US ‘Out of Time’ to Fix Supply Chain Gaps
“You’re really out of time and you need to figure [this] out,” Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo pushed Congress to act on gaps in the domestic supply chain for US weapons. Semiconductors, critical mineral supply chains, and computer chips are addressed in bills currently before legislators.
Pax Firefighters Train at Merchant Marines School
It’s every sailor’s responsibility to respond to an emergency, so the 25 PAX firefighters, although serving a shore-based installation, took the opportunity to receive shipboard firefighting training at the Merchant Marine school in Piney Point, MD.
RIMPAC Tests 3D Technology at Sea
The US Navy has installed a liquid-metal 3D printer on the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship Essex to help test the new printing technology at sea.
At NAS Pax, Take the Pedal Off the Metal
NAS Patuxent River has lowered speed limits on base in an attempt to improve driver, pedestrian, and cyclist safety. In most areas where a change has occurred, the speed limit has been lowered to 25 mph.
Log4j Remains an ‘Endemic’ Security Risk
The computer vulnerability discovered last year in a ubiquitous piece of software is an “endemic” problem that will pose security risks for potentially a decade or more, says the United States’ new Cyber Safety Review Board.
Pax Shoreline Gets $2.7M
NAS Patuxent River has been awarded $2.7 million from the 2022 REPI Challenge Package to mitigate rising sea levels and accelerating shoreline erosion that threatens aircraft testing and training. Nine projects won awards from the 2022 Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration program, totaling $31.6 million.
It’s Primary Election Day in Maryland
Today, Tuesday, July 19, is 2022 Primary Election Day in Maryland. Polls will be open from 7 am to 8 pm.
Lawmakers Ask for Halt on Nice Bridge Demolition
Three Maryland lawmakers are urging the state Department of Transportation to pause plans to demolish the existing Gov. Harry Nice Memorial Bridge. They want a review conducted to determine the feasibility and cost of repurposing the old bridge for recreational use.
Visibility Technology Testing @ Pax
Two prototype landing aids for helicopters are on simulators at Pax and being developed to reduce the dangers of low-visibility flying. Video shows the technology allowing two lieutenants to complete an impossible landing of their MH-60R Seahawk on a moving destroyer in a fog that brought visibility down to practically zero.
DynCorp Out; Workers Likely Remain
For almost 50 years DynCorp (now part of Amentum) worked with the Naval Test Wing Atlantic at Patuxent River Naval Air Station providing aircraft mechanics and more, becoming St. Mary’s County’s 3rd-largest employer. While Amentum leaves town, officials expect the Pax employees to remain with the new contract winner, Vertex Aerospace LLC,
