Morning Coffee Off the Burner
Morning Coffee is on winter break. We’ll be back Thursday, January 5, 2023.
Contractors Get Half of DoD Budget
More than half of the Pentagon’s yearly budget goes to private contractors. In 2021, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Raytheon, General Dynamics, and Northrop Grumman received over $116 billion in Pentagon contracts while paying their top two dozen executives a total of $287 million. The CEOs of the top five contractors received compensation ranging from $18 million to $23 million each.
2 Super Hornets, 2 Mishaps in 2 Days
Two US Navy Super Hornets suffered mishaps on consecutive days in November at NAS Oceana, VA.
US Seizes Iranian Trawler, 50T Ammo
Iran is accused of “unlawful transfer of lethal aid” after the US 5th Fleet says it seized more than 50 tons of ammunition rounds, fuses and propellants for rockets from a fishing trawler in the Gulf of Oman. The Navy says sailors found more than 1 million rounds of 7.62mm ammunition; 25,000 rounds of 12.7mm ammunition; nearly 7,000 proximity fuses for rockets; and over 2,100 kilograms of propellant used to launch rocket propelled grenades.
State AG Files Lawsuit Against MetCom Over Sewage Overflows
The Maryland Attorney General’s Office filed a civil complaint Thursday in the Circuit Court for St. Mary’s County against the St. Mary’s County Metropolitan Commission over continued sewage overflows from its sanitary sewer system.
US Navy Found Guilty of Piracy
A US federal court has found the US Navy guilty of pirating a software company’s copyright by using a 3D mapping software without permission. The Navy is on the hook for $154,400, plus a yet to be determined sum to be paid for damages.
Navy Football Uniforms Honor NASA
For the Dec. 10, 2022, Army-Navy football game, the Midshipmen will be dressed from head-to-toe in NASA-themed gear that pays homage to the academy’s astronaut alums.
GAO: Aircraft Readiness Goals Not Being Met
A Government Accountability Office report finds that more than two dozen military aircraft fleets — the bulk of the US’s military airpower — haven’t met their annual combat-readiness goals in at least a decade.
DoD $1.4B Short on Next F-35 Contract
The Pentagon is $1.4 billion short for its next major F-35 contract with Lockheed. If more money isn’t found, the pending three-year contract, valued at as much as $30 billion, will yield fewer aircraft for the US’s costliest weapons program, which is now estimated at $412 billion.
US Ships Seize Explosive Mix in Gulf of Oman
The US Navy and Coast Guard have intercepted a fishing boat headed to Yemen carrying 180 tons of Iranian explosive material – urea fertilizer and ammonium perchlorate. The USCGC John Scheuerman and Navy guided missile cruiser USS The Sullivans came across the dhow in international waters of the Gulf of Oman on Nov. 8.
