Crozier Won’t Be Reinstated on USS Roosevelt
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Capt. Brett Crozier will not be reinstated as captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt nor will he receive any further punishment for his handling of the COVID-19 outbreak on the aircraft carrier, reports CBS News. The US Navy relieved Capt. Crozier of his position in April after he sent a letter to Navy leaders calling attention to the seriousness of the outbreak.
Two aviators were safe and in good condition after they ejected from their F/A-18F Super Hornet over the Philippine Sea on Thursday, reports Navy Times. This crash follows a string of US military aviation mishaps in recent months, both in the US and overseas, reports The Drive.
Earlier last week, a US F-15C fighter jet crashed into the sea off the coast of the United Kingdom, reports Business Insider,and both the aircraft and the pilot were lost in the crash. The pilot was identified as Air Force 1st Lt. Kenneth “Kage” Allen, reports Air Force Times.
The first F-35C Lightning II pilots have graduated from the Navy Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor course ― best known as TOPGUN ― and are back in the fleet training others, reports Navy Times.
One of the Pentagon’s top policy officials, Kathryn Wheelbarger, resigns after three years in the job, reports The Washington Times. The departure comes six days after her name was pulled from consideration to fill the second top civilian intelligence job at DoD. Ms. Wheelbarger’s resignation comes two days after Elaine McCusker, the Pentagon’s acting comptroller, announced she was leaving her post, reports Defense News.
The US Air Force wants to improve body armor for women, which will fit better and provide more protection for them, reports Air Force Times. The new armor will be specifically fitted to women’s bodies, to prevent them from being exposed to risks by poorly fitting body armor designed for men.
Few federal employees are eager to return to the office, especially as large-scale telework — despite some initial hiccups — has proven to be relatively effective during the coronavirus pandemic, reports Federal News Network.
At a time when less than 30% of American youth are qualified to join the military ― and less than 1% are even interested ― DefSec Mark Esper wants to know if standards like the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery are still serving the force well, reports Military Times.
In a blow to US plans to build a regional missile defense network in the Pacific region, Japan says it is putting the brakes on the second of two Aegis Ashore systems, effectively halting all work on the program in that country, reports Breaking Defense.
Frank Smith, director of the DC African American Civil War Museum has some suggestions for names for US Army bases currently named after Confederate officers, reports WUSA9. If Congress moves forward with the name changes, Mr. Smith wants to nominate some Black officers who fought in the Civil War.
Here’s one for the history books. The National Interest introduces readers to the Boeing X-32, the plane that could have replaced the F-35.
US Africa Command says Russian aircraft are flying in Libyan airspace backing Russian state-sponsored private military contractors there, reports Military Times. US Air Forces Europe-Africa head Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian says that the Russian aircraft, the numbers of which are in the “upper teens,” could signal “a significant security concern” to Europe and Libyans, reports The Hill.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking member Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and House Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Eliot Engel (D-NY) have introduced a bill aimed at blocking President Donald Trump’s plan to withdraw thousands of US troops from Germany, reports The Hill.
President Trump will meet with Poland’s president at the White House this week, where the issue of moving American troops from Germany to Poland is expected to be discussed, along with trade, energy, and telecommunications security, reports The Associated Press. The US visit is expected to give President Andrzej Duda a probable electoral boost just four days before a tightly contested presidential vote in his country, reports The Guardian.
An advisory commission of 13 Northeastern states has OK’d a recommendation to the Environmental Protection Agency that Pennsylvania’s power plants, whose emissions have been a major source of ozone and air pollution in Maryland, must add more pollution control measures, reports Maryland Matters.
Maryland and Virginia receive high marks in Save the Children’s ranking of best and worst places for kids in US, reports WTOP.com.
Contracts:
BAE Systems Technology Solutions and Services Inc., Rockville, Maryland, is awarded an $85,912,640 cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost reimbursable, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. This contract provides for in-service engineering activity and production services for various Navy identification and data link systems in support of the Combat Integration and Identification Systems Division at the Naval Air Warfare Center Webster Outlying Field. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland (77%); and Rockville, Maryland (23%). Services will support integration and production efforts, including design and feasibility evaluation, component and system design, system integration, production, installation testing and evaluation, in-service engineering, logistics, repair and validation, training, lab maintenance, quality assurance and technical management on a worldwide range of naval ship and shore platforms. Work is expected to be complete by June 2025. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was competitively procured via an electronic request for proposal, and one offer was received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00421-20-D-0117).
AV3 Inc., Mechanicsville, Maryland, is awarded a $9,770,558 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. This contract procures the audio and visual video teleconference equipment for the integration of specialized network video teleconference systems in support of the integrated command, control and intelligence divisions of the Joint Staff and combatant commanders, Department of Defense agencies and services, and Department of Homeland Security operational and support components. Work will be performed in Mechanicsville, Maryland, and supports the command, control, communications, computers, cyber, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions. Work is expected to be complete by June 2022. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was competitively procured via an electronic request for proposal and two offers were received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Lakehurst, New Jersey, is the contracting activity (N68335-20-D-0028).
Science Applications International Corp., Reston, Virginia, has been awarded hybrid (labor hour and firm-fixed-price) task order HTC711-20-F-D061 in the amount of $8,863,576. The task order provides software engineering services to the US Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command. Requirement to obtain software engineering services to support US Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command’s integrated booking system. Services include requirements definition, software maintenance, development, configuration management, area manager support, training, implementation, documentation, technical support and project management. Work will be performed at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. The contract base period of performance is from Oct. 1, 2020, to Sept. 30, 2021. No funds were obligated at award; award was made subject to the availability of fiscal 2021 funds. US Transportation Command, Directorate of Acquisition, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, is the contracting activity.
Federal Resources, Stevensville, Maryland; W.S. Darley & Co., Itasca, Illinois; US21 Inc., Fairfax, Virginia; Atlantic Diving Supply Inc., Virginia Beach, Virginia; and Tactical & Survival Specialties Inc., Harrisonburg, Virginia, have been awarded a $950,000,000, 10-year, multiple-award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to provide equipment, training and product support to approximately 3,500 Air Force Special Warfare operators, as well as authorized users in support of Special Warfare mission requirements. Work will be performed at various US locations, and is expected to be completed June 2030. These awards are the result of a competitive acquisition with 17 offers received. Fiscal 2019 other procurement funds in the amount of $2,000 will be obligated on the initial order placed against each of the contracts. Air Force Life cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio, is the contracting activity. (FA8629-20-R-5003).
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Linthicum Heights, Maryland, has been awarded an $18,733,197 firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P00026) to contract FA8615-17-C-6047 for active electronically scanned array radars of Air Force F-16 aircraft. The contract modification is for definitization of the Radio Frequency Target Generator, additional support equipment and software development to support Phase Two. Work will be performed in Linthicum Heights, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by April 2023. Fiscal 2018 aircraft procurement funds in the amount of $3,510,172; and fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $10,103,436 are being obligated at the time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $1,027,044,025. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity. (Awarded June 18, 2020)
American Computer Development Inc., Frederick, Maryland (N00164-20-D-JN94); Advance Circuit Technology Inc., Rochester, New York (N00164-20-D-JN95); Bionetics Corp., Heath, Ohio (N00164-20-D-JN96); ZENTECH Bloomington LLC, Bloomington, Illinois (N00164-20-D-JN97); Printed Circuits Corp., Lilburn, Georgia (N00164-20-D-JN98); Sechan Electronics Inc., Lititz, Pennsylvania (N00164-20-D-JN99); Spectrum Advanced Manufacturing Technologies Inc., Colorado Springs, Colorado (N00164-20-D-JN00); and Unified Business Technologies Inc., Troy, Michigan (N00164-20-D-JN01), are awarded a $14,705,110 five-year, firm-fixed-price, multiple award contract for build-to-print circuit card assemblies for military projects. These contracts combine purchases for the Navy (58%); and sales to the governments of other countries (42%) under the Foreign Military Sales program. Work will be performed in Frederick, Maryland; Rochester, New York; Heath, Ohio; Bloomington, Illinois; Lilburn, Georgia; Lititz, Pennsylvania; Colorado Springs, Colorado; and Troy, Michigan. These build-to-print circuit card assemblies are used for military projects including, but not limited to, helmet display tracking system, fixed forward firing weapons and interface unit automatic data processor systems that are utilized on the MH-60R and MH-60S helicopters. Work is expected to be complete by June 2025. If all options are exercised, work will continue through June 2030. These contracts include options, which if exercised, will bring the cumulative value of these contracts to $38,418,061. Working capital funding that does not expire in the amount of $24,000 will be obligated at time of award. This contract was competitively procured via the beta.SAM website, and 11 offers were received. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division, Crane, Indiana, is the contracting activity.
Aurora Flight Sciences Corp., Manassas, Virginia, has been awarded a $7,115,128 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the Control of Revolutionary Aircraft with Novel Effectors (CRANE) program. Work will be performed in Manassas, Virginia (50%); Tucson, Arizona (26%); St. Louis, Missouri (15%); and Los Angeles, California (9%), with an estimated completion date of June 2021. Fiscal 2020 research and development funds in the amount of $7,109,177 are being obligated at the time of award. This contract is a competitive acquisition in accordance with the original broad agency announcement HR0011-19-S-0072. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HR0011-20-C-0119).
