Final Presidential Helicopter Delivered
The Presidential Helicopters Program Office and the US Marine Corps accepted delivery of the final VH-92A Patriot helicopter in August for a total inventory of 23 aircraft. (Photo by Owen Hoffmann via NAVAIR News)
Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River 
economic community. The opinions expressed here do not reflect opinions of the Leader’s owners or staff.
Sikorsky, a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin, delivered the final VH-92A Patriot presidential transport helicopter in a ceremony at the company’s Owego, NY, facility earlier this month, reports Marine Corps Times. The air frame is most famously known as Marine One when carrying America’s commander-in-chief.
President Joe Biden made the first presidential flight last week aboard one of the new generation of Marine One helicopters, reports Yahoo!News. Biden used the Sikorsky VH-92A to fly from O’Hare airport to Soldier Field, en route to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
The new helicopter was built to increase performance and payload over the VH-3D and VH-60N. It will provide enhanced crew coordination systems and communications capabilities in addition to improving availability and maintainability, according to NAVAIR News.
Northrop Grumman announced that it has successfully completed the first flight campaign of its Electronically-Scanned Multifunction Reconfigurable Integrated Sensor, or EMRIS. The development paves the way for eventual deployment of new radar capability that will enable future jets to avoid a wider array of threats. reports Defense One, reports Defense One.
El Al Israel Airlines has reached a $2.5 billion deal with Boeing to buy up to 31 of the US manufacturer’s 737 MAX planes, reports MarketWatch via MSN.com. This marks the biggest expansion of the Israeli national carrier’s fleet in its 76-year history.
Istari Digital is partnering with Lockheed Martin Skunk Works to demonstrate the ability to digitally certify an aircraft before it’s built, reports C4ISRNET. The process that could make it easier to develop and test military aircraft in the future. The partnership is part of a $19 million contract the Air Force awarded Istari last year through a program called Flyer One.
NASA said Saturday that astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams stuck in space will not return on a Boeing capsule, but will wait for a SpaceX craft, reports NBC News. The Starliner drama has been a setback for Boeing’s space ambitions, adding to years of struggle to get the capsule off the ground and keep up with rival company SpaceX.
The US Navy and the Marine Corps have ordered all sailors, Marines, and federal civilian employees to undergo training about the do’s and don’ts of political involvement, ahead of the presidential election, reports Air Force Times. The orders come after the Defense Department’s Office of Inspector General reported that the Pentagon had failed to properly train and guide troops about partisan political activities before the 2024 campaign season.
The USS Abraham Lincoln and its carrier strike group are now operating in the Middle Eastern waters of US Central Command as the Pentagon aims to strengthen its presence amid heightened tensions in the region, reports Navy Times. Escalations stem from the recent killings of top leaders of Iran-backed militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah in suspected Israeli strikes, while US forces experience continued attacks in Iraq and Syria.
A Greek oil tanker was drifting ablaze last week in the Red Sea after suspected Houthi attacks, reports Navy Times, reports The Associated Press. The attack, the most serious in the Red Sea in weeks, comes during a monthslong campaign by Houthis targeting ships over the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
After last week’s collisions between Chinese and Philippine vessels in the South China Sea, some experts believe that China is testing Philippine resolve and the US’s relationship with the island nation, reports Breaking Defense. “China is known to employ dangerous and aggressive maneuvering as a tactic,” said Jennifer Parker, a naval expert at the Australian National University in Canberra. The run-ins occurred near Sabina Shoal, a disputed bit of land in the contentious sea. Two ships were damaged; no one was injured.
The US Air Force is preparing a network of dispersed bases and airfields across the Pacific region in case of a war against China, reports Military Times. Air Force Chief of Staff GEN David Allvin said that more must do more to defend those bases against attack. He said he would feel more confident if the military had a more robust active base defense to safeguard those smaller operating locations.
The US Office of Personnel Management is testing a new online retirement application platform as it attempts to modernize its system, reports Federal News Network. Guy Cavallo, OPM’s chief information officer, said the pilot program includes several departments to reduce both the amount of paper needed and the error rate in processing applications.
A federal judge from the Eastern District of Virginia ruled last week that the US military cannot bar enlistees who have undetectable viral loads of HIV, eliminating the last major barrier in the armed forces for asymptomatic individuals who have the virus, reports The Hill. Judge Leonie Brinkema said in the ruling none of the arguments the Pentagon made in attempting to prevent the recruitment of HIV-positive individuals were “supported by the evidence.”
A Defense Department contractor has been charged with mishandling classified documents, according to a complaint filed in a Virginia federal court, reports CNN. From May until as recently as Aug. 7, Turkey-born electrical engineer Gokhan Gun printed more than 250 documents at work, a few of which were labeled “top secret,” FBI officials allege.
The 2022 PACT Act claims continue to rise, two years after law was enacted, reports Navy Times. But the full impact of the law — which granted new disability benefits to veterans who suffered toxic exposure injuries while in the ranks — might not be known for years to come. More veterans received health care and financial aid through the Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act in its second year than the first, and Department of Veterans Affairs statistics suggest that number could continue to grow.
Afro News reports Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) pledged to assist more than 150,000 military and veteran caregivers around the state through the Hidden Heroes campaign, an initiative of the Elizabeth Dole Foundation. “The Elizabeth Dole Foundation was one of the first nonprofits to partner with our department as part of the Maryland Joins Forces initiative,” said Maryland Department of Veterans and Military Families Secretary Anthony Woods, in a news release. Learn more about Maryland Joins Forces here.
A SmileHub report ranks the US states that “care most about veterans,” reports Fox26 Houston. The organization found that Virginia cared most about veterans in 2024; Maryland ranked 7th. The study, conducted by SmileHub, compared all 50 states across three key dimensions: veteran community support, veteran health and wellness, and veteran employment and finances. According to Pew Research Center, there are more than 18 million living veterans in the United States, representing about 6% of the country’s adult population.
The Florida Python Challenge is offering an opportunity for many military veterans to help remove some invasive species like the Burmese python from the Everglades, reports CNN. Organizers said it is a kind of therapy in the wild. For the animals and plants native to the Florida Everglades, the removal of invasive species is a tough job that someone’s got to do.
The US Army’s home for intelligence and cyber operations welcomed its first female garrison commander earlier this month, reports Army Times. COL Yolanda Gore, a native of South Carolina, became the 89th garrison commander of Fort Meade when she took command from COL Michael Sapp on Aug. 6
Contracts:
J.F. Taylor Inc., Lexington Park, Maryland, is awarded a $12,857,547 modification (P00007) to a previously awarded cost-plus-fixed-fee, level-of-effort, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N004212D0008). This modification exercises an option to and increases the contract ceiling to provide continued systems engineering, technical services, and supplies in support of the Simulation Division development projects, laboratories and operations to include hardware design, fabrication, software development, integration, testing, delivery, initial operational support, maintenance, and upgrade for simulation systems for the Navy. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland (50%); Lexington Park, Maryland (35%); and other various locations within and outside the continental US (15%) and is expected to be completed November 2024. No funds will be obligated at the time of award; funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.
Information Systems and Networks Corp., Bethesda, Maryland, is awarded a $27,297,042 modification to previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (M95494-20-C-0002). This modification exercises Option Period Four and provides property management support to the Marine Corps service members residing in Unaccompanied Housing (UH). This modification also increases the number of full-time-equivalent building managers to meet the fiscal 2024 National Defense Authorization Act requirements to replace active-duty Marines currently performing barracks manager (and collateral building manager) duties across the Marine Corps UH portfolio. This modification increases the value of the basic contract by $27,297,042, the new total is $45,178,878. Work will be performed at approximately 26 installations located in inside and outside of the continental US, including Okinawa, Japan (23%); Oceanside, California (21%); Jacksonville, North Carolina (21%); San Diego, California (6%); Port Royal, South Carolina (5%); Twentynine Palms, California (4%); Kaneohe, Hawaii (4%); Quantico, Virginia (4%); Havelock, North Carolina (3%); Yuma, Arizona (3%), and various other locations below 1%. Fiscal 2024 operation and maintenance (Marine Corps) funds in the amount of $27,297,042 will be obligated at time of award. The Marine Corps Installations Command Contracting Office, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity.
MaChis Mid-Atlantic Inc., Clinton, Maryland, was awarded a $22,746,452 firm-fixed-price construction contract for the repair and modernization of an 89th Maintenance Group building. This contract provides for all architectural and engineering services as required to finalize a government provided design and complete all construction required to execute the design. Work will be performed at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by June 5, 2026. This contract was a sole source acquisition. Fiscal 2024 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $17,568,540 are being obligated at the time of award. The 316th Contracting Squadron, Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, is the contracting activity (FA2860-24-C-0011).
Goldbelt Glacier Health Service LLC, Alexandria, Virginia, was awarded a modification to a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (HT941022D0002) to increase the total value to $100,000,000 for nurse and health care worker services in Japan to provide nursing, physician assistant, mental health case manager, and administrative assistant support. Work will be performed at multiple Navy and Air Force military medical hospital and clinics throughout Japan. The contract was a direct award through the Small Business Administration 8(a) program in accordance with 15 US Code 637 as implemented by Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-5(b)(4). Fiscal 2024 operations and maintenance funds were obligated at time of award. The period of performance on this contract is from Aug. 28, 2022, to Aug. 27, 2027. The Defense Health Agency, Western Healthcare Operations Contracting Division, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity.
L3 Technologies, Incorporated Systems Co., Camden, New Jersey, is awarded a $29,276,702 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to the previously awarded contract (N00024-22-C-5514) to exercise an option for engineering services, travel, and incidental materials for the Shipboard Panoramic Electro-Optical Infrared system. Work will be performed in Mason, Ohio (51%); Tulsa, Oklahoma (32%); Northampton, Massachusetts (9%); Norfolk, Virginia (7%); and various locations across the U.S., each less than 1% (1%). Work is expected to be completed by August 2025. Fiscal 2024 research, development, test, and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,399,140 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington DC, is the contracting activity.
Parsons Government Services Inc., Centreville, Virginia, was awarded a $16,915,407 firm-fixed-price contract for design-bid-build construction of the Lt. Col. Hernan G. Pesquera Army Reserve Center Microgrid. Bids were solicited via the internet with eight received. Work will be performed in Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico, with an estimated completion date of April 25, 2026. Fiscal 2020, 2021, and 2023 military construction, defense-wide funds in the amount of $16,915,407 were obligated at the time of the award. US Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville, Kentucky, is the contracting activity (W912QR-24-C-0027).
