Maryland Guard Deploys A-10s to Europe
An A-10C Thunderbolt II aircraft assigned to the 104th Fighter Squadron, Maryland Air National Guard, taxis at Andoya Air Base in Norway ready to conduct Agile Combat Employment training in support of the Swift Response exercise on May 6, 2022. (US Air National Guard photo by Tech. Sgt. Enjoli Saunders)
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Ten A-10C Thunderbolt II attack aircraft belonging to the Maryland Air National Guard and assigned to the 104th Fighter Squadron landed in Iceland on Thursday, reports The Aviationist. The “Warthogs” will be part of a training exercise throughout Eastern Europe. The A-10 is the US Air Force’s primary low-altitude close air support aircraft and is the first Air Force aircraft designed specifically for close air support to ground forces, according to a service news release.
Boeing is moving its headquarters from Chicago to Northern Virginia, reports CNBC. Boeing wants to develop a research and technology hub in the area. Some analysts think the move is one in the wrong direction, reports CNN Business. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) said it “shows that the Commonwealth is the premier location for aerospace companies,” reports The Washington Post.
Boeing isn’t the first defense company to move its headquarters closer to the Pentagon, reports Military.com. Lockheed Martin settled in Bethesda, MD, in 1995. General Dynamics moved to Northern Virginia in 1991. And Northrop Grumman opened its headquarters in Falls Church, VA, in 2011.
Lockheed Martin CEO James Taiclet said the company plans to nearly double production of its Javelin missiles, reports The Hill. Taiclet was speaking on CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday. The US has sent thousands of the missiles to the Ukrainian military as it fights off the Russian invasion. US President Joe Biden visited Lockheed’s Troy, AL, plant last week, where he praised the assembly line workers for “doing life-saving work,” reports The Associated Press.
The Pentagon is reviewing industry proposals in an effort to rapidly supply weapons to Ukraine, reports Defense News. DoD wants input on a number of needed capabilities, including air defense, anti-armor, unmanned aerial systems and communications equipment.
US diplomats returned to the US Embassy in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv over the weekend, reports Reuters. The move is the latest step toward resuming a full US presence in the city.
Germany has decided to send military weapons to Ukrainian forces, reports Defense News, after being reluctant to do so. German and Dutch officials said they will send a dozen Panzerhaubitze 2000 howitzers.
Finnish defense officials said that Finland’s joining NATO would lead to a deeper US Arctic cooperation and Air Force integration, reports Air Force Magazine. The country’s decision to purchase the F-35 was cited as a central piece in a strengthening partnership between the air forces of the two countries.
US Cyber Command’s new program, “Under Advisement,” allows the private sector to share information about critical cyber threats, reports FedScoop. The program involves members of the command’s elite cyber national mission force, using their real names, sitting in chat rooms and disclosing threats with the cybersecurity sector. The chats occur on Signal and other trusted cybersecurity forums.
South Korea’s military said North Korea tested a ballistic missile that was likely fired from a submarine, reports The Washington Post, as North Korea ramps up military tensions days before a new president takes office in South Korea.
A US Navy aviation ordnanceman was found dead on the amphibious assault ship Bataan late last month, reports Navy Times. A probe of the incident is being conducted by Naval Criminal Investigative Services. No other details were available.
Sailors assigned to the USS George Washington — that had multiple suicides occur among crew — say the aircraft carrier was uninhabitable, reports CNN. Some current and former crewmembers said the ship had myriad issues, including what many said were terrible accommodation standards on the vessel which was effectively a construction site, concerns over the quality of food, and a sense that leadership was dismissing complaints.
LT COL Matthew Baumann took command of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (HX) 21 during a change of command ceremony at NAS Pax River on Thursday, reports The Southern Maryland Chronicle. He replaces CMDR Daniel Short.
US Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said the mailing industry needs to be prepared for USPS to raise prices on its market-dominant products “at an uncomfortable rate,” reports Federal News Network. The price of a first-class stamp will go from 58 cents to 60 cents July 10. Find other new pricing here.
Veterans unemployment remained below 3% for the second consecutive month in April, reports Military Times. One year ago, in April 2021, the jobless rate for veterans was 5.2% and the national rate was 6.1%.
Kristin Thomasgard, program director for the Defense Department’s Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration Program, discussed the role the military plays at the intersection of national security and conservation with The Pew Charitable Trusts. Thomasgard talked about how the DoD works to protect military installations from the impacts of climate change in the Chesapeake Bay region and beyond.
The first middle Chesapeake Bay region dolphin sightings this year were received in the first week of April. Sightings also have been received very far upstream in the Potomac, Patuxent, Choptank, Little Choptank, and Chester rivers. Chesapeake DolphinWatch is keeping tabs on reported sightings here. Dolphin Smart is reminding residents to practice responsible viewing when encountering dolphins in local waters.
Provided he gets a clean bill of health in the coming days, Rich Strike is committed to being in the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore in two weeks, reports Horse Racing Nation. Rich Strike, at 80-1 odds, won Saturday’s Kentucky Derby. Rich Strike became the horse with the second-longest odds in Kentucky Derby history to win the famed race, reports The Lexington Herald-Leader.
Emerge Maryland, a training program for Democratic women, is seeing an increase in the number of women candidates on the 2022 ballot, reports Maryland Matters. About 30 Emerge Maryland candidates are running for the first time this year.
A Goodwill store find in Texas turned out to be ancient Roman bust, reports The Associated Press. An art collector bought the marble bust for about $35 in the San Antonio store. Experts said it is centuries old and has been missing from Germany since World War II. They believe a soldier took the sculpture and brought it to the US.
Contracts:
Aery Aviation LLC, Newport News, Virginia (N0042122D0074); ASR International Corp., Hauppauge, New York (N0042122D0075); Attollo LLC, Cumberland, Rhode Island (N0042122D0076); Bowhead Mission Solutions LLC, Springfield, Virginia (N0042122D0077); Cherokee Nation Red Wing LLC, Tulsa, Oklahoma (N0042122D0078); Eagle Systems Inc., California, Maryland (N0042122D0079); Engineering Solutions and Technology Applications – Odyssey LLC, Chula Vista, California (N0042122D0080); First Division Consulting Inc., Burke, Virginia (N0042122D0081); LTM Inc., Havelock, North Carolina (N0042122D0082); Matanzas Engineering and Technology LLC, St. Augustine, Florida (N0042122D0083); Naval Systems Inc., Lexington Park, Maryland (N0042122D0084); Sierra Management and Technologies Inc., California, Maryland (N0042122D0085); Synectic Solutions Inc., Oxnard, California (N0042122D0086); Tekla Research Inc., Fredericksburg, Virginia (N0042122D0087); The Lockwood Group LLC, Belcamp, Maryland (N0042122D0088); Tri Star Engineering Inc., Bloomington, Indiana (N0042122D0089); VectorCSP LLC, Elizabeth City, North Carolina (N0042122D0090); and Velocit.e LLC, California, Maryland (N0042122D0091), are awarded a cost-plus-fixed-fee, firm-fixed-price, cost reimbursable, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. The estimated aggregate ceiling for this contract is $346,526,131, with the companies having an opportunity to compete for individual orders. This contract provides product support management integration support, to include program management and logistics support services for the acquisition and life cycle sustainment of specified weapons systems, system of systems, sub-systems, and support equipment for multiple Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) program offices, Echelon III /IV commands, and NAVAIR Sustainment Group departments. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland (80%); and various locations within the continental US (20%), and is expected to be completed in May 2027. 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, as a small business set aside, via an electronic request for proposal; 18 offers were received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.
BAE Systems Land & Armaments L.P., Sterling Heights, Michigan, is awarded an $89,467,675 firm-fixed-price modification (P00148) to previously awarded contract M67854-16-0006 for Amphibious Combat Vehicles (ACV). The total cumulative face value of the contract is $1,825,427,258. This contract modification provides for the exercise of options for the procurement of 14 full-rate production ACV Command variants and associated production, and fielding and support costs. Work will be performed in York, Pennsylvania (60%); Aiken, South Carolina (15%); San Jose, California (15%); Sterling Heights, Michigan (5%); and Stafford, Virginia (5%), with an expected completion date of July 2024. Fiscal 2022 procurement (Marine Corps) funds in the amount of $89,467,675 will be obligated at the time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Marine Corps Systems Command, Quantico, Virginia, is the contracting activity (M67854-16-C-0006).
Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Manassas, Virginia, is awarded a $67,850,964 fixed-price incentive and firm-fixed-priced modification to previously-awarded contract N00024-18-C-5218 to exercise the options for additional Technical Insertion-20 (TI-20) AN/SQQ-89A(V)15 surface ship undersea warfare combat systems, AN/SQS-53C transmitter infrastructure shipsets, and spares in support of the continued AN/SQQ-89A(V)15 development, integration, manufacture, production, and testing efforts. Work will be performed in Manassas, Virginia (60%); Lemont Furnace, Pennsylvania (33%); Syracuse, New York (4%); Clearwater, Florida (2%); and Hauppauge, New York (1%), and is expected to be completed by August 2024. Fiscal 2022 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $35,362,594 (52%); fiscal 2022 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $27,007,759 (40%); Foreign Military Sales (Australia) funds in the amount of $4,637,360 (6%); fiscal 2021 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $481,333 (1%); and fiscal 2019 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $361,918 (1%) will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity.
Forcepoint Federal LLC, Herndon, Virginia, was awarded a competitive, firm-fixed-price contract with a total cumulative face value of $89,145,587 for a user activity monitoring enterprise solution for the Department of Defense combatant commands and Fourth Estate agencies. The base period value of this action is $13,360,360 and will be funded by fiscal 2022 operations and management funds. Performance will be at Fort Meade, Maryland. Proposals were solicited via sam.gov and two proposals were received from this full and open competition. The period of performance is from May 10, 2022, to May 9, 2023, with three one-year options. The Defense Information Technology Contracting Organization, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, is the contracting activity (HC1084-22-C-0002).
