March 28, 2024

Military Firearms Keep Disappearing

Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River Morning Coffee logoeconomic community. The opinions expressed here do not reflect opinions of the Leader’s owners or staff.

US military guns keep vanishing, some are showing up in street crimes, reports The Associated Press. An investigation has found that at least 1,900 US military firearms were lost or stolen during the 2010s, with some resurfacing in violent crimes. Newly reported military records show pistols, machine guns, shotguns, and automatic assault rifles have vanished from armories, supply warehouses, Navy warships, firing ranges, and other places where they were used, stored, or transported.

The US Space Force launched an experimental space situational awareness satellite this week from a rocket aboard a plane in flight — readying the payload for launch in record time, reports C4ISRNET. After taking off from Vandenberg Space Force Base, CA, the aircraft rose to about 40,000 feet above the Pacific Ocean, where the rocket ignited its solid propulsion first stage to accelerate into orbit. The Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL launches satellites into low Earth orbit from a modified Stargazer L-1011 aircraft in midair.

A NATO-led effort to field a new multi-role helicopter by 2035 is setting the stage for a competition between US- and European-based rotorcraft industries, reports Defense News. Multiple allies want a medium-lift, multi-role helicopter and are launching a joint effort to develop a common set of requirements and a timeline to field it by 2035.

The Homeland Security and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency are poised to advance a series of policy changes to cut the time it takes to hire cybersecurity professionals and to offer competitive pay rates, reports FCW. Final rules are anticipated in September, the rules must be published for public comment to go live with the project.

DoD is looking to improve pay for Guard and Reserve troops to ensure better benefits parity for similar work between the part-time forces and active-duty troops, reports Military Times. Joint Chiefs Chairman GEN Mark Milley said a “reform effort” is underway.

Recently China and Russia have fielded experimental hypersonic weapons to travel faster than five times the speed of sound, potentially already holding US aircraft carriers at risk from hypersonic missiles, reports USNI. The Navy has developed early defenses for the threat, the head of the US Missile Defense Agency told the Senate last week.

The aircraft carrier group led by the USS Ronald Reagan has entered the South China Sea, reports Reuters, as part of a routine mission according to the Navy. Tensions continue to rise between Washington and Beijing, which claims most of the disputed South China Sea waterway.

 

 

Turkey seeks US support to keep major transport routes functioning in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of other NATO troops, reports Military Times. Turkey is reported to have offered to guard the airport as security questions remain regarding the airport and other major transport routes. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said “diplomatic, logistic and financial assistance” is needed to maintain Turkish troops in Afghanistan to protect and run Kabul’s international airport.

Ranking member on the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK), wants 1,000 troops to remain in Afghanistan until early 2022 as a safety net, reports Military Times, to minimize the “chaotic transition” expected when US forces fully withdraw from the country, he said, allowing “more time to process visas for Afghans who assisted US troops and now fear for their lives.”

Voice of America reports the US is not planning air strike support for Afghan forces after the US troops withdrawal is complete. Counter-terrorism strikes in Afghanistan will be limited to discovery of attack plans to strike the US or its allies.

NATO training for Afghan security forces will move forward after the US withdrawal, reports The Hill. NATO SecGen Jens Stoltenberg “reaffirmed their commitment to continue to stand with Afghanistan with training and financial support for Afghan forces and institutions.”

The Philippine president again delayed his threatened ending of a key security pact with the US as he asks for more aid and coronavirus vaccines in exchange for retaining the accord, reports Military Times. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte again suspended termination of the pact for six months. Terminating the pact would be a major blow to one of America’s oldest alliances in Asia.

The cost of the Navy’s Ship-to-Shore Connector breaches a decades old acquisition law, reports Defense News, but the service says the program has stabilized and will continue in production. On March 26, the Navy notified Congress of an increase in unit cost and average procurement cost which breach the significant Nunn-McCurdy cost threshold.

Lebanon’s military has received 100 armored vehicles from China, reports Defense News, as part of a military assistance deal. Sixty four-wheel vehicles designed and manufactured by the Chinese company Beijing Auto, perform as a command, utility, or light assault vehicle, capable of carrying a machine gun or a light rocket launcher. The 60 B80VJ vehicles sent to Lebanon are not armed. The 40 Sinotruk Howo vehicles are six-wheel drive military tractor trucks produced by the Chinese firm Sinotruk.

The Marine Corps needs more intelligence personnel and it’s willing to pay out substantial retention bonuses to get them, reports Marine Corps Times. The corps is looking for corporals and sergeants with a GT score of at least 110. Marines can request a waiver if they are within five points of the GT score, and staff sergeants will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

The Air Force will let troops wear green coveralls, camo ball caps, reports Air Force Times. Starting immediately, officers and enlisted troops can don “coyote brown” camouflage baseball caps they already own, as long as they are made entirely of Operational Camouflage Pattern fabric or in OCP material with a brown mesh back, the service stated.

Contracts:

Applied Research Associates, Albuquerque, New Mexico (N66001-21-D-0132); Gryphon Technologies LLC, Washington, DC (N66001-21-D-0133); HII Mission Driven Innovative Solutions Inc., Huntsville, Alabama (N66001-21-D-0134); ISPA Technology LLC, Lithia, Florida (N66001-21-D-0135); Leidos Inc., Reston, Virginia (N66001-21-D-0136; Oasis Systems LLC, Burlington, Massachussetts (N66001-21-D-0137); Peraton Inc., Herndon, Virginia (N66001-21-D-0138); Science Applications International Corp., Reston, Virginia (N66001-21-D-0139); and Serco, Inc., of San Diego, California (N66001-21-D-0140) are awarded a $118,816,148 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple-award contract with cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost-with-no-fee pricing for technical support including specification and design, fabrication, installation, test and evaluation, fielding, maintenance, training, and configuration and program management of hardware and software in support of surface and subsurface unmanned maritime systems engaged in waterborne and underwater mine countermeasures. This four-year contract includes four one-year option periods which, if exercised, would bring the overall potential value of this contract to an estimated $249,741,160. Work will be performed in San Diego, California (75%); and outside the continental US (25%). The period of performance of the base award is from June 15, 2021, through June 14, 2025. If all options are exercised, the period of performance would extend through June 14, 2029. Awardees will have the opportunity to compete for task orders during the ordering period. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Fiscal 2021 funds will be obligated as task orders are issued using operation and maintenance (Navy); other procurement (Navy); working capital (DOD); and research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds. This contract was competitively procured via a request for proposal (N66001-21-R-0014) published on the beta.sam.gov web site and Naval Information Warfare Systems Command e-Commerce Central website. Thirteen offers were received and nine were selected for award. Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity.

Progeny Systems Corp., Manassas, Virginia, is awarded an $18,579,302 cost-plus-fixed fee level of effort and cost-only modification to previously awarded contract N00024-18-C-6265 to exercise options for engineering and technical services for Navy submarines that will include software development, commercial off-the-shelf  products, and hardware and software integration. Work will be performed in Manassas, Virginia (65%); Middletown, Rhode Island (25%); and San Diego, California (10%), and is expected to be completed by July 2022. Fiscal 2021 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funding in the amount of $3,457,357 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.

Applied Training Solutions LLC, Hampton, Virginia, is awarded an $11,803,309 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to provide support services for the operation of the Marine Corps distance learning programs learning resource center facilities. The work will be performed at 40 learning resource center facilities both within and outside the continental US. The work will be distributed evenly throughout the different locations and is expected to be completed by July 2027. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual task orders as they are issued. This contract was competitively procured pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation part 15. The Marine Corps Systems Command, Quantico, Virginia, is the contracting activity (M67854-21-D-7900).

BAE Systems Technology Solutions & Services Inc., Rockville, Maryland, has been awarded a maximum $79,800,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for automated tank gauging, independent alarm system, and overfill protection equipment maintenance. This was a competitive acquisition with three responses received. This is a one-year base contract with four one-year option periods. Locations of performance are Maryland and throughout the continental US and the Caribbean, with a July 12, 2022, ordering period end date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, National Guard, and Coast Guard. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2021 through 2022 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Contracting Services Office, Columbus, Ohio (SP4702-21-D-0005). 

DigiFlight Inc., Columbia, Maryland, was awarded a $13,802,929 modification (P00003) to contract W31P4Q-21-F-D003 for programmatic support for the Apache Attack Helicopter. Work will be performed in Columbia, Maryland, with an estimated completion date of May 23, 2022. Fiscal 2021 other procurement, Army funds in the amount of $13,802,929 were obligated at the time of the award. US Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity.

D7 LLC (doing business as Dawson), Colorado Springs, Colorado, was awarded a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-quantity/indefinite-delivery contract (HU000121D0003) with a minimum award amount of $490,000 and a maximum ceiling/face value of $47,500,000 for information technology and information management support services in support of the Chief of Information Office at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. Work will be performed at Bethesda, Maryland, from June 15, 2021, to June 14, 2026. Operations and maintenance funds will be applied at the task order level. This contract was a sole source acquisition awarded in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 19.804-6(c). There is no known congressional interest in this requirement. Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

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