Navy Re-Establishes 2nd Fleet in Atlantic

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.

Amid heightened tensions with Russia, the Navy says it will re-establish the US Second Fleet which will be responsible for naval forces along the East Coast and in the northern Atlantic Ocean, reports Bangor Daily News. The fleet was deactivated in September 2011 after 65 years of service as part of a cost-saving and organizational-restructuring effort, reports Business Insider.

House Armed Services Committee member Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) introduced an amendment to the fiscal 2019 defense authorization bill that would create a National Commission on Military Aviation Safety, reports Military Times, to review the recent spike in military aviation accidents and figure out why they are happening.

DefSecJim Mattis has offered a very different vision for how the Navy will be used in the future and hinted at big changes on the horizon for how and when carrier strike groups deploy, reports Navy Times.

Lockheed Martin said this week that the Pentagon is again accepting deliveries of the F-35 JSF, after resolving a disagreement with the company over who should pay to fix a couple hundred jets, reports Defense News.

One of the busiest F-35 training units is hoping the US Air Force can help relieve some of the pressures of training student pilots with ineffective resources, reports Military.com. The 33rd Fighter Wing, the leading training wing for F-35 student pilots, hopes it will receive additional F-35A aircraft, along with considerable upgrades to its existing fleet, to keep up with training demands.

Retired Marine Lt. Col. Oliver North has been named the next president of the National Rifle Association, reports The Associated Press.

Russia is taking advantage of its military role in Syria to bolster its naval presence in the eastern Mediterranean region, Navy Adm. James Foggo says, making the region “very crowded.” Army Times reports NATO’s southern Europe commander says Russia has used the desperation of Syrian President Bashar Assad to expand Russian military power beyond Syria’s borders.

Reuters reports Turkey’s foreign minister says that country will retaliate if the US enacts a proposed law that would halt weapons sales to Turkey.

Maj. Gen. Stephen Fogarty has been confirmed as Army Cyber Command’s next commander, reports Defense Systems. Maj. Gen. Fogarty has been the chief of staff for US Cyber Command since 2016.

A Lockheed Martin-built spacecraft for NASA’s Mars mission lifted off May 5 aboard United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, reports ExecutiveBiz.com. The Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport — InSight — lander is scheduled to reach Mars on Nov. 26, 2018, and perform scientific investigations through Nov. 24, 2020.

Army Times reports that House Republicans are poised to approve President Donald Trump’s plans for a national military parade. They may also send more planes and tanks to take part in the event planned for November.

Contracts:

IAP Worldwide Services Inc., Cape Canaveral, Florida, is being awarded a $19,300,000 modification (P00042) to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price, cost-reimbursable contract (N00019-15-C-0120) to provide additional funding for spare parts/inventory replenishment in support of the E-6B Take Charge and Move Out (TACAMO) aircraft and Airborne Command Post Service Life Extension program. Work will be performed at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (75 percent); Offutt Air Force Base, Bellevue, Nebraska (15 percent); Travis Air Force Base, Fairfield, California (five percent); and the Naval Air Station, Patuxent River, Maryland (5 percent), and is expected to be completed in November 2020. Fiscal 2018 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $8,443,472 will be obligated at time of award, all of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

Accenture Federal Services LLC, Arlington, Virginia (N00189-18-D-Z030); and Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., McLean, Virginia (N00189-18-D-Z031), are awarded an estimated $153,789,957 multiple award, cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract that will include terms and conditions for the placement of both cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price task orders for financial improvement and audit readiness in support of the Department of the Navy Financial Improvement and Audit Readiness program. This announcement is for two additional firms selected for award under request for proposals N00189-15-R-Z006. Each of the contracts will run concurrently and include a 12-month base ordering period, and four 12-month options for a total potential ordering period of 60 months if all options are exercised. If the options are exercised, the total estimated value of the four contracts combined will be $980,000,000. Work will be performed at various contractor locations throughout the US (85 percent); and percentage of work at each of those locations cannot be determined at this time. Work will also be performed at government facilities in Washington, District of Columbia (13 percent); San Diego, California (1 percent); and Pearl Harbor, Hawaii (1 percent). Work is expected to be completed by May 2019; if the option is exercised, work will continue through May 2023. Fiscal 2018 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $50,000 will be obligated on each of the two contracts to fund the minimum amounts, and that total $100,000 of funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This fiscal 2018 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding will also be obligated as individual orders are issued. This contract was competitively procured pursuant to Federal Acquisition regulation 16.504, with the solicitation posted to the Federal Business Opportunities website, with eight offers received. Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center Norfolk Contracting Department, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity.

Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Baltimore, Maryland, is being awarded an $11,769,528 firm-fixed-price contract to provide common Machinery Control System consoles and cabinets for the DDG 51 New Construction Ship program and DDG 51 Midlife Modernization program. The DDG 51 Class Machinery Control System (MCS) provides control and monitoring capability of the ship’s auxiliary, damage control, electrical, and propulsion systems. As part of its electrical capability, MCS interfaces with the ship’s power generation and electrical distribution system. The contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value to $194,287,280. Work will be performed in Orlando, Florida (90 percent); and Baltimore, Maryland (10 percent), and is expected to be completed by May 2019. Fiscal 2018, 2017 and 2016 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $11,769,528 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with one offer received. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity (N00024-18-C-4208).

Northrop Grumman Technical Services Inc., McLean, Virginia, was awarded an $18,523,982 modification (P00095) to contract W911S0-11-C-0014 for technical support services. Work will be performed in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 31, 2018. Fiscal 2018 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $18,523,982 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Mission and Installation Contracting Command, Fort Eustis, Virginia, is the contracting activity.