New Triton Drone Surveils SoMd
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A new configuration of the US Navy’s new MQ-4C Triton drone, loaded with more sensors, had its first flight last Thursday over Southern Maryland, said CAPT Dan Mackin, naval program manager for the Triton program, in a report from Military.com. The drone’s newly installed cameras and signals intelligence collection systems “are performing better than expected at this point,” he said.
The Navy plans to design a new-generation fighter jet around different types of technology — as opposed to designing an aircraft and then trying to pack it with technology after the fact, said VADM Dean Peters, the Naval Air Systems Command commander. It’s a shift in the design philosophy of high-performance fighter jets, reports Defense One.
The Navy wants to stop buying Super Hornets. RADM Andrew Loiselle, who leads the chief of naval operation’s air warfare directorate, explains to USNI, buying the current F/A-18E/F Super Hornets keeps the airframes in the fleet into the 2050s, when they likely couldn’t stand up to future threats.
Chief of Naval Operations ADM Michael Gilday criticized defense contractors for “lobbying Congress to buy aircraft that we don’t need.” The Hill reported his remarks appeared to be directed toward Boeing and its efforts to sell the F/A-18 Super Hornet. The Navy has asked Congress to phase out the older fighter jet, but the House defense budget includes $900 million to purchase additional Super Hornets. “Lobbying Congress to buy aircraft that we don’t need, that are excess to needs, it’s not helpful. It really isn’t, in a budget constrained environment,” Gilday said.
An F/A-18E Super Hornet’s emergency landing last week following an in-flight engine fire was at least the fourth Class A mishap involving a Super Hornet this fiscal year, reports Navy Times. There have been 12 Class A aviation mishaps so far in FY21, which ends Sept. 30, up from 11 in FY20. The jet, assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron 146, landed safely at NAS Lemoore, CA, and is currently listed as a Class A mishap, which involves damages exceeding $2.5 million.
If the federal government ends up operating under a continuing resolution this fall, RADM John Gumbleton, the Navy’s top budget officer, said the service couldn’t buy the ships and weapons it needs in FY22, couldn’t operate the fleet, and might have to cut back on people, reports Defense News. A CR would maintain FY21 spending levels and leave the Navy with $14 billion in the wrong funding accounts.
Removing photos from promotion and selection boards has had adverse effects on diversity, according to VADM John Nowell Jr., the chief of naval personnel, and others, reports Navy Times. “We look at, for instance, the one-star board over the last five years, and we can show you where, as you look at diversity, it went down with photos removed,” Nowell said.
More than half of women soldiers who report sexual harassment say they are repeatedly harassed. The most prevalent forms of harassment are attempts at unwanted sexual relations, being “ignored,” “mistreated,” and “insulted“ due to their gender and hearing they are not as good as men, reports Military Times.
The two top leaders at the Social Security Administration were fired weeks ago, but union leaders say it will take more action from the agency to repair strained labor-management relations, reports FCW.
As they bargain a new contract, the National Treasury Employees Union and Department of Health and Human Services agreed to revert to the 2010 collective bargaining agreement as updated in 2014, reports FCW. The change comes months after President Joe Biden reversed a series of workforce executive orders issued by his predecessor. In July, the Department of Veterans Affairs also announced it was resetting labor-management relations at its agency as well.
Senators introduced bipartisan legislation this week to strengthen the US cybersecurity posture and protect the nation’s critical infrastructure, reports MeriTalk. The bill includes several key recommendations from the Cyberspace Solarium Commission and provides funding, tools, and authority to protect the infrastructure.
Naval News compares Russia’s Yasen-M submarine to the US Navy’s Block-V Virginia. The Yasen-M Class boats are larger and carry more weapons and quicker to field hypersonic weapons. But they carry fewer cruise missiles than the enlarged Block-V Virginia Class, which significantly narrows the gap even before the US Navy adds hypersonic weapons and the anti-ship capable Tomahawks.
Egypt received the fourth German-made S-44 submarine at its Alexandria naval base this week, the Egyptian Navy announced. The model 209/1400 mod 4 sub was shipped from the German port city of Kiel, reports Defense News.
Juanita Naomi Koilpillai, 58, a cybersecurity executive who worked for FEMA was fatally stabbed last week at her home in Anne Arundel County, reports NBC News. Her son, Andrew Weylin Beavers, was arrested in Leesburg, VA, and charged with first- and second-degree murder. Beavers, 23, lived with his mother in Tracys Landing, about 30 miles east of Washington, DC.
A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck the coast of the Ibaraki prefecture in Japan, with shaking felt by some attending the Olympic Games in Tokyo, reports Insider.
Contracts:
Austal USA, Mobile, Alabama (N00024-21-D-4443); Epsilon Systems Solutions Inc., Portsmouth, Virginia (N00024-21-D-4444); and Continental Maritime of San Diego LLC, San Diego, California, formerly Huntington Ingalls Industries San Diego Shipyard Inc. (N00024-21-D-4445), are each awarded firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple award contracts to support sustainment execution efforts for Littoral Combat Ships homeported in San Diego, California (MAC I). The MAC I contracts will have a ceiling of $344,724,287. Delivery orders will be competitively awarded under these contracts, which are to be performed in San Diego, California (58%); outside the continental US (28%); and other continental US (14%) locations, as appropriate. Each of the contracts has an estimated ordering period of 19 months, which is expected to end in February 2023. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $15,000 ($5,000 minimum guarantee per contract) is being obligated as each contract’s initial delivery order which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. These contracts were competitively procured using full and open competition with three offers received via the beta.sam.gov website. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity.
AECOM Technical Services Inc., Los Angeles, California (W91278-21-D-0040); Arcadis U.S. Inc., Highlands Ranch, Colorado (W91278-21-D-0041); CCW AE Services JV, Fairfax, Virginia (W91278-21-D-0042); HDR Engineering Inc., Tampa, Florida (W91278-21-D-0043); Tetra Tech Inc., Boynton Beach, Florida (W91278-21-D-0044); CEC-CDM Smith JV, Bonita Springs, Florida (W91278-21-D-0045); Ilsi-Arcadis Small Business JV LLC, New Orleans, Louisiana (W91278-21-D-0046); and Resilient LLC JV, New Orleans, Louisiana (W91278-21-D-0047), will compete for each order of the $46,000,000 order-dependent contract for architect and engineering services. Bids were solicited via the internet with 21 received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 3, 2026. US Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Alabama, is the contracting activity.
