Pentagon’s Goal: US Drone Dominance
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The Pentagon is directing every US Army squad to be armed with small, one-way attack drones by the end of fiscal 2026, reports Breaking Defense. The push to break through policy and acquisition barriers was announced by DefSec Pete Hegseth last week. Hegseth also wants troops to be able to modify small drones in the field as necessary. The Pentagon memo follows a June 6 executive order from the White House called, “Unleashing American Drone Domination,” which focused more broadly on commercial UAS.
A new report finds that defense companies are not “exiting” the market at such a fast rate as federal contracting experts once thought, reports Federal News Network. Baroni Center for Government Contracting at George Mason University research shows the industrial base and competition are healthy. The center released last week its Government Contracting Trends and Performance Index, a first-of-its-kind analysis of the 200,000-firm industrial base providing nearly $800 billion in products, materials, and services to the federal government.
The US Army Corps of Engineers’ Engineer Research and Development Center is working on prototypes of robotic coyotes, unmanned ground vehicles, or UGVs, that can be deployed across airfields to scare off birds and other problematic wildlife that could do millions of dollars’ worth of damage, or even threaten aircrew lives by flying into the engine, reports Navy Times.
The US State Department began firing more than 1,300 employees on Friday, a move that some current and former diplomats say will degrade America’s standing in the world, reports The Washington Post.
President Donald Trump has named Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to be the interim NASA administrator, reports CNN on MSN. In late May, the president rescinded his nomination of tech billionaire Jared Isaacman to lead NASA, citing a “thorough review of prior associations.”
Russia fired more than 700 attack and decoy drones at Ukraine in a major attack last week, topping previous nightly barrages for the third time in two weeks as Moscow intensifies its aerial and ground assault in the three-year war, reports AP News on MSN.
The US Senate’s version of its fiscal 2026 defense policy bill would provide $500 million in long-term security aid to Ukraine, reports Navy Times.
The Trump administration has resumed sending some weapons to Ukraine, reports AP News, a week after the Pentagon had directed that some deliveries be paused. The about-face on last week’s pause of some weapons shipments to Ukraine has revealed chasms within the administration, with the president claiming several times that he didn’t know who approved the halt, reports The Hill.
Marines at Camp Lejeune, NC, conducted the first fully fielded drone drop of lethal ammunition, reports Marine Corps Times. The July 3 live-fire exercise included the drop, followed by mortar fire and a Javelin missile strike in a simulated company-level assault.
Japan has begun deploying its V-22 Ospreys to a new home base, Camp Saga, in the country’s southwestern region, reports Marine Corps Times. The use of the V-22 remains controversial in Japan, especially in the south, due to a series of accidents involving the aircraft.
US Indo-Pacific Command confirmed last week that it was “monitoring a [Chinese People’s Liberation Army] vessel which was operating in international waters in the vicinity of Hawaii,” reports Military.com. Military officials offered few details about the latest sighting. They also acknowledged specific instances of Russian naval forces operating near the Hawaiian Islands.
Defense tech startup HavocAI and Lockheed Martin have announced a partnership focused on rapidly developing and scaling medium unmanned surface vessels, reports Breaking Defense. HavocAI is a Rhode Island-based startup focused on developing what it calls “ultra-low cost, high-rate production” autonomous surface vessels.
NATO is testing Baltic Sea drones to track Russian warships and freighters, reports Defense News. US-based Saildrone said it deployed a handful of unmanned surface vessels as part of NATO’s Task Force X demonstration, which helped detect and track Russian shadow-fleet vessels operating in the area.
The Army is making changes in how it investigates military-related misconduct, reports Military Times. The update to the Army’s 15-6 regulation, which lays out the process for probing allegations of wrongdoings such as hazing, sexual harassment, and toxic leadership, includes punishment for making false accusations.
The Army will end most of its ceremonial horse programs and adopt out the animals, reports The Hill. The service will keep the Old Guard caisson units at Joint Base San Antonio and Arlington National Cemetery for burial honors.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has ended its experiment to create a heavy cargo seaplane and instead will find new uses for the technology it has developed through the program, reports Air Force Times. The Liberty Lifter program was intended to design and build — and possibly float and fly — a long-range, low-cost seaplane that could take off and land in rough seas.
US Air Force fighter pilots integrated two Kratos XQ-58A Valkyrie drones into an aerial combat training exercise, reports Air Force Times. The exercise at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida was described as “a major leap in human-machine teaming.” The pilots were flying an F-16C Fighting Falcon and an F-15 Strike Eagle 4.
The Coast Guard said it is looking into the aircrew that drew remarkably detailed genitals in the sky, reports Task & Purpose. Officials did not directly confirm that the flight path was specifically flown to create the image, but said the service is reviewing the flight.
The Senate Appropriations Committee voted last week to preserve $1.4 billion in funds for use at the Prince George’s County site for the new FBI headquarters, disrupting the administration’s plans to use the funds to move the headquarters to the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, DC, reports WBFF Fox45 News. However, on Friday, Maryland Matters reported that the spending bill had stalled. Several hours after the amendment was adopted, it upended debate on the entire bill — which includes funding for the Departments of Commerce and Justice as well as science programs, such as NASA and the National Science Foundation.
Financial data firm SmartAsset has ranked 348 US cities based on how desirable their job markets are, reports The Hill. Using US Census Bureau data from 2023 and factoring in everything from unemployment to median earnings, wage growth, remote work opportunities and more, the study puts Bend, OR, in the top spot.
Contracts:
The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Missouri, is awarded a not-to-exceed $9,245,430 modification (P00004) to a cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N0001922D0001). This modification increases the contract ceiling to continue to provide non-recurring engineering support to integrate the Next Generation Jammer Low Band Pod System onto the EA-18G platform. The support includes design and qualification of platform A-kit provision, aircraft/pod system physical interface analysis, wind tunnel test, ground vibration test, technical directive development and verification, and all logistics product data to support the program life cycle. Work will be performed in St. Louis, Missouri (78%); Patuxent River, Maryland (19%); and China Lake, California (3%), and is expected to be completed in November 2026. No funds will be obligated at the time of the award; funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was not competed pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1. Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.
Management Concepts Inc., Tysons Corner, Virginia, was awarded a $13,657,130 firm-fixed-price contract for training support services. Bids were solicited via the internet with four received. Work will be performed in Washington, DC, with an estimated completion date of Jan. 13, 2031. Fiscal 2025 operation and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $13,657,130 were obligated at the time of the award. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity (W91CRB-25-A-A006).
Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., McLean, Virginia (N66001-21-D-0070); Exceptional Employees for Exceptional Results Corp., San Diego, California (N66001-21-D-0071); G2 Software Systems Inc., San Diego, California (N66001-21-D-0072); KAB Laboratories Inc., San Diego, California (N66001-21-D-0073); Kratos Defense and Rocket Support Services Inc., San Diego, California (N66001-21-D-0074); M.C. Dean Inc., Tysons, Virginia (N66001-21-D-0075); Parsons Government Services Inc., Pasadena, California (N66001-21-D-0076); Science Applications International Corp., Reston, Virginia (N66001-21-D-0077); Sentar Inc., Huntsville, Alabama (N66001-21-D-0078); Systems Technology Forum Ltd., Fredericksburg, Virginia (N66001-21-D-0079); and Transtecs Corp., Arlington, Virginia (N66001-21-D-0080) are awarded a combined $30,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity modification to a previously issued contract for management, engineering, technical assistance, integrated logistics, and security of wideband, narrowband, and protected communications on afloat, ashore, airborne, submerged, and space-based platforms. This modification brings the overall value of this contract to $129,788,587. Work will be performed in San Diego (80%); and outside the continental US (20%) and is expected to be completed by March 2027. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Fiscal 2025 funds will be obligated as task orders and issued using research, development, test and evaluation (Navy); operations and maintenance (Navy); and other procurement (Navy) funds. This contract was competitively procured via a Request for Proposal (N66001-20-R-3426) published on the beta.SAM.gov website. 11 offers were received and 11 were selected for award. Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity.
East Coast Repair & Fabrication LLC, Portsmouth, Virginia (N50054-25-D-0012); Lyon Shipyard Inc., Norfolk, Virginia (N50054-25-D-0013); BayTec Marine LLC, Chesapeake, Virginia (N50054-25-D-0014); and Colonna’s Shipyard Inc., Norfolk, Virginia (N50054-25-D-0015) are each awarded a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple award contract for repair, maintenance, modernization, and sustainment for messing and berthing barges as required by the Navy. East Coast Repair & Fabrication LLC is being awarded $210,443,900 inclusive of all ordering periods. Lyon Shipyard Inc. is being awarded $211,320,000 inclusive of all ordering periods. BayTec Marine LLC is being awarded $219,898,812 inclusive of all ordering periods. Colonna’s Shipyard Inc. is being awarded $262,392,000 inclusive of all ordering periods. Work will be primarily performed within a 50-mile radius of Norfolk, Virginia. The shared ceiling amongst all awardees is $262,392,000. Work will complete July 15, 2030. Fiscal 2025 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $48,000 ($12,000 per contract) will be obligated for the minimum guarantee and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This multiple award contract was procured as a small business set-aside via the System for Award Management website with 11 offers received. Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity.
Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems, Manassas, Virginia, is awarded a $197,477,596 cost-plus-incentive-fee modification to a previously awarded contract (N00024-20-C-6117) to exercise options for Navy engineering design, development, and production support in support of sound navigation and ranging systems. Work will be performed in Manassas, Virginia (65%); Clearwater, Florida (32%); Syracuse, New York (2%); and Marion, Florida (1%), and is expected to be completed by September 2026. Fiscal 2024 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $5,500,000 (62%); fiscal 2025 research, development, test and engineering (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,700,000 (19%); fiscal 2025 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,120,000 (12%); and fiscal 2024 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $600,000 (7%), 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.
Leidos Inc., Reston, Virginia, is being awarded a $51,233,897 single-award, cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N00189-25-D-Z029) for the provision of psychological health and readiness research support services for the Naval Health Research Center. The contract will include a five-year ordering period with an additional six-month option period pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.217-8, which if exercised will bring the total estimated value of the contract to $56,682,221. Work will be completed by July 10, 2030; if the option is exercised, work will be completed by Jan. 10, 2031. Services under the contract will be performed in San Diego, California (100%). Fiscal 2025 research, development, test and evaluation funds (Navy) funds in the contract’s minimum amount of $1,000 will be obligated at time of award and funds will expire at the end of fiscal 2026. Subsequent task orders under the resultant contract will be funded with appropriate fiscal year research, development, test and evaluation funds (Navy) funds. The requirement was competitively procured through the System for Award Management website (Sam.gov) as an unrestricted, competitive procurement with three offers received. Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center Norfolk, Contracting Department, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity (N00189-25-D-Z029).
