Powell Remembered as Soldier, Trailblazer, Statesman

GEN Colin Powell, then-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, greets crew members aboard the battleship USS Wisconsin (BB-64) while visiting the ship during Operation Desert Shield. (US Navy archive photo by PH1 Scott Allen)

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.

Former secretary of state Colin Powell, 84, was remembered Monday as a trailblazer and trusted adviser to presidents, reports The Washington Post. The US Army general and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs died Monday, due to complications from COVID-19. US and world leaders reacted to Powell’s death. “He was a man who loved his country and served her long and well. Working with him during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, I saw first-hand General Powell’s dedication to the United States and his commitment to the brave and selfless men and women who serve our country in uniform,” said former vice president Dick Cheney, in statements compiled by The Associated Press.

Navy Times reports DefSec Lloyd Austin said that Powell, in his role as the US’ first African-American secretary of state, was a man respected around the globe. Others recalled him as a superb soldier, mentor, and public servant. By the time his career in public service had ended, Powell had become as influential a military figure as he was a policy maker, the Defense Department noted in a news release.

A Russian fighter jet was scrambled Sunday to escort a US B-1B strategic bomber over the Sea of Japan, reports Reuters. Russia also claimed on Friday that one of its warships had to prevent a US Navy destroyer from entering Russian’s territorial waters in the Sea of Japan, reports Navy Times. The Navy pushed back on Russia’s claim.

The Association of the US Army met earlier this month in Washington, DC. Defense News highlights some major issues discussed at the annual meeting: Army GEN Charles Flynn addressing multi-domain operations in the Pacific region; the service’s preparation for the release of its climate change strategy; the Army’s future aviation programs; and how the service is dealing with recent tech failures.

The Army has detailed plans to create a foundation needed to improve its data sharing and analytics capabilities, reports FCW, a need highlighted during the recent withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. The Army Unified Network Plan 2021 focuses on how the service plans to sync up its tactical and enterprise networks over the next 10 years.

Nearly 50 service members in the Army and Marine Corps are trying to help 509 relatives evacuate Afghanistan, reports Military.com. They are working with several private veterans groups trying to evacuate the Afghans.

Members of Congress say constant finger-pointing between the Pentagon and State Department is making it difficult to get a full accounting of the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, reports The Hill. “I would try to take the politics out of it,” said Rep. Ami Bera, a Democrat from California. “How did we get Afghanistan so wrong after 20 years and hundreds of billions of dollars of investment?”

In an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes,” former defense secretary Robert Gates criticized the troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, reports The Hill. He put the blame on both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.

The Senate Armed Services Committee is expected to hold hearings today, October 19, on the DoD nominations of Nickolas Guertin to be director of Operational Test and Evaluation, Alexandra Baker to be a deputy under secretary, John Patrick Coffey to be general counsel of the Department of the Navy, and Douglas R. Bush to be an assistant secretary of the Army.

US Coast Guard Commandant ADM Karl Schultz is also expected to testify Tuesday before the SASC about the state of the Coast Guard. In September, the admiral, speaking to the Heritage Foundation, said that retaining talent was a looming problem, reports UNSI News. He also said the the Coast Guard was working toward expanding its diversity.

Capitol Hill lawmakers are being urged to drop plans in the annual defense authorization bill which would allow online voting for troops serving overseas, reports Military Times, saying security concerns outweigh the potential benefits.

 

 

Seven Air Force Reserve Command installations have been added to the DoD’s list of bases using 5G, reports GCN. The bases are in California, Florida, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas. A year ago, Defense One reported that the Pentagon was starting to test new concepts for 5G communications at five bases.

Veterans advocates want to see the military’s 28-year-old Troops to Teachers initiative revived, reports Military Times. Defense Department officials closed the transition assistance program earlier this month. Officials from veterans organizations such as the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Student Veterans of America, Disabled American Veterans, and Veterans Education Success are urging Capitol Hill lawmakers to reverse the DoD decision.

The Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate signed a research agreement with Orbit Fab, a company pioneering orbital gas stations for spacecraft, reports Defense News, signaling the military’s interest in using the technology to keep satellites on orbit longer.

AFSec Frank Kendall wants Congress to authorize a new assistant secretary for space acquisitions before the October 1, 2022, date set in the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, reports Space News.

A Russian space capsule with a cosmonaut and two Russian filmmakers landed in Kazakhstan on Sunday after a 3 1/2-hour trip from the International Space Station, reports UPI. The cosmonaut had spent 191 days at the ISS. The filmmakers had been on the space station for 12 days filming a movie.

Three astronauts will fly to the ISS for the first time along with a veteran crewmate on his third spaceflight at the end of the month, reports UPI. SpaceX will launch NASA’s Crew-3 mission in its Crew Dragon spacecraft Endurance, set for October 30.

Retired MAJ GEN Linda Singh, the 29th adjutant general of Maryland and the first African-American and the first woman to lead the Maryland National Guard had her official portrait unveiled at a new readiness center in Sykesville last week, reports baltimoreCBSlocal.com. Singh retired in 2019.

The Minnesota National Guard has been placed on alert to help ease staffing shortages at hospitals and care facilities due to the rise in COVID-19 cases among unvaccinated residents in the state, reports axios.com.

Contracts:

BAE Systems Technology Solutions and Services Inc., Rockville, Maryland, is awarded a $137,119,008 cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-reimbursable, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. This contract provides engineering and integrated product support, technical data and configuration management, and technical and project management in support of life cycle management of legacy, current, and future command, control, communications, computers, combat systems, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance systems and subsystems for the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Webster Outlying Field, Special Communications Mission Solutions Division. Work will be performed in St. Inigoes, Maryland, and is expected to be completed in October 2026. No funds will be obligated at time of award; funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was competitively procured via an electronic request for proposal; one offer was received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N0042122D0002).

Deloitte Consulting LLP, Arlington, Virginia, is awarded $223,591,227 under a previously awarded request for proposal (N00189-21-R-0016), indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple-award contract that will include terms and conditions for the placement of firm-fixed-price task orders to obtain strategic contractor services to assist with transformation efforts that include Naval Sustainment System – Supply, Perform-to-Plan logistics, supply chain and logistics technology, and enterprise transformations in support of Naval Supply Systems Command and the Department of the Navy. The contract will include a five-year base ordering period with an additional six-month ordering period option pursuant of Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation 52.217-8 — option to extend services, which if exercised, will bring the total value to $246,761,679. The base ordering period will begin October 2021 and is expected to be completed by September 2026; if the option is exercised, the ordering period will be completed by March 2027. All work will be performed at various contractor facilities throughout the US; the percentage of work at each of those locations cannot be determined at this time. Fiscal 2022 operation and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,000 will be obligated to fund the contract’s minimum amount, and funds will expire at the end of the fiscal year. Individual task orders will be subsequently funded with appropriate fiscal year appropriations at the time of their issuance. This contract was competitively procured for the award of multiple contracts pursuant to the authority set forth in Federal Acquisition Regulation 16.504. The requirement was solicited through the beta.sam.gov website, with 10 offers received. Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center Norfolk, Contracting Department, Norfolk Office, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N00189-22-D-0001).