Question of Bias Disrupts Fitz’s CO Court-Martial
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The court-martial against the Fitzgerald’s former CO was thrown into disarray this week, reports Navy Times, when a military judge ruled that the admiral who brought charges against Cmdr. Bryce Benson failed to remain neutral in his case. Seven American sailors drowned in the June 27, 2017, Fitzgerald accident and 10 were killed on the McCain, two months later.
Lockheed expects the F-35A cost to drop below $80 million apiece in 2023, reports USNI News.
The Navy’s costliest warship, the $13 billion Gerald R. Ford, had 20 failures of its aircraft launch-and-landing systems during operations at sea, according to the Pentagon’s testing office, Bloomberg reports.
DoD remains mum on whether National Security Adviser John Bolton is suggesting 5,000 US forces could be dispatched to Venezuela to respond to the internal crisis, reports Military Times. DoD had no comment on whether that option was under consideration. Acting DefSec Patrick Shanahan said the Pentagon was monitoring the evolving upheaval in Venezuela.
Shanahan has identified who he wants to lead US Space Command, reports Defense News, but no name has been released. Work is underway on the confirmation process.
The Pentagon confirms thousands of troops are heading to US-Mexico border to meet President Donald Trump’s request to enhance security there, reports Military Times. And Democrats want to know why active duty troops are still at the US southern border.
Capitol Hill negotiators hope for an agreement during ongoing talks on a homeland security spending bill trapped in a stalemate over Trump’s long-stalled border wall, report AP. Seasoned House and Senate lawmakers say they could easily reach a border security deal as they have for two years in a row. But whether Trump would sign it is another matter altogether.
The Hill reports top leaders of the intelligence community contradicted Trump’s claims about North Korea and Iran in a new assessment about nuclear developments in the two countries.
Navy Times reports China’s ongoing military buildup on islands in the South China Sea is akin to “preparing for World War III,” says Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
US and Chinese negotiators continue two days of high-level talks aimed at settling a six-month trade war that has weakened both sides, shaken financial markets, and clouded the outlook for the global economy. AP reports the odds are stacked against a resolution this week.
The famous Postal Creed does not apply to Polar Vortex conditions, reports CBS News. In response to frigid and hazardous driving conditions, the US Postal Service suspended service in parts of Minnesota, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois (including parts of Chicago), Wisconsin, Ohio, Iowa, western Pennsylvania, the Dakotas, and Nebraska.
Thousands of civil servants and contractors are back at work at NASA’s various centers throughout the country but, reports The Verge, it will be a while before it’s work as usual. As a NASA policy adviser said, “You can’t just turn off and on the US space program like a flashlight.”
A Maryland man’s 17.9-pound fish breaks the state record, reports UPI. David Confair, 44, of Secretary was fishing along Marshyhope Creek in Dorchester County and caught a Longnose Gar weighing 17.9 pounds. Confair said he kept the longnose gar alive out of the creek for two days before returning it to its home saying, “It deserves to live.”
Contracts:
Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., McLean, Virginia, is awarded a $36,655,871 cost-plus-fixed-fee, firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite quantity contract for Identity Dominance System (IDS) technology refresh for the Department of Defense. The IDS technology refresh effort is a refresh of the entire current configuration. The primary focus of this contract is the acquisition of a hand-held biometric hardware device for the IDS program to replace the current integrated base unit. Work will be performed in McLean, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by January 2024. Fiscal 2018 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funding in the amount of $1,522,548 will be obligated at time of award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was solicited on a full and open competition basis via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with three offers received. The Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division, Dahlgren, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N00178-19-D-4000).
B.L. Harbert International, Birmingham, Alabama, is awarded a $41,832,719 firm-fixed construction contract for a hangar located at the Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland. The project will construct an 80,000 square foot hangar and associated facility to support research, development, testing, and evaluation of unmanned carrier-launched aerial surveillance systems to be located at the air station. The contract also contains five unexercised option, which if exercised would increase cumulative contract value to $44,374,719. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland, and is expected to be completed 607 days after award. Fiscal 2017 military construction (Navy) contract funds in the amount of $41,832,719 are obligated on this award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website with three proposals received. Naval Facilities Engineering Command Washington, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity (N40080-19-C-2015).
Sallyport Global Holdings, Reston, Virginia, has been awarded a not-to-exceed $375,000,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee undefinitized contract action to provide base operations support, base life support, and security services in the support of the Iraq F-16 program. Work will be performed on Balad Air Base, Iraq, and is expected to be completed by Jan. 30, 2020. This contract was the result of a sole-source acquisition and involves foreign military sales to Iraq. Foreign military financing loan repayable funds in the amount of $183,750,000 are being obligated at the time of the award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8630-19-C-5004).
Kforce Government Solutions Inc., Fairfax, Virginia, was awarded a $28,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract to procure traumatic amputation task trainers. One bid was solicited with one bid received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Jan. 30, 2024. US Army Contracting Command, Orlando, Florida, is the contracting activity (W900KK-19-D-0005).
Emergent LLC, Virginia Beach, Virginia, was awarded a $7,616,333 firm-fixed-price contract for Oracle PeopleSoft software license renewals. Bids were solicited via the internet with two received. Work will be performed in Crystal City, Virginia; and San Diego, California, with an estimated completion date of Jan. 31, 2020. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance, Navy; and operations and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $7,616,333 were obligated at the time of the award. US Army Contracting Command, New Jersey, is the contracting activity (W15QKN-19-F-0274).
ARTEL LLC, Herndon, Virginia, was awarded a contract modification (P00013) to exercise Option Period Three on task order GS-35F-5151H / HC101316F0022, for commercial satellite communications service. The face value of this action is $23,328,000 funded by fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance funds. The total cumulative face value of the task order is $93,159,500. Performance directly supports the Air Force’s Central Command area of responsibility for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platforms. Quotations were solicited via the General Services Administration’s Federal Supply Schedule, Information Technology Schedule 70, and one quotation was received from 29 offerors solicited. The period of performance for Option Period Three is Feb. 10, 2019, through Feb. 9, 2020, and there is one remaining unexercised option period for this task order. The Defense Information Technology Organization, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, is the contracting activity.
