March 28, 2024

Searching the Bay for Sunken Aircraft

sunken aircraft at Pax River

Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the Internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River Morning Coffee logoeconomic community. The opinions expressed here do not reflect opinions of the Leader’s owners or staff.

The Tester reports  that underwater archaeologists with the Naval History and Heritage Command’s Underwater Archaeology Branch spent a couple weeks recently off the coast of NAS Pax River searching the Chesapeake Bay for US Navy aircraft lost in training exercises more than a half century ago. Field work on the project began about a year ago. On the search list was an FJ-1 Fury lost in 1947. That was the year the fighter entered service, making it the Navy’s first operational jet. The archaeologists returned earlier this month, still searching for the Fury and an HOK-1 Huskie helicopter lost in 1956.

The Naval History and Heritage Command also has recently begun an assessment of a M1 Garand rifle used by US Marine Corps raiders during the Makin Island raid in World War II, the Navy News Service reports. The Makin M1 was originally discovered in 1999, when the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command’s Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii returned to Makin Island to relocate, recover, and repatriate the remains of the Marines who died there.

VADM Mike Shoemaker told the Center for Strategic and International Studies last week that the US Navy plans to continue to modernize Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornets. The vice admiral described the newer versions of the plane as “4.5-generation” fighters. He didn’t minimize the need for Lockheed Martin’s F-35, a fifth-generation fighter; he sees a role for both of them, Investor’s Business Daily reports. “We absolutely need the F-35 as soon as we can get it,” he said. ” We want to pair those two up together.”

The Navy is undergoing the third round of developmental testing of its F-35C, the services’ first-ever stealthy carrier-launched, multi-role attack fighter. The two-week testing period is taking place aboard the USS George Washington, an aircraft carrier somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean off the East Coast of the United States, Scout Warrior reports. The plane is expected to be operational by 2018.

The F-35 JSF’s stealthiness is clearly reflected in the plane’s flat, faceted surfaces, designed to direct away as much radar energy as possible, Popular Mechanics reports, but radar isn’t the only way to detect a plane. Another example is the infrared radiation generated by heat sources. An infrared sensor delicate enough to read the differences in emitted heat can paint an “image” of an object approximate to that using visible light.

BAE Systems’ deal to develop Turkey’s first home-built fighter jet has been delayed as the UK assesses the aftermath of the attempted coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Bloomberg News reports. Details of the cooperation with Turkish Aerospace Industries on the jet, dubbed the TF-X, may be announced only toward the end of the year. BAE is competing with Airbus Group SE for the right to help design and develop the plane, which is targeted for completion by 2023.

AFP reports that 15 detainees at Guantanamo Bay were transferred to the United Arab Emirates last week. These transfers bring the remaining population of the detention center to 61. Since 9/11, about 780 inmates have been housed in the US military-run facility.

Outgoing Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus discussed his thoughts on another round of Base Realignment and Base Closure recently with The Connecticut Mirror. The paper also has published a Q&A where the NavSec talks about such topics as the F-35s, his legacy, and the future of the service.

Residents are reminded that noise-generating testing events are scheduled to take place between 6 and 11 pm Aug. 22 through 25 at NAS Pax. Pilots at NAS Pax will conduct field carrier landing practices. As with all operations, the naval air station takes precautions to lessen the impact of testing activities on the community. Call 1-866-819-9028 with questions.

On Friday, a Navy sailor was sentenced to one year in jail for taking photographs inside a nuclear attack submarine in 2009, MSN News reports.

A California woman has been sentenced to 50 months in prison for conspiring to export fighter jet engines, an unmanned aerial vehicle, and related technical data to China, Voice of America reports. Prosecutors say evidence shows that between March 2011 and June 2013, the woman conspired with a contact in China to send equipment that included engines used in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, F-22 Raptor fighter jet, F-16 fighter jet, and MQ-9 Reaper/Predator B drone.

Contracts:

Alpha-Omega Change Engineering, Williamsburg, VA (FA7037-16-D-0002); BOSH Global Services, Newport News, VA (FA7037-16-D-0003); FEDITC LLC, Rockville, MD (FA7037-16-D-0004); FGS LLC, La Plata, MD (FA7037-16-D-0005); and Trofholz Technologies Inc., Rocklin, CA (FA7037-16-D-0006), have been awarded a $78,426,203 multiple award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity; hybrid of firm-fixed-price, time, material and cost contract to support weapon systems and command, control, communications, computers and intelligence systems information technology services; project management; intelligence support; security office support; staff support; studies, reports, analyses and evaluations; and system engineering and subject matter expert support. Work will be performed primarily at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, VA; Beale Air Force Base, CA; Joint Base San Antonio- Lackland Air Force Base, TX; Kadena Air Base, Japan; Ramstein AB, Germany; Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii; Osan Air Base, Korea; and associated Guard and Reserve organizations; and is expected to be complete by Aug. 17, 2019. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition, and 14 offers were received. Fiscal 2016 operations and maintenance and overseas contingency operations funds are being used, and no funds are being obligated at the time of award. AMIC DET2/PKB, San Antonio, TX, is the contracting agency.

The Boeing Co., Seattle, WA, is being awarded a $68,409,026 modification to a previously awarded advance acquisition contract (N00019-14-C-0067). This modification provides for long-lead parts and efforts associated with the manufacture of two full-rate production 4 Lot 8 P-8A Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft for the government of United Kingdom under the Foreign Military Sales program. Work will be performed in Seattle, WA (82.6 percent); Baltimore, MD (6.2 percent); Greenlawn, NY (4.2 percent); North Amityville, NY (3.5 percent); and Cambridge, UK (3.5 percent), and is expected to be complete by July 2017. Foreign military sales funds in the amount of $68,409,026 are being obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, MD, is the contracting activity.

Bell-Boeing Joint Program Office, California, MD, is being awarded a $62,673,124 one year, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the repair of various parts on the V-22 aircraft. Work will be performed in Fort Worth, TX (80 percent); and Ridley Park, PA (20 percent). Work is expected to be completed by December 2017. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Fiscal 2016 working capital funds (Navy) will be obligated through individual delivery orders as they are issued; none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was a sole-source pursuant to the authority set forth in 10 U.S Code 2304(c)(1). Naval Supply Systems Command Weapon Systems Support, Philadelphia, PA, is the contracting activity (N00383-16-D-951N).

Parsons Government Services Inc., Pasadena, CA, is being awarded a $40,777,653 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract, including options, for advisory and assistance services for Systems Engineering/Modeling and Simulation in support of technical, engineering, advisory and management support. This contract includes supporting the critical program level Ballistic Missile Defense System architecture, system engineering, and engineering activities in accordance with the Missile Defense Agency Systems Engineering “V.” This effort complements engineering activities occurring within the “Element Design & Build” systems engineering phase. It includes the identification and definition of future capabilities not yet assigned to an MDA product office; planning for technology demonstrations and risk reduction tests; and development of transition plans for future capabilities into product offices. Work will be performed at Huntsville, AL; Colorado Springs, CO; and the National Capital Region which includes Fort Belvoir, with an expected completion date of April 2017. Fiscal 2016 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $10,466,782 are being obligated at time of award.  This is a sole-source award for a base period of four months, and an option period of 3.5 months to bridge the gap until competitive award of the follow-on effort. The Missile Defense Agency, Huntsville, AL, is the contracting activity (HQ0147-16-C-0061).

Parsons Government Services Inc., Pasadena, CA, is being awarded a $7,209,735 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract, including options, for advisory and assistance services for Space and Directed Energy in support of technical, engineering, advisory and management support.  This contract continues critical engineering activities supporting space and directed energy engineering. Work will be performed at Huntsville, AL; Colorado Springs, CO; and the National Capital Region which includes Fort Belvoir, with an expected completion date of August 2017. Fiscal 2016 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $1,459,000 are being obligated at time of award.  This is a sole-source award for a base period of six months, and an option period of six months to bridge the gap until competitive award of the follow-on effort. The Missile Defense Agency, Huntsville, AL, is the contracting activity (HQ0147-16-C-0074).

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