Secret SEAL Sub Has Secret Collision
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.
Secret SEAL sub suffers secret mishap, reports Navy Times. A secretive Navy SEAL “Delivery Vehicle,” or SDV, secretly suffered a secret mishap during secret training on Oct. 24, officials confirmed this week. The SDV, basically a mini submarine launched from a bigger submarine that ferries SEALs on missions, collided with a fixed object that day, according to the Naval Safety Command. Naval Safety Command listed the SEAL sub collision as a “Class A” mishap, which connotes damages of more than $2.5 million.
NASA delays Artemis 1 moon launch to Nov. 16 due to Tropical Storm Nicole, reports Space.com. The launch had been scheduled for Nov. 14 from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center. But Nicole is bearing down on Florida’s Atlantic Coast. “Adjusting the target launch date will allow the workforce to tend to the needs of their families and homes, and provide sufficient logistical time to get back into launch status following the storm,” NASA officials said.
The Navy has fired a warship CO in the middle of a deployment, reports Navy Times. CAPT Simon McKeon, commanding officer of the guided-missile cruiser Normandy was relieved of command Tuesday in the middle of the warship’s deployment, and less than eight months after he took command. McKeon was relieved “due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command” was given as the reason behind the relief.
More than 100 C-130s are down, likely because mechanics scratched their propellers, reports DefenseOne.com. The procedure used by Air Force mechanics to document inspections likely damaged hundreds of C-130 propeller blades over a decade. “The process used to engrave serial numbers on the propellers likely contributed to cracks that are being found on the C-130Hs,” USAF spokesman MAJ Beau Downey said. “That process, which involved an electric arc pen to incise digits into the surface of the metal, was stopped about six months ago and will not be used going forward.
Wholesale used car prices plummet as retail prices soar, reports The Hill. The wholesale price of used cars is falling off a cliff while the retail prices that car shoppers are paying is way up, suggesting dealers are making a killing while consumers are taking a bath. Used car prices declined 2 percent from September in the first half of October and are down 10.3 percent from a year ago, according to The Manheim Used Vehicle Index just published. Meanwhile, the retail price that car shoppers are paying for used cars has increased 7.2 percent since last year, according to the Department of Labor’s latest consumer price index.
The Hill reports, how the midterms could impact the Russia-Ukraine war. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), the likely Speaker in a GOP majority, has talked about how Ukraine would not get a “blank check” from the US with Republicans in control of the House.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky says he is only open to ‘genuine peace negotiations’ with Russia, reports The Hill. Zelensky elaborated that genuine negotiations would include affirmations of Ukraine’s “territorial integrity” and assurances that Russia would not invade its smaller neighbor in the future. He blamed Moscow for a failure to reach a diplomatic solution to the war, saying that Ukraine has “repeatedly” proposed talks and “we always received insane Russian responses with new terrorist attacks, shelling or blackmail.”
An airman and an Army reservist are among four charged in COVID relief fraud scheme, reports Military Times. An airman from Shaw Air Force Base and an Army reservist deployed overseas were among four recently charged in a scheme to steal millions of dollars of COVID-19 relief loans. Senior Airman Kehinde Mubarak Ladepo, 26, Army Reserve LT Maxwell Okobi, 24, and two others were charged for allegedly stealing $1 million in government pandemic relief loans and attempting to swindle another million more.
Small shipyards consolidate amid Navy program delays, reports Defense News. Bollinger Shipyards this week said it will acquire shipyards VT Halter Marine and ST Engineering Halter Marine Offshore from parent company ST Engineering, a deal one expert said may have been spurred by the Navy’s slow pace in awarding the contracts expected to go to smaller shipyards. The transaction, expected to close by the end of the year, offers Bollinger additional new construction and repair expertise.
Former Army helicopter pilot Shapour Moinian is sentenced for spying for China, reports Military Times. Moinian, 67, with more than 20 years of military service and additional years as a defense contractor, was sentenced Nov. 7 for acting as an agent of China. He was sentenced to 20 months in federal prison for acting as an agent of a foreign government and for making materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements or representations on security clearance forms signed as part of his defense contracting position. He was facing a maximum of 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty June 23.
A military cargo truck collision caused the fatal crash at the Fort Indiantown Gap, PA, base, reports Army Times. New details released in a preliminary accident report reveal how National Guard solider SPC Mackenzie Shay, 20, died in the Oct. 22 accident. Two M1120 flat rack trucks were traveling down a tank trail in a remote corner of the installation. The soldiers were collecting spent ammunition casings and Shay was driving the second truck when it rear-ended the first. Shay’s side of the second truck’s passenger cab was “crushed” when it struck the first truck’s flat rack.
A 5.5 magnitude earthquake in Italy was felt in several countries, reports BBC. The earthquake off the Italian resort of Rimini, was felt across central Italy and parts of the Balkans. Schools were shut in parts of the central Marche region and trains were halted around the city of Ancona because of suspected track damage. Italian officials said the quake was 8km (5 miles) in depth. It was felt in Rome in the west and Bologna in the north-east as well as across the Adriatic in Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The first and strongest tremor at 07:07 (06:07 GMT) was followed by a number of smaller shocks.
There’s an entire village hidden underwater at Liberty Reservoir in Maryland, reports NewsBreak.com. The picturesque reservoir is one of the most vital clean water sources in the state. Created west of Baltimore in the 1950s to support the rapidly expanding population, the reservoir submerged Oakland Mills. Piles of stones once part of the village can still be seen when the water level is low.
Pentagon test bed to ramp up development of hypersonics, reports Military Times. Led by the Pentagon’s Test Resource Management Center and the Naval Surface Warfare Center’s Crane Division, based in Bloomington, Indiana, the Multi-Service Advanced Capability Hypersonics Test Bed aims to create a new option for defense agencies and universities as they demonstrate and validate hypersonic vehicles, materials and related technology.
Pentagon to unveil its zero-trust cyber strategy, reports Military Times. Pentagon Chief Information Officer John Sherman said the plan approved last week is being reviewed. The strategy comprises more than 100 activities, including applications, automation and analytics, to keep critical data secure.
Contracts:
Oceanetics Inc., Annapolis, Maryland, is awarded a $99,989,368 firm-fixed-price and cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for ocean infrastructure support services. This contract provides for support to the NAVFAC Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center (EXWC) Oceans Technical Department at Naval Base Ventura County, Port Hueneme, California. No task orders are being issued at this time. Work will be performed at various locations worldwide and is expected to be completed by November 2027. This contract includes an option which, if exercised, would extend the period of performance to May 2028. Fiscal 2023 working capital (Navy) funds in the amount of $10,000 will be obligated at time of award in order to satisfy the minimum guarantee and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Future task orders will be primarily funded by operations and maintenance (Navy) funds; working capital (Navy) funds; research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds; and other procurement (Navy) funds. This contract was competitively procured via the System for Award Management website, with two proposals received. The Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center, Port Hueneme, California, is the contracting activity (N39430-23-D-4050).
Metro Machine Corp., doing business as General Dynamics NASSCO-Norfolk, Norfolk, Virginia, is awarded a $76,698,633 firm-fixed-price contract for the fiscal 2023 dry-docking selected restricted availability for the USS Bainbridge (DDG-96). This contract includes options, which if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $79,600,222. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by August 2023. If all options are exercised, work will continue through August 2023. Fiscal 2023 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $76,698,633 will be obligated at time of award. This contract was a competitive acquisition solicited on the System for Award Management Contract Opportunities website and two offers were received. Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N5005423C0002).
