Troops May Guard Syrian Oil Fields

Photo by Jonas Jordan, US Army Corps of Engineers

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.

DefSec Mark Esper says some US troops may stay in Syria to guard oil fields, reports Military Times, to make sure they don’t fall into the hands of a resurgent Islamic State.

A US military convoy withdrawing from Syria was pelted with garbage by angry residents upset with America’s retreat from the region. Military Times reports the Kurdish fighters who liberated northeastern Syria from ISIS feel betrayed by the surprise withdrawal.

According to three current and former defense officials, the Pentagon is making plans for a quick Afghanistan withdrawal in case President Donald Trump surprises military leaders by ordering an immediate drawdown as he did in Syria, reports NBC News. The US has already pulled 2,000 troops from Afghanistan, reports Military Times.

Congressional leaders traveled to Afghanistan amid uncertainty over troop deployments overseas, reports Military Times, adding the stop in Afghanistan was a planned high-level congressional visit with officials in Jordan to discuss instability in Syria and neighboring countries.

Federal prosecutors allege Lt. Fan Yang, a naval flight officer, conspired to smuggle military-style boats to China and sold a firearm to a Chinese national, reports Navy Times. Yang and his wife, Yang “Yuki” Yang, were arrested following a joint FBI and NCIS raid on their home in Florida.

DoD announced that DefSec Esper will recuse himself from the Pentagon’s $10 billion “war cloud” contract competition due to his son’s employment with one of the companies that sought the deal, reports The Hill.

When the Air Force funding ended Oct. 18 on a contract involving the intercontinental ballistic missile program, Boeing stopped work three days later. The company reassigned approximately 300 employees and stopped suppliers work on the ICMB contract. The move, reports Military Times, could take Boeing out of the Air Force’s fractious competition for next-gen ICBMs for good, effectively giving the contract to Northrop.

The USS Abraham Lincoln’s deployment is extended for an unspecified amount of time as the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman remains stuck in Norfolk undergoing repairs. Electrical problems have delayed the switch, reports Pilot Online.

Military prosecutors sent two San Diego-based petty officers to the brig for dealing a boatload of drugs, reports Navy Times. At least 45 sailors stationed in San Diego County were suspected of buying drugs from Hull Maintenance Technician 2nd Class Casey T. Balausky and Interior Communications Specialist 2nd Class Tyler D. Farley before an undercover sting last year sparked guilty pleas from the two petty officers.

Three Fort Stewart soldiers died when their vehicle fell from a bridge during training, reports Army Times. Soldiers were training in darkness when their armored vehicle fell from a bridge and landed upside down in water below, killing three of those inside and injuring three others. The Army identified the soldiers who died as Sgt. 1st Class Bryan Jenkins, 41, of Gainesville, FL; Cpl. Thomas Walker, 22, of Conneaut, OH; and Pfc. Antonio Garcia, 21, of Peoria, AZ.

US Marines used drones to bring blood and medical supplies to battle, reports Defense One, during a live-fire exercise in August with Australian and other forces. The drones were from a small startup called Zipline.

USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker: Oct. 21, 2019

Lexington Park teenager adopts entire herd of Assateague ponies, reports Delmarvanow.com.

Contracts:

Leebcor Services LLC, Williamsburg, Virginia, is being awarded an $8,451,462 firm-fixed-price task order (N69450-20-F-0700) under a multiple award construction contract for the design and construction of B868 overhaul at Naval Air Station, Jacksonville, Florida. The work to be performed provides for addressing ongoing building envelope maintenance concerns, specific heating, ventilation, and air conditioning modification/upgrades and electrical service and system upgrades. Work will be performed in Jacksonville, Florida, and is expected to be completed by April 2021. Fiscal 2020 working capital funds in the amount of $8,451,462 are obligated on this award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Two proposals were received for this task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southeast, Jacksonville, Florida, is the contracting activity (N69450-16-D-1113).