Trump Issues Ultimatum to China

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.

Comments from President Donald Trump have caused concern among officials in Asia, The Guardian reports. President Trump issued China with an ultimatum that if it fails to put pressure on North Korea to disable its nuclear program, then the US is prepared to take action against North Korea on its own. The president said in a recent interview, “Well, if China is not going to solve North Korea, we will.”

A senior North Korean defector says that North Korea’s “desperate” dictator Kim Jong Un is prepared to use nuclear weapons to strike the US and its allies, NBC News reports. Former DefSec Ash Carter said “all options” should be on the table when considering a pre-emptive military strike against North Korea, The Washington Times reports. Mr. Carter said North Korea would likely respond to a US attack by attempting to invade South Korea. But he is confident that “the outcome of that war … would be the defeat of North Korea.”

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson participated in discussions with foreign ministers from a couple dozen NATO member nations last week, Los Angeles Times reports. He delivered a firm rebuke of Russian “aggression” and promised allies the US will stand by their side — while also demanding they spend more on defense and do more to fight terrorism.

Retired Col. Joe Felter is being tapped to be DefSec James Mattis’ deputy assistant defense secretary for South Asia and Southeast Asia, Breaking Defense reports. Sources say the former Army officer has extensive foreign affairs and counterinsurgency experience in Afghanistan.

The NRL-developed transparent polymer armor consists of alternating layers of elastomeric polymer and a harder material substrate. Very small crystalline domains, which also provide rigidity, give the polymer its transparency. (US Naval Research Laboratory)

Research chemists have developed and patented a transparent thermoplastic elastomer armor to reduce weight, inherent in most bullet-resistant glass, while maintaining its ballistic properties, the US Naval Research Laboratory reports. “Because of the dissipative properties of the elastomer, the damage due to a projectile strike is limited to the impact locus. This means that the affect on visibility is almost inconsequential, and multi-hit protection is achieved,” senior scientist Dr. Mike Roland said.

Defense Systems reports the Navy is working to procure next generation software for its latest E-2D Advanced Hawkeye surveillance planes, an aircraft designed to help integrate advanced radar, data communication, and drone control capabilities to detect and intercept cruise missile launches.

The Defense Advanced Research Project Agency will test a program to launch and recover small drones from an Air Force C-130 aircraft, Defense Systems reports. DARPA’s Gremlins program deploys a group of small drones carrying a 60-pound sensor payload up to 300 nautical miles.

The Army is surveying small businesses to identify those with interest in supporting the service’s next Network Integration Evaluation exercise scheduled for July, Washington Technology reports. GSA posted the request for information Friday.

The US Coast Guard is the smallest branch of the armed forces and the only one that falls under the Homeland Security Department rather than the Pentagon. The USGC organizational structure was recently questioned by a lawmaker, Military.com reports, but the USCG wants to remain part of Homeland Security and doesn’t see a need to reorganize under DoD.

Cmdr. W.T. Rassieur, first NAS Pax River commanding officer, addresses officers and enlisted personnel during the installation ceremony April 1, 1943. (US Navy Photo)

Happy 74th birthday! Construction began on NAS Pax River April 4, 1942, on approximately 6,500 acres of land acquired by the Navy that had formerly contained several large farms along the Chesapeake Bay. Construction was fast and furious with as many as 7,000 workers laboring long days. A year later, the Navy base was commissioned April 1, 1943. Click here to view others photographs that record NAS Pax River’s history.

Contracts:

AT&T Corp., Columbia, Maryland, was awarded $12,025,001 to exercise Option Year 3 of a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (HC1013-14-C-0003) for the Priority Telecommunication Service (PTS) to support the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Emergency Communications (OEC). The base period of performance was Aug. 1, 2014, to March 31, 2015, with nine one-year option periods.  The current action is for the period of April 1, 2017, to March 31, 2018. The AT&T contract was one of three sole-source contracts to support the National Security/ Emergency Preparedness (NS/EP) Priority Telecommunication Service (PTS) via utilizing the public switched networks. The PTS is a White House-directed program that leverages the commercially owned public switched network to provide specially designed telecommunications services to the NS/EP user community during natural or man-made disasters when conventional communications services are ineffective. This action is funded by fiscal 2016 operations and maintenance funds. The total cost of this contract was increased from $43,539,078 to $55,564,078. Lifecycle amount is $309,800,000. Performance is throughout the continental US. The OEC’s National Security/Emergency Preparedness PTS program provides communications under all circumstances, including crisis or emergency, attack, recovery, and reconstitution, when network congestion or damage renders conventional communications ineffective, by utilizing the surviving assets of the public switched network to provide priorities and routing alternatives. The Defense Information Technology Contracting Organization, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, is the contracting activity.

AT&T Corp., Columbia, Maryland, was awarded $8,945,232 to exercise performance work statement Subtask 8.5.5, System Engineering Life Cycle, of previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract HC1013-14-C-0003 for the Priority Telecommunication Service (PTS) to support the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Emergency Communications (OEC). Performance will begin on April 1, 2017. This action is funded by fiscal 2016 operations and maintenance funds. The total cost of this contract was increased from $55,564,078 to $64,509,310. Lifecycle amount is $309,800,000. The Defense Information Technology Contracting Organization, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, is the contracting activity.

Charles F. Day and Associates LLC, Fredericksburg, Virginia, was awarded a $9,650,534 firm-fixed-price contract for implementing the range residue, recovery, range clearance and mission support for explosive ordnance. Bids were solicited via the Internet with three received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of March 31, 2020. US Army Contracting Command, Fort Hood, Texas, is the contracting activity (W91151-17-D-0005).

QuantaDyn Corp., Ashburn, Virginia, has been awarded a $27,000,000 modification (P00016) to previously awarded contract FA8621-16-C-6396 for the Joint Terminal Control Training and Rehearsal System (JTC TRS). Contractor will provide an additional quantity of 23 JTC TRS production devices. Work will be performed at Fort Riley, Kansas; Fort Campbell, Kentucky; Fort Wainwright, Alaska; Wheeler Army Air Field, Hawaii; Fort Stewart, Georgia; Einsiedlerhof, Germany; Vilseck, Germany; Fort Irwin, California; Fort Polk, Louisiana; Hurlburt Field, Florida; Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada; Fort Carson, Colorado; Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington; Fort Hood, Texas; Pope Army Air Field, North Carolina; Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Mildenhall, United Kingdom; Cannon AFB, New Mexico; and Kadena Air Base, Japan. Work is expected to be complete by May 31, 2018. Fiscal 2016 other procurement; and fiscal 2017 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $26,397,417 are being obligated at the time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, is the contracting activity.

National Industries for the Blind, Alexandria, Virginia, has been awarded a maximum $8,568,000 modification (P00002) exercising the first one-year option period of a one-year base contract (SPE1C1-16-D-B006) with four one-year option periods for Army physical fitness uniform pants. The modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $16,968,800 from $8,400,000. This is an indefinite-delivery contract. Locations of performance are Tennessee; and North Carolina, with an April 6, 2018, performance completion date. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2017 through 2018 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Leidos Inc., Reston, Virginia, was awarded an $8,718,331 modification (P00069) to contract W52H09-08-C-0170 to purchase 13 stand-alone large – multiple person entrance green systems with generators; four stand-alone large – multiple person entrance tan systems with generators; 11 Tent Kit 2 – multiple person entrance tan systems, and 25 Structure Kit Unimproved Single Person Entrance tan systems for the Joint Expeditionary Collective protection family of systems. Work will be performed in Reston, Virginia, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 23, 2017. Fiscal 2017 other funds in the amount of $8,718,331 were obligated at the time of the award. US Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity.