Univ. System of MD Enters PAX $38B Economy
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 necessarily reflect those of the Leader’s owners or staff.
USM Chancellor William Brit Kirwan
The Chancellor of the University System of Maryland signed an agreement Friday to build a research and incubator facility at the Southern Maryland Higher Education Center five miles north of PAX:NAS, reports The LexLeader.
Hours after the agreement was signed, leaders involved with negotiating and funding the new building began emailing back and forth a bullish report from The Washington Post on investment in drones in the commercial sector. Public and private officials see the expanding University System as strengthening Maryland’s position to be named one of the six FAA-approved drone testing sites. Maryland joined Pennsylvania and New Jersey in a collaborative bid for the designation, as reported in September 2013 by The Baltimore Sun.
It was a mistake, an erroneous pre-solicitation notice: the Navy will not be buying F/A-18s anymore, Reuters quotes Vice Admiral David Dunaway, commander of Naval Air Systems Command. The Navy is sticking with the F-35 and the Pentagon plans to boost JSF production rates in FY 2015, but awards will be tied to progress on previously identified design issues, software development and improvements in a computer-based logistics system, reports Aviation Week.
On the heels of a week of JSF reviews, more integrated testing is being discussed by the Pentagon as it works to save the F-35 fighter program from budget constraints, reports the Chicago Tribune. Air-to-air and air-to-ground, F35 passes two weapons tests at Edwards Air Force Base, reports Intercepts of Defense News. RAF pilots report “flying blind” out of Elgin, Florida, as glitches continue in the JSF helmets, reports The Daily Mail.
The Times of Israel reports a major Lockheed-Martin subsidiary to open in Israel with plans to purchase Israeli companies and employ hundreds of people. DefSec Chuck Hagel announced that V-22 would be fast-tracked to Israel, jumping them into production ahead of the Marine Corps, reports Marine Corps Times.
The federal deficit is falling and Defense News speculates this might be bad for defense budgets, as even some Republican members of the Senate Armed Services Committee are beginning to embrace across-the-board sequestration, believing no other acceptable budget reduction methods will emerge.
Dismantling has begun at the USS Enterprise in Newport News, reports Defense News. The activity at the shipyard along the St. James River presents the full life cycle of a carrier to interested observers.
A new and bigger Fire Scout flies at Point Mugu: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3df73f0lKWs]
A Senate bill aimed at tightening security breaches calls for two random audits of federal employees and contractors during a five-year period of active security clearances, reports FCW.
Lockheed wins $422M contract for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter for recurring sustainment support largely involved with the operations and maintenance of the project through October 2014. This contract combines purchases for the U.S. Air Force ($188,287,831; 44.6 percent), U.S. Marine Corps ($125,641,895; 29.7 percent), the U.S. Navy ($66,558,160; 15.8 percent); and the governments of the United Kingdom ($18,291,583; 4.3 percent); the Netherlands ($8,392,726; 2 percent); Australia ($4,856,254; 1.2 percent); Turkey ($2,975,016; .7 percent); Italy ($2,676,868; .6 percent); Canada ($1,933,807; .5 percent); Norway ($1,556,986; .4 percent); and Denmark ($892,597; .2 percent).
PAE Applied Technologies of Fort Worth, Texas, won a $23,246,532 modification to a previously awarded contract for range engineering, operations and maintenance services in support of the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Divisions’ Atlantic Test Range and Atlantic Targets and Marine Operations Division. The estimated level of effort is 270,215 man-hours. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Md., and is expected to be completed in February 2014. Navy working capital funds in the amount of $5,984,310 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.
