US Military Weapons Sales on the Uptick
Pallets of ammunition, bound for Ukraine, are loaded onto a commercial aircraft during a security assistance mission at Dover Air Force Base, DE, earlier this month. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency is involved in the transfer of equipment to foreign nations. (US Air Force photo by Mauricio Campino)
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.
US military weapons sales to other countries saw a major increase in 2022, up nearly $51.9 billion, reports Defense News. The Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency cited factors such as the waning effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and concerns about China’s rising influence in the Pacific as possible reasons for increased sales, according to a Defense Department news release.
What will the military do in 2040, who will serve in it, and how will it recruit people? Those were the questions being tackled by social scientists, military experts, and national security strategists who gathered at the US Naval Academy for the Future of the All-Volunteer, All-Recruited Force symposium, reports Military Times. One of the conclusions reached: the services are going to have to rely more on women.
Ukraine is facing several logistics hurdles ahead of tank deliveries from the US, Germany, and Great Britain, reports The Washington Post. Among them are organizing the different weapons systems, training soldiers to use them, and procuring ammunition.
A new report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies found that the “Russian Arctic Threat” is growing more potent, reports USNI News. Russia’s war in Ukraine has “raised geopolitical tensions in the Arctic,” reads the January 2023 report.
More than two dozen hopeful pilots who were caught cheating on a written test last year while attending the Army’s flight school at Fort Rucker, AL, received a second chance to retake the test, reports Army Times.
The Navy’s amphibious assault ship USS America successfully fired a RIM-116 missile during routine operations while underway in the Philippine Sea, reports Navy Recognition.
The Maryland State Department of Education said that student test scores in the state have returned to pre-pandemic proficiency in English language arts, but continue to plummet in math, reports WTOP News. Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program data includes cohort findings, which track how Maryland students in a particular grade fared in the 2021-2022 school year compared to before the pandemic.
The US Department of Justice said it has dismantled the international ransomware group Hive, reports The Hill. Hive is responsible for extorting more than $100 million in payments from organizations based in the US and around the world.
A new two-year, “black box” pilot program aims to reduce military rollover deaths, reports Navy Times. The 1st Lt. Hugh Conor McDowell Safety in Armed Forces Equipment Act, which was rolled into the fiscal 2023 National Defense Authorization Act, created a two-year program for the US Army and Marine Corps to assess whether built-in data recorders ― commonly known as black boxes ― will support the safe operation of military vehicles and improve readiness.
Republican lawmakers renew calls for the Department of Defense to reinstate thousands of military members who were dismissed from the service for refusing to get vaccinated against COVID-19, reports Military Times. New legislation was introduced in the House and Senate last week. US Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Ted Cruz (R-TX) and 17 of their colleagues have introduced the Allowing Military Exemptions, Recognizing Individual Concerns About New Shots, or AMERICANS, Act.
US Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) is threatening to hold up nominees for the Pentagon’s top positions because DefSec Lloyd Austin has declined to meet and discuss the decision to move US Space Command headquarters from his home state to Alabama, reports Military.com. Defense One reports that a handful of President Joe Biden’s picks for Defense Department appointments are still awaiting Senate approval.
A US Space Force and the Coast Guard memorandum will expand Space Force access to USCG Research and Development Center facilities, infrastructure and personnel, reports Marine Link. “The Coast Guard is a forward-leaning organization with an eye to the future,” said Dr. Joel Mozer, Space Force science, technology, and research director. “The Space Force wants to take advantage of their methods of strategic foresight and apply them to our own space problems, where technology developments overlap between the two services, we want to partner.”
The Department of Veterans Affairs said it has surpassed 2022 goals for housing veterans experiencing homelessness, reports The Hill. The latest point-in-time tally taken last week, which consists of a count of the sheltered and unsheltered people experiencing homelessness on one night in January of each year, showed an 11% decline in veteran homelessness since 2020.
A Government Accounting Office survey finds that on-time performance of the US Postal Service is similar in rural and urban areas, reports Maryland Matters. “The report validates expectations that there are few differences in service performance for urban and rural areas,” said Angela Curtis, USPS vice president of delivery operations.
A former Army reservist, Ji Chaoqun, 31, has been sentenced to eight years in prison for spying for the Chinese government by gathering information on scientists and engineers in the US who specialized in aerospace and satellite technology, reports The Associated Press.
The US Naval Academy announced that it is set to build a $22 million lacrosse facility on its campus, thanks to an anonymous donor, reports WMAR2News. The two-story, 33,000-square-foot building is expected to be a major resource for the Navy’s NCAA Division 1 men’s and women’s lacrosse programs.
Options for natural, or “green,” burials are growing in the Chesapeake Bay region, reports Bay Journal.
Michigan Live reports that an ancient green comet that’s been cruising ever closer to Earth in January is making its closest approach to the planet this week. On February 1 and 2, the comet will reach its closest point to Earth — about 27 million miles, which is still more than 100 times the moon’s distance away, according to EarthSky.org.
Contracts:
L3Harris Technologies Inc., Colorado Springs, Colorado, has been awarded a $21,200,111 contract modification (P00161) to previously awarded contract FA8823-20-C-0004 for Maintenance of Space Situational Awareness Integrated Capabilities (MOSSAIC) sustainment services. The modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $650,107,962. Work will be performed in Colorado Springs, Colorado; Dahlgren, Virginia; Vandenberg, California; and Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, and is expected to be completed by Jan. 31, 2024. Fiscal 2023 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $21,200,111 are being obligated at the time of award. The Space Systems Center Directorate of Contracting, Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colorado, is the contracting activity.
Gulfstream Aerospace Corp., Savannah, Georgia, has been awarded a $87,000,000 ceiling, firm-fixed-price modification (P00022) to contract FA8106-18-D-0002 for C-20 and C-37 contractor logistics support services. The modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $594,000,000. Work will be performed at Savannah, Georgia; Joint Base Andrews, Maryland; Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii; and Ramstein Air Base, Germany, and is expected to be completed Jan. 31, 2025. Fiscal 2023 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $17,400,343 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Tinker AFB, Oklahoma, is the contracting activity.
Gulfstream Aerospace Corp., Savannah, Georgia, has been awarded a $37,000,000 ceiling, firm-fixed-price modification (P00003) to contract FA8134-21-D-0001 for C-20 and C-37 engineering support contract services. The modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $612,000,000. Work will be performed at Savannah, Georgia; and Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, and is expected to be completed Jan. 31, 2031. Fiscal 2023 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $12,234,886 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, is the contracting activity.
Ivyhill Technologies Inc., College Park, Maryland, is awarded an $11,745,888 firm-fixed-price contract to provide Integrated Referral Management and Appointing Center (IRMAC) National Capital Region (NCR) Market Consolidated Call Center/Referral Management Support at the Dalecarlia Annex, Bethesda, Maryland. However, based on mission requirements, the duty location for service providing personnel may be located at a military medical treatment facility or an authorized telework location within the NCR Market. The IRMAC is an integrated on-demand call center for the NCR Market military medical treatment facilities and provides referral management and appointing services for the entire market, and serves as the point of contact for beneficiaries seeking health care. The IRMAC assists beneficiaries with appointments, navigating the direct care system, and providing referral management oversight. The place of performance is Bethesda, Maryland, and the period of performance will be April 21, 2023, to April 20, 2024. Fiscal 2023 operations and maintenance funds are being obligated at the time of award. The Defense Health Agency, Northeastern Market Contracting Division, Falls Church, Virginia, is the contracting agency.
Commonwealth of Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired, Richmond, Virginia, was awarded a $147,934,705 firm-fixed-price contract for full food service at Fort Lee, Virginia. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Jan. 31, 2028. US Army Field Directorate Office, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, is the contracting activity (W5168W-23-D-0006).
Phillips Corp., Federal Division, Hanover, Maryland, is awarded an $8,958,832 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to establish and manage a preventive and corrective maintenance program that will plan, schedule, and provide qualified personnel for preventative maintenance, corrective maintenance, and calibration analysis for up to 600 pieces of industrial plant equipment located in the controlled industrial area of Norfolk Naval Shipyard in support of its mission to provide on time delivery of carriers, submarines, and barges. If all options are exercised, the total will be $53,051,662. Work will be performed in Portsmouth, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by March 9, 2024. If all options are exercised, work will continue through Sept. 8, 2028. Fiscal 2023 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $10,000 will be obligated at time of award for the minimum guarantee and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the System for Award Management website, with three offers received. The Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N4215823DS001).
Amentum Services, Germantown, Maryland, was awarded a $34,817,407 modification (P00196) to contract W58RGZ-17-C-0011 for contractor logistics support. Work will be performed in Germantown, Maryland, with an estimated completion date of May 31, 2023. Fiscal 2023 operation and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $34,817,407 were obligated at the time of the award. US Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity.
Hardwire LLC, Pocomoke, Maryland, has been awarded a maximum $8,385,168 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for enhanced small arms protective inserts for use in extra-small shorts and small shorts. This was a competitive acquisition with four responses received. This is a two-year contract with no option periods. The ordering period end date is July 30, 2025. Using military service is Marine Corps. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2023 through 2025 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
DLP Enterprises, doing business as Paige Decking, Chesapeake, Virginia (N5005423D0006); Titan Decking, Chesapeake, Virginia (N5005423D0007); AMP United LLC, Dover, New Hampshire (N5005423D0008); Coastal Marine Services Inc., San Diego, California (N5005423D0009); International Flooring and Protective Coatings Inc., Norfolk, Virginia (N5005423D0010); and Capitol Finishes Inc., Norfolk, Virginia (N5005423D0011), are awarded a $30,842,389 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple award contract to provide interior decking removal and installation. DLP Enterprises is awarded $13,531,262; Titan Decking is awarded $17,970,650; AMP United LLC is awarded $19,609,446; Coastal Marine Services Inc. is awarded $24,572,866; International Flooring and Protective Coatings Inc. is awarded $27,911,861; and Capitol Finishes Inc. is awarded $30,842,389. Each contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the individual ceiling value to $30,842,389. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia, and is expected to be complete by January 2024; and if options are exercised, by January 2028. Fiscal 2023 operations and maintenance (Navy) funding in the amount of $12,000 ($2,000 minimum guarantee per contract) will be obligated at time of award and expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This multiple award contract was procured as a small business set-aside via the System for Award Management website with seven offers received. The Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity.
The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co., Baltimore, Maryland, is awarded a $20,349,359 firm-fixed-price task order (N6247323F4140) under a multiple award construction contract (N62473-21-D-1215) for design, engineering, and construction of a maritime operations and boat maintenance facility, and renovation of a headquarters building to support Special Operations Forces, Naval Special Warfare Command at Naval Base Coronado. Work will be performed in Coronado, California, and is expected to be completed by January 2025. Fiscal 2019, 2020, and 2022 military construction contract funds in the amount of $20,349,359 are obligated on this award. Fiscal 2019 military construction contract funds in the amount of $73,599 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Fiscal 2020 and 2022 military construction contract funds in the amount of $20,275,760 will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Five proposals were received for this task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command Southwest, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity.
