March 28, 2024

Will Hike in Flight Pay Help Retain Pilots?

Pilots

Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the Internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River Morning Coffee logoeconomic community. The opinions expressed here do not reflect opinions of the Leader’s owners or staff.

The Air Force wants to keep its pilots so the service is increasing its flight pay for the first time since 1999, reports Breaking Defense. AFSec Heather Wilson wants to stem the flow of pilots chasing bigger paychecks with America’s airlines.

Divers recovered the bodies of all 10 sailors missing after the USS John S. McCain collided Aug 21 with a tanker in the waters east of the Straits of Malacca, reports NBC News. The Straits Times takes a look at the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore and the investigation that is ongoing on the collision. In the spotlight is the MPA’s Vessel Traffic Information System and how commercial and military vessels navigate the seas. Senior surface warfare officers told Navy Times that today’s US Navy suffers from a disturbing problem: It’s not very good at driving ships.

A US military Black Hawk helicopter crashed Friday off the coast of Yemen during a training exercise, Associated Press reports. One service member is missing; five other aboard were rescued.

Gen. Joseph Votel, US commander for the Middle East, visited Saudi-Yemeni border area for a first-hand look at Saudi Arabia’s military fight against Yemen’s rebels, Army Times reports. This comes as the US presses on with a campaign targeting al-Qaida-linked militants in Yemen.

The US ambassador to Pakistan met with that country’s military chief for a briefing on President Donald Trump’s new war strategy on Afghanistan, Army Times reports. Pakistan was warned to stop harboring insurgents who are battling US forces in Afghanistan. Long War Journal says President Trump’s public acknowledgement of Pakistan’s ties to terrorist groups was unprecedented for a US commander in chief.

Defense News says the relationship between the US and Pakistan is a two-way street, and the Pakistanis have something the US and its allies view as vital – control over supply lines for materiel into Afghanistan, known as the ground lines of communication, or GLOC.

DefSec James Mattis is confident that US-backed Iraqi forces will finish off the Islamic State militants clinging to strongholds that are shrinking in size and number, Associated Press reports.

President Trump’s directive to ban transgender people from serving in the military would cost the federal government about $960 million, UPI News reports. A Palm Center study estimates the cost to replace the transgender service members would be 114 times more than the $8.4 million to provide them care for gender transition.

Northrop Grumman will upgrade the Air Force’s tactical radios — the E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar Systems — on the fleet of surveillance radar aircraft, to securely deliver situational awareness and other threat data, reports Defense Systems.

Lockheed Martin test pilot Billie Flynn talks about what it’s like to flight test the F-16 and the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Aviation Week features Flynn discussing his decades of experience testing cutting-edge aviation technology.

Contracts:

Wyle Laboratories Inc., Huntsville, Alabama, is being awarded an $8,201,006 cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost reimbursable contract for program management support services for the government of Australia F/A-18 Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program. Work will be performed at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland (83 percent); Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington (7 percent); Navy Supply Systems Command, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, (4 percent); Naval Air Station North Island, California (3 percent); Royal Australian Air Force Base Amberley, Queensland, Australia (2 percent); and Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia (1 percent), and is expected to be completed in August 2018. FMS funds in the amount of $384,065 are being obligated on this award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The contract was not competitively procured, pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-4. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00421-17-C-0056).

Mark G. Miller Inc., Layton, Utah (FA8532-17-D-0004); Falcona Intuitive Integrated Solutions, San Antonio, Texas (FA8532-17-D-0005); Strategic Enterprise Solutions Corp., Warner Robins, Georgia (FA8532-17-D-0006); and Ki Ho Military Acquisition Consulting Inc., Reston, Virginia (FA8532-17-D-0007), have been awarded $9,750,000 shared ceiling, firm-fixed price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contracts for munitions handling units and trailers. Work will be performed in Layton, Utah; San Antonio, Texas; Warner Robins, Georgia; Reston, Virginia, and the completion date will differ on individual orders. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, is the contracting activity.

M.A. Mortenson Co., Minneapolis, Minnesota, has been awarded a $27,780,500 firm-fixed-price contract for repair and renovation upgrade of Bachelor Enlisted Quarters Building 3606 at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek – Fort Story. Work will be performed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by September 2019.  Fiscal 2017 operations and maintenance (Navy) contract funds in the amount of $27,780,500 are obligated on this award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website, with 12 proposals received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity (N40085-17-C-0309). (Awarded Aug, 25, 2017)

L3 Computer Sciences Corp., Millersville, Maryland, is being awarded a $9,147,202 modification to a previously awarded contract (N00024-13-C-6239) to exercise options for the production of TB-34X towed array assemblies, cable assemblies, test sets, and engineering services. Work will be performed in Millersville, Maryland (57 percent); Liverpool, New York (40 percent); and Ashaway, Rhode Island (3 percent), and is expected to be completed by April 2019. Fiscal 2017 other procurement (Navy) funding in the amount of $9,147,202 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity. 

Lyon Shipyard Inc., Norfolk, Virginia (N00024-17-D-2216); and Tecnico Corp., Chesapeake, Virginia (N00024-17-D-2218), each have been awarded separate $7,200,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity multiple-award contracts for the service life extension program of 676-class yard patrol boats. The contracts include options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative shared multiple award ceiling value to $43,200,000. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia; and Chesapeake, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by September 2018.  Fiscal 2016 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $50,000 ($25,000 per contractor) was obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The contracts were competitively procured under a small business set-aside via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with seven offers received. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity.  (Awarded Aug. 24, 2017)

LinTech Global Inc., Farmington Hills, Michigan, is being awarded a $9,493,920 fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract under solicitation HE1254-17-R-9002 for services that will assist the Department of Defense Office of the Inspector General  in information technology support functions. This contract includes four one-year options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $48,428,538. This was a competitive acquisition with 19 responses received. Location of performance is Alexandria, Virginia, with an Aug. 31, 2018, performance completion date for the base period and an Aug. 31, 2022, completion date, if all options are exercised. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2017 operations and maintenance funds. The contracting activity is the Department of Defense Education Activity on behalf of the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, Alexandria, Virginia (HE1254-17-D-9002).

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