Women to Register for the Draft, Says Panel
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.
A bipartisan, national commission is recommending women register for the draft, reports Military Times. A panel charged with evaluating the Selective Service System will recommend, for the first time, requiring women between 18 and 25 to register for future military drafts, as all young men are currently required to do.
F-35 testing paused as Edwards Air Force Base in California shuts down to help slow the spread of coronavirus, reports Defense News.com. Flight testing at the installation has been suspended, and tests of the F-35’s Joint Simulation Environment and its cyber protections may also have been been slowed or halted as a result.
Pentagon leaders say the COVID-19 threat won’t end anytime soon, reports Military Times. “I think we need to plan for this to be a few months long at least,” DefSec Mark Esper said. Navy leadership advises commands to follow as best as possible the Centers for Disease Control guidelines, reports USNI News.
Three sailors on board carrier Theodore Roosevelt test positive for COVID-19, reports Navy Times. These are the first cases of the disease caused by the novel coronavirus on a ship underway. It is unknown yet how the sailors may have contracted the illness. Aircraft land on the ship regularly from outside the command and the Navy is trying to trace the sailors’ movements and isolate sailors they’ve been in contact with.
A rotation of several hundred Marines to Norway has been stuck in the country with no date yet to return home due to COVID-19 concerns, reports Marine Corps Times.
Amazon opposes the Pentagon’s proposal to reevaluate parts of its JEDI award, reports Federal Times, arguing DoD’s proposal isn’t “fair and rational” and will “preserve” Microsoft’s win, according to a March 24 court filing.
DoD calls for contractors to maximize telework opportunities in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak, reports FCW.
Three Army field hospitals are ordered to New York, Washington states, reports Army Times, the 531st Hospital from Fort Campbell, KY; the 627th Hospital from Fort Carson, CO; and the 9th Hospital from Fort Hood, TX.
Military Times reports a civilian at Special Operations Command headquarters in Tampa, FL, tested positive for COVID-19. It is the first confirmed case at SOCOM’s headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base, which is also home to US Central Command, which has already had at least two other personnel test positive for the virus that has killed nearly 20,000 around the world.
All elective military medical and dental surgeries on hold amid coronavirus pandemic, reports Military Times, as of March 31, to shore up capacity for the Defense Department’s steady rise in coronavirus cases.
Two US soldiers died at Camp Humphreys in South Korea over the weekend, reports Army Times. The 2nd Infantry Division says their deaths did not stem from the COVID-19 pandemic. Pfc. Marissa Jo Gloria, 25, and Spc. Clay Welch, 20, were pronounced dead by emergency medical personnel after being found unresponsive in their barracks. The cause of their deaths is unclear, and investigations are underway. Welch was a combat medic specialist and died on March 22. Gloria was a combat engineer and died on March 21.
DoD is working to bolster its networks as the number of employees teleworking surges and also to advance the capability and capacity of its network during this rise in demand, C4ISRNET reports.
It costs the Navy $400K per flush to unclog its prized carrier’s oft-congested plumbing, reports Navy Times. According to a Government Accountability Office watchdog report the sewage system pipes onboard the super carrier Gerald R. Ford are too narrow to accommodate the crew of more than 4,000. What’s worse, the carrier George HW Bush, commissioned in 2009, features the same sewage system and is experiencing similar issues.
With Iran tensions high, a US military command pushes a dubious carrier strategy, reports Defense News, operating two carriers in the Middle East which lengthens deployments and deteriorates readiness, say opponents.
BAE execs explain the thinking behind their latest acquisition, reports C4ISRNET. In late January, Arlington, VA-based BAE Systems Inc. announced two acquisitions to bolster its electronic systems sector, a move that reflected a combined investment of $2.2 billion. The purchase included $1.9 billion for Collins Aerospace’s GPS receivers business and $275 million for Raytheon’s tactical airborne radios. Company leaders saw an opportunity.
Contracts:
Smartronix Inc., Hollywood, Maryland, is awarded a $26,565,294 modification (P00011) against a previously awarded cost-plus-fixed-fee task order N00421-19-F-0422 under a general services, Alliant 2 government-wide acquisition contract (47QTCK-18-D-007). Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland, and will provide for the development, planning, execution, monitoring and life cycle services for information technology/cybersecurity programs and activities in support of the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Information Technology and Cyber Security Department. Work is expected to be completed in March 2021. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,832,019 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.
AECOM Technical Services Inc., Los Angeles, California (N62470-19-D-8022); Aptim Federal Services LLC, Alexandria, Virginia (N62470-19-D-8023); CH2M Hill Constructors Inc., Englewood, Colorado (N62470-19-D-8024); Environmental Chemical Corp., Burlingame, California (N62470-19-D-8025); Fluor Intercontinental Inc., Greensville, South Carolina (N62470-19-D-8026); and Perini Management Services Inc., Framingham, Massachusetts (N62470-19-D-8027), are awarded an $11,443,694 modification to increase the maximum dollar value of an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple award. Work will be performed for global contingency construction projects worldwide and provides for the Navy on behalf of the Department of Defense and other federal agencies when authorized to make an immediate response for predominately construction services. Construction and related engineering services will be in response to natural disasters, conflicts, humanitarian assistance and projects with similar characteristics. The term of the contract is not to exceed 60 months with a completion date of March 2024. The contractor may be required to provide initial base operating support services in support of the construction effort, which will be incidental to construction efforts. After award of this modification, the total cumulative contract value will be $1,071,443,694. No funds will be obligated at time of award; funds will be obligated on subsequent modifications for work on existing individual task orders. Naval Facilities Engineering Command Atlantic, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity.
National Industries For The Blind, Alexandria, Virginia, has been awarded a maximum $9,039,000 modification (P00010) exercising the fourth 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. This is an indefinite-delivery contract. Locations of performance are Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee, with an April 6, 2021, performance completion date. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2021 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
