Navy Consolidating Autonomous Acquisitions

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A new office consolidating the development and purchasing of autonomous systems into a single entity will be the US Navy’s first effort under the new era of Pentagon acquisition reform, USNI News reports. The Portfolio Acquisition Executive Robotic Autonomous System will absorb up to 66 programs across 18 different offices and account for about $19 billion in acquisitions over the next five years. It’s unclear whether a military or civilian director will be named or when.

President Donald Trump announced Monday that he will sell F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, praising the kingdom’s strong partnership with the United States, reports AP News. The announcement came on the eve of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s first visit to the US in more than seven years.

The Strategic Defense Agreement with Saudi Arabia that approved the sale of F-35 fighters also included 300 Abrams tanks to go to the Middle East ally, reports Breaking Defense. The agreement “is a win for the America First agenda, making it easier for US, defense firms to operate in Saudi Arabia,” according to a statement from the White House.

The UN Security Council on Monday authorized a US plan for an international stabilization force to provide security in Gaza and envisions a possible future path to an independent Palestinian state, CBS News reports. Russia, which had circulated a rival resolution, abstained along with China on the 13-0 vote.

US Marines returned fire this week when suspected Haitian gang members fired on American forces protecting the US Embassy in Port-au-Prince, reports Military Times. No Marines were hurt in the attack. This was not the first time suspected gang members opened fire near the US embassy, which is surrounded by three major armed groups. This US response sends the message, fire on US embassy personnel or property and expect to be fired upon, says Military.com. Gangs control 90% of Haiti’s capital, where they extort businesses and fight for territory using heavy weaponry.

Another US attack on an alleged drug trafficking boat in the eastern Pacific occurred on Saturday, killing three people aboard, reports The Guardian. Trump said the US may open talks with Nicolas Maduro, the Venezuelan president.

The Trump administration has disclosed 21 strikes, killing at least 82 people, Military Times tallied as of Nov. 17.

Troops from the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit began night-time training this week throughout Trinidad and Tobago, the Caribbean island nation only miles from Venezuela, reports Task & Purpose. The training runs through Nov. 21.

Cartels are using first-person view drones, replicating military tactics in Ukraine, reports Defense News. Last month, the latest high-profile attack came from three drones rigged with explosives detonated outside a prosecutor’s office in Tijuana, Mexico, besieging six cars parked outside with a blast of nails, BBs, and metal fragments. The Mexican government confirmed a cartel orchestrated the attack and targeted a government anti-kidnapping unit.

Former StateSec Mike Pompeo has joined the advisory board of Ukraine’s leading defense company, renowned for long-range drones capable of striking targets deep inside Russia, and for an ongoing corruption investigation into the company’s origins. Military.com reports that Fire Point, expanding and establishing a new factory in Denmark, seeks prominent industry figures to enhance its international reputation. Critics allege the company has links to Tymur Mindich, who is implicated in a major Ukranian corruption scandal.

A drone struck a Turkish-flagged tanker and set it ablaze a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a deal to import US liquefied natural gas through the area, reports Military.com. The MT Orinda was hit during the offloading of liquefied petroleum gas at Izmail port in southern Ukraine’s Odesa region. All 16 crew on board evacuated, and no one was hurt.

The Pentagon is building an “Amazon-like marketplace” for agencies to purchase counter-drone equipment, reports TMZ. The marketplace will resemble the hub the Army created for equipment and components of drones where commanders and partners like the FBI, Homeland Security, and local law enforcement can shop and also “go online, look for capabilities and user feedback,” said a military spokesperson. The effort comes as the US faces an increasing number of incursions over military facilities and across the continent.

Navy SEALS seek a civilian contractor to launch a 10-day school to teach its troops how to build and fly first-person-view drones, repair them, and put operators through a final field exercise, reports Task & Purpose. The listing on sam.gov calls for the 10-day course to include 35 hours of training, five hours of hands-on drone building, and 40 hours of actual flying.

The Washington National Guard simulated drone attacks on Seattle’s Lumen Field earlier this month in an exercise that put the 2026 FIFA World Cup center stage, reports Defense News. Next year’s FIFA World Cup will see soccer matches held in 11 major metropolitan stadiums across the United States, which will host games along with Canada and Mexico. The Nov. 5 rehearsals, part of the Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems Summit, were hosted by MAJGEN Gent Welsh, Washington’s adjutant general and homeland security adviser.

The biennial Dubai Air Show opened Monday with hometown airline Emirates ordering 65 of Boeing’s upcoming 777-9 aircraft, as the carrier looks to increase its fleets off record earnings and unending demand for flights through this East-West travel hub, reports AP News. Emirates valued the deal with Boeing and GE Engines at $38 billion at list prices, although airlines often negotiate lower prices in major orders.

Rarely encountered aircraft such as Russia’s Su-57 stealth fighter and China’s CH-9 drone are part of the Dubai Airshow and much more. Breaking Defense provides  multimedia coverage of it all.

The US Marine Corps has deployed a unit equipped with MQ-9A Reaper drones to the South China Sea to support Philippine forces amid a series of clashes with Chinese vessels. The unit is deployed on a temporary basis, and the drones are unarmed, reports Defense News.

Veterans advocacy groups are already offering support for a bill introduced on Monday to add $10,000 a year to the disability compensation rate for veterans with catastrophic injuries and their survivors, reports Stars and Stripes. The bill also would increase monthly support by 1% a year for the next five years for the survivors of veterans and military members who died from their injuries.

Lawmakers want the Department of Veterans Affairs to inform veterans about which toxic exposure illnesses the agency is studying behind closed doors, reports Military.com. A new bill would require the VA to establish a public website on processes the agency uses to determine which conditions are correlated with military toxic exposures.

The Navy has begun mobilizing to salvage an F/A-18 fighter jet and MH-60R helicopter lost Oct. 26, off USS Nimitz in the South China Sea, reports Breaking Defense.

Air Force families can go-ahead with early Christmas decorations after an outcry against stricter guidelines previously issued by their private housing company, reports Task & Purpose. The housing management offices for Tyndall Air Force Base, FL, and Grand Forks Air Force Base, ND, said guidelines specifying decorations cannot be displayed until the last week of November are not hard and fast and were “never meant to be strictly enforced.”

The US Navy commissioned the 19th and final Independence-class littoral combat ship, the USS Pierre officially entered service, at a time when the Navy is looking to scrap or repurpose littoral combat ships, reports Task & Purpose.

Blue Origin’s successful second launch last week of its New Glenn heavy lifter — including its first landing of the reusable booster at sea — clears the penultimate hurdle for company to begin launching critical national security payloads, reports Breaking Defense.

The new Naval Inspector General and US 7th Fleet commander VADM Patrick Hannifin became the 55th commander of  7th Fleet last week, reports USNI, taking over for VADM Fred Kacher.

The only American military cemetery in the Netherlands removed, in March, panels displaying the contributions of Black American soldiers during WWII, sparking outrage from Dutch and American citizens, reports Military Times. The American Battle Monuments Commission, which oversees the Netherlands American Cemetery and Memorial, was queried, also in March, by the Heritage Foundation, a right-wing think tank, regarding compliance with Trump’s anti-DEI initiatives. Priscilla Rayson, ABMC’s chief diversity officer, was placed on administrative leave shortly thereafter.

The Royal Navy’s HMS Prince of Wales has reached full operating capability and is now under NATO command, reports UK Defence Journal. This is the first European carrier strike group equipped with fifth generation jets committed to the alliance, according to the Ministry of Defence and reflects a NATO-first posture in defence planning and a renewed focus on European security.

Contracts:

Defense Maritime Solutions Inc., Chesapeake, Virginia, is awarded a $13,132,833 modification to exercise Option Year Three of a previously awarded firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N55236-23-D-0002) in support of the original equipment -manufacturer for the Littoral Combat Ships Independence-variant for waterjets, shafts, and seals. The overall total contract value ceiling remains unchanged at $60,582,873. Work will be performed at Mayport, Florida (40%); San Diego, California (40%); and various locations that will be determined at the delivery order level (20%). Option Year Three shall be from Jan. 1, 2026, through Dec. 31, 2026. No funds will be obligated at the time of award of contract modification; funds will be obligated on individual delivery orders as they are issued. Southwest Regional Maintenance Center, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity.

Balfour Beatty, Falls Church, Virginia (N40080-23-D-0026); Clark Construction Group LLC, Bethesda, Maryland (N40080-23-D-0027); Consigli Construction Co. Inc., Washington, D.C. (N40080-23-D-0028); Grunley Construction Co. Inc., Rockville, Maryland (N40080-23-D-0029); Hensel Phelps Construction Company, Tysons, Virginia (N40080-23-D-0030); M. A. Mortenson Company, McLean, Virginia (N40080-24-D-9500); and Walsh Federal LLC, Chicago, Illinois (N40080-24-D-9501), are awarded a combined $93,000,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity modification to their respective previously-awarded contracts for large general construction projects. This award brings the total combined cumulative value of all seven contracts to $1,043,000,000. The contract modification is for additional capacity to order construction services throughout the duration of the contract vehicle. Work for this contract vehicle is performed for Navy and Marine Corps (70%); Air Force (25%); and other government facilities (5%), within the Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Washington area of operations and is expected to be completed by September 2028. No funds will be obligated at time of the awarded modifications. NAVFAC Washington, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity.

Innovative Defense Technologies LLC, Arlington, Virginia, was awarded a $48,990,984 cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-21-C-5100) to provide engineering labor and support for automated test and analysis requirements. This contract action combines purchases for the Navy (99%); and the government of Australia (1%), under the Foreign Military Sales program. Work will be performed in Arlington, Virginia (53%); Mount Laurel, New Jersey (40%); and San Diego, California (7%), and is expected to be completed by November 2026. Fiscal 2025 research, development, test, and evaluation (Navy) funds in the amount of $8,181,578 (56%); fiscal 2024 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $4,119,970 (28%); fiscal 2025 defense-wide research, development, test, and evaluation funds in the amount of $2,000,000 (14%); and Foreign Military Sales (Australia) funds in the amount of $199,993 (1%), will be obligated at time of award, of which $14,301,548 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity. (Awarded Nov. 17, 2025)

General Dynamics Electric Boat Corp., Groton, Connecticut, was awarded a $2,283,291,317 cost-only modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-17-C-2117) for additional advance procurement and advance construction Columbia-class fleet ballistic missile submarine hulls (SSBN 828-832), and to support additional program execution in accordance with Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) 252.232-7998 – Obligations in Advance of Fiscal Year 2026 Funding (Deviation 2026-O0001). Work will be performed in Groton, Connecticut (70%); Newport News, Virginia (15%); and Quonset Point, Rhode Island (15%), and is expected to be completed by December 2031. No funding will be obligated at the time of award. Fiscal 2026 National Sea-Based Deterrence Fund funds in the amount of $2,229,067,000 (98%); and fiscal 2026 other procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $54,224,317 (2%), will be obligated at the time made available and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, was the contracting activity. (Awarded Nov. 12, 2025)

BAE Systems Ordnance Systems Inc., Radford, Virginia, was awarded a $20,348,798 firm-fixed-price contract for the procurement and storage of sheeted cotton linters. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2026. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, is the contracting activity (W519TC-26-F-0002). (Awarded Nov. 14, 2025)

Mantech Advanced Systems International Inc., Herndon, Virginia, has been awarded a $42,990,248 modification (P00175) to a previously awarded contract (FA8819-18-C-1001) for continued specialized acquisition and operations security services. The modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $333,281,082 from $290,290,835. Work will be performed at Los Angeles Air Force Base, and Vandenberg Space Force Base, California; and Peterson SFB, and Schriever SFB, Colorado, and is expected to be completed by Nov. 16, 2026. Fiscal 2025 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $3,319,456; fiscal 2025 Space Force procurement funds in the amount of $435,553; and fiscal 2026 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $1,768,160, are being obligated at time of award. The Space Systems Command, Los Angeles AFB, California, is the contracting activity. (Awarded Nov. 14, 2025)

UPDATE: Atlantic Diving Supply Inc., Virginia Beach, Virginia (SPE2DF-26-D-0003, $18,000,000), has been added as an awardee to the multiple award contract for laboratory equipment, accessories and consumables for the Defense Logistics Agency Electronic Catalog, issued against solicitation SPE2DE-22-R-0006 and awarded Feb. 24, 2023. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.