Morning Coffee: DoD Contracts Continue Dive
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.
DOD contracts fell 48 percent in February extending a drop that has awards near the lowest level in almost two years, reports Bloomberg. The Pentagon announced contracts with a maximum value of $12 billion last month, compared with $23.1 billion a year earlier. A consulting executive stated that military officials, “have sent a very clear message that they are going to be curtailing spending. And when they do spend, they’re going to do so with a very close eye on price.”
The Navy is updating 170 Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighter jets with a next-generation infrared sensor designed to locate air-to-air targets in a high-threat electronic attack environment, reports DefenseTech. The Infrared Search and Track “is a passive, long-range sensor that searches for and detects infrared emissions. The system can simultaneously track multiple targets and provide a highly effective air-to-air targeting capability, even when encountering advanced threats equipped with radar-jamming technology,” said program manager Capt. Frank Morley.
The USS Kidd and its MH-60 Seahawk helicopters have been removed from the search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, reports the Los Angeles Times. The Navy will continue deploying its P-8 Poseidon and P-3 Orion submarine-hunting aircraft which can search up to 15,000 square miles in one nine-hour flight with advanced surface search radars and sensors.
A 2013 Chinese rocket launch that was described as a research mission was actually a test of a new anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon based on a road-mobile ballistic missile, reports Reuters. A recently released analysis indicates that China may be testing an interceptor launched by a new rocket that could reach geostationary orbit about 22,500 miles above the earth. Brian Weeden, publisher of the report, said, “No other country has tested a direct ascent ASAT weapon system that has the potential to reach deep space satellites in medium earth orbit, highly elliptical orbit or geostationary orbit.”
NavSec Ray Mabus released the results of the Navy’s investigation into circumstances surrounding last year’s Navy Yard mass shooting that killed 12 people, reports The Hill. The report, released on Tuesday, determined that there were “missed opportunities for intervention that, had they been pursued, could have prevented the tragic result at the Washington Navy Yard.” The investigation concentrated on the the shooter’s background, the effectiveness of Navy policies designed to safeguard staff and the post-incident response. Mr. Mabus stated, “Safeguarding our people remains critical to our national security. Through all of the actions taken as a result of the investigation, we seek to improve our ability to protect our people, and reduce the likelihood that events like this will happen again.”
The USS Ronald Reagan encountered radiation levels that far exceeded what Navy officers had been told to expect by the Japanese government when it responded to the 2011 Fukushima nuclear crisis in Japan, reports Stars and Stripes. A recent report claims that the carrier was exposed to radiation levels that were 30 times greater than normal. The Navy has said that sailors were not exposed to harmful levels even though personnel were told to scrub the ship and equipment in protective suits.
Lockheed Martin won three 2014 Manufacturing Leadership Awards recognizing achievements in advanced manufacturing, environmentally friendly practices and customer relationships, reports MarketWatch. Orlando Carvalho, executive vice president for Lockheed Martin’s Aeronautics business said, “We’re honored to receive this recognition for our focus on delivering quality products with efficiency and full respect for the environment. Our innovations improve quality, reduce cost and address our customers’ most pressing needs.”
The Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society (NMCRS) is providing classes to help personnel start planning and budgeting for an upcoming “bundle of joy” arrival, according to dcmilitary.com. Maureen Farrell, director of the NMCRS office at NAS Patuxent River said, “The class provides information about the financial impact of adding to your family. We talk to parents, new and experienced, about the financial things to consider during the baby’s first year and beyond; and participants also share their own experience and tips with the group.” The next “Budget for Baby Class” is on March 26; Building #401, 10 a.m. to noon, 301-342-7439.
Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, is being awarded an $118,875,655 modification to a previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee contract (N00019-12-C-0004) for the repair and replenishment of government-owned Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft assets. These JSF aircraft assets include spare parts on JSF jets, training devices, support equipment and Autonomic Logistics Information System equipment. Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas (35 percent); El Segundo, Calif. (25 percent); Warton, United Kingdom (20 percent); Orlando, Fla. (10 percent); Nashua, N.H. (5 percent); and Baltimore, Md. (5 percent), and is expected to be completed in October 2014. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.
