Thanksgiving, Despite Shootings and Conflicts
US Navy Culinary Specialist 3rd Class Rafonzyted Ibasco bastes roast turkey for the crew’s Thanksgiving meal in the galley of the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Mitscher (DDG 57), Nov. 25, 2025. Mitscher is deployed to the US 5th Fleet area of operations to support maritime security and stability in the US Central Command area of responsibility. (Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class William McCann)
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.
Two West Virginia National Guard soldiers were shot on Wednesday near the White House in what officials described as a targeted attack. The suspect is in custody after suffering gunshot wounds during the incident. Both victims are in critical condition, reports CNBC. “This is a targeted attack,” Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser said.
The Trump administration plans to deploy another 500 members of the National Guard DC, reports CBS. The 500 service members will join roughly 2,200 troops already in DC as of Sunday morning. That includes around 900 members of the DC National Guard and more than 1,200 members of several states’ Guard forces.
The US Federal Aviation Adminstration has issued an advisory warning of a “worsening security situation and heightened military activity” in and around Venezuela’s airspace, triggering international airlines to begin suspending flights to and from the country, reports Military.com. The FAA cited increased US military operations in the Caribbean—most notably the deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier strike group and additional warships—as creating risks to civilian aircraft “at all altitudes.” At least seven airlines halted service to Venezuela between Nov. 22-24, with most suspensions listed as indefinite.
GEN Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and President Donald Trump’s primary military adviser, visited American troops Monday in Puerto Rico and on a Navy warship in the region, where the US has amassed an unusually large fleet of warships and has been attacking alleged drug-smuggling boats, reports Military Times.
Colombia’s president alleged the Trump administration’s pressure campaign on Venezuela is more about accessing the South American country’s oil than fighting drug trafficking, reports CNN. “[Oil] is at the heart of the matter,” Gustavo Petro told CNN in an exclusive interview, noting that Venezuela has what are considered the largest oil reserves in the world.
In the US, airlines geared up for the busiest Thanksgiving travel period since 2010, reports Aviation Week.com, with more than 360,000 flights scheduled between Nov. 24 and Dec. 2.
The US Naval Academy relieved CAPT Gilbert Clark Jr.,as commandant of midshipmen, on Monday, five months after he assumed the position, reports Military Times. He was relieved by academy Superintendent LTGEN Gen. Michael Borgschulte, the first Marine Corps officer to serve as the service academy’s superintendent, and who replaced VADM Yvette M. Davids in July, the first woman to serve as the superintendent of the school.
The century-old partnership between the US military and Scouting could be coming to an end, reports NPR. DefSec Pete Hegseth is planning for the military to sever all ties with Scouting America, saying the group once known as the Boy Scouts is no longer a meritocracy and has become an organization designed to “attack boy-friendly spaces.” In a draft memo to Congress, Hegseth criticizes Scouting for being “genderless” and for promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Hegseth told the admirals and generals in September he felt proscriptions against bullying and hazing were “undercutting commanders and [noncommissioned officers].” But complaints about these practices were already growing, reports Military Times. Congress mandated tracking of the reporting and adjudication of hazing and bullying within the armed forces, excluding boot camp and entry-level training. A June report found, in FY24, troops submitted 138 complaints of hazing, with 31 (22%) substantiated, compared with 121 complaints and 29 (24%) substantiations in FY23. In FY24, troops also submitted 1,058 reports of bullying with 227 (21%) substantiated, compared with 932 bullying reports and 175 (19%) substantiations in FY23.
US Africa Command announced its 100th airstrike of the year in Somalia, Stars and Stripes reports on America’s most aggressive campaign against Islamic militants in east Africa. This year’s strikes exceed previous years and could double 2019’s previous high of 63. Since September, the US has conducted 21 separate strikes in the Caribbean Sea, and at least 28 US strikes on militants in Somalia.
Starlink mission of Nov. 20 was the 100th orbital launch of the year and the first time Cape Canaveral and Kennedy Space Center have seen triple-digit activity in a single calendar year, reports Space News. COL Brian Chatman, commander of Space Launch Delta 45, described the triple-digit activity as the new normal and called for a broad modernization to address the inadequacy of the Apollo era assets.
The Pentagon has threatened Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), a veteran, with a recall to service to face a court-martial or other “administrative measures” for joining other lawmakers in a video calling upon US troops to refuse unlawful orders, reports Military.com. The Pentagon suggested Kelly’s videoed statements interfered with the “loyalty, morale, or good order and discipline of the armed forces” by citing the federal law that prohibits such actions.
Ten military veterans of different service and rank have made their own video in support of Kelly and his congressional colleagues, reports Military.com. They describe the Pentagon’s move as unprecedented and a politically motivated use of Uniform Code of Military Justice authority.
Less than a year after a 162-day deployment in December 2024, USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) departed Friday from Naval Station San Diego, CA, for a Pacific deployment, USNI News reports. The deployment is a break from the Navy’s Optimized Fleet Response Plan, which dictates a 36-month schedule of maintenance, training and deployment. San Diego-based carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) also broke from the OFRP cycle. After wrapping up an almost four-and-a-half-month deployment, in early 2024, Carl Vinson returned to San Diego for exercises and to participate in the 2024 Rim of the Pacific Exercise, before leaving again on Nov. 18, 2024, for an almost nine-month deployment, returning in August.
The US Navy is canceling its Constellation frigate program following months of cost overruns and delays but plans to keep two vessels that are already being built in Wisconsin, reports Defense News. NavSec John Phelan said the four ships under contract but yet to be built by Fincantieri will be canceled.
The Army has announced nine installations under consideration for its next-generation nuclear Microreactor power plant, reports Military.com. They are Fort Benning, Fort Bragg, Fort Campbell, Fort Drum, Fort Hood, Fort Wainwright, Holston Army Ammunition Plant, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, and Redstone Arsenal.
Breaking Defense reports the Navy is inviting defense industry, venture capital, and private investors to gather in Washington, DC, and Arlington, VA, Dec. 9 and 10 for a briefing on the service’s Naval Rapid Capabilities Office, according to a public notice.
The US-backed 28-point peace plan to end the war in Ukraine, drew from a Russian-authored paper submitted to the Trump administration in October. The original plan has changed dramatically since then, reports Reuters. Nine points were cut following talks between senior US and Ukrainian officials, according to ABC News. A bipartisan group of US senators said on Saturday that SecState Marco Rubio told them the 28-point plan was not a US plan but instead a Russian wish list, although the White House and State Department vigorously denied that Rubio had characterized it as such.
Contracts:
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Linthicum Heights, Maryland, was awarded a ceiling $100,000,000 cost reimbursement, firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for Stand-in Attack Weapon Subsystem support. This contract provides for active seeker specific support associated for components, test and evaluation support, science and technology development. Work will be performed at Baltimore, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2034. This contract was a sole source acquisition. Fiscal 2025 research and development funds in the amount of $21,953 are being obligated at time of award. The Air Force Lifecycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, is the contracting activity (FA865926DB001).
Emagine IT Inc., Bethesda, Maryland, was awarded $32,781,760 firm-fixed-price contract for advisory and assistant services. This contract provides for advisory and assistance services to the Department of the Air Force Chief Information Officer in support of cybersecurity, information technology governance, and workforce development initiatives. Work will be performed in Washington, DC, and is expected to be completed by Sept. 29, 2029. This contract was a competitive acquisition, and eight offers were received. Fiscal 2026 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $1,602109 are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force District of Washington, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity (FA701426F0004).
KBR Wyle Services LLC, Chantilly, Virginia, was awarded a maximum $12,822,929 firm-fixed-price contract for Eddy Current inspection services. This contract provides for preventative and remedial services support and sustainment for the eddy current inspection hardware and associated software. Work will be performed at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, and is expected to be completed by Nov. 30, 2030. This contract was a sole source acquisition. Fiscal 2026 working capital funds in the amount of $2,454,125 are being obligated at time of award. The Air Force Sustainment Center Maintenance Contracting Branch, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma is the contracting activity (FA813226C0001).
Insignia Federal Group LLC, McLean, Virginia, was competitively awarded a $12,466,726 firm-fixed-price contract (HT0011-26-C-E001) to support the Defense Health Agency TRICARE Health Plan (THP) enterprise. This contract provides for the support of the THP programs and activities including purchased health care services, human resources programs for the Assistant Director, Health Care Administration; the Deputy Assistant Director, Health Care Operations; and THP front office operations, assisting program managers with contract transitions, providing program integration support, and providing analytical support to program managers. The place of performance is Falls Church, Virigina; Aurora, Colorado; and San Antonio, Texas. The contract is for a base period of 12 months with three option periods. This award was the result of a competitive acquisition amongst small businesses. Fiscal 2026 operation and maintenance funds in the amount of $12,466,726 will be executed, subject to the availability of funds, for the 12-month base period from Oct. 7, 2025, to Oct. 8, 2026. The Defense Health Agency, Professional Services Contracting Division, Falls Church, Virginia, was the contracting activity. (Awarded October 7, 2025)
