Computer Science Corp. in Falls Church, VA received a $11.3 million order under a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (M67854-02-A-9004) for C4ISR support to the Marine Corps Systems Command’s Marine Corps Tactical Systems Support Activity (MCTSSA). The order has pre-priced options of $1.2 million, which if exercised, would bring the total order value to $12.6 million.

MCTSSA is the Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence (C4I) Systems Engineering Interoperability, Architecture, and Technology (SIAT) center for the US Marine Corps…

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General Dynamics C4 Systems in Scottsdale, AZ received a $7.6 million contract to develop a new KG-530 SONET OC-768C in-line encryptor in support of a National Security Agency (NSA) initiative to secure and distribute data at 40 gigabits per second (Gbps) for US military and civilian government networks.

The KG-530 will secure large image, data and video files, classified up to and including Top Secret, that travel through US military and government networks…

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ManTech International received a $76 million contract to provide IT operations and mission support for the National Media Exploitation Center (NMEC).

ManTech will provide NMEC with data center operations, network operations, software engineering, systems engineering, information assurance, requirements management, configuration management, and project/program management support.

NMEC was set up in the aftermath of 9/11…

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Raytheon has completed its acquisition of BBN Technologies, a provider of high-tech defense products, for approximately $350 million, subject to post-closing adjustments.

BBN’s defense portfolio includes advanced networking, speech and language technologies, information technologies, sensor systems, and cybersecurity products. BBN has won numerous contracts from the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to supply advanced technologies for the military…

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Galileo concept
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The European Union is cooperating with a number of outside investors to replace the USA’s free Global Positioning System service with an alternative under their own control. In addition to civilian GPS (the Open Service), services to be offered include a paid Commercial Service (with accuracy greater than 1 meter), and a Public Regulated Service (PRS)/ Safety of Life Service (SoL) for use by security authorities (police, military, etc.) and safety-critical transport applications (air-traffic control, automated aircraft landing, etc.). PRS/SoL aims to offer Open Service quality, with added robustness against jamming and the reliable detection of problems within 10 seconds.

Organizational issues and shortfalls in expected progress pushed the “Galileo” project back from its originally intended operational date of 2007 to 2013-14 – and doubts persist in several quarters about its economic model, even as security issues arise regarding China’s COMPASS project. After a public-private partnership model failed to agree among themselves or with the EU’s desired terms, the organization gained initial-stage approval for its plan to finance the program with tax dollars instead of the expected private investments. Political issues were overcome, albeit with some protest, by raiding other EU accounts for over EUR 3 billion (about $5.35 billion) in funds, rather than asking for more money from member states.

The latest set of updates cover developments in Galileo, and in related programs like GIOVE and EGNOS. While the project’s base funding is now more secure, its ability to remain within budget faces issues, as does the expected launch timetable. Recent events may even lead to a smaller Galileo constellation…

• Galileo: Goals, Structure & Costs
• “Eppur, Si Bloccare”: Trials & Tribulations [updated]
• Contracts and Key Events [updated]
• Appendix A: The EU Proposal – Going Forward (2007)
• Appendix B: Additional Readings [updated]
• Appendix C: Additional Readings – The Security Dimension
  
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AEHF concept
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DID’s FOCUS articles offer in-depth, updated looks at significant military programs of record. This article offers a look at the AEHF system’s rationale and capabilities, while offering insight into some of the program’s problems, and an updated timeline covering over $5 billion worth of contracts since the program’s inception.

The USA’s new Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellites will support twice as many tactical networks, while providing 10-12 times the capacity and 6 times higher data rate transfer than that of the current Milstar II satellites. With the cancellation of the higher-capacity TSAT program, AEHF will form the secure, hardened backbone of the Pentagon’s future Military Satellite Communications (MILSATCOM) architecture. Its companion Family of Advanced Beyond-line-of-sight Terminals (FAB-T) program will give the US military modern capabilities, and more flexibility on the receiving end. The program has international components, and partners include Britain, Canada, and the Netherlands.

This article has been updated with a recent contract for Boeing to provide engineering development models for the FAB-T, and a $50+ million order from Canada…

• The AEHF Program (i.e. “Continue reading…”)
• FAB-T Terminals and Ground Control
• FAB-T: Contracts and Key Events, full history [updated]
• The AEHF Satellites
• The AEHF Satellites: Contracts & Key Events, full history
• Additional Readings
  
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The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) awarded a $31 million contract to a team lead by Lockheed Martin to develop a network protocol to improve the confidentiality, integrity, and security of US military networks.

In developing this new protocol, Lockheed Martin’s team will develop router technologies that include strong authentication and self-configuration capabilities to improve security and bandwidth allocation and lower overall life cycle costs for network management.

Lockheed Martin’s team includes Microsoft, Juniper Networks, Anagran, Stanford University, and LGS Innovations, which has been quite active in securing military IT business on its own…

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Defense was an issue in the last Australian election. The center-left Labor Party attacked the center-right Liberal Party by citing mismanaged projects, and accusing the Howard government of making poor choices on key defense platforms like the F/A-18F Super Hornet and F-35A Joint Strike fighters. That sniping continued even after Labor won the election, and has been evident in more than a few Defence Ministry releases.

The new government made some program changes, such as canceling the SH-2G Seasprite contract. Yet it has been more notable for the programs it has not changed: problematic upgrades of Australia’s Oliver Hazard Perry frigates were continued, the late purchase of F/A-18F Super Hornets was ratified rather than canceled, and observers waited for the real shoe to drop: the government’s promised 2009 Defence White Paper, which would lay out Australia’s long-term strategic assessments, and procurement plans.

On May 2/09, Australia’s government released “Defending Australia in the Asia Pacific Century: Force 2030.” DID has reviewed that document, and the reaction to date… including a new ASPI roundup of reactions from around Asia.

• Fast Incoming
• The Highlight Reel
• Additional Readings & Assessments [updated]
  
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Small businesses – which traditionally have done very well competing against larger firms for the first NetCents program – are now complaining that the Air Force is gaming the system to gut set-aside requirements to small businesses in the second NetCents round.

The Network Operations and Infrastructure Solutions project – a $4.2 billion Air Force effort to provide IT purchasing services to various government agencies, part of the Network Centric Solutions 2 (NetCents 2) contract – will likely employ NAICS codes that include a greater number of potential vendors than was the case in the first round.

Defense Systems reports hearing from small businesses, cited anonymously, that they fear the Air Force is broadening the pool of vendors for its convenience, contravening stated precedence. The story reports that an official from the Air Force Small Business Programs Office warned that recent proceedings indicated this change may make the whole program vulnerable to successful challenges and related delays.

ManTech International received the follow-on contract for the Analytic Space (A-Space) program from the US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA). A-Space, which was developed by ManTech, is a collaborative workspace for analysts from 16 different intelligence agencies. The contract is valued at $11 million with a base year and 2 option years and includes Jive Software, NavStar, and SAIC as team members.

A-Space is a joint initiative of DIA and the US Director of National Intelligence (DNI) designed to give analysts secure access to text, graphics, imagery and video intelligence spanning multiple classifications with appropriate security controls. The application, which is similar to Web 2.0 social networking programs, now has over 10,000 users within the intelligence community.

The use of a Web 2.0-like application enables the intelligence community to break down long-standing barriers to sharing information…

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