• Defense Secretary Leon Panetta’s first message to DoD staff emphasizes the importance of discipline in the management of taxpayer resources. This will underpin the DoD’s commitment to preserving the ‘excellence and superiority’ of the military while looking for savings.

• Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says that one of Panetta’s biggest challenges will be fending off White House and congressional initiatives to reduce defense expenditure. Rumsfeld also echoed former Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ opinion that defense spending was not responsible for the budget deficit, before offering his own solutions to reducing expenditure.

• Russia’s Defense Minister, Anatoly Serdyukov, pours cold water over United Shipbuilding Corporation’s claims that the country has plans to build aircraft carriers over the next 10 years. According to Serdyukov, the Defense Ministry has requested a draft design of an aircraft carrier to consider its ‘conceptual and technical solutions’.
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• Reuters reports that the Chinese language Liberation Army Daily newspaper has published an article advocating that China builds up cyber warfare capabilities to counter American attempts to “seize the commanding military heights on the Internet”.

• Boeing will lay off up to 225 people at its Wichita, KS facility, as the civilian and military demand cycle drops for certain programs. The Wichita facility is involved in programs like the C-40 Clipper executive and transport fleet, E-4B and E-6B national command aircraft, ongoing support for the B-52H bomber, and soon, final conversion of the KC-46A aerial tankers.

• The French  Directorate General of Armaments awards Zodiac Milpro [PDF] a contract for 20 multi-purpose commando RIBs (ECUME) and four air delivery systems (SLE).

• Rheinmetall unveils new HE DM-11 secondary ammunition for MBT 120mm smoothbore guns. The HE DM-11 can be fired from any in-service 120 mm smoothbore gun and is deemed safe to fire in all climate zones.

• As the Arctic continues to increase in strategic significance Defence Watch considers the Canadian Armed Forces’ procurement requirements.

• Now a former U.S. defense industry CEO joins the debate regarding China’s J-20 fighter.

• Danger Room ponders over the topics to be covered by DARPA’s 100 Years Starship conference. The program ties ethical and moral concerns to DARPA’s quest to achieve interstellar flight by 2111. If Jack Kirby’s - the creator of the Silver Surfer cartoon – comments are anything to go by, then the defense industry will be more than welcome to attend.

• Run down: The Balisle Report offers an alarming picture of a US Navy whose readiness and reliability issues extend far beyond just its new multi-billion dollar LPD-17 program.

• Help Wanted: President Obama calls on the private sector to take on more of the civilian tasks in Afghanistan and Iraq, such as building schools and establishing a justice system. Perhaps one day they’ll also get to take on more civilian tasks in America.

• Yard Sale: US military sells surplus items to Iraqis, such as trailers, refrigerators, and latrines, as US troops prepare to withdraw. A slew of more serious military stuff is also on the way.

• Early Warning: Iran has sent advanced radar systems to Syria to provide early warning for Israeli air sorties against Iranian nuclear facilities, the WSJ reports. That won’t help much if they go through Saudi Arabia.

• On the Block?: Applied Signal Technology, a Sunnyvale, CA-based C4ISR supplier to the US military, is seen as the next possible takeover target following Boeing’s agreement to buy Argon ST.

• Eurohawk UAV: First flight for Northrop Grumman/EADS RQ-4 ELINT variant.

• Laser mine-hunter: ALMDS flight tests have begun.

• Can You Hear Me Now?: iGov snags contract worth up to $25 million to supply an expeditionary computer network that can be used for collaboration by US Marines in the field.

• Chillin’: Todd Shipyards in Seattle, WA gets $12.9 million contract modification to support reactivation of the icebreaker USCG Cutter Polar Star (WAGB-10); last year the shipyard got a similar order to repair the icebreaker USCG Cutter Healey (WAGB-20).

US Coast Guard Cutter Healy

The US Coast Guard awarded Todd Pacific Shipyards in Seattle, WA a $12.5 million modification to a previously awarded contract (HSCG85-05-C-625306) in support of repairs and alterations performed during the triennial Dry-Docking Planned Maintenance Availability (DPMA) of the icebreaker USCG Cutter Healy (WAGB-20).

The contract modification provides for repair and maintenance of the ship’s main propulsion system, auxiliary systems, and other structural, mechanical, and electrical features aboard the ship, including underwater hull inspection and renewal.

The USCG Cutter Healy is the USA’s largest icebreaker…

On the list again

Naval Open Source Intelligence is a good set of quick links to international navy-related stories in the news. Each year, they also add a summary of their take on the most significant trends and items to their “Naval Year in Review” set.

They’ve added the 2008 list, which includes piracy, the continuing crisis in US Navy shipbuilding (4 of last 5 years, see DID), environmental groups’ lawfare against the US Navy (2 of last 3 years, see DID), the steady growth of the Chinese Navy, the use of semi-submersibles to smuggle drugs into the USA (see readings), humanitarian operations, arctic sovereignty, and more.

Small business qualifier Nana Pacific LLC in Anchorage, AK received a $6.7 million firm-fixed-price contract for construction of a new antenna addition and a weather vestibule between existing buildings, relocation of a fuel storage tank, and expansion of the area within the security fence at Fort Greely, Alaska, an existing defense satellite communications system facility.

Fort Greely is a launch site for anti-ballistic missiles and home of the Cold Regions Test Center (CRTC), as it is one of the coldest areas in Alaska (get the current forecast). Imagine the fun experience in store, with work lasting through fall and winter and ending on March 15, 2008. This was a sole source contract initiated on Nov. 13, 2006 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Elmendorf Air Force Base, AK (W911KB-07-C-0002).

K-159 before departure,
moored at Gremikha base
(click to expand)

According to a British report published June 10, 2005, Russia’s scrapped atomic submarines pose a serious nuclear threat. Russia must act to prevent a nuclear accident in northwest Russia’s Barents Sea region, home to 118 scrapped nuclear submarines as well as spent nuclear fuel storage sites, said Mark Gerchikov, coordinator of the report from British consulting firm National Nuclear Corporation. It was funded by the 60-nation European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

The USSR built 450 naval nuclear reactors, beginning in 1958. Of these, two-thirds are located in the Barents Sea region, representing 20% of the world’s nuclear reactors. “Certain nuclear installations are in such a state that we cannot exclude a chain reaction” leading to a nuclear accident, Gerchikov said at the report’s presentation.