• USA DOE drawing up a strategic plan to deal with China’s dominance of key “rare-earth” mineral supplies.

• People as policy: Northrop Grumman appoints new head for X-47B N-UCAS stealth UAV program – but that’s just one piece of a bigger picture.

• Littoral Combat Ship Freedom (LCS 1) performs drug busts, but sharp debate escalates over the class’ lack of armament and suitability for its missions.

• Rocky Mountain Instrument (RMI) in Lafayette, CO fined $1 million for exporting defense-related optics to China, Russia and other nations without a license. US Justice Department release | RMI release | Denver Business Journal | Associated Press

• Low tech IEDs in Afghanistan vs. high-tech US counter IED devices: number of attacks double.

• Raytheon sets up new missile defense product line, gets $11.9 million order to support Patriot missile field surveillance program.

• UK MoD, Defence Industries Council offer tech exhibition at Yeomanry House.

• Can you hear me now? B-2 bomber gets EHF SATCOM hardware; system has been 3 years in development.

MCTAGS on Various Vehicles
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$74.1 million order for MCTAGS kits and turret assemblies. (March 17/10)

US Marines deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan face numerous hazards in close-combat urban environments. Certainly, small arms fire and fragments from IED explosions are high on the list. To lessen those risks, the USMC turned to BAE Systems to develop a transparent, bulletproof shield that can be attached to gun turrets on a number of types of armored vehicles.

It is called the Marine Corps Transparent Armor Gun Shield (MCTAGS), and BAE Systems received a contract in 2005 to develop and produce MCTAGS to replace the Gunner’s Protection Kit used on most USMC armored vehicles…

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Night raid
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Small business qualifier Oasys Technology secures $10.7 million contract to supply US Navy thermal binoculars. (March 17/10)

It was Christmas Eve 2007 and US Army Rangers were searching for suspected Al-Qaeda members in Mosul, Iraq. They were using their night vision goggles so they would have the element of surprise on their side. The story, detailed in a USA Today article, dramatically demonstrates the advantage night vision capabilities provide to US troops on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Rangers found 2 Al-Qaeda suspects who were holding an 11-year-old Iraqi boy hostage. Using their night vision capabilities, they were able to shoot the suspects without harming the boy. After that encounter, a firefight erupted between the Army rangers and Al-Qaeda insurgents, with 10 insurgents killed, including the head of an assassination cell, and no Army ranger losses. As former General Barry McCaffrey, commander of the US Army’s 24th Infantry Division in the 1991 Desert Storm conflict, commented: “Our night vision capability provided the single greatest mismatch of the war.” It still does.

This free DID Spotlight Article will examine how this technology works, how its military application has developed over years, how the technology is used by troops in the field, as well as major DoD contracts for procuring night vision devices.

• Night Vision Technology
• Generations
• Riding the Omnibus
• Thermal Weapon Sight II
• Multi-Functioning Aiming Laser System
• Helicopter Systems
• Panoramic Night Vision
• Contracts and Key Events [updated]
• Additional Readings
  
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$20.4 million to Booz Allen Hamilton for USAF cyber security under IATAC contract. (March 15/10)

The US Department of Defense’s Information Analysis Centers (IACs) are research and analysis organizations operated by the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC). Chartered by the DoD to help researchers, engineers, scientists and program managers, IACS offer specialized research staff to DoD agencies and military services.

The mission of the IACs is 2 two-fold: (1) IACs provide access to worldwide scientific and technical information to improve the productivity of personnel in the defense science and technology communities. The IACs accomplish this mission by collecting, analyzing, synthesizing, and disseminating relevant information in clearly-defined and structured subject areas; (2) IACs serve their respective fields by providing technical services and solutions.

There are 10 DTIC IACs that specialize in various scientific areas relevant to the US military…

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“Lend me your ears”
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Northrop Grumman wins US Army Europe contract. (March 11/10)

The US military has come to rely more and more on contractors to provide linguist services to function effectively in non-English speaking regions. The need for these services is particularly acute in the Middle East and Central Asia where US troops are actively engaged.

An indication of what could go wrong with an unskilled linguist is illustrated in a short documentary video produced by journalist John McHugh of The Guardian newspaper. In the video, a US Army sergeant and an Afghan tribal elder engage in a conversation about Taliban rocket attacks.

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RG-33 variant
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Field Service Reps order, Updated MRAP program totals & percentages. (March 12/10)

The USA’s Mine-Resistant, Ambush Protected (MRAP) program has been a long road for BAE Systems. In the wake of the US Army’s belated realization that mine protection was critical for vehicles in theater, BAE’s designs, long-standing experience in the field, and production capacity had made them an early favorite. Early results were a deeply humbling experience for the firm, but a combination of acquisitions, persistence, and product development combined to recover 2nd place status by the time MRAP orders ceased.

This in-depth, updated DID feature shines a spotlight on BAE Systems’ family of MRAP offerings, order record, and associated contracts. The MRAP program appears to have reached its vehicle limit, but some BAE vehicles are getting a major suspension upgrade and maintenance contracts continue…

• BAE MRAP: The Vehicles
• BAE MRAP: The Current Tally [updated]
• BAE MRAP: Contracts & Key Events [updated]
• Appendix A: MRAP Competition Half-Time Update, June 28/07
  
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CACI International received a $31 million task order to support implementation of Oracle’s E-Business Suite for the US Department of Defense Business Transformation Agency’s Defense Agency Initiative (DAI) program.

The task order was awarded under the Defense Information System Agency’s $12.3 billion ENCORE II contract vehicle. It is also 1 of 3 DAI-related awards CACI has won with the Business Transformation Agency in the past 12 months, which total approximately $53 million.

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The Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Pacific in Pearl Harbor, HI awarded firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity multiple award contracts to 4 small business qualifiers in support of the Environmental Remedial Action Program at various sites in NAVFAC Pacific’s area of responsibility (AOR).

The maximum dollar value, including the base period and 4 option years, for all contracts is $30 million.

The 4 small business qualifiers are…

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USMC RG-31,
IEDed in Iraq
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Orders accompany 250 new RG-31A2s, RG-31s will have 2 different suspension upgrades. (March 3/10)

BAE OMC’s RG-31 was the first mine-resistant vehicle fielded by US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, where it was used by the 101st Airborne (and reportedly by SOCOM) as a patrol vehicle. Since hostilities began, a series of orders have been placed by US forces through an odd triumvirate: General Dynamics Land Systems Canada was partnered with BAE OMC of South Africa and its GDLS parent in the USA. All contracts are signed through the Canadian Commercial Corporation, a Crown Agency of the Canadian Government (who also use RG-31s).

General Dynamics did reap 50% of every Cougar MRAP order to Force Protection, via the Force Dynamics partnership, but the RG-31 had been MIA (Missing In Action) in the MRAP competition. An August 2007 order for 600 more vehicles put General Dynamics back in the game as a distant 4th place producer, and other orders followed. Hopefully, US forces will be able to avoid the initial maintenance issues that have given Canadian RG-31s problems in Afghanistan. Thanks to 2 sets of new suspension upgrades, they also hope to mitigate the off-road issues created by a v-hull’s higher center of gravity.

• GD’s Other MRAP Entries: The RG-31 Family
• RG-31 MRAP Contracts [updated]
  
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M1A2 SEP
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22 more tanks, program details. (March 8/10)

America’s M1 Abrams tanks come in a number of versions. In addition to the M1A1 that is now standard, the US Army is beginning to field its M1 TUSK for urban warfare. It also operates the M1A2 System Enhancement Program (SEP), currently the most advanced standard variant.

This Spotlight article covers the M1A2 Abrams SEP upgrade program, and will be updated and backfilled as new contracts are issued and key events take place.

• M1A2 SEP: Additional Background
• M1A2 SEP: Related Contracts, 1996 – Present [updated]
• Additional Readings & Sources
  
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