RAFO F-16Cs w. CFTs

Oman is location on the eastern Arabian peninsula next to the UAE and Saudi Arabia, and across from Persia. It remains a very strategic country, controlling the Strait of Hormuz’s western bank, and providing an overwatch position for both the entrance to the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean near Africa. The Royal Air Force of Oman (al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Sultanat Oman) currently flies 12 F-16 Block 50 fighters: 8 F-16Cs and 4 F-16Ds, whose delivery began in 2005. They complement the RAFO’s 18 Jaguar strike aircraft, and 11 single-seat subsonic Hawk 203 light fighters. Sultan Qaboos’ air force is looking to replace its aging Jaguars, and has made inquiries about buying 4+ generation fighters like Eurofighters or even JAS-39 Gripens for this purpose.

A formal DSCA request for 18 more F-16s raised the possibility of a different approach, and that has now become a firm contract. But BAE just received an RFP for its Eurofighter…

• The Sultanate of Oman’s History, and its Fighter Fleet
• Contracts & Key Events [updated]
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Construction underway; Further details. (Jan 18/12)

At the end of September 2011, Sunpower Corp. in Richmond, CA, won a $100.3 million firm-fixed-price task order under a previous multiple-vendor award contract, for up to 30 years of electricity from a renewable energy generating system at Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, CA.

Many consumers know Sunpower as one of the no money down firms that will install solar panels on your house. NAVFAC seems to be pursuing similar initiatives at Navy facilities. It’s government land, but Sunpower will build, own, and maintain the solar system under 10 U.S.C. 2922(a) authority…

Too Hot to Handle?

Most people think “defense procurement” and think “weapons,” but the truth is that infrastructure and associated services consumes at least as much money. In December 2007 (FY 2008), the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia (DSCP, now the US Defense Logistics Agency’s Troop Support group) in Philadelphia, PA issued awards by region for “tailored logistics support” involving fire and emergency equipment on behalf of US military installations, other federal agencies and departments, and other approved customers. In practice, all of the contracts below may involve the US Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, federal civilian agencies, or even state and local governments as end customers.

These FES contracts involved hundreds of millions of dollars over a 2-year base contract, followed by 3 more 1-year options, with FY 2012 as the final option year.

Lower Monumental Dam

Project Time & Cost, Inc. in Atlanta, GA won a 5-year, firm-fixed-price contract worth up to $150 million. They’ll provide “architect-engineering services for nationwide cost engineering” in support of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Walla Walla District in Washington State. The district’s site offers a summary of the key projects it’s involved in, and the firm has been working with the US ACE for over 25 years now. Work location will be determined with each task order, with an estimated completion date of Nov 6/16. The bid was solicited through the Internet, with 4 bids received by the US Army Corps of Engineers in Walla Walla, WA (W912EF-12-D-0003).

According to AACE International, cost engineering is ”...the area of engineering practice where engineering judgment and experience are used in the application of scientific principles and techniques to problems of cost estimating, cost control, business planning and management science, profitability analysis, project management, and planning and scheduling.” That scope includes Cost Estimating, Earned Value Management, Risk Management, and Schedule Management.

(click to visit)

2 more firms added. (Nov 9/11)

In September 2011, US Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Pacific in Pearl Harbor, HI awarded a new emergency engineering and infrastructure umbrella contract to 4 firms. Up to $900 million could be up for grabs among the 4 qualifying firms, over a 5 year period (base year + 4 option years), ending in September 2016 at the latest.

This is an indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity multiple award contract for the purchase of “short-term facility support services with incidental construction” in support of natural disasters; humanitarian efforts; the full range of military actions; and incumbent breaks in service at various locations throughout the world. NAVFAC has issued similar contracts before: a $500 million contract that ran from 2005-2009 came in handy a few times, in response to disasters like hurricane Katrina. This one could involve work on…

• The US DoD acquisition office hosted the 1st Product Support Manager (PSM) Conference last week. Among the material presented there, we recommend this overview [PDF] of Open Systems Architectures (OSA) and data rights. “Data rights are rights granted to the government for technical data and computer software” which can help DoD maintain competition over the life of a program, among other benefits.

• Also of interest from the PSM event: sustainment metrics [PDF]; this primer [PDF] on the role of PSMs, a position created under Section 805 of the FY10 defense authorization bill. Per DTM 10-015 [PDF], all ACAT I/II major programs must have a PSM supporting them.

• Conundrums can arise when safety procedures meet environmental concerns in the life of a military base. For instance, US DoD policy requires periodic aircraft hangar fire suppression foam system nozzle discharge checks to make sure these systems will perform when needed. But these necessary checks generate nontrivial amounts of wastewater, a liability and another burden to deal with. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Engineering Service Center think they have an answer with their “NoFoam” design [PDF].

• Meanwhile the US Army is trying to scale its renewable energy efforts through its recently-created Energy Initiatives Task Force (EITF).

• If you’re a US military member preparing to enter the federal or private sector workforce, this US Navy primer will help.

• The WSJ reports that the CIA has made concessions about how it uses UAVs for strikes in Pakistan.

• The USAF’s unique BACN jets and UAVs receive official designations.

• Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs Andrew J. Shapiro gave a speech last Friday summarizing the nature of American military support for Israel, which receives $3B per year in funding for training and equipment under Foreign Military Financing (FMF), or 60% of a total $5.5B spread among 70 countries.

• Transfield Services (Australia) Pty Ltd wins A$ 90 million Comprehensive Maintenance Services (CMS) contract for all Defence establishments in South Australia, from 2011-2014, with options to 2017.

• The US Air National Guard has approved the new LITENING G4 surveillance and targeting pod for fielding on its F-16s.

• Bloomberg has a wrap-up on the F-35, one of the few programs that have been identified by name in recent budget cut talks.

• 6th Swiftship patrol boat delivered to Iraq.

• The anti-climatic video below shows US National Guard soldiers loading tanks to be shipped out of Contingency Operating Base Adder, Iraq:
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• Trash into Gold: DARPA has a Phoenix Program to recycle satellites for parts.

• One of the ship blocks for Britain’s new Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier had a fire. It’s out, and doesn’t appear to have done any significant damage, or hurt anyone.

• The RAND Corporation reviewed US Navy major defense acquisition programs (MDAPs) and the unique challenges they face.

• An F-4 training jet crashed in Turkey, killing its 2 pilots.

• A federal grand jury in Texas has indicted 3 people in a $6.5M fraud investigation involving subcontracts to a fake company used to overcharge the USAF for engineering services.

• The US GAO reports its findings on the state of the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) and Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA), says: “Because of its own workforce struggles, DCAA has lagged in completing a number of [contractor business systems] audits and is currently focusing on other high priority areas. GAO found, however, that DCMA contracting officers maintained their determination of many contractor business systems as adequate despite the fact that the systems had not been audited in a number of years – in many cases well beyond the time frames outlined in DCAA guidance.”

• The US Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive published a report to Congress on foreign spies stealing US economic secrets in cyberspace [PDF].

• US Senate Armed Services Committee ranking member John McCain (R-AZ) and Appropriations Committee member Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) sent a letter asking the Secretary of Defense to describe what specific measures DoD would have to enact if the super committee doesn’t reach an agreement.

• The Jacksonville Daily News in North Carolina has a look at projected workloads at Fleet Readiness Center (FCR) East, with or without JSF work.

• Quick look in the video below at how MRAPs and M-ATVs are maintained in Bagram AF, Afghanistan:
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• The USAF is restructuring its Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) from 12 centers to 5 is one of the major steps within broader changes in its civilian workforce which should amount to adding “5,900 positions in acquisition, the nuclear enterprise, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and other key areas while reducing approximately 9,000 positions in management, staff, and support areas.”

• The Russian Defense Ministry and United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) have sorted out their pricing disagreements on Yasen and Borey class nuclear-powered submarines. That’s their good news. Gaddafi’s fall on the other hand means billions of dollars of lost potential arms exports.

• In talks with the German government, EADS is reportedly ready to waive penalties triggered by reduced Eurofighter orders in exchange for Talarion UAV orders. Germany has been leasing IAI Herons for the last 2 years. [Nov. 7 update: Germany says no.]

• The Bundeswehr also recently announced a significant BRAC-like program leading to 31 base closures: Der Spiegel | Deutsche Welle (both in English).

• An F-15 from Japan’s Air Self-Defense Force lost a wing part during a training flight yesterday. Japan’s F-15 fleet was grounded twice this year after a fatal crash in July and a minor incident last month.

• Boeing delivers its 1st production AH-64D Apache Block III attack helicopter to the US Army.

• Lockheed Martin MFC is busy test-firing a new Patriot PAC-3 Reduced Cost Initiative missile variant.

• A test uses the infrared sensors on 4 Raytheon MTS-B/AAS-52 sensor turrets to track ballistic targets for the Missile Defense Agency. ABIR doesn’t have an official platform yet, but they’re using the MTS-B’s usual MQ-9 Reaper drones as carriers for now.

• Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal Facility (UMCDF) completed the disposal of the chemical weapons stockpile at Umatilla Chemical Depot (UMCD) in Oregon. This work started 7 years ago. Both facilities will be closed within the next 2 years.

• The Financial Times urges politicians and investors to take the long view on the real-world potential of newer materials such as graphene, based on the uneven track record of similarly hyped carbon fiber.

• The US House’s Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces had a hearing yesterday on combat aviation programs. On the table: F-35 contract renegotiation, bomber costs. See 1st video embedded below. Meanwhile the full HASC had yet another “sequestration looks really, really scary” hearing.

• Online hacker group Anonymous to Mexico’s brutal Zetas drug cartel: Release our member, or else you’ll be one sorry bunch of pendejos – and so will the people on your payroll. This one is a new chapter in information warfare. Love the “V for Vendetta” mask in the video, which you can view in the 2nd embed below [in Spanish]:
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Atlantic CommTech Corp. in Virginia Beach, VA received a $12 million firm-fixed-price contract. They’ll provide interior intrusion detection systems for protective aircraft shelters, and redundant cable, for the 498th Nuclear Systems Wing. Atlantic CommTech will be performing 100% of the work throughout 6 NATO installations in Europe. This is not surprising. Back in February 2008, “The Blue Ribbon Review of Nuclear Weapons Policies and Procedures” raised concerns about security practices at nuclear-capable facilities in Europe, and recommended a number of steps to improve the situation. Meanwhile, European countries’ waning desire to even host such weapons has become a subject of high-level debate among NATO members.

The 498th Nuclear Systems Wing is part of USAF Materiel Command, and handles nuclear maintenance projects, programs, & systems integration, advocacy, and oversight. The wing’s groups and divisions include the 498th Missile Sustainment Division based at Tinker AFB, OK, the 498th Nuclear Systems Division at Kirtland AFB, NM; the 498th Munitions Maintenance Group at Whiteman AFB, MO, and the 798th Munitions Maintenance Group at Minot AFB, ND. The USAF Nuclear Weapons Center/PKE at Kirtland AFB, NM, manages the contract (FA9422-12-F-0001).

Karwar, India: The Site

Phase II much more expensive, but headed for approval as India’s navy grows.(Oct 13/11)

Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee opened the first phase of India’s giant western naval base INS Kadamba in Karwar, Karnataka state, on May 31/05, saying it would protect the country’s Arabian Sea maritime routes. Kadamba has become India’s 3rd operational naval base, after Mumbai and Visakhapatnam. It is valuable for its location, and also for its ability to transcend the fundamental capacity and security limitations of India’s other 2 naval bases.

INS Kadamba is being built near Karwar in the southern state of Karnataka. That Phase I construction was just part of India’s ambitious “Project Seabird,” a potential INR 50+ billion project that will include the naval base, and much more besides. India finished a scaled-back Phase I a full decade after the originally-envisaged 1995 completion date. As might be expected, Phase II is now likely to be approved, after it was supposed to have been finished…

• INS Kadamba [updated]
• Contracts and Key Events [updated]
• Additional Readings
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