• Virtual Success: The military simulation and virtual training market reached $8.4 billion in 2009; the market is expected to grow, particularly in the Middle East, China and India through 2020, according to CompaniesandMarkets.com.

• That’s so Tubular: The market for microwave tubes, which make up a key component in specialized military communications equipment among other uses, is worth $1 billion, ABI Research reports.

• The Congressional Budget Office projects that the US defense budget will reach $2 trillion by 2020. Report summary.

• Meanwhile, US Army Vice Chief of Staff Chiarelli laments the difficulty of keeping up technologically with… the Taliban?!? Read about the acquisition process and see.

• YAL-1 747 Airborne Laser test postponed for the 4th time, due to ongoing technical difficulties.

• 10th Mountain division’s 4th BCT is the first unit to get the new MultiCam camouflage pattern.

• An upgraded version of Lockheed Martin’s Desert Hawk mini-UAV arrives in Afghanistan for UK forces as part of a GBP 3 million urgent operational requirement order; Desert Hawks were originally deployed to UK troops in Afghanistan in 2006.

• Bad for Business: US pullout from Iraq is a logistics challenge, involving moving 2.2 million piece of equipment from 600 bases, and a blow to contractors providing food and logistics to US troops.

• L-3, Applied Energetics team to pursue DoD counter-IED system contracts.

• To Russia, with Sub: Russia’s Zvezdochka shipyard begins an $80 million overhaul of India’s S63 INS Sindhurakshak submarine, an improved Kilo-class diesel-electric submarine that Russia built for India.

• Simulated Revenues: Canada’s CAE expects a 10-12% rise in revenue for the year, spurred by an increase in its military crew simulator training business.

• RFID leader Savi shifts its HQ out of California to Alexandria, VA – near Washington DC.

• US Army 3D backpacks: Is that like having eyes in the back of your head?

• Britain buys Lockheed Martin’s TopScene, which makes 3D simulation maps based on cartography and satellite data, to aid with mission rehearsal in Afghanistan.

• Lockheed Martin ExLS launches Nulka ship decoy. ExLS installs in Mk41 cells, allows launch of smaller payloads like Nulka decoys or NLOS-LS missiles without deck mountings, or custom launchers. Too bad the USA’s $700 million Littoral Combat Ships won’t have any.

• Food for Thought: A Kuwaiti paper is reporting that the US is extending Agility’s $2 billion prime vendor contract for 6 months to supply food to US forces in Iraq, Kuwait, and Jordan, even though the company’s contract was not renewed because of fraud charges.

• USMC Gen. Mattis takes over as CENTCOM commander, says some US forces will remain in Iraq through 2020.

• Easterline Defense Products secures $29 million contract to make combustible cases for US Army and USMC artillery.

• Op-ed: Pentagon officials argue for phased adaptive ballistic missile defense to counter threat from rogue states.

• Controversy over F-35 design changes that may make it more vulnerable.

• EADS to continue funding development of Talarion MALE UAV despite reluctance of European partners to place orders. This study may also have had something to do with EADS’ decision.

• Eurosatory 2010 is on in Paris, France. BAE presents its new CV90 Armadillo family of tracked IFVs and RG41 wheeled APC, GD presents its Eagle V patrol vehicle, Renault its VAB Mk.II wheeled APC.

• Meanwhile, France is presenting its Munitions Precision Metrique (MPM) program [in French], which aims to offer a family of tank shells, 155mm artillery, 120mm mortars, GMLRS rockets, and 68mm SNEB rockets that use semi-active laser guidance + INS to get 1m CEP precision, instead of GPS/INS guidance’s 10m (decametrique).

• It’s called job security. US Navy loses 3 REMUS-100 UUVs, calls in the old standby dolphins and sea lions to find them.

• Australia’s new submarine support facility in Henderson, Western Australia, is open for work. They can use that help.

• Too many zeros: The Associated Press added 3 zeros to an $8.4 million Sikorsky Aircraft order for normal maintenance work on the VH-3D Sea King presidential helicopter fleet. Speaking of needing help… $8.4 billion should be intuitively wrong for that.

• Not business as usual: SAIC snags contract worth up to $75 million to provide technical support for the US DoD Business Transformation Agency’s Enterprise Planning & Investment Directorate.

• Japanese spacecraft lands in Australia with asteroid samples. Bruce Willis and crew not on it…

• Do the H2O: Global Defense Technology & Systems wins $45 million contract for mobile systems to package purified water for front-line Marines.

• Salt Lake seed money: Utah launches initiative to lift defense, aerospace industries.

• NATO chief says it would cost less than Euro 200 million for C2 center to link alliance’s existing missile defense systems.

• Life imitates Star Trek: USAF funds promising experiments with lasers and nanofluids to treat wounds. But the show never had to portray FDA approval, or it would still need to be on TV…

• More KBR Troubles: US DoJ joins a whistleblower lawsuit against KBR and 2 freight fowarding companies, a suit that alleges that the freight forwarding companies provided “unlawful kickbacks” to KBR employees under the LOGCAP 3 contract. KBR said that it was unaware of any violations by its employees and that receiving gifts would be against company policy.

• At the same time, the US Army awarded KBR a task order to provide base life support services – engineering and sustainment services, equipment maintenance, facility operations, food service, cleaning, laundry, water production, sewage and trash services – in Iraq under the no-bid LOGCAP 3 contract, instead of the competitive bidding LOGCAP 4 contract, at the request of commanders in the field.

• US Special Forces to take XM-25 airburst grenade launcher to Afghanistan this summer.

• GE discusses 3 improvement programs for its F414 engine, including enhanced performance EPE with 20% better thrust, more reliable F414 EPE, and improved fuel consumption. These are just some of the potential future improvements for the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet beyond Block II, and better F414s could also factor into products like India’s Tejas fighter and Saab’s JAS-39 Gripen NG.

• Rafale flies with improved Snecma M88 engines of its own.

• Chile accepts its first C-295 MPA maritime patrol aircraft.

• JAGM multi-role missile contenders complete wind tunnel testing for the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet, begin preparing for flight tests.

• South Korea’s National Defense Ministry is requesting funding for improved underwater surveillance systems, such as modern sonar and naval radar, in response to the sinking of the ROKS Cheonan (PCC-772), a Pohang-class patrol combat corvette.

• Russian Novator’s promotion of its containerized SS-N-27 Klub-K CMS cruise missiles extend and highlight new dimensions of the terrorist threat as “the ultimate concealed weapon,” offers second-strike for smaller states outside the rules of war, and raises the priority for persistent cruise missile defenses.

• On a related note, the emergence of surveillance-strike complexes and missiles as the new coastal artillery, has far-reaching naval implications.

• Russian president says he’s interested in NATO proposal to develop a common missile defense system.

• Liquid-fueled rockets, or solid fuel? MBDA’s Bayern Chemie says don’t choose – use gelled propellant to get full safety and variable thrust.

• Raytheon and EAI finish ground tests of their TALON 70mm laser-guided rocket.

• 418th Flight Test Squadron paradrops 77,000 pound load out of a C-17A, at 25,000 feet, to test the parachutes for NASA’s Ares I solid rocket booster.

• Supermaaaan! US Army Golden Knight parachutist sets the official world distance record in a wing-suit.

• Picking soldiers’ brains: US OSD wants small business input on cognitive readiness in modern military operations.

• Harris snags a $35 million contract from the Defense Commissary Agency to provide IT support for distribution of commissary goods to US military personnel worldwide.

• EADS is running out of time to line up US partner for KC-X aerial tanker RFP.

• Oil services giant Schlumberger begins standing up an Iraq branch, incl. up to $100 million for a complex at Rumalia in southern Iraq, following BP’s award of over $500 million in oil services contracts.

• UK Ministry of Defence explains 2010 election limits for their site, and their forces.

• Pakistan conducts largest military exercise since 1989 close to Indian border.

• Iran’s Ghadr, Sajjil and Shahab-3 missiles on display at Army Day military parade, while Pentagon chief memo warns US lacks long-term Iranian strategy.

• US Navy’s MQ-8B Fire Scout returns from 1st operational deployment, which included the first helicopter UAV drug bust.

• US Defense Logistics Agency awards $2.2 billion contract to ANHAM FZCO to provide full-line food distribution and non-food distribution to US troops in Kuwait, Iraq, and Jordan.

• Why does an American ICBM base need to hire… goats?

• GTEC snags $30 million in orders [pdf] to provide containerized kitchens for the US Army.

• SRA gets $19.5 million re-compete task order to provide integration management support to the USAF Distributed Common Ground System’s formal training unit.

• US GAO releases 2010 Assessments of Selected Weapons Programs – about 70. The summary is finally up, and there is a lot of reading after that. Note that the GAO sets the bar higher for system development readiness – TRL 7, not the Pentagon’s TRL 6.

• Newsweek calls Afghanistan’s police force a ”$6 billion fiasco” that could cost us the war.

• EADS Defense and Security unit has war chest to expand abroad, invest in Talarion UAV development. Reuters | Dow Jones

• President Obama nominates California CIO Takai to head Pentagon’s IT operations. InformationWeek | National Journal | Government Technology | Computer World

• The USAF now has an “operationally significant quantity” of MALD air-launched decoys.

• The Pentagon is mulling sending surveillance UAVs and other military support to the Somali government for offensive against al-Qaida-linked insurgents, the Associated Press reports.

• Britain’s Nimrod MR2 maritime patrol planes end their service, though Nimrod MRA4 replacements aren’t yet ready.

• AeroVironment, maker of the Raven, Dragon Eye, Puma AE, and Wasp [pdf] small UAVs, says CFO has resigned to “pursue other business interests.” AeroVironment release | Associated Press

• You don’t have to speak Na’vi to use Northrop Grumman’s avatar training tool for the US Army’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System.

• Rrrrolll up the rrrim to win? Tim Hortons’ employees at Kandahar Airfield are now eligible for Canadian war medals.

Containerized Kitchen
(click to view larger)

Global Strategies Group North America in Frederick, MD received an $18.7 million firm-fixed-price modification to a previously awarded contract (W911QY-05-D-0004) for 103 containerized kitchens and spares.

The containized kitchen is a US Army deployable food preparation container that is able to prepare and serve a minimum of 800 meals up to 3 times per day. The container can be expanded to 8 feet by 8 feet by 20 feet and is mounted on a tactical trailer.

The kitchen is powered by thermal fluid/ cogeneration technology…

The US Defense Supply Center Philadelphia is exercising the 1st 18-month option on a firm-fixed-price prime vendor contract (SPM300-08-D-3242) for The Merchants Co. in Hattiesburg, MS to provide full line food distribution to US military facilities in Mississippi and Louisiana.

The option has a maximum value of $30.4 million. The original contract, along with another prime vendor contract (SPM300-08-D-3244), were awarded to The Merchants Co. on Jan 17/08 to supply food to 12 US military facilities in those states. The contracts have a 2-year base period, and 3 option periods. The combined value of the contracts, if all options are exercised, is $81 million…

Lot of mouths to feed

Shamrock Foods in Commerce City, CO received a maximum $9.5 million firm fixed price, indefinite-quantity contract modification for full-line food distribution services to US military facilities in Colorado and Wyoming.

The original contract (SPM300-08-D-3219), awarded Jan 19/07, has a base year and 4 one-year options, with a potential value of $31 million. This modification is the 3rd-year option period.

The facilities being served by Shamrock under this contract include the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO. The institution houses more than 4,000 cadets, as well as faculty and staff. Other facilities being served by Shamrock include: