Rapid Fire 2010-04-16: IMPROVE Act

• Reports that Syria has supplied Hezbollah with short-range Scud ballistic missiles creating ripples in Washington, and beyond. Jerusalem Post | Politico | Voice of America.

• US Defense Logistics Agency replaces Agility as a logistics supplier to US military in Kuwait and Iraq following the DoJ’s extension of fraud indictments to company’s affiliates. Dow Jones | Reuters | Bloomberg | Agility statement on indictment extension

Up to $50M to HDR E2M for US Navy Marine Species Monitoring

Do Not Disturb!

HDR engineering-environmental Management (e2M) in Englewood, CO won a indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for marine species monitoring, evaluations, and/or assessments at various locations within the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Atlantic and Pacific area of responsibility. The maximum amount of the contract is $50 million.

The US Navy carries out marine species monitoring in live-fire ranges and areas where naval exercise are conducted to assess the impact on marine life.

For example, the Navy monitors bird colonies, turtle nests, and marine mammal activity around its Farallon de Medinilla target range in the Northern Marianas Islands. The range, located 150 miles north of Guam, is the Pacific Fleet’s only US range available for live-fire training for forward deployed naval forces…

The USS Enterprise’s Long ESDRA Drydocking

Task Force One, 1964

Enterprise redelivered to US Navy. (April 19/10)

USS Enterprise, the world’s first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, is currently mired in an Extended Drydocking Selected Restricted Availability (EDSRA). The cost has shot beyond the original estimates by almost 45%, to almost $650 million, and will take about 50% longer than expected. All to give the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier about 1-2 more major deployment rotations before her retirement.

ESDRA is less extensive than a refueling and complex overhaul (RCOH) that refuels the ship’s nuclear reactors. Even so, this procedure was expected to put “The Big E” into drydock for about 16 months to receive restoration and upgrades of all subsystems that affect combat capability and safety, plus hull inspections and recoating, radiological surveys, and other maintenance related evolutions below the waterline. The EDSRA will also address the propulsion system, offering more extensive propulsion plant repairs and testing than Enterprise’s shorter and more conventional Extended Selected Restricted Availability (ESRA) in 2002. Contracts include…