US Army Releases 2007 Sustainability Report

(click for report)

Energy conservation has been moving up the Pentagon’s agenda for several years now. The U.S. Army released its 2007 Sustainability Report in September 2008. In FY 2007, 301 new Army military construction projects, or 78% of projects, were designed to The US Green Building Council’s LEED standards for sustainability and energy efficiency. That’s substantially higher than private-sector figures. The Army also reported an 8.4% reduction in energy use intensity in facilities from FY 2004.

See: Environmental Leader report | US Army 2007 Sustainability Report [PDF] | US Army Engineering Knowledge Online: Sustainable Design and Development.

Rock n’ Recoil: MK93 Mounting Systems

Mk93 mount & M2

The Mk93 Heavy Machine Gun Mounting System is used to lessen the recoil of heavy weapons like the 40mm MK19 Grenade Machine Gun (GMG) and the .50 caliber/12.7mm M2 Heavy Machine Gun (HMG), improving their accuracy. It attaches to a tripod for infantry use, but it’s seen much more frequently as part of a vehicular mount, using the MK175 pintle pedestal. The MK93 requires no external adapters or tools, and consists of a gun carriage and cradle assembly, a train stop bracket, an ammunition can holder, a bolt-on small pintle, a bolt-on large pintle, and a stowage bar assembly. The U.S. Army Tank Automotive and Armaments Command in Rock Island, IL recently announced a set of contracts for these items to:

Canada Joining the Anglosphere C-17 Club with CC-177

CC-177, Inuvik

When Canada announced a program to replace its aging CC-130 Hercules fleet in November 2005, there was a great deal of speculation about where the C-17 might fit in. The fast answer was that it didn’t, but speculation revived following the Liberal government’s defeat and the formation of a new Conservative Party government. The new government justified that speculation, creating a separate Strategic Airlift competition – and the shape of its specifications suggested that Canada was about to reprise Australia’s recent move and buy at least 4 of Boeing’s C-17 Globemaster III aircraft. Australia, Britain, and the USA already operate the C-17; NATO is scheduled to buy 3-4 as a shared strategic airlift solution, but the procurement is in limbo.

Canada has traditionally resisted buying strategic airlift, choosing instead to participate in NATO’s SALIS consortium that leases ultra-heavy AN-124 aircraft for such roles. Other leased alternatives to the C-17s were available to Canada, including one based on Canadian soil – but in the end, the C-17 was the sole realistic competitor for this C$ 3.4 billion (USD$ 3 billion) program, and is entering service in Canada as the CC-177.

Canada has now taken delivery of its “CC-177s,” and begun flying missions. With new planes, however, comes new ancillary equipment.

Scone Foundation Honors US COIN Field Manual’s Lead Author

Dr. Conrad Crane
(click for profile)

The Scone Foundation Archivist of the Year Award is presented annually by The Scone Foundation to recognize an archivist who has made considerable contributions to his or her profession or who has provided significant support to scholars conducting research in history and biography. This year, the award has a military winner.

Dr. Conrad Crane’s title is Director of the U.S. Army Military History Institute at Carlisle Barracks, following 26 years of military service that concluded with 9 years as Professor of History at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. In 2003, he became Director of the Military History Institute – and also co-authored “Reconstructing Iraq,” which drew heavily on archival material relating to past military occupations throughout history. It predicted failure without early and adequate post-conflict planning, and warned that: “A force initially viewed as liberators can rapidly be relegated to the status of invaders should an unwelcome occupation continue for a prolonged time”. Dr. Crane’s contribution did not stop there, however. His West Point classmate Gen. David Petraeus has spoken of foreign occupation having a “half-life,” and in 2006 he asked his old colleague to be the lead author of the Counter Insurgency Field Manual for Iraq Forces [US Army release | Amazon.com].

Even this achievement is only part of Dr. Crane’s legacy. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Rick Atkinson has praised Dr. Crane “for professionalizing one of the nation’s most priceless repositories of military records, and in making the U.S. Army’s Military History Institute more accessible to both scholars and curious citizens. He combines the best instincts of historian, archivist, and public servant.”

The event will be held on Nov 17/08 from 6:00pm – 7:30pm, in the Teatro Casa Italiana at Columbia University’s Morningside Campus, 1161 Amsterdam Avenue, NYC, NY. In addition to receiving the award, Dr. Crane will also deliver a lecture: “From Past to Policy: Using History to Make History.”

Sharpen Yourself: “40 Second Boyd”

Col. John Boyd

“In the mid to late fifties, a fighter pilot could earn himself a quick forty bucks and perhaps a nice steak dinner in Vegas – not to mention everlasting renown, which is to fighter pilots what oxygen is to us lesser beings – by meeting over the Green Spot at thirty thousand feet and taking position just 500 feet behind an arrogant and unpleasant man with precisely zero air-to-air victories to his credit. From that perfect kill position, you would yell “Fight’s on!” and if that sitting duck in front of you was not on your tail with you in his gunsight in forty seconds flat then you would win the money, the dinner and best of all, the fame… To be challenged in such a manner is an irresistible red flag to men like this, and certainly no less of one because the challenger was a rude, loud, irreverent braggart who had never been victorious in actual air-to-air combat. And yet that forty dollars went uncollected, uncollected for many years against scores of the best fighter pilots in the world.

Continue Reading… »

TACOM Orders 20,000 Beretta 92FS Pistols

Beretta 92/M9, firing

Beretta U.S.A. Corp. in Accokeek, MD recently received a 3-year, $8.2 million firm-fixed-price contract for 20,000 Beretta 92FS 9mm pistols. Work on this contract will be performed in Accokeek, MD, with an estimated completion date of Oct 20/09. One bid was solicited and one bid was received by TACOM Contracting Center at Rock Island Arsenal in Rock Island, IL (W52H09-09-D-0037).

The Beretta 9mm pistols have received extensive criticism since the pistol’s inception in the 1980s. Modern front-line soldiers, who frequently face armed, drug-enhanced opponents in the Middle East and Afghanistan, have re-echoed some of those criticisms. This problem is not exactly unknown in certain American neighborhoods, either. American law enforcement agencies seem to prefer Glock pistols, and many are also moving to heavier rounds; .40 caliber is becoming dominant, and some are even using .45 caliber pistols. Or perhaps the best solution lies in the bullets?

The US Navy’s DMLGB Program

DMLGB on AV-8B

“Dual guidance” bombs are becoming popular. They cost more, but deliver on versatility once all that money has been spent to get its carrying aircraft into position. GPS/INS guidance gives them the ability to bomb through sandstorm, fog, or other obscurement; or from high altitude, or without active targeting. Laser guidance adds other advantages, including improved accuracy and the ability to moving targets that have been “painted” by a laser designator.

Britain’s Paveway-IV project, France’s recent retrofits, Boeing’s LJDAM, and Raytheon’s Enhanced Paveway family weapons all fall into this category. So, too, does RAFAEL’s Spice, though it uses a combination of GPS/INS and imaging infrared (IIR). In October 2008, US Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) added another entry when PMA-201 Precision Strike Weapons delivered the first Dual-Mode Laser-Guided Bomb (DMLGB) to the Fleet…

DID Announcements: Nov 11-19/08

On the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month, the guns ceased. During Remembrance Day, British Commonwealth countries remember those who came before, and those who came after, and all who have given in their nation’s service. A number of European countries know it as Armistice Day. Americans celebrate it as Veteran’s Day. Per DID tradition and policy, we remind our readers that we do not publish on that day. We hope you have a meaningful day at the commemorative event of your choice.

The second announcement is that DID’s Editor-in-Chief Joe Katzman will be in the Tucson, AZ area from November 14th-19th. Some briefings with local firms are already scheduled; please email defenseindustrydaily.com if you’d like to discuss (joe@…) other opportunities.

US GAO Briefings for the New Administration, 2008

“Following each presidential election, GAO serves as a resource to assist with the transition to a new Congress and administration. Using its institutional knowledge and broad-based, nonpartisan work on matters across the government spectrum, GAO provides insight into, and recommendations for addressing, the nation’s major issues, risks and challenges. Also identified are key reports for further research, as well as contact information for and video messages from GAO experts.”

Our readers might be especially interested in the Department of Defense section. Don’t miss the left sidebar, either, which includes key sub-topics like “Managing Weapon System Programs.”

ATSCC Contracted for American SpecOps Medical Training

SDV Team 1

Oct 28/08: Service-Disabled veteran owned small business qualifier Assessment and Training Solutions Consulting Corp. of Virginia Beach, VA received a $26.8 million firm fixed price contract for a base year to provide medical instruction and medical support services in support of U.S. Army Special Forces Command’s Joint Special Operations Medical Training Center and U.S. Army Special Operations Command’s Acquisitions and Contracting Office. The contract has 4 one-year options. Work will be performed at Fort Bragg, NC, and is expected to be complete by July 31/13. This contract was awarded through a small business set-aside (H92239-09-C-0001).

The trainees will have a lot to live up to. The Navy photo above depicts SEAL SDV Team 1, which became the focus of action during Operation Redwing on June 28/05. Lt. Murphy would later earn a posthumous Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions. A combination of freak circumstances, great personal determination, and the steadfast honor of local Afghan villagers made hospital corpsman Luttrell (highlighted) the only surviving team member. From left to right: Sonar Technician – Surface 2nd Class (SEAL) Matthew G. Axelson, 29, of Cupertino, CA; Information Systems Technician Senior Chief (SEAL) Daniel R. Healy, 36, of Exeter, NH; Quartermaster 2nd Class (SEAL) James Suh, 28, of Deerfield Beach, FL; Hospital Corpsman Second Class (SEAL) Marcus Luttrell; Machinist Mate 2nd Class (SEAL) Eric S. Patton, 22, of Boulder City, NV; and LT (SEAL) Michael P. Murphy, 29, of Patchogue, NY.