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Navy Demos LVC Capability of Next-Gen Air Combat Training Tech
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Navy Demos LVC Capability of Next-Gen Air Combat Training Tech

The U.S. Navy conducted a demonstration in August to test the live-virtual-constructive capability of the Tactical Combat Training System Increment II in an operational environment.

The Naval Aviation Training Systems and Ranges program office, PMA-205, and Advanced Naval Technology Exercise-21 teams conducted the demonstration using F/A-18 and EA-18G aircraft, an operational destroyer, Joint Semi-Automated Forces System, Next Generation Threat System, a guided missile and an F/A-18 simulator through the Navy Continuous Training Environment, Naval Air Systems Command said Monday.

“On the surface side, ships have been using a training LVC mode for a while, networking back and forth to exercise coordinators running complex scenarios. Now aviation is part of the mix through validation of TCTS Inc. II as the host system connecting live aircraft into a LVC environment,” Capt. Lisa Sullivan, PMA-205 program manager, said of the demonstration.

Chuck Kaylor, the PMA-205 TCTS Inc. II team lead, said the event marked the first time the TCTS Inc. II pod flew on a fleet aircraft and was used to establish an LVC surface-to-air engagement, among other firsts for naval aviation training.

“TCTS Inc. II is a critical enabler of Navy LVC, helping to close competition gaps in both operational security and training capabilities for the high-end fight, and this event comes with TCTS II already in production and approximately one year prior to initial operational capability,” said Kaylor.

The Navy will use the demonstration results to determine how to improve the use of TCTS Inc. II and LVC in naval aviation training.

In June, Raytheon Technologies’ Collins Aerospace business achieved Milestone C for TCTS Inc. II, marking the transition of the system to the production phase.

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NSF Awards $127M to Research Infrastructure Projects; Sethuraman Panchanathan Quoted
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NSF Awards $127M to Research Infrastructure Projects; Sethuraman Panchanathan Quoted

Ten teams have been selected by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to receive $127 million in total funds to create facilities and tools that could help researchers perform scientific work.

NSF said Monday it will back efforts to design a superconducting magnet, internet security infrastructure, ocean-bottom seismographs and radar technology through the Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure-1 program.

The agency will also support the development of a deep soil testbed, an atmospheric measurement network, research centers for high-pressure materials and silicon carbide, an online human and platform behavior observatory and a data-driven instrumentation for heritage science.

Florida State University, University of California-San Diego, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, University of Kentucky, Northeastern University, University of Arkansas, Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Idaho and Associated Universities will lead projects under the Mid-Scale RI1.

“NSF is committed to filling this mid-scale space in the American scientific research infrastructure by investing in research facilities and instrumentation that advance next-generation discoveries,” said NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan.

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DOE Plans FY 2022 Atmospheric System Research Grant
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DOE Plans FY 2022 Atmospheric System Research Grant

The Department of Energy is looking to award grants worth up to $14 million for scientific research of the interaction between aerosols and clouds.

DOE said Monday it plans to hold a competition for the funding opportunity for the Atmospheric System Research program and select awardees through a peer-review process.

Each grant will range from $200,000 to $900,000 and support three years of work that could begin in the government's 2022 fiscal year. The department expects fund recipients to use data from its Atmospheric Radiation Measurement laboratory and other agency-backed observations.

DOE added that the competitive grant program will be open to interested parties in the commercial, academic, nonprofit and federal sectors.

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FirstNet Authority Releases Emergency Management Resource Guide
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FirstNet Authority Releases Emergency Management Resource Guide

The First Responder Network (FirstNet) Authority within the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration has issued a document designed to guide emergency managers how to use the capabilities, products and services of a national public safety broadband network.

The Emergency Management Resource Guide provides information on the FirstNet broadband service offered by AT&T through a contract with the FirstNet Authority and offers an overview of technology platforms and tools available to users of the service.

The guide includes sections offering information on how public safety agencies can field the FirstNet service to meet the broadband communications needs of first responders and details on how to use Network Status and Uplift Request Tools.

Other topics discussed in the document are tips on how to select FirstNet Ready devices, considerations when building a device cache and ways to incorporate the service into communication plans.

The FirstNet Authority said it will regularly update the guide to provide information on new functions, features and other changes to the communications platform.

Air Force Decommissions B-1B Legacy Bombers Amid Fleet Modernization
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Air Force Decommissions B-1B Legacy Bombers Amid Fleet Modernization

A major command of the U.S. Air Force has wrapped up the retirement of 17 B-1B Lancer planes as the service branch moves toward adopting a Northrop Grumman-built bomber aircraft.

Air Force Global Strike Command said Friday it flew the last Lancer for decommissioning to an aircraft boneyard at Davis-Monthan AF Base in Arizona and the move will allow its maintenance crew to focus more on the health of the remaining 45 units in the active B-1B inventory.

“Beginning to retire these legacy bombers allows us to pave the way for the B-21 Raider,” said Brig. Gen. Kenyon Bell, director of logistics and engineering at AFGSC.

Bell added that keeping the now-retired Lancers would have cost the Air Force as much as $30 million per unit in maintenance costs until the next-generation aircraft enters service.

Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said at the Air, Space & Cyber Conference that efforts are underway to assemble five test articles of the Long Range Strike Bomber.

The branch also awarded Rolls-Royce a $2.6 billion contract to provide replacement engines for B-52H Stratofortress bomber fleet as part of modernization efforts.

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Terran Orbital Invests $300M in New Florida Space Vehicle Manufacturing Facility; Gov. DeSantis Quoted
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Terran Orbital Invests $300M in New Florida Space Vehicle Manufacturing Facility; Gov. DeSantis Quoted

Terran Orbital, leading provider of end-to-end satellite services, is partnering with Space Florida to develop a 660,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art commercial space vehicle manufacturing facility at the Kennedy Space Center’s Launch and Landing Facility on Merritt Island, Florida.

Governor Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., announced in a news conference on Monday that Terran Orbital will be investing $300 million in new construction and equipment for the “largest satellite manufacturing facility in the world,” and the development is expected to create over 2,000 new jobs.

“In Florida we are going to continue to take the lead on space by investing in infrastructure, training highly skilled workers and maintaining an economic climate that allows companies like Terran Orbital to thrive,” DeSantis continued.

DeSantis noted that satellite manufacturing is an increasingly essential component of the Space Coast’s economy and that this facility will position the state for an impactful contribution to the aerospace industry.

Marc Bell, co-founder and CEO of Terran Orbital, said, “Not only will we be able to expand our production capabilities to meet the growing demand for our products, but we will also bring valuable space vehicle manufacturing opportunities and capabilities to the State of Florida.”

The planned “Industry 4.0” facility will be composed of 10 automated and augmented hangers that will utilize an AI-powered supply chain, 3D printing capabilities and additive manufacturing technologies to produce and deliver thousands of space vehicles to the market per year.

Bell said the facility will create 2,100 new jobs with an average wage of $84,000 by the fourth quarter of 2025.

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Navy Creates Offices to Support Project Overmatch Integration
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Navy Creates Offices to Support Project Overmatch Integration

The U.S. Navy will employ new program integration offices to facilitate coordination between program offices and Rear Adm. Doug Small, who leads Project Overmatch, Breaking Defense reported Friday.

Project Overmatch aims to establish an integrated command and control network in support of the U.S. military’s Joint All Domain C2 concept. The establishment of PIOs as liaisons is a structural move to support Project Overmatch’s implementation across the entire Navy.

A decision memorandum states that PIOs are tasked to oversee the integration of standards, data structures and architectures with the different technologies under Overmatch.

PIOs will coordinate with agencies and organizations that correspond to specific systems, networks and other assets delivered to Navy procurement offices.

In June, Naval Information Warfare Systems Command launched a competition that searched for technologies with the potential to support Project Overmatch. The Networks Advanced Naval Technology Exercise challenge’s submission period ended on July 27 and winners will be announced in November.

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USAF, Boeing to Use VR in T-7A Red Hawk Technical Order Verification; Fred Tschirner Quoted
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USAF, Boeing to Use VR in T-7A Red Hawk Technical Order Verification; Fred Tschirner Quoted

The U.S. Air Force plans to certify the T-7A Red Hawk aircraft's technical orders via methods that rely on virtual reality and 3D modeling.

The effort's assigned team and its partners at Boeing will use the latter's virtual reality technology to certify the technical orders in a way that mitigates risks, Air Force Materiel Command said Friday.

The VR laboratory, known as the Boeing Integrated Development Center, is located in St. Louis, Missouri.

“The goal is to align with the Air Force Materiel Command Digital Campaign where the desire is to create a collaborative, integrated digital environment that guides, orchestrates, and delivers the means for each individual across the enterprise to access the data, functions and elements needed to do his or her job in a purely digital manner,” said Fred Tschirner, T-7A VR team lead.

Tschirner said the facility can also help the team meet the effort's aggressive seven-month schedule.

The aircraft's verification plans will undergo further updates that will define new VR confirmation processes.

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New DARPA Competition Seeks Predictive Models for Sea Drifters
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New DARPA Competition Seeks Predictive Models for Sea Drifters

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has launched a competition in search of technology that can predict the location of sea drifters or floats in a prospect of 10 days.

DARPA said Friday its Forecasting Floats in Turbulence challenge will task participants to develop and submit algorithms that can predict drifting locations based on the ocean’s current.

FTT supports DARPA's Ocean of Things program, which aims to generate maritime situational awareness via floats drifting across the ocean.

The agency believes FTT's resulting models have the potential to support oil spill predictions, maritime rescue operations and ship route planning.

Participants will receive access to a data set that covers 20 days of sea drift history. Sofar Ocean, a provider of ocean intelligence platforms, produced the spotters that generate this data.

“It’s incredibly exciting for us to partner with the team at DARPA to challenge teams to use this data to develop new approaches to accelerate ocean discovery and research," said Tim Janssen, CEO at Sofar.

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DOD Seeks Public Input for Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Mobile Nuclear Microreactor
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DOD Seeks Public Input for Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Mobile Nuclear Microreactor

The Strategic Capabilities Office of the Department of Defense is seeking input for the recently published draft environmental impact statement for the development of a transportable advanced nuclear microreactor prototype. 

The mobile microreactor, intended to augment the National Environmental Policy Act, is under SCO’s Project Pele, a fourth-generation nuclear reactor that could serve as a front-runner for the technology’s commercialization once it is prototyped, the DOD said Friday. 

The prototype system will be designed to reduce carbon emissions, operate for three years, supply up to five megawatts of electrical power and deliver new tools in support of disaster relief and critical infrastructure efforts. 

Earlier in March, the department tapped BWX Technologies and X-energy to work on the preliminary design of Project Pele’s prototype and perform independent development groundworks for the next phase of the initiative. 

One of the two companies could potentially be selected to create and demonstrate the prototype after the environmental analysis under NEPA and final design review in early 2022 are conducted.

The DOD is encouraging the public to submit comments on the EIS during the 45-day period, noting that two public hearings will take place in Idaho and the livestream will be available online on Oct. 20. 

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