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White House Appoints Chirag Parikh as National Space Council Executive Secretary
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White House Appoints Chirag Parikh as National Space Council Executive Secretary

Chirag Parikh, former director of space policy at the National Security Council, has been named executive secretary of the White House National Space Council chaired by Vice President Kamala Harris, SpaceNews reported Monday.

Parikh will join the council from Microsoft, where he has served as senior director of Azure Space since January 2020.

He previously worked at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, where he served as deputy director for counterproliferation.

He also served as deputy national intelligence officer for science and technology within the National Intelligence Council and spent a decade as an aerospace engineer within the U.S. Air Force’s national air and space intelligence center.

Parikh’s appointment came three months after Harris was named head of the National Space Council.

The White House said the council is expected to have its first meeting in the fall of 2021.

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USAF Provides 2 Boeing-Built Chinook Helicopters to Australia as Part of Foreign Military Sales Program
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USAF Provides 2 Boeing-Built Chinook Helicopters to Australia as Part of Foreign Military Sales Program

The U.S. Air Force completed the delivery of two CH-47F Chinook helicopters, manufactured by Boeing, from Dover AF Base in Delaware to a military airbase in Townsville, Australia, under a foreign military sales deal.

USAF said Monday its 9th Airlift Squadron used a C-5M Super Galaxy to transport the Chinooks that the Australian government procured for use by the Asia-Pacific country's army.

Boeing, a program office within the 436th Aerial Port Squadron and Australia's defense capability acquisition and sustainment agency took part in the process of fulfilling the FMS requirement.

The two countries are scheduled to conduct joint missions with the Chinook platform in the spring of 2022.

The State Department approved a $259 million sale of four CH-47F aircraft with customer-unique modifications and related equipment to Australia in April.

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Navy Flight Tests MQ-4C With New Multi-Mission Sensor for First Time; Capt. Dan Mackin Comments
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Navy Flight Tests MQ-4C With New Multi-Mission Sensor for First Time; Capt. Dan Mackin Comments

The U.S. Navy has conducted its first test flight of the MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft system in the new Integrated Functional Capability-4 configuration at Naval Air Station Patuxent River. The surveillance aircraft demonstrated its stability and control following a 30-month multi-mission sensor upgrade process, NAVAIR Thursday.

Present at the functional check flight and initial aeromechanical test points at Maryland was the Triton Integrated Test Team, which consists of representatives from the Navy, the U.S. government and industry sectors, and Australian partner organizations.

The Navy plans to reach the initial operational capability milestone for the upgraded aircraft in 2023 as part of its Maritime Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance (ISR) and Targeting transition plan.

Capt. Dan Mackin, the naval program manager for persistent maritime UAS, noted that Tritons would "continue to provide unprecedented maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities which are especially critical to national interests with the increased focus in the Pacific."

The Navy plans to deploy the Northrop Grumman-developed long-endurance ISR drones to five orbits around the world.

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US Navy Holds Christening for Virginia-Class USS Hyman G. Rickover; James Geurts Quoted
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US Navy Holds Christening for Virginia-Class USS Hyman G. Rickover; James Geurts Quoted

The U.S. Navy has christened the second submarine named after Hyman G. Rickover, the former four-star Navy admiral who initiated the adoption of nuclear propulsion with technological and cultural advances in the service. 

James Geurts, currently performing the duties of the undersecretary of the Navy and a 2020 Wash100 Award winner, likened the sailors and shipbuilders' commitment of excellence in constructing the boat to Rickover's culture of excellence, the U.S. Navy said Saturday. 

US Navy Holds Christening for Virginia-Class USS Hyman G. Rickover; James Geurts Quoted

The Virginia-class attack submarine USS Hyman G. Rickover, also known as SNN 709, is slated to join the fleet with 132 crews, 12 vertical launch systems payload, 7,835 tons of displacement and four torpedo tubes. 

The multimission platform is designed to allow five Navy maritime strategy core capabilities that include sea control, power projection, forward presence, maritime security and deterrence. 

The previous Hyman G. Rickover ship was commissioned on July 21, 1984, at the Submarine Base, New London, in Groton. 

Submarine sponsor Darlene Greenert, a navy veteran and wife of former Chief of Naval Jonathan Greenert, was also present Friday during the christening ceremony held at General Dynamics’ Electric Boat shipyard facility in Groton, Connecticut.

She underscored the sacrifices of militaries and commemorated Eleonore Rickover, the admiral’s late wife. 

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President Biden Eyeing to Nominate Alex Wagner as US Air Force Assistant Secretary For Manpower, Reserve Affairs
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President Biden Eyeing to Nominate Alex Wagner as US Air Force Assistant Secretary For Manpower, Reserve Affairs

President Biden is eyeing to select Alex Wagner, Aerospace Industries Association vice president for strategic initiatives, as the U.S. Air Force assistant secretary for manpower and reserve affairs nominee, Air Force Times reported Friday. 

If confirmed, he will be in charge of handling military and civilian personnel concerns, Reserve components affairs and ensure the readiness of an estimated 700,000 workforce members in the Department of the Air Force. 

Prior to his role as AIA executive, Wagner served the Department of Defense for seven years and most recently assumed the chief of staff to the 22nd Secretary of the Army post. He led the direction of policies, communications and legislations while ushering the civilian and military leadership as the principal strategic adviser. 

He was an adjunct professor of law from 2011 to 2018 at Georgetown University Law Center, where he contributed to the drafting of the U.S. Supreme Court’s amici briefs on behalf of the previous Secretaries of the U.S. Navy, Army and Air Force. 

At the Office of the Secretary of Defense, he worked as the senior adviser on rule of law and detainee policy, where he crafted policy initiatives on weapons systems autonomy, leading to the pioneer international discussions at the United Nations in 2014. 

Once he receives Senate confirmation, Wagner will replace John Fedrigo, who assumed the acting assistant secretary position in January. 

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CISA Launches New Online Vulnerability Disclosure Platform; Cybersecurity Official Eric Goldstein Quoted
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CISA Launches New Online Vulnerability Disclosure Platform; Cybersecurity Official Eric Goldstein Quoted

The Cybersecurity Infrastructure and Security Agency (CISA) has launched a new centrally managed website where security researchers and the public can report vulnerabilities on federal civilian systems.

The Vulnerability Disclosure Program Platform will enable agencies to work with the research community on identifying system weaknesses and improve their cybersecurity posture, Eric Goldstein, CISA's executive assistant director for cybersecurity, said Friday.

The sharing process works by researchers checking the integrity of systems listed by the participating agencies and submitting their findings on the platform. Service providers BugCrowd and EnDynma will then assess the reports initially before passing them to the government organizations.

According to CISA estimates, using the VDP Platform will save the government over $10 million. The departments of Homeland Security, Labor and the Interior already pledged to use the website once it becomes available.

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DHS S&T Unveils Research Strategy for Artificial Intelligence; Kathryn Coulter Mitchell Quoted
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DHS S&T Unveils Research Strategy for Artificial Intelligence; Kathryn Coulter Mitchell Quoted

The Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology (DHS S&T) Directorate has unveiled a strategy that would guide S&T's research pursuits in the areas of artificial intelligence and machine learning. 

DHS said Friday that its new AI/ML strategic plan defines research efforts that aim to increase S&T's understanding of opportunities and risks across the dynamic AI landscape.

The directorate wants to drive next-generation AI/ML technologies, apply these technologies to homeland security missions and develop a workforce of interdisciplinary professionals skilled in AI.

“This actionable plan lays out how S&T will build and apply cutting-edge expertise to help the department harness the opportunities of AI/ML technologies while mitigating the associated risks," said Kathryn Coulter Mitchell, who serves as DHS's undersecretary for S&T on an acting basis.

The plan supports the DHS-wide Artificial Intelligence Strategy released in December 2020.

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Senate Passes Bill to Support Small Business Federal Contracting; Sen. Gary Peters Quoted
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Senate Passes Bill to Support Small Business Federal Contracting; Sen. Gary Peters Quoted

The Senate's Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) has passed a bill that aims to help U.S. small businesses pursue contracting opportunities with the federal government. 

The Promoting Rigorous and Innovative Cost Efficiencies for Federal Procurement and Acquisitions (PRICE) Act would task the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to help federal procurement leaders make government contracting suitable for small businesses, HSGAC said Friday.

OMB will share best practices to update contracting processes in a way that supports small businesses.

The PRICE Act — introduced by Sens. Gary Peters, D-Mich., and Joni Ernst, R-Iowa — seeks to address the reluctance of some agencies towards the Small Business Administration’s programs.

“This commonsense legislation will give small business owners a fair shot to win federal contracts and grow their businesses," Peters said.

The legislation now awaits the House's approval.

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Ivanti Acquires RiskSense to Revolutionize the Patch Management Market, Combat Cyber Threats; CEO Jim Schaper Quoted
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Ivanti Acquires RiskSense to Revolutionize the Patch Management Market, Combat Cyber Threats; CEO Jim Schaper Quoted

Ivanti announced on Monday that the company has acquired RiskSense, a pioneer in risk-based vulnerability management and prioritization, in an undisclosed transaction to drive the next evolution of patch management.

“Ivanti has been a leader in patch management for many years, but the acquisition of RiskSense will take our capabilities to an even higher level,” said Jim Schaper, Ivanti chairman and CEO.

Ivanti and RiskSense will provide security and IT teams with context and adaptive intelligence regarding what their organization’s exposures are to vulnerabilities that are being actively exploited, including whether those vulnerabilities are tied to ransomware, and then enable them to quickly remediate those threats.

This combination will enable organizations to shrink their attack surface, prioritize vulnerabilities to remediate, and reduce their exposure to cyber threats and ransomware attacks by taking a proactive, risk-based approach to patch management.

“This combination will allow us to provide our customers with a holistic view of vulnerabilities and exposures, and then enable them to take fast action through Ivanti Neurons for Patch Intelligence,” Schaper added. “Customers will be able to greatly reduce their attack surface and risk of breach because of the vulnerability intelligence and the resulting remediation prioritization based on actively trending exploits and ransomware attacks.”

Ivanti has already integrated the RiskSense Vulnerability Intelligence and Vulnerability Risk Rating, which prioritizes and quantifies adversarial risk based on factors such as threat intelligence, in-the-wild exploit trends, and security analyst validation, into Ivanti Neurons for Patch Intelligence.

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Margaret Vo Schaus Confirmed as NASA Finance Chief; Administrator Bill Nelson Quoted
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Margaret Vo Schaus Confirmed as NASA Finance Chief; Administrator Bill Nelson Quoted

The Senate on Friday voted to confirm Margaret Vo Schaus, a career member of the Senior Executive Service, as NASA’s next chief financial officer.

Vo Schaus, who received nomination for the space agency’s CFO role in April, said that the agency’s budget is not only meant to support space exploration work, but also to expand educational opportunities, create jobs and encourage future astronauts and scientists.

“As we continue to explore the universe, expand critical Earth science research to combat climate change and maintain the world’s most talented workforce, I am fully committed to helping ensure the president and administrator’s vision is carried out here at NASA,” she added.

She has served as director of business operations in the Office of the Under Secretary for Research and Engineering since August 2019 and previously held various positions at the Department of Energy (DOE).

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said that the agency needs steady management of the budget to support its upcoming efforts such as the deployment of the first woman and person of color to the Moon and preparation for human spaceflight to Mars.

“Margaret will be integral to determining future missions and help turn program dreams into reality,” Nelson added.

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