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CAE Names Ben Nicholson VP of Washington Operations; Ray Duquette Quoted
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CAE Names Ben Nicholson VP of Washington Operations; Ray Duquette Quoted

CAE has appointed Ben Nicholson as vice president of Washington Operations, effective December 14, 2020, the company reported on Thursday. He will bring experience in government and legislative relations as well as public policy. 

“He has an extensive background in government relations and a thorough understanding of national security businesses and will be an important addition to the CAE team," said Ray Duquette president and general manager of CAE. 

Nicholson will bring more than two decades of experience across the political and corporate environment. He has expertise in government operations, programs and contracting, including congressional operations, economic development and the federal appropriations process for national defense, aerospace, security and intelligence programs.

In his new role, Nicholson will serve as the senior executive for CAE's government relations in Washington, D.C., and will be responsible for representing the company with the U.S., Congress, federal agencies, foreign governments and industry associations. 

Nicholson will also guide U.S. government foreign policy and national priorities related to the defense and security, civil aviation and healthcare sectors, including their impact on CAE pursuits and objectives in the U.S. and international markets.

Prior to joining CAE, Nicholson served as  vice president of Global Government Relations for Honeywell International, where he led government relations efforts in aerospace, defense and other national security businesses. Nicholson also served as vice president of Government Affairs at L3 Technologies. 

"Nicholson will strengthen CAE's relationship with the U.S. government, Department of Defense and government agencies, as well as develop closer relationships with OEMs, suppliers and partners," Duquette added. 

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Tsymmetry Names New Executives to Advisory Board
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Tsymmetry Names New Executives to Advisory Board

Tsymmetry’s  Board of Directors has appointed Patricia Todaro Bolin, John Sutton and Amanda Brownfield to its inaugural Advisory Board to expand business growth and innovative solutions for the federal IT and private sectors, the company reported on Thursday.

“The individual contributions of our Advisory Board members to operational and IT deployments have led to transformative scalable innovations, pragmatic efficiencies, and stronger national security. Their alignment with our company’s vision will further expand Tsymmetry’s growth,” Tsymmetry chairman Philip Lowit said.

Patty Todaro Bolin
Patty Todaro Bolin

Todaro Bolin, founder of Innovation Consulting Services (ICS Advisory), provides B2B consulting services across mission, technology and operational services for law enforcement, tactical infrastructure, international/trade support and technology innovation/transformation. She also delivers B2B advisory services in business development and capture management.

“I am truly honored and proud to be connected with this maturing firm.  I look forward to working with Tsymmetry leadership and team members, in strengthening current client engagements; and, achieving further success in supporting new client growth and expansion,” said Todaro Bolin.

John Sutton
John Sutton

Sutton is an adjunct professor of Business at George Mason University and advisor to Quadrint Inc. He previously served across a variety of executive leadership positions, such as COO for KeyW, and general manager of QinetiQ NA and Global Crossing. In these roles, Sutton has led business operations and growth.

“I am very excited to join the Tsymmetry Advisory Board. The federal solution market is seeing unprecedented valuations and growth opportunities for technically-enabled, mission-focused firms like Tsymmetry.  I look forward to assisting Philip and his team in evolving their vision, strategy, and operations to growth and success,” said Sutton.

Amanda Brownfield
Amanda Brownfield

Brownfield currently serves as CEO of Geospark Analytics, a provider of transformational data analytics. She holds a deep knowledge of profit and loss (P&L) for privately held and publicly traded companies focused on National Intelligence, Defense and Law Enforcement.

“It’s a tremendous honor to join the Tsymmetry team. I look forward to working with the team to continue to build this amazing platform,” said Brownfield.

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US-European Satellite Delivers First Sea Level Measurements; Thomas Zurbuchen Quoted
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US-European Satellite Delivers First Sea Level Measurements; Thomas Zurbuchen Quoted

Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, a joint U.S.-European satellite built to measure global sea surface height, has sent back its first measurements of sea level, NASA reported on Thursday. The data has provided information on sea surface height, wave height and wind speed off the southern tip of Africa.

"We're excited for Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich to begin its critical work studying sea level and helping us understand the many aspects of our planet's global ocean," said Thomas Zurbuchen, NASA's associate administrator for science at the agency's headquarters in Washington.

Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich successfully launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Nov. 21. The satellite will measure global ocean height from space. 

"Data from Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich will help us evaluate how the Earth is changing," said Karen St. Germain, director of NASA's Earth Science Division. 

The initial orbit for Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich was 11.4 miles lower than its ultimate operational orbit of 830 miles above Earth. Engineers plan to move the satellite into its operational orbit by mid-December, where it will trail the Jason-3 satellite by 30 seconds. 

During this tandem flight, scientists and engineers will spend the next six to 12 months cross calibrating the data collected between the satellites to ensure the continuity of measurements. Following, Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich will become the primary sea level satellite. 

In addition to measuring sea level, Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich will monitor atmospheric temperature and humidity, which will help improve weather and hurricane forecasts.

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Boeing Enters Long Term Agreement with Frontier Airlines to Support Operations
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Boeing Enters Long Term Agreement with Frontier Airlines to Support Operations

Boeing has entered a ten-year agreement with Frontier Airlines to implement a range of crew, flight-planning and operations tools to enhance efficiency for the airline, Boeing reported on Thursday. 

Boeing’s Jeppesen product range will provide digital solutions that deliver cost savings across regional and international routes, enhance airline crew-planning processes and increase operational reliability.

“We are fully confident that these robust Jeppesen flight-planning and operational tools will bring tremendous benefit to Frontier’s operations from day one following implementation,” said Brad Lambert, vice president of Flight Operations for Frontier Airlines. 

Under the agreement, Frontier Airlines will leverage a new Jeppesen digital solutions suite that provides day-of-operations decision-support tools, including flight-planning and scheduling services, crew management, tail assignment and operations-control tools. 

“From maintenance and operational planning to day-of and irregular operations, the Jeppesen automation and crew-management tools will complement our low-cost business model while contributing to our system reliability and efficiency,” Lambert added. 

“Boeing’s analytics-powered tools [will] maximize performance and reduce costs during this critical moment for our industry,” said Ted Colbert, president and CEO of Boeing Global Services. “This is a great example of our partnership with customers like Frontier to turn Boeing’s unparalleled digital expertise into operational bottom-line advantages.”

About Boeing

Boeing is the world’s largest aerospace company and leading provider of commercial airplanes, defense, space and security systems, and global services. As a top U.S. exporter, the company supports commercial and government customers in more than 150 countries, leveraging the talents of a global supplier base. Building on a legacy of aerospace leadership, Boeing continues to lead in technology and innovation, deliver for its customers and invest in its people and future growth.

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New SEC Rules Seek to Modernize Infrastructure Used in Equity Market Data Collection, Distribution; Jay Clayton Quoted
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New SEC Rules Seek to Modernize Infrastructure Used in Equity Market Data Collection, Distribution; Jay Clayton Quoted

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has implemented rules to update the infrastructure used to collect, consolidate and disseminate market data for national market system (NMS) stocks.

SEC said Wednesday that the newly adopted rules will upgrade and expand the content of NMS market data and create a decentralized consolidation framework that replaces exclusive securities information processors with “competing consolidators” to oversee the collection, consolidation and dissemination of market data to the public.

“Today’s rules are part of our larger initiative and ongoing efforts to modernize our equity market regulatory structure to address significant changes in our trading markets and better fit the needs of investors—both retail and institutional—and other market participants, including issuers,” said SEC Chairman Jay Clayton. “In particular, these rules are designed to increase competition and transparency, which will improve data quality and data access for all market participants.”

SEC has come up with a phased transition plan for the new rules that will kick off in 2021.

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Laura Stanton Offers Update on GSA’s STARS III, Polaris Small Business IT GWACs
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Laura Stanton Offers Update on GSA’s STARS III, Polaris Small Business IT GWACs

Laura Stanton, assistant commissioner of the office of information technology category at the General Services Administration (GSA), said GSA plans to award the potential $50 billion STARS III governmentwide acquisition contract (GWAC) set aside for small IT businesses in fiscal year 2021, FedScoop reported Wednesday. 

Stanton said a draft solicitation for another small business IT GWAC, Polaris, will be released soon on the beta SAM website.

“I would say that the future is fairly near in this case,” she said of Polaris during an AFFIRM webinar Wednesday.

The report said GSA expects Polaris to help expand the number of HUBZone and women-owned IT contractors supporting agencies. Stanton announced in October 2020 that Polaris seeks to provide customers access to providers of artificial intelligence, 5G, cloud and other emerging technologies.

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John Ratcliffe on Space Force Becoming Part of US Intelligence Community
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John Ratcliffe on Space Force Becoming Part of US Intelligence Community

Director of National Intelligence (DNI) John Ratcliffe said the U.S. intelligence community will soon integrate the U.S. Space Force as the 18th member, SpaceNews reported Wednesday. Ratcliffe made the announcement Wednesday during a National Space Council meeting at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

A spokeswoman for the Office of the DNI told the publication the plan for the Space Force would help strengthen the partnership between the IC and the Department of Defense (DoD) and that ODNI expects a decision on the move “in the next few months.”

Ratcliffe said his office and the Space Force plan to establish a national space intelligence center focused on technical intelligence to help protect space systems from potential anti-satellite weapons from Russia and China.

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New Collaborative Pilot Program Aims to Bolster DHS Tech Dev’t
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New Collaborative Pilot Program Aims to Bolster DHS Tech Dev’t

The Department of Homeland Security has co-launched a collaborative pilot program that aims to accelerate the development of technologies in support of the DHS mission.

DHS said Tuesday its Science and Technology Directorate has partnered with technology company BMNT, nonprofit Common Mission Project and other DHS components to pursue the Hacking for Homeland Security or H4HS pilot program.

The program engages with academia to identify and develop new concepts and technologies that address real-world problems faced by DHS.

“The H4HS Program will be an opportunity for S&T and DHS components to test a unique innovation program focused on reframing problems and developing unique solutions,” said Megan Mahle, director of industry partnerships at S&T.

H4HS builds on the Hacking for Defense academic course that trains students to address national security and intelligence issues via modern entrepreneurial approaches.

Student participants of H4HS will receive opportunities to learn from experts about homeland security technologies. The program's next course will take place next spring with a focus on issues faced by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

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NASA Tests 3D-Printed Parts for Future Spacecraft
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NASA Tests 3D-Printed Parts for Future Spacecraft

NASA has demonstrated the hot-fire performance of 3D-printed rocket engine parts designed for future lunar landers.

The space agency said Tuesday it tested a copper alloy combustion chamber and a hydrogen-resistant alloy-made nozzle that were produced via additive manufacturing.

NASA’s Alabama-based Marshall Space Flight Center conducted the tests under the Long-Life Additive Manufacturing Assembly project that seeks to produce 3D-printed parts for lunar landers.

“This 3D printed technology is a game-changer when it comes to reducing total hardware manufacturing time and cost,” said Tom Teasley, a test engineer at Marshall.

The effort’s assigned team ran 23 separate hot-fire tests within a 10-day period and generated data on pressure and temperature conditions.

NASA locally melted metal powder to produce the iron-nickel superalloy nozzle through a method known as laser powder directed energy deposition.

The LLAMA project is part of the larger Game Changing Development program that aims to explore new approaches to space technology and operations.

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Army, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Prototype Quadrotor Drone Maneuverability Element
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Army, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Prototype Quadrotor Drone Maneuverability Element

The U.S. Army has partnered with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in New York to develop a “trajectory planner” element to help improve vertical takeoff-and-landing maneuverability for quadrotor drones. 

Researchers integrated the tail-sitter onto a Common Research Configuration quadrotor biplane to test the element's ability to affect rotor movement and wing aerodynamics particularly in dense locations and urban areas, the Army Research Laboratory said Tuesday.

Jean-Paul Reddinger, an aerospace engineer at ARL’s Vehicle Technology Directorate, said the trajectory planner’s capacity to transition the platform between hover and forward-flight could help the Army in applications such as aerial resupply and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.

“The goal of this work was to use a model-based trajectory planner that could capture the quadrotor’s dynamic characteristics sufficiently while executing quickly enough to provide trajectories in-flight,” he said. 

“The direction we’re trying to take this in is to incorporate obstacles and additional kinds of constraints on its maneuverability.”

RPI and the Army plan to conduct further simulation trials for the tail-sitter ahead of hardware integration activities and flight tests.

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