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F-35 Joint Simulation Environment Test Schedule Pushed Back to 2021
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F-35 Joint Simulation Environment Test Schedule Pushed Back to 2021

The full-rate production phase for the F-35 fighter jet program faces another delay after the Department of Defense (DoD) pushed back testing in the Joint Simulation Environment from December 2020 of this year to sometime in 2021, Defense News reported Monday.

Jessica Maxwell, a spokeswoman for Hon. Ellen Lord, undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment at DoD and a four-time Wash100 Award winner, announced the delay in simulation tests, which she said will inform a statutory report DoD needed to review and decide whether to grant Milestone C approval in order for the program to advance to full-rate production.

“Production of the F-35 will continue in [low-rate initial production] in accordance with Congressional authorization and appropriation,” Maxwell said in a statement.

The F-35 program was expected to receive Milestone C decision in December 2019, but that timeline was pushed back to March 2021, according to the report.

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Lisa Watson-Morgan: NASA Eyes Ways to Stretch Out Funding for HLS Program
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Lisa Watson-Morgan: NASA Eyes Ways to Stretch Out Funding for HLS Program

Lisa Watson-Morgan, Human Landing System (HLS) program manager at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, said the HLS program is considering “some interesting methods” that could help stretch out its budget for an additional month or so in the event that Congress faces further delays in passing a final appropriations bill for fiscal year 2021, SpaceNews reported Monday.

NASA requested $3.2 billion in FY 2021 funds for the HLS program and Watson-Morgan reiterated the need for the agency to receive that funding in order to support the lunar landing mission in 2024.

“We are certainly also planning to get additional funding so that we can achieve the moon landing in 2024,” she said Monday during a session at the American Astronautical Society’s Wernher von Braun Memorial Symposium.

NASA awarded SpaceX, Blue Origin and Leidos’ Dynetics subsidiary 10-month contracts worth $967 million combined in late April to design and build human landing systems for the Artemis moon mission in 2024.

“Right now our base period goes through February 28th, and we are funded to complete all the base period milestones,” Watson-Morgan said of those contracts with the three companies.

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Excelicon Named to the 2020 Inc. 5000 List; CEO Tushar Garg Quoted
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Excelicon Named to the 2020 Inc. 5000 List; CEO Tushar Garg Quoted

For the second consecutive year, the Inc. 5000 list has named Excelicon as a part of its 2020 edition, an annual list to celebrate the nation’s brightest business minds and their remarkable achievements.

“We are so proud of our team that continues to deliver ‘Excellence in Consulting’,” said Tushar Garg, CEO at Excelicon. “Our official rank is 1330 with an impressive growth rate of 335.91%.

This recognition, two years in a row, proves that we are doing something right by focusing on quality delivery, client mission and team success,” Garg added. “Excelicon is proud and humbled to be recognized by Inc. 5000 and we will use this proof to continue with ‘Excellence in Consulting.’”

About Excelicon  

Excelicon has been a trusted advisor and an outstanding provider of Agile, Cybersecurity, and Advisory services to our clients, helping government customers increase efficiency, get the best value and bring systems into the modern era.

Holding contracts with several Federal Agencies, Excelicon is dedicated to the delivery of high-quality service to clients that uphold ethical and humane missions that support our nation’s security, resilience and health. Excelicon consultants apply their advanced technical acumen on the ground, working with client’s side-by-side to ensure a stronger government for all.

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Air Combat Command Adds Electromagnetic Spectrum to Training Priorities; Gen. Mark Kelly Quoted
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Air Combat Command Adds Electromagnetic Spectrum to Training Priorities; Gen. Mark Kelly Quoted

Air Combat Command (ACC) has identified the electromagnetic spectrum as a technology priority across training activities in anticipation of future challenges. 

The command is working to keep up with the intelligence and maneuvering challenges associated with EMS technological advancements', the U.S. Air Force said Friday.

“Focused integration of electromagnetic spectrum operations in our training and exercises will expand our readiness by creating complex environments for our Airmen to train in and against,” said Gen. Mark Kelly, ACC's commander.

Lt. Gen. Christopher Weggeman, ACC deputy commander, said excellence in information warfare would depend on expertise in spectrum operations. ACC will modify and align its policies, organizations and tactics with priorities to address EMS challenges.

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Air Force Unveils Tracker Tech for Storm Damage Assessment; Dave Thomander Quoted
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Air Force Unveils Tracker Tech for Storm Damage Assessment; Dave Thomander Quoted

The U.S. Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center (AFIMSC) has deployed a storm damage tracker to assess infrastructure damage brought by natural disasters on USAF installations.

Developed in partnership with the Air Force Civil Engineer Center, the tracker collects various information such as independent government estimates, statements of work and photos of the damage, the service branch said Sunday.

"Comptrollers work hand-in-hand with civil engineer squadrons to get the right information and photos uploaded in the tracker so we can go in and validate damage," said Dave Thomander, facilities sustainment, repair and modernization requirement validator at the Air Force Civil Engineer Center's planning and integration directorate.

AFIMSC will use the data collected by the tracker to obtain funding or reimbursement for installation repairs and replacements.

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Air Force Reorganizes Spectrum Mgmt Office to Streamline Info Warfare Efforts; Lt. Gen. Mary O’Brien Quoted
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Air Force Reorganizes Spectrum Mgmt Office to Streamline Info Warfare Efforts; Lt. Gen. Mary O’Brien Quoted

The U.S. Air Force has transitioned its Spectrum Management Office (AFSMO) into the Cyberspace Operations and Warfighter Communications Directorate as part of a reorganization effort aimed at synchronizing information warfare functions.

The Air Force said Friday that AFSMO will operate under the Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance (ISR) and Cyber Effects Operations to support all-domain operations and full integration into the Headquarters Air Force Staff.

AFSMO will continue to operate from Fort George G. Meade in Maryland and handle efforts involving electromagnetic spectrum allocations and the Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) system.

“This is a critical step to information warfare integration and synchronization because command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) is inextricably linked to EMS management,” said Lt. Gen. Mary O’Brien, the Air Force's deputy chief of staff for ISR and Cyber Effects Operations. 

“To compete and win in competition as well as a high-end fight, our Air and Space Force activities and capabilities like EMS must not only be de-conflicted, but integrated with our service counterparts," she noted.

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Louisiana Nat’l Guard Responds to Gov’t Cyber Attacks Ahead of 2020 Elections
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Louisiana Nat’l Guard Responds to Gov’t Cyber Attacks Ahead of 2020 Elections

The National Guard has responded to alleged cases of cyber breaches at government offices in Louisiana weeks ahead of this year’s presidential elections, Reuters reported Friday.

The publication’s sources said the threat was terminated before it critically penetrated government systems but several northern Louisiana government offices experienced successful cyber breaches during the attack.

Cybersecurity experts have attributed the cyber attacks in Louisiana to a hacking group backed by North Korea, according to Reuters.

Earlier this month, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued an advisory on a new form of malware called "emotet” which has worm-like qualities.

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NASA Meets Sample Requirement for Asteroid Study Mission; Thomas Zurbuchen Quoted
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NASA Meets Sample Requirement for Asteroid Study Mission; Thomas Zurbuchen Quoted

NASA has gathered more than the required amount of rock samples for a mission to study the Bennu asteroid. The space agency said Saturday it collected over 60 grams of Bennu's surface material under the OSIRIS-REx mission.

“Bennu continues to surprise us with great science and also throwing a few curveballs,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, NASA’s associate administrator for science.

The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft's Touch-And-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism (TAGSAM) collected samples for the mission. However, some of the samples appear to be escaping due to small gaps.

“The loss of mass is of concern to me, so I’m strongly encouraging the team to stow this precious sample as quickly as possible," said  Dante Lauretta, principal investigator for OSIRIS-REx at the University of Arizona in Tucson.

Goddard Space Flight Center oversees the mission from NASA's end, and Lockheed Martin provided the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft.

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NIST Issues Draft Guidance on Implementing Cybersecurity for PNT Operations
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NIST Issues Draft Guidance on Implementing Cybersecurity for PNT Operations

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has created draft cybersecurity guidelines for positioning, navigation and timing (PNT)-based technologies.

NIST said Friday the Cybersecurity Profile for the Responsible Use of PNT Services is meant to guide agencies in applying the NIST cybersecurity framework to “help mitigate cybersecurity risks that endanger systems important to national and economic security”.

The draft guidance also serves as a response to an Executive Order issued earlier this year on the responsible use of PNT services for national security.

NIST’s PNT profile is the agency’s latest addition to its cybersecurity framework profiles created to support critical applications such as power grid, manufacturing and maritime operations. Jim McCarthy, co-author of the draft guidance and 2016 Wash100 Award winner, said the profile is meant to help “a broad set of users” across economic sectors.

“The ultimate goals are to identify systems that use PNT data and to detect disturbances to it. Doing so can help mitigate the risk of misuse of PNT data affecting our critical infrastructure, public health and national security.”

The guidance comes as NIST and OPNT are building a PNT central distribution hub for the East Coast in McLean, Virginia.

Comments on the draft guide are due on Nov. 23rd.

NIST Issues Draft Guidance on Implementing Cybersecurity for PNT Operations

During Potomac Officers Club’s Ensuring PNT Superiority on the Future Battlefield Virtual Event, Nelson will discuss resiliency within the military’s existing GPS enterprise, sources of PNT that enable robustness and resilience and how to find ways to disrupt adversaries’ use of PNT information.

To register for Ensuring PNT Superiority on the Future Battlefield, as well as view upcoming opportunities, visit Potomac Officers Club’s Event Page.

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New NAVFAC Directorate to Lead Real Estate Efforts; Rear Adm. John Korka Quoted
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New NAVFAC Directorate to Lead Real Estate Efforts; Rear Adm. John Korka Quoted

Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) has established a directorate tasked to procure and manage real property for naval installations. 

NAVFAC's new Real Estate directorate will implement enhanced use leases, other transaction authorities and other diverse methods to procure property for both the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps, the Navy said Friday.

“By making this move, we are enabling NAVFAC’s real estate subject matter experts to develop and deliver projects with greater speed, agility,and relevance,” said Rear Adm. John Korka, NAVFAC commander.

Joe Calcara, who will lead the new directorate, said his team will conduct feasibility studies on efforts to maximize investments, improve energy and water resilience and boost facility maintenance efficiencies. These studies will run over the next months, in a move to pursue and streamline sought efforts at least within the next year.

“Realigning the NAVFAC real estate organization into a new directorate is paramount to both recapitalizing Navy and Marine Corps infrastructure and reducing facility sustainment, restoration and modernization burden,” Calcara noted.

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