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NAVAIR Working to Deploy Marine Aviation Data Management System
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NAVAIR Working to Deploy Marine Aviation Data Management System

A program office within Naval Air Systems Command is working through the final steps to deliver to the fleet a system designed to modernize shipboard data management of the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Marine Corps.

NAVAIR said Thursday the command’s Aircraft Launch and Recovery Equipment Program Office, or PMA-251, Information Systems team has implemented design changes, integrated fleet feedback and demonstrated prototypes of the Marine Aviation Data Management System, or MADMS.

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What Is MADMS?

MADMS is a shipboard information platform designed to digitally integrate weapons, surface operations, flight deck management, flight operations, shipboard operations and other operational systems and provide fleet users with real-time situational awareness.

The platform created a Development Security & Operations Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery software development pipeline, enabling multiple contractors and developers to simultaneously work and field features to fleet test groups.

“It’s exciting to see such an adaptable tool make its way to our warfighters,” said Capt. Mike Kline, PMA-251 program manager. “With today’s rapidly changing global threat environment, our teams are working diligently to give the warfighters the capabilities they need now and in the future.”

Plans for MADMS

In fiscal year 2025, the PMA-251 MADMS team will distribute a Market Survey Simulation through the Consolidated Afloat Networks system, a.k.a. CANES, to collect fleet feedback and deploy MSS as a software-only prototype application on CANES.

In 2026, the program office is set to release the MADMS Capability Drop 1 to the fleet. As the office addresses input from the fleet and improves cybersecurity, annual increments of the system will be deployed.

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AUKUS Partners Test Joint Maritime Capabilities in Australia
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AUKUS Partners Test Joint Maritime Capabilities in Australia

Through AUKUS, a trilateral security agreement between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States in the Indo-Pacific region, partners have successfully tested several autonomous maritime systems.

During a three-week span of maritime tests in Australia, dubbed Autonomous Warrior 24, AUKUS partners worked to improve the ability to jointly operate unmanned systems, share data between all three nations and provide maritime domain awareness to help inform decision-making, the Department of Defense announced Thursday.

Heidi Shyu, undersecretary of defense for research and engineering and a 2024 Wash100 awardee, said, “Autonomous Warrior/Maritime Big Play creates a unique opportunity for our three countries to work together, which will ultimately improve operational efficiency and allow us to work more cohesively against common threats.”

“This collaborative approach enables us to reduce acquisition, maintenance, and training costs by creating economies of scale,” Shyu added.

The Autonomous Warrior 24 event featured capabilities from underwater to space systems. These systems included software-defined acoustic modems, multi-model unmanned underwater and surface vehicles and low-cost autonomous surface vehicles.

The event was a part of the Maritime Big Play initiative and continued efforts to develop AUKUS Pillar II capabilities to advance maritime awareness.

“By investing in novel and innovative capabilities directly aligned to AUKUS mission priorities, as well as making future advancements in emerging technologies like AI and Quantum, we support a more stable region — one where all nations are empowered to make their own sovereign decisions free from coercion — a world that centers on hope for the opportunity and prosperity of the future,” Shyu stated.

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National Reconnaissance Office Launches 4th NROL Mission
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National Reconnaissance Office Launches 4th NROL Mission

The National Reconnaissance Office launched on Oct. 24 the fourth mission for its proliferated satellite architecture. The mission, dubbed NROL-167, involved the use of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, which took off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, the NRO said Thursday.

Proliferated Satellite Architecture Program

NRO Director Chris Scolese said in May that the proliferated satellite architecture would “enhance our ability to collect and deliver critical information at the speed our users demand.” The four-time Wash100 awardee also said the architecture is characterized by a diversity that “allows us to remain agile and resilient amid increasing competition and emerging threats, ensuring we are well positioned now and in the future to deliver on our mission of keeping our nation safe.”

Increased NROL Launch Frequency

NROL-167, which was launched in partnership with U.S. Space Force Space Launch Delta 30 and SpaceX, comes on the heels of NROL-113 — the third mission in the series — which launched just this September. According to the NRO, the short gap between the two signifies an increased launch frequency for the program.

Over half a dozen launches are set for 2024 in support of the proliferated architecture program, while more launches are expected through 2028.

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DISA Pacific Chief on Ensuring Communication in the Indo-Pacific
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DISA Pacific Chief on Ensuring Communication in the Indo-Pacific

U.S. Marine Corps Col. Jared Voneida, commander of Defense Information Systems Agency Pacific, spoke at the recent AFCEA TechNet Indo-Pacific 2024 conference, where, during a breakout session, he discussed the need for resilient communication in the region.

Communication Node Distribution

Part of that effort to ensure resilience is DISA’s move away from large command and control nodes towards smaller, dispersed sites, according to an article published Thursday on the agency’s website. Node distribution across a wider area ensures continued connectivity because, Voneida said, “[big] nodes are worthy of being attacked.”

“Small dispersion is what we’re looking for, not only for security but also to cover down on the threat,” the official added.

Agnostic Transport

Voneida also discussed the need to achieve what he described as “agnostic transport,” where communication is maintained through the use of a mix of various technologies, including terrestrial fiber and satellite communication.

“What we’re doing is looking at spreading out our capability to make sure the joint coalition force can connect, making it exceedingly difficult to be completely denied,” the DISA Pacific chief explained.

Communication Security

Protecting communication infrastructure is complex, Voneida noted, due to the many ways it can be compromised. Part of efforts to mitigate such threats is DISA collaborating with industry and government partners.

Also key to communication security is Thunderdome, the agency’s zero trust network access and application security architecture.

For Voneida, getting zero trust right would be advantageous in the Indo-Pacific in light of “all these disparate countries that we have to work with.”

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CISA Software Deployment Guide Aims to Secure Products, Services
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CISA Software Deployment Guide Aims to Secure Products, Services

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has jointly developed with the FBI and the Australian Cyber Security Centre a guidance to help software manufacturers and service providers deliver secure products and maintain safe deployment processes. 

Titled “Safe Software Deployment: How Software Manufacturers Can Ensure Reliability for Customers,” the 12-page guidance issued on Thursday can help the software industry provide customer security and service reliability when introducing new product features, CISA said.

The guide provides key considerations in the six phases vital to safe software deployment, including planning, development, internal rollout, testing, customer trial and feedback. The guidance also offers pointers for creating playbooks on efficient and resilient software deployment to ensure that the safety steps taken are well-documented for future reference or use. 

To develop the playbooks, the guide suggests the inclusion of emergency protocols to address the issues and concerns following software deployment. Incident detection and reporting, as well as recovery and rollback procedures are among the emergency protocols that the guidance recommends.  

On the consumer front, CISA and the FBI recently released for public comment the Product Security Bad Practices catalog that also provide recommendations on how to build secure software.

CISA Software Deployment Guide Aims to Secure Products, Services

Join the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Homeland Security Summit on Nov. 13, to learn more about the major threats poised against the United States and the efforts underway to address them. Register now to join the conversation! 

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ARPA-E Unveils Funding Program to Develop New Quantum Algorithms
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ARPA-E Unveils Funding Program to Develop New Quantum Algorithms

The Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy has announced $30 million in funding to develop quantum computing-enabled strategies for studying chemistry and materials.

To be awarded through the Quantum Computing for Computational Chemistry program, the funding would support project teams’ efforts to develop new quantum algorithms for innovative energy research, ARPA-E said Thursday.

The selected teams will work on specific chemistry or materials science problems, where quantum capabilities can be used to increase clean energy generation or cut down greenhouse gas emissions. The projects could introduce new superconductors for more efficient electricity transmission or develop enhanced battery chemistries, the agency added.

According to ARPA-E Director Evelyn Wang, the QC3 projects will use the power of quantum computing to overcome the limits of conventional computing and enable researchers to solve high-impact energy problems.

Under the program, the project teams will be required to present quantum simulations that demonstrate a hundred times improvement over classical computing methods. The teams can also showcase scalable solutions that can be verified on existing quantum computing systems.

The QC3 program advances ARPA-E’s mission to develop and deploy advanced energy technologies.

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NASA Report Reveals Space Exploration, Change Research Boosted Economic Activity
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NASA Report Reveals Space Exploration, Change Research Boosted Economic Activity

A new study has found that the U.S. government’s investments in space exploration are giving the economy a boost by creating jobs and generating tax revenues. NASA said Thursday that, based on the results of its third economic impact report, its Moon to Mars activities, climate change research, technology development and other projects have led to $75.6 billion in economic output across the nation in fiscal 2023. 

NASA Programs Benefit Americans

According to the report, the space agency’s programs in fiscal 2023 supported a total of 304,803 jobs, which generated $9.5 billion in federal, state and local taxes. Moreover, the economic impact of NASA programs is felt in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. 

Its Moon to Mars initiative, which includes the Artemis mission, accounted for 32 percent of the agency’s economic impact, generating nearly $2.9 billion in tax revenue in 2023. Approximately 11 percent of its economic impact came from its investments in climate change, with research and technology contributing over $1 billion to the economy. 

NASA scientists and engineers also work on certain technologies that directly benefit American lives. The section of the report on Spinoffs, which refers to public products and processes developed with NASA equipment and funding, created 1,564 new technology reports, 40 new patent applications and 69 patents issued.

“To invest in NASA is to invest in American workers, American innovation, the American economy and American economic competitiveness,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, a Wash100 awardee, said in a press release. “Our work doesn’t just expand our understanding of the universe — it fuels economic growth, inspires future generations, and improves our quality of life.”

NASA Budget

Janet Petro, director of NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center in Florida, pointed out that the space agency received less than one-half of a percent of the overall federal budget. 

“Our missions help unveil the secrets of the universe and our home planet while also benefitting the taxpayers, communities, and industries across the country,” she stated. 

For fiscal 2025, NASA is requesting $25.4 billion in funding to support its science and technology projects.

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DOD ManTech Program Announces Appointment of Stephen Recchia, Stephen Luckowski to Key Roles
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DOD ManTech Program Announces Appointment of Stephen Recchia, Stephen Luckowski to Key Roles

The Department of Defense has appointed government program managers Stephen Recchia and Stephen Luckowski to new leadership roles to drive the future efforts of DOD’s Manufacturing Technology program, or ManTech.

The department said Wednesday Recchia succeeds Luckowski as program manager of the DOD Manufacturing Innovation Institutes, or MIIs.

Meanwhile, Luckowski will take on the role of director of the Technology Transfer, Transition and Commercial Partnerships Office, or T3CP.

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Stephen Recchia

In his new role, Recchia will manage nine department-led MIIs, provide strategic guidance and facilitate collaboration with the government, industry and academia to advance DOD’s manufacturing capabilities and portfolio of critical technologies.

The former engineer within the U.S. Army most recently served as a program manager within the Office of the Secretary of Defense Manufacturing Science and Technology Program.

The DOD MIIs seek to reinforce the country’s domestic manufacturing capability by advancing research and development, building up manufacturing systems and promoting education and workforce development.

Stephen Luckowski

As head of T3CP, the former MII program manager will leverage his experience in technology transition and public-private partnerships to drive innovation, develop commercialization pathways and transition capabilities to the warfighter.

Luckowski has over three decades of Army civilian service.

He previously served as a ManTech program manager for the Army and DOD, director of the Prototype Integration Facility at the Combat Capabilities Development Command Armaments Center at Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey and chair of the metals processing and fabrication subpanel within the Joint Defense Manufacturing Technology Panel.

Register now for the Potomac Officers Club’s 2025 Defense R&D Summit on Jan. 23, and hear from leading defense researchers, experts and decision makers about the cutting-edge technologies shaping the future of the U.S. military.

POC - 2025 Defense R&D Summit
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DCAA Appoints Jennifer Desautel as Director
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DCAA Appoints Jennifer Desautel as Director

Jennifer Desautel, former assistant director of policy and quality at the Defense Contract Audit Agency, was appointed DCAA director, effective Oct. 20.

DCAA said Thursday she brings to the role more than two decades of experience in accounting, auditing and management.

As the DCAA director, Desautel has decision making authority on agency policy, resources and operations. She also manages an annual operating budget of approximately $650 million for DCAA whose mission is to deliver contract audit and advisory services in support of the DOD.

Jennifer Desautel’s Career

Desautel held several director and assistant director positions, including director for the Boeing Honeywell Corporate Audit Directorate, at the agency before assuming her recent role as policy and quality assistant director.

In the said position, the DCAA leader drove the development and release of contract audit policy and quality assurance for the agency. Desautel was responsible for audit procedures, standards and guidelines and for oversight of the quality control system.

Desautel also served as associate director for air, space and intel within the Investment Directorate, where the audit professional worked to ensure that air, space and intelligence programs funded by Department of Defense investments were properly priced and financed. She completed a detail with the Office of the Secretary of Defense Comptroller from May 2023 to June 2024.

According to the DCAA announcement of Desautel’s leadership appointment, she has a track record in leading transformative and strategic change, as well as in strengthening coalitions with internal and external partners.

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White House Releases National Security Memorandum on AI
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White House Releases National Security Memorandum on AI

The White House has issued a memorandum directing the U.S. government to implement measures to harness artificial intelligence technologies in support of the national security mission.

Harnessing AI for National Security

According to a fact sheet published Thursday, the national security memorandum directs agencies to propose streamlined procurement approaches and practices to facilitate collaboration with nontraditional vendors and requires the creation of a framework to promote AI governance and risk management in national security.

The document also aims to achieve national security objectives while safeguarding democratic values and human rights.

The memo also proposes actions to ensure the country’s leadership in the development of safe, secure and trustworthy AI tools and drive international consensus and governance around AI.

Advancing US Leadership in AI

To maintain U.S. leadership in trustworthy AI development, the memo calls for actions to improve the diversity and security of chip supply chains and directs U.S. government entities to provide AI tech developers with counterintelligence and cybersecurity information to ensure the security of their inventions.

The new policy officially designates the AI Safety Institute as industry’s key point of contact in the U.S. government and advances the National AI Research Resource.

Fostering International AI Governance

The memo directs the U.S. government to work with allies and partners to establish a stable governance framework to ensure that AI tools are developed and used in ways that protect human rights and fundamental freedoms while adhering to international law.

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