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AFRL Holds Largest Wright Dialogue With Defense Industry in Ohio
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AFRL Holds Largest Wright Dialogue With Defense Industry in Ohio


AFRL Holds Largest Wright Dialogue With Defense Industry in OhioThe 13th annual Wright Dialogue With Industry, hosted by the Air Force Research Laboratory, saw more than 600 registrants, making it the largest WDI ever.

The event, titled “AFRL Science and Technology Supporting the National Defense Strategy,” was held from July 17 to 19 in Dayton, Ohio, featured presentations, panel discussions, open forums and one-on-one sessions between senior Air Force officials and defense contractors, Wright-Patterson AFB said Friday.

During the dialogue, Maj. Gen. William Cooley, AFRL commander, discussed technologies outlined in the 2018 National Defense Strategy that the AFRL is focusing on, including hypersonics, directed energy, autonomy, biotechnology, robotics, artificial intelligence, big data analytics and quantum computing.

Cooley also discussed the launching of the Air Force Science and Technology 2030 website, where visitors can submit ideas for innovative technology to be evaluated by a panel of national experts and AFRL researchers.

Ideas that stood out will be included in a report to the Air Force secretary due in September.

Other key speakers for the event were Valerie Muck, member of the senior executive service and director of the Defense Department‘s Air Force Small Business Programs; Tom Lockhart, also a member of the senior executive service and director of the AFRL Plans and Programs and Strategic Development Planning and Experimentation directorates; Dr. Steven “Cap” Rogers, the AFRL’s senior scientist for autonomy; and Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Stephen Wilson.

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Task Force Report Describes DOJ’s Efforts to Address Cyber Threats Posed by Foreign Influence Operations
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Task Force Report Describes DOJ’s Efforts to Address Cyber Threats Posed by Foreign Influence Operations


Task Force Report Describes DOJ’s Efforts to Address Cyber Threats Posed by Foreign Influence OperationsAttorney General Jeff Sessions on Thursday announced the release of a report that provides an assessment of cybersecurity threats facing the country and describes how the Justice Department detects and responds to those threats.

The department said Thursday the report was produced by the cyber-digital task force that Sessions established in February and led by Sujit Raman, associate deputy attorney general.

The document’s first chapter describes the five types of foreign influence operations and how such activities can target U.S. elections and other democratic institutions.

Those operations include cyber activities that zero in on the election infrastructure, political organizations, officials and campaigns; covert operations to harm political campaigns and organizations; covert activities that include disinformation to cause division and influence public opinion; and use of foreign media entities and lobbyists to influence the public and other overt influence initiatives, according to the fact sheet.

The report also cites how DoD responds to such operations and those include collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies to facilitate data sharing on cyber threats; investigation and prosecution of criminal activities; and formation of partnerships with social media entities to help them identify foreign influence activities.

The task force also discussed in the report fraud schemes, data theft and other cyber threats, the FBI’s efforts to address cyber incidents and the department’s initiative to train and manage its cyber workforce.

Commerce Department Launches Probe Into Uranium Production, Imports
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Commerce Department Launches Probe Into Uranium Production, Imports


Commerce Department Launches Probe Into Uranium Production, ImportsU.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said his department has started an investigation into the possibility that the reduced production of uranium ore in the United States may be negatively impacting the military and energy sectors’ strength and soundness.

Local uranium production, which is crucial for military and electric power, has plunged to 5 percent of consumption from 49 percent in 1987, prompting the Bureau of Industry and Security to conduct an investigation as to whether uranium imports “threaten[s] to impair national security,” the Commerce Department said Wednesday.

Ross said uranium is important to the country’s military and energy sectors, as it is an essential component of the nuclear arsenal and is used to fuel the U.S. Navy’s fleet of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and submarines. It also powers 99 commercial nuclear reactors that account for a fifth of the electricity in the U.S. electric grid.

The decision to launch the probe came after UR-Energy and Energy Fuels filed a petition on Jan. 17 requesting the Commerce Department to initiate a Section 232 investigation into uranium ore product imports.

The two mining companies have reportedly lost half of their workforce over the last two years and are currently operating at drastically reduced capacities.

Ross said his department conducted consultations with Congress, the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy and industry stakeholders prior to the launch of the Section 232 investigation.

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Report: NASA to Announce Commercial Crew Program Astronauts in August
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Report: NASA to Announce Commercial Crew Program Astronauts in August


Report: NASA to Announce Commercial Crew Program Astronauts in AugustNASA is set to announce on Aug. 3 the first batch of astronauts who will travel to the International Space Station under the Commercial Crew Program, Politico reported Friday.

The space agency expects the program’s maiden mission to take place sometime in 2020.

Boeing and SpaceX were awarded contracts worth up to $6.8 billion combined in September 2014 to ferry astronauts to and from the space station with the CST-100 and Dragon spacecraft.

Each contractor received four additional ISS transport missions in January of last year.

The Aug. 3 mission will also mark Americans’ first trip to space from U.S. ground since the Space Shuttle program concluded seven years ago.

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Tiffany Hixson: GSA Advances Performance-Based Approach in Service Procurements
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Tiffany Hixson: GSA Advances Performance-Based Approach in Service Procurements


Tiffany Hixson: GSA Advances Performance-Based Approach in Service Procurements
Tiffany Hixson

Tiffany Hixson, assistant commissioner of the office of professional and human capital services at the General Services Administration’s Federal Acquisition Service, has said she believes the government should adopt a performance-based approach when it comes to services procurement, Federal News Radio reported Friday.

“Traditional strategic sourcing proposals based on price don’t work well, in my opinion, in the services acquisition space,” Hixson said Thursday at Deltek’s Spending Spree event.

“I think most procurements in services need to be done from best-value perspective,” she added.

Hixson noted that the agency has updated the performance-based procurement resource for professional services on the Acquisition Gateway and initiated efforts to build up the adoption of the four-tier professional services schedule.

Christopher Krebs: Trump Administration Seeks Public-Private Collaboration for National Risk Mgmt Initiative
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Christopher Krebs: Trump Administration Seeks Public-Private Collaboration for National Risk Mgmt Initiative


Christopher Krebs: Trump Administration Seeks Public-Private Collaboration for National Risk Mgmt Initiative
Christopher Krebs

Christopher Krebs, undersecretary for the Department of Homeland Security’s national protection and programs directorate, has said the Trump administration plans to launch an initiative to encourage public-private partnerships to address cyber threats and secure critical infrastructure, Nextgov reported Friday.

He told audience at a Washington Post-hosted cyber forum Friday the planned national risk management initiative seeks to involve DHS and the departments of Energy and Treasury as well as companies and sector-specific agencies that deal with cybersecurity.

The idea comes as the government works to avoid cyber attacks on the 2018 midterm elections.

FCW reported that Krebs said he believes a lack of cooperation between industry and governments at the federal and state levels prompted the administration to establish a new risk management program.

“[We are] pushing a collective security model where we work together to manage risk,” he said.

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DARPA Launches Program to Expedite Exploratory Research Work on ‘3rd Wave’ AI Concepts
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DARPA Launches Program to Expedite Exploratory Research Work on ‘3rd Wave’ AI Concepts


DARPA Launches Program to Expedite Exploratory Research Work on '3rd Wave' AI ConceptsThe Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has introduced a new program that aims to speed up research and development work on artificial intelligence platforms in an effort to help the U.S. maintain its technological edge in the field of AI.

The AI Exploration program will focus on the development of “third wave” AI applications and theory designed to allow machines to adapt to evolving situations, DARPA said Friday.

DARPA Launches Program to Expedite Exploratory Research Work on '3rd Wave' AI ConceptsThe agency expects exploratory research work to begin within three months of the announcement of funding opportunities – AIE Opportunities – and plans to award “other transactions” agreements worth up to $1 million each for prototype projects, according to the program announcement.

Researchers should determine the feasibility of AI-based ideas and concepts within 18 months of the OTA-based contract award.

“The intent is to get researchers on contract quickly to test the value and feasibility of innovative concepts,” Peter Highnam, deputy director of DARPA, said of the AIE initiative.

DARPA said the AIE program seeks to pursue AI pilots; proofs of concepts; applications of commercial technology platforms for defense use; and design, development and demonstration of operational or technical utility.

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Lt. Gen. Charles Hooper: DSCA Mulls Shipment Fee Reduction for Foreign Weapons Buyers
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Lt. Gen. Charles Hooper: DSCA Mulls Shipment Fee Reduction for Foreign Weapons Buyers


Lt. Gen. Charles Hooper: DSCA Mulls Shipment Fee Reduction for Foreign Weapons Buyers
Charles Hooper

Lt. Gen. Charles Hooper, director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency and a 2018 Wash100 awardee, has said that DSCA looks to cut the transportation fee charged to foreign military sales clients, Defense News reported Saturday.

The agency calculates shipping charges on FMS contracts fee partly based on current oil prices and seeks to lower the fee as part of efforts to increase sales of U.S.-built weapons systems to the country’s allies.

DSCA lowered in June the FMS administration surcharge from 3.5 percent on every transaction to 3.2 percent.

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Report: Marines Look to Adopt Loitering Munitions
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Report: Marines Look to Adopt Loitering Munitions


Report: Marines Look to Adopt Loitering MunitionsThe U.S. Marine Corps intends to arm front-line troops with suicide drones, also called loitering munitions, to help them perform missions in austere locations beyond a striking range of manned aerial platforms, Marines Corps Times reported Saturday.

The service branch envisions deploying swarms of up to 15 suicide drones each under the control of a single marine and the operator possessing a capacity to manage close-air support and electronic warfare operations.

USMC sought input from industry in April about the availability of a pneumatic launched suicide drone system that could travel 37 miles for two hours.

Defense & Aerospace Export Council Supports US Conventional Arms Transfer Policy
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Defense & Aerospace Export Council Supports US Conventional Arms Transfer Policy


Defense & Aerospace Export Council Supports US Conventional Arms Transfer PolicyThe U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Defense and Aerospace Export Council has expressed support for the Trump administration’s implementation plan for a new policy governing U.S. arms transfer processes.

Keith Webster, president of DAEC and vice president at Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement released Thursday implementing the Conventional Arms Transfer policy will mark a key step toward adoption of measures to fast-track government approval of proposals from defense and aerospace companies.

The CAT implementation plan includes the council’s recommendations such as institution of policies that seek to improve quality of bids while decreasing the cost to companies and prioritization of economic considerations in federal transfer deals.

DAEC also proposed updating the Defense Department Technology Security Foreign Disclosure policy procedure; establishing an avenue for foreign industrial security mechanisms to gain access to U.S. defense technology platforms; and modernizing foreign military sales pricing structure.

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