/
Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force to Prioritize Funding for Combat Aircraft Production, Sustainment
Published on
Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force to Prioritize Funding for Combat Aircraft Production, Sustainment


Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force to Prioritize Funding for Combat Aircraft Production, SustainmentSenior officials at the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force have informed House Armed Services Committee members of the service branches’ programs to buy combat aircraft and weapons systems, DoD News reported Friday.

Vice Adm. Paul Grosklags, commander of Naval Air Systems Command, said at an HASC hearing Friday the Marine Corps’ aviation priorities cover F-35 and CH-53K production and H-1 modernization, F/A-18 maintenance and unmanned expeditionary platform development efforts.

Grosklags added the Navy aims to extend the service life of its Hornet fleet, build an MQ-25 unmanned air system and procure updated F-18 Block III systems and MQ-4C unmanned aerial vehicles as well as F-35, E-2, P-8 and CMV-22 aircraft.

Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch, military deputy for the Air Force’s Office of the Assistant Secretary for Acquisition, told committee members at the meeting the military service will continue to invest money to produce, sustain and modernize F-35s; develop the B-21 bomber and increase the power projection capacity of KC-46 tankers.

/
Reps. Mac Thornberry, Adam Smith Initiate 2019 NDAA Draft
Published on
Reps. Mac Thornberry, Adam Smith Initiate 2019 NDAA Draft


Reps. Mac Thornberry, Adam Smith Initiate 2019 NDAA DraftHouse Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) and ranking member Adam Smith (D-Washington) have introduced a “by request” bill to begin drafting a fiscal 2019 defense policy bill.

The committee said Friday the effort marks the first step to craft the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act, which will include proposals from the Defense Department.

The “by request” bill named H.R. 5515 calls for the clearance of 2019 appropriations for DoD’s military activities and military construction.

President Donald Trump approved a $700 billion 2018 NDAA in December of last year.

The law authorizes the recruitment of 20,000 additional troops across the service branches and modifications to missile defense systems.

It also funds the U.S. military’s fight against Islamic State militants as well as procurement of Virginia-class underwater vessels and fighter jets.

/
Rep. Brian Babin Introduces NASA Authorization Proposal
Published on
Rep. Brian Babin Introduces NASA Authorization Proposal


Rep. Brian Babin Introduces NASA Authorization ProposalRep. Brian Babin (R-Texas), chairman of the U.S. House Space Subcommittee, has introduced a bill that calls NASA to further coordinate with commercial partners in issues about space, SpaceNews reported Friday.

The proposed legislation called NASA Authorization Act of 2018 will allot nearly $21 million for the space agency in 2018 and a similar value in 2019.

The bill calls NASA to leverage commercial offerings for future missions in deep exploration, as well as encourages the U.S. to promote the development of private sector remote sensing capabilities and analysis to meet the demand for medium-resolution land remote sensing data in the long run.

Other topics included in the proposal are funding for the International Space Station and NASA’s Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope.

The House Committee on Science, Space and Technology will review the bill on April 17.

/
Report: Jeff Boleng Named DoD’s Special Assistant for Software Acquisition
Published on
Report: Jeff Boleng Named DoD’s Special Assistant for Software Acquisition


Report: Jeff Boleng Named DoD’s Special Assistant for Software Acquisition
Jeff Boleng

Jeff Boleng, acting chief technology officer at Carnegie Mellon University’s software engineering institute, will serve as special assistant for software acquisition at the Defense Department starting Monday, April 16, Defense News reported Friday.

Ellen Lord, defense undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment and a 2018 Wash100 recipient, announced Boleng’s appointment to the newly created role during a roundtable with reporters Friday.

Lord said Boleng will focus at least 90 percent of his time on the Lockheed Martin-built F-35 aircraft and help “bring the right talent onboard.”

Boleng will help oversee the development of software development policies and standards across DoD and offer advice on commercial software development best practices to Pentagon leadership as the F-35 joint program office implements the Continuous Capability Development and Delivery strategy.

Boleng is responsible for SEI’s research and development portfolio that covers software development, cybersecurity and data analytics in support of government, industry and academia.

Prior to joining the institute in 2012, he spent more than two decades in the U.S. Air Force where he served as a computer science instructor at the Air Force Academy and as a network engineer with the 1st combat communications squadron.

 

/
David Bowdich Named FBI Deputy Director, Paul Abbate to Serve as Associate Deputy Director
Published on
David Bowdich Named FBI Deputy Director, Paul Abbate to Serve as Associate Deputy Director


David Bowdich Named FBI Deputy Director, Paul Abbate to Serve as Associate Deputy Director
David Bowdich

David Bowdich, formerly associate deputy director of the FBI, has succeeded Andrew McCabe as the bureau’s no. 2 official.

FBI said Friday Bowdich has managed its personnel, budget, infrastructure and inspection and insider threat programs over the past two years.

He previously served as assistant director for the Los Angeles Field Office and before that  worked as special agent in charge of that office’s counterterrorism division, where he led a joint terrorism task force as well as crisis management and response assets.

His FBI career started at the San Diego Field Office in 1995. He received a promotion to work at the bureau’s  Washington, D.C. headquarters eight years later, then returned to the San Diego branch and supervised a multiagency gang task force.

The bureau appointed Paul Abbate, executive assistant director for the criminal, cyber, response and services branch, to succeed Bowdich as associate deputy director.

Abbate has been with the FBI since March 1996 and previously worked at its New York, Los Angeles and Washington field offices.

/
Navy PEO(A) Plans Additional Aircraft Buys Through FY 2023
Published on
Navy PEO(A) Plans Additional Aircraft Buys Through FY 2023


Navy PEO(A) Plans Additional Aircraft Buys Through FY 2023Rear Adm. Dean Peters, a U.S. Navy program executive officer, has said the service branch’s air anti-submarine warfare, assault and special mission programs office plans to increase its aircraft purchases through fiscal 2023 as a result of increased budget.

PEO(A) looks to procure 75 units during fiscal 2018 and another 167 over the next five fiscal years, the Naval Air Systems Command said Thursday.

Peters noted the office had planned to buy 41 aircraft for FY 2018 and 167 for the FY 2019-2023 period.

“During my time as a program manager since 2007, working programs or in the PEO, this is really the first time that we’ve been able to talk about increases in our programs as far as what we’re procuring.”

He said that the V-22 Osprey program office will soon deploy a roll-on, roll-off kit for the MV-22B aerial refueling mission with a U.S. Marine aircraft.

The Navy is also testing missile systems on the P-8A Poseidon and C-130 Hercules.

/
James Mattis, Gen. Joseph Dunford: 2-year budget deal can help DoD implement national defense strategy
Published on
James Mattis, Gen. Joseph Dunford: 2-year budget deal can help DoD implement national defense strategy


James Mattis, Gen. Joseph Dunford: 2-year budget deal can help DoD implement national defense strategyDefense Secretary James Mattis and Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have told House Armed Services Committee members that the two-year budget agreement passed by Congress supports National Defense Strategy implementation efforts, DoD News reported Thursday.

Both officials also testified on a fiscal 2019 defense budget request during an HASC hearing that was held Thursday.

“This budget funds systems to enhance communications and resiliency in space,” Mattis, a 2018 Wash100 recipient, told committee members.

He added the department will prioritize efforts to accelerate the delivery, continuous adaptation of technology platforms.

Dunford, also a 2018 Wash100 recipient, said he believes the U.S. military can “defend the homeland, meet our alliance commitments and prevail in any conflict.”

The JCS chair added he believes the federal government should invest in a full range of systems to deter foreign threats.

/
GSA’s Joanne Collins Smee on $100M Technology Modernization Fund, industry best practices
Published on
GSA’s Joanne Collins Smee on $100M Technology Modernization Fund, industry best practices


GSA’s Joanne Collins Smee on $100M Technology Modernization Fund, industry best practicesJoanne Collins Smee, acting director of technology transformation services at the General Services Administration, has said she believes the $100 million worth of funding that Congress authorized for the Technology Modernization Fund for the remaining months of fiscal 2018 is a “great thing,” Federal News Radio reported Wednesday.

“It’s $100 million more than we had last year, so that’s a great thing… The $100 million is focused on activities that are going to be able to make that transformative change for government,” she said at a Meritalk event Tuesday in Washington.

Collins Smee, who also serves as deputy commissioner of GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service, said the board that oversees TMF has received approximately 20 funding requests since the congressional authorization as part of the enactment of the Modernizing Government Technology Act.

She noted that GSA intends to use an artificial intelligence platform – robotic process automation – to help manage public inquiries about government services and cited the need for government to adopt industry best practices.

“So part of what we’re doing is bringing in outside assistance to make sure that we’re bringing in industry trends and technology into the government to make the right change for citizens,” she added.

/
CNO John Richardson wants ‘open competition’ for Navy cruiser replacement
Published on
CNO John Richardson wants ‘open competition’ for Navy cruiser replacement


CNO John Richardson wants 'open competition' for Navy cruiser replacement
John Richardson

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson has detailed a strategy for the U.S. Navy to procure its next surface combatant ship that will build on the service branch’s ongoing FFG(X) frigate program, Defense News reported Thursday.

“I’d like to do the whole thing, well, as fast as possible but do it in the frigate timeframes: in terms of defining what we want, the requirements, getting industry involved, making it a very open competition,” Richardson was quoted as saying.

He told Defense News in an interview the Navy’s cruiser replacement effort would adopt an existing hull platform with high-power and rapid switching capacities.

The CNO added he aims to define requirements for the upcoming combatant ship within the 2018-2019 time frame, according to the report.

/
US, Norway agree on bilateral exchange of defense offerings
Published on
US, Norway agree on bilateral exchange of defense offerings


US, Norway agree on bilateral exchange of defense offeringsDefense representatives from the U.S. and Norway have signed a “security of supply arrangement” to solidify their partnership in exchanging defense products and services for national security, Defense News reported Friday.

Morten Tiller, national armaments director at the Norwegian Ministry of Defense, and Eric Chewning, deputy assistant undersecretary for manufacturing and industrial base policy at the Defense Department, sealed the agreement at the Norwegian-American Defense Conference.

The SoSA allows both countries’ defense departments to request priority delivery for their contracts and orders from companies under their jurisdiction.

Tiller said Norwegian firms will work to support U.S. authorities and prime contracts that demand security of supply arrangement in future contracts.

The partnership comes as the U.S. aims to strengthen its alliances under the new National Defense Strategy.

1 … 2,154 2,155 2,156 2,157 2,158 … 2,715