As the new program executive officer of intelligence, electronic warfare and sensors at the U.S. Army, Brig. Gen. Ed Barker said he plans to prioritize stakeholder management, review of strategic partners’ needs and building their organizational agility.

In an interview on C4ISRNET, Barker said he intends to meet with program managers in September to do a deep dive of their branch’s projects and goals as part of continuous assessments at PEO IEW&S.

He highlighted their outlook for deep sensing technology, which is being applied to experimental military assets such as the terrestrial layer system.

“We’re welcoming the conversation about deep sensing because we know we’re ready to contribute,” Barker explained. “With TLS or TITAN as examples, I think what that means is they may end up at a different echelon, and there may be more or fewer at that echelon, as the Army goes to this more centralized management, and then pushing those capabilities down to the brigade combat team. I think we need to be prepared to adjust for that, across the portfolio.”

When asked about the transition process between him and former IEW&S program executive officer Mark Kitz, Barker said that both of them had very similar leadership and problem-solving approaches. “There is definitely a different level of responsibility that the PEO has that the deputy doesn’t have,” the new PEO remarked. “Things like being the approving official for the networks and stuff…Mark helped me navigate that.”

The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps demonstrated a refueling mission between the latter’s MQ-8C Fire Scout helicopter and the former’s CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter, marking a first time for such event involving an unmanned rotary wing aircraft and manned platform.

The aerial delivered ground refueling trial was performed at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California on July 31, according to a post on Defense Visual Information Distribution Service.

About 700 pounds of fuel were transferred to the MQ-8C by utilizing the ability of the CH-53E to deliver fuel to air and ground vehicles in austere environments. The said value could support an estimated range of 150 nautical miles and enable the unmanned helicopter to function on the battlespace longer.

“By conducting ADGR in addition to using a mobile control station, the MQ-8C can be operated to support Marines in nearly any environment,” said Lt. Cmdr. Brian “Freq” Paskey, the HSC-21 training officer.

Participants in the trial were Marines with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and the MQ-8C Fire Scout from Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 21.

The Department of Homeland Security has begun accepting information on potential industry sources that could provide enterprise information technology support services and solutions to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers’ Chief Information Officer Directorate.

A notice posted Wednesday on SAM.gov states that the EITSS procurement vehicle will support the FLETC headquarters and field sites to provide training services to federal law enforcement professionals.

The potential contract will cover support across all CIO Directorate divisions, including the end user computing services branch, IT service management branch, IT infrastructure branch and cybersecurity division.

Work may include acquisition support, quality control, configuration management, system integration, zero trust architecture support and division administrative support.

Interested parties have until Sept. 6 to respond to the request for information.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the National Security Agency and the National Institute of Standards and Technology have recommended that organizations begin preparing for post-quantum cryptography migration by developing roadmaps for quantum readiness.

Organizations that handle sensitive information must plan their implementation of post-quantum cryptographic standards to be released by NIST in 2024 to boost their security against malicious use of quantum computers, the NSA said Monday.

An effective quantum-readiness roadmap must begin with an inventory of quantum-vulnerable systems and assets before starting the quantum risk assessment processes. During the inventory, organizations should engage with supply chain vendors to identify technologies that need to migrate to PQC.

The agencies also encourage organizations to create migration plans prioritizing the most sensitive and critical assets.

Technology manufacturers and vendors of products that support the use of quantum-vulnerable cryptography should begin reviewing the draft PQC standards to begin planning and testing for integration.

“The transition to a secured quantum computing era is a long-term intensive community effort that will require extensive collaboration between government and industry,” said Rob Joyce, director of cybersecurity at NSA and a two-time Wash100 awardee.

The Small Business Administration has extended — until Sept. 30, 2024 — the moratorium on the requirement for small businesses to establish a bona fide place of business in a particular geographic area when awarded any construction contract under the 8(a) Business Development Program.

The moratorium was instated in 2021 to address challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic and has since enabled federal agencies to increase construction procurements with small and disadvantaged businesses in rural and remote areas, SBA said Monday.

A bona fide place of business refers to the location where a participant regularly maintains an office with at least one full-time employee. It does not include construction trailers or other temporary construction sites.

“With this extension, the SBA under the Biden-Harris Administration is again demonstrating its commitment to creating opportunity and leveling the playing field for American entrepreneurs,” said SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman.