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Lt. Gen. John Healy Takes Command of Air Force Reserve
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Lt. Gen. John Healy Takes Command of Air Force Reserve

Lt. Gen. John Healy formally assumed leadership of the Air Force Reserve Command in an Aug. 3 ceremony at Robins Air Force Base following his promotion from major general rank.

As Air Force Reserve commander, he will be responsible for leading three numbered air forces with 74,000 Reserve Airmen and civilians and providing the secretary and the chief of staff of the Air Force with advice on reserve-related matters, the service branch said Thursday.

“My priorities and goals are going to be pretty basic and straightforward — ready now, transforming for the future,” said Healy.

His career includes time as a command pilot with over 5,000 military hours and 402 combat hours. He also has experience in leading at the squadron, group, wing and numbered Air Force levels, as well as in a variety of high-level positions. His most recent position was deputy to the chief of Air Force Reserve.

During the ceremony, the new commander also thanked Lt. Gen. Richard Scobee, outgoing AFRC chief and retiring serviceman, for setting the path that he will continue to pursue. “We’re in a great place thanks to your steady leadership,” commented Healy.

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QinetiQ US to Add Cyber, Software Capabilities With Avantus Federal Acquisition; Shawn Purvis Quoted
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QinetiQ US to Add Cyber, Software Capabilities With Avantus Federal Acquisition; Shawn Purvis Quoted

The U.S.-based subsidiary of defense contractor QinetiQ Group has agreed to purchase cyber- and data analytics-focused company Avantus Federal for a reported sum of $590 million.

Together, QinetiQ US and Avantus Federal intend to bolster each organization’s ability to serve government clients and meet the needs of the Department of Defense and the Intelligence Community, QinetiQ said Friday.

“This acquisition is a transformational platform that delivers on our growth strategy of building a disruptive mid-tier defense and intelligence company,” commented Shawn Purvis, CEO and president of QinetiQ.

Purvis, who is a two-time Wash100 Award winner, also predicted that the business combination will result in a “a powerful performance culture and scaled technical differentiation.”

The existing technology, cyber and intelligence capabilities of QinetiQ and Avantus will be compounded in the merger, as will both companies’ extensive order backlogs and networks of relationships in the defense industry.

Individually, QinetiQ’s team specializes in constructing and implementing robotics and autonomous systems, sensing, protection systems and autonomous vehicles. Meanwhile, Avantus offers expertise in data engineering, software development and providing cyber and intelligence support to special operators.

“Avantus’ highly integrated business, core capabilities, and customer relationships complement QinetiQ’s distinctive offerings, allowing us to grow the services and solutions that benefit our combined global customer,” remarked Steve Wadey, CEO of QinetiQ Group.

Wadey also said Avantus’ consistently strong employees, leadership team, dynamics with customers and prolonged periods of growth were most impressive to QinetiQ.

QinetiQ anticipates that adding Avantus to its portfolio will allow it to amplify both organic and inorganic growth in U.S. markets.

The acquisition is expected to close at the end of calendar year 2022, pending subsequent customary conditions such as regulatory approvals. Guggenheim Securities, LLC acted as exclusive financial advisor to Avantus and its parent company, NewSpring Holdings, while Gleacher Shacklock were joint lead financial advisers to QinetiQ.

Blank Rome LLP and Kirkland & Ellis LLP provided Avantus’ legal counsel while Baker McKenzie represented QinetiQ.

In May, QinetiQ Group announced that it intends to focus its strategy for new contract work within the U.S. and Australia in the coming two years. The acquisition of Avantus will likely aid the company in this mission.

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Federal Government Ups Adoption of AFRL-Made SecureView Cross-domain Access Platform
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Federal Government Ups Adoption of AFRL-Made SecureView Cross-domain Access Platform

The Air Force Research Laboratory has seen an increase in the adoption of its cross-domain access software architecture across the U.S. federal government to enable telework and allow secure remote access to classified networks.

AFRL said Thursday SecureView, which offers ready access to classified information through virtual desktop infrastructure, authorized commercial hardware and laptops, now has more than 16,000 users throughout the federal government, doubling its user base since 2017.

“SecureView provides ready access to information on disparate security domains, reduces infrastructure costs and streamlines support of domain management,” said Eileen Goodell, program manager of SecureView.

The platform is managed by the SecureView Program Office, which supports the U.S. military, intelligence community and other federal government agencies.

“Our office routinely works with sites to implement unique use case requirements into the SecureView baseline,” Goodell said.

SecureView onboarded about 1,500 users in 2022 alone and the program office plans to add an additional 4,000 customers by 2023.

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Christopher Scolese: NRO Looks to Expand Commercial Satellite Capabilities
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Christopher Scolese: NRO Looks to Expand Commercial Satellite Capabilities

Christopher Scolese, director of the National Reconnaissance Office and a three-time Wash100 awardee, said the agency is looking to acquire more commercial products from the private sector following the awarding of a 10-year, multibillion-dollar contract to three space technology companies.

Speaking at an event hosted by the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, Scolese said NRO is planning to tap into the growing commercial market to bring in more satellite technology and capabilities capable of providing “incredible intelligence value,” the agency reported Thursday.

“We kind of have a motto of ‘buy what we can, build what we must.’ But really what it comes down to is the commercial market has really grown. And we’re seeing a lot of capability out there that the commercial companies are providing,” Scolese said.

In May, the NRO awarded BlackSky, Maxar and Planet contracts to provide commercial imagery and remote sensing data to enhance transparency, situational awareness and humanitarian aid missions.

“About yearly we’re going to … go off and ask for commercial companies to come in with their ideas so that we can engage early, prior to having to award of contract, so they can understand what the government’s needs are and we can understand what their capabilities are,” Scolese said.

He said the move will enable commercial companies to have readily available technology and capabilities to offer the agency when a new contract opportunity comes.

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HII’s Paul Harris Named to National Defense University Foundation Board
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HII’s Paul Harris Named to National Defense University Foundation Board

Paul Harris, executive vice president and chief sustainability and compliance officer at HII, has been appointed to the board of directors of the National Defense University Foundation.

He brings to the board extensive expertise and experience gained from holding various positions in the federal government and private sector, including as deputy assistant attorney general of the civil division at the Department of Justice, the NDU Foundation said Thursday.

Harris joined HII in 2020 from Hampton University, where he most recently worked as senior vice president.

He previously served as corporate counsel at Northrop Grumman, senior manager for corporate compliance at EY and senior counsel and director of enterprise compliance at Raytheon Technologies.

Harris is a U.S. Army veteran who served in the 10th Mountain Division as a military intelligence officer.

“Mr. Harris’ appointment further advances our efforts to expand the perspectives and experience of our members across the defense industrial complex,” said James Schmeling, president and CEO of the NDU Foundation.

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GovCon Expert Steve Orrin Explores Securing End-to-End Computing for Round Table Discussion
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GovCon Expert Steve Orrin Explores Securing End-to-End Computing for Round Table Discussion

GovCon Expert Steve Orrin, chief technology officer and senior principal engineer at Intel Federal, participated in a recent round table discussion alongside CACI CTO Glenn Kurowski and Chris Oliver, CEO of ID Technologies to explore the importance of end-to-end computing, why it is needed and who it’s needed for in the technology industry.

During the discussion, GovCon Expert Steve Orrin shared his invaluable insights into the critical aspects of commercial technologies that can support the various mission models that can scale and the organizations that develop a software-defined network with a common infrastructure to move between these necessary capabilities and platforms.

“That’s really what Intel brings to the table,” Steve Orrin explained. The computing, as well as the software-defined and enabled security throughout the stack from the cloud to the edge and through the network, provides an approach that is multi-mission, multi-program to scale with the different mission spaces and build that software or that service and deploy it everywhere.”

GovCon Expert Steve Orrin explained that will be a significant factor in the transformation of the government into more of a dynamic and agile environment where anyone can build on their mission capabilities across multiple mission platforms at the enterprise level as well as at the tactical edge.

In addition, Orrin also discussed the go-to-market strategy for these companies to deliver those capabilities into the hands of the federal workforce and into the tactical mission specifically. He explained that as we look across the federal government to digitally transform and modernize the infrastructure from the cloud through the network and the remote workforce, it requires taking a different approach to how to secure that infrastructure.

“It’s an end-to-end more holistic approach, which means looking at the cloud and the back end on-prem hybrid architectures and multi-cloud architectures that are the transforming network of connectivity,” Steve Orrin explained.

“As we look at these next-generation services, software-defined architectures and deployment models, we need to be able to transform the way does things while also maintaining the security they need to complete their mission and protect data and applications at scale.”

Visit the Secure Computing Round Table featuring GovCon Expert Steve Orrin to learn more and listen/watch to the full panel discussion.

Energy Industry Executive David Crane Nominated DOE Infrastructure Undersecretary
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Energy Industry Executive David Crane Nominated DOE Infrastructure Undersecretary

David Crane, a three-decade energy sector veteran, has been nominated to serve as undersecretary for infrastructure at the Department of Energy, the White House announced Wednesday.

If confirmed, Crane would lead a DOE office focused on infrastructure deployment initiatives that support national goals for clean energy and climate crisis management.

He currently serves as CEO of Climate Real Impact Solutions, a special purpose acquisition company pursuing business combination opportunities in the sector.

His energy industry experience also includes service as chief executive at International Power, NRG Energy and NRG Yield.

Crane is a board member at solar energy company Heliogen, water technology provider Source Global, Tata Steel and JERA, a joint venture between Tokyo Electric and Chubu Electric.

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Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Inflation Reduction Act
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Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Inflation Reduction Act

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said lawmakers had reached a compromise on the proposed Inflation Reduction Act, which he believes will get the support of all Democrats in the upper chamber, CBS News reported Thursday.

Schumer and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W. Va., negotiated the bill, which would raise approximately $739 billion in revenue through tax increases on some corporations and high-income earners.

President Joe Biden said in a statement the legislation would make investments in fighting climate change and improving energy security, lower prices of prescription drugs, generate savings on health premiums and reduce federal deficit.

A group of 126 top economists sent a letter to Congress on Tuesday urging lawmakers to pass the Inflation Reduction Act, which would earmark $300 billion for deficit reduction to help counter inflation, according to a blog post published by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office.

Investments in health care and energy “would be more than fully paid for” by raising revenue stemming “from enhanced tax enforcement and closing some of the most distortionary loopholes in the tax code,” according to the Aug. 2 letter.

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NASA Creates Independent Review Board for Earth System Observatory; Thomas Zurbuchen Quoted
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NASA Creates Independent Review Board for Earth System Observatory; Thomas Zurbuchen Quoted

NASA has formed a board to help review goals, current plans and technical concepts for its next-generation Earth-observing satellites designed to provide critical information for use in guiding initiatives related to disaster mitigation, climate change and weather forecast improvement efforts.

Geoff Yoder, former NASA deputy associate administrator for the science mission directorate at NASA, and Waleed Abdalati, director of the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder, will serve as co-chairs of NASA’s independent review board, the agency said Wednesday.

“The Earth System Observatory will take us into the next generation of remote sensing,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for the science mission directorate at NASA.

“We are designing the observatory to give us the most comprehensive view yet of how Earth is changing. By strengthening our scientific understanding, we can provide information for people and communities around the world to plan for the future,” Zurbuchen added.

The observatory will work to implement the 2017 Earth Science Decadal Survey’s recommendations and prioritize four areas of focus: atmosphere observing system led by Goddard Space Flight Center; mass change managed by Jet Propulsion Laboratory; surface biology and geology led by JPL; and surface deformation and change.

The board held its first meeting in late July.

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NSF Seeks Public Input on Federal Big Data R&D Strategic Plan
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NSF Seeks Public Input on Federal Big Data R&D Strategic Plan

The National Science Foundation is soliciting information from the public to help inform updates to a plan concerning research and development related to big data.

NSF is inviting government, academia and industry stakeholders to share insights as it works to revise and update the Federal Big Data Research and Development Strategic Plan, according to a request for information published Wednesday.

The comment period for the strategic plan was originally scheduled to close on July 29, but NSF and the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development National Coordination Office decided to extend the deadline for feedback after receiving requests from the public.

Responses to the RFI are due Aug. 17.

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