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Charles River to Develop AI-Assisted Intelligence Collection Manager for Army
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Charles River to Develop AI-Assisted Intelligence Collection Manager for Army

Charles River Analytics has received U.S. Army funding to improve the planning of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance efforts using artificial intelligence optimization techniques and human-machine design best practices.

Achieving Federated ISR Collection through Intelligent Optimization and Natural AI supported Decision Operations (AFICIONADO) is aimed at improving the Army’s existing manned process of managing intelligence collection missions, Charles River said Monday.

Individual collection managers can use AFICIONADO unified workspace to receive AI engine-generated plans that recommend optimized ways of meeting mission goals while enterprise users can utilize the shared system to coordinate and improve strategies by units across the service branch.

“It will serve as a catalyst for changing the current, largely manual workflow, which is extremely laborious, into a streamlined, collaborative one,” noted Tyler Mayer, Charles River scientist and AFICIONADO principal investigator.

Development of AFICIONADO could inform the advancement of resource allocation optimization in the utilities market and the wider private sector in the future.

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OMB Report Highlights Climate Change Impact on Federal Budget
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OMB Report Highlights Climate Change Impact on Federal Budget

The Office of Management and Budget has released an initial risk assessment highlighting the impacts of climate change on the federal budget and U.S. economic development.

Candace Vahlsing, associate director for climate, energy, environment and science at OMB, and chief economist Danny Yagan said in a blog published Monday the report found that the U.S. government could lose about $2 trillion annually in revenue by the end of the century due to climate change.

The report also estimates that the federal government’s expenditure on climate change-related issues could be between $25 billion to $128 billion annually. Crop insurance premium subsidies are projected to grow from 3.5 percent to 22 percent annually as a result of crop losses and annual spending on coastal disaster response could increase up to $94 billion annually by the end of the century.

The OMB recommended that Congress enact budget allocations in fiscal year 2023 that address the threats of climate change, including more than $7 billion to reduce emissions in the power sector and more than $5 billion to help the Department of Transformation transition to renewable energy.

“Funding these activities will not only help confront the risks created by the climate crisis, but help ensure that 40 percent of the benefits from climate and clean energy funding is directed through the Justice40 Initiative toward addressing the disproportionate impacts of climate change on disadvantaged communities,” the OMB personnel said.

The report was published in compliance with an executive order signed by President Biden in May 2021 that directed agencies to analyze and mitigate the risks climate change poses to Americans’ financial security.

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Gen. Paul Nakasone Talks US Cyber Command’s Priorities at Congressional Hearings
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Gen. Paul Nakasone Talks US Cyber Command’s Priorities at Congressional Hearings

Gen. Paul Nakasone, head of U.S. Cyber Command and a 2022 Wash100 Award recipient, on Tuesday appeared before House and Senate lawmakers to discuss five priorities that will help USCYBERCOM improve its capabilities to counter cybersecurity threats and other national security challenges.

Nakasone, who also serves as director of the National Security Agency, said those priorities are readiness; operations in defense of the nation; integrated deterrence; recruiting, retention and training; and Joint Cyber Warfighting Architecture and enhanced budget control.

For integrated deterrence, he said advancing that priority “means preparing for crisis and conflict while campaigning in competition across the full spectrum of cyber operations” and “building the strategic partnerships that enable the defense of U.S. systems and networks” beyond the defense industrial base and the Department of Defense Information Network.

Nakasone told congressional members how the command supported Ukraine, NATO allies and other mission partners to defend networks against potential vulnerabilities in light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

He also talked about the strategic challenges posed by China, North Korea and Iran in cyberspace.

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Aaron Weis: Navy Enterprise Network Modernization Calls for IT Architecture Changes
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Aaron Weis: Navy Enterprise Network Modernization Calls for IT Architecture Changes

Aaron Weis, chief information officer at the Department of the Navy and a 2022 Wash100 Award recipient, said a fundamental change in information technology architecture could help DON increase the agility and security of its enterprise network, FCW reported Tuesday.

He pointed to the Navy’s move to implement Office 365 productivity and collaboration tools as part of a broader network modernization strategy during a panel discussion at the Navy League’s Sea Air Space conference.

Weis told the publication that the branch seeks to transform how it operates and protects the network with software-defined technology.

The Navy is working with Leidos to conduct IT modernization efforts under the Next Generation Enterprise Network-Recompete contract’s service management, integration and transport portion valued at $7.7 billion over eight years.

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FBI Promotes Nathan Taylor to IT Applications & Data Division Assistant Director
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FBI Promotes Nathan Taylor to IT Applications & Data Division Assistant Director

Nathan Taylor, a 16-year FBI veteran, has been promoted to assistant director of the bureau’s information technology applications and data division. 

He held the deputy assistant director post within the division for three years before his promotion and is now responsible for overseeing the applications and information services that support the FBI’s administrative, investigative, cybersecurity and intelligence processes, the FBI said Monday. 

Taylor supported cloud service adoption and cybersecurity initiatives in his more recent role at ITADD.

His FBI career started in 2006 as an accounting analyst for the finance division and he later served as a management and program analyst. The bureau also assigned him to the front office of the budget and accounting sections and the internal advisory group.

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US, Australia, UK to Pursue Hypersonics Development Under New Defense Alliance
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US, Australia, UK to Pursue Hypersonics Development Under New Defense Alliance

The U.S., Australia and the U.K. have agreed to broaden cooperation to develop hypersonics and other military technology platforms, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.

The defense alliance, called AUKUS, will also advance cooperation on artificial intelligence, cyber, quantum, undersea and electronic warfare capabilities.

U.S. President Biden, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a statement the expanded cooperation sought to reaffirm their “commitment to [the partnership] and to a free and open IndoPacific.”

The three countries launched AUKUS in September. At the time, the U.S. and the U.K. announced that they would help Australia develop nuclear-powered submarines.

A defense official said the U.S. conducted testing in mid-March of a Lockheed Martin-built hypersonic missile that was launched from a B-52 bomber, according to a report by CNN.

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency said the Lockheed version of the Hypersonic Air-breathing Weapon Concept system flew for more than 300 nautical miles at altitudes higher than 65,000 feet and hypersonic speeds faster than Mach 5.

The HAWC missile also met several objectives, including safe separation from the carrier aircraft, booster firing, integration and release and cruise, according to the report.

CNN said it was the second HAWC missile test. In September, the U.S. Air Force tested a Raytheon Technologies-built configuration of an HAWC missile powered by a scramjet engine from Northrop Grumman.

Hypersonics Forum

Join ExecutiveBiz Events for the Hypersonics Forum this spring to hear from federal and industry leaders as they discuss the role of public-private partnerships in hypersonics development in relation to national security, military capabilities and strategic competition in today’s evolving threat landscape.

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Air Force’s Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent Now Designated LGM-35A Sentinel; Frank Kendall Quoted
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Air Force’s Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent Now Designated LGM-35A Sentinel; Frank Kendall Quoted

The Department of the Air Force has officially named its Ground Based Strategic Deterrent intercontinental ballistic missile system the LGM-35A Sentinel.

The Sentinel is set to replace the Minuteman III ICBM system as the ground-based leg of the U.S. nuclear triad and will have a modular architecture to facilitate the integration of emerging technologies in response to evolving threat environment, the Air Force said Tuesday.

The service said the GBSD weapon system, which is being developed by Northrop Grumman under a contract awarded in September 2020, will reinforce the country’s integrated deterrence and will be a fully integrated platform with command and control capabilities.

“The name Sentinel recognizes the mindset that thousands of Airmen, past and present, have brought to the deterrence mission, and will serve as a reminder for those who operate, secure, and maintain this system in the future about the discipline and responsibility their duty entails,” said Frank Kendall, secretary of the Air Force and a three-time Wash100 Award winner. Kendall approved the designation for the new ICBM system.

The LGM-35A Sentinel will be housed at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming, Minot AFB in North Dakota and at Malmstrom AFB in Montana.

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Hughes Teams with OneWeb to Deliver LEO SATCOM Data to DOD; Rick Lober Quoted
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Hughes Teams with OneWeb to Deliver LEO SATCOM Data to DOD; Rick Lober Quoted

Hughes Network Systems has entered an agreement with OneWeb Technologies to distribute its low earth orbit data to the U.S. Department of Defense.

The work will build on Hughes’ debut of the first managed LEO satellite communications (SATCOM) network, which was carried out in the Arctic region for the U.S. Air Force Research Lab, the company said Tuesday.

Rick Lober, vice president and general manager of the Hughes defense division, explained that the new agreement with OneWeb surfaced alongside the introduction of the Arctic-based LEO satellite network.

“With a proven implementation in the harshest of environments and live LEO network capability, we stand ready to deploy diverse, integrated SATCOM solutions for DoD across all domains, platforms and theaters worldwide,” Lober continued.

The combined efforts of Hughes and OneWeb will result in single- and multi-transport network services that feature OneWeb’s low-latency connectivity as well as service level charters and selectable vendor equipment, installation and network management options.

The distribution agreement sees that Hughes will provide turnkey LEO managed services that are intended to aid DOD acquisition agencies and satisfy international combatant command conditions.

Ian Canning, chief operating officer of OneWeb, expressed the company’s excitement to help Hughes with the delivery of the LEO data to the federal government and said the partnership “has enabled the DoD to experience low latency, high speed internet in latitudes above 75 Degrees North for the first time.”

Canning also highlighted the time-honored relationship between Hughes and OneWeb. EchoStar, Hughes’ parent company, is among OneWeb’s investors. In addition, Hughes performs engineering work with the OneWeb team, including gateway electronics and core module development.

Hughes and OneWeb’s distribution deal follows the former company’s March DOD contract win to provide 5G network services for a Navy air station in Washington state.

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BAE to Equip Foreign Apache Helicopters With Common Missile Warning Systems
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BAE to Equip Foreign Apache Helicopters With Common Missile Warning Systems

BAE Systems has received a contract worth $22 million to produce and deliver missile warning systems for a Foreign Military Sales customer’s fleet of Apache attack helicopters.

The contract calls for the AN/AAR-57 Common Missile Warning System, a platform issuing alerts for incoming missile threats, coordinating hostile countermeasures and recording mission data, the company said Monday.

The CMWS will feature BAE’s new Gen3X electronic control unit that was designed to improve the processing capabilities and sustainability of its predecessors.

“Our Common Missile Warning System is a tried-and-true, electronic warfare system that protects aircraft and their crews in the most complex battlespaces,” shared Chris Austin, director of threat detection solutions at BAE.

The FMS award was facilitated by the U.S. Army. Since its launch in 2015, CMWS has been used by the Army and 17 other U.S. allies across the world.

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New Army Black Hawk Variant Certified to Fly in National Airspace
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New Army Black Hawk Variant Certified to Fly in National Airspace

The latest variant of the U.S. Army’s UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter has secured certification to fly in national airspace at any time of the day and under instrumented meteorological conditions, Defense News reported Tuesday.

Brig. Gen. Robert Barrie, the program executive officer for Army aviation, said the Instrument Flight Rules certification clears the way for the service to conduct the second initial operational test for the UH-60 Victor-model aircraft in July.

A unit of the Army National Guard received the first UH-60V Black Hawk from the Utility Helicopter Program Office in July 2021 nearly two years after the variant underwent its first initial operational test and evaluation at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state.

The Army decided to hold a second test in 2020 but was pushed back due to software and reliability fixes and delays in the IFR certification process.

The UH-60V helicopter replaces the Army’s legacy Black Hawk L-model helicopter fleet and includes a digital cockpit designed by Northrop Grumman.

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