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AF Department’s New Office to Manage Land Mobile Radio Procurements; Don Lewis Quoted
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AF Department’s New Office to Manage Land Mobile Radio Procurements; Don Lewis Quoted

The Department of the Air Force has activated a new office to centralize the oversight and procurement of land mobile radio systems across the U.S. Air Force and Space Force.

The Land Mobile Radio Product Management Office, which reached initial operational capability status upon its formation, replaced the cyberspace systems support unit under the Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center, AFIMSC said Monday.

Rich Lapierre of the Air Education and Training Command has been appointed chief of LMR PRO.

“By centralizing LMR oversight, we estimate more than $300 million in savings over the next 10 years,” said Don Lewis, chief of AFIMSC’s Cyberspace Systems Branch.

“The individual bases will continue to manage local site operations, but we will provide a single source for policy and technical support, PMO-level advocacy for requirements, standard levels of service, and strategic planning and lifecycle management.”

DAF expects the new office to have a full staff by the end of this year and reach full operational capability in December 2022.

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FAA Warns of Potential Interference From 5G Network Deployments in C-Band
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FAA Warns of Potential Interference From 5G Network Deployments in C-Band

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has released a bulletin informing aircraft manufacturers, operators and pilots over potential interference with radio altimeters and other aircraft electronics systems caused by the use of 5G technology, Reuters reported Tuesday.

FAA is carrying out a risk assessment to determine whether further mitigation is needed in preparation for planned 5G network deployments in the C-band spectrum starting Dec. 5th, according to the special airworthiness information bulletin.

The agency called on equipment manufacturers to conduct tests to determine the susceptibility of radio altimeters to interference and work with aircraft makers on design changes.

Aircraft manufacturers should evaluate the potential for interference on various aircraft types and issue guidance to operators on retrofit plans for radio altimeters and other aircraft equipment that are susceptible to harmful interference due to 5G network operations in the 3700-3800 MHz band.

Meredith Attwell Baker, president and CEO of wireless trade group CTIA, said 5G networks using the C-band spectrum would not cause any harmful interference and that any delay in using the spectrum could undermine U.S. leadership in 5G.

“5G networks using C-band spectrum operate safely and without causing harmful interference to aviation equipment,” Baker was quoted as saying by Fierce Wireless.

“The evidence includes numerous active 5G networks using this spectrum band in 40 countries all over the world, as well as years of study and technical analysis by the FCC and international agencies, including material submitted by the aviation industry.”

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Ruben Gallego’s Proposed NDAA Provision to Consider Expanding Five Eyes Alliance
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Ruben Gallego’s Proposed NDAA Provision to Consider Expanding Five Eyes Alliance

Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., chairman of the House Armed Services special operations and intelligence subcommittee, has proposed a language in the defense policy bill that would consider adding four countries to the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, Defense One reported Tuesday.

The provision in the House version of the National Defense Authorization Act would direct the Director of National Intelligence and the Department of Defense to report on the state of intelligence sharing among the Five Eyes member countries and assess the potential benefits and risks of integrating Japan, India, South Korea and Germany with the alliance.

The Five Eyes alliance is composed of the U.S., Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the U.K. It started as an intelligence-sharing pact between the U.S. and the U.K. to fight the Axis powers during World War II.

Gallego said adding India, South Korea and Japan to the alliance would enable the U.S. to broaden its network of surveillance assets to help track China’s activities.

“It is basically a warning to China, as well as a shot in the arm to these nations, that ‘we trust you so much that we are putting you in our sacred circle of intelligence sharing,’” he said.

The House approved its NDAA version containing Gallego’s proposed language in September. The Senate has yet to pass its defense policy bill, which needs to be reconciled with the lower chamber’s measure before it heads to the White House for President Joe Biden’s signature.

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CDC Solicits Comments on Proposed Centers of Excellence for Personal Protective Tech
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CDC Solicits Comments on Proposed Centers of Excellence for Personal Protective Tech

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is seeking public input on the need to form centers of excellence to address research and practice gaps in the field of personal protective technology (PPT). 

CDC’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is seeking comments on three focus areas that future centers of excellence could help address, including research and development of new technologies and approaches to PPT and ergonomic measures to assess the factors that influence the adoption of PPT, according to a request for information published Tuesday on Federal Register.

NIOSH is asking interested stakeholders to respond to a set of questions, including the benefits of establishing centers of excellence to advance PPT research and practice and specific PPT research and practice needs for certain industry sectors and occupations, various types of hazards and certain anatomical categories of protection.

The institute also wants information on emerging technologies that could be investigated with regard to improving the effectiveness of PPT and specific research domains, technical expertise or academic disciplines that could help address PPT research and practice needs.

Responses to the RFI are due Jan. 31st.

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DARPA Seeks Mission System Concepts Aimed at Peer Competition
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DARPA Seeks Mission System Concepts Aimed at Peer Competition

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Strategic Technology Office (STO) has released a broad agency announcement (BAA) on a funding opportunity for research and development of mission system concepts to help the U.S. military address the challenges of peer competition.

A notice posted Monday on SAM.gov says that the office is seeking new warfighting technology platforms to enable “mosaic warfare” and shape the battlespace across multiple domains.

Topic areas of interest listed in the announcement include artificial intelligence, non-kinetic effects, autonomy and control algorithms, electromagnetic warfare, photonics, strategy analysis technology, space architectures and system of systems.

The BAA solicits “revolutionary” ideas for topics not covered by current STO programs. Interested parties can submit proposals through Oct. 31, 2022.

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NIST Seeks Comments on Draft Consumer Software Cyber Labeling Document; Michael Ogata Quoted
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NIST Seeks Comments on Draft Consumer Software Cyber Labeling Document; Michael Ogata Quoted

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is soliciting feedback on a draft document outlining a set of cybersecurity criteria for a consumer software labeling program in compliance with a cybersecurity executive order signed in May.

NIST said Monday it is seeking comments on the baseline of technical requirements or “attestations” for software and related label.

These attestations are claims about the security of software offerings and are classified into four categories in the document: descriptive; secure software development; critical cybersecurity attributes and capability; and data inventory and protection attestations.

“We are establishing criteria for a label that will be helpful to consumers,” said Michael Ogata, a NIST computer scientist and co-author of the draft document. “The goal is to raise consumers’ awareness about the various security needs they might have and to help them make informed choices about the software they purchase and use.”

Public comments on the Draft Baseline Criteria for Consumer Software Cybersecurity Labeling are due Dec. 16th. NIST will use the insights to inform the document’s final version set for release by Feb. 6th.

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SDA Issues Draft RFP for Tranche 1 Operations and Integration Support Program
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SDA Issues Draft RFP for Tranche 1 Operations and Integration Support Program

The Space Development Agency (SDA) has issued a draft solicitation for the ground operations and integration support for the first tranche of the National Defense Space Architecture’s (NDSA) transport layer and future capability layers.

SDA will select a contractor that has capabilities to manage, maintain, operate and provide general and logistical services in support of the Tranche 1 Operations and Integration program, according to a draft request for proposals posted Monday.

The selected vendor will also provide personnel, materials and tools needed to carry out operations and integration support under the statement of work.

“This level of support will generate a common operational picture of the NDSA by actively monitoring the network and mission systems,” the draft solicitation reads.

The Tranche 1 O&I program will have a five-year performance period with a base term of two years for operations and sustainment and three option years. Comments on the draft RFP are due Dec. 1st.

In late October, SDA released a new solicitation for the Tranche 1 Transport Layer program with plans to use other transaction authorities as a contracting mechanism for the satellite procurement effort.

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Mitre Provides Recommendations for Congressional Efforts on Federal Cybersecurity
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Mitre Provides Recommendations for Congressional Efforts on Federal Cybersecurity

Mitre recommends Congress consider actions regarding leadership, legacy systems, cyber risk management framework and other aspects related to improving federal cybersecurity.

The organization said it advises lawmakers to boost the authority of federal cybersecurity leaders with regard to cyber risk management and modernize legacy information technology systems to mitigate vulnerabilities.

Mitre released a total of eight recommendations, which also cover mandating supply chain risk assessments and establishing cybersecurity as a cross-agency performance goal.

The recommendations also include implementing a zero-trust architecture, creating an integrated framework for cyber risk management and updating congressional oversight based on the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act.

Mitre believes these recommendations can help the federal government bolster cybersecurity against threats from ransomware users, Russia, China and other cyber actors.

The authors of the recommendation report are Mark Peters, a cyber defense policy professional at Mitre; Dave Powner, executive director of Mitre’s Center for Data-Driven Policy; and Chris Folk, director of cybersecurity policy and strategic partnerships at Mitre.

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JHU APL Addresses Navy’s Need for Shipboard Surveillance System; John Shelton Quoted
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JHU APL Addresses Navy’s Need for Shipboard Surveillance System; John Shelton Quoted

Johns Hopkins University’s Applied Physics Laboratory is helping the U.S. Navy develop requirements for a visual surveillance system designed to make crews aware of what is happening on a ship.

The Shipboard Passive Electro-Optical Infrared (SPEIR) program aims to deliver a system that uses shipboard-installed EO and IR sensors to provide visual surveillance, JHU APL said Monday.

The program addresses the mission limitations of existing EO/IR technology and seeks to expand these systems’ scope of tasks.

“It will detect threats and generate data to keep the crew informed about what platforms — friendly, enemy and neutral — are in the vicinity of the ship,” John Shelton, APL’s project manager for SPEIR, said about the new technology his team is working on.

APL and the Navy gathered input from warfighters and veterans to inform SPEIR’s initial system design.

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Andrew Williams Appointed to Oversee Air Force Research’s Space S&T Efforts
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Andrew Williams Appointed to Oversee Air Force Research’s Space S&T Efforts

Andrew Williams, an 18-year veteran of the Air Force Research Laboratory’s (AFRL) space vehicles directorate, has been named deputy technology executive officer for space science and technology at AFRL.

He will be responsible for developing and implementing S&T initiatives across the research organization in support of the U.S. Space Force mission, AFRL said Monday.

“Throughout my career, I’ve experienced the dramatic changes and challenges that led to the stand-up of the Space Force, and I’m excited as the D-TEO to be part of that and ensure AFRL delivers science and technology necessary to advance our national defense, in the space warfighting domain,” Williams noted.

In his previous capacity, Williams led S&T investment strategy for the space vehicles directorate headquartered at Kirtland AF Base in New Mexico.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Texas A&M University, a master’s degree in aerospace engineering sciences from the University of Colorado and a PhD in engineering from the University of New Mexico.

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