DHS Secretary Possibilities. There’s a bevy of potential candidates that Republican President-elect Donald Trump may consider as Homeland Security Secretary, according to Catalyst Partners consultant Rich Cooper, who in September dropped some possible names. Cooper’s list includes New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R), Maricopa County, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke, Rep. Will Hurd (R-Texas), Rep. Dan Donovan (R-N.Y.), and Arkansas Gov. and former DHS border and transportation security official Asa Hutchinson (R). Cooper’s colleague at Catalyst, David Olive, tells Defense Daily that he sees former TSA Administrator John Pistole as a potential candidate for the top job at DHS, noting that since Pistole became president of Anderson Univ. in Indiana last year he thinks he has developed a good relationship with Vice President-elect Mike Pence, who is also that state’s governor.
…Risk Expert. In a later blog post last month, Cooper said the next DHS secretary be a risk expert given the department’s “mandate is fundamentally about risk.” Cooper wrote that having someone “who is familiar with risk assessments and risk management could be a game changer in how the Department does its job,” adding that despite the fact that DHS is all about risk assessment and management, “So far, it’s been a mixed bag in terms of results.” Cooper points to the insurance industry, which uses and analyzes data to inform decisions on risk assessments and investments, a showing the way for how the next DHS chief needs to work to “mitigate risks and manage our bad days in all of their forms.”
Precision Ammo. Orbital ATK President and CDO David Thompson says that under its three-year development effort to create advanced precision medium caliber ammunition it has demonstrated an initial version of a 30-millimeter air burst round that works with the company’s medium-caliber gun systems. He adds on an investor call that Orbital ATK also has done some successful tests of its technology used in proximity fuses and active guidance in similar medium caliber rounds. The precision technology will be applied to more ammo calibers over the next two years and with other gun platforms with initial production deliveries expected in late 2017 or early 2018, he says.
New SAIC CFO. Science Applications International Corp. has appointed Charles Mathis as its new chief financial officer effective on Monday. Mathis joins SAIC from $3.5 billion technology services and products company ScanSource Inc., where he was the CFO since 2012. Before ScanSource, Mathis was a CFO with South Carolina defense firm Force Protection, Inc., and before that with Texas-based EFW, Inc., which is part of Israel’s Elbit Systems. Mathis takes over at SAIC for interim CFO Maria Bishop, who resumes her duties as corporate controller. Bishop took on the interim role in July, several months after the company’s then CFO John Hartley announced he planned to return to Southern California where his family lives.
Ayotte Out. SASC and A-10 backer Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) late Wednesday conceded her reelection race to New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan (D). As of Thursday at 11:36 a.m. EST, N.H. television station WMUR has Hassan with 716 more votes than Ayotte, who was an ally of SASC Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) and one of the leading forces preventing the Air Force from retiring the A-10.
WorldView-4 Launch. DigitalGlobe’s WorldView-4 imaging satellite is ready to launch Friday after a long delay due a wildfire at Vandenberg AFB, Calif., and a minor issue with the Atlas V launch vehicle. Launch is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. EST. WorldView-4 will provide 30 cm resolution from an altitude of 617 km above the earth’s surface. The Atlas V is developed by United Launch Alliance (ULA), a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Boeing.
SM-3 Test Delayed. The Standard Missile III (SM-3) Block IIA, a new, longer-range version of the SM-3 interceptor, was supposed to have its first missile shoot-down attempt in October but is still being readied for the test, according to a spokesman for the Missile Defense Agency (MDA). The spokesman attributes the delay to the need to “reduce the risk of anomalies and to ensure quality control.” MDA, Japan and Raytheon are jointly developing the SM-3 Block IIA, which will be deployable on land and at sea to defend against ballistic missiles.
Inactivating Enterprise. Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) has completed 75 percent of its inactivation work on the USS Enterprise (CVN-65), the world’s first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, a company spokeswoman says. The project includes removing fuel from the ship’s eight reactors. HII, which received a $745 million contract for the project in June 2013, expects to finish the job in the third quarter of 2017. The company originally expected to be done in August 2016 but identified “growth work” during the inactivation process. The Enterprise, which served the Navy for over half a century, is slated to be replaced by the first Ford-class carrier (CVN-78), whose construction by HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding is nearing completion.
Name That Ship. The Navy has unveiled the names of two ships that will be built by Huntington Ingalls Industries. The USS Frank E. Petersen Jr., an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer (DDG-121), has been named after the Marine Corps’ first black aviator and general officer. The USS Bougainville, the third America-class amphibious assault ship (LHA-8), has been named after an island in the northern Solomon Islands where World War II allies secured a strategic airfield from Japan.
Advanced Protection. The Israeli Ministry of Defense purchased hundreds of additional Trophy active protection systems (APS), manufactured by Rafael, in a deal worth hundreds of millions of dollars. The order ensures that every new Merkava 4 tank and Namer armored personnel carrier will be equipped with the Trophy system, providing significant additional protection against missile threats. The Isreali MoD’s Tank Management Program and the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), conducted in recent months a series of successful tests on the Namer APC equipped with the Trophy System. Completion of the trials and the integration process allows for the procurement and production of hundreds of additional Trophy systems.
Marine Trucks. The Marine Corps contracted with Polaris Defense to manufacture 144 four-seat diesel MRZ ultralight off-road vehicles part of the utility task vehicle (UTV) program, which provides MRZR-D4s to each of the Marine Corps’ active-component infantry regiments. The contract also includes spare parts blocks in support of the vehicles. This vehicle procurement follows successful testing and integration exercises, such as the recent RIMPAC 2016 where the Marine Corps experimented with new technologies, tactics and operational concepts during force-on-force training. “We introduced the diesel MRZR earlier this year and the Marines were among the first to purchase vehicles for test and evaluation,” says Joaquin Salas, business development manager for Polaris Defense. “The MRZRs off-road mobility, heavy fuel compatibility and internal transport certifications on vertical-lift aircraft make it a force multiplier for Marine infantry units.” The UTV program is designed to provide company-level operations with logistics support, filling a capability gap at the tactical level. The MRZR-D4 is certified for internal transport in MV-22 and CH-53 aircraft.
SECDEF Travels. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter travels to California, Texas and Florida Nov. 14-17 for a trip focused on ensuring troop readiness and the effectiveness of their training and equipment. He will meet new recruits, combat veterans, technical experts, experienced aviators, special operators and wounded warriors as they each prepare to confront the challenges ahead. He will also observe advanced training operations with immediate relevance to current overseas operations. On Nov. 15, Secretary Carter visits the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms, California to meet with Marines engaged in final combat training exercises. Carter will observe and discuss training operations designed to match real operational conditions. Carter will then deliver remarks to Marines thanking them for their service and updating them on the challenges facing the U.S. military, including the campaign against the Islamic State.
… Then To Texas. On Nov. 16, Secretary Carter will travel to Texas to visit Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, where he will speak with recruits navigating the challenges of basic training. Carter will thank the Air Force recruits for joining the force of the future, and will observe the training they are receiving, which will form the bedrock of their military career. The secretary will then visit Brooke Army Medical Center, the Army’s largest and busiest medical center. He will visit with and personally thank wounded and ill warriors, their families and BAMC staff. Carter will tour labs and simulation centers pioneering new advances in diagnostic imaging and new medical training aids. The secretary will wrap up his visit to San Antonio at JBSA-Randolph, where he will hold a press availability with local and traveling press, and take part in a training mission in a T-1 aircraft, a jet trainer used for training advanced phase student pilots selected to fly airlift or tanker aircraft.
… On To Florida. On Nov. 17, Secretary Carter concludes his trip with a visit to Hurlburt Field and Eglin Air Force Base near Fort Walton Beach, Fla., to meet with troops, participate in an aerial assault demonstration and receive a briefing on the advanced weaponry and aircraft at the base. The secretary will embed with a special tactics ground force as Air Force special operators demonstrate their unique ISR, mobility and strike capabilities to conduct a simulated personnel recovery and strike mission featuring an AC-130U Gunship and CV-22 Osprey. Carter will receive a briefing on advanced armaments and platforms including the AC-130J and F-35 as well as other aircraft and munitions.
Navy IT Contract. The U.S. Navy awarded Resource Management Concepts Inc. a $32.3 million cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-reimbursable, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to provide services in support of research, development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E) efforts that provide enterprise solutions and services in meeting information technology requirements and compliance with information assurance and security mandates. No funds were obligated at award time and will only be obligated as task orders are issued. The contract was competitively procured as a small business set-aside with seven offer received. Work will be performed in Patuxent River, Md.; Orlando, Fla.; Cherry Point, NC; and San Diego, Calif. It is expected to be completed in November 2021. The contracting activity is the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division at Patuxent River, Md.
Corps Of Engineers IT Contract. The U.S. Army awarded NetCentrics Corp. an $8.8 million contract modification for management services for the Army Corps of Engineers Information Technology Hardware Catalog integration services and purchase of information technology equipment. Fiscal 2017 other category funds of the full modification amount were obligated at award time. Work will be performed in Herndon, Va., with an estimated completion date of Aug. 11, 2017. The contracting activity is the Army Corps of Engineers in Huntsville, Ala.
NY Cyber Grant. The Research Foundation for the State University of New York (SUNY) at Albany was awarded a nearly $117,000 grant by the U.S. Commerce Department to establish a Cybersecurity Innovation and Research Center for University-Industry Technologies (CIRCUIT) to advance a long-term high throughput engine of economic growth through networking, collaborations, research, entrepreneurial opportunities, and job creation in cybersecurity. The award is part of the department’s Economic Development Administration’s 2016 University Center Economic Development Program Competition. This is part of a total over $2.5 million in grants to 24 colleges and universities for a five-year program to promote innovation.
Acting GPO CIO. U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) Director Davita Vance-Cooks named Tracee Boxley as the office’s new Acting Chief information Officer (CIO). Boxley replaces former CIO Check Riddle who moved to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. In the new position, Boxley is responsible for managing IT policies and standards relating to the acquisition, implementation, and operation of telecommunications and IT system in the agency. She also will develop and maintain operating budgets for network IT systems consistent with program plans and financial guidelines and for monitoring activities and costs related to the use of information resources. Boxley previously served as Deputy CIO since 2012 after joining the GPO in 2006 as Senior Customer Advocate for IT.