Open DAGIR. The Pentagon’s Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO) on Aug. 29 officially launched its Open Data and Applications Government-owned Interoperable Repositories (Open DAGIR) Challenge, soliciting industry’s pitches for solutions in the contested logistics and sustainment space in support of the Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control (CJADC2) initiative. “The initiative has the potential to impact every Combatant Command, and warfighters will witness industry solutions applied immediately to their problem sets in a common CJADC2 global integration decision platform. Warfighters will rapidly share feedback in an iterative fashion, while executing the mission,” DoD CDAO said in a statement. “Open DAGIR establishes a multi-vendor ecosystem to enable industry and government to integrate data platforms, development tools, services, and applications, while preserving the Government’s data ownership and industry’s intellectual property.” DoD CDAO is accepting Open DAGIR submissions on the Tradewinds Solutions Marketplace through Sept. 6.
SeaVue. RTX revealed that during the Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) an MQ-9B SeaGuardian UAS used the company’s SeaVue Multi-role Radar (SVMR) surveillance and imaging system to survey several targets to send track data to F/A-18E/F Super Hornets. The company said the Navy aircraft used that data to fire a Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) at the decommissioned former USS Tarawa (LHA-1) during the RIMPAC sink exercise. “The live-fire exercise enabled us to test and validate SVMR to ensure it can provide the situational awareness required in an operational environment – allowing faster decision making and more efficient kill chains,” Bryan Rosselli, president of Advanced Products & Solutions at Raytheon, said in a statement.
Logistics Grand Strategy. MITRE is advising a new presidential administration to develop a Logistics Grand Strategy by next spring. “The Department of Defense, inter-governmental agencies, and private industry should come together to more effectively optimize the nation’s logistics networks to ensure sustained resiliency, whenever and wherever needed,” MITRE said in a new paper. “To achieve this, the incoming administration should develop a comprehensive and enduring Logistics Grand Strategy within the first 100 days to convey a clear direction and the overall importance of this issue.”
…Supply Chain. One question for policy makers may be how the U.S. will secure vital supplies in the event of conflict. “The lack of an industrial base that can consistently deliver the required defense-related manufacturing items at the speed of need has forced the United States to depend on obtaining sourcing options from potential adversaries like China,” MITRE said. “In 2022 alone, the United States imported over $500 billion in goods and services from China. This included electronic equipment, plastics, organic chemicals, iron, steel, and pharmaceutical products. Each of these items would be needed to maintain the nation’s military fleet during global operations. Should a potential conflict extend into the Indo-Pacific region, the nation’s access to critical parts and components would be significantly diminished due to its heavy reliance on manufacturing from within this region.”
Engine Deal. Aircraft engine aftermarket services company StandardAero last week acquired Aero Turbine, Inc., a Federal Aviation Administration Repair Station that services the J85, J69, and J79 turbojet engines, and accessories that power T-2, T-37, T-38, F-5, A-37, F-4 and BAE Hawk aircraft worldwide. The deal expands StandardAero’s military engine and maintenance, repair, and overhaul services work. Terms of the deal were not announced. California-based Aero Turbine was a holding of Gallant Capital. StandardAero is owned by the investment firm Carlyle. Lincoln International served as financial adviser to Gallant and Aero Turbine.
Croatia/HIMARS. The State Department on Aug. 30 approved a potential $390 million deal with Croatia for the sale of eight HIMARS launchers, which would be the country’s first purchase of the Lockheed Martin-built systems. Under the deal, Croatia would also receive GMLRS rockets, Humvees, Defense Advanced GPS Receivers, practice rocket pods, radios and fire control software. “The proposed sale will improve Croatia’s capability to deter current and future threats and support coalition operations as well as promote interoperability with the United States and other NATO forces,” the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a statement.
Naval Interrogator. The Navy awarded BAE Systems a $24 million contract for continued redesign of AN/UPX-50(C) digital interrogator assemblies. This modification seeks to address parts obsolescence and implement ways to achieve compliance with the latest Navy specifications, qualification and certification standards. The interrogator provides the Navy with Identification Friend or Foe technology which emits an interrogating radio signal that prompts a reply at a different frequency if the other aircraft or naval vessel is friendly. The Navy noted this next generation interrogator allows for faster updates to the IFF technology.
Joint Assault Bridges. Leonardo DRS recently received a $49 million deal from the Army to deliver additional Joint Assault Bridge (JAB) systems, the company said on Aug. 22. The latest order covers JABs for the Army and the Romanian military, through an earlier foreign military sale case. The JAB provides a deployable bridge capability built on a modified M1A1 Abrams tank chassis. “We are proud to continue to deliver this robust and reliable system to the U.S. Army and allied militaries to ensure armored vehicles can better navigate complex battlefield conditions,” Aaron Hankins, senior vice president and general manager of Leonardo DRS’ land systems business unit, said in a statement. “In partnership with the U.S. Army, we have successfully delivered more than 100 of these next-generation Joint Assault Bridge systems. JAB is a force multiplier and provides warfighters with advanced infrared vision technology, rapid assault launch and retrieve capability and superior mobility.”
Weapon Sights. Leonardo DRS said on Aug. 27 it was also recently awarded a $117 million production order from the Army for continued delivery of next-generation thermal weapon sights. The order was placed under the company’s current Family of Weapon Sights – Individual (FWS-I) IDIQ contract. “Leveraging DRS’s uncooled thermal imaging technology, FWS-I is a stand-alone, clip-on weapon sight that connects wirelessly to helmet-mounted vision systems including the enhanced night vision goggle binoculars and the next-gen integrated visual augmentation system and provides rapid target acquisition capabilities to the soldier,” the company said in a statement. “It gives users the ability to acquire targets day or night and in a range of degraded environmental conditions, providing strategic and tactical advantages on the battlefield.”
Intelligence Deal. Sensible Solutions and Technologies, Inc. (SSATI) last week said it has acquired Data Sync Technologies, Inc., in a deal that expands the company’s position in the intelligence community with new customers. Data Sync’s capabilities are in knowledge management and data analysis. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. SSATI is based in Annapolis Junction, Md., is an information technology service provider for the federal government and defense agencies. Chesapeake Corporate Advisors and FVC Bank served as SSATI’s financial advisers on the deal.
Polar Star is Home. The Coast Guard’s lone heavy polar icebreaker, the Polar Star, last week returned to its homeport of Seattle after more than three months in dry dock where the 399-foot vessel underwent the fourth phase of a five-year service life extension project (SLEP). The SLEP followed a 138-day deployment to Antarctica as part of Operation Deep Freeze 2024 and was focused on recapitalizing propulsion, communication, and machinery control systems, and other maintenance. The SLEP work was done at Mare Island Dry Dock at a cost of $16.8 million.
Navy and Shield. Naval Air Systems Command last week said that on Aug. 16 it awarded a contract to Shield AI to begin integrating company’s Hivemind artificial intelligence-based autonomy software to pilot the BQM-177A aerial target vehicle as the Navy continues to assess autonomous systems for Naval aviation. The agreement between the Navy and Shield was first announced in March. Now, the service says a technical demonstration will happen in 2025. “The Navy plans to begin digital engineering for software, networks, and autonomy in preparation for the demonstration in December 2025,” Greg Crewse, program manager Aerial Targets (PMA-208), told Defense Daily in an email reply to questions. “The BQM-177A will serve as a versatile airborne test bed, to bridge the gap between virtual simulations and live testing, offering a reliable platform for validating autonomous systems.” Kratos Defense & Security Solutions makes the BQM-177A, which is used as a surrogate for modern subsonic anti-ship cruise missile threats used in training and testing.
Hypersonic SBIR Award. Evolution Space last week said it has received a $1.2 million contract from the Air Force’s AFWERX innovation unit to continue research and development on solid rocket propulsion hypersonic boost and target solutions. Evolution, a startup focused on developing solid rocket motors and launch vehicles, said the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II award was made on Aug. 22.
Handsome Raise. Defense technology company Parry Labs, LLC last week said it has completed an $80 million funding raise to accelerate investments in defense technologies for the tactical edge. The funding round was the first for the company with institutional investors and was led by the investment firm Capital Meridian Partners, with participation from the investment firm 3Wire Partners, and venture capital firms True Ventures, and Teamworthy Ventures. Parry Labs is developing open architecture mission solutions, edge computing devices, a tactical electronic jammer, and digital engineering tools.
Contractor Helper. Pryzm, a startup developing artificial intelligence-based tools to help government contractors navigate and capture business, last week announced a $2 million seed round led by XYZ Venture Capital. The company’s AI analyst is “trained to understand the technological and historical context of your capabilities and surface the latest contracts, grants, and awards most relevant to your growth without the need for keyword-based search,” it says on its website. Pryzm’s tools scour dozens of government and other databases, enable collaboration across a team by creating a common operating picture around business opportunities, it says.
In the Open. Portal Space Systems last month emerged from stealth mode, announcing more than $3 million in Defense Department and Space Force funding for the development and launch of its payload-agnostic Supernova satellite bus, which the Seattle-based startup said is designed for maneuverability and features a solar-thermal propulsion system. The company is led by Jeff Thornburg, the architect of SpaceX’s Raptor engine and former head of Mechanical Engineering & Manufacturing at Amazon’s Project Kuiper. “We provide an over 50x improvement in current spacecraft mobility,” Thornburg said in a statement. “For our customers, that means the ability to have spacecraft on orbit that are able to respond in real-time to events in any orbital regime.”
People News. Jason Kim, who had been CEO of Boeing’s Millenium Space Systems satellite company before a seemingly abrupt departure early last week, on. Aug. 29 was named the new CEO of the launch vehicle and space technology company Firefly Aerospace effective Oct. 1. In mid-July, Firefly announced that then CEO was out, effective immediately, and that board member Peter Schumacher would serve as interim-CEO while the board searched for a new chief executive. Electra.aero, which is developing electric short take-off and landing aircraft for commercial and defense markets, has named B. Marc Allen as its CEO, succeeding founder and still chairman, John Langford. Allen most recently was chief strategy officer and senior vice president for strategy and corporate development at Boeing.
DDG-130 Keel. General Dynamics Bath Iron Works marked the keel laying of the future USS William Charette (DDG-130), a Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, during a ceremony at the shipyard in Bath, Maine. The ship is named after a master chief hospital corpsman who received the Medal of Honor during the Korean War. The company is also building the Flight IIA destroyers Harvey C. Barnum Jr. (DD-124) and Patrick Gallagher (DDG-127) as well as the Flight III destroyers Louis H. Wilson Jr. (DDG-126), Quentin Walsh (DDG-132), John E. Kilmer (DDG-134) and Richard G. Lugar (DDG-136).
CG-63 Retired. The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Cowpens (CG-63) decommissioned after 33 years of naval service during a ceremony at Naval Base San Diego on Aug. 27. CG-63 was the 17th ship with the Aegis Combat System. It was commissioned in 1991, the second ship to be named after the Battle of Cowpens during the Revolutionary War. Following inactivation, the ship is due to be towed to the Navy’s Inactive Ship facility in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, where it will be in a Logistic Support Asset (LSA) status.
DDG-97 DPM. The Navy awarded BAE Systems’ San Diego Ship Repair a $178 million undefinitized contract modification on Aug. 29 for repair, maintenance, and modernization of the USS Halsey (DDG 97) under a Chief of Naval Operations fiscal year 2024 Depot Modernization Period (DMP). The award covers all labor, supervision, facilities, equipment, production and testing needed to prepare for and perform the DMP. The contract includes options that, if exercised, would increase the total value to $226 million. The work is expected to be finished by April 2026. DoD’s announcement said the contract was not competitively procured.
DDG-56 DSRA. The Navy also awarded Vigor Marine LLC a $76 million contract for the maintenance, modernization, and repair of USS John S. McCain (DDG-56) in a fiscal year 2025 Docking Selected Restricted Availability (DSRA). The contract includes options that, if exercised, would raise the total value to $84 million. Work will occur in Portland, Ore., and is expected to be finished by November 2025. DoD’s announcement said the contract was competitively procured with one other offer received, but as is standard did not disclose the losing party.
DDG-136. General Dynamics’ Bath Iron Works (BIW) marked the start of fabrication of the future USS Richard G. Lugar (DDG-136), a Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer on Aug. 21 at its Structural Fabrication Facility at the Maine shipyard. DDG-136 will be the 46th destroyer in its class and the fifth in the newest Flight III configuration, which features modifications to accommodate the AN/SPY-6 Air and Missile Defense Radar. The ship is named after the late senator who died in 2019, having previously represented Indiana for 36 years and chaired or was the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for 12 years. BIW is also in production on the Flight IIA Arleigh Burke-class destroyers Harvey C. Barnum Jr. (DDG-124) and Patrick Gallagher (DDG-127) as well as the Flight III destroyers Louis H. Wilson Jr. (DDG-126), William Charette (DDG-130), Quentin Walsh (DDG-132) and John E. Kilmer (DDG-134).
Next-Gen OPIR GEO. U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command said on Aug. 30 that RTX’s Raytheon has delivered the first of two geosynchronous (GEO) hypersonic and ballistic missile warning payloads to Lockheed Martin for bus integration and system testing under the Department of the Air Force’s Next-Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared (Next-Gen OPIR) program. “The payload, known as NGG-1, was transported from Raytheon’s Mission Payload Facility in El Segundo, Ca. to Lockheed Martin’s Space Vehicle Integration Facility in Sunnyvale, Ca. following successful completion of thermal vacuum chamber testing from Apr. 26 to Aug. 12, 2024,” SSC said. “Next Gen GEO is on schedule for a projected December 2025 initial launch capability.”
