Capitol Hill Week Ahead. The Senate and House return from their Veteran’s Day recess this week, and their biggest task will be furthering the appropriations process as the clock ticks down to Dec. 11, when the current continuing resolution runs out. The defense spending bill is still on the table and needs to be cut by $5 billion to match the $607 billion agreed to in the Bipartisan Budget Act. With the defense authorization bill wrapped up, the House and Senate armed services committee will focus on a range of hearings dealing with topics from autonomy to improving Pentagon management.
Presidential Helo Replacement. Sikorsky achieves a number of milestones in the VH-92A Presidential Helicopter Replacement Program, including preliminary design review (PDR) completion, according to a company statement. It also completes integration and performance testing of mission communications system components and accepts the second S-92A aircraft for the program. Sikorsky plans for initial fielding in 2020, with production concluding in 2023. The Navy in 2014 gave Sikorsky a $1.2 billion fixed-price incentive engineering and manufacturing development (EMD) contract with production options for 21 operational and two test aircraft. 
C-130J Contract. The Air Force awards Lockheed Martin a $969 million undefinitized contract action modification to previously awarded contract FA8625-14-C-6450 for C-130J multi-year production aircraft, according to a DoD statement. Lockheed Martin will provide six C-130J-30s, one HC-130J, nine MC-130J and one KC-130J aircraft. The Air Force expects work to complete by April 30, 2020.
SDB I Contract. The Air Force awards Boeing a $130 million modification to previously awarded contract FA-8681-10-D-0071, increasing the contract ceiling for foreign military sale (FMS) Small Diameter Bomb I (SDB I) production, according to a DoD statement. The modification increases the contract’s ceiling from $98 million to $228 million to meet current and future FMS procurements under this contract. The Air Force expects work to complete by April 15, 2019. The contract is 95 percent FMS.
F-35 Norway. The first two Norwegian F-35s arrive at Luke AFB, Ariz., according to a Lockheed Martin statement. Shortly after arriving, a Norwegian pilot flies the F-35 for the first time. The arrival of Norway’s F-35s mark the second international partner to have the aircraft arrive for training at Luke, which currently has 32 F-35s. By 2024, the base is slated to have six fighter squadrons and 144 F-35s. Norway will have seven F-35s stationed at Luke.
ULA Contract. The Air Force awards United Launch Alliance (ULA) a $373 million firm-fixed-price modification to previously awarded “block buy” contract FA8811-13-C-0003 for launch vehicle production services, according to a DoD statement. ULA provides two launches for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO): one Atlas V and one Delta IV Heavy. The launches do not constitute exercised options. The Air Force says Nov. 20 the contracts include launch vehicle production and launch operations for the NROL-52 and NROL-71 missions. NROL-52 is scheduled to launch as early as Oct. 1, 2017; and NROL-71 is scheduled to launch as early as Sept. 15, 2018. The ULA is a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Boeing.
3DELRR. The Air Force anticipates a second quarter fiscal year 2016 contract award in its beleaguered Three-Dimensional Long Range Radar (3DELRR) program, service spokesman Justin Oakes says in a statement. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Oct. 23 denied Raytheon’s appeal, allowing the Air Force to continue source selection and take corrective action. The service had previously awarded the contract to Raytheon, but decided to throw out the award and recompete the contract, prompting the lawsuit. Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman are also players for the new 3DELRR contract.
ICBM Contract. The Air Force awards Orbital ATK a cost-plus-fixed-fee contract worth as much as $790 million for ICBM propulsion subsystem support, according to a DoD statement. Orbital ATK provides sustaining engineering support and program management support services for the ICBM propulsion subsystem. DoD says the primary focus is ensuring any modifications or changes to the propulsion subsystem will maintain and improve system-level performance. The Air Force expects work to complete by Nov. 4, 2016. The award is the result of a competitive acquisition with three offers received.
Army UH-72A Order. The Army exercises $66 million in contract options for 12 additional UH-72A Lakota helicopters from Airbus, according to a company statement. The aircraft are to be delivered in August 2017, configured for the Army as initial entry rotary-wing trainers. The Navy operates the Lakota in a training role at the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School. The Army in 2015 fields more than 50 Lakotas to Fort Rucker, Ala., in preparation for the UH-72A’s formal introduction into the training curriculum by early 2016.
Growing Cyber Attack Surface. Over the next five years the number of users and devices and the amount of data and network traffic is expected to grow considerably, increasing the surface space for cyber attacks, Intel Security says in its annual threat predictions report. With connected devices estimated at 200 billion and growing by 2020, “this massive increase in the number of devices that need to be secured with a well-documented shortage of security talent” means “it is easy to understand why the security industry must simplify and automate defenses and their configurations, and improve efficiency with machine learning and networked collaboration,” the 40-page report says.
…New Threat Vectors, Sources. The report says that currently there is little malware targeted at hardware and firmware vulnerabilities but this will change over the next five years. It also says that new cyber attack capabilities will “trickle down from advanced national-state intelligence and defense agencies, through big organized crime syndicates, and into broader use.”
Board Chairman. Rockwell Collins’ board of directors has elected company President and CEO Kelly Ortberg to the additional role of chairman of the board. Ortberg, who has been president since 2012 and CEO since 2013, succeeds Anthony Carbone as chairman. Carbone will continue on the board as lead director.
Seabury Boosts A&D Expertise. In the wake of former President and Chief Operating Officer Chris Kubasik leaving the firm to take the same position at L-3 Communications, the professional advisory firm Seabury Group has named Paul Meyer as executive vice president of its Seabury Global Aerospace & Defense Consulting division. Meyer recently retired from Aerojet Rocketdyne as senior vice president of Advanced Programs and Business Development.
International E-2D Sales. Northrop Grumman lands a $151.3 million contract modification to produce one E-2D Advanced Hawkeye for Japan. The aircraft is the first of four E-2Ds planned to be purchased by the country. Earlier this year, the State Department approved a foreign military sale request—with a total estimated value of $1.7 billion—that would permit Japan to buy four aircraft as well as the associated radars, engines, equipment and logistical support.
DDG-51 Maintenance. BAE Systems picks up a $25.2 million contract for repairs, maintenance and modernization of the USS Forrest Sherman (DDG-98) during a fiscal year 2016 dry dock availability. If executed, option items could bring the value of the contract up to $26.6 million. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Va., and is expected to be completed by July 2016.
Next Generation Jammer. Raytheon announces the completion of the preliminary design review of the Next Generation Jammer, which will replace the current ALQ-99 jamming pods on the E/A-18G Growler. The company will now begin detailed design work, according to a Raytheon news release. Initial operating capability is planned for 2021. “The jammer’s open architecture design, coupled with high-powered, solid state electronics and agile jamming techniques, will enable us to meet U.S. Navy electronic warfare mission requirements while ensuring the affordability of future upgrades,” says Daniel Theisen, director of airborne electronic attack programs for Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems.
Ship Namings. At a New England Patriots game at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announces that SSN-798, a Virginia-class attack submarine, will be named the USS Massachusetts. During a taped message played at the Nov. 8 game, Mabus says the name represents “the long tradition of strong connection between the people of Massachusetts and our Navy.” SSN-798 will be the fifth ship to bear that name. The submarine will be built by General Dynamics Electric Boat and Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Newport News Shipbuilding, and then delivered by Newport News.
Army Lab. The Army Research Laboratory announces plans to recruit up to 70 researchers to develop and transition innovative technologies to the field at a new outpost at the University of Southern California’s Institute of Creative Technologies in Playa Vista, Calif. ARL West, as the outpost will be known, is the largest of ARL’s satellite operations and the first west of the Mississippi river, according to the Army. ARL is based at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. In connection with scientists at USC, ARL West researchers will “broaden its abilities for the discovery, innovation and transition of science and technology,” the Army says.
Expanded Network. General Dynamics recently demonstrated a new third-generation scalable software to power the Army’s Command Post of the Future (CPOF) that can link up to 5,000 dispersed users at a time. More than 5,000 participants, including geographically dispersed Army and General Dynamics representatives and virtual participants, simultaneously used CPOF to collaborate and share mission command information in real-time, the company says. “By increasing the maximum number of concurrent users from 300 to 5,000, the new third-generation software capability enables commanders to collaborate across any deployment and echelon,” Bill Weiss, vice president of General Dynamics Mission Systems, says in a statement.
… Scaled Up. The Army has been using the basic CPOF software since 2004 to plan, rehearse and carry out operations across tactical networks located in dispersed geographical areas. In 2007, General Dynamics was awarded a contract to expand the CPOF capabilities for commanders and their staffs to make more efficient and effective command decisions in a larger collaborative environment. The CPOF mission command application is currently a system within the Army’s Command Post Computing Environment used for tactical and humanitarian missions. The recent demonstration was designed to prove the scalability of the new software iteration from including several hundred collaborators to several thousand. Another goal was to study the reliability of the system at varying levels of participation across multiple Army echelons, GD says. Both demonstrations were successful. Participants were able to simultaneously share data and information updates from various units involved in a variety of operations.
DoD Dismissal. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter on Thursday fires one of his top military aides, Army Lt. Gen. Ron Lewis, because of allegations of misconduct. Carter asks the DoD Inspector General to investigate and says once the facts of the matter are brought to light, the Army will then take appropriate action.”I expect the highest possible standards of conduct from the men and women in this department particularly from those serving in the most senior positions,” Carter says in statement. “There is no exception.”
ISIL Stateside. While U.S. and allied aircraft pound Islamic State (ISIL) targets in Iraq and Syria, the terrorist organization’s message seeps through the Internet to potential terrorists in the United States. The Justice Department on Thursday arrested a man in Akron, Ohio, for “soliciting the murder of members of the U.S. military,” Pentagon Spokesman Peter Cook says. The 25-year old suspect “solicited the murder of members of our military by disseminating ISIL’s violent rhetoric, circulating detailed U.S. military personnel information, and explicitly calling for the killing of American service members in their homes and communities,” the Justice Department says in a statement. “ISIL and its followers continue to use social media in an attempt to incite violence around the world, including in the United States.” The suspect allegedly disseminated an online video that included dozens of photographs of U.S. military personnel, their names, addresses and military branch, urging ISIL sympathizers to seek out and murder them, the Justice Department says.
Drone Strike. A U.S. unmanned aircraft is believed to have killed perhaps the most famous member of ISIL: The man nicknamed “Jihadi John” that appeared in several videos depicting the beheading of U.S., British and other hostages. The strike, near Raqqa, Syria, targeted Mohamed Emwazi and likely killed him, though Pentagon Spokesman Peter Cook would not confirm his death.”Emwazi, a British citizen, participated in the videos showing the murders of U.S. journalists Steven Sotloff and James Foley, U.S. aid worker Abdul-Rahman Kassig, British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning, Japanese journalist Kenji Goto, and a number of other hostages,” Cook says in a statement. “We are assessing the results of tonight’s operation and will provide additional information as and where appropriate,” Cook adds.
Cuba Dialogue. The United States and Cuba hold an inaugural Law Enforcement Dialogue in Washington, D.C., as both countries continue to normalize relations. The discussion focuses on issues including counter-terrorism, counter-narcotics, transnational crime, cyber crime, secure travel and trade, and fugitives. The U.S. delegation is led by Deputy Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs Alex Lee and Deputy Assistant Attorney General Bruce Swartz. Ambassador Yuri Gala Lopez, Director of Bilateral Affairs, Directorate General for the United States, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, leads the Cuban delegation. The parties agree to continue the dialogue and pursue deeper bilateral cooperation via technical meetings through the first half of 2016.
Cyber Bills. A Congressional Research Service (CRS) report explains the similarities and differences among the three cybersecurity information sharing bills set to be reconciled during a conference committee between the House and Senate: the Protecting Cyber Networks Act (PCNA, H.R. 1560), the National Cybersecurity Protection Advancement Act of 2015 (NCPAA, H.R. 1731), and the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 (CISA, S. 754). They differ in how they define some terms in common, roles they provide for federal agencies, processes for nonfederal entities to share information with the federal government, processes for protecting privacy, permitted uses for shared information, and reporting requirements.
DHS Official To China. Alejandro Mayorkas, Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, visits Beijing, China for meetings with senior Chinese officials to further implementation of bilateral commitments on cyber issues made by both countries in September as well as in preparation for the first US-China Ministerial Dialogue on Cybercrime and Related Issues in December. Mayorkas also discusses other homeland security-related issues including counterterrorism, combating transnational crime, and Coast Guard conduct at sea.
DNI Supports Cobert. Director of National Intelligence (DNI) James Clapper supports President Obama’s nomination of Beth Cobert from Acting Director to permanent Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) in a statement. “Beth is a valued colleague, dedicated public servant and supportive partner to the Intelligence Community. Upon confirmation, I look forward to working with her and the OPM staff to address mutual challenges and enhance our collaboration,” Clapper says.