Defense War News Updates: 4/1/10

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

DTN News: USAF Rules Out New F-15s And F-16s To Narrow ‘Fighter Gap’

Defense War News Updates: DTN News: USAF Rules Out New F-15s And F-16s To Narrow ‘Fighter Gap’

Source: DTN News / FlightGlobal.com By Stephen Trimble
(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON, U.S. - April 6, 2010: Delays and cost overruns for the Lockheed Martin F-35 have not changed the US Air Force's plans to deactivate

about 250 fighters later this year, says its chief of staff, Gen Norton Schwartz.
The USAF, however, has begun destructive tests on Boeing F-15s and Lockheed F-16s to prove the viability for a potential service life extension programme, says Schwartz.
"At 10-15% of the cost [of a new fighter] you could perform a service life extension programme," Schwartz says, "which would get us close to where we need to be in, we think, a more affordable way."
Schwartz rejected buying the latest "fourth-generation-plus" versions of the F-15 and F-16 despite a new two-year slip and nearly 90% projected cost overrun for the F-35. "To be sure, we do not think it prudent to utilise precious procurement dollars for anything but fifth-generation aircraft." But Schwartz added an important caveat, that the USAF still has not determined whether the service life extension programme would be technically or financially viable.
The USAF has terminated Lockheed F-22 production with 186 aircraft in inventory after 2011, leaving only plans to acquire 1,763 F-35s over the next 30 years to modernise its fighter fleet. Meanwhile, the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review set the tactical aircraft requirement at about 2,000 fighters.
During the F-35's projected lifetime in production, however, the USAF faces a growing fighter inventory gap made even more complicated by Lockheed's cost and schedule problems.
In 2009 the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported alarming trends. Twelve Air National Guard units today patrol US airspace with F-16s scheduled for retirement by 2020. As of late 2008, only one of the 12 units was scheduled to receive F-35s by 2020 to continue flying the mission.
The increasing gap in the fighter inventory prompted a US lawmaker to predict the air force's dependence on the F-35 will be a "monumental mistake".
"When these F-16s and F-15s are no longer able to fly and the F-35s still has problems because somebody hasn't figured it out, you're going to have air guard units that are not going to have planes," says Representative Frank LoBiondo, who represents a district that includes an F-16 base, during a 24 March hearing.

DTN News: First F-15SGs Arrive In Singapore

Defense War News Updates: DTN News: First F-15SGs Arrive In Singapore

Source: DTN News / FlightGlobal.com By Siva Govindasamy
(NSI News Source Info) SINGAPORE - April 6, 2010: Singapore has flown home its first Boeing F-15SG fighters,

just under a year after taking delivery of the first examples.
Republic of Singapore Air Force pilots started training with US Air Force F-15s in July 2008, moving on to the F-15SGs at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, after the first of those were delivered in May 2009.
The service has assigned the F-15SGs to the 149 Squadron, which is based at Singapore's Paya Lebar Air Base.
"The F15SG is a major enhancement to Singapore's air defence capability, and will also play a significant role in the Singapore Armed Force's overall operations. The F-15SG squadron will increase the SAF's ability to deal decisively with future threats and meet our critical operational needs," says Singapore's defence minister Teo Chee Hean.
Boeing has delivered 18 of the 24 F-15SGs on order. Five more aircraft are expected to arrive in Singapore over the next few months, while the other six aircraft that are on order will be delivered in 2011.
Some aircraft will remain at Mountain Home where the RSAF maintains the Peace Carvin V F-15SG fighter detachment, part of the USAF's 428th Fighter Squadron. They will operate there for the next 25 years, says the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
The F-15SG, which is powered by two General Electric F110-129 engines, includes the Raytheon APG-63(V)3 active electronically scanned array radar,Lockheed Martin Sniper targeting pod, infrared search and track sensor and reportedly an Israeli-supplied electronic warfare system.
The aircraft has a maximum payload of 23,000lbs, allowing it to carry up to eight air-to-air missiles in an air-to-air configuration and up to fifteen 500lbs bombs in an air-to-ground configuration. Its weapons include the M61 20mm cannon, AIM-120 air-to-air missiles, AIM-9X air-to-air missiles, Maverick air-to-ground missiles and laser-guided bombs.Singapore is considering the F-15SG for a follow-on buy even as it continues to study theLockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Industry sources say that it may hold a second competition to evaluate its options.

DTN News: Afghanistan TODAY April 6, 2010 ~ Karzai To Lawmakers: 'I Might Join The Taliban'

Defense War News Updates: DTN News: Afghanistan TODAY April 6, 2010 ~ Karzai To Lawmakers: 'I Might Join The Taliban'

*Afghan leader made threat twice at closed-door meeting, witnesses say

Source: DTN News / Allauddin Khan - AP
(NSI News Source Info) KABUL, Afghanistan - April 6, 2010: Afghan President Hamid Karzai threatened over the weekend to quit the political process and join the Taliban if he continued to come under outside pressure to reform, several members of parliament said Monday.

Karzai made the unusual statement at a closed-door meeting Saturday with selected lawmakers — just days after kicking up a diplomatic controversy with remarks alleging foreigners were behind fraud in last year's disputed elections.
Lawmakers dismissed the latest comment as hyperbole, but it will add to the impression the president — who relies on tens of thousands of U.S. and NATO forces to fight the insurgency and prop up his government — is growing increasingly erratic and unable to exert authority without attacking his foreign backers.
"He said that 'if I come under foreign pressure, I might join the Taliban'," said Farooq Marenai, who represents the eastern province of Nangarhar.
"He said rebelling would change to resistance," Marenai said — apparently suggesting that the militant movement would then be redefined as one of resistance against a foreign occupation rather than a rebellion against an elected government.
Marenai said Karzai appeared nervous and repeatedly demanded to know why parliament last week had rejected legal reforms that would have strengthened the president's authority over the country's electoral institutions.
Two other lawmakers said Karzai twice raised the threat to join the insurgency.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said the reports were troubling. "On behalf of the American people, we're frustrated with the remarks," Gibbs told reporters.
Pandering?

The lawmakers, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of political repercussions, said Karzai also dismissed concerns over possible damage his comments had caused to relations with the United States. He told them he had already explained himself in a telephone conversation Saturday with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton that came after the White House described his comments last week as troubling.
The lawmakers said they felt Karzai was pandering to hard-line or pro-Taliban members of parliament and had no real intention of joining the insurgency.
Nor does the Afghan leader appear concerned that the U.S. might abandon him, having said numerous times that the U.S. would not leave Afghanistan because it perceives a presence here to be in its national interest.
Karzai spokesman Waheed Omar's phone was turned off and another number for him rang unanswered Monday. Deputy spokesman Hamed Elmi's phone rang unanswered.
The comments come against the background of continuing insurgent violence as the U.S. moves to boost troop levels in a push against Taliban strongholds in the south.
NATO forces said they killed 10 militants in a joint U.S.-Afghan raid on a compound in Nangarhar province's Khogyani district near the Pakistani border early Monday, while gunmen seriously wounded an Afghan provincial councilwoman in a drive-by shooting in the country's increasingly violent north.
NATO also confirmed that international troops were responsible for the deaths of five civilians, including three women, on Feb. 12 in Gardez, south of Kabul.
'Accidentally killed'

A NATO statement said a joint international-Afghan patrol fired on two men mistakenly believed to be insurgents. It said the three women were "accidentally killed as a result of the joint force firing at the men."
International force officials will discuss the results of the investigation with family of those killed, apologize and provide compensation, he said.
The two men killed in the Gardez raid had been long-serving government loyalists and opponents of al-Qaida and the Taliban, one serving as provincial district attorney and the other as police chief in Paktia's Zurmat district.
Their brother, who also lost his wife and a sister, said he learned of the investigation result from the Internet, but had yet to receive formal notice.
Mohammad Sabar said the family's only demand was that the informant who passed on the faulty information about militant activity be tried and publicly executed.
"Please, please, please, our desire, our demand is that this spy be executed in front of the people to ensure that such bad things don't happen again," Sabar said.
In the latest of a series of targeted assassination attempts blamed on militants, Baghlan provincial council member Nida Khyani was struck by gunfire in the leg and abdomen in Pul-e Khumri, capital of the northern province, said Salim Rasouli, head of the provincial health department. Khyani's bodyguard was also slightly injured.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the shooting, although suspicion immediately fell on Taliban fighters who often target people working with the Afghan government and their Western backers.
One month ago, a member of the Afghan national parliament escaped injury when her convoy was attacked by Taliban insurgents in eastern Afghanistan. Female government officials regularly report receiving threats to their safety. Some women leaders, including a prominent policewoman, have been assassinated.
The Taliban rigidly oppose education for girls and women's participation in public affairs, citing their narrow interpretation of conservative Islam and tribal traditions. Militants, who are strongest in the south and east, carry out beatings and other punishments for perceived women's crimes from immodesty to leaving home unaccompanied by a male relative.
Also Monday, the organizer of a national reconciliation conference — known as a jirga — scheduled for early May said it would not include insurgent groups such as the Taliban. There has also been indications it would include discussion of the withdrawal of 120,000 foreign troops in the country.
Ghulam Farooq Wardak, the minister of education who is organizing the conference, said it will focus on outlining ways to reach peace with the insurgents and the framework for possible discussions.
Out of the jirga will come the "powerful voice of the Afghan people," Wardak said. "By fighting, you cannot restore security. The only way to bring peace is through negotiation."

Monday, April 5, 2010

Defense War News Updates: DTN News: U.S. Department of Defense Contracts Dated April 5, 2010

Defense War News Updates: DTN News: U.S. Department of Defense Contracts Dated April 5, 2010

Source: U.S. DoD issued April 5, 2010 Seal of the Department of Defense

(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON - April 6, 2010: U.S. Department of Defense, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs) Contracts issued April 5, 2010 are undermentioned;

CONTRACTS

ARMY

General Dynamics C4 Systems, Inc., Taunton, Mass., was awarded on March 24 a $164,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract. This contract is for Warfighter Information Network (WIN) Tactical Increment 2 (T INC2) low-rate production, urgent first order, for the procurement of equipment for three brigade combat teams, one division headquarters, four regional hub nodes, and one base equipment complement to support the initial operational test and evaluation for WIN-T INC2 for program manager, WIN-T. Work is to be performed in Taunton, Mass., with an estimated completion date of June 30, 2010. One sole-source bid was solicited with one bid received. CECOM Acquisition Center, Fort Monmouth, N.J., is the contracting activity (W15PT-10-D-C007).

BAE Systems, LLC, U.S. Combat Systems, York, Pa., was awarded on March 31 a $145,170,882 firm-fixed-price contract for the reset of 551 Bradley Fighting Vehicle Systems. Work is to be performed in York, Pa. (42 percent); Aiken, S.C. (8 percent); Fayette, Pa. (12 percent); and Texarkana, Texas (38 percent), with an estimated completion date of Aug. 30, 2011. One bid was solicited with one bid received. U.S. Army, TACOM Contracting Center, CCTA-AHL-A, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (W56HZV-05-G-0005).

Archer-Western Contractor, Ltd., Arlington, Texas, was awarded on March 30 an $112,247,806 firm-fixed-price construction contract. This contract is for Lake Pontchartrain and vicinity, levee enlargement for South Point to CSX railroad, and US 11 and US 90 highway crossing, Reach LPV 109.02, Orleans Parish, Louisiana. Work is to be performed in Orleans Parish, La., with an estimated completion date of June 6, 2011. Bids were solicited via the the Federal Business Opportunities and Army Single Face to Industry Web sites, with seven bids received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Hurricane Protection Office., New Orleans, La., is the contracting activity (W912P8-10-C-0059).

Oshkosh Corp., Oshkosh, Wis., was awarded on March 29 a $10,036,560 firm-fixed-price contract for the procurement of 31 field service representatives, equal to 372 months, for the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected All Terrain Vehicle in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Work is to be performed in Oshkosh, Wis., with an estimated completion date of May 31, 2012. Five bids were solicited with five bids received. TACOM, CCTA-ADC-A, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (W56HZV-09-D-0111).

AAI Corp., Hunt Valley, Md., was awarded on March 26 a $9,800,000 cost-plus-incentive-fee, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for over-and-above efforts for government-owned, contractor-operated Units 1 and 2 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and overseas contingency operations. Work is to be performed in Hunt Valley, Md., with an estimated completion date of Oct. 31, 2010. One bid was solicited with one bid received. U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, CCAM-AR-A, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-08-C-0016).

Great Lakes Dredge a Dock Co., LLC, Oak Road, Ill., was awarded on March 26 a $9,663,200 firm-fixed-price contract for the dredging of the Mississippi River harbors. Work is to be determined with each task order, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2010. Bids were solicited on the World Wide Web with two bids received. U.S. Army Engineer District Memphis, Memphis, Tenn., is the contracting activity (W912EQ-10-D-0011).

Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, Orlando, Fla., was awarded on March 26 a $9,464,423 firm-fixed-price contract. This procurement is for issuance of an undefinitized contract action for the purchase of AH-64 Apache modernized target acquisition designation sight/pilot night vision sensors visible near infrared sight kits and associated spares for the United States government and the United Arab Emirates government. The March 26 obligation of $9,464,423 is 49 percent of the undefinitized contract action not-to-exceed amount of $19,315,150. Work is to be performed in Orlando, Fla., with an estimated completion date of May 31, 2012. One bid was solicited with one bid received. Army Contracting Command, AMCOM Contracting Center, CCAM-AP-B, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-06-C-0169).

Science Applications International Corp., McLean, Va., was awarded on March 26 a $5,759,507 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract. This contract is a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency program that will develop and demonstrate an innovative multi-physics coupling software environment to enable rapid and accurate multidisciplinary performance design and analysis simulations for lightweight, multi-material Navy submarine rotors. Work is to be performed in Bowie, Md., with an estimated completion date of Sept. 18, 2011. Bids were solicited via Broad Agency Announcement with nine bids received. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Va., is the contracting activity (HR0011-10-C-0082).

The Ross Group Construction Corp., Inc., Tulsa, Okla., was awarded on March 26 a $5,726,551 firm-fixed-price contract. The intent of the project is for the repair and renovation of approximately 5,610 square feet of existing building space which comprises the second floor of Building 700, known as Knox Hall. Renovation will create new functional areas with offices. The renovation and repair will allow the facility to properly support its current mission. Building 700 is located on the southeast corner of the intersection of Randolph Road and McNair Avenue on Fort Sill, Okla. The contractor is to purchase required materials and provide design, equipment, labor, and management to perform all the required work to design and construct this project to provide a complete and useable facility. Contractors are to coordinate with a submitted and approved construction schedule, work plan, and approved designs. Features of work include demolition and renovation of the existing second floor space, including wall layout, communications, electrical distribution system, fire arm and suppression system, lighting, mechanical duct work ,systems, and plumbing. Additional feature include renovation of elevator cab and operating systems, and stair wells. Work is to be performed in Fort Sill, Okla., with an estimated completion date of Dec. 30, 2011. Bids were solicited on the World Wide Web with one bid received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineer Tulsa Distinct, Tulsa, Okla., is the contracting activity (W912BV-09-D-2024).

Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., Stratford, Conn., was awarded on March 29 a $9,223,633 firm-fixed-price contract for incorporating the recurring production of Engineering Change Proposal 628 (AV 10063R1), UH-HH-60M Black Hawk upturned exhaust systems. Work is to be performed in Stratford, Conn., with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2012. One bid was solicited with one bid received. U.S. Army Contracting Command, CCAM-BH-A, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-08-C-0003).

I.L. Fleming, Inc., Midway, Ga., was awarded on March 29 a $7,811,000 firm-fixed-price contract for the construction of Chapel Complex PN 61035, Fort Bragg, N.C. Work is to be performed in Fort Bragg, N.C., with an estimated completion date of July 15, 2011. Bids were solicited on the World Wide Web with ten bids received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District, Omaha, Neb., is the contracting activity (W9128F-10-C-0012).

AM General, LLC, South Bend, Ind., was awarded on March 29 a $7,717,067 firm-fixed-price contract to add 50 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles to contract. Work is to be performed in Mishawaka, Ind., with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2010. One bid was solicited with one bid received. TACOM Warren, CCTA-ATA-A, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (DAAE07-01-C-S001)

Gulf Power Co., Pensacola, Fla., was awarded on March 26 a $5,586,210 firm-fixed-price contract for the construction of Freedom Way substation and transmission line extension, Hurlburt Air Force Base, Fla. Work is to be performed in Hurlburt Field, Fla., with an estimated completion date of March 1, 2010. One bid was solicited with one bid received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Mobile District, Mobile, Ala., is the contracting activity (W91278-10-F-0035).

NAVY

M.C. Dean, Inc., Dulles, Va., is being awarded a $75,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, cost-plus-incentive-fee modification to a previously awarded contract (N65236-07-D-5884) for command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance initiatives and programs supported by the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Atlantic, European Office. The cumulative value of this contract, including this modification, is $239,013,981. Work will be performed in Europe (80 percent) and Southwest Asia (20 percent), and is expected to be completed by April 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured through the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command E-commerce Web site, with five offers received. Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Atlantic, Charleston, S.C., is the contracting activity.

VSE Corp., Alexandria, Va., is being awarded a $42,510,858 cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N00174-10-D-0011) for decontamination and demolition support services for the industrial revitalization program. The government requires analytical, technical, and management support services for industrial revitalization efforts to include caretaking assistance, modernization, explosives/energetics decontamination, demilitarization, demolition, and divestiture support for the Navy and other Department of Defense (DoD) customers, and non-DoD customers. Work will be performed at Naval Surface Warfare Centers in Indian Head, Md., Crane, Ind., and Dahlgren, Va.; Naval Weapons Stations in Yorktown, Va., Seal Beach, Calif., Concord, Calif., and Earle, N.J.; and the Naval Air Systems Command, Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plants in Texas, New York, Connecticut and Ohio. Work is expected to be completed by April 2015. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Federal Business Opportunities Web site, with one offer received. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Division, Indian Head, Md., is the contracting activity.

EDO Communications and Countermeasures Systems, Inc., wholly owned by ITT Force Protection Systems, Thousand Oaks, Calif., is being awarded a $31,269,829 cost-plus-incentive-fee, cost-plus award fee, cost-only, firm-fixed-price modification to previously awarded contract (N0024-09-C-6316) to exercise options for all material and services to support the system development and demonstration phase through critical design review for the three capabilities (dismounted, mounted, and fixed-site) of the joint counter radio-controlled improvised explosive device electronic warfare (JCREW) 3.3 system of systems, 71°C ambient temperature. JCREW systems provide combat troops protection against radio-controlled improvised explosive devices. Work will be performed at Clifton, N.J. (41 percent), Annapolis Junction, Md. (30 percent), and Thousand Oaks, Calif. (29 percent), and is expected to be complete by June 2010. Contract funds in the amount $8,500,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Mo., is being awarded a $13,632,188 cost-plus-fixed-fee delivery order against a previously issued Basic Ordering Agreement (N00019-05-G-0026) to complete the AESA waveform generator DDS II die parts obsolescence redesign engineering change proposal for the F/A-18E/F aircraft. Work will be performed in El Segundo, Calif. (87.7 percent), and St. Louis, Mo. (12.3 percent), and is expected to be completed in March 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md. is the contracting activity.

Souza Construction, Inc.*, Farmersville, Calif., is being awarded $10,221,050 for firm-fixed-price task order #0002 under a previously awarded multiple-award construction contract (N62473-09-D-1652) for facility energy improvements at Heat Plant 5 (HP-5) at Marine Corps Logistics Base, Barstow. Work will be performed in Barstow, Calif., and is expected to be completed by September 2011. Funds for this project are provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Seven proposals were received for this task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southwest, San Diego, Calif., is the contracting activity.

The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Mo., is being awarded a $6,123,474 not-to-exceed modification to a previously awarded indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract (N00019-08-D-0013) to provide 300 hours of persistent unmanned aerial vehicle intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance services in support of naval maritime missions. Work will be performed in Bingen, Wash. (96 percent), and St. Louis, Mo. (4 percent), and is expected to be completed in January 2011. Contract funds in the amount of $3,980,257 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

BAE Systems, Land and Armaments L.P., Minneapolis, Minn., is being awarded a $6,049,979 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-08-C-5407) to exercise an option for engineering services to support operation and capabilities of the MK 45 Naval Gun System, including system engineering and ammunition integration. The MK 45 Naval Gun System is designed to provide surface fire support for multiple ship platforms of the U.S. Navy and various Foreign Military Sales customers. These engineering services will provide design, development, production, logistics, testing, operational, and life-cycle support for the gun system. Work will be performed in Minneapolis, Minn. (87 percent), and Louisville, Ky. (13 percent), and is expected to be complete by September 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

AIR FORCE

Northrop Grumman Guidance and Electronic Co., Woodland Hills, Calif., was awarded a $14,109,480 contract which provides for 252 embedded GPS inertial navigation system production units for the USAF F-16. At this time, the entire amount has been obligated. 647 AESS/PK, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity. (FA8626-06-C-2066).

Boeing Co., Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, Wichita, Kan., was awarded a $9,348,867 contract which provides additional funding on option period one for a contract to provide contractor logistics support for the VC-25A aircraft. At this time, the entire amount has been obligated. 727 ACSG/PKB, Tinker Air Force Base, Okla., is the contracting activity (FA8106-09-C-005).

Choctaw Professional Resources Enterprise, Durant, Okla., was awarded a $20,000,000 contract which provides action to support the Family Advocacy Program, U.S. Air Forces in Europe, outside the contiguous United States. At this time, $2,998,319 has been obligated. AFDW/A7KM-S, Brooks City-Base, Texas, is the contracting activity (FA7014-10-D-0001).

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

Mercury Air Centers Inc. dba Atlantic Aviation, Los Angeles, Calif., is being awarded a maximum $8,376,373 fixed-price with economic price adjustment contract for jet fuel. Other locations of performance include Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles, Calif. Using services are the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and other federal civilian agencies. There were originally three proposals solicited with three responses. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance completion is March 31, 2014. The Defense Energy Support Center, Fort Belvoir, Va. (SP0600-10-D-0048), is the contracting activity.

*Small business

Sunday, April 4, 2010

DTN News: Putin Bolsters Oil, Defense Ties With Venezuela

DTN News: Putin Bolsters Oil, Defense Ties With Venezuela

* Chavez wants nuclear energy, space technology
* Venezuela beefing up defenses with Russian arms
* Russian companies to produce oil from Orinoco belt
* Putin also meeting Bolivia's Morales

Source: DTN News / Reuters By Darya Korsunskaya and Anthony Boadle
(NSI News Source Info) CARACAS,

Venezuela - April 3, 2010: Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited Venezuela on Friday to discuss oil, defense and nuclear energy cooperation with Latin America's main leftist foe of the United States, President Hugo Chavez.
They were to launch a $20 billion venture between Russian firms and Venezuelan state company PDVSA to pump 450,000 barrels a day -- almost a fifth of the OPEC member's current output -- from the vast Orinoco heavy oil belt.
Putin's 12-hour visit provides a welcome lift for Chavez, who is facing domestic and international criticism for failing to solve Venezuela's economic woes and attempting to silence opposition to his 11-year rule.
Putin was later to hold talks in Caracas with Bolivian President Evo Morales, along with Chavez the fiercest opponent of what they call U.S. "imperialism" in Latin America.
Chavez said Moscow and Caracas would strengthen security ties to "continue increasing Venezuela's defense capability" and move ahead with cooperation on nuclear energy.
"We are not going to build the atomic bomb but we will develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. We have to prepare for the post-petroleum era," Chavez said on Thursday.
Facing a national electricity crisis that has caused widespread outages, Chavez's government is turning to Iran and Russia for help to develop nuclear power.
Venezuela, South America's top oil exporter and a major U.S. supplier, has expanded military ties with Russia under Chavez, who says the United States could attack Venezuela for its oil reserves.
Since 2005, Venezuela has bought $4 billion worth of Sukhoi jet fighters, Mi-17 helicopters and Kalashnikov assault rifles. Chavez received more than $2 billion in loans for more Russian arms during his eighth visit to Moscow in September, including T-72 tanks and the S-300 advanced anti-aircraft missile system.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed concern last year that the Russian weapons purchases by Venezuela could trigger an arms race across Latin America.
Chavez says his growing arsenal is aimed at countering a planned increase in the U.S. military forces at bases in neighboring Colombia, Washington's closest ally in the region.
ORINOCO OIL VENTURE
A Russian Beriev amphibious plane to fight forest fires arrived on Thursday to help extinguish blazes that have ravaged the drought-scorched Avila mountain overlooking Caracas.
The highlight of Putin's visit will be the rolling out of the joint venture to develop the Junin 6 field in the Orinoco, which will require $20 billion in investments over 40 years.
Venezuela expects the venture to begin producing 50,000 barrels a day by the end of the year.
The Russian consortium involved in Junin 6 are state giant Rosneft, private major Lukoil, Gazprom, TNK-BP and Surgutneftegaz.
PDVSA holds a 60 percent stake in the project, and Caracas says the Russian firms will pay Venezuela a first tranche of $600 million on Friday -- out of an agreed total of $1 billion -- for the right to take part in the venture.
To boost its sagging output from traditional wells, Venezuela needs foreign investment and technology to tap the heavy oil of the Orinoco belt that requires much upgrading to turn into lighter crude.
Putin's first visit to Venezuela is seen as part of an effort by Moscow to help Russian firms expand abroad and own oil assets all over the world.
Industry sources said Rosneft, Russia's largest oil producer, was seeking to buy stakes in four German refineries from Venezuela as part of the Kremlin's drive to encourage its companies' activities abroad.
Rosneft said on Friday it was in talks with PDVSA, but that there were no proposals to acquire its German assets.
Chavez hopes Russian cooperation will reach as far as the space industry. "We could even install a satellite launcher," he said on Thursday.

(Additional reporting by Dmitry Zhdannikov in Moscow; Charlie Devereux in Caracas; Editing by Daniel Wallis)

DTN News: Iran Used China Connection For Nuke Gear - Report

DTN News: Iran Used China Connection For Nuke Gear - Report

Source: DTN News / Reuters
(NSI News Source Info) - WASHINGTON, April 3, 2010: Western authorities are investigating whether an Iranian firm acquired valves and vacuum gauges

used to enrich uranium through the representative of a Chinese firm, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.
The report appeared as the United States sought China's support for a new round of sanctions to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Iran says its nuclear activities are peaceful and legitimate.
Purchase of the equipment could violate export sanctions. The newspaper cited a diplomat in Vienna as saying the International Atomic Energy Administration and western intelligence agencies were investigating.
The probe was sparked by a Jan 14 email to IAEA. It alleged an Iranian firm, Javedan Mehr Toos (JMT), acquired the French-made valves through an intermediary who represented Zheijiang Ouhai Trade Corp, a subsidiary of Jinzhou Group, based in China, said the report.
Western officials told the newspaper that JMT has worked since last year to acquire nuclear materials on behalf of an Iranian firm, Kalaye Electric Co, involved in centrifuge research and development, part of Iran's work toward uranium enrichment capacity.
Kalaye is on anti-proliferation list maintained by the U.S. Treasury Department, which bars trade with specified persons, businesses and entities to prevent the spread of nuclear arms. Neither JMT nor the Chinese business are listed.
A Treasury spokeswoman would not confirm the report.
"On any given day, Treasury is actively working dozens of cases ... involving hundreds of potential targets for designation, but to comment on any particular investigation or pending designation would threaten the integrity and effectiveness of our actions," said the spokeswoman.
A senior diplomat in Vienna said many of the valves used in uranium enrichment facilities are subject to export controls. "They are needed in big numbers, at least in thousands, for installations like Natanz," said the diplomat, referring to Iran's main enrichment plant.
The Wall Street Journal said it was not known how many valves allegedly were acquired by JMT or how significant they were in Iran's nuclear work. It said the maker, KD Valves-Descote, formerly was owned by the U.S. conglomerate Tyco International (TYC.N). Both firms said they had not been contacted by investigators and did not know how the materials could have reach Iran.

(Writing by Charles Abbott, editing by Alan Elsner) (Additional reporting by Sylvia Westall in Vienna)

DTN News: UK Says Oman Intends To Buy Eurofighters

DTN News: UK Says Oman Intends To Buy Eurofighters

Source: DTN News / Reuters
(NSI News Source Info) LONDON, UK - April 3, 2010: Oman has indicated that it intends to buy an unspecified number of Eurofighter warplanes, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's spokesman said on Friday.

The possible deal followed three years of talks between Brown and the leaders of Oman, the spokesman said without giving details of the size or timing of any sale.
Media reports in late 2008 said Oman was in talks with BAE Systems (BAES.L) to buy 24 Typhoons worth at least 1.4 billion pounds ($2.13 billion).
The British company makes the Eurofighter alongside Italian group Finmeccanica (SIFI.MI) and European aerospace group EADS (EAD.PA). The engines are supplied by a group led by Rolls-Royce (RR.L) and Germany's MTU Aero Engines (MTXGn.DE).
A BAE spokesman said the company had no immediate comment, but would release a statement later on Friday.
If confirmed, the deal would give a boost to the Eurofighter project after years of uncertainty over whether European countries would agree to buy the full number of jets they signed up for.
Saudi Arabia bought 72 Eurofighter Typhoons in 2006 and India is considering buying the aircraft for its $11 billion fighter jet contract. (Editing by Mike Nesbit)

DTN News: Pentagon Boosting Afghanistan 'Eyes In The Sky'

DTN News: Pentagon Boosting Afghanistan 'Eyes In The Sky'

Source: DTN News / Reuters By Andrea Shalal-Esa
(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON, U.S. - April 3, 2010: The Pentagon is focused on getting more trucks, surveillance equipment and other military equipment into Afghanistan to prepare for what will be a critical summer in the war, Defence Undersecretary Ashton Carter said on Friday.

Carter, head of Pentagon acquisition, technology and logistics, said the success of the war in Afghanistan would depend largely on being able to get weapons and support services to the U.S. troops headed to the land-locked country, which he described as "the last place where you would like to be fighting a war."

A commercial plane flies past the Pentagon as security watch from the roof in this September 11, 2008 file photo. REUTERS/Jason Reed/Files

"This summer is going to be very critical. If we don't get ourselves in there and get set... we can't have success," he told a conference hosted by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies,

As part of that effort, Carter said he was increasing 20-fold the number of airships hovering over Afghanistan, providing "eyes in the sky" to troops on the ground.

Equipped with sophisticated cameras and the ability to stream images to U.S. bases on the ground, the airships would help track any activity that could jeopardize the troops, including the burying of roadside bombs.

At the same time, the very visible presence of the airships would keep potential attackers on their guard, Carter said, calling the airships a more affordable way to maintain surveillance than more-expensive unmanned airplanes, which are also being deployed in Afghanistan in large numbers.

Carter did not say which airship model would be added.

Lockheed Martin Corp builds a 35-meter tethered helium-filled airship known as Persistent Threat Detection System that has been in use by the Army since 2004. Nine of the airships are being used in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Lockheed is building eight more airships under a $133 million one-year contract it won in October 2009, and is in talks with the Army about additional orders.

Another aerostat used by the military is made by Aerostar, a unit of South Dakota-based Raven Industries Inc, which last month said it had a tethered airship backlog of more than $10 million. It said the airships would be paired with surveillance equipment and deployed in Afghanistan.

The unmanned airships will cut the need for risky on-foot missions by staying in the air much longer and feeding data to commanders through on-board cameras and sensors.

These sensors could also "rewind" after an explosion to find who planted the bomb and where they went.

Carter said the airships would be under the control of local forward operating bases, not commanders far away, making them a good tool on a fairly localized basis.

He said the Pentagon was also accelerating delivery of hand-held metal detectors and ground-penetrating radars, as part of an urgent drive to reduce the number of casualties from road-side bombs or improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

The military was also deploying about 1,000 new armoured trucks built by Oshkosh Corp per month, double the initial rate, Carter said.

He said Defence Secretary Robert Gates had told him to "make sure that we are doing all we can do" to prevent the large number of IED-related troop deaths and injuries that marked the early years of the Iraq war.

The Pentagon was also examining several models of unmanned helicopters that could be used to get supplies to troops without using dangerous convoys on the road, he said.

At the same time the military is dramatically increasing its presence in Afghanistan, it was also dealing with the drawdown in Iraq, a major logistical challenge, Carter said.

He said the military had already removed 2.2 million pieces of military equipment from more than 350 forward operating bases in Iraq but needed to deal with 1.2 million more pieces by August, deciding if they should return to the United States, stay in Iraq or go elsewhere for use in future conflicts.

DTN News: Defense War News Up-dates

SATURDAY, APRIL 3, 2010

DTN News: Putin Bolsters Oil, Defense Ties With Venezuela

Defense War News Updates

DTN News: UK Says Oman Intends To Buy Eurofighters

Defense War News Updates

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 2010

Defense War News Updates

THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2010

Defense War News Updates

TUESDAY, MARCH 2, 2010

Missile Defense Agency Selects TASC For Ballistic Missile Defense System Security Contract

Defense War News Updates

MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2010

DTN News: India TODAY March 2, 2010 ~ Ready To Go ‘Extra Mile’ If Pakistan Acts Against Terror Says Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

Defense War News Updates

US State Dept's Steinberg heads to China, Japan

* Many issues on U.S.-China agenda

* U.S. officials also will visit Japan

Defense War News Updates ~ WASHINGTON, Feb 28 (Reuters) - James Steinberg, deputy secretary of State and one of the Obama administration's leading voices on China, will leave for China and Japan on Monday, the State Department announced late Sunday.

Steinberg heads to Asia as Washington deals with a host of disagreements with Beijing, including computer hacking attacks that have been linked to China on foreign firms including Internet search giant Google Inc (GOOG.O).

Also causing friction was Washington's decision in January to announce it would sell $6.4 billion in arms to Taiwan, the self-ruled island China claims as its own.

Last week, U.S. President Barack Obama's meeting with the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan leader who China reviles as a separatist for demanding self-rule for his homeland.

When asked about the United States on Saturday, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao did not dwell on conflicts between the two countries but instead expressed hope that trade frictions would ease.

Wen said China is not deliberately seeking a trade surplus with the United States and renewed his call for Washington to drop restrictions on sales of high-technology products so China can buy more than soybeans and aircraft -- two of its main imports from the United States.

On this Asia trip, Steinberg will be accompanied by Jeffrey Bader, senior director for the U.S. National Security Council for Asian Affairs. They will depart on Monday and meet with Chinese officials in Beijing from Tuesday through Thursday.

They will meet with senior officials in Tokyo on Thursday and Friday.

A disagreement between Washington and Tokyo over the relocation of the Futenma Marine base on Okinawa is eroding support for Japan's governing Democratic Party and setting its coalition partners at odds ahead of an expected July election.

The top U.S. Marine in the Pacific, Lieutenant General Keith Stalder, said on Feb. 19 that his forced need to stay on Okinawa for strategic reasons. There have been suggestions that the Marine base be moved to Guam or the tiny island of Tinian. (Writing by Deborah Zabarenko; Editing by Bill Trott)