DEAL APPLIES TO BAMS-D, WHICH ADAPTED GLOBAL HAWK FOR NAVY USE

Northrop to Keep Aircraft Mission Capable

By Brad Graves

Friday, April 15, 2022

Ten years ago in June, Northrop Grumman unveiled the Navy version of its Global Hawk aircraft, called BAMS, to invited guests at its factory in Palmdale. (Photo courtesy of U.S. Navy and Northrop Grumman via DVIDS)

Ten years ago in June, Northrop Grumman unveiled the Navy version of its Global Hawk aircraft, called BAMS, to invited guests at its factory in Palmdale. (Photo courtesy of U.S. Navy and Northrop Grumman via DVIDS)

The U.S. Navy awarded Northrop Grumman Corp. (NYSE: NOC) a modification to a previously awarded contract related to unmanned aircraft that gather intelligence. 

Specifically, the Navy exercised options to provide continued operation, logistics and sustainment engineering support — to include training, supply chain and spares management — for Global Hawk peculiar items, peculiar support equipment, and technical publications in support of ensuring the Broad Area Maritime Surveillance Demonstrator (BAMS-D) aircraft are mission-capable for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.

BAMS-D refers to the earliest versions of the unmanned Global Hawk aircraft used by the Navy. Global Hawk, which was developed in San Diego, was originally a U.S. Air Force asset. The Navy then modified the basic design for use over the ocean.

The entire deal is worth $65.3 million. Some 5% of the work, worth an estimated $3.3 million, will be performed in Rancho Bernardo, where the program is based. The bulk — some 70% — will be performed in Patuxent River, Maryland, and the remainder will be performed in undisclosed locations outside the continental United States. Work is expected to be completed in April 2023. The Naval Air Systems Command at Patuxent River, Maryland awarded the contract on April 4.

Valiant Produces War Games at Fort Polk

The U.S. Army awarded the San Diego office of Valiant Integrated Services a $75.2 million contract modification to deliver what the Pentagon calls “a realistic, high-end collective training experience” to troops at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana. Work will be performed at Fort Polk with an estimated completion date of March 26, 2023. The U.S. Army 418th Contracting Support Brigade at Fort Polk awarded the contract, announced on March 25.
 
San Diego-based Cubic Corp. coordinated the war games in Louisiana before selling that part of its business to Valiant in 2018. As part of the training at Fort Polk, U.S. troops encounter actors who play people who live in the war zone.
 
Leidos Receives Ship Systems Work

Leidos Inc. (NYSE: LDOS) of Reston, Virginia will install anti-submarine warfare systems on U.S. Navy surface ships under a recently awarded deal. The Navy awarded Leidos an $8.1 million modification to a previously awarded contract, exercising options for installation of the Navy’s AN/SQQ-89A(V)15 Surface Ship Undersea Warfare Systems. Some 13% of the work, worth slightly more than $1 million, will be performed in San Diego. Work is expected to be completed by September 2024. The Naval Sea Systems Command of Washington, D.C. awarded the contract, announced on Feb. 22.
 
L3Harris Steers Ships

The U.S. Navy awarded L3Harris Technologies Inc. (NYSE: LHX) of Ayer, Massachusetts a contract worth as much as $19.2 million. The deal covers engineering services for steering control and navigation control systems and machinery control systems for several classes of ships. These range from the very large (Nimitz-class aircraft carriers) to the relatively small (both classes of Littoral Combat Ships); the deal also includes the three ships in Zumwalt destroyer class. Some 3% of the work, worth as much as $576,000, will be performed in San Diego and is expected to be completed by February 2027. All other funding will be made available at the task order level as contracting actions occur. This contract was not competitively procured, as the government determined there was only one responsible source and no other supplies or services would satisfy its requirements. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division awarded the contract on March 11.

BAE Helping DARPA’s MINC Project

DARPA, the Pentagon’s R&D office, awarded BAE Systems a $24.9 million contract to support the Mission-Integrated Network Control (MINC) program. DARPA describes MINC as a software-development project creating an “always on” interconnected network for military missions in multiple domains. The system must work in contested environments. Some 6% of the work, worth an estimated $1.5 million, will be performed in San Diego with an expected completion date of July 2025. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency of Arlington, Virginia awarded the contract, announced on Feb. 2.

Radiance Project Takes in Poway

DARPA also awarded Radiance Technologies Inc. — a small business based in Huntsville, Alabama — an $8 million modification to a previously awarded contract for the Secure Advanced Framework for Simulation and Modeling program.

SAFE-SiM, as the program is also known, seeks to build a government-owned and controlled, faster-than-real time modeling and simulation (M&S) capability for theater-wide, mission-level M&S. This capability would enable rapid analysis supporting senior-level decisions for concept of operations development, force structure composition, resource allocation and targeted technology insertion.
 
The latest modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $31.4 million. Approximately $80,000, or 1% of the new work, will be performed in Poway. Previous awards have also gone toward work in San Diego County. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency of Arlington, Virginia awarded the contract, announced on April 1.