The Official Newsletter of The National Defense Transportation Association

August 28, 2024

Fall Meeting 2024 – Transportation Academy Promotion

The 12th annual NDTA-USTRANSCOM Fall Meeting will be held October 7-10, 2024 at the St. Louis Union Station Hotel in St. Louis, MO. The Fall Meeting will include Transportation Academy educational sessions led by dynamic and experienced government and industry leaders complementing this year’s theme: “Accelerating Decision Advantage Across Defense Transportation & Logistics.”  Transportation Academy sessions receive outstanding survey results every year, and we expect the trend to continue in 2024! […READ MORE…]

DHS Announces Funding Allocations for Fiscal Year 2024 Preparedness Grants

The Department of Homeland Security announced final allocations of nearly $724 million in six Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 competitive preparedness grant programs. This includes $454.5 million in funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, an increase of $149.5 million from FY 2023, which will provide critical funding for faith-based groups and others to prevent and protect themselves from the heightened threat environment we face today. These allocations, together with the more than $1.25 billion in non-competitive grant funding announced earlier this year, total almost $1.98 billion in FY 2024 to help prepare our nation against threats and natural disasters. […READ MORE…]

When It Comes to Military AI, There Is No Second Place

By Adm. Gary Roughead, U.S. Navy (Retired)

When future military capabilities are discussed these days, artificial intelligence and how it will change the nature of warfare is at the top of the list. But within the Pentagon and the services, AI ambition does not match current budgetary realities. And while more money is rarely the answer to every Defense Department shortcoming, militaries are what they buy.

As a former Chief of Naval Operations and former member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who continues to participate in non-governmental dialogues in Asia, to include with China, I’ve followed China’s impressive military growth.

Chinese ships, aircraft, and technology are not as good as ours, but they are buying more and rapidly getting better. The dialogue agendas and discussions have also evolved, to include transformational technologies with AI top of mind. Unquestionably, as we move deeper into the AI modernization war, Beijing is buying in that space and doubling down. […READ MORE…]

Why Is the US Defense Industrial Base So Isolated from the US Economy?

By Gregory C. Allen and Doug Berenson

Excessive defense industry consolidation and inadequate competition are real challenges for the DOD, but there is another closely related problem that is often overlooked and understudied: the isolation of the defense industrial base from the wider commercial economy. […READ MORE…]

Brown Visits Middle East Partners, Allies Amid Rising Regional Tension

By Matthew Olay, DOD News

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. CQ Brown, Jr., embarked on a three-country visit throughout the Middle East aimed at demonstrating the long-term US commitment to the region, as well as furthering his understanding of various perspectives concerning ongoing Middle East tension by engaging with US partners and allies throughout the region. […READ MORE…]

Industry News

At Ingalls, Plenty of Space for Shipbuilding but Ramping up Workforce Will Be the Challenge

By Justin Katz

HHI’s Ingalls Shipbuilding, a sprawling 800-acre campus in Pascagoula, Ms., has plenty of capacity for new work, but every new project requires a bigger workforce to sustain it. The challenges to ramp up the workforce have grown since the 1970s and 1980s when this yard saw 25,000 workers constructing the 500- and 600-ship US Navy fleets of that era. Currently, the Navy’s fleet is struggling to break 300 ships. […READ MORE…]

Editor’s Picks

SNC Wins Army Contract for HADES Spy Plane

(Breaking Defense) Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) won a high-flying Army contract to convert a business jet into a deep-sensing spy plane, beating out an industry team up featuring L3Harris, Leidos and MAG Aerospace. Under the High Accuracy Detection and Exploitation System (HADES) program, SNC will be charged with integrating sensing technologies aboard the Bombardier Global 6500 business jet for airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions as the service phases out a legacy fleet of turboprop aircraft. 

This System Could Allow Small Army Teams to Hit 1,000 Targets per Hour

(Army Times) A collection of premier operational Army units has conducted at least 10 rounds of experiments with a targeting system that is now used in US Central Command and is being applied to solve logistics problems globally. The Maven Smart System is a combination of sensors and software that allows users to quickly assess a battlespace, gather reams of data and analyze that data using artificial intelligence to identify targets and strike.

US Puts World’s Largest Carrier Fleet to Work

(Newsweek) More than half of the 11 US Navy aircraft carriers—which is the largest fleet in the world—were underway over the weekend as Washington faced a sea power gap while juggling multiple fronts. A “multi-carrier formation” transited the Atlantic Ocean for an ordnance transfer with two supply ships on Saturday. The “flat-tops” in the formation were USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, USS Harry S. Truman, and USS Gerald R. Ford. 

Navy Outfits Aircraft Carrier with First Drone Operations Center

(Stripes.com) The Navy recently outfitted an aircraft carrier with the first drone operations center, furthering the service’s high-tech pursuit into remotely piloted aircraft. The MQ-25 Stingray warfare center was installed aboard the USS George H.W. Bush, which is based at Naval Station Norfolk, Va. The MQ-25 Stingray is a tanker drone designed to refuel manned fighter jets in midair.

Navy Could Sideline 17 Support Ships Due to Manpower Issues

(USNI.org) Military Sealift Command has drafted a plan to remove the crews from 17 Navy support ships due to a lack of qualified mariners to operate the vessels across the Navy. The MSC “force generation reset” identified two Lewis and Clark replenishment ships, one fleet oiler, a dozen Spearhead-class Expeditionary Fast Transports (EPF) and two forward-deployed Navy expeditionary sea bases that would enter an “extended maintenance” period and have their crews assigned to other ships in the fleet.

C5MI Honored with 2024 NDTA Corporate Distinguished Service Award

C5MI received the 2024 NDTA Corporate Distinguished Service Award for the second consecutive time, a milestone indicative of dedication to the logistics and transportation community. It is a testament to C5MI’s commitment to setting industry standards and fostering resilience in supply chains, particularly in today’s intricate geopolitical environment. C5MI upgraded to a top-tier membership level fueled by a strong desire to contribute to NDTA’s mission and participate on its influential committees.

US Navy Awards SAIC Three Contracts for Engineering Services

Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC) was awarded three contracts worth $58.2 million to support the Airborne Electronic Attack (AEA) Integrated Product Team (IPT) Jammer Technique Optimization (JATO) Program, the International Program, and the AEA IPT EA-18G Program. SAIC will deliver technical services, including jammer technique development, test and evaluation engineering, interoperability testing and analysis, threat analysis, tactics development, mission data development and production, and fleet liaison activities.

Atlas Air Worldwide to Add Three Boeing 747-8 Freighters to Fleet

 Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, Inc. is adding three Boeing 747-8 freighters to its fleet to meet the global demand for dedicated large widebody airfreight capacity, particularly for cross-border e-commerce shipping. The three additional 747-8Fs are expected to enter service late in the third quarter of 2024.

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