A320 makes historic flight

A JetBlue A320 made history Wednesday when it made the first commercial flight between the United States and Cuba in more than a half-century. The Airbus jetliner, Flight 387, left Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and landed in the central city of Santa Clara after a 51-minute trip. U.S.-Cuba travel was curtailed during the 55-year-old trade embargo. Also Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced the carriers selected to operate routes to Havana: Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Southwest Airlines, Spirit Airlines and United Airlines. Carriers will serve the Cuban capital from Atlanta, Charlotte, Fort Lauderdale, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New York City, Orlando and Tampa. (Sources: Multiple, including AP via Chicago Tribune, USA Today, 08/31/16) Gulf Coast note: Airbus now makes A320 series jetliners in Mobile, Ala. JetBlue was the first customer to take delivery of an A321 in April 2016.

Contract: UTC, $7.4M

United Technologies Corp., Pratt & Whitney Military Engines, East Hartford, Conn., is being awarded a $7,395,958 modification (00008) to a previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee, fixed-price-incentive-fee contract (N00019-15-C-0004). This modification procures advanced spare parts and deployment spare part packages and initial spare 3BSM modules in support of the F-35 for the Marine Corps and Navy. Work will be performed in Hartford (62 percent); and Indianapolis, Ind. (38 percent), and is expected to be completed in August 2019. This modification combines purchases for the Marine Corps $6,261,526 (85 percent); and the Navy $1,134,432 (15 percent). The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 08/31/16) Gulf Coast note: Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home of the F-35 integrated training center.

Contract: DRS, $9.8M

DRS Training and Control Systems, LLC, Fort Walton Beach, Fla., was awarded a $9,757,139 firm-fixed-price contract to procure overhaul/upgrade of the AH-64 digital captive boresight harmonization kit for a minimum quantity of 25, maximum of 200. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 29, 2021. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-16-D-0038). (Source: DoD, 08/30/16)

Contract: Bell-Boeing, $32.4M

Bell-Boeing Joint Project Office, Amarillo, Texas, is being awarded a $32,401,348 modification to previously issued cost-plus-fixed-fee delivery order 0026 placed against basic ordering agreement N00019-12-G-0006. This modification provides for software and hardware upgrades for 28 V-22 flight simulators for the U.S. Marine Corps (19 MV-22) and the U.S. Air Force (9 CV-22). Work will be performed in Chantilly, Va. (26 percent); Broken Arrow, Okla. (21 percent); Fort Worth, Texas (18 percent); St. Louis, Mo. (10 percent); Philadelphia, Pa. (5 percent); Mildenhall, United Kingdom (5 percent); Albuquerque, N.M. (4 percent); Clovis, N.M. (4 percent); Fort Walton Beach, Fla. (4 percent); Clifton, N.J. (2 percent); and Orlando, Fla. (1 percent), and is expected to be completed in March 2020. This modification combines purchase for the U.S. Air Force/Special Operations (71 percent) and the U.S. Navy (29 percent). The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 08/30/16)

Contract: L-3, $19.6M

L-3 Communications Corp. -Systems Field Support, Madison, Miss., has been awarded a $19,579,865 modification (P00044) to exercise the option on previously awarded contract FA8106-11-D-0002 for C-12 contractor logistics support. Work will be performed at Accra, Ghana; Andrews Air Force Base, Md.; Ankara, Turkey; Bangkok, Thailand; Bogota, Columbia; Brasilia, Brazil; Budapest, Hungary; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Cairo, Egypt; Edwards AFB, Calif.; Elmendorf AFB, Alaska; Gaborone, Botswana; Holloman AFB, N.M.; Islamabad, Pakistan; Manila, Philippines; Nairobi, Kenya; Rabat, Morocco; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; San Angelo, Texas; Tegucigalpa, Honduras; Yokota AB, Japan, and is expected to be complete by Aug. 31, 2017. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Tinker AFB, Okla., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 08/30/16)

Contract: Lockheed, $28.2M

Lockheed Martin Corp., Fort Worth, Texas, was awarded $28,240,000 for modification P00001 to a previously awarded fixed-price-incentive-firm, cost-plus-incentive-fee contract (N00019-16-C-0004) for additional sustainment in support of Low Rate Initial Production Lot 10 F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter aircraft. Support to be provided includes non-air vehicle spares, support equipment, Autonomic Logistics Information System hardware and software upgrades, supply chain management, full mission simulators and non-recurring engineering services for the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy. Work will be performed in Orlando, Fla. (79 percent); Redondo Beach, Calif. (10 percent); Fort Worth (9 percent), and Samlesbury, United Kingdom (2 percent), and is expected to be completed July, 2022. This contract combines purchases for the U.S. Navy (79 percent) and U.S Air Force (21 percent). This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to 10 U.S.C. 2304c(1) and Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1(a)(2). The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Awarded August 26, 2016) (Source: DoD, 08/29/16) Gulf Coast note: Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home of the F-35 integrated training center.

Contract: SDVE, $9.8M

SDVE, LLC, Andalusia, Ala., was awarded on June 8, 2016 a $9,800,000 indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract for simplified acquisition of base engineering requirements. Contractor will provide simplified acquisition of base engineering requirements contract work including detailed task specifications that encompass most types of real property maintenance, repair, and minor construction work. Work will be performed at Arnold Air Force Base, Tenn., and is expected to be complete by June 7, 2021. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition with seven offers received. Air Force Test Center, Arnold AFB, Tenn., is the contracting activity. (FA9101-16-D-0001) (Source: DoD, 08/29/16)

Jetliner makes emergency landing

A Southwest Airlines flight from New Orleans to Orlando made an emergency landing in Pensacola Saturday when one of its two engines failed. Oxygen masks dropped down and the plane shook for a while. One of the pilots came out after the incident to tell passengers that one of the engines was lost. None of the 99 passengers or five-member crew aboard the 737, flight 3472, was injured. (Sources: CNN, Washington Times, 08/27/16)

Contract: Cummings, $9.9M

Cummings Aerospace Inc., Huntsville, Ala., has been awarded a $9,902,752 firm-fixed price and indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for hardware, software, and design. This contract supports the Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence & Munitions Test Improvement (CIMTIC) program. The location of performance is Huntsville and is expected to be complete by Aug. 25, 2017. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition with three offers received. Air Force Test Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity. (FA2487-16-D-0145) (Source: DoD, 08/26/16)

Contract: Georgia Tech, $9.9M

Georgia Tech Applied Research Corp., Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Ga., has been awarded a $9,902,752 firm-fixed-price and indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for hardware, software, and design. This contract supports the Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence & Munitions Test Improvement (CIMTIC) program. The location of performance is Atlanta and is expected to be complete by Aug. 25, 2017. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition with three offers received. Air Force Test Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity. (FA2487-16-D-0144) (Source: DoD, 08/26/16)

Contract: Dynetics, $9.9M

Dynetics, Inc., Huntsville, Ala., has been awarded a $9,902,752, firm-fixed-price and indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for hardware, software, and design. This contract supports the Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence & Munitions Test Improvement (CIMTIC) program. The location of performance is Huntsville, Alabama, and is expected to be complete by Aug. 25, 2017. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition with three offers received. Air Force Test Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity. (FA2487-16-D-0143) (Source: DoD, 08/26/16)

Contract: Gulf Power, $9.8M

Gulf Power Co., Pensacola, Fla., is being awarded a $9,804,275 firm-fixed-price modification to task order 0001 under a previously awarded basic ordering agreement (N69450-14-G-0012). This modification will initiate the findings of the preliminary assessment and investment grade audit to determine energy improvements at Naval Air Station Whiting Field. Work will be performed in Milton, Fla., and is expected to be completed by November 2017. No funds will be obligated with this award as it will be financed and paid with the savings from the energy improvements. The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 authorizes agencies to use appropriations, private financing, or a combination to comply with its requirements for utility energy service contracts for evaluations/project implementation. For this project, Naval Air Station Whiting Field has agreed to pay for the costs of services/construction from project financing which will be obtained by Gulf Power Co. The contract was procured under the authority of Title 10 U.S. Code Section 2304(c)(5), statute expressly authorizes or requires that the acquisition be made through another agency or from a specific source, as implemented by Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-5. One proposal was received for this task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southeast, Jacksonville, Florida, is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 08/24/16) Correction: The contract modification to Gulf Power Co., Pensacola, Fla., for $9,804,295 (N69450-14-G-0012), announced on Aug. 24, 2016, was actually signed and awarded on Sept. 6, 2016. (Source: DoD, 09/08/16)

Contract: L-3, $21.9M

L-3 Communications Vertex Aerospace LLC, Madison, Miss., is being awarded $21,895,190 for modification 0006 to a previously awarded indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N00019-15-D-0022) to exercise an option one for contractor-owned and operated business jet training services in support of contracted air services’ basic training, large national exercises, and small, single unit training exercises. Missions include maritime air patrol, low/slow terrorist aircraft, air interdiction training, and air intercept/anti-submarine training. These services support training requirements through air intercept control, anti-submarine tactical attack control, tracking exercises, electronic warfare missions, banner tows and target tows. Work will be performed at the Virginia Capes Training Ranges, Virginia Beach, Va. (50 percent); North Island Naval Base, Coronado, Calif. (40 percent); and Kauai, Hawaii (10 percent), and is expected to be completed in August 2017. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 08/24/16)

Contract: Multiple, $155.7M

Booz Allen Hamilton, McLean, Va. (N00189-16-D-Z039); Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, Orlando, Fla. (N00189-16-D-Z040); Science Applications International Corp., McLean, Va. (N00189-16-D-Z041); Leidos Inc., Reston, Va. (N00189-16-D-Z042); and Deloitte Consulting LLP, Arlington, Va. (N00189-16-D-Z043), are being awarded a combined estimated $155,770,425 multiple award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, cost-plus-fixed-fee, firm-fixed-price task orders contract to obtain analytical, engineering, and project/program management services in support of the Joint Staff J6 Directorate's C4/Cyber Program. Contracts will run concurrently, and each contract includes a 60-month ordering period. Work will be performed in Norfolk/Suffolk, Va. (49.5 percent); Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. (27 percent); Arlington, Va. (13.5 percent); and contractor facilities (10 percent). Work is expected to be completed by September 2021. Each of the five contractors will be allowed to bid on the individual task orders as they are issued. Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center Norfolk Contracting Department, Philadelphia, Pa., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 08/23/16)

NASA awards contract mod

NASA has awarded Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) of McLean, Va., a modification to the NASA Integrated Communications Services (NICS) contract, which provides and manages the vast majority of the agency’s information technology (IT) communications infrastructure services. This $6.5 million contract modification adds external border-protection and enterprise internal border-network access control sustaining efforts. This contract is a cost-plus award fee/cost-plus incentive fee contract that began June 1, 2011, and consists of a three-year base period, followed by a two-year option, three-year option and another two-year option. The period of performance runs through May 31, 2021, if all options are exercised. The NASA Shared Services Center (NSSC) at Stennis Space Center, Miss., administers the contract. The NSSC performs select business activities for all NASA centers. (Source: NASA, 08/22/16)

F-35 landings too precise?

Before seven carrier-variant F-35 embarked aboard the carrier USS George Washington for its third and final round of developmental testing, they completed a required on-shore training period and learned just how precise a built-in landing program could be. The practice landings at Choctaw Naval Outlying Field near Pensacola, Fla., went so well, with the planes landing on the same spot of the runway every time. Vice Adm. Mike Shoemaker, head of Naval Air Forces, told an audience at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., that the landings on the same spot tore up the runway where the hook touches down. The F-35C uses the Delta Flight Path, a built-in technology that controls glide slope and minimizes the number of variables pilots have to monitor as they complete arrested carrier landings. (Source: DoD Buzz, 08/18/16) Previous

33rd FW participating in exercise

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. – Members of the 33rd Fighter Wing will be participating in the two-week Northern Light exercise at Volk Field, Wis. In Northern Light, Air National Guard, Air Force and Navy aircraft simulate deployment and missions in a contested environment. Instructor pilots, student pilots and professional maintainers from the 33rd FW will take part in the large force exercise to develop and demonstrate the ability to deploy and sustain an F-35A squadron in its intended threat environment alongside legacy aircraft. Col. Lance Pilch, 33rd FW commander, said the wing "has been and will continue to be integral in building battle-ready F-35 pilots and maintainers capable of employing this weapons system against elevated threats." (Source: 33rd FW Public Affairs, 08/18/16)

RS-25 tested 420 seconds

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- NASA engineers successfully conducted a development test of the RS-25 rocket engine Thursday. The RS-25 will help power the core stage of the agency's new Space Launch System (SLS) rocket for the journey to Mars and beyond. The test of engine No. 0528 was for 420 seconds. The SLS rocket will be powered by four RS-25 engines, firing along with a pair of solid rocket boosters. NASA has conducted tests of the new booster at Orbital ATK's test facilities in Promontory, Utah, while all RS-25 developmental and flight engine tests will be conducted on the A-1 Test Stand at SSC. (Source: NASA, 08/18/16) Previous

Contract: UTC, $17.4M

United Technologies Corp., Pratt & Whitney Military Engines, East Hartford, Conn., is being awarded $17,382,523 for modification P00009 to a previously awarded, cost-plus-incentive-fee, fixed-price-incentive-firm-target contract N00019-14-C-0004 for additional long lead items in support of the F-35 low-rate initial production (LRIP) Lot XI procurement. This modification provides for delivery of long-lead items for the LRIP Lot XI effort for the Navy/Marine Corps, Air Force, international partners, and foreign military sales (FMS) customers. The long-lead items include group hardware supporting 48 F135-PW-100 propulsion systems for the Air Force; group hardware supporting 14 F135-PW-600 propulsion systems for the Marine Corps; group hardware supporting four F135-PW-100 propulsion systems for the Navy; and group hardware supporting 51 F135-PW-100 and three F135-PW-600 propulsion systems for international partners and foreign military sales. This modification also provides for procurement of afloat support packages/deployment spares packages for the Marine Corps. Work will be performed in East Hartford (67 percent); Indianapolis, Ind. (26.5 percent); and Bristol, United Kingdom (6.5 percent), and is expected to be completed in August 2018. This contract combines purchases for the Navy/Marine Corps (87.8 percent); Air Force (2.3 percent); international partners (9.5 percent); and FMS customers (0.40 percent). The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 08/18/16)

Contract: Webb, $11.5M

Webb Electric Co. of Florida, Pensacola, Fla., was awarded an $11,499,889 firm-fixed-price contract for repair circuit six, selected portions. Bids were solicited via the Internet with seven received. Work will be performed at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas, with an estimated completion date of Oct. 31, 2018. Army Corps of Engineers, Tulsa, Okla., is the contracting activity (W912BV-16-C-0037). (Source: DoD, 08/18/16)

US-built Spirit A321 painted

A321 for Spirit Airlines leaves paint shop.
Airbus photo

MOBILE, Ala. – The first U.S.-built A321 for Spirit Airlines has left the MAAS Aviation paint shop at the Airbus U.S. Manufacturing Facility at the Mobile Aerpolex. It will soon enter the flight test phase before being delivered to the customer. The Spirit jetliner is the 10th A321 built at the Mobile facility. Seven of the jetliners have been delivered to customers. (Source: Airbus, 08/16/16)

Contract: Lockheed, $20.8M

Lockheed Martin Corp., Fort Worth, Texas, is being awarded a $20,783,686 modification to a previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee, fixed-price-incentive, firm-fixed-price contract (N00019-15-C-0031) for the procurement, delivery, installation, configuration, and standup of the Naval Air Station Lemoore Training Infrastructure System and Pilot Fitting Facility in support of the F-35 aircraft. Work will be performed in Orlando, Fla. (90 percent); Greenville, S.C. (6 percent); and Fort Worth (4 percent). Work is expected to be completed in March 2019. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 08/11/16)

Contract: UTC, $151.7M

United Technologies Corp., Pratt & Whitney Military Engines, East Hartford, Conn., is being awarded $151,664,883 for modification P00007 to a previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee, fixed-price-incentive-fee contract (N00019-15-C-0004). This modification procures initial spare modules, engine system trainers, support equipment and depot activation services and supplies in support of the F-35 for Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, international partners and foreign military sales customers. Work will be performed at Hartford (88 percent); and Indianapolis, Ind. (12 percent), and is expected to be complete in September 2019. This modification combines purchases for the Air Force (35.52 percent); Navy (20.26 percent); Marine Corps (12.05 percent); international partners (30.15 percent); and foreign military sales customers (2.02 percent). The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 08/10/16)

SSC tests unique camera

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- A booster test for NASA's Space Launch System in June also demonstrated a new video recorder that captured unprecedented imagery of the rocket firing, revealing details normally masked by the motor’s bright-hot exhaust. Developed by engineers at NASA’s Stennis Space Center, the camera can record multiple slow motion exposures at once. Conventional cameras can only record in one exposure, a problem when trying to document very bright events like a rocket test. The new method is called the High Dynamic Range Stereo X, or HiDyRS-X. Imagery from the new recording system exposes everything within its field-of-view, showing the rocket motor’s supersonic exhaust plume while still keeping other parts of the image visible. (Source: Spaceflight Now, 08/09/16)

SSC key in next gen engines quest

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- NASA's rocket engine test facility in South Mississippi has become a battleground in the contest to replace Russian-built engines used for government launches. SpaceX and Aerojet Rocketdyne, two of the four companies competing to develop engines to replace the RD-180, both have chosen to use Stennis Space Center to develop the crucial engines. (Source: GCRL Aerospace Newsletter, article, 08/09/16)

DI: Innovation on the fast track

FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. -- For an organization that didn't even open its doors until 2014, what's happened since then is a strong indication of the value of its work. The Doolittle Institute, a think tank that launched in Fort Walton Beach with $1.5 million in funding from the Air Force Research Lab Munitions Directorate, is on a growth curve. Last month the state said DI would get $100,000 from the Florida Defense Support Task Force Grant Program. But that's just part of the story about DI, which today has a growing operation in Tampa, collaboration agreements with universities and research organizations, and multimillion-dollar funding expected to double this year. (Source: GCRL Aerospace Newsletter, article, 08/09/16)

Drones grow SSC science repertoire

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- A federal facility best-known for testing huge space rocket engines has added to its repertoire over the years. The most recent capability is in a field growing in leaps and bounds: unmanned systems. And a recent FAA decision to expand the restricted air space over SSC promises to make it a key activity. (Source: GCRL AerospaceNewsletter, article, 08/09/16)

Farnborough: Cementing bonds

The announcement from the Farnborough International Air Show last month was on the first day of the business session, and it was big. Aerojet Rocketdyne said it would assemble and test its AR1 rocket engine at NASA's Stennis Space Center, Miss. But announcements like that are not the norm. Indeed, what does not get publicity are the relationships developed and nurtured at the air show, which are key to the whole process. Those are investments of time and effort that might not have any payoff for many years to come. A look back at last month’s show. (Source: GCRL Aerospace Newsletter, article, 08/09/16)

Contract: Lockheed, $102M

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, is being awarded $101,970,569 for cost-plus-incentive-fee delivery order 0026 against a previously issued basic ordering agreement (N00019-14-G-0020). This order definitizes a previously awarded undefinitized contract action and provides for additional non-recurring effort and integration efforts required in support of the F-35 Reprogramming Center West. Efforts will include the production of F-35 software data loads for laboratory testing, planning for verification and validation (V&V) test, conduct technical support of the test, design, build, and delivery of V&V modification kits and mission data file generation tools for the Foreign Military Sales customers. Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas (53 percent); Orlando, Fla. (25 percent); Nashua, N.H. (18 percent); El Segundo, Calif. (2 percent); and San Diego, Calif. (2 percent), and is expected to be completed in December 2018. Foreign military sales funds in the amount of $74,121,831 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 08/04/16)

Brown opening Atmore facility

ATMORE, Ala. -- Huntsville-based Brown Precision Inc. will open a $7 million manufacturing facility that will create more than 100 jobs. Brown Precision, founded in 1964, performs precision machining for the aerospace and medical industries. The family owned company manufactures complex components for aircraft and helicopters, and also, artificial human joints, according to the governor’s office. Workers at the new facility in Atmore will be involved in CNC-based manufacturing, custom fabrication, and component coating. Brown Precision will become the first industrial tenant at the new Rivercane Industrial Park. (Sources: WKRG, Made in Alabama, 08/04/16)

F-35Cs to use Meridian OLF

Navy and Marine F-35C pilots training at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., are expected to start two weeks of practice carrier-landing training Aug. 6 at the Naval Air Station Meridian’s Outlying Field Joe Williams in Kemper County. The F-35C pilots will be conducting the practices during daylight hours. The F-35C is a long-range stealth strike fighter built with larger wing surfaces and reinforced landing gear designed for carrier operations. (Source: Meridian Star, 08/03/16)

Contract: Cutter, $16M

Cutter Enterprises LLC, Vernon-Rockville, Conn., was awarded a $16,065,460 firm-fixed-price contract for a design-build fuel cell maintenance hangar. Bids were solicited via the Internet with six received. Work will be performed at Hurlburt Field, Fla., with an estimated completion date of Aug. 19, 2018. Fiscal 2012 military construction funds in the amount of $16,065,460 were obligated at the time of the award. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Ala., is the contracting activity (W91278-16-C-0021). (Source: DoD, 08/02/16)

AF declares F-35A combat-ready

The Air Force today declared its first squadron of F-35As ready for battle. The milestone means that the service can now send its first operational F-35 formation, the 34th Fighter Squadron at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, into combat operations anywhere in the world. The service, which plans to buy 1,763 of the Lockheed Martin F-35As, is the single-largest customer of the fighter. The Air Force follows the Marine Corps in approving F-35s for operations. (Source: Defense News, Salt Lake City Tribune, Bloomberg, 08/02/16) Gulf Coast note: Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is home of the F-35 integrated training center.

Contract: Rockhill, $7.6M

The Rockhill Group Inc., Molino, Fla., has been awarded a $7,610,538 fixed-price with cost-reimbursable line items contract for air and ground training support. Contractor will furnish all personnel, equipment, tools, materials, supervision, and all other items and services that are required to support MQ-1/9 RPA with air and ground intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. Work will be performed at Holloman Air Force Base (AFB), N.M.; Creech AFB, Nev.; March Air National Guard Base (ANGB), Calif.; and Hancock ANGB, N.Y., and is expected to be complete by Sept. 30, 2017. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition with seven offers received. Fiscal 2016 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $9,534 are being obligated at the time of award. Air Combat Command, Langley AFB, Va., is the contracting activity (FA4890-16-C-0011). (Source: DoD, 08/01/16)