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Lastly, the Air Force has deferred replacing its T-38 trainer aircraft -- one which the service critically needs to train its pilots -- for years, but that could change in 2017.

The aircraft, first produced by Northrop in 1959, is used to prep pilots for "front-line fighter and bomber aircraft such as the F-15E Strike Eagle, F-15C Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon,

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,

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and

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," according to the service.

The Air Force hopes to buy 350 new trainer jets.

Boeing, collaborating with Saab, is competing with Northrop Grumman Corp. for a new design for the program. Boeing so far is the only team to offer a twin canted vertical tail design, mimicking fourth- and fifth-generation fighter jets such as the F-22 Raptor, F-35 and

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.

Other vendor teams, such as Lockheed Martin Corp. and Korea Aerospace Industries, and Raytheon Co., Leonardo-Finmeccanica and CAE Inc., are offering modification designs to current aircraft, but are not competing in clean sheet designs.

However, another competitor may join the running. Sierra Nevada Corp. and Turkish Aerospace Industries are said to be partnering on their own design for a T-X trainer, one that could be more fuel efficient,

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.

Mock designs provided to AvWeek

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the competitor to have twin canted vertical tails.

The A-10 Lives On
The latest NDAA will once again prevent the premature retirement of the A-10 Thunderbolt.

In February, Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced

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until 2022 after officials opined the Air Force was ridding the U.S. military of a "valuable and effective" close-air-support aircraft. However, fiscal 2017 budget documents revealed the Air Force still hoped to remove A-10 squadrons in

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in order to make room for

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squadrons coming online.

Some members of Congress, most notably Arizona Republicans Sen. John McCain, a former Navy pilot, and Rep. Martha McSally, who flew A-10s during her Air Force career, fiercely opposed the move, and included language in the bill that would prohibit retirement of the A-10, popularly known as the Warthog, until the Air Force can prove the F-35 can sustain similar capabilities on the battlefront.

Air Force Materiel Command chief Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski

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the depot line for the A-10 is cranking back up as part of an effort to keep the Cold War-era aircraft flying "indefinitely."

"They have re-geared up, we've turned on the depot line, we're building it back up in capacity and supply chain," Pawlikowski

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. "Our command, anyway, is approaching this as another airplane that we are sustaining indefinitely."

While many A-10 enthusiasts would like to see the planes flying "indefinitely," the general likely means "into the foreseeable future."

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Military engineers are looking to revolutionize battlefield communications by introducing a new project that seeks to bridge gaps in current military communications capabilities.

The program, by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), is called A Mechanically Based Antenna, or AMEBA for short. It is headed by Troy Olsson, DARPA’s program manager in the Microsystems Technology Office.

Olsson’s program seeks to leverage the benefits of ultra low frequency (ULF) and very low frequency (VLF), which operate in the electromagnetic spectrum band between hundreds of hertz and three kilohertz (KHz), and three to 30 KHz, respectively.

The benefit of the ULF and VLF bands is their ability to penetrate water, soil, rock, metal and building materials, and their potential for long distance communication — as the atmosphere acts as a waveguide to propagate ULF and VLF due to their extremely long wavelengths, according to Olsson.

“If we are successful,

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would be able to use a ULF channel for low bit-rate communications, like text messages, to communicate with each other or with nearby submarines, ships, relay buoys, UAVs, and ground-based assets, through-ground communication with people in deep bunkers, mines, or caves could also become possible,” he said.

Frequency and wavelength are inversely proportional, which means that as frequency lowers the wavelength becomes much longer. This fundamental concept of radio frequency theory has been a bane for military communications for ages.

The problem arises out of antenna construction for ULF and VLF frequencies. Because an antenna must be resonant with the selected frequency, that means antenna size is directly related to frequency, Olsson explained to Military Times. To put that into perspective, a 10 Hz transmitter would require a 1,500-kilometer -- or a more than 930-mile -- antenna at half wavelength.

Antenna construction of that magnitude makes operating in the ULF and VLF bands impractical for the average war fighter and highly inefficient for submarine and navy vessels. On top of the gargantuan size of the antenna, the power needed to transmit a signal would be in the megawatt range. The standard military man-packable PRC-117 Harris SATCOM radio

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less than 60 watts of power.

AMEBA is designed to develop new transmitters that will allow for handheld or man-packable devices, while exploiting the benefits of ULF and VLF frequency band.

“Rather than relying on

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and power amplifiers to create oscillating electric currents that, when driven into antennas, initiate radio signals, the new low-frequency VLF and ULF antennas sought in the AMEBA program would generate the signals by mechanically moving materials harboring strong electric or magnetic fields,” Olsson explained.

ULF and VLF communications have great potential for military applications. ULF communications would allow for direct communications between manned or unmanned submarines operating underwater and the ability to transmit data and text. That translates into longer underwater operations and less of a need for submarines to surface, where they are most vulnerable, because traditional communications bands don’t travel well in salt water.

Also, because GPS doesn’t work underwater, ULF can be utilized for triangulation and locating other submarines. This application will be especially helpful as the Navy continues to develop its

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, expected to be operational by 2020.

For the Army and Marine Corps, ULF and VLF communications allow for over-the-horizon long distance communications.

Currently in the U.S. arsenal, ground forces employ PRC 117 SATCOM and PRC-150 high frequency radios. These systems provide over-the-horizon communications but with substantial drawbacks, according to Olsson. High frequency radios require the transmitter to know the precise location of the receiver, and the operator must change antenna construction for night and day operations to match the lowered ionosphere.

SATCOM radios are vulnerable to attacks by sophisticated state agents such as China and Russia, who both employ satellite-killing missile systems. In a satellite or GPS constrained environment, ULF and VLF transmitters could provide war fighters with handheld devices capable of data and voice communications, Olsson explained.

ULF and VLF can also be utilized as a search and rescue tool for buried miners or victims trapped in earthquake rubble because of its ability to penetrate rocks and building materials.

The AMEBA program was announced this December and currently is in the early stages of discussion with no researchers under contract. DARPA has scheduled a Proposers Day on Jan. 6 at the Booz Allen Hamilton Conference Center in northern Virginia to further describe the project in detail.

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The battle to build the US Air Force’s $16.3 billion T-X trainer officially kicked off Friday with the release of the final request for proposals.

The competition pits defense contractors Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and Sierra Nevada Corp. against each other for one of the last major Air Force aircraft programs on the horizon. The T-X will replace the T-38 and will be the first trainer designed to train the fifth-generation pilots of the F-22 and F-35.

"Our ability to get the most out of our fifth-generation aircraft depends on success in the Advanced Pilot Training program," Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein said in a statement. "In terms of both providing realistic, holistic training and reducing flying hours on our fifth-generation platforms, T-X is a program we've got to get right."

The winner of the contract — planned to be announced in 2017 — will likely be responsible for manufacturing the entire 350-strong-aircraft program of record. After the delivery of five test aircraft, the Air Force plans to execute contract options for two batches of low-rate production and eight rounds of full-rate production. The contract also includes ground training systems, mission planning and processing systems, support equipment, and spares.

Initial operating capability is planned by the end of fiscal 2024.

One of the biggest questions is whether financial incentives given for higher-performing bids will swing the competition. For example, the service will knock up to $88 million off a proposal’s total evaluated price for high G maneuvering beyond the threshold value, and $51 million for high angle of attack. These incentives, introduced in an earlier draft version of the request for proposals, remained the same in the final version.

Because T-X is one of the service’s most high-profile aircraft programs, the Air Force has taken special care to guard it from a protest — an event that most in industry see as probable. In a statement, Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James said the service conducted “extensive dialogue with industry” that helped refine the final request for proposals (RFP).

"Our dialogues have clarified RFP requirements and saved tens of millions of dollars in development cost and risk while still ensuring we acquire capability needed to train our next generation of pilots,” she said.

The T-X Contenders

The field of T-X competitors couldn’t be any more different, with both flashy, clean-sheet designs and proven aircraft already in service vying to become the Air Force’s next trainer.

Lockheed Martin has partnered with Korea Aerospace Industries (KIA) to offer the T-50A, a modified version of KIA's supersonic T-50 trainer flown by South Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia and Iraq. Lockheed has been flying two T-50A aircraft since this summer and recently moved one aircraft to the company’s final assembly and checkout facility in Greenville, South Carolina.

Raytheon also opted to update an existing design, and partnered with Leonardo, Honeywell and CAE on the T-100. The T-100, based on Italian firm Leonardo’s M-346, will be manufactured in Meridian, Mississippi, should the companies win the contract. The team has already built and flown one T-100 aircraft in Italy.

Northrop Grumman teamed with BAE Systems and L-3, and Northrup has kept a close hold on any information regarding its clean-sheet T-X, which was seen conducting taxi tests this summer before a reported first flight in August.

Boeing took the opposite approach, inviting media to a flashy rollout ceremony in St. Louis earlier this year, where the company unveiled that it had created two purpose-built T-X aircraft. The first of those jets made its inaugural flight this month.

Sierra Nevada Corp. made its presence in the competition known this month, disclosing to Aviation Week that it had built a “Freedom Trainer” with Turkish Aerospace Industries.

Textron’s Scorpion jet could be yet another spoiler, but it still remains to be seen whether the company will thwart expectations and offer the aircraft for the T-X program. Company executives have said a final decision will not be made until a final RFP was issued, however the Scorpion program has made strides over the past few months, including the start of limited production and the first flight of a production-conforming version jet on Dec. 22.

During the flight, which lasted a little less than two hours, test pilots Don Parker and Dave Sitz took off from McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita, Kansas, and checked the aircraft’s avionics and performance. The first Scorpion jet, a demonstrator, took its first flight in December 2013, but the production-conforming plane that flew this month incorporated suggestions from potential customers, the company said in a news release.

A new avionics system — Garmin’s G3000 — was one of those changes. Textron also modified the wings to 4 degrees of sweep, improved the aft horizontal stabilizer to increase the plane’s performance at high speeds, simplified the landing gear, and integrated a new heads up display and throttle and stick controls.

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NASSCO gets $324M for work on Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB) 5

The U.S. Navy awarded General Dynamics National Steel and Shipbuilding a $324.4 million contract to definitize the long lead time material and to award the detail, design and construction of Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB) 5.

NASSCO received a $106 million contract in June this year to procure long lead time material and engineering support for ESB 5

Previously known as the Mobile Landing Platform Afloat Forward Staging Base program, Expeditionary Mobile Base is a ship that provides logistics movement from sea to shore supporting military operations.

The ESB will provide a flight deck and expansive reconfigurable mission deck; military personnel accommodations; small craft launch and recovery capabilities; and command, control, communication, computer and intelligence for communication and computer equipment across multiple networks and architectures.

The 239.3-meter-long ESD/ESB ships were based on an existing commercial design – the Alaska class crude oil carrier built by General Dynamics National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO).

The shipbuilder has delivered three ships in the class to the Navy: USNS Montford Point (ESD 1), USNS John Glenn (ESD 2) and USNS Lewis B. Puller (ESB 1) so far.

Expeditionary Transfer Dock (ESD) ships USNS Montford Point and USNS John Glenn are configured with the core capability set which consists of add-on modules that support a vehicle staging area, vehicle transfer ramp, large mooring fenders and up to three LCAC vessel lanes to support its core transfer requirements.

USNS Lewis B. Puller (ESB 3) is the first Expeditionary Mobile Base, and along with follow-on ships, ESB 4 and ESB 5, will be optimized to support a variety of maritime based missions.

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USS Carl Vinson begins deployment in January

The U.S. Navy’s 3rd Fleet announced that ships and units from the Carl Vinson strike group (CVNSG) will depart San Diego for a regularly-scheduled deployment to the Western Pacific on January 5 and 6.

The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70), Carrier Air Wing 2, and embarked Destroyer Squadron 1 will deploy with Ticonderoga class guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Champlain (CG 57) and Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112) and USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG 108).

Homeported in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, Michael Murphy will join CVNSG later as the strike group makes its way to the Western Pacific.

CVNSG will deploy with approximately 7,500 sailors and will focus on maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts. The strike group assets will conduct bilateral exercises in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region to include anti-submarine warfare, maneuvering drills, gunnery exercises and visit, board, search and seizure subject matter expert exchanges.

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General Dynamics Bath Iron Works first restart Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer has completed acceptance trials, according to a Wednesday statement from Naval Sea Systems Command.

Rafael Peralta (DDG-115) completed the trials on Dec. 16 after two days at sea overseen by U.S. Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV).

“The trials were conducted both pier-side and underway. Many of the ship’s onboard systems tested to validate performance, including navigation, damage control, mechanical and electrical systems, combat systems, communications, and propulsion applications, met or exceeded Navy specifications,” read the statement.

BIW’s Peralta and the under-construction Thomas Hudner (DDG-116) are part of the quartet of restart destroyers announced by then-Secretary of Defense Robert Gates in 2009 following the cancellation of the next generation cruiser program (CG(X)).

“The shipyard is currently in production on future destroyers Thomas Hudner (DDG-116), Daniel Inouye (DDG-118) and Carl M. Levin (DDG-120) and under contract for three additional ships awarded as part of the five-ship multi-year procurement for FY13-17,” read the statement.

Huntington Ingalls Industries first restart destroyer, John Finn (DDG-113) completed its acceptance trials last month.

The following is the complete NAVSEA Dec. 28, 2016 statement.
...

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The Navy’s rating modernization will continue into 2017, as Navy officials press forward with reforms that will broaden career fields and allow sailors to qualify to work, advance and take duty assignments in more than one skill within a related field.

The modernization is expected to take three to five years to totally complete, but sailors should start seeing parts fall into place in 2017.

Multiple, parallel efforts are underway to make this happen. First up is the expected request for proposal to create a new personnel mega-database considered the keystone of the effort. Without this in place, the ability of the Navy to track sailors' skills and training won’t be possible. The Navy was expected to request proposals in very late 2016, and let the contract begin sometime in 2017.

Meanwhile working groups are evaluating all Navy skills, formerly known as ratings, to see where those with like skills can be combined into broader career fields that promote cross training. That review is expected to extend into 2017 and could wrap up by the fall or year’s end.

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US Air Force releases final T-X trainer RFP

T-X contenders are off to the races today, after the US Air Force released its much anticipated final request for proposals for the T-38 trainer replacement programme.

The $16.3 billion RFP encompasses a total of 350 aircraft, including delivery of the initial five test aircraft, contract options for LRIP lots 1 and 2 and full-rate production of lots 3 through 11.

The USAF is expected to award the contract in 2017 and reach initial operational capability by the fourth quarter of Fiscal Year 2024, the service says in a 30 December statement.

The final RFP did not change course from the air force’s draft version released in July, which proposed millions of dollars in incentives for contractors who bring forth a trainer aircraft that exceeds the service’s outlined performance requirements.

Contractors who offer a trainer with higher sustained G and maneuvering, as well as lower turn-around time, would receive reductions to their total evaluated price. Competitors would receive a $13.2 million decrement to its price for every 0.1G above the threshold of 6.5Gs, and $4.4 million for every 0.1G above 7.0G. The service set a 7.5G ceiling with a maximum $88 million price reduction, according to the draft RFP.

Competition for the T-X programme has been heating up all year, with Boeing’s extravagant T-X rollout in September and more recent media days from Lockheed and Raytheon this December. Four competitors will face off for the T-X competition. Boeing and Northrop Grumman have each put forth clean-sheet designs, while Lockheed has opted for the existing T-50A and Raytheon has chosen the the T-100 based on M346 twin-jet design.

With the exception of looming nuclear recapitalisation, the USAF has bitten off most of major acquisition programmes with the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and the B-21 bomber. That makes those 350 aircraft all the more enticing to competitors. A T-X win could provide a boost for Boeing, which has faltered in the fighter jet market in recent years.

For the USAF, the T-X competition also represents what the service hopes to be a turning point in defense acquisition. The air force spoke with industry for several months before releasing the final RFP, a move that could prevent the kind of contentious protests the service saw following the B-21 bomber contract award.

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WASHINGTON (NNS) -- On Dec. 21, the Navy announced that effective immediately, Sailors may continue to be addressed by their Rating Titles.

Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Admiral John Richardson, with the support of Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) Ray Mabus and Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (MCPON) Steve Giordano, made the announcement in NAVADMIN 283/16.

"Our Navy needs to be a fast-learning organization - that includes Navy leadership," Richardson wrote in the NAVADMIN. "The Design for Maintaining Maritime Superiority states that our most junior teammate may have the best idea and that we must be open to capturing that idea. We have learned from you, and so effective immediately, all rating names are restored."

"The SECNAV, MCPON and I, along with other Navy leadership, have had the opportunity to speak with thousands of Sailors during our travels throughout the fleet. The feedback from current and former Sailors has been consistent that there is wide support for the flexibility that the plan offers, but the removal of rating titles was unnecessary and detracted from accomplishing our major goals."(YEA!!)

The rating modernization working group will continue its work on the substantive portion of the rating modernization effort.

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​

Naval Today said:

The U.S. Navy’s future Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Rafael Peralta (DDG 115) completed acceptance trials December 16 after spending two days underway off the coast of Maine.

USS Rafael Peralta is the third Flight IIA Restart destroyer laid down in October 2014 and christened a year later by the U.S. Navy at the General Dynamics’ Bath Iron Works shipyards.

The U.S. Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) reviewed the ship and its crew during a series of demonstrations while underway. INSURV evaluates the ship’s construction and compliance with Navy specifications and is the governing body that recommends the ship be delivered to the Navy.

Trials were conducted both pier-side and underway. Many of the ship’s onboard systems tested to validate performance, including navigation, damage control, mechanical and electrical systems, combat systems, communications, and propulsion applications, met or exceeded Navy specifications.

The destroyer is equipped with the Aegis baseline 9 combat system, which includes an integrated air and missile defense (IAMD) capability, incorporating the ballistic missile defense 5.0 capability upgrade (BMD 5.0CU) and naval integrated fire control-counter air (NIFC-CA).

According to the U.S Navy, the Aegis baseline 9 IAMD destroyers have increased computing power, along with radar upgrades that improve detection and reaction capabilities against modern air warfare and BMD threats.

Following delivery, DDG 115 will be the 65th Arleigh Burke class destroyer and the first of the DDG 51 FLT IIA restart ships to be built at Bath Iron Works. The shipyard is currently in production on future destroyers Thomas Hudner (DDG 116), Daniel Inouye (DDG 118) and Carl M. Levin (DDG 120) and under contract for three additional ships awarded as part of the five-ship multi-year procurement for FY13-17.

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