Feral Jundi

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Space: SpaceX’s Success May Lead To Military Contracts

Filed under: Industry Talk,Space — Tags: , , , , , , , , — Matt @ 1:42 AM

In this article, they mentioned ULA as the only certified company to launch military payloads. But if SpaceX can get certified, they will be the second.

The reason why I am excited about this stuff, is that for both ULA and SpaceX, they will need some heavy duty security to guard these military satellites as the rockets are being prepared, and protect the launches. So expect to see everything from basic security, all the way up to special response teams or SWAT type teams to protect this stuff. Because once you get into the realm of defense related space contracts, national security depends upon the successes of these launches and the integrity of the satellites.

I have not seen any job ads or news about this type of security, but I expect we will as time goes by.  Of course private protection forces for space launches are not a new concept, and I mentioned KSC SWAT guys protecting NASA launches a long time ago. So I will definitely keep my eyes open for space related security gigs…..and the future is now. –Matt

 

Members of the Kennedy SWAT team are ready and well equipped to keep the Space Center safe. Image credit: NASA/KSC

SpaceX’s Success May Lead To Military Contracts
By Richard Stalker
SpaceX made history 2 weeks ago becoming the very first private company to launch a capsule into space and have it dock with the International Space Station. Now that the Dragon has successfully returned to earth, SpaceX can start working on it’s contract through the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The resupply contract for the International Space Station has it making 12 runs, and since it is reusable, they will have the ability to ferry items back and forth, not just trash but experiments.
This launch was the second one for the Falcon 9 and after a third successful one they will be allowed to bid for military contracts to launch satellites into space. “The new entrant criteria did say three launches are required (for Falcon 9) before certification can happen for national security payloads,” said SpaceX Communications Director Kirstin Brost Grantham.

(more…)

Friday, June 8, 2012

Legal News: Rep. Cummings Introduces Legislation To Reform DBA Insurance Program

Filed under: Industry Talk,Legal News — Tags: , , , , , — Matt @ 2:27 AM

Analysis of Labor Department data found that insurers had denied about 44 percent of all serious injury claims — those involving more than four days of lost work. The companies also turned down about 60 percent of contractors who claimed to suffer psychological damage such as post-traumatic stress disorder. The Times sued the government for access to Labor Department records.
“There are clearly serious deficiencies in the health coverage of civilian employees who have been injured while working overseas to keep us safe here at home — costing not only the men and women who are being refused coverage for the treatment they need, but also for the American taxpayers who are footing the bill for their coverage,” Cummings said.

This looks like some good legislation. Thanks to the work of Propublica and others, these insurance loopholes and wasteful practices will hopefully be shut down. It is also atrocious that at one point in this war, up to 44 percent of all serious injury claims were being denied. It is appalling that contractors were treated like this.

So hopefully this law get’s passed and it actually fixes the problem. I like the language in the bill in regards to assessing the law’s effectiveness after one year. If you have anything to add, either in support or against, let us all know.

If you want a great primer on what spurred on this legislation, check out Propublica’s work and there is lot’s of great info on this industry there. If you have any nightmare DBA claim stories, feel free to put that up in the comments section as well. –Matt

 

Cummings Introduces Legislation to Reform Defense Base Act Insurance Program
June 6, 2012
Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, Ranking Member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, introduced legislation today that would save taxpayers huge sums of money by transitioning the existing workers’ compensation insurance system for overseas government contractors away from private sector insurance companies to a federal self-insurance program.
“There is absolutely no reason American taxpayers should be lining the pockets of private insurance companies,” said Cummings.  “This bill would save billions of dollars while improving the ability of contractor employees who risk their lives in war zones to obtain the medical care and support they deserve.”
According to a 2009 Pentagon study, Congress could save as much as $250 million a year by transitioning the existing Defense Base Act (DBA) insurance program to a government self-insurance program.  The study found:  “In the long run, the self-insurance alternative may have the greatest potential for minimizing DBA insurance costs, and it has several administrative and compliance advantages as well.”

(more…)

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Military News: Private Contractors Key To UK Army, Says Philip Hammond

Filed under: Industry Talk,Military News,United Kingdom — Tags: , , , , , — Matt @ 2:13 AM

The same thing that applies to the US, is being applied to the UK. Contractors are an essential element to raising an army quickly, or maintaining the one you have. It ensures that the soldiers you do have, are in fact fighting forces and not just cooks or range maintenance folks. You can also build up that support force, or quickly tear it down, and there is no legacy costs like pensions to worry about.

Now the thing that I am curious about is the ‘inherently governmental’ debate happening places like parliament, think tanks and committees. How much will the British allow contractors to actually do when it comes to the gun related contracts in the future?

One thing that is definitely giving a good show as to the effectiveness and capability of armed security contractors is the anti-piracy efforts of the companies right now. Armed guards on boats, along with the history of British contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan, are all experiences that are adding to the debate of what contractors are capable of.  Interesting stuff and we will see how the British military and leaders navigate this aspect of force. –Matt

 

Private contractors key to Army, says Philip Hammond
7 June 2012
The British army will have to rely more on part-time reserves and private contractors, Defence Secretary Philip Hammond is expected to say later.
In a speech to military experts, he is due to say the future will involve “thinking innovatively about how combat service support is provided”.
Under the Strategic Defence and Security Review the Army will shrink from 102,000 to 82,000 troops by 2020.
Mr Hammond says there will be “difficult” decisions ahead.
BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner said the speech at the annual Land Warfare Conference in London will give some clues as to how this rebalancing will be achieved, ahead of a full announcement later this month.
Mr Hammond is expected to tell an audience at the Royal United Services Institute there will be a need to use “more systematically the skills available in the reserve and from our contractors”.
Our correspondent says: “A total of £1.8bn is to be invested in the reserve forces, with a focus on certain niche areas such as cyber warfare, medical and intelligence.”

(more…)

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Maritime Security: IMO Guidance Calls For ISO Certification For Companies

Filed under: Maritime Security — Tags: , , , , — Matt @ 1:49 AM

This is a good move. The ISO standard has been the goal of a number of groups and this is one step closer to giving legitimacy to this sector of the industry.

It is also cool to see the statistics mentioned in regards to pirate attacks. An increase in attacks, but a decrease in successful ones. Bravo to all of the security teams out there doing such a fantastic job in beating back these heathens. It really is impressive and armed guards on boats is definitely proving it’s worth.

But the statistics also show that pirates are not giving up and their industry continues to grow and expand. So they definitely have the greed and determination to keep going after their prey. Especially when they are expanding into new hunting grounds, and using mother ships and swarm type attacks. At this rate, there will not be any patch of ocean devoid of these thugs. –Matt

 

IMO Guidance Calls for Certified Private Maritime Security Companies
This is interim guidance from the International Maritime Organization’s Maritime Safety Committee that applies to privately contracted armed security personnel on vessels transiting off the east coast of Africa.
Jun 05, 2012
New interim guidance adopted by the International Maritime Organization’s Maritime Safety Committee calls for companies supplying armed security personnel to seek certification with national and international standards, once those are established. The IMO committee decided ISO is the organization best suited to develop an international standard.
The committee met May 16-25 in London, and IMO posted details of its guidance May 31. The guidance applies to vessels transiting what IMO called “the high risk area off the east coast of Africa.”
During their meeting, committee members discussed the 544 acts of piracy and armed robbery against ships that were reported to IMO in 2011, which represented an 11 percent increase from 489 reported the previous year. The areas most affected in both years were East Africa and the Far East, in particular the South China Sea, followed by the Indian Ocean, West Africa, South America, and the Caribbean. (East Africa alone was responsible for an increase from 172 incidents in 2010 to 223 in 2011.)

(more…)

Monday, June 4, 2012

Syria: DIY Armored Trucks–The T-HOMS75

Filed under: DIY,Syria — Tags: , , , , , , , , — Matt @ 2:56 AM

Now this thing is an interesting creation and I will tell you why. It is wedge shaped, which indicates to me that it could be used for barrier busting. Like knocking down sandbags/walls and getting in some quick shots with the mounted DShK. Then they pull away so they can reload and maybe attack from another point.

The wedge shape is also great for deflecting incoming small arms fire, or maybe even some cannon fire from the front. So on the streets of Homs where every inch of territory is being fought over with a vengeance, something like this was probably purpose built to deal with an issue the rebels identified.

Another cool use for such a vehicle is creating mouse holes in walls. So if you are able to punch a hole in a wall, then your assault team can run into those breaches and either make an escape or obtain a tactical advantage in a fight. They can also rescue downed rebels in a fight if they had to.

Who knows, but it definitely looks like they are taking some notes from the Libyans in their war and the Narco Tanks in Mexico. They probably checked out all of the ‘Mad Max’ designs back in the day in Iraq as well.  Interesting DIY Armor and if anyone has anything to add about this vehicle, I would be interested to hear what you got. –Matt

 

 

….Something much weird of the anti-aircraft pick up was recently spotted in Homs, Syria. It’s a sort-of improvised Suzuki pickup converted into armored vehicle capable to open its way through barriers and sand bags, equipped with a Doshka machine gun.

Dubbed T-HOMS75 by the Zaman Al Wasl reporter that took the first pictures of it, the vehicle is operated by a crew three people (driver, gunner and assistant): the gunner stands behind the drivers cabin with the gun placed on top of it.

It is capable of a maximum speed of 80 km/h (due to the added weight) and gives protection against light and medium machine guns, allowing to move in places guarded by snipers.

From the Aviationist.

« Newer Posts

Powered by WordPress