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Improved Capabilities for Irregular Warfare Platforms
Request: $4,000,000
Patuxent River Naval Air Station
Patuxent River, MD 20670 Funding would be used to integrate and upgrade Special Operation Forces (SOF) vehicles and platforms with more advanced intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities. This funding is a good use of taxpayer dollars because this project will integrate new technology across the broad range of SOF vehicles which will provide war fighters with access to a common operational picture and air-ground-sea interoperability. This will not only help to meet current SOF ISR needs, but will also help to reduce friendly fire incidents.
Advanced Energetics Initiative
Request: $4,000,000
Naval Surface Warfare Center at Indian Head
3767 Strauss Ave., Bldg. 20, Indian Head, MD 20640-5150
Funding would go toward the research and technology development of the next generation reactive material warhead concepts for highly reactive materials, and novel reactive structural materials. This funding would be a good use of taxpayer dollars to meet the pressing need to continue advancing current energetics capabilities. This is due to current Navy requirements for next generation energetic materials to be smaller, lighter, more lethal, safer, and adaptable to a constantly changing target set. New advanced energetics weapons, such as the thermo-baric and reactive material warheads, are providing enhanced capability against difficult targets in both Iraq and Afghanistan.
Technology Transfer Office
Request: $1,500,000
Naval Surface Warfare Center at Indian Head
3767 Strauss Ave., Bldg. 20, Indian Head, MD 20640-5150
Funding would be used to establish a Technology Transfer Office at NSWC Indian Head to assist the Office of Research and Technology Applications with facilitating the transfer of commercially useful technologies from federal laboratories to the private sector. This funding would be a good use of taxpayer money because transferring federal technology invented by the government-owned lab will be licensed, allowing the government to receive royalties from the patents purchased by this program. Additionally, new businesses will be created around the licensed technology, which in turn, will create new technical employment, a new tax base for federal and state governments, and potentially, additional inventions will be created during the research and development process.
Manufacturing Science and Technology for Next Generation Energetics
Request: $5,000,000
Naval Surface Warfare Center at Indian Head
3767 Strauss Ave., Bldg. 20, Indian Head, MD 20640-5150
Funding would be used to allow for the design and development of safe and cost-effective manufacturing processes for next generation energetics. This is a good use of taxpayer money because the manufacture process of explosives and propellants must be precise and absolutely safe. Investment in the development of new manufacturing processes is required for the military to safely produce the new, superior explosives and propellants that it will use in future conflicts.
NAE Interoperability with the Carrier Strike Group
Request: $4,700,000
Patuxent River Naval Air Station
Patuxent River, MD 20670
The funding would be used to integrate the Ship Self Defense System (SSDS) with the Surface Aviation Interoperability Laboratory at NAS Patuxent River. This project continues the upgrade of the Surface/Aviation Interoperability Laboratory (SAIL) at NAWCAD, PAX River with SSDS. This is a good use of taxpayer money because it will give SAIL the ability to interact with the SSDS, which will allow aircraft systems to successfully test and interact with shipboard systems in the virtual mode. This will reduce the overall cost of testing as it will not require the use of actual aircraft and shipboard assets.
Joint Mission Battle-Space to support Net-Ready Key Performance Parameters
Request: $2,000,000
Patuxent River Naval Air Station
Patuxent River, MD 20670
The funding would be used for the procurement and integration of the Navy's tactical data links and command and control systems in order to create a joint battle space environment to test, analyze and determine whether the Key Performance Parameters for net-readiness and interoperability have been met. This is a good use of taxpayer money because it will give NAS Patuxent River the ability to conduct joint testing and training throughout the Joint Atlantic and Chesapeake Ranges Cooperative (JACRC). The principal location of research, development and test assets, primarily radar and flight instrumentation systems, is located at Patuxent River and will allow centrally-located assets to link to the JACRC and allow many tests to be done from multiple locations simultaneously. This allows tremendous cost savings by utilizing one hub to monitor and track test assets rather than having the testing done at multiple locations.
Energetics Science and Technology Workforce Development
Request: $3,500,000
Center for Energetic Concepts Development
3120 Glenn L. Martin Hall, College Park, MD 20740
Energetics Technology Center
107 Centennial Street, Suite 101, PO Box 601, La Plata, MD 20646
The funding would be used to bolster our nation's energetics workforce and allow energetics experts to conduct wide-ranging basic research in order to advance the science and engineering of energetics systems. This is a good use of taxpayer money because it will help to regenerate the energetics professional workforce at a time when many scientists and engineers are approaching retirement and many young people are choosing other career paths.
Multi-Mission Helicopter Avionics Mission System
Request: $1,500,000
Patuxent River Naval Air Station
Patuxent River, MD 20670
The funding would be used to acquire a multi-mission helicopter test-bed to test and certify the interoperability of the data-links between naval vessels and the multi-mission helicopter. The Multi Mission Helicopter is currently being developed to replace many legacy aircraft that are at the end of their useful life. Before these new aircraft can be introduced to the fleet, new systems must be tested and certified. These systems must allow the aircraft to successfully communicate with shipboard platforms for a variety of missions. This will be a good use of taxpayer money because it will allow the Navy to develop the requisite interfaces and test them so that when ship and aircraft are available they can be integrated with minimal cost and schedule impacts.
Underwater Explosives and Warhead Research
Request: $3,000,000
Naval Surface Warfare Center at Indian Head
3767 Strauss Ave., Bldg. 20, Indian Head, MD 20640-5150
The funding would be used to research and develop energetics technologies that provide increased damage capability for a given explosive weight and warhead concepts that can defeat both submarine and surface targets. This is a good use of taxpayer money because the U.S. Navy must protect its ability to ensure that the sea lanes remain open to commercial and military traffic. This funding will advance efforts to develop the next generation of explosives and warheads that can defeat both submarines and surface targets, such as mines, and also be used successfully against new or evolving threats.
Joint Heavy Lift Helicopter Research
Request: $1,000,000
University of Maryland, College Park
College Park, MD 20742
This project will be used to fund research and develop technology that increases structural, aerodynamic, flight control, and propulsion efficiencies for the Navy's Heavy-Lift Helicopter program. This is a good use of taxpayer money because funds will be used to support a large number of graduate and undergraduate students who contribute to Heavy-Lift research. Additionally, it will upgrade existing rotorcraft-related experimental facilities and instrumentation, which will lead to the acquisition of new experimental and computing facilities to carry out further research. By involving graduate and undergraduate students in this program, it will help to address the shortage of scientific and engineering professionals in the U.S. workforce.
Advanced Spinal Cord Restoration Therapies
Request: $1,000,000
Kennedy-Krieger Institute
707 North Broadway, Baltimore, MD 21205
The funding would be used to continue to develop spinal cord restoration therapies, which can be used to rehabilitate wounded warriors with spinal cord injuries. This is a good use of taxpayer money because both the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have produced over 20,000 injured servicemen and women, and roughly twenty percent of these individuals will have suffered from serious brain or spinal cord injuries. The new therapies and techniques developed will aid America's war fighters with spinal cord injuries and allow them to live fulfilling and productive lives.
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