NAVCENT Hosts Ukraine Delegation for Tour of Unmanned and AI Task Force

From NAVCENT Public Affairs

Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT), U.S. 5th Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces, welcomed a Ukrainian delegation to the U.S. Navy's regional headquarters in Bahrain, March 13.

Ambassador of Ukraine to the United Arab Emirates Dmytro Senik joined six members of the Ukrainian Parliament for a NAVCENT briefing on regional maritime security cooperation and unmanned technology integration.

The delegation learned about NAVCENT's latest efforts in integrating advanced unmanned systems and artificial intelligence into regional maritime operations.

An unmanned and artificial intelligence task force NAVCENT established in 2021, called Task Force 59, is currently spearheading an effort to form a multinational fleet of 100 unmanned surface vessels based in the Middle East by end of the summer. U.S. 5th Fleet announced in February the task force and regional partners have approached the halfway point toward that goal.

NAVCENT is currently leading the largest naval exercise in the Middle East, called International Maritime Exercise 2023. The training event includes 7,000 personnel from over 50 countries and organizations, 35 ships and more than 30 unmanned and artificial intelligence systems operating in the Arabian Gulf, Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, Red Sea, Indian Ocean and East African coastal regions.

The U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations encompasses approximately 2.5 million square miles of water area and includes the Arabian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, Red Sea, parts of the Indian Ocean and three critical choke points at the Strait of Hormuz, Suez Canal and Strait of Bab al-Mandeb.

From NAVSUP FLC Bahrain

Naval Supply Systems Command (NAVSUP)

Fleet Logistics Center (FLC) Bahrain hosted an Industry Day engagement with more than 40 local companies in attendance on Feb. 23 in an effort to increase vendor awareness and participation in ship maintenance and repair services procured by NAVSUP FLC Bahrain in the 5th Fleet area of responsibility (AOR).

The function of an Industry Day is to provide important information to emerging and established business with the US Government and the federal contracting process specifically geared toward enhancing awareness of ship repair and maintenance opportunities. NAVSUP FLC Bahrain contracting personnel provided an overview of how to do business with the U.S. Government and discussed different contract types. NAVSUP FLC Bahrain is responsible for awarding and managing contracts to shipyards for the repair and maintenance of homeported and deployed US vessels within the 5th Fleet AOR.

Forward Deployed Regional Maintenance Center (FDRMC) and Military Sealift Command (MSC) provided customer overviews and requirements for their maintenance needs in the AOR. The attendees learned about FDRMC and MSC maintenance opportunities and the application and award process implemented by US federal law, regulations, policies, and procedures.

The event marked the first in-person Industry Day hosted by NAVSUP FLC Bahrain since the coronavirus pandemic beginning in March 2020. It was a tremendous opportunity to have contracting and maintenance professionals from around the globe to meet in support of mission readiness. NAVSUP contracting personnel (SUP 02) from Mechanicsburg, Penn.; Yokosuka, Japan; and Naples, Italy attended, along with FDRMC Detachment Bahrain leadership and MSC Headquarters guests from Norfolk, Va.

“This year's Industry Day was very well received. We had tremendous interest within the local business market,” said Mr. Rick Bauer, NAVSUP FLC Bahrain Director of Contracting. “More than 100 participants pre-registered for the event this year; and we had outstanding support from our customers, in providing relevant information to the business community.”

NAVSUP FLC Bahrain, FDRMC and MSC collaborate to ensure contracted vendors provide U.S. military vessels the required maintenance, supplies and quality of life products need to keep ships mission-ready.

NAVSUP FLC Bahrain awards contracts with speed and precision to support FDRMC and MSC requirements as maintenance providers while maintaining accountability of government funds. FDRMC and MSC conduct contract management oversight during execution to ensure the work completed meets Navy standards and requirements. Together the three organizations increase fleet readiness throughout the AOR.

Events such as Industry Day attract a diverse group of companies within the region. Vendors attend each year to gain up-to-date information, customer needs, and contractor requirements for the Department of the Navy. The information presented will help companies submit a more comprehensive proposal for contracted maintenance opportunities. The ability to return to an in-person event supported a substantial increase in participation from vendors. The face-toface interactions and ability to ask questions in an open forum was invaluable for all attendees. Key speakers for the event included Captain Alexander D. Wallace, III, commanding officer NAVSUP FLC Bahrain, Mr. Timothy Kiss, Director for Ship Management MSC, as well as Commander Timothy Dutton, Officer in Charge FDRMC det Bahrain.

“Supporting Industry Day during my annual training at NAVSUP FLC Bahrain was a career highlight,” Navy Reservist Lt. Jamelia Anderson, NR NAVSUP FLC Bahrain Detachment Headquarters said. “It was very informative for myself, being a military contracting professional, to hear from NAVSUP FLC Bahrain's customers and their contractor base. I now have a better understanding of customers’ needs and how to better communicate requirements to the prospective contractors.”

MSC operates approximately 125 civilian-crewed ships that replenish U.S. Navy ships, conduct specialized missions, strategically preposition combat cargo at sea around the world, and move military cargo and supplies used by deployed U.S. forces and coalition partners.

FDRMC provides emergent, intermediate and depot-level maintenance and modernization for transient and Forward Deployed Naval Forces in U.S. 5th and 6th Fleets through fleet technical assistance, voyage repair, contract management oversight, assessments, and diving and salvage.

NAVSUP FLC Bahrain is one of eight FLCs under Commander, NAVSUP. Headquartered in Mechanicsburg, Penn., NAVSUP employs a diverse, worldwide workforce of more than 25,000 military and civilian personnel. NAVSUP and the Navy Supply Corps conduct and enable supply chain, acquisition, operational logistics, Sailors, and family care activities with our mission partners to generate readiness and sustain naval forces worldwide to prevent and decisively win wars.

Learn more at www.navsup.navy.mil, www.facebook.com/navsup and https:// twitter.com/navsupsyscom.

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