Countermeasures
The global spread of a deadly disease outbreak during a biological attack would impact far more than U.S. government financial resources, former federal lawmakers say, and could crash the coffers of local and state budgets just as severely.
“We know unequivocally that terrorists have the... Read More »
A group of legislators introduced Tuesday a bill designed to block the online publication of blueprints used to make fully functioning 3D-printed guns.
Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Bill Nelson (D-FL) joined 20 of their Senate colleagues in crafting the measure, which would make it illegal for... Read More »
The Air Force has awarded a $96.1 million contract to Raytheon to produce 250 Miniature Air- Launched Decoy (MALD) missiles.
Officials said the MALD system is an air-launched missile with both decoy and jamming capabilities, possessing the ability to stimulate and neutralize enemy air defense... Read More »
Following recommendations made by the Attorney General’s recent Cyber Digital Task Force report, a group of U.S. senators introduced Tuesday a pair of bills intended to safeguard the U.S. election infrastructure from future cybercrimes.
The bills, the International Cybercrime Prevention Act... Read More »
BAE Systems recently was awarded a U.S. Army contract to provide 250 touchscreen computer display units (CDU) on Black Hawk helicopters, the army’s primary medium-lift transport aircraft.
The CDUs are an upgrade to BAE’s ASN-128 Doppler GPS Navigation System.
The ASN-128 operates on more... Read More »
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently announced it will install a computed tomography scanner (CT) at the Philadelphia International Airport.
The technology allows for 360-degree views of baggage contents and can automatically detect explosives, including liquids.
In the... Read More »
Emergent BioSolutions Inc. said on Tuesday it began the first phase of a clinical study for its anti-Zika virus immune globulin, known as ZIKV-IG, which was fast-tracked by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2017.
Concern over Zika virus disease, transmitted by mosquitoes, has risen... Read More »
Two businesses owned by Textron Inc., a multi-industry aircraft, defense, industrial and finance company, successfully integrated and demonstrated Textron’s Synturian software and a Scorpion jet Monday.
Textron Systems and Textron Aviation Defense installed the software into the jet’s... Read More »
Developing drugs for rapid response to treat emerging infectious diseases requires overcoming numerous hurdles.
For a start, there are few large-scale pharmaceutical campaigns. The reality is quite the opposite, as it can be a challenge for the government to convince pharmaceutical companies to... Read More »
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently announced it will install 15 more computed tomography scanners (CT) at checkpoints in U.S. airports.
The technology is already in use at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and Boston’s Logan International Airport. A third unit was... Read More »
Global security and aerospace company Lockheed Martin will helm a U.S. Army project to develop an unmanned convoy system in combat environments over the next three years.
"We are leveraging 15 years of experience in developing autonomous capabilities for our customers," said Gaylia Campbell,... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Todd Young (R-IN) and Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) sent correspondence this week to Heather Wilson, Secretary of the Air Force, expressing their support of transitioning Fort Wayne Air National Guard Base from a stock of A-10 fighters to F-16s.
Fort Wayne hosts the 122nd Fighter Wing. At this... Read More »
Georgia State University researchers maintain a new peptides-based vaccine protects mice against influenza A virus.
Investigators said the double-layered nanoparticle vaccine was developed using peptides, compounds consisting of two or more amino acids linked in a chain because they are much... Read More »
Marines and Illinois response units recently joined forces to share training techniques designed to enhance chemical and biological emergency preparedness.
Marines and sailors with the Chemical Biological Incident Response Force (CBRIF) participated in Exercise Chicago Response in Chicago,... Read More »
At the first Biometric Technology Rally, the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) established a series of checkpoints used to identify biometrics, mainly facial and iris identification, quickly and accurately.
Attendees at the DHS Maryland Test... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and David Schweikert (R-AZ), co-chairs of the Congressional Valley Fever Task Force, joined three other task force members this week to introduce legislation seeking to advance research and treatment of the fungal disease.
There are currently more cases of Valley... Read More »
Eighteen Massachusetts fire departments are slated to receive $4.8 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants.
Officials said 17 of the departments received funding through FEMA's Assistance to Firefighter Grants (AFG) program, which provides resources for firefighters and... Read More »
Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. was welcomed last week as the 35th commander of Pacific Air Forces (PACAF).
The PACAF includes 46,000 airmen and covers more than 100 million square miles, extending from the nation’s west coast to the east coast of Africa and from the Arctic to the... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed the Conference Report for the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, which authorizes the Air Force Test Center’s top military construction priorities.
The projects prioritized included a Joint Simulation Environment (JSE)... Read More »
The U.S. House voted this week to advance a legislative provision seeking to reduce reliance on Russian energy for troops serving in Europe, while also authorizing funding for military members and their families.
The John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2019... Read More »
While the inherent danger of antimicrobial resistance is growing, increasing the threat of a global public health crisis, a new national institute to address the threat has been created through a partnership between universities in Nebraska and Iowa.
The new Institute for Antimicrobial... Read More »
Reps. Tom Rice (R-SC) and Mike Quigley (D-IL) recently introduced legislation designed to enhance international tourism to America while improving national security.
The Jobs Originating through Launching Travel (JOLT) Act would also reform outdated visa laws, create jobs, and rename the Visa... Read More »
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA) forwarded correspondence last week urging the Trump Administration to hold Russia accountable for its likely use of chemical weapons in recent attacks on civilians in the United Kingdom.
In his letter, Royce noted the Administration missed... Read More »
The U.S. Border Patrol Rio Grande Valley Sector (RGV) recently established an Incident Management Team, which will work with the Emergency Operation Center during natural disasters or wide-scale emergencies.
The team, comprised of Border Patrol personnel from across the RGV, met last week to... Read More »
The spread of tickborne infections has risen significantly in the past decade, with the upward trend likely to continue, according to a recent report by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).
Lyme disease represents the majority of tickborne infections in the United... Read More »
The United States remains critically vulnerable to cyber attack, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), which also found 10 crucial steps agencies need to take and four major cybersecurity challenges circling the nation’s information security.
Security... Read More »
KBRwyle, a subsidiary of professional services and technology provider KBR, Inc., has been awarded a $36.5 million Air Force Installation Contracting Agency (AFICA) missiles system contract.
Officials said KBRwyle would provide sustainment engineering support to the 414th Supply Chain Management... Read More »
An updated database released this week has identified more than 170 incidents of nuclear and radioactive material trafficking across 14 countries in 2017.
Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) officials said the Global Incidents and Trafficking Database, produced for NTI by the Center for... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently installed a new Federal Inspection Station at Puerto Rico’s Luis Muñoz Marin International Airport.
The $6 million station uses advanced technology and allows passengers to move through a single point of control, speeding up entry to the... Read More »
In a massive study that examined data from 76 countries collected from 1959 to 2009, analysts from the University of Illinois have found that outbreaks of chikungunya and dengue fever -- both linked to mosquitoes -- are most affected by population density and proximity to a country already... Read More »
Officers with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) arrested 132 individuals on criminal and civil violations at the conclusion of Operation Eagle’s Shield last week.
Eagle’s Shield, which ran from July 9 to July 20, was an... Read More »
The House Homeland Security Committee has advanced the Biometric Identification Migration Alert Program (BITMAP) Authorization Act of 2018 to help better identify national security threats.
The legislation was introduced by Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) and was co-sponsored by Rep.... Read More »
A bill introduced by Rep. Dan Donovan (R-NY) designed to enhance efforts to protect the nation from evolving threats has unanimously advanced the House Homeland Security Committee.
Donovan said the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Act strengthens national security by ensuring the... Read More »
The American Airlines Terminal at John F. Kennedy International Airport recently installed a computed tomography (CT) checkpoint scanner that provides 3-D imaging for detecting explosives.
The scanner is similar to those used to scan checked baggage. It provides clear, 3-D images that can be... Read More »
Following President Donald Trump’s assertions of doubt on the accuracy of the American intelligence community’s findings on Russian election interference, a bipartisan effort in the House of Representatives introduced a resolution this week reaffirming support for those findings.
At a joint... Read More »
