Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Officials Call Energy Efficiency 'Huge Priority' for Air Force

By Navy Seaman William Selby
Special to American Forces Press Service

Oct. 22, 2008 - As the largest consumer of energy in the federal government, the Air Force has made conserving resources a priority, officials said yesterday. "We have to continue with our strategy of reducing demand and increasing [energy] supply and changing the culture within the
Air Force," Kevin Billings, acting assistant secretary of the Air Force for installations, environment and logistics, told bloggers during a teleconference.

Billings said finding cheaper, more efficient energy remains a top priority, because the Air Force uses so much energy.

The Air Force is spending more time looking for best practices and collaborating with the other services in terms of how to move forward, Billings said. In addition to changing facilities management activities and aviation operations, he added, the
Air Force now wants to address the general outlook airmen have toward conserving energy.

"Technology can provide us better aviation operation procedures and, certainly, more alternative energy and renewable energy resources," Mike Aimone, assistant deputy chief of staff for logistics and installations, said. "But the culture can significantly reduce the demand for electricity if we, in fact, build this culture where airmen make energy a consideration."

In addition to changing its energy conservation culture, the Air Force is exploring ways to use its land for energy sources, Billings said. For example, he said, the Air Force sold 140 acres of land at Nellis
Air Force Base, Nev., to developers to build 72,000 solar arrays that created 14 megawatts of clean, renewable energy for Nevada Power. As a result, he said, the Air Force received a 20-year reduction of $1 million per year off its energy bill.

The
Air Force also has begun a significant effort to monitor how much petroleum is being used on its bases, Aimone said, initiating an audit to find out the best methods of satisfying energy needs besides putting convoys of petroleum products.

Another project is the ongoing application of insulating foam to worn-out tents in Iraq and Afghanistan. At one location, Aimone said, eight air conditioning units were needed to cool the tents before the foam was applied. Now, only three air conditioning units are needed, he said.

Looking forward, Billings said, the Air Force plans to research more opportunities to use wind and solar energy and to test different fuels for vehicles. However, he said, some of the more efficient fuels are more expensive.

"We're not going to subsidize it in terms of paying a premium for the fuel, because we've got a fiduciary responsibility to the taxpayers to fly our missions as cost-effectively as possible," Billings explained.

While the
Air Force will continue to search for more efficient energy, Billings said, it will not interfere with their overall mission.

"The No. 1 thing is providing our mission and making sure that we fulfill our mission ... while developing energy resources -- whether they be wind, geothermal, solar or mineral resources under our land," he said.

(
Navy Seaman William Selby works in the New Media directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)

Rules for Political Activities Apply to Troops, Civilian Employees

American Forces Press Service

Oct. 22, 2008 - With the national election less than two weeks away, Defense Department officials are stressing to troops and civilian employees that federal law and DoD directives limit their involvement in certain political activities. Political-related "dos and don'ts" pertaining to members of all service branches are proscribed within Defense Department Directive 1344.10, titled, "Political Activities by Members of the Armed Forces on Active Duty."

The federal Hatch Act delineates what federal civilians, including those working for the Defense Department, may or may not do in the political realm.

For example, servicemembers and government civilians may attend political events such as meetings and rallies, but
military members must only be spectators and may not wear their uniforms. In addition, servicemembers aren't permitted to make public political speeches, serve in any official capacity within political groups, or take part in partisan political campaigns or conventions.

Under Hatch Act rules, government civilians may be active in and speak before political gatherings or serve as officers of political parties or partisan groups. They're also allowed to manage political campaigns and may distribute literature, but not at work. They also may write political articles, or serve as spokespersons for political parties or candidates.

military members generally aren't allowed to campaign for political office. Civilians can campaign for office in nonpartisan elections. Partisan political activity is defined as activity directed toward the success or failure of a political party or candidate for a partisan political office or partisan political group.

Yet, basic rules apply to both
military members and government civilians. Neither can use their position in the military or the government to influence or interfere with elections. Servicemembers and federal civilians never can engage in political activity on the job, in a government vehicle, or while wearing an official uniform.

For example, servicemembers and government civilians are not to distribute political literature at work. This also applies to politically partisan e-mail messages forwarded over the Internet.

Servicemembers and government civilians are encouraged to exercise their right to vote and participate in the democratic process. But they should know there are rules in place that govern the extent of their involvement in political activities, officials said.

MILITARY CONTRACTS October 22, 2008

ARMY

AM General LLC, South Bend, Ind., was awarded Oct. 21, 2008, a $179,586,188 firm/ fixed price contract for High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled vehicles to contract. Work will be performed in Mishawaka, Ind., with an estimated and completion date of Dec. 31, 2009. Bids solicited were via Broad Agency Announcement and nine bids were received. TACOM, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (DAAE07-01-C-S-001).

CPP Construction Co., Gaithersburg, Md., was awarded Oct. 17, 2008, a $14,850,000 firm/fixed price contract. Construct facilities at the Dalecarlia and McMillian Water Treatment Plants to replace existing chlorine storage and feed systems with aqueous hypochlorite storage. Work will be performed in Wash., with an estimated and completion date of July 3, 2010. Bids solicited were via the Web and nine bids were received. USA Corp of Engineers,
Baltimore, Md., is the contracting activity
(W912DR-09-C-0005).

Air Force

Assurance Technologies of Carlisle, Mass., and Lockheed Martin Space Systems of Denver, Colo., are being awarded cost plus incentive fee/fixed fee contracts for $29 million. This action will provide for Self-Awareness Space Situations Awareness acquisition, which is born out of the
Air Force's need to provide threat-warning instruments or sensors for our nation's space-based assets. This two-year developmental project will work towards demonstrating a viable sensing capability, as well as integration, for high-value space assets to include detection, assessment and notification of any attribute interference or attacks from multiple threats. At this time $10 million per contract has been obligated. Space and Missile Systems Center, Space Superiority Systems Wing, El Segundo, Calif., is the contracting activity (FA8819-09-C-0021 (AT) and FA8819-09-C-0023 (Lockheed)).

ATK Mission Research of
Santa Barbara, Calif., is being awarded a cost plus incentive fee contract for $26,116,415. The contractor shall accomplish all the effort necessary to design, fabricate, install, and test the Space Threat Assessment Testbed (STAT) System to meet all specification requirements (one lot). The STAT will create a realistic space environment to perform developmental and early operational testing of space hardware for Department of Defense, national Reconnaissance Office, and other agencies against man-made threats and naturally occurring environmental phenomena. STAT will emulate the environmental conditions existing at various orbits and self-induced effects. Additionally, STAT will emulate man-made threats to perform real-time system test and evaluation. Finally, STAT will lay the foundation for near real-time connectivity to a satellite operations center for integrated system testing, training, tactics, techniques, and procedures development. This action is a 54-month effort. At this time $1 million has been obligated. AEDC/PKM, Arnold AFB, Tenn., is the contracting activity (FA9101-09-C-0002).

Missile Defense Agency Contract Award

Alliant Techsystems Inc. of Elkton, Maryland, is being awarded a $8,331,652 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for designing, fabricating and testing components as a risk reduction program for future unitary kill vehicle divert and attitude control systems. Award is in response to the Broad Agency Announcement HQ0006-06-MP-BAA. Work will be performed at Elkton, Maryland with an estimated completion date of January 2010. The Missile Defense Agency, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity (HQ0006-08-C-0045). The contract will be incrementally funded by $850,000 using Fiscal Year 2008 Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation funds.

NAVY

Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., Newport News, Va. is being awarded a $5,851,025 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-07-C-2104) for planning and design yard functions for Standard Navy Valves in support of Nuclear Powered Submarines. Work will be performed in Newport News, Va. and is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2009. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington
Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity.

Navy Commissions Submarine New Hampshire

The Navy's newest attack submarine New Hampshire (SSN 778) will be commissioned Saturday, Oct. 25, 2008, during a 10 a.m. EDT ceremony at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine.

Sen. Judd Gregg will deliver the ceremony's principal address. The ship's sponsor, Cheryl McGuinness of Portsmouth, N.H., is the widow of Lt. Cmdr. Thomas McGuinness, a veteran
Navy pilot and co-pilot of American Airlines Flight 11 which was flown into the North Tower of the World Trade Center by terrorists on Sept. 11, 2001. The ceremony will be highlighted by a time-honored Navy tradition when McGuinness gives the order to "man our ship and bring her to life!"

The fifth submarine of the Virginia-class,
New Hampshire was delivered eight months early thanks to the Navy's on-going cost-reduction initiatives. This will mark the first time since 1996 that the Navy has commissioned two submarines of the same class in the same year -- USS North Carolina was commissioned in May.

Through their unique capabilities of stealth and endurance, Virginia-class submarines directly enable the Maritime Strategy Core Capabilities of forward presence, deterrence, sea control, power projection, and maritime security. Equally adept at operating in the world's shallow littoral regions and deep waters,
New Hampshire will significantly contribute to the mission areas of anti-submarine warfare; anti-surface warfare; special operations forces; strike; intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance; irregular warfare; and mine warfare.

Cmdr. Mike Stevens, a native of Tacoma, Wash., will become the ship's first commanding officer, leading a crew of approximately 134 officers and enlisted personnel.

The 7,800-ton
New Hampshire was built under a unique teaming arrangement between General Dynamics Electric Boat and Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding. New Hampshire is 337 feet in length, has a beam of 34 feet, and can operate at depths greater than 800 feet and at speeds exceeding 25 knots submerged. New Hampshire is also designed with a reactor plant which will not require refueling during the planned life of the ship, reducing lifecycle costs while increasing operational availability.

Additional information about this class of submarine is available online at http://www.navy.mil/navydata/fact_display.asp?cid=4100&tid=100&ct=4 .

Serbian, U.S. Officials View Balkans Regionally, Mullen Says

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

Oct. 21, 2008 - Serbian and American
military officials understand the two nations disagree about Kosovo, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today, but they recognize the relationship has to be about more than just that nation. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen met with Serbian President Boris Tadic last night and discussed ways the U.S. and Serbian militaries can work together.

Tadic recognizes that there is more to the U.S.-Serbian relationship than their disagreement on Kosovo, Mullen said. The United States quickly recognized Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia in February.

Serbia has turned to the West, and is working to join the European Union. It is also a member of NATO's Partnership for Peace program, often a stepping-stone to full membership in the alliance. The nation is working to eliminate the barriers to full integration in the European economy and the Euro-Atlantic community, the chairman said.

This includes energetically searching for Ratko Mladic and other war criminals from the Bosnian war.

"I get the sense that they are focused on the underpinning of the
military-to-military [relationship] and a future that has them as members of the European Union and NATO," Mullen said.

Serbia has a strong strategic commitment to keep tensions low and to make sure violence doesn't break out over Kosovo, Mullen said. The United States and Serbia must continue to make progress in Kosovo, he said, and the next big way is to support the European Union Rule of Law Commission in Kosovo.

"There is so much focus on security and stability in Kosovo that everything is seen through the prism of Kosovo," Mullen said. "We have got to look beyond Kosovo independence, because that isn't the end of the importance of the region. We have to focus on the Balkans writ large. I'm mindful to focus on Serbia as Serbia affects the region, and not just how Serbia affects Kosovo.

"There has to be a balance there," he said.

Mullen said he is pleased with the path of the
military-to-military relationship between the United States and Serbia. "Part of that is the great relationship with the Ohio National Guard [as part of a Guard partnership program], but part of it is the general slope-up."

The chairman said he'd like to see Serbian forces working alongside U.S. forces in actual operations. "You can only learn so much from training," he said. "There's always learning that goes on from a real-world operation."

Police Union Signs Statement of Support for Guardsmen, Reservists

By Army Staff Sgt. Michael J. Carden
American Forces Press Service

Oct. 21, 2008 - The National Fraternal Order of
Police formalized its support here yesterday for the men and women who wear both the military uniform and that of their local law enforcement agencies. "I don't know of any other profession that has as many people in the National Guard and Reserve as law enforcement," said Chuck Canterbury, president of the Police union. "It just seems like the two go hand in hand. I'd just like to apologize that we haven't done this before."

Canterbury signed his organization's commitment to ensure job security as well as employee benefits for its
police officer in the nation's military reserve components and their families during war and peacetime. The organization understands the requirements and essential roles military volunteers hold in preserving national security, he said.

"So many of our members are in the Guard or Reserves, and we just wanted to show our support and make sure the people that are mobilized are remembered and taken care of," Canterbury said. "Law enforcement and the
military are both highly regarded by the national public, and it's always good for these groups to speak in a united voice."

Now that the National Fraternal Order of
Police has formally affirmed support of its military members and the federal government, the next step is to challenge local chapters and lodges nationwide to make the same commitment, he said.

"The next step is to go out to our 2,200 lodges and chapters throughout the country and having them sign a show of support," he said. "We've just done it at the national level, so now we've got to do it at the local levels, so they will know what we're doing."

The Fraternal Order of
Police is more than 320,000 members strong and is the most affected among organizations working with the Defense Department's National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, said Thomas F. Hall, assistant defense secretary for reserve affairs.

"This show of commitment is going to mean a lot throughout the country," Hall said. "Service as a
police officer is very compatible with that of military service. With that, the support of organizations like the [Fraternal Order of Police], who understand the rules and the laws and go far beyond that, are critical."

ESGR was established in 1972 to promote cooperation and understanding between reserve-component members and their civilian employers, and to assist in the resolution of conflicts arising from an employee's
military commitment. It is the lead Defense Department organization for this mission.

Airman Missing In Action From Wwii is Identified

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from World War Two, have been identified and will be returned to his family for burial with full military honors.

He is 2nd Lt. Ray D. Packard, U.S.
Army Air Forces, of Atwood, Calif. He will be buried on Oct. 22 in Prescott, Ariz.

Representatives from the
Army met with Packard's next-of-kin to explain the recovery and identification process and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.

On Aug. 25, 1944, Packard was a pilot in a flight of 22 P-38 Lightning fighter aircraft that left the allied airfield at St. Lambert, France, to attack enemy airfields near Laon-Chambry, France. Enroute to their target, the fighter group was intercepted by more than 80 German fighters near Beauvais, France. During the ensuing dogfight, 11 P-38s were shot down, including Packard's which crashed 15 miles south of Beauvais near the town of Angy. Five of the pilots escaped and evaded enemy capture and two were taken as prisoners of war. Of the four men who were missing in action, three were later recovered and identified, but Packard remained unaccounted-for.

In 1951, a U.S.
Army Graves Registration Command team investigated the incident and interviewed a French citizen who said he recovered human remains from a P-38 crash site in Angy. The team also interviewed the mayor of Angy who said that the remains had been buried in a local cemetery, but had later been exhumed and he didn't know what happened after the disinterment. The team went to the crash site, but only found small pieces of aircraft wreckage.

In 2006, a Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) team traveled to Angy to investigate the incident. The team interviewed the son of the French citizen interviewed in 1951. He turned over to the team human remains and other non-biological evidence recovered from the crash site. The team interviewed another French citizen, an aircraft wreckage hunter, who turned over remains and other evidence from an excavation that he conducted at the site.

In 2006 and 2007, JPAC teams conducted two excavations and recovered more human remains, aircraft wreckage, and material evidence including Packard's identification tag.

Among other
forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC used dental comparisons in the identification of Packard's remains.

For additional information on the Defense Department's mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.

Defense Department at Forefront of Energy Conservation, Official Says

By Navy Seaman William Selby
Special to American Forces Press Service

Oct. 21, 2008 - The Defense Department is constantly looking for ways to proactively conserve and reuse energy, a department official said. "We're really leading the nation in looking at energy and considering energy," Mindy Montgomery, deputy director for investment, Office of the Director for Defense Research and Engineering, said during a teleconference with bloggers Oct. 20.

Montgomery said that every $10 increase in the price of a barrel of oilraises the DoD's fuel spending by $1.3 billion per year. The department has spent $3 billion to $5 billion extra each year due to the price increase over the last couple years, she said.

But energy conservation does more than help to compensate for rising prices, Montgomery said. It makes operational sense, too, she noted.

"Seventy percent of the convoys in Iraq and Afghanistan are for fuel and water," she said. "So if we can reduce those, we can reduce all the security assets that go along with all ... these convoys."

While DoD has made progress in energy conservation, Montgomery said, it still has a long way to go.

"Since 2005 we've reduced our total energy consumption by 6 percent," Montgomery said. "On the installation side, since 2003, we've reduced our demand by 10 percent."

Unfortunately, reduced energy consumption doesn't automatically translate to money saved, Montgomery said. DoD has spent $13 billion in total energy costs since 2005 due to rising fuel costs, she said.

"I'd like to say we've saved, but unfortunately, energy costs have gone way up," Montgomery said. "Even though we've reduced consumption, it still costs us more in the long run."

Montgomery said that some electricity costs have stabilized, which should lead to savings in the near future. Installation-specific improvements also should lead to savings, she said.

To reduce energy consumption at installations, the department created the Power Surety Task Force to focus on combatant commanders' energy needs, Montgomery said. For instance, in Iraq and Afghanistan, soldiers were using tents that were worn out and were not energy efficient, Montgomery said. The task force recently found a substance called installation foam to spray on the tents, which is reducing energy consumption by about 30 percent.

"Now, we're keeping the air inside," Montgomery said. "By the way, the tents are actually about 20 percent cooler than they ever got with the air conditioning," she added.

Montgomery estimated that the DoD will save about $400,000 a day and take about 13 fuel trucks off the roads a day as a result of using the insulation foam.

The Department also is looking at more efficient turbine engines for aircraft, more fuel-efficient engines for the next generation Humvee, and other alternatives that may decrease energy and fuel costs, Montgomery added.

"That program is run by the Army tank and automotive command," she said. "They're looking at different drivetrains, different kinds of engines, [and] different power systems on the vehicle."

Montgomery said the task force also has been focusing on modifying technologies and looking for new methods of power generation.

"We actually just opened a solar farm [that produces] over 14 megawatts in Nellis
Air Force Base in Nevada," she said. "We've also, for the last 20 years, had a geothermal plant at China Lake [Naval Air Weapons Station, Calif.]," she added. "I want to say it produces somewhere between 180 and 200 megawatts."

Officials also are looking at expanding its use of geothermal power generation, which uses heat from the Earth.

(
Navy Seaman William Selby works in the New Media directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)

MILITARY CONTRACTS October 21, 2008

Navy

EDO Communications and Countermeasures Systems, Inc., Thousand Oaks, Calif., is being awarded a $205,802,682 modification to previously awarded contract N00024-07-C-6311 for the production and support of 2,866 JCREW 2.1 Radio-Controlled Improvised Explosive Device (RCIED) Electronic Warfare (CREW) systems to meet urgent Department of Defense (DoD) requirements in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Vehicle-mounted CREW systems are one element of the DoD's Joint Counter RCIED Electronic Warfare program. Spiral 2.1 CREW systems are vehicle mounted electronic jammers designed to prevent the initiation of Radio-Controlled Improvised Explosive Devices. This contract is for the urgent procurement and support of CREW systems, to be used by forces in each of the
military services of the Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility. The Navy manages the joint CREW program for Office of the Secretary of Defense's Joint IED Defeat Organization. Work will be performed in Thousand Oaks, Calif. and is expected to be completed by April 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc., McLean, Va., is being awarded a $17,409,817 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for technical and engineering services for communications-electronics advanced technology systems supporting the special communications requirements division of the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River,
Maryland. The estimated level of effort for this option is 150,028 man-hours. Work will be performed in Lexington Park, Md. (70 percent) and St. Inigoes, Md. (30 percent), and is expected to be completed in October 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured by electronic solicitation, with three firms solicited and one offer received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, St. Inigoes, Md. is the contracting activity (N00421-09-C-0016).

ARMY

Grandis Inc, Milpitas, Calif., was awarded Oct. 17, 2008, a $6,048,181 cost/sharing contract. This program relates to DARPA Spin /Torque/Transfer/Random /Access/Memory technologies program. The goal of this program is to develop materials and processes to fully exploit the spin/torque transfer phenomenon for creating universal memory elements. Work will be performed in Milpitas, Calif., Charlottesville, Va., and Tuscaloosa, Ala., with an estimated and completion date of Oct. 20, 2012. Bids solicited were via broad agency announcement and nine bids were received. Defense advanced research projects agency, Arlington, Va., is the contracting activity (HR0011-09-C-0023).