Military Awards

The purpose of this message is to announce the 2007 Military Photographer of the Year (MILPHOG), Military Graphic Artist of the Year (MILGRAPH) and Military Videographer of the Year (MILVID) award winners.

The competitions are open to enlisted active duty, reserve, and national guard personnel of all the armed services, including the U.S. Coast Guard, holding the occupational specialty code(MOS, NEC, OR AFSC) of photographer, journalist, photojournalist, videographer, broadcaster, graphic artist, mass communication specialist or equivalent. All materials were produced between 1 Jan 07 AND 31 Dec 07. Winning entries may be viewed on The Defense Information School (DINFOS) website at WWW.DINFOS.OSD.MIL. A combined award ceremony will be held at the DINFOS, to honor the achievements of the award winners, on 16 May 2008, 1000. All winners, their commanding officers and their guests are invited to attend.

The following have been announced as winners of the Military Photographer of the Year (MILPHOG) Competition.

Military Photographer of the Year - USAF SSgt Stacy L. Pearsall, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. 1st Runner-up - USAF TSgt Jeremy T. Lock, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. Honorable Mention (HM) - USAF TSgt Adrian Cadiz, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF MSgt Andrew N. Dunaway, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C.. HM - USAF SSgt Shawn P. Weismiller, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF TSgt Cecilio M. Ricardo, Air Force News Agency, San Antonio, TX.

COMBAT DOCUMENTATION: 1st Place - USAF SSgt Stacy L. Pearsall, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. 2nd Place - USN MC2 Kevin S. O'Brien. Department of the Navy/Office of the Secretary, Pentagon. 3rd Place - USN MC2 Kittipongse Amaritnant, NECC Det. Combat Camera, Norfolk, VA. HM - USAF TSgt Jeremy T. Lock, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USN MC1 Brien R. Aho, Naval Media Center, Anacostia Naval Station, D.C. HM - USA SSG Adam R. Mancini, HHC JMRC OPS GROUP VIPERS. HM - USAF SrA Nicholas J. Pilch, 437th Airlift Wing, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF A1C Evelyn Chavez, 27th Special Operations Wing, Canon AFB, NM. HM - USN MC2 Todd C. Frantom, NECC DET Combat Camera, Norfolk, VA. HM - USAF TSgt Adrian Cadiz, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C.

PICTURE STORY: 1st Place - USAF SSgt Stacy L. Pearsall, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. 2nd Place - AF TSgt Jeremy T. Lock, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. 3rd Place - USAF TSgt Cecilio M. Ricardo, Air Force News Agency, San Antonio, TX. HM - USN MC1 Michael L. Larson, Fleet Combat Camera Group Pacific, San Diego, CA. HM - USN MC1 Brien R. Aho, Naval Media Center, Anacostia Naval Station, D.C. HM- USN PH3 Kristopher S. Wilson, USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75).

NEWS: 1st Place - USAF SSGT Shawn P. Weismiller, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. 2nd Place - USN MC2 John Stratton, Fleet Public Affairs Center, Atlantic, Norfolk, VA. 3rd Place - USAF SrA Christopher L. Ingersoll, 1 FW/PA, Langley AFB, VA. HM - USAF TSgt Cecilio M. Ricardo, Air Force News Agency, San Antonio, TX. HM - USAF SSgt Bennie J. Davis, Air Force News Agency, San Antonio, TX. HM - USAF SSgt Shawn P. Weismiller, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USN MCSA Matthew Bookwalter, Fleet Public Affairs Center, Atlantic, Norfolk, VA. HM - USAF TSgt Sean M. Worrell, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C.

FEATURE: 1st Place - USAF SSgt Stacy L. Pearsall, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. 2nd Place - USAF TSgt Jeremy T. Lock, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. 3rd Place - USN MC2 Todd C. Frantom, NECC DET Combat Camera, Norfolk, VA. HM - USAF SSgt Stacy L. Pearsall, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USN PH2 Johansen Laurel, Fleet Combat Camera Group Pacific, NAS North Island, CA. HM - USAF MSgt Andrew N. Dunaway, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USN MC1 Brien R. Aho, Naval Media Center, Anacostia Naval Station, D.C. HM - USAF SSgt Joshua L. DeMotts, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAFR MSgt Richard Sforza, 4th Combat Camera Squadron, March ARB, CA. HM - USMC Sgt Clinton F. Firstbrook, E Co., 4th LAR, Syracuse, NY. HM - USAF SSgt Brian P. Ferguson, Air Force News Agency, San Antonio, TX. HM - USAF TSgt Adrian Cadiz, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C.

PORTRAIT PERSONALITY: 1st Place - USAF SSgt Stacy L. Pearsall, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. 2nd Place - USAF TSgt Jeromy K. Cross, 460 SW/PAZ, Buckley AFB, CO. 3rd Place - USAF SSgt Joshua L. DeMotts, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF MSgt Andrew N. Dunaway, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF SSgt Joann S. Makinano, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF TSgt Jeremy T. Lock, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF SSgt Joshua L. DeMotts, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF TSgt Adrian Cadiz, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF TSgt Jeremy T. Lock, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C.

ILLUSTRATIVE PHOTOGRAPHY: 1st Place - USAF TSgt Matthew J. Hannen, AETC/SEM Torch Magazine, Cibolo, TX. 2nd Place - USMC Sgt Clinton F. Firstbrook, E Co., 4th LAR, Syracuse, NY. 3RD PLACE - USAF TSgt Cecilio M. Ricardo, Air Force News Agency, San Antonio, TX. HM - USAF SSgt Jake N. Bailey, MPJ/Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY. HM - USAF SrA Clay Lancaster, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USN MCSN Daniel A. Barker, Fleet Public Affairs Center, Pacific, San Diego, CA. HM - USA SPC Kieran A. Cuddihy, 55th Combat Camera, Ft. Meade, MD. HM - USN MC2 James R. Evans, USS Abraham Lincoln CVN 72.

PICTORIAL: 1st Place - USAF SSgt Stacy L. Pearsall, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. 2nd Place - USA SSG Jon Soucy, 58th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Reisterstown, MD. 3rd Place - USAF MSgt Andrew N. Dunaway, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF SSgt Stacy L. Pearsall, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USN MCSN Matthew Williams, USS Harry Truman (CVN 75). HM - USN MC1 Brien R. Aho, Naval Media Center, Anacostia Naval Station, D.C. HM - USCG PA2 Robert L. Nash, Coast Guard Public Affairs District Seven, Atlantic Beach, FL. HM - USMC Sgt Ethan E. Rocke, III Marine Expeditionary Force/Marine Corps Bases Japan Consolidated Public Affairs Office, Camp Foster, Japan.

SPORTS: 1st Place - USA PFC Kirby Rider, 115 MPAD, Baqouba, Iraq. 2nd Place - USN MC1 Tiffini M. Jones, OPNAV, Chief of Naval Operations, Pentagon, DC. 3rd Place - USAF SrA Clay Lancaster, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF TSgt Jeremy T. Lock, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USMC Cpl Randall A. Clinton, 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, Camp Lejeune, N.C. HM - USAF SSgt Manuel J. Martinez, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF TSgt Jeremy T. Lock, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF TSgt Cecilio M. Ricardo, Air Force News Agency, San Antonio, TX.

The following have been announced as winners of Military Graphic Artist of the Year (MILGRAPH) Competition.

MILITARY GRAPHIC ARTIST OF THE YEAR, USAF MSgt William Vance, Wing Education & Training Division, Lackland AFB, TX. 1st Runner-Up, USN MCC Pierre Georges, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Pentagon, D.C.

ILLUSTRATION: 1st Place - USMC Cpl Christopher Peace, III Marine Expeditionary Force/Marine Corps Bases Japan, Consolidated Public Affairs Office, Camp Foster, Japan. 2nd Place - USN MCC Pierre Georges, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Pentagon, D.C. 3rd Place - USA SSG Peter Donigan, OAA, AMVID, Pentagon, D.C. HM - USAF MSgt William Vance, Wing Education & Training Division, Lackland AFB, TX. HM - USAF MSgt William Vance, Wing Education & Training Division, Lackland AFB, TX.

FINE ART: 1st Place - USAF MSgt William Vance, Wing Education & Training Division, Lackland AFB, TX. 2nd Place - USN MC1 Russell Stewart, Defense Information School, Ft. Meade, MD. 3rd Place - USN MC1 Russell Stewart, Defense Information School, Ft. Meade, MD. HM - USN MCC Pierre Georges, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Pentagon, D.C. HM - USAF SSgt Monique Jose, Defense Information School, Ft. Meade, MD.

DIGITAL ART: 1st Place - USAF TSgt Erik Simmons, 142CF/PA Oregon Air National Guard, Portland, OR. 2nd Place - USAF MSgt William Vance, Wing Education & Training Division, Lackland AFB, TX. 3rd Place - USA SSG Deidre Piechocki, Recruiting and Retention Command, Lansing, MI. HM - USAF TSgt Erik Simmons, 142CF/PA Oregon Air National Guard, Portland, OR. HM - USAF TSgt Erik Simmons, 142CF/PA Oregon Air National Guard, Portland, OR. HM - USAF TSgt Erik Simmons, 142CF/PA Oregon Air National Guard, Portland, OR. HM - USA SGT Brandon Spragins, HHC, 5th Signal Command, Mannheim, Germany. HM - USAF MSgt William Vance, Wing Education & Training Division, Lackland AFB, TX.

WEB DESIGN: HM - USAF SSgt Zachary Bolda, United States Air Force Air Demonstration Squadron, Nellis AFB, NV.

ANIMATION: 1st Place - USAF MSgt George Jumara, 435 CS/SCSVG, Ramstein, Germany. 2nd Place - USAF TSgt Rick Dunaway, HQ Air University/Air University Television, Maxwell AFB, AL. 3rd Place - USAF TSgt Rick Dunaway, HQ Air University/Air University Television, Maxwell AFB, AL. HM - USAF MSgt William Pope, 439th Airlift Wing Public Affairs, Chicopee, MA.

PUBLICATION: 1st Place - USAF TSgt Matthew Hannen, AETC/SEM Torch Magazine, Cibolo, TX. 2nd Place - USAF MSgt George Jumara, 435 CS/SCSVG, Ramstein, Germany. 3rd Place - USAF SSgt Jon DuMond, USAFADS, Nellis AFB, NV. HM - USA SPC Russel Schnaare, USASMA HQ & HQ Company, Ft Bliss, TX

MULTIMEDIA: HM - USA SSG Peter Donigan, OAA, AMVID, Pentagon, D.C.

LAYOUT & DESIGN: 1st Place - USN MC2 Steven Shepard, USS Blue Ridge, Yokosuka, JAPAN. 2nd Place - USN MCC Pierre Georges, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Pentagon, D.C. 3rd Place - USN MC1 Brien R. Aho, Naval Media Center, Anacostia Naval Station, D.C. HM - USN MC1 Brien R. Aho, Naval Media Center, Anacostia Naval Station, D.C. HM - USCG PA2 Lauren Downs, Boston, MA HM - USAF SSgt Aaron Perkins, 142 FW PA, Portland, OR. HM - USA SGT Brandon Spragins, HHC, 5th Signal Command, Mannheim, Germany.

The following have been announced as winners of the Military Videographer of the Year (MILVID) Competition.

MILITARY VIDEOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR - USN MC2(AW/SW) Summer Anderson, FLTCOMCAMGRUPAC, NAS North Island, CA.

COMBAT DOCUMENTARY: 1st Place - USN MC2(AW/SW) Summer Anderson, FLTCOMCAMGRUPAC, NAS North Island, CA. 2nd Place - USAF TSgt Michael Davis, Vermont National Guard Public Affairs, South Burlington, VT. 3rd Place - TSgt Michael Hasenauer, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USAF SrA Geneve Stone, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C.

EDITING: 1st Place - USAF SrA Jose Rodriguez Jr., 435 ABW PA, Ramstein, Germany. 2nd Place - USN MC1 Shane McCoy, Naval Media Center, Anacostia Naval Station, D.C. 3rd Place - USA SSG Raymond Flores, Soldiers Media Center/ Soldiers Radio and Television, Alexandria, VA. HM - USMC LCpl Victor Velazquez, H&S Battalion, Quantico, VA. HM - USMC GySgt Steven Williams, MarinesTV, Division of Pubic Affairs, Washington D.C. HM - USN MC2(AW) Andrew Geraci, Naval Media Center, Broadcast Detachment, Diego Garcia.

DOCUMENTARY: 1st Place - USAF MSgt James Monk, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. 2nd Place - USAF TSgt James Carney, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. 3rd Place - USAF MSgt James Monk, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C.

FEATURE STORY: 1st Place - USMC CPL Christian Winter, MarinesTV, Division of Pubic Affairs Washington, DC. 2nd Place - USMC GySgt Steven Williams, MarinesTV, Division of Pubic Affairs, Washington D.C. 3rd Place - USA SSG Raymond Flores, Soldiers Media Center/ Soldiers Radio and Television, Alexandria, VA. HM - USN MC2 Jason Zuidema, Fleet Public Affairs Center Pacific, NAS North Island, CA. HM - USN MC2(AW) Andrew Geraci, Naval Media Center, Broadcast Detachment, Diego Garcia.

FIELD PRODUCTION: 1st Place - USN MC2(AW/SW) Summer Anderson, FLTCOMCAMGRUPAC, NAS North Island, CA. 2nd Place - USAF TSgt Michael Davis, Vermont National Guard Public Affairs, South Burlington, VT. 3rd Place - USAF TSgt Michael Davis, Vermont National Guard Public Affairs, South Burlington, VT. HM - USAF MSgt James Monk, 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston AFB, S.C. HM - USMC Cpl Tanner Iskra, HQSVCBN, CVIC, Quantico, VA.

Please direct any questions to LT Glenn Sircy; Comm. Tel: 301-677-6428 / DSN: 622-6428 / Email: glenn.sircy@dinfos.osd.mil

Face of Defense: Women's Aviation Hall of Fame Inducts Air Force Pilot

By Staff Sgt. Jeremy Larlee, USAF
Special to American Forces Press Service

March 19, 2008 - In the months since her last flight in the No. 3 jet for the Air Force's Thunderbirds, Maj. Nicole Malachowski has had a hard time attaching perspective to being the first woman to fly on a service-level U.S. military flight demonstration team. But at the San Diego Air and Space Museum on March 14, the major said, she was blindsided by an emotional moment that placed her achievements into focus.

The visit to the museum was part of the 19th Annual International Women in Aviation Conference held here March 12 through 15. The conference, attended by more than 3,200 people, included an exhibit hall, speeches by aviation legends and professional development classes. It ended with Malachowski's induction into the Women in Aviation International's Pioneer Hall of Fame, along with Nancy Love, Geraldine Mock, Margaret Ringenberg and the women's section of the Air Transport Auxiliary.

Earlier in the year, Malachowski donated one of her show suits to the museum, which had turned it into a display in time for the conference. The major said she had what she called a "non-fighter-pilot moment" and had to excuse herself for a few minutes to get composed when she got her first glimpse of the display.

"I'm 33 years old and looking at something that I wore in so many air shows displayed in a museum," she said. "People were just looking at it and taking photos and standing there. I realized the significance of what I have done and how I could inspire others."

Malachowski said it was an honor to attend the conference and she enjoyed being in the ranks of historic female aviators.

"Women have been involved in aviation since the time of hot-air balloons," she said. "It's only normal to me that women are going to add their strength and skills to the effort of pushing aviation forward."

The major said one of the highlights for her in the conference was interacting with members of the Women Airforce Service Pilots, which was an organization essential in freeing up male pilots for combat service and duties in World War II. The women would transport aircraft throughout the U.S. and Canada. They also assisted in training pilots. Thirty-eight women died while performing these duties.

"We have to honor the accomplishments and courage of the Women Airforce Service Pilots," Malachowski said. "People think it is great that these women were flying fighter aircraft 60 years ago. It is not remarkable because they were women. It is remarkable because they were there in defense of the free world and helped bring our country and allies to victory. I know I had the Thunderbirds experience and I'm standing here today in this wonderful uniform because of the contributions and sacrifices of people like them."

In her duties as an Air Force security forces airman, Senior Airman Tara Currah has spent a lot of time guarding aircraft while stationed at McChord Air Force Base, Wash. She said she really enjoyed the professional development courses in the conference, and had a chance to speak with Malachowski.

"It has been inspiring to see so many powerful women," she said. "It makes you feel like you can accomplish anything if you put your mind to it."

The major said her mantra has always been that actions speak louder than words.

"I wanted to show through my actions that women are capable of anything," she said. "I did my best, and I hope I represented our Air Force with the respect it deserves."

(Air Force Staff Sgt. Jeremy Larlee serves at the Air Force News Agency.)

Army Seeks DNA Samples from Families of MIA Soldiers

By Kristen Noel
American Forces Press Service

March 19, 2008 - More than 6,300 families need to be located to collect DNA samples for the purpose of identifying missing soldiers from World War II and the wars in Korea and Vietnam, a U.S. Army official said yesterday. The military maintains a database of mitochondrial DNA samples from family members of missing-in-action soldiers in the Armed Forces DNA Identification Lab, Army Lt. Col. Julius Smith, chief of past conflict repatriation for Army Casualty and Mortuary Affairs, said during a teleconference with online journalists and "bloggers."

Smith explained that the DNA samples help the Army identify missing soldiers' remains when they are uncovered, so they can be returned to the families.

The Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command continually sends anthropologists and forensic analysts to search past-conflict locations identified as potential recovery sites, provided the country where the conflict took place allows U.S. access.

Mitochondrial DNA is used for identification because it can be extracted from skeletal remains, which are the only kind of remains coming back from conflicts that happened more than 50 years ago, Linda Baublitz, chief of the Korean War section of the Past Conflict Repatriation Branch, explained.

The mitochondrial DNA source is passed only through the maternal line, Baublitz said, so the Army has to locate eligible donors from the mother's side of the missing soldiers' families.

The DNA samples are collected through an oral swab kit that is mailed to the donor, she said.

Baublitz also said the Army Past Conflict Repatriation Branch has launched an outreach program to try to locate more eligible donors from families of unaccounted-for soldiers from the Korean and Vietnam wars. Efforts to obtain family DNA samples for missing World War II soldiers are being handled on a case-by-case basis, Smith said.

The Army has a record of missing soldiers' next of kin from personnel files, Smith said, but the lapsed time has made it difficult to track down current information on family members.

"It's hard to keep in touch with (the families) now, because most of them ... are now getting older," Carolyn Floyd, the Southeast Asia section chief for the Past Conflict Repatriation Branch, said. "You're getting out of the line of having parents or wives."

Though contracted professional and amateur volunteer genealogists, as well as volunteers from veterans' groups, have helped the Army track down thousands of missing soldiers' families, Smith said, public input is needed to identify families with missing soldiers and to keep family records updated.

Smith explained that the Army provides lines of communication for the public to come forward with information. Families with unaccounted-for soldiers, or anyone who knows of a family with an unaccounted-for soldier, should contact the Past Conflict Repatriation Branch by calling 1-800-892-2490 or sending an e-mail to tapscper@conus.army.mil, he said.

"The information you provide can be the difference in an identification being made and a soldier coming home," Smith said.

(Kristen Noel works for the New Media branch of the American Forces Information Service.)

MILITARY CONTRACTS March 19, 2008

NAVY

Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co., Sunnyvale, Calif., is being awarded a $25,000,000 modification (PH0006) under previously awarded cost-plus-fixed-fee contract (N00030-07-C-0100) alternate release assembly design, modeling, and testing efforts. The modification increases the total contract value to $1,026,269,387. Work will be performed primarily in Sunnyvale, Calif., and places yet to be determined. Work is expected to be completed May 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year (FY2008). The contract was not competitively procured. Strategic Systems Programs, Arlington, Va., is the contracting activity.

ITT Communications & Countermeasures Systems, Thousand Oaks, Calif., is being awarded a $24,754,858 modification to previously awarded contract N00024-07-C-6311 to exercise an option for the production and support of 325 JCREW 2.1 Radio-Controlled Improvised Explosive Device Electronic Warfare systems to meet urgent Department of Defense requirements in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Work will be performed in Thousand Oaks, Calif., (87 percent) and Lancaster, Calif., (13 percent), and is expected to be completed by Nov. 2008. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity.

Protective Products International of Sunrise, Fla., is being awarded a $12,726,353 delivery order (0002) under firm fixed price, indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract M67854-07-D-3065 for Modular Tactical Vest consumable spare and repair parts to sustain currently fielded MTVs. Work will be performed in Granite Falls, N.C., (70 percent) and in Sunrise, Fla., (30 percent). The effort is expected to be completed by Mar. 2009. Contract funds in the amount of $12,726,353 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was a sole source award. The Marine Corps Systems Command (M67854), Quantico, Va., is the contracting activity (M67854-07-D-3065).

Wyle Laboratories, Inc., Huntsville, Ala., is being awarded an $11,320,335 cost-plus-award-fee contract for the services and materials necessary to support the analysis, design, development, test, integration, deployment, and operations of information technology (IT) systems and services. Work will be performed in China Lake, Calif., (90 percent) and Pt. Mugu, Calif.,(10 percent)and is expected to be completed in Jul. 2008. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured. The Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, China Lake, Calif., is the contracting activity (N68936-08-D-0018).

Windsor Continental Corp.*, Alexandria, Va., is being awarded a $11,149,992 firm-fixed-price supply contract to provide collective training and simulation systems to support Army National Guard training requirements in the form of deployable instrumentation capability (Flex Train) and the Mobile Virtual Training Capability for unit training. These training and simulation capabilities shall provide a highly realistic battlespace experience for training units as they prepare for mobilization in accordance with the Force Generation Model. This contract includes an option which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $12,443,686. Work will be performed in Alexandria, Va., and work is expected to be complete by Mar. 2012. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This is a competitive 100 precent small business set-aside procurement. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Division, Indian Head, Md., is the contracting activity (N00174-08-C-0022).

Lockheed Martin Services, Cherry Hill, N.J., is being awarded a $9,863,300 cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for security cooperation, security assistance and foreign military sales technical and program/project management support services to Naval Inventory Control Point. This contract includes one base year and three one-year option periods, which if exercised, bring the total estimated value of the contract to $47,538,352. Work will be performed in Philadelphia, Pa., (70 percent) and Washington, D.C., (30 percent), and work is expected to be completed by Mar. 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured. The Fleet Industrial Supply Center Norfolk, Contracting Department Philadelphia Division is the contracting activity (N00189-08-D-Z025).

Reliable Builders, Inc., P.O. Box 7536, Tamuning, Guam 96931, a Section 8(a), certified Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB), certified HUBZone firm is being awarded a $8,029,000.00 firm-fixed price contract for the FY08 MILCON SAKW335780B, upgrade northwest field infrastructure, phase II, Andersen Air Force Base, Guam. Award is made for CLIN 0001 in the amount of $6,309,000.00; CLIN 0002 in the amount of $250,000.00; CLIN 0003 in the amount of $180,000.00; CLIN 0004 in the amount of $470,000.00; and CLIN 0005 in the amount of $820,000.00. Total contract award is $8,029,000.00. Work will be performed in Guam on Andersen Air Force Base and is expected to be completed 7 November 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was a set-aside for Historically Underutilized Business Zone Small Business Concerns with 28 solicitation packages distributed and three (3) proposals received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Pacific, Construction Contracts Branch, is the contracting activity (contract number N62742-08-C-1309).

AIR FORCE

TW and Co., of Lanham, Md., is being awarded a firm fixed price contract for $8,857,852. This requirement contract is for certified armed security guard services for Installation Entry Control, Commercial Vehicle Inspection and Visitor Control Center at 17 Air Force CONUS locations. At this time $8,857,852 has been obligated. Randolph AFB, Texas is the contracting activity (FA3002-07-D-0024 (via task order 000201)).

Southern Protective Services (SEP), Inc. of Rock Hill, S.C., is being awarded a firm fixed price contract for $6,416,084. This requirement contract is for certified armed security guard services for Installation Entry Control, Commercial Vehicle Inspection and Visitor Control Center at 15 Air Force CONUS locations. At this time $6,416,084 has been obligated. Randolph AFB, Texas is the contracting activity (FA3002-07-D-0022 (via task order 000201)).

U.S. and Indian Officials Discuss WWII Recovery Missions

Officials of the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) met today with representatives of the Indian government in New Delhi to lay the groundwork for future U.S.-Indian humanitarian operations in Arunachal Pradesh State.

During the meeting, the officials discussed a tentative timeline for future investigations and recoveries of aircraft crash sites associated with missing U.S. servicemen from World War II. In addition, they discussed cooperation in the areas of team security, medical support, logistical requirements and transportation.

JPAC officials will return to the region in the spring to discuss details of future operations with Ministry of Defense and Arunachal Pradesh officials. This will be followed by site visits in early fall to determine the scope of debris fields and evaluate unique logistical requirements associated with each site. This process sets the groundwork for future recovery teams by clearly defining the work that will be required to properly and efficiently excavate known aircraft crash locations.

The first full excavation mission should begin shortly after these site visits and is scheduled to be finished by the end of the year.

"This meeting is a significant step in a partnership that will enable our teams to go into areas where we hope to find remains of missing American service members," said Rear Adm. Donna Crisp, JPAC commander.

"We look forward to developing closer ties and stronger working relationships with our Indian counterparts as we work together to accomplish this humanitarian mission."

There are more than 1,300 individuals missing from loss incidents - primarily aircraft crashes - in the region known as "the Hump" or the "China-Burma-India" theatre of operations in WWII. While it is impossible to say with certainty in which country a specific plane was lost, JPAC analysts estimate more than 400 Americans are unaccounted-for in this region.

For additional information on this mission in India, call JPAC at (808) 448-1938, or the Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office at (703) 699-1420.

NATO Progress in Afghanistan Significant, General Says

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

March 19, 2008 - Despite the task NATO faced when it arrived in Afghanistan in 2003, the alliance has made significant progress in the country, the deputy chairman of the alliance's military committee said here yesterday. "NATO's done a remarkable job ... in expanding their operations, from what began just in the Kabul area, throughout the entire country by late 2006," U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Karl W. Eikenberry told the Pentagon Channel. "Today, NATO does have the responsibility for the maintenance of security throughout the entire country of Afghanistan."

NATO came into Afghanistan under a United Nations mandate to establish an International Security Assistance Force, or ISAF. That force had the responsibility of providing security in the greater capital area of Kabul.

By October 2006, NATO had expanded its operations throughout the country and was tackling three main tasks, which it continues today. Those tasks include helping the Afghan government extend control throughout the country and developing the necessary security institutions to maintain that control.

"The third major task is helping to create the conditions throughout the country for sustainable reconstruction and development to be conducted," said Eikenberry, who commanded coalition forces in Afghanistan until NATO assumed responsibility in October 2006.

About 47,000 NATO servicemembers, including about 19,000 Americans, serve in the country under the NATO flag. Most of an additional contingent of 3,200 U.S. Marines deploying to Afghanistan will serve in combat roles in the eastern or southern areas of the country.

"Others in the Marine forces will be employed in smaller units that will be partnered with the Afghan National Police," Eikenberry said. They will provide training, logistics and combat support, operating in the more difficult districts of Afghanistan that are more threatened by Taliban, he added.

Steady engagement and lessons learned have led not only to progress in Afghanistan, but also to growth in alliance members' capabilities.

"I look at our non-U.S. NATO partners, (and) I'm seeing the same trends inside of Afghanistan of steady improvement in terms of their doctrine, their capabilities (and) the equipment they're bringing to bear," Eikenberry said. "I also see that the alliance, in terms of multinational practices or alliance practices, are steadily improving."

That's a fact the general has noticed in the relaxing of some of the operational restrictions, or "caveats," that some alliance members place on their forces. Those restrictions have in the past and could continue to reduce NATO's overall operational effectiveness, he said.

"But all told, again, I would emphasize that NATO has made significant progress even in terms of, over time, reducing these kinds of restrictions that are placed on forces," he added. "A bit more progress needs to be made."

While the alliance's mission moves forward in Afghanistan, it's status quo in the newly independent republic of Kosovo, the general said.

The former Serbian province's declaration of independence has changed the environment on the ground, Eikenberry said.

"But still today, the Kosovo force under NATO command operates under the U.N. Security Council Resolution 1244, still maintains the mandate of maintaining a safe and secure environment, and it does so in an impartial manner," he said.

The United States provides about 10 percent of the 16,000-member NATO force in Kosovo.

64 Universities to Receive $200 Million in Research Funding

The Department of Defense announced today 34 awards to academic institutions to perform multi-disciplinary basic research. The total amount of the awards is expected to be $19.7 million in fiscal 2008 and $200 million over five years. Awards are subject to the successful completion of negotiations between the academic institutions and DoD research offices that will make the awards: the Army Research Office (ARO), the Office of Naval Research (ONR), and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR).

The awards are the result of the fiscal year 2008 competition that ARO, ONR, and AFOSR conducted under the DoD Multi-disciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) program. The MURI program supports multi-disciplinary basic research in areas of DoD relevance that intersect more than one traditional science and engineering discipline. Therefore, a MURI effort typically involves a team of basic researchers with expertise in a variety of disciplines. For a research area suited to a multi-disciplinary approach, bringing together scientists and engineers with different disciplinary backgrounds can accelerate both basic research progress and transition of research results to application.

To assemble a team with the requisite disciplinary strengths, most MURI efforts involve researchers from multiple academic institutions, as well as multiple academic departments. Based on the proposals selected in the fiscal 2008 competition, a total of 64 academic institutions are expected to participate in the 34 research efforts. Three non-U.S. academic institutions will participate in two of the MURI efforts, but will receive no funding from the MURI program.

The MURI program complements other DoD basic research programs that support traditional, single-investigator university research by supporting multi-disciplinary teams with awards larger and longer in duration than traditional awards. The awards announced today are for a three-year base period with a two-year option contingent upon availability of appropriations and satisfactory research progress. Consequently, MURI awards can provide greater sustained support than single-investigator awards for the education and training of students pursuing advanced degrees in science and engineering fields critical to DoD, as well as for associated infrastructure such as research instrumentation.

The MURI program is highly competitive. ARO, ONR, and AFOSR solicited proposals in 18 topics important to DoD and received a total of 104 proposals. The 34 proposals announced today were selected for funding based on merit review by panels of experts in the pertinent science and engineering fields.

The list of projects selected for fiscal 2008 funding may be found at: http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Mar2008/d20080318muri.pdf.

America Supports You: Mental Health Providers Give Back to Military

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

March 18, 2008 - Help for servicemembers coping with the effects of wartime service is just a phone call or a mouse click away, thanks to a nationwide network of mental health professionals. "Give an Hour" is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that has created a national network of mental health professionals providing free counseling services to returning veterans and their loved ones, according to Barbara Romberg, the group's founder and president. "The participating mental health professionals will offer a wide range of services including individual, marital and family therapy, substance abuse counseling, and treatment for post traumatic stress disorder," she said.

The organization's member providers offer an hour of their time each week to provide services to servicemembers and their spouses and children.

Give an Hour takes the offer a step further by extending its services to parents, siblings and unmarried partners who aren't entitled to receive similar services through the military. This group might have access to mental health services, but may be less likely to seek help if it's costly or difficult to find, Romberg said.

Romberg said she's hoping that will never be the case, as one of Give an Hour's goals is to recruit tens of thousands of mental health providers across the country willing to offer their services. To date, Give an Hour has 1,000 providers participating nationwide -- a number Romberg hopes to see increase substantially in the near future.

"There are approximately 400,000 licensed mental health professionals in the United States. Our goal is to have 10 percent of them join our efforts," she said. "With 40,000 providers offering free services for which the average fee would be $100 an hour, we will be saving the military and the taxpayer a total of $4 million per week."

Until that goal is reached, however, if a request is received and there's no provider in the immediate area, Give an Hour will work to find one, Romberg said. Organization officials will either work to recruit a provider to serve that area or find a one who will offer phone support.

Give an Hour recently became a supporter of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.

"America Supports You will help Give an Hour get much-needed mental health services to our troops and their loved ones by letting them know help is available wherever they are," Romberg said.

Face of Defense: Buddy System Proves Friendly for Medics From Guam

By Chuck Roberts
Special to American Forces Press Service

March 18, 2008 - Whenever Airman Tiamae Cruz needed a helping hand while growing up in Guam, a friendly face seemed to arrive within minutes. So when the 18-year-old decided to join the Air Force and leave the confines of her Pacific island measuring 30 miles long by 12 miles wide, she looked around for the usual reassurance. Enter Airman Taija Alcantara. The grammar school chum, high school sporting rival and rediscovered best friend was a fellow student at the University of Guam. Both wondered what to do with their lives and were on similar career paths. Cruz aspired to become a veterinarian; Alcantara hoped to become a cardiac surgeon.

"It would be great if you joined (the Air Force with) me," Cruz recalls saying to Alcantara.

A military career in unknown lands was a daunting proposal. Alcantara had never left the island, except for a few months as a 4-year-old, while Cruz had visited the U.S. occasionally, but only with family.

"We were really, really scared and nervous," Cruz said. "It was a big step. Being from Guam, everything is small and you're used to leaning on your family and friends."

It seemed clear the developing plan called for some sort of guaranteed Guam support network, which fortunately the local military recruiter was able to offer. Through the Air Force Buddy System, he was able to guarantee the friends would spend the first six weeks of their military career together at basic training. At the time it seemed like enough, but the contract they signed would later turn out to be much more than they could have hoped for.

When their 24-hour flight to basic military training ended with a screaming welcoming committee at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, the value of the buddy system became immediately apparent.

"Basic training was kind of scary," Cruz said. "Taija was my support network."

Their companionship helped overcome the initial tears and desire to return home, but it wasn't always encouraged, said Alcantara, a native of Mangilao, Guam.

From basic training, the two comrades could have gone in different directions both professionally and geographically. They entered the Air Force as "open general," meaning they did not have a guaranteed specific job. Instead, during basic training they would pick a job among five choices, and surgical technician was an option offered to both. For two women seeking medical careers, it was the obvious choice.

The Guam connection continued to Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas, for eight weeks of technical training. When that ended, they once again beat the buddy system odds and were both assigned to Travis Air Force Base, Calif., for six additional weeks of on-the-job training.

Not only their basic training instructor, but also subsequent technical school instructors felt the young women were too dependent upon each other and attempted to separate the pair. Cruz said some encouraged competitiveness between them, but for Cruz and Alcantara, the issue was friendship and supporting each other along this new military adventure.

"We can work on our own. We can function on our own. It's just that we find sometimes we function better together," said Cruz, whose hometown is Yona, Guam.

At both training bases they said they continued to hear comments such as, "Where's your other half?" or "Why aren't you with your twin?" In fact, now that they were roommates with more free time on their hands, they joked about feeling like true sisters, sharing both good times and occasional spats followed by a door slam.

With technical school completed, both airmen returned to Guam, where they participated in the Recruiter Assistance Program while on leave. As part of the recruiter program, airmen visit schools and other locations to help promote the Air Force. Alcantara also got married, with her maid of honor being who else but her fellow airman and best friend. They picked out the wedding gown together while wearing their battle dress uniforms.

After their trip home, it was time to begin their Air Force careers. The odds were further stacked against the buddy system extending to a job at the same location in the global Air Force. But they both put Germany at the top of their "dream sheet" of potential bases they would like to be stationed at, and Germany it was.

"We were excited when we heard we were coming (to Ramstein Air Base)," Alcantara said. "But it's so big and you just don't know where to start. I'm in culture shock."

She soon faces even further adjustment when her husband, Shawn Alcantara, departs for Air Force basic military training.

Cruz has had to adjust her lifestyle too.

"I'm freezing, first of all," Cruz said. Since her Dec. 2 arrival, she has adjusted to life in Landstuhl, which is in stark contrast with Guam, where she described a life of "always at the beach" swimming, snorkeling or playing sports.

"My whole system has been thrown off," Cruz said. "I don't know what to do. I don't know who I am. I don't know how to act sometimes. It's weird trying to readjust and find myself again."

Although new to their career field and to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center where they continue with their on-the-job training, both airmen are solid performers who have hit the ground running, their supervisor said.

"Airmen Alcantara and Cruz have already proven themselves to be valuable assets to our surgical suite," said Tech. Sgt. Jonah Gruner, the noncommissioned officer in charge of the operating room. "They both are extremely motivated. They work together seamlessly, yet they seem to keep a good-natured competition between them while completing their career development courses. Hopefully, their friendship will continue to grow throughout their careers. We are thrilled to have them here."

Their friendship seems certain to continue throughout their careers, but only time will tell if their careers will continue parallel to their friendship.

"That will be interesting. We don't know," Cruz said of the prospect. If their future leads in different directions, she said that will be okay because they will have grown both personally and professionally in the meantime.

"Honestly, she's like my sister," Cruz said. "We're always going to be there for each other. Family is family. If something happens to your family, you're going to be there for them."

(Chuck Roberts is assigned to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center Public Affairs.)

National Security Archive Update, March 19, 2008

Treasury Wins 2008 "Rosemary Award" as Worst FOIA Agency

National Security Archive Annual Award Cites Shredded Letters, Decade-Long Delays, and Sub-Prime Performance

For more information contact the National Security Archive staff:
Thomas Blanton, Meredith Fuchs, Kristin Adair, Catherine Nielsen 202/994-7000

http://www.nsarchive.org

Washington D.C., March 19, 2008 - As if the sub-prime credit crisis was not enough, the U.S. Treasury Department today won the fourth annual Rosemary Award for the worst performance by a federal agency under the Freedom of Information Act.

Given annually by the Emmy- and George Polk Award-winning National Security Archive at George Washington University, the Rosemary recognizes outstandingly bad responsiveness to the public that flouts the letter and spirit of the Freedom of Information Act. The Award is named after President Nixon's secretary Rose Mary Woods and the backwards-leaning stretch with which she erased an eighteen-and-a-half minute section of a key Watergate conversation on the White House tapes.

"The Treasury Department has brought new meaning to the notion of sub-prime performance," remarked the Archive's director Tom Blanton. "Instead of answering Freedom of Information requests, Treasury puts the burden on requesters to repeatedly confirm interest in their requests and actually destroys the original request letters the way Rose Mary Woods erased the tapes."

On one Archive request filed in 1997 about the Clinton administration's certification of Mexican efforts against drug trafficking, Treasury:

(1) repeatedly asked the Archive (in 2001, 2004 and 2007) if we were still interested (Treasury has sent the Archive 74 such letters for 42 different requests in the past seven years),

(2) asked for another copy of the request since the original had been "destroyed," (Treasury has asked for similar replacement letters for other Archive requests 42 times),

(3) finally closed the request without ever processing a document, claiming so much time had elapsed that the records had been retired to the National Archives (Treasury has asserted such claims in at least 10 of the Archive's FOIA cases).

Air Force was the recipient of the 2007 Rosemary for its status as an "E-Delinquent" in the 2007 National Security Archive audit of agency compliance with the Electronic FOIA, which found 139 broken links on the Air Force FOIA Web sites. In its latest Audit, 'Mixed Signals, Mixed Results: How President Bush's Executive Order on FOIA Failed to Deliver,' the National Security Archive found that the Air Force has since made significant strides in improving its FOIA Web site and developing it into an effective tool for FOIA requesters.

The Archive presented the 2006 Rosemary Award to the Central Intelligence Agency for "the most dramatic one-year drop-off in professionalism and responsiveness to the public we have seen in 20 years of monitoring federal government compliance with the freedom of information law." After this poor performance, however, the CIA received high marks for its E-FOIA performance in the Archive's audit, 'File Not Found: 10 Years After E-FOIA, Most Federal Agencies Are Delinquent,' and for its handling of backlogged FOIA requests in the Archive's latest audit 'Mixed Signals, Mixed Results: How President Bush's Executive Order on FOIA Failed to Deliver.'

Visit the Web site of the National Security Archive for more information about today's posting.

http://www.nsarchive.org

THE NATIONAL SECURITY ARCHIVE is an independent non-governmental research institute and library located at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The Archive collects and publishes declassified documents acquired through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). A tax-exempt public charity, the Archive receives no U.S. government funding; its budget is supported by publication royalties and donations from foundations and individuals.

MILITARY CONTRACT March 18, 2008

AIR FORCE

Orbital Science Corp., Launch Systems Group of Chandler, Ariz.; Space Vector Corp., of Chatsworth, Calif.; L-3 Communications Corp., Coleman Aerospace of Orlando, Fla.; and ATK Launch Systems of ATK Launch Systems of Brigham City, Utah, are being awarded an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract for $250,000,000. This action will provide multiple awards with a seven year ordering period to provide engineering and technical services necessary to support the Sounding Rocket Program three. The Sounding Rocket Program three provides launch systems and services for sun-orbital ballistic trajectories up to 5,500 km downrange. At this time $200,000 has been obligated. Robins AFB, Ga., is the contracting activity (FA8523-07-C-0008-PZ0001).

Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Aeronautical Systems of Marietta, Ga., is being awarded a modified contract for $133,200,000. This contract modification is an undefinitized contract action (UCA) for the procurement of two FY 09 KC-130J aircraft and the associated long lead effort. At this time $30,000,000 has been obligated. Kirtland AFB, N.M., is the contracting activity (FA8625-06-C-6456 P00033).

ITT Avionics of Chandler, Ariz., is being awarded a modified firm fixed price contract for $78,172,524. This requirement is for Foreign Military Sales of the ALQ-211(V)4 Advanced Integrated Defense Electronics Warfare system to the country of Pakistan. This Electronic Warfare system will be used on the F-16 aircraft being procured under separate acquisition by the F-16 program office. Associated spares, support equipment, training, engineering services, flight test support and data are also being acquired under this contract. At this time $39,003,041 has been obligated. Kirtland AFB, N.M., is the contracting activity (FA8818-08-D-0036, FA8816-08-D-0037, FA8818-08-D-0038, and F8818-08-D-0039).

DEFENSE LOGISTIC AGENCY

Sysco Foodservices of Conn., Rock Hill, Conn., is being awarded a maximum $35,261,204.28 fixed price with economic price adjustment contract for full line garrison feeding support. There are no other locations of performance. Using services are Army, Navy, Air Force, and Federal Civilian Agencies. The original proposal was solicited on FEDBIZOPS with three responses. This contract is a six year contract with two year base term and three 18-month option periods. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Date of performance completion is Mar. 22, 2010. The contracting activity is Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa. (SPM300-08-D-3238).

Sopakco, Inc., Mullins, S.C.* is being awarded a maximum $8,878,080.00 firm fixed price contract for first strike rations. There are no other locations of performance. Using services are Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps. There were 38 proposals originally solicited with three responses. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Date of performance completion is Jan. 31, 2009. The contracting activity is Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa. (SPM3S1-08-D-Z101).

Sysco Foodservices of Northern New England, Westbrook, Maine is being awarded $6,984,773.94 fixed price with economic price adjustment contract for full line garrison feeding support. There are no other locations of performance. Using services are Navy, Air Force, and Federal Civilian Agencies. The original proposal was solicited on FEDBIZOPS with three responses. This contract is a six year contract with two year base term and three 18-month option periods. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Date of performance completion is Mar. 22, 2010. The contracting activity is Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa. (SPM300-08-D-3237).

NAVY

EDO RSS, Morgan Hill, Calif., is being awarded a $7,751,810 delivery order against a previously issued basic ordering agreement (N68335-05-G-0006) for manufacturing and delivery of 38 R-4100 chassis with internal TN-500 Digital RF Tuner and Automatic Identification System (AIS) capabilities for the P-3 aircraft. Work will be conducted in Morgan Hill, Calif. and work is expected to be completed in Feb. 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Lakehurst, N.J., is the contracting activity.

Correction: The contract announcement awarded on Mar. 14, 2008, to International Military and Government LLC, Warrenville, Ill, contract number M67854-07-D5032, should have read the delivery order amount as $405,963,830 vice $410,730,320.

U.S., Russian Officials Agree to Create Strategic Framework Document

By Fred W. Baker III
American Forces Press Service

March 18, 2008 - After two days of intense talks here, U.S. and Russian officials have agreed to a draft of a "strategic framework" document that will hopefully guide the two sides through dealing with tough issues such as a European missile defense plan. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice presented the draft to Russian President Vladimir Putin and their Russian counterparts at the start of their talks yesterday and have since been hammering out its details.

The document contains about a dozen initiatives, many which are already in the works between the two countries, but it also contains missile defense and strategic arms reduction treaty initiatives -- two most contentious points between the two countries.
"We had the opportunity to elaborate on a number of confidence building measures and measures for transparency to provide assurance to the Russian Republic that our missile sites and radars would not constitute a threat to Russia," Gates said in mid-day press conference with Rice and Defense Minister Anatoliy Serdyukov and Foreign Affairs Minister Sergey Lavrov.

"I think both President Putin [yesterday] and our Russian colleagues today found these ideas useful and important ... and they will be studying them further," Gates said.

The bulk of the effort the past two days was working through the missile defense and strategic arms reduction treaty topics, said a senior U.S. official later, speaking on background.

Gates was on hand to clarify some points in the initiatives that were thought to be mistaken or misunderstood by the Russian leaders. Officials worked through the document paragraph by paragraph and an edited document derived from the talks will be delivered to the Russians before the secretaries leave tomorrow. Their leaders have promised to have their experts "analyze" it, the official said.

"I think based on the discussions we've had in the last 24 hours, we feel like we've moved the ball forward here in Moscow," the official said.

This is not the first time U.S. officials have put their ideas in writing for the Russians. In the first of these talks officials agreed to submit their proposals in writing. Lower-level U.S. and Russian officials have met about a half-dozen times in the past year. But this document is collective, collaborative and aimed at reconstructing a relationship that was sliding downward on tough issues, obscuring in part the issues that the two countries were making progress, the official said.

The official said the United States wanted "to capture those areas where we have made progress and try to frame up those where we have differences in a larger context which includes all the progress."

Also, with each iteration of the document, levels of detail are added to the complex agreements, the official said.

Russian officials agreed that the United States was working to assuage their fears that the proposed missile defense sites planed for Poland and the Czech Republic will not become a threat to their country. They also agreed that it is important to maintain continuity while both administrations transitioning its top leadership in the next several months.

But, Russia's Defense Minister finished the talks by reiterating their current stand on the U.S. proposal.

"In principle our positions have not changed," Serdyukov said. "We can say that we have a lot of work to do but we need to see these proposals to look at them, to understand them, and then, following the work at the expert level, we'll make a decision on how to move forward."

The Russian foreign minister also said that the best way to allay their concerns would be to not build the missile defense sites. But he also said that the proposal would be sent to Putin once they are reviewed.

"While not agreeing with us on substantial issues, they [the U.S.] recognize that we have these concerns and they put forward proposals aimed at allaying or making these concerns [minor]," Lavrov said.

Because of the Russians' concerns about the missile defense plan and a strategic arms treaty, getting them to allow those items into the strategic framework document is in itself progress, a senior U.S. official said.

"No one on either side expected dramatic breakthroughs. But we were pleased by the progress we made. A lot of work remains but it was a productive day-and-a-half of talks," the senior official said. "This is realistically what we hoped for."

Secretary Rice said at the news conference that the two countries had good discussions even on the tough issues.

"We have agreed on the elements that will be included in the document and have made considerable progress on a number of them," Rice said.

"We have work to do but I think it is fair to say that U.S.-Russian relations ... [are] proceeding in a way that we are able to go forward in various areas of cooperation and when we have differences we can talk about them in an atmosphere of mutual respect," Rice said.

Gates, in coming to the talks, was very vocal about expecting the Russians to be responsive to the United States' efforts to allay their fears about the missile defense system.

"I would say that they listened very carefully. President Putin took extensive notes and obviously there was a lot done during the day today," Gates said. "... I would expect and hope that we would hear back from them reasonably quickly."

A senior U.S. official later said that he expected to be back negotiating with the Russians in less than six months.

"There's grounds for much more rapid follow up work," he said. "We've really set the stage with these talks here."

Why We Serve: Marine Captain Talks About Corps Pride

By Fred W. Baker III
American Forces Press Service

March 14, 2008 - Marine Capt. John Sand knows what it takes to be a good college student: go to class, read the book, and take good notes. And, for him, first spend four years in the Marine Corps. This realization came after Sand spent a few years as a not-so-good college student after high school, he said.

"I had a 0.8 grade point average for the semester when I left school. That's very hard to do. I pretty much flunked everything and didn't really care much about school," Sand said.

Sand grew up in the small Illinois town of Ottawa. Both of his parents were career educators; his father was a counselor and his mother a grade-school teacher. After high school graduation in 1988, Sand accepted an Army ROTC scholarship to attend college. But after a few years, both Sand and his parents accepted that he needed to do something different.

"I flushed a scholarship away, basically. I wasn't paying for school. I was having a little too much fun. I needed to get some discipline and more control over where I wanted to go," Sand said.

His father, once in the Navy, suggested the Marines, and Sand agreed.

In 1991, Sand enlisted as a Morse code interceptor. He said he did, indeed, learn self-discipline, and that he enjoyed his tour, which took him twice to Somalia on deployments. But Sand had promised his parents that at the end of his enlistment he would return to college.

He made good on that promise and returned to study criminal justice.

"It was a complete 180 from my experience the first time at college. Four years in the Marine Corps made coming back to college kind of ... simple," Sand said.

The former dropout then made the dean's list and played tennis competitively. In the 60 credit hours he amassed to finish his degree, Sand received nearly perfect grades.

Still, he missed the Corps, Sand said. After graduation, he returned to the Marines as an officer.

"When I enlisted in 1991, did I think I'd be doing this in 2008? No, I didn't, but it led me down that road, and I really enjoy it," Sand said.

Now Sand, as part of the Defense Department's "Why We Serve" public-outreach program, is traveling the country, telling his story to community, business and veterans group audiences and at other gatherings. Fresh from a deployment to Iraq, Sand said he hopes to convey the efforts of servicemembers there.

"It's important what we're doing in the global war on terrorism. I think it's important that they hear it from the servicemember's perspective," Sand said. "In Iraq, there's a lot more to it than guns and tanks. There's a lot of humanitarian assistance. There's a lot of nation building. We definitely do a lot of work for the Iraqi people, alongside the Iraqi people, to better their lives."

Sand served as an artillery battery commander in Iraq, returning in October. His battery provided a regimental combat team with artillery fire in support of operations in and around Fallujah. They also performed nonstandard missions such as providing security for explosives technicians who cleared the roads of bombs. His battery went on more than 500 combat patrols.

"I like to talk about my Marines a lot. I'm very proud of what my Marines did in Iraq, and I think that there's a really good story there," Sand said. "It's hard work over there. A lot of times they are out for long patrols. They don't get a lot of sleep. They don't get a lot of time off. But they do their job, and they're proud of what they do."

During his tour, Sand said, he saw the tangible signs of progress.

"Things got better while we were there. When we initially showed up, we were shooting quite a bit. By the time we were leaving ... we might go a week or more without ever pulling the lanyard on a howitzer," Sand said. "If we're not shooting as much, to me that's a sign that things are better there."

As a father of three children, being around the Iraqi children sometimes made him homesick, but also served as reminder for why he was there, Sand said.

"Seeing the little kids playing soccer, it's like 'Wow, I miss spending the time with my kids,'" Sand said. "On the other hand, it makes you feel like we're doing something good over there. The smiles, the little conversations -- sometimes just with hand gestures -- or kicking a ball around, that makes you feel good that day."

Sand said he also hopes to convey that servicemembers are typical people, Sand said.

"Military people are your average Joes," he said. We do a lot of the same things. I'm a husband. I'm a father. I'm also a Marine."

In fact, his family is a big part of why he continues to serve in the Marine Corps, Sand said.

"That's very important to me. I want them to grow up in a country where they (continue to) have the freedoms that we enjoy," Sand said. "And so I'm willing to serve to ensure that they grow up in a place where they don't have to worry. I want to ensure that they have a good childhood experience and continue to reap the benefits of the country that we live in."

Sand continues his service also because of the sense of camaraderie he feels for his fellow servicemembers and the sacrifices of those who have fought before him.

"I think that's a big deal. You keep doing it because the guy next to you is counting on you," the captain said.

He is in awe for those who have given the ultimate sacrifice for their country, Sand said.

"It's just amazing to think that I'm part of that organization that would have somebody of that character. That makes you want to stay," he said.

"I serve because I'm proud to wear the uniform. I'm proud to be a Marine, and I want to get that message out there -- that it's a very honorable service and that we're proud to serve the American people," Sand said. "That's why I do what I do."

Face of Defense: Airman's Instincts Prevent Catastrophe

By Tech. Sgt. James Law, USAF
American Forces Press Service

March 14, 2008 - An airman's quick action following a Feb. 26 jet fuel starter explosion that sent shrapnel across the flightline here averted a possible explosion of an F-15E Strike Eagle, officials said. Air Force Staff Sgt. Jonathan Billie was working near a fellow airman preparing an F-15E for flight when the small motor that starts the fighter's engines blew up. The jet fuel starter imploded, and pieces of the machine flew across the flightline.

"I went out to help the crew chief on the jet clean up the area and find out how much damage had occurred," said Billie, an F-15E crew chief with the 335th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Unit here. "When I came upon the scene, I noticed there was a lot of shrapnel on the ground."

Instinctively, Billie looked up into the engine's exhaust to check the damage and noticed flames flickering in the engine compartment. In eight years as an F-15 crew chief, he said, he had never before personally witnessed flames in the engine.

"I had someone come over and verify, just to double check, because you don't want to jump to conclusions," Billie said.

With the flames confirmed, Billie immediately ran over and grabbed the hose off the halon fire extinguisher while simultaneously instructing another crew chief to charge the bottle. Charging the bottle is a process of removing a safety pin and pushing the charging handle forward to pressurize the hose.

Billie yelled out to the eight or so airmen nearby to clear the area. He ran back to the aircraft, pointed the hose into the exhaust and sprayed the bottle's contents onto the fire before it turned catastrophic.

"The first thing that crossed my mind was the live explosives," said Billie, who is deployed from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C. "My thoughts were, 'We need to put this fire out now.'"

Billie said F-15 crew chiefs are trained to deal with this situation, but because it is not a frequent occurrence, it is imperative to remember the training and react without hesitation.

"His actions were outstanding," said Senior Master Sgt. Donald Poormon, the maintenance unit's F-15E assistant superintendent. "He acted perfectly, and you couldn't ask for better."

Brig. Gen. James W. Hyatt, then the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing commander, recognized Billie with a commander's coin at a meeting with the wing's group commanders and chief master sergeants.

(Air Force Tech. Sgt. James Law serves with 455th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs.)

First Community Sites to Open for Reserve, Active-Duty Families

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

March 14, 2008 - A new "virtual installation" concept that helps families who live far from a military base get information and tap into services available for them during their loved ones' deployment is expected to begin rolling out next month. Plans are being laid to open several "brick and mortar" pilot sites by April 23, just in time for the Army Reserve's 100th anniversary celebration, Laura Stultz, wife of Army Reserve Chief Lt. Gen. Jack C. Stultz, told American Forces Press Service.

Focus groups are under way to identify where to put the first three to five sites, she said, likely in areas with big Army Reserve and National Guard populations and no Army post nearby.

General Stultz acknowledged that all spouses face hardships when their loved ones deploy – regardless of whether they're active-duty, National Guard or Reserve. But he said his wife reminded him that unlike active-duty families, who can turn to their local post for help if they need it, Army Reserve families often live far from an Army post and don't know how to tap into available services.

"She said, 'If I am living on an installation, I have Army Community Services, child and youth services, legal support, medical support, the Red Cross. I can go to Army Emergency Relief if I need to get help,'" the general said. He paused, then continued his wife's point: "But if I am in Pocatello, Idaho, who do I turn to?"

As Laura Stultz sees it, the gap is as much cultural as geographic. Active-duty families tend to live on or near a military post, know each other and know where to go for assistance, or at least who to ask how to get it, she said.

Reserve families often don't. A single Reserve unit can draw members from a 10-state area, and families may have had no past exposure to each other or to the Army system overall.

That quandary led her to come up with the virtual installation concept. As she envisions it, it not only will fill a gap for reserve-component families, but also will benefit the many active-duty families who leave their post for their hometowns during their loved one's deployment.

Each site to open next month under the pilot program will be slightly different; one may be a kiosk in a local shopping mall, another may be an office in an Army Reserve center or National Guard armory. "We'll try different approaches of going into the community and see what works best," Laura Stultz said.

Military family members will be able to walk into the sites to talk to someone about their questions or needs. A trained staffer – most likely a military or veteran volunteer – will know the answer or be able to pick up a phone or go online to get it.

The general's wife said she envisions people from the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and other veterans as well as community groups manning the sites. "They keep asking what they can do and saying that they want to help, so I am giving them a job to do," she said.

In addition to providing personal service to military families, the brick-and-mortar sites will serve as visible signs of a broader community outreach effort, Laura Stultz said. Volunteers who staff them will help make inroads into local businesses, churches and other groups to remind them that members of their community are deployed, and that they and their families need support, she added.

The sites will represent the first step in a two-pronged effort designed to reach out to Army Reserve and National Guard families who are nowhere near installations and the full range of support services they offer to active-duty families, she said.

In addition to physical sites, the new concept calls for a Web-based virtual installation that families can tap into from their computer for information and support. That site is expected to go live later this year.

Once it's operational, users will be able to navigate the streets of a simulated Army base with a click of their computer mouse, stopping wherever they wish, Laura Stultz explained. They'll be able to "stop" at the military identification card desk to find out how to replace a lost card, the Tricare office to check on their medical benefits or the family assistance center for other support. "You'll be able to navigate down the street just like in a video game and get the information you need," she said.

Families also will be able to enter their ZIP codes into the site to find the nearest place to get help or services or to contact the nearest family readiness group.

The Army Reserve chief's wife cited the "Fort Family" Web site launched by the Army Reserve's 108th Training Command as an example of the virtual installation's potential. That site links families with local military and civilian resources. It also offers a virtual volunteer program for people seeking ways to help local soldiers and families.

The Web initiative and other programs promoting family wellness and readiness earned the unit honors in the Defense Department's 2007 Reserve Family Readiness Award program.

Laura Stultz praised the 108th Training Command for taking the lead in helping make the virtual installation concept a reality. "It's a wonderful program," she said. "It's a smaller model of what we will take and then add to."

Among additional services she hopes to offer is a chat room for children of deployed troops.

While the general's wife never has served in the military herself, she said she's had lots of experience holding down the homefront far from the nearest military post when her soldier-husband deployed.

She recalled his deployments to the Persian Gulf and the Balkans in the 1990s, when she had four young children at home and couldn't make the two-hour drive to a family readiness group meeting for help and support. "So I know what it's like to be out there and not know where to turn," she said. "I understand."

Now that her husband is chief of the Army Reserve, Laura Stultz said she feels a personal responsibility to make things smoother for other Army Reserve spouses who keep the home fires burning during deployments.

"Their soldiers are putting their lives on the line just like everyone else, so they deserve and need the same help and resources available for active-component families," she said.

General Stultz called the virtual installation an important step toward taking better care of Army Reserve families. After all, he said, the Army Reserve recruits soldiers, but it retains families. "And we have to do a better job of reaching out to those families," he said.