Family Matters Blog: Grant Sends Military Teens to Washington

By Lisa Daniel

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, July 6, 2012 – As Americans were preparing last week to celebrate America’s 236th birthday, hundreds of teenagers from military families were treated to three days of fun and learning here in the nation’s capital.

About 600 teenagers who participate in Boys & Girls Clubs of America in or around military installations flew in with about a hundred of their mentors for “Operation Washington,” a first-time event co-sponsored by BGCA and the Close Up Foundation as part of a partnership grant from the Departments of Defense and Justice, said Kevin McCartney, BGCA’s vice president of government relations.

The program allowed the teens to see in person those symbols of democracy for which their parents fight, and for which they, too, have sacrificed through frequent moves and dealing with deployed parents.

These were no ordinary tours of the Capitol and Washington’s other monuments. Under Close Up’s civics curriculum, the teens’ visit to the World War II, Korean and Vietnam War memorials included a discussion about the role and responsibilities of citizens during wartime. Their tour of the Capitol included meeting with their congressional representatives, and a trip to the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial came with a discussion of civil rights and citizens’ roles in shaping public policy.

Through it all, the teens took part in group discussions about the appropriate size and role of government in a democracy, states versus the federal government, and an in-depth simulation of the legislative process. The teens also met with Attorney Gen. Eric Holder and Education Secretary Arne Duncan, as well as senior Defense Department and White House officials, McCartney said.

“Close Up is really a hands-on experience here in Washington, D.C. It’s a very organized curriculum,” he said. “Everything has education and civics attached to it.”

The participants also were charged with developing a plan to address important issues in their own communities. Judging by their reaction to being in Washington, it sounds like they will do just that.

“These kids were outstanding, and they truly were grateful for this,” McCartney said.

Ponce Arrives In Bahrain

From U.S. Naval Forces Central Command Public Affairs

MINA SALMAN PIER, Bahrain (NNS) -- The U.S. Navy's first afloat forward staging base-interim, USS Ponce (AFSB-I), arrived in Bahrain for duty in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility (AOR), July 6.

Prior to arriving in theater, Ponce, formerly designated as an amphibious transport dock (LPD), was converted and reclassified as an AFSB(I) in April to fulfill a long-standing U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) request for an AFSB to be located in its AOR.

"Ponce's role as an AFSB provides us with an enhanced capability to conduct maritime security operations, and gives us greater flexibility to support a wide range of contingencies with our regional partners," said Vice Adm. John Miller, commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT).

Ponce's primary mission is to support mine countermeasures (MCM) operations and other missions, such as the ability to provide repair service to other deployed units, including electrical, diesel engine, piping, and machinery repairs. Additionally, Ponce also has the capability to embark and launch small riverine craft.

Commanded by a U.S. Navy captain, Ponce will remain a U.S. Navy ship. The newly classed AFSB will be manned by a "hybrid" crew consisting of approximately 150 Military Sealift Command (MSC) civilian mariners and 55 U.S. Navy Sailors. Sailors will be primarily responsible for the ship operations. MSC personnel will man the engineering, deck and damage control departments.

"The versatility of Ponce, combined with the teamwork of its 'hybrid' crew, brings a unique capability to the region." said Capt. Jon Rodgers, commanding officer of Ponce. "As the first dedicated afloat forward staging base, we look forward to working closely with our coalition and regional partners to promote security and stability."

Ponce departed its homeport of Norfolk, Va., June 1. Previously scheduled to decommission, Ponce delayed its scheduled decommissioning to serve as an interim AFSB until a permanent solution can be identified.

DOD C-130 Crews Continue Western Wildfire Fight

From a U.S. Northern Command News Release

WASHINGTON, July 6, 2012 – In 140 airdrop missions since they were called into action to battle fires in the Rocky Mountain region and other western locales, Defense Department C-130s equipped with the U.S. Forest Service’s Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System have discharged more than 332,400 gallons of retardant as of early today, U.S. Northern Command officials reported.

Six Department of Defense C-130 aircraft under the command and control of U.S. Northern Command now are assisting in the firefighting effort at the request of the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, officials said.

C-130 efforts yesterday centered on the Squirrel Creek Fire, located about three miles west of Woods Landing, Wyo., officials said, discharging about 8,500 gallons of retardant.

Underwood, Curts Replenish Underway with Sacagawea

By Lt. Stephanie Homick, Southern Seas 2012 Public Affairs

PACIFIC OCEAN (NNS) -- The Oliver Hazard Perry-class guided-missile frigates USS Underwood (FFG 36) and USS Curts (FFG 38) conducted vertical replenishments at sea with USNS Sacagawea (T-AKE 2), July 5.

During the six-hour evolution Underwood took on 60 pallets of stores, supplies and ammunition.

The original plan called for Underwood to complete a connected replenishment (CONREP), but because of engineering issues, Cmdr. Peter Mirisola, commanding officer of Underwood, decided it was safer to do a vertical replenishment (VERTREP) utilizing an SH-60B Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to the "Vipers" of Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Light (HSL) 48.

"Right now we only have control of one of our gas turbine engines," said Lt. Michael Hellard, chief engineer aboard Underwood. "It's not safe to go alongside a ship in such close proximity at 150 to 180 feet away from them with one engine. We've had to cancel our CONREP and move it all to VERTREP so we're farther away from the UNREP [underway replenishment] ship. It's a safer distance, and it gives us more time to stop [the ship if needed]."

Two HSL 48 crews flew between Underwood and Sacagawea during stormy conditions to load palletized cargo.

"The weather is obviously playing a big role in today's events, causing us to have to turn, but the ship is doing a good job at keeping us out of it as much as they can," said Lt. j.g. Lance Herndon, HSL 48 pilot.

The aircrew was able to establish a steady pattern in conjunction with the helicopter from Curts.

"Both ships are doing the VERTREP with the Sacagawea at the same time," continued Herndon. "You get into a rhythm when one aircraft is there picking up a load; you have the other aircraft back at their own ship dropping off a load. So you just rotate back and forth, and it requires a lot of communication between both aircraft, as well as an understanding of how our inter-aircraft operations work."

On board Underwood, it was an all hands evolution as Sailors lined the centerline passageway to haul pallets from the flight deck, break down supplies and distribute them to their appropriate locations aboard the ship.

"Since we've been out to sea, we haven't done [an UNREP]," said Chief Logistics Specialist (SW) Laking Brooks, the supply chief of Underwood. "This allows for the whole ship to get together to bring on everything from food, toilet paper, consumables; the whole nine yards. I'm surprised because the atmosphere right now is very uplifting. Everybody's happy to have received all their parts. That's what we look for when we do operations like this."

Underwood is deployed to Central and South America, and the Caribbean in support of Southern Seas 2012.

U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command and U.S. 4th Fleet (COMUSNAVSO/C4F) support USSOUTHCOM joint and combined full-spectrum military operations by providing principally sea-based, forward presence to ensure freedom of maneuver in the maritime domain, to foster and sustain cooperative relationships with international partners and to fully exploit the sea as maneuver space in order to enhance regional security and promote peace, stability, and prosperity in the Caribbean, Central and South American regions.

Face of Defense: Air Force General Pilots Raptor Fighter

By Justin Oakes

Air Combat Command

LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va., July 6, 2012 – Air Combat Command's senior airman completed F-22 Raptor pilot qualification recently, reinforcing his personal stake in the Air Force's efforts to identify the root cause of unexplained physiological incidents involving a small number of Raptor crews.

"As airmen, risk is part of our lives as members of the military," said Gen. Mike Hostage, the commander of Air Combat Command. "I'm asking these airmen to assume some risk that exceeds the norm in day-to-day training, and I have to be willing to do it myself and experience firsthand what they do."

Hostage completed his F-22 qualification training with the 325th Fighter Wing at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., June 27.

"Flying the airplane allows me to understand exactly what our airmen are dealing with," Hostage said. "It's an amazing airplane to fly, and I'm confident in the procedures we have in place to help enhance crew safety."

Since September 2011, when the aircraft returned to flight operations, the Air Force has worked to determine why a very small number of pilots have experienced symptoms such as dizziness while flying or disorientation post-flight, and to reduce the risk of those incidents. In January 2012, the Air Force created the F-22 Life Support Systems Task Force, which consists of approximately two dozen ACC specialists and hundreds of others from across the Air Force and other governmental agencies, including NASA and the Navy, as well as industry partners.

"We've had a 99.9 percent effective flying rate relative to these unknown physiological incidents, but that is not good enough," Hostage said. "The task force has made great progress, and the collaboration between our Air Force experts and others from NASA, the Navy and industry is exceptional. I'm confident we're on the right track, ensuring the safety of our crews and maintaining the F-22's combat readiness."

Air Combat Command is leading the F-22 life support task force, which has implemented several risk mitigation measures since the return-to-fly in September. Those measures include comprehensive inspections of aircraft and aircrew life support systems; a greater awareness and emphasis on pilots' recognition of any indication of a potential problem; the installation of a better-designed handle to activate the emergency oxygen system; the fielding of pulse oximeters that allow pilots to cross-check symptoms against measurements of the oxygenation of their blood's hemoglobin; and numerous other non-material enhancements.

"We have taken a 9-1-1 call approach," said Air Force Maj. Gen. Charles Lyon, the ACC's director of operations and the task force lead. "We have instructed our airmen in the field that whenever they get any indication that something may not be right, knock it off, the flying equivalent of calling 9-1-1, and terminate the flight. We focus all our attention on them and the safe recovery of the aircraft."

Most recently, ACC directed pilots to remove the upper pressure garment of their aircrew flight equipment during routine flight operations. Recent centrifuge testing revealed some issues with the garment, which places added pressure on a pilot's chest and restricts breathing in some instances.

"I'm cautiously optimistic that we've identified the major factors that have caused symptoms of oxygen deprivation in some of our F-22 pilots," Lyon said. "We've learned some significant things over the past several months that help protect our crews and maintain our combat readiness for the nation."

Lyon also said he is satisfied that, after extensive testing, no harmful contaminants are moving through the oxygen system. He went on to say a major focus of the task force now is looking at the physiological-support equipment and exploring commonalities in the flight profiles -- the combination of various altitudes and maneuvers -- that could be common in the incidents.

As the task force continues its analysis of factors contributing to physiological incidents, it remains in ongoing dialogue with F-22 pilots, maintainers and life support airmen through regular video teleconferences and a series of town hall meetings.

Meanwhile, Hostage plans to use his time in the Raptor to experience F-22 operations firsthand and continue engaging in personal dialogue with Raptor crews.

"Flying with F-22 pilots and interacting directly with our maintenance and life support airmen helps me better understand and validate what we've learned and what we're continuing to learn about safer operation of the aircraft in a really demanding flight environment," he said.

"The F-22 is vitally important to this nation and the joint warfighting team, and our Raptor pilots and ground crews are up to the task," Hostage said. "Our adversaries pay very careful attention to where it is and what it's doing. Our friends are very reassured by its presence. And it's ready to meet combatant commander requirements anywhere in the world -- all because of our airmen who make it happen."