Navy To Commission Guided-Missile Destroyer Truxtun

The Navy's newest Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, Truxtun, will be commissioned Saturday, April 25, 2009, during an 11 a.m. EDT ceremony at Charleston, S.C.

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead will deliver the ceremony's principal address. Carol Leigh Roelker and Susan Scott Martin, descendants of the ship's namesake, will serve as sponsors of the ship. The ceremony will be highlighted by a time-honored Navy tradition when they give the first order to "man our ship and bring her to life!"

Designated DDG 103, the destroyer honors Commodore Thomas Truxtun (1755-1822) who embarked upon a seafaring career at age 12. When the Navy was initially organized, he was selected as one of its first six captains on June 4, 1798. Assigned command of the USS Constellation, one of the nation's new frigates, Truxtun put to sea to prosecute the undeclared naval war with revolutionary France. On Feb. 9, 1799, Truxtun achieved one of his most famous victories when Constellation battered the French warship L'Insurgente into submission in one of the most illustrious battles of the quasi-war with France.

Five previous Navy ships have been named Truxtun: a brig launched in 1842, two destroyers DD 14 and DD 229, a high speed transport APD 98 (initially designated a destroyer escort DE 282), and a nuclear-powered frigate (DLGN) later re-designated cruiser CGN 35.

The 53rd Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, Truxtun will be able to conduct a variety of operations, from peacetime presence and crisis management to sea control and power projection. Truxtun will be capable of fighting air, surface and subsurface battles simultaneously and contains a myriad of offensive and defensive weapons designed to apply maritime power to protect U.S. vital interests in an increasingly interconnected and uncertain world.

Cmdr. Timothy Weber, a native of Decatur, Ga., will become the first commanding officer and lead the crew of 276 officers and enlisted personnel. The 9,200-ton Truxtun was built by Northrop Grumman Ship Systems, Ingalls Operations, Pascagoula, Miss. The ship is 510 feet in length, has a waterline beam of 59 feet, and a navigational draft of 31 feet. Four gas turbine engines will power the ship to speeds in excess of 30 knots.

Interested media may contact the Navy Office of Information at (703) 697-5342. Additional information on Arleigh Burke class destroyers is available online at http://www.navy.mil/navydata/fact_display.asp?cid=4200&tid=900&ct=4 .

MILITARY CONTRACTS April 22, 2009

AIR FORCE
The Air Force is awarding a firm fixed price contract to Pratt & Whitney Military Aftermarket Services of San Antonio, Texas for $22,915,389. This action will provide Overhaul of Core Module applicable to the F100 and F220 engines of F-15 and F-16 aircraft. At this time, the entire amount has been obligated. 448 SCMB/PKBB, Tinker Air Force Base, Okla., is the contracting activity. (FA8104-04-D-0004-0136)

The Air Force is modifying a fixed price economic price adjustment contract with Lockheed Martin Co., of Marietta, Ga., for $8,011,714. This contract modification will provide CCP 0558 for Lot 2 Readiness Spares Package for the C-5M Reliability Enhancements and Re-engining Program. At this time the entire amount has been obligated. 716 AESG/PK, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio is the contracting activity. (FA8625-07-C-6471, P00016)

The Air Force is modifying a fixed price economic price adjustment contract with Lockheed Martin Co., of Marietta, Ga., for $7,192,055. This contract modification will provide CCP 0556 for Flight Control Spares for the C-5M Reliability Enhancements and Re-engineering Program. At this time, the entire amount has been obligated. 716 AESG/PK, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio is the contracting activity. (FA8625-07-C-6471, P00015)

The Air Force is awarding a firm fixed price contract to Hamilton Sundstrand Corp., of Windsor Locks, Conn., for $6,130,336. This contract is to establish supply contract for blades in support of the C-130 aircraft. At this time, the entire amount has been obligated. DLA/DSCE/ZEB, Robins Air Force Base, Ga., is the contracting activity. (SPM400-04-D-9432XE01)

NAVY
General Dynamics-Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine is being awarded a $19,772,932 cost plus award fee delivery order under previously awarded contract (N00024-05-D-2301) for the Post-Shakedown Availability (PSA) of Truxtun (DDG 103). This delivery order encompasses all of the manpower, support services, material, non-standard equipment and associated technical data and documentation required to prepare for and accomplish the DDG 103 PSA. Specific efforts include: engineering and management in support of the PSA; labor and procurement of material to correct government responsible deficiencies and accomplish system upgrades; perform specified PSA work items inclusive of tests and post repair sea trials; and task additional manhours and material in order to complete emergent repairs. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Va., (95 percent) and Bath, Maine, (5 percent), and is expected to be completed by March 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured as an order under an existing Multiple Award Contract, with two proposals solicited and two offers received. Proposals were solicited via email to the two contractor party to the Multiple Award Contract. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

Northrop Grumman Corp., Annapolis, Md., is being awarded an $8,172,237 modification (P00001) to previously awarded cost plus fixed fee, indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract (N00189-08-D-P002) to exercise an option for engineering and technical services supporting the Advanced SEAL Delivery System (ASDS) Planning Yard, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Kittery, Maine. Work will be performed at Annapolis, Md., (75 percent); and Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, (25 percent), and work is expected to be completed by April 2010. Contract funds will expire before the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured. The Fleet and Industrial Supply Center Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Annex is the contracting activity.

Operation Homefront Names First Military Child Award Winner

American Forces Press Service

April 22, 2009 - An Army family member has earned $5,000, a laptop computer and a trip to the nation's capital as the first Military Child Award winner for a national troop-support organization. Brittany Wallace, 17, will receive her award from Texas-based Operation Homefront at a ceremony here April 29.

Wallace was among 450 military children from 8 to 18 who competed for the award. Jennifer Cernoch, Operation Homefront's Texas chapter president, nominated the San Antonio teenager.

"I've seen the actual, genuine empathy that Brittany has, not only for her own family, but also for other wounded warrior families, especially their kids," Cernoch said. "She has been such an inspiration to the kids in helping them cope with their fathers' injuries. From her babysitting to just being there, she's become a wonderful role model."

Operation Homefront members voted online for three finalists -- Wallace, Adam Soisson of South Bend, Ind., and Mollie Danel of Camp Lejeune, N.C. -- and a panel of judges selected one for the top award.

"Our selection criteria included the child's circumstances, hardships, challenges overcome, community activities and the example he or she sets for others," Kerry McGinley, associate editor for Operation Homefront, said. "We were really moved by Brittany's giving nature, her commitment to her family as well as other wounded warrior families, and all that she's accomplished despite the challenges of her situation."

Wallace's challenges began in 2007 when her father, Army Staff Sgt. Robert Henline, was the lone survivor of a roadside bomb in Iraq that burned 38 percent of his body and all but destroyed his left arm. Despite his life-changing injuries, the soldier said, it was his daughter who fought the harder battle.

"She helped her mom a lot during our difficult time," Henline said. "She had a lot on her plate. She never complained, and never felt sorry for herself. She took over caring for her siblings. We were, and are, so proud of her."

Brittany was 15 when her mother, Connie, left her and her younger siblings, Skylar and McKenzie, with family in North Carolina so she could be at her husband's bedside in San Antonio. For three months, Wallace helped with meals and homework. Family members said she provided a sense of comfort and stability to her siblings.

Those three months were hard on everyone, the teenager recalled. She said she remembers wanting to talk to her mother longer than the brief chats they shared on the phone, but realized her mother was so stressed and drained by taking care of her father that anything longer than a few minutes would set loose the emotions she worked so hard to keep in check. Wallace said she learned to follow her mother's example for the sake of her siblings.

"It was hard with my mom being gone," she said. "My sister and brother looked up to me a lot. Other family members were there for us and were very helpful, but they didn't really know our routine. It was up to me to keep that routine for them. I didn't [worry about] mine. They needed me, and I was there for them. My priorities changed. My family came first."

Those strong qualities, McGinley said, gave Wallace the edge over the other two finalists.

"We consider Brittany as an exceptional young lady who is determined to make the most and the best of her circumstances," McGinley said. "It was really inspiring to talk to her -- to hear her describe her father's injuries as a blessing, because it has brought her family closer."

Lockheed Martin Corp. sponsored the Military Child Award as a way to honor and "recognize the extraordinary efforts of our military kids," said Jim Knotts of Lockheed Martin, who conceived the idea.

"While our country asks for great sacrifices from our men and women in uniform, we also ask for great sacrifices from our military families, especially the kids," Knotts said. "We need a strong military, and our military members need strong families."

Air Force Bases Participate in Energy-saving Campaign

American Forces Press Service

April 22, 2009 - All 64 major Air Force bases in the United States are participating in a campaign to change out incandescent bulbs with energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs, or CFLs. "Energy Star Operation Change Out: The Military Challenge" is a joint campaign between the Defense and Energy departments.

Officials at the Air Force Facility Energy Center, part of the Air Force Civil Engineer Support Agency here, and the major commands coordinated the effort with base energy managers to encourage facility lighting audits and to schedule bulb change-outs. Many people turned it into a grassroots effort.

At Charleston Air Force Base, S.C., for example, energy manager Jeff Morgan spent several days delivering two CFLs and energy awareness brochures to the doorsteps of 1,000 military families. The $5,000 investment at Charleston alone will save the Air Force an estimated $43,254 over the lifetime of the bulbs.

In the past year, beginning with Earth Day 2008, Air Force participants have changed out more than 228,000 bulbs. This will save millions of pounds of greenhouse gases and enough energy to power 3,841 homes for a year, officials said. The Air Force will save $7.5 million over the lifetime of the bulbs.

Energy Star-qualified CFLs have many benefits:

-- They use about 75 percent less energy than standard incandescent bulbs, and last up to 10 times longer;

-- They save about $30 or more in electricity costs over each bulb's lifetime;

-- They produce about 75 percent less heat, so they're safer to operate and can cut energy costs associated with home cooling; and

-- They are available in different sizes and shapes to fit in almost any fixture, indoors or outdoors.

Energy Star is a joint program of the Energy Department and the Environmental Protection Agency, helping to save money and protect the environment through energy-efficient products and practices.

(From an Air Force news release.)

Military Parents

If your parent was in the armed services, or if you are a parent serving in any branch of the military for any country, please go to http://tr.im/gA79 and answer a few questions. Thank you for helping provide stories for Angela Grett and Yvonne Perry who are co-authoring a book to help civilians better understand military families.

Massachusetts National Guard Supports Boston Marathon

By Army Sgt. James Lally
Special to American Forces Press Service

April 21, 2009 - Almost 400 Massachusetts National Guardsmen were called up to support yesterday's 113th running of the Boston Marathon. Guardsmen from the 126th Combat Support Battalion were positioned at the starting line to assist the Hopkinton Police in keeping the race route clear for more than 26,000 runners.

The Boston Marathon is a public event supported by multiple agencies in the commonwealth. Every year, spectators line the 26.2-mile route from Hopkinton to Boston. The National Guard helps local police along the marathon route to safeguard spectators and maintain public order.

When the race began, the street was packed tight with runners, who touched the outstretched hands of screaming spectators as they ran by.

"I have done this many times before with the military police, and I hope that I will be able to do it again," said Army Sgt. 1st Class Leonard A. Hester of Company A, 126th Combat Support Battalion. "It's nice to get out here and see the crowd having fun."

Guardsmen don't often experience interacting with the public while in uniform, and they see events like the marathon as a good opportunity to interact. "The spectators were cheering for us as we marched down the route to get into position before the race started," said Army Sgt. Stephen R. Mastronardi, an intelligence analyst with the Headquarters Company, 126th Combat Support Battalion.

Army 1st Lt. Justin P. Culverwell, commander of the battalion's Company B, said the operation was a success. "The soldiers here definitely made a positive impact on the start of the race and had a good time talking with spectators."

The runners got off to a good start in Hopkinton, but as quickly as the last group of racers could run by, the spectacle of the race ended. The Guardsmen marched back to their busses and returned to their armories for lunch and to discuss their plans for next year.

(Army Sgt. James Lally serves with the Massachusetts National Guard.)

Obama Honors Navy Football Team for Commitment to Team, Country

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

April 21, 2009 - President Barack Obama presented the winning U.S. Naval Academy football team the Commander-In-Chief's Trophy today during a White House Rose Garden ceremony. Obama extended congratulations to the midshipmen from Annapolis, Md., who bested both the U.S. Military Academy "Black Knights" 34-0 and the U.S. Air Force Academy "Falcons" 33-27 during the 2008 season.

The wins earned Navy the coveted Commander-in-Chief's Trophy – and a trip to the White House to receive it -- for the sixth consecutive year.

"By now, you guys know your way around here better than I do," Obama said at today's ceremony, evoking laughter from the group.

Obama offered high praise to Navy for its "fearsome offense" as well as the nation's most-improved defense.

But amid the levity of the event, he identified attributes that make Navy's players unique, including the top graduation rate in the NCAA for four straight years and a demanding schedule of coursework and military training.

Obama noted that all 32 seniors on the Navy team are "preparing to trade one proud uniform for another – and that's the United States of America's uniform."

And although the Navy team has won a record 13 straight service academy games dating back to the 2002 Army-Navy game, the president told them, "You're all joining the same team now."

"Football, it's said, makes boys into men," he said. "But the academy makes men and women into leaders. And the bonds that you've built and the lessons that you've learned on that field and in your 'four years by the Bay' have prepared you to join and lead the finest fighting force in the history of the world."

Obama, who is scheduled to deliver the keynote address at this year's Naval Academy graduation, told the team he has no greater honor or responsibility than serving as their commander in chief. "I'm proud of you," he said.

"And I promise you this," he continued. "From the minute you put on that uniform to the minute you take it off, and for all the days of your life, this country will stand behind you and will be here for you, because we know that you will be there for us."

During today's ceremony, Obama recognized Lt. Cmdr. Wesley Brown, who in 1949 became the U.S. Naval Academy's first black graduate, and for whom the academy's new field house is named.

The president also recalled his Hawaiian roots, recognizing two fellow Hawaiians: team coach Ken Niumatalolo and Midshipman Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada, the starting quarterback. Rendering a "shaka" or Hawaiian "hang loose" sign in during the ceremony, Obama noted Niumatalolo's calmness under pressure. "That's the Hawaiian spirit," Obama said. "That's how we roll."

MILITARY CONTRACTS April 21, 2009

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Hess Corp., Woodbridge, Va., is being awarded a maximum $610,118,406 fixed price with economic price adjustment contract for electrical services. Other locations of performance are in Maryland, and New Jersey. Using services are Army, Navy, Air Force and Federal Civilian Agencies. There were originally 195 proposals solicited with 11 responses. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance completion is June 30, 2014. The contracting activity is the Defense Energy Support Center, Fort Belvoir, Va., (SP0600-09-D-8016).

Bmsco Inc., Salt Lake City, Utah*, is being awarded a maximum $23,620,091 fixed price with economic price adjustment, total set aside contract for landing gear equipment. There are no other locations of performance. Using service is Army. There were originally three proposals solicited with three responses. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance completion is April 30, 2014. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency (DSCR-ZDA), Redstone Arsenal, Ala., (SPRRA1-09-D-0014).

L-3 Communications Corp., San Carlos, Calif., is being awarded a maximum $11,475,000 firm fixed price, sole source contract for BD4 output traveling wave tubes. There are no other locations of performance. Using service is Navy. This is an undefinitized contractual action. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance completion is December 31, 2011. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency (DSCR-ZC), Philadelphia, Pa., (N00383-07-G-075B-THA1).

NAVY

Dimensions Construction, Inc.*, San Diego, Calif., Halbert Construction Co., Inc.*, El Cajon, Calif., Hal Hays Construction, Inc.*, Riverside, Calif., I.E. Pacific, Inc.*, San Diego, Calif., K.O.O. Construction, Inc.*, West Sacramento, Calif., Peter Vander Werff Construction*, El Cajon, Calif., and Souza Construction, Inc.*, Farmersville, Calif., are each being awarded a firm fixed price, indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity multiple award construction contract HUBZone and Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business set-aside for new construction and renovation of general building construction at various locations within the NAVFAC Southwest area of responsibility including but not limited to southern Calif., (83 percent), Ariz., (16 percent), and New Mexico, (1 percent). The total contract amount for all seven contracts is not to exceed $750,000,000 for all contracts combined. The terms of the contracts are not to exceed 60 months, with an expected completion date of April 2014. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.

Dimensions Construction, Inc. is being awarded task order #0001 in the amount of $6,124,000 for the design and construction of a mail handling facility at the Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Oceanside, Calif. Work for this task order is expected to be completed by September 2010. The task order includes one unexercised option which, if exercised, would increase the cumulative value of the task order to $6,194,000. Contract funds for task order #0001 will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website, with 28 proposals received. These seven contractors may compete for task orders under the terms and conditions of the awarded contract. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southwest, San Diego, Calif., is the contracting activity (contract numbers N62473-09-D-1614/1615/1616/1617/1618/1619/1620.

Walton Construction Co. LLC, Harahan La., is being awarded an $18,807,667 modification under a previously awarded design-build firm fixed price contract (N69450-08-C-1759) to exercise option 2 which provides for the design and construction of a barracks, Recruit Drill Grinder and a Physical Training Circuit at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, S.C. The work to be performed under this option is for the design and build of one barracks, Recruit Drill Grinder and a Physical Training Circuit. The contractor shall provide all labor, supervision, engineering, materials, equipment, tools, parts, supplies and transportation to be performed. After exercise of this option, the total cumulative contract amount will be $78,410,407. Work will be performed at Beaufort, S.C., and is expected to be completed by April 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southeast, Jacksonville, Fla., is the contracting activity.

RiskAware LTD,* Bristol, United Kingdom, is being awarded a $6,214,104 indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity, time and materials contract for research and development services to develop techniques for performance improvements and science and technology integration risk reduction for the Joint Effects Modeling Program. Work will be performed in the United Kingdom, and is expected to be completed by April 2012. Initial contract funds will be obligated in the amount of $299,743 and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively solicited and one offer was received via the Commerce Business Daily's Federal Business Opportunities website, and the SPAWAR e-Commerce Central website. The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command, San Diego, is the contracting activity (N00039-09-D-0023).

ARMY
James G. Davis Construction Corp., Rockville, Md., was awarded on Apr. 20, 2009 a $75,000,000 firm fixed price contract for the Command Control/ Communication Network Transport (C2/CNT) Facility East, APG, Md. Work is to be performed in Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2010. Two-Hundred and six (206) bids were solicited and ten bids received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers District, Philadelphia, Pa., is the contracting activity (W912BU-09-C-0018).

Resonant Microsystems, Inc Eau Claire, Wis. was awarded on Apr. 20, 2009 a $7,477,863 cost plus fixed fee contract. With this contract the government requires engineering and technical services to integrate all components of standard military fuses into a single electronic chip, to provide an order of magnitude or better reduction in size and cost. Work is to be performed in Eau Claire, Wis. with an estimated completion date of Apr. 19, 2010. Bids were solicited on the World Wide Web and five bids received. TACOM Picatinny, Picatinny Arsenal, N.J. is the contracting activity (W15QKN-09-C-0080).

L-3 Communications Corp EOS Division, Garland, Texas was awarded on Apr. 20, 2009 a $6,657,200 firm-fixed-price contract for 2200 each 22MM Gen II Image Intensifier Tube AN/PVS-4 NVS 700, P/N 510-3882-300 Foreign Military Sales, sole source directed by Egypt for L-3 Communications, EOS Division, Garland, Texas. Work is to be performed in Garland, Texas with an estimated completion date of Jan. 31, 2011. One sole source bid solicited and one bid received. CECOM Acquisition Center, Fort Monmouth, N.J., is the contracting activity (W15P7T-09-P-D018).

Alliant Ammunition and Powder Co., LLC Radford, Va., was awarded on Apr. 17, 2009 a $20,284,957 firm fixed price contract for NSN: 1376-00-628-3333 Item: TRINITROTOLUENE (TNT), Type I, Flake Quantity: 4,717,432. Work is to be performed in Redford, Va., with an estimated completion date of Sept. 30, 2012. Bids were solicited on the World Wide Web and three bids received. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Contracting Center, CCRC-AR, Rock Island, Ill is the contracting activity (W52P1J-09-D-0017).

AIR FORCE
The Air Force is awarding a fixed price incentive firm contract to Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., of San Diego, Calif., for $21,600,000. This contract will provide advance procurement of LRIP Lot nine selected long lead items required to meet the production schedule of two Global Hawk Block 30 and three Global Hawk Block 40 Air Vehicles as well as the selected long lead items for the ASIP sensors. At this time, $21,600,000 has been obligated. 303 AESG/SYK, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio is the contracting activity (FA8620-09-C-4001).

Navy Medical Unit Helps Africa, Asia Combat Medical Threats

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

April 21, 2009 - Disease knows no borders, and the men and women of the U.S. Naval Research Unit No. 3 here know that better than anyone. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, visited the joint-service unit today and received briefings on how it operates and what threats the doctors, microbiologists and entomologists track each day. With similar units in Djakarta, Indonesia, and Lima, Peru, the unit tracks infections, disease vectors and the scope of outbreaks.

The units work with host nations and other nations in their regions to build medical capacity.

Cholera, other diarrheal diseases, HIV, avian influenza, Rift Valley fever, e-bola, leishmaniasis are among the diseases tracks, and the list goes on. Afghanistan even has diseases no one has ever heard of, because few researchers were allowed into the country in the past, Navy Lt. (Dr.) Jamal Dejli, a microbiologist at the unit, said.

From a military perspective, the unit works to ensure U.S. troops worldwide have good medical force protection. With airline travel as prevalent as it is today, the dengue fever that was a problem in Ethiopia today could be causing havoc at Fort Bragg, N.C., tomorrow.

The unit – working with partners in Egypt, other nations, the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control – are part of the tripwire to chart diseases, develop vaccines and respond to any outbreaks.

"This is a really important unit and a really important mission," Mullen told the American and Egyptian workers at the unit. The chairman thanked them for their work and told them that he is proud of the work they do for America and the world.

Working alongside 152 Egyptian scientists and 97 contractors, 22 Navy and Army personnel and 11 career civilians work at the unit here. The unit has excellent rapport with Egypt's Ministry of Public Health and with countries running from Central Asia throughout Africa. "Our medical staff went on 1,200 temporary duty assignments last year," Navy Capt. (Dr.) Kenneth Earhart, the unit commander, said.

Earhart told the chairman that the unit has had a shift in the way it operates over the past few years. It previously had concentrated on pure medical research, but now the U.S. and Egyptian specialists are spending as much time building capacity in neighboring countries as they do on research, he said.

"They are interested in the same things we are: building the capacity to improve public health, track diseases and respond to outbreaks," Earhart said. "We do a lot of training and capacity building from Kazakhstan to West Africa."

When there is a disease outbreak, unit medics can go to the area and conduct field studies, or local governments can send samples to the unit for analysis and advice. The unit has reference laboratory services that researchers across the region can use.

The unit began in 1942 as part of the effort to address the problem of typhus among allied troops in North Africa. It was effective, and after the war, the Navy established the unit and expanded its responsibilities. It is a unit dedicated to the health of all. No one goes into a country unasked, and conclusions and research are shared with all qualified public health professionals.

When there was a break in U.S.-Egyptian relations after Egypt's Six-Day War with Israel in 1967, all Americans were required to leave Egypt. The Egyptian staff maintained the unit's capability. Soon, the Egyptian government made an exception and allowed the unit's commanding officer to return. He was virtually alone until relations thawed in 1974.

The unit has plenty to do. Workers are developing an integrated communicable disease surveillance database, working with countries of the region to publish a disease surveillance bulletin, and are looking for antibiotic resistance for diarrheas and for drug-resistant tuberculosis.