Mullen Receives Atlantic Council's Military Leadership Award

By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service

April 22, 2008 - Navy Adm. Mike Mullen was one of four leaders spotlighted last night during a who's who of policymakers and policy enforcers that included scores of former heads of state, department secretaries, ambassadors and high-ranking military officers. Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, joined former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, media magnate Rupert Murdoch and Russian piano virtuoso Evgeny Kissin in accepting the Atlantic Council's award for Distinguished Military, International, Business and Artistic Leadership, respectively, in a gala here.

"Let there be no doubt that Adm. Mike Mullen is the right man in the right job at the right time for our nation, and his entire career has contributed to leading him to this point," retired Marine Gen. James L. Jones, chairman of the Atlantic Council, said before presenting the chairman the award.

Mullen, one of few senior naval officers to hold four four-star assignments, oversaw one of the most transformative eras in naval history while serving as vice chief of naval operations, Jones said. The period recognized that family readiness was critical to the Navy's readiness.

"The policies put in place under his watch ... led to historically high retention rates and significantly higher operational readiness rates Navywide," Jones said, describing Mullen's tenure from August 2003 to October 2004, as he served under then-Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Vernon E. Clark.

Jones added that Mullen also showed exceptional leadership serving as commander of NATO's Allied Joint Force Command, in Naples, and U.S. Naval Forces Europe, and as the 28th chief of naval operations.

"Ladies and gentleman, we can all be thankful Mike Mullen is at the helm," Jones said. "He's calm; he's thoughtful; he's reasonable; he's insightful; and he fully understands the magnitude of that task before him."

Apparently, he also has a sense of humor and humility.

Mullen, the last speaker to address the high-caliber international audience, began his remarks, "Good evening. I certainly recognize my place in the order tonight." But as the laughter subsided, the top military officer tempered the revelry by honoring deployed servicemembers of the United States and its allies.

"As we are here this evening enjoying this celebration, I am mindful of all those men and women who are serving in all of our countries around the world," he said. "Many of them are in harm's way this evening so that we might enjoy the freedom, the privileges, the opportunity that their service, in fact, provides."

The chairman then provided a sweeping assessment of global security, including countries where troops are stationed currently and where he expects they'll be needed in future operations.

Echoing comments made this month by Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, Mullen said security there is improved but fragile. Furthermore, he said, security is a necessary condition, but not sufficient, as diplomatic, political and economic progress is imperative for long-term stability.

Mullen said Iran routinely pushes its way into "realms of instability," and advocated that allied countries address Iran's variform influence in the Middle East: in Hezbollah, Hamas and in southern Iraq.

"I think for the ability to create stability in that part of the world, that not just this alliance but those who are allied will have to deal with Iran in the very near future," he said.

Afghanistan is "front and center" for allied Atlantic countries, Mullen said. He added that NATO countries must ensure that their contributions are sufficient in helping establish security in Afghanistan. In related comments, he stressed the need for allied countries to address threats emanating from Pakistan.

"We also must work hard, I think, to build non-NATO relationships," he added. "And there are those countries, those allies, who have joined us in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

"They represent the best of those relationships," he continued, "countries who are responsible and who recognize in that responsibility that we can meet these challenges head on together much better than we can meet them individually."

In closing, Mullen said, the strength of international partnership lies in nations' shared hope for the future.

"As a community of nations, we've elected to lead, and we've chosen to work together to create a future where parents can raise their children without fear, with dignity and with hope," he said.

The Atlantic Council of the United States promotes constructive U.S. leadership and engagement in international affairs based on the central role of the Atlantic community in meeting the international challenges of the 21st century, according the organization's official Web site.

MILITARY CONTRACTS April 22, 2008

NAVY

Northrop Grumman Corp., Integrated Systems, Bethpage, N.Y., is being awarded a cost-plus-award-fee contract with an estimated value of $1,164,011,648 for the system development and demonstration of Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS). The System Development and Demonstration (SDD) Phase includes the design, fabrication, and delivery, of two unmanned aircraft with mission payloads and communications suites; one Forward Operating Base Mission Control System; one Systems Integration Laboratory; and one Main Operating Base Mission Control System. The BAMS UAS will provide persistent Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) data collection and dissemination capability to the Fleet. BAMS UAS will deliver capability enabling the Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Force (MPRF) Family of Systems to meet the Navy's maritime ISR requirements. Work will be performed in Bethpage, N.Y., (30 percent); San Diego, Calif., (25 percent); various locations throughout the United States (13 percent); W. Salt Lake City, Utah (9 percent); Rolling Meadows, Ill., (7 percent); Falls Church, Va., (6 percent); Baltimore, Md., (5 percent); and Norwalk, Conn., (5 percent), and work is expected to be completed in Sep 2014. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured through a request for proposals; three firms were solicited and three proposals were received. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity (N00019-08-C-0023).

Kiewit-General a Joint Venture, Poulsbo, Wash., is being awarded a $27,869,606 modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed price contract for construction of the Limited Area Production and Storage Complex at the Strategic Weapons Facility Pacific, Naval Base Kitsap. The facility includes vehicular access; support buildings; a lightning protection system, grounding system and utilities for the facility. This project will also provide an observation tower, perimeter fencing, roadwork, and other site improvements. Work will be performed in Silverdale, Wash., and is expected to be completed by Nov. 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Naval Facilities Engineering Command e-solicitation website with two proposals received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Northwest, Silverdale, Wash., is the contracting activity (N44255-08-C-6003).

Force Protection Industries, Inc., Ladson, S.C., is being awarded a $12,635,801 firm-fixed-priced modification under Delivery Order #0004 to previously awarded contract (M67854-07-D-5031) for the purchase of Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle logistics support to include technical data, provisioning data, Outside the Continental United States field service representatives, one-year maintenance workshop block and one-year forward deployment block. Work will be performed in the combat area of operations and Ladson, S.C., and work is expected to be completed by Nov. 2008. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured. The Marine Corps Systems Command, Quantico, Va., is the contracting activity.

UNITED STATES TRANSPORTATION COMMAND

Federal Express Charter Programs Team Arrangement of Memphis, Tenn., is being awarded an estimated $1,676,857,474 (revised) firm fixed-price contract for international airlift services with a minimum guarantee of $158,493,329. Team members include: Air Transport International LLC of, Little Rock, Ark.; ATA Airlines, Inc., of Indianapolis, Ind.; Atlas Air, Inc., of Purchase, N.Y.; Federal Express Corp., of Memphis, Tenn.; Northwest Airlines, Inc., of St. Paul, Minn.; Omni Air International, Inc., of Tulsa, Okla.; and Polar Air Cargo Worldwide, Inc., of Purchase, N.Y. This is a revision to the original announcement to include dollars associated with urgent missions to move Mine Resistant, Ambush Protected vehicles. The United States Transportation Command Acquisition Directorate, Scott Air Force Base, Ill., is the contracting activity (HTC711-07-D-0021).

ARMY

Daimler Trucks North America, LLC, Portland, Ore., was awarded on Apr. 18, 2008, a $169,990,717 firm-fixed price contract for 600 each of M916A3 light equipment transporters, 150 each, M917A2 dump trucks and 50 each, M917A2 W/MCS dump trucks. Work will be performed in Portland, Ore., and is expected to be completed by Oct. 31, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Apr. 21, 2000, and two bids were received. TACOM, LCMC, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (DAAE07-00-D-S022).

University of Southern Calif., Los Angeles, was awarded on Apr. 21, 2008, a $40,000,000 increase on an existing cost-reimbursable-type contract for the university as an affiliated research center. Under the contract, USC established a separate institute called the Institute for Creative Technologies to conduct research in advanced modeling and simulation. Work will be performed in Los Angeles. One bid was solicited. U.S. Army Research Development Engineering Command, Durham, N.C., is the contracting activity (W911NF-04-D-0005).

Washington Harris Group, Inc;, Greenbelt, Md., was awarded on Apr. 21, 2008, a $12,514,213 firm-fixed price contract for medical and dental case-management support for Army National Guard State Surgeons' Offices. Work will be performed in Greenbelt, Md., and is expected to be completed by Apr. 30, 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Jan. 17, 2008, and six bids were received. National Guard Bureau, Arlington, Va., is the contracting activity (W9133L-08-F-0078).

CSS Global, Ada, Mich., was awarded on Apr. 19, 2008, a $6,429,113 firm-fixed price contract for construction equipment for the engineer and infrastructure battalions. Work will be performed in Baghdad, Iraq, and is expected to be completed by Oct. 16, 2008. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Feb. 16, 2008, and 26 bids were received. Joint Contracting Command, Baghdad, Iraq, is the contracting activity (W91GY0-08-M-0215).

Daimler Trucks, North America LLC, Portland, Ore., was awarded on Apr. 18, 2008, a $5,991,503 firm-fixed price contract for the addition of M915 test vehicles, test assets, test support design engineering and other non-recurring tooling costs to the contract. Work will be performed in Portland, Ore., and is expected to be completed by Jan. 31, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Apr. 21, 2000, and two bids were received. TACOM, Warren, Mich. is the contracting activity (DAAE07-00-D-S022).

AIR FORCE

United Technologies Corp., Pratt and Whitney Aircraft Group of East Hartford, Conn., is being awarded a modified contract for $6,903,409. This action will provide refurbishment of three F-22 Raptor F119 Test Engines. At this time $6,903,409 has been obligated. Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8611-05-C-2851).

Campaign Stars Honor Service in Afghanistan, Iraq

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

April 22, 2008 - New campaign stars authorized for wear on the Afghanistan and Iraq campaign medals represent tangible recognition and honor for the sacrifices and contributions servicemembers have made in support of operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, a senior defense official said today. The Defense Department announced the campaign stars yesterday to recognize participation in specific campaigns in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Servicemembers who quality for the Afghanistan Campaign Medal or Iraq Campaign Medal may now display a bronze campaign star on their medals for each designated campaign phase in which they participated.

In keeping with military tradition, the Defense Department established designated campaign phases and inclusive dates, explained Bill Carr, acting deputy undersecretary for military personnel policy.

The Afghanistan medal is divided into three distinct campaign phases. The "Liberation of Afghanistan" ranfrom Sept. 11 to Nov. 30, 2001. The "Consolidation 1" phase ran from Dec. 1, 2001, to Sept. 30, 2006. The "Consolidation II" phase began Oct. 1, 2006, and continues through a yet-undesignated end date.

The Iraq medal has four campaign phases. The "Liberation of Iraq" extended from March 19 to May 1, 2003. The "Transition of Iraq" ran from May 2, 2003, to June 28, 2004. The "Iraq Governance" phase went from June 29, 2004, to Dec. 15, 2005. The "National Resolution" phase begans Dec. 16, 2005, and continues to a date to be determined.

To qualify for a star, a servicemember must have served 30 consecutive days or 60 nonconsecutive days in the area, Carr said.

Troops who served the required days during more than one phase, or in both Iraq and Afghanistan, qualify for two stars, he said. However, a servicemember who served two tours during one designated campaign phase qualifies for just one star.

Servicemembers who qualified for the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal based on service in direct support of operations Enduring Freedom or Iraqi Freedom between Sept. 11, 2001, and April 30, 2005, remain qualified for that medal, Carr explained. However, no servicemember is entitled to both the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal and either an Afghanistan or Iraq campaign medal for the same act, achievement or service period.

On the uniform, the ACM, then the ICM, follow the Kosovo Campaign Medal in precedence.

"The presence of a campaign medal on a uniform represents that the member participated long and well in multiple stages of the operation," Carr said. "They take pride in having invested that much of themselves and their families in those phases.

"And that should be reflected on their uniform so we can all recognize and honor it."

NCOs' Service Vital to Nation During Dangerous Time, Mullen Says

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

April 22, 2008 - Navy Adm. Mike Mullen told noncommissioned officers here today that this is the most dangerous period he has seen in his more than 40 years in uniform. Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the threats of extremism and changes happening around the world associated with energy and resources make the present day "the most uncertain and potentially the most dangerous time since I've been serving," he said at a noncommissioned officer quarterly breakfast.

Mullen told the NCOs that their service at this time is absolutely vital. "(Your service) is bedrock to this country," he said. "Without that service and without that dedication, we could not be the country that we are; that's just flat-out the truth. We shouldn't take that for granted."

The increasing pace of change also puts challenges to all military leaders, Mullen said.

"I can rack and stack it: whether it's the missions, whether it's where we are, whether it's what we're doing, how we're doing it, the skills that we are evolving -- this kind of change will continue as far as I can see in the future," he said.

The changes are not limited to warfighting, but are systemic, he said. "It's how we're going to recruit, how we're going to train, how we're going to educate, what our career paths are, how do we incentivize our people now and in the future," he said.

It can be difficult to adapt to change, but change also can lead to tremendous opportunities, the chairman said.

"For our younger people, it's an exciting time," he said. "We bring more and more young people in who quickly adapt to change, who see opportunity, and we need to figure out how to adapt the institutions ... as rapidly as possible."

Change is happening particularly fast within the military reserve components and in health care. These areas are evolving "almost as fast as the clock ticks," Mullen said.

He told the NCOs to think back to the way the military did business in 2001 and to look at the services today. He said that change was "probably not possible without the sense of urgency that war brings."

The world has entered an era of persistent conflict, he said, and NCOs must be ready to confront and lead change. NCO experiences will be important to the force of the future.

"This is the most battle-hardened force we have ever had," and retaining and capitalizing on that experience will be essential to the armed services' future, he said.

Mullen also addressed President Bush's decision to reduce Army deployments from 15 months to 12. "That's a big deal," he said. "(My) view was that 15 months was just too long."

In addition, the admiral said, the military must work to build dwell time, the amount of time at home station between deployments. "I believe we're not home enough right now," he said.

Ultimately, soldiers will be 24 months at home station for every year deployed and Marines will look to 14 months at home station for every seven months deployed, Mullen said.

He said he is "cautiously optimistic" a modification of the Montgomery G.I. Bill would allow servicemembers to transfer their benefits to their spouses or children.

"There is broad bipartisan support, as far as I can tell, to push this through, and it speaks to the recognition that the support of our families is so vital," Mullen said. "I'm cautiously optimistic. What's different is we've never had this kind of proposal on the Hill before."

Mullen challenged the NCOs to think of ways to better serve their fellow servicemembers. Keeping servicemembers connected was one example. He said a reserve-component soldier, for example, serves in Iraq or Afghanistan and then comes home.

"You get off a plane and your transition time is zilch: Boom! You are back in Minneapolis, and you are going back to work in two, three weeks," he said. "You've been in 15 months of combat, and you've seen things you never thought you would see that again have changed your life forever. Where is your contact with people who have been through what you've been through?"

Young servicemembers who separate from the service shortly after leaving a war zone are another example. "They cross that bridge, and they are standing on the other side of that bridge alone without any support mechanisms," the chairman said. "How do you know they will be okay? How do you know? We owe them connectivity."

The services track those who get out for 120 days after their separations, but then lose touch. He said the military can and should do a better job of ensuring servicemembers make good transitions to civilian life.

Civilian Visitors Get Feel for Navy Life on USS George Washington

By Fred W. Baker III
American Forces Press Service

April 22, 2008 - Forty-eight business, civic and local government leaders visited the USS George Washington about 80 miles off shore from here April 20, and a lucky dozen got to spend the night on the ship. "It reminds me that the best and the brightest are right here representing our country," said Neal Denton, a senior vice president of government relations and strategic partnerships for the American Red Cross, based in Washington, D.C.

Denton and the other visitors are participating in the 75th iteration of the Joint Civilian Orientation Conference, a defense secretary-sponsored program for America's leaders interested in expanding their knowledge of the military and national defense. JCOC is the oldest existing Pentagon outreach program.

The USS George Washington is here on its way to its eventual new home port in Japan. It will replace the USS Kitty Hawk based there now. JCOC participants toured the ship talking to sailors and meeting its leaders.

An aircraft glitch led to a small group of participants spending the night on the ship and having the rare opportunity to watch night operations aboard the aircraft carrier.

One participant likened the incredible synchronicity of the flight operations to a "high-risk ballet."

But, equally fascinating for the group was walking up to the bridge and finding Seaman James Holzmann, a 19-year-old from Arizona with only two years in the Navy, driving the ship.

The George Washington's flight deck is 4.5 acres. The ship can accommodate about 6,000 sailors. It can distill 400,000 gallons of water a day, serves 18,000 meals daily, and is held together by 60,000 tons of structural steel.

Denton said that he was struck by how everyone on the ship worked together despite the enormity of its daily operations.

"This is a city, and everyone has a job and everyone has a responsibility and knows each other and knows what their jobs are and how they rely on each other," Denton said. "I guess I just didn't perceive it like that, as a city where everyone here has a role to play in making sure this thing ticks from the first thing in the morning until they all go down to bed at night."

A former Army enlisted man, Denton said the best part of his visit was in the galley with the sailors. In fact, he said, getting back in touch with the troops was one of his main motivations for joining the JCOC trip, he said.

"I love some of these guys here. I had some of the best conversations. That was my favorite part. Sitting at the tables talking with them," Denton said. "This was a chance to sort of reconnect with what is going on in today's service.

"There has been so much discussion in Washington -- public policy decision makers who are trying to find their way into making the right decisions now -- and I like to be engaged in their conversations. Now I feel like I'm engaged in those conversations with a different pool of knowledge than I had before.

"I feel as though I know a heck of a lot more now than I did before," Denton said.

John Stross, the owner of Leverock's Restaurant, in St. Petersburg, Fla., said he was impressed with the efficiency of the air operations. It takes only 45 seconds for crews to clear the landing strip between planes during the day. At night it still takes only minutes.

Crews in different colored shirts, each with their own meaning, move around the deck with precision speed, moving planes, pulling chains and cables, and sending signals with colored flash cones.

No detail is too small on the spotless ship. Sailors on their hands and knees scrub the insides of divots in the deck to secure chains tied to the planes. Dirt can settle inside the indentations and stick to the planes' tires.

Debris on a tire could find its way onto the landing strip and into one of the jet engines, causing a "blowout" requiring the engine to be rebuilt. Each engine costs more than $1 million, an officer explained.

"If I could run my restaurant as efficiently as they run their flight operations, I would never put out a bad meal," Stross said.

The longtime business owner used a seafood restaurant analogy to give credit to the ship's leaders.

"I believe the fish stinks from the head down. I think that great leaders make great organizations," Stross said. "My hat is off not only to the enlisted people, but especially to the officers and the [noncommissioned officers] who, to use Army terms, have made these enlisted people the best that they can be.

"I think, in interacting with the people, at times if you didn't see ... the rank or the brass they wore on their uniforms, you might not know the difference," said he added.

Karen Johnson, senior vice president with Valente and Associates, a government affairs firm based in Washington, D.C., was all smiles when she came off the flight deck after the night operations ended.

"I thought it was incredible. Seriously, you could just feel it in your gut when they landed and when they took off. It was the most amazing feeling," Johnson said as she tried in vain to put her hair back in some sort of order.

At this point, it was nearly 10 p.m. local time. The group had left at 4 a.m. two days earlier and had not seen a bed since. They spent the first day of their trip in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, reviewing military operations there, before boarding an all-night flight to Rio de Janeiro, where they waited all day for their flight to the ship.

But, Johnson summed up her opportunity on the ship in one sentence as she wrestled to shove her hair up under the souvenir conference hat.

"It was worth a bad hair day," she said.

Recruiting Standards Remain High Despite Waivers

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

April 22, 2008 - The Defense Department maintains stringent standards for its recruits, despite an increase in felons the military services accept. A senior defense official said waivers sometimes are granted to people who commit "youthful pranks that went way too far," but not to dangerous criminals.

The military granted waivers to 903 felons in 2007, 511 of them for the Army and 350 for the Marine Corps, Bill Carr, acting deputy under secretary for military personnel policy, told American Forces Press Service. These numbers, up from 249 in the Army and 208 for the Marine Corps in 2006, constitute a tiny fraction of all incoming recruits -- one half of one percent, Carr said.

Contrary to what media reports imply, the waivers weren't granted to hardened criminals fresh out of prison, Carr said. Mostly they're granted to people who made mistakes when they were younger, but then straightened up to become responsible citizens, he said.

The military is extremely judicious in granting the waivers and limits the number granted each year. A general officer must approve all such applications. Those with "sinister crimes" are automatically eliminated. Only those who show they've turned around and have potential in the military get a chance to enlist.

"The military determines that they're worth betting on and gives them a second chance," Carr said.

In a tough recruiting environment, the practice serves the military too. Two-thirds of the American youth population is disqualified to enlist by today's military entrance standards, said Army Lt. Col. Jonathan Withington, a Pentagon spokesman. Medical conditions account for most of the disqualifications, and medical waivers make up the biggest percentage of waivers granted.

Of waivers granted to felons, most were to individuals involved in crimes against property. Typically, the offenses occurred years before the waivers were granted, Withington said.

One recruit described in news reports as a "bomber" actually was a young person who blew up a mailbox using a soda bottle full of gunpowder, Carr said. "It was more of a youthful prank than the sinister activity that some of the media suggest," he said. That offense occurred two years before the waiver was granted.

Another recruit had been convicted of involuntary manslaughter resulting from driving under the influence of alcohol three years before receiving the waiver. Several recruits had been convicted of sexual offenses, most involving consensual sex with a minor and typically years before the military waiver was granted.

Carr has a message to parents concerned about who their son or daughter joining the military may serve with.

"They should feel assured that we are very careful about who their children serve alongside," he said. "These are generally people of respectable character who made a terrible move in their youth, but have made a dramatic turnaround."

Army Reserve Looks Forward to Further Transformation on 100th Anniversary

By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service

April 22, 2008 - After undergoing a century of change, the Army Reserve is now in the midst of its biggest transformation, the component's chief said. Lt. Gen. Jack C. Stultz characterized the first 100 years of the Army Reserve as a metamorphosis from an Army medical reserve corps to a strategic force and toward an operational force. The future of the service, however, will usher in an ever-greater period of transformation, he said.

"Throughout the 100 years, as the Army has changed, the Army Reserve has changed," he said. "Most significantly, I would say, is after Sept. 11, after we've gotten into an extended conflict in the war on terror, the Army Reserve is in the midst of the biggest transformation we've ever had."

To illustrate the current state of flux, Stultz recalled the differences between now and his early days in the reserves. "When I first entered the Army Reserve (after) leaving the active duty in 1979, our mantra was: 'One weekend a month, two weeks in the summer -- that's all we ask," he said.

"(But) our mantra right now is: When called upon, you're expected to mobilize, deploy and defend your nation," he said. "And if you're a member of the Army Reserve then it will occur during your career, and it will occur in multiple locations."

The Army Reserve of today is engaged with the combat force on an "extended basis" in Iraq, Afghanistan and other parts of the world where U.S. operations are ongoing.

"Now (the Army Reserve's) combat support, service support has to be mobilized on an extended or persistent basis," he said. "That means the Army Reserve is no longer strategic; it's operational."

Reserve members' adaptation is a good news story, Stultz said, because the corps is consolidated into a more committed force that is more prepared, capable and willing to deploy.

"We have grown from 188,000 this time last year, to right now 195,000," he said. "We've increased end strength by 4,000 this fiscal year already, but we're doing with the people who say, 'I know what I'm getting into.'"

The reserve chief's comments were echoed by his senior enlisted advisor, Command Sgt. Maj. Leon Caffie. The transformed force is endowed with training, leadership and skills comparable to the active-duty component, Caffie told American Forces Press Service.

Caffie said he was impressed by the quality of reservists he met over the holidays in Afghanistan and Iraq and during a massive reenlistment ceremony in Iraq in which he participated in January.

"You can go to the theater ... and you can't distinguish between the active-duty, National Guard or Army Reserve soldiers because that skill set and that quality is so much higher (than in the past)," he said.

The top reserve officer and enlisted member agree that the reserve's turning point came in the early 1990s, when Army Reserve soldiers started being mobilized into operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. Caffie said the operations revealed an Army Reserve that was ill-equipped, poorly trained and insufficiently led.

"We had created this strategic force that was really not relevant at all. You had a bunch of numbers, but as far as training and capability, performance at that level wasn't expected," he said. "That changed drastically when the Army Reserve as a whole went from a strategic force to an operational force, and you have seen a significant change in how we do stuff as Army Reserve soldiers."

In a dramatic departure from the "summer camp" era, today's reservists have been deployed up to four times, Caffie said. Others have made significant personal sacrifices by deploying for a year at a time, he said.

"The combat experience of Army Reserve soldiers is phenomenal," he said. "Today's Army Reserve force is by far the best-led, -skilled and -equipped Army Reserve I have ever been associated with."

Gates Urges Unconventional Thinkers to Address Unconventional Challenges

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

April 21, 2008 - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates today challenged military officers to become forward thinkers with the courage to advance new approaches needed to confront current and emerging threats. "An unconventional era of warfare requires unconventional thinkers," Gates told Air War College students at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.

He challenged the officers to think outside the box to help the military adapt to a constantly changing strategic environment characterized by persistent conflict.

While addressing an Air Force audience, Gates' challenge applies militarywide.

"For the kinds of challenges America will face, the armed forces will need principled, creative, reform-minded leaders," he said.

Bucking convention isn't easy, Gates conceded. "Virtually every institution is organized in a way to stifle out-of-the-box thinking," he said.

Ideas that break with the status quo aren't always met with open arms, he added.

Gates noted the example set by the late Air Force Col. John Boyd, a maverick reformer who turned traditional approaches to air-to-air conflict and principles of maneuver warfare on their head. To do so, Boyd had to overcome "a large measure of bureaucratic resistance and institutional hostility," Gates said.

The way Boyd saw it, everyone faces a fork in the road in his military career. People choose to "be somebody," Gates said, making compromises and turning their backs on their friends to get ahead. Or they choose to "do something" -- sticking their neck out for their country, their military and themselves -- while recognizing that it's not likely to garner them favor or career advantage.

Pressing security challenges require people in the armed forces who "want to do something, not be somebody," Gates said.

New challenges, realities and requirements have meant "a wrenching set of changes for our military establishment that, until recently, was almost completely oriented toward winning the big battles in the big wars," Gates said.

He cited vast transformations within the military and the need for more. The Army is taking lessons learned and capabilities built from the Iraq and Afghanistan campaigns and institutionalizing them into its core doctrine, funding priorities and personnel policies.

Similarly, the Air Force has adopted recent lessons, setting the stage for the expeditionary culture and mindset to take root, Gates said. It has accepted new, nontraditional combat missions, new ways of doing things and new battlefield responses, including small-diameter munitions that can strike enemies with less chance of collateral damage.

Gates urged the officers to come up with more ways the Air Force can evolve to meet asymmetric threats.

"I would ask you to think through how we can build the kinds of air capabilities most likely to be needed while continuing to offer a strategic hedge against rising powers," he said.

Gates also challenged to officers to:

-- Come up with better ways to address the air, space and cyberspace roles in counterinsurgency operations;

-- Enhance partners' airpower capabilities;

-- Conduct civil-military or humanitarian missions with interagency, nongovernmental organizations and other partners;

-- Rethink the way the service is organized, manned and equipped;

-- Determine what new priorities should drive issues ranging from promotions to procurement; and

-- Come up with ways to accomplish future missions ranging from strike to surveillance in the most affordable, sensible way.

"I have raised difficult questions with perhaps difficult answers," Gates said. "I am asking you to be part of the solution and part of the future."

The secretary urged the officers to be willing to think beyond the status quo when they approach Boyd's proverbial fork in the road. He also emphasized the need for senior leaders to recognize the value of out-of-the-box thinking and to support the people who do it.

"For the good of the Air Force, for the good of the armed services, and for the good of our country, I urge you to reject convention and careerism and to make decisions that will carry you closer toward -- rather than farther from -- the officer you want to be and the thinker who advances air-power strategy in meeting the complex challenges to our national security," he said.

Camp Stryker Soldiers Run for the Cure in Iraq

By Army Staff Sgt. Tony M. Lindback
Special to American Forces Press Service

April 21, 2008 - Soldiers on Camp Striker ran a 5-kilometer race that kicked off simultaneously with a Ride for the Cure bicycle race in Clarksville, Tenn., April 19. The idea to do a run for the cure of breast cancer in Iraq came from Army Capt. Troy King's wife, a breast cancer survivor.

King, commander of the 101st Airborne Division's Company B, 626th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, said he was happy to help the cause, but he was planning the run on a smaller scale at first, like a company run. When word spread, however, more people wanted to take part.

"At first we started off small with a company run and a few other folks," King said. "But then we signed up as a team. Then we set up the Rakkasan Run for the Cure, and it just sort of blossomed from there."

The support of his battalion commander, Lt. Col. Mathew Redding, and brigade commander, Col. Dominic Caraccilo, made it easier for King to take the run to another level, he said.

The Rakkasans showed their support and responded in the form of 196 registered runners, more than $6,400 in donations and about $4,500 from the sale of t-shirts and registration fees. In all, more than 300 people participated in the event on Camp Striker.

As the crowd gathered for the race, runners stretched and laughed, and a bit of the Rakkasans' competitive nature surfaced as people set their sights on other runners.

Cellular phones were used to synchronize the start times of the run at Camp Striker and the Ride for the Cure race in Clarksville.

Upon hearing "go," the runners took off. After jockeying for position, it occurred to some of the runners why they were really running.

"When I was a little kid, my grandmother died of breast cancer, and my mom had a scare a few years back, so I had that on my mind," said 1st Lt. Brendan Crane, a distribution platoon leader with Company A, 626th BSB.

Crane said he was moved by signs along the race route that showed how many have been affected by breast cancer. "It really hit me as I ran by, so getting tired really wasn't an option," he said.

His resilience carried Crane to a first place finish with a time of 19:15. Though the race had prizes for the first and second place finishers for men and women, the race had no losers.

Army Command Sgt. Maj. Gregory Patton, of 3rd Brigade Combat Team, greeted everyone who finished after him with cheers and high-fives. With his own mother being a breast cancer survivor, the run itself meant more to him than who placed first.

"The run was in remembrance of ... all the women who are survivors of breast cancer -- the daughters, the sisters, the wives and the mothers -- everyone who has been subjected to the disease," Patton said. "We're trying to ensure our daughters and their daughters don't have to go through the things our generation has gone through."

(Army Staff Sgt. Tony M. Lindback is assigned to 101st Airborne Division's 3rd Brigade Combat Team.)

Education Compact Helps Retain Military Families, Official Says

By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service

April 21, 2008 - A piece of legislation aimed at easing transitions for military children switching schools adheres to an armed forces adage: Recruit the servicemember, but retain the family, a Pentagon official said today. Developed by the Council of State Governments, education experts and the Defense Department, the Compact on Education Transition for Military Children addresses common problems that affect military students as a result of frequent moves and deployments.

"The interstate compact is a major new tool and opportunity for the nation really to show its appreciation to military families," Leslye A. Arsht, deputy undersecretary of defense for military community and family policy, said during an interview today.

States that pass the bill agree to work collectively with other participating states to create uniform standards of practice, including the transfer of records, course placement, graduation requirements, redundant or missed testing, entrance-age variations, and other transition issues.

Kansas and Kentucky signed onto the bill this month, and 21 other states actively are considering the measure; 14 of those state legislatures have bills submitted in one or both chambers. In order for the compact to become operational, 10 states must adopt it, Arsht said.

"We are thrilled that Kansas and Kentucky are leading the nation in seeking uniform standards for school transition for military children," she said after the two states adopted the bill.

She emphasized today that the Defense Department hopes the compact is made operational during the current Congressional session.

About 1.5 million children of military families attend schools other than those sponsored by the Defense Department, and military families move about three times as often as their civilian counterparts, Arsht said in an earlier interview. This legislation will ease transitions of the 19,000 school-age children of military families residing in Kansas and 30,834 school-age children in Kentucky, she added.

David S. C. Chu, undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, said in an interview that passage of the interstate compact will have a lasting, positive impact on American military families.

"Quality education is a primary quality-of-life concern. In fact, education is so important that it directly impacts military recruitment, satisfaction with assignments, readiness and, ultimately, retention," he said.

"We ask a lot of our military families," he continued. "Easing this burden is the right thing to do. We appreciate all the support and effort to implement the compact. We look forward to more states signing on."

Face of Defense: Samoan Teacher Becomes U.S. Soldier

By Army Sgt. Brandon Little
Special to American Forces Press Service

April 21, 2008 - More than 10 years ago, Maranata Temese was an elementary school teacher living in American Samoa with his wife, Leaiseaiga, and their three children. Wanting to provide a better life for his family, he decided to join the military. But there was one problem: He was not a U.S. citizen. American Samoa is a U.S. territory, and its natives have the same U.S. rights and privileges as natives of Guam and Puerto Rico. Temese's wife and children were born in American Samoa. Temese, however, was born in the independent country of Samoa.

"When I walked into the recruiting office to ask if I could join the Army, I even told them my wife was a U.S. citizen," said Temese, a platoon sergeant in Company G, Task Force 12. "The recruiter, knowing that I was from Samoa, told me no, I cannot join the Army. It was because of [biased views] held by some people born in American Samoa against people born in Samoa."

His desire to provide a better life for his family through service in the military was now fueled by a determination to prove his recruiter wrong, he said. His next step was to write a letter to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services and find out what he needed to do to join the Army.

"The USCIS wrote me back and told me the process I needed to follow [to get a visa] since I was married to a U.S. citizen," he said. "After I filled out all the paperwork and they accepted my application, I received a quota number, and I was now able to move to the U.S. and live."

Instead of moving to the United States, Temese took his paperwork and went back to that same recruiting station to see the recruiter who told him he couldn't join the Army because he wasn't a citizen.

"Now that I had a [visa], they wanted to help me," Temese said. "After [the recruiter] made a few phone calls, he said, 'You can join the military,' And I told him I'd be more than happy to join."

He enlisted as a light-wheeled-vehicle mechanic and deployed a few years later in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. By then his family had grown from three children to six children, and he had provided a better life for his family. But he was still not a U.S. citizen.

"Every time we went to the airport, I got stopped because of my island passport," he said. "My wife got tired of waiting with the kids while I got checked, and she finally said, 'This has got to stop; you need to get your citizenship and a U.S. passport.'"

He decided to talk to his chain of command and Task Force 12's top enlisted soldier, Command Sgt. Maj. H. Lee Kennedy, to get help.

"While I was in Kuwait, waiting to enter Iraq, I saw [Kennedy] and explained my situation to him," Temese said. "As soon as I asked for his help, he took out a piece of paper and pen and promised he would help make this happen for me. He was really on top of things."

With a little persistence and a lot of help from soldiers working in the Task Force 12 legal office, Kennedy kept his promise. Temese was one of several soldiers in Task Force 12 to become a citizen during a Multinational Corps Iraq naturalization ceremony at Camp Victory on April 12.

"[Temese] is a very special soldier, and it was a real privilege to watch him walk across that stage and become a U.S. citizen," Kennedy said.

Although his journey to citizenship may have taken a little longer than expected, Temese said his original goal of providing a better life for his family happened without delay and he tries to help others do the same.

"Every time I go back to my island, I go to the school I used to teach in and tell the children some of the things the Army has done for me," Temese said. "I think they appreciate the information I give them, and some of them are actually joining the military. I know that by [serving in the Army] I am helping my country of Samoa be a better place, because the United States always tries to fight for little people who get overlooked -- just like my tiny island."

Army Reserve to Mark Century of Service to Nation

By Retired Army Col. Randy Pullen
Special to American Forces Press Service

April 20, 2008 - The U.S. Army Reserve will celebrate its 100th birthday on April 23, marking a full century of service in which Army Reserve soldiers have continuously answered the nation's call. Army Reserve soldiers served in both world wars, the Cold War, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Persian Gulf War and the ongoing global war on terrorism. They also helped respond to countless other crises, emergencies, disasters, operations and expeditions.

That busy century of service to America all began when Congress established the Army's first federal reserve force on April 23, 1908. President Theodore Roosevelt signed Senate Bill 1424, creating the Medical Reserve Corps. The Reserve medical officers in the corps could be ordered to active duty by the secretary of war during times of emergency.

In June 1908, the first 160 medical professionals received Reserve commissions. This number grew to about 360 by 1909 and to 1,900 by 1916. The concept of bringing civilian professionals into the Army in a disciplined and quickly-accessible manner also expanded beyond the medical profession and beyond just officers.

In 1912, the Regular Army Reserve was created, a federal reserve outside of the Medical Reserve Corps. It grew much more slowly than its predecessor; by 1913, there were only eight enlisted men in it. Three years later, some 3,000 Army Reserve soldiers would be called up to serve beside their Regular Army and National Guard comrades along the southern border of the United States.

This first mobilization of the Army Reserve was due to tension between the United States and Mexico caused by the actions of the Mexican revolutionary, Francisco "Pancho" Villa, and the subsequent punitive expedition after him led by Brig. Gen. John J. Pershing. A second Mexican-American War was averted, but this mobilization provided invaluable experience for America's Army in the greater war soon to come.

As World War I raged on it Europe, major changes were taking place in the Army's structure. The National Defense Act of 1916 established the Officers Reserve Corps (into which the Medical Reserve Corps would be merged in 1917), the Enlisted Reserve Corps and the Reserve Officers Training Corps. When the United States entered World War I in April 1917, these organizations – as well as the entire Army – would expand dramatically. For example, by June 1917 there would be 9,223 Army Reserve doctors, dentists and veterinarians -- a huge increase from the original 160 only nine years earlier.

More than 170,000 Army Reserve soldiers served on active duty during World War I. The Reserve doughboys of the Great War served in every division of the American Expeditionary Force in France, whether those divisions were Regular Army, National Guard or National Army.

Among their ranks was President Roosevelt's son, Col. Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., who served in the 1st Infantry Division; Maj. Charles Whittlesey, who led the 77th Infantry Division's "Lost Battalion" during its heroic battle in the Meuse-Argonne, and Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker, "America's Ace of Aces." All three would receive the Medal of Honor, Whittlesey and Rickenbacker for World War I heroism, Roosevelt for his courage in World War II. Their example and those of all the citizen-soldier doughboys set the standard that Army Reserve soldiers have followed ever since.

The era between the world wars was a difficult one for the Army. There were few incentives for service, active or reserve, other than dedication to duty and patriotism. In the Organized Reserve (as the Army Reserve was called at this time), which was primarily an organization of Reserve officers because few enlisted men served, there was no pay for unit drill and no retirement plan. With the national economy in tatters during the 1930s, training became even rarer. No year in that decade saw more than 30 percent of Reserve officers undergo annual training; in 1934, only 14 percent did so.

Despite these and other hardships, the Army Reserve continued to answer the call to serve in emergencies, such as the national emergency of the Great Depression. Between 1933 and 1939, more than 30,000 Organized Reserve Corps officers were involved in running some 2,700 Civilian Conservation Corps camps. The CCC was one of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's key New Deal programs that provided jobs to unemployed young men across the country.

With the outbreak of war in Europe in 1939 and especially with the fall of France in June 1940, the United States began rearming in earnest. The nation began calling on its long-neglected Reserve as a key element in rebuilding its armed forces. There were some 2,700 Reserve officers serving on active duty in mid-1940; within a year, there were 57,000 on active duty. About 90 percent of the Army's company grade officers in June 1941 were recently-mobilized Army Reserve officers.

The Reserve presence in World War II was considerable. In a typical Regular Army combat division during the peak war years, Reserve soldiers occupied most of the mid-grade officer positions. By the end of the war, more than 200,000 Reserve soldiers were on active duty, serving on every front. Roughly a quarter of all Army officers serving during the war were Army Reserve officers.

Most of them were in the grades of first lieutenant through lieutenant colonel. They included Lt. Col. James Earl Rudder who led Rudder's Rangers up the Pointe du Hoc cliffs on D-Day; Lt. Col. Strom Thurmond who crash-landed in a glider with the 82nd Airborne Division on D-Day; Lt. Col. Henry Cabot Lodge who resigned from the U.S. Senate to serve in North Africa, Normandy and Italy; and Capt. Ronald Reagan who used his civilian-acquired skills as a movie star to make Army Air Force training films.

A number of these officers progressed to general officer rank. In April 1942, Lt. Col. James H. Doolittle led 16 Army B-25 bombers off the aircraft carrier Hornet on the first aerial attack against Japan. For leading what was immortalized as "the Doolittle Raid," he received the Medal of Honor and a promotion from lieutenant colonel to brigadier general. He would go on to command the Eighth Air Force and end the war as a lieutenant general.

Maj. Gen. William J. Donovan had received the Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross and three Purple Hearts while leading a battalion of the 165th Infantry Regiment (the old "Fighting 69th" regiment from the Civil War), 42nd Infantry Division, in World War I. Recalled to active duty as a colonel in 1942, Donovan headed the nation's espionage and sabotage agency, the Office of Strategic Services, known as the OSS, the World War II predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency. Another hero from the First World War who also fought in the Second was Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., who returned to duty as a colonel in 1941 and was soon promoted to brigadier general.

After combat in North Africa and Sicily with the 1st Infantry Division, Roosevelt led the 4th Infantry Division ashore on Utah Beach, the first general officer to come ashore on a Normandy beach on D-Day. For his leadership and courage on June 6, 1944, he received the Medal of Honor. He died of a heart attack on July 12, 1944, never learning that he had been selected for promotion to major general and command of the 90th Infantry Division.

One Reserve officer reached the highest position possible: commander in chief. Harry S Truman, who commanded a Field Artillery battery in combat during World War I, joined the Organized Reserve in 1920 and rose to the rank of colonel. He was elected U.S. Senator from Missouri in 1934. When the war began, Truman requested to be called to active duty but was turned down by Army Chief of Staff Gen. George C. Marshall, who said Truman was more valuable to the country in the Senate than he would be in the Army.

Marshall, as usual, was correct. As head of a special sub-committee, Truman investigated wastefulness in the nation's defense programs and saved the government billions of dollars from fraud and mismanagement. His new national prominence helped gain him a spot as President Roosevelt's running mate in 1944. When Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945, Vice President (and Organized Reserve Col.) Truman became the President of the United States and led the nation to final victory in World War II.

Five years after the end of World War II, Army Reserve men and women -- women were authorized to join the Organized Reserve in 1948 -- were called to duty again, this time for war in Korea. More than 240,000 Reserve soldiers were eventually called to active duty, some as individuals, and others with the 971 Reserve units that were mobilized. Fourteen Reserve battalions and 40 separate companies actually went to Korea, and seven Reserve soldiers – men like Capt. Raymond Harvey and Cpl. Hiroshi Miyamura – received the Medal of Honor for their combat heroism.

In the 1960s, the Army Reserve stood ready to answer the Nation's call during the Berlin Crisis, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Vietnam War. Only Vietnam resulted in an armed conflict and, because of decisions made by the administration of President Lyndon Johnson, only a small Reserve mobilization was authorized, resulting in a call-up in 1968 of 42 Army Reserve units with fewer than 5,000 soldiers.

Army Reserve soldiers actively participated in Operation Just Cause, the United States' intervention in Panama in 1989, with military police and civil affairs support.

The biggest deployment of Army Reserve soldiers overseas since the Korean War took place in 1990-1991 with Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. More than 63,000 soldiers from 647 units were activated to accomplish both continental U.S. and overseas missions. Thousands of Individual Ready Reserve soldiers, Individual Mobilization Augmentees and 1,000 retirees volunteered or were ordered to active duty as well. In all, almost 84,000 Army Reserve soldiers answered their country's call.

In 1993, Army Reserve soldiers participated in Operation Restore Hope, the Somalia relief expedition. They included more than 100 Army Reserve volunteers who made up the 711th Adjutant General Company. Other Army Reserve civil affairs and public affairs soldiers also served in Somalia until U.S. Forces departed there in March 1994.

Since 1995, thousands of Army Reserve soldiers have conducted peacekeeping operations in Bosnia and Kosovo, as well as to support those operations from Hungary, Germany, and Italy. The Kosovo conflict resulted in a stateside mission in 1999 at the Fort Dix Army Reserve Installation in New Jersey. There, Army Reserve soldiers led and were part of the Operation Provide Refuge Joint Task Force, giving relief and assistance to more than 4,000 ethnic Albanian refugees from Kosovo.

On September 11, 2001, terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners and crashed them into the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon in Washington, DC, and a field in Pennsylvania. About 3,000 Americans were killed as a result of these attacks.

Army Reserve men and women were on the front lines of this first war of the 21st century from its outset, with a number of Reserve soldiers among the killed at the Pentagon and the World Trade Center. Army Reserve units and individual soldiers responded to the attack immediately and carried out a host of missions to support rescue and recovery operations and to secure federal facilities nation-wide.

Less than a month after the attack on America, America struck back at the base of the attackers in Afghanistan. Within a few months, Afghanistan's repressive Taliban regime, which had supported and given sanctuary to the al Qaeda terrorists who had launched the 9-11 attacks, had been driven from power and, along with the foreign terrorists, were in hiding in the rugged south and east of Afghanistan. Army Reserve soldiers contributed significantly to this victory.

Army Reserve public affairs soldiers went into the mountains of eastern Afghanistan with the 101st Airborne Division during Operation Anaconda. Army Reserve engineers improved facilities at Kandahar, while medical citizen-soldiers treated casualties at Bagram air base. Army Reserve civil affairs soldiers operated throughout Afghanistan to help the Afghan people recover from decades of war.

On March 20, 2003, Operation Iraqi Freedom began, with Army Reserve soldiers in action right from the beginning and fighting their way to Baghdad alongside their comrades-in-arms from the other U.S. services and coalition allies. The 459th Engineer Company, for example, built bridges across the Diyala and Euphrates rivers under fire to support the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force's advance to Baghdad.

Although major combat operations in Iraq were declared to be over on May 1, 2003, combat did not cease. A difficult guerilla campaign continued, one waged by loyalists of Saddam Hussein's regime, Iraqi insurgents and foreign fighters. Army Reserve soldiers in a multitude of units served, and continue to serve, in numerous capacities during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Not all of the Army Reserve's battles in the early 21st century were against armed foes. Nature was also a tough adversary. In 2005, for example, Army Reserve soldiers kept busy providing assistance to the victims of numerous natural disasters at home and abroad. Especially valuable were the Army Reserve helicopter units that provided assistance to the people of the U.S. Gulf Coast in September following Hurricane Katrina and to the people of Pakistan following a devastating earthquake in October.

As the Army Reserve ended its first century of service, it remained heavily committed to the continuing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. In Afghanistan, Army Reserve soldiers were decisively engaged in helping the emerging Afghan democracy. They served as part of the coalition forces building a 70,000-man strong Afghan National Army and helping the Afghans set up a modern defense establishment under the control of a democratically elected civilian government.

In Iraq, Army Reserve soldiers continued to battle Iraqi insurgents while laying the groundwork for Iraq's security forces to take over this mission themselves. A key development in accelerating the training of the new Iraqi Army was the deployment of the 98th Division to Iraq in late 2004 to speed up the new Iraqi Army's training. This was the first time since the U.S. military began training Iraqi security forces that an Army Reserve unit took on this important mission.

The Army Reserve's only remaining ground combat unit served in Iraq from 2005-2006. The 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry, deployed there as part of the Hawaii Army National Guard's 29th Separate Infantry Brigade. The Army Reserve soldiers of the 100th/442nd come from Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam and Saipan.

In Iraq, they proudly upheld the heritage inherited from the original 100th Infantry Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team of World War II, the most decorated U.S. Army units of their size in American history. During its year in Iraq, four soldiers from the battalion were killed and 45 wounded.
At the beginning of 2008, the number of Army Reserve soldiers killed in both Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom had grown to 153. More than 1,250 had been wounded in action.

The Army Reserve that embarks on its second century in 2008 is one of its most battle-tested and experienced forces since its creation. More than 180,000 Army Reserve Warrior-Citizens have been called to duty since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, with more than 41,000 having been mobilized more than once.

No longer a strategic reserve, the Army Reserve of 2008 is an operational reserve, with some 25,000-30,000 soldiers – from a force of about 190,000 – mobilized routinely and deployed in 18-20 countries around the world, to include the combat zones of Iraq and Afghanistan, and in the United States.

Not only conceptually but throughout its first 100 years, the Army Reserve changed from a force that was a smaller mirror image of the Active Army to one that complemented the Total Force with combat support, combat service support and training capabilities. Many of these capabilities were and remain either exclusively or primarily in the Army Reserve.

Though the Army Reserve has undergone many changes over the past century, one thing that hasn't changed are the quality of citizen-soldiers who continue to distinguish themselves serving their country. Today's Warrior-Citizens remain as dedicated, professional and courageous as their predecessors.

Spc. Jeremy Church of the 724th Transportation Company received the first Silver Star awarded to an Army Reserve soldier in Iraq for battling insurgents and rescuing other soldiers and civilians during an ambush on his convoy in April 2004. Staff Sgt. Jason Fetty, a 339th Combat Support Hospital soldier attached to the 364th Civil Affairs Brigade, received the first Silver Star awarded to an Army Reserve soldier in Afghanistan after hand-to-hand combat with a suicide bomber that foiled his attack on the Khost Hospital in February 2007.

They and their fellow Army Reserve comrades serving today show by their commitment and actions that they are worthy successors to the Organized Reserve doughboys and G.I.s who preceded them. As the Army Reserve continues to evolve and transform throughout its next 100 years, it will do so, as it always has, in the capable hands of those men and women who choose to be "twice the citizen."

(Retired Army Col. Randy Pullen, a former Army Reserve public affairs officer, wrote this article for the Office of the Chief, Army Reserve.)

MILITARY CONTRACTS April 21, 2008

ARMY

Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems, Linthicum Heights, Md., was awarded on Apr. 18, 2008, a $42,504,058 firm-fixed price contract for the synthetic aperture radar/ground moving target indicator. Work will be performed in Linchicum Heights, Md., and is expected to be completed on Apr. 17, 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Aug. 10, 2007, and two bids were received. CECOM Acquisition Center, Fort Monmouth, N.J., is the contracting activity (W15P7T-08-C-P427).

Watts Constructors, Honolulu, Hawaii, was awarded on Apr. 17, 2008, a $23,464,255 firm-fixed price contract for the replacement of a hydrant fuel system. Work will be performed at Hickam Air Force Base, Oahu, Hawaii, and is expected to be completed by Apr. 22, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Apr. 31, 2007, and one bid was received. U.S. Army Engineer District, Honolulu, Hawaii, is the contracting activity (W9128A-08-C-0009).

BAE Systems Information and Electronic Systems Integrated, Lexington, Mass., was awarded on Apr. 18, 2008, a $13,181,799 firm-fixed price contract for 880 each OR-336/A Cooler Dewar Groups and 261 each DT-635 Detector Dewars to support the requirement of Intelligence, Electronic Warfare, and Sensors Night Vision Division for Apache and Bradley Fighting Vehicle Platforms. Work will be performed in Lexington, Mass., and is expected to be completed on Nov. 30, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Mar. 11, 2008, and one bid was received. CECOM Acquisition Center, Fort Monmouth, N.J., is the contracting activity (W15P7T-07-C-W004).

SFA, Inc., Frederick, Md., was awarded on Apr. 18, 2008, a $13,068,034 firm-fixed price contract for the 1500 tactical water purification systems. Work will be performed in Frederick, Md., and is expected to be completed on Jan. 18, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited in Dec. 2007. TACOM LCMC, Warren, Mich. is the contracting activity (DAAE07-02-D-T001).

CJW Construction, Inc., was awarded on Apr 15, 208, a $9,305,000 firm-fixed price contract for the design and construction of approximately 40,000 linear feet of sewer force main from the Huachuca City Waste Water Treatment Plant Lagoon. Work will be performed at Fort Huachuca, Ariz., and is expected to be completed by Aug. 31, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Jan. 27, 2008, and eleven bids were received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles, Calif., is the contracting activity (W9128A-08-C-0009).

Technical Communications Corp., Concord, Mass., was awarded on Apr 18, 2008, a $5,750,452 firm-fixed price contract for DSD 72-A-SP Arecal-II, Military High Speed Ciphering System. Work will be performed in Concord, Mass., and is expected to be completed on Apr. 18, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on Feb. 1, 2008. CECOM Acquisition Center, Fort Monmouth, N.J., is the contracting activity (W15P7T-08-C-C007).

NAVY

DM Constructors, Inc., Carlsbad, Calif., is being awarded a $36,239,200 firm-fixed-price contract for wastewater treatment plant repairs and upgrade at the Naval Base, Guam. This is a design-build project with performance and prescriptive specifications. The purpose of this project is to restore the Apra Harbor wastewater treatment plant to its original design capacity and operational capability, upgrade the process components and equipment to provide reliability and efficiency of operation, and meet Environmental Protection Agency wastewater treatment requirements. This award covers Contract Line Item Number (CLIN) 0001 in the amount of $34,647,200; CLIN 0002 in the amount $775,000; and CLIN 0003 in the amount of $817,000. Work will be performed in Guam, and work is expected to be complete May 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured with 79 solicitations issued and four proposals received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Pacific, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is the contracting activity (N62742-08-C-1316).

Dillon Aero, Inc., Scottsdale, Ariz., is being awarded a $30,000,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the MK 44 Mini Gun System. The MK 44 System is a mini-gun system; the system and its supporting components are being procured to support a wide variety of needs within the Department of Defense. Work will be performed in Scottsdale, Ariz., and work is expected to be completed by Apr 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division, Crane, Ind., is the contracting activity (N00164-08-D-JN32).

Rolls Royce Naval Marine, Inc., Walpole, Mass., is being awarded a $7,976,358 firm-fixed-price contract for a DDG-1000 Baseline Tactical Auxiliary Turbine Generator (ATG) set engineering services and support. This ATG set will be delivered to the Navy land based test site in Philadelphia, Pa. This ATG set will meet the same specification established by the DDG-1000 shipyard for the lead ship installation. Work will be performed in Indianapolis, Ind., (80 percent) and Walpole, Mass., (20 percent) and is expected to be completed by Feb. 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract wasnot competitively procured. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-08-C-4203).

Teledyne Scientific Co., Thousand Oaks, Calif., is being awarded $7,056,865 for an 18-month option for additional research on an existing cost-plus-fixed-fee contract (N66001-06-C-2025), which was solicited under Broad Agency Announcement No. N66001-05-X-6030 and awarded on Jun. 30, 2006. The contract provides for the development of Feedback Linearized Microwave Amplifiers in support of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Microsystems Technology Office research and development efforts. The scope of this effort is to develop ultra-linear, broadband low-noise microwave amplifiers with unprecedented linearity-to-dissipated dc power ratios. This option award increases the overall total value of the contract to $12,049,069. Work will be performed in Thousand Oaks, Calif., and work is expected to be completed Dec. 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center San Diego is the contracting activity.

AIR FORCE

Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc. of Herndon, Va., is being awarded a cost plus fixed fee contract for $9,604,464. The objective of this Technical Area Task is to provide planning analysis to the Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS). This analysis will ensure that CNSS is able to focus on development and document addressing key priority areas identified through the CNSS conference and hot wash process. At this time $260,869 has been obligated. Offutt AFB, Neb., is the contracting activity (SPO700-98-D-4002 DO 0335).

America Supports You: Jack Daniel's Toasts Troops with Care Packages, Concert

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

April 21, 2008 - More than 200 volunteers took the opportunity to support the troops here April 19 during the Jack Daniel's-United Services Organizations' "Toast to the Troops" care package stuffing party. Jack Daniel's Distillery hosted the event in conjunction with the USO, which left the event with more than 10,000 care packages to send to troops through its USO Care Package Program. It's not the first time the two organizations have paired up to toast the troops in this manner.

"We've done six of (these parties) at bases throughout the country," said Elizabeth Conway, Jack Daniel's public relations manager. "We include in each care package a personalized post card with a little message to the troops that we call a 'Toast to the Troops.'"

The note is just one of many items boxed up for the troops. One volunteer said he'd have very happy to get one of those care packages when he served.

"On the island I was on, we'd have been too glad to have one of those things, a little package like that," said Bill Stang, a World War II Marine veteran.

Stang was referring to Guadalcanal, where he and his comrades served after participating in the initial landing on the island. He said they ran out of everything while they "existed" there.

He said he believes today's troops will appreciate each box they get, though they might be just a bit disappointed.

"Each time they open one of those packages, they're going to look for a little bottle of Jack Daniel's, but it's not going to be there!" he said with a laugh.

Another volunteer agreed with the potential for disappointment, but knows for a fact today's troops will appreciate the other goodies.

"I know exactly what they need over there, and the stuff that I saw that was in the bags, it was like perfect," said former Army Sgt. Michael Cain.

The former soldier, who lost his right leg below the knee when his vehicle hit an anti-tank mine in Tikrit, Iraq, on Aug. 7, 2003, is medically retired.

The Walter Reed Army Medical Center-outpatient traveled to Quantico to help pack boxes and said it was a great experience. "I love it so much," Cain said, "just knowing that those guys are getting good stuff over there."

The volunteers got good stuff, too. Jack Daniel's provided a barbecue lunch and a concert as a thank you for their hard work.

Country music star Craig Morgan, an Army veteran with 11 years active-duty service and another six years reserve duty, helped pack boxes before he hit the stage to perform.

He said he met several wounded warriors who were volunteering and was touched by their stories.

"I have a great deal of respect for what the men and women in the armed services are going through these days," the singer said. "I'm humbled by their presence and the pride that they take and their ability to carry on as if nothing's happened. I don't know how you can talk to these guys and not be motivated to do more."

It's not the first time Morgan has had the opportunity to participate in a Jack Daniels' stuffing party. Of the six events the distillery's hosted, Morgan's been right there to flash his megawatt smile, joke with the crowd, and entertain fans with hits like, "That's What I Love About Sunday."

"They asked us and we volunteered, and we like it so much they can't get rid of us," Morgan said with a chuckle. "They would probably like to have another artist, but I won't let anybody else come and do it."

The USO is a supporter of America Support You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.