CNIC Visits Sailors, Tours Navy Installation in Chinhae, South Korea

By Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Korea Public Affairs

CHINHAE, Republic of Korea (NNS) -- Vice Adm. William French, commander of Navy Installations Command, visited Sailors assigned to Commander, Fleet Activities Chinhae (CFAC) in the Republic of Korea (ROK), May 13, as part of his tour of the Asia-Pacific region.

During an all hands call, Vice Adm. French addressed various topics including the U.S. rebalance to the Pacific, pay and benefits, force readiness, and the effect of the fiscal budget on deployments and installation services.

"We value what you are doing here in Korea," said Vice Adm. French. "We appreciate you being forward deployed and supporting the numerous fleet visits and engagements across the Korean peninsula. All the things you do, at the end of the day, strengthen our alliance with the Republic of Korea."

CFAC leaders and staff members also met with Vice Adm. French to discuss local improvement projects and provided him with a tour of base facilities.

"This base has done well because our people take care of each other and they care about the mission," said Cmdr. Quinn Skinner, commander, Fleet Activities Chinhae.

"Even though different parts of the base don't directly work for each other, they have chosen to engage and support each other in the things they need to get done. The whole base has prospered because of it."

CFAC has distinguished itself as one of the Navy's premier installations by providing superior operational support and quality of service to Sailors, Civilians, and their families.

The Naval Education and Training Professional Development Technology Center selected CFAC as the 2013 Small Command Overseas winner of the Navy's Flagship award for Community Service, Health, Safety, and Fitness.

CFAC housing earned a Platinum "A List" award for achieving the highest levels of customer satisfaction in 2013, for the 12th consecutive year. In 2012, the CFAC Fire and Emergency Services Department was selected as the Small Fire Department of the Year across all U.S. Navy installations worldwide.

Located on the southeastern coast of the Republic of Korea, CFAC provides service and operational support to the fleet while strengthening the U.S.-ROK alliance through joint armistice, training exercises and contingency operations.

Commander, Navy Installations Command (CNIC) is responsible for worldwide shore installation support for the U.S. Navy under the Chief of Naval Operations. CNIC oversees more than 83,000 facilities and 58,000 personnel, all managed from a single unified enterprise.

Deputy Defense Secretary Sends Message to DOD Workforce

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 14, 2014 – Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work today issued his first message to the Defense Department workforce.

Here is the text of his message:

To All Department of Defense Personnel:

On May 5, I took the oath of office to become the deputy secretary of defense. I am humbled by the confidence President Obama and Secretary Hagel have placed in me and pledge to do everything possible to maintain America's military edge.

The work of a long line of my predecessors, most recently Ash Carter and Christine Fox, helped the department be better prepared to meet the nation’s security needs during these challenging times. I look forward to building upon their legacy.

The greatest honor of my life is I am able to serve my country alongside you. I promise to work every day to support service members and civilians so they can excel in the performance of missions that this great nation calls on them to accomplish every day.

Together, we will keep our military equipped, trained, and ready to defend our country and our interests. We are and will remain a global power whose position in the world is underpinned by our ability to project global influence in concert with other elements of national power and our allies and partners overseas.

We must prioritize and make wise budget decisions to be good stewards of the resources entrusted to us by the Congress and ultimately the taxpayers. Together, we will improve the requirements and acquisition process to better manage the cost-effectiveness and ultimately maintain the dominance of our weapon systems.

We must also balance the need to maintain the day-to-day readiness of our forces in order to project military power whenever and wherever needed with our ability to prevail against future threats and challenges.

As Americans, it is our cultural heritage to meet and exceed even the greatest of expectations -- together. I challenge you to be great. I know that your accomplishments will continue to be nothing less than spectacular and I’m proud to be on your team.

Robert O. Work

Deputy Secretary of Defense

Polish military decorates AFSOC exercise planner

by Chief Master Sgt. Jesse Hall
Air Force Special Operations Command Public Affairs

5/9/2014 - HURLBURT FIELD, Fla.  -- The Polish Armed Forces awarded one of its highest military decorations May 6 to an Air Force Special Operations Command civilian.

Roy Vaughn, an AFSOC exercise planner, received the Polish Armed Forces Medal during a ceremony in Warsaw, Poland. Vaughn played a major role in training PAF to operate internationally.

"The actions and assistance provided by Mr. Vaughn have helped ensure the security of Poland," said Col. Piotr Gastal, commander of Poland's Grupa Reagowania Operacyjno-Manewrowego, which translates to Operational Maneuver Response Group. "With his help, the GROM has become an effective partner in Iraq, Afghanistan and throughout the other regions where we are engaged in battle."

Vaughn described the Poles' contributions as "huge" in the fight against Al Qaeda, Taliban and other combatants in Afghanistan.

Since 2003, Vaughn and his team have integrated Polish SOF into U.S.-based Emerald Warrior "spirals." These are roughly six, one-week-long exercises conducted annually at ranges at Cannon AFB, N.M., and Hurlburt Field, Fla. Along with the Poles, eight other nations take part in training that Vaughn called an "air-centric" approach to special operations.

The exercises build communications efficiency between special operations forces on the ground and AFSOC assets in the air. Realistic scenarios require forces to infiltrate areas with enemy presence, locate targets, and call in and guide close air support. The process hones Special Forces' joint terminal attack control skills.

The training program grew out of lessons learned during Afghanistan operations in 2002. According to Vaughn, partner nations with little or no multi-national JTAC experience found themselves trying to call in U.S. gunships while under fire. "Coordinating gunships is not something you should do for the first time when someone is shooting at you," Vaughn said.

Chief Master Sgt. Greg Smith, a former planner with Hurlburt's 1st Special Operations Wing, launched the training program in 2003, and Vaughn has since taken the reigns. He designs scenario injects and works coordination and logistics with participating nations to provide needed pre-combat experience. The result is improved wartime interoperability among partner nations, including the Poles.

"Special ops capability is vital to success in modern combat," said Brig. Gen. Mark Hicks, AFSOC director of operations. "Roy's work in our JTAC training program is helping America and her allies build a united and effective response to current and future global threats."

Vaughn is a retired lieutenant colonel with substantial AFSOC experience. He served as an MC-130P Combat Shadow pilot, performing global force infiltration and exfiltration missions. Vaughn also flew in support of the 1986 military strike on Libya. Starting in 1987, he served as the Air Force's deputy program manager for the MC-130 E/H Talon II, an aircraft designed for special forces infiltration/exfiltration and resupply. Vaughn has been on AFSOC's Directorate of Operations staff since 1999.

Static display dedicated at AC-130H retirement ceremony

by Airman 1st Class Shelby Kay-Fantozzi
27th Special Operations Wing Public Affairs

5/7/2014 - CANNON AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. -- This feature is the fifth in a continuous series highlighting the phase out and eventual retirement of the eight AC-130H Spectre gunships at Cannon Air Force Base, N.M., scheduled to occur in fiscal year 2015.

"Gravedigger," a stately AC-130H Spectre gunship, stands sentinel May 6 near the main gate of Cannon Air Force Base, N.M., as tales of its extensive list of achievements echo across scores of spectators.

Characteristic New Mexico winds whip through Cannon's Air Park and briefly, Gravedigger twitches to life, its rudder, flaps and ailerons shuddering as if with the memory of the multitude of sorties it has flown.

Rattles and rumbles emit from the aircraft, echoing the generations of crew who have supported missions stretching from the Vietnam era to the present. After more than 40 years of providing close air support, air interdiction and force protection for special operations forces, it is finally time for Gravedigger and its seven surviving peers to officially retire.

A crowd, including veterans from nearly every stage of the Spectre's life, cheered as a plaque detailing the history of the aircraft was unveiled at the air park.

Stories akin to legends of the airframe's long combat history were traded among the event's distinguished guests, including many past and present members of Cannon's 16th Special Operations Squadron, operators of the AC-130H.

The venerable Gravedigger has seen action in Vietnam, supported Operations Bield Kirk and Blinking Light in El Salvador, provided armed reconnaissance during Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada, aided in the evacuation of U.S. Embassy employees in Somalia, made gravity-defying dives to defeat missile fire during Operation Desert Storm, supported the NATO mission in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and fired the first and last shots of the 16 SOS's successful 12.5-year contribution to Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

"Special operations is a team sport," said Lt. Gen. Eric Fiel, Air Force Special Operations Command commander, "and the H-model is a key player on the special ops team. From what we can tell, the 16 SOS is the most deployed squadron in the Air Force."

The aircraft, which Fiel and others call "the most feared weapons system on the planet," has an impressive history that will not be forgotten even as the 16 SOS transitions to a new era of operations with the AC-130J Ghostrider.

As the retirement ceremony came to a close, the gravity of the gunship's long history was lost on no one as the eldest Spectre veteran in attendance approached the aircraft and laid a loving hand on Gravedigger's flank. The Johnny Cash music that accompanied the official party's exit was drowned out by the roar of another AC-130H's engines overhead, heralding the end of an era and the start of new traditions in special operations aviation.

President Presents Medal of Honor to Former Army Sergeant

By J.D. Leipold

Army News Service

WASHINGTON, May 14, 2014 – Former Army Sgt. Kyle Jerome White was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama at a White House ceremony yesterday, making him the sixth living Army recipient and the 14th from all services to earn the medal in either Iraq or Afghanistan.

Obama opened his remarks in the East Room by paying tribute not just to White, but to what he referred to as the "9/11 generation," all those young citizens who came forth after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States to volunteer their service knowing fully well what the cost could be.

"For more than 12 years, with our nation at war, the men and women of our armed forces have known the measure of danger that comes with military service," he said. "But year after year, tour after tour, they have displayed a selfless willingness to incur it -- by stepping forward, by volunteering, by serving and sacrificing greatly to keep us all safe.

"Today, our troops are coming home," he added, saying that by year's end the war in Afghanistan will be over. "And, today, we pay tribute to a soldier who embodies the courage of his generation -- a young man who was a freshman in high school when the Twin Towers fell, and who just five years later became an elite paratrooper with the legendary 173rd Airborne -- the Sky Soldiers."

The president recounted the Nov. 9, 2007, ambush outside the village of Aranas in Afghanistan’s Nuristan province, in which five soldiers and a Marine would perish, as White's unit of 13 Americans and a squad of Afghan soldiers descended into what was called "Ambush Alley." Suddenly, the chatter of AK-47s and the smoke trails of rocket-propelled grenades lit up the valley, sending shattered shards and chunks of red-hot metal and rock flying.

With nowhere to escape the three-pronged onslaught but down a steep decline, White, 1st Lt. Matthew Ferrara, Spc. Kain Schilling, Marine Corps Sgt. Phillip Bocks and an interpreter were left stranded as the rest of the unit slid 160 feet down the mountain.

Then a specialist, the 20-year-old White emptied one 30-round clip from his M-4, but as he went to slide another into place, an RPG screamed in nearby. "It was just lights out," he said later. That wouldn't be the last time that day he would be rocked by a nearby explosion.

White saw his buddy Schilling trying to stay in the shade of what Schilling later recalled "as the smallest tree on earth." Schilling had been wounded severely in his right upper arm, so White sprinted to Schilling, applied a tourniquet, then saw Bocks.

After four sprints and attempts to pull Bocks to cover, White finally was successful, and he began administering first aid. He applied a tourniquet, but it was too late. Bocks’ wounds had been too severe, and he passed away. When White looked up, he saw Schilling take another round, this time to his left leg. Again, he sprinted to Schilling. Out of tourniquets, he used his belt and was able to once again stop the bleeding.

While the one-way battle continued, White saw his lieutenant lying face-down. He ran to Ferrara's aid, but found he was dead. As White once recalled in an interview, he had accepted that he and Schilling weren't going to make it through this firefight.

"It's just a matter of time before I'm dead," White had said. "I figured if that's going to happen, I might as well help while I can."

White next secured a radio, as both his and Schilling's had been destroyed by small-arms fire. He relayed a situational report and called for mortars, artillery, air strikes and helicopter guns runs. Suddenly, and for the second time that day, an explosion that "scrambled my brains a little bit there," concussed White. A friendly 120-mm mortar round had fallen a bit short of its intended target.

Though struggling to keep Schilling and himself from falling asleep, White eventually was able to lay out a landing zone and assist the flight medic in hoisting all the wounded aboard. Only then did he allow himself to be medically evacuated.

Today, nearly seven years later, White and the other survivors of the Battle of Aranas wear a stainless steel wristband made by one of the unit's soldiers. Each is etched with the names of those who didn't come home: 1st Lt. Matthew C. Ferrara, Sgt. Jeffery S. Mersman, Spc. Sean K.A. Langevin, Spc. Lester G. Roque, Pfc. Joseph M. Lancour and Marine Corps Sgt. Phillip A. Bocks.

"Kyle, members of Chosen Company, you did your duty, and now it's time for America to do ours," Obama said. "You make us proud, and you motivate all of us to be the best we can be as Americans, as a nation."

Following the ceremony, White offered his thoughts to the media:

"I wear this medal for my team. I also wear a piece of metal around my wrist. It was given to me by another survivor of the 9 November ambush; he wears an identical one," he said. "This has made it even more precious than the medal just placed around my neck. On it are the names of six fallen brothers; they are my heroes."

Air Force egress "godfather" visits Seymour Johnson egress technicians

by Airman 1st Class Aaron J. Jenne
4th Fighter Wing Public Affairs

5/13/2014 - SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. -- The 4th Component Maintenance Squadron egress shop recently welcomed an historical visitor to their workplace.

Retired Chief Master Sgt. George H. Fuller Sr. visited the shop almost like a proud parent, because, in many respects, he's the father of the Air Force egress career field.

The visit was especially poignant as Fuller passed away a mere 13 days later. At 80, Fuller leaves behind one child, two grandchildren, and an indelible mark on the Air Force.

In 1953, then Airman 3rd Class Fuller found himself spearheading the creation of the Air Force's egress world through matters of circumstance and timing.

Initially trained as an aircraft maintainer, Fuller was selected to attend the first egress course. After completion of the course, Fuller was asked by his leadership at Alexandria Air Force Base, Louisiana, to train aircraft maintainers on how to work safely around egress equipment.

"They said, 'You've been through an ejection seat school?'" Fuller remembers. "'You're going to start taking care of the ejection seats.' So I said, 'Yeah, okay, I'd be glad to.' I went to every one of the crew chiefs and showed them how to do it right, and from then it just blossomed."

He said through hours of one-on-one instruction he began to see a need for an actual physical location for egress training and repairs. Thus the Air Force's first egress shop was created.

That was the beginning of what would be a career dedicated to changing a key aspect of safety. He had unofficially cut the ribbon on the Air Force's first egress shop, but little did Fuller know, there would be many to follow.

With the first egress shop up and running, Fuller received orders for Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany. Armed with the knowledge of the drastic need for training and the experience of setting up a shop, he stepped forward and established a second egress shop.

With his acquired skills, Fuller found he had a knack for it. So he continued on that course of changing stations and setting up an egress shop wherever he was located.

His third assignment was to Greenville Air Force Base, Mississippi. There, he encountered his first real snag.

Fuller said he was told he didn't have enough rank to be setting up shops. Accompanied by Lt. Gen. Claire Chennault, a famous pilot during WWII, Fuller went to Langley Air Force Base, Virginia.

"[Chennault] got to know me and took me up to Langley," Fuller said. "He said, 'You've got to do something about [Fuller]. Put him in a job that requires him to do this.' That's what they did. They gave me a new AFSC to continue setting up schools."

Once Fuller had his newly minted AFSC, he continued with his mandate, ultimately setting up more than 15 egress shops at bases around the world, including Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England, the 333rd Fighter Squadron's shop at Takhli Air Base, Thailand, and Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.

In truth, Fuller boasts a dynamic albeit remarkable Air Force career aside from his egress accomplishments. Both a Korean and Vietnam War veteran, he served more than 30 years.

A courier during the Korean War, Fuller travelled to U.S. embassies around the world delivering cryptologic devices; devices used to ensure secure classified information transfer. He said that over a span of two years, he visited every country that had a U.S. embassy.

Fuller also served as a senior enlisted advisor for multiple commands. But with all his experience and various jobs, Fuller said egress was his true love.

"It's unbelievable how much shops have changed from when they started to now," he said. "It makes me really proud. Now I've seen it all."

According to the Airmen of the 4th CMS egress shop, Fuller's presence had a true impact and really put their career in perspective.

"It was a real honor to meet the godfather of egress," said Airman 1st Class Seth Burton, 4th CMS egress technician. "I chose this career because an ejection seat saved my uncle's life. I attribute his life and probably countless others to the contributions of this man."

By many, Fuller is remembered as a true unsung Air Force hero. His legacy will live on throughout the years.

"From Fuller's story, we can obviously see he was an aviation pioneer," said Dr. Roy Heidicker, 4th Fighter Wing historian. "He was working during a time of major technological advancements. The period after WWII saw great leaps in aircraft capabilities and safety and Fuller shares in that important time period."

Air Force Chief of Staff visits Idaho Air National Guard

by Lt. Col. Gary A. Daniel
124th Fighter Wing Public Affairs

5/7/2014 - BOISE, Idaho -- Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh and his wife Betty touched down here May 2 to speak with nearly 900 Airmen of the 124th Fighter Wing at Gowen Field here.

Welsh arrived after spending the past day and a half visiting Mountain Home Air Force Base.

"We were pleased to welcome Gen. Welsh to Gowen Field to visit with our Air National Guard personnel, tour our world-class facility and speak with elected leaders," said Air Force Maj. Gen. Gary L. Sayler, Idaho Adjutant General.

Airmen from the Idaho ANG briefed Welsh on the current status of the Guard and how it accomplishes its current federal and state missions.

Welsh then took the stage in an aircraft hangar flanked by two of the unit's Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft. He began by describing a few key components that help make the Air Force successful: pride, communication, and caring more.

"Everybody in this room has a story," said Weldh. "It's a remarkable story. Some of them are inspirational. Some of them are a little sad. But each one is unique. I encourage you to learn the stories."

Welsh addressed the fiscal constraints on future Air Force operations and on the Airmen who perform them.

At the conclusion, he opened the floor to questions. Tech. Sgt. Michelle Thompson asked about the likelihood of members from the 124th Fighter Wing and the 366th Fighter Wing at Mountain Home Air Force Base "associating" their units in efforts to assist budget cuts.

Welsh said he believes that there is room for discussion, and now planners must look to the best way of doing it.

Welsh was born in San Antonio, Texas, and is a graduate of the Air Force Academy. He entered the Air Force in 1976 and currently serves as the Air Force's Senior Uniformed Officer accountable for more than 690,000 active duty, guard, reserve and civilian members that are currently serving both stateside and overseas. Welsh has flown numerous aircraft; including the A-10--flown by the Idaho Air National Guard, with more than 3,300 hours of flight.

Col. Tim Marsano and Senior Airman Cassie Morlock contributed to this coverage.

Dempsey Gives Shorthand Account of Challenges U.S. Faces

By Jim Garamone

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 14, 2014 – Defense strategy is complicated, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today at the Atlantic Council, but his “elevator pitch” boils down to the mnemonic aid “2,2,2,1.”

Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey said the number string refers to:

-- Two heavyweights – China and Russia;

-- Two middleweights – Iran and North Korea;

-- Two networks – al-Qaida and the transnational criminal network; and

-- Cybersecurity.

“The world in which we live and the security we seek and the actions we take are conducted strategically in the context of what it will mean to the two heavyweights,” he said.

The threat of al-Qaida is known, but it is changing, the chairman said. Al-Qaida is a network running from Pakistan and Afghanistan through Iraq and Syria, across the Arabian Peninsula and into North Africa. Boko Haram in Nigeria is the latest affiliate of the group to manifest itself.

“It’s a network, and it doesn’t mean that network is one, coherent ideologically or financially linked organization,” he said. “They syndicate themselves when it works to their convenience.”

Defense planners must think of al-Qaida as a network that will be a generational challenge,” Dempsey said. “That is to say 20 or 30 years,” he added.

The transnational criminal network that runs in the Western Hemisphere doesn’t receive the attention it should get, the chairman said. “We tend to think of that as a drug-trafficking network, but it is equally capable and often found to be trafficking in illegal immigrants and arms and laundering money,” he said. “It’s extraordinarily capable and extraordinarily wealthy, and it can move anything for the highest bidder.”

Cyber remains a problem that must be addressed, Dempsey said, adding that he is worried about the nation’s lack of preparedness for an attack. “We have sectors within our nation that are more ready than others,” he said. “But we don’t have a coherent cyber strategy as a nation.” Privacy, cost and information-sharing are just a few of the issues that must be addressed before a comprehensive strategy can be emplaced, he said.

“Another thing that concerns me about cyber is not just the denial or the destruction of entire networks -- which would be a problem in the financial sector or in critical infrastructure -- but I worry equally about the corruption of data,” he said. “We’ve become a technologically savvy … and dependent organization. And we rely on three things: … precision, navigation and time.

“Our joint force is agile,” he continued. “It’s adaptable, … it embraces change and is eager for change. But what it isn’t eager to accept is uncertainty, and we’ve got too much uncertainty in our budget condition right now.”

Each security concern requires a different approach, the chairman said. The United States deters through the use of all levers of power -- diplomacy, economic and military. But they are wielded differently if facing a heavyweight or a middleweight, he added. And networks don’t respond to the same pressures as nations, he noted, calling cyber a whole new world.

F-35 flies first training sortie at Luke AFB

56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs

5/14/2014 - LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. (AFNS) -- An F-35 Lightning II took to the sky over the West Valley here, May 5, in what was the first local training sortie for the fifth-generation fighter jet.

The jet is currently the only F-35 at Luke Air Force Base with additional jets expected to arrive within the next few weeks.

"The ability to conduct local flight operations demonstrates the commitment by thousands of individuals who have worked to make this a reality," said Lt. Col. Michael Ebner, the 61st Fighter Squadron commander. "Our first sortie this week represents a significant milestone in the F-35 program at Luke (AFB)."

There are currently six F-35 pilots assigned to the 61st FS. There will eventually be approximately 30 pilots by the time the squadron is up to full capacity.

The 61st FS coordinates with the 61st Aircraft Maintenance Unit, which maintains the aircraft, to fly the jet when it is available -- which, as of this week, is approximately 1-2 times per day. That number could increase to 2-4 sorties a day by next month, when more jets are expected at Luke AFB, Ebner said.

Construction, much of which is sub-contracted locally, continues on base to prepare for the arrival of additional F-35s.

The Academic Training Center, which will house classrooms and 12 F-35 simulators, is under construction and is expected to be completed in late September. Construction is also underway on the combined Operations/AMU building for the second F-35 squadron.

Other projects, including the third Operations/AMU building, a maintainer training facility and a four-bay F-35 hangar are also in planning stages.