By Fred W. Baker III
American Forces Press Service
June 6, 2008 - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates will travel next week to Air Force bases in the United States, hoping to show his support for airmen in the wake of the resignations of the service's two top officials. Gates accepted the resignations of Air Force Secretary Michael W. Wynne and Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley yesterday following an investigation revealing a decline in focus, performance and effective leadership in the Air Force's nuclear program.
Gates will leave June 9 for a two-day trip that will take him to Langley Air Force Base, Va., Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., and possibly a third base, officials said.
During the trip, Gates will "reinforce the messages ... about the supreme importance of safeguarding our nuclear arsenal and its associated components, and how there is no room for error in this line of work, [while] at the same also conveying to airmen ... his support for their efforts in the global war on terror, and his commitment to work with them to improve the Air Force," Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell said.
"[Airmen] shouldn't confuse issues he's had with their leadership with any lack of support for their effort in the war," Morrell said. "Fundamentally, this is an outreach to airmen. I don't think he wants them to be left with the impressions that he has any problems with the Air Force other than those identified ... with regards to the handling of nuclear components."
Morrell said the secretary has nominees in mind to replace Wynne and Moseley and hopes to announce his choices soon, most likely before he leaves on his trip. Gates has spoken to President Bush about his picks for the jobs, but it was not in the form of a formal recommendation, Morrell said.
A Pentagon official speaking on background said the secretary is strongly considering recommending Michael B. Donley, the director of administration and management for the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Donley was sworn into his current job in 2005.
Wynne and Moseley will remain in their posts until new leaders are in place. Gates announced Wynne's and Moseley's resignations after the release of a report detailing the accidental shipment of four non-nuclear ballistic missile nose-cone assembly components rather than the intended helicopter batteries to Taiwan in August 2006.
After visiting the bases, Gates will travel on to Brussels, Belgium, on June 11 for a NATO defense ministers conference.
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
June 6, 2008 - With fuel prices soaring and no apparent end in sight, the Defense Department is feeling the pinch in its pocketbook and is looking for ways to save through conservation and alternative fuels programs. The Defense Department is "probably the largest single user of petroleum products in the world," so rising energy costs are a major concern, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates told a questioner at the Asia Security Summit in Singapore earlier this week.
"Every time the price of oil goes up by $1 per barrel, it costs us about $130 million, and frankly, my credit card limit is getting narrow on that," Gates said.
Particularly in light of wartime operations, the impact is significant. Defense Energy Support Center statistics show that the military spent $12.6 billion on jet fuel, diesel and other fuels in 2007, with operations in Iraq and Afghanistan consuming $1.7 billion of that total.
Spiraling fuel costs in 2008 and their effect in fiscal 2009, which begins Oct. 1, have forced department officials to return to Congress for additional funding to cover the shortfall. But the department is increasingly looking to other options, Gates told his Asian counterparts during the three-day security conference, citing efforts ranging from synthetic fuels initiatives to fuel reclaiming aimed at curbing fuel demand as well as costs.
Gates noted that the Air Force recently achieved milestones using synthetic fuels that cost significantly less than their petroleum counterparts. In March, a B-1B Lancer became the first Air Force aircraft to fly at supersonic speed using a 50/50 blend of synthetic and petroleum gases.
The fuel, derived from natural gas, is being tested as part of an ongoing Air Force program to help the environment and to use a fuel produced domestically.
Air Force officials previously have tested the fuel blend in the B-52 Stratofortress, the first aircraft to use the fuel, and the C-17 Globemaster III.
Meanwhile, engineers at Arnold Engineering Development Center in Tennessee wrapped up alternative fuel testing on the first fighter jet engine in May. The test used a synthetic blend in the engine for the F-15 Eagle and F-16 Fighting Falcon jets.
"The goal is to have every aircraft using synthetic fuel blends by 2011," Air Force Maj. Don Rhymer, of the Air Force Alternative Fuels Certification Office, told the Air Force News Agency. "By 2016, we hope at least 50 percent of this fuel will be produced domestically."
While experimenting with synthetic fuels, the Defense Department is exploring other fuel-saving options. "We are looking at ways to recapture used petroleum products and refine then, and we are looking at various conservation measures," Gates said at the Asia Security Summit.
Gates described some of the recovery efforts he witnessed during a May 1 visit to Red River Army Depot, Texas, during testimony later that month before the Senate Appropriations Committee.
The depot contracts with a private company that retrieves gasoline, oil and other fluids in the Humvees, Stryker armored vehicles, tanks and other vehicles brought to the depot for maintenance, Gates told the senators. The company then refines and sells the fluids, with Red River Army Depot getting a share of the profits.
"So they make several million dollars back for the taxpayers simply by not throwing away these used fuel and petroleum products," Gates said.
Gates called this an example of how the Defense Department supports broader conservation efforts. "I think that we do have a contribution to make, but I would say that it is very much in a supporting role," he said at the Asia Security Summit.
(Air Force Staff Sgt. Matthew Bates of the Air Forces New Agency and Janaé Daniels of the Air Force's Arnold Engineering Development Center contributed to this article.)
by Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg
Special to American Forces Press Service
June 6, 2008 - Forming partnerships with host and partner nations while offering medical assistance are key elements provided during the Pacific Partnership 2008 deployment aboard the Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Mercy, the ship's civil service master said yesterday. Since deploying May 1, Mercy has visited three provinces in the Philippines and is expected to visit four other countries.
"The planning of this mission began many, many months ago, and it began by the requests of the host nations to partner with them to provide humanitarian assistance and civil assistance," Navy Capt. James P. Rice, commanding officer of the medical treatment facility aboard Mercy, said in a teleconference with online journalists and bloggers.
Rice said many host-nation health care providers operate side by side with the Mercy staff.
"We have networked with the local health care system and the ministries of health to [ensure after-care is provided] to transition those patients into their health care system," Rice added.
During the deployment, Mercy also will visit Vietnam, East Timor and Micronesia, offering medical assistance, repairing infrastructures and providing donated medical equipment for the host nation's use.
"This is a full-service hospital with everything you would expect to find in a hospital back home," Rice said. "We have lots of capability to include medicine, pediatrics and surgery, as well as the ability to put people in the host nation and provide medical and dental care ashore."
Since their stop in the Philippines, Mercy's crew has seen more than 14,000 patients through medical and dental civil action programs ashore. Aboard Mercy, some 200 surgeries have been performed and 400 patients have been seen.
Civil service master Capt. Robert T. Wiley, commanding officer of Mercy, said many miracles have taken place aboard Mercy, such as a surgery that allowed a young boy with a crippling injury to walk.
"Six years ago, he was injured in a bomb explosion and his right leg was bent at the knee," Wiley said. "They did skin grafts and orthopedic surgery, and they got the leg to straighten."
He added that yesterday, in physical therapy aboard Mercy, the 14-year old boy walked for the first time with crutches.
Other miracles are being performed, such as 53 cleft lip palate surgeries performed by Operation Smile, or the 22-pound tumor recently removed from a Filipina woman, Wiley said. "In 2006, aboard Mercy, we took out a larger tumor, which was close to 30 or 40 pounds," he added.
The crew of Mercy is thrilled to participate in the Pacific Partnership 2008 mission, the ship's civil service master said.
"People who go to medical school and decide to wear the uniform are so excited about being here," he said. "This is their mission; they are at the tip of the spear and are extremely excited about this."
Accompanying the Mercy crew are doctors and dentists from Japan, Canada and Australia, but as the deployment continues, they will be welcoming medical practitioners from Chili, Portugal, Singapore and Indonesia. Nongovernmental organizations, such as Project HOPE also are accompanying the crew of Mercy.
"This is a great value to work together on a humanitarian basis, ... to prepare us to work together in a disaster situation where we already know each other and [will] be comfortable working together," Rice said.
Rice explained other capabilities Mercy also brings to the countries it visits.
"We have brought preventive medicine and environmental health providers on board to help with sanitation inspections and other public health preventative medicine programs," Rice said.
Mercy also has veterinarians aboard, performing important work on animals, which are a defining component of some host nations' economic stability, he added.
Construction battalion engineers round out the crew. They are actively engaged in a variety of projects ranging from repairing roofs and schools to replacing windows.
"All this will have an impact on their educational ability. By having a nice structure that will allow them to educate their children, there will be a long-term benefit," Rice said.
(Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg works in the New Media directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)
Editor's Note: The guest is a Vietnam Vet.
June 5, 2008, 2008 (San Dimas, CA) On June 11, 2008, Conversations with Cops at the Watering Hole will feature an interview with Retired NYPD Detective and former member of the NYPD Emergency Services Unit, Alan Sheppard.
Program Date: June 11, 2008
Program Time: 2100 hours, Pacific
Topic: NYPD Emergency Services Unit
Listen Live:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/LawEnforcement/2008/06/12/The-Watering-Hole
About the Guest
In the late 1960s, Detective Alan Sheppard, NYPD (ret.), served two years with the United States Army. His service included deployment with the 101st Airborne Division to the Republic of South Vietnam. In 1969, Alan Sheppard joined the New York City Police Department. His first assignment was as a patrol officer in the 81st Precinct which is located in the north central area of the borough of Brooklyn. This neighborhood is known as "Bedford Stuyvesant." A small section along the southern border is referred to Stuyvesant Heights.
In 1974, Alan Sheppard was assigned the Emergency Service Unit. The Emergency Services Unit of the NYPD is nation’s largest permanent emergency response team with over 400 personnel. The “ESU” provides specialized equipment, expertise and support; “from auto accidents to building collapses to hostage situations, ESU officers are called on when the situation requires advanced equipment and expertise.” In 1985, Alan Sheppard was assigned to the NYPD Intelligence Division and given dual status with the United States Marshals. In 1988, he worked an undercover assignment and in 1989 he was assigned to the Major Case Squad. Detective Alan Sheppard, NYPD (ret.) is the author of E-Man: Life in the NYPD Emergency Services Unit.
According to Lieutenant Vernon Gebreth, NYPD (ret.), “Sheppard served in the NYPD during the urban warfare years and received his Baptism of Fire at the Williamsburg Siege. He was a decorated hero of the NYPD and member of the elite Emergency Services Unit (ESU). In his book, E-Man Al takes the reader on a non-stop roller coaster ride of emotions as he reveals life on the streets through the eyes of a combatant during the turbulent times and the work of the Emergency Services Unit—the same unit that the Police call when they need Help.”
According to one reader, Alan Sheppard’s book, “is a fast paced account of a true story about a cop who not only carried people from burning buildings and off of bridges high above the waters of NYC but also saved a fellow cop from sure death by shooting his killer dead. You will not be able to put this book down! I urge to read how some people don't imagine how to be a hero but actually become one.”
About the Watering Hole
The Watering Hole is police slang for a location cops go off-duty to blow off steam and talk about work and life. Sometimes funny; sometimes serious; but, always interesting.
About the Host
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster was a sworn member of the Los Angeles Police Department for 24 years. He retired in 2003 at the rank of Lieutenant. He holds a bachelor’s from the Union Institute and University in Criminal Justice Management and a Master’s Degree in Public Financial Management from California State University, Fullerton; and, has completed his doctoral course work. Raymond E. Foster has been a part-time lecturer at California State University, Fullerton and Fresno; and is currently a faculty advisor and lecturer with the Union Institute and University. He has experience teaching upper division courses in law enforcement, public policy, law enforcement technology and leadership. Raymond is an experienced author who has published numerous articles in a wide range of venues including magazines such as Government Technology, Mobile Government, Airborne Law Enforcement Magazine, and Police One. He has appeared on the History Channel and radio programs in the United States and Europe as subject matter expert in technological applications in law enforcement.
Listen, call, join us at the Watering Hole.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/LawEnforcement
Program Contact Information
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster, LAPD (ret.), MPA
editor@police-writers.com909.599.7530
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
June 6, 2008 - A new notice on Defense Department computer screens ensures users understand that their e-mails are subject to monitoring, but also reinforces specific user privacy and confidentiality protections, the department's chief information officer said. The new language represents the first change since 1997 to the "notice and consent" banner that appears each time a user logs onto a Defense Department network or information system.
While clarifying the scope of the Defense Department's authorized monitoring of its networks and information systems, the revised language "absolutely preserves" user privacy and confidentiality guaranteed by law, according to John G. Grimes, assistant secretary of defense for networks and information integration.
"These changes to the banner and user agreement language help clarify the user's understanding of the broad nature of DoD's authorized monitoring practices, while simultaneously reaffirming DoD's commitment to respecting and protecting important private and confidential communications that are guaranteed for its personnel," Grimes said.
Communications between Defense Department users and their attorneys, clergy or psychotherapists are considered "privileged" and protected from monitoring.
"Although DoD has a long history of respecting such privileged relationships, the previous banner language did not expressly identify this protection for the user," Grimes said. "For the first time ever, the DoD banner and user agreement now specifically addresses these important protections."
The new banner notifies users that their systems may be monitored for "penetration testing, COMSEC (communications security) monitoring, network defense, quality control, and employee misconduct, law enforcement and counterintelligence investigations."
It also includes a paragraph clarifying that passwords, access cards, encryption and biometric access controls are used to provide security for the benefit of the government – not to provide personal privacy to employees.
The notice also will appear on government BlackBerry devices and other personal digital assistants and personal electronic devices, although the wording will be shorter than on computers.
Grimes emphasized that monitoring activities covered by the new banner language have been in effect for "a long time," but were not specifically named in the 1997-era banner language.
The new verbiage spells out the policy in light of a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces decision. The court ruled that the previous banner warning did not state clearly enough that employees have only limited privacy rights when using government computer systems.
In that case, a servicemember received notice that she was required to undergo a random urinalysis test. She, in turn, e-mailed several other people, discussing her fear that her drug use would be detected and the steps she had taken to avoid detection, officials in Grimes' office explained. Investigators used those e-mails as evidence in a prosecution. The servicemember was convicted and sentenced, but an appellate court set aside the findings and sentence, because the banner did not clearly state that there was no right of privacy in e-mails.
The revised banner will ensure all users of government computer systems understand the limited privacy protections, officials said.
Defense Department officials said monitoring is critical in ensuring government systems aren't compromised by viruses or hackers, and to identify threats as early as possible. "In order to protect DoD information systems, DoD needs to be able to monitor all traffic flowing through and across DoD systems," an official said.
AIR FORCE
The Air Force is modifying an undefinitized, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract with Boeing Satellite Systems, Inc., of El Segundo, Calif., not to exceed $75,000,000. This undefinitized contract action will authorize Boeing to conduct additional Risk Reduction and System Definition (RR&SD) baseline efforts as well as adding two tasks. First, they will perform an Industrial Base Impact Study which assumes a Transformational Communications Satellite System (TSAT) Development and Production contract start date of 1 July 2008. The study will include the assumption of a start date 6 months thereafter through a total delay of 24 months. Second, they will develop system definition and design concepts and present the results in the form of an Interim Design Review (IDR) for two Government-provided alternative TSAT program requirements sets (TSAT "Digital Core" and 'TSAT-Lite"). The prime contractor for this effort is Boeing Satellite Systems, Inc. At this time $37,500,000 has been obligated. HQMCSW/PK, El Segundo, Calif., is the contracting activity (FA8808-04-C-0022/P00046).
The Air Force is modifying an undefinitized, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract with Lockheed Martin Corporation of Sunnyvale, Calif., not to exceed $75,000,000. This undefinitized contract action will authorize Lockheed Martin to conduct additional Risk Reduction and System Definition (RR&SD) baseline efforts as well as adding two tasks. First, they will perform an Industrial Base Impact Study which assumes a Transformational Communications Satellite System (TSAT) Development and Production contract start date of 1 July 2008. The study will include the assumption of a start date 6 months thereafter through a total delay of 24 months. Second, they will develop system definition and design concepts and present the results in the form of an Interim Design Review (IDR) for two Government-provided alternative TSAT program requirements sets (TSAT "Digital Core" and "TSAT-Lite"). The prime contractor for this effort is effort is the Lockheed Martin Corporation. Approximately 33 percent of the work will performed by Lockheed Martin Corporation, Sunnyvale, California. The remaining 67 percent of the work will be performed by subcontractor Northrop Grumman Space and Missile Systems Corp, One Space Park, Redondo Beach, Calif., 90278. At this time $37,500,000 has been obligated. HQMCSW/PK, El Segundo, Calif., is the contracting activity (FA8808-04-C-0023/P00047).
The Air Force is modifying a firm-fixed-price contract with Raytheon Company, Missile Systems of Tucson, Ariz., for $44,820,181. This action will provide Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) Foreign Military Sales (FMS) Air Intercept Missile (AIM) 120-C7 Software Tapes 18A/20. This effort supports foreign military sales to Greece and Taiwan. This action is a modification to the AMRAAM Production Lot 21 contract. At this time $17,362,439 has been obligated. 695ARSS, Eglin AFB, Fla., is the contracting activity (FA8675-07-C-0055 P00010).
The Air Force is modifying a cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery, requirements contract with Wyle Laboratories, Inc., of Huntsville, Ala., for an estimated $6,626,355. The Reliability Information Analysis Center will perform NAVAIR aviation readiness and resource analysis program lifecycle support. At this time no funds have been obligated. 55th Contracting Squadron, Offutt AFB, Neb., is the contracting activity (HC1047-05-D-4005, DO 0013, Modification 21).
Canadian Commercial Corporation of Ottawa, Canada, is being awarded a firm-fixed price contract for $5,699,233. This action will provide Manufactured by Pyrogenesis Canada Inc., Montreal, Canada for delivery and installation at Hurlburt Field, AFB, Florida. At this time $3,716,000 has been obligated. Specialized Contracting, HQ AFSOC/A7KQ, Hurlburt Field, Fla., is the contracting activity (FA0021-08-C-0002).
ARMY
Satterfield & Pontikes Construction, Inc., Houston, Texas, was awarded on June 5, 2008, a $33,381,645 firm-fixed price contract for the construction of a primary health care clinic. Work will be performed at Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio, Texas, and is expected to be completed by Jan. 30, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Feb. 14, 2008, and four bids were received. U.S. Army Engineer District, Fort Worth, Texas, is the contracting activity (W9126G-08-C-0024).
Benham Constructors, LLC, Oklahoma City, Okla., was awarded on June 5, 2008, a $31,379,729 firm-fixed price contract for the design and construction of a consolidated fuel, overhaul, repair and test facility. Work will be performed at Tinker Air Force Base, Midwest City, Okla., and is expected to be completed by April 30, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Aug. 21, 2007, and three bids were received. U.S. Army Engineer District, Tulsa, Okla., is the contracting activity (W912BV-08-C-2004).
Manhattan Construction, Falls Church, Va., was awarded on June 4, 2008, a $24,380,000 firm-fixed price contract for the design and construction of the museum support center. Work will be performed at Fort Belvoir, Va., and is expected to be completed by June 30, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Dec. 14, 2007, and four bids were received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore, Md., is the contracting activity (W912DR-08-C-0032).
FN Manufacturing, LLC, Columbia, S.C., was awarded on June 5, 2008, a $16,079,649 firm-fixed price contract for M240B machine guns. Work will be performed in Columbia, S.C., and s expected to be completed by Dec. 30, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Web bids were solicited on Nov. 2, 2006, and five bids were received. U.S. Army TACOM Life Cycle Management Command, Rock Islands, Ill., is the contracting activity (W52H09-07-D-0319).
Applied Energetics, Inc., Tucson, Ariz., was awarded on June 4, 2008, a $9,280,801 cost-plus-fixed fee contract for the continued development and production of ten counter improved explosive devise systems plus spares, operator training and technical support for an overseas operational assessment. Work will be performed in Tucson, Ariz., and is expected to be completed by June 4, 2008. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. One bid was solicited on April 3, 2008. U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md. is the contracting activity (W91CRB-08-C-0080).
By Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg
Special to American Forces Press Service
June 6, 2008 - A special organization within the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md., works with the U.S. military's combatant commanders to assess worldwide nations' capabilities for surveillance of infections and how quickly they can respond to an outbreak. Part of USUHS's Department of Military and Emergency Medicine, the Center for Disaster and Humanitarian Assistance Medicine develops interagency relationships across the federal government and with nongovernmental organizations, Army Col. (Dr.) Charles Beadling, the center's director, said in an interview on the "Dot Mil Docs" program on BlogTalkRadio.com.
"We provide reach-back expertise for the critical management of disasters and humanitarian assistance medicine around the world," Beadling said.
This week, the center has a team supporting U.S. Pacific Command with a conference on avian influenza and pandemic influenza prevention for the island nations in the South Pacific.
"Our team works with the combatant commander's medical staff to assist allied host nations with developing surveillance capabilities and response plans," Beadling explained.
The center is uniquely postured by being part of an academic center with access to subject-matter experts in many relevant specialties, especially public health, Beadling said. The center was created in 1999, through direct congressional action.
"We also augment the education of military medical officers here at the School of Medicine to specialize expertise, consultation and teaching," Beadling said. "This better prepares them for their future careers."
Since its creation, the center has reached around the globe offering its unique services.
"We have a team in Australia that's working with the island nations of the South Pacific to specifically look at their programs for education, prevention, surveillance and response," Beadling said.
In other parts of the world, the center is working not only on prevention or surveillance, but also on issues such as land mine victims' assistance efforts in the Central African country of Chad.
"Chad has a long history of warfare along its borders, and therefore has numerous unexploded remnants of war that are a hazard for the population, especially around water sources, lines of communication, [and] roads to market," Beadling explained.
Through the sponsorship of U.S. European Command, and now with the new U.S. Africa Command, the center has been working with government officials in Chad for the past three years to help to educate their de-mining organization in everything from first response to medical care for the population that may have been injured by exploded ordnance.
The center uses the Information Management System for Mine Action, a computer system that can be used to compare mine risk and mine activity around the world. "We can look at Chad to see how they compare to Yemen, Cambodia or the Balkans," Beadling said.
Through sponsorship by U.S. Central Command and Combined Security Transition Command Afghanistan, the center also helps the Afghan government with consultation and expertise to assist in developing infrastructure for the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police.
"Our program is designed to improve the health care infrastructure that is directly providing health care to that Afghan national security forces and their families," Beadling said.
In Latin America and the Caribbean Basin, the center pitches in through sponsorship by U.S. Southern Command. "[It's] one of our longest-running programs," Beadling noted. "We provide HIV/AIDS prevention assistance to the militaries of allied nations."
(Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg works in the New Media directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)
By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
June 6, 2008 - With symbolic glasses raised on high, Jim Beam distillery offered a toast to U.S. servicemembers and their families with a $175,000 donation to Operation Homefront. Operation Homefront provides emergency assistance and morale to the nation's troops, to the families they leave behind, and to wounded warriors when they return home.
In supporting the organization, Jim Beam honors it as part of the brand's renewed top-down commitment to its own original values of true character, integrity and doing the right thing, Jim Beam officials said in a news release announcing the donation.
"Jim Beam is doing the right thing by helping us keep military families and wounded warriors from homelessness and to keep these families safe and secure," said Amy Palmer, executive vice president of operations and development for Operation Homefront. "We're so grateful for this donation, which will allow us to enhance our support of the brave men and women in uniform and their families who are experiencing hardships."
The admiration is mutual.
"We're so proud of Operation Homefront and all that they do, so we're putting it right on our bottle," said Fred Noe, seventh-generation Beam distiller and self-described Beam family ambassador. "A special limited-edition Operation Homefront label is going on more than 500,000 bottles of Jim Beam bourbon."
In addition, Jim Beam has partnered with the ABC Fine Wine and Spirits chain in Florida to celebrate America and support the nation's military families.
"Jim Beam has the heritage of the only distilled spirit indigenous to America," said Andy Abernathy, senior vice president, ABC Fine Wine and Spirits. "As the largest bourbon retailer in the state, we are thrilled we can show respect for our country while providing our customers with an opportunity for them to support Operation Homefront."
ABC Fine Wine and Spirits will donate $1 for every 750 milliliter bottle of Jim Beam White and Jim Beam Black sold between June 1 and July 6. Patrons also will have a chance to learn more about the military and Operation Homefront at ABC Fine Wine and Spirit stores throughout the Sunshine State.
Operation Homefront and military personnel will greet customers at various locations, which will have military vehicles, including Humvees and tanks, on display, through July 6.
Jim Beam also is inviting its customers of legal drinking age to support the troops by posting a toast on its "The Stuff Inside" Web site. Toasts will appear on the site until July 4. Of those submitted, best toast or toasts that capture the spirit of "the stuff inside" may be considered for use in Jim Beam advertising, officials said.
Bottles of Jim Beam featuring the limited edition Operation Homefront labels are on store shelves now and are estimated to be available until July 4.
Operation Homefront is a supporter of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
June 5, 2008 - At every "all-hands" meeting he's had with troops from Zamboanga in the Philippines to Baghdad to Fort Bragg, N.C., the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff gets questions about changes to the GI Bill. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said he is delighted that Congress is considering changes that would allow servicemembers to transfer their education benefit to children or spouses. Defense leaders are following the debate in Congress closely and are waiting to see the specifics of the changes, Mullen said.
"From our standpoint, it is transferability first and a more robust benefit second," the nation's top military officer said during an interview aboard a C-40 aircraft bringing him back from meetings in Pakistan today.
The chairman said he believes the GI Bill is a sound investment for America in people who have proven their worth and loyalty to the country.
"All servicemembers worth anything want to improve themselves and many enlist specifically for the educational benefits," Mullen said. That was true when he was commissioned in 1968, and it is true today, he said.
The young men and women in the military today "are serving at a level I have never seen before," Mullen added. "This benefit would enhance them, enhance the U.S. military and enhance the country."
Under one proposal, servicemembers could transfer educational benefits to spouses or children. Currently, only servicemembers and veterans can use the benefit. The proposed legislation is attached to the emergency supplemental funding bill for war operations that is awaiting passage.
In a May 21 news conference, Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell said Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates considers transferability of GI Bill benefits to family members "absolutely imperative." However, Morrell said, Gates has concerns about how some proposals for GI Bill enhancement would affect the all-volunteer force if they became law.
Gates advocates offering enhanced benefits after six years of service -- rather than the two years in some proposals under consideration in Congress -- to reward servicemembers who opt to re-enlist at least once, Morrell said.
"We are not trying to keep people here forever, but we are trying to create a system in which troops see the benefit of making a career out of the military," Morrell said at the news conference. "We make an enormous investment in their careers and their futures, and we think it would be very damaging to the all-volunteer force if they were to leave prematurely."
That would create big problems to the military, particularly as it confronts the global war on terror, he said. "Now, more than ever, we need to hold on to our superbly trained, battle-tested troops," Morrell said. "They are the key to victory in this conflict."
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
June 5, 2008 - The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff returned today from an overseas trip that included meetings with Pakistani leaders in an effort to reinforce the military-to-military relationship between the two countries. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen met twice with Pakistan's Army Chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and with Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Chairman Gen. Tariq Majeed in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad.
Mullen and U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan Anne Patterson also traveled to Peshawar, where they boarded Pakistani helicopters and overflew training camps for the government's Frontier Corps.
"We had good meetings with [Kayani] and discussed a wide range of topics," Mullen said in an interview with reporters traveling with him today. "We clearly are continuing to look across the full range of military-to-military issues." The chairman would not comment further, saying his discussions with Pakistani leaders are best kept private.
Mullen praised the work of Army Maj. Gen James R. Helmly, the U.S. defense representative in Pakistan, who is leaving the post soon after two years on the job. As a lieutenant general, Helmly volunteered to revert to major general to take the crucial position.
"He's done extraordinary work in relationship building, and in setting up a near-term and long-term strategic approach to partnership," Mullen said. "I think we will reap the benefits of his efforts for years to come, and I am really indebted to him."
In a statement issued in Pakistan, Mullen said that Pakistan has made strides in its efforts against extremists, but that much work remains.
"The United States military stands ready to assist in any way the Pakistani government finds appropriate," he said in the statement. "Pakistan and the United States remain steadfast allies, and Pakistan's military is fighting bravely against terrorism."
This was Mullen's third trip to Pakistan since February, and it came at a touchy time in U.S.-Pakistani relations. Pakistan held elections in February, but the new government – installed in March – still has internal divisions.
"Pakistan is still in the nascent stages of setting up a new government," Mullen said. The government is "trying to push its way through some pretty good challenges."
Pakistan remains a good friend in the war on terror, Mullen said. "In all my conversations, they are very focused in going after the extremist threat," he said.
Mullen received an aerial view of the training bases that the Pakistani government will use to train its Frontier Corps. The corps patrols and maintains peace inside the federally administered tribal areas along the border with Afghanistan. It is made up of local tribesmen.
"They are making progress in getting the facilities in shape," the chairman said. "They have a plan for the forces, and there is a train-and-equip aspect to this."
But the bottom line, he noted, is that it is the Pakistani government's initiative.
"We're supportive of it, but it's their business," Mullen said. "We've engaged with them, and they are looking at a very positive result. But it's going to take time."
The Frontier Corps is a paramilitary force that includes regular army officers. The government has put in place proposals to improve the training of the force, make it more professional and expand it to about 100,000 members. Most of the rank-and-file Frontier Corps personnel are members of Pashtu tribes and have ties on both sides of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. The famous Khyber Rifles is part of the Frontier Corps.
By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
June 5, 2008 - In Ohio, a new team is taking a community approach to supporting troops and military families. "Our mission is to empower communities to support military members and their families through the deployment cycles," said PamelaJune Banks-Anderson, founder of the Ohio-based National Restoration to Military Families Team.
The team, which operates as "National Restoration Team," takes a three-pronged approach to helping servicemembers and their loved ones.
First, the team works to encourage faith- and community-based leaders and organizations to build servicemember- and veteran-friendly communities. It also helps servicemembers with readjustment and reunion issues while remembering the fallen and assisting their families with grief management.
"The threefold effort is ongoing and dynamic," said Banks-Anderson, a veteran of the Gulf War. "We are connecting with community-based organizations like United Way, the American Red Cross, [Department of Veterans Affairs] centers and faith-based organizations to partner with the National Restoration Team to make military members' and their families' transitions as smooth and healthy as possible."
These community connections are made through "Caring 4 Military Family Community Conferences and Workshops," the first of which will be held July 10 in Dayton, Ohio.
National Restoration to Military Families Team is a new supporter of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad.
"We anticipate National Restoration Team becoming as much a household name as 'America Supports You,'" through ASY networking, visibility and connectivity, Banks-Anderson said.
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service
June 5, 2008 - Walter Reed Army Medical Center rolled out a sophisticated new vehicle today that will make wounded soldiers' ride to the Army hospital safer and smoother. The Patient Evacuation Vehicle, a semi-trailer-sized hospital on wheels that will phase out buses currently used to transport wounded troops to Walter Reed from Andrews Air Force Base, Md., was unveiled in a ceremony here.
"[This is] the latest innovation in our ongoing efforts to promote and preserve the health and strength of the world's finest servicemembers," Army Maj. Gen. Carla G. Hawley-Bowland, commander of North Atlantic Regional Medical Command and Walter Reed Army Medical Center, told the crowd on hand for the event.
Hawley-Bowland called the Patient Evacuation Vehicle, or PEV, an "incredible leap forward" in the care and transport of injured soldiers. The PEV fits up to 12 ambulatory and 16 nonambulatory patients, more than three times the capacity of the buses currently in use.
By the end of summer, the fleet is expected to grow to three PEVs, which boast smoother suspension than their Blue Bird bus counterparts, and allow hospital personnel to administer medical oxygen, air or suction to patients in need.
"They can transform this PEV into an intensive-care unit," Hawley-Bowland said. "This capability can save countless lives during the ride from Andrews to Walter Reed."
Army Secretary Pete Geren praised the leaders of industry and medicine who cooperated to help "make this dream a reality."
"Today, so much of medicine – when you get outside of the military – is all about business," he said. "But in the Army, medicine is all about service; it's all about taking care of soldiers, taking care of their families.
"Every day we pledge to do better than we did the day before," Geren continued, "and this is one more example of leadership at Walter Reed stepping forward to do more for the men and women who bear the battle for all of us in the United States."
Army Col. Patricia Horoho, commander of the Walter Reed Health Care System, said fielding the PEV is another example of the Army hospital's dedication to serving wounded warriors.
"This new Patient Evacuation Vehicle shows our commitment and the commitment of the Army to providing the best care for our patients before they arrive at the hospital [as] we welcome them home," she said.
In addition to transporting injured from military installations, Walter Reed will make its PEV fleet available to the National Capital Region if a mass-casualty event or other medical emergency occurs.
"[The PEV] also shows that we take our responsibilities to our neighbors in Washington very seriously in order to improve emergency medical preparedness, and to medically support the many special events that take place regularly in the national capital region," Horoho said.
By Fred W. Baker III
American Forces Press Service
June 5, 2008 - Just inside the gates of the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Md., officials today ceremoniously turned the dirt at the site of what will become the military's premier institute for the study and care of psychological health and traumatic brain injuries. Defense Department Secretary Robert M. Gates, alongside two other department secretaries, top military leaders, recovering wounded warriors and the namesakes of the Fisher House Foundation joined to break the ground for what will become the National Intrepid Center of Excellence for psychological health and traumatic brain injury.
Construction of the $70 million, 75,000-square-foot facility is being funded by the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, a not-for-profit agency that raises funds to support military servicemembers and families. The project mirrors the organization's funding and construction of a physical rehabilitation facility – The Center for the Intrepid -- built at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio last year.
This facility will serve as the clinical research and educational arm of the DoD Center of Excellence for psychological health and TBI -- a collaborative network of military, private and public health care and educational organizations linked to discover and promote best practices in the care of treatment of psychological health and TBI.
Gates said the need for such a facility has "never been more pressing or more important."
He said that the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have presented DoD with a unique mix of injuries, stress and strains on its military force.
"As in every conflict in America's history, many of our troops have returned bearing the scars of war – scars both seen and unseen," Gates said. "These invisible wounds are in many ways more pernicious, more grievous, because they are not readily apparent and have not always received the attention they should."
Gates said advancements in armor protection and battlefield medicine have led to more troops surviving what would have been otherwise fatal injuries. As result, though, there has been an increase in cases of TBI. The secretary conceded that although much about the condition still is not understood, $150 million has been dedicated to the injury's prevention, diagnosis, treatment and recovery.
Also, the military has implemented better reporting mechanisms for those potentially affected, and DoD has launched departmentwide efforts aimed at reducing the stigma attached with receiving mental health services in the military.
"That change in our culture represents our biggest challenge, and we know it will not happen overnight," Gates said.
Last month, DoD changed a longstanding question on its security questionnaire that asks if servicemembers have received mental health counseling. Now, the question excludes counseling for combat-related stress and post-traumatic stress disorder.
"We hope that with this change, more will be willing to come forward and seek help," Gates said. "The main point is to do everything we can to ensure that the inevitable anxiety and stress from combat does not turn into something tragically worse."
Gates said that the new center symbolizes that the United States is keeping its contract with servicemembers and their families to provide care should they be injured on the battlefield.
"After the wars themselves, I have no higher priority. And this superb new center will be a living reminder that America honors that contract and keeps faith with those who have sacrificed so much for all of us," Gates said.
The honorary chairman of the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, Arnold Fisher, said that the contributions provided for the center were not charity, but a duty by Americans to care for its troops.
"This is not charity work. This is our duty to give back to this country, especially to the military," Fisher said. "We are no longer embarrassed to talk about mental health of our brave warriors. They deserve the best care, and this center will be the core of that effort."
The Fisher family's Fisher House Foundation raises money to build homes on military installations and at Veterans Affairs medical centers across the United States. Families of those recovering at the hospitals are allowed to live in the homes for free. So far, the foundation has built 38 such homes. It plans to build more at the Bethesda campus, officials announced.
Once complete, the building will be turned over to the Defense Department for resourcing and management. The building is planned to be finished by November 2009.
The center is another example of the ever-expanding partnership between VA and DoD and other governmental agencies. So far, the two agencies have collaborated on revising policies and procedures that have been sticking points for servicemembers transferring their care between the agencies. They've also joined to hire federal recovery coordinators who will oversee the management of the cases of the most severely injured. VA, DoD and the National Institutes of Health will collocate at the new center. The deputy director of the DoD Center of Excellence for psychological health and TBI is a VA employee.
"This Intrepid Center of Excellence will play an absolutely essential role in a unwavering commitment to continue that forward movement in getting it right in caring for those who have borne the battle," VA Secretary Dr. James B. Peake, a retired lieutenant general who served as Army surgeon general, said.
Marine Gen. James E. Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the collaboration of the political administration, the military and the private sector shows long-term commitment toward servicemember care.
"We all are committed to making sure this is not just a short-term flash in the pan," Cartwright said. "We are committed to making this work, to addressing every problem that we can find and we can go after. This is absolutely essential. This is our duty."
The director of the DoD Center of Excellence for psychological health and TBI said the center will put in one place the partnerships that her office has been working to cultivate and will serve as a hub of global efforts to provide evaluation, diagnosis, and treat those suffering from PTSD, TBI and other psychological issues.
"We've always worked together to some extent, but this center will provide that galvanizing focus that will bring the VA, the National Institutes of Health, and bring the Department of Defense and the private and public sectors together, all united in one great effort," said Army Brig. Gen. Loree Sutton, who also serves as the special assistant to the assistant secretary of defense for health affairs.
Sutton added that the center will benefit not only military medicine, but also civilian medicine in terms of its findings in research and diagnosis.
"Whatever we can find in terms of best practices around the world, we're bringing it here. Whatever we learn here, we'll push it out," Sutton said.
The groundbreaking is the first of many changes to the landscape of the historical naval hospital campus, as it prepares to merge with the Walter Reed Army Medical Center by 2011 to become the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
June 5, 2008 - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates today announced a new task force to recommend improvements needed to ensure top-level accountability and control of U.S. nuclear weapons, delivery vehicles and sensitive components. Gates announced the task force after removing Air Force Secretary Michael W. Wynne and Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley over the accidental shipment of four non-nuclear ballistic missile nose-cone assembly components to Taiwan in August 2006.
While citing efforts under way in the Air Force, Navy and Defense Logistics Agency, Gates said he believes "an outside perspective is required to ensure sufficiently far-reaching and comprehensive measures are taken."
James Schlesinger, former Defense Department and Energy Department secretary and CIA director, will head up the task force. The task force itself will be made up of experts from the Defense Policy Board and Defense Science Board.
The task force will operate under tight deadlines. Within the first 60 days, it will recommend organizational, procedural and policy improvements involving the Defense Department and Air Force, Gates said. For its second phase, it will report within 120 days on management and oversight of nuclear weapons and related materials and systems across the entire department.
Citing a report on the nose-cone mishandling incident, Gates said no one was put in danger and the integrity of the nation's nuclear deterrent force was not risked. The investigation showed no evidence that the parts were compromised while out of U.S. custody, and no nuclear materials were ever compromised.
"Having said that, this incident represents a significant failure to ensure the security of sensitive military components, and, more troubling, it depicts a pattern of poor performance," he said.
While holding the Air Force leadership accountable, Gates called on the task force to support other initiatives under way to identify and and fix the structural, procedural and cultural problems that led to the incident.
In a memo to Schlesinger, Gates said he urges the entire department to cooperate with and provide any relevant documents and information the task force needs to do its job.
"Your advice should focus on enhancing the department's ability to sustain public confidence in the safe handling of Department of Defense nuclear assets and bolster a clear international understanding of the continuing role and credibility of the U.S. nuclear deterrent," he wrote.
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
June 5, 2008 - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates today announced the resignations of Air Force Secretary Michael W. Wynne and Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley following an investigation revealing a decline in the Air Force's nuclear program focus, performance and effective leadership. Gates announced the resignations in the wake of a report detailing the accidental shipment of four non-nuclear ballistic missile nose-cone assembly components rather than the intended helicopter batteries to Taiwan in August 2006.
The report, prepared by Navy Adm. Kirkland H. Donald, director of naval nuclear propulsion, detailed what Gates called a shift of the Air Force leadership's focus from, and degraded performance related to, its most sensitive mission.
Air Force leaders focused on the problem only after two internationally sensitive incidents -- one involving Taiwan and another in which an Air Force B-52 bomber flew across the United States carrying six armed nuclear cruise missiles, Gates said.
Both incidents could have been prevented if the Air Force had applied proper inspection and oversight, he said. He blamed a "lack of a critical self-assessment culture" within the Air Force nuclear program that might have identified and fixed systemic weaknesses.
Gates noted that he had to intervene personally to ensure a thorough investigation of what went wrong and how.
In the nose-cone incident, the secretary blamed the Air Force and Defense Logistics Agency for using supply system procedures designed to move large amounts of low-value material for shipping the sensitive classified parts.
"The specific cause of this event was the Air Force and Defense Logistics Agency's sole reliance on, and lack of compliance with, existing supply system procedures to provide positive control of the four forward-section assemblies," he said.
But Gates said the incident signals far deeper problems.
"During the course of the investigation, other issued indicating a decline in the Air Force's nuclear mission focus and performance became apparent," he said. "Rather than an isolated occurrence, the shipment... was a symptom of a degradation of the authority, standards of excellence and technical competence within the nation's ICBM (intercontinental ballistic missile) force."
At a broader level, Gates cited declining expertise in the entire Air Force nuclear program – the result, he said, of lack of top-level focus and emphasis.
None of these problems happened overnight and some have root problems dating back a decade, he said. But Gates cited "contemporary failures and lack of effective oversight."
In addition to removal of the top Air Force leadership, Gates announced a senior-level task force to recommend improvements needed to ensure accountability and control of nuclear weapons, delivery vehicles and components.
James Schlesinger, a former Defense Department and Energy Department secretary and CIA director, will lead the task force, Gates said. The task force will recommend organizational, procedural and policy changes needed within 60 days. Within 120 days, it will address defense-wide management and oversight of nuclear weapons and related materials and systems.
Gates said he plans to recommend a new Air Force secretary and chief of staff soon. Once they are confirmed, he said he will leave it to them to determine proper disciplinary actions for others identified in the Donald report.
The secretary expressed personal sadness about today's decision, calling Wynne "a dedicated and honorable public servant" and noting Moseley's decades of "courageous and devoted service."
"They both deserve their gratitude for their service," he said. "I have enjoyed serving with them and deeply regret that the issues before us require the actions I have taken."
In his resignation letter, Wynne took accountability for the incidents and said he must live up to the same standards he expects of his airmen. Moseley said he takes "full responsibility for events which have hurt the Air Force's reputation or raised a question of every airman's commitment to our core values."
Gates called today a sad day for the Air Force, the Defense Department and him personally, but said it also marks a return to the Air Force's standards of excellence and accomplishment.
Noting his own Air Force roots, Gates said he stands in solid support of all airmen. "They have my respect, my support and my commitment to do everything I can in my remaining time to work with them and to sustain the tradition of service and excellence that has been the hallmark of the United States Air Force since its inception," he said.
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
June 5, 2008 - Back today from a 10-day, around-the-world trip designed to foster relationships with allies and emerging countries, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said it also gave him insight into the way U.S. government agencies are beginning to work together. Navy Adm. Mullen spoke to reporters today aboard his plane over the Atlantic Ocean while en route to Washington. Earlier in the day, he had met with Pakistani leaders and viewed the country's Frontier Corps training camp near Peshawar. Mullen and his party left Andrews Air Force Base, Md., on May 27. The trip took him to Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines, Korea, Pakistan, Germany and back to Andrews.
The admiral noted that for the last couple of years he has said that no one country – much less one department of one country -- can fight extremism alone. Traveling to places like Indonesia and the Philippines reinforces that fact in his mind, he said.
The countries of Southeast Asia are blessed with great natural resources and lie along the sea lanes of communication from Europe and the Middle East to China, Japan and the West Coast of the United States. That this is an important region, "is not a new discovery," the chairman said.
Mullen's trip was meant to reinforce relationships with old allies – the Philippines, Singapore and South Korea – and to engage emerging nations – Indonesia and Pakistan. This important external country-to-country, military-to-military aspect is important and includes bilateral and multilateral relationships among nations and militaries, he said.
But the trip also highlighted a "we can't do this alone" portion of the equation that applies within the U.S. government, he told reporters. The chairman saw and spoke with representatives from many non-defense U.S. agencies who are doing their parts in places like Indonesia, the Philippines and Pakistan, he said.
Mullen got a first-hand look at this in Zamboanga, Philippines. "I saw how representatives from many agencies work together in the Philippines," he said. "I've seen the same thing in the drug task force in Key West. I see it in places like Pakistan and Iraq and Afghanistan – the interagency aspect of it. It continues to evolve and mature and make itself evident in everything. I also think that's best for the long-term aspect of what we're doing."
During his visit to Singapore, the chairman attended the Shangri-La Dialogue – an Asia security conference named for the hotel where it is held. Mullen met with defense representatives from other nations and also made time to meet with Singaporean officials to thank them for their help and to understand how they want to move forward. "We have an incredibly robust military-to-military relationship there," he said.
In addition to the inter-governmental and interagency effort in the Philippines, Mullen said, he was struck by the maturation of the Philippine military.
"I lived in the Philippines in the early 1980s – I left in 1983," he said. "They have matured tremendously." He said he was very impressed with Lt. Gen. Alexander Yano, a Philippine army officer who leads the island nation's armed forces.
"He's got the right demeanor, the right approach," Mullen said. "He's highly regarded in his country, and he is highly regarded in the region.
"I also want to take my hat off to the U.S. ambassador and the country team in the Philippines," he continued. "They have come a long way as well."
And it shows at the basic level, the admiral said, noting stability in the country has allowed the nation's gross domestic product to grow by 6 to 7 percent a year for the past few years.
Indonesia is an emerging relationship, Mullen said. It has the largest Muslim population in the world, and since 1998, has come a long way. "The government has been freely elected, [and] the police are now totally separate from the defense establishment," the chairman said. Stability has led to an average of 6 percent annual real economic growth per year. National and military leaders in Indonesia are focusing on human rights.
"Do they still have a ways to go?" Mullen asked, "Certainly. Is the leadership aware? They are. I think in another 10 years that Indonesia, being well-led and taking aggressive steps, ... will have moved that much further down the road."
Mullen said he still worries about the decades over which U.S. military officers had no contact with their Indonesian counterparts because of sanctions imposed on Indonesia. The Indonesians are worried about whether the United States will maintain a military-to-military relationship.
Mullen recalled a visit to Indonesia while he served as chief of naval operations. "The first question my navy counterpart ... asked me was, 'Are you going to do it again?'" Mullen said. "We have got to rebuild the trust between the countries."
The Philippines, Indonesia and Singapore face an extremist threat that is far more complicated when viewed close-up than from an office in Washington, Mullen said. Al-Qaida affiliates split and form and coalesce with other extremist groups constantly.
"Nice, clean solutions just don't happen in counterinsurgencies," the admiral said.
American Forces Press Service
June 5, 2008 - The United States continues to extend its offer of cyclone relief support to the government of Burma, even as the USS Essex group and the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit move away from the Burmese coast, the Marine Corps general in charge of the military's role in the effort said today. Officials announced yesterday that the four ships of the USS Essex group that had been positioned off the Burmese coast awaiting the OK from Burma's ruling military junta to deliver relief supplies in the wake of a devastating May 2 cyclone, would resume their normal operations today.
"While the USS Essex group ships are in transit, the U.S. maintains its offer to support the distribution efforts of the Burmese government and the international community," said Lt. Gen. John Goodman, commander of U.S. Marine Forces Pacific and commander of Joint Task Force Caring Response. "This distribution support includes the use of helicopters currently in Thailand, and if requested, the landing craft from the amphibious ships to assist the world community in the distribution of relief supplies to relieve suffering."
Goodman noted the value of the capabilities the USS Essex group could provide.
"As demonstrated in past humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations, helicopters and landing craft are the most expeditious means to move relief supplies into difficult-to-reach sites without placing an additional burden on the affected region," he said.
As the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations work to establish an air bridge for delivery to the hubs such as Rangoon, the Burmese capital, a tremendous number of Burmese cyclone victims have yet to receive any assistance, as insufficient quantities of relief are being distributed from hubs to the most critically affected regions of the Irrawaddy delta, where hundreds of thousands still await help.
Goodman said the United States has on numerous occasions offered Burma's military government the use of helicopters and surface craft to support humanitarian relief efforts in the most difficult-to-reach areas of the Irrawaddy delta. Navy Adm. Timothy J. Keating, commander of U.S. Pacific Command, made one of those offers face to face when he accompanied the first planeload of relief supplies the junta allowed to land in Rangoon.
"Following Admiral Keating's visit, Ms. [Shari] Villarosa, the charge d'affairs, and I have met twice with a ranking member of the military government in Rangoon," Goodman said. "Our offer has been without strings, and it has never included bringing U.S. Navy ships into their ports. Unfortunately, those offers of support have yet to be accepted, resulting in the ships being repositioned to the Gulf of Thailand."
In addition to continuing offers of support to the distribution efforts from the hubs to those areas where the aid will be distributed to those in need, the United States will continue to deliver relief support from Thailand, primarily using U.S. military C-130s to deliver U.S. Agency for International Development and other supplies to the hub at Rangoon, supporting U.N. and ASEAN delivery network efforts. Through today, the United States will have flown 116 flights, delivering more than 2.2 million pounds of needed relief supplies to the Rangoon hub.
(From a Joint Task Force Caring Response news release.)
Posts
