By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 9, 2008 - If one of the Pentagon Channel's newest programs was a hot Apple iTunes download before, it'll be on fire in the near future. The company recently named "The Grill Sergeants" one of its top 25 videos of the year. It's currently ranked as No. 13.
"We were pretty excited. Obviously, it's great to get recognition for your programming," said Michael Winneker, the Pentagon Channel's distribution and marketing manager. "We always know around here that it's good, ... but it's kind of nice to hear from other listeners or viewers that the programming is good and people are interested in it."
Apple iTunes divides its podcasts into categories. "The Grill Sergeants" is found in the "Government and Organizations" section, where it usually enjoys a Top 5 placement.
Winneker attributes the iTunes accolades to a current interest in both cooking shows and the military.
"I think people, traditionally, when they think of military cooking they think of the chow hall and someone with an ice cream scooper of mashed potatoes and they're slamming it down on the tray," he said. "I think this show proves that we do have some great military chefs out there, and some great food and great recipes that anyone can pick up."
"The Grill Sergeants," which is five episodes into its second season, is hosted by Army Sgt. 1st Class Brad Turner, a New Orleans native.
An aficionado of many cuisines, Turner was chosen as an apprentice to the U.S. Army Culinary Team while stationed at Fort Stewart, Ga. Later, he apprenticed with German master chef Hans Bauer in Amberg, Germany.
After being reassigned to Fort Bliss, Texas, Turner helped to establish the Fort Bliss Culinary Program.
But it's not only Turner's pots and pans that have put him in the spotlight. It seems he's got a set of pipes, too. The chef loves to sing while he cooks, and even won the title of 2007 Fort Lee (Va.) military Idol.
Turner now is stationed at Camp Stanley, South Korea, where he serves as the dining facility manager at the Stanley Gardens Restaurant. The father of seven says his motto is "Share your love, share your food."
"The Grill Sergeants" airs on the Pentagon Channel at noon EST on Mondays. Past episodes are available for download from the Pentagon Channel's Web site, as well as iTunes. The Pentagon Channel also makes available for download podcasts of 16 other programs and 10 audio podcasts, all of which are free, Winneker said.
Tuesday, December 09, 2008
Financial Crisis Affects Defense Department, Chairman Says
By Army Staff Sgt. Michael J. Carden
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 9, 2008 - Though the extent of its impact is not yet clear, the Defense Department will feel effects from the current financial crisis, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told about 500 airmen here yesterday. "The global financial crisis is going to have an effect on us in the military, and I've thought that for months," Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said. "To the degree that this financial crisis has an impact on us, and it will, I worry about an increased level of insecurity [and] instability around the world."
Since 2000, the Defense Department's budget has increased steadily to more than $715 billion for fiscal 2009. But the chairman said he expects DoD will have to "start tightening our belt" and making adjustments.
"It's going to take a very healthy debate about what it's going to take to provide for our national security during these very challenging times," Mullen said. "We've got to get our arms around this."
The department is going to have to start trying to reduce costs, he said, citing uncertainty over how quickly the financial impact will settle in. "It's certainly too early to determine, but I think it's virtually certain that it will have an impact on us," he said.
"We need to pay an awful lot of attention to that," he continued. "I clearly think it's going to impact the Department of Defense, but I don't know the specifics of that at this particular point in time and how the new administration will address this."
But as officials scrutinize future budget requests, Mullen said, the military can't afford to lose sight of caring for its members, whom he regularly calls DoD's most important resource. He noted dramatic improvements in the last 10 years in pay and benefits, veteran compensation, health care and family care programs.
"We've got a chance to get this right," he said, remembering the inadequate care Vietnam veterans received until recently. "We've got huge challenges in health care, just like the rest of the country, [and] like other organizations throughout the country and throughout the world, we're going to have to get a handle on this."
Air Force Staff Sgt. Adam Rosen of the 1st Component Maintenance Squadron here is an unmarried airman who said he feels the effects of the weakening economy, but not as much as others with families to support.
"Obviously, the economy is not going to be a quick fix, but it's reassuring that the senior leadership recognizes the issues," Rosen said. "Hopefully, we can continue our missions around the world without significant setbacks."
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 9, 2008 - Though the extent of its impact is not yet clear, the Defense Department will feel effects from the current financial crisis, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told about 500 airmen here yesterday. "The global financial crisis is going to have an effect on us in the military, and I've thought that for months," Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said. "To the degree that this financial crisis has an impact on us, and it will, I worry about an increased level of insecurity [and] instability around the world."
Since 2000, the Defense Department's budget has increased steadily to more than $715 billion for fiscal 2009. But the chairman said he expects DoD will have to "start tightening our belt" and making adjustments.
"It's going to take a very healthy debate about what it's going to take to provide for our national security during these very challenging times," Mullen said. "We've got to get our arms around this."
The department is going to have to start trying to reduce costs, he said, citing uncertainty over how quickly the financial impact will settle in. "It's certainly too early to determine, but I think it's virtually certain that it will have an impact on us," he said.
"We need to pay an awful lot of attention to that," he continued. "I clearly think it's going to impact the Department of Defense, but I don't know the specifics of that at this particular point in time and how the new administration will address this."
But as officials scrutinize future budget requests, Mullen said, the military can't afford to lose sight of caring for its members, whom he regularly calls DoD's most important resource. He noted dramatic improvements in the last 10 years in pay and benefits, veteran compensation, health care and family care programs.
"We've got a chance to get this right," he said, remembering the inadequate care Vietnam veterans received until recently. "We've got huge challenges in health care, just like the rest of the country, [and] like other organizations throughout the country and throughout the world, we're going to have to get a handle on this."
Air Force Staff Sgt. Adam Rosen of the 1st Component Maintenance Squadron here is an unmarried airman who said he feels the effects of the weakening economy, but not as much as others with families to support.
"Obviously, the economy is not going to be a quick fix, but it's reassuring that the senior leadership recognizes the issues," Rosen said. "Hopefully, we can continue our missions around the world without significant setbacks."
Three Dead, One Missing in San Diego Crash
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 9, 2008 - The crash of a Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet strike fighter jet in San Diego yesterday killed three people on the ground, and one person is missing, city fire officials said. The Hornet, from Fighter/Attack Training Squadron 101 of Marine Aircraft Group 11, crashed into two houses after going down around noon PST in a neighborhood near Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, officials said.
The pilot is in stable condition at Naval Medical Center San Diego, Marine officials said.
The pilot – part of the 3rd Marine Air Wing – radioed that there was trouble and tried to steer the aircraft to an uninhabited canyon, Marine officials said. But the pilot was forced to eject, and the jet crashed two miles from the airport, they said.
The jet was returning from training exercises aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln when the crash occurred.
Dec. 9, 2008 - The crash of a Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet strike fighter jet in San Diego yesterday killed three people on the ground, and one person is missing, city fire officials said. The Hornet, from Fighter/Attack Training Squadron 101 of Marine Aircraft Group 11, crashed into two houses after going down around noon PST in a neighborhood near Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, officials said.
The pilot is in stable condition at Naval Medical Center San Diego, Marine officials said.
The pilot – part of the 3rd Marine Air Wing – radioed that there was trouble and tried to steer the aircraft to an uninhabited canyon, Marine officials said. But the pilot was forced to eject, and the jet crashed two miles from the airport, they said.
The jet was returning from training exercises aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln when the crash occurred.
Mullen Salutes Servicemembers' Success at Awards Dinner
By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 9, 2008 - U.S. troops engaged in the global war on terrorism are doing "an exceptionally hard job exceptionally well," the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said at the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs' annual awards dinner held here yesterday. "I believe our future is tied, as it always must be, to the young people who are in the fight right now," Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said. Mullen received the institute's Jackson award, named after the late U.S. Sen. Henry M. Jackson, a staunch supporter of America's friendship with Israel. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates received the Jackson award last year.
Senior U.S. civilian and military leaders are focused on "driving hard for final success in Iraq [and] turning it around in Afghanistan," Mullen said.
At the same time, defense leaders remain committed to supporting the military families "of those who have borne the battle," Mullen said, noting he is working to provide more time at home for troops between duty assignments in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The U.S. military also is focused on providing "a lifetime of care to the wounded and the families of the fallen," he said.
Today's generation of soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen want "leaders who will listen" and "challenging assignments of value, learning and building on the satisfaction that they've achieved by doing an exceptionally hard job exceptionally well," the chairman said.
Servicemembers who have fought in Afghanistan and Iraq also want to lead, Mullen said, noting they've been shaped by experiences different from those encountered during his service as a young officer during the Vietnam War and the subsequent military cutbacks in the 1970s.
Today's troops have achieved great success in Iraq and Afghanistan, Mullen said, and they "are truly appreciated and trusted by the American public."
As the war in Iraq winds down, U.S. servicemembers will experience "the prospect of a long, tough duty ahead, as we turn our full attention to the hills of Afghanistan, as we must," Mullen said.
The war against terror isn't over, Mullen said, citing the Nov. 26 terrorist attacks on Mumbai, India. The four-star admiral recently returned from a visit to Pakistan – believed to be where the Mumbai attackers made their plans -- where he encouraged senior Pakistani leaders to take a firmer role in confronting militant extremists operating in their country.
"We are working to prevent Nov. 26 from becoming a tipping point towards chaos in the region, by confronting once again a common enemy," Mullen said. "Both India and Pakistan are increasingly targeted by terror, just as we have been, and the futures of these nations are bonded, just as our future is with theirs."
Investigations of the Mumbai attacks indicate a new level of terrorist sophistication, Mullen said, noting the attackers employed global positioning systems and satellite phones while committing mayhem that killed more than 200 people.
"This is an evil in the sight of our world, and the only way to face it is to face it with united determination, with every aspect of our influence and power, and with all possible urgency," Mullen said. "This wasn't just an attack on Indians, or Americans or Brits or even Jews; it was, rather, an attack on all of us who love the sacred dignity of human life."
As the war against terrorism continues, it's time to prepare young military leaders for greater responsibilities and higher rank as part of "their turn at the tiller of history, for they've earned it," Mullen said.
Military-support groups, such as JINSA, help foster closer civilian understanding of national security matters "and unite us in common purpose, thought and deed," he said.
Earlier in the evening, Mullen saluted six servicemembers who received the institute's 2008 Grateful Nation award for outstanding service during the war on terrorism. The awardees are:
-- Army Sgt. Monica L. Brown;
-- Marine Staff Sgt. Phillip J. Anderson;
-- Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Douglas Day;
-- Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Eric S. Bernstein;
-- Air Force Master Sgt. Edward A. Tillman III; and
-- Air Force Staff Sgt. Zachary J. Rhyner.
The six military awardees are "very, very special people," Mullen said. They were selected by their service branches.
"They represent the best military that I have been associated with in the over four decades that I've had the privilege to serve," Mullen said of the awardees.
Brown, a combat medic who earned the Silver Star for gallantry during action against enemy forces in Afghanistan in 2007, said she feels honored to receive the Grateful Nation award.
"There's a lot of history behind this organization," Brown said of JINSA's long-time support on behalf of servicemembers and the U.S. military. Therefore, being a recipient of the institute's Grateful Nation award "means a lot to me," she added.
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 9, 2008 - U.S. troops engaged in the global war on terrorism are doing "an exceptionally hard job exceptionally well," the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said at the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs' annual awards dinner held here yesterday. "I believe our future is tied, as it always must be, to the young people who are in the fight right now," Navy Adm. Mike Mullen said. Mullen received the institute's Jackson award, named after the late U.S. Sen. Henry M. Jackson, a staunch supporter of America's friendship with Israel. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates received the Jackson award last year.
Senior U.S. civilian and military leaders are focused on "driving hard for final success in Iraq [and] turning it around in Afghanistan," Mullen said.
At the same time, defense leaders remain committed to supporting the military families "of those who have borne the battle," Mullen said, noting he is working to provide more time at home for troops between duty assignments in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The U.S. military also is focused on providing "a lifetime of care to the wounded and the families of the fallen," he said.
Today's generation of soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen want "leaders who will listen" and "challenging assignments of value, learning and building on the satisfaction that they've achieved by doing an exceptionally hard job exceptionally well," the chairman said.
Servicemembers who have fought in Afghanistan and Iraq also want to lead, Mullen said, noting they've been shaped by experiences different from those encountered during his service as a young officer during the Vietnam War and the subsequent military cutbacks in the 1970s.
Today's troops have achieved great success in Iraq and Afghanistan, Mullen said, and they "are truly appreciated and trusted by the American public."
As the war in Iraq winds down, U.S. servicemembers will experience "the prospect of a long, tough duty ahead, as we turn our full attention to the hills of Afghanistan, as we must," Mullen said.
The war against terror isn't over, Mullen said, citing the Nov. 26 terrorist attacks on Mumbai, India. The four-star admiral recently returned from a visit to Pakistan – believed to be where the Mumbai attackers made their plans -- where he encouraged senior Pakistani leaders to take a firmer role in confronting militant extremists operating in their country.
"We are working to prevent Nov. 26 from becoming a tipping point towards chaos in the region, by confronting once again a common enemy," Mullen said. "Both India and Pakistan are increasingly targeted by terror, just as we have been, and the futures of these nations are bonded, just as our future is with theirs."
Investigations of the Mumbai attacks indicate a new level of terrorist sophistication, Mullen said, noting the attackers employed global positioning systems and satellite phones while committing mayhem that killed more than 200 people.
"This is an evil in the sight of our world, and the only way to face it is to face it with united determination, with every aspect of our influence and power, and with all possible urgency," Mullen said. "This wasn't just an attack on Indians, or Americans or Brits or even Jews; it was, rather, an attack on all of us who love the sacred dignity of human life."
As the war against terrorism continues, it's time to prepare young military leaders for greater responsibilities and higher rank as part of "their turn at the tiller of history, for they've earned it," Mullen said.
Military-support groups, such as JINSA, help foster closer civilian understanding of national security matters "and unite us in common purpose, thought and deed," he said.
Earlier in the evening, Mullen saluted six servicemembers who received the institute's 2008 Grateful Nation award for outstanding service during the war on terrorism. The awardees are:
-- Army Sgt. Monica L. Brown;
-- Marine Staff Sgt. Phillip J. Anderson;
-- Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Douglas Day;
-- Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Eric S. Bernstein;
-- Air Force Master Sgt. Edward A. Tillman III; and
-- Air Force Staff Sgt. Zachary J. Rhyner.
The six military awardees are "very, very special people," Mullen said. They were selected by their service branches.
"They represent the best military that I have been associated with in the over four decades that I've had the privilege to serve," Mullen said of the awardees.
Brown, a combat medic who earned the Silver Star for gallantry during action against enemy forces in Afghanistan in 2007, said she feels honored to receive the Grateful Nation award.
"There's a lot of history behind this organization," Brown said of JINSA's long-time support on behalf of servicemembers and the U.S. military. Therefore, being a recipient of the institute's Grateful Nation award "means a lot to me," she added.
Monday, December 08, 2008
National Security Archive Update, December 8, 2008
Reagan, Gorbachev and Bush at Governor's Island
Previously Secret Documents from Soviet and U.S. Files On the 1988 Summit in New York, 20 Years Later
Edited by Dr. Svetlana Savranskaya and Thomas Blanton
Washington, DC, December 8, 2008 - Previously secret Soviet documentation shows that Mikhail Gorbachev was prepared for rapid arms control progress leading towards nuclear abolition at the time of his last official meeting with President Reagan, at Governor's Island, New York in December 1988; but President-elect George H. W. Bush, who also attended the meeting, said "he would need a little time to review the issues" and lost at least a year of dramatic arms reductions that were possible had there been a more forthcoming U.S. position.
The new documentation posted today by the National Security Archive at George Washington University (www.nsarchive.org) includes highest-level memos from Gorbachev advisors leading up to Gorbachev's famous speech at the United Nations during the New York visit, notes of Politburo discussions before and after the speech and the Reagan-Bush meeting, CIA estimates before and after the speech showing how surprised American officials had been and how reluctant the new Bush administration was to meet Gorbachev even half-way, and the declassified U.S. transcript of the private meeting between Reagan, Bush and Gorbachev on December 7.
Visit the Web site of the National Security Archive for more information.
http://www.nsarchive.org
Previously Secret Documents from Soviet and U.S. Files On the 1988 Summit in New York, 20 Years Later
Edited by Dr. Svetlana Savranskaya and Thomas Blanton
Washington, DC, December 8, 2008 - Previously secret Soviet documentation shows that Mikhail Gorbachev was prepared for rapid arms control progress leading towards nuclear abolition at the time of his last official meeting with President Reagan, at Governor's Island, New York in December 1988; but President-elect George H. W. Bush, who also attended the meeting, said "he would need a little time to review the issues" and lost at least a year of dramatic arms reductions that were possible had there been a more forthcoming U.S. position.
The new documentation posted today by the National Security Archive at George Washington University (www.nsarchive.org) includes highest-level memos from Gorbachev advisors leading up to Gorbachev's famous speech at the United Nations during the New York visit, notes of Politburo discussions before and after the speech and the Reagan-Bush meeting, CIA estimates before and after the speech showing how surprised American officials had been and how reluctant the new Bush administration was to meet Gorbachev even half-way, and the declassified U.S. transcript of the private meeting between Reagan, Bush and Gorbachev on December 7.
Visit the Web site of the National Security Archive for more information.
http://www.nsarchive.org
Retailer Brings Holiday Cheer to Fisher Houses
By Sharon Foster
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 8, 2008 - More than 50 local Wal-Mart associates donated their time and tinsel Dec. 4 to bring holiday cheer to servicemembers recovering from wounds at Fisher Houses at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here and Andrews Air Force Base, Md. Wal-Mart associates "decked the halls" for the two Fisher Houses and also presented a check for $280,000 at the Walter Reed location.
"Decorating the Fisher Houses was important for a number of reasons," said E.R. Anderson, Wal-Mart regional media director. "First, Wal-Mart is committed to giving back to the communities where we operate. Second, we want to say 'thank you' to our servicemen and women for all they do for us. We also want to appreciate their families."
Nationally, Wal-Mart Stores is donating $250,000 to the Fisher House Foundation -- $100,000 to support the purchase of gifts cards for unmet needs of families spending the holidays in a Fisher House, $95,000 in direct support to the houses, and $55,000 for fees associated with Hero Miles tickets to unite families during the holidays.
In the Washington area, Wal-Mart Foundation's State Giving Program is donating an additional $30,000 to area Fisher Houses.
Fisher Houses are built on the grounds of major military and Veterans Affairs medical centers. They provide free lodging for military families to be close to loved ones during hospitalization.
James D. Weiskopf, executive vice president of communications at the Fisher House Foundation, said he is proud of the partnership with the world's largest retailer.
"Community involvement and support is essential to the program," Weiskopf said. "Supporting America's servicemen and women, and most especially those wounded or injured, is a duty for all Americans. Wal-Mart is a very patriotic, community-spirited corporation, and we are proud of our association."
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 8, 2008 - More than 50 local Wal-Mart associates donated their time and tinsel Dec. 4 to bring holiday cheer to servicemembers recovering from wounds at Fisher Houses at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here and Andrews Air Force Base, Md. Wal-Mart associates "decked the halls" for the two Fisher Houses and also presented a check for $280,000 at the Walter Reed location.
"Decorating the Fisher Houses was important for a number of reasons," said E.R. Anderson, Wal-Mart regional media director. "First, Wal-Mart is committed to giving back to the communities where we operate. Second, we want to say 'thank you' to our servicemen and women for all they do for us. We also want to appreciate their families."
Nationally, Wal-Mart Stores is donating $250,000 to the Fisher House Foundation -- $100,000 to support the purchase of gifts cards for unmet needs of families spending the holidays in a Fisher House, $95,000 in direct support to the houses, and $55,000 for fees associated with Hero Miles tickets to unite families during the holidays.
In the Washington area, Wal-Mart Foundation's State Giving Program is donating an additional $30,000 to area Fisher Houses.
Fisher Houses are built on the grounds of major military and Veterans Affairs medical centers. They provide free lodging for military families to be close to loved ones during hospitalization.
James D. Weiskopf, executive vice president of communications at the Fisher House Foundation, said he is proud of the partnership with the world's largest retailer.
"Community involvement and support is essential to the program," Weiskopf said. "Supporting America's servicemen and women, and most especially those wounded or injured, is a duty for all Americans. Wal-Mart is a very patriotic, community-spirited corporation, and we are proud of our association."
Obama Taps Shinseki as Next Veterans Affairs Chief
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
, Dec. 8, 2008 - President-elect Barack Obama has selected retired Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric K. Shinseki as his nominee to be secretary of veterans affairs. "As we seek a new national security strategy that uses all elements of American power, we must also remember those who run the greatest risks and make the greatest sacrifices to implement that strategy – the men and women who wear the uniform of the United States of America," the president-elect said in announcing his choice yesterday.
Obama echoed the words of Abraham Lincoln when he said the nation has a sacred trust to serve those who have borne the cost of battle.
"We must show them and their families the same devotion that they have shown this country," he said.
If confirmed by the Senate, Shinseki will succeed retired Army Lt. Gen. (Dr.) James B. Peake in leading the second-largest federal department, with 240,000 employees. Some 23.4 million veterans are alive today, and the department is their point of contact for compensation and pensions, medical care, education and training, home loans and other benefits. Last year, the VA had a budget of $93.4 billion.
The government must do everything it can to help those veterans who suffer "from the signature injuries of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan – post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury," Obama said in Chicago.
Obama also promised to help those who leave the service to find work.
The United States needs to modernize the VA, cut red tape there and eliminate shortfalls, the president-elect said.
"That is the kind of VA that will serve our veterans as well as they have served us," he said. "And there is no one more distinguished, more determined, or more qualified to build this VA than the leader I am announcing as our next secretary of veterans affairs -- General Eric Shinseki.
"No one will ever doubt that this former Army chief of staff has the courage to stand up for our troops and our veterans," he continued. "No one will ever question whether he will fight hard enough to make sure they have the support they need."
Shinseki retired as chief of staff in 2003 after a four-year term. He graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., and served two combat tours in Vietnam as a young officer. He lost part of his foot in Vietnam, was awarded three Bronze Star awards and two Purple Hearts.
Shinseki said today's veterans "are a part of an unbroken line of heroes that stretches back to the American Revolution." Still, there are veterans worried about keeping their health care or homes, he said.
"Veterans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan, in particular, are confronting serious, severe wounds - some seen, some unseen – making it difficult for them to get on with their lives in this struggling economy," he said. "They deserve a smooth, error-free, no-fail, benefits-assured transition into our ranks as veterans, and that is our responsibility, not theirs.
"A word to my fellow veterans: If confirmed, I will work each and every day to ensure that we are serving you as well as you have served us," Shinseki continued. "We will pursue a 21st-century VA that serves your needs. We will open ... new doors of opportunity so you can find a good job, support your families when you return to civilian life. And ... we will always honor the sacrifices of those who have worn the uniform, and their loved ones."
American Forces Press Service
, Dec. 8, 2008 - President-elect Barack Obama has selected retired Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric K. Shinseki as his nominee to be secretary of veterans affairs. "As we seek a new national security strategy that uses all elements of American power, we must also remember those who run the greatest risks and make the greatest sacrifices to implement that strategy – the men and women who wear the uniform of the United States of America," the president-elect said in announcing his choice yesterday.
Obama echoed the words of Abraham Lincoln when he said the nation has a sacred trust to serve those who have borne the cost of battle.
"We must show them and their families the same devotion that they have shown this country," he said.
If confirmed by the Senate, Shinseki will succeed retired Army Lt. Gen. (Dr.) James B. Peake in leading the second-largest federal department, with 240,000 employees. Some 23.4 million veterans are alive today, and the department is their point of contact for compensation and pensions, medical care, education and training, home loans and other benefits. Last year, the VA had a budget of $93.4 billion.
The government must do everything it can to help those veterans who suffer "from the signature injuries of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan – post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury," Obama said in Chicago.
Obama also promised to help those who leave the service to find work.
The United States needs to modernize the VA, cut red tape there and eliminate shortfalls, the president-elect said.
"That is the kind of VA that will serve our veterans as well as they have served us," he said. "And there is no one more distinguished, more determined, or more qualified to build this VA than the leader I am announcing as our next secretary of veterans affairs -- General Eric Shinseki.
"No one will ever doubt that this former Army chief of staff has the courage to stand up for our troops and our veterans," he continued. "No one will ever question whether he will fight hard enough to make sure they have the support they need."
Shinseki retired as chief of staff in 2003 after a four-year term. He graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., and served two combat tours in Vietnam as a young officer. He lost part of his foot in Vietnam, was awarded three Bronze Star awards and two Purple Hearts.
Shinseki said today's veterans "are a part of an unbroken line of heroes that stretches back to the American Revolution." Still, there are veterans worried about keeping their health care or homes, he said.
"Veterans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan, in particular, are confronting serious, severe wounds - some seen, some unseen – making it difficult for them to get on with their lives in this struggling economy," he said. "They deserve a smooth, error-free, no-fail, benefits-assured transition into our ranks as veterans, and that is our responsibility, not theirs.
"A word to my fellow veterans: If confirmed, I will work each and every day to ensure that we are serving you as well as you have served us," Shinseki continued. "We will pursue a 21st-century VA that serves your needs. We will open ... new doors of opportunity so you can find a good job, support your families when you return to civilian life. And ... we will always honor the sacrifices of those who have worn the uniform, and their loved ones."
Severely Wounded Soldiers Have Support for 'As Long as it Takes'
By Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg
Special to American Forces Press Service
Dec. 8, 2008 - The Army's Wounded Warrior Program will support those it was created to serve for as long as it is needed and for the rest of their lives, the sergeant major of the program told listeners of a blog talk radio show Dec. 4. Army Sgt. Maj. Brent Jurgersen reflected on the importance of the Defense Department's designation of November as Warrior Care Month, which he said allowed the program to inform soldiers and their families about programs and services available to wounded warriors.
The program uses the motto "As long as it takes" to show its support of wounded soldiers from the date of the injury for the rest of their lives, he told "Dot Mil Docs" listeners.
"Even when a soldier or family may be out there after several years and they say, 'We got it. We don't need your services any more. We are doing good," ... we are still there with that soldier and family," Jurgersen said. "So, if they ever need any assistance at any point, they know that they can reach out to us and that we will help them."
Jurgersen added that the motto is especially reassuring to seriously wounded soldiers because 75 percent of them are medically retired. "The real transition" begins at the time of their retirement, he said.
"For the first time, their military support structure is gone, and they are another veteran," he said. "To me, as a wounded warrior myself, it's about their 'new normal.' It's about getting their life back together. It's not about being in the hospital, ... but it's about establishing their life and strengthening their lives ... and ensuring they have received their full benefits."
Jurgersen said he identifies with other wounded warriors because he is one of them. He said his fellow soldiers call him "The Rock" because he survived severe combat injuries in Iraq in 2004 and 2005 that included a gunshot wound to the face, a traumatic brain injury, amputation of his left leg, severe damage to his right knee and a compound fracture to his right hand.
"I try to present the image and try to lead with the fact that their first sergeant was always there for them -- that regardless of what happened, he was going to be there to back them up and pick them up and personally bring them home," he said.
In an effort to aid more wounded, ill and injured soldiers, Jurgersen added, program leaders announced in October expanded criteria to better serve the needs of soldiers and their families.
"Originally, support was to the most severely wounded soldiers from the global war on terrorism who have or are expected to receive an Army disability rating of 30 percent or greater in one or more specific categories," Jurgersen said. "Under the expanded criteria, the Army Wounded Warrior Program supports soldiers who have received a combined disability rating of 50 percent or greater for conditions that are the result of combat or are combat-related."
For other combat-related conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, Jurgersen said, he believes the Army has done a lot to treat soldiers, but must continue to press forward to make changes.
"For the first time this year, the number of soldiers with severe PTSD exceeded the number of amputations, making that population of soldiers the largest group" in the program, Jurgersen said. "[What] we take out of this [is] that PTSD is real, and we have all seen the effects of this in our soldiers and the effects it can have on [them] and their families. I am really excited about the way ahead as far as what we are doing and what our country and our military is doing to address PTSD."
Jurgersen encouraged people to continue to support not only those soldiers who are severely injured, but also all soldiers who continue to serve around the world, as well as their families.
(Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg serves in the New Media directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)
Special to American Forces Press Service
Dec. 8, 2008 - The Army's Wounded Warrior Program will support those it was created to serve for as long as it is needed and for the rest of their lives, the sergeant major of the program told listeners of a blog talk radio show Dec. 4. Army Sgt. Maj. Brent Jurgersen reflected on the importance of the Defense Department's designation of November as Warrior Care Month, which he said allowed the program to inform soldiers and their families about programs and services available to wounded warriors.
The program uses the motto "As long as it takes" to show its support of wounded soldiers from the date of the injury for the rest of their lives, he told "Dot Mil Docs" listeners.
"Even when a soldier or family may be out there after several years and they say, 'We got it. We don't need your services any more. We are doing good," ... we are still there with that soldier and family," Jurgersen said. "So, if they ever need any assistance at any point, they know that they can reach out to us and that we will help them."
Jurgersen added that the motto is especially reassuring to seriously wounded soldiers because 75 percent of them are medically retired. "The real transition" begins at the time of their retirement, he said.
"For the first time, their military support structure is gone, and they are another veteran," he said. "To me, as a wounded warrior myself, it's about their 'new normal.' It's about getting their life back together. It's not about being in the hospital, ... but it's about establishing their life and strengthening their lives ... and ensuring they have received their full benefits."
Jurgersen said he identifies with other wounded warriors because he is one of them. He said his fellow soldiers call him "The Rock" because he survived severe combat injuries in Iraq in 2004 and 2005 that included a gunshot wound to the face, a traumatic brain injury, amputation of his left leg, severe damage to his right knee and a compound fracture to his right hand.
"I try to present the image and try to lead with the fact that their first sergeant was always there for them -- that regardless of what happened, he was going to be there to back them up and pick them up and personally bring them home," he said.
In an effort to aid more wounded, ill and injured soldiers, Jurgersen added, program leaders announced in October expanded criteria to better serve the needs of soldiers and their families.
"Originally, support was to the most severely wounded soldiers from the global war on terrorism who have or are expected to receive an Army disability rating of 30 percent or greater in one or more specific categories," Jurgersen said. "Under the expanded criteria, the Army Wounded Warrior Program supports soldiers who have received a combined disability rating of 50 percent or greater for conditions that are the result of combat or are combat-related."
For other combat-related conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, Jurgersen said, he believes the Army has done a lot to treat soldiers, but must continue to press forward to make changes.
"For the first time this year, the number of soldiers with severe PTSD exceeded the number of amputations, making that population of soldiers the largest group" in the program, Jurgersen said. "[What] we take out of this [is] that PTSD is real, and we have all seen the effects of this in our soldiers and the effects it can have on [them] and their families. I am really excited about the way ahead as far as what we are doing and what our country and our military is doing to address PTSD."
Jurgersen encouraged people to continue to support not only those soldiers who are severely injured, but also all soldiers who continue to serve around the world, as well as their families.
(Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg serves in the New Media directorate of the Defense Media Activity.)
Military Books
Military-Writers.com is pleased to announce the addition of these servicemembers to the website:
Colonel Thomas X. Hammes, USMC (ret.)
Colonel Linda R. Herbert, USA
Colonel John T. Carney, Jr., USAF (ret.)
Colonel William H. Wheeler, USAF (ret.)
Colonel H. Avery Chenoweth, USMC (ret.)
Colonel Peter W. Cuthbert, USA (ret.)
Captain Carl. W. Swickley, USCG (ret.)
Commander Tex Atkinson, USN (ret.)
Lieutenant Colonel William F. Haenn, USA (ret.)
Lieutenant Colonel Wayne “Randy” Cribbs, USA (ret.)
Lieutenant Colonel Peter S. Kindsvatter, USA (ret.)
Lieutenant Colonel Mark Bender, USA (ret.)
Major Hilery H. Battle, USA (ret.)
Lieutenant Commander Robert V. Ricard, USCG (ret.)
Lieutenant Commander James A. Vernon, USN (ret.)
Lieutenant Commander Joseph T. Stanik, USN (ret.)
MORE INFORMATION
Military Books
Colonel Thomas X. Hammes, USMC (ret.)
Colonel Linda R. Herbert, USA
Colonel John T. Carney, Jr., USAF (ret.)
Colonel William H. Wheeler, USAF (ret.)
Colonel H. Avery Chenoweth, USMC (ret.)
Colonel Peter W. Cuthbert, USA (ret.)
Captain Carl. W. Swickley, USCG (ret.)
Commander Tex Atkinson, USN (ret.)
Lieutenant Colonel William F. Haenn, USA (ret.)
Lieutenant Colonel Wayne “Randy” Cribbs, USA (ret.)
Lieutenant Colonel Peter S. Kindsvatter, USA (ret.)
Lieutenant Colonel Mark Bender, USA (ret.)
Major Hilery H. Battle, USA (ret.)
Lieutenant Commander Robert V. Ricard, USCG (ret.)
Lieutenant Commander James A. Vernon, USN (ret.)
Lieutenant Commander Joseph T. Stanik, USN (ret.)
MORE INFORMATION
Military Books
Known Unknowns: Unconventional "Strategic Shocks" in Defense Strategy Development
The author provides the defense policy team a clear warning against excessive adherence to past defense and national security convention. Including the insights of a number of noted scholars on the subjects of “wild cards” and “strategic surprise,” he argues that future disruptive, unconventional shocks are inevitable. Through strategic impact and potential for disruption and violence, such shocks, in spite of their nonmilitary character, will demand the focused attention of defense leadership, as well as the decisive employment of defense capabilities in response. As a consequence, the author makes a solid case for continued commitment by the Department of Defense to prudent strategic hedging against their potential occurrence.
READ ON
http://www.strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pubs/display.cfm?PubID=890
READ ON
http://www.strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pubs/display.cfm?PubID=890
Retiring General Hands Over Army's Training Command
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 8, 2008 - Army Gen. William S. Wallace today relinquished the colors of the U.S. Army command responsible for developing soldiers' skills and doctrine. In a ceremony at the U.S. Army Training and doctrine Command headquarters at Fort Monroe, Va., Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates praised Wallace's leadership, saying TRADOC became the Army's institutional and intellectual epicenter during the general's three-year tenure as commander.
"Spurred by the demands of fighting brutal and adaptive insurgencies in two theaters, the Army has seen a dramatic and historic shift in the way it is organized, equipped, and, above all, trained," Gates said.
TRADOC is responsible for the Army's architecture and doctrine -- from recruiting and training soldiers to establishing the branch's standards and building a future Army. The command conducts more than 3,000 courses at 32 schools on 16 Army installations.
In addition to the command change, today's ceremony doubled as a farewell for Wallace, who is leaving the Army after a 37-year career that included a post commanding U.S. ground forces during the March 2003 invasion of Iraq.
As commander of 5th Corps in the opening phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Wallace saw firsthand the modern operational environment, Gates said, describing it as "a toxic admixture of the conventional and irregular, the high-tech and the low, the Internet and the IED," or improvised explosive device.
"During General Wallace's tenure, the best brains inside and outside the Army were brought together to publish new doctrine on counterinsurgency and stability operations – bolstered by a substantial increase in the amount of instruction devoted to irregular and asymmetric conflict in the Army's staff colleges," Gates said.
In an interview with TRADOC News Service, Wallace said the changes to Army field manuals that occurred under his command represented "a doctrinal rebirth."
"We think that it's a recognition that the operational environment has changed, and therefore we've got to reflect the changes in the operational environment and how we intellectualize how we do our business within the Army," he said.
During Wallace's time as TRADOC chief, the Army met its annual recruiting goals, basic training was retooled to better teach survival skills, and national training centers became more grueling and realistic, the secretary said.
"Because of [Wallace's] efforts," Gates said, "new soldiers arrive at their units today far more ready to deploy and fight than in years past."
Taking over the reins of TRADOC is Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, who received his fourth star today. Most recently, Dempsey was acting commander of U.S. Central Command following the departure of Navy Adm. William "Fox" Fallon.
Gates expressed confidence in TRADOC's incoming leader.
"General Marty Dempsey – with his experience commanding U.S. troops in Baghdad, overseeing the training and equipping of Iraqi security forces, and his leadership of Centcom – is uniquely suited to take the helm of this organization at this critical time," he said.
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 8, 2008 - Army Gen. William S. Wallace today relinquished the colors of the U.S. Army command responsible for developing soldiers' skills and doctrine. In a ceremony at the U.S. Army Training and doctrine Command headquarters at Fort Monroe, Va., Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates praised Wallace's leadership, saying TRADOC became the Army's institutional and intellectual epicenter during the general's three-year tenure as commander.
"Spurred by the demands of fighting brutal and adaptive insurgencies in two theaters, the Army has seen a dramatic and historic shift in the way it is organized, equipped, and, above all, trained," Gates said.
TRADOC is responsible for the Army's architecture and doctrine -- from recruiting and training soldiers to establishing the branch's standards and building a future Army. The command conducts more than 3,000 courses at 32 schools on 16 Army installations.
In addition to the command change, today's ceremony doubled as a farewell for Wallace, who is leaving the Army after a 37-year career that included a post commanding U.S. ground forces during the March 2003 invasion of Iraq.
As commander of 5th Corps in the opening phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Wallace saw firsthand the modern operational environment, Gates said, describing it as "a toxic admixture of the conventional and irregular, the high-tech and the low, the Internet and the IED," or improvised explosive device.
"During General Wallace's tenure, the best brains inside and outside the Army were brought together to publish new doctrine on counterinsurgency and stability operations – bolstered by a substantial increase in the amount of instruction devoted to irregular and asymmetric conflict in the Army's staff colleges," Gates said.
In an interview with TRADOC News Service, Wallace said the changes to Army field manuals that occurred under his command represented "a doctrinal rebirth."
"We think that it's a recognition that the operational environment has changed, and therefore we've got to reflect the changes in the operational environment and how we intellectualize how we do our business within the Army," he said.
During Wallace's time as TRADOC chief, the Army met its annual recruiting goals, basic training was retooled to better teach survival skills, and national training centers became more grueling and realistic, the secretary said.
"Because of [Wallace's] efforts," Gates said, "new soldiers arrive at their units today far more ready to deploy and fight than in years past."
Taking over the reins of TRADOC is Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, who received his fourth star today. Most recently, Dempsey was acting commander of U.S. Central Command following the departure of Navy Adm. William "Fox" Fallon.
Gates expressed confidence in TRADOC's incoming leader.
"General Marty Dempsey – with his experience commanding U.S. troops in Baghdad, overseeing the training and equipping of Iraqi security forces, and his leadership of Centcom – is uniquely suited to take the helm of this organization at this critical time," he said.
Face of Defense: Wounded Airman Lives for Son, Hopes to Stay on Active Duty
By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 8, 2008 - Air Force Tech. Sgt. Israel Del Toro has made remarkable strides in his recovery in the three years and 102 surgeries since he and his team were ambushed by the Taliban in the mountains near Qalat, Afghanistan. His fight to survive started on that mountain, where he refused to leave his 3-year-old son fatherless. He'd lost his father early in life and vowed his son wouldn't know what that was like.
The fight intensified when he woke up in the intensive care unit at Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
"They told me I was going to be in the hospital for another year, that I may or may not walk again, [and] that I was going to be stuck on a respirator for the rest of my life," Del Toro said. "I sat there for a few seconds and came back with, 'You can kiss my ass,'" he said.
Del Toro was part of Tactical Air Command and Control, Detachment 1, 4th Air Support Operation Squadron, when he was deployed in December 2005 to Forward Operating Base Lagman, Afghanistan, in support of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. He was part of a scout team sent to investigate intelligence that the Taliban, including a high-value target, was using a supply route in the mountains near the southeastern city of Qalat.
A couple of days into the mission, an interpreter picked up chatter indicating that the Taliban were observing the unit's every move.
"The Taliban were talking about ... that they could see us when we leave out of the compound, that they see us when we come back in," Del Toro said. "They saw us if we left with the motorcycles, if we were leaving with the trucks."
Del Toro's lieutenant decided to take half a scout team and try to catch the Taliban at their own game. Five members of the 10-man team would head up the mountain after dark and try to catch the Taliban members as they returned the following morning. The rest, including Del Toro and the lieutenant, would provide overwatch from another vantage point.
When a couple of days passed with no action, the lieutenant decided his team would head into the town at the foot of the mountain. There wasn't much in the town, but a suspicious man going up the mountain drew their attention and the five-man team began to follow.
Del Toro told his lieutenant that he could take the shot, but the officer wanted to capture the suspect.
"I told him, 'Sir, these guys are like goats here in Afghanistan. They can be in flip-flops. They can be barefoot. [But] they run up these mountains like gods.'"
The lieutenant still wanted to capture the man, however, but as Del Toro had predicted, the man escaped, leaving the team to traverse the one road that led up and down the mountain.
Del Toro's group was on its way to pick the rest of their team on top of the mountain when his vehicle hit a roadside bomb just after passing a creek.
"They always say your life flashes in front of you. I never believed it, but it's kind of true," he said. "I just thought of my family, my son; what we were supposed to do. We were living in Italy at the time. We were going to Greece. I was going to teach my boy how to play ball."
When Del Toro got out of the vehicle, he was on fire from head to toe.
"I knew that creek was behind me," he said. "But the flames overtook me, and I collapsed. I did think I was going to die there."
His comrades weren't about to let that happen, though. The lieutenant helped him up, and they both jumped in the creek.
Both the primary and secondary radios had been destroyed in the blast, making it impossible to call in air support for the team on top of the mountain that was caught in crossfire.
An Army private with a radio became Del Toro's mouthpiece.
"He's repeating everything I'm telling him," said Del Toro, who, as a joint terminal attack controller, normally would have made the call. "He eventually gets a hold of Lagman, and they say, 'Hey, tell Gunslinger [Del Toro's call sign] he has A-10s and British airs coming in."
That was the last action Del Toro took that day. After the trauma of the blast, the third-degree burns covering 80 percent of his body, and the frigid dip in the creek, his body began to shut down. His brothers in arms knew how to keep him going, though.
"They knew that I had lost my dad when I was young, and how I said I would never let that happen to my son," he said. "They used that to keep me [awake]."
Del Toro remembers being loaded onto the helicopter that arrived after about 20 minutes. He remembers getting to the field hospital, where the doctor cut off his watch and told him he'd be OK. And that's all he remembers about that day.
That was December 2005. He woke up in March 2006. Losing four months of his life was surreal, he said.
"Sometimes I'll try and concentrate and see if I can remember anything," he said. "But I'm not even sure if they're memories, or hallucinations or dreams."
Del Toro did not get much time to dwell on his lost time. He had bigger demons to slay in recovering.
First, there was the news that he may not walk again and that he'd be on a respirator the rest of his life. In an act of defiance, Del Toro left the ICU at the end of April. A month later, he walked out of the hospital, breathing on his own.
Despite all he'd gone through, Del Toro said, he never once wished that he'd died. Still, his biggest personal fear later made that thought race through his mind in what he described as a "real dark hour."
"When you're as badly burned as I was, they ease you into seeing your face," he said. "There was one day where my wife and my therapist - he was my guardian angel – were helping me to the bathroom.
"I don't know if it was my wife or my therapist ... [who] slipped and fell and pulled the towel off the mirror, [but] I saw my face in there and I broke down," he said. "I just wished I died at that point."
It had nothing to do with being vain, and everything to do with his son and how he would react to his father's appearance, he said.
"I was like, 'My God, if I think I'm a monster, what's my 3-year-old son going to think?'" he said.
Just as his therapist had assured him, however, Israel Del Toro Jr., after a brief hesitation, gave his dad a big hug when he heard his voice.
Del Toro, who hopes to remain on active duty, has had several speaking engagements since becoming an outpatient.
"I'm still an NCO in the Air Force. I've still got a job to do," he said. "Just because I got hurt, if I use that as an excuse not to go my job, I think that's a copout."
Del Toro has accepted that when he's finished with his recovery - he estimates he's got another 10 to 15 surgeries remaining - he won't be able to return to the field as an operator. Instead, he said, he would like to become an instructor.
It's the attitude one would expect from someone who, until questioned about their whereabouts, didn't know where his medals were. His Purple Heart and Army Commendation Medal, which he received in a June 24, 2006, ceremony, along with the Bronze Star he received for actions in Iraq, were in a box in a closet.
"For me, my medals aren't a big thing," the 12-year Air Force veteran said. "I went there to do my job. I saved some guys. I came back. I didn't expect to be rewarded for it."
Del Toro, a Chicago native, and his wife, Carmen, live near Lackland Air Force Base, Texas.
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 8, 2008 - Air Force Tech. Sgt. Israel Del Toro has made remarkable strides in his recovery in the three years and 102 surgeries since he and his team were ambushed by the Taliban in the mountains near Qalat, Afghanistan. His fight to survive started on that mountain, where he refused to leave his 3-year-old son fatherless. He'd lost his father early in life and vowed his son wouldn't know what that was like.
The fight intensified when he woke up in the intensive care unit at Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
"They told me I was going to be in the hospital for another year, that I may or may not walk again, [and] that I was going to be stuck on a respirator for the rest of my life," Del Toro said. "I sat there for a few seconds and came back with, 'You can kiss my ass,'" he said.
Del Toro was part of Tactical Air Command and Control, Detachment 1, 4th Air Support Operation Squadron, when he was deployed in December 2005 to Forward Operating Base Lagman, Afghanistan, in support of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. He was part of a scout team sent to investigate intelligence that the Taliban, including a high-value target, was using a supply route in the mountains near the southeastern city of Qalat.
A couple of days into the mission, an interpreter picked up chatter indicating that the Taliban were observing the unit's every move.
"The Taliban were talking about ... that they could see us when we leave out of the compound, that they see us when we come back in," Del Toro said. "They saw us if we left with the motorcycles, if we were leaving with the trucks."
Del Toro's lieutenant decided to take half a scout team and try to catch the Taliban at their own game. Five members of the 10-man team would head up the mountain after dark and try to catch the Taliban members as they returned the following morning. The rest, including Del Toro and the lieutenant, would provide overwatch from another vantage point.
When a couple of days passed with no action, the lieutenant decided his team would head into the town at the foot of the mountain. There wasn't much in the town, but a suspicious man going up the mountain drew their attention and the five-man team began to follow.
Del Toro told his lieutenant that he could take the shot, but the officer wanted to capture the suspect.
"I told him, 'Sir, these guys are like goats here in Afghanistan. They can be in flip-flops. They can be barefoot. [But] they run up these mountains like gods.'"
The lieutenant still wanted to capture the man, however, but as Del Toro had predicted, the man escaped, leaving the team to traverse the one road that led up and down the mountain.
Del Toro's group was on its way to pick the rest of their team on top of the mountain when his vehicle hit a roadside bomb just after passing a creek.
"They always say your life flashes in front of you. I never believed it, but it's kind of true," he said. "I just thought of my family, my son; what we were supposed to do. We were living in Italy at the time. We were going to Greece. I was going to teach my boy how to play ball."
When Del Toro got out of the vehicle, he was on fire from head to toe.
"I knew that creek was behind me," he said. "But the flames overtook me, and I collapsed. I did think I was going to die there."
His comrades weren't about to let that happen, though. The lieutenant helped him up, and they both jumped in the creek.
Both the primary and secondary radios had been destroyed in the blast, making it impossible to call in air support for the team on top of the mountain that was caught in crossfire.
An Army private with a radio became Del Toro's mouthpiece.
"He's repeating everything I'm telling him," said Del Toro, who, as a joint terminal attack controller, normally would have made the call. "He eventually gets a hold of Lagman, and they say, 'Hey, tell Gunslinger [Del Toro's call sign] he has A-10s and British airs coming in."
That was the last action Del Toro took that day. After the trauma of the blast, the third-degree burns covering 80 percent of his body, and the frigid dip in the creek, his body began to shut down. His brothers in arms knew how to keep him going, though.
"They knew that I had lost my dad when I was young, and how I said I would never let that happen to my son," he said. "They used that to keep me [awake]."
Del Toro remembers being loaded onto the helicopter that arrived after about 20 minutes. He remembers getting to the field hospital, where the doctor cut off his watch and told him he'd be OK. And that's all he remembers about that day.
That was December 2005. He woke up in March 2006. Losing four months of his life was surreal, he said.
"Sometimes I'll try and concentrate and see if I can remember anything," he said. "But I'm not even sure if they're memories, or hallucinations or dreams."
Del Toro did not get much time to dwell on his lost time. He had bigger demons to slay in recovering.
First, there was the news that he may not walk again and that he'd be on a respirator the rest of his life. In an act of defiance, Del Toro left the ICU at the end of April. A month later, he walked out of the hospital, breathing on his own.
Despite all he'd gone through, Del Toro said, he never once wished that he'd died. Still, his biggest personal fear later made that thought race through his mind in what he described as a "real dark hour."
"When you're as badly burned as I was, they ease you into seeing your face," he said. "There was one day where my wife and my therapist - he was my guardian angel – were helping me to the bathroom.
"I don't know if it was my wife or my therapist ... [who] slipped and fell and pulled the towel off the mirror, [but] I saw my face in there and I broke down," he said. "I just wished I died at that point."
It had nothing to do with being vain, and everything to do with his son and how he would react to his father's appearance, he said.
"I was like, 'My God, if I think I'm a monster, what's my 3-year-old son going to think?'" he said.
Just as his therapist had assured him, however, Israel Del Toro Jr., after a brief hesitation, gave his dad a big hug when he heard his voice.
Del Toro, who hopes to remain on active duty, has had several speaking engagements since becoming an outpatient.
"I'm still an NCO in the Air Force. I've still got a job to do," he said. "Just because I got hurt, if I use that as an excuse not to go my job, I think that's a copout."
Del Toro has accepted that when he's finished with his recovery - he estimates he's got another 10 to 15 surgeries remaining - he won't be able to return to the field as an operator. Instead, he said, he would like to become an instructor.
It's the attitude one would expect from someone who, until questioned about their whereabouts, didn't know where his medals were. His Purple Heart and Army Commendation Medal, which he received in a June 24, 2006, ceremony, along with the Bronze Star he received for actions in Iraq, were in a box in a closet.
"For me, my medals aren't a big thing," the 12-year Air Force veteran said. "I went there to do my job. I saved some guys. I came back. I didn't expect to be rewarded for it."
Del Toro, a Chicago native, and his wife, Carmen, live near Lackland Air Force Base, Texas.
Procurement Initiative Secures DoD Computers, Saves Money
By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 8, 2008 - The Pentagon is among dozens of departments and organizations that have improved security for their laptop computers and saved taxpayers more than $92 million by using a new procurement initiative, a senior Defense Department official said here. The Defense Department and the General Services Administration are among the many federal agencies that participated in the Data At Rest Tiger Team initiative that resulted in the purchase of about $112 million worth of information security products for interagency users at an actual cost of about $19 million, David Hollis, the team's program manager for the Pentagon, said.
The DARTT involved 20 defense agencies, 18 other federal or civil agencies, as well as state and local and NATO participation, Hollis said.
Data at rest refers to digital information stored on computers, personal digital assistants and thumb and flash drives.
"The DARTT has been very successful in improving the government's mobile data security posture while offering deep product and service discounts across the government," Hollis said.
Publicized accounts of lost government laptops and other computer devices in recent years prompted U.S. agencies to seek ways to better safeguard sensitive information, Hollis said.
The government requested proposals from private industry in December 2006. About six months later, the Defense Department's Enterprise Software Initiative purchase program, in partnership with the GSA's SmartBUY program, awarded 12 blanket purchase agreements for various computer-security-related products and services, he said.
For example, the use of encrypted software and other security products with mobile computer devices prevents sensitive information from being accessed by unauthorized users, Hollis said.
The initiative also helps the federal government meet an Office of Management and Budget directive that requires the encryption of all data on mobile computers and associated storage devices that carry sensitive information, Hollis said.
The U.S. government saved $93 million through the program because of its business-pricing and competitive-bidding processes, Hollis said. Pentagon participation in the initiative falls under the purview of Chief Information Officer John G. Grimes, the assistant secretary of defense for networks and information integration.
The DARTT program was among three finalists for "Government Information Security Program of the Year" honors for North America, sponsored by the Executive Alliance, a worldwide group that recognizes outstanding business and leadership achievements, according to a recent DoD news release.
Robert Lentz, deputy assistant secretary of defense for information and identity assurance, reinforced DoD's need to encrypt its mobile information systems to protect against potential intrusions.
"technology changes constantly," Lentz said. "We need to make sure we are keeping up with the advances in encryption product technology so as our adversaries improve their attack methods, we are equipped to defend" sensitive unclassified and personal information.
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 8, 2008 - The Pentagon is among dozens of departments and organizations that have improved security for their laptop computers and saved taxpayers more than $92 million by using a new procurement initiative, a senior Defense Department official said here. The Defense Department and the General Services Administration are among the many federal agencies that participated in the Data At Rest Tiger Team initiative that resulted in the purchase of about $112 million worth of information security products for interagency users at an actual cost of about $19 million, David Hollis, the team's program manager for the Pentagon, said.
The DARTT involved 20 defense agencies, 18 other federal or civil agencies, as well as state and local and NATO participation, Hollis said.
Data at rest refers to digital information stored on computers, personal digital assistants and thumb and flash drives.
"The DARTT has been very successful in improving the government's mobile data security posture while offering deep product and service discounts across the government," Hollis said.
Publicized accounts of lost government laptops and other computer devices in recent years prompted U.S. agencies to seek ways to better safeguard sensitive information, Hollis said.
The government requested proposals from private industry in December 2006. About six months later, the Defense Department's Enterprise Software Initiative purchase program, in partnership with the GSA's SmartBUY program, awarded 12 blanket purchase agreements for various computer-security-related products and services, he said.
For example, the use of encrypted software and other security products with mobile computer devices prevents sensitive information from being accessed by unauthorized users, Hollis said.
The initiative also helps the federal government meet an Office of Management and Budget directive that requires the encryption of all data on mobile computers and associated storage devices that carry sensitive information, Hollis said.
The U.S. government saved $93 million through the program because of its business-pricing and competitive-bidding processes, Hollis said. Pentagon participation in the initiative falls under the purview of Chief Information Officer John G. Grimes, the assistant secretary of defense for networks and information integration.
The DARTT program was among three finalists for "Government Information Security Program of the Year" honors for North America, sponsored by the Executive Alliance, a worldwide group that recognizes outstanding business and leadership achievements, according to a recent DoD news release.
Robert Lentz, deputy assistant secretary of defense for information and identity assurance, reinforced DoD's need to encrypt its mobile information systems to protect against potential intrusions.
"technology changes constantly," Lentz said. "We need to make sure we are keeping up with the advances in encryption product technology so as our adversaries improve their attack methods, we are equipped to defend" sensitive unclassified and personal information.
F-18 Crashes in California Neighborhood
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 8, 2008 - An F/A-18D Hornet jet based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif., crashed today into a civilian neighborhood about two miles northwest of the airfield, Marine Corps officials announced. The aircraft, assigned to Vertical Marine Fighter/Attack Training Squadron 101 from Marine Aircraft Group 11, went down at 11 a.m. PST, officials said.
Initial reports indicate the pilot ejected from the aircraft.
The incident is under investigation, officials said.
Dec. 8, 2008 - An F/A-18D Hornet jet based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif., crashed today into a civilian neighborhood about two miles northwest of the airfield, Marine Corps officials announced. The aircraft, assigned to Vertical Marine Fighter/Attack Training Squadron 101 from Marine Aircraft Group 11, went down at 11 a.m. PST, officials said.
Initial reports indicate the pilot ejected from the aircraft.
The incident is under investigation, officials said.
MILITARY CONTRACTS December 8, 2008
NAVY
Bell-Boeing Joint Project Office, Amarillo, Texas, is being awarded a $55,605,664 modification to a previously awarded fixed price incentive fee contract (N00019-07-C-0066) to incorporate Engineering Change Proposal #708R2. Tasking under this effort includes the production of kits, recurring engineering, and installations for nine Lot 5 MV-22 aircraft to be converted from a Block A to a Block B configuration. Work will be performed in Cherry Point, N.C., (65 percent); Amarillo, Texas, (20 percent); Philadelphia, Pa., (10 percent); Oklahoma City, Okla., (3 percent); and Mesa, Ariz., (2 percent) and is expected to be completed in May 2009. Contract funds in the amount of $47,910,772 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.
Belonger/Blinderman Joint Venture LLC*, Chicago, Ill., is being awarded a $9,142,101 modification under a previously awarded firm fixed price contract (N40083-08-C-0055) to exercise option 0002, which provides for various repairs in Building 3, RTC Great Lakes. The work to be performed under this option provides for design, construction, repair and renovation within Building three west wing basement, west wing gymnasium, third floor attic space, and central second floor. The work shall include mechanical HVAC, plumbing, fire suppression, fire alarm, mass notification, electrical, telecommunication and furniture. Exercise of Option 0002 brings the total contract amount to $16,360,101. Work will be performed in Great Lakes, Ill., and is expected to be completed by Apr. 2010. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Midwest, Great Lakes, Ill., is the contracting activity.
Power Dynamics LLC,* Stennis Space Center, Miss., is being awarded a $5,666,580 modification under a previously awarded firm fixed price contract (N00025-04-C-0003) to exercise option 0005 which provides for the refurbishment of 10 Lighter, Amphibious, Re-Supply, Cargo (LARC) amphibious landing craft. The work to be performed provides for complete disassembly and removal of most LARC components followed by restoration to include installation of a hydraulic drive system. Contract N00025-04-C-0003 calls for Service Life Extension Program rebuild of LARCs to be ordered through FY 2009. The total contract amount after exercise of this option will be $23,270,388. Work will be performed at Stennis Space Center, Miss., and is expected to be completed by Sept. 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Headquarters, Washington Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity.
ARMY
Alliant Techsystems, Inc, Independence, M.O., was awarded on Dec. 4, 2008 a $86,727,031 firm fixed price contract. This is a Foreign Military Sales Requirement. This award will result in a firm fixed price contract for $94,614,670 rounds of various nonstandard ammunition for the Afghanistan national Army and Afghanistan National Police. Work will be performed in Independence, M.O., with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2009. Bids solicited were via the Web and fourteen bids were received. Army Research Sustainment Command, Rock Island, Ill., is the contracting activity (W52P1J-09-C-0007).
Sundt Construction, Tempe, Ariz., was awarded on May18, 2008, a $43,498,326 firm fixed price contract. This project is required by the Army's Military Construction Transformation initiatives and will provide single solider housing similar to apartment-type housing in the private sector. Rooms shall include but not be limited to private sleeping areas, walk-in closets, shared bathroom and kitchenette. Work to be determined with each task order with an estimated completion date of May 18, 2010. Bids solicited were via the Phase 2-6 Offerors and bids were received via the Phase 2-6 Offerors. US Army Engineer District, Forth Worth, Texas, is the contracting activity (W9126G-09-D-0011).
Bell-Boeing Joint Project Office, Amarillo, Texas, is being awarded a $55,605,664 modification to a previously awarded fixed price incentive fee contract (N00019-07-C-0066) to incorporate Engineering Change Proposal #708R2. Tasking under this effort includes the production of kits, recurring engineering, and installations for nine Lot 5 MV-22 aircraft to be converted from a Block A to a Block B configuration. Work will be performed in Cherry Point, N.C., (65 percent); Amarillo, Texas, (20 percent); Philadelphia, Pa., (10 percent); Oklahoma City, Okla., (3 percent); and Mesa, Ariz., (2 percent) and is expected to be completed in May 2009. Contract funds in the amount of $47,910,772 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.
Belonger/Blinderman Joint Venture LLC*, Chicago, Ill., is being awarded a $9,142,101 modification under a previously awarded firm fixed price contract (N40083-08-C-0055) to exercise option 0002, which provides for various repairs in Building 3, RTC Great Lakes. The work to be performed under this option provides for design, construction, repair and renovation within Building three west wing basement, west wing gymnasium, third floor attic space, and central second floor. The work shall include mechanical HVAC, plumbing, fire suppression, fire alarm, mass notification, electrical, telecommunication and furniture. Exercise of Option 0002 brings the total contract amount to $16,360,101. Work will be performed in Great Lakes, Ill., and is expected to be completed by Apr. 2010. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Midwest, Great Lakes, Ill., is the contracting activity.
Power Dynamics LLC,* Stennis Space Center, Miss., is being awarded a $5,666,580 modification under a previously awarded firm fixed price contract (N00025-04-C-0003) to exercise option 0005 which provides for the refurbishment of 10 Lighter, Amphibious, Re-Supply, Cargo (LARC) amphibious landing craft. The work to be performed provides for complete disassembly and removal of most LARC components followed by restoration to include installation of a hydraulic drive system. Contract N00025-04-C-0003 calls for Service Life Extension Program rebuild of LARCs to be ordered through FY 2009. The total contract amount after exercise of this option will be $23,270,388. Work will be performed at Stennis Space Center, Miss., and is expected to be completed by Sept. 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Headquarters, Washington Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity.
ARMY
Alliant Techsystems, Inc, Independence, M.O., was awarded on Dec. 4, 2008 a $86,727,031 firm fixed price contract. This is a Foreign Military Sales Requirement. This award will result in a firm fixed price contract for $94,614,670 rounds of various nonstandard ammunition for the Afghanistan national Army and Afghanistan National Police. Work will be performed in Independence, M.O., with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2009. Bids solicited were via the Web and fourteen bids were received. Army Research Sustainment Command, Rock Island, Ill., is the contracting activity (W52P1J-09-C-0007).
Sundt Construction, Tempe, Ariz., was awarded on May18, 2008, a $43,498,326 firm fixed price contract. This project is required by the Army's Military Construction Transformation initiatives and will provide single solider housing similar to apartment-type housing in the private sector. Rooms shall include but not be limited to private sleeping areas, walk-in closets, shared bathroom and kitchenette. Work to be determined with each task order with an estimated completion date of May 18, 2010. Bids solicited were via the Phase 2-6 Offerors and bids were received via the Phase 2-6 Offerors. US Army Engineer District, Forth Worth, Texas, is the contracting activity (W9126G-09-D-0011).
Sunday, December 07, 2008
Military Books
Military-Writers.com is pleased to announce the addition of these servicemembers to the website:
Major General Christopher S. Adams, Jr., USAF (ret.)
Major General Robert H. Scales Jr., USA (ret.)
Colonel John Jack Cobb, USA (ret.)
Colonel Walter B. Edgar, USA (ret.)
Captain Edward Latimer Beach, Jr. USN (ret.)
Captain Clif Cormier, USMC (ret.)
Commander Herbert Kriloff, USN (ret.)
Lieutenant Colonel Boardman C. Reed, USAF (ref)
Lieutenant Commander Herman R. Hebb, USN (ret.)
Lieutenant Commander Lawrence A. Marsden, USN (ret.)
Major Jack C. Hubbard, USAF (ret.)
Major Michael Nugent, USA (ret.)
MORE INFORMATION
Military Books
Major General Christopher S. Adams, Jr., USAF (ret.)
Major General Robert H. Scales Jr., USA (ret.)
Colonel John Jack Cobb, USA (ret.)
Colonel Walter B. Edgar, USA (ret.)
Captain Edward Latimer Beach, Jr. USN (ret.)
Captain Clif Cormier, USMC (ret.)
Commander Herbert Kriloff, USN (ret.)
Lieutenant Colonel Boardman C. Reed, USAF (ref)
Lieutenant Commander Herman R. Hebb, USN (ret.)
Lieutenant Commander Lawrence A. Marsden, USN (ret.)
Major Jack C. Hubbard, USAF (ret.)
Major Michael Nugent, USA (ret.)
MORE INFORMATION
Military Books
Friday, December 05, 2008
Military Launches Most Complex Missile Defense Test to Date
By Fred W. Baker III
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 5, 2008 - The military today shot down a mock enemy missile, employing a synchronized network of sensors in what officials called the largest and most complex test of the missile defense system to date. A mock target missile was fired from Kodiak, Alaska, at 3:04 p.m. Eastern Time. An interceptor missile was fired about 30 minutes later from a silo at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., with its launch directed by soldiers based at Fort Greely, Alaska. The two successfully collided off the coast of California minutes later.
This is the first time the Defense Missile Agency has synchronized its network of varied sensor types and frequencies to successfully track, report and intercept a single target, the agency's top officer said.
If the multiple radars did not work together, each would have reported a different target to the system.
"Overall, I'm extremely pleased, because ... the core of our missile defense system is the fact that we can operate in layers and have multiple systems working together," Army Lt. Gen. Patrick J. O'Reilly said. "The key to our protection and the effectiveness of the systems is to have all of these different sensors simultaneously tracking, and the system [knowing] exactly that it's not multiple objects, it's one object up there."
The test combined an early warning radar system south of Sacramento, Calif., a mobile radar system temporarily posted in Juneau, Alaska, two AEGIS ballistic missile defense ships off the Pacific coast and a sea-based radar system.
The test also marked the first time soldiers from the 49th Missile Defense Battalion based at Fort Greely were in control of the launch. On previous tests, a Colorado Springs-based unit was used.
Each of the systems was networked together, despite their varied sizes and frequencies, to form an accurate, single-target track, O'Reilly said.
Soldiers, airmen and sailors operated all parts of the system, and the USS Benfold, a Navy guided-missile destroyer equipped with the AEGIS air-defense system, went through all of the motions of a simulated intercept successfully, O'Reilly said.
"What we showed today is all those sensors working together," he said. "At any one time, the system knew which sensor was reporting ... and tracking it and it gave the warfighter a presentation of the target. It is the first time we have ever done that in an actual test and with our soldiers [and sailors and airmen] operating it."
Officials had hoped to deploy countermeasures during the flight that would test the system's reaction to multiple objects. Countermeasures could include the missile deploying chaff, decoys or replicas. The countermeasures did not deploy, however.
"Countermeasures are very difficult to deploy," O'Reilly said. "We have had trouble deploying them in the past."
Even though countermeasures didn't deploy, the upper stage of the mock enemy missile was still in the area. The interceptor saw two objects and had to understand the data sent from the sensors to discern which object to hit, O'Reilly said.
Pentagon officials said this test was "very realistic" and followed a trajectory and mimicked a launch similar to one the U.S. military believes could be a threat.
This test cost $120 million to $150 million. Thirteen similar tests have been conducted since 1999, seven successfully hitting their targets. The last previous test, in September 2007, was successful.
The ground-based midcourse defense program is designed to defend the United States against intermediate- and long-range ballistic missile attacks in the midcourse phase of flight, or while they are arching in the "exoatmosphere" -- the region of space just outside the Earth's atmosphere.
The 54-foot-6-inch interceptors look like missiles, but no explosive warheads are attached. The main body acts as a booster vehicle to propel into space the embedded kill vehicle, a 152-pound "smart bullet" that basically steers itself into the path of the oncoming warhead, causing an explosion on impact.
The U.S. military has 24 ground-interceptors in silos in Alaska and California, and 21 sea-based interceptors.
The Defense Department has spent about $100 billion on missile defense since 1999, officials said. Iran's pursuit of ballistic missiles and the recent nuclear and long-range missile tests by North Korea create an evolving threat to the United States, according to military reports.
In the last 20 years, the number of countries interested in having or actually having intercontinental ballistic missile capability has increased from six to more than 20, military officials said. The number of test launches has increased every year.
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 5, 2008 - The military today shot down a mock enemy missile, employing a synchronized network of sensors in what officials called the largest and most complex test of the missile defense system to date. A mock target missile was fired from Kodiak, Alaska, at 3:04 p.m. Eastern Time. An interceptor missile was fired about 30 minutes later from a silo at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., with its launch directed by soldiers based at Fort Greely, Alaska. The two successfully collided off the coast of California minutes later.
This is the first time the Defense Missile Agency has synchronized its network of varied sensor types and frequencies to successfully track, report and intercept a single target, the agency's top officer said.
If the multiple radars did not work together, each would have reported a different target to the system.
"Overall, I'm extremely pleased, because ... the core of our missile defense system is the fact that we can operate in layers and have multiple systems working together," Army Lt. Gen. Patrick J. O'Reilly said. "The key to our protection and the effectiveness of the systems is to have all of these different sensors simultaneously tracking, and the system [knowing] exactly that it's not multiple objects, it's one object up there."
The test combined an early warning radar system south of Sacramento, Calif., a mobile radar system temporarily posted in Juneau, Alaska, two AEGIS ballistic missile defense ships off the Pacific coast and a sea-based radar system.
The test also marked the first time soldiers from the 49th Missile Defense Battalion based at Fort Greely were in control of the launch. On previous tests, a Colorado Springs-based unit was used.
Each of the systems was networked together, despite their varied sizes and frequencies, to form an accurate, single-target track, O'Reilly said.
Soldiers, airmen and sailors operated all parts of the system, and the USS Benfold, a Navy guided-missile destroyer equipped with the AEGIS air-defense system, went through all of the motions of a simulated intercept successfully, O'Reilly said.
"What we showed today is all those sensors working together," he said. "At any one time, the system knew which sensor was reporting ... and tracking it and it gave the warfighter a presentation of the target. It is the first time we have ever done that in an actual test and with our soldiers [and sailors and airmen] operating it."
Officials had hoped to deploy countermeasures during the flight that would test the system's reaction to multiple objects. Countermeasures could include the missile deploying chaff, decoys or replicas. The countermeasures did not deploy, however.
"Countermeasures are very difficult to deploy," O'Reilly said. "We have had trouble deploying them in the past."
Even though countermeasures didn't deploy, the upper stage of the mock enemy missile was still in the area. The interceptor saw two objects and had to understand the data sent from the sensors to discern which object to hit, O'Reilly said.
Pentagon officials said this test was "very realistic" and followed a trajectory and mimicked a launch similar to one the U.S. military believes could be a threat.
This test cost $120 million to $150 million. Thirteen similar tests have been conducted since 1999, seven successfully hitting their targets. The last previous test, in September 2007, was successful.
The ground-based midcourse defense program is designed to defend the United States against intermediate- and long-range ballistic missile attacks in the midcourse phase of flight, or while they are arching in the "exoatmosphere" -- the region of space just outside the Earth's atmosphere.
The 54-foot-6-inch interceptors look like missiles, but no explosive warheads are attached. The main body acts as a booster vehicle to propel into space the embedded kill vehicle, a 152-pound "smart bullet" that basically steers itself into the path of the oncoming warhead, causing an explosion on impact.
The U.S. military has 24 ground-interceptors in silos in Alaska and California, and 21 sea-based interceptors.
The Defense Department has spent about $100 billion on missile defense since 1999, officials said. Iran's pursuit of ballistic missiles and the recent nuclear and long-range missile tests by North Korea create an evolving threat to the United States, according to military reports.
In the last 20 years, the number of countries interested in having or actually having intercontinental ballistic missile capability has increased from six to more than 20, military officials said. The number of test launches has increased every year.
Hospital Robot Helps to Save Lives Off Battlefield
By Fred W. Baker III
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 5, 2008 - Once confined solely to the pages of science fiction, remotely controlled robots are now commonplace on today's battlefield, extending the reach of bomb experts and being used extensively to search for and destroy booby traps intent on killing U.S. troops. Remotely piloted aircraft also have proven their worth in combat, and now are in high demand, allowing the U.S. military to project its firepower and reconnaissance capabilities beyond its troops' reach.
And behind the scenes in a handful of military hospitals, the use of remotely controlled robots is being explored as a means of projecting doctors' expertise beyond the walls of their own medical facilities and into places where troops need their specialty care.
"It takes a little bit of an imagination. It's hard for some people to grasp everything that you can do with this thing," said Dr. Kevin Chung, the medical director for the burn intensive care unit at the Army's burn center at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio. "The potential is limitless."
Chung is one of the military's pioneers in robotic telepresence, and he regularly pilots a robot around the halls of the intensive care unit at BAMC. His RP-7 robot, made by InTouch Health, a robotics technology company based in Santa Barbara, Calif., is a wireless, mobile, robot that allows Chung to be in many places at once.
A laptop computer connected to a wireless signal serves as the control station for the robot, which brings to mind a souped-up, four-foot tall version of Disney's animated robot "WALL-E."
A computer screen serves as its head, with a camera that can pan, tilt and zoom. Two-way audio and video allows for interaction between doctor and patient or staff. Using the robot, Chung can interact with patients, check vital-sign monitors, examine X-rays and zoom in to read charts or examine a patient's wound. The system also can capture and share digital images and videos.
The RP-7 can move freely, guided remotely by Chung. Chung recently returned from a six-month deployment as a critical care doctor at a combat support hospital in Baghdad. While he was there, he said, he was able to log in via satellite to the robot at BAMC and make his rounds seeing patients there. Twice, Chung was able to see and direct treatment for patients he had seen first in Baghdad to follow up on their care after they were flown to BAMC.
Doctors long have used the telephone to call in and check on patients, but that limits them to information passed to them with no way to visually assess the patient. Teleconferencing has been used as well, but it often is static and isn't mobile.
Using the robot, Chung said, he is able to see wounds for himself, read body language, watch facial expressions and examine a patient. He can talk to the patient and staff, and even meet the family.
"It doesn't beat real presence, obviously," he said. "Being there is the best thing. But let's say you can't be there. Which would you rather have? A telephone or this?"
Also, using such a robot would allow specialists from other hospitals to project their expertise even though they cannot be there physically, Chung said. This could be helpful in areas within the military where there is a shortage of medical care providers, especially those with specific skills.
The program still is in its pilot stage, but the goal is to have robots stationed at all military treatment facilities so that the experts can project their presence anywhere, Chung said.
The robots do have some limitations, Chung said. It doesn't have arms, so it can't open doors, and it is designed to stay in only one area. Also, "dead spots" in wireless connectivity can cause the robot to lose its signal momentarily. It then needs a gentle push by a staff member to move it out of the dead spot.
Chung acknowledged it also takes some time for the staff and doctors to get used to using and interacting with the robots. The patients, however, seem to like the robot, he added.
"It's not embraced by everyone," he said. "Ultimately, one of the things I see happening as technology improves and as wireless is available globally, ... [is that] connection issues that we have now are not going to exist, and it's going to be something that is embraced."
The Army's Medical Research and Materiel Command leased four robots in the pilot program. The robots cost about $250,000 each, or lease for about $80,000 a year, Chung said. BAMC is in the process of buying the robot Chung uses for about $100,000, he said.
Chung said he can see eventually deploying such robots into mass casualty situations, such as a biochemical attack, allowing experts from around the world to project their skills to the site quickly and safely.
Applications could expand into teaching as well, Chung said, with auditoriums full of medical students following along as a robot and doctor make their rounds.
"If you look at this simply, it is a video teleconference on wheels," Chung said. "As the technology improves, I think this is going to become a very useful tool."
Already, though, the robot has proved its worth in Chung's eyes, as a tool that can be used to save lives. Since he has been using the robot, he said, a handful of his patients were dying, and he was able to direct their resuscitation from a different state.
Chung was at his wife's bedside after giving birth to their third child, Chung said, when he got a call from a surgeon who asked that he look at a soldier who was dying. Chung stepped out of the room, logged remotely into the robot, and examined the patient.
"It was like I was there," he recalled. "I was able to process the information very quickly. Look at the patient. Look at the monitor. Look at the vitals." He even met the wife of the injured soldier for the first time via the robot.
The patient lived, Chung said.
"That patient's alive. He was dying," Chung said. "The robot itself isn't going to save lives. It's just another tool you can use to help make your life more efficient and extend your capabilities as a physician."
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 5, 2008 - Once confined solely to the pages of science fiction, remotely controlled robots are now commonplace on today's battlefield, extending the reach of bomb experts and being used extensively to search for and destroy booby traps intent on killing U.S. troops. Remotely piloted aircraft also have proven their worth in combat, and now are in high demand, allowing the U.S. military to project its firepower and reconnaissance capabilities beyond its troops' reach.
And behind the scenes in a handful of military hospitals, the use of remotely controlled robots is being explored as a means of projecting doctors' expertise beyond the walls of their own medical facilities and into places where troops need their specialty care.
"It takes a little bit of an imagination. It's hard for some people to grasp everything that you can do with this thing," said Dr. Kevin Chung, the medical director for the burn intensive care unit at the Army's burn center at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio. "The potential is limitless."
Chung is one of the military's pioneers in robotic telepresence, and he regularly pilots a robot around the halls of the intensive care unit at BAMC. His RP-7 robot, made by InTouch Health, a robotics technology company based in Santa Barbara, Calif., is a wireless, mobile, robot that allows Chung to be in many places at once.
A laptop computer connected to a wireless signal serves as the control station for the robot, which brings to mind a souped-up, four-foot tall version of Disney's animated robot "WALL-E."
A computer screen serves as its head, with a camera that can pan, tilt and zoom. Two-way audio and video allows for interaction between doctor and patient or staff. Using the robot, Chung can interact with patients, check vital-sign monitors, examine X-rays and zoom in to read charts or examine a patient's wound. The system also can capture and share digital images and videos.
The RP-7 can move freely, guided remotely by Chung. Chung recently returned from a six-month deployment as a critical care doctor at a combat support hospital in Baghdad. While he was there, he said, he was able to log in via satellite to the robot at BAMC and make his rounds seeing patients there. Twice, Chung was able to see and direct treatment for patients he had seen first in Baghdad to follow up on their care after they were flown to BAMC.
Doctors long have used the telephone to call in and check on patients, but that limits them to information passed to them with no way to visually assess the patient. Teleconferencing has been used as well, but it often is static and isn't mobile.
Using the robot, Chung said, he is able to see wounds for himself, read body language, watch facial expressions and examine a patient. He can talk to the patient and staff, and even meet the family.
"It doesn't beat real presence, obviously," he said. "Being there is the best thing. But let's say you can't be there. Which would you rather have? A telephone or this?"
Also, using such a robot would allow specialists from other hospitals to project their expertise even though they cannot be there physically, Chung said. This could be helpful in areas within the military where there is a shortage of medical care providers, especially those with specific skills.
The program still is in its pilot stage, but the goal is to have robots stationed at all military treatment facilities so that the experts can project their presence anywhere, Chung said.
The robots do have some limitations, Chung said. It doesn't have arms, so it can't open doors, and it is designed to stay in only one area. Also, "dead spots" in wireless connectivity can cause the robot to lose its signal momentarily. It then needs a gentle push by a staff member to move it out of the dead spot.
Chung acknowledged it also takes some time for the staff and doctors to get used to using and interacting with the robots. The patients, however, seem to like the robot, he added.
"It's not embraced by everyone," he said. "Ultimately, one of the things I see happening as technology improves and as wireless is available globally, ... [is that] connection issues that we have now are not going to exist, and it's going to be something that is embraced."
The Army's Medical Research and Materiel Command leased four robots in the pilot program. The robots cost about $250,000 each, or lease for about $80,000 a year, Chung said. BAMC is in the process of buying the robot Chung uses for about $100,000, he said.
Chung said he can see eventually deploying such robots into mass casualty situations, such as a biochemical attack, allowing experts from around the world to project their skills to the site quickly and safely.
Applications could expand into teaching as well, Chung said, with auditoriums full of medical students following along as a robot and doctor make their rounds.
"If you look at this simply, it is a video teleconference on wheels," Chung said. "As the technology improves, I think this is going to become a very useful tool."
Already, though, the robot has proved its worth in Chung's eyes, as a tool that can be used to save lives. Since he has been using the robot, he said, a handful of his patients were dying, and he was able to direct their resuscitation from a different state.
Chung was at his wife's bedside after giving birth to their third child, Chung said, when he got a call from a surgeon who asked that he look at a soldier who was dying. Chung stepped out of the room, logged remotely into the robot, and examined the patient.
"It was like I was there," he recalled. "I was able to process the information very quickly. Look at the patient. Look at the monitor. Look at the vitals." He even met the wife of the injured soldier for the first time via the robot.
The patient lived, Chung said.
"That patient's alive. He was dying," Chung said. "The robot itself isn't going to save lives. It's just another tool you can use to help make your life more efficient and extend your capabilities as a physician."
Bush Establishes Pacific Theater Monument, Honors Pearl Harbor Anniversary
By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 5, 2008 - President George W. Bush signed proclamations today establishing a World War II monument to those who fought in the Pacific theater and commemorating the anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument will serve as a reminder of the sacrifices "The Greatest Generation" made to protect the country, Bush said before signing the proclamation.
"But there's a broader purpose, as well," he said. "And that is to remind generations of Americans about the transformative effect of freedom.
"One of the great stories during World War II was that people fought bitterly to defend our country and way of life, and then worked to help our enemies develop democracies according to their own cultures and their own history," Bush continued. "Today, I am so pleased to report that Japan is a strong ally of the United States."
The monument will include nine sites: five in Hawaii's Pearl Harbor area, three in Alaska's Aleutian Islands and one in northern California to honor Japanese-Americans who were held in internment at the Tule Lake Segregation Center National Historic Landmark and nearby Camp Tule Lake. The proclamation names the National Park Service as the general administrator of the monument.
On Dec. 7, the United States will mark the 66th anniversary of the day President Franklin D. Roosevelt famously said "will live in infamy."
More than 2,000 servicemembers and many civilians were killed when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. The attack marked the United States' official entrance into World War II, and those serving in uniform sent a clear message to America's enemies, Bush said today in a Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day proclamation: "If you attack this country and harm our people, there is no corner of the Earth remote enough to protect you from the reach of our nation's armed forces.
"On this anniversary, we honor the heroes who risked and lost their lives for our security and freedom," Bush said in the proclamation. "Their selfless dedication exemplifies the great character of America and continues to inspire our nation."
The proclamation encourages flying the American flag at half-staff Dec. 7 in honor of those who died as a result of service at Pearl Harbor.
American Forces Press Service
Dec. 5, 2008 - President George W. Bush signed proclamations today establishing a World War II monument to those who fought in the Pacific theater and commemorating the anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument will serve as a reminder of the sacrifices "The Greatest Generation" made to protect the country, Bush said before signing the proclamation.
"But there's a broader purpose, as well," he said. "And that is to remind generations of Americans about the transformative effect of freedom.
"One of the great stories during World War II was that people fought bitterly to defend our country and way of life, and then worked to help our enemies develop democracies according to their own cultures and their own history," Bush continued. "Today, I am so pleased to report that Japan is a strong ally of the United States."
The monument will include nine sites: five in Hawaii's Pearl Harbor area, three in Alaska's Aleutian Islands and one in northern California to honor Japanese-Americans who were held in internment at the Tule Lake Segregation Center National Historic Landmark and nearby Camp Tule Lake. The proclamation names the National Park Service as the general administrator of the monument.
On Dec. 7, the United States will mark the 66th anniversary of the day President Franklin D. Roosevelt famously said "will live in infamy."
More than 2,000 servicemembers and many civilians were killed when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. The attack marked the United States' official entrance into World War II, and those serving in uniform sent a clear message to America's enemies, Bush said today in a Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day proclamation: "If you attack this country and harm our people, there is no corner of the Earth remote enough to protect you from the reach of our nation's armed forces.
"On this anniversary, we honor the heroes who risked and lost their lives for our security and freedom," Bush said in the proclamation. "Their selfless dedication exemplifies the great character of America and continues to inspire our nation."
The proclamation encourages flying the American flag at half-staff Dec. 7 in honor of those who died as a result of service at Pearl Harbor.
MILITARY CONTRACTS December 5, 2008
Navy
Charles Stark Draper Laboratories, Cambridge, Mass., is being awarded a $157,342,752 cost plus incentive fee, cost plus fixed fee contract for services supporting the TRIDENT II (D-5) weapons system. The services provided will encompass the following: provide specialized tactical engineering services, logistics services, fleet support services, and guidance repair services to test, repair and maintain guidance subsystems, test equipment, and related support equipment; perform research in the application of technologies to support TRIDENT II (D-5) Guidance and Reentry Systems; perform failure verification, test, repair and re-certification of Inertial Measurement Units P/N 5807000, Electronic Assemblies P/N 6285900, electronic modules and MK 6 Guidance System related components; perform design, analysis and test of service life related upgrades of Inertial Measurement Units P/N 5807000, Electronic Assemblies P/N 6285900, electronic modules and MK 6 Guidance System related components. Work will be performed in Cambridge, Mass. (72 percent); Pittsfield, Mass. (21 percent); Clearwater, Fla. (3 percent); El Segundo, Calif. (3 percent); and Andover, Mass. (1 percent), and work is expected to be completed Sept. 30, 2009. Contract funds in the amount of $91,211,276 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured. Strategic Systems Programs, Arlington, Va., is the contracting activity (N00030-09-C-0008).
BAE Systems, Technology Solutions & Services, Rockville, Md., is being awarded an $82,273,890 cost plus incentive fee, cost plus fixed fee contract to provide systems integration support for TRIDENT II (D5) Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) Program and the SSGN Attack Weapon System (AWS) Program. Major tasks include: performance of FBM Weapon System Integration; implementing interface control programs; performing special technical investigations; providing Kings Bay and Bangor Supply Support; providing Systems Integration for the SSBN 734 and SSBN 735 Engineered Refueling Overhaul; supporting Shipboard Integration Increment I, Nuclear Weapons Security Systems Integration; US SWSMIN/EWL/AMIN Support and Maintenance; SSGN Attack Weapon System (AWS) Systems Integration; and TRIDENT II Strategic Weapons Systems Logistics Support. The effort will also include options for Tomahawk TLAM-N Support; Advanced Systems Development and Studies; D5 Missile Life Extension Program Systems Integration; and, TRIDENT Submarine Operation and, support for next generation platforms using the existing TRIDENT II missile. This contract contains four option years, which is exercised, will bring the contract value to $434,592,259. Work will be performed in Rockville, Md. (70 percent); Bangor, Wash. (15 percent); Kings Bay, Ga. (10 percent); Mechanicsburg, Pa. (5 percent), and work is expected to be completed September 2009 (Sept. 2013 with options exercised). Contract funds in the amount of $62,340,858 will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contact was awarded based on a sole source acquisition. The Strategic Systems Programs, Arlington, Va., is the contracting activity (N00030-09-C-0003).
Raytheon Co., Integrated Defense Systems, Tewksbury , Mass., is being awarded an $8,976,435 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-05-C-5346) for the non-recurring engineering effort to update selected Zumwalt Class Destroyer Mission Systems Equipment for initial integration efforts at Wallops Island, Va., and follow-on installation on board Navy's Self Defense Test Ship (SDTS) to mitigate production and integration risk and conduct at sea testing in support of the Zumwalt TEMP (test and evaluation master plan). The SDTS test will include the first missile firing with this advanced Mission System from a remote controlled ship against the most stressing targets available. The purpose of this effort is to initiate the non-recurring engineering work required to make the selected Mission System Equipment (Dual Band Radar SPY-3 Array and REX; MK57 Vertical Launch System Electronics Module Controller Unit; Canister Electronic Units, and Total Ship Computing Environment) compatible with the Navy's Self Defense Test Ship. Work will be performed in Portsmouth R.I. (55 percent), Tewksbury, Mass. (25 percent), Andover, Mass. (20 percent), and is expected to be completed by August 2009. Contract funds in the amount of $8,976,435 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.
Air Force
The Air Force is awarding a firm fixed price contract to McDonnell Douglas Corp., St. Louis, Mo. for $106,933,360. This contract action is for 4,372 Joint Direct Attack Munition Lot 13 Guided Vehicle kits. At this time, the entire amount has been obligated. 678 ARSS/PK, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. is the contracting activity (FA8681-09-C-0057).
The Air Force is modifying a cost plus award fee contract with Northrop Grumman Missile System, San Jose, Calif. for $24,996,865. This action will extend the baseline contract to accommodate Global Hawk flight testing. At this time the entire amount has been obligated. AFMC, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio is the contracting activity (F33657-03-C-4318, modification P00065).
The Air Force is awarding a firm fixed price contract to Raytheon Co., Tucson, Ariz. for 16,298,964. This action will provide High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missile Targeting Systems Contractor Logistics Support for a basic year and two one-year options. At this time, $2,716,494 has been obligated. 693 ARSS/PK, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. is the contracting activity (FA8675-09-C-0003).
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Canadian Commercial Corp., Ottawa, Canada is being awarded a maximum $21,227,240 fixed price with economic price adjustment contract for modern burner unit accessories and spare parts. Other location of performance is Richmond, British Columbia. Using service is Army. This proposal was originally solicited as one approved source with 1 response. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance completion is December 6, 2010. The contracting activity is the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa. (SPM3SD-09-D-0001).
Army
Thales Raytheon Systems, Fullerton, Calif., was awarded on Dec 4, 2008 a, $5,586,627 firm fixed price contract. The work consists of maintenance dredging in Charleston Harbor, upper reaches and Pier PAPA, Coast Guard Pier. Work will be performed in Charleston Harbor, Charleston County, S.C., with an estimated completion date of June 30, 2009. Bids solicited were via the Web and two bids were received. Corp of Engineer/Charleston District, Charleston, S.C., is the contracting activity (W912HN-09-C-0003).
Thales Raytheon Systems, Fullerton, Calif., was awarded on Dec. 4, 2008, a $48,585,028 firm fixed price contract. Award of a production buy for spare parts to support AN/TPQ-36(V) and AN/TPQ-37(V) FITEFINDER Radar Systems. Work will be performed in Fullerton, Calif., with an estimated completion date of May 1, 2012. Bids solicited were via Sole Source and one bid was received. CECOM Acquisition Center, Fort Monmouth, N.J., is the contracting activity (W15P7T-06-D-T001).
Duke Realty Corp., Indianapolis, Ind., was awarded on Nov 25, 2008 a, $300,000,000 firm fixed price contract. This procurement is for the purchase of a complete and usable administrative office complex to be sold to the Army and developed on a turnkey basis by the contractor. Work will be performed in Alexandria, Va., with an estimated completion date of Sept. 15, 2011. Bids solicited were via the FedBizOpps and two bids were received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore, Md., is the contracting activity (DACA31-7-09-0067).
Alutiiq International Solutions, LLC, Anchorage, Alaska, was awarded on Dec 3, 2008 a, $14,894,905 firm fixed price contract for design/construct a school age services center (PN60054), Fort Wainwright, Alaska. Work will be performed in Fort Wainwright, Alaska, with an estimated completion date of May 30, 2010. Bids solicited were solicited via RFP,8(a) Competitive Set Aside and three bids were received. USA Aviation & Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W911KB-09-C-0002).
Charles Stark Draper Laboratories, Cambridge, Mass., is being awarded a $157,342,752 cost plus incentive fee, cost plus fixed fee contract for services supporting the TRIDENT II (D-5) weapons system. The services provided will encompass the following: provide specialized tactical engineering services, logistics services, fleet support services, and guidance repair services to test, repair and maintain guidance subsystems, test equipment, and related support equipment; perform research in the application of technologies to support TRIDENT II (D-5) Guidance and Reentry Systems; perform failure verification, test, repair and re-certification of Inertial Measurement Units P/N 5807000, Electronic Assemblies P/N 6285900, electronic modules and MK 6 Guidance System related components; perform design, analysis and test of service life related upgrades of Inertial Measurement Units P/N 5807000, Electronic Assemblies P/N 6285900, electronic modules and MK 6 Guidance System related components. Work will be performed in Cambridge, Mass. (72 percent); Pittsfield, Mass. (21 percent); Clearwater, Fla. (3 percent); El Segundo, Calif. (3 percent); and Andover, Mass. (1 percent), and work is expected to be completed Sept. 30, 2009. Contract funds in the amount of $91,211,276 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured. Strategic Systems Programs, Arlington, Va., is the contracting activity (N00030-09-C-0008).
BAE Systems, Technology Solutions & Services, Rockville, Md., is being awarded an $82,273,890 cost plus incentive fee, cost plus fixed fee contract to provide systems integration support for TRIDENT II (D5) Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) Program and the SSGN Attack Weapon System (AWS) Program. Major tasks include: performance of FBM Weapon System Integration; implementing interface control programs; performing special technical investigations; providing Kings Bay and Bangor Supply Support; providing Systems Integration for the SSBN 734 and SSBN 735 Engineered Refueling Overhaul; supporting Shipboard Integration Increment I, Nuclear Weapons Security Systems Integration; US SWSMIN/EWL/AMIN Support and Maintenance; SSGN Attack Weapon System (AWS) Systems Integration; and TRIDENT II Strategic Weapons Systems Logistics Support. The effort will also include options for Tomahawk TLAM-N Support; Advanced Systems Development and Studies; D5 Missile Life Extension Program Systems Integration; and, TRIDENT Submarine Operation and, support for next generation platforms using the existing TRIDENT II missile. This contract contains four option years, which is exercised, will bring the contract value to $434,592,259. Work will be performed in Rockville, Md. (70 percent); Bangor, Wash. (15 percent); Kings Bay, Ga. (10 percent); Mechanicsburg, Pa. (5 percent), and work is expected to be completed September 2009 (Sept. 2013 with options exercised). Contract funds in the amount of $62,340,858 will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contact was awarded based on a sole source acquisition. The Strategic Systems Programs, Arlington, Va., is the contracting activity (N00030-09-C-0003).
Raytheon Co., Integrated Defense Systems, Tewksbury , Mass., is being awarded an $8,976,435 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-05-C-5346) for the non-recurring engineering effort to update selected Zumwalt Class Destroyer Mission Systems Equipment for initial integration efforts at Wallops Island, Va., and follow-on installation on board Navy's Self Defense Test Ship (SDTS) to mitigate production and integration risk and conduct at sea testing in support of the Zumwalt TEMP (test and evaluation master plan). The SDTS test will include the first missile firing with this advanced Mission System from a remote controlled ship against the most stressing targets available. The purpose of this effort is to initiate the non-recurring engineering work required to make the selected Mission System Equipment (Dual Band Radar SPY-3 Array and REX; MK57 Vertical Launch System Electronics Module Controller Unit; Canister Electronic Units, and Total Ship Computing Environment) compatible with the Navy's Self Defense Test Ship. Work will be performed in Portsmouth R.I. (55 percent), Tewksbury, Mass. (25 percent), Andover, Mass. (20 percent), and is expected to be completed by August 2009. Contract funds in the amount of $8,976,435 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.
Air Force
The Air Force is awarding a firm fixed price contract to McDonnell Douglas Corp., St. Louis, Mo. for $106,933,360. This contract action is for 4,372 Joint Direct Attack Munition Lot 13 Guided Vehicle kits. At this time, the entire amount has been obligated. 678 ARSS/PK, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. is the contracting activity (FA8681-09-C-0057).
The Air Force is modifying a cost plus award fee contract with Northrop Grumman Missile System, San Jose, Calif. for $24,996,865. This action will extend the baseline contract to accommodate Global Hawk flight testing. At this time the entire amount has been obligated. AFMC, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio is the contracting activity (F33657-03-C-4318, modification P00065).
The Air Force is awarding a firm fixed price contract to Raytheon Co., Tucson, Ariz. for 16,298,964. This action will provide High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missile Targeting Systems Contractor Logistics Support for a basic year and two one-year options. At this time, $2,716,494 has been obligated. 693 ARSS/PK, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. is the contracting activity (FA8675-09-C-0003).
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Canadian Commercial Corp., Ottawa, Canada is being awarded a maximum $21,227,240 fixed price with economic price adjustment contract for modern burner unit accessories and spare parts. Other location of performance is Richmond, British Columbia. Using service is Army. This proposal was originally solicited as one approved source with 1 response. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance completion is December 6, 2010. The contracting activity is the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa. (SPM3SD-09-D-0001).
Army
Thales Raytheon Systems, Fullerton, Calif., was awarded on Dec 4, 2008 a, $5,586,627 firm fixed price contract. The work consists of maintenance dredging in Charleston Harbor, upper reaches and Pier PAPA, Coast Guard Pier. Work will be performed in Charleston Harbor, Charleston County, S.C., with an estimated completion date of June 30, 2009. Bids solicited were via the Web and two bids were received. Corp of Engineer/Charleston District, Charleston, S.C., is the contracting activity (W912HN-09-C-0003).
Thales Raytheon Systems, Fullerton, Calif., was awarded on Dec. 4, 2008, a $48,585,028 firm fixed price contract. Award of a production buy for spare parts to support AN/TPQ-36(V) and AN/TPQ-37(V) FITEFINDER Radar Systems. Work will be performed in Fullerton, Calif., with an estimated completion date of May 1, 2012. Bids solicited were via Sole Source and one bid was received. CECOM Acquisition Center, Fort Monmouth, N.J., is the contracting activity (W15P7T-06-D-T001).
Duke Realty Corp., Indianapolis, Ind., was awarded on Nov 25, 2008 a, $300,000,000 firm fixed price contract. This procurement is for the purchase of a complete and usable administrative office complex to be sold to the Army and developed on a turnkey basis by the contractor. Work will be performed in Alexandria, Va., with an estimated completion date of Sept. 15, 2011. Bids solicited were via the FedBizOpps and two bids were received. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore, Md., is the contracting activity (DACA31-7-09-0067).
Alutiiq International Solutions, LLC, Anchorage, Alaska, was awarded on Dec 3, 2008 a, $14,894,905 firm fixed price contract for design/construct a school age services center (PN60054), Fort Wainwright, Alaska. Work will be performed in Fort Wainwright, Alaska, with an estimated completion date of May 30, 2010. Bids solicited were solicited via RFP,8(a) Competitive Set Aside and three bids were received. USA Aviation & Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W911KB-09-C-0002).
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