The AP reports useless facts

The AP reports that a major offensive is underway in Helmand province, Afghanistan. The AP does a reasonably good job of informing the reader as to the situation, letting him know that the offensive is called 'Strike of the Sword', is being conducted by Marines and Afghan Army troops, and is taking place in a Taliban stronghold.

That said, instead of with even more important facts, such as which units are involved, the AP provides us with facts unimportant to the story. The war is called 'once forgotten' which must be news to the American, Canadian, and British troops which took part in the bloody campaigns of 2005 and 2006, Operation Medusa for instance. The AP lets us know that the planned level of 68,000 troops in Afghanistan is still less than half of the number in Iraq. We are also told that there is 'no time table for withdrawal' as if Lincoln set one for Sherman's march to the Sea.

One of the reporters is Lara Jakes. A quick google search finds no Lara Jakes, but a Lara Jakes Jordon, who also writes for the AP. Has she been through a divorce? More likely she dropped the Jordan from her name because it is the surname of her husband, Jim Jordan, a Democrat strategist. The same search reveals Lara Jakes Jordon has in the past been singled out by the conservative News Busters, for problems with her reporting. Here's another critique again from a conservative outfit, World Net Daily.

Incidentally, another quick search reveals the American unit involved to be the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade. an AP update says 650 Afghan troops are involved most likelythe commando Kandak either from the 3rd Brigade, or attached to the 205th Corps. The Washington Post new, and saw fit to report it. Why not Ms. Jakes?

Will's book about the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment and the Battle of 73 Easting, is called A Line Through the Desert. It may be purchased at Amazon.

DoD Announces New Defense Policy Board Members

Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates today announced the following new members to the Defense Policy Board: Gen. (Ret) Larry Welch, former Air Force chief of staff ; Stephen Biddle, Council on Foreign Relations; Richard Danzig, former secretary of the Navy; Robert Gallucci, former assistant secretary of state; Chuck Hagel, former senator from Nebraska; Robert D. Kaplan, Center for a New American Security; Andrew Krepinevich, Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments; Rudy deLeon, former deputy secretary of defense; John Nagl, Center for a New American Security; Sarah Sewall, Harvard University; Wendy Sherman, former special advisor to the President.

These members join the following returning members: John Hamre, chairman; Harold Brown; Adm. (Ret) Vern Clark; J.D. Crouch; Fred Ikle; Gen. (Ret) Jack Keane; Henry Kissinger; Dave McCurdy; Frank Miller; William Perry; James Schlesinger; Marin Strmecki; Vin Weber; Gen. (Ret) Pete Pace.

The Defense Policy Board provides the secretary, deputy secretary and under secretary for policy with independent, informed advice and opinion concerning matters of defense policy.

MILITARY CONTRACTS July 1, 2009

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
TW Metals, Inc., Carol Stream, Ill., is being awarded a maximum $96,000,000 fixed price with economic price adjustment contract to be a metals prime vendor for the northeast region of the United States. Other locations of performance are Exton, Pa., and various other locations. Using services are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Federal Civilian Agencies. There were four proposals originally solicited with four responses. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract has a two-year base and three possible one-year options. The date of performance completion is June 30, 2011. The contracting activity is the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPM8EG-09-D-0009).

Tennessee Apparel Corp.,* Tullahoma, Tenn., is being awarded a maximum $22,101,000 firm fixed price, total set aside contract, indefinite quantity and indefinite delivery for camouflage parkas. Other locations of performance are Waynesboro, Tenn., Sparta, Tenn., and Whitwell, Tenn. Using service is the Army. The proposal was originally Web solicited with five responses. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The date of performance completion is Oct. 30, 2010. The contracting activity is the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPM1C1-09-D-1067).

AIR FORCE
McDonnell Douglas Corp., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Boeing Company, Long Beach, Calif., is being awarded a $46,070,000 contract modification for the C-17 Globemaster III Sustainment Partnership contract to increase funding for FY07 Material Improvement Projects for the USAF. At this time, the entire amount has been obligated. MSW/516 AESG/PK, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8614-04-C-2004).

Fatigue Technology Inc., Seattle, Wash., is being awarded a $25,000,000, contract for Wing Pylon Rib Repair for the F-16 aircraft. At this time, no funds have been obligated. 508th ACSG/PK, Hill Air Force Base is the contracting activity (FA8232-09-D-0001).

ITT Corporation, EDO Defense Systems, Amityville, N.Y., is being award a $19,146,918 contract action that will repair the AN/ALQ-161A Radio Frequency Surveillance/Electronic Countermeasures System components; 255 repair contract line items, one contract line item for material, and one contract line item for travel. At this time no funds have been obligated. Warner Robins – Air Logistics Center, Robins AIR Force Base, Ga., is the contracting activity (FA8522-09-D-0006).

Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company-Marietta, Marietta, Ga., is being awarded a $8,000,000 contract for the C-5 repairs/maintenance beyond the capability of the using command. At this time, no funds have been obligated. 330th Aircraft Sustainment Wing, Robins Air Force Base is the contracting activity (FA8525-09-D-0002).

NAVY
DCK North America, LLC, Large, Pa., is being awarded a $37,937,937 firm-fixed-price contract for the design and construction of an Operational Training Facility for Multi-Mission Aircraft (MMA/P-8A) at Naval Air Station Jacksonville. The work to be performed provides for a facility that includes space for 10 Operational Flight Trainers (OFT), eight Weapons Tactics Trainers, four Part Task Trainers, support equipment, bridge cranes over the OFT devices, computer based training stations, internal and external network communication equipment, training media storage, maintenance support shops, administrative offices, student study rooms, briefing areas, communications closets, and Secure Compartmented Information Facilities. Work will be performed in Jacksonville, Fla., and is expected to be completed by June 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website, with 21 proposals received in Phase I and seven Phase I offerors selected to proceed to Phase II. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southeast, Jacksonville, Fla., is the contracting activity (N69450-09-C-1257).

Honeywell International, Inc., Defense and Space Electronic Systems, Albuquerque, N.M., is being awarded a $26,341,552 modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed price contract (N00019-07-C-0014) to exercise an option for the full-rate production of 498 Advanced Multi-Purpose Displays (AMPD) for Lot 33 F/A-18F and EA/-18G aircraft, and retrofit of Lot 26-28 F/A-18E/F and E/A-18G aircraft for the U.S. Navy (422 units) and the Government of Australia (76 units). Units being procured for the U.S. Navy include 167 five-by-five inch forward; 134 five-by-five inch aft; 64 eight-by-ten inch AMPDs and 57 eight-by-ten inch AMPD High Resolution Recorder Interface kits to upgrade legacy displays with higher resolution capability. Units being procured for the Government of Australia include 30 five-by-five inch forward; 30 five-by-five inch aft; and 16 eight-by-ten inch AMPDs. This contract combines purchases for the U.S. Navy ($21,822,180; 82.8 percent) and the Government of Australia ($4,519,372; 17.2 percent) under the Foreign Military Sales Program. Work will be performed in Albuquerque, N.M., and is expected to be completed in December 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

FGM, Reston, Va., is being awarded a potential $21,426,600 indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for Net-Enabled Command Capability (NECC) systems engineering support for the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA). NECC provides seamless integration of information for the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, combatant commanders, and the military services, ensuring synchronized joint and multinational operations, as well as joint Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence to support the entire force projection cycle. NECC support services include technical operations, integrated logistics, test and evaluation, training, modeling and simulation, security engineering, and other related systems engineering support. This contract is one of three contracts awarded: all awardees will compete for task orders during the ordering period. This two-year contract includes one three-year option period which, if exercised, would bring the potential, cumulative value of the contract to $60,264,055. Work will be performed at DISA locations in the Washington, D.C. area, and work is expected to be completed June 30, 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via publication on the Federal Business Opportunities website and posting to the SPAWAR e-Commerce Central website, with three viable offers received. The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific (SSC Pacific) is the contracting activity (N66001-09-D-0114).

Booz Allen Hamilton, McLean, Va., is being awarded a potential $20,414,156 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for Net-Enabled Command Capability (NECC) systems engineering support for the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA). NECC provides seamless integration of information for the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, combatant commanders, and the military services, ensuring synchronized joint and multinational operations, as well as joint Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence (C4I) to support the entire force projection cycle. NECC support services include technical operations, integrated logistics, test and evaluation, training, modeling and simulation, security engineering, and other related systems engineering support. This contract is one of three contracts awarded: all awardees will compete for task orders during the ordering period. This two-year contract includes one three-year option period which, if exercised, would bring the potential, cumulative value of the contract to $56,729,467. Work will be performed at DISA locations in the Washington, D.C. area, and work is expected to be completed June 30, 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via publication on the Federal Business Opportunities website and posting to the SPAWAR e-Commerce Central website, with three viable offers received. The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific (SSC Pacific) is the contracting activity (N66001-09-D-0113).

Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), San Diego, Calif., is being awarded a potential $20,139,580 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for Net-Enabled Command Capability (NECC) systems engineering support for the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA). NECC provides seamless integration of information for the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, combatant commanders, and the military services, ensuring synchronized joint and multinational operations, as well as joint Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence (C4I) to support the entire force projection cycle. NECC support services include technical operations, integrated logistics, test and evaluation, training, modeling and simulation, security engineering, and other related systems engineering support. This contract is one of three contracts awarded: all awardees will compete for task orders during the ordering period. This two-year contract includes one three-year option period which, if exercised, would bring the potential, cumulative value of the contract to $55,419,565. Work will be performed at DISA locations in the Washington, D.C. area, and work is expected to be completed June 30, 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via publication on the Federal Business Opportunities website and posting to the SPAWAR e-Commerce Central website, with three viable offers received. The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific (SSC Pacific) is the contracting activity (N66001-09-D-0115).

Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding Inc., Newport News, Va., is being awarded a $9,156,317 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-06-C-2104) for research and development of advanced submarine technologies for current and future submarine platforms. The contract provides for provision of studies to support the manufacturability, maintainability, producibility, reliability, manning, survivability, hull integrity, performance, structural, weight/margin, stability, arrangements, machinery systems, acoustics, hydrodynamics, ship control, logistics, human factors, materials, weapons handling and stowage, submarine safety, and affordability of current and future submarine platforms. The contract also provides for engineering and technical support for Research and Development efforts associated with designing a future undersea superiority alternative to the reduced submarine program. Focus is on Hull, Mechanical, and Electrical systems, but may also involve C4I and non-propulsion electronic systems. Work will be performed in Newport News, Va., and is expected to be completed by September 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

Northrop Grumman Corp., Integrated Systems, Bethpage, N.Y., is being awarded a $6,359,983 modification to a previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee contract (N00019-03-C-0057) for the procurement of NP2000-3 Propellar Systems for three E-2D Advanced Hawkeye Pilot Production Aircraft, and associated spares. Work will be performed in Windsor Locks, Conn., (80 percent) and Bethpage, N.Y., (20 percent), and is expected to be completed in October 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

McDonnell Douglas Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Mo., was awarded a $27,856,053 modification on June 30, 2009, to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00019-09-C-0086) for additional time-critical parts in support of EA-18G Full Rate Production Airborne Electronic Attack (AEA) system. Work will be performed in St. Louis, Mo., and is expected to be completed in September 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

Correction: The contract awarded June 30, 2009, to DynCorp International LLC, Fort Worth, Texas, (N62742-08-C-1115) should have read that the current total contract amount after exercise of the option would be $205,996,058.

Correction: Contract awarded June 30, 2009, to Douglas E. Barnhart, Inc., San Diego, Calif., (N62473-08-D-8608) should have stated the award amount as $10, 122,318.

Wounded Warrior Diaries: Family Heals Together, Stays Together

By Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg
Special to American Forces Press Service

July 1, 2009 - A retired Army captain who survived third-degree burns over 30 percent of his body while stationed in Iraq believes that through family, faith and a lot of hard work, anything can be overcome. Capt. Alvin Eugene Shell Jr., who served with the 16th Military Police Brigade, credits his wife, Danielle, his three sons, his mother and father, and his wife's parents for helping him recover. They are his heroes.

"You can't define a hero by one act," Shell said. "A hero is a person that laces up his shoelaces every single day and doesn't ask to be recognized, doesn't ask for the accolades, or the rewards, or anything. They do it because of who they are."

Shell originally served as an enlisted soldier and later received his commission through Officer Candidate School. When he arrived in Iraq, he endured some of the toughest battles of the war, including the battle of Fallujah, before being injured.

"When we went to Fallujah, we all did a fair share of fighting," Shell recalled. "Fallujah was the toughest time. And if Fallujah didn't get me, nothing would get me." Or so he thought.

After making it through the battle of Fallujah, Shell's company was sent on a well-earned reprieve to Camp Victory in Baghdad.

"The entire company and platoon made it through pretty well; we didn't have any casualties, and we did an awesome job," he said. "After those four months in Fallujah, they actually sent us in Camp Victory. And to us, it was like a vacation, [yet] that was actually where I happened to get hurt out on a patrol."

Shell recalled that he wasn't supposed to be on patrol the evening he was injured. After agreeing to take his counterpart's patrol, he assumed the duties of the watch officer.

During the patrol, Shell's battle buddy, Staff Sgt. Wesley Spaid, told him he had a sense that something bad would occur. As soon as he said it, a semi truck in the convoy ran over an improvised explosive device, spilling diesel fuel on the road, Shell recalled.

"The shrapnel actually ripped through the gas tank, and it spilled the gasoline all the way down the [military supply route]," he said. "The truck was immobilized. The convoy still had to keep going, and if you know anything about being hit, you ride until the wheels fall off."

Shell and his crew quickly removed the driver from the burning truck and tried to hook a winch from their vehicle to remove the truck from the road to allow the convoy to pass through.

"You have to also imagine that the gas was still running out of this truck as we are pulling it off, and right when they got the winch hooked up, a [rocket propelled grenade] came over my left shoulder," he said. "I could feel the heat from it, and it hit a Humvee, and just a spark from the RPG ignited the road. The entire road caught on fire."

The kick from the RPG propelled him out of the fire a few yards away. After regaining consciousness, Shell recalled, he looked to the road and saw a few people running around, on fire.

"I remember the gas still pouring down, and I remember the fire almost chasing the gasoline down the MSR," he said. "I remember looking through the fire and remember seeing Sergeant Spaid on fire. ... As I saw the gas coming my way, I jumped back on the MSR, and ran through the gas and the fire."

Shell said he went to rescue his sergeant, who was confused and believed he had little hope, and asked Shell to shoot him.

"I yelled at him and said if I would have shot you, I would have done it over there [out of the fire]," he said.

Shell tried everything to extinguish the fire on Spaid, rolling him on the ground and covering him with dirt until the sergeant was able to retreat from the fire. Meanwhile, Shell realized that he, too, was on fire after becoming soaked with diesel fuel.

"I had to make a choice," he said. "I ... put my left hand on my face and my right hand on my rifle, and when I ran through, I lit up like a Christmas tree because I was pretty much soaked in the diesel fuel from my boots to my pants. And when I ran through the other side of the fire, I lit up. And I just remember being on fire, and I rolled and couldn't get the fire out. I remember running to the vehicle to get the fire extinguisher."

While looking for a fire extinguisher, Shell saw members of his company returning incoming fire. Approaching the lead vehicle, and with precious seconds ticking away as he searched for something to put out the flames, he realized the extinguishers had been used on a mission at least a week prior. As he tore the burning clothing off his body, he knew he had to put the flames out. He saw a ditch, jumped in, and extinguished the flames.

Climbing out of the ditch, Shell didn't immediately notice his injuries; his concern was his missing weapon.

"I remember when I got out of the ditch, I still thought I had my weapon in my hand," he said. "I looked down, but my weapon wasn't there. It got so hot that it melted the skin in my hand, and my weapon fell on the ground."

Shell continued to look for his weapon and told his company that no one would leave until 100 percent weapon accountability was performed.

After accounting for all the weapons, Shell and two others injured during the attack were taken back to Camp Victory. During the ride, an officer told him he was a hero. Shell simply replied that "a hero is a sandwich."

"I did anything any other paratrooper would do," he said.

Within a few days, he was sent to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, where he remained in a medical-induced coma for a week. He was then transferred to the burn unit at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, where his family was waiting for him.

Shell would endure 18 months of rehabilitation and therapy, and more than 30 surgeries. During this time, he relied heavily on his parents, friends and wife.

"My father retired and actually came up and lived with me when I got hurt; he was there constantly," Shell said. "My wife was there constantly. They pretty much moved to Texas and took care of me 24 hours a day.

"I think my family and my friends were pivotal," he continued. "I couldn't have recovered to the point I am right now. I think I would have healed -- my wounds would have healed and scabbed over -- but when you talk about actual recovery or you reach a point of wellness, I don't think I would be that person today."

He said all wounded warriors need someone to bounce their anger off of and properly manage all the complex emotions they have to sort through during the long road of recovery.

Shell said many families have to give up their lives to take care of their wounded soldier.

"They are taking themselves out of what they have done all of their lives, the jobs that they have, to say that they will give all that up to take care of their soldier," he said. He understands the personal sacrifices his wife and parents made. When Shell was injured, he said, his wife took care of their children – ages 6, 9 and 9 months – "and a husband that couldn't feed himself."

"I admire my wife, because she is tough as nails," he said.

Danielle Shell's strength and positive attitude helped her husband learn to walk again. "I would try to be there from when he woke up for breakfast and be there until dinner," she said.

Through nearly five years of recovery, she added, they have come through a more united and connected family.

"As far as the family goes, I think it helped," she said. "We appreciate each other more, and he could have easily died that day. I appreciate him more for the little things he does."

Despite qualifying for 100 percent disability, Shell said, he believes having a purpose every day also assists in the healing process. So, as he continues working 50 to 60 hours a week at his job with the Homeland Security Department, he counts his blessings every day, he said, thankful for his wife, three sons, parents and parents-in-law.

After almost five years, Shell's recovery continues. He will require at least two more surgeries on his right hand, and he may need physical therapy for the rest of his life.

"I don't think that it is in me to accept my 100 percent and not go to work," he said. "I could have accepted that 100 percent disability check, and my wife would have gone to work and would have never complained, but my parents didn't teach me any other way but to work."

(This is the 10th installment of the Wounded Warrior Diaries series. Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg serves in the Defense Media Activity's the emerging media directorate.)

Face of Defense: Soldier Hopes His Story Instills Sense of Reality

By Army Capt. Joseph Sanfilippo
Special to American Forces Press Service

July 1, 2009 - Even as Army Staff Sgt. Conrad Begaye relived the firefight that took the lives of his fellow soldiers, and even as he was awarded the military's third-highest honor for valor yesterday, his thoughts were on his comrades. Begaye, a Navajo from Black Canyon City, Ariz., said he wants the story of his actions in Afghanistan to help younger soldiers understand the importance of training, leadership and motivation. For troops eager to see combat, he said, he hopes his story instills a sense of the reality of war.

"It should open their eyes. A firefight is a life-altering experience - one that I'm still living through," Begaye said following a June 30 ceremony here in which he received the Silver Star. "Soldiers should understand ... this is real life, and people do die."

On Nov. 9, 2007, Begaye, an Airborne Ranger with the 503rd Infantry Regiment's 2nd Battalion, was part of a unit that had just met with local leaders in Afghanistan's Nuristan province. They were hiking along rugged terrain when his squad, his platoon's headquarters sections and a squad of Afghan soldiers began taking fire from enemy positions above.

Pinned down at first, Begaye was struck in the arm while returning fire and directing his men. Begaye bounded over a cliff, calling to his troops to follow him down the rocky slope to find cover.

Keeping his composure against overwhelming odds, Begaye directed and encouraged his fellow soldiers under heavy fire. One paratrooper had been shot in both legs and was still taking fire. Begaye called out to him to play dead, knowing the enemy would shift their fire away if they thought the soldier was killed -- quick thinking that likely helped to save that soldier's life.

Ignoring his own injuries, Begaye moved a wounded soldier to a nearby cave to protect him from enemy fire. Using a radio, he called his higher headquarters and directed mortar fire onto enemy positions - essentially ending the battle. Then he motivated a soldier to organize a defensive perimeter of Afghan soldiers to prevent their unit from being harassed or overrun.

Twenty-one months later, with his comrades standing quietly on the parade ground behind him, Begaye listened as Maj. Gen. William B. Garrett III, commander of U.S. Army Africa, spoke here, where Begaye began his service 10 years ago.

"Today, we honor a noncommissioned officer whose bold actions turned the tide of battle and saved the day, ... [and] whose courage under fire and fierce loyalty to his men still astounds us all," Garrett said. "Outnumbered, wounded, and initially pinned down in the kill zone of an enemy ambush -- he didn't hesitate to leap forward, literally, and take charge of the fight."

Garrett spoke of the "warrior ethos" that guides soldiers: place the mission first, never accept defeat, never quit, and never leave a fallen comrade.

"These are just words to some people," Garrett said. "But the warrior ethos is a way of life to Staff Sergeant Begaye. Amazing acts of bravery and valor were commonplace that grim day. But this morning, we recognize Staff Sergeant Begaye for his courage - and we are thankful for the opportunity to serve with such a man."

After the ceremony, Begaye's wife, Air Force Staff Sgt. Idellia Beletso, a flight medic based at Aviano Air Base, Italy, hugged her husband. Hundreds of red-bereted paratroopers lined up to shake Begaye's hand, many of whom served with him in combat.

"There are people who have passed on that deserve this," said Begaye, who served three combat tours. "There were five men who died. I'll accept and wear it in honor of them, not for my actions, but for theirs."

Begaye said he would have preferred a simple handshake or a pat on the back. After all, he said, infantrymen don't fight for medals, they fight for each other. That's why Begaye felt grateful to have soldiers from his unit, Chosen Company, behind him on the parade field during the ceremony.

"What happened there is something I think about every day," Begaye said. "It's not easy to forget about."

(Army Capt. Joseph Sanfilippo serves with the 503rd Infantry Regiment's 2nd Battalion public affairs office.)

Gates Visits Wounded Warriors, Returns Two to Washington

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

July 1, 2009 - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates visited Landstuhl Regional Medical Center here yesterday, meeting with wounded warriors and the staff that treats them and touring a new USO facility that's providing them a better quality of life as they heal. Gates paid a call to the largest U.S. military hospital outside the United States after presiding at change-of-command ceremonies at the U.S. European Command headquarters in Stuttgart.

The secretary toured the center's intensive care unit and the USO Warrior Center that opened in November, and he met with patients wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan. The patients represented about a 50-50 split between the two combat zones, reflecting what the staff here calls a trend as battle injuries drop in Iraq but increase in Afghanistan.

Air Force Lt. Col. Raymond Funk, deputy trauma director at Landstuhl, called the fact that many of these patients survived their injuries to be flown here for advanced care a testament to the military medical care system.

Gates has been a champion of improving wounded warrior care at every level from the point of injury. He ordered more field hospitals and medevac helicopters to Afghanistan this spring after learning that many troops there were too far from advanced-level treatment facilities to be treated within 60 minutes — the so-called "golden hour" after being wounded.

Gates told reporters traveling with him yesterday that he has his staff tracking "every single medevac" flight, and that he believes the additional medical assets are making a difference.

"Now, we're down to about 68 minutes" in average medevac time in Afghanistan, he said. But there's still a disparity in the response times – sometimes as little as 20 minutes, sometimes an hour and a half. "I want to equalize that," he said.

In addition to providing more assets, Gates said, he wants to cut through the administrative hurdles required to launch a medevac mission in the first place. "We want to try to get them to the point where they launch the helicopter even if they don't have the full chain of approvals," he said.

As he visited Landstuhl yesterday, the secretary met some of the servicemembers who have benefitted directly from the additional battlefield medical capabilities he ordered and his overall emphasis on wounded warrior care. Army Sgt. 1st Class Jeffrey Lawrence, platoon sergeant at the Medical Transient Detachment, said he was delighted to see the way the secretary interacted with his troops being treated for "anything from mental health issues to gunshot wounds and everything in-between."

"He's in there with about 55 people, talking to each one and shaking their hands," Lawrence said as he stood outside the new USO center. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Their faces light up, and it makes their day."

Lawrence called working with wounded troops at Landstuhl the most rewarding job he's had in his Army career.

"The patients we take care of here are very deserving," agreed Funk, who has served at Landstuhl since 2004 and keeps asking to extend his duty here. "Everyone who comes here has been doing something for their country."

After Gates' visit, as he lifted off from Ramstein Air Base bound for Washington, he had two of Landstuhl's patients in tow, headed for military treatment facilities in Washington.

Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Tracy Morton and Army Spc. Anthony Martinez represent the large percentage of Landstuhl's patients who come to the facility with non-combat-related injuries.

Morton, a Navy corpsman who spent nine months at Forward Operating Base Sharana in Afghanistan's Patika province, was headed to the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., to be treated for complications following appendicitis surgery.

Martinez is a Fort Drum, N.Y.-based UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crew chief who spent the past eight months ferrying troops around Iraq. That all came to a screeching halt when he woke up one day – May 4 to be exact – with vertigo, then developed Bell's palsy, a facial paralysis that caused the side of his face to droop. Yesterday he sat alongside Morton in Gates' C-32 aircraft, bound for Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington for additional testing.

Both Morton and Martinez had experienced the full range of combat medicine the military provides deployed combat troops.

Morton, 42, first went to sick call at his forward operating base's Army hospital, where he got first-level care from a forward surgical team that had just arrived. From there, he was taken to Bagram Airfield for surgery.

The plan was to return him back to Sharana after recovery, but Morton began developing blood clots, gall bladder problems and an embolism.

Because troops taking blood thinners aren't permitted to serve in the combat theater – a precaution to safeguard against excessive blood loss in the event of an injury – Morton was again flown to Landstuhl. He spent two days in a ward, then to make room for other inbound troops, two additional days in an outpatient status while undergoing tests. From there, he was set to be transferred to Bethesda for higher-level care.

Martinez, got his initial evaluation by a doctor assigned to Contingency Operating Base Speicher. The 22-year-old 10th Mountain Division soldier was then sent to a combat surgical hospital, where he was diagnosed with vertigo.

He recalled the frustration of being taken off flight status and assigned to office duties as he waited for the symptoms to subside before the Bell's palsy set in. He paid daily visits to the doctor's office, getting evaluated by a neurologist at Balad Air Base who consulted closely with neurologists at Walter Reed.

From there, Martinez was flown to Landstuhl, a stopover on his way to Walter Reed for an MRI and other care.

Neither Morton nor Martinez knows exactly how long they'll be at the capital region medical centers, and both expressed regret that they've left their units behind in the combat zone. They also had nothing but praise for the medical care they've received every step of the way.

"I've been taken care of very well," Martinez said. "Everything has been there for me. They've been awesome."

Morton said his medical issues gave him the chance to experience firsthand the range of care patients he treats receive once they're evacuated from the point of injury.

"We would ship people off and not every really know what would happen to them," he said. But after his experience at Landstuhl, Morton said, he's a believer in the military medical system.

"The people here are really mission-oriented with the wounded warriors," he said. "To see how they handled wounded warriors at Landstuhl was mindboggling. It was obvious that their mission was to take care of us – at any cost."

Yellow Ribbon Fund Keeps Troops' Families Mobile

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

July 1, 2009 - Servicemembers' long-term rehabilitation shouldn't keep them, or their family members, bound to the hospital grounds, and the Yellow Ribbon Fund is working to make sure that doesn't happen. Founded in 2005, the organization was created to assist injured servicemembers and their families while they recuperate at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center here and the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. Toward that goal, it offers several programs for recovering servicemembers, including a mentor/intern program in which they can learn job skills from a local company.

"The Yellow Ribbon Fund is the only organization that provides free rental cars to the family members of the injured servicemembers at NNMC and WRAMC," said Marie Wood, the group's first vice president and director of communications. "These cars provide transportation away from hospital grounds for our wounded warriors their family members.

"As one wife told me about availability of a car after she had been caring for her husband for months at Walter Reed, 'It's like being released from jail to have car, finally,'" she added.

Family members and friends visiting a recovering servicemember are eligible to a Yellow Ribbon Fund rental car through the Soldier and Family Assistance Center at either medical facility. This ensures that the request is coming from someone legitimately there to visit a servicemember, Wood explained.

Servicemembers are not eligible to rent a car themselves, however, and for good reason, said Diane Shoemaker, Yellow Ribbon Fund's director of housing and transportation.

"We have no way of knowing who is on medication [that might impair the ability to drive]," she said. But the staff at the dealership that provides the cars goes out of its way to be kind to the soldiers and their visiting families, she added.

The dealership, Nextcar Rentals, is owned by Jack Fitzgerald. As of June 29, he had rented 1,032 vehicles, mostly PT Cruisers, to servicemembers' families through Yellow Ribbon Fund. That model seems to work best for those who need to transport wheelchairs, Shoemaker said.

Renters may keep the vehicles for 28 days, at which point they're required to return them. If they need them for longer, they can contact Shoemaker to renew the rental, but they still need to take the cars back to the rental company for servicing, she said.

"The person renting the car is required to furnish the gas, so that when they take the car back to the dealership it's on full," Shoemaker said. "They are also responsible for any parking tickets [and] any damage to the car while they have it. Renters must be 21, a standard rule of car renting, she added.

If there's any doubt about the importance of the program, one need look no further than Danielle Gillon.

Gillon is the manager of Nextcar Rental's Wheaton, Md., location, which supplies the rentals for the Yellow Ribbon Fund program.

"It means a lot -- it means transportation," she said. "Some of [the families] are here with children, and they're here for an extended period of time. They're able to get their children to and from school. They're able to get the patients out of the hospital for awhile, just to get away.

"Without the vehicle," she continued, "they would be stranded at the hospital, whether it's at the Navy base or at Walter Reed. So I know that it means a lot to them, because they say it. They're quite grateful."

Gates, Spanish Defense Minister Discuss Military Relations

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

July 1, 2009 - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Spanish Defense Minister Carme Chacon discussed operations in Afghanistan, counter-piracy initiatives and continuing military-to-military ties during a meeting at the Pentagon today. Gates said the relationship between the two NATO allies is excellent. Spain has 780 soldiers in Afghanistan today, according to NATO statistics, and commands the Badghis Provincial Reconstruction Team in western Afghanistan.

"We talked a good bit about Afghanistan," the secretary said during a media availability following the meeting. "I expressed our appreciation for all that Spain is doing there, including the additional troops that were announced last week in time for election security."

Spanish officials have said they will send an additional 532 servicemembers to Afghanistan ahead of the Aug. 20 national elections.

Chacon spoke of the range of military-to-military relations between the United States and Spain. She said Spain agrees with the strategy in Afghanistan and stressed her country's commitment to providing economic and governance support to the nation.

The secretary thanked Chacon for Spain's continuing approval of American access to the navy base at Rota and the air base at Moron.

As for counter-piracy, Gates said, the two talked about "the need for a legal framework to deal with these issues."

"All in all, we had a very broad, wide-ranging conversation," he said. "We look forward to the high-level meetings this fall, and look forward to a bold and ambitious agenda."

U.S. Base in Honduras on Shut-down Following Uprising

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

June 30, 2009 - There are no current threats to U.S. servicemembers serving in Honduras following last week's ouster of the Honduran president, U.S. Southern Command officials said today. The 600 American soldiers, sailors and airmen based at Soto Cano Air Base are staying on the base and not conducting exercises with the Honduran military, said Robert Appin, deputy director for public information and outreach at Southern Command in Miami.

The Honduran military reportedly ousted President Manuel Zelaya on June 28. President Barack Obama has expressed concern over the development and said the Hondurans need to work the problem out.

The last off-base operation was June 26 when U.S. servicemembers concluded a medical readiness exercise, Appin said.

Army Col. Richard A. Juergens, commander of Soto Cano, ordered the air base closed following Zelaya's ouster. "No one is allowed off base except for emergency situations," Appin said. "All travel is restricted."

U.S. forces have served in Honduras since the early 1980s. A mix of active and reserve component servicemembers work with local forces and local institutions. Servicemembers deploy for either six months or a year to Soto Cano, Appin said.

MILITARY CONTRACTS June 30, 2009

U.S. ARMY TANK - AUTOMOTIVE AND ARMAMENTS COMMAND
Oshkosh Corporation., Oshkosh, WI is being awarded a $1,055,910,053 Firm Fixed Priced Delivery Order Number 0002 under Contract W56HZV-09-D-0111 for the purchase of 2,244 MRAP All Terrain Vehicles (M-ATVs), Basic Issue Items, Field Service Representative Support, Equipment, Engineering, Authorized Stocking List Parts Packages and Prescribed Load List parts packages. The US Army Tank Automotive Command, Warren, Michigan, is the contracting activity.

NAVY
General Atomics, San Diego, Calif., is being awarded a $573,000,000 ceiling priced, undefinitized contract action for the production of the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) CVN 78 Shipset. EMALS is the catapult launch system on CVN-78 class aircraft carriers, replacing the steam catapults used on prior generations of aircraft carriers. Work will be performed in San Diego, Calif., (49 percent); Tupelo, Miss., (19 percent); Mankato, Minn., (12 percent); Waltham, Mass., (4 percent); and various locations across the United States (16 percent), and work is expected to be completed in September 2015. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to FAR 602-1. The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Lakehurst, N.J., is the contracting activity (N68335-09-C-0573).

DynCorp International LLC, Fort Worth, Texas, is being awarded $45,649,330 modification to previously awarded cost-plus-award-fee contract (N62742-08-C-1115) to exercise the second option period to provide support services for Philippines Operations Support in the Republic of the Philippines for the Joint Special Operations Task Force – Philippines. The work to be performed provides for all labor, supervision, management, tools, materials, equipment, facilities, transportation, incidental engineering, and other items necessary to provide support services. The current total contract amount after exercise of this option will be $206,634,712. Work will be performed in the Republic of the Philippines, and work is expected to be completed Jun. 30, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Pacific, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is the contracting activity.

Lockheed Martin Maritime Systems and Sensors, Moorestown, N.J., is being awarded a $44,910,868 cost-plus award/fixed-fee contract for combat systems engineering to support the government of Australia under the Foreign Military Sales Program - Case AT-P-LCQ. The government of Australia selected the Navy/Lockheed Martin Aegis Combat System for its Australian Air Warfare Destroyer (AWD) Program. These requirements include the necessary combat systems engineering, computer program development, ship integration and test logistics technical services, NSCC/CSEDS equipment, and staging support to design and build an Aegis Weapon System (AWS) baseline to support the AWD Program. The AWD AWS baseline will be derived from a technology refreshed variant of the Navy AWS baseline 7 Phase I. This contract will support efforts through Aegis Combat System critical design review (CDR). Work will be performed in Moorestown, N.J., (97 percent) and Australia (3 percent), and is expected to be completed by June 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured. This contract was procured under the authority of 10 U.S.C. (c)(4), International Agreement. As such, this procurement was not synopsized in Federal Business Opportunities. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-09-C-5104).

American Bridge Co., Richmond, Va., is being awarded a $35,152,446 firm-fixed-price contract for the complete construction of Pier 31 at Naval Submarine Base New London. The work to be performed provides for demolition of the existing pier and construction of Pier 31 to include a pile supported pier with concrete deck, electrical shore power, pier lighting, communications, cable, telephone, lightning protection, water, sewer, compressed air, pure water and oily waste/waste oil piping connections off pier, bitts, jib cranes, retractable craneless brows, rubber faced steel fendering system and specialized equipment. Work will be performed in Groton, Conn., and is expected to be completed by November 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website, with five proposals received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic, Norfolk, Va., is the contracting activity (N40085-09-C-7011).

Raytheon Co., El Segundo, Calif., is being awarded a $22,584,562 delivery order against a previously issued basic order agreement (N00019-05-G-0008) for the procurement of 151 electro optical sensor unit weapon replaceable assemblies (WRAs) from ATFLIR pods or spare deliveries; 154 laser WRAs from ATFLIR pods or spare deliveries; 154 laser electronic unit WRAs from ATFLIR pods or spare deliveries; 32 visible channel assembly; and 12 visible beam splitter. This effort will include the production, implementation, and ILS efforts and modification labor associated with ATFLIR IR-marker retrofit engineering change proposal in support of the F/A-18. Work will be performed in McKinney, Texas, (60 percent); and El Segundo, Calif., (40 percent); and is expected to be completed in July 2010. Contract funds in the amount of $3,242,394 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

Brandes Associates, Inc.*, Santa Barbara, Calif., is being awarded a $16,731,943 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to research, design, develop and deliver an Advanced Systems Integration and Operations Center (ASIC) to the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD). The ASIC will provide new functionality and network outreach, encompassing network centric warfare and operations, fleet exercise collaboration and support of other country and organization exercises and objectives, support testing and training for the Department of Defense, to include joint service efforts. Work will be performed in China Lake, Calif., and is expected to be completed in June 2014. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured under an electronic request for proposals as a 100 percent small business set-aside; one offer was received. The Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, China Lake, Calif., is the contracting activity (N68936-09-C-0081).

Oceaneering International Inc., Chesapeake, Va., is being awarded an $11,984,265 firm-fixed-price contract for the Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) service life extension program (SLEP) for the LCACs 30 and 56. The LCAC SLEP will extend the service life of LCAC from 20 to 30 years, sustain/enhance craft capability, replace obsolete electronics, repair corrosion damage, reduce life cycle cost by improving reliability and maintainability, increase survivability, and establish a common configuration baseline. The LCAC SLEP scope of effort includes repair and upgrade of the buoyancy box, gas turbine engine replacement, installation of a new skirt, installation of an integrated C4N equipment package, and accomplishment of selected craft alterations and repair work. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $35,227,516. LCACs 59, 62, and 79 are included as option crafts. Work will be performed in Camp Pendleton, Calif., and is expected to be completed by January 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured and advertised via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with 24 proposals solicited and four offers received via the Federal Business Opportunities website. The Southwest Regional Maintenance Center, San Diego, Calif. ,is the contracting activity (N55236-09-C-0004).

BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair, Norfolk, Va., is being awarded a $11,717,122 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-05-C-4403) for repairs of the USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7). The following work items will be accomplished on the ship: replace sewage discharge pumps; install scullery steam condensate drain piping; replace fire retardant plywood on ammunition magazine bulkhead; remove & dispose marine coatings containing heavy metals; replace & test flight deck padeyes; replace ventilation ducting and preheater; repair combination steam exhaust/relief valve; replace lube oil tank, fill connection deck fitting; and other work items to support those mentioned. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Va., and is expected to be completed by November 2009. Contract funds in the amount of $11,717,122 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center, Norfolk, Va., is the administrative contracting activity for the contract (N00024-05-C-4403).

The Pennsylvania State University Electro-Optics Center, Freeport, Pa., is being awarded an $11,488,791 cost-plus-fixed fee contract for research, design, development, and delivery of sub-systems for use in the next generation radars and the Common Data Sensor Architecture (CDSA) Program. The CDSA is a centralized system for collecting input information from a variety of sensors and even providing information from one group of sensors to another. Two technologies are fundamental for the CDSA to successfully transition to producible, fielded systems: high voltage/ high power switching devices based on halide chemical vapor deposition; and wavelength division multiplexing. Requirements include prototype sub systems for the NG radar; research into transmit receive module technology; developing optical radar methodologies; analysis of air defense radar including: jamming, radio frequency (RF) transmitting vs. receiving; research for RF propagation, high powered testing, deep level transient spectroscopy and secondary ion mass spectroscopy. Work will be performed at Freeport, Pa., (80 percent) and State College, Pa., (20 percent) is expected to be completed in June 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured. The Crane Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane, Ind., is the contracting activity (N00164-09-C-GR34).

Douglas E. Barnhart, Inc., San Diego, Calif., is being awarded $10,895,718 for firm-fixed price task order #0003 under a previously awarded indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple award construction contract (N62473-08-D-8608) for design and construction of a child development center at Naval Base Coronado. Work will be performed in San Diego, Calif., and is expected to be completed by January 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Four proposals were received for this task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southwest, San Diego, Calif., is the contracting activity.

Sherrick Construction, Inc.*, Nashville, Tenn., is being awarded a $9,666,646 firm-fixed price contract for the design and construction of a new Child Development Center at Naval Support Activity Mid-South. The contract also contains two unexercised options, which if exercised would increase cumulative contract value to $10,292,446. Work will be performed in Millington, Tenn., and is expected to be completed by July 2011. Funds are provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website with nine proposals received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Midwest, Great Lakes, Ill., is the contracting activity (N40083-09-C-0011).

BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair, Norfolk, Va., is being awarded a $8,685,509 firm-fixed-price contract for a 55-calendar-day regular overhaul of Military Sealift Command's fast combat support ship USNS Arctic (T-AOE 8). The ship's primary mission is to operate as part of a carrier strike group, providing fuel, ammunition, and dry and refrigerated stores to support U.S. Navy ships at sea. This regular overhaul includes cleaning and inspecting tanks and spaces, underwater hull-cleaning and painting, and numerous inspections and certifications. The contract contains options which, if exercised, would bring the total contract value to $11,684,396. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Va., and the period of performance is for 55 calendar days, commencing on about Aug.1, 2009. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured with three offers received. The U.S. Navy's Military Sealift Fleet Support Command, a field activity of Military Sealift Command, is the contracting activity (N40442-09-C-2007).

Sundt William Scotsman, a joint venture, Tempe, Ariz., is being awarded an $8,553,732 modification under a previously awarded firm-fixed price contract (N62473-08-C-3511) to exercise option 0002 which provides for the furniture, fixtures and equipment/collateral equipment for temporary facilities of administration, billeting, armory, storage and maintenance buildings at Marine Corps Base and Marine Corps Air Station, Camp Pendleton. The total contract amount after exercise of this option will be $81,573,825. Work will be performed in Oceanside, Calif., and is expected to be completed by July 2010. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southwest, San Diego, Calif., is the contracting activity.

Straub Construction, Inc., Bonsall, Calif., is being awarded $8,516,000 for firm-fixed price task order #0005 under a multiple award construction contract (N62473-08-D-8616) for design and construction of a consolidated communications/electronic maintenance shop at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. Work will be performed in Oceanside, Calif., and is expected to be completed by January 2011. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Six proposals were received for this task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southwest, San Diego, Calif., is the contracting activity.

Archer Western Contractors, Ltd. dba Archer Western, Chicago, Ill., is being awarded $7,730,990 for firm-fixed price task order #0002 under a previously awarded multiple award construction contract (N40085-08-D-9739) for the construction of a child development center at Naval Station Norfolk. The task order also contains one unexercised option, which if exercised would increase the cumulative task order value to $7,758,490. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Va., and is expected to be completed by September 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Five proposals were received for this task order. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic, Norfolk, Va., is the contracting activity.

Oshkosh Corp., Oshkosh, Wis., is being awarded a $ 7,496,641 fixed-price delivery order #0079 under a previously awarded indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (M67854-04-D-5016) to purchase of 2,980 turret gunners restraint system. Work will be performed in Oshkosh, Wis., (70 percent) and Fairfield, Ohio (30 percent), and work for this delivery order is expected to be completed by Mar. 31, 2010. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Marine Corps System Command, Quantico, Va., is the contracting activity.

Burns & Roe Services Corp., Virginia Beach, Va., is being awarded a $7,038,740 modification under a previously awarded contract (N62470-06-D-4614) to exercise Option 3 for utilities and maintenance services at U.S. Naval Base Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The total contract amount after exercise of this option will be $38,948,784. Work will be performed at U.S. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and is expected to be completed by June 2010. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering and Acquisition Division, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, is the contracting activity.

Sundt William Scotsman, a joint venture, Tempe, Ariz., is being awarded a $6,312,999 modification under a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N62473-08-C-3511) to exercise option 0004 which provides for the furniture, fixtures and equipment/collateral equipment for temporary facilities of administration, billeting, armory, storage and maintenance buildings at Marine Corps Base and Marine Corps Air Station, Camp Pendleton. The total contract amount after exercise of this option will be $73,020,093. Work will be performed in Oceanside, Calif., and is expected to be completed by July 2010. Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southwest, San Diego, Calif., is the contracting activity.

U.S. SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND
United States Special Operations Command is increasing the contract maximum order amount on the acquisition, logistics, management and business operations support contract, USZA22-02-D-0014, awarded in December 2001 to Sverdrup Technology Inc., (now Jacobs Technology Inc.). This is a multiple-award, indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity term contract with an anticipated period of performance through April 2010 for acquiring intellectual capital support in the areas of system acquisition and development. This action will increase the maximum order amount of one of the multiple-award contracts from $400,000,000 to $460,000,000, with an additional $45,000,000 to $505,000,000, if the government exercises the Extension of Services clause.

AIR FORCE
Raytheon Network Centric Systems, Baltimore, Md., is being awarded a $98,353,091 firm-fixed contract for the production of KIV-77 single function appliqué and the remote form factor units for the Air Force, Army, and Navy. At this time, $15,027,990 has been obligated. Headquarters Cryptologic Program System Group, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, is the contracting activity (FA8307-09-D-001).

Lockheed Martin Corp., Liverpool, N.Y., is being award a $76,226,449 firm-fixed contract for a quantity of 17 AN/FPS 117 radar modification kits, site assessments and related training. At this time, $19,474,319 has been obligated. Electronic Systems Center, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity(FA8706-09-C-0001).

Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., San Diego, Calif., is modifying a $75,209,000 fixed- price incentive firm contract for Long Lead funding of two Global Hawk Block 30M air vehicles, each including airborne signals intelligence payload and enhanced integrated sensor suite payloads, three Global Hawk 40 air vehicles, each including an MP-RTIP payload , and three ASIP retrofit kits. At this time, $75,209,000 has been obligated. 303rd AESG/SYK, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8620-09-C-4001).

Kaman Precision Products, Inc., Orlando, Fla., is being awarded a $52,970,557 firm-fixed contract for joint programmable fuze systems, including the FMU-152 fuze and FZU-55 initiator, of five FMS countries for a quantity of 458 and the Air Force for a quantity of 14,601 each. At this time, $52,970,557 has been obligated. 679th Armament Systems Squadron, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity (F08626-98-C-0006).

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Artcraft Optical Co., Inc., Rochester, N.Y.*, is being awarded a maximum $16,302,804 firm-fixed price, indefinite quantity/indefinite delivery contract for purchase of aircrew spectacle frames. Other location of performance is in New York. Using services are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and federal civilian agencies. The original proposal was DIBBS solicited withone one response. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract includes a base and four one-year option periods. The date of performance completion is Jun. 29, 2010. The contracting activity is the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPM2DE-09-D-7539).

Geren Makes Ground-level Assessment at Fort Drum

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

June 30, 2009 - When Army Secretary Pete Geren took the job two years ago, his major mission was to take care of the force. It was in that vein that the secretary visited this fort in upstate New York to see what soldiers and their families need and how to make their lives better.

"We know there are stresses -- from repeated deployments, from combat, from separations," the secretary said during an interview. The Army has put programs in place to respond to soldiers' and families' concerns, and now must make them more responsive, he said.

Fort Drum is the home of the 10th Mountain Division. The division headquarters returned in May from a deployment to Iraq. Three of the division's brigade-sized units are currently deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan and another is preparing for deployment to Iraq.

Geren spoke to soldiers rail-loading vehicles for the move. "Some of our soldiers have deployed three or four times," Army Maj. Gen. Michael Oates, the division commander, told him.

Wanting to assess the reintegration process and families' needs, the secretary toured the post and took a look at new single soldier quarters. He toured the Soldier Family Assistance Center and met with Gold Star families -- those who have lost loved ones in combat. He moved on to the 3rd Battalion, 85th Mountain Infantry, where he met with soldiers recovering from wounds. Finally, he visited an innovative program providing mental-health care to soldiers in downtown Watertown.

"You need to get on the ground and speak to soldiers and their families," Geren said. "You cannot stay in Washington and hope to get the information you need."

The meetings with Gold Star families and with wounded warriors were behind closed doors. He said the meetings were constructive and pointed to some areas the service can explore.

At the 3rd Battalion, 85th Mountain Infantry, Army Lt. Col. Patrick Harvey spoke about the growth of the program at Fort Drum. The unit is the only one of the 36 Warrior Transition Units that has a unit designation. "The unit is important in the division's history," Harvey said. "It was the unit of John McGrath -- the only 10th Mountain soldier to receive the Medal of Honor in World War II."

Being in a unit means something to the soldiers, Harvey said. "They know they still belong to the Army. They are still soldiers and we have not forgotten them," he said. The unit is a place for soldiers to heal and get back to their units or begin the transition to civilian life.

The unit has 92 military positions and 45 civilian positions. It includes 17 case managers and, on average, 360 to 380 soldiers with complex medical conditions.

"You do not get assigned here if you have a broken leg," Harvey said. Soldiers have two or three overlying issues in addition to their injuries -- post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries are among the complicating factors.

The unit works well and that comes down to leadership. "All of the squad leaders here are hand-picked by the division command sergeant major," he said. "They are where the rubber meets the road. They are the people who ensure the soldiers in their squads receive the care they need."

In the middle of town is another program aimed at helping soldiers. A road sign at the entrance of the Coleman Avenue clinic says "Dead End," but the Fort Drum/Samaritan Health Clinic at the end of the road can mean a new beginning for soldiers.

The off-post clinic began seeing patients in June 2008. It has a full staff of psychiatrists, psychologists and therapists, plus the administrative help they need. Almost 1,000 soldiers have attended more than 10,000 appointments at the clinic.

The clinic provides individual and group therapy, medication management, alcohol and drug abuse treatment and psychological assessments. All of this is integrated with other treatment options so there is a continuity of care.

"The off-base location helps NCOs and officers in particular seek the care they need," said Dr. Spencer Falcon, the clinic's vice president for medical affairs.

Somehow there is less stigma associated with going to the civilian clinic, officials said, and they hope the partnership can be tried at other posts. Such partnerships also bridge gaps between the civilian and military worlds.

"The American people appreciate their soldiers, but they don't really understand the sacrifices soldiers and their families make every day," Geren said.

'The War will go on, and on and on...'

Sometime toward the end of the movie, Battle of Bulge, the evil Colonel Hessler is tells his naive orderly that if the German offensive succeeds then, 'The war will go on, and on and on!'

American forces have pulled out of Iraqi cities, leaving them to the increasingly competent Iraqi Army and Police. There are still 130,000 American troops in the country, including three Marine Expeditionary Units of the II MEF, the 1st Cavalry Division, and the 25th Infantry Division.

At some point these units, among the best in the American military, will leave, making them eventually, available for deployment elsewhere.

I recall several months ago MSNBC's Mika Berezninski pestering David Frum about our troop's lengthy deployment in Iraq saying, and this is a direct quote, 'they're not ready'.

A flabbergasted Frum asked, 'Ready for what?' and went on to explain that the purpose of a military is not only to be ready to fight a war, but to fight a war, and that is precisely what our troops in Iraq have been doing for more than 6 years.

Critics will say that the adventure in Iraq was a distraction from the War on Terror. That's as asinine as saying the attack on Germany was a distraction from World War Two. Remember, no Nazi planes were at Pearl Harbor.

9/11 was not an isolated incident. Neither are Hamas and Hezbollah's wars on Israel, or Shabab's war on Somalia, or Pakistan's campaign on the northwest, or Iran's quest from the bomb. They are all linked, not only through Iran's extensive terror supporting network, but by ideology. Mullah Omar, Mohammed Aweys, and Sheik Nasrallah all seek to impose the caliphate, just as Germany, Japan, and Italy sought to impose fascism. Our modern enemies can't be treated separately anymore than our Second World War adversaries could.

Will's novel, A Line Through the Desert: The First Gulf War may be purchased at Amazon

Stavridis Assumes Top European Command Post From Craddock

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

June 30, 2009 - Adm. James Stavridis today became the first Navy officer to assume the top post at U.S. European Command. Stavridis also will serve as NATO's supreme allied commander for Europe.

Speaking during change-of-command ceremonies at Patch Barracks here, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates praised Stavridis, former commander of U.S. Southern Command, as a visionary leader to carry forward important groundwork laid by the retiring Army Gen. Bantz J. Craddock.

"Jim Stavridis is a true sailor-scholar whose strategic vision and diplomatic expertise make him the leader we need at this command at such a critical junction in the history of the transatlantic alliance," Gates said.

Gates called this year's 60th anniversary of NATO an opportunity to take stock of the member nations' shared history, challenges and sacrifices – and their current mission in Afghanistan.

"Today, the transatlantic alliance faces new challenges, and new stresses and strains that will test our credibility, resolve and shared purpose," Gates said. "An alliance that never fired a shot during four decades of the Cold War now has thousands of troops deployed thousands of miles from the heart of Europe, many coming under fire as we stand here today."

Conceding that the outcome and duration of the war in Afghanistan remain uncertain, Gates said he's confident Stavridis "will lead our brave men and women with honor and do right by them, just as General Craddock has over these past three years."

Gates offered high praise for Craddock's accomplishments during the past three years at the helm of Eucom and NATO.

"His tenure since taking command at Eucom and NATO has been one of steady professionalism and forward-thinking leadership during a time of great consequence for the United States and our allies and partners in Europe," Gates said.

Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, shared Gates' assessment of the "simply amazing" evolution within NATO and Eucom under Craddock's leadership.

During Craddock's tenure, NATO became a more expeditionary force, deploying and conducting missions far from its traditional borders, Gates said. Meanwhile, NATO expanded its role in combating nontraditional threats such as narco-trafficking and the proliferation of deadly weapons. Albania and Croatia entered the alliance, and the mission in Kosovo transitioned from United Nations to European Union management. NATO also reformed its command structure and redesigned its response force.

Meanwhile, Craddock assisted in the standup of U.S. Africa Command to focus specifically on the African continent. Mullen recognized Craddock for contributing talent and resources from his own staff to stand up the new command.

But particularly significant, Gates said, has been Craddock's support for the mission in Afghanistan. During the last two years, 36 countries in the Eucom area of responsibility have increased their assistance to NATO's International Security Assistance Force.

"General Craddock accomplished all this while having nearly half of Eucom's forces deployed in direct support of the campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan," Gates said.

"The trajectory of General Craddock's career, in many respects, tracks some of the most important missions the U.S. military has undertaken over the past two generations," Gates said. "Through solidarity and steadfastness of purpose – and the service and dedication of millions of allied men and women in uniform like John Craddock – that famous gap to our east was never breached."

Craddock paid tribute to the more then 84,000 servicemembers assigned to Eucom – troops he said "have worked hard day in and day out," setting a standard of excellence for others to follow.

Calling his people "ordinary people doing a hero's job," he told them their contribution has been significant. "You have made a huge difference," he said.

As Stavridis takes the helm at Eucom, Mullen said, he'll bring the same ability to see issues from other culture's perspectives that he demonstrated at Southcom. "He taught commitment by showing commitment to people of the region," he said.

"Partnership is what this command is all about," Stavridis said, noting that the partnership here is built on trust, confidence and shared experience. The challenges facing the region, he added, will only enhance those partnerships.

Stavridis said he was humbled to accept his new post, looking back on the long legacy of generals who have gone before him.

"I can't help but think about the height of the bar I must achieve," he said, joking about his own short stature.

Turning to Craddock, he thanked the general for "walking point" here and at other shared junctures in their careers. "We can only hope to build on what you have accomplished here," he said.

Security Agreement Implementation Announced

The Department of Defense announced today that, in accordance with the security agreement between the United States and Iraq signed last year, U.S. combat forces have left Iraqi cities, villages and localities.

This historic security agreement between the United States and Iraq is indicative of Iraq's confidence, capacity and capability as U.S. combat forces move out of Iraq's urban areas.

At the forefront of creating a sovereign, stable and self-reliant Iraq and developing an environment of political and economic growth, significant investments have been made in infrastructure, training, equipment, essential services, and the institution of rule of law to benefit all Iraqis.

As U.S. combat forces move out of the localities, Iraqi security forces (ISF) are assuming responsibility for security, a significant step for Iraq and a tribute to the tremendous progress made and dedication of the ISF members.

"The United States is committed to full, transparent, and continued implementation of the security agreement in a spirit of partnership with the sovereign nation of Iraq. Iraqi security forces continue to take the lead in the security and stability of Iraq," said Gen. Ray Odierno, commanding general, Multi-National Force Iraq. U.S. forces outside urban areas will continue to conduct operations by, with, and through, ISF, focusing on securing Iraqi borders and areas outside the cities. "In order to meet our obligations under the security agreement, some U.S. forces will remain in cities to train, advise, and coordinate with Iraqi security forces, as well as support civil capacity efforts led by the U.S. Mission-Iraq, government of Iraq (GoI) and the United Nations. All U.S. forces retain full authority and ability to protect themselves, Iraqi security forces, and the Iraqi public," said Odierno.

To date, more than 150 U.S. bases have been closed or returned to the GoI since January 2008. U.S. troop strength has decreased to 131,000 from a high of 165,574 in September 2007. Contractors have also decreased from 164,491 to 125,163 today.

Additionally, more than $15 million of property has been transferred to the GoI. The United States will continue to reduce both number of bases and combat forces in 2010 through the end of 2011.

Increased security, improved Iraqi security forces, and continued progress in local and national government capacity has set the conditions for U.S. forces to withdraw from the cities.

Group Plans 'National Day of Awakening' on Mental Health

By Sharon Foster
American Forces Press Service

June 30, 2009 - A Maryland-based troop-support group is planning a "National Day of Awakening" to highlight the merntal health needs of military families and the services available to them. "We are very excited about this opportunity to raise awareness and awaken the general public to the issues facing our military families," said Barbara Van Dahlen Romberg, founder and president of Give an Hour, which provides free mental health services to redeployed troops. "In addition to a large day-long event in New York City, our goal is to have numerous community events going on simultaneously across the country."

Give an Hour is planning the National Day of Awakening for October, and the New York event will include a gathering of mental health groups that provide services to military families at an outdoor venue. The event will be open to the public, and speakers and musicians will be invited to "entertain, inform and inspire," Romberg said.

Gatherings across the country will include local and national military and veterans groups, corporations, local governments and community groups, she said.

Organizers hope The National Day of Awakening will fulfill several purposes, Romberg said.

"It will continue the critical process of educating all citizens on issues affecting our returning warriors," she explained. "The event will serve to signal a new era of collaboration and coordination among organizations and individuals who have answered the call to serve this population. The event will also awaken all citizens to the huge resources available to servicemembers."

Romberg added the events will provide an immediate focus for the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act for people interested in serving and helping troops and their families. President Barack Obama signed the act into law April 21. Among other provisions, it created the Veterans Corps as a new national service organization.

Army Spc. Jennifer Crane, a combat veteran who uses Give an Hour services, said she is pleased about the October event.

"I served in Afghanistan in 2003," Crane said. "I was diagnosed with chronic post-traumatic stress disorder. Give an Hour has provided me with amazing free mental health care that I so desperately needed. I have been seeking help through them for about a year now, and it has been a wonderful experience. Today, I am a functioning member of society because of them. I know this event will help many other servicemembers and their families."

Rolando J. Díaz, a licensed clinical psychologist, said he joined Give an Hour because he was searching for a way to support servicemembers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. He thinks the National Day of Awakening will be a huge success.

"So much of the work of this organization is about creating awareness, not only among providers but also servicemembers – knowing that they can get these services free of charge and that they do not have to feel bad about asking for help," Díaz said. "This is what makes this program work. The National Day of Awakening will be very beneficial. If needed, I plan to participate."

Romberg said she believes the event could have far-reaching implications in assisting military families.

"The National Day of Awakening will be a call to action for all citizens to assist the 1.9 million Americans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan and the estimated 20 million directly affected by a loved one's service," she said. "We have the opportunity to unite our country in our concern and compassion for military families."

General Counsel Looking Into 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,' Gates Says

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

June 30, 2009 - A day after President Barack Obama reaffirmed his pledge to overturn the so-called "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today he has Defense Department lawyers exploring ways to make it more flexible until the law is changed. The law prohibits officials from inquiring into a servicemember's sexual orientation in the absence of statements or acts that indicate the servicemember is homosexual, but allows the services to take action against servicemembers who disclose their homosexuality by word or action.

Gates told reporters traveling with him from U.S. European Command that he talked with the president last week about "how to achieve his objective, which is changing the policy." The issue also came up at last week's Defense Leadership Council, he said.

"And the issue that we face is, How do we begin to do preparations and, simultaneously, the administration move forward in asking the Congress to change the law?" he said.

"What we have is a law, not a policy or regulation," Gates said. "And as I discovered when I got into it, it is a very prescriptive law. It doesn't leave a lot to the imagination or a lot of flexibility. So one of the things we are looking at is, Is there flexibility in how we apply this law?"

Gates cited the example of someone who's been "outed by a third party," possibly the result of blackmail or a jilting.

"Does that force us to take an action?" he questioned. "I don't know the answer to that. I don't want to pretend to. But that is the kind of thing we are looking at."

Gates said he believes there's "at least a more humane way to comply with the law until the law gets changed."

Exactly what that might be is up to legal interpretation, he said. "We have general counsel working on it," he added.

Army Secretary Observes First Day for West Point Class of '13

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

June 30, 2009 - "Cadet Candidate! Walk up to the line! Walk up to the line! Walk up to the line!" A young man wearing black shoes, socks and shorts with a white T-shirt and carrying a barracks bag stuffed with clothes walks toward the line painted on the ground and reports to a U.S. Military Academy cadet wearing a red sash.

It's a high-stress environment as the cadet candidate puts down the barracks bag, salutes and attempts to report.

"Can you not walk up to a line?" the senior cadet bellows. "You missed the line! Go back and do it again!" Some cadet candidates repeat the process five or six times before getting it right.

And if that isn't enough stress, the young men and women are under the observation of Army Secretary Pete Geren.

Geren visited "R Day" at the Military Academy here yesterday. It was the first day for the Class of 2013, and like every class at the academy since its founding in 1802, the cadets got their first taste of life as a "plebe" – a first-year cadet.

"I wanted to come up here and see the process," Geren said during an interview. "It's part of the tradition of West Point, and I wanted to experience that. It helps me better understand those traditions and culture of the academy and the officers who come from here."

Geren met with parents, cadets, cadet candidates and military personnel who helped to process 1,304 young men and women into life at the academy.

The process starts with a briefing at Eisenhower Hall to welcome candidates and parents. An Army officer tells parents what to expect and invites them to tour the campus while their sons and daughters in-process. Cadet Stephanie Whitaker takes over the podium and tells the cadet candidates what to expect. She ends her presentation with, "You have 90 seconds to say your goodbyes." With that, she hits the stopwatch function on her wristwatch.

R-Day begins the process of changing civilians into cadets. They are measured for uniforms, given identification cards, shorn of their hair, assigned to companies and taught to march. At 5:45 p.m., the candidates march to Trophy Point for the Oath Ceremony, with their parents watching.

Geren observed the process and also met with parents and candidates.

"The parents are proud, but they are also very nervous," he said. "But you have to hand it to the young men and women who have volunteered for this experience. There were the most applications for positions at the academy this year than ever before.

"I get annoyed at people who say the economy is the driver in this and in recruiting," he continued. "The Army has made its recruiting goals, and the number of applications was up before the economy crashed."

The West Point cadets are impressive in another way, the secretary said. "The United States is at war, and they know it," he said. "Yet they still step forward. We are a fortunate country to have such people."

New Pacific Strategy Builds on Partnerships, Commander Says

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

June 30, 2009 - Partnership, readiness and presence are the cornerstones of the U.S. Pacific Command's new strategy, its commander said at a meeting of the Atlantic Council think tank here last night. "The guns have largely been silent in our area of responsibility," Navy Adm. Timothy J. Keating said. "For that, we're immensely grateful.

"But we wanted to take what got us where we are and try and catapult it five, 10, 20 years into the future," he added. The countries in Pacom's area of responsibility have room for growth, and in some cases, potential for bad behavior, the admiral said. "But in many more cases than not," he said, "[there is opportunity for] cooperating and collaborating to ensure more peace and more stability in the region."

That is why leaders of U.S. Pacific Command, which covers 36 countries accounting for roughly half of Earth's surface, decided a year ago to rewrite its strategy, the admiral said.

Keating described it as an ambitious undertaking. The first tenet, he said, is partnership.

"We're convinced that building upon the very strong bilateral relationships and alliances in our [area of responsibility is essential]," he said, referring to Australia, Thailand, the Philippines, South Korea, and Japan. "Increasingly, we see opportunities for including elements across the dime, so to speak: diplomatic, intelligence, military, energy and the environment.

"We're looking to cobble all this together in an increasingly tightly woven fabric that emphasizes multilateralism and the ability we have as the predominant military power in the region to provide some rudder, some guidance, [and] in some cases, leadership," he added.

Keating used India as an example of an improved partnership. In the mid-1980s, the country's reaction to a visiting U.S. military official was lukewarm at best. A recent visit was completely different, he said.

The Indian government was more willing to talk about engagement and partnership with the United States, and it is participating in military exercises more robustly than before, including a recent trilateral exercise in the Sea of Japan.

"We think that this is a great example of partnership and the benefits we can all derive from increased dialogue, increased cooperation, and increased understanding of what we are all about" in the Pacific area, he said.

As for readiness, having enough forces isn't enough if they can't get out and participate in exercises and respond to the president's or defense secretary's military operational directives, he said.

Keating cited Cobra Gold, an annual exercise in Thailand. For this year's exercise, the 35th in the series, five countries participated and 10 others sent observers, including India and China. Participation has never been more vigorous or spirited, the admiral said.

The "presence" piece of the new strategy exalts the virtue of getting out into the area of responsibility, not conducting business virtually through teleconferencing, secure calls and the like, Keating said.

"You've got to get honest-to-goodness grime underneath your fingernails and work with the folks in this very large area of responsibility," he said, "so that they can develop an intense understanding of what we, the United States of America, offer."

Through understanding of what the United States has to offer, many of the countries in the Pacom area of responsibility have come to view the United States as an indispensable partner, he said.

"We don't necessarily want you with us every minute of every day, in our country, on our soil, in our water, or in the air overhead, but we'd like you nearby," Keating said is the prevailing view in the region. "We want you to be able to come when we need you. We want our young men and women to go to school with you, preferably in the United States."

Keating said he and other Pacific Command leaders hope the new strategy builds a simple, but not easy, way to ensure peace and stability in the region.

New Pacific Strategy Builds on Partnerships, Commander Says

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

June 30, 2009 - Partnership, readiness and presence are the cornerstones of the U.S. Pacific Command's new strategy, its commander said at a meeting of the Atlantic Council think tank here last night. "The guns have largely been silent in our area of responsibility," Navy Adm. Timothy J. Keating said. "For that, we're immensely grateful.

"But we wanted to take what got us where we are and try and catapult it five, 10, 20 years into the future," he added. The countries in Pacom's area of responsibility have room for growth, and in some cases, potential for bad behavior, the admiral said. "But in many more cases than not," he said, "[there is opportunity for] cooperating and collaborating to ensure more peace and more stability in the region."

That is why leaders of U.S. Pacific Command, which covers 36 countries accounting for roughly half of Earth's surface, decided a year ago to rewrite its strategy, the admiral said.

Keating described it as an ambitious undertaking. The first tenet, he said, is partnership.

"We're convinced that building upon the very strong bilateral relationships and alliances in our [area of responsibility is essential]," he said, referring to Australia, Thailand, the Philippines, South Korea, and Japan. "Increasingly, we see opportunities for including elements across the dime, so to speak: diplomatic, intelligence, military, energy and the environment.

"We're looking to cobble all this together in an increasingly tightly woven fabric that emphasizes multilateralism and the ability we have as the predominant military power in the region to provide some rudder, some guidance, [and] in some cases, leadership," he added.

Keating used India as an example of an improved partnership. In the mid-1980s, the country's reaction to a visiting U.S. military official was lukewarm at best. A recent visit was completely different, he said.

The Indian government was more willing to talk about engagement and partnership with the United States, and it is participating in military exercises more robustly than before, including a recent trilateral exercise in the Sea of Japan.

"We think that this is a great example of partnership and the benefits we can all derive from increased dialogue, increased cooperation, and increased understanding of what we are all about" in the Pacific area, he said.

As for readiness, having enough forces isn't enough if they can't get out and participate in exercises and respond to the president's or defense secretary's military operational directives, he said.

Keating cited Cobra Gold, an annual exercise in Thailand. For this year's exercise, the 35th in the series, five countries participated and 10 others sent observers, including India and China. Participation has never been more vigorous or spirited, the admiral said.

The "presence" piece of the new strategy exalts the virtue of getting out into the area of responsibility, not conducting business virtually through teleconferencing, secure calls and the like, Keating said.

"You've got to get honest-to-goodness grime underneath your fingernails and work with the folks in this very large area of responsibility," he said, "so that they can develop an intense understanding of what we, the United States of America, offer."

Through understanding of what the United States has to offer, many of the countries in the Pacom area of responsibility have come to view the United States as an indispensable partner, he said.

"We don't necessarily want you with us every minute of every day, in our country, on our soil, in our water, or in the air overhead, but we'd like you nearby," Keating said is the prevailing view in the region. "We want you to be able to come when we need you. We want our young men and women to go to school with you, preferably in the United States."

Keating said he and other Pacific Command leaders hope the new strategy builds a simple, but not easy, way to ensure peace and stability in the region.

Chairman Calls U.S.-Poland Relationship 'Vital'

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

June 29, 2009 - Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said his visit today with his Polish counterpart, while "routine," also was one of great importance to the U.S. military. "It's a representation of the strength, commitment, and importance of the relationship to both countries," Mullen said following a military honors ceremony welcoming him to Warsaw.

"This is a vital relationship that from my perspective should continue," he said. "The Polish military has provided great capability and great results in Iraq and does so today in Afghanistan under the auspices of [the International Security Assistance Force.]"

The United States is very committed to its partnership with Poland and the modernization of that country's military, Mullen said.

"We've had good initial discussions today, and throughout the day those discussions will continue to do exactly what General [Franciszek] Gagor spoke of, which is to deepen the relationship," Mullen said. "Thank you for the partnership that is so strong. We look forward to it becoming stronger in the future."

Mullen also praised the "young people" who fulfill the commitments Poland has made in places like Iraq and Afghanistan. "I'm always reminded ... of the young people who make this possible, those who sacrifice and, in cases have ... given their lives, to support what we share in common and what we believe in," he said.

The chairman left here June 24 on a week-long trip that has already taken him to Russia where he spoke with his counterpart, Russian Gen. Nikolai Makarov. He spent today talking with Gagor before departing for his final stop in Germany where he and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates will preside over the European Command's change of command ceremony.

Army Gen. John Craddock will turn over EUCOM's reigns to Navy Adm. James G. Stavridis at Husky Field on Patch Barracks tomorrow.