Carter Honors Military Children at Yokota Air Base

DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, April 9, 2015 – Behind those who make up the greatest fighting force the world has ever known are families, many including children who serve the nation around the world just as their parents do, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said yesterday in Japan.

On his first official trip to Northeast Asia as defense secretary, Carter is visiting Japan and South Korea to focus on strengthening and modernizing U.S. alliances in that region.

In Japan the secretary held a military family town hall at Yokota Air Base to celebrate April as the Month of the Military Child, established in 1986 by then-Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger.

The month recognizes nearly 2 million U.S. children who have one or both parents serving in the armed forces.

Military Kids Town Hall

To an audience of service members and military kids of all ages, Carter explained why the U.S. military is the world’s greatest fighting force.

“We have the best technology in the world and we have [many] friends and allies … and by doing what you’re doing here in Japan, you reinforce that. But that’s not the secret,” he said.

The people who make up the American military are the secret, the secretary said.

“Nobody else can compare in terms of the people who make up their militaries,” Carter said. “We can ask you to do the most complex tasks, the most delicate things, the things that require the most smarts and savvy and strength -- and you do it.”

Kids Serve, Too

And behind every service member is a family, and often, children.

To the military children in the audience Carter said, “Even as we can’t do anything without your dad or your mom, they can’t do anything without you. And so, to the kids who are here I want to say to you -- thank you for sticking with your folks as they serve our country. And that way you’re serving our country too.”

After a round of applause for the military kids, Carter said it’s important for U.S. service members to be in Japan and in the region.

Peace and Stability

In a world where many parts of the globe always seem to be in turmoil, he asked they audience why the Asia-Pacific region is “generally so peaceful and therefore so prosperous, raising their children in peace and dreaming their dreams?”

It’s because the Asia-Pacific nations have had year after year of peace and stability, Carter said. That stability has allowed Japan and South Korea, China, India and others in the region to develop and prosper, he explained, “because of the peace that the United States, more than any other single factor, has created in this part of the world for decades.

“In a nutshell,” the secretary added, “when we talk about [the United States rebalancing to the Asia Pacific], it really means focusing on this part of the world … because half of humanity lives here [and] half of the wealth of the world is here,” the secretary explained.

The region wouldn’t be so peaceful and stable, he added, “if it weren’t for … the longstanding presence of the U.S. military here in Japan and elsewhere. So you are part of a winning formula out there, and it wouldn’t be this way without you.”

Traveling and Growing

To the kids the secretary said he knows that being part of a military family isn’t always easy.

“You move around a lot, much more than most American kids, because your folks have to move. So you have to get used to new schools and new friends, and that can be difficult,” he added.

But the same conditions also give military kids more experience as young Americans because they have a chance to travel and understand different cultures and make friends around the United States and around the world.

“I think in the end you [become] stronger people for having done it,” Carter said, adding that it’s also hard when parents are deployed and are away from home for a long time.

“We know that people sacrifice in order to be in the military,” he added, “and we know that they’re not the only ones who sacrifice, that their children sacrifice as well.”

Service and Success

Military kids are some of the most successful citizens, he told the audience.

Military children who grew up on overseas bases and across the United States have gone on to win Heisman trophies and National Basketball Association championships, they’ve become Grammy-winning artists and Oscar-winning actors and actresses, they’ve written best-selling books like “The Hunger Games,” and one former military child became an Army doctor and is now

training to become an astronaut, according to military websites.

“You’re going to go to great places in the future,” Carter said, “and if that is some way that we pay you back for what you’ve given us … I hope [your success] has something to do with the fact that you’ve been military kids.”

He added, “Thank you on behalf of everybody in the United States. We don’t take it for granted -- we really appreciate what you’re doing out here.”

AADD reform encourages culture of responsible choices

by Staff Sgt. Daryl Knee
52nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs

4/8/2015 - SPANGDAHLEM AIR BASE, Germany -- The procedures for Airmen Against Drunk Driving program here will change April 30.

The goal of the anti-drunk driving coalition council's reforms of installing a 24/7 automated phoneline and switching to volunteers using their own personal vehicles from their homes aims to streamline the effectiveness of the program while focusing on its main objectives: saving lives and empowering Airmen.

"These reforms will ensure equal access to our services, our volunteer base stays universal and AADD remains a program run by all Airmen for all Airmen," said U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Joe W. McFadden, AADD president. "As always, the responsibility remains on all Airmen, not just our volunteers, to make plans, prepare for contingencies and educate themselves about the ill-effects of drinking and driving."

The Old System

The program operates Saturdays and Sundays from midnight to 6 a.m. and will continue to be run during those times. The current program utilizes volunteer drivers who report to a staging area in the 52nd Logistics Readiness Squadron dormitory.

There, they and a phone-call dispatcher await calls from anyone who may need their services. Once a call has come through, two drivers will both depart in the program's only vehicle, which is sponsored by a local car dealership.

Their objective is to collect the inebriated Airman and get them and their car back to their home. AADD drivers do this by having one driver operate the Airman's vehicle, and the other AADD driver follows the car with the dealership vehicle.

Current program rules barred non-AADD volunteers to ride in the vehicle, limiting AADD to callers with cars.

"If the Airman didn't have a car, we'd basically tell him to find another way home," said U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Shawnte Gholson, AADD's outreach liaison. "The Airman's Creed says 'I will never leave an Airman behind,' but to these people, that's what we were doing."

With the transfer complete, the two volunteers can then either drive back to the 52nd LRS staging area or drive to pick up another Airman until their shift ends.

Using a single provided vehicle limited volunteers to just two. The council raised the cap to four, yet two drivers would remain idle while waiting for the car to return to base.

A single car for multiple calls also added to response times, leaving callers to wait an average of more than one hour until drivers could reach them. With multiple calls during that same window, times compounded, even running outside the program's hours of operation.

"We were in this strange situation of not only telling carless Airmen to call or pay someone else but we were turning away more volunteers than we could accept," McFadden said. "If Airmen want to volunteer, we ought to help them do that. And if Airmen need help, we should link them with those willing to do so."

The council recognized further issues beyond the moment the callers returned home. They offered surveys to the callers and found that two-thirds of those polled said they both planned on drinking before heading out and using AADD services that night.

Furthermore, McFadden said that two-thirds of the program's 266 trips in 2014 included more than one passenger and one third of the total had more than three people.

Each of those additional passengers represented a potential designated driver, he added.

"Of course we recognize Airmen calling AADD as a net positive for the community and encourage them to use us when needed," McFadden said. "However, these trends represent an opportunity for us to do better at communicating AADD as a last resort. We do our fellow Airmen a greater service by not enabling them to continue making the same choices but by empowering them with more options promoting responsibility and accountability."

For those reasons, the AADD council enacted these reforms not only to address program effectiveness but tackle unintended effects it had on the base's culture.

"This reform is not an experiment -- this is about cultural change," he said. "Under the old program, we sent an unintentional message that Airmen with cars didn't need a designated driver or another plan: AADD would bring them and their car home for free, and we'd do it again the next week. Those days are over, and we're not going back."

The New System

AADD volunteers will no longer drive a single provided vehicle. McFadden stressed that this decision came from the AADD council and not reflective of the dealership or caused by any outside factors.

Instead, volunteers will use their own vehicles to transport callers back to their home locations, similar to how AADD runs at most Air Force installations. Getting a caller's personal vehicle back is not AADD's responsibility, and Airmen should adjust accordingly before heading out.

Drivers and callers will be separated by gender, ensuring females will only be picked up by females and males will pick up males.  Exceptions may be made for groups of mixed genders as appropriate.

Volunteers will no longer be required to report to a staging area on base. They can operate from home and answer calls as needed. On-call dispatchers will also receive AADD requests from their homes and will select drivers nearest to a caller's location to return them.

"If a caller is in Speicher and needs a ride back to Bitburg, we can summon from our volunteer pool a driver from one of those two areas to bring them home," McFadden said. "This will reduce the response times, efficiently utilize volunteer man hours, conserve fuel, and guarantee no Airman will be turned away because they didn't have a car."

Airmen without vehicles or USAREUR driver licenses can still volunteer for AADD as a phone dispatcher. They can also serve as designated drivers for their friends.

"We're not turning into a 'taxi service,'" Gholson added, "We're helping our fellow Airmen in need."

Expanded phone service

The second part of reform will convert the AADD phone number (06565-61-2233) from a phone manned just 12 hours a week into an automated service available 24/7.

"We will continue to offer rides home for Airmen so long as volunteers remain willing to do so," McFadden said. "Should no volunteers be available, we offer the phoneline and its options as another tool to empower Airmen."

During the AADD's operating hours, callers who select AADD support will be transferred to the base command post who will transfer them to the on-call dispatcher for pickup.

Should no driver or dispatcher be available, the caller has the option to be returned to the main AADD phone line for additional services or be connected through the command post to their respective first sergeant or recall roster.

Those who call outside of AADD's hours can be connected to the command post as well as local cab agencies, Ride for Life, the Sexual Assault Response Coordinator, medical emergencies, security forces, the airman and family readiness center, the chapel and the National Suicide Prevention Hotline.

McFadden said the inclusion of these agencies into the AADD phone number offers a safety net should its services be unavailable, guaranteeing Airmen access to support should they elect to use them.

The ultimate success of the reform, as well as the continuing program, depends on the contributions of all of Saber Nation.

"The first 'A' in AADD is for 'Airmen,' and that is not exclusive to our volunteers or just junior enlisted," McFadden said. "It includes our passengers and even those who may never use or volunteer for AADD in their careers. This fact is at the heart of our reform plan, represents a value we are committed to upholding and a better future we are committed to forging today."

For more information about AADD, email 52fw.aadd@us.af.mil. If you are in need of AADD services, call 06565-61-2233.

"We're all out there trying to change the culture of drinking and driving," Gholson said. "Never forget: drinking and driving is never OK. It's not good, and it's not safe."

Navy Lawyer Supports DESRON 26 for Joint Warrior

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Abe McNatt, Destroyer Squadron 26 Public Affairs

USS ANZIO, At Sea (NNS) -- After she finished law school eight years ago, Lt. Nancy Pham sought and earned her commission in the Navy Judge Advocate General's (JAG) Corps.

The Navy provided Pham with an opportunity to put her legal skills to use in service to her country and gave her a way to gain valuable trial experience that wouldn't have been as accessible to a junior lawyer in the civilian world. In addition to enabling her to practice military law, Pham has learned that the Navy will sometimes provide her with opportunities to step outside of her comfort zone.

Swinging "like an orangutan" off of the fantail of a U.S. Navy warship recently, Pham was reminded that JAG work isn't all collecting depositions and processing evidence. While that isn't exactly what Pham had in mind when she first commissioned as a JAG officer, this isn't Pham's first time at sea.

Embarked aboard the guided-missile cruiser USS Anzio (CG 68) for the ship's transit to Scotland to participate in exercise Joint Warrior, Pham is getting her first taste of serving as part of the Navy's "small boy" fleet.

"I've found that I feel much more comfortable walking around and exploring on a smaller ship," Pham said. "Places like the bridge and the flight deck are much more accessible, and I've been able to experience more aspects of the daily life of a shipboard Sailor."

While aboard Anzio, her job is to train Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 26 staff and Anzio crew members on the rules of engagement for Joint Warrior. In between training and preparing for the exercise, however, she has taken advantage of opportunities to further her own "Sailorization."

Pham proudly rattles off a list of her newest experiences like a scout showing off her merit badges: she's donned flight-deck gear to perform a pre-flight foreign object debris walkdown, watched tactical ship maneuvers from the bridge, and discovered some previously unknown acrobatic talents while readying herself for a ride in a rigid-hulled inflatable boat (RHIB).

"I was climbing up the rope ladder coming off the RHIB, swinging there like an orangutan," she said. "It was fun."

Her first RHIB ride, she said was also particularly exciting because they were executing a fast inland attack craft training exercise. The RHIB crew's job was to simulate a swarming attack on the ship by smaller speed boats.

"It was a lot of fun; we got to go really fast, and we were bouncing all over the place," Pham said. "The whole time I was thinking, 'please don't be the JAG who goes overboard.'"

Capt. Brian Fort, the DESRON 26 commodore, said having Pham aboard as part of the DESRON staff has been a valuable experience for all concerned.

"She's been collecting some great sea stories, and my staff has been receiving some outstanding training," Fort said. "She is a top-notch legal officer, and I couldn't ask for a better person to augment my staff prior to the exercise."

"Every JAG should take any opportunity they can to go to sea," Pham said. "Being at sea reminds JAGs of the mission of the Navy and gives context to a lot of what we do, such as freedom of navigation operations. It also gives us perspective on what Sailors do on a daily basis. Seeing the unique challenges of Sailors' lives firsthand-the constant demands and the family separation-is invaluable when advising Sailors and addressing their legal needs."

Twice a year, nations converge on Faslane to commence Joint Warrior, a United Kingdom-led training exercise designed to provide NATO and allied forces with a unique multi-warfare environment in which to prepare for global operations.

With more than 50 ships representing the 15 countries participating, the latest Joint Warrior exercise, scheduled to begin April 9, will be the largest Joint Warrior to date.

The U.S. Navy contingent will be led by DESRON 26. The guided-missile cruisers USS Anzio (CG 68) and USS Vicksburg (CG 69); the guided-missile destroyers USS Porter (DDG 78) and USS Donald Cook (DDG 75); the dry cargo and ammunition ship USNS Medgar Evers (T-AKE 13); and elements from Commander, Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing (CPRW) 11 and Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 48 will also participate.

In addition to U.S. and U.K. forces, Joint Warrior will include air, sea and ground assets from Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Turkey.

USS Donald Cook Departs Plymouth, Continues FOST Training

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Karolina A. Oseguera

PLYMOUTH, England (NNS) -- The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Donald Cook (DDG 75) departed Plymouth, England, April 6, 2015, to continue Flag Officer Sea Training (FOST) at sea.

FOST is based out of naval bases in the United Kingdom (UK), and it delivers operational training across all disciplines for the Royal Navy and other navies that wish to make use of its services.

"I saw huge improvements throughout the past two weeks. We rowed hard and we got a lot of work done. We had major improvements in all areas but we still have much to work on," said Cmdr. Charles Hampton, USS Donald Cook (DDG 75) commanding officer. "However, I am very pleased and very proud of everyone onboard. It was an all-hands effort."

During the first two weeks of FOST, Donald Cook Sailors were placed through multiple training team environments to include combat scenarios, flight operations, seamanship training team scenarios, gunnery exercises, damage control training, engineering training and a weekly war environment.

In the weekly war environment, the ship was placed in a seven hour simulated general quarters environment following a storyline of shipboard attacks from enemy forces. Sailors had to react while being assessed by the United Kingdom Royal Navy FOST and the U.S. Navy's Afloat Training Group (ATG) experts.

FOST will now resume the certification process in preparation for participation in Joint Warrior 15, a 54-nation international exercise in which Donald Cook will operate as part of a strike group.

FOST offers tailored training to meet the specific national requirements of many other navies, air forces and elements of land forces. The syllabus is framed around NATO doctrine and is aimed at delivering Royal Navy standards. It draws upon FOST's experience across an array of platforms to capture and promote best practice.

FOST's training prepares all types of surface warships, submarines and auxiliaries for peacetime, peace-support and war-fighting operations. Starting with basic alongside preparatory safety and readiness training, units progress through single threat and multi-threat scenarios to advanced tactical training at task group level.

Donald Cook's port call in Plymouth allowed Sailors to relax and recover while experiencing the local attractions such as a soccer game and a morale, welfare and recreation (MWR) guided tour to Stonehenge.

Donald Cook, forward-deployed to Rota, Spain, is conducting naval operations with allies and partners in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations in order to advance security and stability in the Mediterranean and Black Sea regions.

U.S. 6th Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, conducts the full spectrum of joint and naval operations, often in concert with allied, joint, and interagency partners, in order to advance U.S. national interests and security and stability in Europe and Africa.