News of the Force: Thursday, September 7, 2017 - Page 1

[Newsoft...@aol.com]

Thursday, September 7, 2017

Today is National Threatened Species Day in Australia

---

 

NOAA news

    

    For more than a day, monstrous Hurricane Irma has sustained Category 5 winds of 185 miles per hour while ripping through the northern Lesser Antilles and the Virgin Islands. As of 5 p.m., ET, yesterday, Hurricane Irma remained a potentially catastrophic Category 5 storm moving west-northwest at 16 mph toward South Florida. No evacuation orders will be issued in Miami-Dade County, Fla., yet, Mayor Carlos Gimenez said yesterday. And a rumor that scientists would create a new hurricane category for Irma led people to believe that the storm had already received a Category 6 designation, but there is no such thing.

    Princess Julianna Airport on the island of St. Martin has been "severely damaged" by Hurricane Irma, according to Air France.

    For the most complete coverage as of this morning on Hurricane Irma, visit:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2017/09/07/category-5-irma-stays-on-perilous-path-toward-florida-hurricane-watch-issued/?deferJs=true&outputType=default-article&utm_term=.61244f6e5aa8 .

    Three teams of U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps personnel are standing ready to assist in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma.

    Find Florida evacuation routes, information on traffic congestion, storm surge, flood information and much more through the dropdown menus here:

http://floridadisaster.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=c788060028cb43809a25744ead39c0d6 . (Thanks, Nena!)
    And flood ravaged Houston may be next to feel the force of a powerful hurricane that could signal the start of the apocalypse, if three self-styled prophets are correct.

 

U.S. adds launchers to THAAD systems in South Korea

    

    Dozens of people were injured in clashes between South Korean protesters and police today as the U.S. military added more launchers to the high-tech THAAD missile-defense system it installed in a southern town.

    Days after a massive underground bomb blast, there are signs North Korea may be preparing a new missile launch. South Korea has responded with another show of force: This time, its navy has conducted live fire drills.

    Japan yesterday again upgraded its estimated size of North Korea's latest nuclear test to a yield of around 160 kilotons - more than ten times the size of the Hiroshima bomb.

    A day after predicting a "global catastrophe" if North Korea's nuclear tests lead to anything other than talks, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said the situation may be "impossible" to resolve.

    A U.S. proposal for new United Nations sanctions against North Korea would clamp an embargo on its oil and textile trade and slap a full asset freeze and world-wide travel ban on leader Kim Jong Un and key regime members.

    President Trump's approach to the rapidly rising threat from North Korea has veered from empathy for the country's bellicose leader to finger-pointing at China to quick-tempered threats of possible military action.

    The Trump administration yesterday circulated a draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council that would effectively empower the United States Navy and Air Force to interdict North Korean ships at sea and inspect them for weapons and other illegal cargo.

    Relatively few Americans know many details about how a war between North Korea, the U.S., South Korea and United Nations would look.

    And South Korean commandos will work with U.S. Navy SEALs who killed Osama bin Laden to create a special unit to assassinate Kim Jong-un in the event of war, an Australian newspaper is reporting.

 

Airstrikes continue on ISIS in Iraq

     

    U.S. and Coalition military forces continued to attack the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today. 

    In Iraq, Coalition military forces conducted eight strikes consisting of 15 engagements against ISIS targets: Near Anah, two strikes destroyed an ISIS headquarters and an ISIS communication node; Near Huwayjah, four strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed five oil stills, two ISIS-held buildings, two ISIS headquarters and a front-end loader; Near Qaim, a strike destroyed two ISIS front-end loaders; and near Rawah, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed an ISIS-held building.

 

Catalonia sets independence vote for Oct. 1st

    

    Voters in Spain's prosperous Catalonia region will be asked to choose in less than a month if they want to secede from Spain, the region's pro-independence ruling government announced yesterday in a move that puts it in open defiance of the national government.

 

Syria's army says Israeli airstrikes hit western military facility

By Lisa Levine, News of the Force Tel Aviv

    

    Syria's army said Israeli air strikes today killed two people at a military facility in the country's west, a zone where the regime has been accused of developing chemical weapons. Syria says the raid killed two soldiers and caused material damage. The reported air raid came as Israel is conducting its biggest military exercise in 19 years on its northern border.

    Syria's opposition must accept that they have not won the six-and-a-half year war against President Bashar al-Assad, the U.N. says.

    In Syria yesterday, U.S.-led Coalition military forces conducted eight strikes consisting of 15 engagements against ISIS targets near Raqqa, destroying 13 ISIS fighting positions, damaging five fighting positions and suppressing two fighting positions.

    U.N. human rights investigators have concluded that the Syrian air force carried out a chemical weapons attack on a rebel-held town in April.

    Iran has boasted that it has tricked the world and can now start making nuclear weapons. Just as Israel had warned, Iran has not honored the Obama-brokered agreement and is now openly saying so.

    And a religious Zionist youth movement is officially reopening in Germany, 79 years after being shut down under the National Socialist regime there.

 

---

    Couzin Gym's Thought for the Day: I didn't make it to the gym today. That makes five years in a row.

---

 

'Trump's not going to heaven,' Jessie Jackson says

    

    Imagine that a white conservative religious leader had said that President Obama wasn't going to heaven. Imagine that, say, Franklin Graham or Jerry Falwell, Jr., said Obama "would not qualify to get into Jesus' kingdom." Well, that's exactly what The Rev. Jesse Jackson just said about President Trump. That deafening silence you hear is the response of the mainstream media.

 

D.C.'s National Cathedral removing two stained-glass windows

    Washington, D.C.'s National Cathedral is slated to remove two stained-glass windows of Confederate generals.

    Meanwhile, students wearing a Confederate flag at an Indiana high school can now face suspension for their clothing.

 

Homeland insecurity

    

    Today's Democratic Party screams "racism!" at the mere mention of a border wall. They ignore a few poignant points. First, dozens of countries around the world have border walls; this isn't something new. Second, many prominent Democrats were for the border wall - until the unthinkable happened. Donald Trump was elected President. If he is for something, by definition, the Democratic Party is against it.

    Pennsylvania has submitted another request for a REAL ID enforcement extension from the federal Department of Homeland Security.

    And the Department of Homeland Security announced yesterday that the agency will not carry out immigration enforcement operations in areas hit by Hurricane Irma.

 

U.S. Air Force

    

    Air Force Lt. Col. (Dr.) Brent Waldman, the 386th Expeditionary Medical Operations flight commander and dentist, performed a root canal procedure on a military working dog in Southwest Asia on Aug. 30th. Waldman worked with the Army's veterinary clinic to provide the medical treatment to the dog.

    The California Air National Guard was busy assisting Texas in the after-math of Hurricane Harvey, and now the 129th Rescue Wing, based in the Silicon Valley, will be heading to Florida in anticipation of Hurricane Irma, which is sweeping through the Caribbean heading toward Florida. The wing plans to deploy about 100 of its members this week, including para-rescuemen, The San Diego Union-Tribune has reported. They plan to operate two HH-60G Pave Hawk rescue helicopters and three MC-130P Combat Shadow aircraft out of Hurlburt Field, in the Florida panhandle, the news report said. The 129th was credited with 113 saves while operating in Texas.

    The U.S. Air Force secretary has visited Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo., to discuss the future of the base's aircraft as she said the base's future is unclear.

    An Iraqi F-16 warplane crashed while on a training mission in open terrain in Arizona on Tuesday, the Iraqi Air Force has announced in a statement. The pilot was killed.

    Maxwell AFB, Ala., and other federal agencies are preparing for Hurricane Irma. Maxwell Air Force Base serves as the Incident Staging Base for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

    This week marks the end of an era at Westover Air Reserve Base, Mass., as the U.S. Air Force's last C-5A Galaxy is scheduled to leave.

    First as a member of the U.S. Air Force Reserve for six years, then in the King County (Wash.) Sheriff's Office for 33 years, and most recently as a seven term U.S. congressman, Rep. Dave Reichert says he will not seek re-election.

    Glancing over a 1985 family portrait, a man is awestruck at the image of his younger self. The snapshot of his mother cradling him as his siblings welcomed their father back from a deployment captured a moment that was stronger than words. Although he was too young to remember the moment, Air Force Major Jonathan Elliott, the 23rd Logistics Readiness Squadron's director of operations at Moody AFB, Ga., began his own search to retrieve this piece of heritage, which became the event that forged a stronger bond between father and son, who both served as Team Moody airmen and Air Force officers. "We were completely unaware of the photo's existence," said retired Air Force Lt. Col. Gary Elliott, a 347th Tactical Fighter Wing F-4E Phantom II pilot from 1983 to 1986. "When the picture was taken, my whole attention was on my family, and I didn't know we were the subject of an impromptu photo. I didn't know if the photo had ever been used in an article or the base newspaper, but it was slice of life in our family history, and we wanted to obtain it." The wife of a former squadron mate who lived in Valdosta, Ga., sent the family a snapshot of the framed photograph that hung on the wall at the officers' club there. Determined to find it, the Elliotts asked the Moody Field Club and base photo lab for a chance to reprint the photo, but unfortunately, the host wing had changed, resulting in the removal of the large frame from the heritage wall, derailing their plans. However, in the summer of 2015, fate would have it that another Elliott would spearhead the continued search. "When I moved here, one of the first places I went was the field club," Jonathan said. "I was excited to finally get to see the actual picture, and I wanted to get copies of it for my family. But it wasn't there, disappointingly. So, I started asking around to try to locate it. I talked with the club management, the wing historian and any civilian I crossed paths with who'd been working on base long enough to have seen it." Although everyone he asked was incredibly gracious and tried to help, Jonathan said, he kept coming up empty while he rummaged through various storage closets and boxes of old pictures. One day in May 2016, however, that all changed. As Air Force Col. Susan Riordan-Smith, the 23rd Mission Support Group's commander, gave a briefing in the First Term Airmen Center, she saw the picture that Jonathan was searching for all along and immediately notified him. "I was shocked and relieved because it seemed too good to be true," Jonathan said. "I went over to the First Term Airman Center immediately so I could see it for myself. It was a bit surreal as well, because it's my parents, siblings and me. It naturally created an emotional connection with me, and yet, the photographer perfectly captured the joy of a military member and family reunited in such a way that it makes an emotional connection, even if you don't know the people in the picture," he added. "It just has that iconic look." While he was tempted to immediately tell his dad of the finding, he said, he wanted to savor the moment for a special day. As all parties in the photo were present in Washington state in June, on Father's Day, Jonathan uttered the words, "I have something for you, Dad." As Jonathan brought out a large, thin package in brown paper wrap, Gary handled it and wondered if it might possibly be "the photo." "As I unwrapped it and saw that it was, I was a little choked up," Gary said. "I think the whole family was a bit emotional. They had all seen the little snapshot on a shelf in our dining room, and knew that we had searched in vain for the actual photo. Everyone was happy that Jon had been able to track it down and get one for the family. He had it beautifully matted and framed, and it was a very special Father's Day gift!" For Gary, no gift could compare to the strong bond that he and Jonathan have forged over the years. "Sharing the United States Air Force Academy as our alma mater strengthened this bond, and when I visit him at his duty stations, he always takes me in to his unit and helps me understand the mission and his responsibilities," he said. Gary said he also appreciates Jonathan wearing his old squadron's paraphernalia and highlighting his heritage, which is among the many things he says brings him pride. "Two of my most proud moments of Jonathan was presenting his Air Force Academy appointment certificate and administering the oath upon his promotion to major," Gary said. "I put my uniform on for both of those occasions, and although it's not the current style, it's still Air Force blue and is a bond to Jon in his blues. I'm proud to wear it, and I think Jon is proud to see me wear it. Beyond the Air Force bond," he continued, "it is still hard for me to stand for the national anthem and look at our flag without being a little choked up, and I trust Jon will always share this mixture of pride, humility, and gratefulness with me."

    Col. Gregory Schnulo, who shepherded Springfield Air National Guard Base, Ohio, after a major transition from training fighter pilots to flying unmanned drones, is retiring from the Air Force.

    The Louisiana Wing of the Civil Air Patrol is photographing the extent of Hurricane Harvey's effects and floods in Louisiana.

    The Civil Air Patrol, the all-volunteer U.S. Air Force Auxiliary, is well known for its expertise in search and rescue operations.

    Make plans to attend the 2017 Fremont County Air Show from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., on Sept. 16th, in Canon City, Colo. Handicapped parking available - ask Civil Air Patrol's volunteer parking attendants.

    A Civil Air Patrol search is on for a missing aircraft in the Wetzel/Harrison County border area of West Virginia.

    Just in time for the hurricane, CAP Lt. Col. Michael Harding, the commander of the Civil Air Patrol Florida Wing's Boca Raton Composite Squadron, and Group 6 commander Lt. Col. Jaime Lichi, welcomed the members of the Boca Raton Airport Board in inaugurating the CAP's new hangar at Boca Ration Airport and displayed their new CAP aircraft.

    In less than a week, the Civil Air Patrol's AirPower History Tour is flying into the Branson Airport, in Missouri.

    And Robert C. Abbaticchio, 85, of New Smyrna Beach, Fla., passed away on Aug. 30th. He was a member of the Florida Wing of the Civil Air Patrol. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Robert's name may be made to the Civil Air Patrol's Office of Development, 105 S. Hansell St., Bldg. 714, Maxwell AFB, AL 36112-6332.

 

U.S. Coast Guard

    

    The U.S. Coast Guard has closed the Columbia River near Troutdale, Oregon, due to a large wildfire in the Columbia River Gorge.

    Bollinger Shipyards, in Lockport, La., delivered the future USCGC Jacob Poroo, the 25th Fast Response Cutter (FRC), to the Coast Guard on Aug. 5th.

    U.S. Coast Guard crews are working to pull out the remains of a sunken sailboat out of the water near San Luis Obispo, Calif.

    The U.S. Coast Guard has fined a cruise ship passenger for jumping from the vessel. The Coast Guard issued the fine on Tuesday, saying intentionally jumping into the water from a passenger vessel is considered interfering with the crew.

    The U.S. Coast Guard says two men were taken aboard a 47-foot life boat when they were rescued from their sinking boat on the Columbia River.

    Florida boat owners should secure their vessels now, says the Coast Guard. And large vessels may be ordered out of ports because of Hurricane Irma.

    You can't make this stuff up: The U.S. Coast Guard has towed a decoy resembling Boca Raton, Fla., into the Atlantic Ocean in an attempt to lure Hurricane Irma away from Florida, saying the plan was the best option for mitigating the potential damage from the storm.

    And in Florida, the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary's Jacksonville Beach Flotilla 14-04 is offering three boating safety courses over the next several weeks.

 

Canada mulls buying used fighter jets from Australia

By Jim Corvey, News of the Force St. Louis

    

    Canada, embroiled in a dispute with the Boeing Co. over the planned purchase of 18 new Super Hornet fighters, could buy older jets from Australia instead, the defense ministry said yesterday.

    The Liberal government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau suspended talks with Boeing over the planned acquisition after the U.S. firm launched a trade challenge against Canadian plane maker Bombardier, Inc., in April.

    Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan says Canada needs the 18 jets to act as a stopgap measure until it is able run an open competition to replace its veteran CF-18 fighters, a process that could take five years. The CF-18 is the Canadian version of the F-18 Hornet, a design that is 40 years old.

    "In light of Australia recently notifying all allies about their intent to dispose of their F-18 fleet, Canada visited them to inquire about the state of their equipment and spare parts," Sajjan's office said in a statement. "It is too early to provide detailed information about other options," it added.

    Trudeau on Tuesday complained about what he called Boeing's "unfair and aggressive" trade challenge against Bombardier, which the U.S. firm alleges is dumping passenger planes in the American market. Trudeau said he'd spoken to Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens to outline his concerns. Super Hornets are made at Boeing's plant in north St. Louis County. Boeing's Canadian network of aerospace suppliers has urged Trudeau to buy the Super Hornets, noting the firm supported more than 17,000 jobs in Canada. "Our partnership is deep and enduring, but it needs your engagement," said a letter from 10 firms, a copy of which was seen by Reuters. Signatories included CAE, Inc., Heroux Devtek, Inc., and Honeywell International, Inc., as well as the Canadian arms of the General Electric Co. and the Raytheon Co. CAE, which has close ties to Bombardier, later noted the letter had not mentioned the Boeing dispute.

    Asked for a reaction to the letter, a source familiar with government thinking said the Canadian aerospace sector supported many jobs in the United States.

    Australia bought 24 Super Hornets as an interim fleet until it could take delivery of F-35 planes from the Lockheed Martin Corp. Canada's former Conservative government said in 2010 it would buy 65 F-35s but later scrapped the decision, triggering years of delays and reviews.

    Ahead of the 2015 election that brought him to power, Trudeau campaigned against buying the F-35 on the grounds it was too expensive. Officials now say the plane would be eligible to participate in the competition.

 

 

Page 1