News of the Force - Tuesday, July 5, 2011 - Page 1

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   Tuesday, July 5, 2011

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Pilot dies after mid-air collision in the U.K.

    

    The pilot of a small aircraft died after colliding in mid air with another plane in the United Kingdom, local media reported yesterday.

    The incident occurred at around 4:30 p.m., local time, in Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, England, when an unnamed 63-year-old pilot crashed its plane into another aircraft during their flight, local authorities told BBC News. The small plane crashed down into the Adur Recreation Ground near Shoreham Airport, bursting into flames.

    According to the Sussex Police, the pilot tried to avoid crashing into residential areas and sought the open field. The other involved aircraft was a single-engine four-seat Diamond DA40 operated by Flying Time Aviation that was able to land safely after the collision. Both of those pilots were reported in good condition.

    Emergency calls reported the incident and Sussex Police and England's Air Accidents Investigation Branch arrived to cordon off the area and begin carrying out investigations. Wreckage and airplane parts were scattered throughout the area. Part of the plane's propeller was located at Beach Green. Despite the parks and regular walkers in the area, no one was injured on the ground.

    Flying Time Aviation has been operating since 2006, and the company said it had not been involved in a serious incident during its history as a flight training organization, underlining its priority on safety.

 

Today in the Department of Defense

    

    Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta is traveling.

    Deputy Secretary of Defense William J. Lynn, III, has no public or media events on his schedule.

 

Mexican authorities arrest founding leader of Los Zetas drug cartel

    

    Mexico's Public Security Secretariat (SSP) announced yesterday the arrest of Jesus Enrique Rejon Aguilar, one of the founding leaders of the "Los Zetas" drug cartel and one of the most wanted men in the country.

    Rejon Aguilar, also known as "El Mamito," was the third in command in the criminal organization and is also wanted by U.S. authorities. He was arrested on Sunday in the Atizapan de Zaragoza municipality, in Mexico State. The capture of Rejon Aguilar was the part of an extensive investigation by the Federal Police of the Zetas organization. The operation was undertaken without firing a single bullet.

    The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) offered a $5 million reward for the capture of Rejon Aguilar who is also wanted for ordering the attacks against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents earlier this year. On Feb. 15, a group of Zetas gunmen attacked two ICE agents on a highway, located in San Luis Potosi State. The two agents were ambushed while traveling in their U.S. government-issued vehicle towards Mexico City. Jaime Zapata, 32, ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agent, was killed during the attack, while his partner, Victor Avila, suffered gunshot wounds. Julian Zapata Espinosa, also known as "El Piolin," was later arrested and presented as the alleged shooter.

    According to the SSP, Rejon Aguilar enlisted to the Mexican army in April 1993 in his native state of Campeche, in southern Mexico. He served as part of the army's air special forces (Grupo Aeromovil de Fuerzas Especiales, or GAFE) before deserting in Feb. 1999. That same year, Arturo Guzman Decena, a/k/a "El Z-1," invited him to join the ranks of the Group of the 14th (Grupo de los 14) which later founded the "Los Zetas" armed wing at the service of the then powerful Gulf Cartel (Cartel del Golfo).

    From the fourteen founders of the Zetas cartel, only two remain at large; Heriberto Lazcano Lazcano, a/k/a "El Lazca" and the current leader of the criminal organization, and Mateo Diaz Lopez, also known as "Z-6." The other founding members are either dead or imprisoned, including Guzman Decena, who was killed in 2002. Rejon Aguilar was the third most powerful member of the organization, just below Lazcano and Diaz Lopez.

    In the beginning, Rejon Aguilar was tasked with protecting former drug kingpin Osiel Cardenas Guillen until his capture in 2003. Then, he participated in facilitating the prison break of several Gulf Cartel members. In addition, he was involved in the violent gunfights with the rival Pacific drug cartel (Cartel del Pacifico) between 2204 and 2005 in Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas states, in northern Mexico. In 2004, he directed the attempted escape of Cardenas Guillen from the Altiplano high security prison. In 2007, he was under the leadership of Miguel Angel Treviño Morales (a/k/a Z-40) until 2009.

    In January 2010, the Gulf cartel and the Zetas parted ways and Rejon Aguilar was assigned as coordinator of the Zetas operations in the central and northern regions of the country. Since then, he has been involved in the deadly and violent territory disputes between the two former allied organizations. He was arrested along Pedro Ortega Herrera, 32, a Mexico City police officer.

    The DEA considers the Zetas cartel responsible for much of the escalation of violence along the Southwest Border. It is known for its use of extreme violence on law enforcement officials, innocent citizens, informants and rival drug gangs.

 

Russia, NATO not reaching agreement on European missile defense system

    

    The Russian Foreign Ministry announced yesterday that Moscow could not agree on the establishment of Europe's sectoral missile defense system with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

    "It is not a big secret to say that an agreement will not be reached on a sectoral approach," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said during the NATO-Russia Council meeting.

    NATO wants to establish two independent systems that exchange information while Russia favors a joint system with full-scale interoperability in which Moscow would be responsible of shooting down missiles heading to NATO members passing through Russian air space.

    In November 2010, Russia and NATO agreed to cooperate on establishing the European missile defense system at the Lisbon Summit. However, the two sides have not agreed on the details since. "Many key issues still need to be addressed. We never said we would agree on missile defense overnight, or even in a few months," said NATO Secretary General Anders Fog Rasmussen. "We are determined to keep up the dialogue."

    In May, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said that if an agreement with NATO was not reached, Russia will enhance its strike nuclear capabilities instead. The missile network was proposed by the United States to defend Europe from possible North Korean and Iranian missile attacks. Russia also opposed to the planned deployment of U.S. missile defense systems near its borders, claiming they could pose a security threat. Medvedev said that this scenario would be similar to the Cold War era.

    On July 1, Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov announced that the Bulava submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) will go into serial production after the June 28 successful launch; the 15th attempt in the troubled missile's history and the eighth that succeeded. The Bulava (SS-NX-30) SLBM is capable of carrying up to 10 MIRV warheads and has a range of over 5,000 miles. The Bulava's warheads are reportedly being shielded against radiation, electromagnetic interference and physical disturbances.

 

More than 400 fighters to lay down their arms in Darfur

    

    The United Nations announced yesterday that more than 400 ex-combatants will lay down their arms this week as part of the disarmament campaign in Sudan's Darfur.

    The disarmament and reintegration exercise is run by the U.N.-African Union peacekeeping force in Sudan (UNAMID). The over 400 individuals were soldiers with the Sudanese armed forces as well as with rebel movements. They will undergo security screenings, medical exams and psychological assessments as part of the disarmament exercise, which begins this Monday in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state. Furthermore, the former fighters will participate in workshops on reintegrating into civil society, receive job training and be given an allowance to help them re-establish themselves in the community.

    The campaign, run jointly with the North Sudan Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) Commission, followed the similar initiative in South Darfur state in which around 1,100 soldiers laid down arms last month in Nyala.

    In April, UNAMID supported another disarmament program in El Geneina, West Darfur. The ten-day process was organized by the National Sudanese Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Coordination Council, with logistical support from UNAMID and other local organizations.

    Darfur has been severely affected by the armed conflict between rebels and government forces. In February 2003, the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) and Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) rebelled against the Sudanese government due to the oppression of non-Arab people in Darfur. After years of fighting, the Sudanese government and the JEM agreed on a cease-fire in February 2010. An estimated 300,000 people have been killed and 2.7 million others displaced so far.

    More than 23,000 troops, military observers and police officers and nearly 4,500 civilians serve with UNAMID, which took over peacekeeping duties from an earlier African Union mission at the start of 2008. The force is tasked with protecting civilians, promoting an inclusive peace process and help ensuring the safe delivery of humanitarian assistance across Darfur, an arid region on Sudan's western flank.

    Meanwhile, the leaders of north and south Sudan have agreed to continue talks on a series of disputes after the south's impending secession, officials have said, a move that will disappoint Western countries hoping for a quick deal. Sudan's oil-producing south is due to declare independence on Saturday -- a split that was voted for in a referendum promised in a 2005 north/south peace deal. The north and south, which fought each other during decades of civil war, have yet to agree on the position of their shared border and how they will manage oil revenues.

 

100 Iraqi MPs demand departure of U.S. forces

    

    One hundred Members of the Iraqi Parliament (MPs) yesterday submitted a document to the government demanding the departure of U.S. forces from the Middle Eastern country, the Aswat al-Iraq news agency reported.

    Uday Awad, member of the al-Ahrar (Liberals) bloc, announced that the document was signed in order to demand both the U.S. and Iraqi governments to comply with the security agreement signed between Baghdad and Washington. The al-Ahrar bloc also urged other political forces and Parliament members to take a similar stand on the issue in order to allow the imposition of sovereignty and independence in Iraq without any foreign input.

    Iraq's Islamic Party, in Ninewa called for rejecting the extension of the U.S. forces in Iraq after some politicians demanded a prolonged presence of American troops beyond Dec. 31, 2011. "Our people have suffered a lot of difficulties and problems caused by the occupation, including sectarianism and racism, the destruction of the country's infrastructure, the plundering of its funds, and the spreading of administrative and financial corruption," said the Islamic Party in Ninewa.

    On Sunday, Jabbar Yawar, a spokesman for the Peshmerga Party, said that the departure of American soldiers will create a security vacuum and called for an extended stay of the U.S. forces. "There is a U.S. division of 15,000 soldiers that helps the Iraqi and region's forces to preserve security and collaborate in joint security check-points," said Yawar. "There will be a security deterioration due to the non-preparedness of the Iraqi forces."

    Less than 50,000 U.S. troops remain in Iraq, eight years since the U.S.-led war began on March 20, 2003. According to a security agreement between Baghdad and Washington, all U.S. forces will be withdrawn by the end of 2011.

 

Egypt's gas pipeline to Israel bombed

By Lisa Levine, News of the Force-Tel Aviv

    

    An Egyptian pipeline in El-Arish which supplies natural gas to Israel and Jordan was the target of a bomb attack yesterday for the third time this year. At about 1:00 a.m., local time, armed men wearing masks broke into the steam-run power station of El Arish after attacking security guards. Then, the attackers placed explosives under the pipeline and remotely detonated them. North Sinai Gov. el-Sayyed Abdel-Wahab Mabrouk labeled the incident as a terrorist attack and added that gas was cut off from the industrial zone as well as from 2,500 houses in central Sinai. The pipeline was closed in order to prevent the passage of gas through it. The gas pipeline was set ablaze and by noon, firefighters were able to control the flames that reached as high as 32 feet. There were no casualties or injuries reported. The explosion took place inside the station's Chamber 2, and another bomb was located at the Chamber 3, but it was defused before being detonated. This was the third attack on the pipeline this year and authorities believe that the same group was behind the three attacks. Many Egyptians have protested the export of natural gas to Israel since the departure of former President Hosni Mubarak. Egypt supplies approximately 40 percent of Israel's natural gas, which is fundamental for generating electricity. The two countries signed a 20-year gas deal in 2008. On April 27, unknown gunmen blew up the pipeline approximately 30 miles from the Egyptian-Israeli border. On Feb. 5, the natural gas pipeline was the target of another attack during the 18-day revolution that forced Egypt;s former leader Mubarak to step down from the presidency on Feb. 11.

    United Nations (U.N.) Secretary General Ban Ki-moon voiced support yesterday for a Greek government initiative to use its vessels to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip through regular existing channels and in consultation with the U.N. On Sunday, Ban spoke with Greek Foreign Minister Stavros Lambrinidis, who briefed him on the details of the Greek initiative, and the secretary general said the initiative "could help to reduce tensions in the region and ensure much-needed aid is delivered to those who need it in Gaza." In addition, Ban said the U.N. would work closely with Greece, Israel and Palestinian authorities on the matter, hoping the organizers of a flotilla of ships – currently docked in Greece and aiming to break the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip and deliver aid to Palestinians living there – would agree to the Greek initiative. Meanwhile, the Middle East Quartet - the diplomatic grouping of the U.N., the European Union, Russia and the United States - on Saturday issued a statement in which they urged all those wanting to deliver goods to Gazans to do so through established channels. Quartet members also expressed regret at the deaths and injuries resulting from a similar flotilla last year, urging restraint and called on all governments to use their influence to discourage additional flotillas, "which risk the safety of their participants and carry the potential for escalation."

    Tunisia, the country where the "Arab Spring" started, has published a document rejecting any chance of peace between itself and Israel. Egypt is expected to go down a similar path.

    Syrian tanks have surrounded Hama, residents and activists have said, threatening a large-scale assault on the city after the biggest protests against President Bashar al-Assad's rule. Tanks and armored vehicles moved overnight to the edges of the city, including 30 seen near a fly-over on a road leading west, they said, a day after hundreds of troops and security police entered Hama at dawn in buses, killing at least three people in raids on main neighborhoods.

    Israel's Jerusalem municipality has approved a plan to build hundreds of new homes for Jews on annexed land in the occupied West Bank, a council member has said. Elisha Peleg said the city planning commission had approved building plans for 900 new units in Gilo, an urban settlement built on land Israel captured in a 1967 war and unilaterally annexed to Jerusalem. About 500,000 Israelis live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, among 2.7 million Palestinians. The World Court has ruled Israeli settlements in the occupied territory are illegal.

    Egypt's rising Islamist power, the Muslim Brotherhood, has thanked the Obama administration for reaching out a hand of peace, but says its condition for re-establishing ties is an end to the Israel-America relationship.

    And the IDF would not be able to perform as it does without reservists, President Shimon Peres said last night at Beit Hanassi during the eighth annual ceremony in tribute to the officers and members of 15 outstanding reserve units cited for excellence. The army would not be able to exist in terms of quality or quantity without the reservists, Peres emphasized, declaring that the reservists represented the most noble aims of Israeli society. “This is not the nobility of pedigree or of affluence, nor is it that of luminaries whose names are bywords,” he said. “This is a completely different elite sector, a quality team whose members are the best of the best; people who love the nation and the state and who see it as a great personal privilege and an obligation of conscience to safeguard the security and well-being of the nation.” Although the reservists are civilians from all walks of life, once they get into uniform, all ethnic, ideological and socioeconomic differences are obliterated, Peres said. There is a sense of camaraderie between officers and those who serve under them that is not emulated in any other country in the world, he added. “There is nothing more Israeli than a unit of reservists,” Peres said. Emphasizing the experience and responsibility of today’s reservists, Peres said they are the bridge for the peace process because they are equipped to meet any challenge and any opportunity. As for the younger generation, Peres did not detect the same degree of commitment after the completion of compulsory army service and regretted the number of dropouts, a phenomenon that needs to be contended with, he said, urging that conditions be created whereby young people who for religious or ideological reasons do not serve in the IDF will be able to serve elsewhere without compromising their beliefs. Peres also said reservists should be better compensated for loss of income while serving in the army. Defense Minister Ehud Barak took the podium as well. Excellence is not just a feature of special circumstances, he said, rather, it is part of one’s DNA. Looking out from the podium at reservists from the army, air force and navy, Barak said, “For you, excellence is a norm.” Reviewing opportunities and challenges facing the nation, he declared, “We can rely only on ourselves. When I say ourselves, I mean the IDF on the quiet command of Benny Gantz.” While emphasizing that security and peace are Israel’s central goals, and that no stone should be left unturned in the effort to resume peace negotiations, he cautioned that even in the pursuit of peace, Israel must remain alert to every danger. Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz said the readiness to continue to serve at the expense of studies, work and family is something that should not be taken for granted. Gantz was particularly appreciative that bereaved families of reservists who fell in battle in the 2006 Lebanon War were in attendance at the ceremony. Following Barak’s line of thinking about opportunities and challenges, Gantz said that in the long run, Israel’s future looked brighter, despite the current turmoil in the Middle East posing new concerns.

 

VA issuing first payments to caregivers

    

    The Department of Veterans Affairs will send out more than $430,000 in stipend payments to nearly 200 family caregivers of veterans in July.

 

Euro zone in crisis over fresh blow to Greek bail-out deal

    

    The Euro zone has been hit by a new crisis as a leading credit agency has threatened to rank Greece as defaulting on its debt.

 

Atlantis' crew arrives at Kennedy Space Center

    

    Space shuttle Atlantis' crew members arrived yesterday afternoon at Kennedy Space Center, Fla.'s Shuttle Landing Facility to get ready for their scheduled Friday launch to the International Space Station. Arriving on the Fourth of July, the crew waved the U.S. flag to the crowd at the facility. The crew: Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, mission specialist Sandra Magnus and mission specialist Rex Walheim.

 

Gaddafi willing to give up, Russian newspaper says

    

    A Russian newspaper has said that Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi is willing to give up power in exchange for security guarantees, citing a high-level Russian official.

    The report in the respected daily Kommersant, which did not identify its source, has come a day after the search for ways to end the war in Libya dominated Russia's talks with NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen and South African President Jacob Zuma.

    "The colonel (Gaddafi) is sending signals that he is prepared to relinquish power in exchange for security guarantees," Kommersant has quoted what it called a high-level source in the Russian leadership as saying. The source said in the report that other nations, potentially including France, were willing to provide those guarantees.

 

Fighting intensifies in Yemen

    Some 54,000 Yemenis fled the flashpoint southern province of Abyan since militants took over its capital last month, a government official has said, as fighting intensified in the area.

    Mass protests demanding an end to President Ali Abdullah Saleh's three-decade rule and a political impasse have continued to paralyze Yemen, as he is recovering in Riyadh from an assassination attempt. His government risks losing control of swathes of the country and giving al-Qaida's local wing a foothold next to key shipping routes.

    The flight of thousands of people from the southern violence, as well as severe food and water shortages, raise the specter of a humanitarian crisis in a country already on the verge of collapse.

 

Shrink ground forces, end counter-insurgency missions for savings, think tank says

    To help heal the nation’s economic sores, Washington could free up billions annually by drastically altering how it uses the U.S. military and shaving the size of the Army and Marine Corps, according to a new study.

    As the White House and congressional leaders race to find a way to address the nation’s mounting debt, members of both political parties have said defense cuts are on the table. Even House Republicans, typically hawkish on Pentagon spending, say defense cuts are needed.

    “America’s current economic troubles require us, as a matter of long-term national security, to re-examine our policy choices in every area and ensure that they are wise, necessary and cost-effective,” states a new Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) report. “We must return to an emphasis on more traditional and reliable crisis response, defense, deterrence and conflict-resolution tasks.” Such a shift in strategy “would allow a significant reduction in both the size and activity level of our armed forces, the study states. “Their activity would become more focused and their goals more discrete, determinate and realistic.”

    While saying defense cuts should be made, no lawmaker - Democrat or Republican - has yet put forth a plan detailing where the Pentagon budget could be slashed and proposing where those cuts could come from as part of recent budget and debt deliberations.

    Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) has called for $1 trillion in Pentagon funding reductions over 10 years.

    Notably, the fiscal-minded House freshman Republican class continues to be open to defense cuts, breaking with the GOP’s mindset of the past decade.

    The IPS study - led by former Pentagon official Lawrence Korb and national security scholar Miriam Pemberton - offers a few ideas. They propose shrinking the size of the U.S. ground forces - the Army and Marines - by 20 percent. The former currently has around 1.4 million active-duty and 850,000 Guard and reserve troops; the Marine Corps has just over 200,000 active and 40,000 reserve personnel. Such a reduction would “yield a steady-state savings of $20 billion per year,” the study concluded.

    While many in Congress want to find a way to build even more than the Navy’s stated goal of 313 ships, Korb and Pemberton recommend shrinking the sea service’s surface fleet by 20 percent, “including two aircraft carriers, and carrier air wings,” a move they say would save $10 billion per year over a decade.

    The Air Force would lose two combat air wings under the IPS plan, for a savings of about $3 billion annually.

    Whether hardware programs and force structure will be pared back in a likely round of defense cuts remains unclear.

    In a statement released Friday just minutes after he was sworn in, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta acknowledged the Defense Department will be forced to make “tough budget choices.” But he called it a “false choice” that fiscal discipline means weakening national security. “Even as the United States addresses fiscal challenges at home, there will be no hollow force on my watch,” Panetta said. “That will require us all to be disciplined in how we manage taxpayer resources."

    Ending counter-insurgency based military campaigns like those in Iraq and Afghanistan also would bring big savings, the researchers found. “The recent cost of protracted U.S. counter-insurgency campaigns approximates $1 million per year for every deployed person,” according to the study.

    President Obama recently placed the price tag for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars at over $1 trillion. But a Brown University study released Thursday put the actual price at $4 trillion. “Conservatively estimated, the war bills already paid and obligated to be paid are $3.2 trillion in constant dollars,” the Brown study found. “A more reasonable estimate puts the number at nearly $4 trillion.” The “human and economic costs,” however, will stretch for decades, with “some costs not peaking until mid-century,” the Brown report concludes.

 

U.S. Constitution doesn't define presidential eligibility, U.S. senator says

    

    One member of Congress suggests it actually is the U.S. State Department that sets the eligibility requirements for presidents, not the Constitution, and another says anyone with concerns about the heated dispute should go to court, where not a single judge has been willing to hear arguments on the merits of the case.

 

U.S. Navy Flag Officer announcements

    Rear Adm. (lower half) George W. Balance, who has been selected for promotion to rear admiral, will be assigned as director, Maritime Partnership Program, U.S. Naval Forces Europe/Africa, Naples, Italy. Balance is currently serving as deputy commander, Seventh Fleet, Yokosuka, Japan.

    Rear Adm. Samuel J. Cox will be assigned as director of intelligence, J2, U.S. Cyber Command, Fort Meade, Md. Cox is currently serving as director, National Maritime Intelligence Center, Washington, D.C.

    Rear Adm. (lower half) James W. Crawford, III, will be assigned as commander, Rule of Law Field Force-Afghanistan. Crawford is currently serving as legal counsel to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Washington, D.C.

    Rear Adm. (lower half) Sean R. Filipowski will be assigned as deputy director of operations, J3, U.S. Cyber Command, Fort Meade, Md. Filipowski is currently serving as director, Cyber, Sensors and Electronic Warfare, N2/N6F3, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Washington, D.C.

    Rear Adm. (lower half) Martha E. G. Herb will be assigned as deputy commander, Navy Personnel Command, Washington, D.C. Herb is currently assigned as chief secretariat, Military Technical Agreement Joint Coordinating Body, International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), Afghanistan.

    Rear Adm. (lower half) Matthew J. Kohler will be assigned as deputy commander, Fleet Cyber Command/deputy commander, Tenth Fleet, Fort Meade, Md. Kohler is currently assigned as deputy chief, Tailored Access Operations, S32, National Security Agency, Fort Meade, Md.

    Capt. Willie L. Metts, who has been selected for promotion to rear admiral (lower half), will be assigned as deputy chief, Tailored Access Operations, S32, National Security Agency, Fort Meade, Md. Metts is currently serving as director of intelligence, J2, U.S. Cyber Command, Fort Meade, Md.

    And Rear Adm. (lower half) Jan E. Tighe will be assigned as director, decision superiority, N2/N6F4, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Washington, D.C. Tighe is currently serving as deputy director of operations, J3, U.S. Cyber Command, Fort Meade, Md.

 

Schwartz calls for renewed focus on unit readiness

    Pressure will only intensify in the coming years to reduce defense spending due to a budget climate "unlike anything we have encountered in decades," writes Gen. Norton Schwartz, the U.S. Air Force chief of staff, in his CSAF Vector 2011, dated yesterday, that lays out his vision for the service.

    This pressure comes at a time when the Air Force needs to modernize many capabilities - like fielding the F-35 strike fighter, a new tanker, and the future bomber - to provide the global power-projection capabilities that the nation requires. "But without a trained and ready force, these capabilities will be of little use," writes Schwartz. "For this reason," he continues, "in the coming year, I want to actively guard against becoming a hollow force by renewing our focus on unit readiness." In fact, he adds, "My pledge for the coming year is to strengthen unit readiness and avoid a creeping hollow force that provides only the illusion of global vigilance, reach, and power."

 

Federal agent's home burglarized, guns taken

    

    Department of Homeland Security Inspector Loucious Sheppard has had at least five guns stolen from his home in Ellenwood, Ga., near Atlanta, including his service weapon.

 

Robins museum adds scale model of C-17

    Along with a $20,000 donation, the Boeing Co. has enhanced the Museum of Aviation at Robins AFB, Ga., with a large-scale model of the C-17 transport.

    Mounted prominently on a plinth outside the museum's south entrance, the 10-foot-wingspan C-17 "represents the work Robins Air Force Base does in maintaining the C-17," said Ken Emery, the museum's director.

    Robins' 402nd Maintenance Wing provides depot-level maintenance, engineering support, and software development for the Air Force's Globemaster III fleet.

    "The C-17 Air Force-Boeing partnership is held up as an example of how it can be done," said Gus Urzua, Boeing's C-17 sustainment program manager, during the June 24 dedication. "Here at Warner Robins is where that partnership shines the brightest."

    In the past, Boeing has donated more than $600,000 to the museum.

 

Documents reveal the TSA misled the public on dangers of body-scanners

    

    Internal U.S. Government documents show that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), under the guidance of the Department of Homeland Security's secretary, deliberately misled the public on the health risks associated with body-scanning devices.

 

Cameron says cut in U.K.'s forces in Afghanistan won't signal policy change

    

    Prime Minister David Cameron said a reduction he'll announce this week in the 9,500-strong U.K. force in Afghanistan doesn't signal a radical policy change. Cameron was visiting British troops at Camp Bastion, in Afghanistan, yesterday.

 

DOD Senior Executive Service announcement

    

    Brett B. Lambert has been assigned as deputy assistant secretary of defense (manufacturing and industrial base policy), Office of the Undersecretary of Defense (Acquisition, Technology and Logistics), Washington, D.C. Lambert previously served as deputy assistant secretary of defense (industrial policy), Office of the Undersecretary of Defense (Acquisition, Technology and Logistics), Washington, D.C.

 

Australian soldier killed in Afghanistan

    An "experienced and decorated" Australian soldier, Sergeant Todd Langley, 35,  has been killed, while another soldier was seriously injured in a firefight with insurgents in southern Afghanistan, the Chief of the Defense Force, Gen. David Hurley, says.

 

Beach-goers salute troops during F-16 fly-over

    

    Four F-16s from Shaw Air Force Base flew over the South Carolina coast yesterday as part of a "Salute from the Shore" event honoring America's armed forces. The F-16s were from the 77th Fighter Squadron, "The Gamblers," of the 20th Fighter Wing.

 

Missouri's Springfield Police may revive their reserve force

    Missouri's third-largest city could have volunteer police officers back in service by the end of the year. Springfield Police Chief Paul Williams has made it a priority to revive the reserve officer program, which was suspended in 1994 and discontinued entirely in 2002.

    Williams, who began his second year on the job last week, told the Springfield News-Leader he's not aiming to save money and that no full-time officers would lose their jobs to reserves. But with his department having difficulty filling all positions, he sees a role for volunteers in helping serve and protect the city. The chief said reserve officers will wear black uniforms and carry guns, but will be under several restrictions, at least at first. For example, he said, the reserve officers would always work under the supervision of a full-time officer. "At no point will there be a reserve guy in a car by himself," Williams said.

    And the initial reserve corps would be limited to those with Class A certification, meaning they have completed 600 hours of law enforcement training, Williams said. He believes several retired law enforcement officers in the area will be ready to fill the reserve ranks."I think there's a pool of folks out there that we can tap into," he said.

    Williams hopes the restrictions would limit the department's exposure to legal liability, a concern of his predecessor when the idea of reviving the reserve force was raised in the past.

    In surrounding Greene County, the sheriff's office has a roster of 40 unpaid volunteers and gives reserve deputies all the authority of full-time officers, Capt. Jim Farrell said. "They work independently," Farrell said. "That's the whole goal of the reserve." Farrell said each reserve deputy works at least 16 hours per month in the jail, on patrol or in the investigation division. They receive the same training as regular officers, differing only in that they're not paid. "There are times I'm not sure how we could make it without our reserves," he said.

 

College students receive training through Air Force internships

    

    College students can intern in U.S. Air Force youth and recreation programs – and get paid for it.

    The Air Force Services Agency Student Intern Program is open to college juniors, or older, to become Air Force non-appropriated fund employees at nearly any Air Force installation world-wide, and earn college credit at the same time.

    The program was established by the Office of Secretary of Defense and Headquarters, Air Force's Airmen and Family Services in 2009, as a way to recruit and retain high- performing students for future careers with the Air Force. While the focus is primarily on child and youth programs, it was recently expanded to familiarize interns with a variety of support functions such as community centers, outdoor recreation, arts and crafts, libraries, and Airman and Family Readiness centers.

    According to JoAnne Dimitriou, AFSVA plans and force management director, the Student Intern Program provides an opportunity for college students to integrate classroom theory with practical on-the-job work experience in child, youth and school-age programs. The internships are challenging and help individuals become competent, effective and productive employees in a variety of occupational areas. The internship is a full-time position that can also be used as course credit at some universities.

    The program is open to all college students with at least two years of education completed. They can request to be placed at any Air Force installation in the world.

    The application process starts with Purdue University, which partnered with the OSD to publicize and manage similar internship programs across the Department of Defense. Students are required to fill out an application, write an essay, and provide letters of recommendation, as well as transcripts, before being considered for the position. Purdue provides incoming interns a week-long orientation.

    Interested students can visit www.ag.purdue.edu/extension/military for more information. Applications are currently being accepted for Spring 2012.

 

Panetta makes Fourth of July calls to deployed service members

    

    Six forward-deployed U.S. service members began their Fourth of July morning with telephone calls from Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta.

    Panetta, sworn in as the nation's 23rd secretary of defense on Friday, reached out late Sunday evening to convey his thanks and support for their service, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs Doug Wilson said today. The defense secretary spoke by phone with service members deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq and Bahrain, Wilson said. "They represent America's men and women in uniform who are away from their families on this July 4 weekend," Wilson added, noting that they "come from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and the Army National Guard."

    Panetta told each service member how proud he was of their service and emphasized to each his commitment to fight for them and their families as they are fighting for their country, Wilson said. "He told each that he looks forward to meeting them during his travels as secretary," Wilson added.

    The names, home towns and locations where they are serving are as follows:

    - U.S. Army Spc. Darwin Siquig is serving in Afghanistan and is from Kahuku, Hawaii.

    - U.S. Navy Petty Officer2nd Class Shain Frazier, Jr., is serving in Afghanistan and is from San Diego, Calif.

    - U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Frankie Lizcano is serving in Afghanistan and is from San Antonio, Texas.

    - U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Jay D'Amico is serving in Afghanistan. He is originally from Joliet, Illinois, and now lives in Surprise, Ariz.

    - U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer 1st Class Brandon Frawley is serving in Bahrain. He is originally from Augusta, Ga., and he and his family now live in Newport, N.C.

    - Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Kelly Ann Pels is serving in Iraq. She is from Clermont County, Ohio.

 

President Obama praises troops at July 4 event at the White House

By Cheryl Pellerin, American Forces Press Service

President Barack Obama, accompanied by First Lady Michelle Obama, speaks to troops and family members at an Independence Day event at the White House, yesterday.

 

    Military service members attending the White House Independence Day celebration represent the latest in a long line of heroes who have served the United States with honor and sacrificed much to protect the freedoms all Americans enjoy, President Obama said at the White House yesterday.

    "I cannot think of anybody I would rather celebrate with than all of you," the president said, "the men and women of our military and our extraordinary military families."

    Obama and his wife and children hosted a traditional Fourth of July celebration for members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard. About 1,200 service members and their families attended the White House event, which included a barbeque, a USO show featuring Train and Amos Lee and a viewing of the national capital fireworks.

    "After all that you do for our country every day, we wanted to give you a chance to get out of uniform, relax a little bit and have some fun," Obama told the troops. "But of course it's also a time for us to reflect on the meaning of America."

    The small band of patriots who signed the Declaration of Independence might be surprised to see their legacy, Obama said, including a nation that's led revolutions in commerce, sent people to the moon, lifted up the poor, cured the sick, fought for democracy and served as a beacon of hope around the world. "All this could only happen because of our founders' central faith that through democracy and individual rights ordinary people have it within their means to forge a nation that's more just and more equal and more free," Obama said.

    Every service member is heir to that legacy, the president added, introducing five heroes, one from each service.

    While on patrol in Iraq, Army Sgt. 1st Class Justin Gang's convoy was struck by a roadside bomb and fell under enemy fire, Obama said. "Even after being wounded by shrapnel himself, he helped secure the scene and evacuate his wounded comrades to safety and today we honor his extraordinary courage," he added. 
    Nigeria-born Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Obi Nwagwu, a hospital corpsman, became an American citizen and volunteered to serve in the U.S. military. "As an orthopedic technician, he helps our wounded warriors regain their strength and resume their lives back home," Obama said. "Today we honor his incredible dedication."

    Whether it's partnering with the Iraqi army or making sure our troops have shelter in some of the toughest places on the planet, Obama said, Air Force Master Sgt. Heather Adkins "knows how to get things done and today we honor her tireless devotion."

    Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Robert "Keith" Kesterson rushed through enemy fire to free a fellow Marine trapped inside a burning vehicle, the president said. "After untangling the Marine's equipment, he extinguished the flames and pulled him to safety, and today we honor his unyielding loyalty," Obama added. 
    Less than 24 hours after the devastating 2010 earthquake in Haiti, the president said, Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Marlene Riklon was on the scene helping direct aid and save lives in the midst of chaos. Yesterday, Obama said, "we honor her incredible dedication."

    These patriots and their fellow service members, the president said, are the reason why America and its armed forces "remain the greatest force for peace and security that the world has ever known." Together, he added, "you're standing with all of those throughout the world who are reaching for the same freedoms and the same liberties that we celebrate today."

 

 

 

 

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