Shaw NCO Awarded $10K For Idea

Shaw AFB, S.C. - A Shaw NCO is $10,000 richer thanks to a suggestion he made.

He thought it would be more economical to stop replacing an $8,500 valve on the F-16 Fighting Falcon every time the $50 heat shield that covers the valve is damaged. The suggestion was submitted through the Air Force’s Innovative Development through Employee Awareness program -- known as IDEA.

The valve, known as the high stage bleed air regulator and shut-off valve, is located on the lower left side of the F-16 behind the wing. It regulates the engine’s downstream pressure and prevents reverse pressure flow, said Master Sgt. Scott Laws, the assistant electrical environmental section chief with the 20th Component Maintenance Squadron.

Currently, during F-16 engine phase inspections, the valve will rub against the bulkhead next to the valve, Sergeant Laws said. This causes damage in the center of the safety wire studs in the heat shield. According to the technical order, there is no replacement for the heat shield.

To correct the problem, maintainers have to replace the whole valve assembly instead of just replacing the heat shield. The option to replace the heat shield is not currently listed in the technical order.

Sergeant Laws suggested changing the technical order to list the heat shield as a separate piece with its own part number. The heat shield is available for purchase from the same supplier as the valve assembly at a much lower cost.

“This is the first $10,000 payout at Shaw since the late ‘90s,” said Marylyn Huber, 20th Mission Support Squadron management analyst.

Sergeant Laws said the benefits would result in immediate savings to the Air Force. Last year, Shaw replaced 11 valves and could have saved more than $91,000 by replacing the heat shield alone.

The change has not been made to the technical order yet. When it is changed, every Air Force base that flies the F-16 will benefit, Mrs. Huber said.

“So far, the projected savings is $320,000 for the Air Force the first year alone,” Sergeant Laws said.

This is the fourth idea suggested by Sergeant Laws. Two were approved and he received awards of $200 for each. This time, he was awarded the maximum of $10,000.

“I’m always looking for ways to improve the way we do things,” he said. “I thought, ‘Why can’t we just replace the heat shield?’”

“Every Airman should follow Sergeant Laws’ example. I encourage everyone to look around their shops and the way they accomplish their mission. If there is a way to improve a process or product, make the suggestion. The Air Force is constantly changing for the better thanks to people like Sergeant Laws,” said Col. Bill Hyatt, 20th Fighter Wing commander.

TACPs: Supporting Troops Anytime, Anywhere

Pope AFB, N.C. - Under the cover of night, he maneuvers through the brush, getting just close enough to spot his target. He takes his measurements … triple checks them … and calls in the strike. If his measurements are correct, the troops who called in for help should have the relief they need in the form of a close air strike on the enemy.

Their missions sometimes sound like scripts out of "Mission Impossible." But their importance continues to be proven through their everyday assistance in the war on terrorism. They are few in numbers, but large in impact.

They are tactical air controllers.

Tactical air control parties make a living working with the Army, Marines, Navy and other coalition troops needing their support. Many of those TACPs, part of the 18th Air Support Operations Group or the 14th Air Support Operations Squadron, call Pope Air Force Base, N.C., home. One of those TACPs is Staff Sgt. Robert Callaway of the 18th ASOG.

Sergeant Callaway is also an instructor working with young Airmen as they come into the career field.

“There really aren’t too many jobs out there like ours where you can go out there and do what we do,” he said. “I like knowing that if the Army calls on me and I get clearance from the commander to take out a building, blow up a car or whatever it is, that when I start doing the mission, it’s just me -- there’s no one else, period. When you maneuver in a squad, there are guys watching your back, your front, everything. When it comes down to executing the mission, it’s me, my radio and the aircraft to get that bomb on the target.”

Sergeant Callaway knows firsthand how the missions TACPs complete every day can affect the overall mission of the Air Force, the Army or any other service they may be working with.

On a recent deployment to Balad Air Base, Iraq, Sergeant Callaway helped neutralize enemy mortarmen. In doing so, he helped keep all of those within the walls of the base safe.

Sergeant Callaway described the incident:

“We thought it was going to be a boring night,” he said. “I wasn’t out with the Army unit. I was actually back watching the video feed from the Predator that was up in the air. The unit was doing a raid and this guy kept running out in different directions. They wanted us to watch over him with the Predator’s thermal sights.

"The Army unit did the raid and got their guy. Next thing you know, we had incoming mortars. The other TACP I was working with flipped right to the computer and was ready to put coordinates in," he said. "I was getting coordinates from the fire support element on the ground. We put the coordinates in, gave them to the Predator and flipped it over to the field."

"From the time the rounds impacted the base to the time we had sensors on the target was a minute or a minute and a half. We watched them run across the field with the mortar tube on their back. We were getting tired of getting shot at, so we did it. I picked up the microphone, told the Predator guys to get hot and they dropped it," he said.

“Then six more guys started to attack us. They were about two miles south of the first guys that shot at us. We watched them and flew one in there as well. We took out 11 of them within three minutes. For the next 10 days there were no mortar attacks.”

Sergeant Callaway said he never thought twice about what they had to do. There was a threat and they were able to assist in eliminating that threat.

“It really didn’t sink on me what we had done until I was sitting in the chow hall and people were walking up thanking me,” he said. “It makes you feel good -- you get to see benefits.”

Close air support has been around since pilots came in close and worked the muddy trenches that stretched from Flanders Fields to the Pyrenees Mountains during World War I. In World War II, air support communications squadrons provided air support to infantry divisions. Their job was a relatively new idea, but their importance was not overlooked.

Some air support parties jumped into Normandy with the 82nd Airborne Division on D-Day. They were known as “Rover Joes.” Since that time, TACPs have become an integral part of military operations.

Ever-improving technology continues to change the way the TACPs do their jobs. They have one radio that combines the functions of the three radios they used to carry. Laser-targeting technology is progressing as well as video technology and unmanned aerial reconnaissance systems.

More than 280 close-air-support missions were conducted by coalition aircraft in a five-day period last week, according to U.S. Central Command. The missions included support to coalition troops, infrastructure protection, reconstruction activities and operations to deter and disrupt terrorist activities.

It is thanks to the skills and efforts of the TACPs that close-air-support missions are successful.

While many career fields in the Air Force are decreasing in size, their career field is adding 1,000 Airmen.

“Somebody has to call in the air strike,” said Sergeant Callaway. “You have to have someone who knows how to do the integration, get the aircraft there and get the bombs on target.”

Whether it’s rolling into a combat situation in a convoy or jumping into one from a C-130 Hercules, Sergeant Callaway and his fellow TACPs don’t skip a breath when there’s a job to be done.

“We can get in by helicopter, convoy, aircraft -- however the Army’s getting to the fight,” said Sergeant Callaway. “If it needs to get done and has to be done, we’re there.”

Misawa Sergeant Saves Fellow Airman

MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan — After the accident, Master Sgt. Richard Robinson walked from the jump to the fresh helmet paint marks in the dirt. He counted 45 paces.

“We call it the ‘whiskey throttle,’ ” he said. “It’s when you hit a bump you’re not expecting, and if you lean back on the bike, it causes you to open the throttle” and accelerate.

It happened to Master Sgt. Mike Ward two weeks ago at a tricky spot along the off-base Misawa area motorcross course.

“He was right in the face of a jump and he shot off that thing,” said Robinson, who was riding behind Ward. Both are assigned to Misawa Air Base.

Ward tore two ligaments in his pelvis — including one that connects the pelvis to the spine — in the wreck and faces a long road to recovery that may or may not include a continuation of his Air Force career, depending on how he mends. But he may owe his life to his friend, who relied on his military training in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and self-aid buddy care to act quickly and decisively in a panic-stricken situation.

Robinson said he knew Ward was in bad shape. His body was twisted, crumpled, lifeless, his face a bluish-green.

“That’s when I started to check his vital signs,” Robinson said. “My heart was beating so hard, I had to do it twice.”

Ward had a pulse. But when Robinson put his hand under his friend’s helmet visor and over his mouth, he couldn’t detect a breath.

“I started to think about doing CPR and mouth-to-mouth,” Robinson said.

As he unbuckled Ward’s helmet, Robinson heard a light gurgle and saw blood. It sounded like his breathing was blocked, so Robinson carefully repositioned him to try to open his airway, he said, “and he started breathing on his own.”

Several other Misawa airmen at the motorcross course, in the meantime, called for help, including Tech. Sgt. Chris Whipple, who speaks Japanese fluently and got local nationals at the site to call an ambulance. The group also kept Ward stabilized, coaxing him against his wishes not to stand up, a move that may have further damaged his pelvis, officials said.

As of Thursday, Ward still was hospitalized in Hachinohe and could not be reached for comment. Through his wife he passed along his thanks to everyone who helped him.

Robinson, 39, the chief inspector for the 35th Maintenance Group, said he never expected he’d use his Air Force life-saving training on a friend at a dirt-bike course. He said Ward, 44, was a seasoned rider wearing all the right protective gear.

“It was comforting to know I knew what to do, but it was scary at the same time,” he said.

His instructor, Tech. Sgt. Cory Mayberry, the chief of development and instruction for the 35th Maintenance Group, said airmen in the maintenance group must complete CPR and self-aid buddy care training every two years. The courses are redundant in some areas, but that only reinforces the material, Mayberry said.

“He did fine,” he said of Robinson. “I think he would have been able to take it one step further if he would have had to. It’s definitely one of those things you want to have and not need.”

C-5 Crash Doesn't Diminish Historian's View of Aircraft

San Antonio, TX. - The C-5 Galaxy crash at Dover Air Force Base, Del., April 3 placed the aging aircraft in the spotlight once again.

With no deaths reported, military officials are cleaning the crash site and are convening a board of officers to investigate the cause of the accident.

But the crash does not tarnish John Leland’s image of the C-5 Galaxy. He places the aircraft in such high regard he has co-written a book about the Air Force’s largest cargo aircraft, “The Chronological History of the C-5 Galaxy.”

“Since this was just its sixth crash in its history, that tells me it has had a good, solid record of performance over the years,” said the historian who works at the Air Mobility Command Office of History at Scott Air Force Base, Ill.

Mr. Leland will include the recent crash in the C-5’s chronological history, which he updates religiously.

Biggest plane in the world
The C-5’s history dates back to March 2, 1968, when President Lyndon B. Johnson attended the rollout and christening ceremony. At that time, it was the largest plane in the world.

“The aircraft symbolized the size, power, might and majesty of the United States Air Force,” Mr. Leland said.

The Galaxy has 12 internal wing tanks with a total capacity of 51,150 gallons of fuel -- enough to fill six-and-a-half regular-size railroad tank cars. At nearly a football field long and nearly six stories high, it can carry tanks and buses. With aerial refueling, the aircraft’s range is limited only by crew endurance.

In 1982, the Antonov 124, a Soviet air transport, set a record for the largest mass ever lifted by an airplane, snatching away the C-5’s title.

The C-5s that could
Since its inception, the C-5 has helped during times of war -- Vietnam, Desert Shield/Storm, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

In 2001, the C-5 furnished about 50 percent of Air Mobility Command’s organic strategic airlift capability. During OEF, the C-5 flew 33 percent of the cargo missions, hauled 46 percent of the total cargo and carried 40 percent of all passengers airlifted by AMC. In Operation Iraqi Freedom, it flew about 23 percent of the missions and delivered about 48 percent of the cargo, moving more cargo per mission than the C-17 Globemaster III and the C-141B Starlifter.

It was also invaluable during times of peace, especially during humanitarian missions.
“The Air Mobility Command developed the C-5’s humanitarian mission a number of years ago, and humanitarian airlift is AMC’s gift to the world,” Mr. Leland said.

Old but not forgotten
Although the C-5 Galaxy is getting old, it can still carry twice the amount of its newest cargo carrier sibling, the C-17.

“I like to think of the C-5 as augmenting the C-17,” Mr. Leland said.

With the retiring of the C-141, which started in 2002 and ended this year, the C-5 and C-17 must now carry the millions of tons per year generated by Air Force missions round the world.

C-5 makeover
Based on a study showing 80 percent of the C-5 service life remaining, AMC began to modernize the C-5. The C-5 Avionics Modernization Program began in 1998 and includes upgrading avionics to comply with air traffic control compliance, improving navigation and safety equipment and installing a new autopilot system.

Another part of the makeover includes new engines, auxiliary power units and other improvements.

“The aircraft has been deemed structurally sound until the year 2040, thus the ‘re-engining’ program,” Mr. Leland said.

In his book, he wrote, “The C-5 has already accomplished what no other air transport has ever achieved, including the new, more reliable C-17.”

Not wanting to speculate on the cause of yesterday’s crash, Mr. Leland said the crash demonstrated the superior training by the aircrew.

“The C-5 flew an awful lot of missions, and I could tell they were superbly trained because there were no critical injuries,” he said.

Other incidents that destroyed C-5s
May 25, 1970 -- Burned aircraft at Palmdale, Calif., during a flight test.

Oct. 17, 1970 -- Also burned during a flight test, this time at Marietta, Ga.

Sept. 27, 1974 -- Crashed at Clinton Municipal Airport, Okla.

April 5, 1975 -- Crashed in Saigon, Vietnam, during Operation Babylift.

Aug. 29, 1990 -- Crashed at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, during Operation Desert Storm.

USS Porter Returns to Black Sea

Naples, Italy - For the second time this year, USS Porter (DDG 78) transited through the Turkish Straits in April to engage with Black Sea navies.

Planned engagements with Romania, Turkey, Georgia and Bulgaria will directly support the Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe (CNE) strategic priority of strengthening enduring partnerships in the region.

“These are our new friends,” Commodore, Task Force (CTF) 67 Capt. Bob Lally said of the countries Porter will be interacting with. “The excitement is because they invited us and want to engage with the U.S. Navy. Building new partnerships and strengthening existing ones, especially in this region, is extremely important in achieving our goals of greater maritime domain awareness and fostering an environment inhospitable to criminals and extremists.”

The visit follows Porter’s Black Sea trip in February, when the ship conducted port visits and training in Romania and Ukraine. This visit to the region will challenge the ship’s crew in several ways, said Lt. Cmdr. Murzban Morris, an operations staff member of CTF 67.

“The first is the pace of operations. We’re basically doing one thing right after another, with very little dead time in between,” Morris explained. “We’re going to come in, and in an 18-day span, work with four different countries integrating, training and engaging with them both in the community as well as military-to-military.”

Porter, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer homeported in Norfolk, Va., has been forward deployed to the U.S 6th Fleet since late November. Porter has been conducting operations in the Mediterranean and Black Seas in support of maritime and theater security cooperation.

The 507-foot-long ship weighs almost 9,000 tons and can exceed speeds of 30 knots. About 315 crew members serve aboard the ship, which was commissioned in March 1999, and can conduct air, surface and sub-surface operations simultaneously.

Cowpens, Russian Navy Demonstrate HA/DR Capability

USS Cowpens - The guided-missile cruisers USS Cowpens (CG 63) and Pearl Harbor-based USS Chosin (CG 65) completed a multinational exercise March 31 with Russian Federation Navy ships RFN Marshal Shaposhnikov (DD 643), RFN Nikolay Korsakov (LST 077), RFN Pechenga (AOR 244) and the ocean-going tug RFN SB-522 (ATA).

The exercise, held off the coast of Guam, followed the Russian ships’ port visit to Guam March 27–30. The exercise focused on demonstrating the interoperability of U.S. and Russian forces for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HA/DR).

While in port, Sailors from both navies participated in several social and athletic events, such as soccer and volleyball games. In preparation for the exercise, they also conducted training for HA/DR operations.

After getting underway March 31, units from both navies participated in a personnel exchange and several basic seamanship exercises, including maneuvering and communication drills as well as helicopter operations.
Through establishing several different lines of communication such as line-of-sight radio circuits and semaphore (visual flag signals between ships), the U.S. and Russian navies demonstrated the ability to synchronize future multinational efforts.

“It was a rare and valuable opportunity to establish and maintain radio circuits with our Russian friends. In the event of future joint relief efforts, we’ll be better prepared to communicate effectively,” said Electronics Technician 3rd Class Michael Wisniewski, of Adrian, Mich.

The exercise culminated with Cowpens, Chosin, Marshal Shaposhnikov, Pechenga and U.S. and Russian helicopters reacting to a simulated disaster. Using remote landing sites on Guam, the ship and helicopters moved medical personnel and humanitarian assistance supplies ashore.

Capt. John Sorce, commanding officer of Cowpens, judged the exercise a success and explained why exercises such as this one are essential for the Navy.

“The success of the exercise demonstrated the effectiveness of a multinational force operating in unison in response to natural disasters around the globe," he said. "As the variety and complexity of potential operations continues to expand for the military, it becomes more critical that U.S. Navy ships prepare to operate as part of a multinational force.”

Cowpens is assigned to Carrier Strike Group 5 and operates out of Yokosuka, Japan.

Navy Designates Next-Generation Zumwalt Destroyer

The Navy has announced April 7 that the first DD(X) destroyer will be designated DDG 1000. As the lead ship in the class, it will also be named in honor of former Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Elmo R. “Bud” Zumwalt, Jr.

Developed under the DD(X) destroyer program, Zumwalt is the lead ship in a class of next-generation, multimission surface combatants tailored for land attack and littoral dominance, with capabilities designed to defeat current and projected threats as well as improve battle force defense.

Zumwalt was appointed Chief of Naval Operations in 1970. As the youngest man ever to serve as CNO, Zumwalt cemented an acclaimed reputation as a visionary leader and thoughtful reformer. July 4, 2000, then-President Bill Clinton celebrated Zumwalt’s accomplishments and memory with the naming of the class and lead ship shortly after the admiral’s passing in Durham, N.C., Jan. 2, 2000.

Zumwalt was born in San Francisco in 1920 and grew up in Tulare, Calif. He was a cum laude graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy in 1942.

As CNO, Zumwalt initiated wide-ranging reforms in a dramatic effort to revitalize the Navy. Time magazine hailed Zumwalt as "the Navy's most popular leader since World War II." As the Navy's senior officer, he increased the warfighting capabilities of the dwindling U.S. fleet by outfitting remaining ships with more efficient and sophisticated weapons. He retired in 1974. In 1996, he took over as chairman of the board of the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation.

In addition to numerous decorations received from the U.S. Navy, including the Navy Distinguished Service Medal (three awards), the Legion of Merit (two awards) and Bronze Star with combat "V," he received decorations and awards from a number of foreign countries. In 1998, Zumwalt was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his service to the United States.

Zumwalt authored two books about his life in the Navy. On Watch (1976) recounts his Navy career and warns Americans about the Soviet naval threat. My Father, My Son (1986), co-authored with his late son, Elmo III, is an account of their Vietnam experiences and his son's tragic illness.

Compared to current U.S. Navy destroyers, the Zumwalt-class destroyer will triple both current naval surface fire coverage, as well as capability against anti-ship cruise missiles. It has a 50-fold radar cross section reduction compared to current destroyers, improves strike group defense 10-fold and has 10 times the operating area in shallow water regions against mines. The Zumwalt class fills an immediate and critical naval warfare gap, meeting validated Marine Corps fire support requirements.

Last year, Congress fully supported the DD(X) budget request, and the Zumwalt class is ready to start construction. In November 2005, the Department of Defense granted Milestone B approval, authorizing entrance into Phase IV of the program, including the detail design and construction of the two lead ships.

Under the Navy’s dual lead ship acquisition strategy proposed in the President’s budget for fiscal year 2007, Northrop Grumman Ship Systems and General Dynamics Bath Iron Works will concurrently build the dual lead ships. Zumwalt will be delivered in 2012.

Army Career News - 04/05/2006

MILPER MESSAGE NUMBER : 06-103
AHRC-MSP-E
DA DIRECTED PROMOTION LIST INTEGRATION TO SERGEANT (SGT) PROMOTIONS EFFECTIVE 1 JUNE 2006
Issued: [04/05/2006]...

A. AR 600-8-19, ENLISTED PROMOTIONS AND REDUCTIONS, 10 JAN 06

B. AR 601-208, ARMY RETENTION PROGRAM, 31 MAR 99.

C. HQDA (DAPE-MPE) MESSAGE, 251601Z FEB 05, SAB.

1. THIS MESSAGE NUMBER WILL EXPIRE NLT JUNE 06; HOWEVER,
THE PROCEDURES WILL REMAIN IN EFFECT UNTIL SUPERSEDED OR RESCINDED.

2. THIS MESSAGE APPLIES TO ACTIVE ARMY SOLDIERS.

3. THIS MESSAGE PROVIDES PROCEDURAL GUIDANCE TO THE AUTOMATIC
PROMOTION LIST INTEGRATION FOR SOLDIERS THAT MEET THE REQUIRED CRITERIA.

4. APPLICABILITY: SOLDIERS IN THE GRADE OF E-4 WHO MEET THE
FOLLOWING CRITERIA WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY INTEGRATED ONTO
THE RECOMMENDED LIST PROVIDED THEY ARE OTHERWISE ELIGIBLE
FOR RECOMMENDED LIST CONSIDERATION DESPITE LACKING THE
ACTUAL PROMOTION BOARD APPEARANCE:

A. FORTY-SIX (46) MONTHS TIME IN SERVICE (TIS) (TO BECOME
ELIGIBLE FOR PROMOTION NET FORTY-EIGHT (48) MONTHS),

B. TEN (10) MONTHS TIME IN GRADE (TIG) (TO BECOME ELIGIBLE
FOR PROMOTION NET TWELVE (12) MONTHS),

C. OTHERWISE NOT INELIGIBLE (IAW AR 600-8-19),

D. NOT OTHERWISE DENIED BY THE COMMANDER.

5. HUMAN RESOURCES COMMAND (HRC) ENLISTED PROMOTIONS
BRANCH, WILL POST A LIST OF SOLDIERS WHO ACCORDING TO
HRC SYSTEMS HAVE MET OR EXCEEDED THE AUTOMATIC
RECOMMENDED LIST CRITERIA FOR RECOMMENDED LIST
INTEGRATION EFFECTIVE 1 APRIL 2006, (WHICH POTENTIALLY
AFFECTS PROMOTIONS FOR 1 JUNE 2006) NLT 1400 HRS EST 5
APRIL 2006 TO THE PROMOTIONS WEB SITE.

6. UPON POSTING DATE, PERSONNEL WORK CENTERS (PWC)
ARE TO EXTRAPOLATE THOSE PERSONNEL FROM THE RECOMMENDED
LIST WITHIN THEIR AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY AND NOTIFY THEIR
RESPECTIVE COMMANDS OF THEIR ELIGIBILITY. INDIVIDUAL UNITS
WILL ALSO HAVE ACCESS, BUT ANY ACTIONS TAKEN TO DENY A
SOLDIER FROM THE AUTOMATIC RECOMMENDED LIST INTEGRATION
MUST BE ACCOMPLISHED AT THE PWC.

7. SUBSEQUENT TO THE DISTRIBUTION/RECEIPT OF THIS LIST,
COMMANDERS MUST DETERMINE WHETHER A SOLDIER SHOULD BE
DENIED AUTOMATIC RECOMMENDED LIST INTEGRATION WITH 350
POINTS. THE DENIAL RECOMMENDATION IS INITIATED BY THE UNIT
COMMANDER AND APPROVED BY THE PROMOTION AUTHORITY LTC/05.
IF A SOLDIER IS DENIED AUTOMATIC RECOMMENDED LIST INTEGRATION,
COUNSELING MUST BE ACCOMPLISHED IAW AR 600-8-19, PARA 1-26.

8. TO AFFECT PROMOTIONS EFFECTIVE 1 JUNE 06 (AS A PROCEDURAL
EXCEPTION), ON 5 APRIL 06, ALL SOLDIERS LISTED ON THE ROSTER THAT
ENLISTED PROMOTIONS BRANCH POSTED, WILL BE GIVEN 350 POINTS. THE
PWC CAN VIEW THESE SOLDIERS ON EDAS ON THE PP SCREEN. THESE
SOLDIERS WILL BE LISTED WITH 350 POINTS AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE OF
990604 OR 200604 IF SELECTED FOR PROMOTION. THE PWC MUST DELETE
THE 350 POINTS ON ANY SOLDIER WHO THE UNIT COMMANDER DETERMINES
SHOULD NOT BE INCLUDED FOR AUTOMATIC RECOMMENDED LIST INTEGRATION.
ALL ACTIONS TO DELETE THE POINTS ON NON-SELECTED SOLDIERS MUST
BE ACHIEVED NLT 17 APRIL 2006.

9. ON 20 APRIL 2006, THOSE SOLDIERS IN EDAS, THAT MET THE CRITERIA
IN PARAGRAPH 5, WILL BE CONSIDERED AS PROMOTABLE SOLDIERS AND
THEIR POINTS WILL NOT BE DELETED AFTER THIS DATE WITHOUT
FOLLOWING THE PROCEDURES OF PARAGRAPH 17 OF THIS MESSAGE.
ADDITIONALLY, UNIT RETENTION NCOS WILL ENSURE ERUP CODES
REFLECT CURRENT ELIGIBILITY AS RELATED TO FIFTEEN (15) YEARS.

A. PROCESSING PROCEDURES:

(1) CAREER COUNSELORS WILL COORDINATE WITH THEIR LOCAL
PERSONNEL WORK CENTERS AND COMMANDERS TO IDENTIFY
SOLDIERS AFFECTED BY THIS MESSAGE.

(2) CAREER COUNSELORS WILL UPDATE THE SOLDIER’S IMMEDIATE
REENLISTMENT CODE USING ORDER OF PRECEDENCE.

B. POINT OF CONTACT THIS MESSAGE IS SGM CARPENTER, EMAIL:
VENUS.CARPENTER@HOFFMAN.ARMY.MIL, DSN: 221-6807.

10. ONCE CUT-OFF SCORES HAVE BEEN DETERMINED FOR 1 JUNE
2006 PROMOTIONS, THOSE MEETING OR EXCEEDING CUT-OFF SCORES
BY BOARD APPEARANCE, AND OTHERWISE FULLY ELIGIBLE, WILL BE
PROMOTED FIRST. IF, AFTER REVIEW, THERE IS STILL A REQUIREMENT
FOR PROMOTIONS, HRC WILL SELECT THAT REQUIREMENT FROM THOSE
SOLDIERS LISTED WITH 350 POINTS AND OTHERWISE FULLY ELIGIBLE.
THE PWC WILL PULL THEIR BY-NAME PROMOTION LIST NLT 15 MAY
2006 FOR ALL PROMOTIONS EFFECTIVE 1 JUNE 2006. THE BY-NAME
PROMOTION LIST WILL INCLUDE SOLDIERS, IF NEEDED, FROM THE
AUTOMATIC RECOMMENDED LIST INTEGRATION IN MOS' BASED ON:

A. DATE OF RANK

B. BASIC ACTIVE SERVICE DATE

11. THE PWC WILL DETERMINE WHICH SOLDIERS WERE GIVEN POINTS
UNDER THIS POLICY. ONCE THE SOLDIERS ARE SELECTED FOR PROMOTION,
THEIR POINTS REMAIN 350, BUT THEIR EFFECTIVE DATE WILL BE 200604.
THIS IS TO ENSURE POINTS ARE EFFECTIVE TWO (2) MONTHS PRIOR
(04=APRIL FOR A 1 JUNE 06 PROMOTION), JUST AS IS DONE CURRENTLY
WITH ACTUAL BOARD APPEARANCES. THEREFORE, AS AN EXAMPLE,
THOSE SELECTED FOR PROMOTION FOR 1 JUNE 2006 UNDER THIS
POLICY WILL HAVE AN EFFECTIVE DATE OF 200604.

12. THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE PWC TO VALIDATE THOSE SOLDIERS
SELECTED FOR PROMOTION FOR ELIGIBILITY IS UNCHANGED. HOWEVER,
THOSE SOLDIERS SELECTED UNDER THIS POLICY WILL NOT HAVE A DA
FORM 3355. SUBSEQUENT TO VALIDATION, THE PWC IS REQUIRED TO
PUBLISH PROMOTION ORDERS AND SUBMIT THE PROMOTION TO SGT
TRANSACTION WITH AN EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1 JUNE 2006.

13. IF AT THE TIME OF RECEIPT, A COMMANDER DETERMINES A SOLDIER
IS INELIGIBLE FOR PROMOTION, FOLLOW THE PROCEDURES IN DENYING A
PROMOTION AS OUTLINED IN AR 600-8-19, CHAPTER 3, PARAGRAPH 3-19.

14. UNTIL AUTOMATION IS DEVELOPED TO INCORPORATE THESE CHANGES
(APPROXIMATELY 6 MONTHS), ALL ACTIONS AT HRC WILL BE ACCOMPLISHED
OFF-LINE, I.E. THE LIST OF ELIGIBLES BEING POSTED TO THE WEB.

15. MILPER MESSAGES WILL BE POSTED MONTHLY TO PROVIDE CURRENT
TIMELINES AND GUIDANCE. THIS WILL CONTINUE UNTIL SUCH TIME AS
AUTOMATION SYSTEMS CAN BE UPDATED, AND THEN THE
STANDARDIZATION OF REQUIREMENTS WILL BE PUBLISHED AND
BECOME PERMANENT POLICY.

16. ANY EXCEPTIONS TO POLICY MUST BE DIRECTED TO THIS OFFICE.

17. IF A UNIT INADVERTENTLY OVERLOOKED A SOLDIER, AND THAT
SOLDIER WAS ERRONEOUSLY LIST INTEGRATED, THE ONLY WAY THAT
COMMAND CAN GET THE SOLDIER REMOVED FROM THE LIST IS TO
FOLLOW THE PROCEDURES OF AR 600-8-19, CHAPTER 3, PARAGRAPH
3-28, AUTOMATIC REMOVALS VERSUS A REMOVAL BOARD.

18. SOLDIERS ADDED TO THE RECOMMENDED LIST IN THIS MANNER
ARE NOT ELIGIBLE FOR RE-COMPUTATIONS. FURTHER, SOLDIERS WHO
DESIRE TO RECEIVE PROMOTION POINTS BASED ON THEIR ACTUAL
ACCOMPLISHMENTS, IAW THE EXISTING PROCESSES OUTLINED IN AR
600-8-19, MUST BE RECOMMENDED AND BOARDED BY THEIR CHAIN OF
COMMAND. SOLDIERS, WITH SUPPORT OF THEIR COMMANDER,
CHOOSING TO APPEAR BEFORE A PROMOTION BOARD AFTER AUTOMATIC
LIST INTEGRATION, ARE TO FOLLOW THE EXISTING PROVISIONS FOR
TOTAL REEVALUATION.

19. IF, AFTER BOARD APPEARANCE, THE SOLDIER DOES NOT HAVE THE
MINIMUM POINTS REQUIRED TO STAY ON THE STANDING LIST (LESS
THAN 350) BUT WAS RECOMMENDED BY THE PROMOTION BOARD AND
THE SOLDIER WAS PREVIOUSLY AUTOMATIC LIST INTEGRATED, THAT
SOLDIER WILL REMAIN ON THE LIST WITH 350 POINTS. TO ADD ANY
POINTS, THE SOLDIER MUST REAPPEAR BEFORE A PROMOTION BOARD.

20. CONVERSELY, IF A SOLDIER APPEARS BEFORE A PROMOTION BOARD,
AND IS NOT RECOMMENDED FOR PROMOTION, THAT SOLDIER, REGARDLESS
OF WHETHER THEY WERE PREVIOUSLY AUTOMATIC LIST INTEGRATED,
WILL NOT REMAIN ON THE LIST AND MUST APPEAR BEFORE A PROMOTION
BOARD TO REGAIN PROMOTABLE STATUS. THE PWC WILL TAKE THE
NECESSARY ACTIONS TO REMOVE THE SOLDIER FROM THE PROMOTION
STANDING LIST. IN ADDITION, THOSE THAT FALL WITHIN THIS CATEGORY
WILL HAVE THEIR RCP ADJUSTED BACK TO PRIOR TO THE PROMOTABLE STATUS.

21. POINT OF CONTACT IS SGM COON AT DSN 221-5101, COMMERCIAL
(703)325-5101 OR MR GRANT AT DSN 221-3959 OR COMMERCIAL
(703) 325-3959.

Big Red One Veterans Meet for 87th Reunion

Washington D.C. - They journeyed from as far away as Germany and as close by as the Military District of Washington. They referred to themselves as Blue Spaders, Kings of Battle and Black Lions. Some commanded troops in Operation Iraqi Freedom II while others stormed the Beaches of Normandy.

Current and previous officers of America’s oldest division – the 1st Infantry Division – gathered for their 87th reunion at the Alexandria Mark Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C., April 1.

This year’s event commemorated the 15th anniversary of the division’s successful combat operations during Operation Desert Storm.

When commenting on the war, former 1st ID Commanding General Retired LTG Thomas G. Rhame said “all of us who were able to fight that war were very fortunate we got to fight that war with the Big Red One. It was a special opportunity, a window in history that God allowed us to participate in.”

The current 1st ID Commanding General, MG Kenneth W. Hunzeker, updated attendees on today’s status of the Big Red One.

“We are all in the middle of an exciting time for the division. Having returned from a highly successful, full-spectrum combat operation, the division, as you know, is again proving its agility by taking on a variety of complex missions relating to the War on Terror, and we’re truly executing the Army campaign plan of the future.”

As the attendees dined, the 1st ID Band played regimental and division songs, and each of the member units took turns marching around the room in single file, swinging their napkins in the air, insuring all present would know the spirit of their unit is alive and well in each of them.

When asked if he was having a good time, one World War II veteran responded enthusiastically with “I’m having a great time, great time. I always enjoy this event.”

After the Color Guard retrieved the colors and the final pictures where taken, the words of the division were repeated by all: “No mission to difficult. No sacrifice to great. Duty First!”

Living with Spouse Improves Iraq Duty

CAMP ANACONDA, Iraq — When Sgt. 1st Class Miguel Guajardo, 34, learned that his wife would be deploying to Iraq, he volunteered to go with her.

Miguel Guajardo, of the 84th Engineer Combat Battalion, said he was slated to go to Iraq with a different unit at a different time, meaning the two would be separated.

“I realized in order for us to stay together, we would have to come to Iraq together,” said the Corpus Christi, Texas, native.

Afterward, he learned that he would not only be able to serve with his wife, but live with her as well.

Lt. Col. Mark Toy, battalion commander, said he allows married couples such as Miguel and Delilah Guajardo to live together because he recognizes that his soldiers are professionals and know how to act.

For Miguel Guajardo, being able to live with his wife while serving in Iraq has been “more than I hoped for.”

“It certainly helps with the stress because you get to see your spouse and you know they’re doing well,” he said.

Still, some couples say being with their spouses can’t make everything all right.

Some couples said they worry when their spouses go outside the wire. They said they try not to think about their loved ones being in danger and they pass the time by watching movies.

But Sgt. 1st Class Lynette Joyner, 32, said she gets worried if her husband doesn’t get back to their trailer by 6:30 a.m.

Sgt. Lakia Thornton, 21, said, “As soon as I hear the knob or see the door open, I jump up.”

Thornton, of Newark, N.J., said this deployment marks her second with her husband, Sgt. Hoover Thornton, 23, of Jersey City, N.J.

She said serving with her spouse gives her a shoulder to cry on, but leaving her child back in the States without his parents is a hardship.

“It hurts when he says, ‘Where is Daddy, where is Mommy?’” she said.

Miguel Guajardo said he and his wife are experiencing their 14-month-old son’s early childhood “vicariously” through DVDs and other items sent by their family.

Sgt. 1st Class Delilah Guajardo, 34, gets emotional when she still sees her son as the 10-month-old boy she left when she came to Iraq.

“It felt like — it’s about like part of me died,” she said, starting to cry.

Joyner, of Jackson, Calif., said being able to serve with her husband has been a “blessing,” but being away from her son has proven more difficult than she anticipated. She said she calls home as often as possible and tries to get through the pain of separation.

“Just have your nights crying and move on,” she said.

Delilah Guajardo, of Corpus Christi, Texas, said she views having her family raise her son while she is gone as a gift to them.

Asked what she plans to do with her son when she gets home, she said, “Probably hug and kiss him a million times.”

New Operation Launched in Afghanistan

Afghan and coalition soldiers killed six insurgents in eastern Afghanistan Wednesday as they launched a new 2,500-troop operation with predawn air and ground strikes, the US military said.

The insurgents were killed as part of Operation Mountain Lion in eastern Kunar province, where seven children were killed Tuesday in a rocket attack blamed on militants allied to the ousted Taliban regime.

"The operation began with predawn air and ground assaults today (Wednesday) in the Pech River Valley, an area notorious for terrorist activity," the US-led coalition said in a statement.

The insurgents were killed in a neighbouring district of the province, which borders Pakistan.

The operation, involving 2,500 troops from the Afghan Army and various coalition regiments, aimed to "disrupt insurgents' activities, deny them sanctuary and prevent their ability to resupply," it said.

It was a "comprehensive effort to kill, incapacitate or capture terrorists operating in the region" that would continue "as long as necessary."

On Tuesday a rocket fired at a school killed seven children in the provincial capital Asadabad and left 33 others and a teacher wounded.

It was unclear if the rocket, which police said was fired from across the border, had been aimed at the school, which was in a mosque near an Afghan army base and coalition compound.

Officials blamed the attack on the Taliban, who have been waging an insurgency against the new government since they were toppled in a US-led campaign in late 2001.

The leadership of the Islamist movement is believed to have fled into Pakistan from where Afghan officials say the insurgency is being run.

The unrest sees almost-daily attacks in southern and eastern Afghanistan that mainly feature roadside bombs and often-botched suicide blasts.

In one such attack, a roadside bomb ripped through a police vehicle in volatile southern Helmand province Wednesday, killing a policeman and wounding two others, police said.

The policemen were on patrol when the remote-controlled device was detonated, police criminal investigation department chief Amanullah Khan said.

The attack was claimed by the Taliban, whom officials say are particularly active in Helmand because of their links to widespread opium cultivation there.

Afghan and coalition forces in neighbouring Kandahar province meanwhile discovered a cache of weapons that "belonged to a Taliban facilitator who has plotted to ambush and kill Afghan government officials and coalition forces," a separate coalition statement said Wednesday.

The stash contained rocket-propelled grenades and materials to build home-made bombs.

And in eastern Ghazni province, a government official turned over to coalition troops a cache that included more than 250 mines, nine mine fuses, four grenades and around 70 kilograms (150 pounds) of TNT, the statement said.

The unrest is hampering Afghanistan's efforts to rebuild after 25 years of war that ended with fall of the Taliban.

There are about 30,000 foreign troops here to help stabilise the country and end the insurgency.

But violence has shown no sign of abating and has killed more than 2,000 people, most of them militants, since the beginning of 2005, according to an unofficial count.

Retired General Calls For Rumsfeld to Go

Another retired general called for the resignation of US Defense Donald Rumsfeld on Wednesday, adding to a drumbeat of pressure from the military for new leadership and fresh thinking on Iraq.

Major General John Batiste, former commander of the US Army's 1st Infantry Division, criticized Rumsfeld for ignoring military advice and failing to provide sound military planning.

"You know, it speaks volumes that guys like me are speaking out from retirement about the leadership climate in the Department of Defense," Batiste said in an interview with CNN.

His was the latest in a groundswell of calls for Rumsfeld's resignation by respected retired generals who served in Iraq or key positions in the military hierarchy. Batiste led the 1st Infantry Division during a year-long Iraq tour in 2004 and 2005.

General Peter Pace, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, came to Rumsfeld's defense on Tuesday and said the military fashioned, debated and vetted the war plans for Iraq.

"As far as Pete Pace is concerned, this country is exceptionally well served by the man standing on my left," the general said at a press conference with Rumsfeld.

Rumsfeld shrugged off the criticism as not "new or surprising," and said it had not affected his ability to do his job.

The generals have blamed Rumsfeld for the failure to commit enough troops to Iraq and plan for the post-invasion insurgency that has tied down the 130,000-strong US force for more than three years.

But they also have bitterly criticized him for an arrogant style that they say shuts out opposing viewpoints.

"We need a leader who understands team work, a leader who knows how to build teams, a leader that does it without intimidation," said Batiste.

"Conversely, I think we need senior military leaders who understand the principles of war and apply them ruthlessly, and when the time comes, they need to call it like it is," he said.

So far, no serving general other than Pace has spoken out publicly on the issue.

But retired lieutenant general Gregory Newbold, a Marine who served as the operations director of the Joint Staff during the Afghanistan campaign, urged serving officers to speak out.

He blasted the senior military leadership for their timidity in an opinion piece published over the weekend by Time magazine.

None of the retired generals who have spoken out so far have called for a withdrawal of US forces from Iraq.

"Whether we agree or not with the war in Iraq, we are where we are and we must succeed in this endeavor," Batiste said. "Failure is frankly not an option."

Three Marines in Fatal Raid Reassigned

WASHINGTON - Three Marines have been relieved of their commands in connection with problems during their deployment to Iraq, including their battalion's actions during a firefight that left 15 Iraqi civilians dead.

No charges have been filed against the three officers, who were reassigned to new duties within the division because of a "lack of confidence in their leadership abilities," said Lt. Lawton King, spokesman for the 1st Marine Division at Camp Pendleton in California.

King would not comment on the officers' specific connection to the firefight, which occurred in the western town of Haditha and is being probed by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

"There was no one justification for the move," said King. "In fact many considerations factored into the decision to relieve the commanders.... It stems from their performance during the entire deployment."

The officers are Lt. Col. Jeffrey R. Chessani, commanding officer of 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment; Capt. James S. Kimber, commanding officer of Company K, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, and Capt. Lucas M. McConnell, commanding officer of Company I, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.

Maj. Gen. Richard F. Natonski, commanding officer of the 1st Marine Division, made the decision to reassign the officers. The action is separate from the criminal probe, and King said it is too early to tell if the officers will be charged.

About a dozen 3rd Battalion Marines are being investigated for war crimes in connection with the November 2005 incident to determine if they violated the rules of military engagement.

A videotape taken by an Iraqi shows the aftermath of the alleged attack by U.S. troops on civilians in Haditha: a blood-smeared bedroom floor and bits of what appear to be human flesh and bullet holes on the walls.

The video, obtained by Time Magazine, was broadcast a day after Haditha residents told The Associated Press that American troops entered homes and shot dead 15 members of two families, including a 3-year-old girl, after a roadside bomb killed a U.S. Marine.

Soldier Sentenced in Theft

FORT LEWIS, Wash. - A 19-year Army veteran admitted Monday that he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of military supplies that were later sold online.

Staff Sgt. Arthur O. Smith III, 42, was sentenced to 45 months in jail, with credit for 149 days already served. Col. Debra Boudreau, the presiding judge at Smith's court martial, also ordered him to forfeit pay and pay $150,000 in restitution. He'll also receive a bad conduct discharge.

Smith, a former student at the academy for noncommissioned officers, was charged with 25 counts of unauthorized sale of government property, one count of failure to obey an order and one count of obstruction of justice. He pleaded guilty to all the counts.

He is one of 10 Fort Lewis Soldiers accused of stealing government property and selling it to Mykel D. Loftus, who then allegedly sold the items online. Loftus has been charged in federal court with conspiracy to possess stolen government property.

Investigations continue regarding the nine other Soldiers, Fort Lewis officials said after the sentencing.

Smith stole more than $279,900 in government property that included Gore-Tex jackets and pants, tool sets, knives, ammunition, global positioning systems and meals-ready-to-eat, Capt. Dan Kuecker, a military prosecutor, said Monday. Loftus paid more than $83,400 for the items, the prosecutor said.

Under a plea agreement with prosecutors, Smith had his sentence reduced from a possible maximum 228 years in exchange for his cooperation in the cases involving Loftus.

Military Doubts Burning Pilot Video

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Gunmen shouting "God is Great!" dragged the burning body of what they said was a U.S. pilot in a horrific video posted Wednesday on the Web by a new al-Qaida-affiliated group that claimed it shot down an Apache helicopter last weekend.

On Thursday, roadside bombings in Iraq killed two security forces and wounded at least 12, officials said.

One of the bombs exploded near a police patrol in western Baghdad, killing a policeman and wounding five, officials said. A second bomb detonated when another group of police arrived at the scene, wounding two more policemen.

North of the capital, an Iraqi army patrol was also hit by a roadside bomb, killing one officer and wounding five soldiers outside the city of Baqouba.

Meanwhile, the U.S. military expressed outrage over the release of "such a despicable video for public exposure" but said it had serious doubts that the footage was authentic.

The AH-64D Apache Longbow attack helicopter was downed near Youssifiyah about 12 miles southwest of Baghdad on Saturday, killing the two pilots. A U.S. statement said troops had recovered "all available remains" although "reports of a Web site video suggest that terrorists removed part of a body from the crash site."

The flaming wreckage of a helicopter could be seen clearly in the video, including outlines of the aircraft's blades and jagged pieces of wreckage strewn over a field.

The camera panned over bloodstained debris, then showed several men dragging the burning body of a man across a field as they shouted "Allahu Akbar," or "God is Great!" Voices could be heard in the background shouting "come, come, help me carry it."

The body's face was not visible, but the camera zoomed in on what appeared to be his waistline, which showed a scrap of underwear with the brand name "Hanes." It appeared the man was wearing tattered digital camouflage fatigues, which are worn by U.S. troops in Iraq.

The time stamp on the video which shows the minutes and seconds do not run sequentially, and the scenes appear disjointed. The posting also included bombing scenes filmed elsewhere, indicating the material had been edited as a propaganda package.

Lt. Col. Barry Johnson, a spokesman for the command, said the wreckage shown on the video "does appear to be an AH-64" but added that other helicopters of that type have been lost.

"We have serious doubts about the authenticity of this video, a common tactic we see terrorist groups use to keep the stories they want alive in the media," he said.

But in Alexandria, Va., Ben Venzke, head of IntelCenter, a defense contractor which monitors militant statements, said it appeared on first viewing that the tape was authentic. Although the date stamp on the video was Sunday, April 2, a day after the crash, Venzke said the discrepancy could be simply a technical error in the setting.

"Based on an initial review of the footage, it would seem to indicate the downing of a helicopter and the removal of crew and passengers from the craft," he said. "On an initial review, it does appear to be what it purports to be."

He said the large amount of background chatter among those on the ground suggested that "it was filmed closely after the downing of the helicopter as opposed to something that was found later and staged."

It was the second Apache to crash in Iraq this year. On Jan 16, an AH-64 Apache conducting a combat air patrol went down in Mishada, north of Baghdad, killing two Soldiers. At least 12 Apaches have crashed since the beginning of the war three years ago.

U.S. officials first reported Saturday that an American helicopter had crashed that day about 5:30 p.m. during a combat patrol southwest of the capital and that the status of the crew was unknown. Ordinarily, U.S. officials refrain from reporting helicopter crashes until the status of the crew is clear to avoid tipping off the insurgents that wounded survivors may be in the area.

Late the next day, the U.S. command confirmed that helicopter was an Apache and that the two crew members were "presumed dead," suggesting the remains had not been found. Later the same day, U.S. authorities said the bodies had been recovered.

On Wednesday, the military identified the pilots killed as Capt. Timothy J. Moshier, 25, of Albany, N.Y., and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Michael L. Hartwick, of Orrick, Mo.

The video was e-mailed to reporters and posted on an Islamist Web site by the Mujahedeen Shura Council, purportedly a new umbrella organization that includes al-Qaida in Iraq and smaller insurgent groups. Formation of the group, announced Jan. 21, was seen as a bid to consolidate various organizations that had been operating independently since the insurgency erupted in 2003.

It was also seen as an effort by insurgents to lower the profile of al-Qaida in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian, whose mass attacks against Shiite civilians have tarnished the image of the insurgents among many Iraqis.

"We are outraged that anyone would create and publish such a despicable video for public exposure," Lt. Col. Jonathan Withington, a U.S. spokesman, said. "The terrorists continue to demonstrate their immoral disregard for human dignity and life."

Spending Bill Targets Military Voting

WASHINGTON - A provision inserted into an Iraq spending bill this week would attempt to make it easier for troops abroad to vote.

The provision, added by Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., would allow local governments to electronically transmit ballots, giving absentee military voters the opportunity to download and print them. The voters would then return the ballots by mail.

Seventeen senators - 11 Republicans and six Democrats - have joined in asking Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld to smooth the military voting process. Several of them sent a letter to Rumsfeld last month.

Under the current system, members of the military must contact local officials by regular mail and request a ballot, which is then mailed to them. The voter then must fill out the ballot by hand and send it back to his or her state, also by regular mail.

Lawmakers cite concerns that the voting process for troops overseas is so complex and time consuming that their ballots can arrive too late to be counted.

Burns said his amendment, added to a bill that would provide more than $100 billion for war costs and hurricane recovery, would speed that process substantially.

"Considering many soldiers are regularly deployed and redeployed from one location to another rather quickly sometimes, they won't have to wait for their ballot to catch up with them in the mail," Burns said.

The amendment would also appropriate $5.8 million for the department to cover the cost of the plan.

Lt. Col. Ellen Krenke, a Pentagon spokeswoman, would not comment on the pending legislation. She said many resources are already available on the department's Web site for absentee voters abroad, including a blank ballot that voters can fill out and send to their local election offices.

F-16 Crashes Into Ocean

A Shaw Air Force Base pilot was rescued Wednesday night about two hours after his F-16 plunged into the ocean off the South Carolina coast.

The pilot, Capt. Ted Shultz of the 55th Fighter Squadron, was in stable condition, said Petty Officer Bobby Nash, a Coast Guard spokesman.

After being treated on a Navy ship that was in the area, the pilot was transferred to the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, Nash added.

The crash happened about 5:40 p.m., approximately 30 miles off the coast between Myrtle Beach and Charleston, Shaw spokesman Lt. Bryan Cox said.

The F-16 was one of two fighters participating in a training exercise over a section of the ocean where military jets are allowed to fly at supersonic speeds, Cox added.

The pilot of the second jet saw Shultz eject from the doomed fighter and parachute safely into the ocean, Cox said. The second pilot then circled the area to assist the search.

A Coast Guard search-and-rescue team dispatched from Charleston found Shultz about 7:35 p.m., Nash said.

Once the helicopter reached the crash scene, its crew lowered a rescue swimmer into the water to assist the pilot.

Meantime, a nearby Navy ship launched one of its small boats to pick up Shultz and the Coast Guard crewman, Nash said.

The pilot was checked aboard the Navy ship and transferred to MUSC.

A board of officers will investigate, Cox said.

Wednesday's crash is the first involving a Shaw fighter since April 18 when a two-seater jet crashed into marshland along the Ashley River near downtown Charleston.

Both pilots ejected safely and were not injured. An investigation found that a maintenance crew's failure to install seals on a turbine blade led to the crash.

Fighters from Shaw, as well as McEntire Air National Guard Station and Beaufort Marine Corps Air Station, routinely train over the Atlantic.

By operating over the ocean, the jets can fly at supersonic speeds, keeping down noise levels and staying away from areas where there is heavy commercial air traffic.

Cutter Mackinaw Finishes Final Icebreaking Season

Sault Ste. Marie, MI. - U.S. Coast Guard icebreakers continue to focus their efforts on Whitefish Bay.

U.S. Coast Guard Cutters Mackinaw home ported in Cheboygan, MI, Biscayne Bay (St. Ignace, MI), Katmai Bay (Sault, MI), and Neah Bay (Cleveland, OH) are hoping to take advantage of long awaited southerly winds, rain, and warmer temperatures in order to flush the last of the region's ice out into Lake Superior. All the while, the ice breakers have kept the almost constant flow of commercial vessel traffic, moving through the area without delay. To date, 91 commercial vessels have transited the St. Mary's River, since the Soo Locks reopened on March 25th.

While most of the Great Lakes escaped the icy grip of "Old Man Winter", U.S. Coast Guard Sector Sault Ste. Marie has been dealing with ice in its waterways since mid December. Although the ice never reached its historical thickness, the Straits of Mackinac, St Mary's River, and the western Lake Superior ports of Duluth and Superior had enough ice (average 10-12 inches in most areas 18 to 24 inches in some) to keep icebreaking resources steadily working throughout the winter.

The "Old Mackinaw" was locked though on March 13th in preparation for spring opening of the Soo Locks. Mackinaw found the ice from the locks up to the entrance of the St Mary's River (near Point Iroquois) very manageable. However, they found a completely different story when they entered Whitefish Bay. Inside the shipping lanes, Mackinaw found ice varying in thickness from 36-48 inches. Outside the shipping lanes ice plates formed ridges up to eight feet thick. These conditions required the unique capabilities of Mackinaw given her size and power. The crew worked diligently for seven days as the Mackinaw carved a track through the stubborn ice fields of Whitefish Bay. In the meantime, outside assistance was called in. By Sunday March 20th, the Mackinaw was joined by the 140 foot ice breakers, Biscayne Bay and Neah Bay, with the Bristol Bay (Detroit, MI) joining the fleet later in the week. With the Katmai Bay handling the lower river, the Mackinaw and the three smaller ice breakers put the finishing touches on the track lines. At midnight on the 25th of March, the commercial lakers met no resistance as they made their way through Whitefish Bay. The mariners thanked the Mackinaw and the other cutters for the "highway" they had prepared. The "highway," as they put it, enabled the vessel traffic to pass clear of the locks and the St Mary's River system without delay.

With the southerly winds, rain, and warmer temperatures entering the region this week, the ice has begun to disintegrate, and Mackinaw's "highway" has collapsed - signifying the final stages of the ice season. Each year, the final days of ice breaking are often the most hectic. With no discernable track, the breakers are relegated to escorting vessels one by one through the rotting (still burdensome) ice. After which, the ice breakers must race back and forth to smash up the larger plates of ice. This allows the ice to move into Lake Superior and melt without posing a threat to the passing ships. This weekend, we've reached that phase of the ice season, as the

CG Station Receives Five Hoax Calls

Seattle. WA. - Coast Guard Station Yaquina Bay, Ore., has received five hoax calls this month, which places Coast Guard responders' lives at risk.
Each hoax call can result in the Coast Guard launching ships, boats and aircraft that could otherwise be used in legitimate search and rescue efforts. Hoax calls have become an increasing concern for the Coast Guard and the public.

The calls received in Yaquina Bay came in the form of a "Mayday" call for help on VHF channel 16, the emergency channel that is monitored by the Coast Guard 24-hours a day. For more than 200 years the Coast Guard has responded to distress calls at sea. Recently, more of these calls have been found to be hoaxes, which jeopardize search and rescue operations.

Hoax calls also cost taxpayers thousands of dollars annually. It costs approximately $1,200 per hour to operate a Coast Guard 47-foot motor lifeboat. A helicopter or larger cutter may cost anywhere from $9,000 to $12,000 an hour.

The five hoax calls that were received this month resulted in four searches and utilized three response boats for over six hours. An HH-65 Dolphin helicopter from Coast Guard Air Facility Newport, Ore., was also launched to respond to four of the calls.

The Coast Guard works with the FCC, FBI and local law enforcement agencies to identify people making hoax calls.

Knowingly and willingly transmitting a hoax call is a felony offense and is punishable by six to 10 years in prison, up to a $250,000 fine, a civil penalty of up to $5,000 and possible restitution to the government for the cost of the search.

To listen to an audio clip of one of the hoax calls, click on the following link:

http://www.piersystem.com/clients/uscg-13/52418

Disabled Fishing Vessel Towed to Port

Anchorage, AK. - The 174-foot catcher/processor Blue North is currently under tow by the tug James Dunlap west of Spray Cape, Unalaska Island. They are headed to Dutch Harbor at a speed of 8 knots. Estimated time of arrival in Dutch Harbor is 10 p.m. today.

The Coast Guard received notification from the captain of the Blue North at 4:35 a.m. today that the vessel's propeller was fouled by a line and reported being disabled and adrift about 25 miles west of Spray Cape. The vessel was drifting toward Unalaska Island at a speed of 1.5 - 2.5 knots on a heading of 150 degrees true.

The Coast Guard launched two HH-60 Jayhawk helicopters and a C-130 from Air Station Kodiak to assist with on scene communications and crew evacuation if needed. One HH-60 acted as the eyes on scene during the James Dunlap's arrival and the hook up of the tow. All aircraft have since been released from the scene and are returning to Kodiak.

The captain of the Blue North, with assitance from the Coast Guard Command Center in Juneau, immediately directed the launch of the tug James Dunlap from Dutch Harbor to respond. The tug arrived on scene at about 1 p.m. The James Dunlap is 94 feet long and has 4,000 horsepower.

Weather conditions in the area are west north west winds at 15 knots, six foot swells and visibility of 10 - 12 miles.

The Blue North has 11 crew and about 33,000 gallons of diesel fuel on board.

A unified command was quickly established to monitor the situation and posture resources in the event the tow was unsuccessful. Representatives include the Coast Guard, State of Alaska, Blue North Fisheries, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NOAA scientific support, the City of Unalaska and various response entities. Close monitoring will continue until the vessel is safely in Dutch Harbor.

Morgenthau Home After 18,000 Mile Trip

Alameda, CA. - The Alameda based Coast Guard Cutter Morgenthau will return home today following a successful counter-narcotics patrol off the coasts of Central and South America. Morgenthau's 163 person crew seized more than 13 metric tons of cocaine in their last two patrols, estimated at $.9 billion.

During this extensive three month deployment, Morgenthau's crew seized two vessels carrying a approximately six tons of cocaine with a street value of more than $300 million. The first vessel, a Peruvian fishing boat, was located and seized while trying to make the journey north to offload narcotics destined for the streets of the United States. Morgenthau intercepted the vessel and deployed the ship's boarding teams to search the boat for contraband. The vessel and the contraband were seized by Morgenthau's crew.

Morgenthau's second cocaine seizure occurred when the cutter detected a small, high speed vessel typically used for the movement of illegal narcotics. Morgenthau's crew deployed the ship's stingray helicopter and interceptor boats to capture the vessel. A boarding team subsequently discovered more than three tons of cocaine aboard the vessel and detained the six man crew.

Later in the patrol Morgenthau made a 1,000 mile sprint at top speed to assist 77 Ecuadorian migrants found adrift in a sinking vessel off the coast of El Salvador. After transferring the migrants to the Morgenthau, the crew provided food, shelter and medical care while safely delivering the men and women for repatriation to Ecuador. Several of those assisted were only 15 years old.
Morgenthau's crew proudly returns to their homeport of Alameda after sailing more than 18,000 miles, visiting seven ports in seven different countries in support of the Coast Guard's counterdrug mission.

An End of an Era: Pea Island Survivor Visits ISC Sand Island

There are so many reasons to honor our military members, and on Feb. 10, at the Integrated Support Unit, Sand Island, Honolulu, we celebrated the career of Lt. Herbert Collins, one of two surviving members of the all black Coast Guard Station, Pea Island.

“Collins’ life story and career is what people write movies about; his character should be the standard for all who aspire greatness, but most importantly, his experiences must be honored and never forgotten,” said Petty Officer 1st Class Geoicondar Morse, 14th district, co-organizer of the event.

Collins served aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Mendota in Norfolk, Va., as a mess attendant, where Alex Haley, the author of the book “Roots,” was also stationed at the time. Six months later, he transferred back to Pea Island and remained there throughout World War II. Collins was a member of the crew that rescued a ship that had been hit by a torpedo between the Chicamacomico and Pea Island Coast Guard Stations. In 1947, Collins decommissioned the all-black personnel Pea Island Station. His famous family has the record for the longest continuous service in the Coast Guard, beginning in 1880 with his grandfather, Joseph H. Berry.

The Black History Month event at Sand Island highlighted a beautiful Hawaiian day, and was held for a packed crowd at the ISC gymnasium. “This year’s theme: ‘Celebrating Community: A Tribute to Black Fraternal, Social, and Civic Institutions,’ was clearly demonstrated in the event. Station Pea Island was an all black fraternal institution that was committed to their work,” said Petty Officer 1st Class A.J. Melendez, ISC Honolulu, co-organizer of the event.

Collins was escorted by Rear Adm. Stephen Rochon, Asst. Commandant for Personnel Management at Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Rochon was instrumental in the posthumous recognition of the all-black crew of the Pea Island Lifesaving Station, N. C., for their dramatic through-the-surf rescue of nine crewmembers and passengers of the Schooner E.S. Newman in 1896.

Collins told stories about spending much of his enlisted career as a mess attendant.

“Collins survived an unfortunate era in the Coast Guard where the rules were different. The color of one’s skin alone determined the job a black man could get in the military,” said Morse. “As he told these stories you could feel a sigh amongst the crowd. Just thinking that a man with this much talent and love for the Coast Guard could be held to cleaning dishes and scraping pots like some kind of servant.”

“I found it very humbling when he talked about joining the Coast Guard as a mess attendant, since at that time, a mess attendant was all a black man could be. You don't hear about that sort of thing in this day and age,” said Petty Officer 2nd Class Erin Lucas, ISC Honolulu, co-organizer of the event.

During the event the facilitators debuted the Pea Island movie. The documentary was narrated by the famous voice of James Earl Jones. Many who saw the movie were moved to tears.

“How heroic and committed the members were to save lives. You hear the same heroism during times of war with soldiers in movies, rarely about the Coast Guard and our dedication. This movie really sank deep one of our core values ‘Devotion to duty,’” said Melendez.

At the end of the event everyone had the opportunity to meet and greet Collins and almost everyone took advantage. Just being in the presence of such Coast Guard history and charisma was very humbling. “His presence alone was significant and I got his autograph because he is famous. He reminded me that I am not just a number in the Coast Guard but I also represent a proud service,” said Melendez.

Collins still is making ground breaking achievements to this day. He has a current commercial multi-engine pilot’s license, and recently taught at the Naval Academy Flying Club in Annapolis, Md., as a certified flight instructor. He visits Coast Guard bases regularly. With each visit he leaves a deep impression in the hearts and minds of the people he reaches.

At the time of segregation in the military few have prospered as much as Collins. Despite all the social and economic disadvantages Collins shined, and his long established career is testimony for his accomplishments. He has shown courage, commitment and dedication when at times not reciprocated by the Coast Guard. By his actions he has proved that honor, respect and devotion to duty were his core values long before the Coast Guard adopted them.

“Collins is living proof that it's definitely not about the color of your skin, but the content of your character which defines you as a person,” said Lucas.

Collins currently resides with his lovely wife in Olney, Md., they have one adult son and two daughters.

Marine Corps Career News

Marine Corps Career News - 03/29/2006
This is an unofficial posting.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

April 2006 SNCO Promotions for Active Reserve, Selected Marine Corps Reserve, and Individual Ready Reserve

Date signed: 03/27/2006 MARADMIN Number: 145/06
Subject: APRIL 2006 SNCO PROMOTIONS FOR ACTIVE RESERVE (AR), SELECTED MARINE CORPS RESERVE (SMCR), AND INDIVIDUAL READY RESERVE (IRR)

R 270730Z MAR 06
FM CMC WASHINGTON DC(UC)
TO AL MARADMIN(UC)
UNCLASSIFIED//
MARADMIN 145/06
MSGID/GENADMIN/CMC WASHINGTON DC MRA MM/-//
SUBJ/APRIL 2006 SNCO PROMOTIONS FOR ACTIVE RESERVE (AR), SELECTED
/MARINE CORPS RESERVE (SMCR), AND INDIVIDUAL READY RESERVE (IRR)//
REF/A/MSGID:DOC/MMPR-2/30OCT2002//
AMPN/REF A IS MCO P1400.32C, ENLISTED PROMOTION MANUAL//
POC/J.A. MCLAUGHLIN/MAJ/MMPR-2/-/TEL:DSN 278-9710
/EMAIL:JAMES.MCLAUGHLIN@USMC.MIL//
GENTEXT/REMARKS/1. AS OF SOFTWARE RELEASE 2-01 NAMES ARE NO LONGER
LISTED ON THE MARADMIN. THE SELECT GRADE RANK, SENIORITY
NUMBER AND BOARD YEAR WILL BE LISTED ON THE "GRAD" SCREEN IN THE
MCTFS. UNITS WILL RECEIVE A DIARY FEEDBACK REPORT (DFR) WITH A
SELECT GRADE DATE OF 1 APRIL 2006 FOR EACH MARINE TO BE PROMOTED.
2. UPON RECEIPT OF THIS MARADMIN AND POSTING OF A SELECT
GRADE ON THE DFR, BUT NOT PRIOR TO THE 1ST OF APRIL 2006,
COMMANDERS WILL EFFECT THE PROMOTION OF SELECTED MARINES PER PAR
5100 OF THE REF. CITE THIS MARADMIN AS AUTHORITY FOR
PROMOTION.
3. COMMANDERS ARE REMINDED THAT PAR 3103.6 OF THE REF REQUIRES
THAT MARINES IN THE GRADE OF GUNNERY SERGEANT AND ABOVE WHO HAVE
SERVED AT LEAST 18 YEARS BUT LESS THAN 30 YEARS OF ACTIVE MILITARY
SERVICE MUST AGREE TO SERVE 2 YEARS OR UNTIL SERVICE LIMITS,
WHICHEVER OCCURS FIRST, IN THE GRADE TO WHICH PROMOTED. BEFORE
DELIVERING APPOINTMENT CERTIFICATES TO MARINES IN THIS CATEGORY,
COMMANDERS MUST ENSURE EACH MARINE HAS SUFFICIENT OBLIGATED SERVICE
REMAINING ON THEIR CURRENT CONTRACT TO ENABLE THEM TO SERVE AT LEAST
2 YEARS OR UNTIL SERVICE LIMITS IN THE GRADE TO WHICH PROMOTED. IF
THE MARINE REFUSES TO EXTEND OR REENLIST TO HAVE SUFFICIENT
OBLIGATED SERVICE, INFORM CMC (MMPR-2) OF THE MARINE'S REFUSAL.
4. COMMANDERS ARE REMINDED OF THEIR INHERENT RESPONSIBILITIES IN
THE ENLISTED PROMOTION SYSTEM. THOROUGHLY REVIEW THE RECORD OF EACH
SELECTED MARINE PRIOR TO DELIVERY OF THE CERTIFICATE OF APPOINTMENT
TO ENSURE THE MARINE HAS CONTINUED TO MAINTAIN THE HIGH STANDARDS OF
PROFESSIONAL AND PERSONAL PERFORMANCE WHICH LED TO SELECTION. YOU
ARE ENJOINED TO REVIEW PAR 1200.4, 1204 AND 3107 OF THE REF. UPON
COMPLETION OF THE REVIEW OF APPLICABLE RECORDS, IF THE COMMANDER'S
INTENT IS TO DELAY OR REVOKE THE PROMOTION OF A SELECTED MARINE THE
REF PROVIDES SPECIFIC GUIDANCE AND REPORTING INSTRUCTIONS.
5. THE NUMBERS LISTED IN PARAGRAPH 6, 7, AND 8 INDICATE THE SENIOR
NUMBER PROMOTED THE PREVIOUS MONTH AND THE TOTAL NUMBER TO BE
PROMOTED FOR THE CURRENT MONTH. HOWEVER, THE NUMBERS MAY NOT ALWAYS
ADD UP. THIS IS DUE TO MARINES SELECTED NONCOMPETITIVELY (WO
SELECTS) WHO ARE ASSIGNED A SENIORITY NUMBER WITH AN ALPHA LETTER,
MARINES WHO ARE DISCHARGED, AND MARINES IN A PROMOTION RESTRICTION
STATUS. TO AVOID ERRONEOUS PROMOTIONS OF SNCOS IT IS IMPERATIVE
THAT COMMANDERS FOLLOW THE GUIDANCE IN PARAGRAPH 1 AND ONLY PROMOTE
MARINES WITH A SELECT GRADE DATE IN THE MCTFS.
6. STATUS OF FY 2006 ACTIVE RESERVE SNCO PROMOTION LISTS:
NUMBER SENIOR NO. APR PROJECTED
GRADE SELECTED PROM 1 MAR PROM FOR MAY
SGTMAJ/MGYSGT 6 4 1 1
1STSGT/MSGT 29 8 7 2
GYSGT 54 39 10 1
SSGT 94 40 10 10
7. STATUS OF FY 2006 SELECTED MARINE CORPS RESERVE SNCO PROMOTION
LISTS:
NUMBER SENIOR NO. APR PROJECTED
GRADE SELECTED PROM 1 MAR PROM FOR MAY
SGTMAJ/MGYSGT 54 NA 6 6
1STSGT/MSGT 111 NA 12 12
GYSGT 369 NA 41 41
SSGT 748 NA 83 83
8. STATUS OF FY 2006 INDIVIDUAL READY RESERVE SNCO PROMOTION LISTS:
NUMBER SENIOR NO. APR PROJECTED
GRADE SELECTED PROM 1 MAR PROM FOR MAY
SGTMAJ/MGYSGT 10 NA 1 1
1STSGT/MSGT 22 NA 2 2
GYSGT 80 NA 40 40
SSGT 1176 NA 118 118
9. FOR ENLISTED PROMOTION MATTERS CALL COMM (703) 784-9710
OR DSN 278-9710. E-MAIL INQUIRIES MAY BE SUBMITTED VIA THE
PROMOTION SECTION INTERNET WEBSITE AT WWW.USMC.MIL. SELECT
"CAREER," "MARINES," "PROMOTIONS," "ENLISTED PROMOTIONS," THEN
"POINTS OF CONTACT."//

Concealed by Night, Scout Swimmers Move Undetected

Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan - Cloaked by night and veiled in silence, a squad of warriors moved undetected through Kin Bay. With deliberate actions, the squad promptly secured the beach before sending an “all clear” report back to a ship waiting 25 miles off the coastline.

The ship was imaginary. The cold waters, stealthy tactics and exhaustion were not. The warriors swam through cold waters till their bodies cramped and shivered as III Marine Expeditionary Force’s Special Operations Training Group conducted a Scout Swimmer Course March 20-April 5 at various Okinawan beaches.

The Marines and sailors learned the intricacies of movement without detection as the course’s curriculum spotlighted clandestine insertion.

“Clandestine insertion is usually used at night when helicopter or (Assault Amphibian Vehicle) insertion is impossible,” said Sgt. Joseph L. Mills, an amphibious raid instructor with SOTG. “It’s usually done on a secluded beach out of enemy sight.”

During the initial phases of the course, instructors gave classroom instructions covering such topics as hazardous marine life and equipment maintenance. After more than 10 hours of classroom instruction, the group moved to the Okinawan coastline.

As the course unfolded at a secluded beach near Kin Blue, the students found themselves in the water more often than not. On March 19, the students moved through water so calm it seemed to be made of glass. Their slow and methodical movements left ripples invisible to the naked eye in the water.

When conducting a clandestine insertion, a calm sea is a scout swimmer’s nemesis, Mills explained.

“In calm weather, you don’t have the sound of waves breaking to conceal your noise,” Mills said. “This is why we try to avoid urban coastlines in actual missions.”

Manmade structures usually stop waves in urban environments, Mills stated.

The group moved to an urban training environment during the seventh day of training at Kin Red Pier, explained Sgt. Bart P. Dellinger, the senior amphibious raid instructor with SOTG.

The students were subjected to 2,800 meter swims with backpacks in tow throughout the course.

“It messes with your head,” said Lance Cpl. Kenneth A. Belovarac, an assistant small craft raid instructor. “You keep kicking and it doesn’t seem like you have gotten anywhere.”

Once the team reaches the shore, they secure the area and send beach survey reports to the appropriate commanders. The commanders obtain detailed descriptions of what to expect on land in the swimmers’ reports.

This course has proven to be extremely demanding and has one of the highest attrition rates of any course in the U.S. military, explained Mills.

“We started with 17 students and we now have eight,” Mills said on the sixth day of the 13-day course. “The course is very physically demanding.”

According to Mills, a lot of casualties are caused by exhaustion and cold-related injuries.

The few amphibious warriors who endure the course become certified scout swimmers. The newly certified scout swimmers will have the ability and knowledge to help train units going through SOTG’s boat raid courses.

Air Force Career News -

Web Site Lets Reservists Correct Duty History 'Live'
by Tech. Sgt. Rob Mims
Air Reserve Personnel Center Public Affairs

4/4/2006 - DENVER (AFPN) -- Air Force Reserve members worldwide can now correct or change their duty history via the virtual Personnel Center Guard and Reserve, a customer-service Web portal operated by the Air Reserve Personnel Center.

Previously, Airmen had to visit their local military personnel flight or call several agencies to correct their duty history. Now, no matter the time of day, reservists can log on to the vPC-GR at http://arpc.afrc.af.mil/support/default.asp.

Airmen can click on the “Correct Duty History” link and annotate their changes, attach any relevant supporting documentation and click on “submit.”

There is no change to the process for updating current duty information; it still must be done through the local commander’s support staff or base individual mobilization augmentee administrators.

ARPC and the Air Force Personnel Center are working on centralizing and automating many of their processes for all Airmen and civilians in the total force.

Processes that have been automated or centralized at ARPC include 20-year letter (re-issue), mortgage letter, current points request, promotion board counseling request, and electronic promotion letter to the board president.

In the future, automated and centralized services should account for nearly all aspects of an Airman’s personnel actions, from initial enlistment to retirement. Between now and Sept. 1, 2007, ARPC will work to automate or centralize retirements, separations, awards and decorations, evaluations, enlisted promotions, assignments, retraining, reenlistments, duty status, classifications, adverse actions and accessions.

Airmen Doubling as Local Lawmen

ALI BASE, Iraq — Whether it’s a surveillance drone zooming miles overhead or a Humvee tearing down Perimeter Road on its way to the dining facility — airmen at the 407th Air Expeditionary Group have it on their radar.

In addition to controlling all air traffic in the southern third of Iraqi air space, 407th AEG airmen have also been charged with enforcing all laws at the international military base — including the writing of speeding tickets — as well as all gate functions and the patrolling of a large swath of land beyond the installation’s perimeter.

The allocation of such duties to the Air Force, particularly on a base that is mostly U.S. Army personnel, is rare, according to Col. Kevin Kilb, group commander.

“We’re outside the wire every day,” Kilb said. “That’s definitely a change for us.”

To most of the U.S. Army and coalition forces, this aging airstrip on the outskirts of Nasiriyah is known simply as Tallil — the crossroads of forces from America, Europe, Japan and Australia.

But to Kilb and roughly 1,000 airmen, the proper name for this southern Iraqi air hub is Ali Base, the first training center for the new Iraqi Air Force.

Standing in the shadow of the ancient Ziggurat at Ur, Ali Base trained the very first group of Iraqi Air Force pilots on U.S. C-130s for roughly a year, before the program was transferred to Baghdad.

“This area is known as the birthplace of civilization,” Kilb said. “And now it’s also the birthplace of the Iraqi air force.”

The U.S. Air Force has steadily decreased the number of airmen at Ali Base, but its responsibilities of law enforcement, patrolling and the checking and escorting of local and foreign national labor and explosive ordnance removal remain.

As such, the Air Force’s standard four-month tour of duty has been extended to six months for airmen performing security duties.

“Basically, we drive around the base and make sure nobody’s doing anything crazy,” said Senior Airman Brian Kasper, 20, of Tignall, Ga.

On a recent patrol, the officers made checks of ammunition storage facilities and other sensitive sites before setting up a speed radar check on a busy base road.

“We’re not the bad guys, we’re just out doing our job,” Kasper said.

While it’s not unusual for airmen to endure some ribbing from their counterparts in the Army, who serve yearlong tours of duty, Kilb said he reminds his airmen that they have a lot to feel proud about in supporting the coalition’s overall mission in Iraq.

Kilb said that no matter what their role was — whether providing security on a convoy or helping to operate the 407th’s Muscle Beach gym — the duties were equally important to the overall effort.

“There is no difference between what our people are doing today and the stuff they read about in World War II, Vietnam or the Korean War,” Kilb said. “This is the one they’re in. … This is their time and they need to be proud of it.”

It’s a message that some airmen have taken to heart.

“It’s a good feeling knowing that we’re playing a major role in the mission,” said radar air traffic controller Andrena Guerra, 25, of Columbia, S.C. The ebullient airmen said that this is her first deployment to Iraq, and that it had made a big impression on her. “You realize the things you took for granted back home, like those 30-minute showers.”

By the same token, Guerra said life is much more comfortable at Ali Base than she expected.

The Air Force living area of Ali Base is nicknamed “Bedrock” and, as one astonished Army visitor once said — “it’s so clean you could eat off the rocks.”

While airmen live in tents — not trailer units like their Army counterparts — they do have one of the most well-appointed morale and welfare complexes in Iraq. In addition to the standard Internet and computer game terminals, it sports numerous homey-looking couches and reading chairs, as well as pool tables, felt-lined card tables, two mini movie theaters, a coffee shop, a real library — not just a collection of dog-eared paperbacks — and a very popular Italian restaurant.

“It’s the hottest reservation in Iraq,” Kilb said of Ciano’s — the Italian-owned concession. “Just try getting a table for four on a Friday night.”

Personnel Services Delivery System Initiative Begins

San Antonio, TX. - The Air Force Contact Center’s Web-based services and contact center officially began taking calls after a ceremony at the Air Force Personnel Center at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas.

The center is part of a new initiative called Personnel Services Delivery Transformation, or PSD, which uses technology to place the capability for conducting routine personnel transactions into the hands of Airmen via Web-based services and contact centers.

“PSD is the road from good personnel service delivery to great personnel service delivery,” said Roger M. Blanchard, assistant deputy chief of staff for personnel, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. “The call center is here to execute that vision. We are on the cutting edge of delivering services to the Air Force community. That’s the road we are on today.”

The center’s opening is just the beginning of many changes Airmen will see in the way they handle tasks concerning their careers -- tasks they normally had to visit their military personnel flight, or MPF, to complete.

The idea behind this transformation is to provide a convenient and secure way from any telephone or Internet-ready computer, allowing Airmen to avoid waiting in lines, save time and fit their personnel business into their own schedule.

The goal is to move 85 percent of MPF actions online. Once the transformation begins, however, it doesn’t mean Airmen still can’t get personal customer service.

“This is a centralized effort and centralization is the beauty of this. We are relieving the pressure from those in the field,” said Maj. Gen. Tony Przybyslawski, AFPC commander. “We are simplifying the process. Now Airmen can make a 90-second transaction at their convenience, instead of what normally might have taken a couple of hours by going to the MPF.”

Several processes like retraining and retirements, currently worked through base-level military personnel flights, will be self-initiated via the Web, and centrally managed and processed at the center.

The transformation is a four-phase program that will continue through 2011. The first phase begins with transferring active-duty personnel actions and will then be further broken up into seven segments called spirals.

Airmen will be able to access the Web-based services through the virtual MPF.
Sound Off...What do you think? Join the discussion.

Navy Promotion Alert

FY07 Reserve Rear Admiral Line Selections
RTTUZYUW RUEWMCS0000 0812059-UUUU-RUCRNAV.
ZNR UUUUU
R 222059Z MAR 06
FM SECNAV WASHINGTON DC
TO ALNAV
BT
UNCLAS
ALNAV 029/06
MSGID/GENADMIN/SECNAV WASHINGTON DC/-/MAR//
SUBJ/FY07 RESERVE REAR ADMIRAL LINE SELECTIONS//
RMKS/1. THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES HAS APPROVED
THE REPORTS OF THE SELECTION BOARDS WHICH RECOMMENDS THE FOLLOWING
OFFICERS IN THE LINE ON THE RESERVE LIST FOR PROMOTION TO THE
PERMANENT GRADE OF REAR ADMIRAL. SELECTEES ARE LISTED WITH
DESIGNATOR AND PRESENT DUTY.
2. FROCKING TO REAR ADMIRAL IS NOT AUTHORIZED EXCEPT ON AN
INDIVIDUAL BASIS BY THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE.
-----UNRESTRICTED LINE-----
BAYLESS, JON W. JR. 1315 DEPUTY COMMANDER, NAVY
REGION MIDWEST
GREAT LAKES, IL
MASSO, EDWARD 1115 DEPUTY COMMANDER, NAVAL
SURFACE FORCE, U.S. PACIFIC
FLEET
SAN DIEGO, CA
PAYNE, WILLIAM H. 1135 DEPUTY DIRECTOR, PLANS AND
POLICY, J5B, U.S. CENTRAL
COMMAND
MACDILL AFB, FL
-----SPECIAL DUTY OFFICER (INTELLIGENCE)-----
GILBRIDE, ANN D. 1635 DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF NAVAL
INTELLIGENCE FOR RESERVE
AFFAIRS, N2R, OPNAV
WASHINGTON, DC
3. RELEASE AUTHORIZED BY THE HONORABLE DONALD C. WINTER, SECRETARY OF THE
NAVY.//

Navy Career News

RAAUZYUW RUENAAA6702 0941426-UUUU--RUCRNAV.
ZNR UUUUU ZUI RUEWMCF3548 0941423
R 041426Z APR 06 PSN 980652K30
FM SECNAV WASHINGTON DC
TO ALNAV
ZEN/ALNAV @ AL ALNAV(UC)
INFO ZEN/CNO CNO
BT
UNCLAS
SUBJ: 2005 ADM VERN CLARK AND GEN JAMES L. JONES SAFETY AWARDS
PASS TO OFFICE CODES:
FM SECNAV WASHINGTON DC
TO ALNAV
UNCLAS
ALNAV 031/06
MSGID/GENADMIN/SECNAV WASHINGTON DC/-/MAR//
SUBJ/2005 ADM VERN CLARK AND GEN JAMES L. JONES SAFETY AWARDS//
RMKS/1. IT IS MY PLEASURE TO ANNOUNCE THE RECIPIENTS OF THE 2005
ADMIRAL VERN CLARK AND GENERAL JAMES L. JONES SAFETY AWARDS.
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE FOLLOWING WINNERS:
A. ADMIRAL VERN CLARK SAFETY AWARD



PAGE 02 RUENAAA6702 UNCLAS
(1) INDIVIDUAL: LIEUTENANT ALLEN J. RAMOS, USNR, USS KITTY
HAWK
(2) UNIT: AIRCRAFT INTERMEDIATE MAINTENANCE DETACHMENT
(AIMD), NORTH ISLAND, CA
B. GENERAL JAMES L. JONES SAFETY AWARD:
(1) INDIVIDUAL: STAFF SERGEANT KRISTINA D. WILBUR, USMC,
7TH COMMUNICATION BATTALION, III MARINE EXPEDITIONARY FORCE
(2) UNIT: MARINE CORPS LOGISTICS BASE (MCLB), BARSTOW, CA
2. THESE ANNUAL AWARDS, ADMINISTERED BY THE NAVY LEAGUE OF THE
UNITED STATES, ARE INTENDED TO STIMULATE SAFETY THROUGH IDEAS AND
PROGRAMS THAT WILL REDUCE AVOIDABLE INJURIES AND FATALITIES BY
PROVIDING SPECIAL RECOGNITION TO INDIVIDUALS, UNITS, OR ORGANIZATIONS
WHO BEST EXEMPLIFY AND ADVANCE A CULTURE OF SAFETY. THE WINNERS WERE
CHOSEN FROM AMONG HIGHLY COMPETITIVE NOMINEES WHO EXHIBITED
EXTRAORDINARY EFFORTS TO PROMOTE SAFETY BOTH ON AND OFF DUTY. I
COMMEND THE WINNERS FOR THEIR EXEMPLARY COMMITMENT TO SAFETY
EXCELLENCE.
3. RELEASE AUTHORIZED BY THE HONORABLE DONALD C. WINTER, SECRETARY
OF THE NAVY//
BT
#6702

Blanks Brothers Preach Fitness

MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan — Navy Master Chief Charles Blanks has extra incentive to stay fit: He doesn’t want to be known as Billy’s “big” brother.

“He walks the walk and inspires me to do the same,” Charles said of his brother.

Command master chief for Commander, Task Force 72 at Naval Air Facility Misawa, Charles also is little brother to Billy Blanks, creator of Tae-Bo, a combination of boxing, calisthenics and cardiovascular exercise.

Billy trains Hollywood stars and professional athletes, has appeared in 18 movies and has sold gobs of workout videos since opening his first studio more than 20 years ago. But to Charles, he’s foremost his big brother.

“I know he’s the big guy in the sky but when I go to talk to him … we want to laugh and joke and do video games because I know he’s more relaxed when he’s around his family,” Charles said.

Billy’s 50; Charles, 48. After five months apart — that’s how long Charles has been at Misawa — they were back at it Tuesday, ribbing each other, about bicep size (Charles is U.S. Armed Forces weight-lifting champion two years running) and comedic ability.

Billy is bringing his Tae-Bo routine to five bases in mainland Japan this week as part of a tour sponsored by Armed Forces Entertainment, Navy Headquarters and other agencies.

His daily schedule starts with crack-of-dawn workouts with the troops. Charles joined one session Tuesday but admits he can’t do Tae-Bo like Billy, saying, “I don’t have the flex that he’s got.”

The brothers, two of 15 siblings, grew up in Erie, Pa. Billy said his brothers were better high-school athletes, excelling in football and basketball. Charles, one of the city’s top running backs, landed an Ohio University football Scholarship but said he left to join the Navy because “I wasn’t doing well in school.”

He didn’t tell his mother until he came home on leave after boot camp.

“She thought I was going into the Vietnam War,” he said, and didn’t talk to him for a month.

As Charles climbed the Navy ranks, Billy made a name for himself in the fitness world.

Hampered by dyslexia, he was shy and uncoordinated, not a star athlete like his siblings. When a neighborhood youth center opened, Billy signed up for a karate class at age 12.

“I saw Bruce Lee on television,” he said. “I wanted to do the ‘Green Hornet.’ The discipline and focus that Bruce Lee has with his body, I was intrigued by that.”

His karate instructor bet him $5 he wouldn’t stick with it. He has “to this day … I’m a seventh-degree black belt in tae kwon do.”

The brothers have made a career out of motivating others.

Charles spent 10 of his 27 years in the Navy as a command physical fitness coordinator. He listens to what his brother says about fitness; “some of the stuff, I steal,” he jokes. He also routinely asks Billy to sign Tae-Bo workout videos for his sailors to encourage them to stay fit.

Billy said the military inspires him. Of Charles, he said, “Your mind and will — that’s what he talks about when he talks to his troops. To get in shape, you have to have a strong mind and will.”

Finding Reasons to Stay in Iraq

BAGHDAD — Iraq is hot most of the year, and dirty, dusty and dangerous most of the time. The usual comforts and pastimes — family, friends, “The Sopranos,” sports and beer — are elsewhere. So, most troops view their deployments as a duty, not a choice.

But for some soldiers and civilians, the secret is that Iraq is also, paradoxically, a respite.

All the dulling routines required in daily life — making dinner, doing laundry, paying bills, rearing children — are suspended. Life is stripped down to your job, your colleagues and seafood night at the dining facility.

One spring day, after a rain that left Camp Victory with standing pools of dirty water, a young captain carefully made her way over wooden planks to a fetid Porta-John. This sort of thing must get tiresome, someone remarked.

“Not really,” she said. “I’m going through a messy divorce at home. This is better, much better.”

And there are some who choose to stay not just one year, but two or even three. Some do it for the thrill, and the money. Some, to avoid what waits at home, and the money. And then there’s the money.

A contractor’s life
Scott Bowans’ whole universe is a dusty little corner of Camp Victory, down the road from the laundry and across the parking lot from the smaller chow hall. There, in Building 39, as KBR billeting supervisor, he assigns tents and trailers to the thousands of troops and civilians.

Bowans has been there for more than two years. He works from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. or later, seven days a week. The 46-year-old Texan couldn’t be happier.

“This is my world right here,” he said. “I got it made.”

“I’ve gotten to do things I never would have done in the States. I’ve gotten to meet people I never would have met had I stayed in the States, and I’ve been to places I never would have been to had I stayed in the States.”

While working, Bowans has left Victory only once — to the International Zone.

“A five-minute helo ride,” he said, “which is probably the coolest thing I’ve done here.”

But during his paid leaves — 10 days, three times a year — he and his wife get around. In the past two years they’ve vacationed in Italy, Germany, the Philippines and Thailand.

Bowans and his wife both work for KBR. Having her with him — actually she got her job first — has made staying in Iraq easier.

The Bowanses had been living near Houston. She was the general manager of a Marriott hotel and he sold fine wine and champagne.

“I hated my job,” Bowans said. “She wasn’t too fond of hers, either.”

Now they’re more content, and solvent. Both pull down a six-figure salary they’re saving to build a house.

“I could be the guy working out on the generators in the 130-degree heat,” he said. “I got the best gig going.”

For the money
Michael Tuazon left his home in the Philippines two years ago to work in Iraq and save money to build a house. And for the past two years, he has hated almost every day. Still, Tuazon has signed up for another year.

Until March, he worked for Prime Projects International, a subcontractor that provides thousands of workers from impoverished countries like the Philippines and Sri Lanka to staff mess halls, clean bathrooms and do other manual labor.

Tuazon, 30, said he was told he’d be earning $2,800 a month. His pay turned out to be $600 a month.

“What are we going to do here? Just work, work, work,” he said. “We don’t know what will happen next.”

Unlike soldiers who live in tents with four or five others or two-man trailers, workers like Tuazon share trailers with 11 others.

“We’re like sardines, you know?” he said.

Tuazon misses everything about his home, he said: the weather, his family, his girlfriend. Despite his professed misery, when Tuazon’s contract ended in March, he signed up for another year with another company, AMECO, which he said was to pay him $1,800 a month as a mechanic.

Soldiers that stay
Staff Sgt. Charles Thomas, an Ohio National Guardsman, spent a year living dangerously in Iraq doing engineering work with the 3rd Infantry Division. He brought his camera everywhere he went.

He has photographs he loves: “These are all my boys,” he says of one photo of his unit. “They all made it back with 10 fingers and 10 toes. I did my job.”

And he has photographs you don’t want to see: an Iraqi, still at the wheel of his car, though dead from a terrible gunshot wound to the head. Thomas experienced things that both delighted and disgusted him, and the excitement, he said, was “addictive.”

When it came time for him to resume his life in Ohio as a grocery store warehouseman, married man, father and grandfather of three, he found himself instead signing up to stay another year.

There was a tax-free cash bonus he might or might not get. Even if he didn’t get it, staying was “financially beneficial.”

His own unit, the 16th Engineer Brigade, that he’d been with for 20 years, was starting its own Iraq deployment. And finally, his new job would keep him relatively safe and usually within the confines of Camp Victory.

Now a couple of months into his second year, Thomas isn’t sure he’d made the right decision.

“Some aspects of it — it’s exhilarating and rewarding,” Thomas said. “It’s the camaraderie of being in the military. It’s hard to describe that feeling.”

But Thomas, 49, sometimes worries that the extra year might be pushing his luck.

“I lay in my bed every night, hoping and praying a mortar doesn’t land on my trailer.”

Army Career News

MILPER MESSAGE NUMBER : 06-102
AHRC-EPF-A
ENLISTMENT BONUS (EB) PROGRAM CHANGES ISSUED:5 APRIL 06
Issued: [04/05/2006]...

A. MILPER MSG #05-301, AHRC-EPT-F, ISSUED 13 DEC 05, SAB.
B. MILPER MSG #06-016, AHRC-EPT-A, ISSUED 18 JAN 06, SAB.
C. HQDA MSG DAPE-MPA 04-04-06, SUBJ: ENLISTMENT INCENTIVE PROGRAM CHANGE EFFECTIVE 5 APRIL 2006.
D. CHAP 5 AR 601-210, CHAP 5 AR 601-280.
1. THIS MILPER MESSAGE WILL EXPIRE NLT 5 APRIL 2007.
2. POLICY: CONTAINED IN REF D.
3. ADDITIONAL GUIDANCE FOR USAREC: TO AVOID FUTURE CLAIMS OF ERRONEOUS OR UNFULFILLED COMMITMENTS, REQ CDR USAREC ENSURE RECRUITERS AND MEPS PERSONNEL ARE KNOWLEDGEABLE OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS MESSAGE. 4. ADDITIONAL GUIDANCE FOR DFAS: TO AVOID FUTURE CLAIMS OF ERRRONEOUS OR UNFULFILLED COMMITMENTS, REQ CDR DFAS ENSURE THAT ALL FAO扴 ARE KNOWLEDGEABLE OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS MESSAGE. 5. RULES:
A. EFFECTIVE 5 APR 06 THE FOLLOWING MOS ARE ADDED TO THE EB PROGRAM:
MOS TITLE NEW LEVEL
2/3/4/5/6 YRS
68K MEDICAL LAB SPEC $0/0/0/4/6000
B. EFFECTIVE 5 APR 06 THE FOLLOWING BONUS LEVELS ARE INCREASED:
MOS TITLE OLD LEVEL NEW LEVEL
2/3/4/5/6 YRS 2/3/4/5/6 YRS
13P MLRS ATMD DATA SYS $2/4/6/8/12000 $3/5/9/12/14000
13S FIELD ARTY SURV $0/2/3/4/6000 $1/3/4/6/8000
14E PATRIOT FC ENH OP $0/0/9/12/14000 $0/6/11/14/16000
14J AD C4I TOC ENH OP $3/5/9/12/14000 $4/6/11/14/16000
14T PATRIOT LS ENH OP $3/5/9/12/14000 $4/6/11/14/16000
25D TELECOM OPR/MAINT $0/0/2/3/4000 $0/0/3/4/6000
33W MIL INTEL SYS MNTR $0/1/2/3/4000 $0/2/3/4/6000
46R BROADCAST JOURNLST $0/0/0/3/4000 $0/0/0/4/6000
89B AMMUNITION SPEC $2/0/6/8/12000 $3/0/9/12/14000
91S PREVENTIVE MED SP $0/0/3/4/6000 $0/0/4/6/8000
92R PARACHUTE RIGGER $2/4/6/8/12000 $3/5/9/12/14000
94E RADIO COMSEC REP $0/0/9/12/14000 $0/0/11/14/16000
94S PATRIOT SYS REP $0/0/0/6/8000 $0/0/0/8/12000
C. EFFECTIVE 5 APR 06 THE FOLLOWING BONUS LEVELS ARE DECREASED:
MOS TITLE OLD LEVEL NEW LEVEL
2/3/4/5/6 YRS 2/3/4/5/6 YRS
11X INFANTRY RECRUIT $4/6/10/14/16000 $3/5/9/12/14000
13M MLRS CREWMEMBER $4/6/10/14/16000 $3/5/9/12/14000
18X SP FORCES RECRUIT $0/0/0/14/16000 $0/0/0/12/14000
19D CAVALRY SCOUT $3/5/8/12/14000 $2/4/6/8/12000
25F NETWORK SW SYS OP $0/0/4/6/8000 $0/0/3/4/6000
31E CORRECTIONS SPEC $0/5/9/12/14000 $0/4/6/8/12000
63M BRADLEY SYS MNT $0/4/6/8/12000 $0/3/4/6/8000
89D EOD SPEC $0/0/12/16/20000 $0/0/11/14/16000
94P MLRS REPAIRER $0/0/3/4/6000 $0/0/2/3/4000
94T AVENGER SYS REP $0/0/3/4/6000 $0/0/2/3/4000
97E INTERROGATOR $0/0/0/4/6000 $0/0/0/3/4000
D. THE FOLLOWING MOS MAY OFFER A FOUR YEAR TOS AND EB LEVEL FOR THOSE WHO ARE LANGUAGE PROFICIENT IAW 611-6, TO INCLUDE HERITAGE SPEAKERS:
MOS TITLE LEVEL
2/3/4/5/6 YRS
97E HUMAN INTELL COLL $0/0/2/3/4000
98XL EW/SIGINT RECRUIT $0/0/9/12/14000
E. A NON-PRIOR SERVICE(NPS) SEASONAL BONUS (SB) IS AVAILABLE TO TSC I-IIIB, NPS APPLICANTS WITH A TIER I EDUCATION CREDENTIAL, FOR A TERM OF SERVICE OF THREE OR MORE YEARS ENLISTING IN ALL MOS WITH A PRIORITY TRAINING SEAT. ALSO ELIGIBLE ARE NPS APLICANTS WITH A TIER II CREDENTIAL, TSC III-A IN SELECT MOS扴 THAT HAVE A PRIORITY TRAINING SEAT. AN SB OF $15000, $14000, $10000, $6000, $3000 OR $1000 MAY BE AVAILABLE FOR PRIORITY TRAINING SEATS. THE REQUEST SYSTEM WILL DETERMINE THE TRAINING SEAT AVAILABITY AND BONUS AMOUNT. THE SB IS FOR NEW CONTRACTS ONLY. THIS BONUS MAY BE COMBINED WITH ALL OTHER INCENTIVES FOR TIER I, TSC I-IIIB and TIER 2, TSC I-IIIA ONLY. APPLICANTS IN TSC I-IIIB MUST ENLIST FOR AN MOS IN BONUS LEVELS 1-3 ONLY TO RECEIVE THE SB.
F. THE ADDITIONAL $5000 BONUS ANNOUNCED IN REF C, PARA 2, IS DISCONTINUED FOR NPS APPLICANTS. PRIOR SERVICE AND BLUE TO GREEN APPLICANTS ENLISTING AS INDICATED IN BELOW PARA G AND H WILL RECEIVE THE ADDITIONAL $5000 BONUS. THIS APPLIES TO NEW CONTRACTS ONLY AND MUST SHIP BY 30 SEPTEMBER 2006 OR EARLIER.
G. A PRIOR SERVICE(PS) SEASONAL BONUS (SB) IS AVAILABLE TO PS APPLICANTS WHO HAVE BEEN SEPARATED FOR MORE THAN 90 DAYS FROM AN ACTIVE COMPONENT ENLISTING FOR A TERM OF SERVICE OF THREE OR MORE YEARS IN ANY MOS. AN SB AMOUNT UP TO $15000 MAY BE AVAIALBLE FOR PRIORITY TRAINING SEATS. THE REQUEST SYSTEM WILL DETERMINE THE MOS VACANCY OR TRAINING SEAT AVAILABITY AND BONUS AMOUNT. THIS BONUS IS FOR NEW CONTRACTS ONLY AND MAY BE COMBINED WITH THE ADDITIONAL $5000 BONUS AS DESCRIBED ABOVE IN PARA F. IT MAY NOT BE COMBINED WITH ANY OTHER ENLISTMENT INCENTIVES OR THE SRB/BSSRB. FORMER MEMBERS OF THE RESERVE OR NATIONAL GUARD MAY ENLIST FOR THIS OPTION IF OTHERWISE QUALIFIED.
H. A BLUE TO GREEN BONUS (B2G) IS AVAILABLE TO B2G APPLICANTS FOR A TERM OF SERVICE OF THREE OR MORE YEARS SELECTING AN MOS WITH A PRIORITY TRAINING SEAT. THE REQUEST SYSTEM WILL DETERMINE THE TRAINING SEAT PRIORITY AND BONUS AMOUNT OF $15000 OR $10000. APPLICANTS RECEIVING THE SB AND LATER CHOOSING TO RENEGOTIATE THEIR ENLISTMENT CONTRACT MAY LOSE THEIR SB IF A TRAINING SEAT IS NOT AVAILABLE. B2G APPLICANTS MAY RESERVE A TRAINING SEAT PRIOR TO SEPARATION FROM ACTIVE SERVICE, HOWEVER THE BONUS WILL NOT BE PAID UNTIL THE APPLICANT IS ACCESSED INTO THE ARMY. THIS BONUS IS FOR NEW CONTRACTS ONLY AN MAY BE COMBINED WITH THE ADDITIONAL $5000 BONUS AS DESCRIBED ABOVE IN PARA F. IT MAY NOT BE COMBINED WITH ANY OTHER ENLISTMENT INCENTIVES OR THE SRB/BSSRB.
I. A $3000 HIGRAD BONUS IS AUTHORIZED FOR ALL MOS扴 FOR NON-PRIOR SERVICE AND DOS APPLICANTS WITH 30-59 SEMESTER HOURS OF COLLEGE AND TSC I-IIIB. A $6000 HIGRAD BONUS IS AUTHORIZED FOR APPLICANTS WITH 60 SEMESTER HOURS OR MORE. APPLICANTS WITH A 2 YEAR ASSOCIATE DEGREE OR EQUIVALENT ARE AUTHORIZED $7000 AND APPLICANTS WITH A 4 YEAR COLLEGE DEGREE ARE AUTHORIZED $8000. ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS MAY RECEIVE ONLY ONE HIGRAD BONUS. THIS BONUS MAY BE COMBINED WITH ALL OTHER INCENTIVES.
J. OCS HIGRAD BONUS EFFECTIVE 11 APRIL 2005 FOR RA CANDIDATE SCHOOL ACCESSIONS IS PAYABLE TO NEW ACCESSIONS INTO THE ARMY WHO HAVE ENLISTED FOR OR ARE ENLISTING FOR THE OFFICER CANDIDATE SCHOOL ENLISTMENT OPTION. IT DOES NOT APPLY TO ACTIVE DUTY SOLDIERS WHO HAVE VOLUNTEERED FOR OFFICER CANDIDATE SCHOOL. THE BONUS WILL NOT EXCEED $8000 BASED ON POSSESSING A FOUR-YEAR COLLEGE DEGREE OR HIGHER AND IS PAYBALE IN LUMP SUM UPON SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF OCS IMMEDIATELY PRIOR TO COMMISSIONING AS AN OFFICER IAW APPLICABLE PROVISIONS. OCS APPLICANTS ARE ELIGIBLE FOR STUDENT LOAN REPAYMENT (LRP) IN ADDITION TO THE OCS BONUS.
K. A $3000 AIRBORNE BONUS IS AUTHORIZED TO NPS APPLICANTS WITH A TIER 1 EDUCATION CREDENTIAL, TSC I-IIIB, WITH AN MOS THAT IS COMBINED WITH THE AIRBORNE TRAINING OPTION AND A REQUEST SYSTEM DETERMINED GUARANTEED AIRBORNE ASSIGNMENT. THIS BONUS MAY BE COMBINED WITH ALL OTHER BONUSES AND ENLISTMENT INCENTIVES IN EFFECT. THE AIRBORNE BONUS IS AVAILABLE FOR THE FOLLOWING MOS; 11X WITH OPTION 40 AND A REQUEST SYSTEM DETERMINED GUARANTEED RANGER REGIMENT ASSIGNMENT, 13B, 13D,13R, 21E, 21J, 25B, 25C, 25D, 25M, 25S, 35A, 37F, 42A, 45B, 63B, 88M, 92A, 92G, 92Y, 96B, AND 97E. THIS BONUS IS ALSO AVAILABLE TO SOLDIERS IN THE FOLLOWING MOS扴 THAT RENEGOTIATE THEIR CONTRACTS WHILE IN BT,AIT, OR OSUT TO ADD AIRBORNE TRAINING AND AN AIRBORNE ASSIGNMENT: 11X WITH OPTION 40 AND A REQUEST SYSTEM DETERMINED GUARANTEED RANGER REGIMENT ASSIGNMENT, 25B, 25S, 42A, 63B, 88M, 92G, 92Y, 96B, AND 97E. SOLDIERS ARE ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE THE BONUS AFTER 1) GRADUATING FROM AIRBORNE TRAINING (FOR 11X, ALSO THE COMPLETION OF THE RANGER INDOCTRINATION PROGRAM) AND 2) REORTING TO THEIR REQUEST SYSTEM DETERMINED GUARANTEED ASSIGNMENT AS DESCRIBED ABOVE. MOS抯 25B, 25S, 88M, 92A, 92Y LISTED ABOVE WILL RECEIVE A $6000 BONUS.
L. A $5000 ARMY CIVILIAN ACQUIRED SKILLS PROGRAM(ACASP) BONUS IS AUTHORIZED FOR ALL INCENTIVISED ACASP MOS扴 FOR TIER I, TSC IIIB NPS AND DOS APPLICANTS FOR A TERM OF SERVICE OF 3 OR MORE YEARS. THIS BONUS MAY BE COMBINED WITH ALL OTHER INCENTIVES.
M. A $5000 BONUS IS AVAILABLE TO QUALIFIED APPLICANTS WHO ENLIST IN THE NATIONAL CALL TO SERVICE PROGRAM AND SELECT THE BONUS OPTION. THIS BONUS MAY NOT BE COMBINED WITH ANY OTHER ENLISTMENT INCENTIVE AND WILL BE PAID UPON COMPLETION OF THE 15 MONTH TERM OF SERVICE. THE FOLLOWING MOS ARE AUTHORIZED THE $5000 BONUS FOR NATIONAL CALL TO SERVICE; 11X,13B,13D,13F,13M,13P,13S,13W,15Q,15R,15T,15U,19D,19K,21B,21C,21E,21F,21J,21K,21L,21M,21R,21S,21T,21U,21V,21W,31B,31L,42L,45B,52C,52D,55B,56M,63B,63S,63W,73C,74D,88H,88M,88N,91E,91G,91Q,91R,91S,91T,91W,92A,92F,92G,92M,92S,92W,92Y,96R.
N. THE ENLISTMENT BONUS IS AVAILABLE TO NPS APPLICANTS WITH A TIER I AND TIER II EDUCATION CREDENTIAL TSC I-IIIA SELECTING A BONUS MOS. THE TOTAL BONUS AMOUNT MAY NOT EXCEED $6000 FOR A TWO YEAR TERM OF SERVICE, $10,000 FOR A THREE YEAR TERM OF SERVICE ($40,000 FOR CRITICAL MOS AS IDENTIFIED IN THE REQUEST SYSTEM)AND $40,000 FOR FOUR OR MORE YEARS. INITIAL PAYMENT OF THE TOTAL BONUS MAY NOT EXCEED $10,000 UPON COMPLETION OF MOS TRAINING AND ARRIVAL AT FIRST DUTY STATION. THE REMAINING BONUS AMOUNT WILL BE PAID IN ANNUAL INCREMENTS. APPLICANTS NOT COMPLETING THEIR INITIAL TERM OF SERVICE IN THE INCENTIVISED MOS WILL REFUND ANY UNEARNED PORTION OF THE ENLISTMENT BONUS, INCLUDING, AIRBORNE, AND ACASP IAW AR 601-280.
HIGRAD AND SEASONAL BONUS WILL NOT BE SUBJECT TO RECOUPMENT AS LONG AS THE SOLDIER REMAINS IN THE ARMY AND COMPLETES THEIR TERM OF CONTRACTED SERVICE.
O. APPLICANTS SELECTING MOS 18X WHO DO NOT COMPLETE ANY PORTION OF THEIR MOS QUALIFICATION TRAINING WILL REVERT TO MOS 11X IF QUALIFIED. THEY WILL RECEIVE THE BONUS FOR MOS 11X THAT WAS AVAILABLE AT THE TIME OF CONTRACTING.
P. THE ABOVE CHANGES DO NOT AFFECT PERSONS CURRENTLY IN THE DELAYED ENTRY PROGRAM (DEP) OR PERSONS WHO ENLIST IN THE DEP PRIOR TO 5 APR 06.
6. THE FOLLOWING IS THE LIST OF MOS AUTHORIZED AN ENLISTMENT BONUS AS OF 5 APR 06:
MOS 2YR LEVEL 3YR LEVEL 4YR LEVEL 5YR LEVEL 6YR LEVEL
11X $3000 $5000 $9000 $12000 $14000
13B $4000 $6000 $11000 $14000 $16000
13D $4000 $6000 $11000 $14000 $16000
13F $6000 $8000 $15000 $20000 $25000
13M $3000 $5000 $9000 $12000 $14000
13P $3000 $5000 $9000 $12000 $14000
13R $4000 $6000 $11000 $14000 $16000
13S $1000 $3000 $4000 $6000 $8000
13W $0 $2000 $3000 $4000 $6000
14E $0 $6000 $11000 $14000 $16000
14J $4000 $6000 $11000 $14000 $16000
14T $4000 $6000 $11000 $14000 $16000
18X $0 $0 $0 $12000 $14000
19D $2000 $4000 $6000 $8000 $12000
19K $0 $1000 $2000 $3000 $4000
21B $0 $2000 $3000 $4000 $6000
21C $0 $2000 $3000 $4000 $6000
21U $0 $0 $4000 $6000 $8000
25C $0 $0 $4000 $6000 $8000
25D $0 $0 $3000 $4000 $6000
25F $0 $0 $3000 $4000 $6000
25P $0 $0 $0 $8000 $12000
25S $0 $0 $9000 $12000 $14000
25U $0 $0 $2000 $3000 $4000
31E $0 $4000 $6000 $8000 $12000
33W $0 $2000 $3000 $4000 $6000
37F $1000 $0 $4000 $6000 $8000
42RD $0 $3000 $4000 $6000 $8000
42RH $0 $3000 $4000 $6000 $8000
42RJ $0 $3000 $4000 $6000 $8000
42RK $0 $3000 $4000 $6000 $8000
42RN $0 $4000 $6000 $8000 $12000
45G $0 $0 $2000 $3000 $4000
46R $0 $0 $0 $4000 $6000
52C $0 $1000 $2000 $3000 $4000
52D $2000 $4000 $6000 $8000 $12000
62B $0 $2000 $3000 $4000 $6000
63B $3000 $5000 $9000 $12000 $14000
63D $0 $1000 $2000 $3000 $4000
63H $0 $4000 $6000 $8000 $12000
63J $3000 $5000 $9000 $12000 $14000
63M $0 $3000 $4000 $6000 $8000
68K $0 $0 $0 $4000 $6000
74D $1000 $3000 $4000 $6000 $8000
88H $0 $1000 $2000 $3000 $4000
88M $0 $5000 $9000 $12000 $14000
89B $3000 $0 $9000 $12000 $14000
89D $0 $0 $11000 $14000 $16000
91S $0 $0 $4000 $6000 $8000
91W $0 $0 $2000 $3000 $4000
92F $6000 $8000 $15000 $20000 $25000
92G $3000 $5000 $9000 $12000 $14000
92R $3000 $5000 $9000 $12000 $14000
92W $2000 $4000 $6000 $8000 $12000
94A $0 $0 $4000 $6000 $8000
94E $0 $0 $11000 $14000 $16000
94F $0 $0 $9000 $12000 $14000
94H $0 $0 $0 $4000 $6000
94M $0 $0 $0 $8000 $12000
94P $0 $0 $2000 $3000 $4000
94S $0 $0 $0 $8000 $12000
94T $0 $0 $2000 $3000 $4000
97E $0 $0 $0 $3000 $4000
98XL $0 $0 $0 $12000 $14000
7. BONUS AMOUNTS ARE REDUCED WHEN COMBINED WITH THE ARMY COLLEGE FUND and THE LOAN REPAYMENT OPTION. SEE HQDA MESSAGE, REF C ABOVE, FOR AMOUNTS.
8. HRC POC FOR THIS MESSAGE IS MR. BROPHY, DSN 221-4182, EMAIL BROPHYM@HOFFMAN.ARMY.MIL

Army Career News

MILPER MESSAGE NUMBER : 06-103
AHRC-MSP-E
DA DIRECTED PROMOTION LIST INTEGRATION TO SERGEANT (SGT) PROMOTIONS EFFECTIVE 1 JUNE 2006
Issued: [04/05/2006]...

A. AR 600-8-19, ENLISTED PROMOTIONS AND REDUCTIONS, 10 JAN 06

B. AR 601-208, ARMY RETENTION PROGRAM, 31 MAR 99.

C. HQDA (DAPE-MPE) MESSAGE, 251601Z FEB 05, SAB.

1. THIS MESSAGE NUMBER WILL EXPIRE NLT JUNE 06; HOWEVER,
THE PROCEDURES WILL REMAIN IN EFFECT UNTIL SUPERSEDED OR RESCINDED.

2. THIS MESSAGE APPLIES TO ACTIVE ARMY SOLDIERS.

3. THIS MESSAGE PROVIDES PROCEDURAL GUIDANCE TO THE AUTOMATIC
PROMOTION LIST INTEGRATION FOR SOLDIERS THAT MEET THE REQUIRED CRITERIA.

4. APPLICABILITY: SOLDIERS IN THE GRADE OF E-4 WHO MEET THE
FOLLOWING CRITERIA WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY INTEGRATED ONTO
THE RECOMMENDED LIST PROVIDED THEY ARE OTHERWISE ELIGIBLE
FOR RECOMMENDED LIST CONSIDERATION DESPITE LACKING THE
ACTUAL PROMOTION BOARD APPEARANCE:

A. FORTY-SIX (46) MONTHS TIME IN SERVICE (TIS) (TO BECOME
ELIGIBLE FOR PROMOTION NET FORTY-EIGHT (48) MONTHS),

B. TEN (10) MONTHS TIME IN GRADE (TIG) (TO BECOME ELIGIBLE
FOR PROMOTION NET TWELVE (12) MONTHS),

C. OTHERWISE NOT INELIGIBLE (IAW AR 600-8-19),

D. NOT OTHERWISE DENIED BY THE COMMANDER.

5. HUMAN RESOURCES COMMAND (HRC) ENLISTED PROMOTIONS
BRANCH, WILL POST A LIST OF SOLDIERS WHO ACCORDING TO
HRC SYSTEMS HAVE MET OR EXCEEDED THE AUTOMATIC
RECOMMENDED LIST CRITERIA FOR RECOMMENDED LIST
INTEGRATION EFFECTIVE 1 APRIL 2006, (WHICH POTENTIALLY
AFFECTS PROMOTIONS FOR 1 JUNE 2006) NLT 1400 HRS EST 5
APRIL 2006 TO THE PROMOTIONS WEB SITE.

6. UPON POSTING DATE, PERSONNEL WORK CENTERS (PWC)
ARE TO EXTRAPOLATE THOSE PERSONNEL FROM THE RECOMMENDED
LIST WITHIN THEIR AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY AND NOTIFY THEIR
RESPECTIVE COMMANDS OF THEIR ELIGIBILITY. INDIVIDUAL UNITS
WILL ALSO HAVE ACCESS, BUT ANY ACTIONS TAKEN TO DENY A
SOLDIER FROM THE AUTOMATIC RECOMMENDED LIST INTEGRATION
MUST BE ACCOMPLISHED AT THE PWC.

7. SUBSEQUENT TO THE DISTRIBUTION/RECEIPT OF THIS LIST,
COMMANDERS MUST DETERMINE WHETHER A SOLDIER SHOULD BE
DENIED AUTOMATIC RECOMMENDED LIST INTEGRATION WITH 350
POINTS. THE DENIAL RECOMMENDATION IS INITIATED BY THE UNIT
COMMANDER AND APPROVED BY THE PROMOTION AUTHORITY LTC/05.
IF A SOLDIER IS DENIED AUTOMATIC RECOMMENDED LIST INTEGRATION,
COUNSELING MUST BE ACCOMPLISHED IAW AR 600-8-19, PARA 1-26.

8. TO AFFECT PROMOTIONS EFFECTIVE 1 JUNE 06 (AS A PROCEDURAL
EXCEPTION), ON 5 APRIL 06, ALL SOLDIERS LISTED ON THE ROSTER THAT
ENLISTED PROMOTIONS BRANCH POSTED, WILL BE GIVEN 350 POINTS. THE
PWC CAN VIEW THESE SOLDIERS ON EDAS ON THE PP SCREEN. THESE
SOLDIERS WILL BE LISTED WITH 350 POINTS AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE OF
990604 OR 200604 IF SELECTED FOR PROMOTION. THE PWC MUST DELETE
THE 350 POINTS ON ANY SOLDIER WHO THE UNIT COMMANDER DETERMINES
SHOULD NOT BE INCLUDED FOR AUTOMATIC RECOMMENDED LIST INTEGRATION.
ALL ACTIONS TO DELETE THE POINTS ON NON-SELECTED SOLDIERS MUST
BE ACHIEVED NLT 17 APRIL 2006.

9. ON 20 APRIL 2006, THOSE SOLDIERS IN EDAS, THAT MET THE CRITERIA
IN PARAGRAPH 5, WILL BE CONSIDERED AS PROMOTABLE SOLDIERS AND
THEIR POINTS WILL NOT BE DELETED AFTER THIS DATE WITHOUT
FOLLOWING THE PROCEDURES OF PARAGRAPH 17 OF THIS MESSAGE.
ADDITIONALLY, UNIT RETENTION NCOS WILL ENSURE ERUP CODES
REFLECT CURRENT ELIGIBILITY AS RELATED TO FIFTEEN (15) YEARS.

A. PROCESSING PROCEDURES:

(1) CAREER COUNSELORS WILL COORDINATE WITH THEIR LOCAL
PERSONNEL WORK CENTERS AND COMMANDERS TO IDENTIFY
SOLDIERS AFFECTED BY THIS MESSAGE.

(2) CAREER COUNSELORS WILL UPDATE THE SOLDIER’S IMMEDIATE
REENLISTMENT CODE USING ORDER OF PRECEDENCE.

B. POINT OF CONTACT THIS MESSAGE IS SGM CARPENTER, EMAIL:
VENUS.CARPENTER@HOFFMAN.ARMY.MIL, DSN: 221-6807.

10. ONCE CUT-OFF SCORES HAVE BEEN DETERMINED FOR 1 JUNE
2006 PROMOTIONS, THOSE MEETING OR EXCEEDING CUT-OFF SCORES
BY BOARD APPEARANCE, AND OTHERWISE FULLY ELIGIBLE, WILL BE
PROMOTED FIRST. IF, AFTER REVIEW, THERE IS STILL A REQUIREMENT
FOR PROMOTIONS, HRC WILL SELECT THAT REQUIREMENT FROM THOSE
SOLDIERS LISTED WITH 350 POINTS AND OTHERWISE FULLY ELIGIBLE.
THE PWC WILL PULL THEIR BY-NAME PROMOTION LIST NLT 15 MAY
2006 FOR ALL PROMOTIONS EFFECTIVE 1 JUNE 2006. THE BY-NAME
PROMOTION LIST WILL INCLUDE SOLDIERS, IF NEEDED, FROM THE
AUTOMATIC RECOMMENDED LIST INTEGRATION IN MOS' BASED ON:

A. DATE OF RANK

B. BASIC ACTIVE SERVICE DATE

11. THE PWC WILL DETERMINE WHICH SOLDIERS WERE GIVEN POINTS
UNDER THIS POLICY. ONCE THE SOLDIERS ARE SELECTED FOR PROMOTION,
THEIR POINTS REMAIN 350, BUT THEIR EFFECTIVE DATE WILL BE 200604.
THIS IS TO ENSURE POINTS ARE EFFECTIVE TWO (2) MONTHS PRIOR
(04=APRIL FOR A 1 JUNE 06 PROMOTION), JUST AS IS DONE CURRENTLY
WITH ACTUAL BOARD APPEARANCES. THEREFORE, AS AN EXAMPLE,
THOSE SELECTED FOR PROMOTION FOR 1 JUNE 2006 UNDER THIS
POLICY WILL HAVE AN EFFECTIVE DATE OF 200604.

12. THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE PWC TO VALIDATE THOSE SOLDIERS
SELECTED FOR PROMOTION FOR ELIGIBILITY IS UNCHANGED. HOWEVER,
THOSE SOLDIERS SELECTED UNDER THIS POLICY WILL NOT HAVE A DA
FORM 3355. SUBSEQUENT TO VALIDATION, THE PWC IS REQUIRED TO
PUBLISH PROMOTION ORDERS AND SUBMIT THE PROMOTION TO SGT
TRANSACTION WITH AN EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1 JUNE 2006.

13. IF AT THE TIME OF RECEIPT, A COMMANDER DETERMINES A SOLDIER
IS INELIGIBLE FOR PROMOTION, FOLLOW THE PROCEDURES IN DENYING A
PROMOTION AS OUTLINED IN AR 600-8-19, CHAPTER 3, PARAGRAPH 3-19.

14. UNTIL AUTOMATION IS DEVELOPED TO INCORPORATE THESE CHANGES
(APPROXIMATELY 6 MONTHS), ALL ACTIONS AT HRC WILL BE ACCOMPLISHED
OFF-LINE, I.E. THE LIST OF ELIGIBLES BEING POSTED TO THE WEB.

15. MILPER MESSAGES WILL BE POSTED MONTHLY TO PROVIDE CURRENT
TIMELINES AND GUIDANCE. THIS WILL CONTINUE UNTIL SUCH TIME AS
AUTOMATION SYSTEMS CAN BE UPDATED, AND THEN THE
STANDARDIZATION OF REQUIREMENTS WILL BE PUBLISHED AND
BECOME PERMANENT POLICY.

16. ANY EXCEPTIONS TO POLICY MUST BE DIRECTED TO THIS OFFICE.

17. IF A UNIT INADVERTENTLY OVERLOOKED A SOLDIER, AND THAT
SOLDIER WAS ERRONEOUSLY LIST INTEGRATED, THE ONLY WAY THAT
COMMAND CAN GET THE SOLDIER REMOVED FROM THE LIST IS TO
FOLLOW THE PROCEDURES OF AR 600-8-19, CHAPTER 3, PARAGRAPH
3-28, AUTOMATIC REMOVALS VERSUS A REMOVAL BOARD.

18. SOLDIERS ADDED TO THE RECOMMENDED LIST IN THIS MANNER
ARE NOT ELIGIBLE FOR RE-COMPUTATIONS. FURTHER, SOLDIERS WHO
DESIRE TO RECEIVE PROMOTION POINTS BASED ON THEIR ACTUAL
ACCOMPLISHMENTS, IAW THE EXISTING PROCESSES OUTLINED IN AR
600-8-19, MUST BE RECOMMENDED AND BOARDED BY THEIR CHAIN OF
COMMAND. SOLDIERS, WITH SUPPORT OF THEIR COMMANDER,
CHOOSING TO APPEAR BEFORE A PROMOTION BOARD AFTER AUTOMATIC
LIST INTEGRATION, ARE TO FOLLOW THE EXISTING PROVISIONS FOR
TOTAL REEVALUATION.

19. IF, AFTER BOARD APPEARANCE, THE SOLDIER DOES NOT HAVE THE
MINIMUM POINTS REQUIRED TO STAY ON THE STANDING LIST (LESS
THAN 350) BUT WAS RECOMMENDED BY THE PROMOTION BOARD AND
THE SOLDIER WAS PREVIOUSLY AUTOMATIC LIST INTEGRATED, THAT
SOLDIER WILL REMAIN ON THE LIST WITH 350 POINTS. TO ADD ANY
POINTS, THE SOLDIER MUST REAPPEAR BEFORE A PROMOTION BOARD.

20. CONVERSELY, IF A SOLDIER APPEARS BEFORE A PROMOTION BOARD,
AND IS NOT RECOMMENDED FOR PROMOTION, THAT SOLDIER, REGARDLESS
OF WHETHER THEY WERE PREVIOUSLY AUTOMATIC LIST INTEGRATED,
WILL NOT REMAIN ON THE LIST AND MUST APPEAR BEFORE A PROMOTION
BOARD TO REGAIN PROMOTABLE STATUS. THE PWC WILL TAKE THE
NECESSARY ACTIONS TO REMOVE THE SOLDIER FROM THE PROMOTION
STANDING LIST. IN ADDITION, THOSE THAT FALL WITHIN THIS CATEGORY
WILL HAVE THEIR RCP ADJUSTED BACK TO PRIOR TO THE PROMOTABLE STATUS.

21. POINT OF CONTACT IS SGM COON AT DSN 221-5101, COMMERCIAL
(703)325-5101 OR MR GRANT AT DSN 221-3959 OR COMMERCIAL
(703) 325-3959.

Army Unit Tries to Restore Order in Iraq

KHALIS, Iraq — With a string of kidnappings, assassinations and an attack on a mosque last week, this small city with a mix of Sunnis and Shiites about 50 miles north of Baghdad has seen a surge in violence in recent weeks.

“When I first got here, everything was under control,” said Lt. Col. Thomas Fisher, the battalion commander who oversees a sweeping area of cities and farmland in western Diyala province, where tensions have run high since the Feb. 22 bombing of a Shiite shrine in Samarra.

“This is where the fight has come next,” said Fisher, of the 1st Battalion, 68th Armor Regiment, 4th Infantry Division.

The increase in attacks here comes about one year after U.S. troops determined Khalis to be one of the most stable cities in Diyala and set in motion plans to remove much of the battalion based here. In June 2005, most of the Army battalion based here was shipped to Ramadi to help a Marine unit with the uprising in Anbar province. A small task force of 100 troops remained here to work with the Iraqi army unit.

In January 2006, troop strength in the entire area was reduced incrementally and Khalis was handed over to the U.S. battalion based in the nearby provincial capital of Baqouba.

The nature of the recent violence has evolved from last year, when attacks on U.S. and Iraqi troops were common, soldiers said.

“Now the insurgents are not targeting us anymore,” said Col. Abdulla, the Iraqi army battalion commander based in Khalis. “Now they are targeting the innocent civilians.”

Local government officials are especially at risk. A top aide to the city’s mayor was killed recently in a bombing that also killed his son and his driver, Fisher said.

Some troops speculate that the insurgents have fled to this area after extensive U.S. military operations in surrounding cities — particularly the massive sweeps conducted in the Samarra area after the bombing there.

“We’ve applied a lot of pressure elsewhere, so they’ve come here now,” Fisher said in a recent meeting with Abdulla. Others believe that the insurgents have strategically targeted the area.

“The insurgents are trying to disrupt the progress that was made,” said Maj. Isidoro Santana, who works in the civil affairs unit that arrived in Khalis last summer. “What I see is the peacefulness has brought the attacks.”

Locals suggest some of the attacks do not stem from the traditional Sunni insurgents but from local Shiite militias, sparking a cycle of violence that draws reprisals from the Sunni fighters.

“We need to get the militias off the streets because it makes people mad and it gives the terrorists a reason to come here,” said Salem Jawad, a Sunni leader on the local Khalis legislative council.

Santana agreed that the recent violence targeting civilians causes political problems because it is often unclear who is attacking whom.

“It throws a lot of doubt about who to blame. It opens the door, we can blame a lot of people,” Santana said.

Fisher said Khalis is becoming one of his top priorities. He said he plans to move some U.S. troops into the area and spend more time working with the Iraqi soldiers to quell the attacks.

Khalis marks a contrast to the surrounding area, where attacks, roadside bombs and assassinations have dropped in recent months. Fisher told the Iraqi commander that this may be the last stand for the region’s insurgents.

“I think that if the fight is successful here, it will be pretty much over,” Fisher said.

Pentagon Channel to Broadcast 1st Cavalry Memorial Dedication

Ft. Hood, TX. - The 1st Cavalry Division will commemorate the sacrifice and service of its members during a dedication ceremony of the Operation Iraqi Freedom Memorial April 4 at 10 a.m. outside the division headquarters.

Located on the east end of the division抯 parade field, the memorial honors all troops who have participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom under the First Team.

The names of 168 Soldiers who were killed during the division's deployment are etched into polished, black granite panels. The panels are from the same mountain in India used for the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C.

The event will be broadcast live on the Pentagon Channel at www.pentagonchannel.mil.
Sound Off...What do you think?

Pentagon Channel to Broadcast 1st Cavalry Memorial Dedication

Ft. Hood, TX. - The 1st Cavalry Division will commemorate the sacrifice and service of its members during a dedication ceremony of the Operation Iraqi Freedom Memorial April 4 at 10 a.m. outside the division headquarters.

Located on the east end of the division抯 parade field, the memorial honors all troops who have participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom under the First Team.

The names of 168 Soldiers who were killed during the division's deployment are etched into polished, black granite panels. The panels are from the same mountain in India used for the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C.

The event will be broadcast live on the Pentagon Channel at www.pentagonchannel.mil.
Sound Off...What do you think?

Top Ten Canadian Complaints Against Americans

1. Won't acknowledge enormous cultural contributions of Howie Mandel.

2. We're pretty sure they're holding Wayne Gretzky down there against his will.

3. Every time we mention the city "Regina," they won't stop giggling.

4. Incredibly, they only have one word for "snow"

5. In American encyclopedias, Canada is often called "North Dakota's gay neighbor"

6. They call it American cheese, even though it was invented by Canadian superstar Gordon Lightfoot

7. They've never even heard of our most popular superhero, Captain Saskatchewan

8. Two words: "Weird Al"

9. Get all confused when we ask a question that ends with "eh?"

10. Not enough guys named "Gordie"

Did You Ever Wonder Again?

If Fed Ex and UPS were to merge, would they call it Fed UP?

Do Lipton Tea employees take coffee breaks?

I was thinking about how people seem to read the Bible a whole lot more as they get older, then it dawned on me . . they're cramming for their final exam.

I thought about how mothers feed their babies with tiny little spoons and forks so I wondered, what do Chinese mothers use? Toothpicks?

Why do they put pictures of criminals up in the Post Office? What are we supposed to do, write to them? Why don't they just put their pictures on the postage stamps so the mailmen could look for them while they delivered the mail?

If it's true that we are here to help others, then what exactly are the others here for?

You never really learn to swear until you learn to drive.

No one ever says, "It's only a game," when their team is winning.

Ever wonder what the speed of lightning would be if it didn't zigzag?

If a cow laughed, would milk come out her nose?

Whatever happened to preparations A through G?

If olive oil comes from olives, where does baby oil come from?

The Gas Men

Two gas company servicemen, a senior training supervisor and a young trainee, were out checking meters in a suburban neighborhood. They parked their truck at the end of the alley and worked their way to the other end. At the last house a woman looking out her kitchen window watched the two men as they checked her gas meter.

Finishing the meter check, the senior supervisor challenged his younger co-worker to a foot race down the alley back to the truck to prove that an older guy could outrun a younger one.

As they came running up to the truck, they realized the lady from that last house was huffing and puffing right behind them. They stopped and asked her what was wrong.

Gasping for breath, she replied, "When I see two gas men running as hard as you two were, I figured I'd better run too!"

New practise

Jack made his way through veterinary school working nights as a taxidermist.

Upon graduation, he decided he could combine his two vocations to better serve the needs of his patients and their owners, while doubling his practice and, therefore, his income.

He opened his own offices with a shingle on the door saying, "Dr. Jones, Veterinary Medicine and Taxidermy - Either way, you get your dog back!"

Romantic

An older couple was lying in bed one night...

The husband was falling asleep but the wife felt romantic and wanted to talk. She said, "You use to hold my hand when we were courting." Wearily he reached across, held her hand for a second, then tried to get back to sleep.

A few moments later she said, "Then you used to kiss me."

Mildly irritated, he reached across, gave her a peck on the cheek and settled down to sleep.

Thirty seconds later she said, "Then you used to nibble my neck." Angrily, he threw back the bed covers and got out of bed.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"To get my teeth!"

The Modern Toolbox

Hammer - In ancient times a hammer was used to inflict pain on ones enemies. Modern hammers are used to inflict pain on oneself.

Screwdriver - The drink ordered at the local bar after you call in a professional repairman to undo the $500 in damage you did while trying to change out a light socket with your handy screwdriver.

Phillips Screwdriver - The bar drink that you order when the damage estimate is over $1,000. Contains twice the vodka.

Pliers - A device used to extend your reach the necessary few inches when you drop a one-of-a-kind screw down behind the new wall it took you two weeks to install.

Multi-Pliers - Contain a handy assortment of sharp and dangerous tools. Best left in its leather sheath and worn on a homeowners belt to increase testosterone levels.

Electronic Stud Finder - An annoying device that never goes off when you point it at yourself.

Halogen Light - A worklight that lights up your backyard with the incandescence of a football stadium, causing you to cast a heavy shadow over the area you're working on so that you need to use a flashlight anyway.

Cordless Drill - A device that lessens your chance of electrocution 90% over a standard plug-in tool.

Cordless Telephone - The handyman's 911.

Air Compressor - A mechanical device similar in principal to harnessing the power of your mother-in-laws nagging complaints and using the resulting airflow to blast old paint off the side of the house.

Chainsaw - Allows you to cut your way out of the shed that you accidentally built completely around yourself.

Vise Grips - A pair of helping hands that doesn't critique the job you're doing or offer advice.

Recent Quips From Late Night

"We estimate that there are perhaps 20,000 prehistoric hunter-gatherers frozen up in those glaciers. Now, if they simply thaw and wander around, it's not a problem, but if they find a leader -- a Captain Caveman, if you will -- we'll be facing an even more serious problem." --Daily Show correspondent John Hodgman, on the dangers of global warming

"The president's mother, Barbara Bush, donated tax deductible money to the Katrina Relief. ... Now we find out the specific instructions -- that the money be spent for educational software owned by her son, Neil. Because who can forget those tragic images of the poor black people on the rooftops in New Orleans holding up signs that said, 'Send educational software.'" --Bill Maher

"Did you hear about this? According to a recent poll, three out of five Americans believe George W. Bush should be impeached. And when he heard that, the president said, 'Cool, I love peaches.'" --David Letterman

"President Bush's approval ratings have taken somewhat of a dive. A senior slump, if you will. Leading President Bush to one conclusion: He is the only one who realizes what a great job he's being doing." --Jon Stewart

"Today is also the third anniversary of the Iraq war. So far so good! Whatever happened to that mission accomplished thing? I think now the only way to get rid of the Iraq war is to put it on NBC."

"[Bush] is committed to one thing, he's going to disarm Iran, he's going to disarm Korea, and he's going to disarm Cheney." --David Letterman

Very Sick

A man returns to the U.S. from Africa feeling very ill. He goes to see his doctor, and is immediately rushed to the hospital, to undergo a barrage of extensive tests.

The man wakes up after the tests in a private room at the hospital, and the phone by his bed rings.

"This is your doctor. We've had the results back from your tests and we've found you have an extremely nasty virus, which is extremely contagious!"

"Oh my gosh," cries the man. He's in a panic now. "What are you going to do, doctor?"

"Well we're going to put you on a diet of pizzas, pancakes, and pita bread."

"Will that cure me?" asked the man hopefully.

The doctor replied, "Well no, but ... it's the only food we can get under the door."

Just Like A Woman

Bubba and Junior were standing at the base of a flagpole, looking up. A blond lady walked by and asked what they were doing.

"We're supposed to find the height of the flagpole," said Bubba, "but we don't have a ladder."

The woman took a wrench from her purse, loosened a few bolts, and laid the pole down. Then she took a tape measure from her pocket, took a measurement and announced, "Eighteen feet, six inches," before walking away.

Junior shook his head and laughed. "Ain't that just like a dumb blond? We ask for the height, and she gives us the length!."

Law and Order

Law of Mechanical Repair:
After your hands become coated with grease your nose will begin to itch or you'll have to pee.

Law of the Workshop:
Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least accessible corner.

Law of probability:
The probability of being watched is directly proportional to the stupidity of your act.

Law of the Telephone:
When you dial a wrong number, you never get a busy signal.

Law of the Alibi:
If you tell the boss you were late for work because you had a flat tire, the very next morning you will have a flat tire.

Variation Law:
If you change lines (or traffic lanes), the one you were in will start to move faster than the one you are in now. (works every time)

Bath Theorem:
When the body is fully immersed in water, the telephone rings.

Law of Close Encounters:
The probability of meeting someone you know increases when you are with someone you don't want to be seen with.

Law of the Result:
When you try to prove to someone that a machine won't work, it will.

Law of Biomechanics:
The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the reach.

Theatre Rule:
At any event, the people whose seats are furthest from the aisle arrive last.

Law of Coffee:
As soon as you sit down to a cup of hot coffee, your boss will ask you to do something which will last until the coffee is cold.

Murphy's Law of Lockers:
If there are only two people in a locker room, they will have adjacent lockers.

Law of Dirty Rugs/Carpets:
The chances of an open-faced jelly Sandwich of landing face down on a floor covering are directly correlated to the newness and cost of the carpet/rug.

Law of Location:
No matter where you go, there you are.

Law of Logical Argument:
Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.

Brown's Law:
If the shoe fits, it's ugly.

Oliver's Law:
A closed mouth gathers no feet.

Wilson 's Law:
As soon as you find a product that you really like, they will stop making it.

Faith

A nun who worked for a local home health care agency was out making her rounds when she ran out of gas. As luck would have it, there was a station just down the street. She walked to the station to borrow a can with enough gas to start the car and drive to the station for a fill up.

The attendant regretfully told her that the only gas can he owned had just been loaned out, but if she would care to wait he was sure it would be back shortly.

Since the nun was on the way to see a patient she decided not to wait and walked back to her car. After looking through her car for something to carry to the station to fill with gas, she spotted a bedpan she was taking to the patient. Always resourceful, she carried it to the station, filled it with gasoline, and carried it back to her car.

As she was pouring the gas into the tank of her car, two men walked by. One of them turned to the other and said: "Now that is what I call faith!"

The Lawyer's Dog

A butcher was minding his store one day, when a dog ran in and stole a cut of meat off his counter. The butcher recognized the dog as belonging to his neighbor who was a lawyer. He called up his neighbor and said, "Your dog stole meat from my store. I believe you owe me for the meat."

The lawyer said "You are correct. How much was the meat?"

The butcher told him that it cost $4.50, the lawyer replied that the butcher should receive a check for that amount in the mail the next day.

The next day, the check arrived in the mail for $4.50, with a bill attached for $150 "for legal consultation."

The Farmer and the Pig

A farmer walked into a bar with his pig and ordered a drink. The bartender could not help asking the man why his pig had a peg leg. "Well, you see," said the farmer, "this is an amazing pig. Why, two years ago, my son was chopping wood in the field when a tree collapsed on him, pinning him to the ground and making breathing difficult. The pig, which was in the area, ran to get assistance and, squealing loudly, led us to my son to rescue him."

"You're right, that is an amazing story. But why does your pig have a peg leg?"

This is no ordinary pig," the farmer continued. "One night while we were sleeping, our barn caught fire and the pig managed to squeeze through a little hole in the wall and circle our house, squealing as loud as it could to wake us up. We were able to save all of the animals."

"Wow. Incredible. But why does the pig have a peg leg?"

"Wait. Once, our home caught on fire. The pig managed to run to the next house over and wake the neighbors, who were able to save us and help put out the fire."

"Okay, okay! The pig is amazing. But why the peg leg?" the bartender demanded.

"An amazing pig like this. You can't eat it all at once."

Lost Dr. Seuss Poem?

I love my job, I love the pay.
I love it more and more each day.
I love my boss; he is the best.
I love his boss and all the rest.

I love my office and its location.
I hate to have to go on vacation.
I love my furniture, drab and gray,
And the paper that piles up every day.

I love my chair in my padded cell.
There's nothing else I love so well.
I love to work among my peers.
I love their leers and jeers and sneers.

I love my computer and its software;
I hug it often though it don't care.
I love each program and every file,
I try to understand once in a while.

I'm happy to be here, I am, I am;
I'm the happiest slave of my Uncle Sam.
I love this work; I love these chores.
I love the meetings with deadly bores.

I love my job-I'll say it again.
I even love these friendly men,
These men who've come to visit today
In lovely white coats to take me away.

It's Time to Turn Your Computer Off and Read a Book When...

- You wake up at 3 am to go to the bathroom and stop to check your E-mail on the way back to bed.

- You name your children Eudora, AOL and dotcom.

- You turn off your modem and get this awful empty feeling, as if you just pulled the plug on a loved one.

- You spend half of the plane trip with your laptop on your lap and your child in the overhead compartment.

- You decide to stay in college for an additional year or two, just for the free internet access.

- You laugh at people with 14.4 baud modems.

- You start using smileys in your snail mail.

- You find yourself typing "com" after every period when using a word processor.com

- You can't call your mother because she doesn't have a modem.

- You check your mail. It says "no new messages." So you check it again.

- You don't know what gender three of your closest friends are, because they have neutral screennames and you never bothered to ask.

- You move into a new house and decide to Netscape before you Landscape

- You tell the cab driver you live at http://1000.garden/house/brick.html

- You start tilting your head sideways to smile.

- After reading this, you immediately e-mail it to your friends.

The meaning of service

At one time in my life, I thought I had a handle on the meaning of the word "service."

"It's the act of doing things for other people." Then I heard these terms which reference the word service:

Internal Revenue Service
Postal Service
Telephone Service
Civil Service
City & County Public Service
Customer Service
Service Stations

Then I became confused about the word "service." This is not what I thought "service" meant.

So today, I overheard two farmers talking, and one of them said he had hired a bull to "service" a few of his cows. Suddenly, it all came into perspective. Now I understand what all those "service" agencies are all about.

I hope you now are as enlightened as I am.

Guard Dog

Sam and George owned a store in the outskirts of San Francisco. It had been burglarized several times in the past year and Sam decided to buy a guard dog.

Shopping for one, Sam found himself in Chinatown, at a pet store whose sign boasted, The Best Guard Dogs That Money Will Buy. He entered the store, but much to his disappointment, all the dogs he could see were Pekingese.

"Excuse me", Sam said to the manager, "But the sign outside says you sell guard dogs. Where are they?"

The manager, an elderly Chinese, replied, "Oh, but these are highly trained guard dogs. They all know karate."

"Karate! No way."

"I'll show you", said the shop owner. He took one of the Pekingese out to the backyard and put it in front of a brick. The dog stood absolutely still. The shopkeeper gave a command, "Karate! Brick!"

And with complete astonishment, Sam saw the little dog perform a perfect karate chop, splitting the brick in half. Totally amazed, he bought the dog. Back at his own store, he showed the guard dog Pekingese to George, who thought he was completely mad and told him to return the Pekingese immediately.

"But, he is a trained guard dog."

"Yeah, sure!"

Sam put the Pekingese on the floor and said, "He knows karate!!"

With a sneer George retorted, "Karate! My Foot!"

U.S.-led military operation in Iraq wrong

U.S.-led military operation in Iraq wrong - Kosachyov
MOSCOW. March 20 (Interfax) - The U.S.-led military operation in Iraq launched on March 20, 2003, was a serious mistake, Chairman of the State Duma International Affairs Committee Konstantin Kosachyov said on Monday.

"It remains unclear whether the organizers and performers of the military operation against Saddam Hussein's government have drawn the right conclusions from their mistake. We believe that the military operation against Iraq was a mistake, and this mistake is turning increasingly tragic," he said.

MILITARY NEWS

Army Capt. Michael R. Taylor, son of retired Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Michael R. and Shelly A. Taylor of Belleville, has assumed command of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 24th Infantry Division and the U.S. Army Garrison at Fort Riley, Junction City, Kan.

Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brian A. Taylor is currently deployed to an overseas forward-operating location to support the missions of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. His wife Melanie is the daughter of Charles G. and Lucia I. Young of Belleville.

Navy Cmdr. Brenda M. Holdener of Collinsville, Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Myesha N. Randle of Belleville, Navy Airman Apprentice DeVallace D. Elam, son of Gloria J. Elam of Alorton, and Navy Airman Maurice Powers, son of Francine R. and Wilbur Hendricks of Belleville, have concluded Annual Exercise 2005 while assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk now, deployed to Yokosuka, Japan.

Navy Seaman Kelly M. Allsman, daughter of Cathy Tanner of Alton and James R. Tanner of Alton, entered the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations to conduct maritime security operations during a scheduled deployment while assigned to the amphibious dock landing ship USS Carter Hall, homeported at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virginia Beach, Va.

Navy Constructionman Recruit Derek T. Rethelford of Collinsville recently graduated from the Equipment Operator Course at Center for Seabees and Facilities Engineering Detachment, Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.

Army Pvt. Michael D. Allen, son of Marcus F. and Rondalyn J. Johnson of Fairview Heights, has graduated from basic combat military training at Fort Sill, Lawton, Okla.

Army National Guard Pvt. Michael G. Schroeder, brother of Danny Schroeder of Belleville and Dawn Schroeder of Belleville, has graduated from basic combat training at Fort Jackson, Columbia, S.C.

Air Force Master Sgt. Michelle D. Cavazos has been named the 11th Wing Pharmacy Technician Senior Noncommissioned Officer of the Year for 2005. The master sergeant is the pharmacy services superintendent with the 11th Medical Support Squadron at Bolling AFB, Washington, D.C. Her husband Mario is the son of Mercedes Sanchez of Belleville.

Army Pvt. Bradley A. Barriger, is the nephew of May Melba of Swansea, has graduated from basic infantry training at Fort Benning, Columbus, Ga.

Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Gregory W. Lyles, son of Mary C. Lyles of Mascoutah, recently was promoted to his current rank while serving with Marine Aircraft Group 12, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, Iwakuni, Japan.

Antoin T. Matthews of Belleville has joined the U.S. Army under the Delayed Entry Program, and has reported to Fort Knox, Ky., for active duty.

Navy Seaman Amanda D. Eavenson, daughter of Deborah A. and George E. Eavenson of Belleville, is in the middle of a scheduled deployment while assigned to the guided-missile destroyer USS Donald Cook, homeported in Norfolk, Va.

Army Pvt. Timothy A.D. Redvay, son of Tina L. Presson of Highland, has graduated from One Station Unit Training at Fort Sill, Lawton, Okla.

Air Force Airman 1st Class Gordon H. Casselman, brother of Heidi E. Casselman of Highland, has graduated from the F-16 Aircraft Avionics Systems Apprentice Course at Sheppard AFB, Wichita Falls, Texas.

Chad says 100 military coup plot suspects arrested

N'DJAMENA, March 20 (Reuters) - Chad's government has arrested 100 military officers and soldiers implicated in a failed assassination plot against President Idriss Deby last week, the security minister said on Monday.

Routouang Yoma Golom also ruled out peace negotiations with Chadian rebels and army deserters who are threatening to launch an offensive from the east of the landlocked oil producer to try to topple Deby as he prepares for a May 3 presidential election.

The Chadian leader, whose 16-year rule has been weakened by a spate of high-level military desertions in recent months, rushed home from an African summit a week ago to foil what officials said was a plot to shoot down his plane.

"There are around 100 members of the military implicated in this coup who have been arrested. They will be brought to trial," Golom told reporters, without identifying the suspects or explaining their involvement in the plot.

He added a military court would sentence them over the next one or two months.

Deby, himself a former army commander who seized power in a 1990 revolt he led from eastern Chad, reshuffled his military top brass and replaced his personal guard late last year as security fears increased.

He has repeatedly accused neighbour Sudan of backing efforts to overthrow him, a charge denied by Khartoum. Conflict in Sudan's western Darfur region has also spilled over into Chad.

Golom said that since the government announced the failed coup plot last week, Deby had been visiting military barracks to ensure the loyalty of his troops.

"The situation is totally under control and calm has returned. The head of state has personally gone several times to military camps .... to restore order," the minister said.

Since last September, several waves of Chadian military officers have deserted with soldiers and equipment to join anti-Deby rebels in the east. At least one rebel group has given the president a public ultimatum to either start negotiations on democratic change or face overthrow.

NO TO NEGOTIATIONS

"Negotiating with coup plotters is out of the question," Golom said.

"If there's someone who you've forgiven two, three times already and he wants to kill you, you're not going to carry on forgiving him. I don't seen any opportunity for negotiations."

Last week's announcement of a coup plot came weeks before a presidential election which is widely expected to extend the rule of 53-year-old Deby.

Golom insisted there had been a plan to kill Deby, rejecting charges by one rebel leader that this had just been an invention by the government to cover up another embarrassing wave of high-level military desertions.

The minister said the arrested plotters "had coordinated with those who are rebelling (against Deby) from inside Sudan to allow them into Chadian territory".

"The plan was to strike in N'Djamena and when N'Djamena falls, the way is open and there'll be less resistance for them to penetrate into Chad and reach N'Djamena," he added.

Analysts fear the threat posed to Deby by the rebels, who appear to be able to operate from Darfur, risked increasing the conflict already spilling over from that Sudanese territory, where ethnic and political violence has killed thousands.

Those deserting Deby have included members of his own Zaghawa ethnic group, some of whom blame him for not doing enough to help fellow Zaghawa kinsmen in Darfur who have been attacked by Sudanese government-backed Arab militias.

Military Investigating Deadly Raid in Iraq

(AP) After a roadside bomb killed a U.S. Marine in western Iraq, American troops went into nearby houses and shot dead 15 members of two families, including a 3-year-old-girl, residents told The Associated Press on Monday.

The military says about 12 Marines are under investigation for possible war crimes by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service following the Nov. 19 insurgent attack in Haditha, 140 miles northwest of Baghdad.

The allegations against the Marines were first brought forward by Time Magazine, which reported this week that it obtained a videotape two months ago taken by a Haditha journalism student that shows the dead still in their nightclothes.

The magazine report mirrored what was told independently to the AP by residents who described what happened as "a massacre."

A military spokeswoman said Monday the allegations were being taken "very seriously."

Khaled Ahmed Rsayef, whose brother and six other relatives were killed, said the roadside bomb exploded at about 7:15 a.m. in the al-Subhani neighborhood, heavily damaging a U.S. Humvee.

A U.S. military statement in November described it as an ambush on a joint U.S.-Iraqi patrol that left 15 civilians, eight insurgents and a U.S. Marine dead in the bombing and a subsequent firefight. The statement said the 15 civilians were killed by the blast, a claim residents denied.

They said the only shooting done after the bombing was by U.S. forces.

"American troops immediately cordoned off the area and raided two nearby houses, shooting at everyone inside," said Rsayef, who didn't witness the events but whose 15-year-old niece says she did. "It was a massacre in every sense of the word."

Rsayef and another resident, former city councilman Imad Jawad Hamza, who spoke with hospital officials and residents, said the first house to be stormed was that of Abdul-Hamid Hassan Ali, which was near the scene of the bombing.

Ali, 76, whose left leg was amputated years ago because of diabetes, died after being shot in the stomach and chest. His wife, Khamisa, 66, was shot in the back. Ali's son, Jahid, 43, was hit in the head and chest. Son Walid, 37, was burned to death after a grenade was thrown into his room, and a third son, 28-year-old Rashid, died after he was shot in the head and chest, Rsayef and Hamza said.

Also among the dead were son Walid's wife, Asma, 32, who was shot in the head, and their son Abdullah, 4, who was shot in the chest, Rsayef and Hamza said.

Walid's 8-year-old daughter, Iman, and his 6-year-old son, Abdul-Rahman, were wounded and U.S. troops took them to Baghdad for treatment. The only person who escaped unharmed was Walid's 5-month-old daughter, Asia. The three children now live with their maternal grandparents, Rsayef and Hamza said.

Rsayef said those killed in the second house were his brother Younis, 43, who was shot in the stomach and chest, the brother's wife Aida, 40, who was shot in the neck and chest while still in bed where she was recuperating from bladder surgery. Their 8-year-old son Mohammed bled to death after being shot in the right arm, Rsayef said.

Also killed were Younis's daughters, Nour, 14, who was shot in the head; Seba, 10, who was hit in the chest; Zeinab, 5, shot in the chest and stomach; and Aisha, 3, who was shot in the chest. Hoda Yassin, a visiting relative, was also killed, Rsayef and Hamza said.

The only survivor from Younis's family was his 15-year-old daughter Safa, who pretended she was dead. She is living with her grandparents, Rsayef said.

The troops then shot and killed four brothers who were walking in the street, Rsayef and Hamza said, identifying them as the sons of Ayed Ahmed _ Marwan, Qahtan, Jamal and Chaseb.

U.S. troops also shot dead five men who were in a car near the scene, Hamza and Rsayef said. They identified the five as Khaled Ayad al-Zawi and his brother Wajdi as well as Mohammed Battal Mahmoud, Akram Hamid Flayeh and Ahmad Fanni Mosleh.

It was not clear if the nine men were involved in the attack as the military statement said.

According to the Defense Department, the Marine who was killed near Haditha that day was Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas, 20, of El Paso, Texas. He was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force.

Dr. Walid al-Hadithi, chief physician at Haditha General Hospital, said that about midnight the day of the attack, two U.S. Humvees arrived at the hospital _ one carrying the bodies of men and the other those of women and children.

"They (the Marines) told me the women and children were shot in their homes, and they added that the men were saboteurs," al-Hadithi said. He said he was given a total of 24 bodies. "All had bullet wounds."

Time said the available evidence did not prove the Marines deliberately killed civilians. The magazine, however, said its investigation showed that walls and ceilings in both houses were pockmarked with shrapnel and bullet holes as well as sprays of blood. The video did not show any bullet holes on the outside of the houses _ holes that might support the military report of a gunbattle.

The military, after being shown the videotape in January, concluded civilians were killed by Marines, Time said, victims of "collateral damage."

A human rights group condemned the shooting of civilians in Haditha.

"Regrettably the American military goes too far in their strikes against civilians because they consider many civilian areas as targets," said Wail al-Tai of the Baghdad Center for Human Rights Studies.

Human Rights Minister Nirmeen Othman would not comment on the incident.

U.S. military spokeswoman Lt. Col. Michelle Martin-Hing issued a statement Monday in response to an e-mail query from the AP:

"We take these allegations very seriously, and I believe the fact that two additional investigations are ongoing concerning this incident clearly demonstrates that. The incident in question was the first in a series of engagements that day that began when the Marine patrol was ambushed in a residential neighborhood with an IED followed immediately by small arms fire from multiple directions."

Saying Marines tracked insurgents for more than five hours, Martin-Hing said "the investigation will examine whether any rules of engagement were violated in the Marines' response to the insurgent attack. We are committed to thoroughly investigating this incident."

Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli, the No. 2 U.S. commander in Iraq, said about 12 Marines were under investigation for possible war crimes in the incident. He said the case was referred to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.



MMVI The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

US military releases 350 detainees in Iraq

The US military has released more than 350 detainees in Iraq, a statement said.
The releases on Saturday were recommended by a review committee consisting of US officers and Iraqi officials from the ministries of human rights, justice and interior, which found no reason to hold them, the military statement said.

All the detainees released were men, the statement said.

The Combined Review and Release Board was created in August 2004.

It has reviewed the cases of some 30,000 detainees at military facilities in Iraq, including Abu Ghraib in Baghdad, Camp Bucca near the southern port of Umm Qasr and FortSuse in the northern Sulaimaniyah area.

US military searching for stinger missiles in Afghanistan

Kabul, March 21 (AP): The US military said on Monday it is on the lookout for Stinger anti-aircraft missiles in Afghanistan, but so far there are no signs that the highly accurate weapons are in the insurgency-wracked country.

The comment by US military spokesman Col James Yonts came after media reports that the Taliban have acquired new battery packs to be fitted to old Stingers supplied by the US to Mujahedeen rebels fighting Soviet occupying forces in the 1980s.

If the reports are confirmed, it would represent a disturbing new threat to aircrafts in the region, especially those used by the US-led coalition and a separate NATO-led peacekeeping force.

When it comes to the Stinger missile ... We are constantly looking at that from an intelligence perspective to see if there is relevant and actionable intelligence that shows us that those have arrived in the theater, Yonts told reporters in Kabul.

Right now we have nothing to show any indications that they are in theater at this time.

He said that if the Stingers were brought into Afghanistan they would be a dangerous threat to both military and civilian aircraft.

The mujahedeen used the missiles to great effect against Soviet helicopters and airplanes and the weapon is credited with playing a large part in forcing the Soviet withdrawal in 1989.

An unknown number of the missiles were believed to have been left over from the war and the US for years offered cash rewards for their return.

Bush says U.S. military will defend Israel from Iran

By DPA and Shmuel Rosner, Haaretz Correspondent

U.S. President George W. Bush said Monday he would use military force to protect Israel from Iranian threats, but also restated his desire to resolve the dispute over Iran's nuclear program diplomatically.

Bush, in a speech in Cleveland, Ohio, cited comments by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad last year calling for Israel to be wiped off the map.

Iran's "stated objective" to destroy Israel is a "serious threat," Bush said as he marked three years since the start of the war in Iraq.




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"But now that I'm on Iran, the threat to Iran, of course - the threat from Iran is, of course, their stated objective to destroy our strong ally Israel. That's a threat, a serious threat. It's a threat to world peace; it's a threat, in essence, to a strong alliance. I made it clear, I'll make it clear again, that we will use military might to protect our ally, Israel," Bush said.

Bush's comments come as the UN Security Council contemplates steps to address Iran's nuclear activities and after Iran accepted a months-old U.S. proposal for direct talks on Iraq.

The United States is concerned that the Iranians have allowed weapons into Iraq that have supported anti-U.S. insurgents and contributed to instability in the country. Iran is also believed to exercise influence on Iraq's majority Shiite population.

Bush said the purpose of any talks with Iran would be to raise U.S. concerns about developments in Iraq. His administration has ruled out negotiations over the nuclear dispute.

Australian Military Humor

Australian Military Humor
Just A Good Old Boy
This Army SGT walks into a Mess in Perth and orders a white wine.
Everybody sitting around the bar looks up, surprised, and the steward looks around and says, "You ain't from around here, are you... where you from, Sergeant?"
The SGT replies, "I'm from Sydney."
The steward asks, "What the hell you do in Sydney?"
The SGT responds, "I'm a taxidermist."
The steward asks, "A taxidermist... now just what the hell is a taxidermist?"
The SGT says "I mount animals."
The steward grins and shouts out to the whole bar, "It's OK boys, he's one of us!"

We're Happy Little ...

Exercise Tandem Thrust [now there’s a Freudian slip] is on in the Rockhampton area, with US and Australian air, land and sea forces.
In the various briefings for the visitors there is a segment on flora and fauna and what to be careful of.
In some of the briefings for US land forces they are warned about the feral koalas which lurk up in trees and drop on people before inflicting serious damage with their long claws [and these were illustrated].
The wounds so caused need lots of Vitamin E to cure, but luckily the Aussies have such stuff, this black paste which is plastered on your skin, mostly on your face to be working in case of drop bear attack.
So the hulking USMC and US Airborne are moving out on patrol and operations with Vegemite smeared on their faces.

IMPOSSIBLE

Private Biddies appeared in his unit at last late in the night, but without his truck he was supposed
to drive.

"Where is your truck?" shouted the commander.

"It's in the suburbs about two miles from here, sir," reported the driver.

"Why didn't you bring it here?"

"It's too dark there to find all the parts, sir."

Real Story

RSM has Regt on parade, officers are not on yet. Decides to size the whole bloody Regt, and calls "From the right, number!"

The boys in 1 Sqn are feeling a little giggly, so this is what we hear - "One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Jack, Queen, King, Ace"

Whole Regt emitting stiffled laughter, as the RSM calmly examines the troops.
He then, without blinking, emits "Right . . . Face cards, left turn, to jail, quick march", and the four march themselves off the square, over to the other side of base, and turn themselves in to the MPs. The RSM let them sit there for about three hours, and then went and got them out.

Historical anecdote

Historical anecdote
Charades anyone?
One of the (many) difficulties that plagued the Austrians in the Seven Weeks War were the multiplicity of languages used by the various nationalities that made up the army. Officers spoke German, the language of command. Unfortunately the soldiers often did not speak German; nor did the regimental commanding officers speak the regiment's native tongue. Understandably this made communication difficult. One regiment at Munchengratz was accused of cowardice after the regiment did not obey an ordered bayonet charge at the Prussian positions. One officer retorted, "The regiment fought bravely until nightfall, when the officers could no longer pantomime examples [of what was needed]."

World War II humor

At an RAF air-show, the Lancaster bomber made his first pass all four engines roaring. As the cheers and waves died down, he shut off one engine and made another pass. Again with only two engines, and finally a low pass with just one engine.

"Oooh", said a young girl, "That must be hard!!"

"Aaah, that's nothing" said her boyfriend, "Next time, he'll just do it on his windshield wipers...."

LONG DAY

The sergeant was giving a batch of rookies an introduction to their hard life and service in the Army.

"The soldier in the Army works 25 hours a day," he declared severely.

"But there're only 24 hours to the day, sergeant," a rookie groaned.

"Then a soldier has to get up an hour earlier," commented the sergeant adamantly.

MISSING A GOOD CHANCE

Father told his schoolboy son: "It's a pity you are not in the Army!"

"Why?"

"Then you sure should have been decorated with a medal there".

"What for?"

"For your amazing bravery in showing your school marks."

A DEFINITION OF WATCH STANDING

A lady who happened to be near a post asked a sentry what he was doing.

"I'm on watch, ma'am," he replied. .

"What are you watching for?" she inquired.

"My relief, ma'am."

You know you've been in Cadets too long when...

1)You think LF3 at the WTSS is fun.
2)You know more about an APC than an Armoured Corpsman.
3)Before doing anything, you check to make sure it’s in the TMP.
4)Every time you see a roo, you pretend to shoot it with your imaginary rifle.
5)You actually enjoy Army rat packs.
6)You see the merit in doing drill.
7)You accept ‘gay cadet-boy’ to be your nickname.
8)You wear your DPCU when walking around the house.
9)You wear your field boots as your casual shoes.
10)You practice drill up and down your hallway.
11)You’re best friends with the CSM.
12)You see someone with his shirtsleeves rolled up and you tell him to roll them down so he doesn’t get sunburn.
13)You sleep in a hootchie when your family goes camping.
14)You use cam-paint as sunscreen.
15)You make phone calls using correct RATEL procedure.
16)You think of your CUO as your mother.
17)You get high on Army cordial crystals.
18)You won’t kick a ball with your mates unless you have a fully filled out NOK form.
19)You make a risk-assessment before stepping out of the house.
20)You think DPCUs are good fashion.
21)You tell people that ‘this is what I want to do, this is when and this is why’.
22)Your life ambition is to be a private in 3RAR.
23)You eat your dinner with a FRED.
24)You wear your bush-hat when going to the footy.
25)Your idea of a good time is discussing the pros and cons of different rifles with your section around a campfire.
26)You recite the principles of leadership in your sleep.
27)When your girlfriend tries to kiss you, you recite the fraternisation policy at her.
28)You think casual clothes means field boots and belt.
20)You practice rifle drill with your household broom.
21)You barrack for your foster unit’s footy team.
22)Your idea of a good film is the Steyr safety video.
23)Your idea of a holiday is going on SLC.
24)You wear your ATA badge on your school uniform.
25)You know the marksmanship principles by heart, even though you never got to fire a weapon.
26)You think you’re a member of the ADF.
27)You consider LT COL Waugh as a religious patriarch.
28)You dress your Teddy bear in cams.
29)You have a Teddy bear.
30)You have a DPCU Mug.
31)You wear your promo course T-shirt when going out.
32)You can recite the dialogue from Zulu…perfectly.
33)You call the time when walking down the street.


HOME | PREV | NEXT

Strategic Security Project Blog

The President has submitted a military budget of $440 billion dollars, with request for more than an additional hundred billion for the Iraq war expected later. It is finally time to say that the Pentagon budget has slipped its leash and is out of control. Not in the sense that the country is splashing money around without accounting for it but that the military budget process has escaped from meaningful political review and oversight. The Republicans know their biggest appeal to the American voters is as guarantors of their security, which they interpret as giving the Pentagon whatever it asks for, even as deficits climb. The Democrats are terrified of being seen as soft on defense so they don’t even dare ask questions. In this climate of fear we operate more on momentum than careful analysis and Congress can’t say “No” to the Pentagon on anything.

It is hard to make sense of the spending. We already spend more than the average peacetime levels of the Cold War and we are approaching Cold War peaks. Ah, but we are told the world is a very dangerous place today and we are fighting a hot war right now. That is true, but we need some perspective, and that has to come from Congress.

We are fighting a poorly defined, and probably weakly organized, set of groups that clearly wants to do us harm. But compare the military challenge of the Cold War. During the Reagan Administration, the Pentagon published annually a report called “Soviet Military Power.” It was meant to be a sobering read, and it was. The Russians had vast tank armies west of Berlin ready to roll to Lisbon and nuclear armed Soviet submarines constantly prowled up and down both coasts.

The threat to the country today is real but the military part of the threat from al Qaeda and the rest of the world is tiny compared to that from the old Soviet Union. If we are spending as much on the military today as we were during the Cold War, then at least one of three things must be true, either we are grossly overspending, or we are applying the wrong tool to the problem, or we are guilty of breathtaking inefficiencies.

What about the all-too-hot war in Iraq? The exact dollar cost of the Iraq war is hard to know, but the Iraq-specific “supplementals” the Administration has submitted to Congress since the war began have been between a quarter and a fifth the size of the rest of the military budget. Turn those numbers around and they imply that the country’s normal, peacetime, day-to-day military operations are financially equivalent to four or five simultaneous Iraq wars.

Several mistakes combine to create this unjustifiable budget.

First, military spending is at Cold War levels because we are still fighting the Cold War. The world has been turned on its head since the end of the Cold War, yet the relative allocation of resources among the three military Services has not changed more than a few percent. This might reflect an astonishing coincidence but it more likely reflects entrenched bureaucratic inertia. We hear the military is stretched thin but don’t be fooled, the Army is stretched thin, not the military. Many of the most expensive weapons in the pipeline were conceived during the Cold War and designed specifically to counter the old Soviet Union and are destined for the Navy and Air Force. There are a dozen examples but the most egregious is without doubt the Virginia-class submarine that, at two billion dollars each, is now being promoted in part as a way to intercept phone calls.

The U.S military budget is roughly the size of every other country’s spending combined and most of the other big spenders—Britain, France, and Japan among them—are our allies, not our enemies. So the Administration has created military requirements that it freely admits are unhinged from any real threats. The Pentagon calls this moving from “threat-based” to “capabilities-based” planning, on the theory that threats in today’s world change too quickly. But capabilities-based planning also means that, if Iran, North Korea, and China were taken over by Quakers tomorrow, our military budget would not go down by a nickel.

This is more than a question of wasting money.

The wrong spending can actually undermine our security. We are confused by our own euphemisms. We call the military budget the “defense” budget. Without question, the military is the cornerstone of our defense and we have learned that we must be ready for war to ensure peace but our defense requires more than military might.

Is our security increased more by buying an additional submarine or spending those billions of dollars on improved port security and building girls’ schools in Pakistan? Congress needs to make decisions about how much it wants to spend on defense and, of that amount, how much should go to the military. The Nation has to stop measuring its security by the size of the Pentagon’s budget.

Strategic Security Project Blog

The President has submitted a military budget of $440 billion dollars, with request for more than an additional hundred billion for the Iraq war expected later. It is finally time to say that the Pentagon budget has slipped its leash and is out of control. Not in the sense that the country is splashing money around without accounting for it but that the military budget process has escaped from meaningful political review and oversight. The Republicans know their biggest appeal to the American voters is as guarantors of their security, which they interpret as giving the Pentagon whatever it asks for, even as deficits climb. The Democrats are terrified of being seen as soft on defense so they don’t even dare ask questions. In this climate of fear we operate more on momentum than careful analysis and Congress can’t say “No” to the Pentagon on anything.

It is hard to make sense of the spending. We already spend more than the average peacetime levels of the Cold War and we are approaching Cold War peaks. Ah, but we are told the world is a very dangerous place today and we are fighting a hot war right now. That is true, but we need some perspective, and that has to come from Congress.

We are fighting a poorly defined, and probably weakly organized, set of groups that clearly wants to do us harm. But compare the military challenge of the Cold War. During the Reagan Administration, the Pentagon published annually a report called “Soviet Military Power.” It was meant to be a sobering read, and it was. The Russians had vast tank armies west of Berlin ready to roll to Lisbon and nuclear armed Soviet submarines constantly prowled up and down both coasts.

The threat to the country today is real but the military part of the threat from al Qaeda and the rest of the world is tiny compared to that from the old Soviet Union. If we are spending as much on the military today as we were during the Cold War, then at least one of three things must be true, either we are grossly overspending, or we are applying the wrong tool to the problem, or we are guilty of breathtaking inefficiencies.

What about the all-too-hot war in Iraq? The exact dollar cost of the Iraq war is hard to know, but the Iraq-specific “supplementals” the Administration has submitted to Congress since the war began have been between a quarter and a fifth the size of the rest of the military budget. Turn those numbers around and they imply that the country’s normal, peacetime, day-to-day military operations are financially equivalent to four or five simultaneous Iraq wars.

Several mistakes combine to create this unjustifiable budget.

First, military spending is at Cold War levels because we are still fighting the Cold War. The world has been turned on its head since the end of the Cold War, yet the relative allocation of resources among the three military Services has not changed more than a few percent. This might reflect an astonishing coincidence but it more likely reflects entrenched bureaucratic inertia. We hear the military is stretched thin but don’t be fooled, the Army is stretched thin, not the military. Many of the most expensive weapons in the pipeline were conceived during the Cold War and designed specifically to counter the old Soviet Union and are destined for the Navy and Air Force. There are a dozen examples but the most egregious is without doubt the Virginia-class submarine that, at two billion dollars each, is now being promoted in part as a way to intercept phone calls.

The U.S military budget is roughly the size of every other country’s spending combined and most of the other big spenders—Britain, France, and Japan among them—are our allies, not our enemies. So the Administration has created military requirements that it freely admits are unhinged from any real threats. The Pentagon calls this moving from “threat-based” to “capabilities-based” planning, on the theory that threats in today’s world change too quickly. But capabilities-based planning also means that, if Iran, North Korea, and China were taken over by Quakers tomorrow, our military budget would not go down by a nickel.

This is more than a question of wasting money.

The wrong spending can actually undermine our security. We are confused by our own euphemisms. We call the military budget the “defense” budget. Without question, the military is the cornerstone of our defense and we have learned that we must be ready for war to ensure peace but our defense requires more than military might.

Is our security increased more by buying an additional submarine or spending those billions of dollars on improved port security and building girls’ schools in Pakistan? Congress needs to make decisions about how much it wants to spend on defense and, of that amount, how much should go to the military. The Nation has to stop measuring its security by the size of the Pentagon’s budget.

Soldier's work shows news is military necessity

From a windowless room in Qatar, Marine Maj. Dave Raimo watches the world's response to America's armed forces at war.
The 36-year-old Albany native, who graduated from the University at Albany, knew early on he wanted to be a military officer. But Raimo said he never expected that would mean he'd be spending his days monitoring satellite television and radio broadcasts throughout the pan-Arab world from the Horn of Africa to Central Asia.

Raimo and his staff collect foreign news reports and have them translated to determine their content and tone in order to analyze how the information is understood by its audiences. "We want to get the facts straight," said Raimo, noting that those facts often do not cast the United States in a favorable light. "It does not always mean it's the most politically correct."

The information gathered by Raimo and his staff is used by the military's public relations officers to better sell their messages.

After more photos taken several years ago in Abu Ghraib prison were televised in Australia on Feb. 15, Raimo had his eyes peeled to the Arab-language network Al-Jazeera to see if it, too, would start telling the prisoner-abuse story all over again.

"We monitor the climate of what the people think about it," Raimo said. In this case, he said, the reaction was not strong. "The photos were nothing new."

But when the Danish editorial cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad, first published last fall, were republished in January, Raimo was told by his translators there would be trouble.

"When it broke they were like, 'Yeah, this is going to be an issue,' " Raimo said.

The translators who work with Raimo are American citizens fluent in several languages and well-versed in the cultural differences between the United States and the Arab world. But Raimo described the coverage of the riots in reaction to the cartoons as non-inflammatory and straightforward.

Raimo, who majored in sociology at UAlbany, also meets with leaders of various communities to learn how and where people are getting their news.

After 16 years in the military, Raimo knows not to make guesses about when he will return to the states. He said he'll continue to serve until his job is determined to be no longer critical.

US Army general confirms force-feeding Guantanamo detainees on hunger strike

[JURIST] US Army Gen. Bantz J. Craddock [official profile], military commander for US Southern Command [official website], which oversees the detention center at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive], has confirmed that military officials have begun employing more aggressive tactics to deter detainees from carrying out long-term hunger strikes [JURIST report] to protest their detention. Reports emerged in early February of the US military employing such aggressive tactics, which reportedly dropped the number of hunger-striking detainees to four [JURIST report].

Craddock on Tuesday confirmed that officers restrained some of the detainees in order to force feed them. A Southern Command spokesperson also told reporters that military officers had used restraints on 35 of the detainees, and that they were still using the equipment on three. Officers also isolated the hunger striking detainees from one another after discovering that some of them were deliberately vomiting or siphoning out the fluid they had been fed. Craddock told the press that he had reviewed the restraint chairs used during the force-feedings, and found that the practice was not inhumane. Eric Schmitt and Tim Golden of the New York Times have more.

America Supports You: Businessman Helps Military Supporters Meet

WASHINGTON, Feb. 22, 2006 – A senior member of New York City's business community who's also a strong advocate of the U.S. military helped arrange a recent summit bringing together groups that support America's troops.

Joyce Rumsfeld, wife of Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, talks with John O'Connor, chief executive officer at the J.H. Whitney investment firm, at the Council on Foreign Relations building in New York City Feb. 17. O'Connor endorses America Supports You and facilitated a summit meeting of groups that support the military. Photo by Gerry J. Gilmore

The "America Supports You" summit meeting was held in New York City Feb. 17. America Supports You is a DoD program that highlights the efforts of citizens and corporations that work to support U.S. forces and their families.

John O'Connor, chief executive officer of J.H. Whitney Investment Management, told American Forces Press Service that day that he became energized to support America's servicemen and women after he participated in a Joint Civilian Orientation Conference trip in 2005. That trip, he said, included a tour of the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan at its San Diego berth, as well as visits to military bases. The Defense Department's JCOC program promotes greater understanding of the U.S. military among America's civilian business, academic and community leaders.

"I've tried to lend assistance to the cause since becoming aware of it through JCOC," O'Connor said during an interview outside the Council on Foreign Relations building, in New York City.

O'Connor then went inside to meet with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld; Rumsfeld's wife, Joyce; and a group of grassroots military-support groups affiliated with the America Supports You program. The defense secretary was in town to deliver a speech at the Council on Foreign Relations. Mrs. Rumsfeld would later visit with the grassroots groups during a meeting held at the America's Society building, located across the street.

O'Connor said he and his wife, Anastasie, were glad to help arrange the meeting place for the America Supports You group. It's important that Americans understand and support their military, he said, especially when many U.S. servicemembers are deployed overseas in the fight against global terrorism.

O'Connor called the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks on the United States "a galvanizing day."

"I lost some great, good friends," the 51-year-old businessman said.

Today, the U.S. armed forces are fighting terrorists worldwide, yet "smaller and smaller percentages of the population, in general, are serving in the military," O'Connor said. Consequently, he said, some Americans don't understand how their all-volunteer military operates.

"Bridging the gap between society at large and the activities of the military is quite critical in our day and age," O'Connor said.

DoD's America Supports You program helps create a bridge of understanding between civilians and U.S. servicemembers and provide support to those who are defending America and its way of life, O'Connor said. "Those who put themselves in harm's way and their families are the ones who deserve the most support," he said.

A chest X-ray

We had a Marcad (Marine flight student) back in '62 who stirred things up for a while. A cook had come down with TB. Everybody had to have a chest X-ray. We all lined up and went through the process. Three days later the corpsmen came hurrying down to the flight line looking for the Marine. ''He's flying,'' came the answer from the ready room.

It seems that the X-ray showed a .45 slug right next to his heart. He was recalled from his solo flight and met at the airplane. ''What's the problem?'' ''How did you get shot?'' ''I was not shot.'' They checked for a scar and found none. The Marine said it must be somebody else and they mixed up the order of X-rays in line. Then they had to check everybody. The corpsmen never figured out that the Marine had scotch-taped the slug to his chest for the X-ray.

The Sergeant's Selected List of Favorite Actual Country-Western Song Titles

Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavor On The Bedpost Overnight?
Drop Kick Me, Jesus, Through The Goalposts Of Life
Get Your Biscuits In The Oven And Your Buns In The Bed
Get Your Tongue Outta My Mouth 'Cause I'm Kissing You Goodbye
Her Body Couldn't Keep You Off My Mind
Her Cheatin' Heart Made A Drunken Fool Out Of Me
Her Teeth Was Stained, But Her Heart Was Pure
Here's A Quarter, Call Someone Who Cares
How Can I Miss You If You Won't Go Away?
How Can You Believe Me When I Say I Love You When You Know I've Been A Liar All My Life?
I Been Roped And Thrown By Jesus In The Holy Ghost Corral
I Can't Get Over You, So Why Don't You Get Under Me?
I Changed Her Oil, She Changed My Life
I Don't Know What Came Over Me (When I Came All Over You)
I Don't Know Whether To Kill Myself Or Go Bowling
I Don't Want Your Body If Your Heart's Not In It
I Fell In A Pile Of You And Got Love All Over Me
I Flushed You From The Toilets Of My Heart
I Hate Every Bone In Your Body Except Mine
I Keep Forgettin' I Forgot About You
I Knew I'd Hit Rock Bottom When I Woke Up On Top Of Yew
I Liked You Better Before I Knew You So Well
I Still Miss You, Baby, But My Aim's Gettin' Better
I Wanna Whip Your Cow
I Would Have Wrote You A Letter, But I Couldn't Spell Yuck!
I Wouldn't Take Her To A Dawg Fight, Cause I'm Afraid She'd Win
I'd Rather Have A Bottle In Front Of Me Than A Frontal Lobotomy
I'll Get Over You As Soon As You Get Out From Under Him
I'll Marry You Tomorrow But Let's Honeymoon Tonite
I'm Gonna Hire A Wino To Decorate Our Home
I'm Havin' Daydreams About Night Things In The Middle Of The Afternoon
I'm Just A Bug On The Windshield Of Life
I'm So Miserable Without You, It's Like Having You Here
I've Been Flushed From The Bathroom Of Your Heart
I've Got Red Eyes From Your White Lies And I'm Blue All The Time
I've Got The Hungries For Your Love And I'm Waiting In Your Welfare Line
If I Can't Be Number One In Your Life, Then Number Two On You
If I Had Shot You When I Wanted To, I'd Be Out By Now
If I Said You Had A Beautiful Body, Would You Hold It Against Me?
If Love Were Oil, I'd Be A Quart Low
If My Nose Were Full of Nickels, I'd Blow It All On You
If She Puts Lipstick On My Dipstick, I'll Fall In Love
If The Jukebox Took Teardrops I'd Cry All Night Long
If The Phone Don't Ring, Baby, You'll Know It's Me
If Whiskey Were A Woman I'd Be Married For Sure
If You Don't Leave Me Alone, I'll Go And Find Someone Else Who Will
If You Leave Me, Can I Come Too?
It Ain't Love But It Ain't Bad
Mama Get The Hammer (There's A Fly On Papa's Head)
May The Bird Of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose
My Every Day Silver Is Plastic
My Head Hurts, My Feet Stink, And I Don't Love Jesus
My John Deere Was Breaking Your Field, While Your Dear John Was Breaking My Heart
My Wife Ran Off With My Best Friend, And I Sure Do Miss Him
She Got The Gold Mine And I Got The Shaft
She Got The Ring And I Got The Finger
She Made Toothpicks Out Of The Timber Of My Heart
She's Out Doing What I'm Here Doing Without
Thank God And Greyhound She's Gone
You Can't Roller Skate In A Buffalo Herd
You Done Tore Out My Heart And Stomped That Sucker Flat
You Were Only A Splinter As I Slid Down The Bannister Of Life
You're The Reason Our Kids Are So Ugly

The Barber

An airman finds a barber shop near the base and goes inside for a haircut. After getting a nice, short flat-top, the airman asks how much he should pay.

"No charge, son" replies the barber, "Your dedication and sacrifice in the service of our nation is payment enough."

The next day, as he opens shop, the barber finds a squadron T-shirt and a thank-you note left by his customer. Later that day, a staff sergeant comes in, asking the barber to take a little bit off the sides. When the haircut was complete and the NCO reaches for his wallet, the barber again says:

"No charge, sergeant. Your dedication and sacrifice in the service of our nation is payment enough."

The next day, as he opens shop, he is pleased to find an Air Force hat and a squadron coin by the door, with a thank-you note. Later that day, a colonel comes in, asking if the barber can do something to cover his bald spot. The barber obliges, and when it comes time to pay, he again says:

"No charge, sir. Your dedication and sacrifice in the service of our nation is payment enough."

The barber comes to work the next day and finds on his doorstep ... three more Air Force colonels.

SUPERIORS ARE ALWAYS ONE'S BETTERS

The tough private sauntered into the dimlylit saloon.

"Is there anybody here called Donovan?" he snarled. Nobody answered. Again he sneered: "Is there anybody here called Donovan?"

There was a moment of silence and then a little fellow in a sergeant's uniform strode forward.

"I'm Sergeant Donovan," he said defiantly.

The tough guy picked him up and threw him across the bar. Then he punched him in the jaw, kicked him, clubbed him, slapped him around a bit and walked out. About fifteen minutes later the little fellow came to.

"Boy," he exclaimed proudly, "sergeants will be always smarter than privates. Didn't I fool him? I ain't Donovan!"

Air Force Women Help Save Convoy

SOUTHWEST ASIA - The lives of four women and their convoy team changed forever Dec. 5.

They were ambushed that night. Insurgents from a village outside of Balad Air Base, Iraq, fired on the convoy, injuring two as they drove back to the base.

Airman First Class Nicole O’Hara, a convoy gunner deployed from Langley Air Force Base, Va., said it was “just a normal convoy” when the day started.

Coming back to the base was when things got hairy. Airman O’Hara was manning her 50-caliber weapon.

“I saw all these tracers and I saw tracers coming back at us. I turned my turret more to the left and started laying down suppressive fire so the rest of us and the convoy could get out of the kill zone,” she said.

But before they could get out of the zone, two of the civilian truck drivers in the convoy were shot. Airman First Class Charity Trueblood, a Humvee driver that night, drove up to one of the injured men’s trucks, which was engulfed in flames.

“When we halt the convoy and we get up there to him, he’s been hit,” Airman Trueblood said. “He’s been hit in the shoulder, and it’s a clean entry wound, clean exit wound. We provide security, the truck catches on fire. We tried to put it out to no avail. I did (Combat Life Saver) from there on out, and applied pressure to the wound.”

That night represents the Airmen’s worst memories of their deployments, but ironically, one their best memories as well.

“I was glad that (the truck driver) was OK,” said Airman Trueblood, who is deployed from Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont. “Another good day for me was that I got to see him again. We were reunited and I got to meet him officially this time and see how he was doing. He’s doing fine. It’s a good thing.”

“When you come home and everyone’s safe, every day is your best day,” Airman O’Hara said.

Staff Sergeant Charnetta McDonald and Senior Airman Candi Laury, both from Patrick AFB, Fla., were also on the convoy that night. Their memories of running convoys on some of the world’s most dangerous highways can’t really be fully explained to friends and families back home.

“You can’t always explain everything to people,” Sergeant McDonald said. “It’s an understanding they have to find on their own. I can sit and explain all day long how important my job is and how important everybody’s job is over here, but to fully understand how important it is, they’d actually have to be here.”

Airman Laury said she’s proud to serve her country in Iraq and hopes her family can relate.

“It’s what we’re proud to do, and that’s why we wear these uniforms,” she said. “So hopefully (in the future) my kids can understand what we do and why we’re over here.”

Another aspect of their deployment for these four Airmen is the sisterhood that developed.

“We do get at each other at times, because we’re always with each other and we never get a break,” Airman Laury said.

Sergeant McDonald said she wouldn’t run with any other crew.

“I couldn’t have asked to work with a better group of people. Everybody looks out for each other,” she said.

“They’re awesome,” Airman Trueblood said. “We have a very fun, energetic crew. Lots of spirit, lots of character. Definitely lots of character.”

Airman Laury said it’s essential to have that close trust.

“The love and caring for each other; you just have to have that. Because if you don’t, what do you have?”

Air Force Announces OTS Selection Board Results

RANDOLPH Air Force BASE, Texas - Two hundred fifty men and women have been selected to attend Officer Training School.

Air Force Recruiting Service officials considered 810 applications as part of Officer Training School, or OTS, Selection Board 06OT02. The board selected 250 for a 30.9 percent selection rate. Of those, 87 enlisted members earned the chance to attend OTS and trade their stripes for gold bars as second lieutenants.

The requirements for fiscal 2006 and 2007 are expected to be approximately 500 selectees each year, according to recruiting officials.

As part of the selection process, board members review both objective and subjective factors. Objectively, the board considers each applicant�s academic discipline, grade point average and Air Force Officer Qualifying Test scores. Subjectively, board members evaluate work experience, accomplishments, adaptability, character, leadership ability, potential for future growth and other recommendations.

For active-duty enlisted members, performance reports and commander�s recommendations are also evaluated.

Five Air Force colonels review every application. The selection process is similar to an Air Force officer promotion board. No single factor leads to an individual's selection or nonselection, according to OTS selection officials.

People selected can expect class assignment information approximately eight weeks after their commissioning physical is certified.

For more information concerning OTS and the application process, active-duty servicemembers should contact their local Education office; civilians should contact the nearest Air Force recruiter.

For a complete list of selectees, visit www.rs.af.mil/news/news15.asp.

(Courtesy of Air Force Recruiting Service)
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Soldier Earns Guinness World Record

HANAU, Germany - Screams and shouts echoed the street as Hanau-based Soldiers cheered on their new world champion, Spc. Jake Truex, who broke the Guinness World Record for the fastest 5,000 meter ruck-run at the Fliegerhorst Kaserne, Feb. 14.

Truex serves as an all-vehicle repairer with 127th Aviation Support Battalion, 1st Armored Division. With a 40-pound rucksack strapped to his back, he attempted to break two world records -- the fasted mile and the fastest 5,000 meters.

Truex has been preparing for his place in history since November. He described his intense workout routine: �I normally get up at 5 a.m. and go for my morning run -- which is usually four to six miles. At lunch, I work on core exercises such as sit-ups and pushups. After work, I go for another run with the ruck on. I do this three days a week,� he said.

The physically fit 178-pound Soldier assured viewers that his rucksack truly weighed 40 pounds as he stepped onto the scale prior to the run.

�I filled my ruck with a seven-pound sleeping bag, 20-pound bag of rice and the rest is all plate weights,� said Truex.

At 218 pounds, Truex took a stab at the world record.

Nine seconds short at first

Although falling just nine seconds shy of the mile record of 5 minutes 35 seconds, the �Workhorse� Soldier raced past the current 5,000 meter-record of 25:15 in only 22:20.

�(The mile attempt) was a devastating blow,� said Truex, �but I knew that all these people came out here to see me do this, so I wasn�t going to miss the next one. I thought to myself, my leg�s going to have to fall off before I lose.�

�All the people� who witnessed Truex�s record-breaking run included strong support from his chain of command.

�When we originally received Spc. Truex in our unit we noticed he was well above the normal Army standards as far as running and physical fitness,� said 1st Sgt. Michelle Thomas, Headquarters Support Command first sergeant. �Rain, sleet, and snow he runs constantly.

So, we�re glad to support him in any physical activity that he is a part of.�

All for his family

The support Truex received extended globally. His best friend in Oregon stayed up to hear his results. Truex was also in contact with his mother after gaining his record-holding title.

�My inspiration is to make a better life for my mom, my dad, my brother and my sister,� said Truex. �They�ve worked hard their whole lives and they deserve much better.�

As Truex is rounding up his time in the Army, he has plans on breaking more records back in his hometown, Albany, Oregon.

�I would love to be the world champion for the Xteera Triathlon,� said Truex. �I�m going home to train full-time as a triathlete.�

�I know one day in my lifetime I will be sitting on the couch and the Olympics are going to come up, and I�m going to see Truex run across the finish line,� said Thomas. �And I get the proud honor of saying, �that�s my Soldier.��
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MOPPing in a Signal Wonderland

Sung to the tune of "Walking in a Winter Wonderland"


Alerts ring,
Are you listening?
On our brows
Sweat is glistening
A pathetic sight
We're deploying tonight
MOPPing in a Signal wonderland.

On the hilltop we can put some camo
And pretend there's nobody around
We'll ask, "Can you see us?"
They'll say, "Hell yeah...
"And so can everybody else in town!"

Gone away,
Is good dinner
And we're all a little thinner
Unhappy we'll be
With our MRE's
MOPPing in a Signal Wonderland

Later on, we'll conspire
To sneak off during night fire
We need pogy bait
To replace what we ate
MOPPing in a Signal Wonderland!
MOPPing in a Signal Wonderland!

A fighter pilot

A fighter pilot goes to a bar after a good days flying. Whilst there he meets a young, attractive and available lady. She is charmed by his tales of aerial combat, high speed flight, and death defying feats. The inevitable happens and they slip away to somewhere more comfortable for an evenings intimate entertainment. Much later that night the pilot drives home to his long suffering wife. On the way he puts on his oxygen mask and draws the straps up as tight as they will go. When he gets home he removes the mask and bravely enters the house. Immediately he tells the wife exactly and honestly what he has been up to that evening. She replies: "Do not lie to me, I can see you have been flying that damned airplane yet again".

Naval pun

A sailor was caught AWOL as he tried to sneak on board his ship at about 3 am. The chief petty officer spied him and ordered the sailor to stop. Upon hearing the sailor's lame explanation for his tardiness, the officer ordered the sailor, "Take this broom and sweep every link on this anchor chain by morning or it's the brig for you!"

The sailor began to pick up the broom and commence performing his charge. As he began to sweep, a tern landed on the broom handle. The sailor yelled at the bird to leave, but it didn't. The lad picked the tern off the broom handle, giving the bird a toss. The bird left, only to return and light once again on the broom handle. The sailor went through the same routine all over again, with the same result. He couldn't get any cleaning done because he can only sweep at the chain once or twice before the blasted bird returns.

When morning came, so did the chief petty officer, to check up on his wayward sailor. "What in the heck have you been doing all night? This chain is no cleaner than when you started! What have you to say for yourself, sailor?" barked the chief.

"Honest, chief," came the reply, "I tossed a tern all night and couldn't sweep a link!"

Military Birth Control

After having their 11th child, a U.S. Marine and his wife decided that was enough, as they could not afford a larger house on their housing allowance. So the Marine went to sick call and told the doctor that he and his wife didn't want anymore children.

The doctor told him that there was a procedure called a vasectomy that could fix the problem but due to cost-cutting, the base hospital no longer performed that procedure. The Marine could have it done off base, at his own expense, said the doctor, but it could be very expensive. A less costly alternative, said the doctor, was to go home, get a get a cherry bomb, light it, put it in a beer can, then hold the can up to his ear and count to 10.

The Marine said to the doctor, "I may not be the smartest man in the world, but I don't see how putting a cherry bomb in a beer can next to my ear is going to help me."

"Trust me," said the doctor.

So, the man went home, lit the cherry bomb, and put it in a beer can.

He held the can up to his ear and began to count, "1, 2, 3, 4, 5," at which point he paused, placed the beer can between his legs, and resumed counting on his other hand.

This procedure also works with most soldiers, some sailors, and a few airmen.

Hello, world!

Hello, world!