Operations Archive

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TPC Inaugural Coverage

– January 20, 2013Posted in: Lifestyle, Operations

Air Force Col. Larry H. Lang, commander of the Air Force Band, conducts as the band plays the "U.S. Air Force Song" during an inaugural parade dress rehearsal on Joint Base Andrews, Md., Jan. 11, 2013The Pentagon Channel and Pentagonchannel.mil will provide in-depth coverage of servicemember’s and military families through a long weekend of Presidential Inaugural events:

There’s an app for that!  See how to use technology to get aound the 57th Presidential Inauguration here.

See an Airman stand-in for the President and other dignitaries during the Inaugural dress rehearsal here.   Read about it here.

See how the DC National Guard prepared for the Inauguration here.  Read about it here.

See how the Presidential Escort prepared for Inauguration here.

Be sure to tune into the Pentagon Channel for live Inaugural coverage starting Monday at 1100.

 

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Operation Deep Freeze 2013

– January 7, 2013Posted in: Operations

The U.S. military recently kicked off the 2012-2013 season of Operation Deep Freeze, the Department of Defense’s support of the U.S. Antarctic Program and the National Science Foundation. The operation began with C-17 Globemaster III operations Sept. 29 and will continue with LC-130 Hercules operations beginning Oct. 18.

Operation DEEP FREZE (ODF) has its roots in the storied history of the Navy’s explorations in Antarctica. As far back as 1839, Captain Charles Wilkes led the first U.S. Naval Expedition into Antarctic Waters. In 1929, Admiral Richard E. Byrd established naval outposts on the Antarctic coast and began conducting photographic and geologic mapping operations around the continent on snowshoe, dog-sled, snow mobile, and airplane.  From the article Operation Deep Freeze main season begins:

Airlift for Operation Deep Freeze involves active duty and Reserve C-17 support from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.; LC-130 support from the New York Air National Guard; sealift support from the U.S. Coast Guard and Military Sealift Command; engineering and aviation services from U.S. Navy Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command; and cargo handling from the U.S. Navy.

Click here to see the series of stories on Operation Deep Freeze from Armed With Science.

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Pot Legal in Washington and Colorado…but not for Servicemembers

– January 3, 2013Posted in: Operations

Washington and Colorado have recently updated their laws on the use of marijuana, essentially decriminalizing use for civilians, however, the Navy reminds Sailors it’s Zero Tolerance drug policy regulations remain unaffected:

The Zero Tolerance drug policy was implemented after a fatal crash of an EA-6B Prowler n board USS Nimitz in 1981, killing 14 crew members and injuring 45 others. Autopsies were performed and several members of the flight deck crew tested positive for marijuana. Following this discovery, then-President Ronald Reagan instituted a Zero Tolerance drug policy across all of the U.S. Armed Forces.  As a result regular, random urinalysis drug checks are conducted on all military personnel.

Read the entire article here.

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DoD’s Sandy Response Grows

– November 1, 2012Posted in: News, Operations

More than 12,000 National Guardsmen are now assisting with recovery efforts following Hurricane Sandy — and that’s just part of the Defense Department’s response.

The Army Corps of Engineers is rushing high speed pumping equipment to drain flooded parts of New York City.

The Navy is positioning three ships – USS Wasp, USS San Antonio and USS Carter Hall – closer to the east coast, in case the ships and their helicopters are needed  for search, rescue or logistical operations.

And the Air Force is mobilizing aircraft and air crews from accross the U.S.  At least 13 crews from active duty, Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve units are slated to deliver more than 600 tons of equipment and relief supplies to aid with the hurricane response.

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DoD Commits Thousands of People to Hurricane Response

– October 31, 2012Posted in: News, Operations

More than 10,000 National Guard troops are assisting state, local and federal agencies in the response to Hurricane Sandy.  A total of 61,000 are available as needed.

Units all along the east coast have been activated, but National Guardsmen from as far away as California are also lending a hand.

American Forces Press Service also reports on the Defense Department’s cooperation with FEMA in the wake of the storm:

FEMA and the Department of Defense established Incident Support Bases in Westover, Mass., and Lakehurst, N.J., to pre-position supplies, including water, meals, blankets and other resources closer to potentially impacted areas, should they be needed and requested by states, according to the FEMA release. FEMA has moved roughly 245,000 liters of water, more than 174,000 meals and thousands of blankets and cots to Westover Air Reserve Base; and more than 400,000 liters of water and more than 390,000 meals and thousands of cots to Lakehurst Naval Air Station in Lakehurst, N.J., and more commodities are en route, as weather conditions permit.

 

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Women to test new body armor in Afghanistan

– September 20, 2012Posted in: News, Operations, Tech

SPC Arielle Mailloux gets some help adjusting her protoype Generation III Improved Outer Tactical Vest from CAPT Lindsey Pawlowski at Fort Campbell, KY.

Women Soldiers deploying from Fort Campbell, KY, to Afghanistan will be among the first to critique new body armor designed specifically for women. 

In the past, the smallest size body armor available was still too big for 80% of women servicemembers.  It was often too long and loose, providing too little protection and uncomfortable enough to affect their performance on the battlefield.

 Women at  Fort Campbell, the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, NY; Fort Benning, GA; and an Army Reserve Center in Milford, MA, have been testing the armor.  But it’s women from Fort Campbell’s 101st Airborne Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team will give the armor its first test in a combat zone.  From Army.mil:

Soldiers who participated in the test are assigned to a female engagement team that will interact closely with the Afghan population, particularly women, when they deploy later this year. The plan, Hennessey explained, was to let the Soldiers get accustomed to wearing the new body armor and then to train in it for about five weeks. This week, they are wrapping up a human factors evaluation that includes such things as weapons firing and climbing in and out of vehicles — all of the things the Soldiers are likely to do in combat. 

The Army’s Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center launched a program in 2011 to come up with a better body armor design for women.  TPC aired a report on the new body armor on July 13.

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U.S. and China train to battle pirates

– September 20, 2012Posted in: News, Operations

A U.S-Chinese combined visit, board, search and seizure team conducts a briefing aboard the USS Winston S. Churchill during a bilateral counterpiracy exercise in the Gulf of Aden, Sept. 17, 2012. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Aaron Chase

The U.S. and China teamed up earlier this week off the Horn of Africa to conduct a joint counterpiracy exercise.  From DoD.mil:

The exercise, the first bilateral counterpiracy exercise ever conducted between the United States and China, paired [guided missile destroyer USS] Winston S. Churchill with the Chinese frigate Yi Yang to conduct a combined visit, board, search and seizure boarding.

USS Winston Churchill played the role of a pirated vessel, while a joint Chinese-American team boarded it and assisted role-playing mariners.  Click on the image at left to see a photo essay of the exercise.