-Caveat Lector- WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a Prelude to War! 0267. Plane crash kills Air Force, Navy pilots RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFPN) -- A T-45 Goshawk training aircraft crashed into, at approximately 4:18 p.m. Feb. 21, into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida killing two pilots, one Air Force and the other Navy. The body of Capt. Justin Sanders of the 33rd Training Squadron at Vance Air Force Base, Okla., was recovered, and Navy Lt. Gregory Fulco, a VT-22 instructor pilot at Naval Air Station Kingsville, Texas, was presumed dead when the search was called off because of darkness. The crash occurred approximately 81 nautical miles from Mayport, Fla. Sanders and Fulco were performing safety observer duties about one nautical mile from the aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower (CVN-69). The Navy is investigating the incident. The aircraft was temporarily assigned to a detachment based at NAS Jacksonville, Fla., where aircrews were performing aircraft carrier landing qualifications. The T-45A is a two place, high performance, fully carrier capable, training aircraft. It provides the Navy the capability to train student naval aviators for high performance jet aircraft and initial carrier qualification. 0269. Get evaluated, says Gulf War Illnesses chief by Gerry J. Gilmore American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- A retired Army general who wrote the official history of the Gulf War tells service members and veterans who think they may have symptoms of Gulf War Illnesses to seek medical help. Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Dale A. Vesser, appointed in January as the acting special assistant to the secretary of Defense for Gulf War Illnesses, said the Gulf War was "a great victory" for United States and coalition military forces. However, Vesser said, the Department of Defense remains very concerned that some active duty, reserve component and former service members believe they've become ill because of their service in the war. Those servicemembers and veterans should contact DOD- or Veterans Affairs-sponsored outreach programs immediately, he said. Vesser heads the office with one of the longest acronyms in the military -- the Office of the Special Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Gulf War Illnesses, Medical Readiness, and Military Deployments. "We missed the main story of the Gulf War, that I've subsequently come to learn, that one in seven veterans who went to the Gulf had symptoms, and they think they got those symptoms in the Gulf," Vesser said. "You are your own best health advocate. Don't tough it out if you think you are sick. Go and get evaluated." About 697,000 Americans served in Southwest Asia during the Gulf War, according to official statistics. About 120,000 people have been examined for Gulf War Illnesses: 40,000 by the military's Comprehensive Clinical Evaluation Program and 80,000 through the Veteran's Affairs registry. Ten percent of those examined were deemed healthy while 90 percent were determined to exhibit symptomatic illnesses, according to office documents. Of those with symptoms, 80 percent were medically diagnosed and treated for a specific known illness, while 20 percent remain undiagnosed. The office notes that the most common symptoms experienced by Gulf War veterans reporting illnesses include tiredness, headaches, joint pains, diarrhea, memory loss, depression, rashes, muscle aches, abdominal pain, hair loss, sleep disturbance and concentration problems. Then-Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Bernard Rostker remarked on Jan. 12 that there is no "smoking gun" pointing to direct causes of the illnesses and that DOD and other medical experts remain baffled as to the specific reasons why some Gulf War veterans are ill. Vesser noted that researchers initially thought that smoke from oil well fires started by retreating Iraqi forces might have been responsible for some veterans' medical problems. However, he said that that theory, and the idea that exposure to depleted uranium munitions have caused the symptoms, have since been discounted. "The work that has been done now pretty much discounts oil well fires as the major source of the symptoms that Gulf War veterans have," Vesser said. "Depleted uranium was another 'cause celebre' for a brief period of time." However, Vesser said that although Saddam Hussein didn't use nuclear, biological, or chemical agents against coalition forces during the war, "it never dawned on us ... that we might have done it to ourselves." The demolition of captured munitions stocks at Khamisiyah, Iraq on March 11, 1991 by U.S. Army engineers may have exposed some troops in the area to very low levels of the chemical nerve agent Sarin, according to a National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine report. Troops in the Khamisiyah region weren't exposed to a high enough dose to cause an intense, immediate reaction, the report noted. The report also noted that evidence is inconclusive as to whether exposure to low levels of Sarin can be tied to long-term health effects, based upon previous studies. "We've identified troops who were exposed, and sent out over 140,000 letters recently, telling them about that potential exposure," Vesser said. "But, the bottom line still is this isn't primarily what might have caused problems to their health." Vesser said DOD still "has major unanswered questions" about service member use of pesticides and pyridostigmine bromide pills during the Gulf War. Pesticides were used to ward off Southwest Asian bugs and insects which carry infectious diseases, he remarked, while pyridostigmine bromide pills were taken as protection against the nerve agent Soman. "We know that at least 40,000 American troops may have been overexposed to pesticides," Vesser said, adding that more than 250,000 American troops took the small, white pyridostigmine bromide pills. Most overexposure to pesticides, he remarked, seems to have occurred not through human use of flea collars, but through overuse of personally applied pesticide and/or pest strips and fly baits used indoors. "Both of these substances may cause symptoms that are consistent with the symptoms that some Gulf War veterans have," Vesser said. "A lot of work needs to be done." Lessons learned from the Gulf War are being applied within the U.S. military today, Vesser said, citing the specially trained NBC, preventive medicine and environmental hazard detection teams that routinely accompany deployed units. "Commanders are more sensitive to non-traditional threats to health, the sorts of things we've talked about that could have long-term consequences for service members' health," he said. "Our commanders are very good at managing risk when they're figuring out how to accomplish missions. They need to be alert to other things that can have equally serious consequences to service personnel because they were exposed to something." Vesser said information sharing up and down the chain of command is also important. During the Gulf War, he said, a third of service members who served on the ground believed they were exposed to a chemical warfare agent. "Why did they think they were exposed?" Vesser asked. "No one explained to them that a lot of things could set off the M8A1 chemical warfare agent detector -- women's perfume, men's after shave lotion, exhaust smoke, oil well fire smoke, low batteries, blowing sand -- so they heard a lot of false alarms. "But, you can't take a chance in that environment: You have to try to protect yourself. People who get in and out of Mission Oriented Protective Posture equipment a lot believe that where there is smoke, there is fire." Vesser reiterated that people who suspect they're ill from their Gulf War service should seek medical help as soon as possible. "People have to ask themselves how they are feeling and be honest with themselves," he said. "If they don't take care of themselves, nobody else will." (Related Site: For more DOD information on Gulf War Illnesses, see http://www.gulflink.osd.mil.) 0268. Lockheed opens new Airborne Laser optical facility SUNNYVALE, Calif. (AFPN) -- Lockheed Martin Space Systems opened an $8 million, 16,000 square-foot optical test center here Feb. 22 designed to analyze the Air Force's airborne laser beam guidance system. The Beam Control/Fire Control Integration and Test Facility is a state-of-the-art resource built to validate the optical system that will be aboard the prototype Airborne Laser when it begins its flight tests early in 2002. The tests will culminate in slightly more than two years when the ABL is slated to shoot down a dummy Scud missile over the Pacific Ocean. The ABL is the world's first combat aircraft armed with a directed energy weapon. "We're investing in a major new facility that will allow our team to test the sophisticated suite of optical benches, sensors, mirrors and lasers that will be aboard the ABL," said Paul Shattuck, Lockheed Martin's ABL program manager. Lockheed Martin is one of three major contractors working on the ALB. The company is fabricating the optical system that will steer the laser beam to its target. The Boeing Co. of Seattle, Wash., built the 747-400F aircraft that will serve as the system's platform, and TRW in Capistrano, Calif., is building the megawatt-class Scud-killing laser. ABL is a theater defense weapon designed to blast ballistic missiles during their propulsion, or boost phase, before they can become a threat to United States or allied troops in the war zone. The prototype 747 is being modified at the Boeing facility in Wichita, Kan., a process scheduled to be completed later this year. Once the modifications are complete, the battle management and optical systems will be installed and the aircraft will be put through a series of airworthiness tests. Once those have been done, the ABL will be flown to Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., for flight tests. "The Airborne Laser is for real, and we are proceeding toward a shootdown demonstration in 2003," said Col. Ellen M. Pawlikowsi, ABL program director. "Adding the Lockheed Martin facility to the program is a critical milestone for a system that offers a realistic and affordable near-term defensive solution to protect civilians and military assets from attack by theater ballistic missiles." The new test facility, which includes a high-level optics clean room, has equipment capable of emulating the geometric positions of the nose turret. The turret will house a 1.5-meter telescope comprising the core of the laser targeting system, and a range simulator allowing for end-to-end testing of the design against a simulated target. (Courtesy of Air Force Material Command News Service) 0271. Air Force announces plan to correct erroneous civilian retirement coverage RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFPN) - The Federal Erroneous Retirement Coverage Correction Act, recently signed into law by former President Clinton, is expected to grant relief to Federal civilian employees who may have been placed in the wrong retirement plan for at least three years of service after Dec. 31, 1986. Most of the errors occurred in the mid-eighties when the Federal government created the Federal Employees Retirement System for newly hired employees, leaving the older Civilian Service Retirement System in effect for current employees. "While most Federal civilian employees working in the Air Force are covered under the correct retirement plan, there are still some in the wrong retirement coverage," said Christine Watkins, Benefits and Entitlements Service Team employee relations specialist. "Our concern is with employees who haven't worked for the Federal government continuously since 1983, or have had changes in appointment types and retirement plans. These employees could possibly be in the wrong retirement coverage." Employees, who have been or were covered under the wrong retirement plan for at least three years of service after Dec. 31, 1986, may benefit from FERCCA in one or more ways. Employees could have an opportunity to choose another retirement plan; receive reimbursement for certain out-of-pocket expenses incurred as a result of the retirement coverage error; benefit from certain rules about how some of their Government service counts toward retirement; and make-up contributions to the Thrift Savings Plan, as well as receive earnings on those contributions. The Air Force Personnel Center's Benefits and Entitlements Service Team will be sending letters to all "full serviced" employees, along with a form requesting review of their Official Personnel Record and an information sheet to help them assess whether they are under the correct retirement coverage. Employees should take the FERCCA Self-Identification Test at online at the FERCCA Web site http://www.cpms.osd.mil/fas/benefits/fercca.htm. If employees determine they are in the correct retirement plan, no further action is required. Employees who believe they are or have been in the wrong retirement plan should identify themselves by filling out and faxing the Request for Review of Official Personnel Records to Benefits and Entitlements Service Team at DSN 665-2936, commercial (210) 565-2936 or mailing the request to the address on the form. BEST will review their record, make a determination regarding their retirement coverage and notify employees within 60 days of receipt of their request. "If they are in the wrong plan, we will enter their name and other relevant information in the Office of Personnel Management's FERCCA database," Watkins said. OPM is the Office of Primary Responsibility for the FERCCA program. OPM will verify employees' options under FERCCA and provide all counseling and assistance. BEST is only responsible for helping employees self-identify themselves and making the initial determination regarding their retirement coverage. Further information is available on the OPM Web site at http://www.opm.gov/benefits/correction and the BEST homepage at http://www.afpc.randolph.af.mil/dpc/BEST/menu.htm under "What's New" and "Retirement." 0270. Air Force names annual safety award winners by Staff Sgt. A.J. Bosker Air Force Print News WASHINGTON -- The Air Force announced its annual safety award winners during the CORONA South conference held recently in Florida. Annually, individual and unit trophies are awarded for excellence in a variety of ground, flight and overall safety programs. The Secretary of the Air Force Safety Award, the Air Force's highest safety award, is presented to two major commands, direct reporting units or field operating agencies with the most effective overall mishap prevention program. It is divided into two categories: Category I for organizations that have all safety disciplines as part of their mishap prevention program, and Category II for organizations that may not require the full complement, such as flying or weapons safety, as part of their prevention program. This year's SECAF Safety Award winner for Category I is Pacific Air Forces. With an area of responsibility encompassing more than 100 million square miles, PACAF reduced its Class A flight mishaps by 83 percent and Class A ground mishaps by 57 percent. It also experienced no Class A or B weapons mishaps. The command also implemented a strong bird/wildlife aircraft strike hazard program and ensures that each wing applies operational risk management principles to their programs to better preserve combat and ecological. The SECAF Safety Award Category II winner is the U.S. Air Force Academy. The Academy reduced its on-duty civilian injuries by 45 percent and military injuries by 33 percent. For the first time in 25 years, the Academy also had no cadet fatalities for two consecutive years. The Academy's 34th Training Wing conducted more than 128,000 airfield events, 29,000 sorties and 13,500 flying hours without a single reportable flight mishap. No mishaps were experienced during the cadet summer programs, which included basic cadet training, combat survival training tactics and global engagement. At the heart of the Academy's efforts to create a safe working environment is its emphasis on training and operational risk management. The Col. Will L. Tubbs Memorial Award is presented to the two MAJCOMs, DRUs or FOAs with the most effective ground safety programs. The trophies are separated by Category I and II, representing organizations with more than 30,000 people, and organizations with fewer than 30,000 people, respectively. Air Education and Training Command has won the Tubbs Memorial Award for Category I. During fiscal 2000, AETC trained more than 400,000 students in 4,000 courses, providing the safety foundation for every new Air Force officer and airman. Throughout this period, the command had no on-duty fatalities and had a 35-percent decrease in total ground mishaps, a 55-percent decrease in civilian injuries and a 40-percent decrease in motorcycle mishaps. For the 25th consecutive year, AETC had no Class A or B explosive mishaps. The Category II winner of the Tubbs Memorial award is Headquarters Air Force Operations Test and Evaluation Center. The center's ground safety program, encompassing 16 directorates, five detachments, 16 operating locations and more than 1,000 people, was managed flawlessly. Safety oversight was also provided to more than 290 tests to determine operational capabilities and limitations of Air Force and joint systems to meet warfighter mission needs and the result was no Class A or B mishaps. Pacific Air Forces also won the Maj. Gen. Benjamin D. Foulois Memorial Award. The award is sponsored by the Order of the Daedalians and is presented to the major command having the most effective aircraft accident prevention program. Last year, PACAF conducted flying operations in multiple countries while participating in 23 major exercises. Despite these numerous deployments and the increased risks associated with flying from deployed locations, PACAF had an 83-percent reduction in Class A mishaps and developed a system to reduce airfield obstructions which was eventually adopted Air Force-wide. In addition, the application of PACAF's operational risk management principles allowed the 354th Fighter Wing to deploy while its runway was being repaired. These many achievements were all accomplished while maintaining the command's normal training and flying operations. This year's recipient of the Koren Kolligian Jr. Trophy is Capt. Barry R. Cornish, 58th Fighter Squadron, Eglin AFB, Fla. The Kolligian Trophy is awarded to the aircrew member who showed the most skill, alertness, ingenuity or proficiency in averting or minimizing the seriousness of a flight mishap. Cornish successfully dealt with a critical mechanical failure during an F-15C Eagle landing and prevented the loss of a valuable combat asset. The 27th Fighter Wing, Cannon AFB, N.M., is the winner of the Colombian Trophy, presented to the fighter, attack or reconnaissance unit for the most outstanding contributions to flight safety in tactical operations. In one year, the 27th FW flew 12,843 sorties totaling 18,577 hours, 16 percent of those in support of contingency operations and exercises. During this time, the wing had no command-controllable Class A or B flight mishaps, the second lowest Class C mishap rate since the wing began flying the F-16 Fighting Falcon, and a perfect foreign-object-damage rate of zero reportable incidents. In addition, the 27th FW also identified engine anomalies and electrical wire chafing problems that had safety ramifications for the F-16 fleet worldwide. Its highly successful bird aircraft hazard program resulted in the lowest bird strike rate ever at Cannon. The wing also met 100 percent of its worldwide taskings without a single personnel or aircraft casualty. The recipient of the System of Cooperation Among the Air Forces of the Americas Flight Safety Award is the 374th Airlift Wing, Yokota Air Base, Japan. This award is presented for outstanding flight safety achievements in an Air Force organization involved in operations other than tactical fighter, attack or reconnaissance operations. During the last year, the 374th AW flew 13,824 Class A, B, and C mishap-free hours. As the Air Force's only forward deployed airlift wing in the Pacific, the wing handled ever-increasing operational taskings into austere locations with little or no external support. Despite this, the wing's 36th Airlift Squadron continued its streak of 26 years without a single Class A or B mishap, while the 459th AS maintained its run of no Class A or B mishaps in the squadron's nine-year history. The Chief of Staff Individual Safety Award was presented to Tech. Sgt. Sonya M. Lakin, 56th Equipment Maintenance Squadron, Luke AFB, Ariz. Lankin received the award for making the greatest contribution to safety within the Air Force. Lakin's direction of her squadron's safety program led to a 12-percent reduction in on-duty mishaps and an 11-percent reduction in off-duty mishaps. Her achievements in managing the safety program for more than 620 people led the wing safety office to benchmark her programs, including a proactive hazard abatement program which eliminated four documented occupational hazards to maintenance members, as best practices. 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