WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a Prelude to War! 001048. DOD temporarily slows anthrax vaccination effort WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- The Department of Defense announced July 11 that it is temporarily slowing its Anthrax Vaccine Immunization Program (AVIP) effort. Most of the remaining vaccine will be used to help protect those most at risk serving in the High Threat Areas of Southwest Asia and Korea. DOD will continue new starts for the highest risk personnel serving in the High Threat Areas; other new starts will be deferred. Those personnel who have begun the shot series, but have since departed the High Threat Areas also will be deferred. A full resumption of the vaccination effort will occur when a sufficient supply of FDA-approved and certified safe and effective vaccine is available. "While we regret this necessity, we do not have a sufficient supply of vaccine at this time," said Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen. "We will expand our vaccination effort as soon as logistically feasible, with FDA-certified vaccine. In making the decision to protect our servicemembers against anthrax, we put safety first. "We determined that vaccination is the safest, most reliable way to protect our servicemembers from a potential threat that is 99 percent lethal to unprotected, untreated individuals. Anthrax remains the top biological warfare threat to U.S. troops, and the vaccine is our safest, most effective weapon to protect our people against that threat," he said. When FDA-released vaccine is again available, the full scope of the program will be resumed. Precise plans for resuming vaccinations will be based on the recommendation of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and consultation with the Food and Drug Administration. "Additionally, we need to assure a sufficient, long-term supply of vaccine," said the secretary. "Protecting our servicemembers is far too important for us to rely on a single source. We are immediately and aggressively seeking a second U.S. source of anthrax vaccine. "By having a second source, we can have greater confidence and comfort that a sufficient supply of safe and effective vaccine will be available to protect our servicemembers against anthrax," said Cohen. A request for a second supplier was published in the July 3rd Commerce Business Daily. More than 455,000 service members have started their vaccinations and more than 1.8 million vaccinations have been given. To be fully protected, servicemembers are vaccinated using the FDA-approved protocol of six immunizations over an 18-month period, plus annual boosters. 001043. Deputy surgeon general to lead American College of Physician Executives by Betty Anne Mauger Air Force Surgeon General Public Affairs WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- Deputy Surgeon General of the Air Force Maj. Gen. Leonard M. Randolph, Jr., has been selected president of the American College of Physician Executives. This is the first time in the organization's 25-year history that a military physician will serve in the position. The general is also the first African-American to hold the office. The ACPE is the only professional organization of physician executives that represents all facets of the medical spectrum: hospitals, group practice, managed care, government, universities, the military and industry. The 14,000-member organization is dedicated to improving the field of medical management, ensuring the integration of the knowledge, skills, ethics and values of medicine, leadership and management. Randolph has had many assignments in his distinguished career that include management and administration, as well as clinical experience -- criteria that personify the organization's charter. "I am delighted and humbled at the selection," the general said. "My Air Force career has afforded me a perfect blend of clinical, management and leadership experiences, and lessons, that I can bring to the table. I'm hopeful that both the ACPE and the Air Force will benefit from the opportunity." In his current capacity as deputy surgeon general of the Air Force, the general directs all operations of the Air Force Medical Service, a $4.6 billion, 46,000-person integrated health care delivery system that serves 2.5 million beneficiaries at 77 military treatment facilities worldwide. Simultaneously, he oversees the functions of the Air Force Surgeon General's Office that comprises five directorates with offices in Washington, D.C.; San Antonio; and Fort Detrick, Md. Included in these functions are clinical quality management; strategic management; full-spectrum medical operations; worldwide aeromedical evacuation; and information systems management. The general entered the Air Force in 1970 while attending medical school at Meharry Medical College, Nashville, Tenn. He graduated in 1972 as a distinguished graduate and a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha National Honor Medical Society. During his military career, General Randolph has commanded hospitals at George Air Force Base, Calif., and the medical center at Travis AFB, Calif. He was the forward command surgeon of the U.S. Central Command Air Forces, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during the Gulf War. He is currently an adjunct associate professor of emergency medicine and medical readiness, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, and has previously held faculty appointments at Wright State University School of Medicine, Dayton, Ohio, and the University of California Davis School of Medicine. A fellow and member of the Board of Governors of the American College of Surgeons, he is also a distinguished fellow of the American College of Physician Executives. He is board-certified in general surgery and medical management and is a certified physician executive and chief flight surgeon. 001042. SECDEF approves NATO Medal for Kosovo operations RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFPN) -- The Secretary of Defense recently approved the wear of the NATO Medal by U.S. service members and civilians for operations related to Kosovo. Eligibility criteria for the medal are: * Participation in NATO operations related to Kosovo (Oct. 13, 1998 to a date to be determined) for 30 days (continuous or accumulated) in the area of eligibility. The AOE is the land, at seas, or in the air space of Kosovo; other territories of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY: Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Slovenia); Albania, Macedonia, and the Adriatic and Ionian seas. * Aircrews participating in OPERATION Allied Force between March 24, 1999-June 10, 1999 with 15 sorties into Kosovo and FRY. * Aircrews who didn't participate in OAF, accumulate one day of qualifying service for the first sortie flown on any day. * Wounded or injured and requiring subsequent evacuation from the defined AOE, regardless of time in the area. * 90 days (continuous or accumulated) within the territories of Italy, Greece, and Hungary in direct support of NATO operations conducted in the AOE. Air Force Personnel Center officials say only one NATO Medal/ribbon is authorized for wear. "Therefore, service members will wear the NATO Medal they were awarded first and should they become eligible for the other NATO Medal, it would be indicated by a bronze service star on the first NATO Medal. U.S. service members are not authorized the wear of numeric symbols on either NATO Medal." Members and/or units who believe they are authorized the award should provide documentation, such as copies of official orders and travel vouchers, decorations, EPRs/OPRs, flight logs, etc., that assign them to one of the approved operations to their servicing military personnel flight career enhancement element to verify their entitlement. (Courtesy of AFPC News Service) 001047. American Legion to honor DOD enlisted volunteers RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFPN) -- The National Headquarters of the American Legion will honor one enlisted member from each branch of service for outstanding volunteer service. The American Legion Spirit of Service Award was recently established to recognize enlisted members who support their local community during off duty time, said Air Force Personnel Center officials. Eligibility criteria for the annual award are: * Military member in the grade of E-1 through E-5; * A nomination package that cites examples of volunteer community service performed in the local community and its impact on the community; and contributions and examples showing the individual as an outstanding military performer. Each major command, field operation agency or direct reporting unit may submit one nomination on AF Form 1206, limited to one page. Nomination packages are due to AFPC Special Awards Section by July 17. The winner will be recognized at the American Legion annual national convention in Milwaukee, Wis. Sept. 5-7. (Courtesy of AFPC News Service) 001045. Edwards' altitude chamber closes by Tech. Sgt. Christopher Ball Air Force Flight Test Center Public Affairs EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AFPN) -- The Physiological Support Flight here, commonly known as the "altitude chamber," has finally closed its doors after 43 years of providing support to countless airmen. Activated in 1957, it's one of five Air Force altitude chambers slated to close, saving the service about $8.9 million annually. Besides providing depot-level maintenance, aircrew training, and fitting and issuing pressure suits, the chamber also supported other missions throughout the years, including the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School "Zoom Program" and "Soar Eagle," a high-altitude record attempt with a glider. Plus, the flight handled SR-71 pressure-suit launch support for the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, which is located on Edwards, and plant facilities in nearby Palmdale. Chamber members often made HAAMS - or High Altitude Airdrop Mission Support - flights. Physiological support people flew on these unpressurized missions where the aircraft reached altitudes of 18,000 feet or higher, watching aircrews for altitude-related problems such as hypoxia and decompression sickness, and assisting with oxygen equipment. And for a few years, the flight owned a hyperbaric chamber, or dive chamber, to treat aircrew for decompression sickness. "There was such a chamber here in the 1970's, but it was removed," said Robert Stahl, an aerospace physiologist. "But another one was reinstalled when U.S. astronauts were expected to begin their first series of long space walks and, therefore, be exposed to a greater risk of decompression sickness. And because the space shuttle began landing here, it was prudent to have the capability to treat astronauts if needed. "It turns out that we never had to treat an astronaut," Stahl recalled, "but we did treat aircrew. Some had decompression sickness from high altitude flights and, in rare instances, from altitude chamber flights." The Physiology Support Flight also taught courses tailored for specific aircraft or mission. Subjects included situational awareness, disorientation, vision, noise, fatigue, acceleration, thermal stress, medication, diet, exercise, oxygen equipment, and escape and crash survival, to name a few. Chamber flights, simulating the effects of altitude, were a key part of training. Most flights reached a simulated altitude of 25,000 to 35,000 feet, with pressure-suit flights up to 100,000 feet. 001045a.gif and 001045a.jpg The last class to receive altitude training at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., goes through a chamber flight. Fliers will still be able to get the academic portion of their training here, but will have to travel to a base with altitude chamber facilities for physical training. (Photo by Senior Airman Casey Moore) 001045b.gif and 001045b.jpg An airman sits with "Hypoxia Pete" in the late 1950s. Pete was a training aid that would display hypoxia symptoms at pressures equal to 25,000 feet altitude. (Courtesy Photo) 001046. There's more than meets the eye for maintainers at Mildenhall by Karen Abeyasekere 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs ROYAL AIR FORCE MILDENHALL, England (AFPN) -- Their tools are fluorescent green dye and x-rays; their job is to detect microscopic cracks and defects in aircraft parts. The six highly skilled airmen who make up the Non-Destructive Inspection Flight here have one mission in mind, find the defects, which are usually invisible to the naked eye, and take the parts out of service before a tragedy can occur. Non-destructive inspection is the broad term given to the science of defect location. To understand NDI, said Tech. Sgt. Marc Bellucci, NDI section chief, think of what auto manufacturers do to a car to test for defects and apply the principle in reverse. Auto manufacturers crash, smash and bash a vehicle to test its endurance limits and identify the failure points. NDI employs techniques that find the cracks and other defects without altering or damaging the part, Bellucci explained. Part of the 100th Maintenance Squadron's Fabrication Branch, the unit inspects all assigned C-130, KC-135, RC-135 and deployed C-5 aircraft, as well as the MH-53 helicopters assigned to the 352nd Special Operations Group here. Bellucci said there are five primary methods used by NDI airmen to detect cracks. Penetrant -- A part is dipped into a thick fluorescent green oil. When the part is rinsed, only dye left in a potential crack remains. The part is inspected under a black light. When checked by a qualified technician, cracks that are invisible to the naked eye distinctly stand out. This inspection technique is used mainly for aluminum or non-ferrous parts. Magnetic particle -- This method is used on ferrous parts containing iron as its base metal. The part is subjected to a powerful electromagnetic field and cracks in the part will produce a leakage field. An oil containing tiny fluorescent green iron particles is poured on the part. The particles are attracted by magnetism. The part is then inspected under black light. Ultrasonic -- This method is similar to what hospitals use but at much higher frequencies since the inspection requires sound to penetrate through dense metals rather than porous human tissue. Eddy Current -- These inspections involve sending an electromagnetic signal through a test specimen via a probe. Defects interrupt the normal current flow, resulting in distortions on a cathode ray tube presentation which can be interpreted by a technician. X-ray -- NDI specialists radiate a part, sometimes for up to five minutes, in order to generate an x-ray film. Bellucci said that no matter what kind of part needs inspection, whether on or off the aircraft, his people can find a defect if one exists. "Sometimes we'll mark an area on a plane where we used eddy current to find a crack," he said. "Because you can't see most cracks with the naked eye, people are reluctant to believe us. We then have to put penetrant on the area to prove the crack exists." NDI is also responsible for the base Joint Oil Analysis Program which uses spectroscopy to determine wear on jet engines. Used engine oil is burned under intense heat. The vaporized oil is burnt in a chamber about the size of a footlocker. White light given off in the process is sent through a series of fiber-optic cables, mirrors and lenses until it is separated into its color band. The color band helps determine if there are metal fragments from the engine present in the oil. "Aircraft engines are made up of these metals and due to operational wear, they are present in the oil," said Bellucci. "By finding out the concentration, you can tell if an engine is wearing normally or at abnormally dangerous rates." What we find has a major impact on how things are repaired and sometimes on how an airframe is flown, said Tech. Sgt. Lance Baucum, the assistant NDI section chief who has worked on MH-53 helicopters for more than 11 years. "I prefer to work on the MH-53," he said. "I've seen the (helicopters) go through many changes to keep up with the enormous stresses that are placed on the airframe and to alleviate weak areas that were prone to stress cracks," he said. "It's kind of rewarding to see the changes that engineers make to the airframe design, based on what we've found." (Courtesy of USAFE News Service) *COPYRIGHT NOTICE** In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for nonprofit research and educational purposes only.[Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ] Want to be on our lists? Write at [EMAIL PROTECTED] for a menu of our lists! ****************************************************************************** ******************* A vote for Bush or Gore is a vote to continue Clinton policies! A vote for Buchanan is a vote to continue America! Therefore a vote for Gore or Bush is a wasted vote for America! Don't waste your vote! Vote for Patrick Buchanan! Today, candor compels us to admit that our vaunted two-party system is a snare and a delusion, a fraud upon the nation. Our two parties have become nothing but two wings of the same bird of prey... 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