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1841. Group launches airstrip in Kyrgyzstan by Capt Kristi Beckman 86th Airlift Wing Public Affairs RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (AFPN) -- People from the 86th Contingency Response Group here recently deployed to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, to open an airfield in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. The unique group, made up of more than 40 various Air Force specialties, established the initial aerial port operation, provided force protection, and coordinated construction of living, operational and maintenance areas for coalition military personnel who will support air operations out of Manas International Airport in Bishkek. "We've had excellent support from the host nation, airport authorities, the Defense Attach� Office and the American Embassy," said Col. Billy Montgomery, 86th Expeditionary Contingency Response Group commander. "We have a tremendous challenge ahead of us in terms of establishing offices, infrastructure and cargo handling." The duration of the deployment will depend on the scope of the mission, but, Montgomery said, the CRG is poised to provide support for 30 days or more. "We are setting the stage for up to 3,300 personnel and numerous aircraft that will be operating out of Manas in the future," he said. 1844. Air Force retiree carries Olympic flame by Staff Sgt. A.J. Bosker Air Force Print News WASHINGTON -- Holiday traffic and a cold Dec. 21 evening could not keep a retired Air Force colonel from what he described as a "once in a lifetime experience" -- carrying the Olympic torch. Frank E. Herrelko Sr., an 88-year-old resident of Bowie, Md., carried the Olympic flame during a special torch relay event and ceremony that paid tribute to veterans of World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam. Herrelko, one of the three torchbearers in this tribute, was representing all the men and women who served in the armed forces during World War II. The relay began at the future site of the National World War II Memorial located at the east end of the West Reflecting Pool near the Washington Monument. Herrelko was the first runner. As the evening's ceremonies commenced, Herrelko, his lit Olympic torch held proudly in his hand, began his portion of the relay. The orange glow from the Olympic flame, that had made its way from Greece many weeks ago, was reflected as a gleam in his eye, showing everyone in attendance the smile on his face and just how proud he was of this honor. After running nearly a third of the length of the Reflecting Pool, Herrelko met up with Gilbert Lyons, a Korean War veteran. He passed Lyons the Olympic torch and joined him in the run past the Korean War Veterans Memorial. Running side-by-side now, Herrelko and Lyons met the third runner, Earl Gillespie, a Vietnam veteran. Lyons passed the torch to Gillespie and the three of them continued together west along the Reflecting Pool toward the Lincoln Memorial and the awaiting crowd. As they neared the bottom of the Lincoln Memorial's steps, Gillespie passed the Olympic torch back to Herrelko. The three of them continued abreast up the steps, past the cheering onlookers, and paused before the bronze cauldron that was to keep the Olympic flame overnight in Washington. With his torch held firmly in hand, Herrelko slowly lowered the flame toward the awaiting cauldron. The cheers from the crowd intensified as the Olympic flame was transferred to its resting place before continuing on toward its final destination -- Salt Lake City -- and completion of its 65-day, 13,500-mile journey. "I'm very proud to have been part of (the Olympic torch relay)," Herrelko said with a smile as family members embraced him. "The cold didn't bother me, (this) was a once in a lifetime experience." Cheering him on and providing him with moral support throughout the entire run were Edie, his wife; Kathleen, his daughter; two of his three sons, Frank Jr., a PGA golf professional; and David, a retired Air Force brigadier general; and three of his granddaughters, Kathy, Emily and Betsy. His third son, Jeffrey, a retired senior master sergeant, was unable to attend because of job commitments, but "was wishing him well," the family said. "He's amazing," Emily said proudly of her grandfather. "He could outrun them all." Those words are more than the boasting of a loving granddaughter. Herrelko is a Senior Olympian with more than 240 gold, silver and bronze medals won at state-, regional-, national- and world-level competitions. Emily said it is "amazing" since he did not even start competing until he was 70-years old. "David called me one day and told me he just saw an 80-year-old man do the pole vault," Herrelko said. "I became interested in competing in the Senior Olympics and began working out. I just couldn't see growing old and sitting in a chair all day." "I had to do something," David said as he hugged his father at the end of the Olympic torch ceremony. "If I didn't get him something to do, he'd drive us all crazy." "He can still compete but I won't let him pole vault or high jump any more," joked Edie, Herrelko's biggest cheerleader and supporter during their 60 years of marriage. "If he breaks his hip or his leg, I don't want to have to take care of him all day." Herrelko just smiled and shrugged his shoulders. Besides competing in the Senior Olympics, Herrelko has dedicated much of his time to public work. He has been a guest speaker at local schools and served as a consumer consultant for many of his senior friends. He has also spent decades serving his country since first enlisting in the Army in 1932. After spending seven years enlisted, he earned his Reserve commission as a second lieutenant in the Army Air Corps in aircraft warning and air defense. During World War II he commanded a signal aircraft warning battalion in Iceland. Upon retiring from the Air Force in 1967, he continued to serve his nation working for the National Security Agency until 1980. 1849. Changes affect two Reserve officer promotion policies by Tech. Sgt. Scott Elliott Air Force Print News WASHINGTON -- Secretary of the Air Force Dr. James G. Roche approved or released two new policies Dec. 19 that provide sweeping changes to the Air Force Reserve officer promotion system. These policies will not impact the Air National Guard. The first change reduces time-in-grade requirements for promotion to captain from five years to two years. The second policy establishes separate competitive categories for officers in the selected and nonselected Reserve. "The (time-in-grade) change will result in a one-time increase of about 300 eligibles to the grade of captain," said Maj. Douglas A. Young, chief of the promotion and evaluation policy branch for the office of the Air Force Reserve. "There is a nominal programming cost to implement this change." More than 12,000 officers have joined the Reserve in the ranks of captain or higher since 1996, Young said. Those officers had the opportunity of mandatory promotion to captain at four years time in grade or less. During the same time frame, only about 2,000 officers who had been commissioned into the Reserve as lieutenants were considered for promotion to captain. "Without this change," Young said, "we were prohibiting our 'home-grown' lieutenants from promotion consideration until the four- to five-year mark, while officers in the active duty component were being considered with two years time in grade. "This is a fairness and equity issue -- especially in light of the high (operations tempo) the Reserve (has) attained in the past few years," Young said. "This will permit our home-grown lieutenants to be considered in the same time frame as active-duty officers." The new time-in-grade policy goes into effect immediately for all fiscal 2003 captain promotion boards for all competitive categories within the Air Force Reserve. Beginning with the major's board in February, officers in the selected Reserve will compete against each other by competitive categories and those officers assigned to nonselected Reserve will compete against each other by competitive category. The competitive categories include line officers, chaplains, judge advocates, biomedical science corps, medical service corps, nurse corps, medical corps and dental corps. Separate promotion quotas for selected Reserve and nonselected Reserve officers will also be developed. "Selected Reserve officers participate (in weekend and annual drills), are paid, accumulate points and receive evaluation reports," Young said. "Nonselected Reserve officers fall into two categories: those who participate for points and evaluation reports only, and those who earn membership points only. When nonselected Reserve officers were promoted in the past, Young said, those promotions came at the expense of selected Reserve officers. "Each quota spent on a nonparticipating nonselect Reserve officer leads to the potential loss of a twice-deferred participating selected Reserve officer," he said. "Since our quota is based on the selected Reserve population, it should apply only to them," Young said. "Establishing a separate competitive category with its own quota would ensure those officers who have demonstrated potential to serve in a higher grade in the nonselected Reserve are afforded the opportunity for promotion without penalizing the selected Reserve." Each competitive category would have a separate selected Reserve and nonselected Reserve opportunity for promotion, Young said. "This would afford officers with similarities in career paths, participation and documentation a more equitable promotion opportunity," he said. The quota for all competitive categories will be reviewed and approved annually by the secretary of the Air Force before the board convening date, based on the needs of the Air Force Reserve. 1846. Civil engineers establish bare-base camps by Tech. Sgt. Michael A. Ward Air Force Civil Engineer Support Agency TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. (AFPN) -- In the weeks after the Sept. 11 attacks, Air Force civil engineers began deploying to countries in Southwest Asia. Their mission: establish fully functioning bare-base camps capable of supporting personnel and air operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Called beddown operations, civil engineers began setting up or expanding existing tent cities at 13 locations in nine countries neighboring Afghanistan. At the same time they repaired or established airfields for flight operations at xx 10 of the locations. "Civil engineers are enablers," said Lt. Col. Greg Cummings, chief of the expeditionary engineering branch for the office of the Air Force Civil Engineer. "We enable aircrews and other Air Force professionals to perform their mission by providing the day-to-day infrastructure functionality needed to sustain the warfighting mission because whatever you have at a stateside installation, you need some semblance of at an expeditionary operating location." Some of the first civil engineers to arrive in the theater of operations were Prime Base Engineer Emergency Force, or Prime BEEF, members from the 366th Wing at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho; and the 820th and 823rd Rapid Engineer Deployable Heavy Operational Repair Squadron, Engineer, or RED HORSE, Squadron from Nellis AFB, Nev., and Hurlburt Field, Fla., respectively. Prime BEEF teams are rapidly deployable units made up of a variety of civil engineer specialties such as electricians, plumbers and structural specialists. RED HORSE units specialize in airfield and base heavy construction and repair. More than 2,000 civil engineers are currently in the region. "It was important for us to get our civil engineers in as soon as possible and establish forward basing operations because it not only reduced the distance our pilots have to fly to bring in supplies, ammunition and equipment, it reduces the amount of time it takes to turn around aircraft, reload them with munitions and get them back into the fight." said Lt. Col. Josuelito Worrell, contingency support director for the Air Force Civil Engineer Support Agency." Worrell directs the Civil Engineer Readiness Operation Center that coordinates civil engineer taskings worldwide. The equipment necessary to establish camps and airfields comes from a prepackaged, transportable bare-base kit called Harvest Falcon. The kits contain tents, a kitchen, showers, latrines and electrical power generation for a 1,100-person encampment. The kits also contain everything necessary to set up bare-base airfield operations including portable aircraft hangars, mobile aircraft arresting systems, emergency airfield lighting systems and structures, and utilities. But nothing comes easy when you are half a world away from home, and setting up camps and airfields throughout that region was no exception, officials said. Some of the terrain proved to be as alien as that of a distant planet, prompting one deployed military member to comment that the area was littered with "rocks the like should not be on this earth." Heavy construction equipment being used for this operation came from pre-positioned stocks in Europe and Southwest Asia. Additional heavy equipment used in the theater was leased through the Air Force Contract Augmentation Program. AFCAP is a contingency contract that provides the Air Force with noncombatant contractor services to augment civil engineers, services and logistics capabilities, principally during military operations other than war, disaster response and humanitarian relief actions. The program was used in 1999 to help establish relief camps for Kosovo refugees displaced by Serbian forces. "AFCAP is a valuable force multiplier for the Air Force," said Capt. Aaron Benson, AFCAP program manager. "Bulldozers, dump trucks, land movers, etc., would have consumed (a lot) of space on even the largest cargo aircraft. But, by leasing equipment from vendors in the region our aircraft were free to perform other critical missions." Leasing also helped RED HORSE engineers meet short deadlines created by the rapid build up. "Speed was extremely critical to accommodate the sudden increase in flying missions," he said. "At some sites we didn't have adequate parking space for aircraft, and expanded parking aprons had to be quickly built." More than 18,000 Air Force people now live and work in the tent cities in Southwest Asia, and hundreds of aircraft fly in and out of the expeditionary airfields. 1845. Missile gets go-ahead for low-rate initial production WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- The military's newest stealth cruise missile is now one step closer to being delivered to warfighters. Undersecretary of Defense Pete Aldridge gave the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile program the go-ahead for low-rate initial production Dec. 21. This decision will give the Air Force combat capability on the F-16 Fighting Falcons and B-52 Stratofortresses by 2003. JASSM is a joint Air Force and Navy program developed and produced by Lockheed-Martin Integrated Systems. JASSM employs stealth, to penetrate enemy air defenses at ranges of more than 200 miles and, GPS coupled with a terminal seeker to precisely attack high-value targets. Unlike current cruise missiles, JASSM can be launched off most types of aircraft in the Air Force inventory. The 2,000-pound class weapon is planned for deployment on the B-1B Lancer, B-2 Spirit, B-52, F-16, and the Navy's F/A-18 E/F Hornet. "We have a low-cost, high performance program and we came in below the objective of $400K in (fiscal) '95 dollars," said Terry Little, JASSM Air Force program director. As a result, the Air Force has increased its buy from 2,400 to 3,700 missiles. "JASSM is a flagship program for acquisition excellence," said Dr. James G. Roche, secretary of the Air Force. "Not only do our combat forces get an unprecedented precision attack capability, but they get it at an affordable price never before achieved on a cruise missile program". Air Force officials said the service plans to make the decision for full-rate production in late 2003. 1848. AFSOC pilots earn weapons school patch by Maj. Karen Finn Air Force Special Operations Command Public Affairs NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. (AFPN) -- Eleven Air Force Special Operations Command pilots are the first to graduate from the U.S. Air Force Weapons School here. The pilots received their weapons school patch during ceremonies here recently. Their graduation recognizes successful completion of six months of graduate-level weapons and tactics courses and flying, officials said. The school's curriculum is the toughest the Air Force has to offer and only the best make it to graduation, said Col. Robin Rand, U.S. Air Force Weapons School commandant. Along with being the first AFSOC aircrew to attend and graduate the course, the 11 pilots will be the initial cadre for the special operations forces weapons school division located at Hurlburt Field, Fla. The first SOF students report for school in January. "The standup of a SOF weapons school brings tactics back to the forefront in AFSOC," said Col. Jim Connors, AFSOC director of operations. "It reprioritizes our warfighting skills even higher than before; it is long overdue." Maj. Mike McKinney, one of the graduates, said attending the weapons school will enhance the command's capabilities. "We were all experts in our particular weapons systems, but now we are experts in the entire SOF arsenal and other Air Force aircraft," he said. "[The weapons school] opened my eyes to the full spectrum of air power and the assets we have to integrate. This model of training has existed for 50 years on how to train and fight... and it works. I am more prepared to work with other air assets and have a deeper understanding of their role in the air battle." The training and knowledge gained at the weapons school will be an important part of combat Air Force operations, officials said. Throughout every conflict and planning process weapons school graduates have lead the Air Force in weaponry and tactical skills, said Brig. Gen. Daniel Darnell, 57th Wing commander, the keynote speaker at the weapons school graduation. The new school at Hurlburt Field will be one of several weapons school detachments throughout the Air Force that provide the most advanced training in weapons and tactics employment to officers of combat air forces. Other detachments are located at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D.; and Barksdale AFB, La. The new SOF Weapons Division will include graduate-level MH-53J/M Pave Low IIIE and AC-130 Gunship curriculum. The MC-130P Combat Shadow curriculum is being developed. AFSOC's weapons school graduates are: Majs. Ian C. Jannetty, McKinney, Lance A. Tilghman, Daniel J. Turner and Craig J. Walker; and Capts. Mark T. Daley, Oscar E. Espinoza, Kevin D. Huebert, Paul H. Mullis, Robert D. Sagraves and Herbert D. Smith. 1843. Eglin welcomes three back to service by Staff Sgt. Robert Zoellner 33d Fighter Wing Public Affairs EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. (AFPN) -- It is not often that once a person quits a job, they want to work for the same person again. But three airmen in the 58th Fighter Squadron here had left the Air Force only to come back for a second time. Senior Airmen Jeff Cody, Bobby Heal and David Holderried, left the Air Force to take the civilian route only to turn their careers around and give the military another shot. "I was thinking I could get a better-paying job," said Cody, who was an F-15 Eagle crew chief at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho. "I thought I was going to get a job with a local contractor. It was looking real good, but they weren't able to hire me." Cody got out of the Air Force in November 2000 and bounced around in various jobs and even shoveled radioactive dirt for a while, he said. "I don't recommend that job to anybody," Cody said. It was not long after getting out that Cody said he was doubting the decision he made to leave. "I was still on terminal leave," Cody said, "and I asked myself 'Jeff, what are you doing?' I should have re-enlisted right then and there, but I waited." And waiting started an 11-month-long process to get back in. Heal left the Air Force in July after four years here of being an F-15 crew chief with the 58th FS. "I wanted to take my kids back home to grow up with family," said Heal, who is from Mississippi. "I had a good job," he said. "I was a crew chief on a helicopter in the civil service with the Army making more than $17 an hour." But working with the Army was not the same as working in the Air Force. It did not take him long to make the decision to come back. "I only worked for them for six weeks and I came back in," Heal said. "I was only out of the Air Force for 45 days." Forty-five days was long enough for him, he said. "I lost six months time-in-grade, my re-enlistment bonus, and my line number (for promotion)," he said. "But I was ready to come back in." On Aug. 30, Heal was back at his position as an F-15 crew chief. Holderried was an F-15 crew chief stationed at Seymour-Johnson AFB, N.C., when he left the Air Force in August 1997. He thought he was set up with a great job but it did not pan out to be as good as he was told. "They (business or companies) will tell you anything you want to hear to hire you," he said. "I was putting in 13-, 14- and sometimes 15-hour days." That same reason was a big factor in Cody's decision to return to service. "The wife and kids had health insurance, and for 11 months I had nothing," Cody said. "It was very scary." But it was more than just medical benefits they missed, Cody said. It was the Air Force family they missed, plus a life they were used to and really enjoyed. "I missed the people, the work, and the way of life," Cody said. "You just don't have a relationship with people on the outside like you do in the military." Heal said he agrees. "People are the best part of being back in," he said. "You know who you work with. It's not some thug they hired off the street." "The best part is the Air Force family," Holderried said. "They take care of their own and I've never seen a blue-suiter go without." All three of these airmen said they plan on giving the Air Force the full 20 years this time around and all had the same advice for anyone who is considering leaving the Air Force. "Be prepared," Cody said. "Make sure that you (have) got a job lined up and get it confirmed in writing, because it's a dog-eat-dog world out there." "Seriously think about it," Holderried said. "Make sure you sit down and evaluate everything. We (Holderried and his wife) knew that the Air Force was a good way of life. I did it before and enjoyed it." 1842. NCO becomes marrow donor hero by Staff Sgt. Olenda Kleffner 314th Airlift Wing Public Affairs LITTLE ROCK AIR FORCE BASE, Ark. (AFPN) -- After nearly two hours of surgery, five holes in his back, eight hours of lying on sand bags, two weeks of convalescent leave and two weeks of light duty, he says he would do it again in a heartbeat. Staff Sgt. Donald Foree, a guidance-and-control technician from the 50th Airlift Squadron here, said donating bone marrow was easier than he expected and, without a doubt, well worth it. Earlier this year, National Marrow Donor Program officials told Foree he was a potential match for a 53-year-old male with acute myocardial leukemia. Ten years after he registered as a marrow donor and after two months of tests, Foree flew with his mother to Washington on Sept. 24 for the transplant procedure the next day. Once they were at the hospital, Foree went through a series of blood tests and was sent to the surgical ward to be prepared for surgery. "After 15 minutes, the anesthesiologist came in and gave me an injection of something, and then they wheeled me in to the surgery room," Foree said. "I remember them hooking up the blood pressure cuff and asking me if I was feeling groggy yet." He said he did not remember anything else until he woke up in the post-operation room. "The procedure went fine," Foree said. "They put me under, and it took about an hour and a half. They only put five holes in my back with a needle about the size of a 10-penny wood nail. It was weird going into surgery feeling great and coming out in pain, but it was not as bad as I had expected." After he woke up, Foree went back to his room in the cancer ward and lay on two sandbags for eight hours. The sandbags conformed to his back and helped stop the bleeding and reduce the swelling, he said. Foree was released from the hospital Sept. 26, and spent the remainder of the evening with his mother. The best part of the trip, Foree said, was the night after the transplant when the doctor told him he did a great job and the marrow they took out was excellent. "She thought I was a real hero," he said. The pain was a minor part of a great process to help save someone's life, Foree said. "I would do it again," he said. "The feeling I had when they told me that I had done good and that the recipient was doing very well and having few problems, it was just a great feeling and the pain and stiffness was just not bad enough to outweigh the good." Foree said he gets an update about the recipient every two weeks. After returning home, Foree went on two weeks' convalescent leave, followed by two weeks of light duty. "I am very glad I did this," Foree said. "I feel that if I didn't, it would be like signing his death warrant myself, and it just feels great to be able to help someone that much. I would encourage others to do it. It just gives you a great feeling to help someone this way." (Courtesy of Air Education and Training Command News Service) 1840. Now showing: Dec. 24 edition of Air Force Television News SAN ANTONIO (AFPN) -- The last edition of Air Force Television News for 2001 is a special one called "The Making of a Recruiter." It is produced and reported by Staff Sgt. Joe Wallace, who spent about eight weeks following the life of a prospective Air Force recruiter from her first day at recruiter school to her completion of the rigorous course to the enlistment of her first Air Force recruit. The segment contrasts the challenge facing recruiters in both urban and rural areas of the United States and how they overcome that challenge. This last edition of Air Force Television News for 2001 marks the first time an entire program has been devoted to a single topic, a decision made because of the importance of the recruiter career field and how work by recruiters form the very foundation of the future Air Force. Air Force Television News is a biweekly production of Air Force News Service. It is distributed on videotape to more than 3,000 military and civilian outlets worldwide, and is seen on more than 700 cable television outlets nationwide. It is also available on the Internet at www.af.mil. The program is the only military production offered with closed captioning. It is also featured on The Pentagon Channel daily. Viewers can comment on the program by sending e-mail to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *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! 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