National Defense articles from March 2006

National Defense archives from March 2006

QDR lays out strategy, but can we afford it?(PRESIDENT'S PERSPECTIVE)
March 1, 2006... At first glance, the fiscal year 2007 defense budget reflects the arduous challenges facing the administration in trying to balance long-term strategy and requirements against immediate priorities and fiscal pressures. On the one hand, the...

'Home Guard' debate.(LETTERS)(Letter to the Editor)
March 1, 2006... Surprisingly, the "Home Guard" currently exists. It is in the Title 32 U.S. Code approved State Defense Force (SDF), a military organization manned by volunteers and reporting to the state governor through their adjutant general. You can...

Raise stirs questions on 'fair pay'.(Washington Pulse)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2006... A proposed 2.2 percent pay raise for military personnel--the same raise that the Bush administration recommended for civilian workers--raised eyebrows in Washington in recent weeks. Giving equal salary, increments to military and civilians,...

Admiral's clout could pay off for shipyards.(Washington Pulse)
March 1, 2006... Another budget-related topic that has roused debate is a Pentagon recommendation--included in its Quadrennial Defense Review--that the Navy increase its submarine production to two vessels per year, despite repeated warnings by Navy leaders...

Push to combine programs gets top-level attention.(Washington Pulse)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2006... In an effort to consolidate military service programs into "joint capabilities," top Defense Department officials will recommend specific areas that should be funded and managed jointly, rather than by individual services. So far, two...

Army Reserves under-funded by $7 billion.(Washington Pulse)
March 1, 2006... Despite a healthy flow of funding into Army equipment accounts in recent years Reserve units are woefully short of trucks and other tactical vehicles, a senior official says. The current funding shortfall is $7.7 billion, according to Maj....

Identity crisis: 'Real ID' controversy heats up.(SECURITY BEAT: Homeland Defense Briefs)
March 1, 2006... Lines are being drawn in the battle over what new standards will be put in place when the Real ID Act of 2005 goes into effect two years from now. The law, a rider to a defense appropriations bill last year, calls for states to comply with...

Temperatures rise on Mexican border.(SECURITY BEAT: Homeland Defense Briefs)
March 1, 2006... The deaths of 18-year-old Mexican Guillermo Martinez Rodriquez and Ismael Segura, 23, did not make national headlines in the United States. Not so in Mexico and a few U.S. border towns. The alleged shootings of the pair in separate...

New oxygen system debuts.(SECURITY BEAT: Homeland Defense Briefs)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2006... The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new oxygen generation system being touted as a safer way for first responders or the military to deliver the life-saving gas to the injured. Boise, Idaho-based OXGEN Flexible Life Systems Inc....

Coast Guard buildings prompt concern.(SECURITY BEAT: Homeland Defense Briefs)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2006... Resources devoted to the Coast Guard's Deepwater equipment modernization program may be squeezing the service's ability to upgrade its shore-based infrastructure, according to the Department of Homeland Security's inspector general. "There...

Broadband eyed for first-responders.(SECURITY BEAT: Homeland Defense Briefs)
March 1, 2006... The Federal Communications Commission said commercial providers could provide solutions for an integrated, interoperable nationwide broadband network for first-responders in times of crises. In a little-heralded report to Congress released...

In the latest Pentagon strategy, uncertainty rules.(DEFENSE WATCH)
March 1, 2006... An elaborate plan recently unveiled by the Defense Department aims to prepare the military services to cope with a wide range of threats to national security during the next 20 years. The document lays out a comprehensive strategy that, for...

Army must address irregular warfare needs.(VIEWPOINT)
March 1, 2006... The Army's largest-ever modernization program, the Future Combat Systems, is expected to deliver a kit bag of new capabilities for the tactical force. Although it's easy to see how FCS technologies will provide a clear advantage in the...

Army 'Land Warrior' not yet ready for war, gears up for next tryout.(UPFRONT)
March 1, 2006... After a disappointing evaluation by users of a new high-tech soldier ensemble, the Army is redesigning portions of the system to make it lighter and easier to use, officials said. The ensemble is a computer-radio suite that connects members...

Navy artillery: no new weapons on the horizon.(UPFRONT)
March 1, 2006... A decade-long effort to develop advanced munitions for 5-inch guns remains in limbo, and the technology is not likely to be ready for operational use in the foreseeable future. Under a program called "extended range munition," which began...

Navy seeks to avert precipitous decline in the size of the fleet.(UPFRONT)
March 1, 2006... An ambitious Navy plan to expand the size of the fleet not only assumes a considerable surge in spending, but also a fundamental shift in the preparation and execution of ship programs, senior officials say. An effort to increase the fleet...

Erratum.(UPFRONT)(Correction notice)
March 1, 2006... In the February 2006 story, page 34, "Game Branches Out Into Real Combat Training," the name of Jerry Ehleiter, of Anteon Corporation, was incorrectly spelled.

Eyes in the sky: urban battlefield is proving ground for unmanned aerial systems.(URBAN WARFARE)
March 1, 2006... Unpiloted aircraft are proliferating in war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan. But while the demand for smaller and more capable systems continues to grow, analysts say that in order to make these aircraft more effective in the urban environment, a...

City streets pose problems for unmanned aircraft.
March 1, 2006... THE DREAM IS A fully autonomous rotary-wing unmanned aerial vehicle--one capable of flying through urban canyons, hovering above city streets or perching on building ledges as it gathers intelligence. Researchers at the Georgia Tech's...

Urban conflicts shape new recon helicopter.(AIRBORNE SCOUT)
March 1, 2006... Col. Mark Hayes and Lt. Col. Neil Thurgood are brimming with confidence while facing a Herculean task. Their mission is to develop and deploy a new, armed reconnaissance helicopter within four years. They admit that there are many who don't...

Insurgency tactics test helicopters' staying power.(UNFRIENDLY SKIES)
March 1, 2006... Technology so far has proven to be of little use in protecting Army helicopters from the ravages of small arms and rocket propelled grenades, military and civilian experts contend. The Army has spent nearly $2 billion outfitting helicopters...

Army to equip helos with 'low cost' munitions.(URBAN WARFARE)
March 1, 2006... THE ARMY SOON may begin arming its combat helicopters with an undersized missile that could surgically destroy targets in urban areas without killing or maiming friendly forces or innocent civilians. All through the counterinsurgency in...

Directed energy weapons face hurdles.(LESS-THAN-LETHAL)
March 1, 2006... In an animated video shown by the Defense Department's office of force transformation, a team of Stryker vehicles tears through urban canyons on their way to rescue two downed helicopter pilots. An insurgent first attempts to set off a...

Non-lethal weapon may spark controversy.(URBAN WARFARE)
March 1, 2006... NO SPEAKERS elicited more questions from the audience at a recent directed energy conference than Stephanie Miller, a researcher at the Air Force Research Laboratory's human effects directorate. The attendees, composed of military and...

Marines extend program to keep aging vehicles in service.(MAKING TRACKS)
March 1, 2006... The Marine Corps has extended a program to repair and update its aging fleet of amphibious armored vehicles, which now are being used heavily in combat against Iraqi insurgents. The current version, known as the assault amphibious vehicle,...

Counter terrorism: at special ops forum, experts weigh prospect of WMD attacks.(SPECIAL OPERATIONS)(Weapons of Mass Destruction)(Cover Story)
March 1, 2006... AS MILITARY LEADERS DEVOTE increasing attention to neutralizing roadside bombs in Iraq, specialists caution that it would be a mistake to dismiss the threat posed by weapons of mass destruction. These experts contend that terrorists are...

Reshaping the force: shift to special operations will not 'gut' the Marine Corps, general says.(SPECIAL OPERATIONS)
March 1, 2006... CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C.--Taking shape here at this sprawling military installation on the coast of North Carolina is the first major Marine Corps component ever to join the U.S. Special Operations Command. The Marine Special Operations Command,...

Corps' trainers target 'ungoverned' areas of world.(SPECIAL OPERATIONS)
March 1, 2006... CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- The first element of the Marine Corps' new special-operations command already is scrambling to tackle its mission--to help prepare the soldiers of under-developed nations to defend themselves against terrorists. The...

Leathernecks sharpen focus on cultural awareness.
March 1, 2006... QUANTICO, VA. -- The Marine Corps has launched an effort to improve the ability of its troops to cope with the complex cultural issues that they are encountering in anti-terrorism and counterinsurgency operations. Here, at the headquarters...

Bio protection: respirator offers protection from deadly agents.(TECH TALK)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2006... An air purifying escape respirator produced by ILC Dover that protects against chemical, biological and nuclear contamination has won approval from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The new mask benefits from an...

Ohio cops receive rolling command center.(TECH TALK)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2006... First responder interoperability is being achieved at the grassroots. A mobile command center packed with radios, landline telephone and cellular hookups, a global positioning system and multiple flat panel monitors has been turned over to the...

Agile training facility suits firefighters.(TECH TALK)
March 1, 2006... HICKSVILLE, N.Y., firefighters are able to conduct training drills at home with multi-room, two-story structures developed by Drager Safety Inc. of Pittsburgh, Pa. "This new structure provides the department with the ability to conduct...

High tech porta-potty introduced.(TECH TALK)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2006... A SELF-CONTAINED processing system imported from Japan by PDA Llc. of Aurora, III., employs a novel system that relies on dehydration and maceration to convert human waste into a powdered ash. The residue is removed by means of vacuum bag for...

Troops inspire array of innovative products.(TECH TALK)
March 1, 2006... THE AIR MOBILITY LAB at Fort Dix, N.J., is converting suggestions from company grade officers and non-corns into an array of diverse and useful products. Some examples include: * A proposal yielded a night vision lighting system for the...

Joint strike fighter gets cleaned up.(TECH TALK)
March 1, 2006... JOINT STRIKE Fighter testers at Edward Air Force Base, Calif., are perfecting processes to cleanse the aircraft of biological and chemical contamination. Biological decontamination, which could be aimed at a lethal agent such as anthrax,...

Ceramic armor advance achieved.(TECH TALK)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2006... What to do with a light, extremely hard substance that would be ideal for body armor, except it tended to crumble and fracture during the manufacturing process? A Georgia Institute of Technology researcher has perfected a process that makes...

'Black Waffle' saves pallets in combat zone.(TECH TALK)
March 1, 2006... A relatively inexpensive low-density hexane copolymer that is molded into an 82-inch by 10-inch by 8-inch rectangle is being used as an equipment pallet that is subsequently loaded on a $1,700 pallet and net system. A rather superfluous...

Light, modular armor vests on display.(TECH TALK)
March 1, 2006... Lightweight, modular body armor systems for military and security personnel--incorporating multi-hit armor technology--were unveiled by Plasan Sasa of Kibbutz Sasa, Israel, at a recent international exhibition. An advanced tactical assault...

Corporate liability: beware of rogues and ostriches.(ETHICS CORNER)
March 1, 2006... A corporation can be liable for a criminal or Civil False Claims Act violation stemming from the conduct of "rogue employees," who are politely known as "adverse agents," and employees who are willfully blind or deliberately ignorant of...

NDIA events calendar.(National Defense Industrial Association)(Calendar)
March 1, 2006... MARCH 15 Missile Defense Monthly Luncheon Arlington, Va. POC: Phyllis Edmonson @ (703) 247-2577 20-23 2006 Joint Services Environmental Management Conference & Exhibition Denver, Colo. POC: Veronica Mien @ (703) 247-2570 Exhibits:...

Affiliate events.(Calendar)
March 1, 2006... MAY 9-10 Fulfilling the Warfighter's Vision 2006: Closing the Information Gap Renaissance Vinoy Resort and Golf Club St. Petersburg, Fla. JUNE 1-2 DoD Research Capabilities for 2010 Ronald Reagan Building Washington, D.C. OCTOBER...

Chapter events.(Calendar)
March 1, 2006... MARCH 14-16 Michigan Chapter 15th Annual TACOM/Industry Logistics Symposium Hyatt Regency Hotel, Dearborn, Mich. APRIL 4-5 Greater Hampton Roads JFCOM Industry Symposium Hampton Roads Convention Center ...