DefendAmerica - Home Page 02/18/2004

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Feb 18, 2004

Saddam's Capture - A Video from Golf Troops' Perspective

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PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE — U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Luke Salkeld, noncommissioned officer in charge of fuels preventive maintenance for the 407th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron's fuels flight, places a brake light on an R-11 refueling truck. Salkeld is deployed to Tallil Air Base, Iraq, from Shaw Air Force Base, S.C. U.S. Air Force photo by Photo by Tech. Sgt. Bob Oldham

Reconstruction Teams Work
To Secure, Rebuild Afghanistan

By Kathleen T. Rhem / American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. 18, 2003 – Officials are happy with the progress of 11 provincial reconstruction teams in Afghanistan and are looking to expand the program throughout the country.
Eleven teams are operating in Afghanistan, with a 12th becoming active this week. Coalition partners operate three of these teams. New Zealand and the United Kingdom each operate a team, while Germany runs one under the auspices of NATO, the top American general in Afghanistan said Feb. 17. More
Briefing Video Report

Bush Thanks Fort Polk Troops, Pledges Vigilance in Terror War

By Donna Miles / American Forces Press Service

President George W. Bush greets national guardsmen as he joins them for lunch at Fort Polk, La., Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2004. White House photo by Paul Morse

WASHINGTON, Feb. 17, 2004 — President Bush credited soldiers and their families at Fort Polk, La., today with “serving with skill and bravery in the war on terror” and leaving “no doubt that that the enemy will be defeated and freedom will prevail.”
The commander in chief thanked troops at this northwest Louisiana post that has trained and deployed more than 10,000 troops in the war of terror. More Remarks

Coalition Continues Offensive Operations in Iraqi Freedom

ByJohn D. Banusiewicz / American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. 17, 2004 - Calling the military situation in Iraq "relatively stable," Combined Joint Task Force 7's deputy operations director detailed recent military activity during a Baghdad news conference today.
Army Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt said the past week has seen an average of 17 engagements daily against coalition military forces, just over four per day against Iraqi security forces and fewer than two per day against Iraqi civilians. More

Outreach Programs Point Iraqis Toward Road To Democracy

Fear of Free Iraq Fuels Terror Attacks, Kimmitt Says

U.S., Coalition Forcing Taliban
To Change Tactical Response

By Kathleen T. Rhem / American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. 17, 2004 — U.S. and coalition actions in Afghanistan have forced terrorist groups operating there to change their strategies. So coalition forces continue to adapt their tactical approach in response, the top U.S. general in that country said today.
Army Lt. Gen. David Barno, commander of Combined Forces Command Afghanistan, explained that Taliban forces used to attack coalition elements in large numbers, until they realized that would get them killed in large numbers. More

Iraq Weekly Progress Update (Governance, Electricity, Education, Oil, Security, Economics, Health Care)

U.S. Defense Dept. slides with facts &
figures on reconstruction efforts in Iraq.

. White House Fact Sheet: Progress in Iraq

. Iraq Update . Maps of Iraq

. Iraq's 55 Most Wanted

. Mass Graves

USS Yorktown Deploys
To Support War on Terror

PASCAGOULA, Miss., Feb. 18, 2004 (NNS) — The guided-missile cruiser USS Yorktown and its crew of approximately 400 deployed Feb. 17 from its homeport at Naval Station Pascagoula to be part of the USS Wasp Expeditionary Strike Group, which is making its maiden deployment as an Expeditionary Strike Group in support of the global war on terrorism.
Yorktown is slated to be the surface warfare commander for the strike group, meaning that the ship and its crew will lead the defense of the group against any surface threat. Story

USS George Washington Joins 5th Fleet

Coalition Ups Rewards Program

WASHINGTON, Feb. 17, 2004 — An enhanced, three-tiered reward program is the coalition's latest weapon against insurgents in Iraq, officials announced at a Baghdad news conference today.
The program's top tier covers the 10 members of the "Top 55" most-wanted members of Saddam Hussein's regime who remain at large. More

All Soldiers To Wear
U.S. Flag Insignia

WASHINGTON, Feb. 17, 2004 (Army News Service) — All soldiers can now wear the U.S. flag insignia on the right shoulder of their utility uniform, as a continued reminder that the Army is engaged in a war at home and abroad.
“The flag has been around for years to identify deploying troops. Now based on the Army’s joint expeditionary mindset, the flag represents our commitment to fight the war on terror for the foreseeable future,” said Sgt. Maj. Walter Morales, the uniform policy chief for G1. More

Commander Visits 'Old Guard'
Troops in Horn of Africa

CAMP LEMONIER, Djioubti, Feb. 17, 2004 — The regimental commander of the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, “The Old Guard,” visited the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa this week to meet with Old Guard soldiers deployed here.
Col. Chuck Taylor toured the region with the Regimental Command Sergeant Major Harry Wimbrough and regimental chaplain Maj. Raymond Robinson. More

Marine Sgt. Maj. Visits U.S. Troops in Georgia

Transformation

New Bouy System to Protect
Navy Ships from Terror Attacks

NAVAL WEAPONS STATION SEAL BEACH, Calif., Feb. 17, 2004 (NNS) — As part of an ongoing program to protect U.S. Navy ships from terrorist attacks, Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach began installation of a new barrier system in Anaheim Bay in mid-January.
The barriers are an added component of the force protection measures already in place to thwart small craft attacks of the type that damaged USS Cole in the port of Aden, Yemen, in October 2000. Story

More Transformation News

Radio

Television

Convoy Through Khyber Pass 6 More Photos

With a steady flow of people passing as they cross the border, members of the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force - Afghanistan and the 19th Special Forces Group move through the village of Torkham, Afghanistan, in the Khyber Pass, following a border security meeting in Pakistan, Feb. 10, 2004. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Joe Belcher Photo Essay Archive

‘Screaming Eagles’ Retrieve Aircraft from Jacksonville Port

By U.S. Army Pfc. Dallas Walker / Fort Campbell Public Affairs Office

Soldiers of 8th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment wrestle a CH-47D helicopter into hoisting position aboard the USNS Benavidez Feb. 16 at Jacksonville, Fla. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Dallas Walker

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Feb. 18, 2004 — Things have come full circle for the soldiers of 8th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment.
Just over a year ago at Jacksonville, they loaded the helicopters of the "Screaming Eagle" 101st Airborne Division on cargo vessels bound for Kuwait. This week, these same aircraft arrived back at Jacksonville, and many of the same soldiers, now combat-hardened, were waiting for them. More

U.S. Troops Train Iraqi
Civil Defense Corps Soldiers

Sgt. Marlon Harper (right), a tanker with C Troop, 1st Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, and an Iraqi Civil Defense Corps instructor, conducts an after-action review with Iraqi soldiers at Baghdad International Airport's Camp Slayer. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Shauna McRoberts

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Feb. 18, 2004 – Soldiers from 1st Armored Division’s 1st Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment are spending the next month training soldiers from the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps. The Iraqi Civil Defense Corps is a home guard consisting of Iraqi citizens who volunteered to serve their nation and fight terrorist insurgents within their homeland.
The Iraqi Civil Defense Corps soldiers of B and C Company, 304th Battalion, 40th Brigade, originally trained with U.S. soldiers from 82nd Airborne’s 2nd Brigade. “We’re taking what the soldiers of the 82nd Airborne Division taught them and building on it,” said 1st Lt. Matt Weightman, a scout platoon leader with C Troop, 1st Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment. More

Iraqi Security Force Members Honored For Explosives Disposal Work

V Corps Troops Return Home
From Iraqi Freedom Deployment

MANNHEIM, Germany, Feb. 17, 2004 -- Enthusiastic families, friends and co-workers were on hand at Tompkins Barracks Feb. 11 to greet soldiers of V Corps Artillery, the command element for the corps’ field artillery assets, marking the end of their year-long deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
As chance would have it, the unit's homecoming ceremony occurred on the same date it deployed 140 of its soldiers exactly one year ago. More

Family, Friends, Fresh Paint
Greet Returning Soldiers

Spc. Jeremy Kersey, a member of V Corps’ Alpha Company, 302nd Military Intelligence Battalion, kisses his six-month old son Jacob upon the unit’s return to Patton Barracks in Heidelberg, Germany Feb. 13 from a year-long deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. U.S. Army photo

HEIDELBERG, Germany, Feb. 17, 2004 - An extra-special treat greeted soldiers of the Alpha Company of V Corps' 302nd Military Intelligence Battalion when they returned here Feb. 13 at the end of their year-long deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
As family and friends greeted them, those troops got an added bonus -- newly renovated living quarters for them at their home station on Heidelberg’s Patton Barracks. "Being deployed, you always miss the little things the most," said Spc. Edward Dingman. "Coming back to something like this, I really feel loved and appreciated." More

War on Terrorism

. FBI Chief Mueller: Counterterrorism is FBI's Top Priority

. Panel to Review Detainees Housed at Guantanamo Bay

. U.S. Troops Work Closely with Iraqi Police and Security Forces

. Rumsfeld Staunchly Defends Preemption to European Officials

. Croatian PM Voices Support for U.S. Policy of Preemption

Iraq

. Dangerous Detainees Important To Intell Effort, Rumsfeld Says

. Terrorists Know Time Running Out as Iraqi Sovereignty Nears

. Terrorists Must Lose Race For Weapons of Mass Murder

. Some Iraqi Cities Not Ready For Local Control, Kimmitt Says

. Bomb Kills 2 Soldiers; Coalition Campaign Focuses on Zarqawi

Military News

. Air Force 'Patriot Express' Flights Diverted to Support Deployments

. Some Reservists Eligible For New Health Benefits

. Nat'l Guard Unit's Deployment 'Different' Than Active, Reserve

. Myers Praises Guard Troops, Families for Service, Sacrifice

. Defense Leaders Urge Proper Funding to Face Terror Threats

. National Guard, Reserve Update

Defense Officials
Identify Army Casualty

WASHINGTON, Feb. 17, 2004 — Defense Department officials announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Spc. Michael M. Merila, 23, of Sierra Vista, Ariz., died Feb. 16 in Talifar, Iraq, when his convoy was hit by an improvised explosive device. Merila was assigned to the Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, Fort Lewis, Wash.

Remembering the Fallen

'Coulter’s Place'
Remembers Fallen Soldier

Maj. Doug Babb, 124th Signal Battalion executive Officer, dedicates the battalion's new Internet café at Forward Operating Base Ironhorse, Tikrit, Iraq Feb. 1, 2004. The building is dedicated to the memory of Chief Warrant Officer Alexander S. Coulter, who was killed Nov. 17. 2003. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Benjamin R. Kibbey

FORWARD OPERATING BASE IRONHORSE, Tikrit, Iraq, Feb. 18, 2004 — Since the beginning of Coalition operations in Iraq, there has been effort here to improve the quality of life for soldiers, including providing such amenities as Internet and satellite phones.
Before he was killed Nov. 17, Chief Warrant Officer Alexander Scott Coulter worked to provide that kind of communication to Soldiers Task Force Ironhorse. More

Sign an On-line Thank You Note

Valentine's Day Messages to the Troops

More Afghanistan Update Details

. Maps of Afghanistan

Defense Leaders Speak

President George W. Bush

"...The men and women we have sent to Iraq and Afghanistan have given vital service in the war on terror....We and our coalition have delivered more than 50 million people from cruel oppression. We've removed sources of violence and instability....We've removed from power enemies of this country. We have made America more secure."

Remarks at Fort Polk, La., Feb. 17, 2004

Defense Views
Quotes by U.S. defense leaders

Profile

U.S. Air Force
Lt. Col. Michael Fossum

Air Force Lt. Col. Michael Fossum (left) and fellow astronaut Steven Swanson train inside a specially built KC-135 Stratotanker at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston for an upcoming mission. During initial astronaut training, the modified aircraft is used to test tools and basic techniques in moving around in zero gravity. Fossum is a reservist assigned to the F-16 system program office at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. Courtesy photo

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio — An Air Force reserve officer assigned to the F-16 Fighting Falcon system program office here is one of four NASA astronauts named to fly on space shuttle mission STS-121. The mission, planned for November, will follow a shuttle mission scheduled for September.
Lt. Col. Michael Fossum, an individual mobilization augmentee, will serve as a mission specialist, responsible for supporting flight operations during launch and re-entry. More

More Profiles

In Iraq

Camp Falcon Weather Team
Helps Put Steel on Target

Spc. Kate Waters meteorological team crewmember, assigned to the 1st Armored Division Artillery Combat Team, prepares a weather balloon during a recent meteorological team mission to gather weather data for various field artillery positions around Baghdad. U.S. Army photo

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Feb. 16, 2004 — For three soldiers, having one of the Army's smallest military job skills, and to some, probably the most unknown job supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom, can be frustrating and rewarding at the same time. More

'On The Ground' Archive