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U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Jorge Chavez, 447th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron Vehicle Maintenance Flight mechanic, removes a roller on a loader. U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Will Ackerman Airmen Keep Fleet Rolling Through Dust, Mud A team of U.S. Air Force mechanics overcome heat, mud and the challenge to obtain replacement parts, to keep more than 300 vehicles running. By U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Will Ackerman 447th Air Expeditionary Group SATHER AIR BASE, Iraq, May 16, 2006 — Working on vehicles in the desert presents challenges. Mechanics sometimes have to scrape off layers of dirt...

ABOARD USS NASSAU, At Sea (NNS) -- Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 8 transited through the Suez Canal April 7, marking the end of more than four months of maritime security operations in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations. ESG 8, composed of the five ships and one submarine in the USS Nassau (LHA 4) Strike Group and the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) (MEU (SOC)), deployed Nov. 4 from Norfolk, Va., as part of a routine deployment of forces. While conducting operations in 5th Fleet, the ESG continuously displayed unique capabilities and continuous flexibility. From serving as...

USS RONALD REAGAN, At Sea (NNS) -- Vice Adm. Patrick M. Walsh, commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/commander, U.S. 5th Fleet (COMUSNAVCENT/5th Fleet), commander, Combined Maritime Forces visited USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) Feb. 27 to welcome the ship’s crew, air wing and embarked carrier strike group staff to the 5th Fleet area of operations (AOO). The Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group is currently supporting Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, as well as conducting maritime security operations (MSO) in the Persian Gulf. Reagan’s aircraft have been supporting ground troops in Iraqi around the clock since arriving in the 5th...

From the NYT obituary (1966-02-21) SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 20--Admiral of the Fleet Chester W. Nimitz died today in his home here. He would have been 81 years old on Thursday. During World War II, he was in charge of assembling the Pacific force of two million men and 1,000 ships that drove the Japanese back to their homeland. The former commander-in-chief of the United States Pacific fleet suffered a cerebral thrombosis, or stroke, early last month. A graveside service and burial with military honors are scheduled for Thursday afternoon at Golden Gate National Cemetery in nearby San Bruno. Earlier that...

USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) and associated strike group units completed their support of Maritime Security Operations (MSO) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) when the carrier and USS San Jacinto (CG 56) transited the Suez Canal Feb. 15 as they continue their return trip home. However, detachments from Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 141 and Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 87, and VFA 15, remain in the Fifth Fleet area of responsibility in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and will rejoin the carrier and its associated air wing, Carrier Air Wing Eight (CVW-8), later this month. The Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group...

ABOARD USS TARAWA, At sea in the Indian Ocean (NNS) -- Four thousand Sailors and Marines of Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 1 entered the 7th Fleet area of operations Jan. 12 en route to their homeport of San Diego after completing their assigned mission in the 5th Fleet region. The ESG-1 flagship, USS Tarawa (LHA 1), the amphibious transport dock USS Cleveland (LPD 7), the amphibious dock landing ship USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) and the embarked Marines of the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit spent more than four months in-theatre. “ESG-1 was simply impressive,” said Vice Adm. Patrick Walsh, Commander...

SAN FRANCISCO (NNS) -- The Friends of the Fleet Foundation of San Francisco welcomed Sailors for Fleet Week at the San Francisco City Hall Oct. 9 with a special "Most Valuable Player Luncheon." Guest speakers Tom Brady Sr. (father of New England Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady Jr.) and Rick Ambrose (from event sponsor Lockheed Martin) mingled with the specially-invited Sailors and Coast Guardsmen, and Ambrose related stories of valor from all the nation's sea services. "Our goal is to salute our Sailors and just say 'thank you,'" said Steve Ware, one of the event organizers. "Anything we can do to...

Three missiles have been fired from the Jordanian port of Aqaba, missing a US Navy ship but hitting Israel. Two rockets missed the USS Ashland, an American naval ship docked in the port. A Jordanian soldier died when one of the two missiles hit the dockside. The third missile landed near Eilat airport in neighbouring Israel, causing no injuries. An internet statement, purportedly from a group which says it has links to al-Qaeda, said it was to blame. The statement, allegedly from the Abdullah al-Azzam Brigades, said the attacks were the group's first attack in Jordan and were aimed at...

SAN DIEGO (NNS) -- The Navy commissioned its newest Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Halsey (DDG 97) July 30 in a ceremony at Pier J, Naval Air Station North Island, Coronado, Calif. Arizona Sen. John McCain, former naval officer, was the key speaker for the event. In his speech, he paid special tribute to his grandfather Adm. John McCain and Fleet Adm. William F. “Bull” Halsey. “My family owes a great debt of gratitude to Adm. Halsey, who personally ordered my grandfather be present on the deck of the USS Missouri when the Japanese formally surrendered,” said Sen. McCain. “For...

Kemah Blessing of the Fleet Kemah-TX (Houston) The Colorful 37th annual Kemah Blessing of the Shrimp and Pleasure Boat Fleet will be held Sunday August 7 at the Kemah boardwalk. Decorated shrimp boats and pleasure craft file past the Cadillac Authentic Mexican Restaurant where the officiating priest and minister bless each of the boats. Bring your family and friends down to the Kemah Boardwalk to witness the festive boats and colorful crews as they parade down the channel in celebration of this time honored tradition. Visit http://www.kemah.net download an entry form or pick one up at Kemah Boardwalk Marina (281)...

King buys golden car fleet with 'purses of the poor' By Christopher Munnion in Johannesburg (Filed: 18/04/2005) King Mswati III of Swaziland has enraged the people of his impoverished kingdom once again by splashing out on a fleet of luxurious German cars at a cost of £500,000. The 36-year-old absolute monarch, under pressure at home and abroad over his autocratic rule and personal profligacy, has bought eight S-350 Mercedes Benz vehicles with gold-plated number plates. In 2004 the King bought BMWs for his 11 wives "He was so taken with the car when he saw it in a brochure that...

“Haven’t we been here before?” by Michael Carl A new report released by a presidential commission says that America’s intelligence agencies were “dead wrong,” about Iraq and the Weapons of Mass Destruction. While any consequences for this latest report are a subject for debate, it is certain that the report will obviously provide further ammunition for President Bush’s political opponents. Yet, the whole scenario of political turmoil in a Middle Eastern nation coupled with election year politics in the United States is an all too familiar scenario. In their respective centuries, Presidents Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and George W. Bush, in...

Pope AFB Loses Nearly Half Of C-130 Fleet To Grounding Delegation Hopes To Update Fleet POSTED: 8:09 am EST February 15, 2005 FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. -- Nearly half of the aging C-130 airplanes at Pope Air Force Base have been grounded because of safety concerns, military officials said. Col. Darren W. McDew, 43rd Airlift Wing commander, said Monday 14 of the 31 four-propeller C-130 Hercules have at Pope are prevented from flying. The planes are used for missions as diverse as dropping Fort Bragg paratroopers on training exercises and hauling cargo around the Persian Gulf. Some members of the North Carolina...

Victory At Yorktown: The Campaign That Won The Revolution by Richard M. Ketchum, Henry Holt and Company, New York, 350 pages. Index, maps, Notes, Principal Character bios. $27.50. “A surprising number of these men had six years of punishing, bloody warfare behind them; six years of hardship and suffering, hunger and tedium, no pay, and unparalleled neglect by their government and fellow Americans… some of these men standing under the hot Virginia sun were survivors of the fights at Concord and Bunker Hill, had suffered bitter defeat with Arnold and Montgomery before Quebec, had been part of the humiliating loss...

TEHRAN (MNA) -- During the latest season of excavations of the northern gate of Takht-e Suleiman, an ancient Zoroastrian fire temple located in northwestern Iran, the stamps of two seals were discovered which indicate that objects entered Takht-e Suleiman from other regions with special tags attached to them which seem to be advertisements. They signify that an early form of advertising was being practiced during the Sassanid era (224-642 C.E.), Yusef Moradi, the head of the excavation team, said on Friday. “The team began its excavations in early August and found the stamps of two seals at the upper levels...

Secrets of an ancient Persian armada sunk off the coast of Greece 2500 years ago are being dredged up by modern archaeologists. A team from Greece, Canada and the United States has just completed a second expedition to retrieve artefacts from 300 ships of the Persian King Darius that were wrecked in a storm off the Mt Athos Peninsula, northern Greece, in 492BC or 493BC. Aucklanders will be among the first to hear the results today when three of the expedition leaders present their findings in a free public lecture at Auckland University. In two trips so far, last October...

I saw the greatest sight this morning. I ride along the West Side Highway every morning - from the 50s to Wall Street and work -- and along the piers, you can see the Iwo Jima and other Navy Vessels proudly arrayed near the USS Intrepid for Fleet Week. And this morning, 200+ marines were running at a fast clip along the pedestrian trail that runs from Fort Washington to the Battery. (I saw them around Houston Street.) I saluted as the stormed past, sounding off. It was a fantastic sight. I thought they would be a welcome permanent addition...

China begins to cut back on its 3.5m fleet of 'perk' cars By Richard Spencer in Beijing (Filed: 02/03/2004) China is "reforming" its 3.5 million-strong fleet of official cars, the government announced yesterday, giving a fresh insight into the privileges lavished on Communist Party officials. The state pays for the running of a car for every 20 members of the party, at a cost of more than £20 billion - more than the government pays on health care - according to the state news agency, Xinhua. Central authorities are now trying to find ways of preventing officials using government cars...

Sixth Fleet may move to Spain John Hooper in Rome and Giles Tremlett in Madrid Saturday February 7, 2004 The Guardian (UK) The American navy said last night that it was considering moving its key, troubleshooting Sixth Fleet away from its base in Italy to Spain. The move would deal a huge blow to the local economy in the area between Rome and Naples, but is likely to be greeted by Italians with as much bafflement as dismay. They had for some time been braced for a decision by Washington to shift the fleet's base port further eastwards, perhaps to...

<p>A top lobbyist for the country’s largest shipbuilders is asking the president to buy 12 ships in the coming year, as the service prepares to submit a budget to Congress with two-thirds of that amount.</p> <p>"In these unprecedented times, when our troops are fighting terrorism both abroad and helping protect our shores here at home, the need for an increase in annual production to 12 ships a year is more important than ever," Cynthia Brown, president of the American Shipbuilding Association, wrote in a Jan. 20 letter to President Bush.</p>