US Military News, Reports, Data, etc.

FuManChu said:

My mistake.

I wonder why China does this when it knows the attacks will get traced back. Does it think it can't be traced back to the PLA, that it doesn't care if they're traced back, or even that the PLA did this without trying to obtain consent of the government?

In any case it isn't good for China's standing in the international community, especially when other countries have made similar reports recently.

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By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Michael W. Pulley, Diego Garcia Public Affairs

DIEGO GARCIA, British Indian Ocean Terrority (NNS) -- After spending most of Labor Day with U.S. troops serving in Iraq, President George W. Bush made a very brief morning visit Sept. 4 to one of the U.S. Navy’s most remote duty stations in the world: the U.S. Navy Support Facility (NSF) on the island of Diego Garcia, in British Indian Ocean Territory.

“This is the third time now the president has visited a command I’ve been a part of and I’ve always noticed how he gets energized shaking hands and saying hello to our service men and women,” said Capt. Greg L. Looney, NSF Diego Garcia’s commanding officer.

The visit was scheduled with less than 12 hours of notice and a lot of work needed to be done in that short amount of time to prepare for the president’s arrival.

“With as little time as we had, I thought we did a pretty good job,” Looney said.

Security protocols needed to be reviewed and implemented and extra measures had to be put in place to accommodate the president’s aircraft, Air Force One.

“Everyone who worked through the night to get things ready did a fantastic job,” Looney added.

In less than 90 minutes, Bush met with more than 100 military members from both the Navy and Air Force and took the time to pose for several group photographs.

“We got to meet the President and shake his hand,” said Air Traffic Controller 2nd Class (AW/SW) Dustin Wolford, one of the air traffic controllers who helped get Air Force One on-island. “It was exciting, a once in a lifetime experience.”

This was Bush’s first visit to Diego Garcia and the first visit from any U.S. president in quite some time.

Along with meeting many of the Sailors and Airmen of the island, the president took time to speak with Capt. Looney and Royal Navy Cmdr. Gary Brooks, the British Representative for the island, about the many missions of Diego Garcia and its strategic importance in the world.

“He was really interested ... and he understands the importance of our mission,” said Looney.

Despite the short amount of time the president was able to spend on the island, military members were nonetheless grateful to their commander-in-chief for taking time out of his busy schedule to spend time with them.

“I appreciate the president and his team stopping here and being gracious enough to come off the aircraft,” Looney said. “The Sailors, Airmen, chiefs and officers all really appreciated it as well.”

Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice was part of the official party and also spent time meeting with the military members of Diego Garcia.

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The US Air Force has launched an investigation after a B-52 bomber flew across the US last week mistakenly loaded with nuclear-armed missiles. It follows reports in the Army Times that five missiles were unaccounted for during the three-hour flight from North Dakota to Louisiana. The air force said the cruise missiles were safe at all times.

Army Times said the missiles were to be decommissioned but were mistakenly mounted on the bomber's wings. The W80-1 warhead has a yield of five to 150 kilotons, the paper said.

The flight took place on 30 August, from the Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota to the Barksdale Air Force Base, near Bossier City, in Louisiana. Air force spokesman Lt Col Ed Thomas said although this was an "isolated incident", Air Combat Command had directed a "command-wide stand down to review process at all of our bases".

Col Thomas said a general had been appointed to investigate the incident and would report by 14 September. "At no time was there a threat to public safety. It is important to note that munitions were safe, secure and under military control at all times," Col Thomas said. "The air force takes its mission to safeguard weapons seriously. No effort will be spared to ensure that the matter is thoroughly and completely investigated."

Army Times quoted the colonel as saying the loading crew involved had been temporarily "decertified" pending retraining and the investigation. A military official told AFP news agency that President George W Bush had been informed of the mix-up. "There are procedures in place and they kicked in and worked," the official said.

The BBC's Adam Brookes in Washington says experts have made it clear that if the plane had crashed there would not have been a nuclear explosion but there could have been a threat from plutonium leakage.

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TerraN_EmpirE said:

OOPS!! looks like the B52 ran one more Cold war patrol...

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Norfolk said:

You can say that again. I mean, how does something like this happen? Isn't there supposed to be the most rigid security regulations and procedures surrounding anything to do with these weapons? The Bomber Wings are filled with pros, guys who know what they are doing and who are used to working under tight security and procedures, not amateurs, so presumably something just freakish must have occurred for this to happen. Still, despite this the other procedures in place worked, and nothing else serious occurred.

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