Navy Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a sailor who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom Horn of Africa.

Constructionman Trevor J. Stanley, 22, of Virginia Beach, Va., died April 7 while deployed to Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti.  Stanley, a Seabee, was assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 3, homeported in Port Hueneme, Calif.

For further information related to this release, contact Lt. Cmdr. Dave Benham at 011-39-081-568-4727 or by email at david.benham@eu.navy.mil .

Texas Army National Guard members teach combatives course in Djibouti

By Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Malcom McClendon

Texas National Guard

CAMP LEMONNIER, Djibouti (3/29/12) - On a make-shift training area, Soldiers and Marines grappled, tackled and clinched their way to graduation from a Modern Army Combatives Program here, March 12-16.

Texas Army National Guard members with Task Force Raptor, 3rd Squadron, 124th Cavalry Regiment, hosted the class and certified 19 new instructors.

The Level-One Instructor Certification course covered a wide range of combat training skills, said Army 1st Lt. Joshua Kane, Task Force Raptor member and MACP instructor.

“We have provided realistic training and defenses in hand-to-hand combat,” Kane added. “We got into weapon retention, knee strikes, punch drills, how to utilize your Kevlar helmet as a weapon in defensive measures, and even using your weight to throw an opponent off balance.”

Kane shared his enthusiasm for the graduates’ recent accomplishment.

“This course in particular is an instructor’s course,” Kane said. “These are basic yet important skills that these new instructors are taking back to their units, and therefore the program continues to grow.”

Army Sgt. Candice Perez, Task Force Raptor member MACP class participant, said there is more to the program than just physical might.

“It’s like a chess game,” Perez said. “The main thing is to stay calm, control your breathing, and think. Don’t try to muscle your way through everything. There’s always a way out of any hold or position you are in.”

Kane and his fellow instructors plan on certifying more service members during their time here.

 “The great thing about this class is that it can be taught anywhere,” Kane said. “I’ve taught it at Fort Benning, Ga., Camp Mabry in Texas, Army bases everywhere, and now here in Djibouti. As long as you have mats and Soldiers willing to learn, it can be taught anywhere.”

Djibouti: Army National Guard conducts water drilling tests at Camp Lemonnier

By Air Force Senior Airman Lael Huss

U.S. Air Force

CAMP LEMONNIER, Djibouti (3/22/12) - It’s isolated, noisy and messy – but if successful could be beneficial to Camp Lemonnier and local Djiboutians. Thanks to new equipment, U.S. Army National Guard 257th Engineer Team drilled four water test wells in different locations here, March 12 to 19.

 “The wells are part of a study to determine if pulling water from a beach aquifer is a viable option for removing Camp Lemonnier from the Djiboutian Fresh Water Aquifer and leaving that resource solely for the Djiboutians,” said Army Capt. Joseph Bzdok, 257th Engineer Team commander.

The well development project directly supports Camp Lemonnier’s initiative to identify alternative well locations and assist in future development of camp infrastructure. 

The team conducted a 24-hour constant rate test for future development and testing of camp aquifer water tables.  A constant rate test is a constant pumping of a well to determine what amount of water can be pumped out at a sustained rate for an indefinite amount of time.

“The pump test right now is pumping at 540 gallons per minute,” Bzdok said. “If the lowering of the water table level of the static water level does not change significantly, we know it can sustain 540 gallons per minute.”

The team finished the last of four test wells four days ahead of schedule.

“The sandy soil conditions have allowed us to drill faster, but the sandy soil is also harder to stabilize from collapsing down the hole,” Bzdok said.

 “The sea water level is very shallow and doesn’t support heavy equipment operations well,” said Army Sgt. 1st Class Shane Banks, 257th Engineer Team drill leader.

 “(There’s) less than an eight-inch crust (of soil),” Bzdok said. ”The rest is goop underneath.”

The team set up the rig in three locations around the final well site, but the weight of the rig caused it to sink into the soft sand and underlying glop.

“The third hole had to be abandoned after it was drilled and cased, and a fourth well had to be drilled for the pump test (due to the soil collapsing down the hole.) So the unit actually drilled four complete holes and cased three of them,” Bzdok said.

The team is using this experience as on-the-job training to work out any kinks in the new equipment before using the machines out in the field.

“It is a lot easier to deal with equipment needs and repairs here than eight hours away,” says Banks about their upcoming missions throughout the Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa’s area of responsibility.

Despite the challenges and constant maintenance issues, Banks said the team knows the wells and testing will “help support the success of the camp and the health and missions of the (personnel) stationed at Camp Lemonnier.”

Pentagon: No Enemy Involvement in Djibouti Air Force Crash

By Cheryl Pellerin
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON  – Four Air Force special operators were killed Feb. 18 when their single-engine U-28 aircraft crashed in Djibouti on the Horn of Africa, Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said today.

“This is obviously a tragic incident,” Little said about the accident, which occurred at the Djibouti-Ambouli International Airport in Djibouti City. Camp Lemonnier, located nearby, is the main base of operations for U.S. Africa Command in the Horn of Africa.

The airmen had been conducting a surveillance and reconnaissance mission, Little said. “There is absolutely no indication of any kind of enemy involvement in the downing of the plane,” he added.

Little said the Air Force mission was in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, which includes operations in Afghanistan, the Philippines, the Horn of Africa and elsewhere. The special operators -- all were from Hurlburt Field, an Air Force installation in Okaloosa County, Fla. -- were:

-- Capt. Ryan P. Hall, 30, of Colorado Springs, Colo., assigned to the 319th Special Operations Squadron.

-- Capt. Nicholas S. Whitlock, 29, of Newnan, Ga., and 1st Lt. Justin J. Wilkens, 26, of Bend, Ore., both assigned to the 34th Special Operations Squadron.

-- Senior Airman Julian S. Scholten, 26, of Upper Marlboro, Md., assigned to the 25th Intelligence Squadron.

Little said a dignified transfer ceremony took place at the Dover Air Force Base military mortuary in Delaware early this morning “for our returning fallen heroes who were involved in this crash.”

A safety board investigation has been initiated to determine the cause of the incident, according to a statement on the Africa Command website. The accident occurred at about 8 p.m. local time, the statement said, and U.S. military personnel were dispatched to the scene.

“We need to understand precisely what happened in this tragic incident,” Little said.

Panetta Thanks Troops in Djibouti

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

CAMP LEMONNIER, Djibouti, Dec. 13, 2011 – Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta kicked off a trip to various countries, thanking members of Combined Joint Task Force Horn of Africa here for their role in maintaining stability and preventing conflict in the region.

The visit was Panetta’s first to Djibouti, to be followed later this week with a stop in Iraq, where he will participate in ceremonies marking the end of the U.S. military mission there. The secretary also will visit Turkey and become the first U.S. defense secretary to visit Libya.

Panetta met here with President Ismail Omar Guelleh at the Djiboutian White House to discuss what he told reporters has become “a very important partnership” in dealing with counterterrorism, counter-piracy and outreach into Africa.

He noted that with significant progress against al-Qaida in the border region between Afghanistan and Pakistan, some terrorist elements have migrated to key nodes such as Yemen and Somalia.

“Efforts to go after them require important partnerships in that part of the world,” he said. “And Djibouti helps provide that partnership for operations that continue, not only against al-Qaida, but obviously against al-Shabaab as well.”

Panetta’s talks focused on the ongoing struggle against al-Shabaab, a terrorist group that controls large sections of southern Somalia, and on Djibouti’s upcoming troop deployment to the African Union Mission to Somalia, a senior defense official traveling with him said.

The secretary kicked off his visit here meeting with about 500 troops assigned to Combined Joint Task Force Horn of Africa to thank them for their service.

“I can’t tell you how proud I am as secretary of defense to visit you” and extend “thanks on behalf of a grateful nation,” he told the group.

“You have done everything the nation has asked you to do,” he said, continuing the American dream of ensuring a better life for the next generation.

Camp Lemonnier is the only enduring U.S. base in Sub-Saharan Africa, with nearly 3,500 members representing all services as well as the National Guard and reserves, Navy Capt. Owen Travis, the task force’s director of plans, told reporters.

The task force initially stood up in November 2002 as a seafaring force aimed at blocking terrorists fleeing Afghanistan from setting up a new safe haven here. But within six months, it moved ashore to this former French Foreign Legion base.

Today, CJTF-HOA uses a “whole of government” approach to focus on challenges in a region strategic because of its geographic location, resources and struggles with instability, Travis said.

In doing so, they apply multiple elements of U.S. national power -- the so-called “three D’s” of defense, diplomacy and development –- to their mission with an array of military-to-military efforts aimed at building capacity and humanitarian and civic-support activities.

Projects go beyond digging wells and building or refurbishing schools. The task force ensures that the host nations are able to sustain what’s done and that the work contributes to the big-picture goals here.

The ultimate goal, Travis said, is to help African nations build capability so they can promote regional security and stability and prevent conflict.

Panetta thanked CJTF-HOA’s members for their contributions toward counterterrorism, counter-piracy and humanitarian assistance that are making a difference in the region.

He noted Djibouti’s central location in the fight against extremism and the role CJTF-HOA plays in helping make the region less hospitable to al-Qaida and other terrorist fringes.

“We have made a commitment,” he said. “We will track these guys wherever they go and make sure they have no place to hide.”

The goal, he said, is to ensure al-Qaida never again has the opportunity or capacity to attack the U.S. homeland.

As they do so, Panetta promised to work to ensure the U.S. military remains the world’s best, even in the face of looming budget challenges.

He vowed not to repeat mistakes of the past in creating a “hollow force” and to use a balanced approach in setting budget priorities. Most of all, he promised to “keep faith with all of you” and protect the benefits they and their families deserve.

Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Joseph Howell, with almost 27 years of service under his belt, said he was gratified to hear Panetta promise to ensure retirement benefits are grandfathered.

For Air Force Col. Dave Barnes, Panetta was “spot on with his message.”

“It’s important to have an advocate and know he is in our corner,” he said. “I think he hit a home run.”