OCR Text |
Show AIR FORCE NEWS Brooks helps detect avian flu 311th Human Systems Wing WASHINGTON (AFPN) — Military personnel and veterans will receive 300,000 wallet-sized cards and key charms with critical employment and jobtraining information in the next six months, the U.S. Department of Labor said. The department also unveiled the recovery and employment assistance lifelines — REALifelines — Advisor. This new online tool will provide valuable information and resources to help returning wounded and injured veterans successfully transition into civilian employment, Labor Department officials said. "The 'Key To Career Success' cards and REALifelines online advisor are part of our outreach efforts to help veterans and returning soldiers access good job opportunities and develop new career pathways," Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao said. "Our servicemen and women have put themselves in harm's way to protect our homeland and help other countries achieve freedom and democracy." "We want to do everything we can to welcome them home and facilitate their reintegration into civilian U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Alfonso Ramirez life," she said. Lee Noel studies influenza strain samples. Mr. Noel is a technician at the Air Force Institute for Operational Health The card will be attached to a brochure for demobivirology laboratory here. lizing and transitioning servicemembers as they go its nucleic acid genome. Shift on a network of global sentiSuch was the case in 1918, through the joint Labor Department, Department of nel (early warning) sites, Ms. with the Spanish flu; in 1957's mutations, however, involve Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense TransiCanas noted. "Our surveillarger genetic segments and Asian flu; and 1968's Hong tion Assistance Program. For veterans who have alcan occur in naturally circulat- lance data is shared with the Kong flu. These outbreaks ready made the transition, additional information and Food & Drug Administration's ing flu 'A' strains. killed millions worldwide. professional staff guidance will be available at the "The problem (leading to po- Vaccine and Related Biological nearly 3,500 One-Stop Career Centers nationwide. To cause a pandemic, it tential pandemics) is someone Products Advisory Commitwould have to mutate. For The card will help veterans access local One-Stop Catee," she said. avian flu to become pandemic, infected with a normal circureer Center services connecting them to employers This information is comit would have to mix its genes lating flu 'A' strain is (also) coseeking men and women with the unique skill sets infected with avian flu," Major pared with other surveillance with those from the naturally and experience characterized'by military service. information and used to Eddington said. circulating flu A' strain to It will also highlight veterans' special status so that, develop North American flu He said, the co-mingling of transform so that it becomes upon arrival centers, they will receive priority service vaccines. Typically, flu vacvirus strains creates condieasily transmissible from as required under the Jobs for Veterans Act. cines are composed of two 'A' tions for gene sharing. This human to human, said Linda The back of the card and key charm features a tollstrains and one 'B' strain. All occurs after an infected cell Canas, chief of the institutes' free phone number, (877) US2-JOBS (TTY: 877-889produces gene segments from flu vaccines and anti-flu previrology section. 5627), and Web link, www.servicelocator.org, to help scription drugs, such as the Influenza viruses are known both strains and they mix veterans speak with a service representative or locate FDA-approved prophylactic together during the process to transform with some the nearest One-Stop Career Center and download a Tamiflu, are made overseas. called self assembly. During frequency. This is why surmap and driving directions. Air Force scientists know this process, the virus mutates veillance exists to determine Akeyfeature of the REALifelines Advisor is that it ofcurrent flu vaccines offer no into a new variation in which which strain is best for the fers one-on-one assistance through the department's protection against avian flu, humans have no immunity. current vaccine, Major Edstate directors for DOL's Veterans' Employment and Ms. Canas said. "The Air Force has stepped dington said. Training Service. These directors will help the tranup worldwide avian flu surveil- "We have very little informa"With the influenza virus, sitioning service member or veteran find meaningful tion on the use of Tamiflu," two different mutations called lance. That includes research employment through the One-Stop Career Centers she said. "The only thing that sites in South America and 'shift' and 'drift' exist," Major and arrange for assistance to help determine what it seems to help is morbidity Thailand," Ms. Canas said. Eddington said. services and programs are best suited for them. (onset of illness). We don't Since 1997, the Air Force He said the drift mutation The REALifelines Advisor is one of a series of onknow how it will affect mortal- line has'been executive agent for process involves a small tools called "elaws" for Employment Laws Assisity." nucleic acid variation that oc- the laboratory-based Global tance for Workers and Small Businesses, which are (Courtesy of Air Force Mate- interactive Web sites providing information about Emerging Infections System. curs after the virus invades a Command News Service) riel This tri-service system relies cell and during replication of major federal employment laws and issues. (Courtesy of American Forces Press Service) 'Cop-pilots' fly their own kind of plane BY TECH. SGT. PAUL DEAN 407th Air Expeditionary Group public affairs ALI BASE, Iraq (AFPN) —The glamour of their "piloting" job may not match that of F-15 Eagle or F-16 Fighting Falcon "fighter jocks." But a group of enlisted Airmen here are using their wings to do a job both kinds of pilots do — provide base security through air superiority. The half-dozen Airmen — 407th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron troops — pilot tiny unmanned aerial reconnaissance vehicles that provide lowcost, low-risk video of any terrain over which they fly. The tiny planes transmit real-time data — day or night — to a ground based operator (the pilot) for analysis and risk assessment. The second operator (the copilot) does the pre-launch checks and provides launch assistance. A portable computer controls the UAVs flight controls and flight paths until the pilot spots trouble and switches to "Udrive," and takes control from the computer. "This isn't what people think it is. It isn't a toy and it's not just a remote controlled plane," said Senior Airman Shawn Fernandez, a team pilot. Team members are hand-picked for the job at their home stations and attend specialized training to operate the UAVs before deploying. The teams can cover a lot of ground with their UAVs. Plus using them costs less and is less risky than using manned ground patrols. "This is a really great system," team memberSeniorAirmanJoAnnBonzisaid. "It allows us to cover a lot of territory that would be hard, if not impossible, to keep an eye on properly any other way." The UAV is almost silent as it goes about its business. And like a U-2 reconnaissance aircraft flying many thousands of feet higher, this mini-UAV's imagery allows a trained operator to spot any kind of potentially aggressive situations, setups or enemy. "Every [Airman] here plays a part in base defense — especially security forces. This (UAV operations) is just one part of it. But it's a great part to be involved in," said Airman 1st Class Eric Vaughn, another team member. The UAV operators are called pilots and copilots in part because of shared responsibilities they have with traditional flyers. Just like a manned flight, UAV pilots and copilots have to notify the air control tower about their location, get clearance to launch and check the flying weather forecast before a mission. Staff Sgt. Chenoa Abbott is the noncommissioned officer in charge of the FPASS team. She said flying the UAVs is "really a different role for a person from security forces to take on." But she said, "It has really opened my eyes and given me a chance to see what the skies of the Air Force are really like." cials in Europe said. This ends the benefit known as combatzone tax exclusion. This decision does not affect the imminent danger pay benefit, which gives troops serving in TAirkey $225 more a month. American forces serving in TAirkey began receiving this benefit in January 2003 in anticipation of Operation Iraqi Freedom, said Deborah McK- Online process simplifies tuition assistance BY STAFF SGT. JULIE WECKERLEIN Air Force Print News U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Paul Dean Senior Airman JoAnn BonzP releases a miniature unmanned aerial vehicle. The UAV is tied to a bungee cord stretched between the mission "pilot" and "copilot" during a slingshot takeoff. The motor starts automatically when It reaches a predetermined speed. Airman Bonzl was a copilot for this mission. U.S. troops in Turkey will no longer receive tax exclusion STUTTGARTVAIHINGEN, Germany (AFPN) — Beginning Dec. 31, U.S. military members in Turkey will no longer be exempt from paying federal taxes. U.S. European Command requested, and the Pentagon approved, terminating Turkey's certification as an area in direct support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, U.S. military offi- AROUND THE AIR FORCE Labor Department launches Veterans employment program BYRUDYPUR1FICAT0 BROOKS CITY-BASE, Texas (AFPN) — An epidemiology laboratory here is working to develop more effective and timely methods for detecting the deadly avian flu virus. The Air Force Institute for Operational Health's epidemiology division is doing the research. The effort will support a worldwide Air Force surveillance program designed to safeguard American servicemembers from a potential outbreak. The division is at the forefront of an Air Force initiative to create more reliable and faster testing procedures for H5N1, the influenza virus that scientists believe has spread from birds to humans across three continents. "We're developing (DNA testing) to rapidly screen for avian flu," said molecular biologist Maj. David Eddington, the division's microbiology chief. This year Air Force scientists began the process of developing new technology to detect avian flu. The new assay — DNA testing — uses polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, technology. This is an easy method for generating unlimited copies of any fragment of DNA. Additionally, the organization is capable of performing molecular sequencing of the viral genome which helps detect mutations, the major said. Since first appearing in Asian poultry in 1997, the highly pathogenic avian influenza, its scientific name, has mostly killed people who have been in direct contact with domesticated fowl. The deadly respiratory strain has become zoonotic (jumping from nonhuman host to people), leading to the first reported human death in 1997 in Hong Kong. Scientists fear that its transmission between humans could trigger a pandemic. Hilltop Times November 23, 2005 A servicemember serving one oy-Phillips, EUCOM entitleday in an area identified on ments program analyst. European command routine- the combat-zone tax exclusion ly monitors identified areas in list allows that person to be exempt from federal taxes for its theater to ensure the combat-zone requirements still ap- that entire month. Normally it is reimbursed upon filing indiply, McKoy-Phillips said. As part of a recent review, evalua- vidual taxes with the IRS at the tors determined that Turkey no end of the year.-For eligibility requirements, check with your longer met the requirements. local finance office. The combat-zone tax exclusion benefit, when in effect, is (Courtesy of American Forces provided in one-month blocks. Press Service) WASHINGTON (AFPN)— Airmen are only a few mouse clicks away from financial support for their college education, thanks to the tuition assistance feature on the Air Force's virtual education center. Online since early 2003, the center helps activeduty, Guard and reserve Airmen pursue their offduty education from a computer. "It's a continual process to make [the site] a onestop shop for an Airman's educational needs," said Kendall McAree, the Air Force's education systems manager at the Pentagon. "We're very excited to be able to now make tuition assistance available online." Air Force tuition assistance is a quality of life program that provides tuition assistance and fees for college courses taken by active duty Airmen during off-duty hours. It's capped at $250 per semester hour — $166 per quarter hour — and is one of the most frequent reasons Airmen give for e'nlisting and reenlisting in the Air Force, according to the Web site. Now that all application paperwork is online, Mrs. McAree hopes more Airmen will take advantage of the program. "Airmen can now access the information anywhere at any time, whether they are at home or deployed somewhere," she said. "With the online signature, all the paperwork can be routed through the appropriate channels faster and more efficiently." . That means Airmen do not visit an education center, which is good, "because some Airmen are in places where there are no education centers," she. said. Mrs. McAree said the new online capability also frees up education center workers, who spent a lot of time doing the paperwork involved with tuition assistance. Now they can devote more time to faceto-face counseling and assisting customers, she said. Along with tuition assistance, Airmen can use the Web site to check their Community College of the Air Force progress, request transcript and civilian course conversion tables, distance learning information, DANTES and CLEP test results and more. The Air Force Virtual Education Center link is available through' the Air Force Portal at www. my.af.mil. - |