Chinese Sub Pops Up Undetected in U.S. Navy Exercise
http://www.clevelandleader.com/node/3540
Recently, when a Chinese submarine popped up undetected in the middle of a Pacific Ocean exercise, dangerously close to the U.S.S. Kitty Hawk, American military chiefs were left dumbfounded and red-faced, according to UK newspaper, Daily Mail.
When the Navy deploys a battle fleet on exercises, they take the security of the aircraft carriers very seriously. At least a dozen warships are used to provide a physical guard, and using advanced technology they are able to detect and deter any potential intruders.
By the time the Chinese sub surfaced, the 160ft Song Class diesel-electric attack submarine sailed within viable range for launching torpedoes or missles at the U.S.S. Kitty Hawk, a 1,000ft. supercarrier with 4,500 military personnel onboard. (cont..)
(9/11 Perp watch)
QinetiQ names Cambone strategy VP http://www.washingtontechnology.com/online/1_1/31743-1.html
QinetiQ North America has hired Stephen Cambone as senior vice president for strategy.
A national security policy expert, Cambone’s knowledge of matters of national significance will play an important role as QNA continues to solve the complex challenges that face our Defense Department and intelligence customers, said Duane Andrews, chief executive officer of QinetiQ North America.
Cambone will lead QNA’s advisory board and its strategic planning process. He also will direct the assessment of investments in technology and research and development, assist in identifying new business opportunities and participate in the evaluation of mergers and acquisitions, the company said.
From 2003 to 2006, Cambone was the first undersecretary of defense for intelligence, providing policy guidance to and responsible for the development and oversight of DOD intelligence programs and budgets.
Before 2003, he led DOD’s strategic planning, including development of strategic policies and plans for the Quadrennial Defense Review.
During the 1990s, Cambone served as staff director for two congressionally mandated commissions, one on ballistic missile threats to the United States, the other on the organization and management of U.S. national security space activities.
Cambone received his doctorate and master’s degrees in political science from Claremont Graduate School in Claremont, Calif., and his bachelor’s degree in political science from The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C.
QinetiQ North America of McLean, Va., is a subsidiary of QinetiQ Group plc of Britain and ranks No. 45 on Washington Technology’s 2007 Top 100 list of the largest federal government prime contractors
"The Golden Guardians"
Palo Alto prepares for bioterrorism scenario
http://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/show_story.php?id=6356
On Nov. 14 Palo Alto will experience a simulated bioterrorism event that will test both the city and the County of Santa Clara's ability to respond to bioterrorism.
Called The Golden Guardians, the statewide event involves California's 58 counties. It has been conducted by the State of California Governor's Office of Homeland Security since 2004 and involves first responders, volunteer organizations, and the private sector in response to potential acts of terrorism and natural disasters.
The drill will begin at 9:30 a.m. and will run until approximately noon, with lunch and a debriefing afterward.
On Election Day, Barbara Cimino, Palo Alto's city disaster coordinator, awaited a group of citizen volunteers for an evening orientation meeting. A thick white binder was located near her fingertips.
"See this binder? Every secret about it is in there," she said.
Many elements of the simulated scenario will be kept under wraps until the actual event. Disaster teams aren't supposed to cram for the test. As far as their actions are concerned, this is intended to emulate the real thing.
What is known is that the scene will be a two-day concert at an undisclosed site. Volunteers will take on roles -- many will be exhibit symptoms of illness. Some will say they got sick on Caltrain after returning from the concert, others will have been exposed to the illness after sitting next to a carrier on a train. They will be old and young, or have medical conditions. First responders will have to assess the ill, transport them to a makeshift medical center and treat each patient with antibiotics. Some may be frantic or hostile. Conditions will be as close to real as possible, Cimino said.
The city will also activate emergency communications, but only to participants and neighborhood groups conducting drills, she added (cont..)
Walton County Flu Drill (FL)
http://www.wmbb.com/gulfcoastwest/mbb/news.apx.-content-articles-MBB-2007-11-09-0012.html
Walton County, FL-- Friday the Walton County Department of Health ran a pandemic flu exercize to test their personell and communication in case such an emergency were to occur.The pandemic flu is a strain that is highly contageous and occurs in large numbers
Health officials, emergency services, and county representatives were all on standby
They practiced giving out shots on a larger scale, holding a flu shot clinic where area residents got theirs for $25.
They also made sure everyone could communicate and know who to contact for medical information.
"We can work out any problems that we might have," said said Walton County Department of Health spokesperson Donna Arnold, "or anything that comes up so we can work it out before anything happens or while we're in the midst of pandemic flu."
If a pandemic flu were to break out in other parts of Florida, all area health departments would be notified to put out an alert.
Photo-Stealth Camouflage Technology Unveiled
http://www.defense-update.com/newscast/1107/news/071107_stealth.htm
Military Wraps Inc. has unveiled today a patent-pending, camouflage technique enabling military units to conceal vehicles, aircraft, UAVs, boats or hardware by blending them in the surrounding scene. The company unveiled the new camouflage at the U.S. Special Operations trade show (SOFEX 2007) and will also display again at the SpecOps East Warfighter Symposium and Expo next week.
Exercise tests command-and-control software
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2007/11/military_cyber_exercise_071109/
LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. — The Air Force is applying the old adage that a picture is worth a thousand words to the future of global command and control.
In one application being studied during a cyber exercise at Langley Air Force Base, Va., hard-to-read, multiple lines of text describing “space weather,” such as solar flares that could potentially interfere with Global Positioning System signals, become graphic representations overlaid on, say, a Google Earth map.
“OK, here’s a hole right here,” said Brig. Gen. Mike McClendon, commander of the Air Force Global Cyberspace Integration Center, describing how an operator might use the application. “No GPS from 5 to 7 p.m. right there. And so you can take one look at it and go, ‘Oh, we better reroute our airplanes because they’re going through that hole.’ ”
What also speeds up the process, McClendon said, is that the software in what is currently dubbed Global-ASSIST — Advanced Suite of Space Integration and Satellite Tools — translates the raw data into the graphic without a human interface.
It’s a step toward a capability not yet present in that application but being tested in others during the ongoing Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2008-01: machine-to-machine directive capability. “But we don’t have a machine-to-machine thread all the way through ... yet,” McClendon said.
One application that could possess such capability is a Navy initiative that would streamline communications between maritime operations centers and Air Force air operations centers, sharing Navy-generated potential target lists with an AOC — without human interaction.
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