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Tanker
Chicago, IL, September 28, 2009 -- UPDATE TO MAY 28, 2009 RELEASE: Among several
items discussed in the Administration's 2010 Budget overview released yesterday
was Boeing's C-17 Globemaster III Strategic/Tactical airlifter, and yet again it
has voiced a desire to shut down production of this critical aircraft citing "DoD
analyses".
"As we noted in our May 28, 2009 release, C-17 is not only absolutely essential to
current and anticipated force projection requirements in a world wherein
conventional and asymmetric conflict potential exists concomitantly," said Stokes,
"but to our plans implementing a US/NATO controlled Heavy and Outsized (HOM)
industry utilizing modestly modified variants of this superlative airlifter.
"I daresay that data from several and quite significant resources, inclusive of
the limited availability 2005/2006 Department of Commerce C-17 Industrial Base
Impacts Study, strongly, if not overwhelmingly, suggests the direction and
viewpoints articulated by our Washington colleagues relative to C-17's continued
existence is at best flawed, and at worst, not reflective of the great
responsibilities conferred upon them by the office in which they serve.
"It should be noted that while we have the greatest respect for the offices of the
SECDEF, SECAF and those to whom they report, we feel it necessary to again invoke
the wisdom, past and present, of DoD personnel such as the late VADM Arthur K.
Cebrowski, whose vast experience and knowledge cannot be ignored. In this
instance, we feel it appropriate to highlight the conclusions of decorated U.S.
Army 4-Star General (Ret'd) Barry R. McCaffrey, Adjunct Professor of International
Affairs, United States Military Academy (USMA) West Point, as outlined in an
"After Action" Report following visits to Nellis and Scott Air Force Bases 14-17
August, 2007."
• We must create the strategic national military airlift and air-to-air refuel
capability (600+ C-17 aircraft) to project national military and humanitarian
power in the global environment. We currently have an inadequate capability with
150 aircraft supported by an aging refueling fleet. The C-5 aircraft must be
retired—these planes are shot. The Army must back off the dubious proposition that
they will size their ground combat force around the volume and lift metrics of the
C-130 --- and instead use the C-17 as the sizing template.
• The Rumsfeld doctrine postulated bringing home deployed Army and Air Force
capabilities from Europe, Okinawa, and Korea. This seismic strategic shift was
unexamined and not debated by Congress or the American people. We are bringing
home ground and air strike assets thousands of miles--- from basing infrastructure
paid for by allies--- to unprepared US launch platforms. If we are to pose a
serious deterrent capability in the dangerous world arena--- then we must credibly
be able to project power back into future combat areas to sustain allies at risk.
• The C-17 represents the capacity to carry out this strategic power projection
mission ---as well as providing intra-theater logistics and humanitarian lift for
pin point distribution of thousands of truck load equivalents of supply per day.
Knowledge is Power
"I will respond preemptively to those who are quick to dismiss the views and
analytics crafted by retired DoD personnel as 'irrelevant and inapplicable', by
saying that such assertions are sophomoric, unsustainable, without merit and
wholly dismissive of the Dr. W. Edwards Deming advocated pursuit of profound
knowledge," says Stokes. "To be sure, we benefit from applying accumulated
knowledge, as has been evident since humankind first saw the need to record and
preserve what was learned. The Library of Alexandria is an ancient and
extraordinary example of this premise."
"This is to say, even if the A330-based Tanker were indeed designed, engineered
and manufactured here, the question at the end of the day is 'Where does the money
go?' Answer: To overseas bank accounts. Also, 'Would there be any guarantees that
manufacturing and design would remain on these shores in the event of a global
economic schism (again) thereby resulting in calls by company stakeholders to
shrink the company's global footprint in the interests of 'fiduciary
responsibility?'
"The idea that obvious illegalities in the form of WTO disallowed EU subsidies
designed to give EADS/Airbus ( Northrop-Grumman, with its extraordinary history of
aircraft development, is nothing more than, sadly, a front to give the illusion of
"Americaness" to their overtures) a competitive advantage in price is dismissed by
DoD procurement officers as irrelevant or "having no bearing in the ultimate
decision" (paraphrased) is suggesting a departure from logic, reason, conventional
wisdom and a complete lack of of understanding that the US defense and industrial
bases are one and the same."
Stokes suggests a much needed expansion of the DoD's paraphrased assertion that
"we are in pursuit of the best value for the warfighter" would include '...,the
American worker and taxpayer."
"To be sure," Stokes further states, "No other country on earth, neither Germany,
France, Italy, Belgium, Spain, Japan, South Korea, China... no one would give away
a core element of its critical industrial base which this Tanker, as built by
Boeing with its clearly superior aircraft build skillsets, represents."
Following previous releases in February 2006 and March 2007, Global Heavylift
Holdings, LLC, a Florida incorporated and Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) listed
entity with principal offices in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, will continue its
pursuit of an USD18.4B capital raise to implement a US/NATO-controlled Heavy and
Outsized (H&O) air cargo industry utilizing new and used modestly modified
variants of C-17 for commercial missions, while still meeting USAF operational
standards as part of Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF) organic airlift augmentation.
(GOOGLE SEARCH: Global HeavyLift Holdings, LLC; also Commercial Application of
Military Airlift Aircraft (CAMAA) )
" The current and real threat to C-17 line continuance concomitant with the core
role this aircraft plays in our existent and long-term plans for wresting control
of the H&O air cargo industry from our Russian and Ukrainian friends, whilst
allowing them to maintain a symbiotic role with the heavylift market-proving
Antonov AN-124 Ruslan, serves as a strong impetus to assist in the preservation of
C-17, not for just the next 2 years, but for the next two decades", says Myron D.
Stokes, Managing Member. "A status, mind you, that C-17 richly deserves as an
aircraft unparalleled in its tactical/strategic airlift capacity. And, given the
fact there is no replacement on any horizon for an airlifter with capabilities
anywhere near C-17, proposing its termination approaches the realm of the
irresponsible."
As for Secretary of the Air Force Donley's comment to the extent if the AF needed
more airlift, "They could always retrofit more [35-42 year old] C-5s", Stokes
observes that without complete control of the air in a battlespace -the intended
role of F-22- very large, minimally maneuverable C5s (not to mention requiring
significant air operations infrastructure) would be nothing more than fodder for
the cannons and missiles of enemy fighter craft.
Stokes also stated his team will support Antonov's late 2009 efforts to restart
AN-124 production at Ulyanovsk, Ukraine, through as yet undisclosed means. The DoD
continues to contract Russian/Ukrainian government controlled entities operating
AN-124 to make up for in-theater airlift capacity shortfalls in Iraq and
Afghanistan.
"In light of the on-going fight, and it is a fight, if not out and out political
war, for preservation of C-17, whose production constitutes so large an economic
foot print as confirmed by the Department of Commerce (DOC) in its still quite
viable C-17 Industrial Base Impacts Study of 2005/2006, our team is resolute in
its support."
(Note to editors: A copy of this quasi-public study is available upon request)
1.Secretary of Defense Gates, with all due respect, has no truly substantive,
credible data to support his intent to kill C-17. Although initially publicly
supportive of ending C-17 production at 180 (now 205) as suggested by the never
released to public Mobility Capabilities Study (MCS, 2005/2006) and 2006
Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR)gao which echoed MCS findings, former SECAF
Michael Wynne and Chief of Staff Gen. Michael Mosely strongly recommended against
line closure, and were fired last year as a result. It was this, not the
"inadvertent" flight of a nuclear-armed B-52 across country, that played a
significant role in their dismissal. The data the SECDEF refers to as "internal
Pentagon analyses" is that developed by the Pentagon Office of Program Analysis
and Evaluation (PA&E) in collaboration with RAND Corporation, and exists in the
form of the Mobility Capabilities Study mentioned above, which was completed in
late 2005 after several delays. This study was promptly debunked by the GAO (and
to former SECDEF Rumsfeld in a strongly worded letter prior to its "release")
subsequently by Congress as being based on flawed analytics and inapplicable,
outdated, conflict assumptions.
Comments to the effect that a new study ordered by Congress "Will reach the same
conclusions as the first" should be suspect.
By all rational indications, the directives given to PA&E were designed to ensure
an end of C-17 production in favor of C-5A and B retrofit, and inclusion of a
much-delayed EADS/Airbus A400M (despite its inability to carry an Abrams Tank) in
USAF inventory.
2.Before the MCS was completed, capable academics and researchers in industry and
government were advised in advance of the "release" of its findings and promptly
developed a countering study -co-sponsored by the USAF- as it pertained to
industrial base impact. This was particularly important owing to an element of MCS
concluding that industrial base impact would be negligible. As those lawmakers who
were able to receive a copy of the DOC study before it was rendered inacessible
ascertained, it reached a diametrically opposite conclusion.
3.The intent of the DoD to kill two critically important elements of national
security, C-17 and F-22, comes on the heels of the confirmed (by Lockheed-Martin)
theft by China of the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMD) through a front
company posing as an LMCO supplier. The Aegis is core to US Naval
offensive/defensive capabilities, while being systemically interlinked to the
whole of network-centric US military operations. Moreover, there is every reason
to believe that F-22 Raptor and C-17 technologies have been compromised as well,
owing to the relative ease with which Aegis was acquired. The Chinese clone was
initially introduced on Luyang II-class Destroyers in 2005/2006 (derived from
Sovremenny-class Russian vessels) and in all likelihood incorporated, among other
capitol ships, within the now operational 67,500 ton Adm. Kuznetsov-class aircraft
carrier Shilang purchased from Ukraine.
"We will not only continue to pursue the necessary resale language from Congress,
to be contained within the 2010 or 2011 budget, but FAA exemption from 14 CFR
21.27, perhaps with a little prodding from the DoD. Furthermore, this continued
exemption quest will be undertaken separate from Boeing", says Stokes.
"The 18.4B funding strategy that will permit acquisition of up to 60 C-17As and 40
new aircraft, and hopefully include the even more capable B variant proposed,
remains as a quadruple and simultaneous raise in the US, Europe, Middle-East and
Asia. This approach continues viable as it was designed with the understanding of
a possible financial sector melt-down over a year before it occurred.
"As of now, and towards the above objective, we have identified accessible
resources up to USD5B. Conversely, in the middle of an economic war and a much
more dangerous world, it is our intent, through the heavylift initiative, to be
part of the profound economic revitalization efforts ongoing; at least to the
extent humans can shape the outcome they want."
Recognizing the absolute necessity of international C-17 sales to its continued
production, GHH, while working with foreign governments to establish the four
global aircraft operations epicenters outlined within plan data, encouraged them
to acquire -and if already in inventory, acquire more- C-17s for both military and
commercial use as a condition of purchase. Such overtures were made to the UK,
Belgium, Japan and The Sultanate of Oman governments, among others.
"Many dedicated people in industry and government have worked very hard, and made
many sacrifices, over the past near decade to preserve C-17 and to create a
US/NATO-controlled heavlift industry with the BC-17 variant," says Stokes.
"For all of us intensely involved in this project; from New York to Washington;
from Detroit to Chicago; from St. Louis to Los Angeles and Long Beach, failure...
is not an option."
c1701_0_0.jpg
Founded in 2002, GHH is a strategic air transport solutions that was born of a
multi-year public/private effort among forward thinkers in both the private sector
and government to mitigate emerging and observable vulnerabilities in the U.S.
industrial base global supply chain. Such vulnerabilities are represented by the
fact that no ocean-borne shipping is in U.S. hands at present, thus potentially
subjecting American corporations, especially automotive, and their global
operations to the whims and perhaps economically hostile activities of and by
foreign governments. Add to this the risk of terrorist activities, which have,
according to the Department of Homeland Security, targeted maritime operations;
i.e., ships, ports and ocean containers.
Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) listed, it is the goal of GHH and its strategic
partners around the planet to work with key logistics personnel within these
corporations and government agencies to conceptualize, craft and structure long-
term global supply chain alternative transportation methodologies through
continuous -- not stop gap or emergency -- air augmentation solutions. Its most
important mission, however, has been in the co-development of global architecture
for infrastructure of a new American controlled industry, Heavylift, utilizing the
excellent airlift performance characteristics of the Boeing BC-17.
Contact :
John T. Chuhran
Global HeavyLift Holdings, LLC
74 W. Long Lake Rd.
Suite 103
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48304
253-220-2566
globalheavyliftholdings@ymail.com
http://www.emotionreports.com