Weekly Contest AutoMatters & More Around Town Enter for a chance to win tickets to the Celebrating the holiday season at Balboa Winter Holiday Mutt Mixer, Santa’s Ugly Jingle Jam 2017 at Valley View Casino Park’s Decemebr Nights. Sweater Shindig, Light Helicopter Tours, Center. See page 4 See page 17 Poinsettia Regatta. See page 22 Navy Marine Corps Coast Guard Army Air Force AT AT EASE ARMED FORCES San Diego Navy/Marine Corps Dispatch www.armedforcesdispatch.com 619.280.2985 FIFTY SEVENTH YEAR NO. 23 DISPATCH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2017 Serving active duty and retired military personnel, veterans and civil service employees Happy you’re home! Home for the Holidays! Welcome home from WESTPAC Pinckney, Howard and Princeton SAN DIEGO - The Nimitz Strike Group (CSG 11) sailed into San Diego Tuesday, ending a deployment that began June 5. A pierside gather- ing welcomed home Hanukkah San Diego-based ships Princeton, Howard, and Dec. 12 Pinckney following the Hanukkah is a Jewish deployment to the West- holiday commemorating ern Pacific with some the rededication of the support for Operation Holy Temple (the Second Inherent Resolve. Carrier Nimitz, de- Temple) in Jerusalem at stroyers Shoup and Kidd the time of the Maccabean stopped here before Revolt against the Seleucid steaming to their home- Empire. ports in Washington state. Airman Christopher Garnow, as- Hanukkah is observed Pinckney is scheduled to signed HSC 8, meets his daugh- for eight nights and days, return to San Diego later ter for the first time USS Nimitz starting on the 25th day this month. (CVN 68) returned to Naval Air The air wing included Station North Island. photo by of Kislev according to the MC3 Cole Schroeder Hebrew calendar, which San Diego-based Marine may occur at any time Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 323, Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 8, Helicopter from late November to late Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 75 and Fleet Logistics Support December in the Gregorian Squadron (VRC) 30. calendar. It is also known “I’m very proud of the entire Strike Group and all that our Sailors and as the Festival of Lights Marines accomplished during this deployment,” said Rear Adm. Gregory and the Feast of Dedica- Harris, commander, Nimitz Strike Group. “The team demonstrated the tion. professionalism, strength and resolve of the U.S. Navy around the world. The festival is observed They battled through the intense heat of the Arabian Gulf to conduct by the kindling of the operations in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. We also enhanced lights of a unique cande- partnerships with international friends and allies, and now we can get labrum, the nine-branched back to our families and enjoy well-deserved time with them.” menorah (also called a USS Coronado returns to San Diego Chanukiah/Hanukiah), one SAN DIEGO - Littoral combat ship USS Coronado (LCS 4) and the additional light on each “Wildcards” of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 23 returned night of the holiday, pro- home from an 18-month deployment Tuesday. gressing to eight on the HSC-23 flew off the ship before Coronado was pierside, landing at final night. Naval Air Station North Island. Then Sailors of LCS Crew 203 arrived The typical menorah at Naval Base San Diego, ending eight months of an 18-month deploy- consists of eight branches ment. In April, LCS Crew 203 relieved LCS Crew 204 who had taken with an additional visually Coronado on her maiden deployment beginning in June 2016. distinct branch. The extra Coronado’s crowning achievement was successfully launching a har- poon over-the-horizon missile utilizing the MQ-8B Fire Scout unmanned light, with which the others aerial vehicle as a targeting system off the coast of Guam during Pacific are lit, is called a shamash Griffin 2017. Pa- (Hebrew: “attendant”) and cific Griffin was a is given a distinct location, bilateral exercise usually above or below with the Repub- the rest. lic of Singapore Other Hanukkah festivi- Navy to enhance ties include playing dreidel the capabilities and eating oil-based foods of both navies to such as doughnuts and ensure maritime USS Coronado, shown here on Nov. security and sta- latkes. Since the 1970s, CORONADO (Dec. 5, 2017) - Aviation Electronics Technician 1st Class Nikki Reyn- 25 in Pearl Harbor for her final port bility. the worldwide Chabad olds, gets the first hug as aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) moores at Naval call. photo by MC2 Katarzyna Kobil- Coronado also Hasidic movement has Air Station North Island here. The Nimitz Carrier Strike Group is on a regularly jak conducted a co- initiated public menorah scheduled deployment to the Western Pacific. The Navy has patrolled the Indo- ordinated patrol lightings in open public Asia-Pacific region routinely for more than 70 years promoting peace and secu- with the Philippine Navy to enhance both navies’ ability to respond to places in many countries. rity. Navy photo by MC3 Jose Madrigal piracy and transnational criminal activity in the Sulu Sea. Marine Corps PP&O testifies to HASC subcommittee on readiness by Lance Cpl. Taryn Escot WASHINGTON - The House Armed Services Subcommittee on readiness met with senior leaders of the military to discuss amphibious warfare readi- ness and training Dec. 1 in Washington. Lt. Gen. Brian D. Beaudreault, Deputy Commandant for Plans, Policies, and Operations, U.S. Marine Corps, Vice Adm. Andrew L. Lewis Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Operations, Plans and Strategy (N3/N5), United States Navy and Mr. Cary Russell Director, Defense Capabilities and Management Team, U.S Government Accountability Office (GAO) all testified on the state of readiness for the Navy and Marine Corps. One of the items that have affected readiness is the continuing resolution. Representative Joe Wilson, who chairs the committee, made it clear that the committee is interested in doing whatever they can do end the continuing resolution. “So we find our maritime superiority edge narrowing through with readiness, the Navy and Marine Corps are still operating the continuing resolutions that is not allowing us to stay on glide to the best of their ability around the world. path for readiness recovery and maintain a superiority on the sea,” said Lt. Gen. Beaudreault. “The Navy and Marine Corps team is forward deployed and standing the watch. Today, Sailors and Marines are at Earlier this year, Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. Robert sea aboard the America ARG and 15 MEU in Central Com- Neller, addressed readiness concerns in his Seize the Initiative 2017 mand, USS Essex in the Pacific and IWO JIMA ARG and message to all Marines. 26 MEU in the Atlantic,” said Lewis. “We are on the tip of the spear and working every day to sharpen it.” “We must improve our overall readiness,” Neller said in his message. “We continue to accelerate our purchases of new systems Wilson concluded the hearing by stating that the commit- while maintaining current equipment. Right now, our ‘ready bench’ tee is in favor in doing what they can to end the continuing is not as deep as we need it to be for crises and contingencies.” resolution and have an actual budget in order to provide the Navy and Marine Corps with the resources they need Wilson asked Beaudreault what elements in the Marine Corps to maintain a high state in readiness to continue to protect suffer the most from atrophy, to which he responded with, “Our the nation. ability to train at higher echelons above the MEU and Amphibious Ready Group Unit. Our forcible entry ability core competency of Marines with 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 1st the Marine Corps and Navy team here is at risk above the MEU Marine Division, depart USS Rushmore to conduct an level. Simply we can do some training, through the command amphibious assault on Red Beach, Camp Pendleton, elements through virtual systems, but at some point you have to during Exercise Dawn Blitz, Oct. 27. DB17 was a scenar- put the ships to sea and go through a mission rehearsal, and the io-driven amphibious exercise conducted between ESG ability to generate the number of ships required to train at a Marine 3 and 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade, testing their Expeditionary Brigade level, just simply isn’t there.” ability to conduct amphibious operations in response to global crises and to project power ashore as part of a Lewis pointed out that even though there are some shortcomings Navy-Marine Corps team. Marine Corps photo BOB STALL CHEVROLET FAMILY OWNED AND OPERATED SINCE 1971 U.S.S. Howard, You’re gonna get a good deal ... Princeton, Coronado, And a good deal more ... & Pinckney SAN DIEGO COUNTY’S #1 VOLUME GM EMPLOYEE PRICING CHEVROLET DEALER AVAILABLE FOR EVERYONE!! SPECIAL PRICING AVAILABLE ON ALL 2017 REMAINING VEHICLE LINES: TO ACTIVE, RETIRED & 2017 Camaros, Colorados, Corvettes, Tahoe, Cruze, VETERANS ONLY!! 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If it does move into the Air Force now, Wilson said, creation of both offensive and faster to maintain a lead in this space, our job will be the same adding that she is pushing the defensive effects that would nail critical warfighting domain, as it is in any other domain: to decision-making process down down deterrence in orbit, the defense officials said at the Rea- deter that conflict to make sure to the lowest possible level.