Archive for category Iraq

Industry Talk: Contractors Are A Crucial Part Of The US Exit, And Diplomatic Logistics In Iraq

Nov 10

Posted by Matt in Industry Talk, Iraq, Logistics | 2 Comments

At any given time, Spoehr said, there are 55 convoys of 30 to 50 vehicles shipping equipment out of the country - that’s about 1,650 vehicles.  He believes the only comparable operation of such size and scope occurred during World War II.   Logistical teams keep track of every convoy’s movement in much the same way that air traffic controllers hand off control of planes in the sky.

This is a story that needs to be told.  Contractors are currently being called upon for a massive logistics operation to get stuff out of Iraq before this December deadline. They are also being called upon to secure and continue the convoys coming in to Iraq to supply the massive diplomatic mission there.  And with ‘zero’ troops to do that supply job, this industry is quickly stepping in to fill that security and logistics vacuum.

So bravo to all of you contractors out there that are assisting in these operations. You are a vital part of this phase of the war and the future of Iraq diplomatic missions, and if no one else will recognize that contribution, then at least I can do that here on the blog.

Also, that is interesting about Olive Group North America. I didn’t know they had this contract. Although I have found nothing on their website to indicate they are looking for folks and maybe they have subcontracted locally or something? Here is the quote:

The firm, Olive Group North America, has had a contract to supply 10 convoy escort teams since July 2011, according to the Army notice. It will now take over security for shipments coming from Kuwait while gradually building up to 45 convoy escort teams.
The cost of the contract, as well as the number of armored vehicles and armed security personnel that make up a convoy escort team, has been redacted from the notice. However, an earlier version of the contract indicated that each team should consist of three to five lightly armored vehicles and be accompanied by an 11-person armed security team.

Interesting information and if anyone has anything to add, please do so in the comments. -Matt

 

In Iraq, U.S. turns to more private contractors
By Walter Pincus
11/08/2011
As American troops head out of Iraq, U.S. officials are being forced to bring in more private security contractors.
The withdrawal of the remaining troops from Iraq — 33,000 at last count — has caused U.S. officials to move quickly to fill a series of security gaps to ensure the continued protection of American diplomatic personnel as well as U.S. goods.
The latest example comes from the Army, which said in a recent notice that it has increased the number of contracted security teams hired to escort convoys of food and fuel coming in from Kuwait.
The U.S. military had previously provided security for truckers hired by the Defense Logistics Agency for such convoys, and the truckers’ contracts require that they have security escorts.
In justifying the expanded contract, the Army said that if it were forced to delay the hiring of more contractors, “the U.S. military would have to stay in theater longer than planned to provide the escorts and postpone their re-deployment operation.”
Getting food and fuel from Iraqi sources was not an option.
Purchasing those items “off the local economy is unacceptable,” the Army said, given that there “isn’t enough time for an assessment team to travel through Iraq and identify approved sources to purchase food.”
As a result, the Army said it was turning to a private security contractor that already had been supplying security for food and fuel convoys in Iraq. The firm, Olive Group North America, has had a contract to supply 10 convoy escort teams since July 2011, according to the Army notice. It will now take over security for shipments coming from Kuwait while gradually building up to 45 convoy escort teams.
The cost of the contract, as well as the number of armored vehicles and armed security personnel that make up a convoy escort team, has been redacted from the notice. However, an earlier version of the contract indicated that each team should consist of three to five lightly armored vehicles and be accompanied by an 11-person armed security team.
The Army’s notice does note one other side effect of the departure of U.S. troops.
Without American military convoys, fuel trucks from the local economy will no longer be permitted onto U.S. sites because of the “catastrophic risk” they could be carrying explosives.
Story here.
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General: ‘Vast Majority’ of US Troops Out of Iraq by Mid-December
Nov 3, 2011
For the first time,  a U.S. military official is saying on the record that the “vast majority” of U.S. troops will be out of Iraq by mid-December, ahead of the end-of-year withdrawal deadline.
Maj. Gen. Thomas Spoehr told Pentagon reporters today that  he could not provide specific timetables about the pace of the drawdown, though he revealed that most U.S. troops would be out by mid-December

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Funny Stuff: From The Department Of Idiocy–Oregon Lawn-chair Balloonist Plans Iraq Flight

Nov 7

Posted by Matt in Funny Stuff, Iraq, Oregon | No Comments

Yep, it’s official…..The Department of Idiocy has deemed this individual to be an ‘idiot’. lol Although I am sure with some luck and a little planning, he will probably survive. But still, if this balloonist turns into a large floating target for all of Baghdad to shoot at, then I would not be surprised if he gets shot down. Especially if the guy is telling everyone about his launch date, and the cameras are rolling. Why wouldn’t insurgents want to shoot it down? -Matt

 

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Industry Talk: Erinys Talks About Picking Private Security In Iraq

Nov 4

Posted by Matt in Industry Talk, Iraq | No Comments

In relation to the cost of security, there is an old saying: “if you have a five dollar head, then wear a five dollar helmet” – in other words, if you value what you have you are willing to pay to protect it.

This is cool. Erinys did a lot of great work in Iraq back in the day, and they will no doubt continue to be involved with oil security in Iraq now and into the future. So it is great to hear them talk about what they think is important for picking a PSC for operations in Iraq.

What I really liked though was the quote up top. I will have to use that one in the future, and it is just another way of emphasizing what happens when you go cheap. Especially in Iraq, and especially as the troops leave and oil security forces continue to face an active insurgency. -Matt

 

Picking private security in Iraq
November 3rd, 2011
Oil companies in Iraq still need to factor in a security cost overhead as part of doing business in the country in order to protect their people and assets. John McCaffery, Managing Director of British private security firm Erinys, gives his guide to choosing the right provider.
The securing of personnel and assets is a complex amalgam of procedural, technical and physical methods that establishes layered security “architecture” with multiple zones.
If one considers the client and a project as the core of an onion then layers of skin that surround the core would represent the security “zones” that protect the client.
In relation to the cost of security, there is an old saying: “if you have a five dollar head, then wear a five dollar helmet” – in other words, if you value what you have you are willing to pay to protect it.
As such it is important to note that the provision of a professional security architecture is expensive anywhere in the world. ?In Iraq though it is more so, given the cost of shipping in equipment and the labour rates of professional security personnel. This is compounded by the need to train and equip local personnel and the extremely challenging regulatory environment in which international PSC’s are required to operate.

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Aviation: Contract Aircraft, Non-military Aircraft Losses In Iraq And Afghanistan Wars

Oct 30

Posted by Matt in Afghanistan, Aviation, Industry Talk, Iraq | No Comments

What I wanted to do here is put together a list of all of the contract aviation losses in both wars. Thanks to wikipedia, it was easy to organize this and put it all together. If anyone has information they would like to add, or if you see some missing aircraft losses in this post, let me know in the comments.

Also, if you follow the links, they will take you to the overall aviation losses in these wars. In Iraq, the Kiowa Helicopter and the Apache really took a hit. Lots of crashes and combat losses there. But they were also heavily used.

In Afghanistan, I would have thought there would be more losses on both the military and civilian side. The CH 47 was the top aircraft that crashed or was shot down. The Blackhawk was right behind this aircraft. Although this war is not over, and these numbers could reach Iraq levels in a few years.

The big one in Afghanistan is the necessary power to get up to those elevations, and the CH 47 is a work horse for that. Hence why this was the top aircraft that crashed, because it gets the most use.

The total losses for military and civilian aircraft in the Iraq war was 133 rotary wing (with 43 lost to hostile fire) and 24 fixed wing losses (with 2 to hostile fire, and 2 to friendly fire).

In Afghanistan, it is 103 rotary wing (with 17 lost to hostile fire) and 23 fixed wing (with 1 lost to hostile fire on ground).

With those statistics, you get a good idea as to what the real danger is of flight in the war zones. The enemy is certainly a threat, but the environment/pilot error/equipment failure is what causes the majority of these crashes.

Also, it would be great to see our military or some think tank go through all of these accidents and combat losses, and find out if there is a better aircraft that could have been used for these types of missions. Sometimes the best aircraft is not necessarily the most expensive or fancier aircraft, but the one that can perform the job in the worst kind of conditions specific to that region or war zone. A hellfire missile fired from a Cessna Caravan, is no different than a hellfire missile fired from an Apache helicopter.

I guess my point is, are we using the correct aircraft with the best survivability and capability for the job that is required? We lost a lot of Kiowas, Apaches, CH 47′s, and Blackhawks in this war, and you wonder if there are aircraft that could have been better suited for these missions?

The other thing to think about is legacy aircraft for these countries when we leave. Both Iraq and Afghanistan are purchasing and using Cessna Caravans, and that is a great multipurpose aircraft that they could use. It is also cheap to keep running and pretty dependable. But once we give these countries the really expensive aircraft to operate and maintain, then how do we expect them to be able to afford using these things? And even with our own operations and the state of the US economy, we should be considering all options for aircraft, based on the requirements of the mission. It is not against the law to be more cost effective in war, and I have to think that there are cheaper options for some of the stuff we are doing in these conflicts. -Matt

 

Contract aircraft, non-military aircraft losses in the Iraq War
2009
July 17, 2009 – An MD-530F contracted to Xe (formerly Blackwater) crashes at Butler Range outside Baghdad. Two pilots died. The cause was not known.
2008
November 13, 2008 – An Antonov An-12 crashes after takeoff from Al Asad Air Base, killing all 7 crew members. Six members of the crew and one passenger died, three of them were Russians. The crew also consisted of a Belarusian, two Ukrainians and an Indian citizen.
2007
March 7, 2007 – A privately-contracted Mil Mi-8 helicopter from the Republic of Georgia crashes due to technical failures, injuring its three Ukrainian crewmembers, and several Iraqi passengers.
January 31, 2007 – A Blackwater USA Bell 412 helicopter is shot down under fire near Karma during a flight between Al Hillah and Baghdad. A US military helicopter rescues the passengers and crew.
January 23, 2007 – A Blackwater USA MD 530F helicopter is shot down by hostile fire in Baghdad. All of the 5 man crew are killed in the incident, likely executed after surviving the crash. The remaining survivor was also killed under unclear circumstances, when another Blackwater helicopter descended to the crash site.
January 9, 2007 – A Moldovan Antonov An-26 crashes near Balad in the 2007 Balad aircraft crash, killing 34 of the 35 on board.
2005
May 30, 2005 – A Comp Air 7SL aircraft with the Iraqi Air Force crashes in eastern Iraq, killing four Americans and an Iraqi on board.
April 21, 2005 – A Bulgarian Mil Mi-8 is shot down north of Baghdad, killing the 11 civilians on board, including six American contractors, three Bulgarian pilots, one of them is executed shortly after the crash, and two Fijian guards.
Link to Wikipedia here.
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Contract aircraft, non-military aircraft losses in Afghanistan War
2011
July 6, 2011: IL-76 cargo plane, registered 4K-AZ55, was destroyed in an accident near Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan. The plane is said to have flown into the side of a mountain at about 12,500 feet (3,800 meters).The transport plane carried a total of 18 tons of cargo for the NATO-led forces at Bagram Air Base.

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Industry Talk: Getting Ready For The Big Switch In Iraq

Oct 12

Posted by Matt in Industry Talk, Iraq | No Comments

Officials familiar with the plans concede, however, that the police advisory program may not last beyond three years. A lack of recruits willing to earn between $100,000 and $150,000 annually for their expertise also means the program is beginning with about 120 advisers, down from the original goal of 190, said the officials, who were not authorized to speak publicly on the issue.
Much of State’s budget request is to pay security contractors to transport and protect the police advisers as they travel to about 30 sites across the country for meetings.

Now that quote up top was the one that I zeroed in on in this article. I have a hard time imagining that these guys are not able to find enough former police officers to staff this program. If they need 70 more advisers, then put the word out. lol It’s that simple and with an effective campaign, you should be able to get enough guys. Especially with today’s economy and lack of jobs.

I also think it is interesting that the Iraqis are now up to the level where they can train their own police.  That was a big goal of all of our efforts, and that is great. Now it sounds like the Iraqi’s are hungry for the advance level of police work, and this might really pay off in the long run. With more competent police, then crime can be more effectively dealt with, and they might even be able to find more terrorists. We will see, and the big one here is funding. If the DoS can secure the funds for this police program, then this thing could continue on for at least 3 to 5 years. -Matt

 

Getting ready for the big switch in Iraq
October 12, 2011
By Ed O’Keefe
If you get to spend any time with Iraqi political leaders of any sort, as The Federal Eye did during a brief stint in Iraq this summer, they’ll likely discuss their deep-rooted eagerness to work with “Americans with civilian suits, not military uniforms.”
That day is fast approaching.
Iraqi leaders still haven’t decided whether they want to extend a three-year security agreement beyond the end of the year, and if they don’t make a formal request by Dec. 31, all U.S. troops and equipment will pack up and leave. In their wake, the State Department plans to deploy about 17,000 American diplomats and security personnel across Iraq, comprising its largest diplomatic presence in the world — and the largest contingent of federal employees and contractors outside the United States.
But the expensive and daunting military-to-civilian transition in Iraq is expected to face close scrutiny from cost-conscious members of Congress eager to avoid further waste and abuse in wartime contracting. Officials with the departments of defense and state on Wednesday are slated to provide an update on the ongoing transition and spending plans at a House subcommittee hearing on national security and foreign operations.

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Bounties: US Offers $10 Million Reward For Al Qaeda In Iraq Leader–Abu Du’a

Oct 9

Posted by Matt in Al Qaeda, Bounties, Iraq | No Comments

Good deal. In Iraq, these rewards for justice bounties sometimes pay off. Both Uday and Qusay were located because of a tipster seeking the $30 million dollar bounty. We will see and hopefully someone turns him in. Maybe even a contractor? lol -Matt

 

duaBounties: US Offers $10 Million Reward For Al Qaeda In Iraq Leader Abu Dua
U.S. offers $10-million reward for Al Qaeda in Iraq leader
October 7, 2011
As the U.S. military heads for the exits in Iraq, the State Department is providing a sobering reminder of the dangers still there.
It has offered a $10-million reward for information that helps authorities capture or kill Ibrahim Awwad Ibrahim Ali Badri, also known as Abu Dua, the leader of the group Al Qaeda in Iraq.
If the bounty is any measure, finding Abu Dua is now a top priority. Only the chief of the global Al Qaeda organization, Ayman Zawahiri, merits a larger reward: $25 million. That’s also what the State Department offered for Osama bin Laden, who was killed in Pakistan in May.
The department long has offered $10 million for Mullah Omar, the Taliban commander who sheltered Bin Laden in Afghanistan before the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The U.S. also has posted a $5-million bounty for Sirajuddin Haqqani, a leader of a network of Pakistan-based militants that U.S. officials say has attacked American forces in Afghanistan.
Three days after Navy SEALs killed Bin Laden, Abu Dua claimed responsibility for an attack in Hillah, Iraq, that killed 24 police officers and wounded 72 others. His group also claimed responsibility for 23 attacks south of Baghdad in March and April, the State Department said.

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Quotes: DoS Says There Will Be 5,000 Security Personnel For Iraq In 2012

Oct 6

Posted by Matt in Industry Talk, Iraq, Quotes | 1 Comment

What is interesting about this is that DoS has been getting some pressure from folks in Congress as to how many security contractors will be on the ground in Iraq in the near future. So this number is coming directly from DoS as a projection for 2012. That number is 5,000 security contractors, which is the equivalent to a brigade in the military. Although that number does not include the logistics folks and other contractor types in country, but at least this gives some perspective as to the size of just the security element.

Now of course this is not new if anyone has been following along. June of last year, State said they would need between 6,000 and 7,000 security contractors for Iraq.  And I guess if you were to add the requirements of the OSC, 5,000 would be modified to be closer to the 6,000 figure. But who knows, and those numbers are not out there yet.

This is also significant, because our industry is giving State the ability to safely operate and perform their duties in Iraq. The troops are going to be gone, and instead of the Marines being ‘last out’, it will be contractors. lol (the Marine in me is not laughing though…lol)

Now the other question that needs to be asked that really hasn’t been addressed from what I can see is the ‘lost functionality’ problem as the military leaves. I imagine that the Iraqis and maybe some small military contingents will be be filling in these gaps, but I am still curious how they are to be filled. Here is a quote from my post on the subject:

Recovering killed and wounded personnel
Recovering damaged vehicles
Recovering downed aircraft
Clearing travel routes
Operations-center monitoring of private security contractors (PSCs)
PSC inspection and accountability services
Convoy security
Explosive-ordnance disposal
Counter-rocket, artillery, and mortar notification
Counter-battery neutralization response
Communications support
Tactical-operations center dispatch of armed response teams
Policing Baghdad’s International Zone
Maintaining electronic counter-measures, threat intelligence, and technology capabilities

As the attack in Kabul demonstrates, there will be times where State’s security forces will actually have to participate in combat. With the troops gone in Iraq, and all of the services and combat power they used to provide going with them, has there been any arrangements to fill those gaps?

Now I am going to assume that all of these issues have been addressed, just because this list of issues was originally brought up by State to congress as to why they needed all of the MRAP’s and military hardware they requested. State has also had plenty of time to plan, and DoD and congress has had plenty of time to figure out what they plan on giving them for that mission.  But who knows, and I really hope it goes well for them. Especially as budget issues come up, and programs and missions are cut. -Matt

Iraq: U.S. Diplomatic Mission and Security Personnel for 2012
Taken Question
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
October 5, 2011
Question: Approximately how many security contractors will be required in Iraq to protect the U.S. diplomatic mission next year?
Answer: In light of the high threat environment in Iraq over the past several years, we expect that in 2012 there will be approximately 5,000 such security personnel to help protect our diplomatic presence in various locations around the country and ensure our capability to interact successfully with the Iraqi Government and people to build an enduring partnership of benefit to both countries and the region. We expect this number of security personnel to noticeably decrease in the following years as security conditions continue to improve, as they have done steadily since 2007.

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Iraq: US Says No Decision On Keeping Troops In Iraq

Sep 7

Posted by Matt in Industry Talk, Iran, Iraq, Military News | No Comments

This is an interesting development. Many folks were speculating that a much higher number of troops would stick around, and then this rumor of 3,000 troops came out and all hell broke loose. lol The article below mentions politics as a driver for this type of decision making….go figure?

The concern here is that if there is too small of a footprint, that these troops will be sitting ducks in Iraq, or Iraq will not be able to deal with their security issues without sufficient troop presence. My concern though is that companies in Iraq that are dependent upon the security services of the current troops, will have to once again re-adjust to the politics of the matter. Planning might have included a certain amount of US troop presence in specific areas, and all of their war fighting tools and capabilities that come with that presence. So if they were planning on a 10,000 troop presence, and now it is 3,000, that can have an impact.

It also can impact the logistics. If contracting companies were planning for a set amount of troops based off the feedback war planners were giving them, then those companies have made their moves and planed for those contracts. So yet again, the back and forth on the troop presence in Iraq has an impact on this industry. Of course companies will flex and adapt, but I am sure this is causing a lot of headaches.

The other aspect of Iraq that needs to be mentioned is the Iranian influence there. As we speak, rockets and mortars continue to fall on the various FOBs and outposts in Iraq. These munitions come from all sorts of sources, but the biggest arms provider is Iran. Their goal is to help along the exit of US Troops and destabilize the region so their pet leaders can rise to the top (like Sadr). So the environment in Iraq is less troops, but tons of contractors, and lots of Iranian weapons and influence pouring into the country to help destabilize it and in the long run control it with puppet leaders.

Iraq is also in dire need of maintenance of weapons and equipment, foreign investment to include oil contracts, training and upkeep of security forces, etc. If Iraq cannot depend upon a US troop presence to help in these areas, then they will probably depend on contractors to fill these needs. Which our industry will fill the need, but yet again we have the wolf called Iran and Al Qaeda still doing their best to do harm.

I contend that private industry can deal with these sets of problems, but private industry does not have the same freedom of war fighting and weapons/hardware that US troops enjoyed. So in essence, private industry will have to accomplish what the military used to do, and yet with one hand tied behind it’s back. If Iraq sinks into Civil War again, or the pace of war and problems pick up, contractors will be right in the middle of that. -Matt

 

US says no decision on keeping troops in Iraq
By LARA JAKES
September 7, 2011
The Obama administration pushed back Wednesday on reports it has decided to keep a few thousand troops in Iraq next year — a number that will do little to ease security concerns but may be too big for White House advisers who are worried about the slumping U.S. economy and the president’s re-election chances.
In Washington, new Joint Chiefs chairman Army Gen. Martin Dempsey and Undersecretary of State nominee Wendy Sherman separately said there has been no decision on how many troops might stay.
U.S. Ambassador to Iraq James F. Jeffrey went a step further, soundly dismissing as false news reports that about 3,000 troops would remain in Iraq beyond the final Dec. 31 withdrawal deadline.
He said that figure has not been part of ongoing discussions in Baghdad, where both governments have been weighing whether as many as 10,000 U.S. forces should stay.

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Industry Talk: Troops Are Replaced By Unity Resources Group At Australia’s Embassy In Iraq

Aug 10

Posted by Matt in Industry Talk, Iraq | No Comments

Bravo to URG and I hope the contract goes well. I am not familiar with any past issues with the company or this contract, and if anyone has anything to add, feel free to do so in the comments. -Matt

 

Australian troops leave embassy in Iraq
August 10, 2011
Thirty-three Australian soldiers who were guarding the embassy in Iraq have been withdrawn, and a Dubai-based private security firm has taken over, an embassy official says.
“We now have moved to a contractor called Unity Resources Group” to provide embassy security, the official said on Wednesday, adding that the last soldiers left on Saturday.
The soldiers guarding the embassy were the last significant Australian troop presence in the country. Australia once had some 2000 soldiers in Iraq, one of the larger non-US deployments.
Two Australian officers remain as advisers to the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, the embassy official said.
According to its website, Unity Resources Group is based in Dubai and was founded by Gordon Conroy, “a former Commander in the Australian SAS (Special Forces) Counter Terrorist Squadron,” who is the firm’s director and CEO.
Story here.

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Legal News: Former Shield Group Whistleblowers Cleared For Civil Suit Against Rumsfeld

Aug 9

Posted by Matt in Iraq, Legal News | No Comments

I am not too familiar with this case, so I really cannot comment too much. It looks to me like poor communications is the culprit. But if in fact they were poorly treated in detention, and no one fessed up that they were Whistleblowers, then that is pretty pathetic. Three months in detention, and no one could come forward to clear these guys? -Matt

 

Court clears way for torture suit against Rumsfeld
August 8, 2011
A federal appeals court has cleared the way for a civil suit against former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld by two Americans who allege they were tortured while being held by the US military in Iraq.
The three-judge panel upheld a ruling by a lower court judge who denied a Justice Department motion to drop the suit brought by Donald Vance and Nathan Ertell against Rumsfeld in 2006.
Vance and Ertell allege in the suit that they reported to the FBI that they suspected the privately owned Iraqi security company they worked for, Shield Group Security, was paying off an Iraqi sheikh to obtain government contracts.
But when the security company began to suspect their loyalty, they were taken into custody by the US military and held incommunicado at Camp Cropper where they were subjected to violence, sleep deprivation and extremes of light and sound.

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