Sunday, May 29, 2011
Cool Stuff: Hero Contractor Pilot And Author Dan Laguna On The Loss Of His Brother And Comrades
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Industry Talk: Missions Evolve, So Does DynCorp
These types of articles are great because they give the reader some perspective as to where the industry is going. DynCorp mentioned specifically that they are looking at getting into intelligence and post conflict international development as their targets for company growth. They are also recognizing the fact that a company that can meet the needs of both the DoD and DoS will have some good diversification as the wars evolve and transition. I love this quote:
“We position ourselves for transition,” he said. “We have to watch the whole life cycle of conflict to see where we’re going to play and who we’re going to play with.”
Which brings up another quote that really kind of threw me here. I had no idea that DynCorp was maintaining Presidential aircraft? That is a huge deal, and to put that kind of trust in a company like DynCorp says a lot. Here is the quote:
“We’re also known for our work with the presidential fleet,” he added. “There are now about 28 airplanes at Andrews Air Force Base that support the president’s Cabinet, and we support that fleet 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.”
So there you have it. A private company tasked with maintaining the aircraft of the most important leaders of the nation. Might I add that DynCorp is also tasked with protecting dignitaries and politicians in the war zones through their DoS contracts, and that is a huge responsibility as well. From protecting nuclear plants, government employees, CEO’s and VIP’s, military officers, political leadership of the US, etc.–private industry is certainly making a contribution. DynCorp is definitely making their mark and it will be very interesting to watch them grow and evolve as the wars transition, or new wars come on to the scene. –Matt
Missions evolve, so does DynCorp
By Amber Corrin
Jun 06, 2011
It’s been a busy year for DynCorp International. In the past 16 months, the company has been bought by a private equity firm, made two acquisitions of its own and won at least four new major contracts.
At the same time, it is maintaining critical U.S. aircraft fleets, running counter-drug operations in Colombia, training law enforcement agents and shuttling dignitaries throughout Iraq, and maintaining military bases and working with police and Ministry of the Interior personnel in Afghanistan.
The company’s success helped it reach the No. 12 spot on the 2011 Top 100 with $3 billion in prime contracts.
The company continues to look toward its future. Specifically, it’s seeking to break into the intelligence and international development spheres, President Steven Schorer said.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Job Tips: Edinburgh International To Start A Recruiting Drive For Oil And Gas Security Jobs In Southern Iraq
Well, here you go guys and gals, and you heard it first on Feral Jundi. The good folks at Edinburgh International contacted me recently to say that they are currently recruiting for some oil and gas security work in southern Iraq and they wanted to get the word out via FJ. So the job tip here is that in order to be considered for this work, you need to sign up at their recruitment portal and get on their database. They will not accept resumes by email anymore, and you must be in their database to be considered. Please read the information carefully below as to what they want done. (hint, hint)
Good luck and I am not the POC or recruiter for this. Might I add that oil and gas security work will be very important and long term in Iraq, as the energy industry continues to grow there. –Matt
Careers
Edinburgh International only employs experienced and well trained consultants.
Pay, insurance, life support and terms of service all lead industry standards, and signify the calibre of individual employed by Edinburgh International.
In order to apply for a position within Edinburgh International (EI) we need to capture some information about you, your experience and qualifications. We will use this information to conduct candidate searches for ALL of our vacancies. The more detailed the information you provide us, the greater the chance that we will be able to match you to a role.
Partial or incomplete submissions will automatically fail most EI job searches because we cannot find specific attributes unless you have added them. We cannot and do not search through every CV to find the information requested.
Please take care to fill in your details in all of the following seven sections:
• My Details
• Overseas Deployments
• Qualifications
• Languages
• Licenses & Badges
• Former Branches
• Nationality
Applicants must be fluent in English. Only applications in this format will be accepted, applications sent via email will not be reviewed.
Your application will be entered into our database and you will ONLY be contacted in the event that you are matched with an opportunity. Calling EI offices directly WILL NOT help your application, please do not do so.
To enter your details onto the database for the first time, please go here. To update your details at any time, please click on Log in.
By submitting details to Edinburgh International , candidates agree to being vetted and having background checks carried out.
Edinburgh International is an equal opportunity employer. Its Equal Opportunities Policy can be found here.
Legal News: Donnelly Amendment To Improve US Oversight Of Private Security Contractors Passes House
You know, better late than never. We will see how this goes and if in fact this impacts the industry positively. Stuff like this only helps to legitimize security contractor use in the war and ensure that this industry is more asset than liability. I would be curious to hear what any industry folks have to say about the amendment and it’s possible impact on the war? –Matt
Donnelly Amendment to Improve U.S. Oversight of Private Security Contractors Passes House
May 25, 2011
Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Joe Donnelly offered an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012, H.R. 1540, legislation authorizing Pentagon programs for the coming year and setting forth our nation’s defense policies and priorities. Donnelly’s amendment would direct the Department of Defense (DOD) to devise a comprehensive strategy setting out standards for oversight plans governing all private security contracts funded by the DOD and designate a single official in the country of operations with the responsibility of certifying that each private security contract has an effective oversight plan and that the contractor’s employees are properly licensed and permitted to do their work.
Industry Talk: The CEO’s Of Triple Canopy And Mission Essential Personnel Speak
This is cool. Every once in awhile, the CEO’s of some of the big companies like to communicate with the public in one way or the other. In the case of Triple Canopy, Mr. Balderas is rallying support for CEJA. For Mission Essential Personnel’s CEO, Mr. Taylor was given the chance to speak at a high school graduation ceremony. (please check out both articles below)
I will not comment much about the CEJA. Contractors must be held accountable, and the CEJA could be one tool used to make contractors accountable. On top of the UCMJ and whatever else laws that congress wants to throw in there, I support anything that makes the client happy. My only caveat is that any and all laws implemented must not hinder the strategic value of contractors. National security comes first in my book, and any laws should be viewed with this filter. But yes, stuff like this helps to legitimize contractors and make us an asset and not a liability in the war.
The other thing that jumped up at me was the quote Mr. Taylor made about his interpreters:
“Every patrol working in Afghanistan has got a Mission Essential interpreter walking with them,”.
That is pretty remarkable, and it also brings some attention to what that actually means. That there are ‘contractors’ assisting every combat patrol out there, and those contract interpreters are the only connection between the troops and the locals. That is offensive operations, and without those contractors, there is no way the troops would be effective in that endeavor. Much like how interpreters and civilian scouts were hired by the US Army during the Indian Wars, we are doing the same thing in these current wars.
The other quote that is stunning, is the amount of contract interpreters being used:
“There are 7,700 Pashto speakers in the United States. [About] 3,300 would be eligible to serve in the capacity we need,” Taylor said. “Of them, we employ 1,800 to 1,900. And we know where the rest of them live.”
That is a lot of American contractors putting their lives at risk by walking side by side with the troops in the war. According to T. Christine Miller’s casualty graph, MEP has had 36 KIA over the course of the war. (although the DoL does not show any deaths–so these could be local national deaths or other) Triple Canopy has lost 15 guys as well.
Both companies have sacrificed in this war, and we should not forget these sacrifices or any of the contractor sacrifices during this Memorial Day. I also salute both CEO’s for getting the word out. Perhaps you guys should look into blogging, to further along your strategic communications goals? –Matt
Laying Down the Rules for Private Security Contractors
By Ignacio “Iggy” Balderas
CEO, Triple Canopy
05/24/11
The failure to establish effective accountability over private security contractors (PSCs) hasn’t just obscured important truths about how our nation secures its foreign policy — it has allowed some reckless actors to repeatedly endanger this goal.
We now have a chance to firmly lay down the rules, punish violators and allow the professional PSCs who make me proud every day do the jobs they’re trained to do. This is why I support The Civilian Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act (CEJA), which will be reintroduced soon by Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-VT. The bill was originally introduced last year and goes further than the current law in holding contractors accountable and plugs potential legal loopholes that bad actors may take advantage of.