Hawaii Marine, October 30, 2015

Navy news

HAWAII MARINE OCTOBER 30, 2015 • A-7

Press Release

Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam

JOINT BASE PEARL HAR- BOR-HICKAM — The Navy and National Park Service are looking for more than 700 active-duty military personnel from all services to volunteer in various events commemorating the 74th anniversary of the at- tack on Pearl Harbor.

The joint National Park Ser- vice and U.S. Navy 74th Anni- versary Pearl Harbor Day Com- memoration will be held Dec. 7 at 7:45 a.m. at Kilo Pier, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. Vol-

unteers are needed to help with the Navy and National Park Service 74th Anniversary Pearl Harbor Day commemoration, USS Utah Memorial sunset cere- mony, USS Oklahoma Memori- al ceremony, USS Arizona inter- ment ceremony, and the FOX Sports Pearl Harbor Invitational.

Volunteer tasks include the fol- lowing: • Nov. 24 through Dec. 3: Grounds preparation, cer- emony setup, staging • Dec. 1 through 7: Site prepa- rations and event day sup- port for the Fox Sports Pearl

Harbor Invitational at Bloch Arena • Dec. 6: USS Utah Memorial sunset ceremony setup and breakdown • Dec. 7: Navy & National Park Service Pearl Harbor Day commemoration ushers, es- corts, parking attendants, and crowd control • Dec. 7: USS Oklahoma Memo- rial ceremony setup/break- down and ushers • Dec. 7: USS Arizona interment ceremony sideboys and setup/ breakdown

Volunteering provides an opportunity for active duty

members to personally con- tribute to the Pearl Harbor Day commemoration, preserv- ing the memory and honoring those who made the ultimate sacrifi ce 74 years ago.

To volunteer, con- tact Chief Ken Bohan at Kenneth.p.bohan@navy.mil or (904) 434-9485, or Lt. Cmdr. Michael Genta at michael.gen- ta@navy.mil, or 473-5752. Sign up by Nov. 24.

For more information on Pearl Harbor Day events, call the JBPHH Public Affairs Offi ce at 473-2926 or 473-2880, or vis- it www.pearlharborevents.com.

Active-duty volunteers needed for Pearl Harbor commemorations

Press Release

TRICARE

Premiums for the Military Health Sys- tem’s benefi t plan for adult children be- tween 23 and 26 years old have been an- nounced. The premiums for the TRICARE Young Adult program will increase on Jan. 1, 2016 to $306 per month for TYA Prime, and $228 per month for TYA Standard.

“Offering the option to have young adults covered under these plans falls in line with what all Americans are able to do with their adult children under the Afford- able Care Act,” said Mary Kaye Justis, direc- tor of the TRICARE Health Plan. “We want to make sure those wanting this coverage know all the facts as they go into the open enrollment season for health care plans in this country.”

Justis explained the increase is due to the requirement in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2011 that TRICARE set TYA premiums to cover the full cost of health care received by the program’s benefi ciaries.

“We are required by law to be cost-neu- tral to the government, so the premiums had to be raised to cover the actual cost of care,” Justis said.

TYA offers very generous, competitive coverage for young adults, Justis said. Al- though the premiums do not go into ef- fect until Jan. 1, 2016, TRICARE leaders want to make sure TYA benefi ciaries have all the facts now to make the best decision possible, based on their needs and circum- stances, during the open enrollment season from Nov. 1, 2015 through Jan. 31, 2016.

“We like having young adults in our sys-

tem and welcome them to stay on,” said Justis. “But they do have options.”

Other health care options for young adult benefi ciaries include: • Purchasing TYA Standard – lower premi- ums, higher cost shares – instead of TYA Prime • Enrolling in a parent’s civilian health in- surance plan, if available • Purchasing coverage through the college or university, if enrolled • Purchasing a plan offered through the Health Insurance Marketplace at www. healthcare.gov.

Lower-cost plans may be available de- pending on income and residence, and assistance paying premiums may be avail- able if benefi ciaries qualify for government subsidies through commercial plans. Visit www.tricare.mil/TYA for more information.

TRICARE young adult premiums to increase Jan. 1, 2016

Marine Division, III Marine Exped- itionary Force.

Navy Chief Petty Offi cer Philip E. Phillips, an LCAC pilot with Naval Beach Unit 7, said driving the hovercraft is like controlling an air hockey puck.

However, unlike an air hockey puck, a LCAC hovers by generating powerful air displacement. The LCAC can carry up to sixty tons and travel as fast as forty knots, said Phillips, who is originally from Riverside, Calif.

Sgt. Russell S. Thompson, a landing support specialist with Combat Logistics Battalion 4, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, had never seen the hovercraft in operation before today.

“For me personally and a lot of my Marines, this is our fi rst time getting fi rsthand experience with the LCACs and doing this specifi c type of operation,” said Thompson, who is originally from Pullman, Washington. “I think the LCAC exponentially increases our capabilities.”

Thompson, whose primary responsibility is to help organize troops and equipment

arriving at expeditionary locations, said the presence of hovercraft helped his Marines understand the importance of their role in the grander scheme of amphibious operations.

“Having 7th Fleet nearby with their multitude of resources, including LCACs, absolutely increases the capability of our training and the amount of experience we’re able to achieve,” said Thompson.

Until the U.S. military patents teleportation, Thompson can expect more help from his Navy brethren during amphibious operations around the world.

HOVER, from A-1

assets operating in a simu- lated combat environment, ultimately proving Det. 5’s and USS Preble’s ability to project naval power at sea in dense threat environments.

The “Expendables” par- ticipated in several multi- national exercises over the course of their Seventh Fleet deployment, including ship anti-submarine warfare readiness and evaluation measurement 180, Talisman Sabre 2015, and CARAT In- donesia. These exercises served to strengthen ties with partner nations and increase the capability for coordinated anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface war- fare, ship-handling, cross- deck landings, and visit, board, search, and seizure operations.

Det 5 further support- ed operational objectives in the form of escort du- ties for the USS George Washington, USS Bon- homme Richard, and USS Ronald Reagan.

They contributed to nu- merous intelligence prod- ucts reaching the highest levels of the U.S. naval in- telligence infrastructure. Arguably the most valuable aspect of their deployment was Det. 5’s completion of Pacifi c presence opera- tions in the East and South China Seas.

This evolution continues to be a vital tool in protect- ing freedom of navigation in international waters, and to contesting invalid sovereignty claims in the region. Det. 5’s deployment is a prime example of the importance of the helicop- ter maritime strike com- munity to the United States Navy’s core objectives of presence, deterrence, power projection, and freedom of the seas.

EXPENDABLES, from A-1