CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 18 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: OSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea - The 25th Fighter Squadron participated in the routine training event, EPIC FOG 24-1, Dec. 11 - 15, 2023, focusing on close air support or CAS, forward air control or FAC and air-to-air refueling, to enhance operational capabilities. The training took place on the eastern side of the Korean peninsula and brought together joint and  more

FORT SHAFTER, Hawaii, Dec. 19 -- The U.S. Army Contracting Command issued the following news: Two contracting professionals of the Regional Contracting Office-Hawaii recently awarded the largest AbilityOne contract for custodial services in the Pacific region since 1989. Kim Feng, a contracting officer, and Joe East, a contracting specialist, completed the contract action valued at $42 million to execute large-scale custodial services on the island of Oahu. Feng and East's efforts resulted in  more

HONOLULU, Hawaii, Dec. 20 -- The U.S. Pacific Air Forces issued the following news: By Tech. Sgt. Nicholas Wilson, Pacific Air Forces Public Affairs The 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command organized an annual Multilateral Integrated Air and Missile Defense Summit at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, from Dec. 4-8. "As a joint force, we will always fight alongside our Allies and partners," said Col. Todd A. Schmidt, director of Army University at the Combined Arms Center, Fort Leav  more

SAN FRANCISCO, California, Dec. 22 (TNSrep) -- The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics - Western Regional Information Office issued the following report on Dec. 21, 2023, entitled "Hawaii Job Openings and Labor Turnover - October 2023": * * * Hawaii had 30,000 job openings in October 2023, compared to 32,000 openings in September, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table 1.) Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that the job openings rate in Hawaii  more

HONOLULU, Hawaii, Dec. 20 -- The U.S. Pacific Air Forces issued the following news: The Office of the Secretary of Defense Chief Digital and AI Office, Defense Innovation Unit, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, U.S. Army Pacific Command and the U.S. Air Force will host a multi-classification hackathon open to all U.S. citizens, Feb. 5-9, 2024. A hackathon is an innovation event commonly employed by technology companies in which teams develop prototypes in response to enterprise challenges associated   more

HAWAII NATIONAL PARK, Hawaii, Dec. 19 -- The National Park Service Hawaii Volcanoes National Park issued the following news release: Hawaii Volcanoes National Park (HVNP) in coordination with Hawaii Electric Light Company (HELCO) is requesting public input on a proposed electrical transmission line relocation within the park. The project includes an area between Pi'i Mauna Drive and the Hilo-side park boundary near Old Volcano Road. The project is considered Phase 3 of HELCO's efforts to upgra  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 20 -- The Department of Housing and Urban Development issued the following news release on Dec. 18, 2023: The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that it is charging individuals and entities associated with a Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, condominium complex, including the condominium association, employees of the condominium association, the property management company, an employee of the property management company, the condominium unit's owners, and  more

HAWAII NATIONAL PARK, Hawaii, Dec. 22 -- The U.S. Department of the Interior's National Park Service issued the following news release: The National Park Service (NPS) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) completed an Air Tour Management Plan for Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on December 20, 2023. The plan provides for the continuation of air tours at reduced levels over the park and within a half-mile of its boundary to protect natural and cultural resources, wilderness, the integrit  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 21 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: KATHMANDU, Nepal - A U.S. Navy SEAL Team conducted a joint training exchange alongside the Nepali Army and members of the Nepali Army Special Operations Force (SOF) Brigade near Kathmandu, Nepal from October 30 to November 6, 2023. The two-week training exchange consisted of a week-long subject matter expert exchange (SMEE) and a week-long multilateral disaster re  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 18 -- The Naval Sea Systems Command issued the following news: PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii - National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Principal Deputy Administrator Frank Rose, accompanied by the Department of Energy/NNSA Liaison to U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, toured Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard Dec. 7, 2023 for familiarization with training and exercises at the shipyard. PHNSY is the largest, most comprehensive Fleet repair and maintenance facility between t  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 21 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: WASHINGTON, D.C. - Joint Staff Spokesperson Navy Capt. Jereal Dorsey provided the following readout: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. CQ Brown, Jr., spoke with People's Liberation Army of China Chief of the Joint Staff Department Gen. Liu Zhenli by video teleconference today. This was the first time the leaders spoke since Gen. Brown became Chairman. Gen  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 19 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke this evening with National Security Office Director Cho Taeyong of the Republic of Korea (ROK) and National Security Secretariat Secretary General Akiba Takeo of Japan following the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK) Intercontinental ballistic missile test. The national security advisors condemned the test, which is a flagrant   more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 23 -- The U.S. State Department issued the following news release: The Department of State hosted representatives from Japan, Australia, and India for the Quad Counterterrorism Working Group meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii December 19-21, 2023. Gregory LoGerfo, Acting Principal Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, led the U.S. interagency delegation. The Quad convenes four like-minded regional partners - the United States, Australia, India, and Japan - to make tangible progres  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 18 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: We are aware of the DPRK's ballistic missile launches and are consulting closely with the Republic of Korea (ROK) and Japan, as well as other regional allies and partners. The United States condemns these launches, and calls on the DPRK to refrain from any further destabilizing acts. We have assessed that these events did not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel, territory, or t  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 20 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: KUNSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea - Members of the Wolf Pack welcomed Republic of Korea Air Force Col. Byeong-Ki Ahn, 38th Fighter Group incoming commander, during the 38th FG change of command ceremony Dec. 15. "I am honorably taking over responsibility as commander of the 38th Fighter Group," said Ahn. "Together, we will lead the future of ROKAF and continue to  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 20 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: SANTA RITA, Guam - In response to the grounding of the motor vessel Voyager, a 116-foot Indonesian-flagged ship, adjacent to Piti Channel in Typhoon Mawar on May 24, 2023, the U.S. Coast Guard, under the leadership of Capt. Nicholas Simmons, the commander of U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam and the Captain of the Port (COTP), has taken decisive action  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 18 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: COLONIA, Yap - In a demonstration of continued cooperation, U.S. Coast Guard personnel completed a key leader engagement and site visit in Yap from Dec. 10 to 12, 2023. This visit, led by Capt. Nick Simmons, commander of U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam (CGFM/SG) and the Compact of Free Association (COFA) team, highlighted the enduring partnership an  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 20 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: For the second time this year, fighter aircraft from the U.S., Japan, and the Republic of Korea conducted a trilateral escort flight of U.S. bombers operating in the Indo-Pacific, Dec. 20, 2023. U.S. F-16s from the 80th Fighter Squadron, 8th Fighter Wing flew alongside Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) F-2s from the 8th Air Wing, and Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) F-15Ks from  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 19 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: Today, the United States, Japan, and the Republic of Korea announce that they have fully activated a real-time DPRK missile warning data sharing mechanism and jointly established a multi-year trilateral exercise plan. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III, Minister of Defense Kihara Minoru, and Minister of National Defense Shin Wonsik recently agreed to finalize the two initiatives  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 18 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: Adm. John C. Aquilino, commander, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, hosted senior joint-force leaders from the Indo-Pacific area of responsibility, for two days of engagements focused on capabilities, joint interoperability, and the local community on the Hawaiian islands of Maui and Oahu, Dec. 14-15.  Commanders and senior enlisted from U.S. Army Pacific, Marine Forces Pacific, Pacific Fl  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 17 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: We are aware of the ballistic missile launch and are consulting closely with our allies and partners. While we have assessed that this event does not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel or territory, or to our allies, the missile launch highlights the destabilizing impact of the DPRK's illicit weapons program. The U.S. commitment to the defense of the Republic of Korea and Japa  more

CAMP SMITH, Hawaii, Dec. 21 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Indo-Pacific Command issued the following news: PALAU - The hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) arrived Dec. 21 in the Republic of Palau to begin the fourth mission stop of Pacific Partnership 24-1, the largest annual multinational humanitarian assistance and disaster relief preparedness mission conducted in the Indo-Pacific region. This marks the sixth time Pacific Partnership has come to Palau, the previous vis  more