Briefs
Advertiser Staff
ALL SERVICES
Pay changes start July 1
Service members stationed in Hawai'i may see changes to their Cost of Living Allowance on their July 1 leave and earnings statement, Pacific Command said.
The changes include increases for service members stationed on O'ahu and Maui, and a decrease for those stationed on the Big Island.
There was no change for Kaua'i. The changes come about as the result of a March 2003 COLA survey. On O'ahu, an E-5 with eight years of federal active service and three dependents would see an increase of about $45 a month for COLA. An O-3 would see a $61 increase.
NAVY
Attack submarine returns to Pearl
USS Columbia, one of four Pearl Harbor attack submarines to fire Tomahawk cruise missiles in the opening rounds of Operation Iraqi Freedom, returned home June 6.
The submarine's commanding officer, Cmdr. Duane R. Ashton, and his crew left Dec. 6 for a six-month deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
The submarine participated in the coalition exercise Tandem Thrust, and stopped in Brisbane, Australia.
Florida unit to train divers
A new Navy unit in Florida, will oversee training for divers and bomb squad personnel.
Capt. Gary Windhorst took command of the the Center for Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Diving that will have about 40 military and civilian personnel when fully functioning in about a year at the Naval Coastal Systems Station near Panama City.
The center will be responsible for the Navy's diving school at the Coastal Systems Station, an ordnance disposal school at Eglin Air Force Base, which trains bomb squad members from all services, and remote training sites at Pearl Harbor, and Indian Head, Md.
Group to hold national meeting
The Navy League is holding its 2003 annual convention Wednesday through Sunday at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. The Honolulu Council of the Navy League is hosting this year's convention, last held in Hawai'i in 1996. More than 500 Navy League supporters from all over the United States are expected to attend.
Officers for 2003-2004 will be sworn in, including Sheila McNeill, the first woman president of the Navy League. Among programs being offered are The Follies Americana, and "Take a Sailor to Lunch" on Wednesday, a chance to host a sailor at Don Ho's Island Grill. The event includes a tour of the frigate USS Reuben James.
Call 422-9404.
AIR FORCE
11 from Hawai'i among graduates
Among the U.S. Air Force Academy's class of 2003 are 11 graduates from Hawai'i, according to the Hawai'i USAFA Club.
The list includes Joshua Arrowood, Shawn Christensen, Ryan Jodoi and Michael Hudson from O'ahu; Erik Carlson, Landon Chang, Mark Enriques, Christopher Ross and Mark Sakai from the Big Island; and Christopher Kary and Tyrone Manegdeg from Maui.
