NPL* = UK National Physical Laboratory where cesium clock and packet switching were born
McConnell offers this post with its images and video links on Veterans Day to honor his U.S. Naval Academy classmate, the late Captain Charles Frank "Chic" Burlingame III, who was the pilot of American Airlines Flight 77 – the aircraft fraudulently alleged to have been crashed by al-Qaeda terrorists into the Pentagon during the September 11, 2001 attacks.
McConnell reaffirms that on this Veterans Day, he and his Abel Danger research team are committed to solving the murders associated with Cameron's Flash-Crash Crime Scenes 9/11 and having Serco insiders treated as members of a racketeering influenced and corrupt organization and punished accordingly.
Prequel 1: #2169: Marine Links Feathered Virgin Murder to Northrop Grumman Override, Serco Flash Crash Clock
Prequel 2: #2064: Marine links Serco tunnels, Amec saboteurs to Clinton Pentagon bomb, BC Tailing Pond
The Pentagon Security Camera on 911 (Part 1)
Serco... Would you like to know more?
Carlton fire ident [Daylight Robbery]
Prime Minister David Cameron pays his respects at Ground Zero
Cameron Flash Crash Crime Scene for MH17
Cameron Flash Crash Crime Scene for Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo in the Mojave Desert
"Charles Frank "Chic" Burlingame III (September 12, 1949 – September 11, 2001) was the pilot of American Airlines Flight 77, the aircraft that was crashed by terrorists into the Pentagon during the September 11, 2001 attacks. Burlingame was born in St. Paul, Minnesota and moved frequently as a son of an active duty member of the United States Air Force. He spent parts of his childhood in California and England.[1] Burlingame graduated from Anaheim High School in California.
Charles Burlingame graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1971.[2]In the Navy, he flew F-4 Phantom jets, rising to the rank of captain. In 1979, Burlingame left active duty with the Navy and joined American Airlines, though he remained in the Naval Reserves. He was an honor graduate of the United States Navy Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN) aboard NAS Miramar. Burlingame volunteered to be activated during theGulf War.[1] Burlingame also spent time working in The Pentagon, while in the Naval Reserves.[3]
Burlingame retired as a Navy Reserve Captain in 1996 and worked at American Airlines.[4] Burlingame was married to an American Airlines flight attendant, Sheri Burlingame.[5] They lived in Oak Hill, Virginia.[6]
Burlingame’s name is located on Panel S-69 of the National September 11 Memorial's South Pool, along with those of other passengers of Flight 77.
Burlingame was the pilot of American Airlines Flight 77, with First Officer David Charlebois, before it was hijacked and flown into the Pentagon. He would have turned 52 on September 12, 2001.[7]
Burlingame was buried in the Arlington National Cemetery. He was initially deemed ineligible for burial there due to his status as a reservist deceased at an age younger than 60, but Burlingame was given a waiver and his case triggered reform of Arlington's burial criteria.[dead link][8]
At the National 9/11 Memorial, Burlingame is memorialized at the South Pool, on Panel S-69.[6]"
"December 9, 2012 4:49 pm
Time called on Serco's NPL contract
By Gill Plimmer
Serco, the FTSE 100 outsourcing company, has lost its contract to run the National Physical Laboratory – which built the first atomic clock – after the government said it would seek academic partners to take over the centre instead. The laboratory has been managed by Serco on a profit-share basis since 1994. But David Willetts, science minister, has decided that the government can "encourage greater interaction with businesses" by ending the contract in March 2014, when the company's 17-year tenure comes to an end.
Serco pays price for outsourcing scandals
The decision highlights the vulnerability of some of the government's biggest suppliers to political change. Although the coalition is widely accepted to be engaged in the biggest wave of outsourcing since the 1980s, contracts can be pulled at the last minute, even once companies have spent significant amounts on the bidding process.
Kean Marden, analyst at Jefferies, said there were still UK government contracts worth £3.5bn in revenues in the pipeline, as advertised in the Official Journal of the European Union. But this is down from the £4bn of bidding opportunities it found in May.
The decrease takes account of a surprise decision last month to cancel a programme to outsource nine prisons each year to the private sector and instead keep the running of custodial services in-house.
It also includes a scaling back of the private sector's involvement in police services after Surrey Police Authority pulled out of discussions with G4S in the wake of the company’s failure to provide 12,000 security staff it had promised for the London Olympics.
The National Physics Laboratory still has a role in setting UK time, with radio signals based on its clocks used to set everything from the pips on the radio to the rail network. An apple tree grown from a cutting of Newton’s famous tree is still growing at its site in Teddington, London.
Serco said it was disappointed by the decision and pointed to a 30 per cent reduction in overhead costs over the life of its deal, as well as a doubling of scientific citations as well as third party revenues.
"We have managed NPL for the last 17 years and we are very proud that during that time it has flourished, both scientifically and commercially," Serco said. The company has won £5.6bn of contracts so far this year.
Mr Willetts said there were significant "opportunities which would be difficult to realise under an extension of the current contract". He said the change would reflect the government’s aim to strengthen “both fundamental research and engagement with business" at the centre.
"I consider that the partners should have a clear, long-term stake in the ownership and operation of the National Physical Laboratory which would not be possible under the current arrangements which, of necessity, must be time-limited," Mr Willetts said. "A partnership with an academic institution would also allow for the formation of a dedicated applied science postgraduate institute."
RELATED TOPICS UK outsourcing"
"Serco supported the AFSCN communications support squadron in partnering with military and government contractors to supervise an Air Force Satellite Control Network test effort at Oakhanger, United Kingdom. Their innovative test procedures and creative solutions provided a viable implementation plan designed to improve communications capability .. The team’s outstanding support and will bring new capabilities and enhanced services to our critical warfighting mission." -- Maj Gen Dale W. Meyerrose, Air Force Space Command
Director of Communications and Information
"Serco shares crash after latest profits warning Outsourcing company that runs railways, prisons and GPs out-of-hours services plans to tap shareholders for £550m amid £1.5bn writedown
Jennifer Rankin
The Guardian, Monday 10 November 2014 09.13 GMT
Shares in Serco, the outsourcing company that runs railways, prisons and GPs out-of-hours services, crashed by a third after the firm shocked the market with the fourth profit warning this year.
The company, which employs 120,000 people across 30 countries, suspended its dividend and said it planned to tap shareholders for £550m in new funds. It also confirmed plans to sell non-core assetsin an attempt to restore its fortunes.
The government services group, which has been dogged by scandals, including overcharging the taxpayer for tagging prisoners, said it was writing down the value of its business by £1.5bn. Profits for 2014 are now expected to be £130m-£140m, around £20m lower than forecast, with the outlook downgraded for 2015.
The company also revealed that profits would have been flat between 2009-2013, were it not for its controversial contract running Australia’s migrant detention centres, including a facility on Christmas Island, condemned by Australia’s top human rights official for its filthy conditions and high levels of self-harm among inhabitants.
The profits downgrade follows a forensic examination of its books uncovered a raft of loss-making contracts.
Chief executive Rupert Soames embarked on a strategic review after taking over in June. The reviews "have encouraged much turning over of stones", he said.
"These challenges, together with a less pronounced improvement in trading in our second half than we expected, have led us to a more cautious view of 2014 and 2015."
Soames, a grandson of Winston Churchill, said the writedowns were only initial estimates until the review is completed by March 2015. “Whilst it is a bitter pill, it is better for all concerned that we swallow it now and establish a really solid foundation on which to build Serco's future."
The single biggest adjustment, of £150m, stems from a contract with the Australian navy to maintain its Armidale patrol boats, where costs have spiralled because of cracking and corrosion.
Serco has also increased provisions for a number of UK contracts by £150m-£200m, after running into trouble in several areas. One of Serco's problem contracts is providing housing for vulnerable asylum seekers, where it has been criticised by the government's spending watchdog for failing to provide habitable properties. Serco's prisoner escort service to the UK government, where police were called into investigate alleged fraud, has also generated lower revenues than expected. Serco has also taken losses on its service to the Royal Navy, where it supports Sea King helicopters in search and rescue missions. The company admitted it had made "strategic mis-steps" in the past, by diversifying into areas of business where it had little expertise, as well as being caught out by changes in public sector contracts that put more risk for contract failure on the supplier.
Serco said it had been insulated from these mistakes by high profits from running migrant detention centres for the Australian government. Serco was recently named as the Australian government’s preferred choice to continue running the detention centres, which have raised concerns among public health experts over military-style methods used to control inhabitants. Gillian Triggs, president of the Australian Human Rights Commission, voiced "grave concerns" for the welfare of asylum seekers at Christmas Island centre. Visiting in July she found a sharp escalation in the number of mothers on suicide watch and babies confined to small metal containers, where they cannot learn to crawl or walk. Many children suffered from chest or gut infections as a result of the cramped living conditions. Levels of self-harm at the Serco-run centres rose six-fold in six months, after the Australian government made it mandatory to process all claims for asylum offshore. Christmas Island is one of 12 immigration centres run by Serco for the Australian government, a contract that has become increasingly important as other parts of the company have run into trouble. The Australian migration contract was worth 10% of Serco’s revenues in 2013 and helped Serco increase profits by 28% between 2009-2013, whereas without it profits would have been flat.
Despite the litany of complaints, Serco said it had a bright future providing services to government. Deploying “a few bad apples” argument, the company said its recent failures of governance, risk management and individual bad behaviour were “a tiny part of our overall business with public bodies".
The company plans to sell its environment and leisure businesses in the UK, Great Southern Rail in Australia and will stop providing back-office services to some private companies. A slimmed-down company will focus on its businesses in justice, immigration, defence, transport and healthcare.
But Andrew Gibb, an analyst at Investec, warned that the company's update "might not be the end of the bad news" and that "any turnaround is going to be a long process".
Serco shares were trading 30% lower at a 10-year low of 220p."
Yours sincerely,
Field McConnell, United States Naval Academy, 1971; Forensic Economist; 30 year airline and 22 year military pilot; 23,000 hours of safety; Tel: 715 307 8222
David Hawkins Tel: 604 542-0891 Forensic Economist; former leader of oil-well blow-out teams; now sponsors Grand Juries in CSI Crime and Safety Investigation
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