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Revision as of 18:36, 27 May 2007

Blackwater USA
Company typePrivate military company
IndustryGovernment Services
Founded1997
FounderErik Prince
HeadquartersMoyock, North Carolina, USA
Key peopleGary Jackson
Bill Mathews
Chris Taylor
DivisionsBlackwater Training Center
Blackwater Security Consulting
Blackwater Canine
Blackwater Armor & Targets
Blackwater Logistics
Blackwater Airships
Raven Development
Blackwater North(Illinois)
SubsidiariesBlackwater vehicles
Websiteblackwaterusa.com

Blackwater USA is a private military company and security firm. Founded in 1997 by Erik Prince, it is based in North Carolina. The company touts itself as being "The most comprehensive professional military, law enforcement, security, peacekeeping, and stability operations company in the world". Blackwater USA and its operations are the object of much controversy and debate.

Corporate structure

Blackwater USA consists of nine companies:

Blackwater Training Center

Blackwater Training Center offers tactical and weapons training to military, government, and law enforcement agencies. See facilities below. Blackwater Training Center also offers several open-enrollment courses periodically throughout the year, from hand to hand combat (executive course) to precision rifle marksmanship. Furthermore one could apply to enroll in Blackwater Academy, a program that will train recruits, provided they can meet strict background and criminal checks, physical fitness tests, and can pass a clinical psychological test. Blackwater may ask recruits to enter a rather restrictive contract that would place them exclusively in the service of the company.

Blackwater Target Systems

This division provides and maintains target range steel targets and a "shoothouse" system.

Blackwater Security Consulting (Moyock, North Carolina)

Blackwater Security Consulting (BSC) was formed in 2002. BSC is one of over 60 private security firms employed during the Iraq War to guard officials and installations, train Iraq's new army and police, and provide other support for occupation forces.

Blackwater Security Consulting is very well equipped and known to use:

Blackwater Canine

Blackwater Airships, LLC

Blackwater Airships LLC was established in January 2006 to build a remotely piloted airship vehicle (RPAV).

Blackwater Armored Vehicle

Blackwater recently introduced its own armored personnel carrier, the Grizzly APC.

Blackwater Maritime

Blackwater Maritime Security Services offers tactical training for maritime force protection units.

Raven Development Group

In 1997, the Raven Development Group was established to design and build Blackwater USA's training facility in North Carolina.

Aviation Worldwide Services (Presidential Airways and STI Aviation)

Aircraft maintenance and tactical transportation. Presidential Airways claims to hold a Secret Facility Clearance from the U.S. Department of Defense.

Greystone Limited

A private security service, Greystone is registered in Barbados, and employs third country nationals for offshore security work.

Personnel

Blackwater's president, Gary Jackson, as well as Executive Vice President Bill Mathews and other business unit leaders are former Navy SEALs. Chris Taylor, VP for Strategic Initiatives is a former Force Recon Marine. Blackwater was founded and is owned by Erik Prince who is also a former Navy SEAL.

Facilities

The facility, located in North Carolina, is composed of several ranges, indoor, outdoor, urban reproductions and has over 7,000 acres (24 km²) of land spanning Camden and Currituck counties.

It is one of the largest firearms training facilities in the world. Company literature claims that the company runs "the largest privately owned firearms training facility in the nation."

In November 2006 Blackwater USA announced it recently acquired an 80-acre (30 ha) facility 150 miles (240 km) west of Chicago, in Mount Carroll, Illinois to be called Blackwater North. That facility is now operational.

Blackwater is also trying to open a facility in California for military training, in Potrero, San Diego County.

History

Blackwater USA was formed in 1997 to provide training support to military and law enforcement organizations. In 2002 Blackwater Security Consulting (BSC) was formed. It was one of several private security firms employed following the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. BSC is one of over 60 private security firms employed during the Iraq War to guard officials and installations, train Iraq's new army and police, and provide other support for occupation forces.

On March 31, 2004, Iraqi insurgents in Fallujah ambushed a convoy containing four American private military contractors from Blackwater USA who were conducting delivery for food caterers ESS. The four armed contractors, Scott Helvenston, Jerko Zovko, Wesley Batalona and Michael Teague, were killed with grenades and small arms fire. The bodies were then hung over a bridge crossing the Euphrates.

Photos of the event were released to news agencies worldwide; a great deal of indignation and moral outrage in the United States followed. This directly preceded the announcement of an upcoming assault on Fallujah.

In April 2005 six Blackwater independent contractors were killed in Iraq when their Mi-8 helicopter was shot down. Also killed were three Bulgarian crewmembers and two Fijian gunners. Initial reports indicate the helicopter was shot down by rocket propelled grenades. The six Americans killed have been identified as:

The three Bulgarians have been identified as:

  • Lyubomir Kostov
  • Georgi Naidenov
  • Stoyan Anchev

Blackwater USA was employed to assist the Hurricane Katrina relief efforts on the Gulf Coast. According to a company press release, it provided airlift services, security services, humanitarian support services, and logistics and transportation services. Unofficial reports claim that the company also provided law enforcement services, such as securing neighborhoods and confronting criminals.

On January 23, 2007, five Blackwater contractors were killed in Iraq when their Hughes H-6 helicopter was shot down. The incident happened in Baghdad, Haifa Street. Three Iraqi insurgent groups claimed responsibility for shooting down the helicopter, however, this has not been confirmed by the US. A US defense official has confirmed that four of the five killed were shot execution style in the back the head, but did not know whether the four were still alive when they were shot. Robert Young Pelton broke the full details of the crash on his site. Pelton also met and flew with the Little Bird pilots.

Blackwater USA has also been contracted by various foreign governments. In 2005 it worked to train the Naval Sea Commando regiment of Azerbaijan, enhancing their interdiction capabilities on the Caspian Sea.

Controversy and criticism

In March 2006, Cofer Black, vice chairman of Blackwater USA, allegedly suggested at an international conference in Amman, Jordan, that the company is ready to move towards providing security professionals up to brigade size for humanitarian efforts and low intensity conflicts. Critics have suggested this may be going too far in putting political decisions in the hands of privately owned corporations. The company denies this was ever said.

Critics claim that Blackwater's private military company self-description is a politically-correct euphemism for mercenary activities. The documentary film Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers suggests that the company has been partially responsible for the Abu Ghraib scandal.

Blackwater is currently being sued by the families of the four contractors killed in Fallujah in March, 2004. The families allege that they are not suing for financial damages, but rather for the details of their sons' and husbands' deaths. They claim that Blackwater has refused to supply these details, unless the families sue. Four family members testified in front of the House Government Reform Committee on February 7, 2007. They asked that Blackwater be held accountable for future negligence of employees' lives, and that Federal legislation be drawn up to govern contracts between the Department of Defense and the defense contractor.

On April 19, 2006, The Nation magazine published an article titled, "Blood Is Thicker Than Blackwater," concerning the lawsuit against Blackwater brought by some of the families of the four deceased employees. The article discussed the removal of the word "armoured" from already-signed contracts, and other allegations of wrongdoing. The author of the article, investigative journalist Jeremy Scahill, has reported more extensively on these issues and others in his book, Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army (2007). Scahill testified before House Appropriations hearing on defense contracting on May 10, 2007.

References

  1. http://www.blackwaterusa.com/targetsystems/
  2. Role of security companies likely to become more visible
  3. http://www.forceprotection.net/news/news_article.html?id=21
  4. Blackwater Product Page
  5. http://baltimorechronicle.com/2007/032607Cherbonnier.shtml
  6. http://www.thespywhobilledme.com/the_spy_who_billed_me/2007/04/blackwater_usa_.html
  7. http://www.sdreader.com/php/cityshow.php?id=1566
  8. http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/op-ed/vandeerlin/20070419-9999-lz1e19vandeer.html
  9. Role of security companies likely to become more visible
  10. The High Risk Contracting Business
  11. 'Residents hang slain Americans' bodies from bridge'—CNN.com
  12. http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/04/23/iraq.main/index.html
  13. Overkill: Feared Blackwater Mercenaries Deploy in New Orleans
  14. U.S. crew of downed helicopter shot at close range—CNN.com
  15. 4 Americans in Iraq Crash Shot in Head—WTOP.com
  16. Pelton, Robert Young: "Licensed to Kill, Hired Guns in the War on Terror," Crown, August 29, 2006
  17. Blackwater USA says it can supply forces for conflicts
  18. Inside America's Private Army (continued)
  19. http://baltimorechronicle.com/2007/032607Cherbonnier.html
  20. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1599682–1,00.html
  21. http://www.thenation.com/doc/20060508/scahill
  22. published by Nation Books, New York; ISBN 1560259795

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