S. Korea set to bolster its Marine Corps and Navy with an eye toward China, Japan and N. Korea...

via The Korea Times

The Marine Corps plans to create a new command tasked to defend the country's islands near North Korean, Japanese and Chinese waters, next year.

This is to counter growing territorial claims of Japan and China as well as North Korea's possible provocations in the western sea border. 
In particular, the Marine Corps will set up a new unit dedicated to defending islands in the East Sea, including Dokdo, to which Japan has intensified its sovereignty claims. 

The Marine Corps unveiled these plans during a National Assembly audit.

"We've been seeking to take relevant measures preemptively as China, Japan and North Korea have been bolstering their amphibious capabilities," a Marine Corps officer said.

This illustrates the problem in Asia.

You want to know why I KNOW they will never replace the US (but will definitely fight us)?  It's because they have so many rivalries in that part of the world that they can never cooperate.

S. Korea is particularly interesting though.  I'm still not sure who they consider the bigger threat.  N. Korea or Japan.  I'm still not sure who they consider a better ally.  The US or China.

But back on task.  Check this part out...

 In a statement released later Thursday, the Marine Corps explained that the "Ulleung unit" is not exclusively tasked with protecting Dokdo, a move seen as to avoid a dispute with Japan amid its territorial dispute with South Korea over the islet.

The Marine Corps will separately form an aviation unit by 2021 and also plans to acquire amphibious assault helicopters, a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), wheeled armored vehicles, high-speed vessels and an air-defense radar between 2020 and 2023. 

Then this...

 The Navy said it plans to create an aviation command by 2020 and a maneuver fleet by 2030 in line with its push for "offensive warfare" against North Korea's evolving military threats.

The aviation command, if set up, is expected to be led by a rear admiral who will be in charge of more than 70 planes and helicopters, including additional maritime patrol aircraft and anti-surface surveillance and attack choppers.

The fleet will include 7,600-ton Aegis destroyers and KDDX destroyers.

The Navy said this will help execute the South Korean military's three-pronged defense system against North Korean attacks _ the Kill Chain, the Korean Air and Missile Defense (KAMD) and the Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation (KMPR).

The system is to strike Pyongyang preemptively if Seoul is faced with an imminent threat while shooting down the enemy's incoming missiles and taking retaliatory measures if the country is under attack.

Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Um Hyun-seong said he will "take a long-term perspective" regarding conservative lawmakers' demands to acquire a supercarrier. 
Um vowed to take stern measures against North Korea should it provoke South Korea near the five border islands in the West Sea, saying "it will be considered as a full-scale war." 

Story here. 

S. Korea bears watching.  They're even looking at the possibility of building a super carrier?

We're looking at a strange future.

S. Korea and Japan could well end up shooting at each other with our forces in the middle of that fight, while at the same time trying to repel a sudden strike by Chinese forces against either or both of our supposed allies.

Even worse?  Australia is just too small to be a multiplier in any scenario in the region.  At best they can provide logistics support but as far as combat power we will be alone.

Wild cards?  The Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and India.  Oh and that's all assuming Russia stays on the sidelines.

Everyone is arming up and we're facing a terrible future in that region.  Europe is easy.  The Middle East is frustrating but if we got serious, easy too.  The headache will be Asia.  Asia is and always will be hard.

Royal Canadian Air Force CH-147F...pic by Cpl Arthur Ark

China's President all but said war with the US is inevitable...

via The Guardian.

Xi Jinping has heralded the dawn of a “new era” of Chinese politics and power at the start of a historic Communist party congress celebrating the end of his first term in office. Speaking in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, at the start of the week-long 19th party congress, Xi told delegates that thanks to decades of “tireless struggle” China stood “tall and firm in the east”. Now, Xi said, it was time for his nation to transform itself into “a mighty force” that could lead the world on political, economic, military and environmental issues.

Drink this in.

The Chinese leader is being culturally correct in this statement and you have to understand Asia to read between the lines.

This is just short of a declaration of war.

What do I mean?  He has announced his intent to lead the world.  This is a statement of Chinese manifest destiny that is all over their internet.  The Chinese truly believe that the world is theirs to rule and that all others must submit to their "dictates".

Disputed islands?  Not if China has a historic claim.  Resources in far off lands? They will cooperate if possible, take if they must.  Cooperate with the West?  Only if its on their terms.

Russia isn't the threat and might well be the key to containing China.  We need to dump the Russia-phobia and concentrate on the real threat.  That threat is in the Pacific and its the Red Dragon, not the Bear.

US Army buys 255 Mobile Strike Force Vehicles...plus are we now a war economy?

via US News and World Report.

A New Orleans company has an Army contract for nearly $333 million to make up to 255 mobile strike force vehicles — armored personnel carriers that Textron Marine and Land Systems has been making since 2012 for the Afghan national army.

Textron's new contract runs through October 2024. It also covers hardware and field representative services.

A brief notice Wednesday in the Pentagon's daily list of military contracts did not say where the new vehicles will be deployed.

Textron said in October 2015 that it had supplied 621 of the vehicles to the Afghan national army since 2012, and more than 550 were in use. At the time, it had received a $17 million contract to train Afghan soldiers to maintain and repair the vehicles.

Wow.

Do you know we've been training and assisting the Afghan and Iraqi armies for more than 10 years?

How long does it take a force to become proficient?

How long does it take for the training wheels to come off and they ride on their own?

When do we decide that we've spent enough money on basket case countries?

Someone needs to ask our tacticians and strategist those questions and more. It's obvious that what we're doing isn't working...at least they're buying our gear.  At least the workers at Textron and other defense manufacturers are getting some work.

One last question.

Have we become a war economy?  Have we evolved to the point that endless war is an important part of our GDP (either directly or indirectly)?  I guess what I'm really asking is this.  If we could snap our fingers and end the wars today would it negatively affect the US economy?

US Army Squad Maneuver Equipment Transport (SMET) is plowing old ground...

Thanks to Shane for the linK!

via Janes.

The US Army plans to move quickly into experimentation with a Squad Maneuver Equipment Transport (SMET) system as the service seeks to finally determine if such a capability is worthwhile.

"We're still struggling to understand this device and what we want it to do for us," Lieutenant Colonel Bill Venable, the US Army's chief for its Electronics and Special Developments Branch.

SMET is now in a 'capability development document' phase that is being reviewed by the Army Requirements Oversight Council and is on hold as a pending programme. The service plans to purchase 80 in various configurations and install them in brigade combat teams (BCTs) across the army to inform doctrine, Lt Col Venable said.

Headquarters Department of Army (HQDA) has "kind of lost our patience with the status quo" and has directed the SMET programme to move forward rapidly so it can experiment with the systems and determine their usefulness, said Stuart Hatfield, the robotics branch chief for Army G-8.

Story here. 

Ground forces and unmanned vehicles.  I don't quite get the thinking or rather the indecision.  What do I mean?  This is old ground.  The military has asked for various studies, experimental vehicles and capabilities and industry/researchers have delivered but they still haven't pulled the trigger. 

What was that?  Prove it?  Ok, then let me hit you with a blast from the past. Below are a few unmanned vehicles that industry/researchers provided that were capable but weren't pursued.

Carnegie Mellon Crusher

Oshkosh Terramax

COoperative Unmanned Ground Attack Robot

Black Knight unmanned ground combat vehicle

Those are just a few examples.  If you do a simple Google search you can find many more.

It seems that the Army's FCS program actually never died, just transformed into something a bit different.  That still doesn't explain why the military isn't actually buying these vehicles but I have a theory.

Considering how the US is deploying its forces worldwide, mixed with the idea that the general public is "less enamored" with the military and finally considering the poor physical condition of recruiting age people, they're thinking that a manning crisis is approaching.

If you are sold on how the military is currently operating, then we're looking at global commitments that will INCREASE, not decrease.  If you're having to cover the same or more spots around the globe with fewer people then you're going to need a ground combat multiplier.

They're betting that unmanned ground vehicles will be that multiplier.

They're wrong though.

You will see these vehicles subjected to the same electronic warfare that our jet fighters will face over hostile skies.  Add in the possibility that the enemy has entire armies of hackers sitting in buildings with thousand ton AC units to cool supercomputers running 24/7 and we could see these vehicles either heading off to resupply the enemy or if they're gunned, see them used against our own troops.

The future GROUND battlefield will be a curious mix of "standard", high tech and primitive fighting.

There will be no shortcuts to success.  Only blood on the ground.

Open Comment Post. Oct 19, 2017

111 Infantry Battalion conducting a combined arms night shoot (pics)

Politics Talk. I'm looking to General Kelly on this latest controversy...UPDATED!!!!

By now you've heard the latest Trump misstep.  To me this would be unforgivable if it's true.

I know the guy thinks he's smooth and a people person but he has a missing "empathy" gene.  He's also a bit glib and thinks it's cute.  Finally he likes to play the tough guy.

This thing keeps spiralling though and Trump did his usual of trying to bluff.  What did he do?  He said that he had proof and that if the Congresswoman didn't retract that he would prove it.

She didn't retract.  He hasn't provided proof.

I'm looking toward General Kelly.  He's one of the few guys with stars that still has a sense of duty.  Oh and don't get it twisted.  You can wear stars and push a jacked up war strategy (at least in my eyes) but still maintain your sense of duty (we just disagree on how the war should be conducted).

So yeah.  General Kelly has my trust.  I want to see what he does.  His actions will tell it all in my view.  Trump will push for him to go out in front of the cameras and smooth this over for him.  If he does then I'll roll with him.

If he doesn't then we know that Trump really is as stupid, idiotic, narcissistic, and simply batshit crazy as many believe.

UPDATE!!!  THANKS TO ERIC!!!!

Mr Wright said he did most of the talking. Told @POTUS son's unit in Niger should have had air support: "he was not aware of that situation"

— Mark Knoller (@markknoller) October 18, 2017

Jesus.

I'm spinning like a top.  I know the Congresswoman is batshit crazy but to lie about something like this? 

And now the father is saying that he did most of the talking and Trump wasn't disrespectful?  He asked about his son needing air support?

Wow.

Pop sounds like he's either been in the military or is well read.  I will add the dad to the trust list...right along with Kelly.  They're both good with it?  Then I am too.  There is one other uncomfortable truth here too.  For some reason beyond me, black women are totally in the democrat camp. I would hate to think that the serviceman's wife would use this for political purposes along with the congress critter but it's not beyond imagining. And before you slam me for slamming the family of a slain servicemember I'm just trying to figure out motives here.  For there to be two totally different accounts of a phone call is puzzling.  Could it be a mistake and misunderstanding?  Yeah, but the Congresswoman coming out with this instead of the family is suspicious as hell...in HINDSIGHT it is.  Might have gotten played on this one or it might be a mistake.  Who the fuck knows.

I'm not ashamed to say this makes me feel...we need a new strategy and more answers!

What you see above is the video of Sgt La David Johnson being brought home after being killed in combat.

I'll ignore the idiocy (AGAIN!!!!!!) about whether Trump said that "he knew what he signed up for" when he talked to his widow this morning, as a Congresswoman is accusing him of (Trump says he has proof that he did not).  That Congress Critter making the accusation is as loony as a cat overdosing on catnip.

I want to circle back to the mission in Niger that these Special Forces troops were on.

We need answers and an explanation AND a better strategy!  Almost 20 years of playing whack a mole isn't cutting it.

V-280 Valor Helicopter Rotors Ground Run & 100% Rotor RPM Testing (Vid)