Tuesday, January 02, 2018
Brazil has purchased HMS Ocean...
via The Herald
Brazil has bought the Royal Navy’s flagship HMS Ocean for £84 million, it has been reported.I know that they're getting two new aircraft carriers but I can't help but feel that the Brits will miss the capabilities that these small little, affordable monsters provided to the Queen.
The UK Defence Journal claims it has received confirmation from a source in the Brazilian Defence community that the sale of the Devonport-based helicopter carrier has been agreed.
Its website reports that Brazilian journalist Roberto Lopes told the journal that the purchase has been confirmed by Brazilian Defence Minister Raul Jungmann within the last week.
On the other hand...Brazil just got a steal of a deal. Well done to their Ministry of Defense. They are growing capabilities on a budget. Nicely done.
Yemen News Agency gives a tally of Saudi backed forces losses for 2017...
via Yemen News Agency.
The army and popular forces destroyed 1,569 military vehicles and eight naval units, and shot down 29 aircraft of the US-Saudi aggression in 2017.
On the other hand, the army and popular forces launched 45 ballistic missiles during the same year.
The military and the Popular forces destroyed eight Abrams tanks, 196 armored vehicles, 31 tanks, 1,337 various ordnance of the US- Saudi aggression and its mercenaries, according to a report issued by the military Information, Saba got a copy of it.
the naval forces and the coastal defense destroyed eight naval military pieces of the Saudi-American aggression in 2017, distributing over two boats and four battleships, and a spy submarine and a frigate.
The report said that the air defenses of the army and the popular forces shot down 29 aircrafts, including two F-16 and one F-15, and one Typhoon, two Apache, a Black Hawk, and a helicopter, and a MQ9 plane, and 19 spy aircrafts.
The missile force of the army and the popular forces fired 45 ballistic missiles into the depth of the Saudi and UAE positions and their mercenaries on various fronts, including three Burkan-1, and three Burkan-2, three H-2, and three Zelzal-3.
Ballistic missiles launched last year also included a winged cruise missile and a Qaher missile M-2, and a missile has not been revealed yet.
During the same period, the missile force also fired 293 homemade missiles, distributing to 62 Zelzal-1 missiles, 109 Zelzal 2 missiles, 10 Sumod missiles, five al-Sarkha, Cry, missiles, 1 al-Sarkha-2 missile, 4 al-Sarkha-3 missiles, 38 Uragan missiles, 57 Grad missiles and seven other missiles.
According to the report, the sniper units of the army and the popular forces managed during the last year to shot and killed 399 Saudi soldiers and 1,894 mercenaries.
Wow. That part of the story "Saudi-American" aggression just made my skin crawl. I could forgive alot of Trump's nonsense to include his miscategorizing the marchers in Charlottesville, if he would just stop getting us entangled in other people's fights.
He failed, the "establishment" won and we're supporting another freaking fight in the Middle East.
It's enough to make you want to pound walls. Oh and make no mistake about it. The US govt has stated clearly that it is supporting Saudi efforts in Yemen.
Yep! A proxy fight between Iran and Saudi Arabia now has US fingerprints and prestige all over it.
What happened to the review that Mattis ordered between the Super Hornet and F-35?
via USNI (Jan 2017).
Defense Secretary James Mattis is ordering a Pentagon review to compare the capabilities and cost between the emerging carrier-based Lockheed Martin F-35C Lighting II Joint Strike Fighter and an upgraded version of the Boeing F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet, according to a memo obtained by USNI News.Story here.
The three-paragraph directive orders Deputy Secretary of Defense Bob Work to, “oversee a review that compares F-35C and F/A-18 E/F operational capabilities and assesses the extent that F/A-18E/F improvements (an advanced Super Hornet) can be made in order to provide a competitive, cost effective, fighter aircraft alternative.”
The memo also directs Work to look at the overall F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program to find opportunities to significantly reduce cost while maintaining the requirements for the program.
The Work reviews are set to inform upcoming budget decisions, read the memo.
In a Friday statement to reporters, Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis said, “this is a prudent step to incorporate additional information into the budget preparation process and to inform the secretary’s recommendations to the president regarding critical military capabilities.”
The new review follows then President-elect Donald Trump’s December declaration that he wanted Boeing to price out a comparable Super Hornet to an F-35 as a cost saving measure.
My question. What was the result of the study? Why aren't defense journalists pressing for answers?
I imagine that the results and testing will be biased to make the F-35 look as good as possible but NAVAIR knows the reality and that's why it hasn't been released.
BUT WE NEED TO KNOW!
Combat capabilities must not be allowed to be subordinate to marketing or stockholder profits.
If the conventional wisdom is correct then electronic warfare will become even more important than stealth in the near future. That means that the E-18G will be a bigger part of future warfare than stealth...especially for ground forces. One last thing. The USAF has abandonded electronic warfare and tossed the mission to the Navy. The USMC has essentially joined with the AF and is doing the same.
That makes this study absolutely essential to the ground combat component of the United States (and probably our allies). We don't have ground based electronic warfare platform like the Russians (who are masters) or even the Chinese. In short. I believe we will need the E-18G to survive on the modern battlefield against a peer opponent.
China 6th Gen Unmanned Hypersonic Stealth Fighter Concept Unveiled
How did F-15E's make it into a Chinese propaganda film?
Another day another Houthi ass kicking of Saudi backed forces...
via almasdarnews.com
The Houthi forces killed scores of Saudi-backed fighters inside the Al-Jawf Governorate of northern Yemen, yesterday, the Yemeni group’s official media wing report.Story here. Be advised (because when I posted pics of the dead on these pages I got reported) that there are a few MILDLY graphic images.
According to the Houthi forces, their fighters foiled a large attack launched by the Saudi-backed Hadi loyalists in the Al-Khalifeen area of Al-Jawf on Monday.
The Houthi forces added that their fighters killed at least ten Hadi loyalists, while also destroying two armored vehicles before the latter finally made the decision to retreat.
Back on task.
It's obvious that the Saudis are conducting some type of push and are still getting it handed to them. Who is the idiot Saudi general that is pushing that same tired meme we heard during the Bush Admin of "staying the course" when it was obvious things weren't working?
The US, Russia and a few other countries can handle protracted war.
Saudi Arabia and the GCC can't.
Before the end of the year I would bet body parts that the house of Saud is teetering on the brink.
Gock 19X. Compact slide, full size frame?
Glock is rolling out its 19X and I just got news in my inbox this morning. I haven't watched any of the review vids or read any articles.
This is just my take on the basic concept.
A Glock 19 slide length married up to a Glock 17 frame?
I've seen wildcat things gone that give you the Glock 17 slide with the frame cut down to Glock 19 length, but to do the opposite?
I really don't get it.
With my carry G26 I walk around with the 10 round mag inserted and have a G19 mag as my reload. If I was carrying for duty work I would probably rock a G19 and have 33 round G17 mags in my bailout bag.
Who is this setup suppose to appeal to? If I feel a need to carry the G17 then why would I not go with the slightly longer slide length? That's in a duty carry scenario. Why would I ever want a G17 frame with a G19 slide in a concealed carry role?
What am I missing?
Let's talk about the case of the SWATTING against an innocent man by another gamer....
By now most of you have heard about the case of the SWATTING, the fraudulent calling of police by another individual with a grudge that causes police to react with Special Tactics Units, of an innocent man by a gamer with a bone to pick with him.
We need to talk about this.
I've read several takes on this issue and they usually fall down into one of two camps.
The first is that the Police responding to the incident are wrong and the second is that the gamer is wrong.
I want to deconstruct this thing but be warned. There are two guilty parties here. One identified, the other has somehow escaped everyone's notice.
First let's talk about the SWAT Teams response. Let me tell you straight ahead. Those guys are golden. They did nothing wrong. These guys were told by dispatchers that they were responding to a case of people being held against their will by another family member.
Have you heard the saying that when things are most intense is when you must focus, think clearly and do what is necessary to stay alive?
This poor guy that got SWATTED handled the issue badly. Following instructions and acting as demanded might have helped to end this differently.
But even if the cops MIGHT have acted in a bad way you have to consider the call they were sent on. Man with a gun. Man holding others against their will.
This was as high risk as it gets.
Obviously the guy that made the call to police is dead wrong. He should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
So if the SWAT Officers are not guilty and the guy making the call is trash that should burned on the side of the road then who is the other party that should be held responsible.
Sorry to them and I know they have a difficult job but dispatchers, the watch commander of that particular sector and whoever held the position as acting chief of police for that watch (to include the chief because he would be called on incidents like this) hold MUCH of the blame here.
SWAT Officers act on the information given to them.
It is up to the dispatchers to gather preliminary information on the call. It is up to the sector watch commander to give intel on the area in question. It is up to the Acting Chief of Police for the watch to ensure that proper intel on the location has been obtained. And finally its up to the Chief of Police, who would have been informed of the situation, to ensure that his people have gathered all intel, attempted a peaceful resolution of the situation by use of negotiators and safeguarded the neighborhood by evacuating citizens that might be caught in the line of fire (and this depends on the weapons his people use for entry and what weapon the suspect is thought to be using...we could be looking at an evacuation that stretches out to a mile or more before they actually conduct a breach).
So yeah. Blame the bastard that made the false call. Blame those that I named in the above paragraph. But don't blame those that have to make entry on a building, pass thru that fatal funnel and then attempt to put bullets on target without hitting people being held for this tragedy.
Cutting low hanging fruit is easy but is what produces. Go higher up and slice away the sour, bitter fruit that only passes the blame or ducks and hides when things go bad.
We need to talk about this.
I've read several takes on this issue and they usually fall down into one of two camps.
The first is that the Police responding to the incident are wrong and the second is that the gamer is wrong.
I want to deconstruct this thing but be warned. There are two guilty parties here. One identified, the other has somehow escaped everyone's notice.
First let's talk about the SWAT Teams response. Let me tell you straight ahead. Those guys are golden. They did nothing wrong. These guys were told by dispatchers that they were responding to a case of people being held against their will by another family member.
Have you heard the saying that when things are most intense is when you must focus, think clearly and do what is necessary to stay alive?
This poor guy that got SWATTED handled the issue badly. Following instructions and acting as demanded might have helped to end this differently.
But even if the cops MIGHT have acted in a bad way you have to consider the call they were sent on. Man with a gun. Man holding others against their will.
This was as high risk as it gets.
Obviously the guy that made the call to police is dead wrong. He should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
So if the SWAT Officers are not guilty and the guy making the call is trash that should burned on the side of the road then who is the other party that should be held responsible.
Sorry to them and I know they have a difficult job but dispatchers, the watch commander of that particular sector and whoever held the position as acting chief of police for that watch (to include the chief because he would be called on incidents like this) hold MUCH of the blame here.
SWAT Officers act on the information given to them.
It is up to the dispatchers to gather preliminary information on the call. It is up to the sector watch commander to give intel on the area in question. It is up to the Acting Chief of Police for the watch to ensure that proper intel on the location has been obtained. And finally its up to the Chief of Police, who would have been informed of the situation, to ensure that his people have gathered all intel, attempted a peaceful resolution of the situation by use of negotiators and safeguarded the neighborhood by evacuating citizens that might be caught in the line of fire (and this depends on the weapons his people use for entry and what weapon the suspect is thought to be using...we could be looking at an evacuation that stretches out to a mile or more before they actually conduct a breach).
So yeah. Blame the bastard that made the false call. Blame those that I named in the above paragraph. But don't blame those that have to make entry on a building, pass thru that fatal funnel and then attempt to put bullets on target without hitting people being held for this tragedy.
Cutting low hanging fruit is easy but is what produces. Go higher up and slice away the sour, bitter fruit that only passes the blame or ducks and hides when things go bad.
Mattis says Conventional Forces will do more Special Ops missions...if that's the case then why is SOCOM so big?
via antiwar.com
After the end of the first US occupation of Iraq, the Pentagon made a concerted shift to use special forces more heavily in the future, allowing more flexible overseas operations with smaller numbers.All you need to focus on is Mattis saying that conventional forces would be used in special operations roles.
Defense Secretary James Mattis suggested this is likely to change in 2018, as continued escalations in myriad countries have already pushed US special forces to their limit, and continued escalations are going to rely on using conventional ground troops in the operations.
Though Mattis suggested this would have them in “special operations roles,” in many cases this will mean embedding conventional troops into operations, or deploying them in smaller US military operations across Africa, in places where small special forces deployments were kept out of the public eye.
With conventional deployments, the numbers will likely have to rise to have a similar impact in those countries, raising the possibility of more casualties, and making the escalations a lot more controversial in the long run.
That should focus your eyes and your brains on this issue like a laser beam!
SOCOM as the supported entity? BULLSHIT!
The concept of SOCOM being a war winner has died a well deserved death. We have been fighting by SOCOM rules in Afghanistan and Iraq and until they deemed it "necessary" to allow conventionals into the fight did we finally see movement against ISIS.
We're seeing the same run and hide behind conventionals in Afghanistan too.
THESE WERE TAILOR MADE CONFLICTS FOR SOCOM TO STRUT IT'S STUFF AND THEY CAME UP SHORT!
Time to recognize the reality of the situation.
SOCOM is a supporting, not supported force. The idea of them having their own branch (I don't even know how to properly classify that organization), command...whatever is a huge shit filled stupid sandwich.
The various Special Ops Units need to go back to their parent services and the Army should be the lead agency when it comes to equipping them (unless they already have established procedures like the Navy SEALs do...oh and MARSOC should follow Army Special Forces/Rangers and NOT FOR ANY REASON marry up with SEALs...they're broken beyond recognition!).
The last of the Rumsfeld initiatives has been shown to have been a tremendous folly. SOCOM can't win wars. SOCOM can't lead fights.
They had their time in the sun and did not deliver. Time to put them back in the cage!
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