The Israeli-Iranian War has begun...first strike--HAMAS.

The war between Israel and Iran has begun.

The Israeli's first move?  Cripple HAMAS, a proxy of Iran, to help protect the home front and prevent a two front war.

Via Haaretz.

               Hamas military chief Ahmed Jabari killed by Israeli strikeLIVE BLOG: Israel strikes more than 20 targets in Gaza, killing Ahmed Jabari, who was behind the 2006 abduction of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit; IDF says ready for ground operation in Gaza if necessary; Hamas: Israeli aggression will lead to war; Israel Police raises alert levels across the country.

Want to know the bad news?  If I'm right on this being the opening move in the Israeli-Iranian War then we can look for our embassies, consulates and forces in Afghanistan to come under attack.

And this couldn't have come at a worse time.  Our CIA has been decapitated because of lack of zipper control and the same two floozies have snared the commander of the effort in Afghanistan in their foolishness.

Things will spiral out of control before anyone notices.  Oh did I mention that Syrian Rebels are moving toward the Israeli border and Egypt is unstable?

Worst Case Budget Scenarios For The Services...

Its time.  Congress and the President are about to start debating how to avoid the "Fiscal Cliff" so lets take a look at what I think are the worst case scenarios for the services...

First up is the Army.

The Army Chief of Staff can try and avoid the inevitable...he can try and team with the Marines and SOCOM on a Land Power Study Group or whatever he calls it but when a former Army Officer from a powerful Democrat Think Tank says that the Army is going to be the bill payer for the move to the Pacific then all bets are off.   Andrew Krepinevich, director of the Center for Strategic and Budget Assessments has specifically targeted Army Heavy and Mech Brigades for cuts. OUCH!

1.  Ground Combat Vehicle.  Toast.  It ain't gonna happen.
2.  Improved Carbine.  Toast.  They won't be able to justify it.
3.  Increased Aviation.  Good to go.  Especially since it can be seen as contributing to disaster relief.
4.  More UAVs.  Unknown.  If Congress gets to the point of actually asking serious questions about the utility of the airplanes, range limitations and utility over the Pacific then I can see the massive buy getting scaled back.
5.  End Strength.  Toast.  They're gonna take a bigger hit than currently planned.  

Next the Navy.

One of the big winners in the turn to the Pacific.  Its ironic too.  The Air-Sea Battle was a USAF initiative designed (in my opinion) to ensure that they would be in a position to rebuild there force after they saw it basically ignored during the war on terror. The irony continues because the Navy and Air Force have been competitors of a sort in the past.  Budget wars make strange bedfellows.

1.  LCS.  Not toast but not clear either.  The Navy will be asked to justify the concept.  They won't be able to and they'll be forced to offer up the LCS to the budget Gods.
2.  F-35C.  No one is buying it but the Navy.  The USMC is having it forced on it but they don't want it and neither does the Navy (or so it seems).  No protection from allied buyers.  A skeptical Navy and budget hawks to be appeased mean that this will be the easiest kill the F-35 will ever suffer.
3.  The Carriers.  Sketchy at best.  I can easily see the Navy being forced to go  for an extended period with 10 carriers.  The debate where the President made the flippant remark about sea power shows that expanding or even maintaining the fleet is not an option.
4.  End Strength.  Fewer ships will drive a smaller Navy.  They're going to take a hit numbers wise that they're probably not expecting.

That's a quick rundown on the Army and Navy.  The Marine Corps and Air Force comes later today.

Mobile Landing Platform. Is it worth it?

via North County Times.

The MLP has been nicknamed the "pier-at-sea" because the vessels will serve as a staging area for supplies and equipment. Other ships will dock with the MLP and offload material that will be transported ashore. The MLPs also are designed to service the type of hovercraft that are used to shuttle Marines. The Navy awarded NASSCO contracts to build three MLPs, and the Obama administration has set aside money for a fourth. The ships will be operated by the Military Sealift Command.

Maybe this is buyers remorse on my part.  Maybe I'm beginning to question the concept in this time of budget austerity (oh the pain is coming...and with the meetings that I'm hearing about that the President is having, the defense budget will be raped to pay for EVERYTHING else). But I wonder if money wouldn't have been better spent on enhanced at sea cranes or maybe modifying current ships to meet the projected requirement.



I'm looking at the MLP and I see a few more LCACs that could have been purchased...maybe high speed LCUs...more capable-heavy lift LCUs...but the MLP?  A super specialized ship in an age of multi-use platforms?

I'm just not sure anymore.

Blast from the past. CH-53 loops and rolls.

Guardium UGV. World's first operational unmanned ground vehicle.

This Israeli made unmanned ground vehicle is one of Israel's most important weapons on its border with Gaza. Equipped with 360 degree cameras, the Guardium is conserving IDF soldier's lives.

Photos by : Cpl. Zev Marmorstein, IDF Spokesperson's Unit.

F-35. Yeah baby! It Super Cruises!

Sferrin told me they were talking about this on F-16.net.  Bjørnar gave me the Air Force Magazine article.  Check out this tidbit...

The F-35’s systems will even allow it to shoot at a target "almost when that airplane is behind you," thanks to its 360-degree sensors.
According to O’Bryan, the F-35 also can interrogate a target to its rear, an ability possessed by no other fighter.
If you survive a modern dogfight, O’Bryan claimed, "it’s based on the countermeasures you have, not on your ability to turn."
If the situation demands a turning dogfight, however, the F-35 evidently will be able to hold its own with any fighter. That is a reflection on the fighter’s agility. What’s more, a potential future upgrade foresees the F-35 increasing its air-to-air missile loadout from its current four AIM-120 AMRAAMs to six of those weapons.
The F-35, while not technically a "supercruising" aircraft, can maintain Mach 1.2 for a dash of 150 miles without using fuel-gulping afterburners.
"Mach 1.2 is a good speed for you, according to the pilots," O’Bryan said.
The high speed also allows the F-35 to impart more energy to a weapon such as a bomb or missile, meaning the aircraft will be able to "throw" such munitions farther than they could go on their own energy alone.
There is a major extension of the fighter’s range if speed is kept around Mach .9, O’Bryan went on, but he asserted that F-35 transonic performance is exceptional and goes "through the [Mach 1] number fairly easily." The transonic area is "where you really operate."
In combat configuration, the F-35’s range exceeds that of fourth generation fighters by 25 percent. These are Air Force figures, O’Bryan noted. "We’re comparing [the F-35] to [the] ‘best of’ fourth gen" fighters. The F-35 "compares favorably in any area of the envelope," he asserted.

Awesome.

ThinkDefence takes a look at the British Tank Force.

ThinkDefence has an interesting series of articles taking a look at the British Tank Force.  Where it is currently and short/long term plans for it.  This is of interest to the Marine Corps because our tank force closely mirrors the Brits in terms of size and use.  Click here to go to the latest article.

Sometimes they make you say wow.

via BlackFive from Human Events.

By: Major Gen. Jerry R. Curry 11/11/2012 05:45 AM
It was the spring of 1971 and Captain Larry McNamara, one of my advisors to the South Vietnamese Army (ARVN), and I were sitting across from each other on a hot, sparsely covered jungle hillside sipping bitter Vietnamese tea. In between us was a fold-up wooden military campaign table.My other advisors sat silently apart from us under a clump of pine trees pretending not to be eaves dropping on our conversation. They were cleaning and oiling their weapons, preparing for combat, deep in the jungle. Occasionally their eyes wandered toward us.A week before, Larry had been deserted and left to die out in the jungle by the Fourth ARVN Battalion commander, Major Uy. Uy was a first class coward and Larry’s returning alive was an embarrassment to him. If Larry had died as Uy intended, Uy could have fabricated a story about the fighting having been so intense that he and Mac had been forcibly separated and he had risked his own life trying to find him.But because Larry had defied all of the odds and come back alive, Uy was forced to explain why they had become separated.  According to Uy’s version of events, he had become so deathly sick that he was unable to lead his battalion. So he was forced to make his way back to the rear to find medical help. Most of the other ARVN officers and senior sergeants had followed him. Larry had ended up commanding the encircled ARVN remnant and was able to lead them to safety.“Larry,” you’ve studied the plan and you know that we’re committing every available combat unit to this fight.”“Yes, and you want me to go back out with the Fourth Battalion again. Is it still commanded by that coward, Uy?”“Yes it is,” I said.“Colonel, you know as well as I that at the first shot fired, he will turn tail and run and the battalion will fall apart, just like it did last week.” He was stating simple, unemotional fact.After a long pause he added, “If I go, I won’t come back. The North Vietnamese Army won’t let me get away twice.”“I know,” I replied looking away, feeling pain deep down inside.  “Do you want me to go in your place?”“No,” he countered sharply. “You’ve got your job to do and I’ve got mine.”Simultaneously we pushed our metal folding chairs back, stood, and shook hands. “Goodbye, Colonel,” he said. “We won’t meet again … at least not in this life. Write my wife, tell her I love her.” I nodded and he was gone.Several hours later, over the radio came Mac’s voice screaming, “I’m hit … I’m hit … in both legs  … real bad. The ARVN are deserting me … leaving me to die here in the jungle … Can you do anything to help me?  Unfortunately there were no American units in the area, the jungle was too dense for a helicopter to land, and I was fresh out of miracles; still I prayed for one while my insides churned in frustration at my impotence.“Well let’s just say I called to say good bye.” Mac quipped.  Then he shouted, “The ARVN are jerking the radio out of my hands.” It was his last transmission.Later we were able to get some American units to sweep the area but they found no trace of him. Then I was making my way from the new command post to my jeep when one of my sergeants ran out of the corrugated tin building shouting. He was a tall, brusque, square shouldered man who brooked no nonsense and no half measures. Waving both arms over his head he shouted, “Sir, they’ve picked up Captain Mac!”Stunned, I froze in mid-stride. On the command radio was an Army aviation gun-ship commander.  “Your captain is on board one of my ‘Slicks.’  It is a positive ID; I repeat, this is a positive ID.”“Tell me about his condition,” I asked.“Sorry, don’t have time … too much going on … we’ll drop him off at the Army hospital in Kontum.”The next morning my boss loaned me his helicopter and I flew back to the hospital.“I’ve got gangrene in both legs and I’m going to lose them,” he said. “When the ARVN left me to die; they stripped off my watch and wedding ring and stole my wallet. Please try to get them back for me.”  I nodded.On the way out I talked to Larry’s surgeon, a bone- weary Army major who had operated on too many wounded for too long. “Both legs have to go,” he said matter-of-factly. “This guy is lucky to be alive. One leg gets cut off above the knee. The other gets cut below the knee.”The following day I radio-telephoned the hospital and was told that Mac’s condition was significantly improved, he would lose only one leg, he had been air-evacuated back to the United States, and the operation would be performed there.Several years later I met Major McNamara in Bremerhaven, Germany during a NATO maneuver exercise. Both his feet and legs were functioning fine. Oh yes, I did manage to locate his wedding ring, watch and wallet and mail them to him.Just before I left South Vietnam the South Vietnamese Colonel to whom I was an advisor asked me this question, after a long and introspective dinner conversation.“How does your country create people like you and Captain McNamara?” Probably it is a question that all veterans ponder from time to time.

It's been said that military history is taught for two reasons.  The first is to record success and failure in military endeavors in order to duplicate the victories and prevent the defeats.  The second, and more important reason, is to teach a nations people what is expected of them when a nation comes to ask for their best efforts.

Captain McNamara and General Curry both demonstrated courage.  General Curry for not shying away from the hard thing of sending a soldier, probably to his death, not because he wanted to but because it was what was necessary and Captain McNamara for understanding exactly what was being asked of him and going anyway.

They're both better than me on my best day.  All I can say is wow.

AAV dunker training

Interesting.  AAV dunkers?  I don't quite get it.  From my understanding the vehicles are self righting and don't have the tendency to roll over like a helo does...is this actually useful or is it another case of checking off the safety boxes?

Sex, Libya and the Generals.

First.
If they can crawl around the E-mails of the head of the CIA, then you can bet that if you type certain key words then they're going to be crawling up your butt with a microscope.

Second.
Men died in Libya and no one cared.  Now a couple of women get into a cat fight over a guy and Washington is interested and outraged.  Amazing.  Sad.  Pay close attention men.  They talk about heroism.  They talk about respect to those serving...but its just that.  No one outside the military really cares.  Its just words and punch lines at parties and in speeches.

Third.
As long as they're talking about sex, a cat fight and who said what when it comes to the cheating scandal then I don't care.  When they concentrate on how the FBI can open private citizens E-mails when no crime or threat to national security exists then consider me interested.

Last.
Now they're trying to bring a Marine General into this nonsense.  I pray to God that he had enough honor to steer clear but if he didn't then again.  I don't care.  We have much bigger problems.

Rant over.

Sounds like a Mac Book!

via Why the F-35 Blog.

Initial feedback from US Air Force pilots and maintainers operating the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter at Eglin AFB, Florida, suggests the aircraft is performing better than its predecessors did at a similar stage of development.
The F-35 is in its infancy, but the stealthy type is already proving to be relatively stable from a maintenance standpoint, says Col Andrew Toth, commander of the 33rd Fighter Wing. "The system right now is behaving as advertised, [although] occasionally, we will have some issues with it on the ground," he says. However, this is usually easily fixed by shutting the aircraft down and then restarting it.

The airplane is a Mac Book!  Love it! 

435th Security Forces Squadron. The USAF's Rangers?

Live and learn!

A reader told me to check out the 435th Security Forces Squadron and was I gobsmacked!  Looks like the USAF is ahead of the US Army and are equipped and ready to setup an airfield in austere locations.

I mean where there is no runway...only jungle or desert or forest, to drop in secure the area and then clear it to make it suitable for an airstrip or LAPPES drops.

If you take the skill set of the boys in the Red Horse Squadrons (think airborne engineers from the 82nd with the skill set of SeaBees) along with the 435th then you have a one stop shop for expeditionary airfield ops.

Check out the history of the 435th on Wikipedia but a small tidbit...

In March 2003 the 786 SFS participated in a combat parachute drop into Bashur Airfield in conjunction with the 173rd Airborne Brigade to open up the northern front in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. The 786 SFS is the first conventional Air Force unit to participate in a combat parachute airborne jump.

Interesting.

I'm seeing a curious trend here.  Much like USMC snipers are sometimes attached to Special Ops teams...just as EOD Units are, we're seeing a USAF unit that seems to blur the line between conventional and Special Operations.

Nice. 

Is it time to dump the swim requirement on AAV's?

Question.

Since World War 2, when AAV's were first developed, what have they all had in common spec wise?

A top speed of about 8 mph in the water.

Remember all those war movies where amphibs had to make dashes into the shore to off load Marines?  Its because the water speed for tracked landing craft was so low.

Only the EFV sought to bring a game change to that.  Because it went over budget and because we're now reverting to basically an upgraded AAV, we're probably looking at limited water performance improvement.

Is it time to dump the swim requirement and to simply buy the best IFV available and depend on LCAC/LCU to get our vehicles ashore?

If we believe that we fight as complete combat arms teams then we'll need our logistics tail...we'll need to get our MTVR's on the beach and they don't swim or fly...we'll need to get our artillery ashore and although they can fly its not the optimum solution...in other words over half the MEU/MEB/MEF can't swim so do we need our IFV's to?

I think the answer is yes.  We must maintain amphibious assault as one of the three legs of forcible entry.  That means that our AAV's need to swim.

What do you think?

A lack of valor. SEALs punished over spilling secrets.

via the Associated Press.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A senior defense official says seven members of the secretive Navy SEAL Team 6, including one involved in the mission to kill Osama bin Laden, have been punished for allegedly disclosing classified information.
The official, who discussed the matter on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the case, says the seven received what the military calls "nonjudicial" punishment on Wednesday. They are alleged to have provided the information to the maker of a video game.
The official says four other SEALs are under investigation for similar alleged disclosures.
The punishments were first reported by CBS News.

I never saw this coming.

I thought the guy who wrote the book might take a hit but not the video game guys.  This is gonna be interesting...what remains to be seen is how this affects the SEALs inside JSOC.  Does this spoil the work that they did to become one of the go to teams?  Are they still trusted by leadership? 

Tracks vs. Wheels ... The Danish debate.

FFG

Nexter VBCI

The Danish have a program that is definitely worth watching...even better it seeks to answer the age old question.  Tracks or Wheels?  Via Defense IQ.

The old argument rears its head again as Denmark looks to award a key procurement contract, while some of the competing manufacturers look to gain an edge by showcasing their solutions for the Nordic military in Oslo.Eight international defence companies are in the running to win potential contracts to meet Denmark’s newly announced requirement for a brand new armoured personnel carrier fleet.The Danish Ministry of Defence has made the call out for the companies to submit bids for an estimated 360 vehicles to help replace the Army’s mechanised capability previously dominated by the ageing M113 fleet, which is already being phased out with the country’s CV90 variant.As yet, the Army cannot decide on whether the vehicle should run on tracks or wheels, and has decided to find a solution by pitting the competition against four specialist suppliers from each side of the spectrum, all of whom qualified for consideration through an evaluation process at the start of the year.Previous tests by other militaries to ascertain the merits and shortfalls of either type have yet to show any definitive benefit of choosing one over the other when vehicles are required for a variety of missions and environments.Recognising that budget constraints are still of highest consideration for most European nations,  the answer may fall into the strategic realm, relying on whether the Danes believe themselves to need an all-terrain/all-weather fleet, or whether they will streamline for specialist expeditionary situations.According to early studies, “tracked vehicles offer the best solution for a versatile platform that is required to operate over diverse terrain, including extremely difficult ground, because tracks inherently provide a greater surface area than wheels, resulting in a lower VCI(Vehicle Cone Index)… [whereas] wheeled vehicles inherently attain faster road speeds”, so while overall mobility may have been benefitted by tracks in a traditional combat zone, the transition to greater urban and irregular environments may demand wheels. However, limiting vehicles to primarily on-road use would be a risk.Likewise, wheeled platforms have progressed in leaps and bounds since the beginning of the campaign in Afghanistan, where operational requirements for once vulnerable tyres and axels have pushed innovative upgrades from mine-resistance to traction over sharp slopes. That said, tracked vehicles possess the tighter turning radius and greater route flexibility – even if that involves rubble or other urban obstacles.Also significant to the argument is the wheeled vehicle’s lower noise signature and ease with which repair and maintenance can be supported, should for example, an IED disable one or more of the wheels, yet the tracked option allows for greater weight spread and could potentially be scaled to carry heavier weapons and other equipment, which could otherwise sink a wheeled vehicle on soft or loose ground.

Seems like the golden age of wheeled vehicles is coming to an end.

CV90120...Perfect for the 82nd's Airborne Main Battle Tank requirement.

The US Army is seeking to mechanize the 82nd Airborne and the CV90120 would be the perfect direct fire support vehicle.

The missing piece is a vehicle for troop transport.  For that limited role upgraded M-113's would be perfect.

With this mix the 82nd maintains strategic mobility but would also have limited tactical mobility to either expand or protect their airborne bridgehead.  The CV90120 weighs in at around 35 tons which means that one C-130 C-17 (thank Grim..I was thinking C-17 but wrote 130...election has my head clouded) could carry 2 and that's in combat configuration.

It would need to be certified for airdrops or LAPPES but that shouldn't be a big lift for the USAF.  These vehicles wouldn't be the first choice to operate in IED infected areas but would more than suffice when it comes to fulfilling the 82nd's out of area operations requirement.

One brigade of CV-90120's assigned to the 18th Airborne Corps along with another brigade of upgraded M-113's.

Mechanized Airborne is borne.

Republic of Korea Marine Corps

ALTAY Main Battle Tank Vid.

Note:  It really looks like the MBT-70 reborn...also note the ground clearance.  Anti-IED effort or just a design choice.

Amphibious Vehicle Recap..

A quick recap on some pretty honest statements about the current state of Marine Corps armored vehicle procurement.

* The company is also delivering two Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) blast test hulls to the Corps in mid-2013, one is based on the current AAV, and one is a brand-new design said Monica Mills, for the company’s AAV program. Mills added that the company is pulling on its experience with the Bradley and PIM programs, among others, in order to develop the second new hull.

BAE is preparing to fight the war on two fronts.  Either a new vehicle or refurbishing the old vehicle to meet the ACV requirements.

*Lockheed Martin has embedded US content into the design, including technology and protection systems. The vehicle on show featured an RPG net and Textron Marine and Land Systems turret.  Magness said the vehicle would be licensed-produced in the US, although at which company facility was still to be determined. The company is currently working to develop its US supplier base.

Did you miss the tell in the above statement?  It has the turret from the current AAV.  Not only are they aiming at meeting the requirement for a family of vehicles (Command, Recovery and Troop Carrier) but another article indicates that Lockheed Martin is prepared for the price war.  Remember the JLTV competition?  AOL ran an article stating that Lockheed Martin has the most tech heavy vehicle but also one that was going to be extremely price competitive.  In other words Lockheed Martin is well aware that they might be facing a price war and it looks like they're ready to fight it...if the JLTV is any indication...

*The Chilean Marines are negotiating the acquisition of 12 AAV-7 tracked armored amphibious vehicles from U.S. Marine surplus stocks. This potential acquisition is part of the expansion of capabilities associated with the recent incorporation of the amphibious assault ship Sargento Aldea, acquired from the French Navy.

This is really old news but it fits here because it means that Chile, Brazil, Japan and the USMC are all in the market for either an upgraded AAV  or ACV.  Marines are popular worldwide...an elite force that has been shown by the Mexican's to be reliable and easy to deploy if needed.  Because of this the market for an Amphibious Assault Vehicle is heating up.

*When asked to compare MPC to the ACV in terms of its importance to the Marine Corps, Taylor, in some ways, made the case against the MPC when Congress considers its future.  “MPC is not satisfying a ship to shore requirement. I think the term is inland waterways,” Taylor said. “It’s envisioned to satisfy a much more limited requirement in terms of mobility.”  Congress has not proven too keen toward investing in the development of vehicles that fulfill “limited requirements.”  The Marine Corps’ deputy assistant commandant for Programs and Resources made the point at Modern Day Marine that the expected defense spending cuts will force leaders to deliver the “best Marine Corps the country can afford” hinting it will not get every modernization program they may want.

This should chill the blood of every manufacturer bidding on the MPC contract.  The program manager for the MPC basically said that the vehicle is a nice to have, not a must have.

The scorecard?  General Dynamics and BAE are going to mix it up on the AAV upgrade/ACV program...Still no view on what GD is going to offer for the ACV but BAE is working to cover both bases.  Not only an ACV based on the existing hullform (which says enhanced upgrade to me) but also a new vehicle if funds become available.  In the AAV upgrade/ACV contest...advantage BAE.  In the MPC program, its hard to bet against Lockheed Martin.  What really has my attention is the news that came down about the JLTV.  They're willing to fight on price and in the Lockheed Martin world view of things this is a tiny contract.  Is it worth pushing the MPC forward as a loss leader just to get into the market?  I don't know but if they are then BAE won't be in a position to match them.  Advantage LM.

Arma 6x6. Design changes and finalist in Colombian APC competition.

original design

revamped vehicle...pic from Military Photos, believed to have been photographed in Kuwait or Qatar...notice the reshaped nose and provision for swim vane.

via Defense Market Intel.

  The Ministry of Defense has selected three finalists Colombia to supply the new APC / IFV 8x8 for the Army. Earlier this week, Army officials informed General Dynamics Land Systems Canada, the European group General Dynamics European Land Systems and the Turkish company Otokar shortlisting the models presented for Mechanized Infantry.
According to sources close to the process, the announcement was made ​​directly to representatives of companies interested in the offices of the Ministry of Defense, leaving pending from the time of final binding bids in terms of prices, configurations and technical aspects the APC / IFV .
The models presented are the Stryker / LAV III  by General Dynamics Land Systems Canada, the Pandur III of the Austrian company Steyr, European group within the  General Dynamics European Land Systems and Otokar Arma 8x8 latter recently entering the fray after delegation visit Colombia Army at company facilities in Turkey last week.

I'm a bit surprised that the Iveco Super AV 8x8 wasn't offered.  The Brazilian's are building a version of it and I would think that they would be keen to sell the Colombians some vehicles...especially when exporting arms is one of the goals of their rebuilt industry.

Even more surprising is the fact that the Patria AMV didn't get selected.  Its the most popular 8x8 in Europe, has been tested in combat and has demonstrated the ability to be tailor made for the client.

What is not a surprise is the arms race that is going on down South.  I don't know what's spurring it, but nations in South America are gearing up for a fight.