A comprehensive case for the F-35 by the American Enterprise Institute.

  A comprehensive case for the F-35 by  

I was given this document and its a good read.

Quite honestly I'm still chewing on it but one thing is without doubt.  Marine Corps armor is suffering.  The wing is in much better shape than our ground vehicle fleet.  This paper makes the case that the F-35 will enable an MEU to be magnitudes more effective than it is today.

Awesome.

But you still have to cross the beaten zone, close with the enemy and destroy him.

The AAV has been great but its not up to the task.  Can we make the AV-8B work while we delay the F-35 and get our armor together?

I think so.

But I'll chew on this some more and see where I land.  Make no mistake.  Its not about the F-35, its about a procurement holiday, a failed leap ahead in tech (because the EFV failed) and a struggle to get a vehicle that is at least EQUAL to what our allies are fielding.  If you can get me the MPC and ACV while keeping the F-35 flowing then awesome.  If one must be delayed then put the F-35 on back burner and get me armor!

Quote of the day.

“Because of [the F-35B] we’re going from 11 aircraft carriers to 22”
Navy Under Secretary Bob Work
(read the story that prompted the remark at Defense Tech)

Politics. Are we seeing a plate too full?

This is outside my lane but I've got talk about it.

Are we seeing the Obama admin piling too much on its plate?

The economy went backwards last month.  It actually went into negative territory.

We have gun control, women in the military, Libya, Syria, Mali, Egypt, immigration, gay marriage, climate change, sequestration, a rising China, deficit spending and a bunch of other stuff.

Just implementing Obama Care would be a heavy lift if it was done right but all this other stuff too?

Watching this and being an admitted amateur when it comes to politics but I just don't see it all getting done before he becomes a lame duck.  Quite honestly I don't see him getting a quarter of it done.

The shockwaves from the cuts to the military will shock the economy like nothing else and I can actually see the economy going into recession just from that shock.  I'm trying to be objective despite my biases but it really seems like a lack of planning is happening and its as if they're throwing stuff against the wall to see what sticks.

XC-142A Operational Suitability Testing (1965)

Final Flight of RAF Puma HC1 Helicopters

This is why the ATF is hated.

The above vid is zooming around the internet and is causing much conversation.

If you ever wondered why gun owners HATE the ATF, then look no further.  They over reach, are over bearing, have no knowledge of firearms, and are generally a bunch of sanctimonious pricks that lie constantly and taint the other Federal Law Enforcement Agencies (well except for TSA...they're dicks too)with their filth.

Paralysis by analysis...the Amphibious Combat Vehicle.

via Marine Corps Times.

The Marine Corps could launch a request for proposals for its next-generation Amphibious Combat Vehicle within the next few months, following another review of what is needed, the commandant said.
Gen. Jim Amos told reporters Monday that he called for a “deep dive” study on what is needed in the vehicle that lasted “right up to Christmas.” He hopes to share the results with Navy Secretary Ray Mabus soon and then brief the next secretary of defense, most likely former U.S. Sen. Chuck Hagel.
“I think all of this is going to happen over the next couple of months because we’re anxious to get money in the budget that we’re working on right now, the [2015] budget,” Amos said after delivering a speech at the Special Operation/Low Intensity Conflict Symposium in Washington. “We’ve got [the money], so we just want to keep it there.”

Read the whole story over at Marine Times but the uptake is clear.

In the Old Corps they taught a little ditty called "JJDIDTIEBUCKLE" it was the Marine Corps Leadership Traits.  I'l leave it to you to look it up to see what each letter represents but I'll give you a primer on one of the letters...letter "D"....Decisiveness....

via WisdomCommons.

Decisiveness is the willingness to make decisions, even in the face of complexity or uncertainty.  When we are decisive, we weight the information that is available to us and we use our judgement to choose among the possibilities.  It is easier to be decisive when we are clear about our values and goals.
Decisiveness means taking the risk that we may be wrong, but knowing that perfect clarity is rarely available and indecisiveness can be costly.  It also means taking responsibility for the outcome of the decision.  Together, research, analysis and decisiveness get great things done.

Amazing.

We MIGHT get a request for proposals in the next few months.

This vehicle program should have been done with the same speed, same sense of urgency and the same "get it done at all costs" attitude that is attached to the F-35 and the V-22 before it.

Basic leadership traits would have this program on a totally different trajectory.

Today's Wallpaper. Jan 29, 2013.

A Royal Air Force Merlin helicopter during Exercise Pashtung Vortex in Jordan. The training package included dust landings, day and night plus tactical flying practice and pairs flying.

Ex Pashtung Vortex was an overseas training exercise, taking place at King Hussain International Airport, Aqaba, Jordan and involved aircraft from the Merlin Force. The exercise also enabled enviromental training and pre-deployment training objectives to be achieved.

Charlies on Fridays? How about for a freaking parade.

U.S. Marines parade onto the field during the half-time show of the 2013 Pro Bowl at Aloha Stadium. Military members participated in the opening ceremony and half-time show at the 2013 Pro Bowl. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Brennan Knaresboro)

New Corps?

Old Corps?

There's a big fucking difference!

Two to the chest, face gets the rest. The hidden danger of drug legalization.

Hey gents.

Consider this another heads up on street dangers.

You think marijuana legalization is awesome?  You think that its less dangerous than alcohol?  You see no problem with it?

Think again.  Law Enforcement bulletins state something that should worry anyone in a state that has legalized the drug and even those in states that consider marijuana as a "kiddie" drug.

The street creeps are mixing marijuana with more potent drugs.  LSD and the like.  When law enforcement makes contact with these individuals the assumption is that they're just dealing with a pot head when in fact they're dealing with someone that is being propelled by some of the most powerful narcotics on this planet.

If you're approached, confronted and then engaged by a so called "pot head," be aware.  You might be facing a 110 pound junkie that has the strength of the Incredible Hulk and won't feel pain and won't stop until he gets whatever it is he's after.

Your life, your wallet, your girlfriend...whatever it is he's after he won't respond like a normal individual.

Make sure its two the chest, the face gets the rest.

Get training, get in shape and get gunned up.

NOTE:  I was thinking about Lane's response to this article and the other guy's too.  Be advised.  THIS IS NOT A JUDGEMENT ON DRUG LEGALIZATION.  Its suppose to be a warning to those of you that might encounter someone that appears to be smoking weed.  Whether its a street scene, apartment complex or some guy in the woods, this is a warning that all might not be as it appears.  You might be up against someone taking LSD or another powerful drug into their body.  Be careful is all I was ATTEMPTING to say.

Blast from the past. Bo 46

Bo 46 (1964)

30th of January 1964 - First hover flight of the Bo 46 experimental high-speed helicopter, equipped with the Derschmidt semirigid fast rotor system

Is the Marine Corps about to break.

Someone has to ask it so I'll be the crash tester on this.

Is the Marine Corps about to break?

Think about it.  When have the services been under this amount of strain from so many directions.

*The War in Afghanistan continues.  Most don't notice it but Marines are still being killed and injured.
*Deployment tempo is still high.
*Gays in the military.
*Women in combat.
*Marines soon to be forced out of the service.
*Budget cuts on the horizon with Democrats talking about making cuts DEEPER than even sequestration.

With all that on the plate of the Marine Corps (really all happening within the last 6 months) is it possible that this service will break?

The only guide we have to this situation is the Vietnam era Marine Corps and how they handled that situation.

I contend that it was a mixed bag and took until the 1980's for a rebound to occur and that the Marine Corps didn't reach its pre-Vietnam war fighting ability and espirit de corps until the late 80's at that.

The Marine Corps and all the services will be combat irrelevant soon and will take at best a decade to get back to the capability they had before the war on terror.

Congratulations.  US leadership (civilian and military) have successfully weakened a nations military.

Note:  This question can be applied to all the services but my focus is on the Marine Corps.  Any perspective on Army, Navy or Air Force issues are outside of my view.  But it must be noted that the Navy and Air Force are technical services that don't have the "physicality" that the combat arms of the Marine Corps and Army have.  Adjustments to this new reality for them will be easier.

Navy Wildcat Inaugural Flight

Hi-rez photo of the Y-20

photo by Topboy

Arjun Main Battle Tank back in production...

From Samar (thanks) via Indian Defense Research.

India’s indigenous Arjun tank project began in 1974, and originally aimed to replace the Russian T-54 and T-72 tanks which made up the bulk of that country’s armored firepower. As has often been the case in India, its DRDO government weapons development agency sought an entirely made in India solution, even though this would require major advances on a number of fronts for Indian industry. As has often been the case in India, the result was a long and checkered history filled with development delays, performance issues, mid-project specifications changes by India’s military, and the eventual purchase of both foreign substitutions within the project (now 58% of the tank’s cost) and foreign competitors from outside it (the T-90S).The 58.5 tonne Arjun tank wasn’t fielded with the Indian Army until May 2009. In contrast, Pakistan’s much more time-limited, scope-limited, and budget conscious approach in developing and successfully fielding its T-80UD “Al-Khalid” tank is often cited by Arjun’s detractors.The Russian T-90S will form the mainstay of India’s future force, despite that tank’sperformance issues in hot weather. That won’t change, but after beating the T-90 in a number of trials, the Arjun now has a clear future in India…

The entire article is a great read on the project.  

And so it begins. The pink slips go out to Marines...

via the Washington Beacon.

The United States Marine Corps is set to shed more than 20,000 active duty positions in the coming years and have already commenced a process meant to force some senior officers into an early retirement.
The Marines are on course to cut around 4,000 positions a year through 2017, decreasing the total number of Marines to 182,100 from its peak last year of 202,100, according to a major scale-down order that was quietly issued last year.
The reduction in forces could leave the elite fighting force underprepared to battle multiple regional threats, particularly those in the Middle East, according to military experts.

The Army is going to shed 60,000 boatspaces.

If you think that its going to stop at 182,000 then you're smoking crack.  All this is ahead of any budget cuts which are a certainty.

 

French Foreign Legion conduct airborne assault in Mali!

Thanks for the news Xavier!

In the e-mail he sent this blurb...

Monday morning, a drop by 2 C-130 and 3 C-160 took place north of the city of Timbuktu to lock access. A Company of "very strengthened 2eme REP" jumped successfully. It left from Abidjan where she had been prepositioned.
Simultaneously, Joint Task Force approaching from the west (left Niono on Friday) took control of the airport in Timbuktu. These ground forces (600 men) were supported by helicopters and airplanes Atlantique 2 and UAVs.

If they're dropping a battalion of paratroopers then this is bigger than I originally thought.

We're all missing this in the US because we've been effectively distracted by gun control, immigration and women in combat.

I would feel better about our lack of visibility on this issue if we were at least focused on something serious like the economy or a belligerent China...but we aren't.  Mainstream news media fail number 10,000,873....and I'm being generous.

Read more about this at Navy Recognition and LignesDefense.

An image of death.

Looks like the penguin is saying "ok...I give up" in this pic.  I originally thought this was a prehistoric pic when I first saw it.  via ABC News.

The Sheriff's Dept needs you to get in the game.

Recording of a public service announcement.

CM-32 Clouded Leopard.

Note:  J.Cole has an interesting article on the CM-32's armor issues here.