Normalcy bias.

via the Free Beacon.

The bill, authored by Sen. Jim Inhofe (R., Okla.) and Rep. Frank Lucas (R., Okla.), comes as numerous lawmakers across Capitol Hill have expressed concern that certain federal agencies, such as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), are stockpiling high quantities of ammunition.
DHS, for instance, has placed two-years worth of ammunition, or nearly 247 million rounds, in its inventory.
Inhofe said these agencies must provide greater “transparency and accountability” over its ammo stockpiles so that the public can learn about its precise use.
“President Obama has been adamant about curbing law-abiding Americans’ access and opportunities to exercise their Second Amendment rights,” Inhofe said in a statement provided to the Washington Free Beacon. “One way the Obama administration is able to do this is by limiting what’s available in the market with federal agencies purchasing unnecessary stockpiles of ammunition.”
Dubbed the “Ammunition Management for More Obtainability Act,” or AMMO, the legislation would prevent all government agencies except for the Defense Department from purchasing and storing what lawmakers say is an excess amount of ammunition.
The bill’s reach would include DHS and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), two agencies that have found themselves at the center of the ammo controversy.
“As the public learned in a House committee hearing this week, the Department of Homeland Security has two years worth of ammo on hand and allots nearly 1,000 more rounds of ammunition for DHS officers than is used on average by our Army officers,” Inhofe said. “The AMMO Act of 2013 will enforce transparency and accountability of federal agencies’ ammunition supply while also protecting law-abiding citizens access to these resources.”
An agency covered by the legislation would not be permitted to purchase or store more ammunition than that agency retained on average between 2001 and 2009, according to an advance copy of the legislation provided to theFree Beacon.

Janet the big nosed bitch, told the world that her agency wasn't stockpiling ammo.

Certain gun guys tried to state that the Govt WAS NOT stockpiling ammo.

Meanwhile we have a sustained ammo shortage.

Sorry, but if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, I'm looking for a duck and not a fucking wolf.

The US government has been stockpiling and hopefully this will ease the supply.  Some of you have normalcy bias.  I hope you experience a major disaster...so that you can truly understand what it means to go hands on.

That had to hurt.

I'm agnostic when it comes to chicks and tats.  Doesn't excite, doesn't turn my stomach...just different things for different people.  But this one on "Emma Ink" had to hurt.  Side question.  An owl?  Really?  I stare and it stares back?  That's kinda uncool.

The Terrorist was unarmed while hiding in the boat...

The longer this lingers....the more the public learns about this incident...the worse its going to look for the government officials.

via The Truth About Guns Blog...

“Even though the Tsarnaev brothers made a violent dash from police, allegedly tossing homemade bombs as they fled, police told ABC News they so far have recovered only a single, semi-automatic handgun from the two men now accused of carrying off the Boston Marathon bombing . . . Law enforcement sources toldABC News the gun recovered from the scene of the Tsarnaev brothers’ shoot out with police was a Ruger 9 mm semi-automatic handgun. Sources said the gun is in the custody of the Massachusetts State Police lab and that the serial number on the firearm was obliterated.”

Wait what????

They only had one gun????

The news media talked about all the assault rifles these guys had...

They talked about how the public should be afraid of these thugs....

But wait there is much more.

Oh and it’s now been revealed that Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was unarmed when he was captured.

Quite honestly, if this is true, then either we as a society condone the shooting of American citizens by law enforcement or we charge some of these officers with aggravated assault.

Its a fickle road that we're traveling since this guy isn't a unlawful combatant.

This is going to be interesting.  

Think about it.

POLICE SHOT AN UNARMED AND BLEEDYing SUSPECT.  Even on the battlefield that's not allowed and Marines have been court martialed for less. 

Indonesia gears up. Heavy armor is all the rage!

I still say that Asia is a powder keg and that we're going to see a war there sooner rather than later.  It might be one of design or it might be an accident between two aggressive Commanders but with the amount of gear that's being bought, something's got to give.

The latest buyer of high tech armor?  Indonesia.

The above pics are of the Leopard 2 Revolution.  I don't know how good the armor kit is, but the basic Leopard 2 is formidable and this adds to it.  Indonesia didn't stop there.  Besides buying 61 Revolutions they're also purchasing 42 Leopard 2A4's.

But most surprisingly they're also buying the Marder 1A3 to the tune of 50 units.

Why is it surprising?  Because Indonesia is also suffering from terrorist movement of sorts and I would have expected a push to acquire a MRAP or two to protect its forces against roadside bombs which are becoming popular.

Instead we're seeing old rivalries coming back to the fore and the entire region fearing land grabs by China.

At most five years before we see a regional war.  I personally expect a flair up between China and India on their mutual border or between Japan and China over islands.

Time will tell.  But everyone is gearing up for the coming battles.

NOTE:  One thing that is surprising to me.  We're talking Asia yet armored forces are all getting heavier and heavier.  I don't know of many plains that can be maneuvered on outside of Australia and most of the fighting will take place in crowded cities, the slums that surround them and jungles.  I can't think of "pure tank country" in the region.

Marine Tanks. Bringing them more in line with "Every Marine a Rifleman" in operation.

On a discussion on a different topic that touched on tanks, Lane brought this up to refute one of my theories...

MCWP 3-12 Marine Corps Tank Employment:
"Tank units provide the MAGTF commander the
ability to attack, disrupt, and destroy enemy forces
through firepower, shock effect, and maneuver in
coordination with other elements of the MAGTF.
The M1A1 tank offers the MAGTF a vast array of
capabilities—excellent cross-country mobility, sophisticated
communications, enhanced day and
night target acquisition, lethal firepower to defeat
most enemy mechanized platforms, highly effective
armor protection—and all of its capabilities
are interrelated."
"Tanks provide five major capabilities to the MAGTF:
armor-protected firepower, mobility, shock effect,
extensive communications, and flexibility."

Nowhere does it say that the vehicle used to provide that shock, outstanding cross country mobility, sophisticated communications, day and night acquisitions and lethal firepower must be wrapped in a 72 ton frame. 

And that is my issue with the M1A1 Abrams.  The Marine Corps is suppose to be an expeditionary force.  Yet on every MEU, we're taking along 4 vehicles that weigh in the neighborhood of 280 plus tons, that consume outrageous amounts of fuel and whose primary function is to support our infantry, not duke it out with enemy tanks.  We have precision artillery, the AH-1Z or UH-1Y, and numerous vehicle and shoulder launched anti-tank missiles that can destroy them.

The Brits had the right idea during WW2.

Matilda II

Valentine MK III.

First, let's cover the infantry tank concept...

The infantry tank was a concept developed by theBritish and French in the years leading up to World War II. Infantry tanks were tanks designed to support the infantry in the attack. To achieve this they were generally heavily armoured to allow them to operate in close concert with infantry even under heavy gun fire. 

The concept is the important thing here and something that the Marine Corps should pay attention to.  These tanks were specifically designed to operate in conjunction with the infantry.  A hallmark of Marine operations.

We've been here before.  This isn't the first heavy tank used by the Marine Corps.

I would pay good money to know the thinking behind the USMC acquiring the M103.  More than likely it goes a little like this.  "Take it.  Its free."  That kind of thinking is all kinds of right...especially considering the day and age.  Right after the war.  People are tiring of defense spending.  Money must be saved in any way possible.

Yeah.  It made tons of sense.  But the Marine Corps of that day and age also had a ship that has gone by the wayside.  Without that particular ship, having dedicated tank units becomes a bit of an issue.  You recall the LST (Landing Ship Tank) right?

The LST was, according to the old skool guys, the most comfortable ship you could be assigned to. More importantly it could discharge a company plus of tanks right on the beach or launch AAVs out the stern gate.  If we still had this ship in the inventory...if we had abandonded over the horizon assault earlier...if we had actually adopted a super sized LCAC as a ship to shore connector instead of focusing on the MLP.  If I knew the lottery numbers I'd be rich.  The ship is no more and with its passing the enabler for a heavy armored force has gone away too.
Mobile Gun System.  Good idea.  Terrible execution.

Ironically the US Army really touched on the idea.  They just executed it badly.  No.  Badly is an understatement.  The Army fucked up the concept with the Stryker Mobile Gun System.  It fills all the check marks of the vehicle that the Marine Corps should have.  Its relatively lightweight.  Its highly mobile.  It has a large caliber cannon.

The problem is it just doesn't work.  What does work?  The Italian Centauro.

The Centauro.  The Italians call it a tank destroyer and its assigned to their middleweight brigade combat teams.  The truly sad part of all this is that the US Army trialled the Centauro yet still decided to go  with the MGS.

Future armored design is leading to self sufficient, fuel efficient, combat capable forces that fight as combined arms teams that minimize their logistics tail and can scale to fight large armored formations of the past or insurgent terrorists of today.

In essence the Marine Corps should be at the cutting edge of todays armored development/theory.  If the EFV and MPC had been procured then we'd be looking at a force that is perhaps unmatched in its reach and combat effectiveness.  Since that plan has been scrapped we need to adjust to the new reality.

The costs of maintaining Tanks, along with the fuel costs, mixed with what will soon be a unique vehicle (once the Army moves to the M1A3) all point to the need to make a decision on heavy armors future in the Corps.

I say its time to shed the 70 plus tons, settle on ACV(AAV)/MPC force with a turreted 120mm gun on our MPC to do the mission of infantry support.  We're  already seeing the concept of tanks performing the infantry support and not the independent shock action already in Afghanistan.

The moral of the story?  FIX MARINE ARMOR!

BAE Systems Australia LHD Training Center...

BAE Australia Press Release....

Today, the Minister for Defence Materiel Dr Mike Kelly opened our new training facility for future crews of the Landing Helicopter Docks (LHDs).
The LHDs will be the biggest ships ever built for the Royal Australian Navy and are currently being worked on at our Williamstown shipyard.
Originally a warehouse, the 4000 square meters of space in Sydney has been transformed into a purpose-built base for the training needs of future crews.

Director Maritime Bill Saltzer said: “For the crews it will be a virtual LHD so they can gain a real understanding of what it will be like to be on board the Navy’s biggest ships and for the Navy it will be one of the most advanced training facilities currently available in Australia.
“The equipment installed has the ability to replicate any scenario, incident or event the LHDs may encounter which means the crews that will be trained here will be familiar with all the ship’s capability and systems before they even step on board.
“We have even constructed a marine evacuation system at the facility where crews can be trained in emergency evacuation procedures.”
Classes will start on Monday 6 May and more than 700 personnel will be trained over the next two and a half years.

Australia can call their ocean going, mechanized, combined arms task force organized naval infantry....part of the Australian Army if that makes them feel better.

But we all know whats coming.  The Navy will insist that it needs ground forces that are better integrated into its naval mission, the Army will complain about the drain of dedicating a unique force to the Navy for amphibious missions and a Marine Corps will be born.

I look forward to it. 

Doosan DST and CMI light tank concept.

We saw a glimpse of this earlier but now its much clearer to me.  The mating of the Korean IFV with the turret from CMI to produce a light tank.  Interesting.  Should the Marine Corps consider giving the heavy tank mission to the US Army and relying on turreted Marine Personnel Carriers armed with these 120/105mm cannons for infantry support?  I think it should be considered. 

Kongsberg MC RWS remote turret tested on Finnish Patria AMV.

Budget matters...

Ok guys.

Can't lie to ya.  I'm beginning to wonder about this F-35...I'm gonna label myself still in the camp but waving around like a flag in the breeze.

My worry?  Budgets.  My worry?  Loss of experience in the Marine Corps due to equipment being chosen over people that have put it on the line time after time after time.  My worry?  Marines riding into combat in a vehicle almost a half century old.

My concern?  I get news like this.  Call it a Bill Sweetman special shot across my bow courtesy of Aviation Week and NavAir....

This was not the only hint about classified programs in the April 17 hearing. RAdm Bill Moran, director of the Navy’s air warfare division, noted that as well as funding APG-78 active electronically scanned array radar retrofits to all early Block 2 Super Hornets, “there are several other programs that I’d be happy to come back and talk about in a classified setting. They are very signficant, fully funded in 2014 and will keep the Super Hornet credible through the late 2020s and early 2030s.”

I've got to get the transcripts from this meeting to read it all for myself.  The Dark Lord himself is playing Sith mind tricks on me with stuff like this!

Israel's V-22 mistake.

The Israeli's are making a mistake by selecting the V-22.  Not only is it an expensive option to a requirement that can best be served by other aircraft, but it is a first gen airplane that already has its replacement on the drawing boards.

The V-280 that Boeing looks to be ready to get started on, promises to provide a nimble UH-60 sized airplane that can not only transport but also fire support for Israeli Special Ops Teams.

One question that should be asked but never was (probably because of the euphoria surrounding UBL's killing) is why didn't the Special Operations Command deem the V-22 the airplane of choice when it came to conducting its most famous raid?

It choose the MH-47G to transport reinforcements and heavily modified UH-60's to conduct the actual assault.  The only time the V-22 showed up was to transport the body of UBL out to a carrier.

When push came to shove, SOCOM relied on variations of tried and true machines.  Additionally Israel needs a CH-53 replacement.  While waiting for the V-280, the Israeli's could acquire CH-53K's which will boast the ability to insert troops into defended airspace as part of its package out the box.

The V-22 is a great plane if you're talking expeditionary warfare.  If you're talking insertion of Special Ops personnel into tight landing places deep inside enemy territory, I think it might be wise to wait on the next generation of tilt rotors.  Israel should wait for the V-280.

Advanced MOtar System (AMOS) / SSG120 Video.

Thanks for the vid Dahlberg!

Turkish LCU. An old capability in a modern, more capable package.

The USMC pushed to develop a Mobile Landing Platform with the idea that it could perform the function of "dock at sea".  Quite honestly we have that covered with the INLS you see below.

What the Marine Corps actually need is a better ship to shore connector.  There were a few "super large" LCACs that were on the drawing board but they never came to be.

Which brings me back to the Turkish LCU...check out that load carrying capability!

Those are old M-60's but the load carrying is impressive!  The speed is more than adequate especially when considering how heavy it is...and two of these large LCUs assigned to each MPF squadron would double the speed at which we could push vehicles ashore.

Rafale vs. Typhoon in Exercise Joint Warrior...

This should be good.  We often hear about Typhoons or Rafales supposedly getting kill shots on F-22s, so it'll be good to see which is better when they go against each other.

I'm predicting a split decision.  The Typhoon will be superior in air superiority missions and the Rafale will win the swing role.

Its really academic.  The F-22 would blow both of them out of the air before they got to the WVR fight...(that statement should stir the pot...) 

Blame the Department of Defense for the militarization of police depts.

I was reading THINK DEFENCE blog and got down to the comments section when when of his readers suggested this WIRED article.

Long story short.  Blame the DoD for the militarization of the police departments all over the US.  Instead of donating gear to allied nations that desperately need it (like the Philippines fighting terrorist on their islands...or even Malaysia that's doing the same).

What does this mean for the future?  A bigger appetite for military grade hardware by police, a quicker shipment of that gear while the US military sheds equipment...a deadlier confrontations between police and citizens.

Bold Alligator 2013 kicks off...

Bold Alligator is about to kick off to test the Marine Expeditionary Brigade and develop concepts to better employ it.

Meanwhile the Marine Corps is developing a new Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force to respond to emergencies based on transport with the MV-22 and KC-130.

No complaints but an observation.  The units of action for the Marine Corps are and always will be the MEU.  So why aren't we developing concepts to better employ it?  Why has the Mini-ARG, Company Landing Team and Distributed Operations from the Sea Concepts been allowed to wither on the vine?

Why has all the thinking that was commissioned by previous Commandant's been thrown away without thought by the current Marine Corps Administration (I hope you get the venom in that characterization).

Not complaining.  Just observing.

Brazilian Marine Corps. Pieces in place for a fully mechanized force.

I'm moving from being impressed by some of the procurement decisions of the Brazilian Marine Corps, to be down right giddy.

Yeah.  Giddy like a school girl.

I present the latest exhibits in why I'm impressed.  The above M113 has been modified by Israel IMI and I'm being told that its a flotation kit.

Along with horsepower and other upgrades, coupled with the buy of AAV's from USMC stocks (that will also be upgraded to the latest standard) with lastly, the purchase of a few more Piranha IIIC vehicles and you have the makings of a fully mechanized Brazilian Marine Corps.

And they didn't have to bust the bank to do it.  Did I mention that the old M113 could carry approx 10 Marines?  Did I mention that with these upgrades it should be an extremely viable vehicle in expeditionary warfare?  Did I mention that there is a glut of MRAPs on the market so if the need should arise they can be acquired cheaply and quickly (so there really isn't a need for these vehicles to be built to resist IEDs...if you run into them then you simply pull those vehicles from storage)?

Congratulations to the Marines from Brazil.  They cracked code and solved the issue of mechanization and budget with a few simple, common sense solutions.

Civil liberties for terrorist but a whole city's rights were trampled. Amazing.

Watching news coverage and the debate over whether or not the surviving terrorist deserves civil liberties protections.

Amazing.

The night when he was captured, the police violated the rights of many in an American city, barged into and searched houses without warrant, forced people to remain inside and for some that's ok.

But talk about declaring this guy an enemy combatant so that we can get information from him BEFORE we prosecute him in a civilian court and the liberals go crazy.

No its not amazing.  Its sad.

Is China about to introduce a new tank?

Circula Trubia Blog is reporting that the Chinese are about to introduce a new tank.  They speculate that its a light tank but I can't tell by the images and there isn't much in the background to give a decent size perspective (I don't know the various sizes of Chinese structures or I'd give it a better guess-estimate).  What I do know is that it has certain "Western" design features and the lead that the allies once had when it comes to heavy armor seems to be eroding.

Israeli MV-22 buy. It doesn't make operational sense.

via Defense.gov

Given many shared threats in the region, including Iran, Syria, terrorism, border issues and other challenges, the president wanted Panetta “to look at ways not just to protect Israel’s qualitative military edge, which is a key principle of American policy, but to increase the capabilities of Israel in a significant and meaningful way and in doing so increase the capabilities of key partner nations,” he added.
The series of sensitive bilateral negotiations took place over the past year and resulted in agreements, reached also through consultations with Congress, to approve requests by Israel for advanced radar for Israeli jet fighters, antiradiation missiles, KC-135 refueling tankers, and a to-be-determined number of V-22 Ospreys, the official said, a capability that the United States has never sold to any other country.
The United States is making these capabilities available for Israeli purchase, the official said, adding that U.S. funding for Israel’s security needs has been unprecedented, even in an austere budget environment.
“This year the United States provided $3.1 billion in foreign military financing to Israel, the highest the United States has ever provided,” he said. In addition, the United States provides about $300 million in missile defense to Israel, the official noted.
Elsewhere in the region, in 2010 Saudi Arabia agreed to purchase 84 F-15 tactical fighters in a deal worth $29.4 billion, the official said, and the first F-15s have rolled off the line in St. Louis and are undergoing flight testing at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.
During Hagel’s trip, the UAE is expected to move forward with the purchase of 25 F-16 Block 60 Desert Falcon fighters manufactured by Lockheed Martin in Fort Worth, Texas. The expected value of the sale is $425 billion, the official said.
“As part of these sales,” he added, “the United States is agreeing to deploy standoff weapons to Saudi Arabia and the UAE.” Such smart weapons can navigate to their targets and are more precise and can be fired at further distances.

The MV-22 buy doesn't make sense for Israel and I wonder if they actually pushed for the buy or if it was pushed on them.

The MV-22 is for want of a better word, a boutique capability that really doesn't fit into Israeli defense schemes.  Many tout its capability to insert special ops personnel deep in enemy territory but recon of enemy defenses are better carried out by other assets.  If you're talking about strikes or raids by Israeli special ops then again, destruction of enemy installations are better done by other means.

Additionally the Israelis are big users of the CH-53 and have made no bones about their desire to acquire the CH-53K as soon as it rolls off the assembly line.

I think that this sale is simply cover for fighters to Egypt and the continued selling of high tech arms to other countries in the Middle East.

Unfortunately for Israel, Arab countries will soon achieve NEAR qualitative equality and will still have numerical superiority which will endanger the Jewish state.  All it will take is a madman to again unify the Arabs and the only choice the Israelis will have is to either see their country destroyed OR to go nuclear.

The ground is being laid for the next Middle Eastern war between Israel and its neighbors and from the look of the sales to Arab countries it will be a bloody affair.

DEFESA Global Blog shows some vehicles from LAAD...

Check the entire collection here....

anyone have any information on who makes this armor package and its capabilities/weight etc...