Is Syria the war the Pentagon desperately desires?

via FoxNews.

US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has said that President Obama has asked the military to "prepare options for all contingencies" as the crisis in Syria deepens following reports of a chemical weapons attack by that country's government earlier this week.
Speaking in Malaysia Sunday, where he was starting a planned one-week tour of Asia, Hagel said that the administration was still weighing whether or not to use military force against the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Among the factors being discussed, Hagel said, were an intelligence assessment of the attack as well as possible international support for a military operation and what he described as legal issues.
"President Obama has asked the Defense Department to prepare options for all contingencies. We have done that and we are prepared to exercise whatever option -- if he decides to employ one of those options,'' Hagel said.

I'm ready for the tin foil hat allegations...but I'll put it out there anyway...Is Syria just what the Pentagon desperately desires?

*  The President has sinking poll numbers...so does the Pentagon.  They both need a boost in "patriotic" feelings.
*  Sequester is hitting hard, and supplementals are a way that the Pentagon slid new spending into previous budgets.  This could be just the ticket to prevent painful choices...at least for the near term.
*  Its politically correct in the circles of the liberal elite to engage in warfare for purely humanitarian reasons.  Whether there are clear policy objectives and an exit strategy be damned.  We must do it for the children.

This is the wrong war for the wrong reasons and we're seeing something new here.  Make no mistake about it.  This is not a union of Tea Partiers and Liberal Democrats.

This is a union of Neo-Cons and Liberal Elite Democrats (note, Neo-Cons never went away they live happily in the form of McCain and the idiot from S. Carolina).

I never hope that a military mission fails, but I hope both these groups burn in hell. 

UPDATE:  Catching a few minutes of the Morning Joe Television Show and the talking heads are all parroting the phrase "we must do something".  I don't know when that became the catchphrase for Washington but we heard the same for the passage of bills that the American people didn't want and now for action in a place where the American people don't want to become involved (only 25% of the American people want to become involved...only the liberal elite & neo-cons want action).

Type 56 Frigates. China is pumping them out like candy. via Chinese Military Review.

China is pumping out the highly capable and thoroughly modern Type 56 Frigate like candy.  Meanwhile, the US is struggling to produce a working LCS...mechanically working that is, we won't even touch the mission module issue.

What should concern everyone and have every naval blog in the US on fire is the fact that China is demonstrating not only the ability to produce large numbers of warships but that they've practically attained technical equivalence with US designs.

There is no doubt that China has regional superiority.  There is no doubt that they can attain local dominance in a given region in the Pacific.

What remains to be seen is how the US will counter their moves.

Street Fighter is dead. So the LCS should die.

I've been slamming the US Navy for proceeding with the LCS class despite evidence that it is outclassed across the board by ships found in navies around the world.

I provide the latest evidence in this case.  The Type 22 Missile Boat and its C-802 missiles.  Check out the pic below, its from USNI News and it shows the LCS' firepower with surface module in play.

If you're impressed by the 21 nautical mile of future missiles on that boat then you're in need of a drug test.

Want to know what the range is of the 8 missiles found on the Type 22 ?  Ok, I'll tell you anyway.  120km in the original version and in the product improved package it goes up to 180km.  Let me remind you that this is the surface launched, anti-ship version we're talking about here, land attack versions go much further.

I love concepts.  I like revolutionary ideas but to build an entire part of our fleet around the idea of battling Iranian Speed Boats seems like pure silliness.  The US Navy made that mistake and bought into the LCS with that threat in mind.  The Pacific will show how crazy that idea really is...the distances are longer and the threat much more formidable than a bunch of true believers with suicide belts and RPGs.

The COIN MAFIA swindled the Navy and set back our defense effort.  It neutered the Navy with the idea that we would be involved in perpetual war with Jihadist.  The LCS is the product of that neutering.

Note:  Street Fighters main failing was that it was a response to a relatively weak enemy tactic.  Swarming speedboats.  Rules of engagement were the problem, not the ships in service.  In other words it was a concept searching for a problem that did not really exist.

A guide to the Middle East via Modern Survival Blog.

According to MSB this was a letter to the editor, but it caught my attention because it sums up the mess that the Middle East is perfectly.

Long story short, its a family fight and you always stay out of those.

Scary via the Batman Blog...

Terminal Lance you crossed the fucking line bitch.

Terminal Lance is a young guy...an artist...and he tries to be edgy.

But this time TL, you son of a bitch.  You crossed the fucking line.

Would you do this with the Muslim Savior, Muhammed?  No.  Because some rag wearing asshole would be filling your in box with hate mail and you'd get death threats from half a world away.  Additionally your new crowd would lambast you and call you racist.

Would you do his with any other religious figure except Christ?  No you wouldn't you little  pussy.

And that's why I'm pissed.  I don't even go to church (although when I was young, I was dragged there every Sunday) and I guess I'd be what you call a "Faux" Christian, but when I saw this I had a visceral reaction.

If that was what you were aiming for, then good job.  But you lost tons of cool points.  Sometimes the juice just ain't worth the squeeze....you fucked up bad, boy.

Think Defence Blog on Syria.

via Think Defence.

Would it be enough to use TLAM’s to take out much of the regimes air force and infrastructure then use Patriots on the boarder to enforce no fly zone’s for rebel controlled areas then start arming the moderate parts of the opposition forces as well as imbedding SF. I am sure such a policy could turn the tide quite quickly even without allied air strikes?
The 800 pound gorilla in the room is obviously the regimes supplies of chemical weapons. Could we secure these amid the type of anarchy we saw in Iraq and Libya after the fall of those regimes? The US estimated it would take 50,000 troops to secure these stockpiles. How quickly could we mount such a large operation and would the regime disperse them when it saw us building up for an invasion.
Could securing the boarders and enforcing a no fly zone with patriots help us to stop any way ward chemical weapons from leaving Syria?

That's just a snippet (read it all here) but the thing that bothers me about this is that I always get the feeling that when Europeans talk about military actions, its always with a nod toward US participation in a fight that they deem necessary.

For example, in the first paragraph he talks about TLAM strikes into Syria.  The Brits have TLAMS but they don't appear to have a large stockpile, via Wikipedia...

On 19 March 2011, 124 Tomahawk missiles[11] were fired by U.S. and British forces (122 US, 2 British)[citation needed] against at least 20 Libyantargets around Tripoli and Misrata.[12

So in Libya, that most joint of military missions...a mission that the Europeans almost pushed us into, the Brits fired 2 missiles to our 122 on the opening night.  Lets be honest.  That's American firepower at play, not British.

Those Patriot Missile Batteries that he's talking about are from the US Army.  He talks about assembling a force of 50,000 troops to secure the chemical stockpiles but even if the Brits were to provide half the force it would strain their Army to the breaking point.

The Brits are great allies but this nonsense has to stop.  Europeans complain that we act as if we're the world police yet at the same time act as if they're the final arbitrators of a just cause and that our forces exist to serve their needs when they see a fight worth having.

Perhaps I'm cold and heartless but I could actually care less about Syrians dying in a chemical attack.  Death is death, whether from a bullet, a knife or a chemical attack.  We're dealing with barbaric people on both sides of that conflict and what the American/European people fail to realize is that this is just another example of sectarian violence mixed in with a civil war.  Islam might be peaceful but the different sects of that religion are from from it.

Syria is none of our business.  The Middle East is toxic and we should declare it a quarantine zone.   If  the Brits and the rest of the EU want the Syria fight then I say have a good one...but we'll sit this out.

Marine Corps to open infantry training to enlisted women

Read it here.

I can't wait to watch this clown show.

Quote of the day...

"The hard mix is figuring out how to support our treaty commitments with a reduced force in a budget constrained environment with an aging ground fighting force designed to combat a threat that passed away in 1989."...via American Mercenary

Modest Proposal. The USMC should switch to the 300 Black.

The Marine Corps has a revolutionary cartridge sitting right in front of them waiting for them to scoop it up and they haven't done it yet.   The same critique applies to SOCOM, SWAT Teams nationwide and the bad boys in the FBI, CIA and the other gun groups.

Why hasn't anyone adopted the 300 Black in the 115 grain for their service rifles?

It hits harder than an AK, is just as accurate as the 5.56 and you basically have a new harder hitting weapon that has the exact same manual of arms and operating features as your legacy weapon.  The Marine Corps Marksmanship Unit and the Marine Corps Gunners should study the possibility and determine whether it's cost effective/is an actual improvement over the long serving 5.56.  I think they'll be pleasantly surprised.

Sidenote:  SOCOM/MARSOC should be all over the suppressed version of this round.

Marine Expeditionary Unit Capabilities

Thanks to ELP Blog for the vid link.

Telegraphing the strike on Syria.

Remember you heard it here first.  I'm probably wrong but I bet we hear about a cruise missile strike on Syria Chemical Facilities sometime between now and the Sunday Morning Talking Head shows.  This from the Boston Globe.

ABOARD A MILITARY AIRCRAFT OVER THE PACIFIC — The Pentagon is moving naval forces closer to Syria in preparation for a possible decision by President Barack Obama to order military strikes, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel suggested on Friday.
Hagel declined to describe any specific movements of U.S. forces. He said Obama asked the Pentagon to prepare military options for Syria and that some of those options ‘‘requires positioning our forces.’’
U.S. Navy ships are capable of a variety of military action, including launching Tomahawk cruise missiles, as they did against Libya in 2011 as part of an international action that led to the overthrow of the Libyan government.
‘‘The Defense Department has a responsibility to provide the president with options for contingencies, and that requires positioning our forces, positioning our assets, to be able to carry out different options — whatever options the president might choose,’’ Hagel said.
He said the U.S. is coordinating with the international community to determine ‘‘what exactly did happen’’ in the reported use by the Syrian government of chemical weapons against civilians earlier this week.
‘‘We’re still assessing that,’’ he said.

Lets see.  We have the President talking about Syria between campaign, excuse me, between policy speeches today....

We have a flurry of talk by the "Washington Intelligentsia" regarding a strike against Syria...

And finally we have the President's poll numbers sinking like the Titanic.

It'll be this weekend or the beginning of next week.  I'm personally betting on sooner rather than later...especially with Hagel sticking his head up out of the sand. 

Know your enemy. ZBD-03 Airborne Armored Fighting Vehicle.

photos via China Defense Mashup

I've been focused like a laser on Chinese naval developments, on their Marine Corps and on their new Mechanized Infantry Brigades.  Which means I took my eyes off the what many foreign armies consider their rapid deployment force.  The airborne.

It doesn't receive much coverage (and to be honest outside of Tanks and their supposed EFV "in ability" amphibious vehicle not much is found on the net regarding Chinese armored vehicles) and at first glance it might not seem formidable but the ZBD-03 gives the Chinese Airborne what few units have....mechanized assault capability right off the drop zone.

It sports a 30mm cannon, 7.62 coax, has a crew of 3 and carries 5 airborne troops.  It is extremely light weight coming in at 8 tons.  This weight class indicates that it is only proof against small arms fire and maybe shell splinters....maybe.  It definitely lacks IED protection and my assumption is that its intended to go where they ain't.

Couple this vehicle with China's new air transport and all the pieces of a truly expeditionary force...land, sea and air....are coming together nicely for them.

Is the legacy of the Iraq/Afghanistan wars hurting US armored vehicle development?  We're expecting IED protection in all our vehicles while our enemies are putting into service armor that is designed to arrive quickly, and defeat the enemy without becoming involved in nation building.  Perhaps its time to clearly delineate between combat and nation building/peacekeeping vehicles.  Our combat vehicles will be light, lethal and easily transported.  Our peacekeeping vehicles will be MRAPs.  That will mean that the Army will get the Stryker as it was intended and not over armored to the point where it can't climb a damn hill and the Marines will get its Marine Personnel Carrier that can get the job done without costing an arm and a leg.

SOCOM picks the JAMA for its GMV. What does that tell us?

The Force Protection/General Dynamics JAMA won the contest for the Ground Mobility Vehicle for SOCOM.

What does that tell us?

Well to me that indicates an increased awareness of the vulnerability of small teams to enemy forces...they want weapon trucks that they can take everywhere that mount heavy weapons.  Additionally it also seems that internal carriage of vehicles is also becoming more paramount (at least for the time) when it comes to SOCOM operations.  I personally thought that the Northrop Grumman offering would win hands down (see below).

And that brings me to my next point.  If I was Northrop I wouldn't scrap the plans to this vehicle just yet.

I can't explain it but the JAMA win smells more like a SEALs selection than something the Rangers would be interested in.  Something tells me that SOCOM will be buying more vehicles to fulfill this same role.

F-35 costs plummet. Why now? Update!

Everyone has the news that F-35 costs have plummeted.

My simple question is why now?  Why are we seeing costs come crashing down now? Elements of Power blog has a story in which he details it quite nicely.  But the question of why now must be answered.  If this had been done 5 years ago then we'd be in a much better position.  You wouldn't see the entire defense budget getting mauled to pay for the plane.  You wouldn't have seen the USMC dump the Marine Personnel Carrier and the Amphibious Combat Vehicle.

You wouldn't see reports that the Pentagon is considering a plan to fire 6000 civilians WHEN sequestration continues next year.  I only have a few theories....

*  Lockheed Martin F-35 division are the greedy bastards that I thought them to be.
*  Lockheed Martin is scared shitless and are seeking to push this puppy across the finish line before the Congress wakes up to its costs (related to the first).
*  The Pentagon is finally pushing hard enough to force the issue.
*  All of the above.

If they're finally pushing the costs down then good...but to be honest I've always wondered how you predict operating costs and this has all the feel of pulling numbers out of your ass and acting as if they're true.

The point remains.

The F-35 is unaffordable.  Is costing us to sacrifice vital capabilities in other areas.  And this JCS will be known as the most ineffective in the history of our nation.

Its painfully obvious why the new numbers are out now.  Lockheed Martin and the Pentagon are putting the full press on to win the S. Korean order.

If they have to lie, spin, twist facts or steal they'll do it.  Fraud was involved in making the V-22 look like a champion and it appears that fraud will be allowed to make the F-35 win projects.

Read about the suddenly "vocal" S. Korean Air Force support for the F-35 here (note that in all the previous contests we have heard nothing from them on preference for a particular jet).

Asteroid Redirect Mission Concept Animation

China has regional superiority over the US.

A discussion I had with a buddy pointed me to a pretty disturbing fact (well...maybe not fact because the numbers are hard to nail down but it seems pretty clear).

The Chinese have regional naval superiority over the US in the Pacific.

Consider these few facts.
*  The Chinese don't have worldwide responsibilities so their naval forces are focused on that one ocean.
*  The Chinese have embarked on a massive ship building program.  New ships that match or nearly match US vessels.
*  Our vaunted naval aviation force is blunted because the Chinese navy will operate under the umbrella of land based air.
*  The Chinese have a large and varied number of high speed anti-ship missiles mounted on everything from Fast Missile Attack Boats, to aircraft to Frigates and Destroyers.

As things stand now, the Chinese have over 80 Frigates and Destroyers in service.  Many of those ships are Type 052C/D, Type 056 Corvettes and Type 054A Frigates.  Compare that to the numerous Perry Class Frigates and LCS coming online (supposedly numbering 50 in class) and stack them against the number of  Type 22 Missile Boats and you have a recipe for the US Navy not being able to effectively deal with the Chinese Navy alone.

I won't even begin to touch on how the Marine Corps or Army would respond to a move against the Chinese if they decided to take Taiwan.

We could only watch and protest.

If a few of our enemies either coordinated actions or took advantage of a move initiated by one of them then we'd be in a hurt locker world wide.  

I didn't see it coming but the decline of the US militarily has already begun and is further along than anyone wants to admit.  

NOTE:  A statement was made that our sub force would be able to effectively destroy any advantage the Chinese have in surface ships.  I beg to differ.  Not only do the Chinese work hard on their Anti-Sub efforts using land based airplanes and ship based helicopters but they also have a pretty effective force of their own.

Note that Chinese subs are taking on a distinctly western style flavor.  It appears that the old Russian styling has been abandoned to follow the British/US example.

The Chinese have a pretty effective diesel electric sub force that is rapidly modernizing.  They're moving to a mixed fleet of nuclear and conventional subs that can give us headaches.  This from the Daily Mail...from back in the day...

When the U.S. Navy deploys a battle fleet on exercises, it takes the security of its aircraft carriers very seriously indeed.
At least a dozen warships provide a physical guard while the technical wizardry of the world's only military superpower offers an invisible shield to detect and deter any intruders.
That is the theory. Or, rather, was the theory.
American military chiefs have been left dumbstruck by an undetected Chinese submarine popping up at the heart of a recent Pacific exercise and close to the vast U.S.S. Kitty Hawk - a 1,000ft supercarrier with 4,500 personnel on board.
By the time it surfaced the 160ft Song Class diesel-electric attack submarine is understood to have sailed within viable range for launching torpedoes or missiles at the carrier.
According to senior Nato officials the incident caused consternation in the U.S. Navy.
The Americans had no idea China's fast-growing submarine fleet had reached such a level of sophistication, or that it posed such a threat.
One Nato figure said the effect was "as big a shock as the Russians launching Sputnik" - a reference to the Soviet Union's first orbiting satellite in 1957 which marked the start of the space age.
The incident, which took place in the ocean between southern Japan and Taiwan, is a major embarrassment for the Pentagon.
The lone Chinese vessel slipped past at least a dozen other American warships which were supposed to protect the carrier from hostile aircraft or submarines.
And the rest of the costly defensive screen, which usually includes at least two U.S. submarines, was also apparently unable to detect it.
According to the Nato source, the encounter has forced a serious re-think of American and Nato naval strategy as commanders reconsider the level of threat from potentially hostile Chinese submarines.
It also led to tense diplomatic exchanges, with shaken American diplomats demanding to know why the submarine was "shadowing" the U.S. fleet while Beijing pleaded ignorance and dismissed the affair as coincidence.
Analysts believe Beijing was sending a message to America and the West demonstrating its rapidly-growing military capability to threaten foreign powers which try to interfere in its "backyard".
The People's Liberation Army Navy's submarine fleet includes at least two nuclear-missile launching vessels.
Its 13 Song Class submarines are extremely quiet and difficult to detect when running on electric motors.
Commodore Stephen Saunders, editor of Jane's Fighting Ships, and a former Royal Navy anti-submarine specialist, said the U.S. had paid relatively little attention to this form of warfare since the end of the Cold War.
He said: "It was certainly a wake-up call for the Americans.
"It would tie in with what we see the Chinese trying to do, which appears to be to deter the Americans from interfering or operating in their backyard, particularly in relation to Taiwan."
In January China carried a successful missile test, shooting down a satellite in orbit for the first time.

This occurred in 2007.

Our Carriers are protected by at least one nuclear sub and several destroyers.

Yet somehow a Chinese sub appeared in the middle of the fleet.  What was being said about our subs sweeping the seas of the Chinese again? 

How bad are things? A US Senator said the "B" word.

Thanks to ELP for the link.

via Standard.net.

CLEARFIELD — The future viability of Hill Air Force Base could hinge on the work being done by an aerospace manufacturer just a few miles down the road.
On Wednesday, ATK celebrated the completion of its 150th wing skin for the F-35 Lightning II, the 5th generation, international, multi-role fighter aircraft that will serve as the replacement to the F-16.
During an event held in ATK’s Aerospace Structures facility in Clearfield’s Freeport Center, Lockheed Martin and ATK officials and members of Utah’s Congressional Delegation highlighted ATK’s work on the F-35, as well as the fighter’s role in protecting national security and the program’s economic impact across the U.S. and within Utah.
“The work being done right here at this facility plays a huge role in Hill Air Force Base’s future,” said Utah Senator Orrin Hatch. “The F-35 is the future of the base and the work that is going on here is essential to the jet’s success.”
ATK manufactures several composite structures for the F-35 at the company’s Clearfield facility, including upper and lower wing skins, straps, engines nacelles, covers and inlet ducts.
Hill is listed as the Air Force’s preferred alternative for the location of the first two operational squadrons of the jet and a possible third squadron.
The move would bring 72 new jets to the base. Hill currently has two F-16 squadrons and 48 jets.
Hill also provides modification and maintenance support on the F-35.
Both Hatch and Utah Congressman Rob Bishop said F-35s at Hill would help secure future workloads at the base.
“The F-35 at Hill, with both the maintenance and the operational wings, helps Hill be more viable if there is ever anything like a BRAC (Base Realignment and Closure Commission),” Bishop said. “And you just never know when something like that may come along.”
Hatch said he believes Hill is in a good position should another round of BRAC come along, but the F-35 squadrons put the base in a class above the rest.
“(BRAC) is always a concern,” the senator said. “Let’s just say I’ve been in the Senate for 37 years, and there hasn’t been a year when I haven’t had to make sure Hill was in good shape. But with the F-35, we’re in a great spot.”
While the discussion at Wednesday’s event centered around Hill, officials also lauded the F-35’s economic impact.
Bob Delaney, an executive at F-35 manufacturer Lockheed Martin, said there are more than 1,000 jobs associated with the jet in Utah, creating an $80 million economic impact. Nationwide, Delaney said, there are more than 125,000 jobs associated with the F-35.
The Air Force expects the F-35 to reach the stage of “initial operation capability” by December 2016.

When I read this on ELP's spot I was just expecting another feel good F-35 story.

What I came away with was something entirely different.

Hatch said the B word.  He talked about another round of base closings.  That tells me that the talk about serious cuts in manpower isn't just talk.  This time its real.  Congress protects bases like a mother protects her child (a good mother...I don't know how many still exist if you consider news reports).

I seriously can't wait for the other military blogs to dial into what is becoming painfully obvious.

When that happens its going to be pandemonium   Fingers will be pointed and rivalries exposed.  Army vs. Air Force, Air Forces vs. Navy, Marines vs. Everyone and so on.  This is going to be fascinating.  Amazing.  Anything but fun.

How low can we go and still win?

I was reading on Marine Corps Gazette an article where they talk about the Marine Corps going down to 100,000 boatspaces.  That would literally mean you're cutting the Marine Corps by more than half.

I've read some thoughts in the comments section that we should move many of our combat forces to the Reserves (this is for the Army bubbas) and the Guard should be nothing but Combat Support and Combat Service Support.

But how low can we go personnel wise before it becomes  case of it being a danger to national security when it comes to our Ground Forces?

Note;  Read the Gazette article here but a tidbit...

Just the other day, I was discussing sequestration with a fellow officer. After we got into the discussion of what it means for the Marine Corps, we began to imagine about what would happen if over the next several years there were further cuts to DoD. As something of a thought experiment, we asked ourselves, what would a Marine Corps with an end strength of 100klook like?
First of all, we figured you'd move Tanks, AAVs to the reserves. Then reduce the LAR Bns to 1 Company per coast, putting the rest in the reserves. Much like the old Self-propelled howitzers we moth-balled after Desert Storm, all of these vehicles are big, heavy, and have a massive maintenance and logistics footprint in both manpower and materiel terms. If we had to keep one of the two, we imagined AAV would be maintained in some sort of cadre format.
Second of all, the attitude moving the Marine Corps to throw Tanks and LAR to the reserves would be an attitude of "lighter, more expeditionary." With that, you'd probably see a gradual shift away from the 155mm in Artillery as the standard tactical artillery piece to something lighter. For example, we might move to the 105mm, while maintaining our current 120mm mortar capability.

This small we're not talking about a Marine Corps anymore...I don't know what we'll be but it won't be the traditional Marine Corps.

That's one crusty ass LCPL.

This LCPL just gave up giving a shit a looooong time ago.

3 rows of ribbons and a service stripe?  Yeah...he talks shit and probably backs it up!