What's in your wallet?!!!
Friday, June 20, 2014
US Order of Battle in Iraq (so far).
All eyes are on Iraq so I decided that now is as good a time as any to do a quick and dirty "order of battle" for US forces. Note that we aren't including European forces which I find strange. It appears that they've completely washed their hands of this wretched country.
300 Green Berets (US Army Special Forces)
Forgive me but first a pet peeve. I've been listening to news reports that are saying US Special Forces are going into Iraq as advisors and that they are not combat troops. ARE YOU SHITTING ME! Additionally they seem to not realize that Special Forces is not a catch all for Special Operations. But back to the task at hand. These guys will be in the sand. They will be calling for fire. They will be leading Iraqi units. They will be in combat.
USMC Fleet Anti-Terrorist Security Teams (FAST Co.)
FAST Company is on deck at the embassy and this is their bread and butter. From news reports it appears that only one platoon (reinforced) has been deployed but I imagine we will be seeing alot more of these boys headed that way. The embassy is huge. If fighting gets closer they will need more boots on the ground.
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George HW Bush Aircraft Carrier.
Trouble hit and what was the first thing the combatant commander called for? An aircraft carrier. Quite honestly I don't know if its just the hubris of realizing that you can tell 5000 plus sailors to turn around and head your way or if they'll actually launch against ISIS, but the firepower is there if needed.
USS Mesa Verde.
I don't quite get this one. Why break up the MEU with an incident this large going on? I get that they want to play with distributed operations from the sea but to think that an LPD will be able to handle an evacuation of the embassy along with a carrier is stupid. Real stupid.
Conclusion.
I'm sure there are other moves happening that I/we don't have visibility on. The curious thing is that this seems extremely disjointed. Poorly planned. Haphazard. I CAN'T SEE THE PLAN IN THESE MOVES.
Its almost like some huge show of force but with the problem of the forces being so misaligned that they actually can't do their jobs properly if called on. Yes. I know I'm playing arm chair commander but most of this doesn't actually make sense. We'll see if it clears up over the next few days but so far I'm unimpressed.
300 Green Berets (US Army Special Forces)
Forgive me but first a pet peeve. I've been listening to news reports that are saying US Special Forces are going into Iraq as advisors and that they are not combat troops. ARE YOU SHITTING ME! Additionally they seem to not realize that Special Forces is not a catch all for Special Operations. But back to the task at hand. These guys will be in the sand. They will be calling for fire. They will be leading Iraqi units. They will be in combat.
USMC Fleet Anti-Terrorist Security Teams (FAST Co.)
FAST Company is on deck at the embassy and this is their bread and butter. From news reports it appears that only one platoon (reinforced) has been deployed but I imagine we will be seeing alot more of these boys headed that way. The embassy is huge. If fighting gets closer they will need more boots on the ground.
George HW Bush Aircraft Carrier.
Trouble hit and what was the first thing the combatant commander called for? An aircraft carrier. Quite honestly I don't know if its just the hubris of realizing that you can tell 5000 plus sailors to turn around and head your way or if they'll actually launch against ISIS, but the firepower is there if needed.
USS Mesa Verde.
I don't quite get this one. Why break up the MEU with an incident this large going on? I get that they want to play with distributed operations from the sea but to think that an LPD will be able to handle an evacuation of the embassy along with a carrier is stupid. Real stupid.
Conclusion.
I'm sure there are other moves happening that I/we don't have visibility on. The curious thing is that this seems extremely disjointed. Poorly planned. Haphazard. I CAN'T SEE THE PLAN IN THESE MOVES.
Its almost like some huge show of force but with the problem of the forces being so misaligned that they actually can't do their jobs properly if called on. Yes. I know I'm playing arm chair commander but most of this doesn't actually make sense. We'll see if it clears up over the next few days but so far I'm unimpressed.
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Brigade sized units/a Reinforced Company of tanks involved in fighting in Ukraine.
We're all focused on Iraq but things are definitely still smoking in Ukraine. Check this out...via The Daily Star.
One military source said 4,000 separatists were involved, while rebels sources in Donetsk said Ukrainian infantry supported by 20 tanks and many other armored vehicles were storming the village of Yampil, about 12 km east of Krasny Liman.For all those saying that this isn't a civil war I say bullshit.
A top rebel commander, Igor Strelkov, reported “heavy losses” in equipment and arms among the separatists, faced with a huge superiority in heavy armor on the government side at Yampil.
“We beat off the first attack and destroyed one tank. But it is difficult to take on 20 tanks. The battle is going on. Our people are holding but we can’t rule out that they [government forces] will break through,” Strelkov, who is also known as Girkin, said in a statement caught on video. He urged Moscow to “take some measures.”
There was no word on casualties from the government side.
From the nearby town of Siversk, artillery blasts, small arms fire and machinegun-fire could be heard from about 3 km away. From high ground, smoke could be seen billowing from rebel positions under attack.
4,000 separatists?
20 Tanks?
Assuming that the attacking side has at least an equal number of Infantry then you're talking about some major force on force action here. How this isn't on mainstream news is beyond me but this is getting interesting.
The Amphibious Inflection Point by Navy Matters Blog.
In mathematics, the point at which everything changes is called the inflection point (that’s a very loose definition that I’m taking great liberties with). Amphibious assault doctrine is struggling to find its inflection point – the point or distance from shore at which an assault has a reasonable chance of success but beyond which, or nearer than, the assault will fail. Where is that optimum inflection point?A reader named Trons Away has had me spinning because this is the very issue we've been discussing, but to Navy Matters I simply say that he's short changing the Squids on this one.
The Navy would place it 50+ miles from shore – perhaps hundreds of miles.
The Marines would place it 25 miles or closer – the closer, the better; much, much closer being preferred.
Why would an assault fail if it is beyond the optimum inflection point? It would fail because the amphibious fleet lacks a ship-to-shore connector that can transport sufficient quantities of personnel and equipment in fighting condition to sustain an assault. The distance reduces the number of trips per day that the connector can make and, worse, renders the delivered Marines unfit for combat. The distance also invalidates Navy gun support. The standard 5” gun can’t even reach the shore from the distances the Navy wants to operate at.
Why would an assault fail if it is closer than the optimum inflection point? It would fail because the Navy’s ships can’t survive against land launched anti-ship cruise missiles at that range (that’s the Navy’s stated position not ComNavOps’ opinion).
The US Navy has been bending over backwards to accomodate the USMC.
Why do I say that???
Check this tick tock....
1. The Marine Corps wanted the Marine Landing Platform. The Navy got it. What happened? The Marine Corps isn't sure how they're going to use it and the majority of them will instead be used for Afloat Forward Staging Bases (AFSB) by SOCOM.
2. The USMC wanted improved LCACs. The Navy got them. What happened? The USMC is now saying that it needs a new generation with even greater range.
3. The USMC wanted dedicated gun ships to support landing ops. The Navy got them. What happened? The DDG-1000 is about to hit the water and now we hear that bigger guns with greater range is needed.
4. The USMC wanted an aviation dedicated LHA. The Navy got them. What happened? The USMC reversed itself and now says it wants well decks back on the America class LHAs!
5. The USMC screamed that small boat swarms are a danger. The Navy said ok. It developed the LCS and now we're watching it morph to handle additional missions and the costs balloon.
6. The USMC said it wanted out of the Riverine Mission. The Navy said ok, and it set up the NECC.
Additionally the Navy is working on several things to enable Marines to more easily assault a beach...Lasers, Rail Guns, UAVs (X-47), improvements to the Super Hornet, improvements to AEGIS, etc...
The Navy has been doing its work.
The problem is that the Marine Corps, once a decisive service that had solid concepts is now struggling mightily to come up with a plan of action for the future.
So while I admire the work that Navy Matters Blog does, on this one he gets it wrong. The problem isn't the Navy. The problem is a vacillating, indecisive, morally bankrupt, stick a finger in the wind, feminist, liberal leader in Marine Corps green that somehow kissed ass into the Commandant's chair called Amos. When Amos leaves you'll see this and other issues worked out.
The 3rd Iraq War has just begun...
via Army Times.
According to the President of the United States...and not disputed by anyone in the Pentagon...the Green Berets/Army Special Forces are not combat troops.
THIS IS CRAZINESS!
Keep an eye on this one kids. Green Berets are force multipliers supreme. They will lead the Shiites and they will direct air strikes.
The 3rd Iraq war has just begun. It might be done in secret, but US warplanes will be dropping bombs. SF Troops will be killed and injured. This thing will spiral out of control.
President Obama is also expected to announce Thursday that he is deploying about 100 Green Berets to Iraq to help train and advise Iraqi forces, according to a U.S. official. However, Obama does not plan to announce immediate U.S. airstrikes on Iraq, which have increasingly become less of a focus of deliberations in recent days.This is amazing.
According to the President of the United States...and not disputed by anyone in the Pentagon...the Green Berets/Army Special Forces are not combat troops.
THIS IS CRAZINESS!
Keep an eye on this one kids. Green Berets are force multipliers supreme. They will lead the Shiites and they will direct air strikes.
The 3rd Iraq war has just begun. It might be done in secret, but US warplanes will be dropping bombs. SF Troops will be killed and injured. This thing will spiral out of control.
USMC irrelevant? Did these authors steal Mike Sparks ideas....
The above paper has had me pounding walls. You can read the Marine Corps Times article on it here.
My question is simple. Did they steal Mike Sparks ideas, dress it up in Marine Corps green and push it forward as their own? The concept that they're pushing looks remarkably like Mike's Air-Mech-Strike Concept.
The image of the SkyCrane concept is straight off Mike's page.
Check facts.
Check images.
Check ideas.
These guys blew it on all counts.
NOTE: Mike Sparks wrote these pages early on during the days of the internet...I mean like the mid 90's just as it was becoming widespread...so the articles by today's standards are overly long and the guy is a bit eccentric, but if you scroll down far enough you'll see what I'm talking about. Additionally follow some of the links on a lazy day when you have time to burn. Some of the stuff is out there but some of it is spot on.
Endurance Course...Photos by Cpl. Henry Antenor
WAIT ONE MINUTE! Are they running this thing hollywood? All that new 782 gear and they're scared to get it a little muddy? All I'm seeing are some hydration carriers and that's it! Hmmm....
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
ART 15 Clothing New T-Shirt is a MUST have!
ART 15 Clothing, the same guys that bring you epic rap battles and how to PT like an operator are also the makers of some pretty fantastic T-Shirts.
Their latest creation is a MUST have! Not only is it pure bad-ass but it also serves as a reminder to act responsibly...I'll take two!
Their latest creation is a MUST have! Not only is it pure bad-ass but it also serves as a reminder to act responsibly...I'll take two!
The Marine Corps Aviation Mafia is fostering lies....
via Marine Corps Times.
I see the Aviation Mafia and the Amos sycophants are hitting hard while trying their best to legacy build a failed Commandant.
The facts are more stark than these two want to admit. IF SHIPS MUST STAND OFF 100 MILES OFFSHORE BECAUSE OF THE REACH OF ANTI-SHIP MISSILES THEN HOW SAFE ARE AIRCRAFT WHEN SYSTEMS LIKE THE S-400 HAVE RANGES OF OVER 300 MILES?
Amphibious Assault is still alive.
It just won't be simple, easy and accomplished by the Marine Corps alone. That dream is dead. If we're going to storm a beach then it will be all hands on deck, we won't be able to transport everyone by helo. We're going to have to do it old school style and create corridors for amphibs to make dashes to shore, covered by USAF, USN, and USMC fighters...get shore bombardment from the DDG-1000, effectively maneuver once we get feet dry and then have the Army push a Stryker Brigade or two through the gap while we reconstitute and get ready to do it all over again at another location.
The Amos cabal sees the writing on the wall.
Dunford is going to tear down their house of cards.
In their white paper titled “Are the Marines Procuring Their Way to Irrelevance?” retired Col. James G. Magee and retired Maj. Richard G. DuVall, both say that Commandant Gen. Jim Amos’ focus on the development of the Amphibious Combat Vehicle 1.1 to replace the decades-old Amphibious Assault Vehicle and the further procurement of additional F-35 joint strike fighters is misguided and does not suit the service’s future needs.Don't you dare buy a bit of the bullshit that these two are shoveling!
The proliferation of advanced missile technology today means ships must maintain a minimum stand-off distance of 100 miles from shore to preserve an adequate strike warning system.. That stand-off distance presents a significant modernization hurdle for a Corps seeking to deliver amphibious forces ashore.
Given current technology, modifying and procuring existing helicopter lift is the best option to get men and armor ashore, Magee and DuVall believe.
I see the Aviation Mafia and the Amos sycophants are hitting hard while trying their best to legacy build a failed Commandant.
The facts are more stark than these two want to admit. IF SHIPS MUST STAND OFF 100 MILES OFFSHORE BECAUSE OF THE REACH OF ANTI-SHIP MISSILES THEN HOW SAFE ARE AIRCRAFT WHEN SYSTEMS LIKE THE S-400 HAVE RANGES OF OVER 300 MILES?
Amphibious Assault is still alive.
It just won't be simple, easy and accomplished by the Marine Corps alone. That dream is dead. If we're going to storm a beach then it will be all hands on deck, we won't be able to transport everyone by helo. We're going to have to do it old school style and create corridors for amphibs to make dashes to shore, covered by USAF, USN, and USMC fighters...get shore bombardment from the DDG-1000, effectively maneuver once we get feet dry and then have the Army push a Stryker Brigade or two through the gap while we reconstitute and get ready to do it all over again at another location.
The Amos cabal sees the writing on the wall.
Dunford is going to tear down their house of cards.
AAV Replacement News. Dunford might scrap the Amos plan.
via Defense News.
First up is the continuing effort to replace the amphibious Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle program, which was scuttled in 2011. The Corps now says it will gradually modernize several hundred tracked amphibious assault vehicles (AAVs), while buying several hundred wheeled amphibious combat vehicles (ACVs) by 2020. The Corps is also slated to begin buying about 4,500 joint light tactical vehicles starting in 2015.Read the entire article here.
Based on past interactions, Dunford’s approach to modernization and acquisitions may be “very conservative,” the defense analyst said, “and I think he’s going to have problems living with the decisions made in his absence about the ACV.”
The implications are clear and while I agree with the sentiment, its alarming nonetheless. The USMC will probably be using the AAV till 2030...at least.
Why do I say that?
Because Dunford is probably going to review the program. Make a fresh, infantry based analysis of what is needed and reset the whole thing to meet his expectations of the program.
Everything is on hold and I'm sure that the Marine Personnel Carrier manufacturers are making their vehicles swim better but will it be good enough? Will all this revert to a simplified EFV? Will he want a clean sheet product improved tracked replacement?
However you count it we're looking at the Amos years being a case of him spinning his wheels while Marine Corps Armored Programs withered away. Remember this statement by the current Commandant? via Defense Tech.
“There are two answers to that, one is as Commandant of the Marine Corps’s answer which is Before I leave leave office four years from now … we’ll have a program of record, we’ll have steel, there will be a vehicle and I’ll be able to drive it,” Amos said responding to lawmakers questions during a House Armed Services Committee hearing. “I’m trying to pressurize industry, I’m trying to pressurize the acquisition folks, I want the word to get out. If we followed the standard acquisition timeline, which in some cases got us to where we are today, it’ll be 2024.”Amos lied his ass off.
To avoid such a fate, the general said the Department of the Navy will be using a model similar to the one it used to quickly buy and field thousands of MRAPs during the height of the Iraq war.
“Something probably that resembles the sense of urgency that we had for the MRAP but probably a little bit more scheduled, and that’s what we’re going to do.”
Now Dunford will have to clean up the mess.
Eurosatory News...
photos by Stéphane Gaudin
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| The above photos are of the ACMAT. |
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| The above photos are of the VAB Mark III. |
I was wrong.
Unfortunately it seems like many of the defense journalist big boys were thinking like me and information has been sparse. Luckily there are a few people out there that did attend and are sending info back.
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Lockheed/Patria Havoc Long Range Surveillance and Attack Vehicle Screen Captures...
* It looks like Lockheed/Patria are throwing down the gauntlet. Their Marine Personnel Carrier Variant is morphing into a family of vehicles right before our eyes. A birdy told me it did quite well (MRAP level of protection) in blast test and it swam well too...if they've worked on the swimming portion of the test even harder and made further modifications then my other favorite, the BAE SuperAV might get a run for its money in the "swim from ship to shore" category.
Blast from the past. FM 21-100 Soldier's Handbook 1941
Note: This blast from the past is rather intense! The US Army once packed a ton of information into their handouts for their Soldiers.
GUNNY WALGREN'S "JOHN GLENN" SPEECH (Not safe for politically correct workplaces).
A repeat on the blog but well worth your time. Find a secluded spot and turn your speakers up high. This is the Marine Corps I remember...
I wonder. Would Gunny Walgreen get a reprimand for doing this same school circle today?
Monday, June 16, 2014
Know your enemy. ISIS in action.
Don't avert your eyes.
Drink it in.
Understand the reality of this situation. Thousands of people are being systematically exterminated.
There are no good guys in this situation...just evil..on both sides.
The only solution?
Let the Middle East burn.
The vid is below. Be warned. Its not for those that are weak, sensitive or are not aware of the reality of the world...
Streit Group is getting into the wheeled APC market?
Pics via Military Technology Magazine Blog.
Note: The majority of defense writers are beasts when it comes to aviation news but miss the lead when it comes to contacts in the Program Office or Industry execs giving info. This applies times 1000 to armor news. The idea that Streit Group is getting into wheeled APCs ... real wheeled APCs and not glorified MRAPs is huge! How can this not be getting more air time? Additionally does anyone know the name and stats on the vehicle?
Note: The majority of defense writers are beasts when it comes to aviation news but miss the lead when it comes to contacts in the Program Office or Industry execs giving info. This applies times 1000 to armor news. The idea that Streit Group is getting into wheeled APCs ... real wheeled APCs and not glorified MRAPs is huge! How can this not be getting more air time? Additionally does anyone know the name and stats on the vehicle?
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| Outline of the vehicle in question added by SNAFU! Blog. |
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