Close air support just got a lot harder....A must read from "War on the Rocks"

via WOTR...

Neither the A-10 nor the F-35 alone has the ability to provide the combination of persistence, precision, and augmented situational awareness that will be necessary in the emergent threat environment. Returning to our Army infantry officer’s CAS requirements — “find the bad guys that are shooting at me, kill them quickly, don’t hurt or kill me, and help me find more bad guys before they shoot at me” — our current CAS platforms fail to measure up in several key areas. How exactly should the Joint Force be equipped to succeed?

Read it all here.

Why do I get the feeling that the future will be a separation of the air arm from the ground side...with close air support being a historical footnote?  Artillery is about to become everyone's best friend again.

Is this a case of religious freedom, a substandard Marine or both?

via CharismaNews.

Liberty Institute and volunteer attorney Paul Clement asked the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (CAAF)—the highest military court whose cases are subject to review by the Supreme Court of the United States—to review the case of Lance Corporal (LCpl) Monifa Sterling, USMC. LCpl Sterling was convicted at a court-martial for putting a Bible verse on her computer when she was stationed at Camp Lejune, North Carolina.
After being criminally prosecuted by the United States Government, LCpl Sterling initially represented herself, then appealed her case to the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals. She again cited her First Amendment rights to religious expression, as well as her protection under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). RFRA is a vital law that has been used in court to protect religious liberty in various contexts.
But in this case, both the trial and the appellate court said RFRA did not apply because displaying a Bible verse does not constitute religious exercise. Sterling and her attorneys take issue with this opinion.
"If the government can order a Marine not to display a Bible verse, they could try and order her not to get a religious tattoo, or go to church on Sunday," says Liberty Institute Director of Military Affairs and Senior Counsel Mike Berry. "Restricting a Marine's free exercise of religion is blatantly unconstitutional."

Read the whole story here (whole printed story at least).

My take?

I get the whiff of alot more going on behind the scenes than we're being told.  You're gonna court-martial a Marine for not taking down a bible verse under the guise of disobeying an order?

That sounds heavy handed....and not the Marine Corps I remember.

I'm hoping that this was just the final straw and a SNCO finally got tired of a substandard Marine and decided that this was the time to strike.

Even with that though I would have recommended doing this a different way about a different topic.

Which brings me back to the leadership in this shop.  Where were the leaders to counsel this Marine's boss on how to properly deal with this wayward soul?  Why wasn't she already on notice that unless she got her act together there would be pain and misery waiting?

Why did it have to turn into this massive cluster?

As far as the religious freedom crowd is concerned.  I'm not buying it.  You can't come to the defense of every Tom, Dick and Harriet that claims they're being "discriminated" against.  That's not at all the way the military works.  I'm betting that if we dug a bit deeper we'd find all kinds of 'drama' revolving around this workplace.  Oh and a sidenote.  While I'm working on my spiritual life (organized religion just doesn't do it for me) I will note that freedom of religion is a two edged sword.  What happens when you have Muslim soldiers wanting calls to prayer on base...and getting it under religious freedom?  What happens when you have Satan worshippers wanting a display adjacent the front gate to advertise their membership drive?

Religion is like sexual orientation.  I don't know what you are and what you do unless you insist on telling me AND insist on me approving.

Thales wins Brit Crowsnest project.

via Royal Navy Website.

The MOD and Lockheed Martin UK, as the prime contractor for Crowsnest, have selected Thales as the chosen bidder to provide the radar and mission system at the heart of the Crowsnest capability.
The Crowsnest project will act as the Royal Navy’s eyes and ears for its next generation carriers, giving long-range air, maritime and land detection, as well as the capability to track potential threats. Crowsnest will also be able to support wider fleet and land operations, replacing the Sea King Mk 7 Airborne Surveillance and Control capability, which has been operational since 1982.

Here.

A helicopter based AWACS?  This smacks of desperation.  As an interim solution, it was a stroke of genius to put a radar on a Sea King to see them through.  I'm by no means an aviation guy but using a helicopter means you're flying lower, not as far and cutting reaction time.

The Brits better hope those new Destroyers are as good as they think....they're going to have to operate so far in front of the carriers that they're definitely gonna be targeted by every missile in the first wave.


NOTE:  Think Defence Blog posted a pic of the winning proposal in the comments section.

Korean Air Lines Co won a deal to do maintenance work on CH-53's?

via Korea Observer.

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea’s top air carrier, said Tuesday it has clinched a 50 billion won (US$45.56 million) deal to perform maintenance on the U.S. Marine Corps’ transport helicopters.
The deal will put Korean Air in charge of the depot maintenance of some 40 CH-53 Sea Stallion heavy-lift transport helicopters that are currently operated by U.S. Marines based in Japan, the air carrier said in a press release.
Depot maintenance refers to the inspection of an aircraft’s various systems, including check-ups on major parts via a complete overhaul, as well as repairing glitches and improving the aircraft’s overall performance.
The contract will last for five years until 2020, according to Korean Air.

Wow.

Really?

Seriously?

This smells.  I can't ever recall Korean Air Lines being involved in providing maintenance to USMC aircraft.  So why now?  I'm not gonna lie to you.  I smell some type of sweetheart deal to make the F-35 more attractive.  I could easily be wrong but on the surface this just doesn't seem right.

The rich are going after trailer parks now.

via Memory Alpha...

"They're greedy, misogynistic, untrustworthy little trolls, and I wouldn't turn my back on one of them for a second."

In the Star Trek universe there are creatures known a Ferengi.  The culture that they created values "wealth creation" above all else.  Nothing is done without the thought of profit.  War?  Unless its profitable it won't happen.  Business?  Ditto.  The concept of social welfare, medical care, helping your fellow man?  None existant.

I wonder if the creators of that fictional universe were onto something.  Check this out from SHTF Blog....

America is filled with lots of poor people these days, and there’s plenty of money to be made off them.
With Wall Street already turning once-homeowners into renters in housing neighborhoods, billionaires and entrepreneurs are now investing in trailer parks, where they are making considerable fortunes off of raising the rent on the poorest among us.
The economic concept is as easy as shooting fish in a barrel.
Generally speaking, these people moved into trailer parks for the cheap rent, and even with rent prices soaring, these poor people have nowhere else to go.
“The economics are compelling… there’s a lot more poor people than rich people,” one investor said.
The London Guardian spotlighted this trending market for moguls, following a bus load of ‘boot campers’ at Mobile Park University who are learning how to profit from the poor, many of whom are ironically found immobile and ‘trapped’ in their mobile homes:

Read it all here.

This is why I'm so worried about stability in America.  You can't keep pushing people...extracting what little they have, before they finally push back.  In the Star Trek universe, attempts to deal reasonably with the Ferengi for the most part failed.  It always came down to force of arms.

Is that the future for America when it comes time to deal with our own "Ferengi"...otherwise known as Wall Street?

Graphic showing all USMC aircraft. via Alert 5.

Finger pointing in Iraq..

via CNN.

"They were not outnumbered," Carter told CNN's Barbara Starr in an exclusive interview. "In fact, they vastly outnumbered the opposing force. And yet they failed to fight; they withdrew from the site."

See the video and read the article here.

This is Vietnam on steroids.  What good is it to spend all the treasure, take all the sacrifice in lives and broken bodies...if the Iraqis just don't seem to give a fuck?

The only real solution is to walk away from Iraq, see how this all plays out and then deal with the consequences.

This high level finger pointing by Ash Carter isn't something to cheer.  If people are honest then they know that the administration (and the previous one) lost the fight in Iraq long ago.  Not on the battlefield but in the planning.  Human Terrain and Counter Insurgency theory just can't deal with a tribal/religious sectarian conflict.  The concepts failed in the field.

Carter is just laying the groundwork for the defense of the administration's policies when he should be advising the President to tell the country that its time to walk away.  Past time.

SB-1 Defiant Video

Is this a new shooting stance?

The Marines YouTube Page has a video out this morning where Recon Marines did one of those all too common "challenge" activities that supposedly honors the fallen.  You can check it out below.  What caught my attention is the thumbnail photo.  Is that a new shooting stance?  Any info is appreciated.

An analysis of the Kornet-D.

Defense 24 has an analysis of the Kornet-D.  You can read it here but this part has me confused...

It is reported that the system is multifunctional as it can cause fire both for terrestrial and marine, and even air (objectives are to be in this case, helicopters and drone).
The time needed to move from position to position combat march is (theoretically) just 7 seconds and a response time of 4-6 seconds.

I get the part about it being multifunctional but the highlighted section just has me spinning.  Maybe my Google Translate let me down but I'm just not getting the meaning of this.

Regardless.  The Kornet-D is looking like a capable weapon system.  The decision to quad pack them on their high mobility vehicles is genius.  Add this to the headaches that future planners will have to deal with...not only do they have to grapple with highly mobile anti-tank teams but the realization that all the investment in UAVs is being threatened by a very prolific anti-tank system.

Grey Eagle pilots and staff planner should be worried...that networked, ISR network is being put under the gun...or should I say missile.

Increased police shooting are the symptoms of a return to 1919?

Know your history America.  via Wikipedia...

In late April 1919, at least 36 booby trap dynamite-filled bombs were mailed to a cross-section of prominent politicians and appointees, including theAttorney General of the United States, as well as justice officials, newspaper editors and businessmen, including John D. Rockefeller.[1] Among all the bombs addressed to high-level officials, one bomb was addressed to the home of a Department of Justice Bureau of Investigation (BOI) field agent once tasked with investigating the Galleanists, Rayme Weston Finch, who in 1918 had arrested two prominent Galleanists while leading a police raid on the offices of their publication Cronaca Sovversiva.[1]

And then this...

Fueled by labor unrest and the anarchist bombings, and then spurred on by Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer's attempt to suppress radical and non-radical labor organizations, it was characterized by exaggerated rhetoric, illegal search and seizures, unwarranted arrests and detentions, and the deportation of several hundred suspected radicals and anarchists. Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer, twice targeted by anarchist bombs, organized the nationwide series of police actions, known as the Palmer raids, in November 1919 and January 1920. Under suspicion of violating the Espionage Act, the Sedition Act, and/or the Immigration Act of 1918,[11] approximately 10,000 people were arrested, of which 3,500 were held in detention.[12] Of those held in detention, 556 resident aliens were eventually deported.[11]

All of the above is from the 1919 Anarchist Bombing (Wiki entry is here). Consider this an online response to my debating partner, American Mercenary.  He did a post here that should be read to put this whole thing in context. 

My point?

The incident at the Bundy Ranch could have sparked something dark and deeply American if the government had chose to.  There have been numerous times throughout our history when the government has forcefully put down dissent.

The situation today is familiar to any student of history.  You're looking at (generally) both coasts against fly over country.  Liberal versus conservative generally established by where you live (with pockets of each viewpoint found in each area).  And there lies the danger.  You have a federal government that is Northeast corridor biased attempting to push its "beliefs" onto parts of the country that do not feel the same (the South and Midwest).

The only thing missing is a defining issue and we're looking at a semi-repeat of history.  Now do you get the force of connection?

China is building a Landing Ship Medium (LSM).

pics and article via China Defense Blog.

CDB says...

A newbuilt ship of an entirely new type for the PLA Ground Forces is currently running sea trials in the Sea of Bohai. It was launched at the Army’s Songliao Shipard at Dalian in August 2013.
Officially described as an Army Ro/Ro Transport, it is really a Landing Ship Medium (LSM), equipped with the with the typical kedging anchor of landing ships, even though the bulbous bow would preclude the ship from beaching.
The ship is equipped with both bow and stern ramps and a short helicopter platform aft. The armament consists of four twin 14.5 mm guns, two forward and two aft. Twin funnels indicate twin-screw propulsion; in addition, it has a bow thruster for improved maneuvrability.The lifting capacity is probably a mechanised infantry company.
The ship is a striking departure from the Type 271III YUWEI class Landing Craft Tank (LCT) that has been building for decades for the Army, and of which there currently are some 85 in service with the Army’s landing craft units. The dark grey colour, too, is a departure from the usual blue of Army vessels.
It is not known if the new ship will go into series production nor which unit will operate the new ship. In view of its experimental nature, a good possibility would be the Ship Squadron (Unit 73502) at Dongshandao, attached to the Nanjing MR Amphibious Training Base.
Songlia Shipyard built another unique ship in 2012, the training vessel AL201 belonging to the Training Squadron of the Army/Air Force Navigation School at Zhenjiang. That ship was based on the Sea Police’s Hai Jing 31101 PUDONG (Type 718).

JESUS!  Will someone at HQMC sit up and smell the coffee?

The Chinese are equipping to put a fully mechanized Chinese Marine Landing Force on foreign terrain.  They are equipping to take it, hold it and repel any assault that we launch!  You don't need this much lift to sustain an infantry heavy force...which means the USMC is gearing up to fight against a future foe in a way that is almost guaranteed to end badly.

Company Landing Teams in Internally Carried Vehicles, depending on air support, naval fires etc...that are far off shore and lack the capability to provide either sustained or prompt fires is asking to fill body bags.

Memorial Day Vid....watch it all and reflect....

MI-26T2 in serial production.

via Alert 5 from Russian Helicopter Press Release.

Russian Helicopters (part of State Corporation Rostec) has launched series production on the heavy Mi-26T2 helicopter at Rostvertol. The Mi-26T2 is a modernised version of the Mi-26T, equipped with the latest avionics, making it possible to cut the number of crew required and also to operate the helicopter during night-time.
“We announce the start of production on the modernised heavy Mi-26T2 helicopter,” said delegation head, deputy CEO of Russian Helicopters Andrey Shibitov. “Mi-26 helicopters are unparalleled in terms of their flight capabilities, and this modernisation significantly expands their potential operational use. I am confident that the Mi-26T2 will be popular in Russia and internationally.”

We can debate the CH-53K versus the CH-47F all day long...but we're really missing the point.  The Mi-26 is the real undisputed king.  A helicopter with the carry capacity of the C-130?  That's the dream of every Army planner and the Russians have had it for over a couple of decades...and now they're modernizing it.

Oh and for the naysayers remember this.  The C-130 has been upgraded since the 1950's and will probably serve until 2050...the CH-47 has also been upgraded since the 1960's and you would be hard pressed to tell the differences.

While we wait for a future "Joint Heavy Lift Platform" (of whatever style it takes...tilt, rotors, compound...) the Russians have the capability today.

Kinda makes me misty in a punch the wall kind of way.

What is going on with the Brazilian fighters?

Ok.  It might be time to get back into the UFC thing again.  I was checking out the results of last nights fights and wow...the Cormier victory was expected but I DID NOT SEE Chris Weidman taking apart Vitor Belfort.

I mean totally dismantling the guy.

Yeah.  Its time to check out some of the young guns that are finally making names as champions instead of contenders.

But as a sidenote.  What is going on with the Brazilian fighters?  Is it just my imagination or does it seem like they're no where as dominate as they once were?  I realize that everyone is studying Brazilian Ju Jitsu, but they're appearing extremely vulnerable to a solid wrestling foundation.  I definitely need to find someone that recorded this thing.  This was one I should have watched live.

A REAL side by side comparison (top view) of the Armata vs. T-90A

Thanks to s300v4 for the pic.

Ok.  I'm not getting this.  What explains the dramatic increase in size of the Armata over the previous Russian Tanks?  I don't think an armored "tub" for the crew would take up so much room.  I'm beginning to wonder if its even bigger than a M1 Abrams or Leopard 2.  Additionally to say that the turret is unmanned they didn't achieve any size reduction there either.

This tank is a mystery.  I can't wait till they sell a detuned model to a foreign government so we can buy or steal it from them.

China tried to jam a UAV on an intel mission. A defense analyst says an inflight snatch might be next...

via Washington Free Beacon (read about the full story here...what has my attention is the words of the defense analyst).

Rick Fisher, a China military affairs analyst, said China could increase pressure on the United States to halt surveillance flights in Asia by first attacking one of the unmanned aircraft flights.
“Though UAVs like the Global Hawk are rather expensive, they are also regarded as more expendable because they are unmanned,” said Fisher, a senior fellow at the International Assessment and Strategy Center.
“But failing to defend these UAVs runs the risk of China viewing them as ‘fair game’ to shoot down whenever they please.”
Beijing also might attempt to capture a Global Hawk by causing one to crash in shallow water, or by attempting to snatch one in flight using a manned aircraft.
The United States should balance its unmanned high-altitude surveillance systems with high-altitude piloted aircraft that are better able to conduct evasive maneuvers and use defensive systems, Fisher said.

Is that even possible?

I really don't know.  I've heard the size of the Global Hawk being described as almost as big as a 737, (its been described as having the wingspan of a 737...apologies to all for a bad memory) so an inflight snatch might be pushing it (although with the Chinese, you shouldn't rule out the improbable) so I'm betting that a carefully timed shootdown to allow them to recover it at their leisure is more likely.

Still.

How would the current administration react to such a provocation?  Would they retaliate?  Or perhaps do nothing at all?

This bears watching.

This is when I started to hate the enemy...

There are usually turning points in every life.  This is one.  I started to hate the enemy after this incident and had much difficulty in separating the perpetrators of the deed from the larger population...and of leadership that was pushing a confusing set of "requirements" that had little to do with actually winning the war.

I think I'm over that...sort of...but I digress.  We're still talking about the ambush of USMC snipers attached to 3/25.  The first video gives a very brief overview...the second is what those Islamic bastards posted...warning....extremely graphic.

A little discussed "incident" from the Battle of Haditha...

Happy Memorial Day Weekend.

While you're settling into your style of festivities, I want you to think about these Marines that everyone seems to have forgotten.  Thier story is hardly ever discussed in Marine Corps circles.  Why?  I'm not sure.  Maybe because it hurts too much to talk about, perhaps because it shows the danger of concepts being pushed...either way, we need to remember the good as well as the heartbreaking.

via Wikipedia.

On the morning of August 1, 2005 a six-man Marine sniper unit on the outskirts of Haditha was attacked by a large insurgent force from theAnsar al-Sunna group and in less than 10 minutes was overrun.[2] Five members of the unit were killed. One was missing and was reported to have been seen alive but wounded and being driven through the streets of Haditha.
A few days later a video of the attack was posted on the Internet on which insurgents were seen rushing the Marines. The group’s Web site posted still photographs showing a bloody, badly wounded body wearing Marine camouflage trousers and two hooded gunmen standing in front of several rifles. The insurgents said that they slit the throats of some of the Marines. Masked gunmen had shown up in the Haditha public market that afternoon displaying helmets, flak jackets and other equipment they said was taken from the bodies of the dead Marines. The bodies of five of the Marines were found in one place and the body of the sixth was discovered later a few miles away.

The Marine Corps must not forget the sacrifice that these men made.  We should remember and honor them at every opportunity.

Small units whether conventional or special ops, always run the risk of being found, fixed and destroyed.  In my opinion the risk is too high to enshrine the Company Landing Team or (rumors) Squad Landing Team into the FMF as a replacement for the MEU.

Remember your history....even the painful parts so you don't repeat it.

NOTE:  Read about the battle of Haditha here.   Sadly this is one time when I can't recommend the official USMC history.  I don't know if it's politics, an attempt to protect those that died, or not talking about painful incidents, but the Anthology is almost comically written.  I've never seen so much politically correct drivel in my life.  If you want to read it anyway then click here.

Sikorsky S-97 RAIDER™ First Flight Vid