China is shaping the ground for military action in Hong Kong...

A new round of protests erupted across Hong Kong. Police have made multiple arrests amid escalating violence. pic.twitter.com/VTaH31K9O9

— China Daily (@ChinaDaily) August 11, 2019

Make note of where this Tweet originated.  China Daily, a self proclaimed news organization whose purpose is to "inspire dialog between China and the US".

If you haven't been following the issue then let's be clear.  The protesters have ramped things up dramatically.  Which part is psyops and which part is truth I just don't know.

I'm not there.

What I do know is that they're claiming that Hong Kong Police, China Supporters and the average citizen on the ground is getting attacked on an almost daily basis.

In others words, this is past ugly and rapidly approaching F-UGLY.

My guess?

Another week at most to shape the terrain and then we'll see tanks moving in Hong Kong to restore order and (taking a page from a recent Marine Corps advertisement) running to the sound of chaos...

The funny thing?

I'm an unashamed China critic, but even with that I can actually support the move (when it comes...and I'm sure it will).  

I wish I was wrong but this no longer looks like a pro-democracy movement (if it ever was).  This seems like its tipped into anarchy.

Before you rage at me, tell me where I'm wrong.

IDF Carmel Armored Fighting Vehicle Models...plus bonus concept art

Note.  Found these on Twitter but lost the tweet so I can't properly credit the photographer.  If you know the person then hit me up so I can update this post.  

Concept art via National Interest from an article on the vehicle here...

Open Comment Post (Late). 11 Aug 2019.

How to Become an Australian Commando Vid plus a few thoughts on their PT and Gear Setup...

Thanks to CARGO for the link!



Great vid.  What stood out to me?  Most of you will think it's goofy but the PT and the way they carry their loadout.  I really think the Brits and the Aussies are doing it RIGHT!

As far as PT is concerned they keep it simple.  Bodyweight exercises, strict form and done to standard.  I luv the gym.  But I still have my doubts about bringing gym type exercises to the PT Field.

Cross Training seems to be something that should stay in the gym.  A good PT program can measure everything you need to know about a Marine without having to tote around tons of gear to every deployment.

As far as the kit.

I don't even know what the Aussies and the Brits call it but carrying your first line gear off the old load bearing equipment where it sits at the waist seems ideal if you're out and about on the ground moving.  Its just biomechanically more sensible than loading up a plate carrier.

The only real life analogy that I see to it in the US is a "battle belt"  Below is a pic I just grabbed off the net.

I know.

Focusing on PT and Gear Carry in an age where the discussion is about the F-35, ACV, LCS, Burke replacement etc is low tech stuff in a high tech world.

But winning battles does come down to the individual Marine right?

The amazing story of the first black astronaut training...the untold story of Ed Dwight...

via NY Times.

So Dwight enlisted in the Air Force in 1953. He rose through the ranks, from cadet to second and then first lieutenant. He leaped into procedural vacuums, streamlining operations and preparing manuals. When instructors were absent, he ran instrument training classes. He administered examinations to his fellow pilots and flew extensively in his off-duty hours. He completed correspondence courses in electronic engineering and calculus. In one evaluation, a lieutenant colonel wrote that Dwight’s “aggressiveness, coupled with his unlimited ability, place him in the outstanding category for a young officer.” Another superior wrote, “I would not hesitate to nominate Lt. Dwight to represent me or the Air Force in dealings with the public.” On top of all that, he looked like a movie star.

Story here.

A trailblazer that had his path cut short due to the racial politics of the day.  I wonder how things would be IF he had been allowed to fly into space.

Regardless.  I wish I had known his story earlier.  Even in the heartbreak there is much inspiration...at least to me. 

Saturday Funny....Dumbest Man Alive (Airborne Edition)

Russia's Aviadarts 2019 Exercise...

All pics/video via TASS (story here)...

Potential Royal Marines Course...

To quote ‘becoming a Royal Marines Commando is tough but not impossible “ - absolutely right. This is a great video of the Potential Royal Marines Course, the first step in the journey to become a Royal Marine and to wear the coveted Green Beret. https://t.co/FFWF1Gw1TN

— Lt Col Gary Green OBE RM (@garyedgreen) August 9, 2019

Open Comment Post. 10 Aug 2019

Iranian F-14A's carrying MiM-23 Hawk Ground Launched Anti-Air Missiles as a standard Air-to-Air Missile

https://targetsacquired.tumblr.com/post/186899801574/mid-way-through-the-long-and-bloody-war-between

 

Open Comment Post. 09 Aug 2019.

Singapore's Hunter IFV frontal armor exposed (pics)...

Thanks to LRD for the pics!

The thickness is undeniable.  I toss this over to the armor guys.  Could we be seeing the first armor capable of withstanding 40mm cannons?

[New Details/Extended Version] The Niger Ambush....unbelievable courage on the ground in a chaotic, savage and unrelenting ambush orchestrated by the village elder...

Thanks to Noble for the link!

Follow AMBLE 19 (Amphibious Live Exhibition) in Germany on Twitter, hosted by German Sea Battalion Association...

via Website.

GETTING INSIGHTS ON AMPHIBIOUS WARFARE TECHNOLOGY

Hello and welcome to the digital information platform of the Amphibious Live Exhibition 2019! AMBLE is scheduled to be an unique amphibious demonstrator event in Germany, bringing together key personnel of both military and defense industry to get hands on hardware at a glance. We - members of the German Sea Battalion Association - are organizing this event on a non-profit base to provide interested fellow users the opportunity to learn more about military hardware in a maritime environment and not in an exhibition hall.

Therefore, put your boots on and leave your suit and tie at home to attend an event from professionals for professionals. Please check the page for further information about AMBLE - we are looking forward to meet you in August! 

Here for the website.

Here for the Twitter page.

Pics below are from their gallery page....

KMW's Amphibious Vehicle Tracked (AVPT), now unwrapped and being tested for @AMBLE_Baltic, August 29 in Wilhelmshaven

via EDR

Take the running gears of the Puma and scale them down, add a diesel engine in the centre, two transmissions bringing the motion to the rear sprockets, add some rubber tracks and a hydrojet, make the front section similar to the old Soviet LT-MB and a rear section that of a boat, and in roughly five years you will get an Amphibious Protected Vehicle Tracked (APVT). KMW of Germany, part of KNDS, started working on this recipe in 2013 and at Eurosatory 2018 unveiled the concept study of this vehicle, capable of all-terrain and water operations, its peculiarity being that on land it drives with its front ahead, the front being optimised for land operations, while when afloat, it drives with its tail ahead, as this is designed to minimise flow resistance in water.

The KMW APVT is not intended to be a ship-to-shore connector but rather a well protected amphibious all-terrain vehicle capable of amphibious operations, mostly in riverine scenarios, the Münich-based company having identified a potential market, mostly in Brazil and in Latin America.

Story here. 

Sneak peak at #KMW|s new Amphibious Vehicle Tracked (#AVPT), now unwrapped and being tested for @AMBLE_Baltic, August 29 in #Wilhelmshaven. Come and meet the team and learn about their pioneering #amphibious concept. https://t.co/VGnta08anL (Photo: KMW) #Seebataillon #FastBoats pic.twitter.com/RTPS7m3UpO

— AMBLE (@AMBLE_Baltic) June 20, 2019

Public Service Announcement....To create an exceptional life, you need to create exceptional circumstances.

via Medium.

To create an exceptional life, you need to create exceptional circumstances.

This means that you need to be willing to be different. It means that you have to make choices, and at times, sacrifices for the greater, long-term good. 

It means you have to think ahead, to live in the service of the wellbeing of your future self, as opposed to the moment-to-moment cravings and desires of your current one.

What you see on the surface is people who are thriving, and what you don’t see is the huge machine of effort and work and time that was put into getting there.

That’s the part that people don’t fall in love with, the actual doing of it.

They just like how it looks when it seems like you can coast.

To become the person you really want to be, you are going to have to defy your most essential instinct in life. You are going to have to differentiate yourself. You are going to have to do things others would not. In the words of Mastin Kipp, you must live as others won’t, so you can live as they can’t.

Story here. 

Marines Eye Unmanned Systems To Keep F-35s Flying From Remote Bases....why aren't we testing converting CH-53's in the boneyards to unmanned platforms?

via Breaking Defense.

The Marines are testing unmanned platforms to quickly refuel and rearm F-35Bs it plans to operate out of remote, austere bases in the Pacific — part of an effort to be more nimble, and unpredictable, as the traditional American dominance at sea and in the air erodes.

For years, the Corps has talked about flying its F-35Bs from hastily assembled bases on small islands and remote locations to avoid sophisticated surface-to-air missiles being developed by China and Russia. The basing effort would not only keep the stealthy planes tactically unpredictable, but also untether them from big deck ships that would be prime targets for hypersonic cruise missiles and other weapons in any future fight with an advanced enemy. This was a key driver behind the Marines deep commitment to the F-35B, which can do short takeoffs and vertical landings, as well as the rare vertical takeoff from a road or other flat surface.

One of the holdups to the plan has always been how to ensure the planes could get fuel, ammunition and parts out to these locations. “If I can’t sustain it, I’m hosed,” Maj. Gen. Mark Wise, deputy commander of Marine Corps Combat Development Command told a handful of reporters at the Pentagon on Thursday.

Getting more fuel and ammo for those planes, quickly, would allow the Marines to “turn up the battlefield tempo at a much faster rate,” he said, which is critical in an area swarming with manned and unmanned platforms looking for American planes sitting on the ground for too long. 

Story here. 

This is where the current DoD and USMC are frustrating me a bit.  Read the article but they're looking at future possibilities when we have stuff on hand right now that could work.  What do I mean?

The MQ-8C is a thing NOW!

Take a couple of CH-53's out of the boneyards.  Hell if you're using them for parts then have someone refurbish a CH-46 and test it in the role.

The point is that if they're serious about this concept, we don't have to wait! We can execute now...to get real world testing on the idea to even see if it's viable.

There is another concern though.

Have you noticed all the expensive unmanned aircraft that the Marine Corps is leaning towards?  An unmanned escort/attack/radar picket/recon/ISR platform and now this thing.

Makes you wonder where all this is going doesn't it.

Pic of the day....Marines fire a Light Armored Vehicle M242 Bushmaster 25mm chain gun during a drill.

PACIFIC OCEAN (Aug. 7, 2019) Marines assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) fire a Light Armored Vehicle (LAV) M242 Bushmaster 25mm chain gun during a Defense of the Amphibious Task Force (DATF) drill aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1), Pacific Ocean, Aug. 7, 2019. During the DATF drill, the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group and 31st MEU team assumed a security posture to simulate traveling through potentially dangerous waters. Wasp, flagship of the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group, with embarked 31st MEU, is operating in the Indo-Pacific region to enhance interoperability with partners and serve as ready-response force for any type of contingency, while simultaneously providing a flexible and lethal crisis response force ready to perform a wide range of military operations. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Jeremy Starr/Released)

Australian Defense promoting the "Marine Thing" in recruiting ad...

New recruiting pic from the Aussies.  You can never go wrong promoting the "Marine Thing" in your ads.

Need an escape longer than a lunch-break? Join a rewarding career in the #AusArmy as an #InfantrySoldier where you'll have the opportunity to travel and encounter new experiences. https://t.co/0DpRbjMdwb pic.twitter.com/brdlXLAz8E

— Defence Jobs Aust (@defencejobsaust) August 7, 2019

Australian M1A1 on the gun range...Pics via Trev Williams Twitter Page...