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Friday, June 25, 2010
Rules of Engagement to change.
Via FoxNews.
A military source close to Gen. David Petraeus told Fox News that one of the first things the general will do when he takes over in Afghanistan is to modify the rules of engagement to make it easier for U.S. troops to engage in combat with the enemy, though a Petraeus spokesman pushed back on the claim.I've been watching the other military blogs and none have even mentioned this story. This is huge news!
Troops on the ground and some military commanders have said the strict rules -- aimed at preventing civilian casualties -- have effectively forced the troops to fight with one hand tied behind their backs.
The military source who has talked with Petraeus said the general will make those changes. Other sources were not so sure, but said they wouldn't be surprised to see that happen once Petraeus takes command.
There's a saying that everytime you get a new Commander, they want you painting rocks...something to signify a change...this is something substantial and long over due. If its true then well done General.
A pictorial history of the war in Iraq/Afghanistan.
HELMAND PROVINCE, Afghanistan - During Operation Cobra's Anger, Marines
with 3rd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, moved cautiously from compound
to compound once they breached the city of Now Zad, Afghansitan. When
there wasn't a clear route, heavy equipment operators used bulldozers to
plow through walls, creating their own doorways through the city.
BUBIYAN ISLAND, Kuwait - Tankers serving with Battalion Landing Team 2/4, the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s ground combat element, prepare M1A1 Abrams for driving on this uninhabited island Nov. 21. Ground and logistics combat elements of the 11th MEU landed Nov. 20 from the amphibious transport dock ship Cleveland and the amphibious dock landing ship Rushmore. The tank detachment is from 1st Tank Battalion, 1st Marine Division.
Sgt. Major Michael Templeton, Dunham’s former company first sergeant, carefully clutches Medal of Honor recipient Cpl. Jason Dunham’s dress blue uniform as Maj. Trent A. Gibson, Dunham’s former company commander, stands at the position of attention during the christening of the Navy destroyer bearing Dunham’s name Aug. 1 at the Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine. Dunham’s parents donated his dress blue uniform to be displayed on the ship’s quarterdeck.
CAMP PENDLETON, Calif.-The squad of trackers students provide security for their wounded after being ambushed by a simulated improvised explosive device and sniper team on range 131 July 24. The ambush was part of the tracking portion of the combat hunters course where the Marines where taught how to track their quarry while maintaining security and how to react in combat situations.
1st Lt. Josh Faucett, a joint terminal attack controller with Company E, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, reaches quickly for his radio handset to call for fire support just after Taliban insurgents ambushed their patrol Aug. 13. The fight lasted six hours and was the longest since July 4 here. Faucett is from Elwood, Ind.
MIAN POSHTEH, Garmsir District, Helmand Province, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan – Lance Cpl. Josh Vance, a team leader with Company E, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, posts security on the corner of a compound just after clearing it during a six-hour firefight with Taliban insurgents here Aug. 13, 2009. Vance is from Raleigh, N.C. (Photo by 1st Lt. Kurt Stahl)
THE 1,000-YARD STARE
Marines serving under 1st Platoon, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, prepare to return fire after receiving enemy small arms fire in Lakari Bazaar, Afghanistan, July 19. The Marines were accompanied by Afghan National Army soldiers in efforts to deny freedom of movement to the country's enemies. The Marine battalion is the ground combat element of Regimental Combat Team 3, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade-Afghanistan.
BUBIYAN ISLAND, Kuwait - Tankers serving with Battalion Landing Team 2/4, the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s ground combat element, prepare M1A1 Abrams for driving on this uninhabited island Nov. 21. Ground and logistics combat elements of the 11th MEU landed Nov. 20 from the amphibious transport dock ship Cleveland and the amphibious dock landing ship Rushmore. The tank detachment is from 1st Tank Battalion, 1st Marine Division.
Sgt. Major Michael Templeton, Dunham’s former company first sergeant, carefully clutches Medal of Honor recipient Cpl. Jason Dunham’s dress blue uniform as Maj. Trent A. Gibson, Dunham’s former company commander, stands at the position of attention during the christening of the Navy destroyer bearing Dunham’s name Aug. 1 at the Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine. Dunham’s parents donated his dress blue uniform to be displayed on the ship’s quarterdeck.
CAMP PENDLETON, Calif.-The squad of trackers students provide security for their wounded after being ambushed by a simulated improvised explosive device and sniper team on range 131 July 24. The ambush was part of the tracking portion of the combat hunters course where the Marines where taught how to track their quarry while maintaining security and how to react in combat situations.
1st Lt. Josh Faucett, a joint terminal attack controller with Company E, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, reaches quickly for his radio handset to call for fire support just after Taliban insurgents ambushed their patrol Aug. 13. The fight lasted six hours and was the longest since July 4 here. Faucett is from Elwood, Ind.
MIAN POSHTEH, Garmsir District, Helmand Province, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan – Lance Cpl. Josh Vance, a team leader with Company E, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, posts security on the corner of a compound just after clearing it during a six-hour firefight with Taliban insurgents here Aug. 13, 2009. Vance is from Raleigh, N.C. (Photo by 1st Lt. Kurt Stahl)
THE 1,000-YARD STARE
Marines serving under 1st Platoon, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, prepare to return fire after receiving enemy small arms fire in Lakari Bazaar, Afghanistan, July 19. The Marines were accompanied by Afghan National Army soldiers in efforts to deny freedom of movement to the country's enemies. The Marine battalion is the ground combat element of Regimental Combat Team 3, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade-Afghanistan.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
APA saved the F-35!
A comment made today...
Sgt C said... Kudos to LM if they can keep the plane in the 60-70m range. There would be no reason for anyone who could buy a JSF to buy anything else. Why buy a Yugo when you can get a Corvette for the same amount of money?
USN reluctance and those wild operational cost numbers that came out are pure F18/Boeing mafia. They're pretty entrenched at NAVAIR.
However, don't think that LM is keeping costs in line out the generosity of its Corporate heart. Public scrutiny of JSF (and many defense contracts in general) have them putting the screws to costs. Which is the way it's supposed to work, I believe.
Saw two BF's fly today. Maybe they will make their goals this year. It would be nice to be wrong in this case.
His statement gave me this wild thought. Without Air Power Australia sounding the alarm (most of the time falsely)...without the criticism from the many critics out there...without the breach....the F-35 program would have probably failed without hope of resurrection.
But because of the early and often fire/brimstone thrown at the program....
Policy makers and Lockheed Martin got a heads up that they needed to make changes---and to do it now.
The irony of the situation is this. The people that sought to kill the F-35 might in the end have saved it...they did not allow the builder or the government to be lulled into a sense that all was well.
This is beyond delicious!
Thompson on the F-35.
After some initial reluctance to comment, prime contractor Lockheed Martin has begun to forcefully rebut the absurd cost estimates being issued by CAPE -- estimates that made the plane sound unaffordable. Lockheed chairman Robert Stevens stated last week that the company expects the actual purchase price of each Air Force variant will be roughly the same as a current Lockheed F-16 or Boeing F/A-18. That would be about $60 million in today's dollars -- less than half the price of an F-22 Raptor -- and it includes all the necessary mission equipment.Read it all here.
The Whitewash is complete. No Punishment from the loss in Wanat.
Listen to this drivel and weep. The US Army and the Pentagon has successfully swept this incident under the rug. Another failure by Brigade and higher Officers in relation to the needs of the men on the ground. Politicians in uniform, not warriors. These senior Officers need to be fired, not given the official pat on the back that they received from this report.
AN-70 to the Russian Air Force?
image via FlightGlobal
via Ria Novosti.Wow, I really thought this was a dead program. Russia has been making alot of announcements regarding weapons purchases....I wonder if this is real or just another bit of propaganda?Russian military to receive first An-70 transport planes by 2012
Russia may start receiving its first An-70 military transport planes as early as in 2012, the defense minister said on Thursday."We hope to start receiving the tested aircraft by 2012. We need this plane and the Russian Defense Ministry plans to buy it," Anatoly Serdyukov said during his visit to the Black Sea Fleet's base in Sevastopol on Ukraine's Crimean peninsula.
The An-70 is a medium-range turboprop military transport plane developed by Ukraine's Antonov design bureau. The Antonov company first tested a flying prototype of the An-70 in 1994, but a lack of Ukrainian state funds, and political disputes between Moscow and Kiev have prevented large-scale production of the aircraft.
The recent thaw in Russian-Ukrainian relations saw Moscow renew long-stalled funding to Ukraine for eventual joint production of the plane.
There are up to 300 transport aircraft in service with the Russian Air Force, including An-12 Cub, Il-76MD and An-124 Condor transport aircraft.
The An-70 is intended to replace Russia's An-12 military transport aircraft.
Russian Airborne Troops Commander Lt. Gen. Vladimir Shamanov said in May that his service had ordered 40 An-70 planes under the new state arms procurement program for 2011-2020.
SEVASTOPOL, June 24 (RIA Novosti)
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