F-35 IS gobbling up the Pentagon.

via Standard  Examiner.

Hagel outlined the broad dimensions of two approaches. One is deeply reducing forces, especially in the Army, while retaining a greater technological capability. The other is delaying weapons advances to maintain the force at levels currently planned.
Hagel briefed congressional committee leaders Wednesday on the “Strategic Choices and Management Review,” effectively warning lawmakers they must alleviate cuts or take responsibility for the alternatives.
Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon, R-Calif., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, criticized the review in an e-mailed statement as being “entirely budget-driven, deferring any further consideration of strategy.”
If the Pentagon cuts deeply into forces, Hagel said, the military will be able to protect certain programs such as Lockheed Martin Corp.’s F-35 fighter, a program to build a new long-range bomber and upgrades in submarine cruise missiles.
That approach calls for reducing the Army from a planned 490,000 active-duty personnel to as few as 380,000. The Marines would be reduced from a planned 182,000 to as few as 150,000.

Read the entire article men.

Cuts to the Marine Corps to 150,000!  How long have I been beating that drum?

"If the Pentagon cuts deeply into forces, the military will be able to protect certain programs..."

I rest my case.

To all those that gave lip?  Kiss my ass.

I was late to the realization that the F-35 was a budget bomb but at least I got there.  We could have managed this better, but you want the bad news?  Personnel cuts are already baked in.  Want to know why?  Because all the people that insisted on military pay raises, increased benefits to dependents have all unknowningly conspired to make tech cheaper than troops.  We're on a bad piece of ground.  On one side we have the techies...those that believe that high tech is the only way to go.  On the other side we have the COIN mafia that believes that all future wars can be won by SOCOM alone, and in the middle you have Joe Marine, Soldier, Airman and Sailor that are actually the glue to it all about to get bum rushed out the door.

You heard it here first. 

US Navy P-3's are monitoring Chinese Naval activity near the Philippines.

Well ain't this lovely!?!  Cold Warriors rejoice.  Looks like we have the beginnings of a new frosty one developing with the Chinese.  The idea that the USN is monitoring Chinese naval activity isn't surprising.  The fact that they're doing it over disputed territory between China and the Philippines is.  via ABS News.

MANILA - A classified government document seen by Kyodo News on Friday confirmed that U.S. Navy surveillance planes conduct routine maritime patrol to monitor activities in the disputed South China Sea.
"(There were) confirmed flights of U.S. P3C Orion aircraft over the South China Sea especially (in the contested Spratly Islands)," according to the document.
Last year, Philippine President Benigno Aquino revealed that Manila was seeking U.S. deployment of P3C Orion spy planes over the disputed sea since the Philippines lacks the capability to monitor its territorial and maritime claims in the sea.
"We can only do (the) best (with) what we have," the document says. "The military is aware of its limitations as regards equipment, naval and air assets, facilities and funding to support our efforts" in the South China Sea.
It says the military "needs another perspective of intelligence from higher headquarters and agencies that are relevant to our efforts".
Military experts describe the P3C Orion, a land-based maritime surveillance and antisubmarine aircraft that can intercept communications, as one of the most sensitive planes in the U.S. fleet.
Its reconnaissance flights are focused on Second Thomas Shoal, a submerged shoal 128 nautical miles (237 kilometers) off the Philippine island province of Palawan.
Since February, the Philippine military says, China has sent frigates and maritime surveillance vessels to the vicinity of the disputed shoal to maintain a presence, setting off alarm bells in Manila.
The territory, which is known to the Philippines as Ayungin Reef and to China as Ren'ai Reef, is part of a group of islets, shoals, reefs and cays known together as the Spratly Islands, which are claimed in whole or in part by Brunei, China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

I'm gonna make a call on this one.

The Philippine Govt released this classified information to let its people know that it wasn't sitting back getting pushed around by China.  If help has to come from the US, then so be it, but the threat is real to the Filipino people and any aid is appreciated.

Last year Vietnam called for a regional response to Chinese aggression.  Just recently Japan gave the Philippines patrol ships...and now we hear about US Navy activity.

Just plain wow.

J-31 Concept Art by Min Hua Li

Sunday Wallpaper. A Kevin Martin 1 Special.

Social Unrest is coming to America. Here's the proof.

via AP.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Four out of 5 U.S. adults struggle with joblessness, near poverty or reliance on welfare for at least parts of their lives, a sign of deteriorating economic security and an elusive American dream.
Survey data exclusive to The Associated Press points to an increasingly globalized U.S. economy, the widening gap between rich and poor and loss of good-paying manufacturing jobs as reasons for the trend.
The findings come as President Barack Obama tries to renew his administration's emphasis on the economy, saying in recent speeches that his highest priority is to "rebuild ladders of opportunity" and reverse income inequality.
Hardship is particularly on the rise among whites, based on several measures. Pessimism among that racial group about their families' economic futures has climbed to the highest point since at least 1987. In the most recent AP-GfK poll, 63 percent of whites called the economy "poor."
"I think it's going to get worse," said Irene Salyers, 52, of Buchanan County, Va., a declining coal region in Appalachia. Married and divorced three times, Salyers now helps run a fruit and vegetable stand with her boyfriend, but it doesn't generate much income. They live mostly off government disability checks.
"If you do try to go apply for a job, they're not hiring people, and they're not paying that much to even go to work," she said. Children, she said, have "nothing better to do than to get on drugs."

Read the entire article and then consider this.

What we saw in Southern Europe and Brazil won't hold a candle to events here if things go off the rails.

The economy sucks, isn't getting better and (my opinion, your mileage may vary) the different "made up" battles between the sexes (war on women), gay rights (forcing marriage equality onto regions of the country not ready for it or against the will of the people where there have been elections), women in combat, sequestration, Trayvon Martin incident, and other issues are all being used to mask the real problem.

Those are all symptoms of a society under pressure.

The economy is still on the skids, the President and Congress don't give a fuck and trouble is ahead.

I'll enjoy watching the fireworks. 

Royal Navy, A Global Force 2013 via ThinkDefence.

  Global Force 2013

Modest Proposal. Cancel the CH-53K, marinize the MH-47.

A quickie here.

A modest proposal.

Cancel the CH-53K and Marinize the MH-47 (without penetration avionics but keep the increased fuel carriage and refueling capability) for Marine Corps use.

Its simple.  The US Army and Marine Corps would operate the same heavy lift helicopter, could fall on similar supply lines and would push down the price because of increased buys of the vehicle.

I don't say this lightly because I'm a huge fan of Sikorsky, but we can't afford a 115 million dollar heavy lift helicopter (according to Wikipedia that's the cost with R&D mixed in...84 million without).

Yeah.  My budget cutting, money saving hat is on.

It's late, but finally an answer to the different looking BAE/Iveco MPC's we saw.

Remember the above foto taken at Modern Day Marine?  Everyone including myself said WTF!  Did BAE and IVECO pull a fast one on the (at the time soon to be doomed) Marine Personnel Carrier Program?

Well actually, no they didn't.  In a totally unrelated article that discusses how IVECO is able to offer MRAP armored protection to the Italian Army/Marine Corps in their soon to be introduced SuperAV, I found this illustration and explanation.

They were add on flotation assistance devices.  A simple explanation but one that eluded me.  Pretty cool.  I'd love to know if they are actually needed and how much they weigh and whether or not they could be shed once on land

Oh and I still say we should have proceeded with the MPC.

Will there be war between the Philippines and China via Bantay Spratly.

Read the article here.  Its fascinating but the comments are even more revealing.  For some, it seems that China and the US are simply using the Philippines as pawns in a game that it can't win.  I might be showing a bit of nationalism myself, but I marvel at how the Chinese can do all kinds of provocative acts and yet the US be blamed for engaging in some type of super power game.

As a sidenote, if you're interested in keeping up with the issue from a Philippine perspective then I highly recommend you bite the bullet (I did) and get a facebook account so you can keep up with Bantay Spratly's postings.  Its one of my best sources for info on the region.

Anti-Access? China's building an expeditionary force!

Y-20 undergoing flight testing.

Everyone is predicting that China is in the midst of building an anti-access force to deal with the US Navy in the Pacific.

I think they're wrong.  Or at best we're seeing a hybrid strategy...a type of mixing between the old strategy of the USSR of keeping US reinforcements from reaching Europe and the US Joint Forces Command attempt at integrating Stryker Brigades, Airborne Units and Marine Forces into an effective expeditionary force.

Take for example the Type 81 LHD.  China watcher Feng (of Information Dissemination) estimates that the Type 81 will be within 30-40 thousand tons and will rival the America class in carriage.  That isn't a ship designed for anti-access operations.  Consider the Y-20 at the top of the page.  A heavy transport that should achieve high speed and heavy lift?

Take into account a turn by the Chinese Army to lighten it forces in the form of Wheeled Armored Fighting Vehicles.  And even more than that, they seem to have settled on two types...a heavy (for Chinese forces...light by new Western standards) eight wheeled model and a light 6 wheeler.  Why is this significant?  Because it will give the Chinese armored protection across all terrain to be found in the Pacific.  It also lightens the logistics burden because these families of armored vehicles are fully amphibious meaning that your Fire Support Gun, Artillery, Anti-Air, Engineer, Personnel Carrier, NBC Vehicle, Command etc...are all operating off the same supply chain, will not weigh down local bridges and have similar mobility.

All in all I think we're missing the boat on China's military intentions.  Luckily our allies seem to be locked in and focused.  Between India's new Strike Force on the Chinese border and Japan establishing diplomatic ties with any and everyone it can--while acquiring new abilities is telling.

Anti-Access my ass.  China is going expeditionary.