GRIPEN M

Thanks to Spinfight for the link!

PDF here.

11th Marine Expeditionary Amphibious Beach Landing....photos by Staff Sgt. Scott McAdam

CH-53K King Stallion Achieves Initial Operational Testing

Reminder. AMPV "turnover" ceremony is today at 11AM EST.

If you're interested in the AMPV turnover ceremony then you can tune into the BAE Facebook Page at 11AM EST to check it out.  Personally I get tired of the dignitaries that seem to think it's about them instead of the vehicle but to each his own.

Open Comment Post. Dec 15, 2016

Aleppo rebel evacuation under way after ceasefire deal

via Reuters.

An operation to evacuate thousands of civilians and fighters from the last rebel bastion in Aleppo was under way on Thursday, part of a ceasefire deal that would end years of fighting for the city and mark a major victory for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said the evacuation of around 200 wounded people had started. Russia, a major ally of Assad, said 5,000 Syrian rebels and family members were being brought out of eastern Aleppo.
The convoy of 10 ambulances and at least 17 green buses with nearly 1,000 aboard drove from the Ramousah district next to the rebel-held area of Aleppo, which was besieged for months by Syrian government forces, a Reuters reporter on the scene said.
Syrian state television said those leaving were opposition fighters. Rebel officials have said that civilians who wish to leave will also be able to do so as part of the ceasefire and evacuation deal. Footage of the buses appeared to show that most of those inside were young men.
Women ululated in celebration as the buses passed through a government-held area, and some waved the Syrian flag.
Earlier, ambulances trying to evacuate people came under fire from fighters loyal to the Syrian government, who injured three people, a rescue service spokesman said.


"Thousands of people are in need of evacuation, but the first and most urgent thing is wounded, sick and children, including orphans," said Jan Egeland, the U.N. humanitarian adviser for Syria.

Here. 

Well this seals the deal for me...oh and the title to this story is from Reuters...I didn't make it!

ISIS hasn't been the focus of our operations in Syria.  Its been a fight against the Assad regime and in turn its been a proxy war between the US and Russia.

All the stories from Aleppo about women and children being injured was just a smoke screen to cover for the people that leadership was actually concerned about...the rebels in their terms...head chopping terrorists in mine.

This.

This is why they're going after Trump so hard.  This is why the long knives are out over his SecState pick.

They want conflict with Russia over a piss ant Middle East country that means jack shit to the majority of the American people.  I've wondered aloud how a force numbering less than 50k fighters could hold off the combined might of the NATO air arms and now its obvious.  They haven't been targeting them.

The conspiracy theorists might have stumbled onto a painful truth after all.

Anti-Ship Missiles Fired Out of HIMARS?

via KitUp!

“We’re looking at munitions and capabilities that can be fired out of existing things,” he told reporters during the conference. “I would love to have an anti-ship cruise missile I could shoot out of a HIMARS launcher. So if the Marines, for example, were to go to seize and secure an advance expeditionary amphibious base and the adversary had ships, rather attack them with an airplane, I’d like to be able to have some way to defend from the shore.”

And then this.

Neller said the Marine Corps and the Army were both looking at requirements to assess the feasibility of using the system to fire anti-ship ordnance as well.
“The Army’s looking at a lot of stuff and a lot of different type of capabilities that actually be fired from artillery, so I’m not going to get into that,” he said. “…We just need to make sure that we can continue to be able to invest in [research and development], and when we find something, that we can figure out a way to field it a little bit faster.”
Neller would also like to see Tomahawk missiles aboard amphibious assault ships, which carry Marines across the globe, he said at the conference.
“Imagine that the big deck amphibs have F-35Bs that can hold any target at risk,” he said, referring to the new joint strike fighter aircraft. “Imagine that the [vertical launching system] space on LPD-17 actually has Tomahawk missiles.”

Wow.  Neller is sounding more and more like a freaking Ground Officer and less like the second coming of Amos.

Notice the language there?

 "...Secure an advanced expeditionary amphibious base..." 

That's old skool Marine Corps thinking.  Not the aviation centric stuff we've been saddled with.  Even better it shows that thinking is migrating away from strike being an all air affair.

I'm being hopeful but could we finally see the beginning of a little balance coming back to the Marine Corps?  I can only hope.  One thing though.  I still say that the MEU needs to be reinforced.  If we're going to add anti-air, increased armor (still say we need more tanks, AAV/ACV, LAV, and apparently now anti-ship capability...not to mention a deep strike option of ATACMS), cyber, electronic warfare and despite what naysayers say increased infantry we're going to need to revamp our basic operational unit.  A reinforced MEU will be a more flexible and powerful instrument.  Combine two of them and you'll actually have a Marine Expeditionary Brigade worthy of the name.

Yeah.  Things MIGHT be looking up in Marine land.

Infographic of the equipment ISIS captured

Thanks to Filippo for the link!

Wow.  This is looking like a bigger boondoggle for the Russians than I imagined.  They lost a battalion of tanks???  That's Iraqi like stupidity.  What were they thinking?

Islamic State blitzkrieg towards Tiyas Airbase

Thanks to Drinas for the link!



The above is an ISIS propaganda vid but did you catch a few things?  That tank looks brand new.  A couple of those technicals are new too.  Who is supplying these guys?  Is anyone actually fighting ISIS or are we just seeing a proxy war between the US/Coalition vs Russia/Syria/Iran?

Somewhere along the way someone lost sight of the real objective.  ISIS is the threat!  Why aren't we killing them????

SPECTRAL Trailer (2016) Netflix Sci-Fi Movie...I gotta see this!!!!

Thanks to Sam for the link!!!!



OH I GOT TO SEE THIS!  It's like Alien, Starship Troopers (the book not the movie) and Fallout 4 rolled into one.

BAE is on streak! They're rolling out the US Army's AMPV tomorrow!

Miss out on our ACV 1.1 ceremony live from Facebook yesterday? Good news is we’re going LIVE again tomorrow, but this time streaming our Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle (AMPV) rollout ceremony! Tune in tomorrow around 11am to watch us roll out the first AMPV to the U.S. Army and hear firsthand what went into designing this robust, modern soluton.

Yep.  BAE is on a streak.  The possibility of winning the USMC ACV contract and they have the AMPV already in their backpocket?  I wonder how the stock is doing.

ROK Army - K-30 Biho 30mm + Missiles Anti-Aircraft Armoured Vehicles Live Firing