The CH-53K although it costs more than twice that of the Chinook is twice the helicopter?

via Jerusalem Post.

“What does the State of Israel want from this helicopter? Will it be used for skirmishes near our border or for special operations and extracting forces and pilots from the range like Iran,” he told The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday, adding “how are you going to get [special forces] Sayeret Matkal to their operations?” The speed of the helicopter is also an important aspect that must be considered especially when they are given a mission to rescue a downed pilot, Ben-Shalom said.

Funding for the procurement is to come from part of the Memorandum of understanding signed in September 2016 between Jerusalem and Washington that would provide Israel with $38 billion in military assistance over the next decade.

Frank Crisafulli, sales director international, heavy-lift helicopters at Sikorsky is quoted by Flight Global aviation website as saying that while the acquisition price of the CH-53K King Stallion with a unit cost of around $87 million will be higher than that of the Chinook with a unit cost of $38.55m. the CH-53K is “literally twice the helicopter.”

Story here. 

I don't know if its always been this way and I'm just paying attention now, but the US military seems to pick winners and losers in the foreign military sales system.

If you read this article it's a thinly veiled advertisement for the CH-53K.

But what has me spinning is that the once proud IDF seems to be buying into hype instead of buying gear that they need at the best price possible.  Did the conditions the Obama Admin put on Israel foreign assistance contain strings that meant they had to buy what we wanted instead of what they needed?

The prime example is the F-35.  They're doing all kinds of modifications to that jet that are going unpublished and unknown to the wider public.  Instead all we hear is that the Israelis are operating this world beating jet...not the fact that they're modifying beyond recognition into a standard that no one but the IAF will know about.

Now we have the Heavy Lift contest and we're seeing the IDF being steered toward the CH-53K when they would probably be well served with slightly modded CH-47s (I'm thinking the enlarged sponson tanks and Israeli avionics) that would be drastically less expensive!

I'll be keeping an eye on this.  It will reveal much about our Military Industrial Complex.  Is it possible that it's even more insidious than I imagine?

Side note:  Where are they getting this 87 million dollar unit price number from.  Last I looked they were 138 million each.

Do you understand the ramifications of N. Korea having Nukes that can reach the Midwest of the US?

I need to point this out to the peace doves in my audience.

In North Korea we have an individual that is considered a little fat madman, that views himself (and his people view him) as a God, has no institutions to limit his actions and now finds himself in possession of a nuclear weapon and the rockets that are long ranged enough to carry them as far as Chicago, USA.

We've never faced this prospect before.

Yeah we went for years facing off against the Soviet Union during the Cold War but it was understood that a nuclear war would be tragic for both countries.  Additionally as much as I despise communism, even in that system there were institutions that would prevent their leader from acting "stupidly".

That same thinking applies to China.  When it comes to Pakistan, Iran, Libya during Qaddafi's regime and even Iran during Saddam's reign, we saw a threat that couldn't reach our shores.  Europe might have been under threat.  India might have been under threat.

But never the US and certainly not major US cities.

Think about it like this.

We've reached a point where the little crazy fat boy can wake up in a bad mood, decide that he wants to end it all and can (unless we're lucky and the tech works perfectly) snuff out Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, San Diego, Seattle or Portland!  While I would miss San Diego and Denver, we still can't tolerate the idea of ANY US city being taken out.

So what do we do?

Peace Doves will say do nothing.  That's rolling the dice on the good graces of a crazy dude.  The problem with that?  You never trust a crazy dude.  War Hawks like Lindsey Graham are saying just obliterate the entire country.  The causalities will be massive.  I'll go into greater detail on another blog post but the only way a decapitation strike can work is with WELL TUNED neutron bombs.

When I say tuned it will rest on the idea of some brilliant geeky nerdy joker pulling our bacon out of the fire and developing a neutron bomb that is short duration but still extremely lethal.

If we have such a device then SOCOM might be able to do the do.  Drop the neutron bombs, wait till you can at least function in hazmat suits and hopefully those guys have practice on conducting ops in them (another reason why I think winter time could be the right time...they're hot as hell) and basically step over the dead while you collect the weapons and the dear leader.

But I digress.

Chicago and other US cities are now under a nuclear cloud from a third world country.  We've never seen that before.  So what do we do about it?

Utility Terrain Vehicle (UTV) @ ITX 5-17 Heliborne Assault Course...pics by Cpl. Christopher Mendoza

The UTV is replacing the Growler as the standard Internally Carried Vehicle for the Marine Corps faster than I thought...and I thought it would be quick!

The only thing that has me wondering is how they could rate the Growler as being a competent fast attack vehicle but the UTV as not being suitable.  Quite honestly I think that was a lie.  The whole selection of the Growler is shrouded in mystery, apparently a bit of corruption and a rigged selection system. Check out the vid below.



The solution?  Simple.  Make whatever modifications necessary to make the UTV a suitable fast attack vehicle and put the Growler in the junkyard or sell them to some civilian idiot that wants a backyard rig that they can't take off road!

German-led enhanced Forward Presence Battle Group performs a river crossing in Lithuania during exercise Iron Wolf 2017.

I find the way the Europeans do river crossings interesting.  Of course we don't see them securing the far bank, setting up security and the like.  But the actual mechanics of the thing seem extremely slow.  Instead of setting up a bridge the instead use a "ferry type system".  I've seen that bridging vehicle but that's not the point.

It really seems like a slow way to move more than a company's worth of vehicles across a river...especially a big one.

I'm not saying that the US Army's method is better.  Just saying that from my chair while it might take longer to get the bridge em-placed, they're able to get their forces across faster and in a more complete unit.

Of course moving a USMC unit can conduct the movement even faster but it comes with a price so its essentially a wash.

But back on task.  Why did the Europeans go with the ferry method instead of doing actual bridging?

Boxer CRV during Land 400 trials via Defence Technology Review Magazine YouTube Page!

SandCat-Stormer RCWS/MLS

Thanks to the Mighty Zuk for the link!

via Israeli Defense Magazine.

The new Stormer vehicle incorporates Rafael Advanced Defense Systems' dual Samson Mini RWS system that includes two Spike LR antitank guided missiles (ATGM) and a 12.7mm heavy machine gun (HMG) with a 150-round magazine

Plasan Sasa, an Israeli manufacturer of armor protection solutions for vehicles, has unveiled a new variant of their SandCat-Stormer armored vehicle, for the first time following serial delivery to an international client – the Stormer RCWS/MLS.

The new Stormer vehicle incorporates Rafael Advanced Defense Systems' dual Samson Mini RWS system that includes two Spike LR antitank guided missiles (ATGM) and a 12.7mm heavy machine gun (HMG) with a 150-round magazine.

Story here. 

Hmm.  I wonder who the customer is that bought this vehicle.  Next I gotta say we're seeing a quiet evolution in these combat utility/patrol rigs.  A dual setup with a 50 cal machine gun and Spike LR?

This sounds more like a Calvary vehicle or Scout than a normal patrol rig.  Why do I say that?  It only carries 150 rounds of 50 cal!  But it does carry the Spike!

Everyone wants anti-tank missiles on every ride but forget that when you add more of one thing you have less of the other.  In my mind killing tanks is easy, dealing with good enemy infantry is harder...but that's just me.

The armor race is here and everyone is seeking solutions it seems.  More so called light vehicles will be missile-ing up I think!

Open Comment Post. Aug. 2, 2017

JonF04 doing some CQB training with his FAST Plt!

Getting them corners, turning, identifying your targets and burn'em down!

Ya got to love the Marine Corps!

Every time I get ready to weep for the Corps I see something that renews my faith.  Whether its a Gunner showing that they're working to get gear to our Grunts or one of my readers doing work in a kill house, there is always something to keep me off the ledge.

Thanks God guys like this still roam Marine Corps land!

ITX 5-17 Tank Mechanized Assault Course (Part 2).....pics by Sgt Kassie McDole

ITX 5-17 Tank Mechanized Assault Course (Part 1).....pics by Sgt Kassie McDole

Eitan IFV modification

Thanks to זאב ברנזון for the pic!

Sweet. I like this...I like it alot....now how long will it take the Israeli's to get this onto the market or in production so the US Army can have their Striker replacement.

War Hawk Lindsey Graham says military option inevitable in N. Korea...

via CNN

When asked about the US government's strategy on handling North Korea, GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham suggested Tuesday using military options to halt threats from the country.

"There is a military option to destroy North Korea's (missile) program and North Korea itself," Graham said on NBC's "Today" show. "If there's going to be a war to stop them, it will be over there. If thousands die, they're going to die over there, they're not going to die here and (President Donald Trump) told me that to my face."
He continued: "I'm saying (military options are) inevitable if North Korea continues."

Story here. 

Do me a favor.  Watch this guys interviews on this subject this morning.  He has a new bone and he's gonna shake this one for all it's worth.

Suffice it to say that the Neo-Cons have found their new plaything and the little fat bastard is gonna play into their hands and kill probably millions of people as a result.

The war drums have been put away.  We're hearing war hammers.  This thing is coming and the chance to resolve it peacefully probably passed this spring while everyone was focused on supposed Russian influence in our election (I still have not heard how putting out information on a candidate is interfering...Hillary was hated and the Republican elite in the form of Bush weren't liked much more!).

Mark my words...sometime this winter...between Nov and Feb will be when this kicks off.  Yep I'm making the call.  We will see bombs drop in N. Korea fairly soon.