Friday, December 06, 2019
Thailand Gets More Tanks, Armored Vehicles from China
via Benarnews.org
Thailand received more battle tanks from China this week, an army official said Thursday, three months after Bangkok took delivery of armored infantry vehicles from the United States.Here
Ten VT-4 main battle tanks – the final lot of the total of about 50 vehicles – and 38 VN-1 armored personnel carriers, among other military equipment, arrived on Tuesday from China at a port in Chonburi province, southeast of Bangkok, a high-ranking military officer said.
“The tanks and armored cars were brought to the Adisorn Cavalry Center in Saraburi province for inspection,” the officer told BenarNews on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. He declined to elaborate.
Interesting UK take on Exercise Green Dagger..."Royal Marines HONE FUTURE ROLE United States Marine Corps into battle
via Plymouthherald.co.uk
A Royal Navy spokesperson said the exercise saw Royal Marines further developing the Future Commando Force concept - and become "the lethal tip of the spear" for the USMC.Here
"The Marines are evolving for the battlefield of the future, focusing on the way they take on their adversaries and developing equipment that will give them the cutting edge in combat," say the RN.
"As part of that, the Green Berets are putting their commando skillset at the forefront of what they do, rather than centring on conventional warfighting.
Tip of the spear?
Future role leading US Marines?
Fuck that.
Break the fucking spear.
If I was in charge for just 10 seconds I'd dial up US Army Special Forces and tell them that I've got a deal for 'em.
Let's team up. Let's work together. This chest thumping from across the water is annoying as hell.
I don't think we need them. We can make do with assets in house. From the SEALs to Special Forces. We don't need Royal Marines "tip of the spear" bullshit infecting an already weakened Marine Corps spirit.
Whistleblower accuses Navistar of fraudulent pricing for MRAPs in newly unsealed complaint...overpricing in the Military Industrial Complex is legal...
via Defense News.
In the complaint it is alleged that Navistar specifically made misrepresentations of the price of its 7400 chassis used in the MRAP vehicles.Here
Navistar is accused of bumping the price to $250,000 a piece compared to a $125,000 price tag for other customers.
Because the chassis is a commercial item, Navistar was exempt from having to show certified cost and pricing data to the Marine Corps.
Burgess noticed, during the course of his job, that Navistar was charging $125,000 for the chassis to other customers, including another branch of the U.S. military and foreign countries. He brought the discrepancy to Navistar’s manager of financing for the MRAP contract, where it was confirmed the prices were different, but he received no explanation as to why.
The government ordered 9,000 MRAPs with the 7400 chassis and suffered approximately $1.25 billion in damages from the chassis price difference alone, the complaint alleges.
-----------------------------------
When the Marine Corps decided in 2009 that it needed modifications to MRAPs sent to Afghanistan due to the more difficult terrain encountered there, it required the companies providing the vehicles to redesign the platforms with improved suspension systems to better handle tough, uneven terrain. Older vehicles would be retrofitted, while all new deliveries would have the new capability.
Navistar outfitted 3,898 vehicles with improved suspension system, or ISS, upgrades, the complaint notes.
According to the complaint, Navistar was concerned it would now have to produce cost data on the chassis and engine when negotiating pricing for the ISS upgrade.
Navistar employees including Burgess were directed to ensure the government would not get access to the data, the complaint states, because there was a fear the government would retroactively seek a rebate on MRAPs already sold to the Marine Corps.
Contract negotiations for the upgrades took place in 2010. And again, Navistar’s executive leadership team was at the table and proposed a $143,294 per unit price for the kits, which was then negotiated down to $142,602 per unit.
Navistar allegedly decided to convince the government the ISS kit was a commercial item to avoid providing cost data again. Burgess argued at the time that the kit didn’t meet the criteria, the complaint recounts.
Navistar showed purported sales histories, catalog listing and vendor quotes to try to convince the government the price was fair, according to the complaint, but the documents were either “forged or utterly misleading.”
For example, one sale history for a transfer case shaft to Deutsch’s Truck and Diesel Repair turned out to be a forgery — the company hadn’t sold the part to Deutsch’s.
And in another case, Navistar presented the government with other vendor quotes, including one price of $103,904 for front and rear axles. The complaint alleges that in reality the quote to that company was actually $58,480 per set.
Overall, due to the inflation of the ISS kits, Navistar overcharged the government $30,455 per kit, according to the complaint. The complaint calculates that total damages here amount to roughly $118.7 million.
Going off memory here but if I recall correctly there is some kind of protest with Navistar and the JLTV. Wait a sec while I google it...
Yep. The story of the Navistar protest is here.
Having remembered that drama while posting this story I can't make heads or tails of this thing.
Is this corporate hardball?
Are we seeing the govt finally coming around and telling Navistar to knock it off thru the backdoor?
Not sure.
What I am pretty sure of is that we're getting a peek behind the Military Industrial Complex in the US. A look at the arcane and downright silly laws. Oh and an education on how defense corporations are bilking the hell outta the taxpayer.
I can hear you say it now.
But what about the military. Don't they have a role to play in holding the contractors feet to the fire!
Yes and no.
Think about it. The mothers of America would be screaming bloody murder if their boys (and now girls...God this is gonna get so much worse when women start showing up mangled) didn't have gear to protect them from harm.
MRAPs were necessary and we needed them in a hurry.
Navistar APPARENTLY took advantage of the laws and the desire to protect to inflate their profit margins and OVERBILL the US govt.
Corporatism gone wild. How do you fix it when its become part of corporate culture.
Our corporate culture today is Gordon Gekko on steroids....even the military industrial complex has adopted it. Forget the protect our soldiers line. They worship money...patriotism be damned.
The Chinese are becoming masters of large scale modular construction...
It's hard to believe but this 30-story hotel was built in 2 weeks in #China pic.twitter.com/QurynE2UhN— RT (@RT_com) December 5, 2019
Did you check out the constructions steps in the above vid?
The Chinese are becoming masters of large scale modular construction. The buildings might not be "pleasing" to look at but they can toss them up quickly.
Are there any military applications to this? I'm not sure. Any ideas?
Milrem Robotics teams for Royal Air Force CH-47 for Mali Mission...
Preparations for #helicopter operations with the Royal Air Force #Chinook during operation #Barkhane in #Mali. pic.twitter.com/V30HbDAaUS— Milrem Robotics (@MilremR) December 5, 2019
Fri Funny?
This is a “Tactical Contact” approach by a south american country given to the scumbags that were robbing and hitting that poor chap.— Ray phill (@MotorcycleTheft) December 4, 2019
Thoughts of the way they dealt with it? pic.twitter.com/Z2qSEevEo5
Couldn't help but smile. Might be wrong but I take pleasure in the fact that these robbers got exactly what they deserved.
Thursday, December 05, 2019
This vid of a Chinese SF Soldier working out is weird...he's either a mini- Super Sayan or its fake as hell...
Chinese Special Forces are not playing games. pic.twitter.com/nB1vN05Ty9— Tendai Joe (@Tendaijoe) September 29, 2019
Your Thurs Public Service Announcement!
Inspirational isn't it? But if Martin Luther King Jr can't convince you then perhaps...
Bruce Lee can. Too small can't read? "It's not the daily increase but the daily decrease. Hack away at the unessential."
Still not buying it? Let's see what Jocko says...
Wow.
Still not getting it. Well let's break it down donkey style....
Now do you get it? Get your ass to the gym to get your mind and body on the right track. Crush your goals. Shed the idiocy, the unnecessary and unwanted from your life.
Go fucking win!
If you don't get it after all that then I can't help ya!
Aerial View of Australian M1 Abrams Conducting Gunnery Qualification Shoot...
As promised, a solid #tanktwitter vid (filmed by @FireFirstFast) from today’s tank gunner qualification shoot @SOARMDAusArmy. Some viewpoints not often seen.— Trev Williams (@strategic_tank) August 7, 2019
Apologies for the vid quality! pic.twitter.com/gWB7yFqpXC
France bears watching...HUGE nationwide protests...
All hell breaks loose on the streets of #Paris @ManilaChan @InQuestionRT #France #QuestionMore— RT America (@RT_America) December 5, 2019
https://t.co/erQwftmApy
2019 will go down in the history books as the year of protests in France. I don't think I can remember a week going by where we didn't hear about some type of civil unrest in that country.
No wonder Macron is so vocal on the issue of NATO.
He needs the distraction.
I don't know what's going on inside the country (ie..they dynamics/reasons behind the various protests) but its obvious that the French people ARE NOT happy with their govt.
Between the Trump election, BREXIT and the French Protests could we finally be seeing a Western revolt against what many think is the status quo?
Boxer bridgelayer module
Boxer bridgelayer module enables it to launch two bridge types: a 14-metre MLC 100 or 22-metre MLC 50. Does not use a scissor system, but rather slides the two sections forward horizontally to reduce signature. Same launch system is used by Leopard 2 bridgelayer. pic.twitter.com/TATBtDl0AQ— Nicholas Drummond (@nicholadrummond) December 5, 2019
Ok. In light of Drummond beating the drum on various Boxer variants I do believe its time to start sounding my own trumpet on different versions of the ACV.
What should be first? An IFV, Direct Fire or 120mm Mortar Carrier? Personally leaning toward a good 120mm Mortar Carrier...we're gonna need that firepower.
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