Story at Defense News (here) but it would appear that they're having trouble with the engine and other components.
Thursday, November 19, 2020
Is the small print in the British defense spending boost the fact that they're halving the buy of F-35's????
Always read the small print:
— Captain Haddock (@JXB101) November 19, 2020
"An RAF order of 138 F-35 fighter jets will be halved." https://t.co/FwCNHyMj1h
I'm gonna have to read this reporting on the British Defense spending boost. First we have the news about the F-35 buy getting cut in half, next we have talk about the British Army going down to about 70K boatspaces....
The small print might be important in this thing.
Side note. Everyone is talking about lasers, AI, space forces and robotics on the battlefield. Are they chasing ghosts or is this technology really ready for primetime? If it ain't then we're gonna create hollow forces from hell all over the western world. Ya know what gives me pause on this whole thing? Do you remember when the Marine Corps was all about cyber on the battlefield? Before that the talk was about fighting in mega cities. Now they're on this. Is it real or memorex?
Russia conducts impressive airlift of peacekeepers to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone...
— FJ (@Natsecjeff) November 16, 2020
VIDEO:
An-124 aircraft delivering Russian "peacekeepers" and military equipment to Yerevan from Ulyanovsk. #Armenia #Karabakh #Azerbaijan pic.twitter.com/ROMHr9qSDI
The Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation continues to transfer Russian peacekeepers to the area of tasks in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone. More: https://t.co/JVXD5bz6el #ArmyRussia #NagornoKarabakh #Peacekeepers #Armenia #Azerbaijan pic.twitter.com/f2gJGP9wXE
— Минобороны России (@mod_russia) November 17, 2020
#Russian peacekeepers patrol an aria in #Stepanakert, the region of #NagornoKarabakh but... Will the pain be forgotten? We need to work harder in building peace.
— Tamer Yazar (@tameryazar) November 17, 2020
-#Armenia #Azerbaijan #Yerevan #Baku #Ankara #Turkey #Russia #Moscow #Putin #Aliyev #Erdogan #Kremlin #Karabakh pic.twitter.com/RQ3InTmLO8
🇦🇲🇷🇺 Transfer of Russian peacekeepers from Ulyanovsk to Armenia@serious_war_eng pic.twitter.com/wSwU3ems4Q
— Serious War (@serious_war_eng) November 16, 2020
Quite honestly I've wondered why so many Europeans fear a Russian attack. This military movement kinda clarifies things. The Russians are capable. We haven't been talking about it on these pages but they have engaged in an impressive airlift of men and material to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone.
The capability is clear. No trains. No ships. Just aircraft and they've moved a respectable force to the region and are already escorting civilians out of the area of fighting.
Additionally they've somehow kept Turkey on the sidelines (and I know the Turks want to jump balls deep into this thing).
They have the military side down, the diplomatic side. They're a power broker in Europe.
They also have one more thing the EU doesn't.
They have the will to act.
I still have to wonder if they might be stretching themselves though. Libya, Syria and now Armenia? That's a strenuous lift. The Russians could be walking into the same trap that the US has. The big winner? China. They wait patiently, building their strength while at the same time pushing out diplomatically and on EVERY economic issue under the sun.
When the Chinese finally do act (and it won't be in the Pacific....they have built a wall of trade around them with the very people we will need to assist us in a fight with them) it'll be in an area of their choosing and on their timetable.
Marines’ New Recon Vehicle Faces Uncertainty
via National Defense Magazine
A new strategic blueprint from the commandant of the Marine Corps has thrown into question the future of the service’s effort to acquire a new scout vehicle.
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A draft request for prototype proposals for the platform’s base variant was slated to be released in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2020 with the final RFPP scheduled for spring 2021, the press release said.
“PM LAV will focus efforts targeted on industry RFIs and strategic small group engagements,” John Myers, program manager for Marine Corps Systems Command’s light armored vehicle portfolio, said in the release.
However, these timelines are now being questioned as the Marine Corps and Navy have gone silent on the ARV.
Over the summer, the program was transferred from Marine Corps Systems Command to the service’s Program Executive Office for Land Systems. Since then, public affairs officers have declined to answer follow-up questions about the program, with MCSC spokespersons referring questions to PEO Land Systems, and its spokesperson referring questions to the Office of Naval Research, since it is classified as a science-and-technology program, not a “program of record.”
----------
Mark Cancian, senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, noted that the service is not only divesting its tanks, but also scaling back on other ground platforms such as the Amphibious Combat Vehicle.
“That vision is for small, highly agile teams that will use long-range precision fires,” Cancian said. “Combat vehicles don’t fit very well into this concept. … Ground combat vehicles are most useful if you are conducting operations against the conventional ground forces of another power. The Marine Corps looks to be fighting at long range.”
Here
There you have it.
I've been telling you that LAR is the walking dead. They're zombies but they just don't know.
Close with and destroy the enemy? That's old skool Marine Corps! There is a "bit of difference"!
The new Marines leave the ground fighting entirely up to the Army. Any mission they're looking at performing will be better conducted by Navy SEALs, Army Rangers, or even Special Forces (raids...Berger thought we could dip our toes in the raid category when SOCOM has that fenced off...is he smoking crack!).
But back on task.
LAR is definitely dead. ACV is probably dead too (the answer to that will be what Biden decides to do with the defense budget but with flat budgets being a certainty and cutbacks being possible its in danger too).
The Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF) had a good run. Its a shame it was killed from within. But have no fear. Once Berger is gone, once the Marines are sitting on the sidelines of future fights they'll TRY and bring it back. Unfortunately it'll be too late. Berger's concept is the death of the Marines.
Light Armored Recon Officer points out how Chinese Armor outclasses the USMC's...
via Proceedings
Even with 30-millimeter-armed ACVs, the Marines will still lack a vehicle armed with a large-caliber direct-fire gun. However, there are many platforms similar to the ACV in active service that are armed with just such weapons. The Army’s Stryker Mobile Gun System, Japanese Type 16 Maneuver Combat Vehicle, and Italian Centauro are all armed with a 105-millimeter main gun. They are all also lighter than the ACV. Fielding such a vehicle would significantly reduce the logistical requirements on Marine units when compared to the Abrams while retaining the capability of an armored direct fire asset. This can be used not only to engage enemy vehicles, but also provide fire support to the infantry.
From main battle tanks to air-defense vehicles, the PLANMC’s vehicles outmatch those of the U.S. Marine Corps in firepower and armor protection. To win a fight with China, the Marine Corps will need to adopt new vehicles or substantially upgrade its existing ones.
Cue the standard response to these concerns. "Marine Air" will take care of it. "Long range artillery" will take care of it. "The Army" will take care of it.
It's all bullshit of course. Don't get me wrong. If they're available they'll fight, fight hard and send all they see to hell. But they'll probably be up to their necks in their own dramas.
The reality?
The Marine Air-Ground Task Force no longer exists.
Berger has killed it along with the Marines capability of fighting on the ground. The Marine Corps is back to at BEST naval infantry. In reality its just a missile slinging air arm.
You wonder why I couldn't get mad at reports that a new (lame duck) defense official had called for the dismantling of the Marine Corps? With its new "force design" the Marines no longer make monetary or manpower sense!
Wednesday, November 18, 2020
Video from HSW presenting new Polish IFV Borsuk (Badger).
Do yourself a favor and follow Damian Ratka's Twitter Page! Thanks for the vid bro!
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