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| Lockheed Martin test pilot Bill Gigliotti flew the seventh production model of the F-35 Lightning II, F-35A AF-12, on its inaugural flight on 9 July 2011 from NAS Fort Worth JRB. |
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| Lockheed Martin test pilot Bill Gigliotti was at the controls for the first flight of the fifth production model of the F-35 Lightning II, F-35A AF-10, on 29 June 2011 from NAS Fort Worth JRB. |
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| 11th MEU's maritime raid force practices securing an oil platform July 9. |
Special Combat recognitions (Combat Jump Operations)
* Regimental Reconnaissance Detachment Tm 3 conducts combat military freefall parachute drop onto Wrath Drop Zone in southeast Afghanistan on 10 November, 2001. In order to establish a Flight Landing Strip for follow on combat operations.
* Regimental Reconnaissance Detachment Tm 3 conducts combat static line parachute drop onto Shiloh Drop Zone in southeast Afghanistan on 21 November, 2001. In order to establish a flight Landing Strip for follow on combat operations.
* Regimental Reconnaissance Detachment Tm 3 conducts combat military freefall parachute drop onto Tillman Drop Zone in southeast Afghanistan in July, 2004 in order to emplace tactical equipment.
*Regimental Reconnaissance Company Tm 1 conducts combat military freefall parachute drop with tandem passenger in Afghanistan on 11 July, 2009 in order to emplace tactical equipment.
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| (via Wikipedia) The Armidale class patrol boats are 56.8 metres (186 ft) long, with a beam of 9.5 metres (31 ft), a maximum draft of 2.25 metres (7.4 ft), and a displacement of 270 tons. The semi-displacement vee hull is fabricated from aluminium alloy, and each vessel is built to a combination of Det Norske Veritas standards for high-speed light craft and RAN requirements. The Armidales can travel at a maximum speed of 25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph), and are drien by two propeller shafts, each connected to an MTU 16V M70 diesel. The ships have a range of 3,000 nautical miles (5,600 km; 3,500 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph), allowing them to patrol the waters around the distant territories of Australia, and are designed for standard patrols of 21 days, with a maximum endurance of 42 days. |
“The nice thing about the defense budget is it’s so big, it’s so huge, that a 1 percent reduction is the equivalent of the education budget,” Obama said, immediately noting he was “exaggerating” the exact numbers.And this...
Today, the Marines are stuck with aging airframes that have limited capabilities and are expensive to operate—a double problem. In contrast, the “B is a winner on both counts. The impact on the fleet is significant. The Marines go from three to one aircraft; and it gets a new aircraft with significant reductions in cost of maintenance.”Read the entire article but when need better leadership than we're currently getting...both in Congress and in the Administration. I wonder how they think the unemployment numbers are going to look after all the reductions in force....I wonder if this entire budget battle isn't really about saving health care and not reducing the deficit....I wonder if anyone in D.C. actually cares. I wonder.
The fate of the F–35 is a case study in the President’s penny-wise, pound-foolish approach to defense spending.
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| Soldiers with A Company, The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, take up position on top of a compound after receiving indirect fire from insurgents in a small pocket of farmland in the southeastern corner of the district of Nahr-e-Saraj, July 2, during Operation ZMARAY SUK II. The operation aimed to disrupt insurgent activity in an area that had yet to see coalition or Afghan security forces. |
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| Soldiers with A Company, The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, rush a wounded soldier to the back of a Chinook HC2 helicopter so he can be evacuated, July 2, during Operation ZMARAY SUK II. The operation aimed to disrupt insurgent activity in an area that had yet to see coalition or Afghan security forces. |
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| Highlander Vinny Spiewack, a machine gunner with A Company, The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, prepares to fire on insurgents located on a hill 600 meters away in a small pocket of farmland in the southeastern corner of the district of Nahr-e-Saraj, July 2, during Operation ZMARAY SUK II. The operation aimed to disrupt insurgent activity in an area that had yet to see coalition or Afghan security forces. |
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| Snipers with A Company, The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, look for insurgents while resting on top of a compound in a small pocket of farmland in the southeastern corner of the district of Nahr-e-Saraj, July 2, during Operation ZMARAY SUK II. The operation aimed to disrupt insurgent activity in an area that had yet to see coalition or Afghan security forces. |
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| Soldiers with A Company, The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, make their way through a small pocket of farmland in the southeastern corner of the district of Nahr-e-Saraj, July 2, during Operation ZMARAY SUK II. The operation aimed to disrupt insurgent activity in an area that had yet to see coalition or Afghan security forces. |
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| 110413-N-SB672-546 PACIFIC OCEAN (April 13, 2011) Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician 1st Class Rene Varela, from Pasadena, Calif., assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit (EODMU) 3, 332nd platoon, fires an M-4 carbine during weapons familiarization aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76). Ronald Reagan is operating in the western Pacific Ocean. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Dylan McCord/Released) |
Classification: UNCLASSIFIEDI mean geez...all I asked was the type of helicopter, what nation its from, casualties and enemy action - if any.
Caveats: NONE
Sol,
You are right - we haven't released any further information as the
incident is currently under investigation.
I can confirm that there were no serious causalities and that there was
no enemy activity in the area at the time.
Regards,
Maj James.
TP JAMES - UK A
OF-3
Press Desk Chief
ISAF JOINT COMMAND
COMBINED JOINT OPERATIONS CENTER
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (July 8, 2011)– At least eight insurgents were killed after they attempted an attack against coalition Special Operation Forces (SOF) of Special Operations Task Force – South, in the Khakrez district of southern Afghanistan’s Kandahar province, July 1.The Australian Special Forces participated in the fighting in Kandahar earlier and although ISAF doesn't list Special Operations tasking or areas of operations the implications are clear.
Insurgents attacked SOF with small arms and machine gun fire during a meeting with village elders to promote ongoing village stability programs within the area.
The SOF team was able to positively identify the insurgents at which time they called for air support.
U.S. Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt aircraft responded and performed multiple gun runs on the insurgents. Afterword, coalition forces were able to confirm that eight insurgents were killed. Three of the killed insurgents were seen being carried away by insurgents in a truck, according to reports from the aerial reconnaissance team.
Following the engagement, the SOF team was able to recover several items from the insurgents, including multiple AK-47 rifles, multiple rocket-propelled grenade rounds, and components used to construct improvised explosive devices.
No civilian casualties or property damage resulted from these operations.
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| More than 180 joint expeditionary tasking airmen assigned to provincial reconstruction teams in Afghanistan are now wearing the Air Force's new Operation Enduring Freedom Camouflage Pattern, or OCP, uniform, as their everyday uniform during their deployments, announced service officials, July 7, 2011. These are the first Air Force personnel to don it. The uniform, shown here, has a more advanced camouflage pattern, lighter weight flame-resistant material, and pre-applied bug repellant. Air Force photo by SrA. Sandra Welch |
The slow erosion of British military power, like the proverbial canary in the coal mine, is an important lesson for national leaders in this country. Once a mighty empire with fleets deployed in many oceans and an Army on which the sun never set, Britain is now reduced to a middling power that is unable to operate even close to the boundaries of Europe without substantial support from its allies. Whether it is maintaining a naval aviation arm, deploying a fifth generation tactical fighter force or sustaining a nuclear deterrent, Britain is dependent on that special relationship with the United States. The situation is likely to get worse as the military faces not only near term budget cuts of eight percent but the need to close a $60 billion gap between projected costs and planned funding over the next decade.Read the whole thing but that short paragraph should chill the bones of every fan of the British military and should shock and dismay the citizens of the UK.
