Thursday, January 03, 2019
Vietnam Aerial Combat Trailer from a small studio...
Don't speak the language so I can't get the real vibe here. All I know is that when I saw the Mig-19's my reaction wasn't...oooh there go the good guys. My reaction was ... I want to see the bastards burn...
It wasn't quite that simple though.
Our F-105's faced off against SAMs for the most part and not enemy aircraft.
Guess its kinda hard to make heroes out of S-2 crewmen, especially when they weren't properly targeted for neutralization by the military commanders of the time.
My biggest takeaway? CGI is entertaining. This short trailer is entertaining, infuriating and in some ways a bit annoying.
I still want to see more.
Spain upgrades its helos to CH-47F standard...
via Boeing Press Release...
Boeing [NYSE: BA] will upgrade all 17 of Spain’s CH-47D Chinook helicopters to the F-model configuration, adding features such as the digital automatic flight control system, common avionics architecture system and advanced cargo handling to align that country’s fleet with those of other nations.
This is the first order from a non-U.S. customer placed through a contract Boeing and the U.S. Army signed in July. That contract covers six new F-models for the U.S. and options for up to 150 more Chinooks for U.S. and international customers. Deliveries to Spain begin in 2021.
“The Chinook is a versatile aircraft flown by eight NATO nations, including Spain,” said Chuck Dabundo, vice president, Cargo and Utility Helicopters and H-47 program manager. “With this contract, Spain’s Chinook crews will enjoy the platform’s current technology and capability, while the country gets an affordable upgrade that builds on its existing H-47 investment.”
The CH-47F is a twin-engine, tandem rotor, heavy-lift helicopter. In addition to the U.S. Army and Special Operations Forces, Chinooks are currently in service or under contract with 19 international defense forces. It can fly at speeds exceeding 175 mph and carry payloads greater than 21,000 lbs. In 2017, Boeing and the U.S. Army announced development of CH-47F Block II, which will incorporate a new rotor blade, redesigned fuel system, improved drivetrain and structural improvements to the fuselage.
Wednesday, January 02, 2019
Indian Vice Admiral (Ret) talks "gentlemanly shit" to Chinese Admiral that talked about sinking an American Carrier....
It appears that this PLAN Rear Admiral has neither done adequate sea command time, nor has he read thoroughly the sea battles of WW2. https://t.co/VTo5qwsrQL— Vice Admiral Arun Kumar Singh (@subnut) January 2, 2019
Trust me boys.
In the General's club this is how they talk shit...at least in public. In private they get just as salty as the rest of us but for a public pronouncement this is pretty huge.
Kinda wish an American Admiral had tossed this little bitty at the Chinese.
I like it.
Field Artillery Squadron “Steel,” 3rd Cavalry Regiment “Brave Rifles,” conduct artillery raid (guns) to support ops against ISIS....pics by Sgt. Edward Bates
via DVIDS
Story by 1st Lt. Jordan C. Cirenza, Field Artillery Squadron, 3rd Cavalry Regiment
“Standby. FIRE!”
A deafening explosion followed the commands as a 155mm artillery round exited the tube of an M777A2 during Operation Swift, Iraq, Dec. 22, 2018.
Troopers from the Field Artillery Squadron “Steel,” 3rd Cavalry Regiment “Brave Rifles,” conducted a gun raid to provide supporting fires for Operation Swift – a series of artillery and airstrikes against ISIS targets in the Makhmour Mountains.
Operation Swift was the first artillery raid conducted in support of Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve, and demonstrated the Coalition’s capability to provide dynamic fires in support of the Iraqi Security Forces.
“Doing the first artillery raid, having never air assaulted a howitzer in theater, was a great experience,” said 1st Lt. Aaron Palumbo, platoon leader. “It taught us just how light we could personally pack and helped us identify the feasibility of transporting a Howitzer with rotary-wing assets,” said Palumbo.
High explosive charges echoed across Camp Swift night and day as the fire direction center meticulously choreographed the fire missions with airstrikes on multiple ISIS weapons caches and hiding spots throughout the mountains.
“It felt as if we were moving mountains before the mission,” said Palumbo. “Now, we have identified friction points and know how to execute future missions with increased lethality.”
The barrages of artillery fire were intended to destroy resources of ISIS fighters and send a message that no enemy location was safe from the lethality of the entire coalition force.
“It was interesting being part of the first artillery raid, and doing an artillery mission in combat like we would during home station training,” said Spc. Deavon Shafer, ammunition team chief.
During the onset of Operation Swift, Steel troopers both observed coalition aircraft dropping ordnance on known ISIS positions, and reinforced those fires with their own M777A2 howitzer that was air assaulted into position.
The artillery raid was a proof of concept to pass onto future artillery units in theater and a demonstration of the partnership between the ISF and Brave Rifles Troopers in the fight to ensure the enduring defeat of ISIS in Iraq.
When not firing, they trained with the 3rd Federal Police Division soldiers at Camp Swift on the unique weapons systems of both units and conducted artillery training with soldiers of the 12th Brigade, 3rd Iraqi FEDPOL Artillery Battalion.
“The training felt the same as training we do internally - we learned something new,” said Spc. Kevin Mahan, M777A2 gunner.
Operation Swift was the first of its kind in theater and will not be the last.
“Task Force Steel executed the artillery raid in conjunction with fixed wing airstrikes to mass joint fires in the Makhmour Mountains and continue the physical and psychological degradation of ISIS,” said Maj. Simon Welte, squadron executive officer. “Our operational tempo remains high against ISIS and this raid serves as another example to our ISF and Kurdish Security Force partners that we are committed to the lasting defeat of ISIS in Iraq.”
Brave Rifles Troopers are deployed in support of Operation Inherent Resolve, working by, with and through the Iraqi Security Forces and Coalition partners to bring about the lasting defeat of ISIS. Brave Rifles Troopers will eventually be replaced by soldiers from the 1st Brigade Combat Team “Bastogne,” 101st Airborne Division, and the Steel Sqdn. has paved the way for future missions.
Bastogne soldiers will continue to provide support to the ISF and deliver massed fires utilizing a variety of firepower to defeat ISIS’s combat power and ideology.
Tuesday, January 01, 2019
China 'is rounding up one million Muslims and putting them in prisons'
via New Zealand Herald.
The vocational education centres in China's far west region of Xinjiang, which officials insisted are being used for the purpose of preventing terrorism, are run more like jails than schools, official documents show.----------
Thousands of guards equipped with tear gas, Tasers, stun guns and spiked clubs keep tight control over Muslim 'students' in facilities ringed with razor wire and infrared cameras, according to an examination of more than 1,500 publicly available government documents.
The centres should "teach like a school, be managed like the military, and be defended like a prison", said one document, quoting Xinjiang's party secretary Chen Quanguo.
To build new, better Chinese citizens, a document argued, the centres must first 'break their lineage, break their roots, break their connections, and break their origins'.Story here.
Brutal huh?
That is the American melting pot on steroids!
"To build new, better Chinese citizens we must BREAK their lineage, BREAK their roots, BREAK their connections and BREAK their origins."
Ya know as rough as I am on China, and while I still see them as an existential threat to America, this is what we try and do here...although much more gently. Correction. Today being an American is de-emphasized and everyone is broken into groups (sadly this also applies to those that served in the military...how we became a protected minority is both good and HORRIBLE at the same time).
Why this?
Because I haven't covered it but I did post a blog earlier showing what was purported to be a Chinese official beating a Muslim. That vid might have been fake but the reality on the ground there is still stunning. One article not good enough you say? Then check these out...
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-sh/China_hidden_camps
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/nov/13/china-mass-incarceration-muslims-unchallenged-uighur
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/million-muslims-are-held-detention-camps-china-now-portrays-humane-n922041
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/16/world/asia/xinjiang-china-forced-labor-camps-uighurs.html
https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/muslims-camps-china/
https://www.vox.com/2018/8/15/17684226/uighur-china-camps-united-nations
Chinese officer beating a Muslim Uyghur for having a copy of the Quran in his house!.. in East Turkistan.
Apparently..— T (@Tkwondo_T) December 31, 2018
a Chinese officer beating a Muslim Uyghur for having a copy of the Quran in his house!.. in East Turkistan. pic.twitter.com/YmDNlmoS2b
A few things about this...
* The Chinese govt is full on oppressing the Muslim minority in their country but the US, EU, and UN basically say nothing. I've been aware of this issue but have remained silent on these pages. We've heard screams about inhumane behavior on the part of other nations and have even launched invasions with human rights, women's rights and spreading democracy, etc... as the rationale but on this issue even so called experts/advocates in those fields remain silent.
* The Chinese aren't facing a widespread insurgency. Why? The Russians have seen one. The US and EU have been attacked. Somehow China has remained comparatively free from such atrocities/attacks. Does might make right? Does brutality actually serve as a deterrent for aberrant behavior?
* Think hard about this vid. In the US or EU everyone in earshot of this event would be searching for new jobs and facing serious jail time. Considering how closed the Chinese govt is, we have to assume that they wanted this video to get out. Is this to serve as a warning to other Muslims in their country?
* I hope that hardliners in the Muslim community take note. This will be coming to free democracies worldwide unless we see some moderating behavior and soon. I know for a fact that there is a large percentage of hardline Americans that wouldn't necessarily welcome this but would be "forgiving" as long as it slowed attacks, and could help extricate us from foreign entanglements.
If you made it this far then this is just me musing about the embedded Tweet. Consider it initial impressions. But make no mistake. The Chinese have cracked down hard and some estimate that they have more than a million Muslim prisoners in jail out in some desert in that country. Love them or hate them but not only can the Chinese be brutal, but they have an efficiency about them that would make Reinhard Heydrich blush with envy.
RNoAF F-16 Fighting Falcon takes off from Bodø MAS for another training mission
Pic via Gunake Instagram Page...
Happy New Year! What do you think 2019 will bring? On a personal level I choose flowers...
This is the perfect meme...We don't know what 2019 will bring, but on a personal level I choose flowers.
So Happy New Year!
The world remains chaotic but it's beyond our control. My advice is to control what you can and in that arena to plant flowers....Command your ship! Choose your mindset! Win the year!
Monday, December 31, 2018
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