Navy SEALs/160th Night Stalkers suffer combat losses.

Major Hat Tip to Rohan.  via SkyNews.

The operators from Seal Team Six were being flown by a crew of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, according to US officials.
One source says the team was thought to include 22 Seals, three Air Force air controllers, seven Afghan Army troops, a dog and his handler, and a civilian interpreter, plus the helicopter crew.
Afghan officials at president Hamid Karzai's office said 31 US special forces and seven local soldiers died in the attack on the Chinook.
A senior US official has confirmed the helicopter was apparently shot down by insurgents.

Terrible news.

I wonder what the Insurgents have identified in our operations that have them getting so much success lately?

I also wonder if they are purposefully targeting only US helicopters or if  our allies are operating differently --- the last three helicopters to be shot down have all been by RPGs....have all been US and have all been Chinooks.

Something is off here.  I just can't put my finger on it.

UPDATE*
LEX is thinking along the lines of my previous post and with his experience in aviation I'm becoming more positive that these can't be RPG ambushes that our guys are flying into.  This from his blog but read the whole thing....

A night-time catastrophic hit with a “rocket” is pretty unlikely, unless that rocket had a guidance system, in which case we’d call it a Man Portable Air Defense System (MANPAD) rather than a rocket. The Stinger missiles that the US provided the Afghan mujahadin back in the 80′s are well beyond their service lives.
I’d sure like to know who is providing the Taliban this technology now, there’s a reckoning due.
Salute to fallen heroes, and prayers for those they left behind.

Once is an incident. Twice is pattern. Three times is concerted enemy activity.

Bad news from Afghanistan.  This from the morning ISAF Brief.

Helicopter Crashes in Eastern Afghanistan; Recovery Underway

ISAF Joint Command - Afghanistan 2011-08-S-014For Immediate Release KABUL, Afghanistan (Aug. 6, 2011) – An International Security Assistance Force helicopter crashed in eastern Afghanistan today, and recovery operations are underway. ISAF is still in the process of assessing the circumstances to determine the facts of the incident, reporting indicates there was enemy activity in the area. Additional details will be released as appropriate.

My eyes flashed straight to the enemy activity in the area.

Of course they're not telling us everything but I just can't see our guys flying into RPG ambushes.  Maybe I'm being a homer but the main aviation unit in eastern Afghanistan---the 10th Aviation Combat Brigade---is no stranger to the area and has alot of experience operating there.

I don't expect ISAF to provide much more than they already have but I do wonder if we're not seeing anti-air missiles on a large scale being introduced into this conflict.  It would make sense with so many disappearing with the mess in Libya...the confusion in Egypt and the troubles with Iran.

Boxer variant...unknown.

Boxer variant...unknown.  I didn't even know they put the Puma turret on the Boxer and have absolutely no idea what they're calling it.  Love them or hate them but KMW is definitely a world leader in the armored vehicle industry.  I can't wait to see their offering for the Marine Personnel Carrier Program and wonder how they're going to make a 33 ton wheeled vehicle float.

Infantry Weapons and their Effects 1943

Tracks gets back to their roots.

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C.-Marines with 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, ready themselves to enter the water in their amphibious assault vehicle during amphibious training operations aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C., August 4, 2011. The Marines train each year to brush up on their old techniques and tactics, as well as learn new ones. During this operation, the Marines had the cooperation of USS Ponce, an Austin-Class amphibious transport dock, and USS Oak Hill, a Harpers Ferry-class dock landing ship. After launching from the beach, the Marines boarded the ship with the help of their vehicles., Pvt. Brian M. Woodruff, 8/4/2011 4:26 AM

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C.-Marines with 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, ready themselves to enter the water in their amphibious assault vehicles during amphibious training operations aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C., August 4, 2011. The Marines train each year to brush up on their old techniques and tactics, as well as learn new ones. During this operation, the Marines had the cooperation of USS Ponce, an Austin-Class amphibious transport dock, and USS Oak Hill, a Harpers Ferry-class dock landing ship. After launching from the beach, the Marines boarded the ship with the help of their vehicles. , Pvt. Brian M. Woodruff, 8/4/2011 4:27 AM

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C.-Marines with 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, prepare to enter the water in their amphibious assault vehicle during amphibious training operations aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C., August 4, 2011. The Marines train each year to brush up on their old techniques and tactics, as well as learn new ones. During this operation, the Marines had the cooperation of USS Ponce, an Austin-Class amphibious transport dock, and USS Oak Hill, a Harpers Ferry-class dock landing ship. After launching from the beach, the Marines boarded the ship with the help of their vehicles. , Pvt. Brian M. Woodruff, 8/4/2011 4:15 AM

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C.-Marines with 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, enter the water in their amphibious assault vehicle during amphibious training operations aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C., August 4, 2011. The Marines train each year to brush up on their old techniques and tactics, as well as learn new ones. During this operation, the Marines had the cooperation of USS Ponce, an Austin-Class amphibious transport dock, and USS Oak Hill, a Harpers Ferry-class dock landing ship. After launching from the beach, the Marines boarded the ship with the help of their vehicles. , Pvt. Brian M. Woodruff, 8/4/2011 4:22 AM

The update that wasn't...

Well.

The Dark Lord is at it again.  Read Bill's latest here.  But as always, here's a tidbit....

Flight and ground tests of the 20-strong F-35 Joint Strike Fighter force could be suspended “for a few weeks,” according to an industrial source close to the program, after the secondary power system of F-35A AF-4, a USAF-variant test aircraft, failed on Aug. 2 at Edwards AFB, Calif., during a ground maintenance engine run. However, another government source says that foreign object damage has not yet been ruled out, and notes that such a finding would allow a more rapid return to flight. A clearer picture is expected to emerge next week

Two sources.

One an industrial source that says that the plane might be grounded for weeks.

The other a government source that says that they don't know but will have a better idea next week.

Long story short.

We don't know yet.

But on Bill's original blog post on this story he posts this update...

Update:  Program officials are preparing for a long stand-down, measured in weeks. We should know more next week. Foreign object damage hasn't been ruled out, in which case the program will breathe a large sigh of relief and move on. But if it's not FOD....

Just plain wow.

Nope.  That ain't strong enough.

JUST FUCKING WOW.

The Jihad continues.  Death to the F-35 (according to Sweetman)...Long live the Eurofighter!

PS.

Will someone in Lockheed Martin, the USAF, US Navy, USMC or the Joint Strike Fighter Program Office find out who this bastard is that's talking to Sweetman and keel haul his sorry behind.  How many times do you give your enemy a chance to punch you in the face before you finally wise up!  Geez!

2 Air National Guard C-27 Deploy to Afghanistan

via Key.aero

TWO OHIO Air National Guard (ANG) C-27J Spartans left Mansfield-Lahm Airport, Ohio, on July 26 for the type’s first deployment to Afghanistan with the ANG to support Operation Enduring Freedom. The first of these, 08-27012 (callsign ‘RCH579’), subsequently arrived at Prestwick Airport, Scotland, on July 28, before leaving for Bucharest, Romania, early the next day and then heading onwards to Afghanistan. The second aircraft, 08-27015 (‘RCH714’), followed it into Prestwick on the afternoon of July 29, having been delayed by technical problems. It also then became unserviceable again at Prestwick, resulting in USAF/AFRC/459th ARW KC-135R 58-0075 arriving from Italy on July 31 with spares. It finally departed for Bucharest early on August 1 to follow its partner into theatre.
Both of these C-27Js are operated by the Ohio ANG’s 179th Airlift Wing/164th Airlift Squadron, which recently became the first US Air Force unit to re-equip with the type, having previously operated the C-130 Hercules. The Afghan deployment is a join mission with aircrew from the 179th AW and soldiers from the Georgia and Oklahoma National Guard. They will be working in conjunction with the 159th Combat Aviation Brigade in direct support of the US Army for airlift and airdrop operations.

Wow.

First deployment and it breaks down while enroute?  I'm not going to call BS on this airplane or how it fits into the Air Force but why wouldn't it make more sense for the USAF to just have bought more C-130's?

UPDATE*
First deployment of US C-27's.  According to David Cenciotti (check out his blog...best coverage of the Libyan aerial conflict that I've seen on the net) and something I really should have known....Italian C-27's have been operating in Afghanistan for some time.