Pic of the day. Jan, 28, 2011.

NAVAL AIR STATION, NORTH ISLAND, Ca. (Jan. 26, 2011) An E/A-18G Growler from the "Vikings" of Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 129, based at Naval Air Station (NAS) Whidbey Island, Wash., arrives at NAS North Island. The Growler is painted in a throwback three-tone paint scheme (circa 1944), honoring Air Group 85 which operated from USS Shangri-La (CV 34) during World War II. The specially-painted Growler is one of more than 200 naval aircraft, from pre-World War II to the present day, participating in a Parade of Flight over San Diego Bay, kicking off a series of nationwide events celebrating the Centennial of Naval Aviation. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Briana C. Brotzman/Released)

M-1A3?

I saw this over at MilitaryPhotos.net...

I'm slightly intrigued.  Could that be the prototype for a new M-1A3 that the US Army is developing?  The only external difference seems to be the turret but some are speculating that a new larger gun is being used.

I report, you decide.

Large Vessel Interface Lift-on/Lift-off (LVI Lo/Lo) crane

*Note, this is a follow on to the "LCS Tender" post. What do we need to make it work? How about something as mundane as a good crane to transfer gear, containers and such at sea in almost any sea state. The Office of Naval Research already has it covered with the LVI Lo/Lo Crane.

via Office of Naval Research...

What Is It?

The LVI Lo/Lo crane is an advanced motion-compensated at-sea cargo transfer system that will be able to transfer fully-loaded cargo containers between ships at sea in Sea State 4 and below by providing six degrees-of-freedom control of the payload without taglines.

How Does It Work?

The system enables the rapid and safe at-sea transfer of standard ISO containers and other heavy loads from military and commercially available ships onto the Sea Base. Capability details include:

• Ability to maintain optimal cargo throughput rates through Sea State 4
• Ability to transfer cargo between two ships directly alongside each other at zero forward speed or underway at slow speed in the open ocean.
• Motion sensing and compensation for the ships and/or the cranes will allow safe and efficient transfer of cargobility to transfer car

What Will It Accomplish?

The LVI Lo/Lo crane is a key technology for enabling the fl ow of joint logistics through the Sea Base. Currently, to off -load a container ship,
it must have a safe deep-water port.  By adding the LVI Lo/Lo crane to the Sea Base, the container ship can be off -loaded at sea, with the containers transferred to other modes of transportation for the final leg to the shore.  This eliminates the need for a secure deep-water port and enables the flow of containerized logistics through the Sea Base to the shore.

Rocket fire.

Marines use high mobility artillery rockets to support infantry

Marines with 5th Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment launch a high mobility artillery rocket system from Forward Operating Base Delaram II, Jan. 26. These systems have been used to support Marine infantry units operating throughout Helmand province in the fight against the Taliban

LCS Tenders.

USS Shenandoah

What does the LCS class desperately need?  Some are calling them motherships but the proper name for ships that would carry replacement crews, mission modules (if the tasking changes), extra munitions or even transport specialist or Special Operations troops to support the LCS mission are Tenders.  This from Wikipedia...

A destroyer tender is a ship designed to provide maintenance support to a flotilla of destroyers or other small warships. The use of this class has faded from its peak in the first half of the 20th century as the roles of small combatants have evolved (in conjunction with technological advances in propulsion reliability and efficiency).
Due to the increased size and automation of modern destroyers, tenders are no longer as necessary as they once were.

Replace the word 'Destroyer' in the above paragraph with the word 'LCS' and you realize the need exists.

My modest proposal.  Build a stripped down LPD-17 class hull, place cranes on it and you have instant modern day LCS Tender.

*While looking up information on the Dash Drone, I ran across this site which provides more information on Destroyer Tenders of old.  Check it out.

C-5.

A C-5A Galaxy strategic airlifter arrived at Lockheed Martin from the U.S. Air Force to begin major maintenance. This C-5A is assigned to Stewart Air National Guard Base, New York, home of the 105th Airlift Wing, and will be at the Palmdale site for five months.

A C-5A Galaxy strategic airlifter arrived at Lockheed Martin from the U.S. Air Force to begin major maintenance. This C-5A is assigned to Stewart Air National Guard Base, New York, home of the 105th Airlift Wing, and will be at the Palmdale site for five months.

Nigel is AWESOME!

A few days ago I ran the a video featuring Nigel Farage.  While I support his cause and his words echo my feelings... comments from my European readers were alot less than flattering.

I wrote the UKIP to get a response to the criticisms that flew Nigel's way.

Today I got that response.

Dear Solomon

Many thanks for writing to me about this.  I notice that the comments you mention, from your "readers in Europe", do not address the substance of my speech - which was all about the EU's Central Bank bailing out failing eurozone-countries - at all!

What those "readers" are saying amounts to an ad hominem attack - an ancient rhetorical device for avoiding an argument you can't win - and, in addition, this attack is the oldest canard in the book - "racism", if you please, when UKIP is a declared libertarian, inclusive, democratic Party, battling to remove the megalomanic grasp of the Brussels-bureaucrats from our social, economic, political and judicial throat!  

I don't think you can take it seriously.  UKIP always says , "love Europe - hate the EU!"  It is the neo-soviet EU-system, we are fighting, and the Quisling-conspirators in national governments, who have created this system, and who stay in power, because they are using taxpayers' money, via the EU and directly, to bribe the media and all society's opinion-formers to support them.

As for our neighbours, European and otherwise, we fear for  them - as the EU's power grows - just as much as we fear for ourselves.

What your critics are saying is cynical tosh.

Yours sincerely

Nigel

Wow.


Nigel rocks!

Navy/Marine Team Practice "Logistics" in the runup to Cobra Gold 11...

Marines and Navy personnel offload humvees from the USNS Lummus onto a causeway ferry as they perform a maritime prepositioning force offload during exercise Freedom Banner on Jan. 25, 2011 at the Sattahip Naval Station, Kingdom of Thailand.

Marines and Navy personnel offload humvees from the USNS Lummus onto a causeway ferry as they perform a maritime prepositioning force offload during exercise Freedom Banner on Jan. 25, 2011 at the Sattahip Naval Station, Kingdom of Thailand.

A Navy causeway ferry, top, docks with the USNS Lummus to offload hummvees and other military gear as part of Exercise Freedom Banner on Jan. 25, 2011, Sattahip Navy Base, Thailand. Exercise Freedom Banner utilizes a Maritime Prepositioning Force to offload gear in a timely manner that is unique to the U.S. Marine Corps and Navy.

“An MPF squadron, like MPSRON 3, can support a brigade sized element of more than 16,000 for up to 30 days. For Exercise Cobra Gold ’11, the MPF will provide 160 pieces of equipment that will be utilized by units within 3rd MEB,” said Lt. Col. Michael Curtin, 3rd MEB logistics officer. “MPSRON 3 is an operational asset to the Navy’s Seventh Fleet focusing on the Asia-Pacific region.”

F-35 final development jet.

A Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II stealth fighter comes in for a landing at Edwards AFB, Calif., Saturday, Jan. 22, after a 3.2-hour ferry flight from Fort Worth, Texas.

Appeasement is the proper policy towards Confucian China???

via The Telegraph.

The correct statecraft for the West is to treat Beijing politely but firmly as a member of global club, gambling that the Confucian ethic will over time incline China to a quest for global as well as national concord. Until we face irrefutable evidence that this Confucian bet has failed, 'Boltonism’ must be crushed.
Appeasement, your hour has come.

Wow!

Wow!

Wow!

Before any action is taken...after we have acquiesced to every demand...the pacifist want even more.

Wow!

If you feel like being highly pissed off then read the whole thing, but remember, I warned you!

I love this guy!

Rant Time. Cutting defense the Sweetman way.

Think Defence said this...

Sol, hear what you are saying and I have railed against the corrosive inter service bitching that has beset UK defence for far too long.

Unfortunately, it shows no sign of getting any better, at least at the higher echelons.

Looking in from the outside, the US has 5 air forces each operating manned, unmanned, rotary and fixed wing; Army, USAF, USN, USMC and SOCOM. Now I could be dead wrong but that looks like duplication to me which as I have said may be perfectly fine in times a plenty but of you look at all western nations, the budget deficits are crippling and simply have to be tacked with reductions in spending. Different countries will of course see defence as different priorities, that is only natural, but defence will surely form part of a deficit reduction plan so all armed forces and industry had better get used to that fact for the next 10 or 20 years

Lean times are coming

Sorry for picking on my boy Think Defence but he's thinking along the lines of Sweetman.

Time to bury this bone of thought, kick dirt on it and not let its ugly head rise again (this is a no zombie zone)!


First, lets take this to its most outrageous place...

If you get rid of Marine Air because the Navy and Air Force can perform that function then why not get rid of the Marines entirely.

But wait while we're at it, the US Army is always complaining that the US Air Force doesn't provide close air support or enough transport aircraft for its troops and we once had the Army Air Corps so....

LETS PUT THE Air Force back into the Army.

But wait their is more.  Lets kill the Coast Guard, fold its law enforcement functions into Customs, its rescue facilities into the Navy...

More you say????  We got along without a SOCCOM so we'll send all the snake eaters back to their respective services and save money there.

Who needs land based ballistic missiles?  We can put them all on subs and be more survivable that way...

Oh and the Army?  Yes we folded the Marines and Air Force into it but guess what, we need to downsize it so we'll have it maxed out at say 200,000 men.

Wait a second!  We already had that.  So really lets save money and KILL THE ARMY AND THE USAF AND LEAVE THE DEFENSE OF THIS NATION TO OUR SEA SERVICES!

The Marine Corps is 202,000 strong right now, and can certainly take care of any land battles!

So if you really want to save money, don't kill Marine Air...KILL THE ARMY, KILL THE AIR FORCE AND YOU HAVE ALL THE CUT BACKS YOU COULD EVER NEED!