Sand storm at sea...

ARABIAN SEA (March 19, 2012) The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) passes through a sand storm. Carl Vinson and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 17 are deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Benjamin Stevens/Released)

Nigel "Sharkey" Ward wants F/A-18's instead of F-35's!

Wow.

Holy Position Reversal Batman!

Sharkey Ward (famed fighter pilot) has written a paper in which he has gone from being a supporter of the F-35 and is now wanting F/A-18's instead.

The dynamics of the power struggle between the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy are hard to make out on this side of the Atlantic but if Sharkey is even half right in his accusations against the RAF then the UK military is in a world of trouble.

While on the surface this might not seem like a big deal, trust me it is.  Ward is a trusted voice in British military affairs and although some would like to dismiss him, 3 kills in the Falklands War and a reputation as being a maverick marks him as a force to be reckoned with.

If Sharkey has turned on the F-35 then its not a good day for the program. My problem is that his reasoning seems to be based purely on politics and not the performance of the airplane.

Read it for yourself...
120320 - The Multi-Role Fighter for Britain's Future Naval Air Force

F-35B BF-11 First Flight

Lockheed Martin test pilot Al Norman flew F-35B BF-11 (Navy Bureau Number 168062), on its inaugural flight on 21 March 2012 from NAS Fort Worth JRB. The aircraft will be assigned to VMFAT-501 at Eglin AFB, Florida.

Too cool...

I'm assuming this is the UK judging by the accents...

25th CAB Pathfinders

Sgt. Kaylub Divine, A Team leader, F Company, 2nd Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment, 25th Combat Aviation Brigade, designates a sector of security to Pfc. Samuel Corsolini, a gunner with F Company, 2-25 AVN, 25th Combat Aviation Brigade, during Operation Pranoo Verbena in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, March 16.  Photo by Sgt. Daniel Schroeder

Pfc. Bryce Sterling, a rifleman with F Company, 2nd Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment, 25th Combat Aviation Brigade, keeps a watchful eye during a search mission with members of 2nd Afghan National Civil Order Patrol Special Weapons and Tactics Team as part of Operation Pranoo Verbena in order to disrupt Taliban operations in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, March 16.  Photo by Sgt. Daniel Schroeder

 

Pfc. Samuel Corsolini, a gunner assigned to F Company, 2nd Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment, 25th Combat Aviation Brigade, pulls security for members of 2nd Afghan National Civil Order Patrol Special Weapons and Tactics Team during a vehicle interdiction as part of Operation Pranoo Verbena in order to disrupt Taliban operations in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, March 16.
25th Combat Aviation Brigade Public Affairs
Photo by Sgt. Daniel Schroeder

 

There are many more pics but they contain ANA personnel in them.  My choice, right or wrong is to not include them on these pages.  My opinion...my decision. 

The "Nanny" Commandant.

I'm not a fan of Amos.

Something about him rubs me the wrong way.  When I see him all I think is that this guy is a politician and he wasn't/isn't ready for the big chair.

Now we have this coming down the pike and it confirms my impressions.  This guy wants Marines to be warrior and to close with and destroy the enemy, wants them to fight tooth and nail to be the best Marine possible...and this is what he's worried about????

3/21/2012  By Keith Hayes, Public Affairs Specialist  , Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow 

MARINE CORPS LOGISTICS BASE BARSTOW, Calif.  — The punishment has increased for not wearing a seatbelt while driving aboard a Marine Corps installation under Marine Corps Traffic Safety Program Drivesafe Order 5100.19F. The enhanced MCO signed by Commandant of the Marine Corps, General John F. Amos, Nov. 29, 2011, adds to the already existing burden of losing private automobile driving privileges aboard base for a period of time, said Brian Korves, safety officer, MCLB Barstow.
“The first violation (for driving without a license) is a 30 day suspension of all base driving privileges to include privately owned vehicles and government owned vehicles, so if you drive for work you can’t drive for 30 days,” Korves said, “plus attendance of an improved remedial driver improvement course.”
For those drivers who still refuse to obey traffic laws by driving without a seatbelt, Korves said the penalties increase.
“The second offense is loss of driving privileges aboard base for six months,” he said. “The third offense is one year without driving a POV or GOV on the base.”
That means an offending driver’s employment could be severely affected.
“If you’re a forklift operator you’re out of a job,” Korves said.
The harsher across the board policy is being implemented, Korves said, because many drivers still are not getting the message.
“The seatbelt laws have been in place since the ‘80s and you still have people refusing to wear their seatbelts, that’s one of the reasons I believe they’re making the punishment harsher,” he said.
The stiffer penalties will inspire most drivers to not take a chance by driving without one.
“If they make this painful for a person then a person is more likely to comply with the laws,” Korves said.
“Let’s look at it this way,” he continued. “You get caught not wearing your seatbelt you get 30 days not driving. You get in to an accident not wearing your seatbelt and you’re dead. Which one is harsher?”
The bottom line is simple, Korves said.
“Seat belts save lives. I believe that this increased penalty for not wearing your seatbelt will make the base a safer place to drive,” he said.

Hey. I get it!

Seat belts save lives. 

But this kind of micro management. 

This crazy ass punishment for not wearing a seat belt has gone too far.  We need a warrior Commandant, not a damn safety Nazi.

Time for you to go buddy.

F-35B BF-10 First Flight

Lockheed Martin test pilot Bill Gigliotti flew F-35B BF-10 (Navy Bureau Number 168061), on its inaugural flight on 15 March 2012 from NAS Fort Worth JRB

OH SHIT!!!!

MASSIVE HAT TIP TO JACKSON!!!

I couldn't believe this shit when I first saw it!