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| Afghan children walk alongside Lance Cpl. Jacob Kartchner, a team
leader with 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, and 28-year-old native
of Long Beach, Calif., in the hopes of receiving candy from Kartchner
as he patrols with fellow Marines and Afghan National Police outside
the Hazar Joft Bazaar here, April 8, 2012. On the patrol, the Kilo Co.
Marines partnered with members of the ANP to maintain security in and
around the bazaar, one of the busiest commercial centers in Helmand
province's Garmsir district. Their partnership is a vital part of
preparing the Afghan National Security Forces to assume lead security
responsibility in Garmsir. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Reece Lodder) |
An aggressive marketing campaign from Swedish defence firm Saab is extolling the virtues of weapons that help users to ”see first – kill first” and can be adjusted to focus specifically on ”soft targets”.Just plain wow.
At a weapons fair in Qatar in late March, the company informed potential buyers that its Gripen fighter planes guaranteed a high ”death ratio”, newspaper Expressen reports.
In its marketing materials, the firm also boasts that its Bill 2 anti-tank guided weapon contains a ”soft target mode” that can be used to hone in on civilian houses, cars, and groups of people.
Asked about the JAS 39 Gripen's ”See first – Kill first” slogan, Saab spokeswoman Marie Karlsson told Expressen:
”I actually don’t know what we were thinking when we used those words. I wasn’t involved in making that judgment or taking that decision,” she said.
Pressed further, she declined to criticize the company’s choice of wording.
”We are after all a defence and security company working with defence-related products. Like any other company, we make use of marketing messages.”
But Henrik Westander at PR agency Westander Publicitet & Påverkan lamented the fact that very little appeared to have changed in the defence industry in marketing terms over the last three decades.
”I remember how [Swedish defence firm] Bofors marketed an anti-aircraft gun in the United States in the 1980s using an image of a sharp-shooting cowboy drawing both his pistols at the same time.
"They wanted to give the impression that it was all a game, and it’s still like that now,” he told Expresssen.
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| The USS San Diego (LPD22) travels through the harbor as it makes its way to its homeport at Naval Base San Diego, April 6. The amphibious transport dock class ship will be commissioned May 19. The USS San Diego is equipped with advanced technology and will assist in the transportation and support of Marine landing forces. |
| General characteristics | |
|---|---|
| Type: | coastal corvette |
| Displacement: | 274 tonnes full load |
| Length: | 155.83 ft (47.50 m) 46.8 ft (14.3 m) (Length on cushion) |
| Beam: | 44.29 ft (13.50 m) |
| Draught: | 3.3 ft (1.0 m) |
| Propulsion: | 2 × Twin gas turbines →12,170 kilowatts Twin diesel engines →1,490 kilowatts |
| Speed: | In rough sea: 45 knots In calm sea: 60 knots |
| Range: | 800 nmi at 40 knots (74 km/h) |
| Complement: | 15-16 |
| Sensors and processing systems: | Thales MRR-3D-NG air/surface radar Ceros 200 FC CS-3701 electronic warfare suite Sagem Vigy 20 Electro-optical sensor |
| Armament: | 8 Kongsberg Naval Strike Missile SSMs (when available) kept in an internal weapons bay 76mm Otobreda Super Rapid multi-role cannon Mistral Surface to air missile 12.7mm gun |
| Notes: | Soft kill: TKWA/MASS (Multi Ammunition Softkill System) Other: Link 11 and Link 16 |
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| The first of twenty Block 52 F-16s for Egypt completed its first flight on 6 April 2012 from NAS Fort Worth JRB. Called Peace Vector VII, the latest purchase of F-16s by Egypt includes sixteen single-seat and four two-seat versions. Deliveries will begin later this year. |
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| Marines from 3rd Battalion, 14th Marines don their packs and prepare
for in-processing after arriving in Agadir, Morocco, April 7 to
support Exercise African Lion 2012. These Marines are responsible for
overseeing the field training portion of the exercise. AL-12 is a U.S.
African Command-sponsored, Marine Forces Africa-led exercise involving
various types of training including command post, live-fire and
maneuvering, peace support operations, an intelligence capacity
building seminar, aerial refueling/low-level flight raining, as well
as medical and dental assistance projects. AL-12 will promote
multi-national cooperation and mutual understanding of each nation's
military tactics and procedures. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Tyler Main) |
I come in peace. I didn't bring artillery. But I'm pleading with you, with tears in my eyes; If you fuck with me, I'll kill you all. - US Marine General James Mattis, to Iraqi tribal leader
