Spain's Council of Ministers today approved the manufacture of 348 8x8 combat vehicles in 13 different versions (Dragon Modernization & Family Of Vehicles Program)

Note the above graphics are from a previous blog post on the Spanish Dragon Modernization Program.  These graphics probably don't capture the real range of vehicles being procured but showed various possible configurations of either an APC or IFV variant.  The Twitter post (below) has few details but they would certainly buy an Engineer, Recovery, NBC, Anti-Air versions which to my knowledge they haven't shown yet.

El Consejo de Ministros ha aprobado hoy la fabricación de 348 vehículos de combate 8x8 en 13 versiones diferentes por un valor total de 2.083.275.262,81€.

La aprobada hoy es la primera fase de un total de un millar que serán plenamente interoperables con nuestros Aliados #OTAN. pic.twitter.com/3gLxb9hoMq

— España en la OTAN (@SpainNATO) July 12, 2019

Open Comment Post. 13 July 2019

Heliplane Concept by Skyworks Global (Vid)

S-400 Infographic...

Interesting.

They include the B-2, F-117, F-22...but weirdly enough they also include the EF-111, F-111 and EA-6 which are all out of service.

Even though the F-35 is NOT included in this graphic I think it's clear that even the author of this graphic is making a sly claim that it also would be vulnerable.

Sidenote.  Ya know we kinda did this to ourselves.  I have no visibility on how effective the S-400 actually is but I DO KNOW that it was pumped up by F-35 fans in order to justify its purchase.  Fans of that plane were perhaps a little too effective in their propaganda and now this weapon system is viewed as the ten foot tall predator that can gobble up Western Air Power.

Light blogging today...gotta get ready for Louisiana sunshine...

Blogging is gonna be light today....gotta get ready for some Louisiana sunshine...probably back to normal Sunday...maybe...meanwhile hash it out in the Open Comments!

S-400 just delivered to Turkey (vid)....the Rubicon has been crossed & the die cast...

#BREAKING: #Turkish media (#Erdogan's Anadolu Agency) released video of the first S-400 SAM battery of #Turkey which were delivered by two #Russia Air Force's An-124-100 transport airplanes, RA-82038 and RA-82013 from 224th Flight Unit at #Akinci AB, #Ankara few hours ago. pic.twitter.com/nT1HX7PKwV

— Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) July 12, 2019

 Julius Caesar's crossing the Rubicon river was an event in January 49 BC that precipitated the Roman Civil War, which ultimately led to Caesar becoming dictator and the rise of the imperial era of Rome. Caesar had been appointed to a governorship over a region that ranged from southern Gaul to Illyricum (but not Italy). As his term of governorship ended, the Roman Senate ordered Caesar to disband his army and return to Rome. He was explicitly ordered not to bring his army across the Rubicon river, which was at that time a northern boundary of Italy. In January of 49 BC, Caesar brought the 13th legion across the river, which the Roman government considered insurrection, treason, and a declaration of war on the Roman Senate. According to some authors, he is said to have uttered the phrase "alea iacta est"—the die is cast—as his army marched through the shallow river.

Yeah.  I think my title is pretty accurate.  Turkey has crossed the rubicon.

Cool Armor....BMD-1 playing hide and seek...

#BMD-1 play Hide & Seek......🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺@Zola_200 @Ninja998998 @saptak__mondal @VinodDX9 pic.twitter.com/Ygjutr2S5s

— Sukhoi Su-57 frazor🇷🇺🇮🇳 (@I30mki) July 11, 2019

LA County Sheriff's thoroughly penetrated by the Banditos Gang...

via LA Times.

Late one night last September, a party for Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies was winding down.

New deputies working in East L.A. were celebrating having successfully completed a probation period and their status as full-fledged members of the Sheriff’s Department.

But the gathering took an ominous turn for some when several older deputies showed up.

According to legal claims filed against the county Thursday by seven deputies, the men belonged to the Banditos, a clique of predominantly Latino deputies who wear tattoos of a skeleton with a sombrero, bandolier and pistol and are alleged to routinely harass young Latino officers at the station.

The claims, which serve as precursors to lawsuits, demand tens of millions of dollars from the county for failing to address the hostile work environment the Banditos are alleged to have created.

The party ended in violence when the Banditos attacked several of the new deputies, according to the claims. One rookie said he was thrown to the ground and punched in the face before being knocked unconscious. Another recalled being choked to the point of passing out.

“This is not just a case about beating up a handful of cops — it’s about fear through intimidation to maintain the corrupt status quo and make certain the new idealistic cops don’t talk,” said Vincent Miller, an attorney representing the seven deputies who filed the claims. “This has been going on for years, and the county needs to fix it.”

The Sheriff’s Department issued a statement Thursday that said it would not tolerate any form of hazing or harassment within the organization.

Story here. 

That's alot of armor in the Chinese Type 071 LPD....my fear of facing a fully mechanized Chinese Marine Corps looks to be coming true...

Seems like standard footprint in 071 welldeck for ZBD05 sized AAVs is four to a row... second picture is particularly interesting, with footprints marked out (mix of ZBD/TD05 and ZTS63A). That's a lot of potential AAVs in an 071's  full welldeck+vehicle bay. pic.twitter.com/7cUvF5y1rA

— Rick Joe (@RickJoe_PLART) July 11, 2019

That's a helluva lot of armor in the well deck of that Type 071!  If you believe like I do that its inevitable that US Marines face off against their Chinese counterparts then how do you think our MEU would fare?

I'm not talking about a set piece battle, more like the two sides stumble into a fight during some diplomatic tensions and everyone is doing a "show of force" mission.

We don't know how the Chinese will organize their MEU equivalent.  Will it mirror our own or will they add an additional ship sorta like the Reinforced MEU concept I've talked about?

It doesn't appear that they're going "aviation centric" so will Marine Air make up for the deficit in armor?

Additionally we don't know if this is simply a propaganda pic or if this is truly representative of how they'll operate.

So many questions so few answers.

Open Comment Post. 12 July 2019

Venezuelan second-tier militia unload from a truck

 

https://enrique262.tumblr.com/post/186224682455/peashooter85-kalichnikov-peashooter85

 

Wow.

Didn't know about this group.  Enrique's words are instructive...

You see these old men (and women, not pictured here) usually manning guard posts at hospital, public stadiums, and any sort of public building, although they’re always unarmed. 

And for what I’ve seen, they’re just retirees trying to earn some extra cash by serving the regime, so unlike the colectivos, whom use their position to impose death and violence on anyone that opposes them, they just quietly stick to the jobs they’re tasked with, doing so with a type of kindness I though was lost among Venezuelan public officials, so really, as much as I hate the Maduro regime, I have absolutely nothing negative to say about them!

Venezuela is a mess.

Trying to guide an insurgency is also messy.  These retirees are part of the govt.  Not because they're trying to oppress the rest of the population but because they're trying to put a little food on the table.

A scalpel is needed to remove Maduro, not a sledgehammer.

Is there a way to remove this guy without bloodshed?  Is there a way to support the people there without aiding the govt?

Don't know.  It's above my payscale.  But hopefully someone is on it.

Portugal places order for 5 KC-390s

via Embraer Press Release.

The Portuguese Government announced today a firm order of five multi-mission airlifters Embraer KC-390 as part of the process to modernize Portuguese Air Force capacities to support national Armed Forces operations and increase readiness in missions of public interest. Deliveries are scheduled to start in 2023.

The KC-390 is designed to set new standards for efficiency and productivity in its category while presenting the lowest life-cycle cost of the market. The aircraft can perform different types of military and civilian missions including humanitarian support, medical evacuation, search and rescue and firefighting, while fully meeting the requirements of the Portuguese Air Force, adding new superior cargo and troops transport, aerial delivery and aerial refueling capabilities.

“Today is a historic day for the KC-390 Program and I want to thank those who have contributed to the project. This is a very important step to consolidate the aircraft which we believe will become another success for Embraer. The Portuguese KC-390 will meet new interoperability requirements, in the areas of secure navigation, data and voice transmission that will allow the KC-390 to integrate joint operations in multinational alliances in which Portugal is integrated. These requirements, developed in partnership with the Portuguese Air Force, will enable the KC-390 to meet the needs of many other nations around the world.” said Jackson Schneider, President and CEO of Embraer Defense & Security. “The industrial partnership between Portugal and Embraer contributes to the development of engineering and the Portuguese aeronautics industry, representing more than 300 million euros in exports each year and thousands of highly skilled jobs.”

Story here. 

I love this airplane.  I think that it COULD HAVE been a C-130 replacement but they got one thing wrong...

Our KC-390 military cargo aircraft specializes in heavy lifting. 26 tons to be exact. pic.twitter.com/TF6OAutBEE

— Embraer (@embraer) February 6, 2017

They built it too small.

The REAL C-130 replacement needs to be able to lift approx 60 tons today.  In essence the USAF retired a plane that it desperately needed and never sought a replacement for...the C-141.

That's where the future market is and no air force on the planet seems to have developed a jet plane to fill that void.

Yeah I'm aware the A400M and AN70 either meet or get close to that mark but as was seen in previous blog post, turboprops just have difficulty in that size range.

You need a jet plane and none are on the drawing board to my knowledge.

That's the rub for the KC390.  Its sized like the C-130 and in that niche the oldie will always win.  Its smaller than the A400M/AN70 so it can't compete.

If I was Embraer I'd design a stretched KC390 with four engines that's about the size of the A400M (or just a bit bigger) and see how much interest they get.