Archive for the ‘International’ Category
Lusty prepares to join Libyan warzone after £40m upgrade
HMS Illustrious is on stand-by to go to war in Libya, The News can reveal.
The Portsmouth-based warship, which only came out of a £40m refit last month, will be sent to relieve HMS Ocean in the Mediterranean in the next six months. [emphasis Murdoc's]
British Army pilots are training to fly AH-64 Apache attack helicopters off of the Illustrious. The ship was refitted to operate helicopters only after the British military retired the last of their Harrier jump jets last year.
Considering that the big rush to get the ship into action will take up to six more months, Murdoc’s thinking the Brits aren’t expecting an end to the action anytime soon.
UPDATE: Here’s a shot of the “Lusty” (pre-refit):
The Royal Navy Invincible-class aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious (R 06), and Nimitz-class aircraft carriers USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) and USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69 transit in formation during a multi-ship maneuvering exercise in the Atlantic Ocean. The three carriers are currently participating in Operation Bold Step where more than 15,000 service members from three countries partake in the Joint Task Force Exercise (JTFX). U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jay C. Pugh (RELEASED). Photographer's Name: MC2 Jay C. Pugh Date Shot: 7/29/2007
A New Zealand ALV tows a US Apache
Nice:
New Zealand soldiers in Afghanistan have been praised for their quick thinking and ingenuity after towing a disabled US helicopter to safety with a light armoured vehicle.
The US army Apache helicopter had to land in an exposed position in Bamyan last month after its engines were damaged by debris.
The NZ Provincial Reconstruction Team manufactured a tow bar and towed the helicopter into the safety of the Kiwi base.
The Apache was from the 101st Airborne Division.
Protesters in Syria attack US embassy
The protesters smashed windows and raised a Syrian flag on the compound on Monday, the witnesses said.
Could the manipulation of the economy into a pit of despair really be an under-the-radar way of addressing the illegal immigration problem?
Illegal Immigration From Mexico At Lowest Level In Nearly 60 Years
I’ve joked about this from time to time, but it ain’t all that funny. Once in conversation I noted that it was similar to cutting down on the burglary problem by burning down all the houses.
Also note that, even with the six-decade low, about 100,000 illegals are estimated to have crossed the border last year. So while the situation might be “better,” it sure isn’t “good.”
The article notes that declining Mexican birth rates are also likely having an impact on the number of fence jumpers.
Via Glenn Reynolds, who writes
Heck, with what Obama’s been doing for the employment situation, soon Americans will be sneaking into Mexico in search of work . . . .
But still…let’s build a big fence.
Navy ships from Chile, Colombia, Peru and the U.S. prepare for a live-fire exercise as part of the Pacific phase of Unitas 52 off the coast of Chile July 1, 2011. Unitas, Latin for "unity," is an annual USSOUTHCOM-sponsored, multinational naval exercise designed to enhance security cooperation and improve coalition operations between South American and U.S. maritime forces. (DoD photo by Mass Communications Specialist 1st Class Steve Smith, U.S. Navy/Released)
“Make no mistake, Pakistan stands shoulder to shoulder with our American allies in hunting down those who threaten our national security,” said Pasha, circling the exact location of the safe house on a large satellite photo of the town. “And we will show no mercy in targeting them, whether it be on the battlefield or, perhaps, in a bunker where the walls are thicker and offer better protection from Predator drone attacks.”
“These are highly dangerous men,” he continued, “who will be taken out at 5:23 a.m. I repeat: The strike begins at 5:23 a.m.”
It’s in The Onion, so it’s humor, right? Right?
U.S. Marine Corps AV-8B Harrier II aircraft with Marine Attack Squadron (VMA) 214, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) land aboard the flight deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD-2) during flight operations in the South China Sea June 29, 2011. VMA-214 was conducting an air qualification exercise in order to provide air support to the 31st MEU during Exercise Talisman Sabre 2011. (DoD photo by Lance Cpl Steve Acuff, U.S. Marine Corps/Released)
The US, Spain, and Italy still operate Harriers. The Brits retired the last of theirs in December.
A couple of weeks ago there, was a report that the US government had bought some of the retired British planes for spare parts to keep the Marine Harriers flying until the F-35B arrives, but the Ministry of Defence denied it. Does anyone have any clarification on this story?
If NATO is “an essential source of stability in an unpredictable world,” heaven help us all
An American colonel, recently returned from Afghanistan, told me that when he asked an officer from a European NATO member country to lead a supply convoy one evening, the officer explained that he was only paid to work for a set number of hours and his working day was done. Reminded that there was a war in progress, the officer said, “Maybe your country is at war, but not mine.”
There was a time when Murdoc thought that the primacy of the UN as the main international body was over than that an expanding NATO would someday fill its place in global politics. That time is long, long past.
NATO isn’t completely worthless. But it seems to inch closer and closer to that state every day.
Though, to be fair, sometimes (a lot of times?) it’s hard to tell that America is at war, too.
Via Instapundit.
Back in 2007:
German minehunter Gromitz grounded in 2007
Missed this when it happened. Here’s a little more info:
German Navy Type 332 Frankenthal class mine hunter M106 Grömitz (built 1994) based in Kiel — will remain for some time on the rocks where it grounded in the night of Feb 21 off the harbor Floræ on way to Bergen. While hull remained so far undamaged in the grounding, the bunker fuel will have to be taken off before salvage. This probably will have to be undertaken by a sheerleg as a tug could cause hull damage when towing the ship off the rocks where Grömitz is stuck fast with its bow pointing to the sky. Cause of the grounding was said to be a navigational error, but the small island could possible not be detected by radar in snowy conditions. Ship was underway with other NATO-units within a mine hunting exercise. She was expected in Bremerhaven the forthcoming weekend but this is very unsure now.
Including RAF Apache helicopter attacks.
