An Iraqi tank crew member loads a .50 caliber machine gun during a live fire training exercise with an M1 Abrams tank, in Baghdad, Iraq, Nov. 14.

A few more at DVIDS.

AP story by David Guttenfelder:

The villagers said they just wanted to be left alone. They claimed they had asked the Taliban to stay away, and wished the Americans would do the same.

But now the Americans were back, determined to stop the Taliban from passing through the village to attack U.S. targets. And shortly afterward the gunfire from the hills above served notice that the Taliban had no intention of leaving.

Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division return fire after their patrol in the Pech Valley of Afghanistan's Kunar province was ambushed by Taliban fighters Nov. 3. David Guttenfelder/AP photo

Go read the whole thing at Army Times.

U.S. Army soldiers watch the surrounding hills for insurgents while fellow soldiers race to their position, dodging heavy sniper fire during a three-hour gun battle in Kunar province, Afghanistan, Nov. 3, 2009. The 4th Infantry Division soldiers have been battling insurgent forces in the Waterpur valley since arriving in Afghanistan last June. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Matthew Moeller

Marines assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit unload assault vehicles from a landing craft, air cushion from the amphibious dock landing ship USS Harpers Ferry during a simulated beach assault. Harpers Ferry is part of the Denver Amphibious Ready Group participating in the annual bilateral Korean Integrated Training Program exercise. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Joshua Wahl

U.S. Army Spc. Peter Hurlock qualifying with the M16 in Korea. April 14, 2009. (U.S. photo by Staff Sgt. Christophe D. Paul/Released)

A couple of posts by C.J. Chivers:

How Reliable Is the M-16 Rifle?

and

The M-16 Argument Heats Up, Again

Good overall views of the issue, though the increasing use of 77-grain Mk 262 ammunition with the Special Forces and the poor showing in US Army dust chamber tests against a trio of piston guns were not mentioned.

Also, he writes about the M855 not “fragmenting” as well as the M193. Didn’t he probably mean “tumbling”? Though they do sometimes fragment, I thought that was not the design intent.

Anyway, it’s nice to see decent coverage of this issue where it might get a little more visibility.

Marines from Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force 26 direct vehicles from a Landing Craft Air Cushioned onto USS New York off the coast of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C., Oct. 30, 2009. Marines from several units merged to form SPMAGTF-26 for the ship's commissioning in New York City, Nov. 7. Lance Cpl. Tommy Bellegarde

That “jeep” beyond the LAV-25 is a Growler, the lightweight vehicle developed to be carried by V-22 Ospreys. The Growler has suffered from typical developmental issues and the cost has grown a typical 100% since the first contract was awarded.

Company C, 1st Tank Battalion waits before embarking on another mission during the training evolution known as Steel Knight. The exercise began in the early 1990s and only involved tankers. It has since grown to encompass all the elements of the Marine Air Ground Task Force. Photo by Lance Cpl. Michael Nerl

Full story: 1st Tanks Rolls Through Largest Steel Knight

First Tank Battalion, along with other units from 1st Marine Division, completed Steel Knight, a Marine Corps Air Ground Task Force level exercise, at the Combat Center Nov. 26.

The combined arms exercise was the biggest yet, said Lt. Col. Tom Gordon, the commanding officer of 1st Tanks and native of Boston.

This photo reminds me of a question I’ve been meaning to ask for some time. Are any of the TUSK upgrades going to made to Marine M1s? The photo below shows a tank with a shield from an Armored Turret System on the loader’s machine gun, but, as the others in the photo gallery don’t have one, I suspect it’s a personal upgrade.

Tanks with Company D, 1st Tank Battalion, make their way to another mission, Oct. 25, at the Combat Center during the training evolution known as Steel Knight. The annual combined arms exercise was the largest it has ever been. Photo by Lance Cpl. Michael Nerl

I’ve seen those shields used in a number of applications, and I don’t know if they were designed as part of the Armored Turret System or if they were adopted for it. My thinking is that they are a huge bonus when involved in they type of combat our tanks have found themselves in over the past few years, whether in urban settings or in the open.

5.56 NATO Dimensions

Steve at The Firearm Blog notes British soldiers also complaining about 5.56mm NATO

In the Telegraph:

A survey of more than 50 servicemen who have fought in Iraq and Afghanistan concluded that the 5.56mm calibre rounds used by British soldiers ‘tailed off’ after 300 metres yet half of all Helmand firefights are fought between 300 and 900 metres.

This seems to make sense and be perfectly reasonable. After all, our Special Forces found out pretty much the same thing in 2001. A lot of them switched to the heavier Mk 262 from the M855 green tip.

But then there’s:

Taliban marksmen use powerful 7.62mm ammo for their AK47 machine guns, according to a report of the study in The Sun.

If they’re trying to argue that AKs firing 7.62 Russian are outshooting guys with 5.56mm SA80 rifles, they’re going to have to do a lot of convincing. Since they use the term “machine gun”, maybe they mean the 7.62×54mm used in the PK-series. But then they’re arguing apples and oranges.

Yes, the 5.56 leaves some things to be desired. Particularly out of shorter barrels.

Yes, a heavier intermediate round such as the 6.8 SPC or the 6.5 Grendel would probably do better in a wider range of circumstances, particularly at longer ranges.

Yes, full size rounds like the 7.62×51 fired from a full-length rifle pack quite a wallop.

But let’s not whine about 5.56 at medium to long range and then extol the 7.62 Russian or medium machine gun rounds in the media.

Army to phase in tan-colored Stryker vehicles

More than six years after sending the first Stryker armored vehicles into desert combat, the Army has decided that it’s probably a good idea to start painting them tan so they will blend in with the environments in Afghanistan and Iraq.

“Safeguarding soldiers is the primary purpose for this color change,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Peter Butts, commander of the 1st Battalion, 401st Army Field Support Brigade, who announced the change in a news release from Camp As Sayliyah, Qatar, earlier this month. “Strykers will blend into surroundings better. They’re less likely to stand out like silhouettes.”

Since 2003, Stryker units deploying to Iraq have done so with their vehicles painted in deep green, while most other units deployed with tan vehicles.

I’ve often wondered about this, but even now no meaningful reason for the delay is to be found. Given the red tape this probably had to go through, I guess we should consider it lucky that the vehicle itself wasn’t cleared to be painted tan but the slat armor had to stay green.

Something that just seems to make this worse is that now, even though the official decision to go desert tan has been made, it can only be done when the Strykers are in “authorized facilities” in Qatar. No immediate changes for deployed units unless their vehicles are sent back for repair.

Here are some photos of the new colors from earlier this month:

Dar Barker, a General Dynamics Land Systems retrofit chief from Puyallup, Wa., directs an armored combat vehicle outside the Stryker battle damage repair facility at Camp As Sayliyah, Qatar, Oct. 5. The Stryker infantry carrier vehicle had been restored after deterioration during enemy engagement in Iraq. It's the first vehicle to adopt a new desert tan color in Southwest Asia, in preparation for a planned phase out of the Stryker's current deep green color. Photo by Dustin Senger

A Stryker armored combat vehicle circles around the Stryker battle damage repair facility at Camp As Sayliyah, Qatar, Oct. 5. The Stryker infantry carrier vehicle had been restored after deterioration during enemy engagement in Iraq. It's the first vehicle to adopt a new desert tan color in Southwest Asia, in preparation for a planned phase out of the Stryker's current deep green color. Photo by Dustin Senger

Jagadish Hajam, an auto body repairman and painter from Nepal, applies a coat of Tan 686A, a paint meant for desert camouflage, on the wheels of a Stryker armored combat vehicle inside a booth at Camp As Sayliyah, Qatar, Oct. 3. It's the first vehicle to adopt the new desert tan color in Southwest Asia, in preparation for a planned phase out of the Stryker's current deep green color. Photo by Dustin Senger

More photos at DVIDS.

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jordan Christie prepares to fire a shoulder-launched multipurpose assault weapon at a compound in the Helmand province of Afghanistan Oct. 15, 2009, during a fire fight. Christie, who is assigned to Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, is attached to Regimental Combat Team 3, whose mission is to conduct counterinsurgency operations in partnership with the Afghan National Security Forces in southern Afghanistan. (DoD photo by Cpl. Artur Shvartsberg, U.S. Marine Corps/Released)