Archive for June, 2006
In case you haven’t already heard, the two missing soldiers were found dead, I’m afraid. And it gets worse… read the link.
This comes just after news that nearly 1000 terrorists have been killed or captured since their Capo was on the receiving end of a JDAM. At least one key figure has also bought the farm. It doesn’t sound like it’s a good time to be wanted in Iraq right now, and I predict after this latest news, it’s going to get a whole lot worse.
Disclaimer: My opinions in no way represent Murdoc’s. Remember, you’re entitled to his opinions, not mine.
Update: Some good discussion on this topic over here at MilBlogs.
—posted by Nicholas.
RomaniaRomania’s name comes from its historical position as part of the far eastern extent of the Roman empire and it is a traditionally Christian nation. Here is a small map for the curious. Romania recently joined NATO and the EU. Their troops in Iraq (860) and Afghanistan (550) are garnering a little more attention lately, but one still rarely hears of them. On a per capita basis they have a significant commitment. Shamefully for me, it is greater than that of Australia, which has a similar population to Romania. It seems that the current high level of NATO/US Military friendliness with Romania is likely the result of their co-operation during the Balkans campaigns, fighting which was took place close to their home. Interestingly, some of the Romanian soldiers are conscripts, but they are planning to phase out conscription for an all-volunteer military some time in 2007. Their military seems fairly modern, despite the image created by the Soviet hand-me-down equipment they are frequently seen operating, and they work fairly closely with the other nations involved in the GWoT. In Iraq, 149 Romanian Engineers and 56 Military Intelligence types operate in Ad Diwaniyah under Polish command. Working with the British in An Nasiriyah is an Infantry Batallion approx. 500 strong, along with 100 Military Police (including the scary-looking fellow on the right). There is also a medical contingent at Abu Ghraib and a few staff officers here and there. In Aghanistan the main Romanian force is an approx. 400 strong Infantry Batallion stationed in Kandahar as well as some officers training Afghan forces. Sadly several Romanian soldiers have died in Iraq and Afghanistan. The colourful names of units which had been deployed to the sandbox under the Romanian flag include “Black Scorpions”, “White Sharks”, “Bold Eagles” and “Carpathian Hawks”. The Romanians remain staunch allies with no plans to pull out until they finish the job. You can find information about Romania here (looks like a great holiday destination!), more pictures of their military here and their official military home page here. Below the fold: Italy and Japan. |
From the Valiant Shield home page:
PACIFIC OCEAN (June 18, 2006) — USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) and USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) carrier strike groups steam in formation during a joint photo exercise (PHOTOEX) in preparation for Valiant Shield 2006. The PHOTOEX featured 14 ships as well as 17 aircraft from Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corp including a B2 bomber. The Kitty Hawk Carrier Strike Group is currently participating in Valiant Shield 2006, the largest joint exercise in recent history. Held in the Guam operating area (June 19-23), the exercise involves 28 Naval vessels including three carrier strike groups, more than 300 aircraft and more than 20,000 service members from the Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. (U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate 3rd Class Jarod Hodge)
3 aircraft carrier strike groups plus a formation of F-16s, F-15s, F/A-18s and a B-2. The power projection side of me says “Woo flippin’ hoo!!!!! The logistical side says “Getting gas to that gaggle is gonna hurt!”
—Posted by Pinch
When I started seeing the “Murtha says pull out like we did in Somalia”-type headlines last night, I thought that critics of the Congressman were projecting a bit. I was wrong.
He really wants a repeat of the Somalia surrender. Seriously. Even with 13 years of hindsight, the guy says it was a good move. Beirut, too. He thinks previous policy is the way to go.
He rambled and wandered and shuffled. He went on and on about how there’s “no plan”. Is there maybe something wrong with him?
He thinks pulling the troops back to Okinawa is the right move. Yes. Okinawa. That’s where he wants to “redeploy” some of those currently in Iraq. He says we can re-deploy from Okinawa to Iraq “almost instantly”. Hahahahah.
Off his rocker. Really.
More at Althouse, Instapundit, Wizbang, Blackfive, and Expose the Left.
I’m considering donating to Murtha’s re-election campaign. Nothing will help his challenger more than Murtha making more public appearances.
Front page of yesterday’s “Issues and Opinions” section (page C1) of the Grand Rapids Press:
This is the sort of crap we have come to expect from openly anti-military news outlets like CNN and media organizations so blinded by Bush-hate that they cannot see straight like the New York Times or Newsweek. But the Grand Rapids Press? Shameful.
The Newshouse News Service article itself waffles back and forth between saying things like “While the specifics have yet to emerge in the alleged murder of 24 civilians by U.S. Marines last fall” and “The chilling suggestion is that a phrase heard commonly among combat troops — “Kill them all and let God sort them out later” — came to ugly fruition in Haditha.”
The basic premise of the article runs something like this:
- It’s not certain if US Marines slaughtered civilians in Haditha
- But Marines under constant pressure might commit atrocities
- Like they did in Haditha
I find two things particularly interesting about the choice to run this story so prominently in today’s paper.
- The picture of the shocked Marine is from April. Of 2004.
- The article itself is from June 5th, nearly two weeks ago.
I’ve been trying to keep an eye on this story since I first bacame aware of it, but the lack of much in the way of solid info makes it hard to know what to think. Now, the BREAKING NEWS headline at MSNBC.com says an Al Qaeda-linked website claims abduction of two US servicemen. [UPDATE: Story now available here.]
I think it’s pretty safe to say that these are the same two servicemen they’re talking about, whether they really have them or not. As the two went missing on Friday and haven’t been heard from since, it’s also pretty safe to say that something unusual has happened, whether the men were captured, killed, or who knows what.
I had been hoping that this would be another Barbie doll situation, but it’s not looking good. I said to a friend not too long ago that we had been fortunate in the sense that the bad guys hadn’t managed to put together a long parade of captured troops for the cameras and knives. The only missing US soldier since the destruction of Saddam Hussein’s regime has been US Army Sgt. Keith Maupin, captured in 2004 and allegedly killed. He’s still listed as MIA.
US and Iraqi troops are beating bushes and kicking doors looking for our guys. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.
Naw. You have to have a way to test out jet engines on a ship before you install them in aircraft, so a special part of the ship was created on the fantail (back end of the ship to you land lubbers) where you can hook up power and fuel to an engine and go through its full range of operating parameters. When I was working the future carrier program a few years ago there was talk that the new Joint Strike Fighter engine would be an “install, ready-for-issue” engine right out of its canister. Seems to me that concept went by the wayside, and seems to me, even with my paltry number of single-engine jet hours, that going by the wayside is a good thing. The fact that the Navy is going back to a single engine jet (not seen in the fleet since the retirement of the A-7 Corsair in the early 90′s) creates its own set of possible hand wringing scenarios, but from all accounts the F-135 engine is a beasty, and a trusting sort of motor. Still, as my Dad said a long time ago (after others, I’m sure), it is far better to call back to base and tell them that you are shutting down AN engine rather than telling them you are shutting down THE engine.
060531-N-1960H-108 Pacific Ocean (May 31, 2006) – Aviation intermediate maintenance department’s (AIMD) jet shop tests an F/A-18F Super Hornet jet engine on the fantail aboard USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63). U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate Airman Thomas J. Holt (RELEASED)
Over on the Instapinch there’s a little story I just put up titled “Camelot 114″ about a rather interesting hop – or rather the end to it – we had on cruise in the Med back in the day. It has some kinda interesting pilot gun-camera video in there, so strap in and go take a look, if you’d like.
–posted by Pinch
Earth-Shattering Ka-boom!
|
tap tap…is this thing on? Many thanks to Murdoc for offering up this opportunity to help fill in some possible quiet spots over the next few weeks or so. I’m looking forward to posting along with Nicholas, in a combined sort of way (as opposed to a joint sort of way), seeing how we’re allies and all. I have a little blog called Instapinch where you can usually find something associated with naval aviation, and for at least a few more months, the F-14 Tomcat. My 30 second bio? Tomcat RIO for about 8 years, still doing the reserve thing down near Naval Air Station Oceana, and currently hanging the civilian hat at a large multi-sided office building in the northern Virginia area. And with that out of the way, launch ‘em!
I spent the last few days back up in Long Island at a wonderful event hosted by the Northrop Grumman folks to mark THEIR farewell to the Tomcat, which is being retired after 33 years of service. I spent 90-92 up there in Calverton, their main aircraft assembly plant, on Navy orders as Operations Officer and part of the flight acceptance team for the F-14D program – Grumman would build the jet, their own test pilots would perform the first flight on the aircraft, then they’d give it to us and we’d fly a specific acceptance profile to check out all the systems. Those hops, as mundane as they sounded, could actually have a bit of fun in them. The British Airways/Air France Concorde was, of course, still flying back then, and they would begin to accelerate to their mach 2 crusing speed just southwest of our military operating area (MOA). As part of the radar check out, if our acceptance hop coincided with the Concorde scheduled departures, it was always fun to lock up the big beast and watch the speed readouts climb through the roof.
I’ll have a bit of a longer post over at the Instapinch on the events of these last few days soon, but in the meantime here is the Long Island Newsday link to there rather….paltry…coverage. I mean really, guys! Put some meat in the story! This isn’t a Hornet, fer cripes sake!
BTW, two Tomcats came up from Oceana for those two days – the first F-14s to grace those skies since the early-to-mid 90′s – thanks to Puck and his boys for bringing them (see pic).
—Posted by Pinch
While looking for some information about what our friends the Poles are up to I came across this somewhat recent AP article which details what the troops from each of the 25 unilateral allies are up to in Iraq.
While many of us are aware that Albanian, Armenian, Australian, Azerbaijanian, Bosnia-Herzegovinian, British, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, El Salvadorian, Estonian, Georgian, Italian, Japanese, Kazakh, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Moldovian, Mongolian, Polish, Romainan, Slovakian and South Korean soldiers and engineers are on the ground, for me at least, it’s a little hazy remembering where they are and what they’re getting up to these days.
If you too are wondering what your favorite sneaky foreign soldiers are doing sticking their noses into “America’s War”, follow the link and read on. Although some of the contingents are quite small—I suppose they are symbolic in a way—every one contributes something towards the stability so sorely needed.
—posted by Nicholas.
