Raw Intel

In late May 1943, the B-24 carrying the 26-year-old Zamperini went down over the Pacific. For nearly seven weeks — longer, Hillenbrand believes, than any other such instance in recorded history — Zamperini and his pilot managed to survive on a fragile raft. They traveled 2,000 miles, only to land in a series of Japanese prison camps, where, for the next two years, Zamperini underwent a whole new set of tortures. His is one of the most spectacular odysseys of this or any other war, and “odyssey†is the right word, for with its tempests and furies and monsters, many of them human, Zamperini’s saga is something out of Greek mythology. For you sports minded folks, t…

The naval variant of the military’s fighter jet of the future arrived at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., on Nov. 6, a development that means the Navy and its industry partners are satisfied that the jet can safely perform basic flight maneuvers and is ready to tackle more demanding tests. Behind the scenes, however, the Navy is struggling to remedy a significant design oversight that poses a major potential hindrance to its ability to successfully deploy and maintain the F-35C Lightning II, the carrier-based variant of the joint strike fighter: Its powerful single engine, when packed for shipping, is too large to be transported to sea by normal means when r…

Now, I don't know if I would call a German Socialist a Fascist .... but that is simply because I have enough of a problem being redundant in my writing. This has been all around ... and I felt the need to share simply because it does three things for me: 1. Shows the EU Parliament as it is. 2. Shows the best political insults come from Brits. 3. Lets me share with you the, ahem, beautiful Dutch language and entertaining hand gestures. Mr. Bloom; take it away. Some think he went too far - maybe, but I would think that he did a great cry for freedom. I owe him beer. Now - who is calling who a Fascist? Vote PVV early - vote PVV often; at lea…

Several noteworthy events took place surrounding Korean Peninsula tensions over the last 24 hours. Reuters discusses the first two issues in this report. "We oppose any military act by any party conducted in China's exclusive economic zone without approval," China's Foreign Ministry said in an online response to a question regarding China's position on the George Washington participating in joint naval exercises. This is the first reaction to the US moving the USS George Washington (CVN 73) into the Yellow Sea. As far as China is concerned, they believe no one should be allowed to operate a warship, much less an aircraft carrier, within their exclusive economic zone.…

BTW - in the German Navy, three thick stripes is a LCDR, not CDR. I like the beard too. ... and yes, I noticed the picture in the Wardroom/Chiefs Mess at the 3:00 mark. Hat tip Boquisucio@Argghhh!!! View the full article

Some goob who I assume thinks he knows what he's talking about has decided, based on something he read in the Wall Street Journal, that the Medal of Honor has become "feminized". That's right - "feminized". We all know what that particular little code word means, don’t we? He couldn't just say, on the day Sal Giunta was awarded our nation's highest honor, "well done and well deserved". Oh, no. He had to make a point to try to cheapen the award by qualifying it somehow. Here's what he said: The Medal of Honor will be awarded this afternoon to Army Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta for his heroism in Afghanistan, and deservedly so. He took a bullet in his protec…

Ark Royal moves on: The aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal has sailed into Scotland for the last time, as part of a farewell tour. The fleet flagship of the Royal Navy, which is being decommissioned after 25 years service, sailed down the Firth of Clyde. It is due to dock at Glen Mallan Jetty on Loch Long to unload its ammunition. The ship will stay in Loch Long for five days before sailing around the north of Scotland and on to Newcastle, close to where she was built. The Ark Royal left its Portsmouth base for a farewell tour of the UK on Tuesday. The aircraft carrier is being retired three years early as part of cost-cutting measures announced by the UK …

SSG Sal Giunta was awarded the Medal of Honor today. It has been since Vietnam that the medal has gone to a living recipient, and Sal Giunta was a perfect choice. He has been nothing but humble and self-effacing, pointing out that he was just one of many brave paratroopers that day. He is absolutely correct, but he is the one who charged the enemy and stopped them from capturing one of his compatriots. There was a reception held by the Bravo Bulls who represent the same company (Bravo/Battle) of the 2nd of the 503rd, 173rd Airborne since the Second World War. This unit has always been called on when we need to break glass in case of war and has always delivered. SSG Giu…

What is the view of the medium term future for the Navy? Join EagleOne and me on Sunday 14 NOV starting at 5pm EST as we discuss the way forward for the Navy in the coming decade with John Patch, CDR USN (Ret.), Associate Professor of Strategic Intelligence at the U.S. Army War College's Center for Strategic Leadership. We will touch on Counter-piracy vs. Antipiracy, the relevance of the Carrier, the Littoral Combat Ship, Naval Surface Fire Support, the relevance of Amphibious capability, and other topics that may come up. Join us live if you can, and pile in with the usual suspects in the chat room during the show where you can offer your own questions and …

A few days ago a warning went out regarding good weather over the next few days. Good weather in the region means piracy usually surges, and it is clear piracy has surged. This morning, another ship was hijacked - this time a Chinese vessel. Pirates hijacked a cargo ship with 29 Chinese sailors aboard in the Arabian Sea and told the shipping company they were taking it toward Somalia, Chinese officials and state media said Saturday. The attack came just two days after another 17 Chinese sailors returned home after being held by Somali pirates for four months. It also highlights the spread of piracy to areas outside the Gulf of Aden, a hijacking hot spot now p…

Another hijacking. Pirates have seized a Panama-flagged chemical tanker with a crew of 31 off the coast of Somalia, the European Union Naval Force for Somalia (EU Navfor) said on Thursday. The anti-piracy taskforce EU Navfor said that the 24,105 tonne MV Hannibal II was taken while sailing to Suez from Malaysia ferrying vegetable oil. "The master of the vessel reported that he had been attacked and boarded by pirates in an area some 860 nautical miles East of The Horn of Africa which is considerably closer to India than it is to Somalia," EU Navfor said in a statement. The naval force said the ship's crew consisted of 23 Tunisians, four Filipinos, a…

A South Korean politician has provided a small intel dump regarding the situation just prior to the sinking of the Navy corvette Cheonan. The Navy corvette Cheonan was warned on the morning it sank on March 26 that a salmon-class North Korean submarine and support ships had disappeared from their bases the day before, a lawmaker claims. Democratic Party lawmaker Shin Hak-yong on Monday said on the morning of the North's attack on the Cheonan, "warnings were given by the Second Fleet Command that a salmon-class North Korean submarine and support ships had been out to sea for unknown operations. Right before the Cheonan was attacked, all artillery guns on the nea…

It is very easy to look at this technology and be dismissive... but that our weakness isn't it? We are a technology society and look at the specifics of technology to form the basis for our judgments. It a technology doesn't conform to our conceptual expectations regarding capability, then 'it doesn't pass the smell test' and is usually dismissed with sarcasm. I expect there is plenty of sarcasm to be easy shared upon examination of this little piece of tech being fielded by Iran. Iran's state TV says the country's powerful Revolutionary Guard has received its first three squadrons of radar-evading flying boats. The report says the domestically made craft can b…

Tejas LCA (click to view full) GE’s F414 turbofan engine will power Tejas Mk2. (Oct 1/10) India’s fighter strength has been declining in recent years, as the MiG-21s that form the largest component of its fleet are lost in crashes, or retired due to age and wear. Some MiG-21s are being modernized to MiG-21 ‘Bison’ configuration, while other current fighter types are undergoing modernization programs in order to maintain the fighter force until replacements can arrive. On which note, an ongoing tender has Russian, French, American, Swedish and European manufacturers dueling for the MMRCA, a multi-billion dollar, 126+ plane light-medium fighter sale. This still leav…

The war in Somalia is at a pivot point. If you read the latest Report of the Secretary-General on Somalia to the United Nations Security Council (PDF), you will find things do appear to be getting worse, not better. There are no territorial advances by the TFG, while security and humanitarian problems appear to be deteriorating within Somalia. Civilian casualties are up as are the use of IEDs, but fewer AU troops are being killed. Noteworthy the report explicitly claims "Mortars also impacted regularly near the United Nations common compound and the UNICEF compound," which is a new development over the period of the report suggesting perhaps territory is indeed being conc…

According to this source (in French), the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle is deploying for 4 months to the Indian Ocean to support operations in Afghanistan. "Agapanthus 10," as the mission is called, was presented at a press briefing of the Ministry of Defense by Admiral Jean-Louis Kerignard. The carrier battlegroup will consist of the aircraft carrier FS Charles de Gaulle (R91), FS Forbin (D620), FS Tourville (D610), the naval auxiliary vessel FS Meuse (A 607), and the submarine FS Amethyst (S605). The air group on board the aircraft carrier will have 12 upgraded Super Etendard, 10 Rafale, 2 Hawkeyes, and helicopters. The operation is expected to begin in …

If the name CDR E. A. Westfall, CDR, USCG sounds familiar, then you are a regular listener to Midrats. He joined us back on Episode 26 of Midrats to discuss the nature of Command, and is the Commanding Officer of the USCGC ESCANABA (WMEC 907). Well, our good Skipper has had an interesting day mid-month. From CNN: A U.S. Coast Guard cutter was fired upon by suspected drug traffickers during a pursuit off the coast of Nicaragua, a Coast Guard spokesman told CNN. No Coast Guard personnel were injured in the gunfight, said Lt. Cmdr. Chris O'Neil. The incident took place in the early morning of September 14, but information about the attack was not re…

So I was at Arlington last week to lay wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns for Soldiers' Angels. With SA, on our way out, I told the group I needed some alone time to visit someone. You can see me (below) taking the photo in the reflection of the tombstone for COL Thompson, but you can't see the tears streaming down my face. Every time I go to Arlington, I visit a friend. Or in this case, a man who bears much responsibility for who I am today. He's in section 30, 611. If you went to Mary Lincoln's tomb, he's directly across from her on a nice little ridgeline. Over at This Ain't Hell, the manager of the Blackfive Farm Team, has a post about Tro…

I am not sure if you have heard, but the Universal Pictures movie Battleship began filming last week in Hawaii. Based on the old board game Battleship, I admit I am skeptical. Noteworthy though, the movie has been given a budget of $200 million - which by any standard is an enormous amount of money for a movie. The other big entertainment news this week is that the Battle of Midway is heading back to the big screen too, this time in 3-D from the same folks who produced the recent award winning HBO mini-series "The Pacific." One of the themes on the blog has been the communication the Navy needs to have with the American people. How can people advocate for seapower…

For a certain generation of officers, your host included, there was one foundation event for many of all designators that shaped the way they looked at leadership - both uniformed and civilian - for their entire career. They learned early that bravery in combat and cowardice in life are not mutually exclusive of each other, and can easily inhabit the same person. They learned that facts were of little importance in the face of a politically driven head wind. They learned that when the going gets tough - the top cover they hoped their senior leadership would provide for them - would fade as fast as the Romanian Army at Stalingrad. They learned not to trust - they lear…