Strike Eagle Down in Libya

A USAF F-15E Strike Eagle fell out of the sky over eastern Libya. The Eagle was assigned to the "Madhatters" of th 492nd Fighter Squadron out of Lakenheath, England.

The aircraft was felled by mechanical failure not enmey action and the Crew is safe. One having been recovered by a USMC TRAP Team using a MV-22 Osprey. The other crewman was found by people on the ground friendly with the push to oust the current regime and he was returned to another Allied CSAR crew.

Here is video of the crash site which shows clearly the aircraft is an F-15. The amazing part is that one of the AIM-120 Air to Air missiles survived the crash and people are standing around it like is was just another part of the aircraft.




Scary.

TRAP: This is what the Marines do that the USAF calls CSAR (Combat Search and Rescue): TRAP is Tactical Recovery of Aircaft and Personnel. My son who was assigned to the 1st Battalion of the 5th Marines was assigned to a TRAP team when he deployed on his MEU several years ago. Story here (My Son was actually part of this training evolution). Back then he performed this action out of either the MH-53 Sea Stallion or the CH-46 Sea Knight flown by the Heavy squadron in his MEU. They use the MV-22 for that now due largely to its impressive speed and range.

I am a fan of regime change in any country that has a history of killing Americans which this regime fall into. I wish the PresBO had handled this differently and was actually putting the U.S. in a Leadership role in this as oppossed to what will be a supporting role. Had we done this three weeks ago I am sure it would be over by now.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

According to USAF personnel the exact cause of the first combat loss of a CV-22 Osprey may never be known. Right now the AIB or Accident Investigating Board for the crash is leaning on blaming the pilot for the crash however, one of the investigators seems to feel the aircraft itself has some blame as well if not completely. See Story here.

Be it power loss or Pilot Error (the usual when a crash cannot be explained) there are mixed opinions on the exact cause which may never be found largely because the aircraft went down in a combat zone and had to be destroyed after everyone was pulled out of the aircraft (16 wounded and 4 KIA including the pilot at the controls).

Now normally that would be the end of the story but, the question of the engine problem kept cropping up especially since the stock V-22 comes equipped with an extensive in-flight monitoring system designed to store away not just engine operating parameters but also flight control inputs and many other environmental and flight characteristics that would easily clear up this conflict. Designed to fit in the handy “crash proof” container. So, where is this magical black box? Was it not retrieved along with the Crypto gear and other high value and classified avionics from the aircraft carcass prior to it being intentionally destroyed?

Yeah, well actually it was left behind.

In this story from Defense Tech they relate the story of how the box was seen but left on the ground with the aircraft wreckage because it was not on the master list of items to retrieve prior to aircraft destruction. Left behind and it had all the answers or at least more clues. Destroyed or stolen either way it was not brought out of the field.

Quoting from here (emphasis added):

Several rescue and salvage crews failed to grab the critical device because the incident recorder was not among the items listed for recovery at the crash site, according to Harvel. This was apparently due to a translation problem between U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Air Force manuals for the V-22.

AFSOC inherited instructional manuals — called “Dash-1s” — for the CV-22 from the Marine Corps’ MV-22B units. It was necessary to translate the manuals from Marine piloting and maintenance jargon to USAF terminology, but the translators made a few mistakes, Harvel says.

“Somehow in that translation there was nothing in [the AFSOC manual] that showed this aircraft had a FIR,” he says.

“They had absolutely no idea.”

As a result, he adds, the FIR “was never on the list to get that off the airplane” after a crash.

Ok then, it seems like there is a problem here with not having Translators available to the USAF to clean-up their manuals. Now, where does one go to get a Marine Translator? Well, maybe the Navy has them since they seem to have Marines on some of their ships, maybe the White House has them to spare also since they fly the President around in a Marine Helicopter. It seems to me that finding a Marine Translator would have been easier than say, a Klingon Translator.

And let us ask some other more poignant questions, if not more sincere. How many years has the USAF been flying the CV-22? I did some digging and found that the first production CV-22 was delivered to the USAF at Edwards AFB in September 2005. This particular aircraft was a version of the MV-22B that the Marines use but equipped with RADAR and IR equipment that the Marines do not use. The AFSOC received its first production fully combat ready aircraft in March of 2006. So the USAF had 5 years to get this “translation” done and the AFSOC had more than 4-years to figure out all that specialized Marine jargon and find the USAF equivalent terminology.

What a shame.

Now back to some snark. In the world of the US Military the Marines are labeled as the most serious organized killing machine in the world however, no one and I mean NO ONE in the US Military family claims them as the smartest. Not by a long shot. In fact I would guess that the USAF would claim being the smartest because they get all the latest gear and have found a way to keep from actually getting dirty during war time. So the USAF would claim to be the smartest. Yet, they can’t figure out Marine jargon? And they have had 4 to 5 years to carry those nasty dirty Marine manuals over to the nearest Navy base and ask them for some help with the Translation. / Snark off.

If people had not died and the fact that the AIB is willing to impune the reputation of the Pilot that died in this incident this would be laughable. But the whole AFSOC should be ashamed for not catching this and more importantly, using “translation” of a brother service’s jargon as the excuse. Especially since there are several Standards and Specifications that detail the use of acronyms and abbreviations used in the development of military documentation.

Back home here in the swamp, we live with a Marine and being a former Squid I know how to translate so that my wife and the mother of said Marine has a way to communicate without too many hand signals. I am available to the USAF to assist them in any further “translations” that they may need. Just saying.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

Aviation News Roundup

Here is some news from the Aviation world that is not makeing too big a splash on the MSM.

Boeing 787 Troubles:

This latest in the long line of commercial haulers from Boeing was well on its way to certification and delivery to an actual paying customer however, all flight testing of the 6 test aircraft was suspended recently after a fire in the #2 test aircraft. This aircraft was on approach to land at an airport in Laredo, TX when the fire broke out in the aft electronics bay. The resulting load shedding to the redundant load center on the other side of the aircraft left the cockpit with a single flight instrument to land the aircraft. The pilot at the controls at the time of the fire: an FAA Test Pilot.

The reported source of the fire as a power distribution panel which are not like the power panels in my beloved S-3. These are highley specialized panels that are as much a computer with embedded programming on them as they are a circuit relay. The modern trend in aircraft is to be more reliant on electrical flight controls (Fly-by-Wire) instead of hydrolics or steel cables. So, there is a lot of dependance on the electricity generated onboard.

The fire was fierce enough to get insulation in the avionics bay to ignight and molten metal dripped onto the inside surface of the composite outter skin of the aircraft. That may comprimse the integreity of that material and a study of the damage is underway. The 787 structure is made mostly of composite materials so this may be one of those failures that derive a lot of knowledge from.

Airbus A380 Troubles

Airbus is also at witts end with an incident that occured late last month. A Quantas Airlines A380 experienced what is called an "uncontained engine failure". In plain speak this is an engine failure where part of the motor is ejected from the motor housing and into the aircraft. The wing in this case. The part went up through the bottom of the wing and severed hydrolic lines and electrical cables before exiting out of the top of the wing. Oh yeah, and a fuel line as well. They were very lucky that the path of that part did not include the fuel tank itself. And that is what makes an "uncontained" failure a big thing as opposed to say a simple engine failure where the parts stay inside the motor housing.

Here is a picture of the damage on the top of the wing, this is where the parts have exited the wing.
Picture stolen from some where on the internet, I forget now. Sorry.

That's a pretty ugly exit wound there folks. That discoloration in the hole on the right is a liquid leaking out that is significantly cooler than the wing itself. Like fuel. More pictures here from Airbus (they are ugly).

All operators of the A380 grounded their aircraft pending the results of the investigation which centered on an oil leak. Many of the operators have commenced to removing the Rolls Royce Trent 900 engines which on inspection indicated an oil leak of some kind.

This was the second time in a very short period of time where a Rolls Royce motor has had this kind of failure (the uncontained type), the first being a test engine for the Boeing 787, a Trent 1000 motor. This engine was on a test stand when the failure occured. The 787 is offered with two different motors which operators can select so Boeing is not in a pickle over the problems over at Rolls Royce. Similarly Airbus sells the A380 with a different motor but customers decide which motor they want and they usually pick one from a manufacturer with whom they already have motors in other aircraft.

Eclipse back on its Feet

Eclipse 500 taken from the Eclipse website.

Good news from my home town, Albuquerque. Eclipse Aerospace took over ownership of the former Eclipse Aviation which went into bankruptcy. The new company has focused on getting a support and logistics train up and running for the 260 odd aircraft delivered before Eclipse went under. In a program they call "Total Eclipse" which the primary goal is to buy back aircraft, re-furbish them to a single production standard and then resell them.

They are doing gang busters in this effort having completed more than 50 aircraft and now there is talk of possibly opening the production line and building new aircraft. What a good deal that would be.

And that's not all, they have gained certification from the FAA for Flight into known Iceing conditions and for flight above 40,000 feet. These are big.

In a perfect world these guys get back to going strong and they can open the production line again. Whis is a wonderful concept for an aircraft and represents a fundemental change in building aircraft. Me things the previous owners bite off more than they could chew.

In other Eclipse news Sikorsky Aircraft recently bought an equity stake in Eclipse Aerospace giving Eclipse a much needed infusion of funding and major corporate stability. What is in the deal for Sikorsky? Who knows, maybe they want to make a tilt rotor version of the Eclipse 500 aircraft. Works for me.

USMC to "Harvest" more Bad Guys

The USMC deployed the first and only KC-130J aircraft with the "Harvest Hawk" modification installed. This modification gives this particular aircraft some teeth that your normal refueling aircraft does not have. The Harvest Hawk modification includes a 4th generation EO/IR Ball that gives them a great picture day and night of activity on the ground and a laser capability as well (for range finding and target desigination). The teeth in the system is the addition of 4 Hellfire missiles mounted on the outboard wing pylon and 10 each Griffen GPS guided Air to Surface missiles. The Griffen is a smaller sized missile than the Hellfire and uses the GPS to home in on a position. I knew nothing about them so I did a little digging, here is something on them. These are mounted on the Cargo Bay ramp allowing for the system to be removed in a case where the aircraft is needed for purley cargo purposes. A neat trick.

The Misguided Children have done what they do best: adapt, improvise, overcome and then kill the enmey.

China C919 to Compete with Boeing and Airbus

Huge air show over in China of all places, the Zhuahai Air show 2010. One of the exhibitors is Comac, the Chinese National Aircraft builder, the Airbus of China and just like Airbus they are owned by the government. Their big news, they are going into production on C919 single asile passenger aircraft. They announced that they have advanced orders for over a 100 aircraft and will deliver their first "revenue" aircraft in 2016. The aircraft will carry between 150 and 190 passengers and is designed to compete with the Boeing 737's and the Airbus A320's.

Picutre of a C919 full scale mock-up as displayed at Zhuahai 2010. Picture taken from rediff.com.

Comes with a pretty nifty glass cockpit and a Heads Up Display. This is interesting on two points, the first is that it is another government sponsered enterprise competing with Airbus. Like Airbus making a profit is secondary in their business planning. This is another massive Jobs program and more importantly it is their graduation onto the world stage of techonology. No longer do they only mass manufacture toys and trinkets. They are capable of making passenger aircraft all on their own.

Picture shows the C919 cockpit with HUD's and a line of Glass Flat Panels that seems to go on forever. Two of them in fact. The engine monitoring system are in flat planes also. Picture taken from rediff.com.

This brings up the second point, that is how much of this knowledge they learned at the hands of Boeing. Yes, Boeing had a huge hand in teaching the Chinese how to build that aircraft. Oh, they did not start out duplicating whole aircraft, but Boeing went to China many decades ago to get small parts manufactured for them in exchange for the many national airlines purchasing Boeing product. This over the years morphed into bigger and bigger parts. Whole sub assemblies of aircraft are now built there and the Chinese have turned all this gained knowledge into well, the C919.

I mentinoned in a post back last year that Boeing should have been spending all that money and energy to develop alternate suppliers in Mexico. It would have resulted in lower transportation costs and more importantly, they would not be using that knowledge against them. Oh well. Live and learn I say.

I'll have more Aviation news soon, there is a starteling Tanker Wars update coming.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

USMC Anniversary - Every Family needs to have at least one

Today the US Marine Corps celebrate the day they were established. A proud day for our country and for the many families with a Marine in midst.

Ours especially:

SN2 in this picture in the way back.

We were visiting family in Albuquerque during the Balloon Fiesta.

That is his "big" sister standing next to him. They were both in awe of the goings on.

Later we would know him as the fierce defense man and sometime center man on his Ice Hockey teams.

He skated for two teams, he was the Captain of his high school team and he skated for the PA Predators, a local Club Team.

But we were proudest of him while he served as a US Marine.

Here he is in Afghanistan displaying the whimsical humor that we know and love.

He was assigned to the 1st Battalion of the 5th Marines which were deployed into Helmand province. SN2's Company was assigned to the Nawa District and the men quickly built themselves a Combat Outpost from which to patrol.

The Navy CB's came in and built the perimeter using the now famous HESCO barriers which are basically huge sandbags.

But the Marines of Charlie Company were not totally satisfied with their new digs and commenced to improve.

Here you can see them digging a shelter out of the desert. By hand.

Well, they had a lot of spare time. It's the Marine way.

Here he is patrolling in Nawa, SN2 was trained as a Mortarman and even when in the COP was responsible for the mortar squad in camp. These squads provide support to the foot patrols from inside the COP. So, he was busy no matter on Patrol or in camp.

SN2 would experience things that one only experiences while in the military. The close fellowship that comes with living with men in the dirt, taking fire from a common enemy and yes, eating things you would not have before.

Like Melons.

Growing up we could not get this kid to eat melons of any kind.

Who knew all you had to do was shoot at him and he would eat them with relish.

Like flying in strange aircraft. Here he is in an MV-22. the most famous plastic aircraft in the military inventory.

His Company wtihin the Battalion was the Air Assault Company so he got to ride in most every helocopter the Marines and Army flew. The CH-46, CH-53, H-1 Huey and MV-22 in the Marine inventory and the H-60 and the HH-47 Chinook. He did say that the H-60 Blackhawks were a much best ride of all, even over the V-22.

Here he is in an MV-22, they are being flown out of their COP and out to the huge Camp Leatherneck and eventually for their flight out of the AOR and back to the states.

Here we are with My Father in Albuquerque back in June of this year.

SN2 returned from Afghanistan and later left the Marines. A relief to his Mother and to me too, to be honest. But his time in the Corps will haunt him like my days in the Navy haunt me. Though no one shot at me during my 9 years in the Navy, I did have many a brush with death on the Flight Deck. And of course the impressions and experience you carry with you no matter what you wear.

And here he is back at home in the Swamp. He has a civilian job now and he is playing Ice Hockey again, in an adult league.

Good to have him home. Happy B-Day Marine.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

Cool Stuff

Cool!!

This picture is from Marines in Helmand Province Afghanistan, they are members of the 4^th Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion of the 2^nd MEB. To complete the photo credit the picture was taken by AP Photographer Kevin Frayer.

I love the contrast with the fading sun and of course all the gun's pointing to the heavens. I really like that my Son is not one of them!

On another note, SN2 is safely in Kyrgyzstan and awaiting the charter flight back to the U.S. along with the rest of the 1/5 Marines. That should happen sometime next week. Mother, Daughter and Father are well, happy.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

Un-Nerving

UPDATE: The Mother sent an email to the Lt. Col. that is the Battalion XO and soon I was speaking to the young Jon that is my SN2 with the Company 1st Sergeant in supervison!! All is well in the AF but SN2 could not talk long as he was under orders to find and speak with his Mother. Sergeants can be that way!!

Most everyone here knows that I troll the internet at least once a day for any news articles or pictures of my son the Marine, SN2 over in the AF. I start with a google search for news of Marines in Afghanistan.

Well today, I stumbled onto this article from a TV station in Jacksonville, Florida. Same name, same rank, same age, this one is in the 2/2 Marines and my son is in the 1/5 Marines and both units are in Helmand Province, but they used the Picture of my Jon that ran originally back in October.

Scary.

I wonder how close the two units are in the field, if they actually would overlap and be part of a joint operation. The 1/5 Marines are being replaced in country by the 1/3 Marines and I think the 2/2 Marines replaced the 2/8 Marines.

I guess I'll just worry all day and see what is waiting for me when I get home. I have already texted the Wife, get ahead of the storm.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

SN2 Update – still in Nawa

We have only word from the Marine Mom network that SN2 is doing well, other Son's that have called home and report that Jon is fine.

We also found this photo of him distributed by the DOD originally back in late October. The press has been using it every time a story needs a picture of a Helicopter and a Marine. I am happy it is Jon, getting his 15 minutes of fame in small increments. The original posting of the picture stated that he was pulling security for VIP's that were at a Combat Outpost in Helmand province. There were many VIP's visiting the area under the 1/5 Marines control, seems they have done more than a good job and are used as an example of what COIN should be and its results. Article here from the LA Times. It has been peaceful enough that the Marines go shopping in the little villages without body armor. Scary yes, I know. I am hoping my boy is keeping his gear on no matter how peaceful things look on the outside.

His tour there is over soon, we have been told to expect the entire battalion back by Christmas. Last dates I saw that I can talk about show that his Company will be pulling out of Helmand and back to Camp Leatherneck this week. They will spend only a few days there when they start the transition to Manas AFB in Kyrgyzsatn marshalling for the return to the states by charter airline.

We are hoping that when he gets to Camp Leatherneck he can find a phone and check in with us in person.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

Interesting Aviation News

First Up: F-35 Activity

An F-35 flew off the production line in Fort Worth, TX as the 4^th F-35 to enter the test fleet. This aircraft is a CTOL or Conventional Take Off and Landing version of the aircraft that will be used by the Air Force. It was designated AF-1 and is part of the LRIP lot of 31 of which 13 should have been delivered by October (2009), so they are having some growing pains. One of the more unique items associated with this aircraft is that it is the first fighter aircraft to be built on a moving assembly line, like cars are made. Usually in the manufacture of an aircraft the hull is placed in a manufacturing bay and the various trades work the aircraft in place. Periodically the aircraft is moved to another station for assembly work and eventually it is rolled out to the paint hanger and then for flight testing. Here, they are literally laying the hull at the start of a long assembly line which moves the hull through the fixed work station. It is a novel concept and I think may actually bring down the cost of assembly of the aircraft. Given they are planning on building so many this may pay huge dividends over the long run.

Also from F-35 land: The first STOVL version F-35B was flown to the Naval Air Station Patuxent River Maryland for extensive tests to be conducted by the Navy and Marine Corps. The F-35B will replace the AV-8B's flown by the Marines and the Royal Navy. The base at Pax River is the home of NAVAIR and the home of Navy/Marine Flight Testing. The F-35B will add to the noise in the sky there at Pax that includes all the newest Navy/Marine equipment. I spent many years working there supporting the War Hoover and saw all the latest in Naval Aircraft. It was a fascinating place to work if you were an aviation buff.

Air Force Flying Safe:

The USAF finished their safest flying year ever in their history with only 17 Class A mishaps. The Class A is an accident that results in the total loss of the aircraft or the loss of life (or permanent total disability). Given they are flying their wings off supporting two Wars way over on the other side of the world this is huge feat. I am not sure what the total flying hours are or the total number of sorties but they have to be astronomical. My hat is off to the Boys in Blue. Great Job.

Fun with Ray Guns:

Boeing announced that they successfully destroyed in flight a UAV (5 of them in fact) using a mobile laser system and tracking system. In a program sponsored by the Air Force the Boeing system is designed to be installed and used from an aircraft although for this series of tests the system was ground based.

Cool Pic here:

This is a system we need more of and I hope they continue to receive funding for this. The big Airborne Laser program (the 747 based ABL program) was recently cancelled by the Obama Administration. Scary, you would think these kinds of advanced systems would be welcome into our military's inventory but not so for the Obama Administration.

Here in the heading of You have to Start Somewhere: "Scientist Stun Nematode Worms with UV Phaser" Straight out of Star Trek. They did a lot to make this work and it was just a bunch of Nematodes but they did use a "ray" on them and that did stun them so, lets just say that more research is required. Next maybe they can build up a Proton Torpedo!!

And Finally, "Shocker Doesn't Arrive in Time for Lobster Fundraiser": The Child and Family Resources in Tucson Arizona annually sponsors a Lobster dinner fund raiser. PETA objected and the good folks at the Child and Family Resources negotiated to use the all new "Crustastun" which would stun the Lobster in a humane way prior to cooking. Problem though, the Crustastun was sent via truck by UPS instead of air by FEDEX (it's a Union thing you know) and never made it in time for the fund raiser. PETA agreed to allow the Lobsters to be dispatched in the usual way; death by boiling water. Oh well. If all those Liberals could get on the same page they might actually get something right!!

BT: Jimmy T sends.

234 Years Strong

Somewhere deep inside the Nawa District of Helmand Province of Afghanistan, my Son the Marine, I am sure is enjoying some Surf and Turf. Steak and Lobster: flown to his Combat Outpost especially for today's celebration of the Marine Corps birthday. I know this because I know how important this is to the Marines, to get to their men, no matter how remote their location may be, no matter how austere the conditions, they celebrate this day like no other service.

So, here is to those few, those proud, those US Marines. May we enjoy the Freedom and Liberty they provide to all of us for another 234 Years.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

Osprey’s in the AF

MV-22 Osprey's are in the AF. 10 aircraft were flown across Pakistan from the USS Bataan and are now bedded down in the capable hands of a Marine V-22 Squadron that was flown there without its aircraft. VMM-261 deployed sans aircraft while VMM-263 (REIN) was deployed on the USS Bataan with its full complement of V-22's. This is not unprecedented in the V-22 community, when the V-22 conducted its first deployment to Iraq the Squadron that initially deployed with the aircraft were relieved when their time in country was complete and they returned to the states, leaving the V-22 in country in the hands of a different Squadron.

The V-22 was designed to replace the CH-46E medium lift helicopters and has had a very dubious past. The Marines have worked hard to erase those bad experiences and putting this aircraft into a combat area will go a long way to proving that this system is worth the loss of so many during its infancy. Or it will show it to be the boondoggle that many think of the system overall.

I have seen these close up, I used to work at the NAVAIR HQ in Patuxent River Maryland and these things were a common sight in the sky. I was able on more than one occasion to climb aboard and look around. As interesting as they are to an aviation buff, I was shocked at the lack of armor to protect the cargo. Now, maybe this is common in combat helicopters and I know that weight is an issue in any flying machine, but the men and women that will ride these into a hot LZ are sitting on mere plastic. A scary thing for a parent with boy in the Marines. I am sure the creative ones will come up with a wide to ride them safely.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

Close to Home

In case anyone wonders why I rail against the CinC PresBO spending more time golfing than he does commanding this is it here:

PAINESVILLE – Lance Corporal David Baker was set to return home from Afghanistan in a matter of weeks, but on Tuesday (20 October) the 22-year-old Marine from Painesville was killed by an improvised explosive device while he was on foot patrol.

David was a member of the same Platoon as my own son. Assigned and trained both as mortarman of the 1^st Battalion, 5^th Marines. He was killed in the Nawa District of Helmand Province.

So, while the "Great One" dithers and does his political calculations, us Americans out here in the 'flyover country' bury the brave heroes who have paid with their lives for our continued freedom.

My Wife, the Good Mrs. T is there in Painesville to comfort another Marine Mom along with about a dozen other Marine Mom's from around the country a solemn duty, an obligation of caring and their Love for their Boy's.

Note: I couldn't go to the Viewing or today's Memorial because of the stinking flu but my heart is with David right now.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

Sixth Sense for Bombs

Very interesting article here (the video is only remotely related to the subject of the story) regarding the best method to detect IED's hidden in the road or along a trail, ye ole Mark 1 Eye Ball Detecting Group, oh and someone with background on how to use them. The article goes on to say that researchers have determined that Marines (and Soldiers too, but the research was done using Marines) with a background in hunting or in urban life are best at detecting hidden threats in the AF and Iraq.

In the first case, the young man uses his hunting skill to identify minute disturbances in the terrain ahead. In the second case, growing up in gang infected urban settings gives the Marine skills in using his peripheral vision for detecting threats that would be missed by those that spent their youth on Video Games. These tended to have a kind of tunnel vision and needed some training in learning how to use their peripheral vision.

The best troops were the ones who grew up in the rural areas; one unit in particular was the South Carolina National Guard unit. "They just seemed to pick up things much better, they know how to look at the entire environment." Said Army Sgt. Maj. Todd Burnett, the top enlisted man with the Pentagon-based Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization.

Its worth a read.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

Beirut Bombing, 25 Years Ago

Today is the 25^th anniversary of the bombing in Beirut, Lebanon of the Marine barracks by a suicide bomber. 241 Marines paid with their lives trying to bring peace to the fighting in what had once been the "Rivera of the Middle East" but had degraded into the mess that Islamic fascist seem to enjoy.

I was on the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower when this happened. It was a ships company assignment for me and I had only recently reported aboard (the 21^st in fact). We were anchored off Monaco when word reached the ship in the early morning hours of that day, all shore leave and liberty was cancelled and we executed an "emergency sortie". We left several hundred sailors ashore while the Eike broke all speed records to get off shore of Lebanon to provide the medical support that the CVN carries. We only broke speed to launch the occasional E-2 and pair of S-3's to scout ahead of the CVN. That big ship vibrated horribly but we pulled up and started ferrying doctors and corpsman ashore and wounded back in less than 20 hours after we departed Monaco. I gave blood twice in a 72 hour period along with a lot of other sailors.

The least we could do for our green brothers in arms.

Here is a link to the DOD's 25^th Anniversary Page on this event.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

News from Camp Jaker

Well it has been awhile since I gave all my regulars an update on SN2. This is the Marine Corporal who was deployed to Afghanistan back in May.

We have been able to keep track of him using the "Mom" network through Marine Parents dot Com. A great resource by the way, for anyone else in the same soup as us here in the Swamp. It's a funny think, I started to take notice of all the other Marine Parents out there; there is the Store Manager of the local Wawa store (she wears a Marine Mom pin), there are several of us that get coffee in the same store, I buy embroider shirts from another, and I have been more than once asked about the sticker on the back of my car. The two Blue Stars always gets noticed and the Marine tag is a giveaway.

Anyway, we missed a call from the Young Corporal when he called and we were in Michigan a ways back. He called the weekend we were in West Virginia moving the Daughter to her new work site. And then on top of that, he called but we had our house phone forwarded to the Daughters number so she spoke with him for 40 some minutes. She called us with a run down.

To say the wife/mom was a bit miffed is an understatement. But then we had help from CNN. When Anderson Cooper was there doing his week in "On the Battlefront" he was actually hosted in country by my Son's Company (Charlie Co. of the 1^st Battalion, 5^th Marine Regiment). We caught glimpses of the "boy" walking in Camp Jaker, another of him building up one of the Hesco Barriers (those are those huge sand bags that are used to set up their base). And then at the end of a long report there is Anderson Cooper interviewing an "unnamed Marine", it was Jon.

We were delighted to see him in close focus and even talking. He looked and sounded great. I did take issue at what he said and I'll quote here "as weird as this sounds this is actually a nice home". Now, I am thinking here about those words. The wife/mom on the other hand is so overjoyed to hear his voice that she doesn't even know what was said. I told her they don't paint "this place" meaning our house on Pheasant Lane as such a nice place. She did not understand. I explained as best I could, the long report by AC360 was about how bad the conditions were for our Men there in that awful place and there is our son saying what a nice home it was. Would not one think that living in dirt was an improvement; from what conditions did this boy come from? She did not understand.

Building up a Hesco Barrier:

Yeah, thats him. Talking about how nice a home this place is?

Look at that look, I mean from Anderson.

Still it was nice to see and hear him.

There was more info later on his movements, patrols that other boys of Mothers that the wife corresponds with passing on information reports. Tracking by data point, rumor and hearsay, but it works.

Finally, three weeks ago on a Tuesday night around 9:00 pm or so we get a call from an unknown number. Normally I would ignore the number but the area code was from the next county over, the one my In-Laws live in and I thought maybe it was them calling us from an un-programmed number. It was Jon.

Mom and Son conversed for almost 40 straight minutes; I listened on the speaker phone while she was on an extension. Him and I always do our own talking after Mom drops off the line, straight speak between just us men. It was a great.

He was tired as he had spent most of the night awake, having several fire mission early in the night (he is in charge of the Camp mortar squad) and then he had to take a turn on watch at a nearby over watch post. They have their main supply road under constant surveillance, the Taliban using the cover of night to come out and plant IED's. They now have these over watch posts all the way up and down the road so they can see and respond to these nocturnal activities. His previous training as a Squad Designated Sniper keeps him in those towers on most nights.

I did get from him the story of his strange quote. He laughed and said that his response was chopped from what he was responding too, that in the weeks before they were encamped at Jaker they had all lived on their feet. Their 'home' was where ever they sat down for the night, carrying everything on their backs. So, moving into Camp Jaker was a big deal. He also said that they actually interviewed him for more than 20 minutes. CNN only put up the one response.

All in all he was in fine shape, he has lost some weight but the care packages are helpful. The Vienna sausages I snuck into one of his packages were a great hit, as was the portable shower Mom sent to him.

No word from the Son-in-Law. Jon says his platoon was detailed to the southernmost edge of his Companies area of responsibility. So, we are still looking for word from him.

The wife/mom is already planning her trip to San Diego for the homecoming in December. Tickets already in hand by the way, never too early to buy them in her mind. And yes, I did caution her knowing all too well about military deployment schedules, but I think she wants to spend Christmas in sunny Southern California no matter what.

I will hold the fort down in the Swamp, with Lady the Princess Pompeian of course as my company.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

The Harvest of Hot Steel

The USMC is pressing forward with arming their KC-130J tanker aircraft with recent test flights of a kit known as the "Harvest Hawk". This kit adds an ISR and targeting capability mounted on one wing with a set of Hellfire missiles mounted on the other. This gives them some teeth along with persistent ISR.

The kit when installed does not affect the aircrafts ability to carry out its primary tanker mission. The ISR ball is installed in the after section of the massive pod/faring on the left wing. This pod carries one of the two refueling hose and drogue assemblies and the EO/IR gear is installed into this pod. A Targeting Sight System is installed into the cargo compartment of the aircraft. The carriage rack for the Hellfire missiles are mounted on the right wing.
I have circled the ISR Ball. This is a USMC Photo of a VX-20 Test aircraft. VX-20 flies out of NAS Patuxent River Maryland and is the home of Developmental Testing for the US Navy and USMC for a variety of aircraft including the P-3, P-8, E-2, E-8 and the KC-130's.

Plans are to 12 of the C-130J's the marines fly after flight testing is complete which should happen quickly. The Marine Corps Times reports that a prototype aircraft will be flying overhead in Afghanistan in November. This is a very smart thing to do; the KC-130's the Marines fly are busy in the sky's over the AF hauling equipment and personnel within that large country. They also provide fuel to the many Marine CH-53 and Army AH-47 helicopters. I am sure they will pass gas to the V-22 once it gets into the fight as well.

Boring holes in the sky will be a lot less boring with this Harvest Hawk kit and future plans call for the addition of a 30mm Bushmaster cannon in addition to the Hellfire kit. That is some serious teeth that I am sure the Marines are dying to try out on the scene in the AF.

Bully for them. I'd pack some of them MOAB BLU-82's on each aircraft too, you know just for fun in making big holes in the earth.

Read more here.

Killing Tango's should not be constrained.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

ROE in the AF – Killing Marines

A recent incident in Afghanistan reveals several items regarding the new Rules of Engagement (ROE) that Troops in contact with the enemy must comply. I had decried these rules when promulgated by General Stanley McChrystal as putting our Troops at risk to death and injury over the death and injury to the enemy. Here is proof:

"U.S. commanders, citing new rules to avoid civilian casualties rejected repeated calls to unleash artillery rounds at attackers dug into the slopes and tree lines - dispite being told repeatedly that they weren't near the village."

This was taken fromt he following story by the McClatchy Newspapers: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/227/story/75036.html

First: The Taliban can read. So, when these new rules were released they were made known to our enemy and with their analysis they contrived to use the civilians within this village as cover. Who out there did not see this coming? How many more times will this happen? How many more fine men and women of our Armed Forces will die because of this policy?

Second: Where is the MSM on this? During the Iraq war this kind of stuff was front page fodder! Anytime a policy decision by members of the Bush appointed military staff brought shame and discredit to that administration, matter how slight it was, the front page headlines were automatic. Not now with the Obama appointed gang, they can do no wrong apparently. And look at where this report originates; The McClatchy chain? Now, I have heard of them but they are far from Main Stream. Nothing from the Grey (two legs in the grave) Lady or the major TV networks. Nothing. Researching this gave me fits because I could only find references from other Blogs. It took me many jumps to get to the original story without a reference through another Blog. A sorry reflection on the state of Journalism in this country today.

Third: Who was it that said the way to win a war is to kill more of the enemy than they kill of your side? Here we allow the Taliban to 'melt' back into the country and in most cases right back into the villages they are fighting from. Where is the Napalm? I say smoke a couple of these villages and soon the natives will start turning in the Taliban just to prevent thier asses from being smoked in the fiery gelatin.

I realize that I have an ulterior motive and maybe I am being selfish, but if it keeps my son alive; all the better. We are at war and we should bring to bear all the steel, fire and death at our disposal in as dispassionate a methodology as we possibly can. Dispassionate to the Enemy and thier collaborators, if the poor are co-opted by the Taliban and they do not stand up against them, too dam bad. They can take up arms too and relieve us of having to go there in the first place.

I fear these four brave Marines are just the start of a long line of warriors giving their all to this narrow and deadly streategy where all the hoooks are on us and none on the enemy.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

UPDATE: The four killed turned out to be 3 brave marines and one Navy Corpsman.

Marine Sighting

I’m not talking about those huge mammals of the deep sea, I am talking the Lean, Green, Fighting ones!!
Watching Anderson Cooper 360 on CNN last night we caught a glimpse of SN2, he was hauling some hesco netting around with a couple of other Marines in Patrol Base Jaker where Anderson is reporting all week long. Anderson was reporting on the general conditions there and going over with different Marines about life on the great basil plane of Helmand Province. It was brief glimpse and we thought that would be it however, Anderson was suddenly interviewing the SN2 asking how things were in Jaker. Ah, he looked good. A little dark, I guess the Indian/Hispanic lineage from my family or the Italian from his Mother is kicking in and his hair was a mess. He had shaved it off back in April but it was in full porcupine mode, sticking straight out. And he sounded good too, you can tell from the voice a lot and he was in good sprits.

There was more in the interview however they cut it off to go to cover the President’s speech. Dam, just one more reason to hate that guy. Every time his polling numbers tank he rolls out the teleprompter and hits the air waves.

So, we wait to get the video when it is posted on the CNN website. But it was very nice to see him Live and in one piece.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

SN2 Live and In Color

Well, as of 26 August SN2 looks healthy. All those internet searches yielded three pictures of SN2 cooking of all things. And playing Chess. All the better, he looks healthy and in good spirits. Here is the official picture script:


U.S Marine Corps Cpl. Jonathan Taylor, with Weapons Platoon, Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, pours rice into a pot of vegetables at Command Outpost Cherokee in Nawa, Afghanistan, Aug. 26, 2009. The Marines are deployed with Regimental Combat Team 3 to conduct counterinsurgency operations with Afghan National Security Forces in southern Afghanistan. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Freddy G. Cantu/Released)


We are packing up care packages to the Boy's we have adopted. There are 8 that we send packages to including a Son-in-Law. It seems my Daughter married one of the Marines in SN2's unit. We were suspicious when this young man drove with our Son all the way from San Diego to South Eastern PA for his pre-deployment Leave period. They spent 4 hours at his home in Midland Texas and then resumed the drive to PA. I wonder what his parents were thinking.
Anyway, we ship every two weeks on Saturday.

If anyone wants to know what we send, let me know and I'll post a list of items that we send out.
BT: Jimmy T sends.

Plague of the Unknown

As you know my second son (SN2) is an infantryman in the US Marine Corps. He was actually trained as a mortar man and when needed he mans one of the 60mm tubes (the Mk 244 I believe, I was a swabbie and I leave all this hands on killing stuff to the professionals) but like all Marines, he is an infantryman (Rifelman) first. Back in May he deployed with his unit to Afghanistan and is currently somewhere in the Nawa District of Helmand Province. A hot and hary place. Lots of killing going on there and in other nearby districts, lots of IED's and various booby traps and mines left for the Marines to find.

Not a good place. I mean, if you were a Drug Lord and wanted to vacation there and see where most of the world's Poppy comes from then this is the place. But, not if you are a parent of a Marine Infantryman sent there to "Make Peace or Die" (which is the motto of the Battalion my son is assigned to).

We have not heard from him in more than 30 days and we are tense and of course, worried.

We have had many sleepless nights here in the Swamp (++). A couple of times a day, every day, I do a Google and Bing search for the latest of what is happening there in the AF. I also search for photo's and pictures that are released from either the military or the many news agencies that have embedded reporters and photographers. Looking for pictures or video of SN2, anyting that would show him and confirm to us that he is still Ok. I have found the occasional photo of his actual unit; sleeping in holes dug into the hard earth looking not unlike open graves, another of them carrying a wounded comrade to a waiting medivac helo, and another of most of his platoon strung out along a long canal firing their rifles at an unseen enemy.

Some nights are worse than others when we hear in the news or find a posting about fatalities from the AF. "4 Troops killed in Southern Afghanistan" was one such just this last week. There was little else in the actual AP report, two killed by gunfire and two more in an explosion, all Marines. We watch the street all day and night worried that the next car to pull up our street is the "Official Use Only" government car with a CASREP and a Chaplin onboard. New's this bad is always delivered in person. Late at night I lay there trying to sleep, I am one of those that hears everything when I sleep and when it's a car on the little road I come up out of snooze to DEFCON2. Which of my neighbors are still out I think, doing a quick mental inventory of cars in the driveways on the street, could it be someone out for a late night snack? Was it someone simply lost and was just going around to get back on the Pike and out of town? The car drives past our house and turns down the Rabbit Run. I return to DEFCON4, close eyes, sleep comes eventually. Until the next drive by that is.

So, for the next day or two I scan every little bit I can off the Web, checking for names on causality reports. These ones this last week were from the North Carolina unit and I feel relief, my eyes tear and I have to pause to control the emotions that overtake me. I weep not just for the loss of more fine Americans but because of the guilt I feel, because the names mean, they were not mine. Guilt. Yeah, the guilt from thanking god it was some other parents son that was killed. And I hope and pray for all the rest of them over there. Not just the Marines but the Army guys too. And yes, the many Navy and Air Force personnel as well, they all have skin in this game.

I know they all can't come home and my shame and guilt is that I don't care so long as just this one does.

BT: Jimmy T sends.

++ Note - The Swamp is the local term for the geographic area here in Pennsylvania that I live and Blog from. In a future post I will elaborate. JvT2