Quote of the day. May 7, 2011.

Lightning Commitment
"[The F-35] is our highest priority program. Air superiority is something we absolutely have to have, operationally, forever. And so, we're going to get that program delivered."
—Frank Kendall, principal deputy undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology, and logistics, meeting with defense reporters in Washington D.C., April 20, 2011.

Col. Morgan-real American hero... / Bell Helicopter...get a freaking clue.

Big Time Apologies to Col Morgan.

Big Time Hat Tip to SMSGT MAC for getting me the article and his citation.

Bell Helicopter get a freaking clue.

I ran an earlier post here, where I questioned what Col Morgan was doing at the Bell Helicopter plant in the context of the US Army about to run a competition for their next generation scout helicopter and whether his appearing in the video amounted to product endorsement.

Bell Helicopter deceived me.  Either intentionally or unintentionally.  The results were the same.

They used a real life American hero for an advertisement when he was there to simply thank them for their product that he used to save lives.

Excerpts from the narrative that accompanied Lt. Col. Mike Morgan’s Silver Star:
“His heroic actions and those of the aircrews he led were singularly responsible for saving American lives that were on the brink of being overrun by a determined enemy insurgents of numerically superior force.”

“LTC Morgan’s quick reaction, skillful employment of his and other attack weapon systems, and mastery coordinating multiple aircraft over a target simultaneously resulted in a confirmed three insurgents confirmed killed and an estimated 20-30 unconfirmed.”

“LTC Morgan, with his aircraft munitions expended, determined that American lives were at risk. He quickly decided to make two additional direct passes with his team, enabling his copilots to use their M4 rifles to suppress insurgents attempting to maneuver and over-take the pinned down route clearance team lead vehicle. His actions provided critical time and space to enable the vehicle to maneuver out of the kill zone and back to the north.”

Pure dee crazy.

I was reading the blog Bayou Renaissance Man (highly recommended...its a mix of just about every interesting news story you could think of)when I stumbled across this story that he posted on May 3 of this year.  I repost it in its entirety without shame.

Doofus Of The Day #472

Courtesy of an e-mail from Australian reader Andrew S., we learn of the shooting of an alleged armed robber - and an incredible statement from his girlfriend.

Mr Douglas was shot in a St Kilda street by officers investigating a stabbing earlier that night at the nearby Gatwick Hotel and police have since confirmed they are probing his connection to two armed robberies at Geelong post offices last month.

The Geelong Advertiser reported the 31-year-old was also arrested in February at the scene of a stabbing at the North Geelong commission housing complex where he had lived since last year.

Miss Tuck, who was taken into custody after Sunday's shooting and later released pending further inquiries, claimed her partner had no involvement in the hotel stabbing and had done nothing to warrant the officers' use of lethal force.

"I'm devastated. I loved him he's my heart," she said.

"How dare those evil police shoot an innocent man who just happened to be advancing towards them with a knife out? It's every ones right to stab people, how dare they take that away from us?"

"It shouldn't be like this. He should be here with me today."

There's more at the link. Bold print is my emphasis.

I could hardly believe what I was reading. Is it even possible that someone could say something so stupid? I don't know what to say about the lady (?) in question . . . except that she instantly qualifies for our latest Doofus Of The Day award!





Peter

(EDITED TO ADD: I note, on returning to the linked news report several hours after I first read it, that the statement in bold print has been removed: but if you read the comments at the foot of the article, you'll see that other readers also quoted it. It was there, all right. A more detailed report of the shooting may be found here.)

Wow.

Just wow.

Oh and WTF!

More F-35 News Sweetman won't like;)

The third production model of the F-35 Lightning II, F-35A AF-8, completed its inaugural flight on 6 May 2011 from NAS Fort Worth JRB with Lockheed Martin test pilot Bill Gigliotti at the controls.

F-35 passes 1st radar cross section test.

via Bloomberg.

The program office has collected radar cross-section information on the Air Force version of the aircraft and “we are very pleased, very pleased,” U.S. Navy Vice Admiral David Venlet, the program manager, said in an interview.

F-35- win
Haters- another loss

AAV's from the USS Iwo Jima on exercise. Photos by Petty Officer 3rd Class Z. Ecklund

An amphibious assault vehicle from 2nd Assault Amphibious Battalion approaches the well deck of the multi-purpose amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima . AAVs are entering and deploying from the ship's well deck as part of a joint training exercise.

An amphibious assault vehicle from 2nd Assault Amphibious Battalion departs the well deck of the multi-purpose amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima bound for Camp Lejeune, N.C. The AAVs are deploying from the ship's well deck as part of a joint training exercise.

A landing craft air cushion departs the well deck of the multi-purpose amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima before crossing Onslow Bay to its final destination of Camp Lejeune, N.C. Iwo Jima is en route to Norfolk, Va., after participating in Fleet Week Port Everglades 2011.

An amphibious assault vehicle from 2nd Assault Amphibious Battalion departs the well deck of the multi-purpose amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima. AAVs are entering and deploying from the ship's well deck as part of a joint training exercise.

USS Boxer conduct water ops. Photos by Seaman T. Welsh.

Amphibious assault vehicles from 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit approach the well deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer. 13th MEU is deployed with the Boxer Amphibious Ready Group as the U.S. Central Command theater reserve force, and is also providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

The amphibious transport dock ship USS Green Bay conducts flight operations in the Gulf of Aden. Green Bay is part of Boxer Amphibious Ready Group and is supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Amphibious assault vehicles from 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit approach the well deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer. 13th MEU is deployed with the Boxer Amphibious Ready Group as the U.S. Central Command theater reserve force, and is also providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Sailors assigned to the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer conduct small boat operations in a rigid-hull inflatable boat as the amphibious transport dock ship USS Green Bay passes near them. Boxer and Green Bay are part of Boxer Amphibious Ready Group and is supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Amphibious assault vehicles from 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit approach the well deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer. 13th MEU is deployed with the Boxer Amphibious Ready Group as the U.S. Central Command theater reserve force, and is also providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Old ideas dusted off as being new. The USS America as a sea control ship.

Sea Control Ship

I am amazed at how the flexibility of amphibious ships is now being touted as an idea to scrap another part of the US Navy. This time aircraft carriers.  What we have is another false choice being proposed by a group of thinkers that supposes the ability of the enemy to quickly and efficiently nullify a warfighting capability, while ignoring the fact that they are attempting to gain the very capability that they would have us relinquish!

But I digress.  This Proceedings article is all the buzz and all it is, is a rehash of the '70's control ship idea.

The thought that the defense community would be all a-twitter over this is ... AMAZING.  Here is a tidbit but read the entire thing.

In the meantime, the America-class big-deck amphibious ship has the potential to be a new generation of light aircraft carrier. At 45,000 tons’ displacement, she will slide into the water larger than her World War II predecessors, and larger even than the modern French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle. Designed without an amphibious well-deck, she will put to sea with a Marine Air Combat Element and key elements of a Marine Expeditionary Unit.
However, to view this purely as an amphibious-assault ship would be to miss her potential as a strike platform. Stripped of her rotorcraft, the America class could comfortably hold two squadrons of F-35B short take-off vertical-landing (STOVL) stealth fighter/attack aircraft. Such an arrangement would allow the naval services to dramatically increase presence and strike potential throughout the maritime domain. In addition, if the requirements were instituted in the near term, the new unmanned carrier-launched airborne-surveillance and strike (UCLASS) aircraft could be designed to operate from America-class decks with greater potential utility and distribution than what could be expected when operating from super carriers.

 That boys and girls is nothing more than a Sea Control Ship.  Nothing fancy.  Nothing revolutionary.  Simply an old idea dressed up.

USS America Class LHA