Friday, March 30, 2012

Whoa! You ever hear of these high speed Air Force guys?????

Airmen of the 820th Base Defense Group jump out of a U.S. Air Force HC-130P/N King cargo aircraft at Moody Air Force Base, Ga., March 21, 2012. There were a total of 30 Airmen who participated in the static line jump. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Douglas Ellis)
820th Base Defense Group.

Ok.  Color me impressed.

First I didn't know that the USAF had established a truly expeditionary Security Force that is able to sortie out, jump in and defend an air strip or base.

The concept itself impresses me.  The curious thing is that they don't advertise the capability.

These jokers have been around since '97!

Amazing.  Between this unit and the Red Horse guys the USAF is doing some things that they should be beating their chests and pounding on tables about.  Check out this passage from Wikipedia....
The 820th is different from other Security Forces Groups in that it is not on a rotational schedule also known as Air Expeditionary Force (AEF). The concept of the 820th BDG is to have a high operations tempo and be ready to deploy to any location at a moment's notice for extended periods of time. Falling under the 820th is the combat operations squadron. Medics, engineers, and communication specialists all fall under the 820th COS.
There are many different Army and non-Army schools 820th airmen may attend, to include: Airborne, Pathfinder, Special Reaction Team, the Close Precision Engagement Course (CPEC), Ranger, Air Assault, Raven, Raven B UAV, Army Sniper, and EMT. Since its activation in 1997, the 820 BDG has deployed in support of Operations Desert Safeside, Southern Watch, Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom, and Bright Star. It has deployed to locations such as Iraq, Djibouti, Cairo, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Hurricane Katrina (New Orleans), Haiti, and Pakistan.
The highlighted portion indicates that this unit is as close as is possible (within the USAF's force structure) to a version of a combined arms task force.  Of course you add in the fact that these guys are going to be protecting and theoretically receiving support from high performance jet aircraft and you're cooking with gas.

Next question is this.

Are they based at Camp Lemonnier in Africa?  And if not then where are they?

Critics can whine but production is ramping up! F-35B BF-12 First Flight

Lockheed Martin test pilot Bill Gigliotti flew F-35B BF-12 (Navy Bureau Number 168308), on its inaugural flight on 30 March 2012 from NAS Fort Worth JRB. The aircraft will be assigned to VMFAT-501 at Eglin AFB, Florida.
Critics can whine.

Cry.

Stomp their feet.

Twist facts to fit a narrative...but they can't keep production from ramping up!  

First flight of BF-12.  

If you're paying attention you'll note that the STOVL version is apparently receiving most of these production slots.

Can you say training to start this year?

Can you say IOC in 2013?

Can you say winning?

Oh and if you disagree fine.  D.I.L.L.I.G.A.F.?

Fitness in the Field...

via Body Building.com...
I hate to be the one to break it to you, but you're probably not going to get huge if your lifestyle includes sleeping in a different location every day.
The best you can reasonably hope for is maintaining what you have and bulking when you get a chance back at the FOB (Forward Operating Base).

Training - Muscle Gain

So, where's the gym around here? What, there isn't one? What do I do now?!
Make your own gym! You have to make adjustments to your training routine, but creativity can save you. Slow-tempo and plyometric bodyweight exercises may not be ideal for bulking, but can still offer enough stimulus to prevent catabolism for a few weeks.
When you're looking for something heavier or for different movements, there's no requirement that you must lift only a dumbbell or barbell.
If you have a vehicle or aircraft nearby, many have handholds, stowage bars, or horizontal surfaces you can grab. Use these for pull-ups (or partials) and bodyweight rows. If you're lucky enough to have a set of rings, a body suspension system or cargo straps, you can add bodyweight biceps curls, triceps extensions, bodyweight flyes and dips.
Resistance bands are a great investment! They're small, portable and accommodate an array of exercises to keep your sinew occupied.
A full 5-gallon water jug weighs approximately 45 pounds and has a convenient handle at the top. Too heavy? Drink a few gallons! Ammo cans full of sand weigh about 30 pounds. Use these for lateral raises, bent-over rows, biceps curls, overhead extensions, or for just about any exercise a kettlebell works for.
Boulders, logs and sandbags come in just about any weight you can imagine, both standard and metric. Biceps curls and overhead military presses are some obvious exercise choices, but don't limit yourself.

The good Captain pretty much covers all the bases so I recommend you read the entire article yourself.

No.

None of it is ground breaking stuff and its all pretty much standard Marine Corps wide.  Heck its pretty much standard Marine Corps AND Army wide.

But the best part of it is where he covers the nutritional aspects of things.  Unless you're at a big base, you're sucking down more MRE's than anyone could ever want...the key to that is to know what to keep, what to trade for and barring that...what to dispose of.

Oh and Body Building .com has some of the best prices on supplements on the net...Check his article out and the store...you won't be sorry.

SIDENOTE:

What I would like to know is if SOCOM does different workout routines while deployed than the conventional forces....hmmm.  Gotta find someone to ask...maybe Black Five has the skinny...

UPDATE:
Your body is an engine.  Stop putting bad gas in its tank...one month of clean eating will see you make more gains than over exercising ever will.  Fitness is 80% nutrition, 10% exercise and 10% rest/recovery.

Micro Protected vehicle for In Building Special Operations.

Man!

Just give me body armor and I'll take my chances.

I heard about this earlier this week and have been desperately searching for pics.  Luckily, Tamir Eshel of Defense Updates has the one available and the story...
Tata Motors unveiled at DefExpo 2012 the Micro Bullet-Proof Vehicle (MBPV), a small vehicle jointly developed by VRDE-DRDO and Tata
Motors, responding to new requirements set by the Indian elite commando forces (NSG, Marine Commandos, Para Battalions & Force One). The vehicle provides assault teams with protected mobility solutions, assisting operations indoors.
According to Tata Motors, commando units that have fought insurgents, terrorists and engaged in hostage situations in urban areas have raised the need for gaining protected mobility. Tata designed the MBPV for such indoor combat in mind, offering width, wheelbase and four-wheel steering enabling access and maneuvering indoors. High power-to-weight ratio enables fast and agile movement across obstacles, including climbing stairs. Ballistic protection panels and armored transparent windows provide protection for the combat teams, while firing ports enable effective retaliatory action.
It remains to be seen if elite units will actually ‘buy’ this solution…
I don't know if this is innovative or just plain crazy.  Either way its interesting.

UPDATE:

Phil recommended this offering from the Howe Brothers as a better vehicle...not for transport but to break down interior barriers etc.  The remote 50 cal weapon system is a bit much though.
 

Helicopters as strike assets at sea....

Thanks for the article Grand Logistics...

via the Grey Lynx.com
Some twenty-seven Lynx from No. 815 Squadron ‘went south’ where they operated in the ASW, ASV, VERTical-REPlenishment (VERTREP) and Special Operations insertion role. Many of the Lynx were hastily fitted with Sea Skua missiles, even though the missiles had not completed their full acceptance trials within the Fleet Air Arm (FAA). It was not only the Sea Skua’s use which was hasty, many of the HAS Mk 2s heading south with the Task Force were not uniformly equipped - not all had Sea Skua, while Electronic-Counter Measures (ECM), thermal imagers and MAD were only carried by a handful of aircraft. Many Lynx were fitted with door-mounted GPMGs for Close-Air-Support (CAS) operations and, though unofficial, the installation proved popular with crews.
        One of the most celebrated actions involved two Lynx from HMS Brilliant, which attacked the Argentine submarine Santa Fe on the 25th April 1982, during Operation Corporate. One launched a Mk 46 torpedo, expecting the vessel to submerge, which it didn’t. The sub was then unable lo submerge due to the circling torpedo beneath it; the Lynx attacked with their 7.62mm machine-guns eventually putting the submarine out of action.
        Further action on the night of the 3rd May 1982 saw HMS Coventry’s Lynx ripple fire two Sea Skuas at the enemy patrol boat, Alferez Sorbal. Two direct hits were scored from a range of 13km. In the confusion of the attack the vessel was struck again by a further two Sea Skuas from a Lynx attached to HMS Glasgow. On May 23rd the Argentine supply ship Rio Caracana received two direct hits courtesy of a Lynx from HMS Antelope. The Sea Skua was gaining itself an impressive reputation, leaving a succession of enemy vessels burning and sinking following Lynx attacks. By the end of the Falklands Conflict Lynx HAS Mk 2s of the RN had an impressive combat record, with one example even having a lucky escape when attacked by a pair of Argentine Daggers. Three Lynx were lost when the ships Ardent, Atlantic Conveyer and Coventry were sunk. A further example lost its nose when an unexploded bomb bounced off the side of HMS Broadsword - however no Lynx were shot down or lost in flying accidents despite the atrocious weather conditions encountered in the region.

Impressive...and a war record I was unaware of.

If you think about it, the one hole in US naval aviation is the lack of thought given to the armed helo in the attack mission.

Correction.

The anti-ship mission.

That's extremely unfortunate and extremely hard to understand.  The S-3 once had this mission set and with its retirement I assume that its been passed to F-18's.  That makes sense if you can successfully keep all ships at 150 or more miles away from your task force but that's an impossibility in any area in which we might operate in the future.  The straits of Hormuz are crowded and the same can be said of shipping lanes in the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.

A properly armed MH-60 should be as successful in this role as the British Lynx's were.  We have comparable weapons...the Hell Fire acting as a Sea Skua surrogate.  And the Harpoon acting as an Exocet clone.

We have the capability but not the will.  Time to get it done.

Too Funny.

Sorry Army...couldn't help myself.  via Military Photos...


Brit Apache's...

Two Army Air Corps Apache attack helicopters are pictured at the Army Aviation Centre Middle Wallop.
Designed to hunt and destroy tanks, the Apache attack helicopter has significantly improved the Army's operational capability.
Apache can operate in all weathers, day or night and detect, classify and prioritise up to 256 potential targets in a matter of seconds. It carries a mix of weapons including rockets, Hellfire missiles and a 30mm chain gun.Photographer: Peter Davies

Take a look at that potential load out.

19 shot rocket pods times four.

Theoretical mission....defense against small boats....

Loaded with 2.75 guided rockets....armor piercing and you have the capability to take out 76 small craft??!!

Helos.  Guided rockets.  Equal the ultimate in small boat killers.

Awesome! Norways Defense Dept makes a vid for the F-35!

 Many thanks to Endre for the link!  Keep'em coming Bud!