Category: Politics

Reuters is reporting the United States shot down a simulated, incoming intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) similar to the ones being developed by countries like North Korea, in a test of the nation’s Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile system.

The successful test over the Pacific Ocean is significant, considering North Korea’s recent launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on July 4.

“The successful demonstration of THAAD against an IRBM-range missile threat bolsters the country’s defensive capability against developing missile threats in North Korea and other countries,” spox from the Missile Defense Agency said.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office, a federal watchdog, noted in a May report that the Missile Defense Agency had not previously tested THAAD against an IRBM, despite having deployed the system to the island of Guam, a U.S. territory in the Pacific, in 2013 amid concerns about North Korea’s missile program.

In the latest test, a THAAD in Kodiak, Alaska, intercepted a ballistic missile target that was air-launched from a C-17 aircraft flying north of Hawaii. A defense official said the test took place early on Tuesday.

This test continues THAAD’s 100 percent success rate, with 14 intercepts of 14 attempts to its credit since flight testing began over a decade ago.

The United States has deployed THAAD to South Korea this year to guard against North Korea’s IRBMs. This has drawn criticism from Beijing and Moscow, who say the system’s powerful radar can probe deep into its territory.

Earlier this month Moscow and Beijing, in a joint statement, called on Washington to immediately halt deployment of THAAD in South Korea, stating Washington was using North Korea as a pretext to expand its military infrastructure in Asia and risked upsetting the strategic balance of power in the region.

Ummm, no. Does “No” work for you, Beijing and Moscow?

 

 

 

 

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Tulsa World reports that a pipe bomb was detonated near an Air Force recruiters’ office in Bixby, Oklahoma at about 10:30 last night, No one was in the office at the time so no one was injured;

Federal Bureau of Investigation special agents collected evidence, including a pipe, from the scene. FBI spokeswoman Jessie Rice said they will attempt to re-create the pipe bomb.

Federal agents are investigating the possibility that the placement and detonation of the bomb was an incident of domestic terrorism. However, federal agents have reached “no conclusion” on the intent, Rice said.

Heavy reports that a witness claimed that a person on a red motorcycle threw the bomb in a backpack from his “crotch rocket”. Heavy also reports that the incident was caught on a security camera.

Thanks to Mick for the tip.

It is now the month of July, and according to Wiki,

July is the seventh month of the year (between June and August) in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and the fourth month to have the length of 31 days. It was named by the Roman Senate in honor of the Roman general, Julius Cæsar, it being the month of his birth. Prior to that, it was called Quintilis.

It also is the month Jonn has to pay the rent on this place, ’cause y’all know good things are’t free. Now I’ve gave Jonn some extra love today to help with the cause, and I urge you to do the same. If I may, please direct your attention to the amber donation button in the upper right hand side of the home page, and follow the bouncing ball.

Jonn, the Army SFC who jumped out of airplanes for a living, is too shy to ask. I, a Navy PO1 who also jumped out of airplanes (sans parachute) am not. So please, don’t hurt yourself by any means, but send some love Jonn’s way today.

Thank you,

AW1Ed

 

Fox News is reporting North Korea has wasted no time criticizing the US’s recent practice bombing runs in South Korea. Rodong Sinmun, the ruling party’s newspaper, called the act “reckless military provocations” after US Air Force B-1B’s dropped inert shapes during a Saturday training mission. These comments were reported by the state Korean Central News Agency, saying the activity increased the threat of nuclear war.

The exercise was conducted days after North Korea successfully tested a ballistic missile reportedly able to strike Alaska and Hawaii.

The Air Force, in a statement, called the mission a “demonstration of the ironclad U.S. commitment to our allies.”

The bombers, which can carry 84 500-pound bombs, fired releasing inert weapons at the Pilsung Range. The mission took 10 hours, according to the statement.

North Korea’s actions are a threat to our allies, partners and homeland,” Gen. Terrence O’ Shaughnessy, the Pacific Air Forces commander, said. “Let me be clear, if called upon we are trained, equipped and ready to unleash the full lethal capability of our allied air forces.”

Additionally, the US and South Korea will test the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system later this month.

 

Chief Tango sends us a link to the latest Gallup poll on Americans’ confidence in 14 institutions. The military and small business lead the pack, well ahead of Congress, the President, journalists, etc….

I suppose that’s why the journalists do there best to undermine confidence in the military at every opportunity.

Also, not surprising;

Republicans and Democrats essentially flipped their confidence ratings of the presidency this year. Republicans’ confidence surged 46 points compared with 2016, while Democrats’ confidence fell by 49 points. Last year, with a Democrat in the White House, Democrats were much more confident in the presidency than were Republicans. This year, Republicans’ confidence in the presidency is 50 points higher than that of Democrats.

For years I’ve watched from a distance as our military services struggled to bring forth a 5th Generation, Joint Strike Fighter. As with all new major weapons developments this one has had plenty of naysayers and numerous setbacks during its creation. Most of the criticism has come from former military pilots who could not envision any aircraft being able to successfully meet the needs of their own service while simultaneously doing so for the other two military services. I confess to having joined that chorus of critics when the air Force announced it would be sending the A-10 Warthog to the barn once the F-35 was fully operational. Like most who read here, my criticism was born out of a very limited knowledge of the F-35’s battle space role and capabilities. We grunts complained that we didn’t need a high tech fast burner covering our butts, we need something low and slow with a fearful strafing cannon like the Hog.

Well our complaints were heard and DoD put a hold on the Hog killers, ensuring it’s continued protective presence over our ground forces in current combat areas around the globe for a few more years while the developing Lightning II gets refitted to handle a strafing cannon. In the meantime the Air Force, Navy and Marines have continued to build their operational F-35 squadrons with those birds now rolling off the production line. Because the Lightning II is such a complex weapons platform, all three services are staffing those squadrons with their very best pilots and it is their evaluations of this aircraft that I have been waiting to hear. They are now speaking up, to the extent the government will allow them and what they are saying is that while there are still bugs to be worked out, this is the most amazing aircraft they’ve ever flown.

Back in February the Air Force hosted Red Flag 17-1, their hyper-realistic combat flying exercise at Nellis AFB in Nevada (I had a friend fly his plane into the ground when he became too engrossed in a dog fight). For the first time, the Lightning II was a participant and aviator eyes all around the world were fixed on the exercise to see whether they were right or wrong about this much maligned aircraft. Well, if they bet on the bird, they made some bucks. The actual performance numbers vary but only in a good sense. The worst I’ve read anywhere is that the Lightning’s kill ratio was 14 to 1in air to air combat while the official report is 20 to 1. Those air combat kills were accomplished while the F-35’s and their pilots were also managing the battle space for far greater numbers of F-15’s, F-16’s, F-22’s and even close air support aircraft of various types. I don’t know if A-10’s were involved but common sense dictates they should be.

And therein lies the rub, as they say. I think most of us ground-pounders envisioned the F-35 as just another fast burner with minimal capabilities in CAS. At Red Flag, due to their ability to fly undetected by the very realistic anti-air defenses set up at Nellis, they were the lead aircraft to enter the battle space where they destroyed virtually ALL the air defense positions, freeing the battle space of threats to the sorties of other aircraft following. Then, due to their ability to see the entirety of that battle space to a far greater distance and in far greater detail, the F-35’s were able to take stand-off positions where they successfully directed the other friendly aircraft to their targets while maintaining a protective air cover. The pilot interviews are universally positive, informative and reinforcing of my growing opinion that we just may have developed a winner here despite all the critics. I was particularly struck by a pilot from one of the two operational squadrons at Hill AFB, UT, who flew in RF 17-1, where he revealed that he and his amazed fellow pilots are continuously learning even greater capabilities of the aircraft as their leadership frees them to explore just what it can do. As those constraints are lifted, they are finding more and more to like.

The Marine version of this aircraft will be of particular benefit because of its vertical take-off and landing capabilities which allow it to be carried aboard amphibious assault ships and other smaller craft that transport Marine expeditionary units. Even if there is no carrier task force in range, any Marine landing force will have state-of-the-art air cover in the F-35B sitting right offshore no matter how remotely deployed they may be.

The more I learn about this aircraft, particularly from the young men whose lives will depend on its performance in combat, the more confidence I have that we birthed a wonder and not a boondoggle as the critics contend. Yes, it’s damned expensive but the unit costs decline substantially with mass production and at this time several governments other than the U.S. have committed to orders that could come to 700 aircraft in the next few years, and that’s in addition to the almost 2500 the United States intends to purchase. One nation’s imprimatur that impresses me is that of Israel, which already owns a handful of F-35’s and intends to buy a total of 50, and, no, I’m not Jewish. I do, however, have great respect for their military acumen and their pilots refer to the Lightning II as “awesome.”

Like me, I think they’ve been struck by lightning.