Good Thursday Morning
A little burp in the recovery Tuesday afternoon into the late evening in the emergency room. Took yesterday off to sleep and recuperate.
Regards,
skip
Today in Naval History
July 30
1918 Headquarters Company and Squadrons A, B, and C of the First Marine Aviation Force arrive at Brest, France, on board USS DeKalb (ID #3010), as U.S. enters European Theater of World War I.
1919 During an inspection by a six-man maintenance crew, the submarine USS G-2 suddenly floods and sinks at her moorings in Two Tree Channel near Niantic Bay off the Connecticut coast. She goes down in 13 1/2 fathoms, drowning three of the inspection crew.
1942 President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the act establishing WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service). During World War II, more than 80,000 officers and enlisted women serve in the WAVES.
1943 PV 1 aircraft from (VB 127) sinks German submarine (U 591) off Pernambuco, Brazil. Also on this date, TBFs and F4Fs (VC 29) from USS Santee (CVE 29) sink German submarine (U 43) in the mid-Atlantic, while (PC 624) sinks German submarine (U 375) off Tunisia.
1945 A Japanese submarine sinks USS Indianapolis (CA 35), northeast of Leyte. Only 316 of her 1,199 crew survive. Due to communications and other errors, her loss goes unnoticed until survivors are seen from a passing aircraft on Aug. 2. Four days earlier, she had delivered atomic bomb components used on Japan in August.
2005 USS Halsey (DDG 97) is commissioned at Naval Station North Island in San Diego, Calif. The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer is named after U.S. Naval Academy graduate Fleet Adm. William Bull Halsey Jr., who commanded the U. S. 3rd Fleet during much of the Pacific War against Japan.
Thanks to CHINFO
Executive Summary:
• Several outlets are reporting that two U.S. service members were killed in Afghanistan on Monday.
• Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition James Geurts warned last week that the window for innovating in Defense Department acquisition is closing, reports Defense Daily.
• USNS Carson City arrived in Lagos, Nigeria in support of its 2019 Africa Partnership Station (APS) deployment to the Gulf of Guinea.
• Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Va.) expresses concerns over the USS Gerald R. Ford advanced weapons elevators being further delayed, reports Bloomberg News.
Today in History July 30
1619 | The House of Burgesses convenes for the first time at Jamestown, Va. | ||
1787 | The French parliament refuses to approve a more equitable land tax. | ||
1799 | The French garrison at Mantua, Italy, surrenders to the Austrians. | ||
1864 | In an effort to penetrate the Confederate lines around Petersburg, Va. Union troops explode a mine underneath the Confederate trenches but fail to break through. The ensuing action is known as the Battle of the Crater. | ||
1919 | Federal troops are called out to put down Chicago race riots. | ||
1938 | George Eastman demonstrates his color motion picture process. | ||
1940 | A bombing lull ends the first phase of the Battle of Britain. | ||
1960 | Over 60,000 Buddhists march in protest against the Diem government in South Vietnam. | ||
1965 | President Lyndon Johnson signs the Medicare Bill into law. | ||
1967 | General William Westmoreland claims that he is winning the war in Vietnam, but needs more men. | ||
1975 | Teamster leader Jimmy Hoffa disappears, last seen coming out of a restaurant in Bloomingfield Hills, Michigan. | ||
1988 | King Hussein dissolves Jordan's Parliament, surrenders Jordan's claims to the West Bank to the Palestinian Liberation Organization. | ||
1990 | Baseball Commissioner Fay Vincent forces George Steinbrenner to resign as principal partner of the New York Yankees. | ||
2003 | The last of the uniquely shaped "old style" Volkswagen Beetles rolls off the assembly line in Mexico. | ||
2012 | Blackout in India as power grid failure leaves 300 million+ without power. | ||
21st CENTURY | |||
2003 | |||
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Thanks to Ed and Remembered Sky
1942- The Year of the Aircraft Carrier; Part 30 – Conclusion* or "Tales of the South Pacific"
http://rememberedsky.com/?p=4166#more-4166
(See links to the 6 Reflection posts below)
This serves as the announcement for the completion of the series 1942- The Year of the Aircraft Carrier, a two year effort focused on carrier aviation in the first year of WWII in the Pacific.
Since posting the piece on the involvement of USS Enterprise and the Cactus Air Force in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, it has taken me six months to finish. With intent for 2-4 pieces to conclude including an Afterword on the Marianna's Turkey Shoot graciously permitted by Barrett Tillman, I could not get comfortable with what I was writing. Short was not getting it and only after I realized there was considerable left unsaid on various operational threads that ran throughout the year could I move forward.The posts links provided below reflect these selected threads:
The nature of things as Guadalcanal ended;
Due reflection on the CVs of 42;
Carrier operations overall including changes to task force organization;
Fighter and Fighter Director issues;
Land-based air in support of Amphibious operations;
The beginning of Close Air Support by the Marines at Henderson Field.
Barrett's post as an afterword then highlights how much had changed as we went into the Battle of the Philippine Sea and on to stand off the waters of Japan itself.
This final piece borrows the title of James A. Michener's Pulitzer Prize winning 1947 book to emphasize a point. This effort was never intended as a book, or as a retelling in shorter form of the battles of 1942 in the Pacific. I'm neither historian, or author. I am though a great reader of history and if it concerns combat aviation - particularly Navy - I'm you're huckleberry! But digging in type reading uncovers stories, many that even interested people may never have had revealed to them. Case in point, I've been reading about the Battle of Midway forever - since I first read Walter Lord's Incredible Victory. But as I progressed, I realized the Guadalcanal Campaign was a vast almost unknown frontier for me. I had never really given thought to how interconnected and interdependent the land, sea and air components were nor that the tin-can and cruiser guys had roughly three times the losses as the Marines. Midway taught much about carriers but not all. Much was different at Cactus and much had to be painfully learned.
So Year of the Carriers is intended not for complete history but for the telling of tales. I've written much but borrowed much also. No footnotes or bibliographies here, but the sources are there mostly in showing the book covers and noting the historians and authors as I used their work. What a great library.
In summary...
For 75 years opponents of the U.S. have had to think and consider how to counter the US aircraft carrier and its airwing. That issue is obviously of concern today with all the cost, technology, and people on a Ford class CV. It is the basis for most critique on building U.S. strategy around CV's, and most certainly key to response for the Chinese build up in the South China Sea.
The attack on Pear Harbor accelerated the rise of the CV as THE capital ship replacing the long running top dog battleship. The British, Japanese and US had explored carrier operations in various forms for years, but it would be left to the Americans to take the concept of a large carrier raiding force to its full potential through employment in the four battles of 1942, learning how to support Marine amphibious landings, and developing the capability to back it up with underway logistics and forward-deployed repair facilities. The stunningly powerful carrier task forces that the U.S. Navy wielded in 1944–45 were as much superior to the Japanese Navy Kido Butai as the latter had been to the British Illustrious's solo attack against Taranto. Indeed, the shock and devastation of Japan's unsuspected carrier aviation capabilities in 1941 helped lay the foundation for an even more lethal weapon system.
The Battle of the Coral Sea set the stage for the Battle of Midway. Often characterized as a miracle or incredible victory, and even by many as the decisive battle of the Pacific War, Midway certainly changed the course of the Pacific War in that the loss of the four Japanese carriers turned the tide in the sense that the U.S. could now consider shifting from a defensive and raiding posture to true offensive action.
The Americans had fundamentally altered the raw numbers in the fleet carrier equation, and had also radically transformed the intrinsic power of the individual flight decks themselves. But the Guadalcanal Campaign proved there was much more to be learned in support of the Marine amphibious operations if the path through the islands to Japan was to be successful. The very close run victory in the Guadalcanal Campaign was, I believe. the true turning point. The Japanese lost the core of their pilot experience, could never match US ship building and pilot training and never went on the offensive again.
In learning the lessons in brutal combat American naval aviation became capable of threatening areas of the empire once thought to be off-limits, while maintaining a much higher tempo of operations than the imperial fleet could. So impressive was this cumulative leap in technology and operational technique that, in effect, the Americans emerged in late 1943 with an entirely new navy.'
But the lasting legacy is one of paradox - the carrier as threat vs as high value vulnerability
Carrier operations in 1942 were the beginning of a major capability which opponents must still consider remaining a vital capability not to be thrown out but also one whose loss would be very serious. And therein lies the basis for current sea-based combined arms.
Thank you for all who have followed and all who have provided such help and guidance. (Next up The Secret Squirrel Chronicles in the Testimony of Pilot series)
Thanks for considering (Sorry for length, BUT it is the end of the series, so wrapping up)
Ed at Remembered Sky
Note: I've never quite understood the metrics of blogs, but FWIW, the eight July posts addressed here have drawn almost 15,000 "people reached" via the Rememberesky Facebook page, and 45,000 "hits" on the website itself.
"1942" – Part 23 – Reflections (1 of 6); Guadalcanal Endgame
"1942" – Part 24 – Reflections (2 of 6); Fast Ships in Harm's Way – The Carriers
"1942" – Part 25 – Reflections (3 of 6); CV Operations
"1942" – Part 26 – Reflections (4 of 6); Fighter Operations
"1942" – Part 27 – Reflections (5 of 6); Land Based Air
"1942" – Part 28 – Reflections (6 of 6); CAS
"1942" – Part 29 – Afterword by Barrett Tillman
1942- The Year of the Aircraft Carrier; Part 30 – Conclusions* or "Tales of the South Pacific"
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for July 12, 2020 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
30 July
1909: The Wright plane completed its second test with a 10-mile flight from Fort Myer to Alexandria and back at 42.583 MPH. The speed gave the Wrights a $5,000 bonus (10 percent of a $25,000base price for each MPH over 40) and made the purchase price $30,000. (4) (12)
1935: Lt Frank Akers (USN) flew an OJ-2 from NAS San Diego and made the first blind landing aboard the carrier USS Langley. He later received the DFC. (24)
1939: The US regained the world payload carrying record when Maj Caleb V. Haynes and Capt W. D. Old flew the Boeing XB-15 to 8,200 feet with a payload of 15 1/2 tons at Wright Field. (24)
1944: VOGELKOP OPERATION. FEAF aircraft supported an amphibious operation, the landings on the Vogelkop Peninsula on the western end of New Guinea. Troops of the 6th Infantry Division met no opposition and began work immediately on airfields at March and Sansapor. Middleburg and Amsterdam Islands, just offshore, were secured, and an airfield on Middleburg was ready for fighters on 17 August.
1948: North American Aviation delivered the first operational jet bomber, the B-45A Tornado, to the Air Force. (21)
1950: KOREAN WAR. 47 B-29s bombed the Chosen Nitrogen Explosives Factory at Hungnam on North Korea's east coast. (28)
1951: KOREAN WAR/ATTACK ON PYONGYANG. Fighters participated in a coordinated attack on selected targets in Pyongyang. The 91 F-80s performing flak suppression, although hampered by cloud cover over the target, were successful as no UN aircraft were lost to flak at Pyongyang during the day. The 354 USAF and USMC fighter-bombers attacking targets around Pyongyang reported fair results. (17) (28)
1952: KOREAN WAR. Following extended heavy rains, 3d Air Rescue Squadron helicopters carried approximately 650 flood-stranded U.S. military members and Koreans to safety. Flying over 100 sorties, five large H-19s transported some 600 evacuees, while two H-5s carried the rest. In the I Corps sector, two H-5s flew over 30 sorties to rescue 60 flood-stranded Koreans and U.S. soldiers. (28) KOREAN WAR. Through 31 July, in one of the largest medium bomber raids against a single target, 60 B-29s destroyed 90 percent of the Oriental Light Metals Company facility, only four miles from the Yalu River. The B-29s achieved the unusally extensive destruction of the target in spite of encountering the largest nighttime counter-air effort to date by the enemy. The attacking bombers suffered no losses. (28)
1959: The Norair N-156F (later modified into the F-5) twin jet tactical fighter completed its first flight at Edwards AFB. (3)
1965: The 7-year Saturn I program ended with the launch of Pegasus III, the tenth success in as many attempts for this booster. 1969: Mariner 6 flew by Mars.
1971: The last C-133 Cargomaster retired from Travis AFB to aircraft graveyard at Davis-Monthan AFB to end a chapter in military airlift history. It fell victim to the jet age and the jumbo airlift capability of the C-5A Galaxy. This event ushered in the modern all-jet airlift fleet. (5) (18) The last F-100 left Vietnam for the CONUS. Its departure ended a combat employment, which began in 1964 and produced 360,283 combat sorties with 243 aircraft losses. (17)
1981: Through 9 August, MAC supported the Gambia evacuation. When Gambia's president attended the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana in London, leftist guerrillas attempted a coup. When loyal Gambian troops and their Senegalese allies were unable to rescue rebel-held hostages and quell rioting in Bangul, MAC sent two C-141s to Dakar, Senegal. On 8 August, the rebel force surrendered and released its hostages. One C-141 evacuated 95 civilians from Bangul to Dakar. (2)
1984: Modified B-1A number four, avionics flight test aircraft, completed its first flight at Edwards AFB. (12) 1985: The USAF Bomarc aerial target drone program ended. (16) (26)
1993: The VISTA NF-16 employed its multi-axis thrust-vectoring system for the first time in a flight over Edwards AFB. That system enabled the aircraft to achieve a 110-degree transient angle-ofattack and a sustained angle-of-attack by September. (20)
1997: Captain Dewey Gay flew a F-16C Fighting Falcon (Tail No. 83-1164) from the 62d Fighter Squadron at Luke AFB to history when he touched down after a 1.3-hour sortie that pushed the F-16 over 4,000 hours. It was the first C-model to reach the 4,000-hour mark. The feat took 14 years. (AFNEWS Article 970991, 13 Aug 97)
1997: The X-38 atmospheric test vehicle made its first captive-carry flight aboard a B-52. The subscale, unmanned X-38 shape was joint NASA Dryden Center and Johnson Space Center project to validate concept for a future International Space Station emergency Crew Return Vehicle. The space "lifeboat" relied on Lifting Body technology. (3)
1998: At Edwards AFB, testing on the C-141A Electric Starlifter came to an end. The joint Air Force Research Laboratory Propulsion Directorate and Lockheed-Martin/Lucas Aerospace testing program outfitted a large military cargo aircraft with electrically operated Fly-By-Wire, PowerBy-Wire flight controls for the first time in aviation history. The C-141A aircraft, assigned to the 418th Flight Test Squadron, flew over 1,000 hours in the program. It was the last C-141A in operational service. With the completion of the test program, the Air Force retired the aircraft to Davis-Monthan AFB. (AFNEWS Article 981113, 30 Jul 98)
2001: The DoD awarded Boeing a $485 million contract to engineer and manufacture an Avionics Modernization Program (AMP) and a separate $1 billion contract for aircraft modifications, support, and other services to complement the AMP enhancements for 519 C-130s. The program would equip the C-130 cockpits with flat panels, digital displays, multi-functional radar, and a state-of-the-art communications system. (22) AETC's C-141 aircrew training school at Altus AFB officially closed to end more than 25 years of C-141 training there. The closure came with the phased retirement of more than 265 C-141Bs. The Air Force, however, modified 56 C-141Bs with state-of-the-art glass cockpits and redesignated them as C-141Cs. (22) A crew from Minot AFB delivered a B-52H to the AFFTC for transfer to NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center. It would be converted into an air launch platform to replace Dryden's venerable B-52B Tail No. 52-0008. (3)
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This Day in US Military History
1916 – German saboteurs blew up a munitions pier on Black Tom Island, Jersey City, NJ. 7 people were killed. Damages totaled about $20-25 million. Now a section of Liberty State Park (along Morris Pesin road including the park office and Flag Plaza), Black Tom was originally a small island in New York Harbor not far from Liberty Island. Between 1860 and 1880, Black Tom was connected to the mainland by a causeway and rail lines terminating at a freight facility with docks. The area between the island and the mainland was filled in sometime between 1905 and 1916 by the Lehigh Valley Railroad as part of its Jersey City facility. By the beginning of the twentieth century, Black Tom was serving as a major munitions depot. Before the United States entered the First World War, American businessmen would sell their supplies to any buyer. However, by 1915, the British Navy had established a blockade effectively keeping the Germans from being able to buy from the American merchants. The German government, on July 30, 1916, orchestrated the sabotage of freight cars at Black Tom, which were loaded with munitions for the Allies in Europe. According to a recent study, the resulting explosion was the equivalent of an earthquake measuring between 5.0 and 5.5 on the Richter Scale. Windows within a 25-mile radius were broken, the outside wall of Jersey City's City Hall was cracked and pieces of metal damaged the skirt of the Statue of Liberty (it is because of this explosion that the Lady's torch has been closed off to visitors). Most of the immigrants on Ellis Island were temporarily evacuated. Losses were estimate at $20 million and seven people were killed. After the war, a commission appointed to resolve American claims against Germany was established. It took years before a decision was made, finally in June of 1939, the commission ruled that the German Government had authorized the sabotage. However, World War II interrupted any chances of arranging for restitution. In 1953 the two governments finally settled on terms that the German government would pay a total of $95 million for a number of claims including Black Tom. The final payment was received in 1979.
1941 – Japanese aircraft bomb USS Tutuila (PR-4) at Chungking, China; First Navy ship damaged by Axis during World War II. Japan apologizes for the incident but it does nothing to ease the strained relations between the US and Japan.
1964 – At about midnight, six "Swifts," special torpedo boats used by the South Vietnamese for covert raids, attack the islands of Hon Me and Hon Ngu in the Tonkin Gulf. Although unable to land any commandos, the boats fired on island installations. Radar and radio transmissions were monitored by an American destroyer, the USS Maddox, which was stationed about 120 miles away. The South Vietnamese attacks were part of a covert operation called Oplan 34A, which involved raids by South Vietnamese commandos operating under American orders against North Vietnamese coastal and island installations. Although American forces were not directly involved in the actual raids, U.S. Navy ships were on station to conduct electronic surveillance and monitor North Vietnamese defense responses under another program, Operation De Soto. The Oplan 34A attacks played a major role in events that led to what became known as the Gulf of Tonkin Incident. On August 2, North Vietnamese patrol boats attacked the Maddox, which had been conducting a De Soto mission in the area. Two days after the first attack, there was another incident that still remains unclear. The Maddox, joined by destroyer USS C. Turner Joy, engaged what were thought at the time to be more attacking North Vietnamese patrol boats. Although it was questionable whether the second attack actually happened or not, the incident provided the rationale for retaliatory air attacks against the North Vietnamese and the subsequent Tonkin Gulf Resolution. The resolution became the basis for the initial escalation of the war in Vietnam and ultimately the insertion of U.S. combat troops into the area.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
O'NEIL, RICHARD W.
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company D, 165th Infantry, 42d Division. Place and date: On the Ourcq River, France, 30 July 1918. Entered service at: New York, N.Y. Birth: New York, N.Y. G.O. No.: 30, W.D., 1921. Citation: In advance of an assaulting line, he attacked a detachment of about 25 of the enemy. In the ensuing hand-to-hand encounter he sustained pistol wounds, but heroically continued in the advance, during which he received additional wounds: but, with great physical effort, he remained in active command of his detachment. Being again wounded, he was forced by weakness and loss of blood to be evacuated, but insisted upon being taken first to the battalion commander in order to transmit to him valuable information relative to enemy positions and the disposition of our men.
OZBOURN, JOSEPH WILLIAM
Rank and organization: Private, U.S. Marine Corps. Born: 24 October 1919, Herrin, Ill. Accredited to: Illinois. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as a Browning Automatic Rifleman serving with the 1st Battalion, 23d Marines, 4th Marine Division, during the battle for enemy Japanese-held Tinian Island, Marianas Islands, 30 July 1944. As a member of a platoon assigned the mission of clearing the remaining Japanese troops from dugouts and pillboxes along a tree line, Pvt. Ozbourn, flanked by 2 men on either side, was moving forward to throw an armed handgrenade into a dugout when a terrific blast from the entrance severely wounded the 4 men and himself. Unable to throw the grenade into the dugout and with no place to hurl it without endangering the other men, Pvt. Ozbourn unhesitatingly grasped it close to his body and fell upon it, sacrificing his own life to absorb the full impact of the explosion, but saving his comrades. His great personal valor and unwavering loyalty reflect the highest credit upon Pvt. Ozbourn and the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
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This is a great history of the Guadalcanal Campaign put together by the Naval Historical and Heritage Command. Each different phase is detailed in the Gualdalcanal Campaign URL highlighted below,
From August 1942 through February 1943, U.S. forces sought to capture and then defend Guadalcanal from the Japanese. A planned amphibious landing turned quickly into a series of massive air and naval battles. The Guadalcanal campaign marked a major turning point in the Pacific during World War II, but it also revealed important lessons about the nature of warfare itself. Specifically, Guadalcanal showed how the old saying "the best defense is a good offense" can be rephrased to "a strong defense can become an effective offensive weapon." Of those who have studied the campaign, Guadalcanal teaches enduring lessons about the importance of integrating planning, training, and technology to generate options that confuse the enemy. To learn more, read the op-ed by Dr. Benjamin M. Jensen and Brig. Gen. William J. Bowers at the Navy Times.
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USS FORRESTAL TRAGEDY...53 Years Ago
thanks to Wimbo and Dutch
From Tom Wimberly Re Forrestal fire:
The account you published is the best I have seen. I was there; I was XO of VF-74 and was scheduled for the 1100 launch and was manning a VF-74 Phantom spotted portside, just about abeam of the after end of the island. My engines were running.
One of the comments of the below account mentions "many" of the casualties occurred in the berthing compartments just under the after end of the flight. It was not just "many" - in fact, 89 of the 134 deaths were from the explosions over those berthing compartments. The night crews of VF-11 and VF-74 were in those two compartments: VF-74's compartment was portside and VF-11's was starboard. 42 from VF-74 did not survive and 47 from VF-11 did not survive. In VF-74, survivors came to our ready room. Skipper Hal Wellman and essentially all the pilots were on the flight deck, doing what they could. I stayed in the ready room and interviewed every survivor who came to the ready room. We needed to find out who was accounted for and who was not. It was quickly apparent that our squadron losses were severe.
If anyone is interested, I can provide an Xcel file that lists all 134 casualties and tells rate and squadron.
If anyone wants to hear my account of the fire, email me at twimbo@aol.com.
I don't think I have seen either of the two training films mentioned. Where can I find them? I did see a film once many years ago which showed the flight deck, but the Phantoms of myself and my wingman were not shown. I was told that that particular film had mixed into it some footage of the Enterprise fire.
Wimbo
In a message dated 7/30/2020 7:17:33 AM Central Standard Time, flyboy@helndutch.com writes:
thanks to THE Bear -
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Daily World news thanks to Military Periscope
USA—Pentagon Reveals Details Of Planned Germany Drawdown Cable News Network | 07/30/2020 Defense Secretary Mark Esper has revealed details of a planned reduction of forces stationed in Germany, reports CNN. Under the proposal, 5,400 personnel would redeploy elsewhere in Europe and 6,400 would return home, Esper said on Wednesday. The reductions would cut the U.S. presence in Germany from about 36,000 to 24,000, below the cap of 25,000 mandated by President Trump. The European Command (EUCOM) would relocate from Stuttgart to Belgium to collocate it with the NATO military command headquarters. Three brigade-size headquarters, an air defense battalion and an engineering battalion are also slated to move to Belgium, said Gen. Tod Wolters, the head of U.S. European Command and NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe. An F-16 fighter squadron and two smaller support and contracting organizations will move to Italy, said Wolters. Plans to move 2,500 aerial refueling personnel from the U.K. to Germany would be canceled, reported NPR News. U.S. Africa Command might also move from its headquarters in Stuttgart. The moves would take months to plans and years to execute and cost billions of dollars, said U.S. defense officials. Lawmakers from both parties have slammed the decision, raising questions about whether the plan would move forward should Trump lose the election in November.
USA—Daniels Takes Command Of Army Reserve Army Times | 07/30/2020 For the first time, a woman is in command of an Army component, reports the Army Times. On Tuesday, Lt. Gen. Jody Daniels assumed command of the Army Reserve. She received her third star during the ceremony. She said her priorities for her term included restarting collective training suspended due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, modernizing the reserves to support the Army's new multidomain operations doctrine and retaining talent. Daniels last commanded the 88th Readiness Division at Fort McCoy, Wis. She has also served as chief of staff for Army Forces Command and held leadership roles in U.S. Africa Command and the U.S. mission in Iraq. She holds a doctorate in computer science and in her civilian career was the director of advanced programs for Lockheed Martin's Advanced Technology Laboratories.
USA—Army Eyes Common Mission Systems For Helicopter Replacements Aviation Week And Space Technology | 07/30/2020 The U.S. Army recently provided its vision for the development of new rotorcraft under its Future Vertical Lift (FVL) program to defense contractors, reports Aviation Week & Space Technology. In briefings to contractors earlier this month, the Army said it wanted mission systems for the new aircraft to be as common as possible. The modular open systems architecture (MOSA) should enable the service to rapidly upgrade payloads, subsystems and design rights to support a perpetual cycle of competitive bidding. Army plans to field the Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) and Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) as quickly as possibly by using only existing and highly mature systems on the new airframes. These initial Increment 1 aircraft would enter service in the third quarter of 2030. More advanced variants would subsequently be fielded in 2034 (FLRAA) and 2035 (FARA). To be ready to enter service by 2030, the Increment 1 platforms will be designed with electronics and systems that are available or set to reach a high level of maturity by 2024. More advanced systems still in the laboratory testing phase in the mid-2020s will be considered for the Increment 2 aircraft. To meet this schedule, the Army will need to establish the FVL Architecture Framework (FAF) to define the interfaces and standards for the common mission systems architecture for the FLRAA and FARA by the end of the year. The program schedule calls for choosing the FLRAA developer in fiscal 2023 and the FARA prime contractor in fiscal 2024. Limited user testing of production aircraft would follow four years after selection. The FLRAA program has benefited from work already completed under competitive demonstration and risk-reduction effort contracts awarded in March to Bell and a Sikorsky-Boing team, reported Defense News.
USA—State, Treasury Announce New Sanctions On Syria U.S. State Dept. | 07/30/2020 The State Dept. and Treasury Dept. have announced a new round of sanctions on Syrian individuals and entities, reports State. On Wednesday, 14 new designations were announced under the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act. The act, named after a Syrian regime military photographer who documented abuse in Syrian government prisons, was enacted last month. Treasury said its Office of Foreign Assets Control had sanctioned one individual and nine entities responsible for enriching the Syrian regime through the construction of luxury real estate. Mall and hotel magnate Wassim Anwar Al-Qattan, who has received a number of recent contracts from the Syrian regime, was among those sanctioned. The measures also affect son of President Bashir Assad, Hafez Assad; the president's cousin, Maj. Gen. Zuhair Tawfiq Assad and his son, Karam Assad; and the Syrian army's First Division.
United Kingdom—Troops Begin Mission Training For Mali Deployment U.K. Ministry Of Defense | 07/30/2020 British soldiers from several units have come together for the first time to begin training for an upcoming deployment with the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Mali (MINUSMA), reports the U.K. Ministry of Defense. Troops from the Light Dragoons Regiment and 2 Battalion, Royal Anglian Regiment, have completed two weeks of mission-specific training on Salisbury Plain, the ministry said on Wednesday. It is the start of months of preparatory training focusing on intelligence-gathering, reconnaissance, patrol and medical evacuation skills ahead of their deployment to Mali in December. The unit will form a Long-Range Reconnaissance Task Group, conducting patrols in Jackal vehicles to provide situational awareness and intelligence to MINUSMA.
Greece—Turkish Firm Wins Deal For Mini Drones Defense News | 07/30/2020 The Greek Ministry of Defense has ordered miniature tactical drones from a Turkish firm, reports Defense News. The deal, the value of which was not disclosed, covers 50 Proton Elic RB-128 uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) from private Turkish firm Assuva Savunma Sanayi, company officials said on Tuesday. All necessary licenses have been obtained from Greece, the officials said. Two of the drones successfully passed acceptance tests in Greece prior to the completion of the deal, said the company. The Proton Elic RB-128 can be used for search-and-rescue missions and detect underground bunkers, explosives, land mines and chemical agents. Greece is the first European Union and NATO customer for the systems. The system has previously been sold to the Chinese, Sri Lankan and Turkish armed forces.
Greece—Turkish Firm Wins Deal For Mini Drones Defense News | 07/30/2020 The Greek Ministry of Defense has ordered miniature tactical drones from a Turkish firm, reports Defense News. The deal, the value of which was not disclosed, covers 50 Proton Elic RB-128 uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) from private Turkish firm Assuva Savunma Sanayi, company officials said on Tuesday. All necessary licenses have been obtained from Greece, the officials said. Two of the drones successfully passed acceptance tests in Greece prior to the completion of the deal, said the company. The Proton Elic RB-128 can be used for search-and-rescue missions and detect underground bunkers, explosives, land mines and chemical agents. Greece is the first European Union and NATO customer for the systems. The system has previously been sold to the Chinese, Sri Lankan and Turkish armed forces.
North Korea—Anti-Ship Cruise Missile Test-Fired During Recent Drills Yonhap | 07/30/2020 North Korea fired an anti-ship cruise missile during its annual summer exercises earlier this month, reports the Yonhap news agency (Seoul). On July 6, an unspecified North Korean vessel fired the missile during drills in the Sea of Japan, South Korean officials said on Thursday. The weapon traveled less than 60 miles (100 km), the officials said. The missile firing was not previously reported. Officials did not identify the type of weapon used but indicated that it had been tested before. North Korea's regular summer drills began in early July and typically wrap up around August.
South Korea—Reservists Set To Resume Refresher Training In September Yonhap | 07/30/2020 The South Korean Defense Ministry says that refresher training for reservists will resume in September, reports the Yonhap news agency (Seoul). Annual training for reservists, which was originally scheduled for March but has been pushed back due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, will begin in September in a scaled-back fashion, the ministry said. South Korean men are required to complete one training session lasting one to three days each year for six years after finishing their mandatory military service. Reservists this year will instead go through a four-hour training program on a date of their choosing. Shooting is among the key programs that will be covered, said defense ministry officials. The military is also creating a trial online course for reservists that is scheduled to launch in November. Personnel who volunteer for the course will be allowed to skip the indoor portion of their training in 2021, the ministry said. This is the first time that South Korea has been forced to modify its training since the reserves program was implemented in 1968.
Japan—Raytheon Seeks Role In Missile Defense Plans Reuters | 07/30/2020 U.S. defense contractor Raytheon is lobbying the Japanese government to choose its radar system for planned missile defense projects, reports Reuters. The move comes as Japan is considering its options after canceling a project to build two Aegis Ashore missile defense systems. Raytheon's proposal includes integrating its SPY-6 radar as part of an upgrade for Japanese destroyers, three sources said. The U.S. Navy is installing the radar on its newest destroyers and will refit some of its older ships with the system. The plan is being offered as an alternative to an existing US$300 million contract with Lockheed Martin to build SPY-7 radars at the two canceled Aegis Ashore sites. Lockheed says the radars could be placed elsewhere or on ships. A defense ministry source confirmed that Tokyo is looking at multiple options. Critics of the Raytheon proposal note that using destroyers for the missile defense mission prevents them from performing other duties, as well as the expense of building new warships. Japan could also face financial penalties if it terminated its contract with Lockheed. One option would be to acquire SPY-6 radars for shipboard use and buy SPY-7s for early warning missions, sources said. A group of former defense ministers and deputy ministers are expected to make recommendations to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe next month.
Japan—MHI Inks Eagle Upgrade Deal With Boeing Boeing | 07/30/2020 Boeing has announced that it has signed a contract with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) to support the modernization of Japan's F-15J Eagle fighter jets. Under the direct commercial sale agreement, Boeing will provide MHI with retrofit drawings, ground support equipment and technical publications to support the upgrading of the first two F-15Js to the Japan Super Interceptor configuration, said a Boeing release on Tuesday. The value of the contract was not disclosed. Under the Japan Super Interceptor upgrade program, the Japan Air Self-Defense Force plans to upgrade 98 of its F-15Js with an advanced mission computer, a new cockpit and an APG-82 active electronically scanned array radar. The contract lays the foundation for the modernization program. MHI will develop a detailed modification plan for the jets and prepare facilities and personnel for work to start in 2022, said Boeing. The program is valued at up to US$4.5 billion.
Australia—Defense, Foreign Ministers Visit Washington For Annual Talks Sydney Morning Herald | 07/30/2020 The defense and foreign ministers of Australia and the U.S. have held an annual meeting in Washington, D.C., reports the Sydney Morning Herald. On Tuesday, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Defense Minister Linda Reynolds met with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Mike Esper. The sides pledged to bolster joint military projects in northern Australia, hold more exercises in the South China Sea and work together on missile and hypersonic defense technologies. China was a particular focus, with both countries accusing Beijing of violating international norms with its actions in the South China Sea. The ministers committed to cooperation on freedom of navigation operations and upholding the rule of law in the region, noted the Hill (Washington, D.C.). In a joint statement, the ministers criticized Beijing's efforts to subvert Hong Kong's autonomy through the recently introduced national security law and its repression of the Uighur minority. Other topics discussed included expanding the joint training exercises in Darwin to include other nations and creating a U.S.-funded commercial strategic military fuel reserve in the Northern Territory.
Brunei—Navy Wraps Up Exercise With Singapore Singapore Ministry Of Defense | 07/30/2020 A Brunei navy patrol ship has just completed a bilateral exercise with a Singapore frigate, reports the Singapore Ministry of Defense. Exercise Pelican was held from July 27 to July 29 in the Philippine Sea, the ministry said on Wednesday. The Brunei patrol vessel Darulehsan and Singapore frigate Supreme conducted interoperability drills, including coordinated gunnery, maneuvering and communication exchanges. There was no physical interaction between the crews due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the ministry said.
India—Defenses Beefed Up On Disputed Border With China Bloomberg News | 07/30/2020 India is moving an additional 35,000 troops to its disputed border with China in the Ladakh region, reports Bloomberg News. Unnamed Indian defense officials revealed the move on Thursday. The goal is to shift the balance of forces along the 2,167-mile (3,488-km) frontier but is expected to stretch the defense budget, officials said. Analysts said that continued deployments to the area in India's Ladakh province are likely to continue. The nature of the line of actual control has changed in Ladakh and neither side will pull back its additional forces until a resolution is reached at the highest political level, the analysts said. On Tuesday, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman told Agence France-Presse that the disengagement plan had been completed along much of the disputed border. A fifth round of talks between military commanders is planned although no date has been set.
Iran—Ballistic Missile Launches Trigger Alerts At U.S. Bases In Qatar, U.A.E. Radio Farda | 07/30/2020 Ballistic missiles launched during a large-scale Iranian exercise triggered alerts in two U.S. bases in the region, reports Radio Farda. On Tuesday morning, the ballistic missiles were launched at a mockup of an American aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf, reported Air Force magazine. An initial assessment indicated that the missiles could have been aimed at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar and Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates, triggering the alert and sending troops to take cover. The alert lasted several minutes and was lifted once the threat had passed, said a Central Command spokeswoman. The systems that tracked the missiles were not made public, but potential platforms could have included missile warning satellites and an AN/TPY-2 missile defense radar based in Qatar, noted the War Zone website. As part of the exercise, Iran also demonstrated its ability to launch a ballistic missile from underground for the first time. Commercial satellite footage taken of the mock carrier target after the drills raised questions about the effectiveness of the ballistic missiles. The photos showed little apparent damage to the deck of the vessel where the missiles would have struck.
Nigeria—14 Die In Village Assault In Kogi State Daily Sun | 07/30/2020 At least 14 people have been killed and six wounded in violence in Kogi state in central Nigeria, reports the Daily Sun (Lagos). On Wednesday, unknown attackers launched a nighttime raid on the Agbudu village in the Koton-Karfe local government area, said the state police commissioner. Thirteen of the fatalities were members of the same family, the commissioner said. An investigation into the incident has been opened. A longstanding land dispute may have been behind the assault, reported Agence France-Presse. Governor Alhaji Yahaya Bello blamed the attack on "criminal elements," which he vowed would face justice, reported the Tribune Online (Ibadan). .
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