Good Morning on Tuesday the 10 November
I hope that you have a great day and say Happy Birthday to all your Marine friend
This Day in Naval History November 10
1775
Congress votes to raise two battalions of Continental Marines, establishing the Marine Corps.
1863
During the Civil War, CSS Alabama captures and burns clipper ship Winged Racer carrying a cargo of sugar, hides, and jute in the Straits of Sunda off Java.
1943
PB4Y-1 patrol bombers from VB-103, VB-105, and VB-110, along with British aircraft, sink the German submarine U-966 in the Bay of Biscay off northwest Spain. Spanish fishing trawlers rescue the survivors.
1958
The first permanent Marine aviation detachment afloat is activated aboard USS Boxer (CVS 21) to provide supply, maintenance, and flight deck control functions necessary to support the operations of Marine helicopter squadrons.
1959
USS Triton (SSRN 586) is commissioned as a nuclear-powered radar picket submarine.
Thanks to CHINFO
Executive Summary:
• National and trade press outlets reported on President Donald Trump's firing of Secretary of Defense Mark Esper.
• USNI News reported on the future of naval aviation from an interview with CNO Adm. Mike Gilday.
• Happy 245th birthday to the United States Marine Corps.
This Day in History
1493 Christopher Columbus discovers Antigua during his second expedition.
1556 The Englishman Richard Chancellor is drowned off Aberdeenshire on his return from a second voyage to Russia.
1647 All Dutch-held areas of New York are returned to English control by the treaty of Westminster.
1775 U.S. Marine Corps founded.
1782 In the last battle of the American Revolution, George Rogers Clark attacks Indians and Loyalists at Chillicothe, in Ohio Territory.
1871 Henry M. Stanley finds Dr. Livingstone at Ujiji near Unyanyembe in Africa.
1879 Little Bighorn participant Major Marcus Reno is caught window-peeping at the daughter of his commanding officer—an offense for which he will be courtmartialed.
1911 President Taft ends a 15,000-mile, 57-day speaking tour.
1911 The Imperial government of China retakes Nanking.
1917 Forty-one US suffragettes are arrested protesting outside the White House.
1938 Fascist Italy enacts anti-Semitic legislation.
1941 Churchill promises to join the U.S. "within the hour" in the event of war with Japan.
1942 Admiral Jean Darlan orders French forces in North Africa to cease resistance to the Anglo-American forces.
1952 U.S. Supreme Court upholds the decision barring segregation on interstate railways.
1961 Andrew Hatcher is named associate press secretary to President John F. Kennedy.
1962 Eleanor Roosevelt is buried, she had died three days earlier.
1964 Australia begins a draft to fulfill its commitment in Vietnam.
1969 The PBS children's program Sesame Street debuts.
1971 Two women are tarred and feathered in Belfast for dating British soldiers, while in Londonderry, Northern Ireland a Catholic girl is also tarred and feathered for her intention of marrying a British soldier.
1972 Hijackers divert a jet to Detroit, demanding $10 million and ten parachutes.
1975 The iron ore freighter Edmund Fitzgerald breaks in half and sinks at the eastern end of Lake Superior--all 29 crew members perish.
1986 President Ronald Reagan refuses to reveal details of the Iran arms sale.
1989 German citizens begin tearing down the Berlin Wall.
1997 WorldCom and MCI Communications announce a merger, the largest in US history up to that time.
2008 NASA declares the Phoenix mission concluded after losing communications with the lander, five months after it began its exploration on the surface of Mars.
2009 North Korean and South Korean ships skirmish off Daecheon Island.
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Happy Birthday to the Marines and Shadow
Double Birthday for me on every 10th of November… Myself and my beloved Corps share the same Birthday date. As you can well imagine, I've had some rather spirited birthdays… and in some far away and exotic locations. Various places around the world, like Rio one year… El Salvador another… Tokyo…twice in the Middle East… Ukraine and even Rangoon, Burma. With a few others along the way.
Had a friend one time that commented that it must have been pre-ordained that I would become a Marine since I was born on the 10th? But like most things in my life, it didn't start out that way. You see, I was brought up as a "Navy Brat"… lived on Naval Air Stations for most of my young life and like my peers, spent a lot of time making fun of Marines on the base. As Kids, we'd stand outside the Marine Barracks and and yell out loud things like; "Hey, you gonna join the Marines when you grow up"… Someone would respond… "No man!… I'm not qualified; my parents are married"! Then another time we'd yell out… "Hey man, what's poo sound like when it hits a fan"?… "Gyreene"! And then there was the classic joke about a sailor and a Marine walking side by side and they come upon Little Johnny and are amazed that this kid is sitting there playing with a pile of horse poop! The Marine looks down and says… "Kid, what the hell are you doing playing with a pile of horse poop". Kid looks up and says very confidently… "I'm making a sailor"! Now as you could understand, the Marine thought this was hilarious. The poor sailor is frustrated and bends over and says… "Making a sailor… why aren't you making a Marine"? Kid looks up and says… "Mister, you should know I don't have enough horse poop for that"!
One thing about being a Marine… it took some pride, hard work and a bit of ego to become a Marine… but it also required an awareness of that others, did not view us as we did our own selves. Their loss; didn't recognize greatness when confronted with it. Which brings me to a little true story that I've often told (Jim Lucas must have heard it a hundred times), about one of my most memorable Marine Corps Birthdays.
The year was 1975… the war had wound down and the 3rd Marine Air Wing, Officers Ball, was being held at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim. It was a Command Function… all hands attendance required; Dress Blues, medals, the whole nine yards… ladies attire was formal. Actually, I didn't like our Dress Blues as much as I did our summer Whites… a little gaudy I thought. Well anyway… the Bride and I made our way from Laguna Niguel to the hotel. As we walked up to the Porte Cochere in front of the hotel (In truth, I didn't know what the hell a Porte Cochere was, until long after I left the Corps. It was that big overhang in front of the hotel that protected you from the rain as you unloaded your luggage). Anyway… as we walked up, I happened to notice that my Squadron Commander and his lady were not far behind us and being a bright young Captain, I stride out in front to open the large doors for my wife and the Skipper and his wife (I wasn't dumb). As I pulled open the door, this elderly gentleman comes shuffling out of the hotel and stops. He looks at me in all my finery… White cover with gold braid, dark blue blouse with enough metal hanging off my left breast to give me a slight port list… my light blue trousers, with a red stripe down the side and my spit shined shoes… and after sizing me up, he says, "Boy, I need a cab to take me to the airport so I can pick up my wife". Holy chit… this old fart thought I was the Bellman!
Now I was faced with a conundrum… Do I go ballistic on this senile old man… who didn't recognize greatness when he saw it and was mistaking me for a damn Bellman… or just let it go. It took about a nano-second to calculate my options (F-4 pilots were quick thinkers)… and I quickly came to the conclusion that was best option was to have some fun with it… I walked over to the old man and gently took him by his arm and said, "Yes Sir"! I then turned and waived my left arm and did my best dog whistle imitation toward the cabbie cue… and promptly a cab pulls up in front of us. I open the door for the old man and as he slides in the rear seat, he palms me a five dollar tip! I close the door saying thanks and give him a salute as they pulled away.
I looked over and there was my wife, the Skipper and his wife… all with their mouths agape; for they had seen and heard the whole thing. I did an about face… back to the door and said, "Ladies, gentleman… right this way"! As the women went in, the Skipper lags behind and as he comes close he quietly whispers… "I don't fucking believe you did that"! I smiled, showed him the five dollar bill and said, "Hey not bad for thirty seconds of work Skipper, eh"? He just shook his head.
Yep… along with the self confidence and hubris it takes to be a Marine… ya better be prepared to eat a little humble pie, somewhere along the way.
True story, Shadow
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Thanks to Mud
A STRIKING NEW VISION FOR THE MARINES, AND A WWAKE UP CALL FOR THE OTHER SERVICES
OCTOBER 1, 2019
SPECIAL SERIES - STRATEGIC OUTPOST
Military planning documents rarely draw more than a yawn in Washington, but the new Marine Corps Commandant's Planning Guidance is proving an exception. Crafted by newly appointed Gen. David Berger, it lays out a striking new vision for the Corps — and jettisons a sizable number of long-held Marine articles of faith along the way. Berger's guidance is both hard-hitting and remarkably well-written, all the better for a document meant to be widely read and disruptive.
In many ways, the planning guidance responds to growing turbulence inside the Marine Corps. Since 2001, marines have served as the nation's second land army in Afghanistan and then Iraq, organized crisis response task forces, and forged a special operations component, while still clinging tightly to their historic mission of large-scale amphibious landings. These widely divergent directions have led some marines to question their identity, with one even arguing that the service suffers from a multiple personality disorder. Thinkers both inside and outside the Corps have called on senior Marine leaders to help redefine its central purpose.
The new guidance responds to those concerns by charting a distinctively new course for the Marine Corps. Berger clearly states what will not change: It will remain the nation's elite force-in-readiness. Yet he is remarkably candid about the aspects of his service that must change, be newly developed, or be thrown overboard. He will unquestionably face an uphill struggle in implementing this vision — confronting the many years that the Marine Corps has invested in counter-insurgency conflicts, shrinking resources, and entrenched bureaucratic interests in the Pentagon and defense industry. But if he succeeds, he will have boldly transformed his organization for the very real challenges of the future. His vision creates some challenges for the other services in terms of roles and missions, but it should nevertheless catalyze their efforts to create equally far-sighted future guidance.
So What's New for the Marine Corps?
The Marines Will Focus on Naval Operations Once Again
Berger correctly argues that future adversaries will be increasingly able to contest and even deny access to the maritime domain, where the United States has long held unchallenged superiority. He therefore intends to overhaul the Marine Corps so that it can operate inside this contested space during a major maritime fight. The planning guidance specifically rejects the notion that the Marine Corps is a standalone fighting force that the Navy simply supports with sea transport, aair power, and logistics. Instead, Berger plans to forge a tight, supporting partnership with the Navy, making the Marines an essential component of all forms of naval warfare. He intends to detail more marines to Navy ships and staffs, assign more Marine forces to the fleet, and integrate Marine Corps officers into all elements of Navy planning. All newly minted Marine flag officers will even be required to attend the Navy's course on joint maritime operations. This will be an immense conceptual and cultural change for the Corps, since expeditionary naval warfare has not been the central mission of the service since it pioneered its amphibious role during World War II in the Pacific.
The Marines Will Focus Primarily on the Pacific
Berger repeatedly highlights the growing military threat posed by China, especially its sea denial capabilities. In response, he explicitly reallocates Marine forces away from the Middle East and other combatant commands, to double down in the Pacific. The III Marine Expeditionary Force "will become our main focus-of-effort," he writes, and will solely support the commanders of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and the Navy's 7th Fleet. The I Marine Expeditionary Force will also focus on the region and the 3rd Fleet. Though the regimental-sized 7th Marines will continue to support operations in the Middle East, Berger directly states that the Marine Corps will "increasingly accept risk" as far as I Marine Expeditionary Force's "habitual relationship" with Central Command is concerned. Beyond the Pacific, II Marine Expeditionary Force will focus on supporting operations in Europe and the Atlantic, which is consistent with the 2018 National Defense Strategy's focus on Russia as the other major competitor with the United States.
The Marines Will Fight Differently
Berger goes far beyond the other service chiefs in describing how existing doctrine, weapons, and operational concepts are no longer adequate for the wars of the future, especially given the ever-growing threat from anti-access and area denial capabilities. Since marines will have to operate within the range of proliferating enemy precision fires, they will need to disperse into small units to avoid being targeted. This will require many new capabilities, including high-endurance loitering sensors and munitions, communications and radars with a low probability of intercept and detection, and advanced air defense systems. Berger wants the Marine Corps to develop precision land-based fires with ranges beyond 350 nautical miles, to attack moving targets afloat and ashore. The new guidance also notes that the Corps has already started experimenting with novel ways to use existing capabilities, such as basing up to 20 F-35B aircraft (which have short takeoff and vertical landing capabilities) on big-deck amphibious ships to provide more dispersed and survivable air power to the Navy. These changes will revolutionize how marines fight throughout the remainder of this century.
The Marines Need Fewer Amphibs, More Unmanned Systems, and Possibly Fewer Marines
Berger argues that large and expensive manned platforms will become ever more exposed to attack and will make marines ever more vulnerable by concentrating them in too few places. Instead, in a pointed phrase that should apply to all of the services, he stresses that the Marine Corps "must continue to seek the affordable and plentiful at the expense of the exquisite and few." This suggests that the Marine Corps needs a greater number of smaller and more specialized ships, as well as "an array of low-signature, affordable, and risk-worthy [read: unmanned and expendable] platforms and payloads." How does Berger plan to pay for all this? He frankly states that he is willing to trade Marine force structure for modernization dollars, which would inevitably shrink the size of his service. Berger's powers of persuasion will be tested by skeptics in the ranks, by Congress, and, when it comes to reducing the number of large amphibious ships, by the defense industry as well.
Marines Should Have More Freedom to Do Their Jobs
Since the threat environment will require increasingly distributed operations, Berger wants combined arms operations to be pushed from infantry companies down to individual rifle squads and reconnaissance teams. That means an even greater emphasis on mission command, a flexible philosophy that trusts subordinates to take a great deal of initiative to achieve their commander's intent. The commandant's guidance therefore stresses doing everything possible to ensure that marines focus on war fighting instead of an excessive number of administrative tasks, like basic data entry and redundant processes. Even more importantly, however, Berger strongly warns against the corrosive effects of commanders who impose too much rigidity on their subordinates while training at home. All of the services face some version of this pernicious problem (as we've previously noted about the Army). Berger deserves credit for identifying it so clearly and stressing how much it undermines effective war fighting.
Marine Culture Is Changing, But Not Enough
While every marine is still expected to be a rifleman, Berger's guidance makes clear that the exclusive dominance of infantry and aviation inside the Marine Corps is slowly ebbing. Throughout the planning guidance, Berger highlights the growing war fighting contributions of marines who are not on the front line. He also takes on the deeply egalitarian ethos of the Corps, which holds that all marines are elite, by repeatedly insisting upon the need to single out and reward top performers while simultaneously ushering out those who do not measure up.
Though Berger states that there is no place in the Marine Corps for those who are "intolerant of their fellow Marines' gender or sexual orientation," he otherwise skirts the central cultural challenge of the Marine Corps: fully integrating women into every corner of its warrior culture. The Corps continues to pose the greatest cultural barriers to female service members taking on a full range of roles, especially in ground combat units. Only the Marines still run gender-segregated initial entry training, which sends a message to all marines that there are different expectations for women, and which perpetuates disparities throughout the service. Until the Corps honestly addresses this fundamental cultural issue, it will continue to deprive itself of a sizable portion of the nation's most talented citizens — and fall short of fully living up to its core values of honor, courage, and commitment. (The cover of the document takes a small step forward on this, featuring a female Marine battalion commander marching in front of her troops.)
Implications for the Other Services and Special Operations Forces
The commandant's guidance provides a revolutionary new direction for the Marine Corps, but it also presents some serious challenges to the other services as they prepare for the future fight. Berger's plans to reshape the Corps will open up some new roles-and-missions issues that might chafe some of his fellow chiefs.
The Air Force
The Air Force should draw two key lessons from Berger's new guidance. First, and most importantly, it needs to follow Berger's lead in moving away from expensive, exquisite legacy platforms, and shift more rapidly toward far bigger investment in large numbers of cheap, unmanned, and expendable systems for a major war. As Chris Brose notes, the Air Force is deeply over-invested in short-range manned tactical fighters. The Air Force desperately needs to reduce its F-35 buy and start procuring smaller, unmanned, and eventually largely autonomous aircraft, just as Berger plans to do for amphibious shipping and watercraft. Second, the Air Force needs to partner closely with the Marine Corps to better integrate their operating concepts for a major war in the Pacific. Air Force leaders should increasingly plan to work with — and perhaps even rely upon — the Marine Corps for missions to seize and protect advanced bases, provide elements of air defense, and conduct long-range fires against enemy platforms that threaten air operations. Increasingly dispersed Marine rifle squads and recon teams should also be authorized to call in Air Force strikes — though this would pose a severe cultural challenge to the Air Force, which has long resisted permitting any strikes that are not directed by an Air Force controller or qualified aviator.
The Army
Berger wants the Marine Corps to be the most agile, flexible, and mobile ground force in the Pacific — which the Army will see as a threat to its evolving role in the theater. His guidance directly challenges how the Army plans to conduct multi-domain operations in a future conflict with China, and essentially relegates the Army's role in the Pacific to defending the Korean peninsula. The Army will likely push back hard against Berger's plans to develop land-based long-range fires, since that has long been an Army mission. Then-Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley frequently stressed the need to disperse soldiers on the battlefield, just as the Marine Corps guidance does. But Berger's plans to provide greater independence and combined arms capabilities down to Marine squads should push the Army to accelerate its thinking in this direction. The Army should also take a page from the planning guidance and add greater uncertainty and battlefield-like chaos into garrison life, since its culture of over-engineered planning often produces initiative-killing directions (such as a 21-page order with annexes for an annual event to clean up trash and pine cones at Fort Bragg.)
The Navy
Although the Navy will surely welcome the return of the Marines as full partners in naval warfare, Berger's sharp critique of big, expensive legacy platforms deeply undercuts current Navy shipbuilding priorities. Berger sees the need for platforms that are small, plentiful, specialized, and unmanned or minimally manned so that naval forces can continue to operate effectively inside the contested zone even if they absorb substantial losses. Yet the Navy's shipbuilding program remains heavily weighted in the other direction, producing small numbers of highly capable but staggeringly expensive multipurpose ships (including a Ford-class carrier, three Virginia-class submarines, and three Burke-class destroyers in 2020 alone). These large, densely manned platforms are becoming far too valuable to be risked in a contested zone dominated by adversary anti-access and area denial defenses. Berger's guidance may already be contributing to a shift in the Navy's 2019 Force Structure Assessment, which should be out by the end of the year. Early reports suggest that entirely new types of ships may be added, such as large unmanned surface ships and submarines. Whether the Navy (and Congress) is prepared to cancel or reduce any significant number of its long-planned billion-dollar warships to resource this transformative shift is another question.
Special Operations Forces
Berger's vision of dispersed, small-unit operations closely resembles how special operations forces operate today. As the new guidance is implemented, the Marine Corps and U.S. Special Operations Command should increasingly work together to develop new operational concepts and capabilities — including weapons, communications gear, intelligence systems, and insertion platforms. But Berger also needs to learn an important lesson from special operations forces about what distributed operations require. Special operators routinely conduct highly independent missions characterized by high risk, great agility, and little oversight. In order to do so effectively, they are nearly always older than conventional troops, trained for much longer periods, and carefully screened for maturity and psychological toughness. But today, the Marine Corps (and the Army) typically puts its youngest and least-experienced people at the cutting edge of the battlefield. Berger's vision may require the Corps to rethink its model of fighting primarily with 18-year-old marines — which would be another culture-shattering challenge for the 21st-century Marine Corps.
A Catalyst for Change Across the Services?
Berger has produced a remarkable set of guidance that will influence the direction of the Marine Corps for years to come. His incisive thinking and willingness to publicly take on his service's long-held sacrosanct dogmas demonstrates fresh thinking, candor, and unusual courage. His clear guidance for the Marines should push the other service chiefs to be equally honest and to issue similarly bold and transformative guidance for their own forces. If Berger's groundbreaking effort helps nudge the rest of the military into more realistic thinking about war in the 21st century, it will have served an even more important purpose than reshaping the Marine Corps.
Lt. Gen. David W. Barno, U.S. Army (Ret.) and Dr. Nora Bensahel are Visiting Professors of Strategic Studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and Senior Fellows at the Philip Merrill Center for Strategic Studies. They are also Contributing Editors at War on the Rocks, where their column appears monthly. Sign up for Barno and Bensahel's Strategic Outpost newsletter to track their articles as well as their public events.
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This Day in U S Military History
1775 – During the American Revolution, the Continental Congress passes a resolution stating that "two Battalions of Marines be raised" for service as landing forces for the recently formed Continental Navy. The resolution, drafted by future U.S. president John Adams and adopted in Philadelphia, created the Continental Marines and is now observed as the birth date of the United States Marine Corps. Serving on land and at sea, the original U.S. Marines distinguished themselves in a number of important operations during the Revolutionary War. The first Marine landing on a hostile shore occurred when a force of Marines under Captain Samuel Nicholas captured New Province Island in the Bahamas from the British in March 1776. Nicholas was the first commissioned officer in the Continental Marines and is celebrated as the first Marine commandant. After American independence was achieved in 1783, the Continental Navy was demobilized and its Marines disbanded. In the next decade, however, increasing conflict at sea with Revolutionary France led the U.S. Congress to establish formally the U.S. Navy in May 1798. Two months later, on July 11, President John Adams signed the bill establishing the U.S. Marine Corps as a permanent military force under the jurisdiction of the Department of Navy. U.S. Marines saw action in the so-called Quasi-War with France and then fought against the Barbary pirates of North Africa during the first years of the 19th century. Since then, Marines have participated in all the wars of the United States and in most cases were the first soldiers to fight. In all, Marines have executed more than 300 landings on foreign shores. Today, there are more than 200,000 active-duty and reserve Marines, divided into three divisions stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina; Camp Pendleton, California; and Okinawa, Japan. Each division has one or more expeditionary units, ready to launch major operations anywhere in the world on two weeks' notice. Marines expeditionary units are self-sufficient, with their own tanks, artillery, and air forces. The motto of the service is Semper Fidelis, meaning "Always Faithful" in Latin.
1808 – In a decision that would eventually make them one of the wealthiest surviving Indian nations, the Osage Indians agree to abandon their lands in Missouri and Arkansas in exchange for a reservation in Oklahoma. The Osage were the largest tribe of the Southern Sioux Indians occupying what would later become the states of Missouri, Kansas, and Nebraska. When the first Anglo explorers and settlers moved into this region, they encountered a sophisticated society of Native Americans who lived in more or less permanent villages made of sturdy earthen and log lodges. The Osage-like the related Quapaw, Ponca, Omaha, and Kansa peoples-hunted buffalo and wild game like the Plains Indians, but they also raised crops to supplement their diets. Although the Southern Sioux warred among themselves almost constantly, Americans found it much easier to understand and negotiate with these more sedentary tribes than with the nomadic Northern Sioux. American negotiators convinced the Osage to abandon their traditional lands and peacefully move to a reservation in southern Kansas in 1810. When American settlers began to covet the Osage reservation in Kansas, the tribe agreed to yet another move, relocating to what is now Osage County, Oklahoma, in 1872. Such constant pressure from American settlers to push Native Americans off valuable lands and onto marginal reservations was all too common throughout the history of western settlement. Most Indian tribes were devastated by these relocations, including some of the Southern Sioux tribes like the Kansa, whose population of 1,700 was reduced to only 194 following their disastrous relocation to a 250,000-acre reservation in Kansas. The Osage, though, proved unusually successful in adapting to the demands of living in a world dominated by Anglo-Americans, thanks in part to the fortunate presence of large reserves of oil and gas on their Oklahoma reservation. In concert with their effective management of grazing contracts to Anglos, the Osage amassed enormous wealth during the twentieth century from their oil and gas deposits, eventually becoming the wealthiest tribe in North America.
1918 – The Western Union Cable Office in North Sydney, Nova Scotia, receives a top-secret coded message from Europe (that would be sent to Ottawa and Washington, D.C.) that said on November 11, 1918, all fighting would cease on land, sea and in the air.
1942 – On Guadalcanal, the Japanese forces around Koli Point are dispersed by the American attacks. American attacks to the west are renewed.
1964 – At a news conference, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara says that the United States has no plans to send combat troops into Vietnam. When asked whether the United States intended to increase its activities in Vietnam, he replied, "Wait and see." By 1969, more than 500,000 American troops were in South Vietnam.
1970 – For the first time in five years, no U.S. combat fatalities in Southeast Asia are reported for the previous week. This was a direct result of President Richard Nixon's Vietnamization program, whereby the responsibility for the war was slowly shifted from U.S. combat forces to the South Vietnamese. This effort began in 1969 and was accompanied by U.S. troop withdrawals that began in the fall of that year. Although American casualties were down, U.S. forces were still involved in significant combat operations at this time.
1983 – Bill Gates introduces Windows 1.0.
2006 – The National Museum of the Marine Corps is opened and dedicated by U.S. President George W. Bush and announces that Marine Corporal Jason Dunham will receive the Medal of Honor in Quantico, Virginia.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
BRITT, MAURICE L.
Rank and organization: Captain (then Lieutenant), U.S. Army, 3d Infantry Division. Place and date: North of Mignano, Italy, 10 November 1943. Entered service at: Lonoke, Ark. Born: 29 June 1919, Carlisle, Ark. G.O. No.: 23, 24 March 1944. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Disdaining enemy hand grenades and close-range machine pistol, machinegun, and rifle, Lt. Britt inspired and led a handful of his men in repelling a bitter counterattack by approximately 100 Germans against his company positions north of Mignano, Italy, the morning of 10 November 1943. During the intense fire fight, Lt. Britt's canteen and field glasses were shattered; a bullet pierced his side; his chest, face, and hands were covered with grenade wounds. Despite his wounds, for which he refused to accept medical attention until ordered to do so by his battalion commander following the battle, he personally killed 5 and wounded an unknown number of Germans, wiped out one enemy machinegun crew, fired 5 clips of carbine and an undetermined amount of Ml rifle ammunition, and threw 32 fragmentation grenades. His bold, aggressive actions, utterly disregarding superior enemy numbers, resulted in capture of 4 Germans, 2 of them wounded, and enabled several captured Americans to escape. Lt. Britt's undaunted courage and prowess in arms were largely responsible for repulsing a German counterattack which, if successful, would have isolated his battalion and destroyed his company.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for November 10, 2020 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
10 November
1918: The 3d Pursuit Group flew the last combat patrol of the US Air Service in World War I. (4) Dr. Robert H. Goddard demonstrated rocket devices to members of the Signal Corps, Air Service, Army Ordnance, and others at the Aberdeen Proving Ground. His devices included an intermittent-firing, long-range rocket, and a bazooka-type rocket. (24)
1925: Maj Thomas G. Lanphier, Air Service, flew 550 miles from Selfridge Field to New York in 3 hours 20 minutes. (24)
1942: Through 13 November, the 33 FG flew 100 P-40s from the carriers USS Chenango and HMS Archer to land at Port Lyautey airfield, Morocco. (21)
1944: Thirty-six B-25s from Fifth Air Force attacked a Japanese convoy near Ormoc Bay, Leyte, and sank three ships. (24)
1948: The School of Aviation Medicine held the first symposium on space medicine. (16)
1950: KOREAN WAR. MiG-15s shot down their first B-29 near the Yalu River. The 307 BG crew parachuted behind enemy lines to become POWs. About 36 hours after arriving in Japan, the 437 TCW began airlifting cargo on C-46s to Korea. (28)
1952: KOREAN WAR. The 315th Air Division air evacuated the 250,000th patient from Korea to Japan. (28) At Santa Susana, the Navaho's complete liquid-rocket engine assembly fired for the first time. (16) (24)
1954: The Rocket Engine Test Laboratory at Edwards AFB hot fired an Atlas single stage test vehicle for the first time. (3) 1960: The SECDEF put the Navy Space Surveillance System and the USAF Space Track System under control of the North American ADC for military functions.
1965: SAC took its last KC-97 from ground alert with the 9th AREFS at Mountain Home AFB. (1)
1972: Boeing and McDonnell Douglas received contracts to build prototype, advanced medium STOL transports, the YC-14 and YC-15.
1981: Through 12 November, Ben Abruzzo, Larry Newman, Ron Clark, and Rocky Aoki of Japan, flew the Double Eagle V balloon on the first manned Pacific crossing. They flew 5,768 miles from Nagashima, Japan to the Mendicino National Forest near Covelo, Calif., in 85 hours. (http://www.todayinsci.com) 1988: The Pentagon announced the existence of the Lockheed F-117A Stealth Fighter. (20) KC-135R tanker crews belonging to the 19 AREFW from Robins AFB, the 340 AREFW from Altus AFB, the 319 BW from Grand Forks, and 384 BW from McConnell AFB set 16 time-toclimb records in flights from Robins. (20)
1998: AeroVironment's Centurion solar-powered technology demonstrator UAV made its first flight, a low altitude check flight under battery power, above Edwards AFB. Part of NASA Dryden's ERAST program, the UAV had solar power arrays across its 206 feet wingspan. The program tried to develop an aircraft to perform long duration environmental and telecommunications missions at altitudes up to 100,000 feet. (3) A B-52H carried a CALCM on its first captive-carry sortie test above Edwards AFB in an effort to expand the B-52's capabilities. (3)
2001: Operation ENDURING FREEDOM. Global Hawk AV- 5 (Aerial Vehicle) deployed from Edwards AFB to Southwest Asia to support this operation. The deployment included 85 military and contractor personnel, and 140 tons of equipment. Global Hawk AV-3 deployed to the theater of war in late November. (3)
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World News for 10 November thanks to Military Periscope
USA—Trump Fires Defense Secretary Washington Post | 11/10/2020 In an expected move, President Donald Trump has fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper, reports the Washington Post. In a statement on Twitter on Monday, Trump said that Christopher Miller, recently named director of the National Counterterrorism Center, would become acting defense secretary. Two White House officials said that White House chief of staff Mark Meadows called Esper shortly before the statement to alert him to his firing. NBC News previously reported that Esper expected to be let go following the election and had prepared a letter of resignation. Questions have been raised about the validity of Miller's appointment to the top Pentagon post. Policy states that Deputy Defense Secretary David Norquist should move into the role in the case of resignation or removal, reported Military.com. The Defense Dept. has yet to comment on the matter. Experts also noted that Miller is not eligible for the defense secretary job since he has not been retired from the military for seven years.
USA—NNSA Chief Resigns Unexpectedly National Nuclear Security Administration | 11/10/2020 The head of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has resigned, reports the agency. On Nov. 6, the NNSA announced that Lisa Gordon-Hagerty had officially resigned as administrator of the agency and undersecretary of energy for nuclear security. Gordon-Hagerty has led the NNSA, which is charged with developing, maintaining and disposing of America's nuclear warheads, since February 2018, reported Defense News. She was the first woman in that role. The resignation may have been driven by conflicts between Gordon-Hagerty and Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette. Dept. of Energy officials have denied those reports.
USA—Army Seeks Replacement For M240 Machine Gun Army Times | 11/10/2020 The Army has begun studying potential replacements for its M240 platoon-level machine gun, reports the Army Times. The Platoon Arms and Ammunition Configuration Study was revealed last week during a National Defense Industrial Association event. The study is likely to last until 2023 or 2024, program officials said. Few details have been released, but the latest study follows the work of the Small Arms Ammunition Configuration Study, which led the Army to select a 6.8-mm round for its Next-Generation Squad Weapon program. The study could focus on the .338 Norma Magnum (.338NM) round as a potential replacement for the current 7.62-mm round used by the M240. The .338NM is already being evaluated by the Marine Corps and Special Operations Command.
Italy—Navy Eyes New Destroyer Program Defense News | 11/10/2020 The Italian navy has announced plans to begin design studies for a next-generation destroyer, reports Defense News. The service has budgeted 4.5 million euros (US$5.3 million) for a two-year feasibility and risk-reduction study to start in early 2021. This would be followed by a final operational requirement in 2022 and, contingent on funding, a construction contract in 2023. The design would be completed in 2025, with the first ship to be delivered in 2028. Plans call for two of the new ships, for a total destroyer fleet of four, so that two can be operational at all times, Vice Adm. Aurelio De Carolis, the deputy chief of staff of the Italian navy, told the newspaper. The new ships would complement the existing Andrea Doria-class destroyers. Fincantieri is expected to build the vessels, keeping its yards busy after the completion of a landing helicopter dock, multimission vessels and logistics ships procured under the 2014 naval law. The destroyers are expected to measure 574 feet (175 m) long with a beam of 79 feet (24 m) and a draft of 30 feet (9 m). A combined diesel or gas and electric (CODOGAL) powerplant would be fitted to provide a top speed of 30 knots. The armament would include 48 vertical launch system cells located in two blocks forward and behind the bridge superstructure. These would be equipped with Aster anti-air missiles, Teseo Mk 2 anti-ship missiles and possibly the naval Scalp cruise missile. A Leonardo 127-mm Compact naval gun capable of firing Vulcano guided shells will be located at the bow. Three Leonardo 76-mm cannons are also expected to be fitted, including two amidships capable of firing Dart guided munitions and one Sovraponte variant located above the helicopter hangar. The helicopter deck and hangar will accommodate two AW101 or SH90 helicopters. Leonardo would provide its Kronos active electronically scanned array radar as well as a rotating L-band long-range radar.
Greece—Navy Proposes Purchasing New Frigates From U.S. Kathimerini | 11/10/2020 The Greek navy has proposed procuring new frigates from the United States, reports the Kathimerini newspaper (Athens). Under the plan, the Greece would purchase four Multi-Mission Surface Combatant (MMSC) frigates based on the Freedom-class littoral combat ship. The MMSC would be upgraded with the COMBATSS-21 combat management system; over-the-horizon surface-to-surface missiles; 20-mm remotely operated cannons; AN/SLQ-25 torpedo defense system; a new fire-control radar; and an eight-cell Mk 41 vertical launch system carrying quad-packed Evolved Sea Sparrow Missiles, reported Naval News. It would retain the 57-mm Mk 110 cannon and SeaRAM surface-to-air missile systems from the baseline variant. The agreement package would also include upgrades for the Greek navy's Hydra-class frigates and local production in Greece of a variant of the new Constellation-class frigate. U.S. officials initially revealed they had made such a proposal to Greece in October, reported Defense News at the time. Greece has also signaled its interest in acquiring Admiral Ronarc'h-class frigates from France.
Poland—President Signs Enhanced Defense Agreement With U.S. United Press International | 11/10/2020 Polish President Andrzej Duda has signed into law a new defense cooperation agreement with the U.S., reports United Press International. The accord calls for increasing the number of U.S. troops in Poland from 4,500 to 5,500, with Warsaw paying for the infrastructure needed to host additional troops, Breaking Defense reported in August. This includes the forward deployment of the U.S. Army's V Corps in Poznan. It also provides for the expansion of Polish defense infrastructure and additional joint military exercises, Polish officials said. Duda emphasized that while political tensions are high in the U.S., U.S.-Polish relations are independent of political changes. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak negotiated the agreement in 2019
Armenia—Prime Minister Signs Agreement To End Fighting In Nagorno-Karabakh Cable News Network | 11/10/2020 Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia have signed a deal to end six weeks of fighting in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, reports CNN. On Tuesday, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that he had signed a "painful agreement" with Azerbaijan and Russia to end the fighting. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that under the terms of the accord, both sides would retain areas currently under their control, suggesting that Baku would consolidate much of its recent gains. It also requires that Armenia surrender some Azerbaijani territory outside of Nagorno-Karabakh, including the eastern district of Agdam and the western area of Kalbacar, reported Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. All fighting has stopped, said Aliyev. As part of the deal, 1,960 troops from Russia's Central Military District have been deployed to Nagorno-Karabakh as peacekeepers, reported the Tass news agency (Moscow). The peacekeepers will monitor the line of contact between Azerbaijan and the Armenian-majority enclave, as well as the Lachin corridor, through which Armenia supplies the unrecognized region. The peacekeeping operation will be headquartered near Stepanakert, the regional capital. Following reports of a peace deal with Azerbaijan, protestors in Yerevan attacked government buildings and other public areas. Separately, Azerbaijan apologized for shooting down a Russian Mi-24 helicopter over Armenian territory near the border of Azerbaijan. Foreign ministry officials said the attack was a mistake and offered to pay compensation to the families of the victims. Two Russian crewmembers were killed and a third was injured.
South Korea—Government Sees Biden Presidency As Win For Alliance With U.S. Reuters | 11/10/2020 South Korean officials say that they expect to resolve a cost-sharing dispute with the U.S. under a Joe Biden administration, reports Reuters. The U.S. will likely continue to demand a greater contribution from Seoul, but at a much more reasonable level than the Trump administration. South Korea's previous offer of a 13 percent increase, bringing its contribution to about US$1 billion would likely be seen favorably, officials said. Biden previously pledged to not "extort" South Korea during the negotiations. President Trump has demanded up to US$5 billion annually from South Korea to offset the cost of hosting about 28,500 American troops on the peninsula. A one-year extension of the cost-sharing pact was signed in February 2019. It has since lapsed, furloughing roughly 4,000 South Korean workers on U.S. bases. Stopgap measures have since allowed them to return to work. Officials warned that another furlough looms unless a cost-sharing agreement is reached by early next year.
Japan—Formal Burden-Sharing Talks With Washington Set To Begin Kyodo News Agency | 11/10/2020 The Japanese and U.S. governments are about to begin formal talks on cost-sharing for American forces stationed in Japan, reports the Kyodo news agency (Tokyo). Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said on Tuesday that this week's talks would take into account increasing tensions in East Asia. The current five-year agreement expires in March. Japan plans to finish drafting its initial defense budget by the end of December. Due to the looming deadlines, both sides may be open to a one-year agreement to ensure that there are no furloughs or problems associated with a lapsed agreement, a source told the news agency. President Trump is critical of current cost-sharing arrangements with Japan, which he argues do not adequately compensate the U.S. for the cost of troops stationed there. Japan has been paying about US$1.9 billion annually, covering utility and labor costs for U.S. bases as well as supporting the relocation of training exercises away from populated areas.
Cambodia—Another U.S.-Funded Naval Facility Demolished Agence France-Presse | 11/10/2020 U.S. officials have expressed disappointment after Cambodia dismantled a second U.S.-funded military facility, reports Agence France-Presse. On Tuesday, Cambodian Defense Minister Tea Banh confirmed that a maintenance facility at Ream base had been destroyed. Images published by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) dated Nov. 4 showed that the rigid-hull inflatable boat maintenance facility had been destroyed, reported Reuters. Banh denied allegations that the move was spurred by plans to host a Chinese facility at the base. The move was made by and for Cambodia, he said. A tactical naval headquarters at the base was destroyed in September. Cambodian officials say the facilities are being relocated about 19 miles (30 km) north of Ream because they had outgrown the existing site. A spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh said that it was aware of and disappointed by the decision to destroy a second facility without notice or explanation.
India—3 Militants Killed In Infiltration Attempt On Line Of Control In Kashmir Times News Network | 11/10/2020 Three militants have been killed after being discovered attempting to infiltrate Indian-administered Kashmir, reports the Times News Network (India). Early Sunday morning, Indian personnel with the Madras Regiment were patrolling along the Line of Control in the Machir sector of the Kupwara district in northern Kashmir when they encountered at least six armed militants trying to cross the border. The security forces challenged the militants, starting a gunfight that killed one militant and a member of the Border Security Force (BSF), reported the Press Trust of India. Two militants fled and additional troops were mobilized, said BSF officials. Later on Sunday morning, the security forces re-engaged the militants, killing two. Three Indian troops were killed and two injured in the fighting, the officials said. The encounter was the deadliest for army personnel in Kashmir since April, reported Al Jazeera (Qatar).
Afghanistan—Police Station Attacked In Kandahar TOLONews | 11/10/2020 A suicide car bombing near a police headquarters in Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province has killed four and wounded dozens, reports Tolo News (Kabul). On Sunday evening, the attacker set off the car bomb near the police headquarters in the Maiwand district. At least four people were killed in the blast and 40 injured, including civilians and soldiers, reported Al Jazeera (Qatar). Rescue personnel were still searching through the rubble of several homes that were destroyed in the explosion, said a provincial official. The attack has not been claimed by any group.
Libya—Political Dialogue Gets Underway In Tunis Libya Herald | 11/10/2020 The Libyan Political Dialogue Forum hosted by the U.N. Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has begun in Tunis, reports the Libya Herald. On Monday, the forum, attended by 75 prominent Libyan leaders, including 13 each from the Tobruk-based House of Representatives and the State Council, began its deliberations. The body is intended to prepare plans for elections and the constitutional basis for them; reunification of divided institutions; and the appointment of a new three-member interim Presidency Council consisting of a president and two vice presidents, each representing one of Libya's three historic regions, and a separate prime minister and government. These discussions are expected to be completed by Nov. 16, though UNSMIL officials said talks would continue as long as necessary. Decisions made by the Joint Military Commission last week will be integrated into the agreements made by the political dialogue, said Stephanie Williams, the U.N. acting special envoy.
Ethiopia—Government Troops Seize Humera Airport As Fighting Continues In North Reuters | 11/10/2020 Ethiopian forces have seized an airport as the conflict in the northern Tigray region continues, reports Reuters. Government forces captured the airport, which is 42 miles (67 km) south of Humera, from the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the state-run Fana TV reported on Tuesday. Army chief Berhanu Jula also said that federal forces had captured four towns in western Tigray. State media showed troops entering the border town of Dansha. Sources close to the government in Addis Ababa said that hundreds of people have been killed on both sides since fighting began on Nov. 4. On Tuesday, the African Union called for an immediate cessation of hostilities.
Mozambique—Militants Behead Dozens In Cabo Delgado Province British Broadcasting Corp. | 11/10/2020 Militants in northern Mozambique have killed more than 50 people in one of the bloodiest attacks since the conflict began in 2017, reports BBC News. On Nov. 6, militants raided the village of Nanjaba in the Cabo Delgado province, survivors told the Mozambique News Agency. At least two people were killed, and several women kidnapped in that attack. In the village of Muatide, militants took dozens of residents to a nearby soccer stadium, beheading more than 50 people, with the killing lasting into Sunday, reported the Pinnacle News. Police found the remains of five adults and 15 children near a forest in the area on Monday, reported Agence France-Presse. More than 2,000 people have been killed by the Ansar Al-Sunnah group since it launched its insurgency in 2017. Several attacks attributed to the group have also been claimed by Islamic State Central African Province (ISCAP).
Cameroon—Rebels Kill Traditional Chief In Southwest Region Voice Of America News | 11/10/2020 Rebels in Cameroon's English-speaking Southwest region have killed a village chief, reports the Voice of America News. On Nov. 6, the residents of the Liwu La-Malale village were meeting with their traditional chief, Molinga Francis Nangoh, when rebels attacked. Nangoh was killed and his residence burned. Several hundred residents then fled, some to the nearby the town of Buea. The Cameroonian government blamed Anglophone separatists for the attack. No group has claimed responsibility. The rebels have threatened local chiefs who work with the central government. Since 2017, at least 11 village chiefs have been killed and 17 abducted. Another village chief in the area said that the attack would likely scare other traditional rulers away from returning to their villages ahead of regional elections scheduled for Dec. 6.
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