TheList 5700

The List 5700     TGB

 

Good Monday Morning May 3.

I hope that you all had a great weekend.

Regards,

Skip.

 

This day in Naval History May 3

 

1777 During the American Revolution, the Continental lugger Surprise, led by Capt. Gustavus conyngham, captures the British mail packet Prince of Orange and the brig Joseph in the North Sea.

1942 USS Spearfish (SS 190) evacuates naval and military officers, including nurses, from Corregidor before surrenderitheng island to Japan.

1949 The U.S. Navy executes its first firing of a high altitude Viking rocket at White Sands, N.M.

1975 USS Nimitz (CVN 68) is commissioned at Naval Station Norfolk, Va. Only America can make a machine like this, notes President Gerald R. Ford about the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. There is nothing like her in the world.

1980 USS Peleliu (LHA 5) is commissioned in Pascagoula, Miss. She is the final Tarawa-class amphibious assault ship built and the first to be named in honor of the battles fought in the Palau Islands.

2008 USS North Carolina (SSN 777) is commissioned at Port of Wilmington, N.C., before sailing for its homeport of Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, Conn.

 

 

Thanks to CHINFO

 

Executive Summary:

•           National and trade press reported about Friday's INDOPACOM change of command ceremony.

•           Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned of China's aggression and threat to the rules-based international order during an interview with 60 Minutes.

•           National and regional press reported China's Shandong carrier task group is conducting exercises in the South China Sea.

 

 

Today in History May 3

495		Pope Gelasius asserts that his authority is superior to Emperor Anastasius.
1568		French forces in Florida slaughter hundreds of Spanish.
1855		Macon B. Allen becomes the first African American to be admitted to the Bar in Massachusetts.
1859		France declares war on Austria.
1863		The Battle of Chancellorsville rages for a second day.
1865		President Abraham Lincoln's funeral train arrives in Springfield, Illinois.
1926		U.S. Marines land in Nicaragua.
1952		The first airplane lands at the geographic North Pole.
1968		After three days of battle, the U.S. Marines retake Dai Do complex in Vietnam, only to find the North Vietnamese have evacuated the area.
1971		James Earl Ray, Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassin, is caught in a jail break attempt.
1979		Margaret Thatcher becomes the first woman prime minister of Great Britain.
1982		A British submarine sinks Argentina's only cruiser during the Falkland Islands War.

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1942 – The first day of the first modern naval engagement in history, called the Battle of the Coral Sea, a Japanese invasion force succeeds in occupying Tulagi of the Solomon Islands in an expansion of Japan's defensive perimeter. The United States, having broken Japan's secret war code and forewarned of an impending invasion of Tulagi and Port Moresby, attempted to intercept the Japanese armada. Four days of battles between Japanese and American aircraft carriers resulted in 70 Japanese and 66 Americans warplanes destroyed. This confrontation, called the Battle of the Coral Sea, marked the first air-naval battle in history, as none of the carriers fired at each other, allowing the planes taking off from their decks to do the battling. Among the casualties was the American carrier Lexington; "the Blue Ghost" (so-called because it was not camouflaged like other carriers) suffered such extensive aerial damage that it had to be sunk by its own crew. Two hundred sixteen Lexington crewmen died as a result of the Japanese aerial bombardment. Although Japan would go on to occupy all of the Solomon Islands, its victory was a Pyrrhic one: The cost in experienced pilots and aircraft carriers was so great that Japan had to cancel its expedition to Port Moresby, Papua, as well as other South Pacific targets.

 

More to come later

 

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Worth the Repeat

 

Thanks to Richard        YaHoo

 

Subject: Re:  Budapest Air Show



 

Subject: Budapest Air Show

 

The helicopter shots are unreal. The FAA would never allow an air show like this in the United States. Great views of a beautiful city 

https://www.youtube.com/embed/0px9HFIVYjY?feature=player_embedded

 

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Thanks to Dick…Another look at it

 

Subject: FW: Real Flying !

 

 

Sent: Saturday, May 2, 2020 12:50 PM
Ed Chadwick who long ago was a member of CACC at the old clubhouse PDX. He's a naval aviator of my vintage.   Roger  Smith

 

The view from the cockpit!  What a lesson in coordination! 

 Four Hands, Four feet, and six eyes - all working as one!  WOW !!!

The old company, Bombardier Aerospace, makes these. They don't "motor around" to fill the tanks---they touch down at approach speed, open the fill scoops, add lots of power, and the tanks fill in seconds.

There's one scene in the film where you can see the two tank level gauges rapidly go up. The other neat thing is watching the magnitude of the flight control inputs, especially aileron, as they are maneuvering down low---sometimes the pilot is literally going stop to stop.

Real flying... Where do I sign up!!!

https://player.vimeo.com/video/48642618

 

Hoser would have loved this one

 

 

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Thanks to Shadow ...

 

Tiger Patrol

 

We were up at "The Rockpile"… between Khe Sanh and the DMZ. It was a rock formation that sat like a citadel overlooking the Ash Hua Valley to the south and a valley to the north to the DMZ… parallel to this Valley was a limestone escarpment we called "The Razorback"… It rose about 300 meters over the valley floor and was about a couple of miles long. 

 

Well we were taking mortars and rockets almost every day and we figured the bad guys had to have an F.O. up on the Razorback, calling the shit down on us. We had a meeting and decided to send a patrol up to see if they could smoke them out. I sat down with the patrol leader and asked how long it would take him to get up on top of it from it's center point and work his way back toward our end. He estimated if they got an early start it could be done during daylight hours… cool. 

 

Well, they left the next morning at day break and as they started up, it was evident his estimate was a bit optimistic to say the least,,, in fact they barely made it to the top in the daylight and were gonna have to set in for the night. They were a small, reinforced squad, we suggested they go 50-50 on watch… since we didn't know how many bad guys were up there? 

 

Well, all was well until about 2300, when all of a sudden, a half dozen pom-pom's went off (hand launched flares)… then a short burst of fire. Immediately they called on the radio and informed us a Tiger ! had come into their position and grabbed one of their Marines by the shoulder and was trying to drag him away! 

 

When the flares went off, it dropped him for a second and then lunged at him a second time and grabbed him again, until another Marine ran over and dispatched the Tiger from very close range. The victim had some severe lacerations, but had to wait until daylight before he could be extracted. 

 

They brought the Tiger out with him the next morning. I talked to the guy after he came back from the USS Repose Hospital ship a couple of weeks later and asked what it was like? He said at first he couldn't believe what was happening… he finally came to his senses and punched the Tiger in the nose with his other arm, as the flares went off, he said the Tiger looked down at him just before he lunged at him the second time. 

 

He then said, it had a look on its' face like… "Do that again and I'll eat your ass right here instead of dragging you off"! We never lost our sense of mirth or humor. He concluded his comments with… "Tigers have the worst bad breath I've ever smelled"!

 

The Tiger skin was preserved and is in the Battalion Trophy case. At least our guy didn't get grabbed by the head.

 

Shadow

 

 

 

'NEVER WITHOUT HEROES' by Larry Vetter.

This is the Recon Marine that got drug out of the Harborsite by his head...San Antonio reunion.

 

 

 

 

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ROLLING THUNDER REMEMBERED Thanks to the Bear

LOOKING BACK 55-YEARS to the Vietnam Air War—3 March 1966 From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com...

"A Bad Day at Yankee Station"

 

http://www.rollingthunderremembered.com/rolling-thunder-3-march-1966/

 

 

Vietnam Air Losses

Access Chris Hobson and Dave Lovelady's work at:  https://www.VietnamAirLosses.com.

 

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This Day in U S Military History…….May 3

1855 – American adventurer William Walker departs from San Francisco with about 60 men to conquer Nicaragua. William Walker (May 8, 1824 – September 12, 1860) was an American lawyer, journalist and adventurer, who organized several private military expeditions into Latin America, with the intention of establishing English-speaking colonies under his personal control, an enterprise then known as "filibustering." Walker became president of the Republic of Nicaragua in 1856 and ruled until 1857, when he was defeated by a coalition of Central American armies. He was executed by the government of Honduras in 1860.

 

1942 – The first day of the first modern naval engagement in history, called the Battle of the Coral Sea, a Japanese invasion force succeeds in occupying Tulagi of the Solomon Islands in an expansion of Japan's defensive perimeter. The United States, having broken Japan's secret war code and forewarned of an impending invasion of Tulagi and Port Moresby, attempted to intercept the Japanese armada. Four days of battles between Japanese and American aircraft carriers resulted in 70 Japanese and 66 Americans warplanes destroyed. This confrontation, called the Battle of the Coral Sea, marked the first air-naval battle in history, as none of the carriers fired at each other, allowing the planes taking off from their decks to do the battling. Among the casualties was the American carrier Lexington; "the Blue Ghost" (so-called because it was not camouflaged like other carriers) suffered such extensive aerial damage that it had to be sunk by its own crew. Two hundred sixteen Lexington crewmen died as a result of the Japanese aerial bombardment. Although Japan would go on to occupy all of the Solomon Islands, its victory was a Pyrrhic one: The cost in experienced pilots and aircraft carriers was so great that Japan had to cancel its expedition to Port Moresby, Papua, as well as other South Pacific targets.

 

1944 – An acoustic torpedo fired by the U-371 hit and destroyed the stern of the Coast Guard-manned destroyer escort USS Menges while she was escorting a convoy in the Mediterranean, killing thirty-one of her crew. The Menges was later repaired and returned to service. She assisted in the sinking of the U-866 on 19 March 1945.

 

1945 – On Okinawa, Japanese forces launch a counteroffensive from positions in the south, during the night (May 3-4), but fail to break through the American lines. Japanese artillery batteries, that have remained silent until now to avoid American retaliation, support the assaults.

 

1946 – In Tokyo, Japan, the International Military Tribunals for the Far East begins hearing the case against 28 Japanese military and government officials accused of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during World War II. On November 4, 1948, the trial ended with 25 of 28 Japanese defendants being found guilty. Of the three other defendants, two had died during the lengthy trial, and one was declared insane. On November 12, the war crimes tribunal passed death sentences on seven of the men, including General Hideki Tojo, who served as Japanese premier during the war, and others principles, such as Iwane Matsui, who organized the Rape of Nanking, and Heitaro Kimura, who brutalized Allied prisoners of war. Sixteen others were sentenced to life imprisonment, and two were sentenced to lesser terms in prison. On December 23, 1948, Tojo and the six others were executed in Tokyo. Unlike the Nuremberg trial of Nazi war criminals, where there were four chief prosecutors, to represent Great Britain, France, the United States, and the USSR, the Tokyo trial featured only one chief prosecutor–American Joseph B. Keenan, a former assistant to the U.S. attorney general. However, other nations, especially China, contributed to the proceedings, and Australian judge William Flood Webb presided. In addition to the central Tokyo trial, various tribunals sitting outside Japan judged some 5,000 Japanese guilty of war crimes, of whom more than 900 were executed. Some observers thought that Emperor Hirohito should have been tried for his tacit approval of Japanese policy during the war, but he was protected by U.S. authorities who saw him as a symbol of Japanese unity and conservatism, both favorable traits in the postwar U.S. view.

 

1952 – A ski-modified U.S. Air Force C-47 piloted by Lieutenant Colonel Joseph O. Fletcher of Oklahoma and Lieutenant Colonel William P. Benedict of California becomes the first aircraft to land on the North Pole. A moment later, Fletcher climbed out of the plane and walked to the exact geographic North Pole, probably the first person in history to do so. In the early 20th century, American explorers Robert Peary and Dr. Frederick Cook, both claiming to have separately reached the North Pole by land, publicly disputed each other's claims. In 1911, Congress formally recognized Peary's claim. In recent years, further studies of the conflicting claims suggest that neither expedition reached the exact North Pole, but that Peary came far closer, falling perhaps 30 miles short. In 1952, Lieutenant Colonel Fletcher was the first person to undisputedly stand on the North Pole. Standing alongside Fletcher on the top of the world was Dr. Albert P. Crary, a scientist who in 1961 traveled to the South Pole by motorized vehicle, becoming the first person in history to have stood on both poles.

 

1952 – Air Force Captain Robert T. Latshaw, Jr., 4th Fighter-Interceptor Wing, and Major Donald E. Adams, 51st Fighter-Interceptor Wing, became the 13th and 14th jet aces of the Korean War, shooting down five enemy aircraft each.

 

Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day

BALLEN, FREDERICK
Rank and organization: Private, Company B, 47th Ohio Infantry. Place and date: At Vicksburg, Miss., 3 May 1863. Entered service at: Adrian, Mich. Born: 1842, Germany. Date of issue: 6 November 1908. Citation: Was one of a party that volunteered and attempted to run the enemy's batteries with a steam tug and 2 barges loaded with subsistence stores.

BRADLEY, THOMAS W.
Rank and organization: Sergeant, Company H, 124th New York Infantry. Place and date: At Chancellorsville, Va., 3 May 1863. Entered service at: Walden, N.Y. Born: 6 April 1844, England. Date of issue: 10 June 1896. Citation: Volunteered in response to a call and alone, in the face of a heavy fire of musketry and canister, went and procured ammunition for the use of his comrades.

BUCKLYN, JOHN K.
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, Battery E, 1st Rhode Island Light Artillery. Place and date: At Chancellorsville, Va., 3 May 1863. Entered service at: Rhode Island. Born: 15 March 1834, Foster Creek, R.I. Date of issue: 13 July 1899. Citation: Though himself wounded, gallantly fought his section of the battery under a fierce fire from the enemy until his ammunition was all expended, many of the cannoneers and most of the horses killed or wounded, and the enemy within 25 yards of the guns, when, disabling one piece, he brought off the other in safety.

CHASE, JOHN F.
Rank and organization: Private, 5th Battery, Maine Light Artillery. Place and date: At Chancellorsville, Va., 3 May 1863. Entered service at: Augusta, Maine. Birth: Chelsea, Maine. Date of issue: 7 February 1888. Citation: Nearly all the officers and men of the battery having been killed or wounded, this soldier with a comrade continued to fire his gun after the guns had ceased. The piece was then dragged off by the two, the horses having been shot, and its capture by the enemy was prevented.

DAVIDSON, ANDREW
Rank and organization: Assistant Surgeon, 47th Ohio Infantry. Place and date: At Vicksburg, Miss., 3 May 1863. Entered service at: Cincinnati, Ohio. Birth: Middlebury, Vt. Date of issue: 17 October 1892. Citation: Voluntarily attempted to run the enemy's batteries.

FRICK, JACOB G.
Rank and organization: Colonel, 129th Pennsylvania Infantry. Place and date: At Fredericksburg, Va., 13 December 1862. At Chancellorsville, Va., 3 May 1863. Entered service at. Pottsville, Pa. Born: 23 January 1838, Northumberland, Pa. Date of issue: 7 June 1892. Citation: At Fredericksburg seized the colors and led the command through a terrible fire of cannon and musketry. In a hand-to-hand fight at Chancellorsville, recaptured the colors of his regiment.

GILMORE, JOHN C.
Rank and organization: Major, 16th New York Infantry. Place and date: At Salem Heights, Va., 3 May 1863. Entered service at: Potsdam, N.Y. Birth: Canada. Date of issue: 10 October 1892. Citation: Seized the colors of his regiment and gallantly rallied his men under a very severe fire.

GOODMAN, WILLIAM E.
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, Company D, 147th Pennsylvania Infantry. Place and date: At Chancellorsville, Va., 3 May 1863. Entered service at: Philadelphia, Pa. Born: 10 December 1838, Philadelphia, Pa. Date of issue: 11 January 1894. Citation: Rescued the colors of the 107th Ohio Volunteers from the enemy.

 

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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS

FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS FOR May 3

THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY

 

May 3

 

1930: Laura Ingalls completed 344 consecutive loops. Afterwards, she tried again and accomplished

980 loops. In another flight later in the year, she successfully completed 714 barrel rolls, giving

her a pair of records no one has cared to challenge. (2)

 

1943: Lt Gen Frank M. Andrews, Commanding General, European Theater of Operations, US Army,

died in an air crash in Iceland. (11) (24)

 

1945: In the last 9th Bomb Division mission, 132 A-26s bombed Czechoslovakia's Stod ammunitions

plant. (4)

 

1949: The Navy fired its Martin Viking rocket at the White Sands Proving Ground. It reached an altitude of 51½ miles and a speed of 2,250 MPH. (24)

 

1950: North American Aviation's Mark X-1 inertial guidance system for the Navaho missile completed

its first flight test in a C-47. The X-1 was the first US inertial guidance system tested. (6)

 

1952: KOREAN WAR/ACES. In aerial combat, F-86 Sabre pilots destroyed five MiG-15s. Major

Donald E. Adams from the 16th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron destroyed two and Capt Robert T.

Latshaw, Jr., from the 335th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, downed another to become aces.

That gave the USAF 14 aces to date in the Korean War. (28)An Air Force C-47 Skytrain, equipped with ski and wheels made the world's first successful

North Pole landing. (16) (24)

 

1960: General Curtis E. LeMay, VCSAF, announced the approval of a single tanker force, SAC

managed and KC-135 equipped, to support training and combat for full implementation by the

end of Fiscal Year 1963. (18)

 

1961: An AFSC crew launched the first ICBM, a Titan, from an underground silo at Vandenberg

AFB. (1) (12)

 

1966: The first operational service of Minuteman II began when 50 missiles were delivered to SAC's

Wing VI at Grand Forks AFB.At Edwards AFB, an HC-130H completed the first live ground-to-air recovery with a singleharnesscapture of Capt Gerald T. Lyvere and a double harness capture of Col Allison Brooks

and A3C Ronald L. Doll. (3)

 

1968: The first ANG unit called to active duty, the 120 TFS from Buckley ANGB, Colorado, arrived

in South Vietnam. It started flying combat operations on 5 May. (16) (21)

 

1973: The National Aeronautic Association presented the 1972 Mackay Trophy to three Vietnam aces:

Captains Richard S. "Steve" Ritchie, Charles B. DeBellevue, and Jeffery S. Feinstein.

 

1990: An all-Air Force crew flew Northrop's B-2A for the first time. Lt Cols Tom LeBeau and John

Small flew the Stealth Bomber on a 7-hour, 20-minute test flight above Edwards AFB. (8: Jul

90)

 

1992: Through 4 May, C-141 Starlifters and C-130 Hercules transports evacuated 350 people, including

some Americans, from Sierra Leone after a military coup. (16) (26)

 

1994: The Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center at Davis-Monthan AFB received the last

B-52G for storage. That transfer left only B-52H models in the active USAF inventory. (16)

 

2001: The Northrop X-4 Bantam tailless transonic research plane, originally tested by NACA in 1950-

1953, returned to the AFFTC from the USAF Academy for permanent display. (3)

 

2006: AFFTC completed the first-ever wet runway taxi testing of an unmanned vehicle, the Global

Hawk. The tests at Edwards AFB validated the Global Hawk's anti-skid braking system and gathered

braking performance data on wet runways. (3)

 

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World News for 3 May thanks to Military Periscope

 

      USA—Biden Charts New Course On N. Korea Policy Washington Post | 05/03/2021 The Biden administration is working on a new framework for dealing with North Korea, reports the Washington Post. The proposed policy calls for a phased approach with sanctions being removed in return for specific denuclearization steps by Pyongyang, said senior administration officials. The goal is to achieve full denuclearization on the Korean peninsula. Details of the plan have not been made public. Officials contrasted the incremental approach with the all-or-nothing approach of the previous administration and the Obama administration's demand that North Korea change its behavior in return for engagement. Biden approved the plan in late April following a month-long review. Sources said that the U.S. intends to communicate the new strategy to North Korea but does not expect an immediate shift in Pyongyang's position. 

 

USA—Blinken Meets With Mossad Chief In Washington Times of Israel | 05/03/2021 U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Israel's intelligence chief last week to discuss Iran, reports the Times of Israel. On April 29, Blinken met with Mossad chief Yossi Cohen and Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Gilad Erdan in Washington, D.C. The two-hour meeting focused on Israeli concerns about the Biden administration's efforts to return to the multinational nuclear deal with Iran among other issues. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan also attended the talks along with senior National Security Council and State Dept. officials. Earlier in the day, Amb. Erdan said that the U.S. understood that Israel retained "freedom of action" to counter Iranian activities that threaten it. Cohen argued that "a bad deal will send the region spiraling into war. Anyone seeking short-term benefits should be mindful of the longer term. Israel will not allow Iran to attain nuclear arms. Iran has no immunity anywhere." He also urged the U.S. to step up pressure on other destabilizing activities by Iran in the region. On April 27, NSA Sullivan met with his Israeli counterpart, Meir Ben-Shabbat, and agreed to set up an interagency working group to address the threat to Israel and other U.S. allies in the region from Iranian drones and guided missiles. 

 

USA—Boise Sub Set To Begin Long-Awaited Refit Navy Times | 05/03/2021 Work will soon begin on a U.S. Navy attack submarine that has been in line for maintenance since it completed its last patrol in 2015, reports the Navy Times. USS Boise is scheduled to receive shipyard space for the maintenance and modernization period this year, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael Gilday told the House Appropriations defense subcommittee on April 29. The $355 million refit will take place at Newport News Shipbuilding, Va., and is expected to take about two years, as previously reported by Defense News. The Boise was caught up in a significant backlog in submarine repair availabilities, resulting in years of delays. Gilday said that the Navy has made progress in catching up on maintenance, with delay days dropping from 7,000 to 1,200 over the last 18 months. 

 

USA—LCS Fleet To Be Divided Between ASW, Mine Warfare Missions Breaking Defense | 05/03/2021 The U.S. Navy has decided to outfit its fleet of Littoral Combat Ships with either anti-submarine warfare or mine countermeasures mission modules, reports Breaking Defense. Plans call for 15 of the ships to receive the ASW capability and 15 the MCM module, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael Gilday told House Appropriations defense subcommittee on April 29. Thirty-one of the 35 ships will be equipped with the Naval Strike Missile as part of efforts to strengthen their combat capabilities. The goal is to complete the modifications in 18 months, though this is contingent on receiving sufficient funding, he said. The Navy previously decided to take the first four ships in the class out of service rather than performing costly upgrades. 

 

USA—Milley Hosts Japanese, S. Korean Counterparts In Hawaii Cable News Network | 05/03/2021 Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has met with the top Japanese and South Korean military officers in Hawaii, reports CNN. On April 29, Milley held talks with Gen. Won In Choul, chairman of the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Gen. Koji Yamazaki, chief of staff of the Japan Self-Defense Force Joint Staff, reported the Yonhap news agency (Seoul). Milley emphasized the U.S. commitment to its allies, including its readiness to provide deterrence across the full spectrum of the military's capabilities. The parties also discussed the importance of promoting a rules-based international order in the region and shared concerns over North Korea's nuclear and missile programs. The meeting was the first to be held in-person since the start of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and the first since Won was elevated to lead the South Korean military in September 2020. As part of the increased American focus on the Indo-Pacific region under the Biden administration, the sides are working to set up a meeting of their foreign ministers on the sidelines of the meeting of G7 foreign ministers in the U.K. this week, reported the Yomiuri Shimbun (Japan). 

 

Turkey—Police Arrest Senior ISIS Member In Istanbul Agence France-Presse | 05/03/2021 Turkish police have arrested a senior member of ISIS in Istanbul, reports Agence France-Presse. The man was arrested on April 28 with a fake passport and identity card, reported the Demiroren news agency (DHA). The Afghan man known as Basim was arrested in Atasehir on the eastern side of the Bosphorus, police said. Basim is believed to have been a close aide of slain ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi and helped the late leader hide in Syria's Idlib province. He is also suspected of organizing ISIS training in Iraq and Syria and serving on its decision-making council. Baghdadi was killed in a U.S. raid in October 2019. 

 

Ukraine—U.S. Secretary Of State To Meet With Top Officials This Week Voice Of America News | 05/03/2021 U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is headed to Ukraine later this week to meet with top officials and affirm American support for Kyiv amid heightened tensions with Russia, reports the Voice of America News. Blinken is scheduled to visit Ukraine on May 5 and May 6 and meet with President Volodomyr Zelensky, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, other officials and representatives of Ukrainian civil society, a State Dept. spokesman said. This will be Blinken's first visit to Ukraine as secretary of state The visit is designed to reaffirm U.S. support for Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russian aggression. The secretary of state will also push for progress on institutional reform, with the goal of reducing corruption. In April, Russia deployed up to 150,000 troops to Crimea and the Ukrainian border for what it called military exercises. Most of those troops were to return to their home stations by May 1, according to Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. 

 

Belarus—Polish Attack Helicopter Crossed Border, Defense Ministry Says Tass | 05/03/2021 The Belarusian Defense Ministry says a Polish military aircraft violated its airspace last week, reports Russia's Tass news agency. Early on the morning of April 29, a Polish Mi-24 attack helicopter entered Belarusian airspace near the village of Kozlovichi. The helicopter was tracked by air force and air defense radars before departing about a minute later near the village of Terebun, the defense ministry said. In a social media post, the Polish Ministry of Defense acknowledged that its helicopter had unintentionally violated Belarusian airspace during a night patrol mission. This was the second violation of Belarusian airspace in April, according to the Belarusian Defense Ministry. The Polish Defense Ministry has denied the accusation that one of its aircraft crossed the border on April 12, saying no military aircraft were in the area at that time.

China—Shandong Carrier Concludes Maneuvers In S. China Sea South China Morning Post | 05/03/2021 China's second aircraft carrier has just wrapped up an exercise in the South China Sea, reports the South China Morning Post. A naval group led by the Shandong concluded the training on Monday, said the Chinese Defense Ministry, without providing details. This was the carrier group's first drills in the South China Sea this year. The training was "legitimate and can enhance Chinese capabilities to protect national sovereignty, security and development interests," a navy spokesman said. 

 

Burma—KIA Downs Helicopter Near Chinese Border Irrawaddy | 05/03/2021 A Burmese rebel group says it has shot down a military helicopter in the northern Kachin state, reports the Irrawaddy (Burma). On Monday, the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) shot down a military helicopter conducting airstrikes in Momauk, said a KIA spokesman. A witness said that the aircraft was brought down after being hit in the tail rotor. Clashes between the KIA and Burmese troops in Momauk have been increasing since April 11. The fighting has focused on control of the Alaw Bum base on the border with China. 

 

India—Another 6 P-8 Patrol Aircraft Sought From U.S. U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency | 05/03/2021 India wants to buy additional maritime patrol aircraft from the U.S. under the Foreign Military Sales program, reports the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency. The proposed US$2.42 billion deal covers six P-8I aircraft and associated equipment. The potential deal includes eight Multifunctional Information Distribution System-Joint Tactical Radio Systems 5 (MIDS-JTRS 5); 42 AN/AAR-54 missile warning sensors; 14 LN-251 with embedded GPS/inertial navigations systems (EGIs); CFM56-7 commercial engines; Tactical Open Mission Software (ITOMS) for the P-8I; MX-20HD electro-optical/infrared sensors; AN/AAQ-2(V)l acoustic system; ARES-1000 commercial variant electronic support measures; AN/APR-39D radar warning receiver; AN/ALE-47 countermeasures dispensing system; and associated support, training and logistical services. The possible sale would allow the Indian navy to expand its maritime surveillance aircraft capability for the next 30 years, said the DSCA. India previously ordered 12 P-8Is. 

 

Afghanistan—Taliban Launches Nationwide Attacks As U.S. Withdrawal Begins TOLONews | 05/03/2021 The Taliban conducted a series of attacks across Afghanistan over the weekend as the U.S. formally began its military drawdown, reports the Tolo News (Kabul). There were 141 Taliban attacks over the previous 24 hours, the news service said on Sunday, with most taking place in the provinces of Badakhshan, Kandahar, Nangarhar, Takhar, Uruzgan and Zabul. At least 20 civilians and pro-government forces were killed in the attacks, including a commander of public uprising forces in Takhar. The Afghan Defense Ministry said that the Taliban suffered more than 100 casualties during the fighting. The militant group rejected that figure. An estimated 438 Afghan security forces and civilians were killed and another 500 wounded over the previous 30 days, said Tolo. There were 190 bombings and targeted attacks during that period. The U.S. begin withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan on May 1. The drawdown is expected to be completed by Sept. 11. 

 

Iran—No Prisoner Swap Imminent, Says U.S. Official New Arab | 05/03/2021 U.S. officials have denied reports that Iran is poised to release four American hostages, reports the New Arab (London). On Sunday, White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain told Face the Nation on CBS that no such deal was in place. The denial followed reports on Iranian state television that the U.S. had agreed to release US$7 billion in frozen funds and free four Iranians accused of sanctions violations in return for the release of the Americans, who have been accused of spying. Separately, Iranian state media reported that British citizen Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, held since 2016, was being freed following the payment of "military debt." The British Foreign Office played down the report, saying that talks were ongoing. 

 

Iran—No Prisoner Swap Imminent, Says U.S. Official New Arab | 05/03/2021 U.S. officials have denied reports that Iran is poised to release four American hostages, reports the New Arab (London). On Sunday, White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain told Face the Nation on CBS that no such deal was in place. The denial followed reports on Iranian state television that the U.S. had agreed to release US$7 billion in frozen funds and free four Iranians accused of sanctions violations in return for the release of the Americans, who have been accused of spying. Separately, Iranian state media reported that British citizen Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, held since 2016, was being freed following the payment of "military debt." The British Foreign Office played down the report, saying that talks were ongoing. 

 

Iran—Rouhani Aide Steps Down In Wake Of Leaked Foreign Minister Interview Al-Monitor | 05/03/2021 A longtime aide to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has resigned in the aftermath of the leak to foreign media of a confidential interview with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, reports the Al Monitor (Washington, D.C.). Hesamoddin Ashena, who was the director of the Center for Strategic Research think tank affiliated with the office of the president, has been replaced by government spokesman Ali Rabiei. It has been speculated that Ashena was sacked by Rouhani. The center conducted the interview with Zarif in which he criticized Russian influence on Iranian foreign policy and the influence of former Quds Force leader Qassem Soleimani. The interview was intended for confidential archives but was leaked. Another 15 individuals suspected of involvement in the leak have been barred from traveling outside of Iran, reported the semi-official Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA). 

 

Nigeria—8 Die In Latest Fighting In Borno State Agence France-Presse | 05/03/2021 At least eight people have been killed in militant attacks on army bases in Nigeria's northern Borno state, reports Agence France-Presse. On Sunday, militants in gun trucks and on motorbikes attacked a base in Ajiri, 12 miles (20 km) north of Maiduguri, the state capital, said security sources. The Nigerian soldiers were forced to withdraw after a two-hour gun battle when the militants breached the base. The base commander and six civilians were killed, a military source said. The militants reportedly looted weapons from the post. Separately, militants attacked a base in Rann, in eastern Borno near the border with Cameroon. Nigerian forces repelled the gunmen, destroying two of six gun trucks used in the attack. One civilian was killed during the clash. Both attacks were blamed on Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). 

 

Nigeria—3rd And Last JF-17 Fighter Arrives

Defence Web | 05/03/2021

Nigeria has taken delivery of its third and final JF-17 Thunder fighter jet ordered from Pakistan, reports Defence Web (South Africa).

On April 29, photos on social media showed a Pakistani air force Il-76 transport aircraft apparently at Makurdi Air Force Base in the east-central Benue state.

The Il-76 is believed to have delivered Nigeria's last JF-17, which is now being reassembled.

Unconfirmed sources said that all three JF-17s ordered in 2018 had been delivered. The first jet arrived on March 21 using the same Pakistani Il-76, the website said.

Nigerian pilots and maintainers have been undergoing training to operate the JF-17 since mid-2020.