The List 6137 TGB
Good Tuesday Morning June 21
I hope that your week has started well
Regards,
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On This Day in Naval and Marine Corps History
June 21
1898 During the Spanish-American War, the cruiser USS Charleston captures the island of Guam without resistance from Spain, because the Spanish Navy had no sufficient ammunition for defense.
1919 The German navy scuttles its own fleet at Scapa Flow. After the Nov. 11 Armistice, the surrendered German ships are divided by Allies. German officers then organize a mass destruction of the fleet that occurs on this day.
1942 PBY aircraft from (VP 24) recovers a two-man torpedo bomber crew from USS Enterprise (CV 6) 360 miles north of Midway after their plane went down June 4. The aviators are the last survivors of the Battle of Midway to be recovered.
1944 USS Newcomb (DD 586) and USS Chandler (DMS 9) sink Japanese submarine (I 185), 90 miles east-northeast of Saipan. Also on this date, USS Bluefish (SS 222) sinks Japanese army cargo ship Kanan Maru off southern approaches to Makassar Strait while USS Narwhal (SS 167) sinks Japanese powered sailboat No.2 Shinshu Maru, 12 miles southwest of Culasi.
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Today in History June 21
1667 The Peace of Breda ends the Second Anglo-Dutch War as the Dutch cede New Amsterdam to the English.
1675 Christopher Wren begins work on rebuilding St. Paul's Cathedral in London after the Great Fire.
1791 The French royal family is arrested in Varennes.
1834 C. H. McCormick patents the first practical reaper.
1862 Union and Confederate forces skirmish at the Chickahominy Creek.
1863 In the second day of fighting, Confederate troops fail to dislodge a Union force at the Battle of LaFourche Crossing.
1887 Britain celebrates the golden jubilee of Queen Victoria.
1900 General Douglas MacArthur offers amnesty to Filipinos rebelling against American rule.
1908 Mulai Hafid again proclaims himself the true sultan of Morocco.
1911 Porforio Diaz, the ex-president of Mexico, exiles himself to Paris.
1915 Germany uses poison gas for the first time in warfare in the Argonne Forest.
1919 Germans scuttle their own fleet at Scapa Flow, Scotland.
1939 Baseball legend Lou Gehrig is forced to quit baseball because of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis--a disease which wastes muscles.
1942 German General Erwin Rommel captures the port city of Tobruk in North Africa.
1945 Japanese forces on Okinawa surrender to American troops. After 92 days
1948 Dr. Peter Goldmark demonstrates his "long-playing" record.
1958 A federal judge allows Little Rock, Arkansas to delay school integration.
1963 France announces it will withdraw from the NATO fleet in the North Atlantic.
1964 Three civil rights workers disappear in Meridian, Mississippi.
1982 John Hinckley Jr. is found not guilty by reason of insanity for attempting to assassinate President Ronald Reagan.
1995 The U.S. Senate votes against the nomination of Dr. Henry W. Foster for Surgeon General.
1788
U.S. Constitution ratified
New Hampshire becomes the ninth and last necessary state to ratify the Constitution of the United States, thereby making the document the law of the land.
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Thanks to Denis
When God created Fathers - by Erma Bombeck
When the good Lord was creating fathers, He started with a tall frame.
A female angel nearby said, "What kind of father is that? If you're going to make children so close to the ground, why have you put fathers up so high? He won't be able to shoot marbles without kneeling, tuck a child in bed without bending or even kiss a child without a lot of stooping."
...And God smiled and said, "Yes, but if I make him child-size, who would children have to look up to?"
And when God made a father's hands, they were large and sinewy.
The angel shook her head sadly and said, "Do you know what you're doing? Large hands are clumsy. They can't manage diaper pins, small buttons, rubber bands on ponytails or even remove splinters caused by baseball bats."
And God smiled and said, "I know, but they're large enough to hold everything a small boy empties from pockets at the end of a day, yet small enough to cup a child's face."
And then God molded long, slim legs and broad shoulders.
The angel nearly had a heart attack. "Boy, this is the end of the week, all right." she clucked. "Do you realize you just made a father without a lap? How is he going to pull a child close to him with the kid falling between his legs?"
And God smiled and said, " A mother needs a lap. A father needs strong shoulders to pull a sled, balance a boy on a bicycle or hold a sleepy head on the way home from the circus."
God was in the middle of creating two of the largest feet anyone had ever seen when the angel could contain herself no longer. "That's not fair. Do you honestly think those large boats are going to dig out of bed early in the morning when the baby cries? Or walk through a small birthday party without crushing at least three of the guests?"
And God smiled and said, "They'll work. You'll see. They'll support a small child who wants to ride a horse to Banbury Cross or scare off mice at the summer cabin or display shoes that will be a challenge to fill."
God worked throughout the night, giving the father few words but a firm, authoritative voice and eyes that saw everything but remained calm and tolerant.
Finally, almost as an afterthought, He added tears. Then He turned to the angel and said,
"Now, are you satisfied that he can love as much as a mother?"
The angel shutteth up.
Author: Erma Bombeck
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ROLLING THUNDER REMEMBERED Thanks to the Bear … Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post
… For The List for Tuesday, 21 June 2022… Bear 🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post for 21 June 1967… Supporting the naval gunners of Sea Dragon fame…
This following work accounts for every fixed wing loss of the Vietnam War and you can use it to read more about the losses in The Bear's Daily account. Even better it allows you to add your updated information to the work to update for history…skip
Vietnam Air Losses
Access Chris Hobson and Dave Lovelady's work at: https://www.VietnamAirLosses.com.
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Thanks to Brett
Geopolitical Futures:
Keeping the future in focus
Daily Memo: The Evolution of Great Powers
By: George Friedman
June 21, 2022
The evolution of military power is one of the most important if underrated geopolitical changes happening in the world today. Throughout the 20th century, military power was the province of large nations. Machines dominated the battlefield, and the production of these machines, the materials that fueled them and the ordnance they used required access to complex factories and massive amounts of raw materials. This, in turn, required vast numbers of workers – and the housing and food the workers needed to function. An economy of this scale needed to produce large numbers of ships, planes, tanks and all other manners of wartime materiel, even as they required functioning economies outside the wartime economy, providing the basic necessities of life and, ideally, maintaining national morale.
Battlefields are black holes of consumption. Any nation can build a plane or tank or send a man to his death, but wars were won by nations that could build enormous numbers of planes and tanks and replace the ones that had been destroyed by the enemy – not to mention replenish the steady stream of dead soldiers.
Small nations could not engage in high-intensity war because they lacked the resources to do so. The definition of a great power, then, was a country with a large population, the agricultural system that fed it and the mineral base that could arm it. Given the deaths and damage the enemy could inflict, the key to military power was the size of the population and its resources. It also ideally had to be vast, with resources dispersed such that an enemy victory in one region would not mean a victory in all regions.
As important, successful wartime nations needed technical expertise. Aircraft, warships and tanks needed to be planned and built, and the designs needed constant upgrading in response to the technical evolutions of the enemy. This meant that great powers had large numbers of inherently scarce technicians.
After World War II, only the United States and the Soviet Union had the potential to wage war as great powers. (They were later joined by China.) Before the war, smaller powers, like Germany, the United Kingdom, France or Japan could be considered great powers too, but in the end, they either lost or participated in an alliance.
In the intervening years, there has been a vast evolution of martial technology. It was once necessary to bring a 40-ton tank 2,000 miles away to deliver 40 or 50 pounds of explosives on an enemy position. The first British bomber attack was so inaccurate that the Germans couldn't figure out what the British target was. Ships could not see farther than the horizon, where an enemy fleet could be lurking. Special aircraft had to be launched simply to see deep. Paradoxically, the more primitive the system, the more resources were required to sustain it. The more aware of its environment and the more accurate the guidance, the lower the drain. For example, a satellite can provide an enemy's location, and automated internal guidance systems on munitions can strike precisely. There are new satellites that belong in a new class. As a result of accuracy, a force requires fewer munitions. The concentration of manpower shifts from the active battlefield to managing intelligence and rapidly innovating technologies. War no longer required a massive population, nor does it require massive consumption of raw material.
This has significant geopolitical consequences. Small and even very small countries can wage war, particularly against older model militaries that lack the precision and range of the new class of countries. These small countries shift from a dependence on depth to time. The more room a country had, the more room it had to disperse. In the emerging model of war, the more time they have in which to react to dangers, the more effective they are. It is not a single evolution so much as a set of evolutions, from space-based intelligence to long-range autotargeted weapons to automated anti-missile systems.
We can see this evolution most clearly in Israel. Founded first on French and then American weapons, the Israeli military now has homegrown capabilities that it (ironically) can sell to others. They are designed around the principle that putting troops at risk is a possible but rare event, while using unmanned force as the dominant element of strategy. Israel has come the furthest with this strategy, but it can be seen also in places such as the United Arab Emirates and Singapore. As a result, each wields international political power far beyond what might have been expected from it during the prior era. New technologies enable small powers to engage much larger powers. The core of the force is the technologists who maintain and upgrade systems – a fraction of the manpower needed by the old definition of great powers.
Of course, manned militaries remain indispensable. But the conversion to a new mode of thought is well underway. Israel has a striking amount of regional influence, but its technology cannot fully defend against a massive force from the last era's great power. Maintaining one culture while creating new ones sparks crises between cultures – and within budgets. The new technology is ready for operation, but by itself it is not yet proven.
Still, the evolution is underway, and that means that the definition of great power will have to change. Russia expected to defeat Ukraine with older weapons. That has not happened, at least not yet. Russia has to evolve its military. So will other large great powers if they wish to have effective forces. There is no inherent reason they can't evolve, but their size is no longer decisive. Smaller nations can become great powers, decisive and dangerous.
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Thanks to 'Brett
An Interesting read....
Most interesting and many surprising statistics. I understood the number of draftees who served in Viet Nam was much higher than the numbers below, same for black KIAs.
Every so often something comes along that is undisputable fact. This is one read that should hit home. Another fact, I know most of you can read. Make those reunion reservations.
I thought this might interest those of you who lived through this as well as those interested in this period of time. Some of you may have seen this before, but in my mind, it begs retelling.
Vietnam Veterans - Only 31.4% of VN vets still alive.
A statistic not included is the number of people who claim to have served in the Republic of Vietnam. That number is 3 or 4 times the 3 Million who did. In case you haven't been paying attention these past few decades after you returned from Vietnam, the clock has been ticking. The following are some statistics that are at once depressing yet in a larger sense should give you a HUGE SENSE OF PRIDE.
Of the 2,709,918 Americans who served in Vietnam, less than 850,000 are estimated to be alive today, with the youngest American Vietnam veteran's age approximated to be 60 years old. So, if you're alive and reading this, how does it feel to be among the last 1/3rd of all the U.S. Vets who served in Vietnam? I don't know about you guys, but this gives me the chills, considering this is the kind of information I'm used to reading about WWII and Korean War vets.
For the last 14 years we have been dying too fast, only a few will survive by 2025... if any. If true, 390 VN vets die each day. In 2,190 days from today, lucky to be a Vietnam veteran alive... in only 6-10 years.
These statistics were taken from a variety of sources to include: The VFW Magazine, the Public Information Office, and the HQ CP Forward Observer - 1st Recon April 12, 1997.
STATISTICS FOR INDIVIDUALS IN UNIFORM AND IN COUNTRY VIETNAM VETERANS:
* 9,087,000 military personnel served on active duty during the
Vietnam Era (August 5, 1964 - May 7, 1975).
* 8,744,000 GIs were on active duty during the war (Aug 5, 1964-March 28,1973).
* 2,709,918 Americans served in Vietnam. This number represents 9.7% of their generation.
* 3,403,100 (Including 514,300 offshore) personnel served in the broader Southeast Asia Theater (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, flight crews based in Thailand, and sailors in adjacent South China Sea waters).
* 2,594,000 personnel served within the borders of South Vietnam (Jan.1, 1965 - March 28, 1973). Another 50,000 men served in Vietnam between 1960 and 1964.
* Of the 2.6 million, between 1-1.6 million (40-60%) either fought in combat, provided close support or were at least fairly regularly exposed to enemy attack.
* 7,484 women (6,250 or 83.5% were nurses) served in Vietnam.
* Peak troop strength in Vietnam: 543,482 (April 30, 1968).
*Agent Orange is taking a huge toll on Vietnam Veterans with most deaths somehow related to Agent Orange exposure. No one officially dies of Agent Orange, they die from the exposures which causes Ischemic Heart Disease and failure, Lung Cancer, Kidney failure or COPD related disorders.
CASUALTIES:
The first man to die in Vietnam was James Davis, in 1958. He was with the 509th Radio Research Station. Davis Station in Saigon was named for him.
Hostile deaths: 47,378
Non-hostile deaths: 10,800
Total: 58,202 (Includes men formerly classified as MIA and Mayaguez casualties). Men who have subsequently died of wounds account for the changing total.
8 nurses died - 1 was KIA.
61% of the men killed were 21 or younger.
11,465 of those killed were younger than 20 years old.
Of those killed, 17,539 were married.
Average age of men killed: 23.1 years
Total Deaths: 23.11 years
Enlisted: 50,274; 22.37 years
Officers: 6,598; 28.43 years
Warrants: 1,276; 24.73 years
E1: 525; 20.34 years
11B MOS: 18,465; 22.55 years
Five men killed in Vietnam were only 16 years old.
The oldest man killed was 62 years old.
Highest state death rate: West Virginia - 84.1% (national average 58.9% for every 100,000 males in 1970).
Wounded: 303,704 - 153,329 hospitalized + 150,375 injured requiring no hospital care.
Severely disabled: 75,000, - 23,214: 100% disabled; 5,283 lost limbs; 1,081 sustained multiple amputations.
Amputation or crippling wounds to the lower extremities were 300% higher than in WWII and 70% higher than Korea.
Multiple amputations occurred at the rate of 18.4% compared to 5.7% in WWII.
Missing in Action: 2,338
POWs: 766 (114 died in captivity)
As of January 15, 2004, there are 1,875 Americans still unaccounted for from the Vietnam War.
DRAFTEES VS. VOLUNTEERS:
25% (648,500) of total forces in country were draftees. (66% of U.S. armed forces members were drafted during WWII).
Draftees accounted for 30.4% (17,725) of combat deaths in Vietnam.
Reservists killed: 5,977
National Guard: 6,140 served: 101 died.
Total draftees (1965 - 73): 1,728,344.
Actually, served in Vietnam: 38%
Marine Corps Draft: 42,633.
Last man drafted: June 30, 1973.
RACE AND ETHNIC BACKGROUND:
88.4% of the men who actually served in Vietnam were Caucasian; 10.6% (275,000) were black; 1% belonged to other races.
86.3% of the men who died in Vietnam were Caucasian (includes Hispanics); 12.5% (7,241) were black; 1.2% belonged to other races.
170,000 Hispanics served in Vietnam; 3,070 (5.2% of total) died there.
70% of enlisted men killed were of North-west European descent.
86.8% of the men who were killed as a result of hostile action were Caucasian; 12.1% (5,711) were black; 1.1% belonged to other races.
14.6% (1,530) of non-combat deaths were among blacks.
34% of blacks who enlisted volunteered for the combat arms.
Overall, blacks suffered 12.5% of the deaths in Vietnam at a time when the percentage of blacks of military age was 13.5% of the total population.
Religion of Dead: Protestant - 64.4%; Catholic - 28.9%; other/none - 6.7%
SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS:
Vietnam veterans have a lower unemployment rate than the same non-vet age groups.
Vietnam veterans' personal income exceeds that of our non-veteran age group by more than 18 percent.
76% of the men sent to Vietnam were from lower-middle/working class backgrounds.
Three-fourths had family incomes above the poverty level; 50% were from middle income backgrounds.
Some 23% of Vietnam vets had fathers with professional, managerial or technical occupations.
79% of the men who served in Vietnam had a high school education or better, when they entered the military service. 63% of Korean War vets and only 45% of WWII vets had completed high school upon separation.
Deaths by region per 100,000 of population: South - 31%, West -29.9%;
Midwest - 28.4%; Northeast - 23.5%.
DRUG USAGE & CRIME:
There is no difference in drug usage between Vietnam Veterans and non-Vietnam Veterans of the same age group. (Source: Veterans Administration Study)
Vietnam Veterans are less likely to be in prison - only one-half of one percent of Vietnam Veterans have been jailed for crimes.
85% of Vietnam Veterans made successful transitions to civilian life.
WINNING & LOSING:
82% of veterans who saw heavy combat strongly believe the war was lost because of lack of political will. Nearly 75% of the public agrees it was a failure of political will, not of arms.
HONORABLE SERVICE:
97% of Vietnam-era veterans were honorably discharged.
91% of actual Vietnam War veterans and 90% of those who saw heavy combat are proud to have served their country.
74% say they would serve again, even knowing the outcome.
87% of the public now holds Vietnam veterans in high esteem.
ROGER K. MARACH (USMC/VIETNAM 1965-1966)
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This was from the List archives . We seem to have gotten worse
Thanks to Mike
A sobering message
A very sobering message, especially to our politicians (Republicans
and Democrats) in Washington. "Real Time" host Bill Maher closed his
show Friday night by sounding the alarm on China's growing dominance
over the United States. Why are Americans sleeping?...We aren't
sleeping, we are spending our time teaching and assisting little boys
how to become little girls!!! And, if we aren't busy doing that we
have the Secy of Defense, responding to an order from the 'commander'
in chief, designing stylish new uniforms for pregnant 'soldiers'.
"You're not going to win the battle for the 21st century if you are
such silly people. And Americans are all silly people," Maher began
the monologue, alluding to a "Lawrence of Arabia" quote.
Do you know who doesn't care that there's a stereotype of a Chinese
man in a Dr. Seuss book? China," he said. "All 1.4 billion of them
couldn't give a crouching tiger flying f--- because they're not silly
people. If anything, they are as serious as a prison fight."
Maher acknowledged that China does "bad stuff" from the concentration
camps of Uyghur Muslims to its treatment of Hong Kong.
But he stressed, "There's got to be something between an authoritarian
government that tells everyone what to do and a representative
government that can't do anything at all."
"In two generations, China has built 500 entire cities from scratch,
moved the majority of their huge population from poverty to the middle
class, and mostly cornered the market in 5G and pharmaceuticals. Oh,
and they bought Africa," Maher said, pointing to China's global Silk
Road infrastructure initiative.
He continued: "In China alone, they have 40,000 kilometers of
high-speed rail. America has none. ... We've been having
Infrastructure Week every week since 2009 but we never do anything.
Half the country is having a never-ending woke competition deciding
whether Mr. Potato Head has a d--- and the other half believes we have
to stop the lizard people because they're eating babies. We are such
silly people.
"Nothing ever moves in this impacted colon of a country. We see a
problem and we ignore it, lie about it, fight about it with each
other, endlessly litigate it, sunset clause it, kick it down the road,
and then write a bill where a half-assed solution doesn't kick in for
10 years," Maher explained. Then the half-assed bill is forgotten.
"China sees a problem and they fix it. They build a dam. We debate
what to rename it."
The HBO star cited how it took "ten years" for a bus line in San
Francisco to pass its environmental review and how it took "16 years"
to build the Big Dig tunnel in Boston, comparing that to a 57-story
skyscraper that China built in "19 days" and Beijing's Sanyuan Bridge,
which was demolished and rebuilt in "43 hours."
"We binge-watch, they binge-build. When COVID hit Wuhan, the city
built a quarantine center with 4,000 rooms in 10 days and they barely
had to use it because they quickly arrested the rest of the disease,"
Maher said. "They were back to throwing raves in swimming pools while
we were stuck at home surfing the dark web for black market Charmin.
We're not losing to China, we LOST. The returns just haven't all come
in yet. They've made robots that check a kid's temperature and got
their asses back in school. Most of our kids are still pretending to
take Zoom classes while they watch TikTok and their brain cells fully
commit ritual suicide." Out teacher's unions are finding every single
way to keep themselves on the payroll, but keep students out of the
classrooms. WAKE UP AMERICANS!! That means ALL of YOU.
Maher then blasted New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, accusing him of
degrading school standards by eliminating merit and substituting a
lottery system for admittance to schools for advanced learners. Our
country is going down the toilet.
"Do you think China's doing that, letting political correctness get in
the way of nurturing their best and brightest?" Maher continued. "Do
you think Chinese colleges and universities are offering courses in
'The Philosophy of Star Trek, 'The Sociology of Seinfeld,' and
'Surviving the Coming Zombie Apocalypse'? Can this be real? Well
let me tell you, China is real. And they are eating our lunch. And
believe me, in an hour, they'll be hungry again."
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This Day in U S Military History…….June 21
1900 – After the Empress declared war on all foreign powers, the Boxers began a two-month assault on the legations in Beijing. An international force of Japanese, Russian, German, American, British, Italian and Austro-Hungarian troops put down the uprising by August 14. The Boxer Rebellion was a violent, anti-foreign uprising that broke out in reaction to years of foreign interference with Chinese affairs. Led by a Chinese secret society called Yi He Tuan–"the Righteous, Harmonious Fists"–the Boxers were aided by the Empress Dowager Ci Xi and pillaged the countryside, murdering foreigners and Chinese Christians.
1916 – The controversial U.S. military expedition against Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa brings the United States and Mexico closer to war when Mexican government troops attack U.S. Brigadier General John J. Pershing's force at Carrizal, Mexico. The Americans suffered 22 casualties, and more than 30 Mexicans were killed. Against the protests of Venustiano Carranza's government, Pershing had been penetrating deep into Mexico in pursuit of Pancho Villa. After routing the small Mexican force at Carrizal, the U.S. expedition continued on its southern course. In 1914, following the resignation of Mexican leader Victoriano Huerta, Pancho Villa and his former revolutionary ally Venustiano Carranza battled each other in a struggle for succession. By the end of 1915, Villa had been driven north into the mountains, and the U.S. government recognized General Carranza as the president of Mexico. In January 1916, to protest President Woodrow Wilson's support for Carranza, Villa executed 16 U.S. citizens at Santa Isabel in northern Mexico. Then, on March 9, he ordered a raid on the border town of Columbus, New Mexico, in which 17 Americans were killed and the center of town was burned. Cavalry from the nearby Camp Furlong U.S. Army outpost pursued the Mexicans, killing several dozen rebels on U.S. soil and in Mexico before turning back. On March 15, under orders from President Wilson, U.S. Brigadier General John J. Pershing launched a punitive expedition into Mexico to capture or kill Villa and disperse his rebels. The expedition eventually involved some 10,000 U.S. troops and personnel. It was the first U.S. military operation to employ mechanized vehicles, including automobiles and airplanes. For 11 months, Pershing failed to capture the elusive revolutionary, who was aided by his intimate knowledge of the terrain of northern Mexico and his popular support from the people there. Meanwhile, resentment over the U.S. intrusion into Mexican territory led to a diplomatic crisis with the government in Mexico City. On June 21, the crisis escalated into violence when Mexican government troops attacked a detachment of the 10th Cavalry at Carrizal. If not for the critical situation in Europe, war might have been declared. In January 1917, having failed in their mission to capture Villa, and under continued pressure from the Mexican government, the Americans were ordered home. Pancho Villa continued his guerrilla activities in northern Mexico until Adolfo de la Huerta took over the government and drafted a reformist constitution. Villa entered into an amicable agreement with Huerta and agreed to retire from politics. In 1920, the government pardoned Villa, but three years later he was assassinated at his ranch in Parral.
1966 – U.S. planes strike North Vietnamese petroleum-storage facilities in a series of devastating raids. These missions were part of Operation Rolling Thunder, which had been launched in March 1965 after President Lyndon B. Johnson ordered a sustained bombing campaign of North Vietnam. The operation was designed to interdict North Vietnamese transportation routes in the southern part of North Vietnam and to slow infiltration of personnel and supplies into South Vietnam. During the early months of this campaign, there were restrictions against striking targets in or near Hanoi and Haiphong. In 1966, however, Rolling Thunder was expanded to include the bombing of North Vietnamese ammunition dumps and oil storage facilities. In the spring of 1967, it was further expanded to include power plants, factories, and airfields in the Hanoi and Haiphong area. The White House closely controlled operation Rolling Thunder and at times President Johnson personally selected targets. From 1965 to 1968, about 643,000 tons of bombs were dropped on North Vietnam. The operation continued, with occasional suspensions, until President Johnson halted in on October 31, 1968, under increasing domestic political pressure.
1
1969 – Approximately 600 communist soldiers storm a U.S. base near Tay Ninh, 50 miles northwest of Saigon and 12 miles from the Cambodian border. The North Vietnamese had been shelling the base for two days, followed by six attacks on the city itself and the surrounding villages. About 1,000 civilians fled their homes as Allied and communist troops fought in the city streets. The Americans eventually prevailed and it was reported that 146 communist soldiers were killed in the bitter street fighting. Ten Americans were killed and 32 were wounded. Total communist losses around Tay Ninh during the two-day battle were put at 194 killed.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
*MCWETHY, EDGAR LEE, JR.
Rank and organization: Specialist Fifth Class, U.S. Army, Company B, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile). Rank and organization: Binh Dinh province, Republic of Vietnam, 21 June 1967. Entered service at: Denver, Colo. Born: 22 November 1944, Leadville, Colo. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Serving as a medical aidman with Company B, Sp5c. McWethy accompanied his platoon to the site of a downed helicopter. Shortly after the platoon established a defensive perimeter around the aircraft, a large enemy force attacked the position from 3 sides with a heavy volume of automatic weapons fire and grenades. The platoon leader and his radio operator were wounded almost immediately, and Sp5c. McWethy rushed across the fire-swept area to their assistance. Although he could not help the mortally wounded radio operator, Sp5c. McWethy's timely first aid enabled the platoon leader to retain command during this critical period. Hearing a call for aid, Sp5c. McWethy started across the open toward the injured men, but was wounded in the head and knocked to the ground. He regained his feet and continued on but was hit again, this time in the leg. Struggling onward despite his wounds, he gained the side of his comrades and treated their injuries. Observing another fallen rifleman Lying in an exposed position raked by enemy fire, Sp5c. McWethy moved toward him without hesitation. Although the enemy fire wounded him a third time, Sp5c. McWethy reached his fallen companion. Though weakened and in extreme pain, Sp5c. McWethy gave the wounded man artificial respiration but suffered a fourth and fatal wound. Through his indomitable courage, complete disregard for his safety, and demonstrated concern for his fellow soldiers, Sp5c. McWethy inspired the members of his platoon and contributed in great measure to their successful defense of the position and the ultimate rout of the enemy force. Sp5c. McWethy's profound sense of duty, bravery, and his willingness to accept extraordinary risks in order to help the men of his unit are characteristic of the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the U.S. Army.
MONTI, JARED C.*
United States Army
Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 3d Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, 3d Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division. Place and date: Nuristan Province, Afghanistan, on June 21, 2006. Citation: Staff Sergeant Jared C. Monti distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a team leader with , in connection with combat operations against an armed enemy in While Staff Sergeant Monti was leading a mission aimed at gathering intelligence and directing fire against the enemy, his 16-man patrol was attacked by as many as 50 enemy fighters. On the verge of being overrun, Staff Sergeant Monti quickly directed his men to set up a defensive position behind a rock formation. He then called for indirect fire support, accurately targeting the rounds upon the enemy who had closed to within 50 meters of his position. While still directing fire, Staff Sergeant Monti personally engaged the enemy with his rifle and a grenade, successfully disrupting an attempt to flank his patrol. Staff Sergeant Monti then realized that one of his Soldiers was lying wounded in the open ground between the advancing enemy and the patrol's position. With complete disregard for his own safety, Staff Sergeant Monti twice attempted to move from behind the cover of the rocks into the face of relentless enemy fire to rescue his fallen comrade. Determined not to leave his Soldier, Staff Sergeant Monti made a third attempt to cross open terrain through intense enemy fire. On this final attempt, he was mortally wounded, sacrificing his own life in an effort to save his fellow Soldier. Staff Sergeant Monti's selfless acts of heroism inspired his patrol to fight off the larger enemy force. Staff Sergeant Monti's immeasurable courage and uncommon valor are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 3rd Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, and the United States Army.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for June 21
FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS FOR June 21
THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
21 June
1908: Glenn H. Curtiss, designer, flew the June Bug. It was the third Aerial Experiment Association plane. (24)
1913: FIRST AMERICAN FEMALE PARACHUTIST: 18-year-old Georgia "Tiny" Broadwick jumped from Glenn L. Martin's plane at 1,000 feet near Los Angeles. (20)
1921: First peacetime Army Air Service in-plant inspection office formed at Boeing Airplane Company in Seattle. (12)
1944: Operation FRANTIC. Nearly 1,000 bombers with over 900 fighter escorts attacked targets in the Berlin area. Of those, 144 heavy bombers and 51 P-51s continued on in shuttle-raid fashion to land at Poltava, Mirgorod, and Piryatin in Russia to reload and restrike targets in Germany on their return to England. (4)
1954: Maj Gen Walter C. Sweeney, Jr., 15th Air Force Commander, led three 22 BMW B-47s on a 6700-mile nonstop flight from March AFB to Yokota AB in less than 15 hours with two KC-97 refuelings. This longest point-to-point B-47 flight to date marked its first appearance in the Far East. (1) The USAF directed the ARDC to create a Western Development Division under Brig Gen Bernard A. Schriever to accelerate the Atlas ICBM program. (21)
1957: An USAF precision team of six F-100C Super Sabres flew from Kindley AFB, Bermuda, to Bedford. They covered the 683 nautical miles in a record of 1 hour 13 minutes. (24)
1960: AIRCRAFT PHASEOUTS. The last operational flight of a B-29 ended on 21 June when an 6023d Radar Evaluation Squadron RB-29 landed at Naha AB after a routine electronic countermeasure training mission. On 30 June, the unit's last four aircraft were salvaged. In addition, PACAF's last C-119 Flying Boxcars were transferred to India under the Military Assistance Program. (17)
1964: The New York Times reported that B-52s were equipped with terrain-avoidance radar to operate at extremely low levels.
1965: Two Athena missiles were successfully launched in less than three hours from the Green River, Utah, test complex under the Advanced Ballistic Reentry Systems (ABRES) program. (16)
1968: The first group of US Marine Corps pilots to be trained by the USAF received their pilot wings at Laredo AFB. (16)
1972: The McDonnell Douglas DC10-30 first flew.
1982: Operation DEEP FREEZE. SAC's tanker operations accomplished another milestone when a KC-10A transferred a record 67,400 pounds of fuel to a MAC C-141 some 750 miles north of the South Pole. (16)
1984: A KC-10A from the 22 AREFW at March AFB, flying the first time from Christchurch IAP, New Zealand, refueled a C-141B three times on its way to resupply the US Antarctic bases at the South Pole and McMurdo Sound. (1) (26)
1985: Through 25 July, three C-123K Providers with aerial spray capabilities responded to an infestation of grasshoppers in southern Idaho. The aircraft treated over 735,000 acres in 73 sorties to end the agricultural threat to private croplands. (16)
1996: Cmdr David Cheslak became the first Navy flight officer to command an Air Force squadron when he assumed command of the 562d Flying Training Squadron at Randolph AFB. The unit provided joint navigation training to Air Force and Navy personnel. (26)
1999: Operation ALLIED FORCE. The 104th Expeditionary Operations Group (ANG) at Trapani AB, Sicily, flew its final A-10 airborne close air support alert sorties for this operation. (32)
2004: SpaceshipOne became the first private venture craft to successfully attempt to leave earth's atmosphere into space (62 miles up) and return to earth. Burt Rutan and his Scaled Composites Company designed the rocket-powered SpaceShipOne and its carrier aircraft, the twin-jet White Knight, for this attempted flight from Mojave, Calif., near Edwards AFB. Michael Melvill, a veteran test pilot, flew in Spaceship One under the White Knight to 47,000 feet, where he dropped off for a 10-second glide. The ignition of the rocket motor eventually carried SpaceshipOne to 328,491 feet before it reentered the atmosphere and returned to earth. (http://www.richard-seaman.com/Aircraft/AirShows/SpaceShipOne2004)
2007: The 11th Reconnaissance Squadron flew an MQ-1 Predator Unmanned Aerial Vehicle past the 250,000 flying hour mark, and celebrated the historic event with a ceremony at Creech AFB, Nev. Major Robert Forino flew the Predator for this milestone. (AFNEWS, "Predator Reaches Quarter Million Flight Hours," 26 Jun 2007.)
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WORLD NEWS FOR 21 JUNE THANKS TO MILITARY PERISCOPE
Note….No news yesterday they took Juneteenth off
USA—3rd Fleet Gets New Commander U.S. Navy | 06/21/2022 The U.S. 3rd Fleet, which operates in the Pacific, has a new chief, reports the U.S. Navy. On June 16, Vice Adm. Michael Boyle succeeded Vice Adm. Steve Koehler as commander of the combat-ready force comprising 68,000 personnel, 100 ships and 400 aircraft, the service said in a release. Boyle previously served as the director of maritime operations at U.S. Pacific Fleet. In his new assignment, he will lead the Combined Task Force for RIMPAC 2022, which begins on June 29 and runs to Aug. 4. For his part, Koehler is headed to Washington to serve as director for strategy plans and policy (J-5), Joint Staff, and as the senior member of the Military Staff Committee of the U.N.
USA—Destroyer Paul Ignatius Arrives At New Homeport In Spain U.S. Navy | 06/21/2022 The U.S. Navy has just deployed a new guided-missile destroyer to Spain, the service reports. On June 17, USS Paul Ignatius (DDG-117) arrived at Naval Station Rota, where it will join Forward Deployed Naval Forces-Europe (FDNF-E). The warships will operate under Commander, Task Force 65 and Destroyer Squadron 60 in support of NATO's integrated air and missile defense architecture, the Navy said. The arrival of the Ignatius is one of several scheduled homeport shifts as part of the Navy's long-term plan to gradually rotate the destroyers based in Rota. Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 79 (HSM-79) also arrived at Rota, where it will provide rotary-wing capabilities to the FDNF-E destroyers.
USA—L3Harris In Talks To Buy Spyware Tools From Blacklisted Firm Security magazine | 06/21/2022 L3Harris in talks with a blacklisted Israeli technology company to buy spyware tools, reports Security magazine (Troy, Mich.). NSO Group was placed on the U.S. Entity List for its surveillance technology, known as Pegasus, which has been used to target smartphones belonging to U.S. citizens. The Biden administration has expressed concern about the possible deal, saying "any U.S. company, especially a cleared U.S. defense contractor, should be cognizant that a transaction with a blacklisted firm would … spur intensive review to examine whether the transaction poses a counterintelligence threat to the U.S. government and its systems and information". The lack of government support is among several challenges the proposed deal faces, analysts said.
USA—Rafael Offers Latest Spike Missile For Apache Choppers Defense News | 06/21/2022 Israeli firm Rafael is offering its latest precision-guided missile for the U.S. Army, reports Defense News. The company unveiled the sixth-generation version of its Spike anti-armor missile during last week's Eurosatory exhibition in Paris. The new missile has an increased range of 30 miles (50 km). Rafael is also one of three vendors participating in a U.S. Army-led competition for a new long-range precision munition for the AH-64E Apache attack helicopter and Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) program. The Spike Non-Line-of-Sight (NLOS) munition was previously chosen by the Army as an interim weapon for its Apaches, but the services wants to further increase its range so that it can operate in degraded environments.
China—Fujian Carrier Launched In Shanghai Wall Street Journal | 06/21/2022 China has launched its first domestically designed and built aircraft carrier, reports the Wall Street Journal. The Fujian, previously known as the Type 003, is named after one of China's coastal provinces. The launch represents progress in President Xi Jinping's plans to make China a first-rate military power. The Fujian will be the third aircraft carrier to join the Chinese fleet. Unlike the previous ships, the Fujian is expected to be equipped with an electromagnetic catapult system, similar to that on the U.S. Gerald. R. Ford-class carriers. The new carrier is expected to enter service in 2024, and support additional fighter aircraft, fixed-wing early warning aircraft, and more rapid flight operations, according to the Pentagon's 2021 annual report to Congress on the Chinese military.
Colombia—Ex-Guerilla Wins Presidential Election Economist | 06/21/2022 Colombia will have a left-wing president for the first time, reports the Economist (U.K.). On June 19, Gustavo Petro, a former mayor of Bogota and member of the M19 guerrilla group, defeated Rodolfo Hernandez, a property developer, in a runoff vote, by a margin of 50.4 percent to 47.3 percent. The margin was higher than projected amid a record turnout of 58 percent of voters. His running mate, Francia Marquez, will be Colombia's first Black vice president. Petro's election is in line with a series of electoral victories by left-wing candidates in Central and South America seen as a rejection of incumbents amid growing distrust of conventional politics. Analysts say the new president could find it challenging to govern since his Pacto Historico party will only hold 15 percent of seats in both houses of Parliament.
France—Macron-Led Party Loses Parliamentary Majority France 24 | 06/21/2022 French President Emmanuel Macron's centrist Ensemble coalition has lost its parliamentary majority, reports France 24. In this month's vote, the coalition won 244 seats, the most of any party but short of the 289 needed for a majority. The leftist New Ecological and Social Political Union (NUPES) won 137 seats, while Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally won 89 seats. Macron planned to meet with the leaders of the opposition parties on Tuesday to discuss options to break the political deadlock. Meanwhile, NUPES leader Jean-Luc Melenchon pledged to hold a no-confidence vote against incumbent French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne in July, while Le Pen said her party would demand the chair of the National Assembly's powerful finance commission, which traditionally goes to the largest opposition party.
Iran—3 Mossad Agents Arrested Haaretz | 06/21/2022 The Iranian government says it has broken up a network of agents linked to Israel's Mossad intelligence agency, reports Haaretz (Israel). On Monday, Arab and Iranian media reported that the suspected agents were apprehended in Iran's southeastern Sistan-Balochistan province in April. The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) said that three alleged agents would soon be put on trial. A judiciary official said that the network was planning to assassinate Iranian nuclear scientists.
Iraq—PKK Tunnel Discovered Under Border With Syria Anadolu News Agency | 06/21/2022 Iraqi Kurdish officials say a Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) tunnel has been discovered running under the northern Iraqi border with Syria, reports the state-run Anadolu Agency (Ankara). A Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) told the Turkish news agency that the militant group built a 7.4-mile (12-km) tunnel running from the Sinjar region in northwestern Iraq to Hasakah province in Syria. He accused the PKK of transporting weapons and personnel through the tunnel and working with the Iraqi Hashd al-Shaabi militia, which is linked to Iran. The two organizations are working together to upend a 2020 agreement between the Kurdistan regional government and Iraqi federal government to secure Sinjar with federal security and Kurdish peshmerga forces, the KDP official said.
Israel—PM Decides To Dissolve Parliament, Schedule New Elections Jerusalem Post | 06/21/2022 Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and alternate Prime Minister Yair Lapid have agreed to dissolve the Israeli Parliament, reports the Jerusalem Post. A bill to dissolve the Knesset is scheduled to be presented for a vote on June 27. The ruling coalition and opposition have also agreed to hold a new election on Oct. 25. In the meantime, Lapid will serve as caretaker prime minister until a new government takes office. The move was necessary after several members of Bennett's governing coalition defected. The election will be Israel's fifth in 3.5 years.
Japan—New Agency Planned To Combat Infectious Disease Asahi Shimbun | 06/21/2022 The Japanese government has decided to establish a new agency to coordinate the response to the spread of infectious diseases, reports the Asahi Shimbun. On Friday, a task force meeting on preventing the spread of COVID-19 agreed to establish a "Cabinet agency for infection crisis management," a permanent body within the Cabinet Secretariat that reports directly to the prime minister. It will be staffed year-round with officials from "relevant" agencies. In an emergency, additional personnel will be assigned. In addition, a new "department for tackling infectious disease" will be set up within the health ministry. The Japanese version of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) would be established under this department by combining the National Institute for Infectious Diseases and National Center for Global Health and Medicine. The department would be designed to prepare the Japanese government to address infectious diseases on an everyday basis. The Japanese CDC would collect information regarding infectious diseases, diagnoses and treatments and use this information to devise policy.
Lithuania—Russia Complains After Restrictions Implemented On Goods Transiting To Kaliningrad Guardian | 06/21/2022 Russian officials have threatened Lithuania after its state railway commission told Russian customers that it would no longer transport goods such as steel or iron ore across European Union territory to the Kaliningrad exclave, reports the Guardian (U.K.). On Tuesday, Russia summoned E.U. Ambassador Markus Ederer to complain. Nikolai Patrushev, the head of Russia's security council, threatened unspecified retaliatory measures if normal transit to Kaliningrad did not resume, reported Reuters. Ederer urged Moscow to refrain from "escalatory steps and rhetoric," according to an E.U. spokesperson. Vilnius began enforcing E.U. sanctions on June 18. The measures, which enter force at different times, cover Russian coal, metals, construction materials and advanced technology. A little under half of the Russian goods that pass through Lithuania every month are affected by the sanctions.
Nigeria—Bandits Ambush Pilgrim Convoy In Sokoto State Premium Times | 06/21/2022 Gunmen attacked a convoy of Muslim pilgrims in the northwestern Sokoto state as they made their way to the state capital to fly to Mecca as part of the Hajj, reports the Premium Times (Abuja). A convoy of buses was taking the pilgrims from the Isa local government area to the city of Sokoto when it was ambushed in the Gundumi area. Police officers escorting the convoy fought off the bandits, sources said. No casualties were immediately reported. The pilgrims were not harmed, a state government spokesman said. Banditry has been a growing problem in northwestern Nigeria, with criminals kidnapping for ransom and rustling cattle. Hundreds have been killed in bandit attacks.
South Korea—Defense Minister Discusses Alliance, N. Korea With U.S. Officials Yonhap | 06/21/2022 South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong Sup met with members of the American Foreign Policy Council (AFPC) this week to discuss regional security and the bilateral alliance, reports the Yonhap news agency (Seoul). On Friday, Lee hosted the delegation, including former Pentagon and National Security Council officials, stressing that North Korean missile tests are provocative and a threat to peace. Last month, Pyongyang launched a series of ballistic missiles, including intercontinental ballistic missiles, after the U.N. Security Council failed to impose new sanctions. Lee also said that South Korea would play a constructive role in building the bilateral alliance with the U.S. into a "global comprehensive strategic alliance."
Syria—ISIS Claims Bus Attack That Kills 13 In Raqqa Reuters | 06/21/2022 At least 13 people have been killed in a militant attack in northern Syria, reports Reuters. On Monday, gunmen attacked a bus in the Jabal al-Bishri region of Raqqa province killing 11 government soldiers and two civilians, according to the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency. Three soldiers were wounded, the Syrian Defense Ministry said in a statement. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack in a Telegram message. The U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that ISIS maintains sleeper cells in Syria's desert areas, which conduct hit-and-run attacks.
Tajikistan—U.S. May Donate Former Afghan Aircraft Reuters | 06/21/2022 The head of the U.S. Central Command says that aircraft that were flown to Tajikistan from Afghanistan during the Taliban takeover may be donated to Dushanbe, reports Reuters. Army Gen. Michael Kurilla visited Tajikistan over the weekend, expressing gratitude to the Tajik armed forces for continuing to secure the aircraft. He said Washington was working with the Tajik government to identify the best way to effectively use and maintain the aircraft. Kurilla said that his goal was to deliver some or all the aircraft to Tajikistan. Platforms that were flown to Tajikistan include A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft, Mi-17 and UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, reported the Aerotime Hub (Cyprus).
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