To All,
Good Tuesday morning March 14 2023.
Regards,
Skip
This day in Naval and Marine Corps History
March 14
1863—A squadron of ships led by Rear Adm. David G. Farragut passes the heavy batteries at Port Hudson, LA, to establish blockade of Red River supply lines during the Civil War. USS Mississippi becomes grounded, catches fire and blows up, killing 64.
1929—During the Elba, Alabama, flooding, Navy planes from Naval Air Station Pensacola, FL, make 113 flights carrying relief supplies and conducting rescues to flooded towns in southern Alabama and western Florida.
1945—USS Cotten (DD 669) and USS Dortch (DD 670) sink the Japanese guardboats Futa Maru and No.17 Kaiko Maru off the Bonin Islands.
1945—USS Bream (SS 243) sinks the Japanese auxiliary submarine chaser Kihin Maru in the Java Sea, south of Borneo. Also on this date, USS Trepang (SS 412) sinks the Japanese guard boat Kaiko Maru off Inubo Saki, Japan.
1945—During the Battle for Iwo Jima, Marine Pvt. George Phillips and Pvt. Franklin E. Sigler each perform acts of "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life." Both are awarded Medals of Honor; Phillips receives his posthumously.
1964—USS Sacramento (AOE 1) is commissioned at Seattle, WA. She is the first-of-class Combat Supply Ship that combines the characteristics of an oiler, ammunition and supply ship.
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This day in History March 14
1629 A Royal charter is granted to the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
1743 First American town meeting is held at Boston's Faneuil Hall.
1757 British Admiral John Byng is executed by a firing squad on board HMS Monarch for neglect of duty.
1794 Inventor Eli Whitney receives a patent for his cotton gin.
1900 United States currency goes on the gold standard.
1903 The Senate ratifies the Hay-Herran Treaty, guaranteeing the United States the right to build a canal in Panama.
1912 An anarchist named Antonio Dalba unsuccessfully attempts to kill Italy's King Victor Emmanuel III in Rome.
1915 The British Navy sinks the German battleship Dresden off the Chilean coast.
1918 An all-Russian Congress of Soviets ratifies a peace treaty with the Central Powers.
1923 President Warren G. Harding becomes the first U.S. President to file an income tax report.
1936 Adolf Hitler tells a crowd of 300,000 that Germany's only judge is God and itself.
1939 The Nazis dissolve the republic of Czechoslovakia.
1943 The Germans reoccupy Kharkov in the Soviet Union.
1947 The United States signs a 99-year lease on naval bases in the Philippines.
1951 U.N. forces recapture Seoul for the second time during the Korean War.
1954 The Viet Minh launch an assault against the French Colonial Forces at Dien Bien Phu.
1964 A Dallas jury finds Jack Ruby guilty of the murder of assassin Lee Harvey Oswald.
1967 John F. Kennedy's body is moved from a temporary grave to a permanent one in Arlington Cemetery.
1978 An Israeli force of 22,000 invades south Lebanon, hitting the PLO bases.
1990 Mikhail S. Gorbachev becomes president of the Soviet Congress.
1991 The "Birmingham Six," imprisoned for 16 years for their alleged part in an IRA pub bombing, are set free after a court agrees that the police fabricated evidence.
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ROLLING THUNDER REMEMBERED Thanks to the Bear
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
Skip… For The List for Tuesday, 14 March 2023… Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post for 14 March 1968…
NYT: "Vietnam: America's Dreyfus Case"… a nation split asunder…
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.
This is a list of all Helicopter Pilots Who Died in the Vietnam War . Listed by last name and has other info https://www.vhpa.org/KIA/KIAINDEX.HTM
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Thanks to Mike,
Remember today, 3/14 is Pi Day. To celebrate Pi Day, I suggest drawing a circle and dividing it by the diameter. You should be able to get the attached answer. Remember to show all work.
http://www.geom.uiuc.edu/~huberty/math5337/groupe/digits.html
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Thanks to the Bear
Weather Warfare
Fred… I betcha' the PRC is responsible for modifying the weather to create the atmospheric rivers that are destroying California… their balloons are seeding the upper levels of the atmosphere… weather warfare at it's best to go along with biological warfare, which, when combined, are an extension of economic warfare, which is consistent with the long-term strategy of the PRC to "win without fighting."… I hope we are testing the snow and rain falling in America this winter to detect and analyze the agents being used to seed the atmosphere headed toward the US from the Western Pacific… Bear
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Thanks to Mud
Flying With Birds in France
This is truly amazing. Years ago when flying into Stuttgart, AR, to go duck hunting, on occasion due to limited visibility I'd find myself entirely too close to a flock of ducks or gaggle of geese. They'd scatter when that happened.
Here's a grand opportunity to practice your French while flying with the birds. Turn up the volume and watch full screen.
S/F,
- Mud
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Thanks to Micro
Children Are So Honest
As I was nursing my baby, my cousin's six-year-old daughter, Krissy, came into the room. Never having seen anyone breast feed before, she was intrigued and full of all kinds of questions about what I was doing. After mulling over my answers, she remarked, "My mom has some of those, but I don't think she knows how to use them."
*****
Out bicycling one day with my eight-year-old granddaughter, Carolyn, I got a little wistful. "In ten years," I said, "you'll want to be with your friends and you won't go walking, biking, and swimming with me like you do now. Carolyn shrugged. "In ten years you'll be too old to do all those things anyway."
******
Working as a pediatric nurse, I had the difficult assignment of giving immunization shots to children. One day, I entered the examining room to give four-year-old Lizzie her injection. "No, no, no!" she screamed. "Lizzie," scolded her mother, "that's not polite behavior." With that, the girl yelled even louder, "No, thank you! No, thank you! No, thank you!"
******
On the way back from a Cub Scout meeting, my grandson innocently said to my son, "Dad, I know babies come from mommie's tummies, but how do they get there in the first place?" After my son hemmed and hawed awhile, my grandson finally spoke up in disgust, "You don't have to make up something, Dad. It's okay if you don't know the answer."
******
Just before I was deployed to Iraq, I sat my eight-year-old son down and broke the news to him. "I'm going to be away for a long time," I told him. "I'm going to Iraq." "Why?" he asked. "Don't you know there's a war going on over there?"
*****
Paul Newman founded the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp for children stricken with cancer, AIDS, and blood diseases. One afternoon, he and his wife, Joanne Woodward, stopped by to have lunch with the kids. A counselor at a nearby table, suspecting the young patients wouldn't know Newman was a famous movie star, explained, "That's the man who made this camp possible. Maybe you've seen his picture on his salad dressing bottle?"
Blank stares
"Well, you've probably seen his face on his lemonade carton." An eight-year-old girl perked up. "How long was he missing?"
******
God's Problem Now!
His wife's graveside service was just barely finished, when there was a massive clap of thunder, followed by a tremendous bolt of lightning, accompanied by even more thunder rumbling in the distance. The little, old man looked at the pastor and calmly said, "Well, she's there."
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Thanks to Dr.Rich It is one of the reasons I do the LIst
Thanks to Budd ... w. some fascinating facts…
Loss of pride through out-and-out historical ignorance has been working with us for a long time. Here's a blog I put up on Substack back in October about the same thing.
There's More to Life Than Airplanes...Like Knowing Stuff for Instance
Facts, Figures and the Art of Learning
Budd Davisson
Oct 9, 20226
Not long ago I was having lunch with some of the airport posse. It was four or five guys and one of their grand kids, who I would guess was 15 or 16. Somehow the conversation got off onto WW II stuff, which means, if I'm within earshot, I'm likely to start rattling off random facts that I consider to be important. Most of them are amazing facts!
For what it's worth, my ex-wife often said that I'm constantly answering questions no one is asking. That pretty much characterizes the conversation I'm about to recount and a concept I worry about.
First, I should mention that for 23 years I was creator and editor-in-chief of Flight Journal magazine (which is still running). So, for 23 years I was up to my butt in aviation history, much of which was WW II, etc. So, I may be more aware than some of the miraculous stuff that was done during that four-year flail. And, I sometimes feel driven to make folks aware of some of those miracles. No one is asking the questions but…
Anyway, sensing a willingness around the table to absorb some of my history factoids, I started spouting facts:
December 7, 1941, Pearl Harbor: At that point in time, the concept of large scale, amphibious warfare, as we know it, didn't really exist. Assaulting and gaining control of a major island or beach had never been done with any amount of precision. Then, exactly eight months later, to the day—to the frigging day— Marines waded ashore at Guadalcanal, code name Operation Watchtower.
During that eight months, we designed and built the specialized landing craft (LCVP), built or modified the ships to carry the landing craft, manufactured everything from shoe laces to tanks to fighters, recruited the men, trained the men. We then shipped it all to the South Pacific with enough gas, mechanical supplies, food and ammo to fight a war. Eight months!!! It seems impossible! Making it seem even more impossible is the fact that there was no form of high-speed communication or information transfer available other than telegraph. It's hard to imagine pulling that off.
Today, it would take us eight months just to come up with a name for the operation and another eight months to run the environmental impact study.
Equally as amazing, three months after assaulting Guadalcanal, we did exactly the same thing in Operation Torch on the other side of the globe, by invading North Africa. Talk about logistical nightmares! Unbelievable!
An example of why we were able to pull all that kind of whiz-bang stuff off is contained in the background story of the Merlin V-12 engine.
When Rolls Royce came to Packard to have them build Merlin engines for the Mustang, Packard responded they couldn't build them the way Rolls did. RR asked "Why? Because you can't hold the precision?"
"No," Packard said, "because we can't build them that sloppy."
RR got all huffy and Packard asked how many Merlins they had built to that point and they reportedly responded around 6,500 since starting full-scale production in 1937/38. Packard then said, "Last year alone we built 91,000 motors."
'Turns out the Brits didn't use the Henry Ford style of assembly line production, which every company in the US did. The Brits had a "craftsman" approach to building engines. Their concept was one man, one motor. Ours was one man, one part. Each of the Brit "craftsman" had their own little machine shop to knock a thousandths off here, a thousandths off there, to make parts fit. RR switched to Henry Ford's concept and eventually cranked out 150,000 Merlins. Making "lots of stuff" is, and always has been, an American specialty. This is something we all take for granted.
Another example: Although a semi-legend, the American M4 Sherman tank, other than being more reliable than most tanks and fairly fast, was one of the worse medium tanks of the war. Survivability was low and it had a less-than-effective gun.
Germany, which had the best tank through most of WW II (the Panther) and the much vaunted Tiger, called Shermans "Ronsons" because they were so easily set on fire. German tank rounds could go right through a Sherman. However, Germany only built about 6,500 Panthers and 1,100 Tiger 1s. We, on the other hand, built 49,234 Shermans in less than four years (40 +/- months to be exact). That's more tanks than England and Germany built combined during the entire war. That's roughly 35 tanks a day, seven days a week! Reportedly, B-24s, as another example, at their peak were rolling off the line one an hour! We simply out-produced the bad guys.
The statistics about what we did during WW II are flat out astounding and we did it with no internet, no texting, no nothin'! Somehow, we made it work.
Obviously, it's easy to get me up on a soap box extolling what was accomplished during the War. Sorry.
I was rattling on about this kind of stuff, when the kid held up his phone and said, "Why would you want to remember all that stuff when it's right here in your phone."
Talk about getting the wind sucked out of your sails! How can you not be interested and want to know more about something that historic? How can you not be impressed?
Then, however, I realized he was right. We are now in a totally different era than most of us are used to. Today, it seems as if mentally cataloging knowledge is secondary. The most valuable skill is knowing how to research the subject. You want to know a fact? Just ask Mr. Google. That's the new educational mantra and it appears, that's the way stuff is being taught. To a certain extent, you aren't being taught to know something. You're being taught to look it up.
Shortly after that exchange, I was talking with a young (early 20's) friend and four of his friends, all of whom had graduated from college. Just for the helluvit, I did a man-on-the-street information gathering thing like we see on TV all the time. I asked a bunch of quick questions and the results were stupefying.
"When was WW II?" I received answers from 1900 to the 1960s. 1940s weren't mentioned.
"Who were we fighting?" England was the most common answer. France came in third and finally Germany. Japan wasn't mentioned
"Who was Lee Harvey Oswald." He had a punk rock group in the '80s. Or, I 'Dunno!
"How many feet are in a mile?" Crickets! Looking at each other.
"How many inches in a yard? Two out of five knew.
"Where is Nebraska." Out "there" somewhere. One of the five pointed west. We're in Arizona and the only thing between us and the Pacific is California. The rest only knew it was east of us. Somewhere.
"Where is Chicago?" Next to New York or Washington, DC were the agreed upon answers.
It went on and on like that and all five intuitively reached for their phones.
Yes, they could find the answer to the questions digitally, but that assumed they knew what to ask. If you don't have the basic knowledge about something, chances are you won't even know what to ask. Literally, if you don't know what you don't know, you don't know what to look up. This is not a good thing.
But, Inches in a yard?! Feet in a mile?! How basic is that? There lots of facts in life no one should ever have to Google. I'm glad I didn't ask how many seconds are in a minute. The answer might have depressed me.
What I may be seeing here is a generational thing. Yeah, I'm a gray dog, but I look around at most of my friends and I know for a fact that each of them has knowledge and facts stored up in their head that are truly valuable when living life. This is stuff over and above what they do for a living. It's just stuff they "know". What I don't know is how much of that "stuff" was saved in their mental hard drives as the result of their experiences and how much was put there by their education long before they started experiencing life. I'm betting it's a combination with an emphasis on the latter.
Today it feels as if much of education has lost its way. Where we used to teach a kid the basic skills to live life, we've complicated the crap out of that important part of their growing process. Where it used to be a simple learning process focused on reading/writing/arithmetic, we've layered tons of social issues on top of the important stuff. At that stage in life, learning is complicated enough without fertilizing it with philosophical stuff that even adults don't have a good handle on. And don't get me started on how important parenting is in the process of growing and learning.
Although it's fun having trivia rattling around inside one's head, even I have to admit it's not important that someone know there were 49,234 Sherman tanks built. However, it is important that kids know how many inches are in a yard, how many ounces in a pound, etc. It's important they know their country's history, both good and bad. Among other things, it's important they know where and when good men died to give them the life they are now enjoying.
As for discussing which restroom they can use, I could be wrong, but I'm pretty certain that's not one of the 3Rs.
bd
PS - While I was typing this, I turned around and found that Abigail, the kitten-that-won't-grow-up that I mentioned a couple weeks back, had silently disassembled a bird on the rug behind me. I need to have a serious talk with her.
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Thanks to Interesting facts…..Aikrports
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In Airport Codes, "X" Is Just Filler
The LAX-Sign at the Entrance of the Los Angeles International Airport.Credit: Michael Rosebrock/ Alamy Stock Photo
The "X" and the end of "PHX" makes sense for Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport — but what about "LAX" for Los Angeles and "PDX" for Portland?
Turns out, the "X" is left over from the days when airports used two-letter codes from the National Weather Service. With the rapid growth of air travel, it soon became apparent that two letters wouldn't be enough. When International Air Transport Association (IATA) three-letter codes became the norm in the 1930s, some airports gained an "X" at the end.
Then there's Sioux City Gateway Airport, which is blessed with the IATA code "SUX." In 1988 and 2002, officials petitioned to change the code, and were offered five options by the FAA: GWU, GYO, GYT, SGV, and GAY. They opted to embrace what they already had instead, and introduced a line of merchandise — beanies, mugs, and more — emblazoned with the "SUX" logo.
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The Wright Brothers' Airport Is the World's Oldest Continuously Operating Airport
A plane takes off from College Park Airport in Maryland.Credit: The Washington Post via Getty Images
Flight pioneer Wilbur Wright established College Park Airport in College Park, Maryland, in 1909 as a training ground for two military officers as they got ready to fly the government's first airplane. More than a century later, it's still a public airport, making it the oldest continuously operating airport in the world.
There's a little bit of an asterisk on that record, though, in that you can't really catch a flight there — unless you have or know somebody with an aircraft and a pilot's license. Which brings us to…
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Hamburg Airport Is the Oldest Continuously Operating Commercial Airport
An airbus of the airline Eurowings takes off from Hamburg Airport.Credit: picture alliance via Getty Images
If you're looking for the oldest airport with terminals and plane tickets, look no further than Hamburg Airport, established in 1911. But while America was building its aviation history on airplanes, Germany built the facility around the country's own technology: Zeppelins.
Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, the inventor of the Zeppelin airship in the 1890s, gave an enthusiastic speech about the future of air travel in Hamburg in 1910. Residents believed in his vision, and the first building at the Hamburg Airport was an airship hangar, built in 1912. However, it took less than a decade for airplanes to start taking over. The airport broke the one-million passenger mark in 1961.
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Airlines Pay Up to Eight Figures for Slots on the Airport's Schedule
Close-up of an airport arrivals and departures sign.Credit: JESHOOTS/ Unsplash
To keep air traffic running smoothly and safely in more than 200 of the world's busiest airports, airport operators grant airlines slots that give them authorization to take off or land at certain times — and in many places, demand is far outpacing supply.
The most expensive slots are at Heathrow International Airport in London, England. In 2016, Kenya Airways sold its only slot to Oman Air for a whopping $75 million. That's on the high side, but eight figures is relatively common. One year later, two slots fetched the same price when Scandinavian Airlines decided to sell.
Because an airline can lose that valuable asset if it doesn't use it at least 80% of the time in a six-month period, you might see some unusual scheduling. At one point, British Mediterranean Airways was operating round-trip flights between Heathrow and Cardiff Airport in Rhoose, Wales — a journey of just a few hours by car or train — with zero passengers, angering environmental activists (among others). And with demand for air travel having decreased during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, some airlines aren't canceling their underbooked flights, leading to more empty planes journeying through the skies.
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Your Confiscated Items Might Be at Auction
Security man at checkpoint in airport exploring luggage on an x-ray screen.Credit: Frame Stock Footage/ Shutterstock
Ever wonder where your favorite nail clippers and corkscrews went after airport security confiscated them? In some states, they end up in government auctions — and they sell in bulk.
Collections of forbidden goods, from 12 pounds of flashlights to 7 pounds of cigar cutters to an assortment of foldable shovels, end up on government-asset marketplace GovDeals.com. There are so many pocket knives that they get sorted into different categories before going on the market, ending up in lots of 100 generic-brand knives; 14 pounds of knives with names, dates, or locations on them; or 14 pounds of small-size Swiss Army Knives.
Lost luggage is also sold if it's not picked up within three months, but the process is a little more streamlined. A reseller called Unclaimed Baggage sorts through and resells, repurposes, or recycles the bags and their contents. Speaking of airport security …
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TSA Collects Your Loose Change
Airport security check with containers filled of personal belongings.Credit: Jaromir Chalabala/ Shutterstock
With hundreds of thousands of travelers throwing wallets into bins every day, some loose change is bound to fall out and get left behind. Over time, that really adds up; in 2020 alone, the Transit Security Administration (TSA) gathered more than $500,000 in loose change, and that's during a pandemic — in 2019, they picked up more than $900,000. The biggest source of lost change was Harry Reid (formerly McCarran) International Airport near Las Vegas, where passengers left behind $37,611.61.
The TSA has to submit reports to Congress every year on how much they've gathered and what they spent it on. They ended 2020 with $1.5 million, including money leftover from previous years, and spent much of it on pandemic mitigation measures like masks, gloves, and face shields.
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Airport Nap Hotels Exist
A sleepbox, a capsule hotel in Xianyang airport, for passengers taking a nap in between flights.Credit: Zhang Peng/ Lightrocket via Getty Images
During a longer layover or delay, travelers sometimes stay at nearby hotels, then head back through security to catch their next flight. But if you just need a quick nap or a moment of quiet — or you're worried about oversleeping — transit hotels are located literally inside the airport.
Aerotel has locations throughout Asia (and a few outside) for some sleep and a shower between, before, or after flights, whether you need an hour-long nap or an overnight stay. Yotel, with airport locations in Amsterdam, London, Istanbul, Paris, and Singapore, fills a similar niche: You can book as little as four hours in a relatively barebones room, with a bed or two, shower, and Wi-Fi.
More traditional hotels built for regular sleeping also exist inside airports, but often offer shorter-term options designed for decompressing during a layover — you just might pay a little extra for the bells and whistles. The Hilton Munich Airport offers a two-hour spa card, and Grand Hyatt DFW and JFK's midcentury-themed TWA Hotel both offer fixed day-use rates that include access to the pool (starting at $109 in Dallas and around $149 at TWA).
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Therapy Dogs Are An Increasingly Common Amenity
A young girl pets a therapy dog at San Francisco International Airport.Credit: Justin Sullivan/ Getty Images News via Getty Images
Anxious before your flight? Need a little dog cuddle? As of August 2021, dozens of airports in North America had some kind of therapy dog program, whether it was daily dog visitors or a once-a-month treat. One of the biggest operations is the Pets Unstressing Passengers (PUP) program in Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), which had around 121 dogs participating before the pandemic — most of them rescue dogs, and all of them with appropriate certifications and on-the-job experience. Each dog has a handsome red vest and weekly shift of 1-2 hours, and handlers double as customer service reps that can help you find your way to the correct gate.
Each therapy dog program is as special as its four-legged volunteers. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) in Broward County, Florida, has eight "FLL AmbassaDogs" that include a Yorkshire Terrier named Tiffany who rides around in a stroller. At the Edmonton International Airport in Alberta, Canada, pups and handlers wear matching outfits and distribute trading cards. In 2016, the San Francisco International Airport (SFO) added a Juliana pig named LiLou to its "Wag Brigade."
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Defense News thanks to Brett
"There are two theories to arguing with women. Neither one works."– Mike Rhodes
Top 5
Military services grappling with filling their ranks in budget request
(Military Times) The White House budget is calling for more troops with next year's budget, but that hoped-for result, as administration budgets are, is tempered by the reality that low national unemployment and a shrinking pool of young people interested in serving means it's harder and harder to recruit. Read More
The Army keeps getting smaller
(Army Times) The Army's end strength continues to decrease under its most recent budget request. Read More
Why the US Navy wants to retire eight ships early
(Defense News) The U.S. Navy intends to decommission 11 ships in fiscal 2024, including eight ahead of their planned end of service life — fewer than the 24 it requested to decommission in its FY23 submission, but still likely to reignite debate on Capitol Hill. Read More
Air Force proposes stagnant workforce, flight time in FY24 budget
(Air Force Times) The Department of the Air Force's request for $215.1 billion in fiscal 2024, unveiled Monday, would maintain the status quo through a marginal decrease in jobs and just enough time in the cockpit to keep airmen's skills fresh. Read More
Corps plans to spend more money on retaining, training Marines
(Marine Corps Times) The Marine Corps hopes to spend more in fiscal year 2024 on retaining and training its Marines, while pressing ahead with efforts to modernize the force. Read More
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Thanks to Brett
Geopolitical Futures:
Keeping the future in focus
Daily Memo: Russia Releases Trade Data
The Kremlin hasn't published export and import figures since the beginning of the war in Ukraine.
By: GPF Staff
Long-awaited stats. Russia's Federal Customs Service has finally published trade data for 2022, after roughly a year of not releasing such figures. By value, Russian imports declined by 11.7 percent compared to 2021, while exports grew by almost 20 percent. Fuel and oil, which accounted for the largest share of exports, increased by 42 percent, food products and agricultural raw materials by 14 percent and fertilizers by 54 percent. As for imports, machinery and equipment dropped sharply due to Western sanctions. The results should be taken with a pinch of salt, however. The figures are presented in dollars, and the depreciation of the ruble means exports appear more valuable than they actually were. The Kremlin also has an interest in demonstrating that its exports remain strong despite Western sanctions, as this will improve its negotiating position in future peace talks.
Skirting sanctions? India's oil exports to the EU increased by 20 percent year over year from April 2022 to January 2023. Between India's refining capacity and increased oil imports from Russia, many believe India is helping to funnel Russian supplies into European markets by mixing it with oil from other countries before reselling it. Relatedly, according to Russian media, Turkish customs authorities have started blocking the transit of Western goods subject to sanctions into Russia and Belarus. Though Ankara has not made any public announcement on the matter, executives from Russian logistics companies said the change was a result of a Turkish government directive.
Bump in the road. The United Arab Emirates is reportedly suspending its purchase of Israeli weapons due to the Israeli government's recent actions, including the national security minister's recent visit to al-Aqsa Mosque and the finance minister's statement that the Palestinian village of Hawara should be "wiped out." Saudi authorities, meanwhile, refused to issue visas to an Israeli delegation that was invited to attend a U.N. tourism event in Saudi Arabia. This comes amid recent efforts to normalize ties between Israel and Arab countries, as well as Riyadh and Tehran's agreement last week to restore diplomatic relations.
U.S. tech security. The U.S. and India agreed over the weekend to create a subcommittee aimed at establishing a more secure semiconductor supply chain. Meanwhile, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce stressed the need to regulate artificial intelligence technology so that it doesn't inhibit economic growth or compromise national security. Also, the U.S. and EU agreed to launch talks on critical minerals used in the production of electric vehicles and high-tech goods, the supply of which is currently highly dependent on China.
Chinese economy. On the sidelines of China's annual parliamentary meeting, the head of the National Bureau of Statistics said there are deep structural "contradictions" and "problems" in the Chinese economy, in a rare acknowledgment of the country's economic challenges. Newly elected Chinese Premier Li Qiang, however, tried to inspire confidence in the economy, saying China will open up further this year and align with international trade rules.
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Military Milestones from Guilford Courthouse to Iraq by W. Thomas Smith Jr.
This Week in American Military History:
Mar. 14, 1951: United Nations forces under the command of U.S. Army Gen. Matthew B. Ridgeway recapture Seoul, Korea.
Mar. 15, 1781: British Army forces under the command of Lt. Gen. Charles Cornwallis march toward a pyrrhic victory over Continental Army and militia forces commanded by Maj. Gen. Nathaniel Greene at Guilford Courthouse (near present-day Greensboro), N.C. Once engaged, the two armies fight for less than two hours. Tactically, it ends in a victory for Cornwallis, who drives Greene's forces from the field. But British losses are heavy. Cornwallis will purportedly say, "I never saw such fighting since God made me. The Americans fought like demons." When word of Guilford Courthouse reaches London, Parliamentarian Charles James Fox will declare: "Another such victory would ruin the British army!" Cornwallis' entire army will surrender to the combined American-French forces of Generals George Washington and Comte de Rochambeau at Yorktown, Virginia, Oct. 19, almost seven months to the day after Guilford Courthouse.
Mar. 15, 1916: As World War I rages in Europe, a U.S. Army expeditionary force under the command of Gen. John J. "Black Jack" Pershing crosses into Mexico in pursuit of the bandit, Pancho Villa. Though Villa will not be captured (he will be assassinated in 1923), the expedition will serve as both a proving ground for new American weapons systems and a combat-campaign prep school for many of the officers and men destined for European fighting in 1918. Pershing – nicknamed "Black Jack" because of his command of black soldiers in the late 19th century – will ultimately command the American Expeditionary Force in World War I.
Mar. 16, 1802: Pres. Thomas Jefferson signs into law the establishment of a corps of engineers, which "shall be stationed at West Point in the State of New York and shall constitute a Military Academy." The United States Military Academy is born. George Washington, Henry Knox, Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, and others "desiring to eliminate America's wartime reliance on foreign engineers and artillerists, [had] urged the creation of an institution devoted to the arts and sciences of warfare," according to the official West Point website.
Mar. 16, 1945: Though Japanese resistance will continue for several more days, Iwo Jima is declared secure. The following day, Adm. Chester W. Nimitz, commander-in-chief of the U.S.
Pacific Fleet, will issue his now-famous communiqué: "The battle of Iwo [Jima] Island has been won. The United States Marines by their individual and collective courage have conquered a base which is as necessary to us in our continuing forward movement toward final victory as it was vital to the enemy in staving off ultimate defeat. … Among the Americans who served on Iwo Island, uncommon valor was a common virtue."
Mar. 17, 1776: British forces under the command of Gen. Sir William Howe begin evacuating Boston after Howe reluctantly concludes that the American artillery positions atop Boston's commanding Dorchester Heights are "impregnable."
Mar. 18, 1945: Some 1,250 American bombers and their fighter escorts roar toward Berlin in one of the U.S. Army Air Forces' "heaviest" bombing raids on the German capitol. The Nazis are finished. In six weeks, Adolf Hitler will commit suicide.
Mar. 18, 1945: Adm. Marc A. Mitscher's Fast Carrier "Task Force 58" begins a several-day series of attacks on Japanese bases at Kyushu, Honshu, and Shikoku in preparation for the forthcoming Okinawa campaign. The enemy will mount a counterattack, but with only moderate effect. Japanese losses of shore facilities, aircraft, and men will be heavy. In less than two years, Mitscher will die of a heart attack. Adm. Arleigh Burke will remember him as "the preeminent carrier force commander in the world. A bulldog of a fighter, a strategist blessed with an uncanny ability to foresee his enemy's next move, and a lifelong searcher after truth and trout streams, he was above all else – perhaps above all other – a Naval aviator."
Mar. 19, 1916: Four days after "Black Jack" Pershing crosses into Mexico, the U.S. Army's 1st Aero Squadron under Capt. (future major general) Benjamin D. Foulois joins the hunt for Pancho Villa. Though Foulois' aircraft will be used primarily for observation and delivery of dispatches, the squadron will be the first to test tactical air support of ground forces. Today, the U.S. Air Force's 1st Reconnaissance Squadron traces its lineage back to the 1st Aero Squadron.
Mar. 19, 2003: U.S. and coalition air and sea forces fire the opening shots in the invasion of Iraq.
Mar. 20, 1863: Confederate cavalry under the command of the famous – some might argue, infamous – Kentucky raider, Brig. Gen. John Hunt Morgan, strikes a sizeable Union reconnaissance force under Col. Albert S. Hall at Vaught's Hill, Tennessee. Though outnumbered and surrounded, Hall's hilltop position enables the colonel to beat back a series of attacks until Morgan – learning that Hall is to be reinforced with additional U.S. troops from Murfreesboro – is forced to disengage. Though Vaught's Hill was a defeat for Morgan, he was far from whipped. His colorful exploits will inspire Constance Fenimore Woolson, a grandniece of James Fenimore Cooper, to pen the lines: "Morgan, Morgan the raider, and Morgan's terrible men, With bowie knives and pistols, are galloping up the glen."
Mar. 20, 1922: America's first aircraft carrier, USS Langley, is commissioned at Norfolk, Virginia. Converted from the coaling ship USS Jupiter, Langley will see action in World War II. But she will be so badly damaged in an action off Java in 1942, her escorts will be forced to scuttle her.Langley, the first of two so-named carriers, is named in honor of aviation scientist Samuel Pierpont Langley.
Mar. 20, 1942: U.S. Army Gen. Douglas McArthur – ordered by FDR to leave his besieged soldiers in the Philippines (where their capture is inevitable) and make his way to Australia – delivers his famous "I shall return" speech. In April he will receive the Medal of Honor (as did his father, Arthur MacArthur, Jr., for heroism during the American Civil War).
McArthur will return to the Philippines in Oct. 1944.
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This Day in U S Military History
14 March
1942 – The 172-foot tender CGC Acacia was en route from Curacao, Netherlands West Indies to Antigua, British West Indies, when she was sunk by shellfire from the German submarine U-161. The entire crew of Acacia was rescued. She was the only Coast Guard buoy tender sunk by enemy action during the war.
1942 – Large numbers of American troops arrive in Australia.
1945 – The US 12th Corps (part of US 3rd Army) launches attacks southeast over the Moselle River, near Koblenz, and US 20th Corps expands its attacks from between Trier and Saarburg. To the north, US 1st Army continues to expand the Remagen bridgehead despite German counterattacks.
1946 – For the first time, U.S. Coast Guard aircraft supplemented the work of the Coast Guard patrol vessels of the International Ice Patrol, scouting for ice and determining the limits of the ice fields from the air.
1965 – Twenty-four South Vietnamese Air Force planes, led by Vice-Marshal Nguyen Cao Ky and supported by U.S. jets, bomb the barracks and depots on Con Co ("Tiger") Island, 20 miles off the coast of North Vietnam. The next day, 100 U.S. Air Force jets and carrier-based bombers struck the ammunition depot at Phu Qui, 100 miles south of Hanoi. This was the second set of raids in Operation Rolling Thunder and the first in which U.S. planes used napalm. Operation Rolling Thunder was a result of President Lyndon B. Johnson's decision in February to undertake the sustained bombing of North Vietnam that he and his advisers had been contemplating for a year. The operation was designed to interdict North Vietnamese transportation routes in the southern part of North Vietnam and slow infiltration of personnel and supplies into South Vietnam. In July 1966, Rolling Thunder was expanded to include the bombing of North Vietnamese ammunition dumps and oil storage facilities, and in the spring of 1967, it was further expanded to include power plants, factories, and airfields in the Hanoi-Haiphong area. The White House closely controlled operation Rolling Thunder and President Johnson sometimes personally selected the targets. From 1965 to 1968, about 643,000 tons of bombs were dropped on North Vietnam. A total of nearly 900 U.S. aircraft were lost during Operation Rolling Thunder. The operation continued, with occasional suspensions, until President Johnson, under increasing domestic political pressure, halted it on October 31, 1968.
1966 – Establishment of River Squadron Five in Vietnam.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
VANTINE, JOSEPH E.
Rank and organization: First Class Fireman, U.S. Navy. Born: 1835, Philadelphia, Pa. Accredited to: Pennsylvania. G.O. No.: 17, 10 July 1863. Citation: Serving on board the U.S.S. Richmond in the attack on Port Hudson, 14 March 1863. Damaged by a 6_inch solid rifle shot which shattered the starboard safety_valve chamber and also damaged the port safety valve, the fireroom of the Richmond immediately filled with steam to place it in an extremely critical condition. Acting courageously in this crisis, Vantine persisted in penetrating the steam_filled room in order to haul the hot fires of the furnaces and continued this action until the gravity of the situation had been lessened.
VAUGHN, PINKERTON R.
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Marine Corps. Born: 1839, Downingtown, Pa. Accredited to: Pennsylvania. G.O. No.: 17, 10 July 1863. Citation: Serving on board the U.S.S. Mississippi during her abandonment and firing in the action with the Port Hudson batteries, 14 March 1863. During the abandonment of the Mississippi which had to be grounded, Sgt. Vaughn rendered invaluable assistance to his commanding officer, remaining with the ship until all the crew had landed and the ship had been fired to prevent its falling into enemy hands. Persistent until the last, and conspicuously cool under the heavy shellfire, Sgt. Vaughn was finally ordered to save himself as he saw fit.
*MICHAEL, HARRY J.
Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Company L, 318th Infantry, 80th Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Neiderzerf, Germany, 14 March 1945. Entered service at: Milford, Ind. Birth: Milford, Ind. G.O. No.: 18, 13 February 1946. Citation: He was serving as a rifle platoon leader when his company began an assault on a wooded ridge northeast of the village of Neiderzerf, Germany, early on 13 March 1945. A short distance up the side of the hill, 2d Lt. Michael, at the head of his platoon, heard the click of an enemy machinegun bolt. Quietly halting the company, he silently moved off into the woods and discovered 2 enemy machineguns and crews. Executing a sudden charge, he completely surprised the enemy and captured the guns and crews. At daybreak, enemy voices were heard in the thick woods ahead. Leading his platoon in a flanking movement, they charged the enemy with hand grenades and, after a bitter fight, captured 25 members of an SS mountain division, 3 artillery pieces, and 20 horses. While his company was establishing its position, 2d Lt. Michael made 2 personal reconnaissance missions of the wood on his left flank. On his first mission he killed 2, wounded 4, and captured 6 enemy soldiers single-handedly. On the second mission he captured 7 prisoners. During the afternoon he led his platoon on a frontal assault of a line of enemy pillboxes, successfully capturing the objective, killing 10 and capturing 30 prisoners. The following morning the company was subjected to sniper fire and 2d Lt. Michael, in an attempt to find the hidden sniper, was shot and killed. The inspiring leadership and heroic aggressiveness displayed by 2d Lt. Michael upheld the highest traditions of the military service.
*PHILLIPS, GEORGE
Rank and organization: Private, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. Born 14 July 1926, Rich Hill, Mo. Entered service at: Labadie, Mo. Citation. For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 2d Battalion, 28th Marines, 5th Marine Division, in action against enemy Japanese forces during the seizure of Iwo Jima in the Volcano Islands, on 14 March 1945. Standing the foxhole watch while other members of his squad rested after a night of bitter handgrenade fighting against infiltrating Japanese troops, Pvt. Phillips was the only member of his unit alerted when an enemy handgrenade was tossed into their midst. Instantly shouting a warning, he unhesitatingly threw himself on the deadly missile, absorbing the shattering violence of the exploding charge in his own body and protecting his comrades from serious injury. Stouthearted and indomitable, Pvt. Phillips willingly yielded his own life that his fellow marines might carry on the relentless battle against a fanatic enemy. His superb valor and unfaltering spirit of self-sacrifice in the face of certain death reflect the highest credit upon himself and upon the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
KERREY, JOSEPH R.
Rank and organization: Lieutenant, Junior Grade, U.S. Naval Reserve, Sea, Air, and Land Team (SEAL). place and date: Near Nha Trang Bay, Republic of Vietnam, 14 March 1969. Entered service at: Omaha, Nebr. Born: 27 August 1943, Lincoln, Nebr. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a SEAL team leader during action against enemy aggressor (Viet Cong) forces. Acting in response to reliable intelligence, Lt. (J.G..) Kerrey led his SEAL team on a mission to capture important members of the enemy's area political cadre known to be located on an island in the bay of Nha Trang. In order to surprise the enemy, he and his team scaled a 350-foot sheer cliff to place themselves above the ledge on which the enemy was located. Splitting his team in 2 elements and coordinating both, Lt. (J.G..) Kerrey led his men in the treacherous downward descent to the enemy's camp. Just as they neared the end of their descent, intense enemy fire was directed at them, and Lt. (J.G.) Kerrey received massive injuries from a grenade which exploded at his feet and threw him backward onto the jagged rocks. Although bleeding profusely and suffering great pain, he displayed outstanding courage and presence of mind in immediately directing his element's fire into the heart of the enemy camp. Utilizing his radioman, Lt. (J.G.) Kerrey called in the second element's fire support which caught the confused Viet Cong in a devastating crossfire. After successfully suppressing the enemy's fire, and although immobilized by his multiple wounds, he continued to maintain calm, superlative control as he ordered his team to secure and defend an extraction site. Lt. (J.G.) Kerrey resolutely directed his men, despite his near unconscious state, until he was eventually evacuated by helicopter. The havoc brought to the enemy by this very successful mission cannot be over-estimated. The enemy soldiers who were captured provided critical intelligence to the allied effort. Lt. (J.G.) Kerrey's courageous and inspiring leadership, valiant fighting spirit, and tenacious devotion to duty in the face of almost overwhelming opposition sustain and enhance the finest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for March 14, 2021 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
14 March
1915: Lincoln Beachey, world-famous stunt flyer, died at the San Francisco Exposition. He was pulling out of a dive, when the wings broke off from his monoplane's fuselage. (24)
1918: The 1st Pursuit Group engaged in its first activities in France, when an element of two pilots from the 95th Pursuit Squadron went on patrol. (24)
1945: In cooperation with Soviets, Fifteenth Air Force bombers based in Italy attacked tactical targets selected by the Soviets target planners in Austria, Hungary, and Yugoslavia. (24)
1956: First Jupiter A (Redstone missile) launched from Cape Canaveral. (6) (24)
1966: Aeronautical Systems Division announced the awarding of $2 million in study contracts to develop an avionic subsystem for the Advanced Manned Strategic Aircraft (AMSA), a long-range versatile bomber that later became the B-1. (16)
1970: Two A-7D Corsair IIs flew 3,502 unrefueled miles from Edwards AFB to Homestead AFB, Fla, to show its capabilities. (3)
1976: From the Eastern Test Range, a Titan IIIC, launched Lincoln Experimental Satellites 8 & 9 and Solar Radiation Satellites 11A and B (SOLRAD 11A/B) for the Space Test Program. (5)
1980: Through 4 April, participants from PACAF flew over 7,500 sorties in Team Spirit 1980. (16)
1988: In ceremonies at Greenville, Texas, E-Systems Inc. unveiled the new MC-130H Combat Talon II special operations airlifter. The Air Force planned to use aircraft for special operations units to infiltrate/exfiltrate troops and resupply behind enemy lines at night or in poor weather. (8)
1990: Sikorsky rolled out the Army's first MH-60K Special Operations Helicopter at Stratford. [8: May 90]
2001: An Army CH-47 Chinook released the X-40A at 15,000 feet successfully for its first free flight and autonomous landing at Edwards AFB. (3)
2003: An AFFTC team conducted the first Global Air Traffic Management (GATM) system test on the KC-10 Extender. The GATM would modernize the tanker fleet to operate in Future Air Navigation Systems (FANS) airspace around the world. (3) Through 19 March, AFFTC accelerated a dual-door separation test to give the F-117A a wider envelope for dropping the EGU-27 laser guided bomb. AFFTC then communicated the results and recommendations to F-117s in the Middle East, and within hours they used the tactic in the opening phases of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM. (3)
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