I think my head nearly exploded the other day when I read an article concerning the Army's search for a new pistol. Er, I meant to say the Army's new Modular Handgun System. (Which apparently was fielded in 2017. I lose track, most of the stuff I work on has been "fielded," that is delivered but it "ain't ready for prime time.")
I mean it's a fire trucking pistol right? It isn't a tank, it isn't an aircraft, it isn't even a new rifle. It's a pistol. Pretty simple, right?
Way back in the day the Army used the .38 caliber revolver, until they ran into the Juramentados during the Moro rebellion in the Philippines. The .38 would not stop a charging Juramentado, so they developed the Colt M1911 in .45 caliber. (I remember reading about this as a kid, the M1911s weren't actually used in the Philippines though .45 caliber pistols were adopted.)
So that was a pretty good pistol right, as far as pistols go. So why did the Army go 9 mm in the Beretta, which a lot of people thought sucked? Don't know but now they've adopted a Sig Sauer model, also in 9 mm. I don't get it, pistols are rather an afterthought in combat, nice to have but not a main weapon. If you've already got something that works, why replace it?
But the Army is not who I have a beef with in this post. Not even the Air Force though their constant desire to get rid of the A-10 does cause me to stay awake at night and weep for the idiocy of my old service. (Oh wait, they're hot for the F-35 wonder jet too, aren't they? I won't speak to the pros/cons of the F-35. The only thing I actually know is that they are ridiculously expensive. Having worked in the defense industry now for over twenty years, I can't imagine why they're so costly. Yes, that was sarcasm...)
No, I have a problem with the service in which my children served, that's right, the United States Navy. (As regards the sons-in-law, Big Time is still on active duty, Tuttle just retired.)
Read this, then this. The money quote from that first article is -
According to the justification in the documents, the money the Navy for planned a subsequent multiyear buy of 36 Super Hornets from FY 2022 to 2024 would be rerouted to “accelerated development of Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) and other key aviation wholeness investments,” read the documents.Yeah, let's not buy something that works (the F/A-18E and F/A-18F), nor the thing that sort of works (the F-35), nah, nah, drop all that we want to put the money towards something which is still vaporware! An "aviation wholeness investment" - whatever the Hell that is. (Fire trucking corporate-speak, that's what that is, we hates it Preciousssss!)
Of course, that's in line with the Navy's "we want a whole bunch of these," that is, the LCS. Which according to Big Navy -
LITTORAL COMBAT SHIP CLASS - LCS
Description
LCS is a fast, agile, mission-focused- platform designed for operation in near-shore environments yet capable of open-ocean operation. It is designed to defeat asymmetric "anti-access" threats such as mines, quiet diesel submarines and fast surface craft.
What does it do?
It has a gun.
A big gun?
Nah, it's only 57 mm.
What else does it do?
Well, we're going to create these modules that you can install to do mine warfare and other roles.
Going to? You mean you don't have them yet?
Nope.
Say what? Are you freaking insane?
Probably.Yup, a real pie-in-the-sky system. Nineteen have been delivered, eleven more are in "various stages of construction," and five more are in the "pre-construction phase." Whatever that means, funded but not started maybe?
Then there is the Zumwalt-class. There were going to be 32 of 'em, then that number was cut to 24, then 7. Finally the Navy said, we'll build two. Apparently the government then said, "Nah, you can have three."
What does it do?
It has a gun.
A big gun?
Yup, 155 mm.
That's not that big.
Ah, but it shoots missiles, not regular artillery projectiles.
Hhmm, those sound pretty cool. How much do those missiles cost?
Uh, a lot.
How much is a lot?
Uh, more than a Tomahawk missile.
Really?
Really.
Nope, cancel that stuff.
What else you got?
Eighty missile tubes.
Uh, the Arleigh-Burkes have 96. And they're a lot cheaper. Are you freaking insane?
Probably.And so it goes, what started as a $3 billion ship (plus about $10 billion to develop) now runs about $4.5 billion per ship. For three of 'em.
And the Navy puts ships in commission before they were complete. Madness. (Same with the Ford-class aircraft carrier.) They were actually counting them towards fleet strength until Congress (in a rare outbreak of common sense) said, "No, those don't count."
CDR Salamander has been on about this kind of thing for years. Apparently the Navy is why we can't have nice things.
A fool and his money are soon parted.
We need to make the fool more accountable methinks. It's our money being wasted.
A foole & his money,
be soone at debate:
which after with sorow,
repents him to late.
From Thomas Tusser in
Five Hundreth Pointes of Good Husbandrie, 1573
Oh yeah, more headers...
Coming soon (eventually) to a blog near you...
(Apparently someone authorized overtime for the header department...)
SOCOM rolled out the H&K offensive handgun twenty-five years ago or so (in .45 ACP). It came with a silencer. Before that the SEALs used the Colt 1911A1 (.45 AC) or the Smith and Wesson Model 66 (.357 magnum) stainless steal revolver, primarily because it held up in a maritime environment better than other options. However SEALs and other SPECOPS types never left the .45 ACP; while at the same time Big Army went with the NATO preferred 9mm. Don't ask me why the 9mm, because that was made way above either your or my pay grade.
ReplyDeleteThe F-22 is a great aircraft. If you want to put four in the air, you need to have six (or seven) on hand. Which is cool in peacetime, I guess. I'm not a zoomie. My sense is that everyone is having similar problems with the F-35. Does that mean that we need to have larger aircraft carriers?
I had forgotten about the SPECOPS types having their own pistol. Above our pay grades, roger that.
DeleteThe F-22 is very capable, but like most modern aircraft it's maintenance intensive. The F-35 has lots and lots of problems, mostly in the software which is no surprise.
Self-driving cars, bah!
The "hushpuppy" was a S&W Model 39 semi-automatic in 9mm. It had a threaded barrel and a can silencer. To "see" over the silencer the front and rear sights were raised. It saw service with SEALs in silencing geese and dogs that might raise an alarm in SE Asia and elsewhere that need not be identified. The sub-sonic 9mm rounds worked well in that particular role.
DeleteA good tool to have in the toolbox!
DeleteSOCOM has fielded a lot of stuff that is not-normal-issue. Like the move to a .338 Norma LMG, because for some reason SOCOM wants a long-distance sniper machine gun. And they've been behind the development of other calibers for other uses, like the 6.5 Grendel and various 6.8mm thingies.
DeleteWhy? Because they have specific calibers and specific requirements for specific uses.
So... Why is Big Army trying to jump on the wagon and actually run ahead of the wagon with some weird 6.8mm expanding caseless magic round (where the bullet is seated inside the cartridge, to reduce length or because it looks cool or something) or something? (Read where one of the functions of the metallic casing in rapid fire guns is to suck heat out of the action. Makes sense, one of those unintended but useful side effects.)
As to the 9mm Europellet, read somewhere the justification was that the pistol was supposed to be a last ditch weapon and too many weaklings and women were complaining about the weight of a 1911A1 and the recoil of the .45 so in order to get a new gun (which, servicewide, was needed as the old 1911A1s were getting long in tooth, I mean, ones issued in WWII were still being issued when they finally downchecked the whole lot) that 'Every Soldier' could shoot. So they got the Beretta, which was machined, apparently, out of depleted uranium and the handgrip was 'large.' So that killed the light-weight, small frame concept.
The modular pistol means basically you can change out the grips for more comfortable ones, like with the Springfield XD series or the Smith & Wesson M&P series. So Big Army had to go through 4-5 rounds of competitions to get to the SIG, even though the two aforementioned pistol lines fit the requirements quite handily.
DoD procurement, need I say more?
Delete"...and too many weaklings and women were complaining about the weight of a 1911A1 and the recoil of the .45..."
DeleteAll too true. Funny how those two issues seem to evaporate when you're fighting for your life at halitosis distance.
My oldest daughter, The Nuke is but a wee slip of a lass, she had no trouble, no trouble at all handling the M1911.
DeleteIn fact, she enjoyed the experience. It's a mindset, that's all.
Read recently that the first four LCS hulls were being taken out of service, they served as test beds apparently. That class hasn't even in the ocean for twenty years yet. Between the three classes you posted Sarge the Navy has certainly p$s#ed away the tax-dollars, there's a few flag rank officers and lobbyist/industrialists who need to be swinging from the yardarm as a result. Plus a few politicians. Oh my.......BRRRRRRRTTTT!
ReplyDeleteYup, first four are to be decommissioned. They weren't "test beds" when they were laid down. Big Navy had their heads up their ass on that mess. Getting that way on Zumwalt as well. DAMHIK
DeleteAs to headers: Thunderbolt and Lightning, very very frightening!!! And a Tomahawk to boot!! WOW!! a trifecta of protecta!!
ReplyDeleteAnd Thuds and Phantoms! TOO COOL!!!! Brrrrrrrp! Love that A10. Well done!!!!
Also read today about the close air support role the AF dawdled on and killed. That the AAAAaaarmy is looking into 75 SLATs (Dragonfly, Spad, type a/c) for SOCOM support. It's like the USN is a yacht club, and the AF is only interested is high and fast. Weirdness. Someone needs to slap some sense into them... Maybe mass demotions would wake up the NIH crowd? (NIH = not invented here)
As to firearms... I get the whole standardization mentality. But I don't have one tool in the toolbox that does everything. And you can't make an M16 hit hard at 800 - 1000 sandy, dusty meters.
arghhhh.... etc.....
You win wars with the Army, everything else is just support. There are days that I'd like to retire every flag officer, as O-6s, and start over. I know there are some good ones, but most of them, bah!
DeleteThe standardization thing is good for logistics, which is important, but you have to be able to reach out and touch someone at range. At least when I was in the NATO standard round was 7.62 mm. The US were the "odd man out."
"But I don't have one tool in the toolbox that does everything. And you can't make an M16 hit hard at 800 - 1000 sandy, dusty meters."
DeleteIndeed. Designated Marksman, anyone?
For non-gunnie types, I explain it like this--run the numbers for a 55gr M-16 round at 1000 yards. At that distance, a sooper troop with eagle eyes and lightning reflexes could whip off his helmet, catch the incoming bullet, walk the 1000 yards back to the firing line, and return said bullet to the shooter.
My question would be why one is engaging at 1000 yards with an M-16. No arty available?
DeleteFunny, but when my middle brother was at Parris Island, one of the requirements was to hit the target at 1000 yards with an M16. With iron sights.
DeleteBrother got his Marksmanship medal because he was able to hit at 1000 in a small enough target. Like the face.
M16 filled the 'nobody needs to kill anyone over 300 yards' need. It's actually more effective at killing at distance than the AK47's dinky 7.62.
So what does big army want? A dinky 7.62, admittedly loaded with hot powder, which strains the action and barrel, which to compensate means you either have to use more metal which makes it heavier or more magic metal like titanium which drives up the price or some boondoggle that uses a slab of titanium to make everything stronger and more heavy while using a lightweight material.
Bah.
Just remember, by the end of WWII, quite a lot of line-apes liked using the M-1 Carbine over the M-1 Garand. And lots of line-apes liked the M-1 Garand over the M-1 Carbine. Carbine for light weight and lots and lots of rounds and because they were never shooting over 300 yards. Garand because long range, punching power, you could club a moose to death with the darned thing.
Submachineguns, like the PPSh-41, the MP-40, and the Thompson, are very effective in close quarter battle. Rifles are good for longer ranges. The Germans created the StG-44 to try and combine the best of both worlds. Which was relatively effective. Not sure why a grunt needs to be shooting at shit at a thousand yards with an M-16, maybe it's a Marine thing. Tactically it's what I consider a waste of ammunition. That being said, lighter round means you can carry more ammo, lighter weapon means you can carry even more other stuff that the Army (or Marines) want you to lug around.
DeleteBTW, StG is the German abbreviation for Sturmgewehr which literally means "assault rifle." Just thought I'd throw that out there. As for line-apes preferring the carbine, in my experience the line-apes use what they're issued, not what they "like" or whatever they can scrounge. If they don't they can get court-martialed for not having their issued weapon.
There are a lot of people in procurement that need to be taken out, and thrown to the otters!
ReplyDeleteAnd those otters need to be hungry!
DeleteHey AFSarge;
ReplyDeleteI am hoping common sense breaks out more, I being an Army guy like the A-10, when there were a crapload of Soviet tanks eyeballing us down the Fulda gap, the A-10 was an equalizer. But the Airforce keeps wanting to kill the A-10 because it ain't sexy, and I remembered proposals about concerting some F-16's to CAS work. I kept wondering if they forgot about the "golden BB' rule. I ain't just bashing the Air Force, I am bashing all the services, it seems like they got stupid with the money, but I do remember in the 1980's the expose's about the M-1 Tank and the Bradley and all the problems they had, and it took desert Storm to shut them up. The Army went to the 9mm so we had standardization with NATO, but I wonder why the "Plastic Fantastic" A.K.A the Glock ain't featured, would save a boatload of money.
For some of us in the Air Force the A-10 is sexy as Hell. The flags that want to kill it are idiots, pure and simple.
DeletePournelle's Iron Law of Bureaucracy does have a role here and is in effect throughout the Pentagon (I'd say throughout DC). However, in a drawdown environment which we'd been in from Clinton to Obama at least, you can't fund everything. Is the F-16 as effective as the A-10 in a low threat environment? Probably not. Can it do the job? Yes. Is the A-10 as effective in a high threat environment? Probably Not. Can it do the job? ...........?
DeleteI sat in a lot of those type discussions at the Major/Lt Col level. They always started with "WTF are they thinking taking X billion from this program?" So there wasn't any "glamour" discussions of saving this program by sacrificing that. The recommendations that came out were the "least painful" we could come up with. Then they started up the chain. In the Pentagon, politics are always present. They start to rule the roost at the O-6 Level and are in full burner at the o-7 and above level.
Which is why Mrs J and I burst into song in July '98 as we left the area.
"We gotta get out of this place
If it's the last thing we ever do
We gotta get out of this place
'Cause girl, there's a better life for me and you."
BTW...Re: the headers....Something's STILL missing! :-0
Deletejuvat #1 - The comparison of the threat environment for the A-10 versus the F-16 makes sense. In a high threat environment, i.e. an opponent with a real air force, the A-10 would have a tough time surviving. I would argue that in that case, we probably don't have enough F-16s to begin with. Freedom costs money, we've never been very good at figuring out what to spend our money on. But that problem has always been around, probably always will be.
Deletejuvat #2 - Missing? Something is missing?
DeleteAh, I know what it is, the Header Production Department is still running three shifts, I'll tell the foreman!
Seem to recall some Army General expressing his displeasure when the Army was selecting the Beretta and the procurement mess. Something along the lines of, "The least important weapon in the Army. I could go to Cabelas and outfit us all for far less than we have already spent".
ReplyDeleteI read that as well, a general with common sense. No doubt he was fired.
DeleteHe was probably right!
In a high-threat environment you send in the cruise missiles. Or long-range standoff weapons. If you are in air-to-air, you need not be burdened with air-to-ground. All that extra stuffs hanging off the outside of your plane gets in the way of air-to-air.
DeleteIt's why you have air-superiority designated fighters. Sure, fighter may be able to do air-to-ground, but you need dedicated designated air-to-air. Air-to-Ground may have some air-to-air stuffs, because it's always nice to splash a helo or a transport or even the occasional plane that wanders into your gunsight, but the 'attack' aircraft should be focused on what's below, while the 'fighter' aircraft should be... fighting.
It's almost like we figured this out in WWII, then in Korea, then in Vietnam, then in.........
Dumbasses.
Bear in mind that most warfare now-a-days is asymmetric, we're not fighting a peer opponent who has stuff almost as good as ours. We now have all purpose fighters as it's cheaper to do things that way. Our designs are all pretty damned good, the enemy may have better equipment (which I doubt) but the man in the machine is still the most important piece of the puzzle.
DeleteThe only thing we really learned in Vietnam is you have to have a fire-trucking gun in the fire-trucking aircraft. Multi-role in a high cost world is necessary. Though I do believe the F-35 is going too far, quantity has a quality all its own, we'll never, repeat never, have the money to have as many F-35s as we really "need." Lots of theorizing going towards thinking we'll be re-fighting WWII, the Fulda Gap and all that. Probably not. If it comes to that, we're all fire-trucked anyway.
That's a beautiful image of the 135 with what appear to be Echoes and Golfs but might be Golfs and Golfs. Or something entirely different. I tried a quick image search without much luck. Doesn't change the beauty of the image though.
ReplyDeleteAs much as it sucks the big government problem is not simply their problem, but our problem. Every single "government" dumpster fire is the direct result of violating foundational American principles. With a government of/by/for the people, I can't help but conclude that I'm part of the problem. How good am I at hewing to my principles? Not good enough. Am I doing enough as a sovereign American to u/f the train wreck? Nope. What should I do? Keep checking that my principles are solid and that I'm doing my best to live by them, Keep my eyes open and my head in the game, suck it up and drive on.
Or something like that. Sorry about the rant.
Another great post under a fantastic header!
They're 105G's and F-4E's, the F-4G sensor under the nose is a bit taller (imho not as "elegant") than the fairing for the Gun. It's most likely a hunter/killer package. The G's locate the sites and the E's bomb it. Did a bit of that at Moody with the Weasels from the Guard. The actual mission was fun, and egressing we still had some gas, so I told the 105 our front to push it up.
DeleteThat was the last time I saw him, until the debrief.
F-4Es and F-105Gs, good eye sailor!
DeleteIt most definitely is our problem. I have learned that if you raise a stink, it's not "career enhancing." Gave up on promotion, started concentrating on doing the right thing. If enough follow the example, then that's all you can really do.
I see juvat hit publish before I did. Of course, he is the resident expert on that sort of thing.
DeleteI do believe the photo is Vietnam era.
JV was the Fin Flash for 34 TFS 388TFW Korat AB Thailand. So, yes, Vietnam era.
DeleteCopy that!
DeleteLove the 105, such power, such speed, so let's use it as a low altitude bomb-truck in an environment it wasn't designed for without training the pilots how to adjust to the new environment and without backup and you wonder why they got shot down so often?
Delete(Facepalm)
And then, when they finally got training and proper support, the war is over so the AF kills every one of them.
(Double Facepalm)
Bastiges!
"I told the 105 out front to push it up. That was the last time I saw him, until the debrief."
DeleteThat's flying magic right there. A fully developed and richly detailed book chapter in 21 words.
Remember, the Thud was intended to fly into Commie-land, drop its nuke then attempt to get home. It wasn't designed for how it was used in SE Asia. The reason so many were shot down has more to do with the assholes in the White House and the Pentagon than it did with the guys in the cockpit. Also the ordnance they were trying to use was good for bombing factories in Germany, not for bridges and the like in North Vietnam. Our guys knew how to drop bombs, can't blame them if the bombs sucked and it was verboten to hit airfields, AAA, and SAM sites.
DeleteNot sure what you mean by "when they finally got training and proper support." Are you referring to aircrews pre-Red Flag losing badly in air-to-air combat? The Thud was never intended to go head to head with an enemy fighter, it had a gun and could, but that was more the job of the F-4 and the various Navy aircraft devoted to that role. By proper support do you mean when Johnson and that other sumbitch McNamara were no longer meddling in the air war?
When Vietnam ended, there wasn't really any more need for the Thud. But Big Air Force destroying all of those F-105 engines still puzzles me (and pisses me off).
Shaun - Missed your comment while I was typing my mini-rant, the Thud had some speed she did.
DeleteI seem to recall some scuttlebutt about the adoption of the M9 pistol. It's made by Beretta. They are in Italy. Italy is a member of NATO. USA wanted Italy's vote on something.
ReplyDeleteHaving been the ranking instructor on the pistol range for a gaggle of NG officer types, sling shots would have been about as effective, and cheaper too. I say SPECOPS gets whatever they want, everybody else gets Glocks.
I think you're right on the selection of the Beretta.
DeleteA gaggle of NG officers armed with Berettas, sounds scary!
There are nicer Europellet guns out there that cost less than Gaston's wunderweapon, and are just as reliable and more comfortable to shoot.
DeleteLike the Springfield XD series or the S&W M&P.
Though Glock has finally after 30 years or more of listening to bitching done something supposedly about their grip angle or something.
Though Glocks do work.
Pistols are good for cops and officers. Period.
Delete"A gaggle of NG officers armed with Berettas, sounds scary!"
DeleteIn a way, yes.
I was an officer at the time, and hinted that any tom foolery on the range would suffer immediate consequences--
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mu51rszgotI
Being a mustang, that scene just warms my heart.
It was clear that none of the NG officers (all company grade) took the training seriously, one joking that it had been two years since he had fired any weapon. Much griping and bitching when I made them shoot a drill with their weak side hand.
"But sir, I can't hit anything with this hand!".
"Do the bad guys know that, lieutenant?".
The range wasn't scary, it was just sad. The scary part was the thought that we might actually have to go to war with them.
Great scene from The Pacific.
DeleteAs to going to war with them, yup, it takes a while to make a good, combat-experienced officer. Many of them don't live that long.
All the header pics are great - especially like the WWII warbirds one, and the Abrams. And the Warthog. OK, I especially like all of them!
ReplyDeleteAs far as the pistol goes, the comments above tell pretty much the story - standardization with NATO, want something from Italy, though the factory was set up in Maryland, since moved to TN (take that, gun grabbers in MD!) (https://money.cnn.com/2016/04/12/news/companies/beretta-gun-factory-tennessee/index.html - but I hope we've moved away the awful Serpa holster - seen way too many ND's with that one, and sand and gunk will lock up the release mechanism, rending the pistol useless) (yes, I know pistols are kinda useless, but since they are last ditch weapons of personal protection, for the most part, you really want it to work when you need it to do so)
As to .45 vs. 9mm, the subject of endless debates in gun magazines and around gun store counters, in the days of only full metal jacket ammo, the .45 made bigger holes and stopped people faster. With today's modern jacketed hollow point ammo, 9mm has approached the .45 in effectiveness. And the service now has the ability to use said effective 9mm ammo - see https://sofrep.com/gear/u-s-army-adopts-hollow-point-ammo/. And in general, 9mm is easier to shoot well by a wider variety of people without extensive training.
As for Glock vs. Sig, note that SOCOM decided to go with Glock 19s - but the P320 is also a good choice.
Great input Tom, thanks!
DeleteYou could retire 75% of the Admirals and find that the service ran a whole lot better. But Trump has had trouble even finding a SECNAV that's worth a damn.
ReplyDeleteNow that Trump doesn't have his hands tied behind his back with all the investigation bullscat, I think he's going to be doing the whole cleaning the house thingamabob he should have been allowed to do in the first 100 days like every other president ever.
DeleteHe's already whacked 70+ people from the NSC. And he's whacked an ambassador, some people in Justice have gone bye-bye, and that's just from last Wednesday to today.
BP - Firing 75% of the admirals is what I call a good start. I also think the acting SECNAV is an idiot, YMMV.
DeleteBeans - I think you hit the nail on the head.
DeleteBeans, from your lips to the Lord's ears.
DeleteAmen!
DeleteJuggies! YAY! MORE JUGS!!!!!! WHOOOOO!!!!!! And -38's! WHOOOOHOOOO!!!!!!
ReplyDelete🤣🤣🤣
DeleteOther than that, I've got nothing to say (having already said it all...)
ReplyDeleteAnd you said a lot. Much food for thought.
DeleteChange the headers every so often, you have some good ones!
ReplyDeleteThanks Rob, that's the current plan. We'll see how it goes.
DeleteThe problem is, congress over site commissions never interview Sargents.
DeleteActually they do, but they talk to senior sergeants who play politics more than their officers...
DeleteI really like the header choices. Some great pictures there. And I even know what is going on in the first picture!! Now, the 4th one down...not so much...why is that airplane look like it has a serious smoking problem?? Just...doesn't look healthy??
ReplyDeleteAnd, yes, SPECOPS should be able to get whatever they like as I feel confident THEY know what they are doing with things that go BANG. So, if ya need my Cabela's card, get in touch. However, everyone else (including cops) need to have documented proof that they get their butts to the range on a regular basis before I am willing to spring big bucks for gun porn.
So far as ships/boats/planes/and very fast planes go...the designers, the sales dudes, and most especially the congresscritters need to definitely talk to the guys/gals who will be actually hands-on using the stuff. Because in my experience, and I don't care what the product is or what the desired outcome is, in military or in civilian life...doesn't matter. The folks who decide ya need a new improved wingnut or thingamajig are the ones who very recently saw that the Jones' just down the street just got a new, improved super-duper wingnut and now envy and covetousness is breaking out like flowers in springtime. So, yeah, talk with the Sargents and the Master Chiefs before any ink gets put on a dotted line. LISTEN to what they have to say, and put a couple of them on the design committee, and on the finance approval committee to be sure that what was originally desired actually happens before all kinds of ornaments get hung on the tree. (Can you imagine how short and sweet THOSE meetings would be? )
Cause I pay taxes, and I KNOW how to balance a budget as well as how to get what ya want without breaking the bank!! Skills some folks should cultivate, along with knowing the 4 rules immortalized by Mr Cooper.
Ok, getting off the rant box now...
The smoking aircraft is the A-10 Warthog in the act of firing its 30 mm cannon, that thing will generate a lot of smoke. When you see that picture, think, "BRRRRRRTTTTT!!!" The sound an A-10 cannon makes.
DeleteAs to your last, amen, amen, and I say again, AMEN!
Love the idea of the header rotation. Seeing the F105's brought a memory to mind. Couple of years ago stopped off at a little watering hole near Lackland's main gate, a lady I'd never seen before came out on the patio, we struck up a conversation making idle chit-chat. She worked on Lackland as a civilian instructor and was an Air Force brat. She mentioned her father had been a pilot and actually wrote a fiction book about flying. Curious, I asked her, "Which book?". She pulls out her phone and shows me a photo of the cover. My jaw dropped and I exclaimed, "I have that book! "Rolling Thunder" by Mark Berent." She just casually says, "Yep. That's my dad." I always find it amazing who I can meet over a beer. - Barry
ReplyDeleteWOW! I've read all of Mark Berent's books, they're outstanding. I need to dig those out of the archives and re-read them.
DeleteThat's pretty cool Barry.
For an Artillery themed header you could use this:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.pinterest.com/pin/561190803559329685/
Hahaha! Love it!
DeleteWe are really effing up the acquisition process, from building ships and aircraft, to fixing them. Over cost, way behind schedule, well under-performing, and taxpayers are getting very very little from their very many taxes paid. Even ship maintenance is a mess. We're paying millions for packages that are not even getting completed. A friend who was the Govt maintenance manager for a certain CG raised the issue and was promptly promoted and moved, but nothing was done back on that boat. Corruption is happening and we should continue to beware the defense industrial complex.
ReplyDeleteThe corruption (and rank incompetence) are astounding.
DeleteHis promotion was for silence, not good work.
ReplyDeleteIf I could learn to shut the Hell up I'd be higher up in the company.
DeleteThe Missus Herself considers that a bug, I think it's a feature.
You are in good company--
Deletehttps://www.slideshare.net/tomlindblad/these-are-my-credentials-27342666
Love those slides!
Delete