Unofficial Military (and other cool) Stuff Thread

[pigfarmer]

Royal Navy Nuclear Submarine Surfaced Next To Russian Spy Ship To Send A Clear Message

Royal Navy Nuclear Submarine Surfaced Next To Russian Spy Ship To Send A Clear Message​

The Russian spy ship Yantar, accused of mapping underwater infrastructure, was back in U.K. waters this week.
Thomas Newdick
Posted on Jan 23, 2025

The United Kingdom has confirmed that one of its Royal Navy nuclear-powered submarines surfaced close to the Yantar, a notorious Russian spy ship late last year, to make it clear it was being observed. The revelation came as the Royal Navy was once again closely tracking the Russian ship after it returned to British waters. According to the U.K. defense secretary, the Yantar has, in recent months, been “mapping the U.K.’s critical underwater infrastructure,” at a time when NATO, in general, is increasingly concerned about apparent sabotage to undersea cables.
The Yantar was sailing in British waters in November last year, during which time U.K. Defense Secretary John Healey said it had been “detected loitering over U.K. critical undersea infrastructure.”

The Yantar transits through the English Channel during an earlier visit to these waters, in 2018. Crown CopyrightLPhot Dan Rosenbaum

Interestingly, Healey disclosed that a Royal Navy submarine was among the assets tasked with shadowing the Yantar when it was in British waters back in November. The defense secretary said that warships and patrol aircraft were also involved in tracking the Russian vessel.
At one point, the submarine surfaced close to the Yantar “to make clear that we had been covertly monitoring its every move,” he said.
The submarine wasn’t named but will have been one of the five currently active Astute class attack submarines.

A Royal Navy Astute class nuclear-powered attack submarine. Crown Copyrightwww.twz.com

The Russian vessel then moved into Irish waters east of Dublin, sparking worries that it might be conducting espionage on critical energy and internet submarine pipelines and cables running between the United Kingdom and Ireland. The spy ship was later escorted out of the Irish Sea.
It’s rare for the U.K. government to release any kind of information about the activities of its nuclear-powered submarine fleet, especially regarding such sensitive surveillance missions. In this case, the information was likely made public to dissuade Russia from further espionage directed against critical underwater infrastructure.
The tactic may have been effective anyway, with Healey saying that, during its latest venture into British waters, this week, the Yantar didn’t remain on station for any longer period and was closely escorted throughout its journey by the Type 23 frigate HMS Somerset and the River class offshore patrol vessel HMS Tyne.

A library image shows three River class patrol vessels, led by HMS Tyne (foreground) exercising off the coast of Cornwall, England. Crown Copyright
LA(Phot) Al Macleod

According to the Royal Navy, Somerset “covertly launched her Merlin helicopter, which used its powerful sensors to locate the Russian ship as it made its way north towards the English Channel.” The Type 23 frigate then closed in on the Yantar’s location and intercepted it at the entrance to the Channel, off the French coast.
“Somerset used her cutting-edge radars and sensors to report on every move during the operation, as she maintained a close distance to Yantar through the Channel and the Strait of Dover,” the Navy added.

HMS Somerset (foreground) tracks the movements of a Russian spy ship Yantar this week, in waters close to the United Kingdom. Crown CopyrightCrown Copyright

Tracking the Yantar is not necessarily a difficult job, since its position is typically broadcast at regular intervals using the automatic identification system (AIS), an automatic tracking system that uses transceivers on ships. This data is then also published by online ship tracking services.

U.K. Defense Secretary John Healey told the British parliament yesterday that the Yantar entered U.K. waters on Monday and was then monitored by the Royal Navy.

HMS Somerset shadows the Russian spy ship Yantar in the English Channel this week. Crown CopyrightRoyal Navy

Healey went on to accuse Russia of threatening European security by targeting undersea infrastructure carrying oil, gas, electricity, and the internet. “We see you. We know what you’re doing,” he told members of parliament.
Healey added that the Yantar was first picked up on Monday when it was 45 miles off the British coast, inside the U.K.’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

“Let me be clear, this is a Russian spy ship,” Healey said.
Officially, the Yantar is a Project 22010 “oceanographic research vessel,” but it has specialized equipment that can reportedly tap or cut submarine cables and investigate and retrieve objects from depths of up to 18,000 feet. It is part of the Russian Defense Ministry fleet, being operated by the Main Directorate Deep-Sea Research, which works on behalf of the Russian Navy, and other agencies.
The Yantar was involved in a high-profile operation in 2017 when it sailed off the coast of Syria to recover the wreckage of two fighter jets, a Su-33, and a MiG-29KR, that crashed into the Mediterranean Sea during operations from Russia’s aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov.
The following year, 2018, the U.K. Royal Navy again escorted the Yantar through the English Channel as it headed into the North Sea. At this time, it was carrying a Saab SeaEye Tiger deep-sea robot on its deck. Russia acquired this underwater drone after the Kursk submarine disaster. It can reach depths of 3,280 feet. On this occasion, the U.K. Royal Navy sent the Type 45 destroyer HMS Diamond plus a Wildcat helicopter to follow the Russian ship.

HMS Diamond (foreground) shadows the Russian spy ship as it passes through the English Channel in 2018. Crown Copyright

More recently, the Yantar was reported in the Mediterranean, where it was assumed to be involved in searching and potentially salvaging the wreck of the Russian cargo vessel MV Ursa Major, which sank after an apparent explosion in its engine room in late December.

The scale of the presumed threat to underwater infrastructure posed by Russian and Russian-inspired actors cannot be understated.
In the Baltic Sea alone, cables have been damaged on three occasions, with all of them carrying at least some of the hallmarks of sabotage. In the most prominent event, on Dec. 25, an oil tanker dragging its anchor, damaging a power cable running between Finland and Estonia. This led to NATO launching Baltic Sentry, a mission intended to ensure the security of critical undersea infrastructure in the region. As you can read about here, the mission now also involves Dutch F-35A stealth fighters and it will soon add at least 20 uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) in the coming weeks. This is in addition to surface vessels and maritime patrol aircraft.

Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) F-35s flying over the Dutch frigate HNLMS Tromp during the Baltic Sentry mission earlier this week. Dutch Ministry of Defense

The vessel responsible for the incident in the Baltic in December was the Eagle S, registered in the Cook Islands, but connected with Russia. The oil tanker was also revealed to be brimming with spy equipment after it was seized by authorities.

The suggestion that this incident was connected somehow to the Kremlin was also raised by Healey, who noted that “many analysts believe this was caused by a vessel in Russia’s shadow fleet.”
The potential risk to undersea infrastructure has long been understood, especially bearing in mind how hard it can be to defend it against nefarious action — and the degree to which nations rely on it to fulfill many of their critical needs.
“We are now seeing Russian underwater activity in the vicinity of undersea cables that I don’t believe we have ever seen,” U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Andrew Lennon, then serving as NATO’s top submarine officer, told The Washington Post back in December 2017. “Russia is clearly taking an interest in NATO and NATO nations’ undersea infrastructure.”
Meanwhile, there is now a wide acknowledgment that the Russian war in Ukraine — and the heightened East-West tensions as a result — are driving up the scale of this risk. With that in mind, spy ships like the Yantar are sure to be closely tracked by NATO assets whenever they are found operating in their waters.
Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

 

[nivek]

Incredible images capture US Navy testing its new laser weapon that NEVER runs out of power​

The US Navy has released stunning images showing its incredible new drone-destroying laser weapon in action for the first time.

The HELIOS system was tested aboard the USS Preble, with photos capturing its bright beam shooting an unmanned aerial vehicle out of the sky.

HELIOS, which stands for High Laser with Integrated Optical-dazzler and Surveillance, was developed by Lockheed Martin in 2021 and delivered to the Navy a year later.

The system blasts more than 60 kilowatts of directed energy, enough to power up to 60 homes, at the speed of light and can hit targets up to five miles away.

It is designed to counter a range of threats, including drones, small boats, and potentially incoming missiles. HELIOS was also designed to disrupt the intelligence and reconnaissance sensors on enemy vessels.

The testing comes as threats against America's warships are growing as foreign nations stock their arsenals with drones and anti-ship missiles.

The US Naval Institute said in a recent report: 'The drone threat has been around for years, but the Navy has yet to prioritize defending against these easily acquired weapons.'

(More on the link)

The images showed the beam targeting a drone above the ship, shooting it down in a ball of flames.

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[pigfarmer]

Incredible images capture US Navy testing its new laser weapon that NEVER runs out of power​

The US Navy has released stunning images showing its incredible new drone-destroying laser weapon in action for the first time.

The HELIOS system was tested aboard the USS Preble, with photos capturing its bright beam shooting an unmanned aerial vehicle out of the sky.

HELIOS, which stands for High Laser with Integrated Optical-dazzler and Surveillance, was developed by Lockheed Martin in 2021 and delivered to the Navy a year later.

The system blasts more than 60 kilowatts of directed energy, enough to power up to 60 homes, at the speed of light and can hit targets up to five miles away.

It is designed to counter a range of threats, including drones, small boats, and potentially incoming missiles. HELIOS was also designed to disrupt the intelligence and reconnaissance sensors on enemy vessels.

The testing comes as threats against America's warships are growing as foreign nations stock their arsenals with drones and anti-ship missiles.

The US Naval Institute said in a recent report: 'The drone threat has been around for years, but the Navy has yet to prioritize defending against these easily acquired weapons.'

(More on the link)

The images showed the beam targeting a drone above the ship, shooting it down in a ball of flames.

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[pigfarmer]

I have a fascination with Gettysburg and have been there several times to explore the battlefields. It literally gives me the willies despite the commercialism and ghost hunting nonsense. Who knows, maybe I was there. I can almost see a line of howling men coming up Culp's Hill and the thought of it is extremely off putting despite the presence of a high school and a Marriott. Vivid imagination with perhaps far too much detail in the mix.

Any time you start reading about battles you need maps, the amount of detail can be overwhelming.
Cool set of maps and pictures that explains how it developed.

Battle of Gettysburg July 1863

 

[pigfarmer]

Again, this is out of sheer boredom. I realize this generates zero interest but you never know who or when might see this and it passes my time. Lately my time passes like a kidney stone.

I always say real history is much better than fiction. As an Alternate History fan you have to know enough about what actually happened to see the difference. Usually it comes down to one specific event, where one man made a difference. The Civil War has any number of those but this one battle is quite literally a turning point of American history.

Much, much better maps. Seems a professional cartographer did this out his own passion for history. Reading about this stuff is pointless without maps and here's some excellent ones for free.

Hal Jespersen’s Cartography Services

This battle alone has any number of points on which our history hung in the balance. I've been all over that place several times but for some reason am constantly drawn to Cemetery Hill and one particular section at that. Seems our known history depended on less than 150 men from a Connecticut regiment that simple said 'no' and absolutely refused to budge.

You know what's worse? At a minimum they knew what medical attention was available to them and did all this anyway. Germ theory was still in the future.

 

[nivek]

Northrop’s YF-23 Black Widow II Might Be Making a Comeback​

Japan, Britain, and Italy will have difficulty moving forward on a sixth-generation fighter because of the sheer complexity of designing one from scratch. But they could start with the proven YF-23 instead.

In the final decade of the titanic ideological struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union that defined the last half of the twentieth century, the United States Department of Defense (DoD) launched the Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program designed to replace the aging F-15 Eagle. Northrop, in partnership with McDonnell Douglas (now part of Boeing), put forward their innovative YF-23 design as a potential pick. Ultimately, this diamond-shaped wing stealth warplane that lacked horizontal stabilizers lost out to Lockheed Martin’s YF-22.

But rumors have been flying across the internet that Japan, and possibly the United Kingdom, are interested in reconstituting America’s canceled YF-23 program in some form. This, as both countries seek—and struggle to build—an indigenous sixth-generation warplane.

The YF-23: Greatest Combat Aircraft Never Built?

The YF-23 Black Widow II was probably the most advanced stealth warplane of its time. Of course, the same is said of the bird that ultimately beat the YF-23, the YF-22 (now designated the F-22 Raptor).

By most accounts, however, the Black Widow II was even better than the plane that would become the Raptor. When the Air Force commissioned the ATF, they wanted to bring the most radical aerodynamic designs forward and combine it with high-speed and total stealth. The YF-23 was stealthier and faster than the YF-22 in all the tests the Air Force did where they matched these birds against each other.

The YF-23 was a marvel of engineering. Along with that unique diamond-shaped wing, the bird was sleek. That sleekness was brought about by its unique composite materials. What’s more, the combination of composite materials and its shape all contributed to its vastly reduced radar cross-section (its stealth), which was superior to even the YF-22.

Two engines, belonging to either the Pratt & Whitney YF119 family or the General Electric YF120 turbofan family, powered these planes. There were two variants built of the YF-23 for testing purposes. The first was known as “Black Widow II,” and the second was called the “Gray Ghost.” The Pratt & Whitney engines were installed on the Black Widow II variant and the General Electric engines were placed on the Gray Ghost. The Air Force wanted to test different propulsion system options, as the Pentagon was very interested in picking the YF-23 over the YF-22.

The YF-23 demonstrated impressive capabilities. It was both faster and possessed greater range than its Lockheed YF-22 competitor. Indeed, the YF-23 reached up to Mach 1.6 and could supercruise at Mach 1.8 once afterburners were engaged. Because of its unique shape, the YF-23 simply did not appear on radars at certain angles.

Its speed, range, and stealth, however, were negated by the fact that the YF-23 was nowhere near as maneuverable as the YF-22 was. And that was a key reason behind the Pentagon ultimately choosing the Lockheed YF-22 over the Northrop YF-23: these were supposed to be fifth-generation air superiority fighters. If the Cold War ever turned hot, and Soviet warplanes got into dogfights with U.S. warplanes, the fifth-generation air superiority fighters needed to be maneuverable—and the YF-23, despite its countless advantages, simply was not.

Bringing Back the YF-23 Won’t Be Easy

Today, it’s an entirely different scenario. Both the Japanese and British want a more modern warplane. Britain says it’s intent on building a sixth-generation bird, but there is likely no real budgetary path forward for the British Ministry of Defense (MoD) to achieve this objective.

At the same time, the Japanese, along with the United Kingdom and Italy, are jointly building the sixth-generation Global Combat Aircraft Program (GCAP). Again, this sixth-generation warplane, even with three wealthy nations funding it, will have difficulty moving forward because of its sheer complexity and cost—as well as the minimal enhancements it will offer over fifth-generation warplanes.

That is why the rumors about Japan and Britain expressing interest in the old YF-23 plans should be seriously considered by both countries. Not only would it be amazing to see the YF-23 come to fruition, but the costs involved would be far less than any other proposed sixth-generation plane. Keeping costs low while enhancing capabilities is the name of the game when it comes to creating advanced warplanes in the modern age.

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[nivek]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cB4N54_BQcs


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[pigfarmer]

Speaking of large ships bumping into things ........

I've been to Norfolk to see USS Wisconsin and on the tour they call her 'Whiskey' because it collided with one of it's escort destroyers and they grafted the bow of the unfinished USS Kentucky onto her.

BB-64 volunteer recalls collision




Photo By Max Lonzanida | An archived photo showing the damaged USS Wisconsin (BB-64)

Amid the on-going COVI-19 mitigations and closures, many in the Downtown Norfolk area have arguably walked by the bow of the majestic USS Wisconsin (BB-64). The majestic Iowa-Class Battleship is berthed next to the Hampton Roads Naval Museum and the Nauticus campus as a museum ship; her decks and interior spaces attract scores of visitors from near and far seeking to connect with naval history.

On May 6, 1956, BB64 collided with the USS Eaton (DD/DDE-510) off the Virginia Capes which resulted in significant damage to both haze gray warships. BB64 Volunteer, former Bosuns Mate Second Class Bob McCarthy, was aboard the Eaton in the immediate wake of the collision; he vividly recalled that fateful day that occurred 64 years ago in an interview.

McCarthy started the interview from his home in Washington state with the moment he was transferred to the Eaton from another Fletcher-Class Destroyer, USS John Hood (DD-655).

He recalled that “they called me up and said they were transferring me to the Eaton. They had collision and they needed more help on the ship. I went over there with just what I had on my back. They sent over my gear afterwards.”

At the time, Eaton was part of the squadron of four Fletcher-Class Destroyers of Escort Destroyer Division 22. They were conducting exercises amid fog in the Chesapeake Bay along with the USS Coral Sea (CVA-43), USS Des Moines (CA-134) and USS Wisconsin (BB-64) when the collision occurred.

Eaton, the flagship for Escort Destroyer Division 22, had turned in-front of Wisconsin during a man overboard evolution. The collision had nearly ripped Eaton’s bow off and ripped one of her 5 inch/38cal guns into the sea. McCarthy recalled that the collision “ripped through the forward boiler room, [and] all the steam escape valves on the mast went off. They say it was so loud that they couldn’t even think.”

He further recalled that “it [the collision] went through the mess decks and it went through the Chief’s quarters. To be honest with you, if they didn’t call man overboard, there would have been people in those locations.” The collision injured two aboard Eaton, and both were transferred to the Wisconsin for treatment in her sick bay.

In the immediate aftermath of the collision, Eaton pulled alongside Wisconsin. McCarthy recalled that “Wisconsin’s crew threw lifejackets over thinking the Eaton was going to sink, but thankfully they got watertight security in place. The first Lieutenant and two Bosuns Mates were able to go forward and close those spaces.”

He vividly recalled the actions of Eaton’s crew:

“The whole front of the ship was swinging back and fourth because the keel was broken. They put cables in place to hold it [her bow], the cables would stretch so they wrapped the anchor chain and welded it past the damage so they could hold the front of the ship together.”

Eaton was eventually towed, stern first, to Norfolk Naval Shipyard with McCarthy aboard. He was able to augment the personnel assigned to her first division and was able to assimilate quickly with his new crew.

He recalled that while pier side, Eaton’s crew was not immediately allowed off base. “They would let the crew off, so many at a time to call home, but they wouldn’t let them off the base of anything,” said McCarthy, as he recalled the investigation and quarantine reminiscent of today’s current COVID-19 mitigations.

McCarthy recalled his service aboard Eaton vividly at the conclusion of his interview. When “I was reassigned to the ship, it was supposed to be temporary. For eight months on them. I made Second Class Bosuns Mate and they kept me on board. [We] spent 8-9 months in drydocks and went out to sea after repairs.” He spent four year assigned to the Eaton, and recalled a cruise to the Red Sea, to Canada, and to the waters off Cuba.

As for the Wisconsin, her bow was repaired by fitting the unfinished bow from the USS Kentucky. Archived copies of Norfolk Naval Shipyards Shipyard Bulletin aptly call the repairs Operation Bow Transfer. In the aftermath, Wisconsin took on a new callsign, WiSKY; W, I, S for Wisconsin and K,Y added after fitting of the Kentucky’s bow. As for McCarthy, he wished all of his friends and the staff at the Hampton Roads Naval Museum and Nauticus campus well after his interview; and wanted to reiterate that he is staying at home amid on-going COVID-19 mitigations.

 

[pigfarmer]

I am not posting this to be snarky so please don't misinterpret. I really had no idea but this may provide some context for current events

 

[pigfarmer]

 

[Dejan Corovic]

Of current broader interest. Where is British WW2 gold stored:

Ukraine is having easy time geting weapons as grants, Britain had to pay for arms with it's hard gold. US was tough on Britain because Britain defaulted on $4 B of its WW1 debit. So, US Treasury asked for cash in WW2.

OK, no more spoilers ;-) watch the video, its 1st class:


View: https://youtu.be/boOPyGBLfv4

 

[nivek]

British army is 'laughing stock' of NATO - because outdated rifles 'wouldn't be able to kill Russian or Chinese soldiers'​

The British army is said to be the 'laughing stock' of NATO because its outdated rifles wouldn't be able to kill Russian or Chinese soldiers in advanced body armour. The army still uses the L115A3 'sniper' rifle, while other armed forces had updated to the same company's AX models, which are lighter and enable soldiers to see further in the distance, according to a serving senior officer. 'The Europeans used to love all of our kit but now laugh at it,' the officer told the Times.

They said that snipers from a NATO ally in eastern Europe was 'mind blown' by the UK still using the old rifles. About 500 snipers in the British army have a L115A3 rifle and they feel underfunded and neglected, according to the officer, who added that the UK had 'fallen far behind the curve as far as capability goes'. Units other than snipers face similar issues. The SA-80 standard infantry rifle, which has been used by British soldiers for four decades, has reportedly not changed much since the 1980s.

The SA-80 uses a 5.56mm round, which is the NATO standard, and the rifle was designed to pierce through old Russian helmets that are not in usage anymore, a second source said, adding that the rifle was 'heavy and clunky'. They also said the SA-80 - of which 150,000 are believed to be currently in service - was one of the 'least updated' rifles that wasn't even made by others anymore. Other allies like the US army were instead using a different ammunition calibre, a 6.8mm round - which is considered more lethal than the 5.56mm - in combination with XM7 and XM250 rifles by US firearms specialist Sig Sauer.

Meanwhile, Russian body armour has improved and its latest kit for infantry soldiers includes 'level 4' armour designed to withstand fire from a Russian 7.62mm rifle. 'Your average [British] soldier wouldn't be able to defeat it, not even close,' the source told the Times. The SA-80, which has been updated over the last four decades, including an update in 2020, is reportedly set to be replaced as part of Project Grayburn, which is currently still in the concept phase. The 5.56mm round used in the SA-80 'can't defeat Russian body armour, and it's easily outranged by the latest Russian small arms,' late US Major General Robert Scales told a Senate hearing in 2017.

In 2020, this was followed up by General Mark Milley, the US army's chief of staff at the time. He said that the 5.56mm was not able to penetrate 'a type of body armour', adding that 'adversarial states' were selling this online. The Times' source said that the US introducing the 6.8mm hybrid round could mean that NATO allies might struggle to share rounds on the battlefield in the future. They said that even though this was known, the ammunition switch was made 'for good reason' as the 5.56mm was now 'obsolete' against modern body armour, according to the source.

The Ministry of Defence was 'behind the curve' in terms of switching to better and more efficient rounds for battlefield rifles, according to Robert Clark, who works as a research fellow at the Yorktown Institute think tank in Washington DC. Clark said the idea behind smaller ammunition had the advantage of being more likely to wound soldiers rather than kill them, which means that it would remove soldiers involved in casualty extraction. But he added that in recent conflicts fighters like those from Russia have been 'less concerned' about saving the wounded, which would make smaller, less lethal rounds 'less useful'. The 5.56mm round was 'almost useless' against the Russians and Chinese, according to Clark.

The British army source told the Times that the issues UK soldiers were facing were 'swept under the carpet' while the MoD was portraying that the military was ready for war. An MoD spokesperson said in a statement that the SA-80 had been upgraded 'in recent years', adding that it was 'one of the most accurate service rifles' currently in use all over the world. The spokeswoman also said that the 5.56mm rounds were 'tried and tested' as well as the Nato standard, which ensured 'interoperability among allied forces'.

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[AD1184]

I am not posting this to be snarky so please don't misinterpret. I really had no idea but this may provide some context for current events

The naval historian C. Northcote Parkinson, in his 1957 book Parkinson's Law, predicted that the Royal Navy would have more admirals than ships as a consequence of his laws of bureaucracy. I alluded to this back in this post a few years ago:

Origin Story of the Royal Navy in Dispute

New Research Disputes 10th Century Origin Story of the Royal Navy Spend time around Brits long enough and one learns there are two things one should never speak ill of – the royal family and the Royal Navy. (There’s probably more, but that’s all we need for this story.) While the royal family...

alienexpanse.com

C. Northcote Parkinson - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[pigfarmer]

Of current broader interes

I only posted that because it's freaky not necessarily because it's about our Civil War. Of that there are only so many pictures in existence and I have seen them over and over again. To see them animated - specifically that one with Robert E Lee was just a little too weird for me.

There are tons of other things on that channel but I tend to flame out after a while.

 

[pigfarmer]

The naval historian C. Northcote Parkinson, in his 1957 book Parkinson's Law, predicted that the Royal Navy would have more admirals than ships as a consequence of his laws of bureaucracy. I alluded to this back in this post a few years ago:

Origin Story of the Royal Navy in Dispute

New Research Disputes 10th Century Origin Story of the Royal Navy Spend time around Brits long enough and one learns there are two things one should never speak ill of – the royal family and the Royal Navy. (There’s probably more, but that’s all we need for this story.) While the royal family...

alienexpanse.com

C. Northcote Parkinson - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I've heard similar noise over here regarding the number of senior officers we have versus what we used to fight WW2 and that's not really a valid comparison. Makes for a good sound byte though.

I was just surprised at that video as I really had no idea, I haven't paid much attention to the RN since the Falklands. What the hell the Royal Navy needs with those two enormous aircraft carriers is hard to see as it appears that they would be hard pressed to deploy a single strike group much less two at once. As I've said, I can't help but think they are designed to fight the last war not the next one and feel the same way about ours; they are the battleships that Mahan was wrong about. When I look at the new Ford class the names Yamato and Musashi come to mind. Not that I could suggest an alternative, they certainly do come in handy sometimes.

Maybe in some respects they'll live on in reputation the way B-52s have but will only be used in a permissive environment.

Our surface fleet is not in in the best condition and training has been shown to be sorely lacking in all the collisions. I've been reading about the possible return of various mothballed elements like the USS Kitty Hawk, various escorts and the Zumwalt class destroyers and that is a breath of fresh air. In a similar vein I've also seen that the Air Force has been testing F-15EXs.

Good book if you're interested in a US Navy origin story

 

[nivek]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQAfwk3Otno


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[nivek]

Inside the Military's Secret Undercover Army​

The largest undercover force the world has ever known is the one created by the Pentagon over the past decade. Some 60,000 people now belong to this secret army, many working under masked identities and in low profile, all part of a broad program called "signature reduction." The force, more than ten times the size of the clandestine elements of the CIA, carries out domestic and foreign assignments, both in military uniforms and under civilian cover, in real life and online, sometimes hiding in private businesses and consultancies, some of them household name companies.

The unprecedented shift has placed an ever greater number of soldiers, civilians, and contractors working under false identities, partly as a natural result in the growth of secret special forces but also as an intentional response to the challenges of traveling and operating in an increasingly transparent world. The explosion of Pentagon cyber warfare, moreover, has led to thousands of spies who carry out their day-to-day work in various made-up personas, the very type of nefarious operations the United States decries when Russian and Chinese spies do the same.

Newsweek's exclusive report on this secret world is the result of a two-year investigation involving the examination of over 600 resumes and 1,000 job postings, dozens of Freedom of Information Act requests, and scores of interviews with participants and defense decision-makers. What emerges is a window into not just a little-known sector of the American military, but also a completely unregulated practice. No one knows the program's total size, and the explosion of signature reduction has never been examined for its impact on military policies and culture. Congress has never held a hearing on the subject. And yet the military developing this gigantic clandestine force challenges U.S. laws, the Geneva Conventions, the code of military conduct and basic accountability.

The signature reduction effort engages some 130 private companies to administer the new clandestine world. Dozens of little known and secret government organizations support the program, doling out classified contracts and overseeing publicly unacknowledged operations. Altogether the companies pull in over $900 million annually to service the clandestine force—doing everything from creating false documentation and paying the bills (and taxes) of individuals operating under assumed names, to manufacturing disguises and other devices to thwart detection and identification, to building invisible devices to photograph and listen in on activity in the most remote corners of the Middle East and Africa.

Special operations forces constitute over half the entire signature reduction force, the shadow warriors who pursue terrorists in war zones from Pakistan to West Africa but also increasingly work in unacknowledged hot spots, including behind enemy lines in places like North Korea and Iran. Military intelligence specialists—collectors, counter-intelligence agents, even linguists—make up the second largest element: thousands deployed at any one time with some degree of "cover" to protect their true identities.

The newest and fastest growing group is the clandestine army that never leaves their keyboards. These are the cutting-edge cyber fighters and intelligence collectors who assume false personas online, employing "nonattribution" and "misattribution" techniques to hide the who and the where of their online presence while they search for high-value targets and collect what is called "publicly accessible information"—or even engage in campaigns to influence and manipulate social media. Hundreds work in and for the NSA, but over the past five years, every military intelligence and special operations unit has developed some kind of "web" operations cell that both collects intelligence and tends to the operational security of its very activities.

In the electronic era, a major task of signature reduction is keeping all of the organizations and people, even the automobiles and aircraft involved in the clandestine operations, masked. This protective effort entails everything from scrubbing the Internet of telltale signs of true identities to planting false information to protect missions and people. As standard unforgettable identification and biometrics have become worldwide norms, the signature reduction industry also works to figure out ways of spoofing and defeating everything from fingerprinting and facial recognition at border crossings, to ensuring that undercover operatives can enter and operate in the United States, manipulating official records to ensure that false identities match up.

Just as biometrics and "Real ID" are the enemies of clandestine work, so too is the "digital exhaust" of online life. One major concern of counter-terrorism work in the ISIS age is that military families are also vulnerable—another reason, participants say, to operate under false identities. The abundance of online information about individuals (together with some spectacular foreign hacks) has enabled foreign intelligence services to better unmask fake identities of American spies. Signature reduction is thus at the center of not only counter-terrorism but is part of the Pentagon's shift towards great power competition with Russia and China—competition, influence, and disruption "below the level of armed conflict," or what the military calls warfare in the "Gray Zone," a space "in the peace-conflict continuum."

One recently retired senior officer responsible for overseeing signature reduction and super-secret "special access programs" that shield them from scrutiny and compromise says that no one is fully aware of the extent of the program, nor has much consideration been given to the implications for the military institution. "Everything from the status of the Geneva Conventions—were a soldier operating under false identity to be captured by an enemy—to Congressional oversight is problematic," he says. He worries that the desire to become more invisible to the enemy not just obscures what the United States is doing around the world but also makes it more difficult to bring conflicts to a close. "Most people haven't even heard of the term signature reduction let alone what it creates," he says. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity because he is discussing highly classified matters.

(More on the link)

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[pigfarmer]

Things like World of Warships would bore me to tears and I definitely am not wasting time watching YT videos drawn from it no matter how much time I have to kill lately. It was a surprise that although Historigraph looks like just another version of that it isn't quite.

I got stuck on this because I had only been peripherally aware of any of this and it's a good story with a surprising amount of detail. For me the real trick when reading history is keeping that map in your head and that isn't easy. This lays it all out easily. I have an easier time remembering that in the South Pacific than I do places in Virginia during the Civil War. I can already point out Balikpapan on a map, Brandy's Station - no clue.


View: https://youtu.be/9Lgc_NtwApQ

 

[pigfarmer]

Great. Now if they can only add 'sloped roof' capability they'd be all set.

What I got from all this is that the new rifle is about 8 lbs lighter, those M110s are heavy bastards. That's like subtracting an m1903 Springfield in weight. I'd guess there is attendant muzzle rise as a result they have to compensate for.

Secret Service Eyes New 6.5mm Semi-Automatic Sniper Rifle

New 6.5mm Creedmoor rifles would give Secret Service counter-sniper teams valuable extra range, accuracy, and ballistic performance.

 

[Dejan Corovic]

Things like World of Warships would bore me to tears and I definitely am not wasting time watching YT videos drawn from it no matter how much time I have to kill lately. It was a surprise that although Historigraph looks like just another version of that it isn't quite.

I got stuck on this because I had only been peripherally aware of any of this and it's a good story with a surprising amount of detail. For me the real trick when reading history is keeping that map in your head and that isn't easy. This lays it all out easily. I have an easier time remembering that in the South Pacific than I do places in Virginia during the Civil War. I can already point out Balikpapan on a map, Brandy's Station - no clue.


View: https://youtu.be/9Lgc_NtwApQ

Tactical mistake by Japaneze aircraft comander. He should had let that one cruiser to attack the submarine. He had two more cruisers by his side to protect him.