Posts filed under ‘Skills and Training’
SHAKO: Pentagon Cancels Planned Drone Pilot/Cyber Warfare Medal
Dust in the Wind
The short, stormy life of the Distinguished Warfare Medal is over.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel announced this week that the new medal, which sparked controversy among veterans’ groups and members of Congress, will be replaced before it was ever issued.
In a statement, Hagel said the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the secretaries of the Army, Navy and Air Force all agreed to create a new “distinguishing device,” honoring unmanned aircraft operators and warriors in cyberspace, that can be affixed to existing medals. Hagel ordered Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, to conduct a review of the proposed medal shortly after taking over the Pentagon last month.
The Distinguished Warfare Medal was created by the Defense Department, at the behest of then-Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, in February to recognize the achievements of drone and cyber operations that had a direct and immediate effect on combat operations.
But veterans groups like the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion complained about the new medal’s placed of precedence between the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Bronze Star medal — which is awarded for both heroism and distinguished service. That, critics complained, would honor service members who did not see combat above those earning the Purple Heart medal for being wounded or killed in battle.
In his statement, April 15, Hagel said he was directing the Defense Department to develop and present final award criteria and other specifics of the distinguishing device within 90 days for final approval. The distinguishing device has not been named or designed.
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SHAKO is an occasional 4GWAR posting on military history, traditions and culture. For the uninitiated, a shako is the tall, billed headgear worn by many armies from the Napoleonic era to about the time of the American Civil War. It remains a part of the dress or parade uniform of several military organizations like the corps of cadets at the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, New York.
NAVAL WARFARE: What’s to See at Sea-Air-Space Expo
Navy League’s Expo
X-47B unmanned aircraft on board the aircraft carrier USS Harry Truman. (U.S. Navy photo courtesy of Northrop Grumman by Alan Radecki)
Your intrepid 4GWAR editor is at the Navy League’s 2013 Sea-Air-Space Expo at the Gaylord National Convention Center, National Harbor, Maryland (it’s across the Potomac from Alexandria, Virginia).
The annual gathering brings together Navy and Coast Guard officials from all over — including many foreign countries — as well as defense contractors — large and small — and scribes like your editor to find out what’s the Navy’s up to and where it thinks it’s going in the future.
We’re helping the folks at Seapower, the Navy League’s magazine, cover the scores of briefings by Navy and Coast Guard commanders, government officials, big defense contractors and organizations dedicated to the sea services.
On Monday we wrote about the Navy’s plans for unmanned aircraft on nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, the successes of the V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft and what Naval Air Systems Command is doing to integrate new systems into the fleet while making them interoperable with existing systems and platforms.
You can see all three stories among lots of others written by the staff of Seapower by clicking here.
FRIDAY FOTO (April 5, 2013)
Hail to the Chiefs
(U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Todd Frantom
We know this kind of photo is a cliche, but we just love the bland expression on this Navy chief’s face as these beautiful Springfield 1903 rifles — with fixed bayonets — sail over him. We also love the chief’s cutlass. Haven’t seen anything like that on a modern day sailor since the river battle scene in “The San Pebbles” (See photo below)
This week’s Friday Foto shows the Navy celebrating 120 years of the chief petty officer rank during an April 1 ceremony at the U.S. Navy Memorial in Washington. D.C. The chief petty officer rank was created in 1893 and Navy chiefs have been leading sailors ever since. We wonder who yelled at the blue jackets and told them to shape up before 1893.
The role and duties of a master chief — and the tradition behind them — are outlined in this interesting column from the Washington Times.
Please click on both photos to enlarge image.
TECHNOLOGY: DARPA’S Part in Obama Brain Initiative
Pentagon Brainiacs to Study the Brain
Jens Langner image via Wikipedia
The day after President Obama announced a new research initiative to study the human brain, a caller to a Washington radio talk show asked whether he should be concerned that a Pentagon agency – DARPA – was included in the White House brain initiative.
DARPA – the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency – is the Defense Department’s think-outside-the-box research arm. Since its creation in 1958 – in response to the launch of the first manmade spaced satellite, the Soviet Union’s Sputnik – DARPA has been behind some remarkable scientific developments including the Internet, Global Positioning Systems and radar-defeating stealth technology.
But what is the motivation for this government agency, known for high risk projects, to launch a high tech study of how the human brain works? The answer might surprise you. Forget “The Manchurian Candidate,” brainwashing and mind control. DARPA is interested in helping people – war injured veterans in particular – recover their memory or their ability to use their limbs again.
DARPA intends to invest about $50 million next year in trying to understand the dynamic functions of the brain and coming up with breakthrough applications. Obama wants to spend a total of $100 million on projects to help researchers find new ways to treat, cure and even prevent brain disorders.
“This kind of knowledge of brain function could inspire the design of a new generation of information processing systems; lead to insights into brain injury and recovery mechanisms; and enable new diagnostics, therapies and devices to repair traumatic brain injury,” DARPA Director Arati Prabhakar, said on DARPA’s website.
According to to the Defense and Veterans’ Brain Injury Center, between the years 2000 and 2012, 266,810 members of the U.S. Armed Services sustained traumatic brain injuries. They ranged from mild (concussion) to penetrating (open head wound/brain penetrated). Most (82.4 percent) are mild, the DVBIJ said.
Defense Department chart
FRIDAY FOTO (March 29, 2013)
Vigilant
Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Ezekiel R. Kitandwe
An Afghan National Army soldier observes his sector during a clearing operation near Camp Shorabak in Afghanistan’s Helmand province. Behind the soldier on the right is a four-wheel MRAP (mine resistant ambush protected) vehicle.
U.S. and coalition troops are letting Afghans take the lead in operations like this in preparation for when the Afghan National Army takes over security responsibilities in 2014.
To see more photos of this operation, click here.
FRIDAY FOTO: March 22, 2013
Training Day
U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Mark Fayloga
Fellow Marines tow Sgt. Ian Anderson as part of a rescue drill during a water survival course for instructors at Marine Corps Base Camp Johnson, North Carolina. Anderson is assigned to the 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment.
For some more very interesting photos of how Marines train to rescue fellow Leathernecks when they go in the drink — with and without their battle gear, click here. You will also see some very interesting tatoos.
FRIDAY FOTO (March 15, 2013)
Something Different: Readers Choice
Over the last few weeks we’ve been bedeviled by the number of great photos taken by photographers of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard. That has made it very difficult at times to pick just one for the FRIDAY FOTO. Longtime 4GWAR visitors have probably noticed we sometimes cheat and run two related photos of the same event or a FRIDAY FOTO Extra (usually a pretty picture without much back story).
This week we’ve decided to try something different. We’re going to let you, the readers, pick this week’s Friday Foto. This isn’t a contest. There are no prizes. Our budget doesn’t allow a cash prize and we have no 4GWAR ballcaps or coffee mugs to award. We just want to see if our taste is in synch with our readership’s.
Below you’ll find three recent photos from the Defense Department website with their original captions. You can pick the one you like by commenting at the bottom of the page or emailing us at 4GWARblog@wordpress.com.
We’ll announce the winner next Friday and post some of the comments we get on the photos and whether you think this was a good idea.
Photo No. 1
Defense Dept photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Corey Hensley, U.S. Navy.
The Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS Albuquerque (SSN 706) approaches the submarine tender USS Frank Cable (AS 40) in Sattahip Bay, Thailand, on March 10, 2013. Frank Cable conducts maintenance and support of submarines and surface vessels deployed in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility.
Photo No. 2
U.S. Marine Corps photo by Pfc. Kasey Peacock
U.S. Marines and Japan Ground Self-Defense Forces move in on an enemy position together during the final comprehensive bilateral force-on-force training evolution during Exercise Forest Light 13-3 at the Hokkaido-Dai Maneuver Area, Hokkaido, Japan, March 3, 2013. The training began with the Marines and JGSDF patrolling separately on foot and by mechanized vehicles to reach a temporary position and set up a hasty defense
Photo No. 3
Defense Dept. photo by EJ Hersom
A soldier keeps watch from the hatch atop a M2 Bradley fighting vehicle as it maneuvers during a training mission at the National Urban Warfare Center in the Mojave Desert on Fort Irwin, Calif., Feb. 24, 2013.
O.K., so there are our three candidates. Don’t forget to click on each photo to enlarge the image (it often makes a difference in one’s appreciation).
Please comment at the bottom of this post (click on where it says comment or click on the blue headline at the top of this post to get the comment box to appear at the bottom of the post) or send us an email at 4GWARblog@gmail.com and give us your pick for next week’s Friday Foto.
FRIDAY FOTO (March 8, 2013)
Million Dollar View
U.S. Air Force photo by Osakabe Yasuo
Bathed in the eerie green glow inside a C-130 Hercules aircraft, U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Nickolas Alarcon observes a cargo drop zone from the rear of the plane above Yakota Air Base, Japan. Alarcon, a loadmaster, is assigned to the 36th Airlift Squadron. The C-130 aircrews demonstrated their airlift capabilities during a readiness week exercise.
Don’t forget to click on the photo to enlarge the image. To see more photos like this, click here.
FRIDAY FOTO (February 22, 2013)
Hitting the Beach
U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Katelyn Hunter
U.S. Marines and sailors speed ashore on combat rubber raiding crafts (Try saying that three times fast!) as part of exercise Cobra Gold 2013 in Hat Yao, None, Thailand, on Feb. 15.
Cobra Gold is an annual exercise that includes multilateral events ranging from amphibious assaults to non-combatant evacuation operations. The training aims to improve interoperability between the United States, Thailand and other participating countries, like South Korea. For more Cobra Gold photos click here.
For still more photos of jungle survival instruction conducted by Thai Marines, click here. Be forewarned, some of the things they have to eat are pretty gross. So don’t view this slideshow over breakfast. We warned you.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the world …
U.S.Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Chelsea Mandello
Sailors on a ship boarding team race across the Atlantic Ocean on a rigid hull inflatable boat during a training exercise with the support vessel USS Prevail (TSV 1). The sailors are attached to the amphibious dock landing ship USS Carter Hall (LSD 50). Carter Hall is participating in Composite Training Unit Exercise off the east coast of the U.S. in preparation for a deployment this spring.
Defense Department officials have warned that training will be among the activities that will be severely curtailed if Congress fails to reach a compromise on reducing the deficit and massive budget cuts kick in under sequestration starting March 1.
SHAKO: New Medal for Drone Pilots and Cyber Warriors Sparks Controversy
Medal Mishigas *
The Defense Warfare Medal (Defense Dept. photo)
You’ve probably heard by now that the Defense Department has created a new commendation medal for members of the military who do extraordinary things off the battlefield. The pilots of unmanned aircraft and cybersecurity/cyberwarfare operators come to mind.
At his last official press briefing at the Pentagon on Feb. 13, retiring Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced the creation of the new Defense Warfare Medal, saying it “recognizes the reality of the kind of technological warfare that we are engaged in, in the 21st century.”
“I’ve seen firsthand how modern tools, like remotely piloted platforms and cyber systems, have changed the way wars are fought. And they’ve given our men and women the ability to engage the enemy and change the course of battle, even from afar,” Panetta said.
Now the DWM will provide “distinct department-wide recognition for the extraordinary achievements that directly impact on combat operations, but that do not involve acts of valor or physical risk that combat entails,” he added.
According to the Defense Department, the Distinguished Warfare Medal will be awarded to members of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps “whose extraordinary achievements, regardless of their distance to the traditional combat theater, deserve distinct department-wide recognition.”
In the hierarchy of military awards, the DWM is slated to rank just below the Distinguished Flying Cross and above the Bronze Star medal. Both of those medals may be awarded for acts of heroism or acts of merit. When awarded for heroism, the medal is awarded with a “V” for valor device.
But that hierarchical placement has veterans groups like the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars — up in arms. Many of their members feel the new medal’s standing diminishes older medals like the Purple Heart, the decoration given to those wounded in battle.
Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said the criteria for the award “will be highly selective and reflect high standards.”
But critics say a medal for singular service far behind the lines should not take precedence over a valor medal like the Bronze Star.
But at a blogger’s roundtable this week (Feb. 20), a Pentagon official tried to set the record straight.
Juliet Beyler, acting director of Officer and Enlisted Personnel Management, noted that only about 2 percent of the Bronze Stars awarded since 9/11 came with the “V” device. “So by far the vast majority of Bronze Stars are not issued with the “V” device,” said Beyler, a retired Marine Corps combat engineer officer who served two tours in Iraq. She added that there are have been several medals “far lower in precedence that are also eligible to have a ‘V’ device.”
There are only three medals awarded solely for valor: the Medal of Honor; the services crosses (Distinguished Service Cross, Navy Cross and Air Force Cross); and the Silver Star medal. There are other medals like the Legion of Merit which are higher in precedence than the Bronze Star but they are for meritorious service over a period of time like 24 months, she said.
A blogger from the American Legion wondered why the new medal was created instead of awarding non-combat zone troops an existing decoration like the Meritorius Service Medal.
SHAKO is an occasional 4GWAR posting on military history, traditions and culture. For the uninitiated, a shako is the tall, billed headgear worn by many armies from the Napoleonic era to about the time of the American Civil War. It remains a part of the dress or parade uniform of several military organizations like the corps of cadets at the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, New York.
