Archive for July, 2022
WELCOME TO MY DARKSIDE
(U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Taylor Parker) Please click on the photo to enlarge the image.
Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Handling) 3rd Class Ronald Saunders prepares to direct a Marine Corps AH-1Z Viper helicopter on the flight deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) during night flight operations July 14, 2022.
We understand that many Flight Deck crew wear face masks to block out the exhaust fumes, and skulls are a popular motif. We probably should have saved this photo for Halloween — by why wait?
Aircraft handlers, like Saunders, wear yellow shirts, as do aircraft directors who shuttle aircraft around the busy flight decks of assault ships and aircraft carriers like traffic cops. Other flight deck crew, who arm, fuel, repair, inspect and move aircraft, wear garb of different colors reflecting their job. To see a short video explaining what all the colors mean, click here.
The Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group is on a scheduled deployment in the Atlantic Ocean, U.S. Naval Forces Europe’s area of operations, employed by U.S. Sixth Fleet to defend U.S., allies and partner interests.
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July 29, 2022 at 5:49 pm
UKRAINE, RUSSIA DRONE NEEDS
Never in the history of warfare have drones been used as intensively as in Ukraine, where they often play an outsized role in who lives and dies, according to the Associated Press. Both the Russians and Ukrainians depend heavily on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
But after months of fighting, the drone fleets of both sides are depleted, and they are racing to build or buy the kind of jamming-resistant, advanced drones that could offer a decisive edge, the AP reported July 14.
Ukraine Getting More Kamikaze Drones
The U.S. Defense Department says hundreds of one-way drones will be included in the latest security assistance package for Ukraine in its battle against Russia’s brutal invasion.
The Pentagon announced Friday (July 22, 2022) that an additional $270 million in Security Assistance for Ukraine will include as many as 580 Phoenix Ghost Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS). It is the sixteenth drawdown of equipment from Defense Department inventories for Ukraine authorized by the Biden Administration since August 2021 — six months before Moscow’s unprovoked multi-front attack.
Back in April, the United States committed to sending 121 Phoenix Ghosts to Ukraine. Pentagon officials have not fully disclosed the capabilities of those drones, which were developed by the U.S. Air Force and produced by Aevex Aerospace, according to the Associated Press. Aevex describes itself as a leader in “full-spectrum airborne intelligence solutions.” The drones have onboard cameras and can be used to attack targets, AP reported.
In April, then-Pentagon press spokesman John Kirby said the Phoenix Ghost had been in development before the February 24 Russian invasion. And in discussions with the Ukrainians about their requirements, “we believed that this particular system would very nicely suit their needs, particularly in eastern Ukraine.”
While primarily a UAS designed for tactical operations like attacking targets, Kirby said Phoenix Ghost ‘s cameras could be used for reconnaissance. But its principal focus is attack, said Kirby, adding “its purpose is akin to that of the Switchblade … which is basically a one-way drone and attack drone. And that’s essentially what this is designed to do.”
Artist’s rendering of AeroVironment Switchblade 600 loitering missile. (Image courtesy of AeroVironment)
Switchblade’s manufacturer, AeroVironmentc Inc.,, calls the little lethal UAV a loitering missile. Originally weighing less than six pounds, it could be carried in a soldier’s backpack and launched from a mortar-like tube. Once airborne, Switchblade sends back color video imagery and GPS coordinates which the operator can view on a hand-held ground controller.
What made Switchblade unique, 4GWAR noted back in 2011, is the ability to transition from a low-flying reconnaissance drone to small bomb with the flick of a switch by the soldier operating the ground controller. It can then be aimed at a nearby — but out of sight — target such as an un-armored vehicle.
Several improvements have been made to Switchblade since then. The larger (50-pounds) Switchblade 600, has greater capabilities for engaging larger, hardened targets with multi-purpose anti-armor ammunition at longer distances than the original Switchblade 300, your 4GWAR editor reported in SEAPOWER.
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Short on Drones, Russia Turns to Iran
Both sides in the war have made ample use of unmanned aircraft, both for missile attacks by armed drones and reconnaissance of enemy troop movements and potential artillery targets. However, many military analysts believe the Russians — who surprised Western observers with their coordinated use of drones as artillery spotters to target Ukrainian tank and artillery formations in 2014 — may now be running low on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
On July 12, U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters that Russia was seeking hundreds of UAVs, including weapons capable drones from Iran.
“Our information further indicates that Iran is preparing to train Russian forces to use these UAVs with initial training sessions slated to begin as soon as early July,” Sullivan told a White House briefing, adding “”It’s unclear whether Iran has delivered any of these UAVs to Russia already.”
On July 16, the White House said Russian officials visited an airfield in central Iran at least twice to view weapons-capable drones it is looking to acquire. The White House released the intelligence the same day President Joe Biden met with leaders of six Arab Gulf countries, plus Egypt, Jordan and Iraq.
The White House also released satellite imagery indicating Russian officials have twice visited Iran in recent weeks for a showcase of weapons-capable drones.
The satellite imagery showed Shahed-191 and Shahed-129 drones on display at Karshan Airfield on June 8 and July 5, while a Russian delegation transport plane was on the ground, the Associated Press reported.
Shahed 129 UAV seen during the Eqtedar 40 defense exhibition in Tehran. (Photo Fars Media Corporation via wikipedia)
Sullivan said in a statement that the administration has “information that the Iranian government is preparing to provide Russia with several hundred UAVs.
“We assess an official Russian delegation recently received a showcase of Iranian attack-capable UAVs. We are releasing these images captured in June showing Iranian UAVs that the Russian government delegation saw that day,” Sullivan added. “This suggests ongoing Russian interest in acquiring Iranian attack-capable UAVs.”
Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian rejected reports on exporting Iranian drones to Russia, calling them “baseless.”
The U.S. intelligence assessment was first reported by CNN.
Russia had previously turned to China for help in supporting its war in Ukraine, U.S. officials disclosed in March, according to the CNN report. As of late May, the US had seen no evidence that China had provided any military or economic support to Russia for the invasion, Sullivan told reporters at the time.
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China’s DJI Halts Drone Business in Russia and Ukraine.
China’s DJI, the world’s largest commercial drone maker, announced in late April that is was suspending all business activities in both Russia and Ukraine.
Since the start of the war, Ukraine has urged the company to take steps to stop its drones being used by Russia.
The Chinese firm said the decision was not a statement about any country, and its drones are not for military use, the BBC reported.
DJI is internally reassessing compliance requirements in various jurisdictions. Pending the current review, DJI will temporarily suspend all business activities in Russia and Ukraine. We are engaging with customers, partners and other stakeholders regarding the temporary suspension of business operations in the affected territories. — DJI Statement
China has sought to remain neutral on the conflict, calling for a peaceful solution, but it has yet to condemn the Russian invasion.
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IN OTHER DRONE NEWS …
Valkyrie Drones Complete Tests for Skyborg Program.
A pair of XQ-58 Valkyrie drones have completed a series of tests for the U.S. Air Force’s Skyborg program, to team unmanned and manned aircraft through an artificial intelligence-enabled autonomous system allowing fighter pilots and bomber crews to control unmanned wingmen.
The XQ-58A Valkyrie demonstrator, a long-range, high subsonic unmanned air vehicle completed its inaugural flight March 5, 2019 at Yuma Proving Grounds, Arizona. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Joshua Hoskins)
Defense contractor Kratos, which manufactures the Valkyrie, announced the successful tests at the Farnborough International Air Show in Britain July 19, but offered no details on what those tests demonstrated or when they occurred, Air Force Magazine reports.
The XQ-58, meanwhile, has conducted a limited number of flight tests showcasing some of its capabilities including releasing another drone in flight and carrying technology allowing an F-35 Lightening II and an F-22 Raptor to share data in-flight.
It was the first public announcement of the Valkyrie flying for the Skyborg program. The drone was first developed as part of the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Low Cost Attritable Aircraft Technology portfolio and flew its first several tests before Kratos was selected in late 2020 as one of three companies to conduct Skyborg flights, according to the magazine.
“This is a program about autonomy,” Jeffrey Herro, a senior vice president in Kratos’ unmanned systems division, told Air Force Magazine in an interview at Farnborough. “Our aircraft was chosen to be the testbed for these autonomy tests. And so we’ve been flying various payloads in support of the government’s activities on Skyborg.”
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July 26, 2022 at 3:42 pm
STEADY MEN.
(U.S. Marine Corps photo by Corporal. Sydney Smith) CLICK on photo to enlarge.
U.S. Marines assigned to Battalion Landing Team 3rd Battalion of the Okinawa-based, 4th Marine Regiment, Marine Air-Ground Task Force 7 and a Marine assigned to the Mexican Naval Infantry practice small boat flipping techniques at Marine Corps Base Hawaii on July 6, 2022, during Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC), the world’s largest international maritime exercise.
U.S. and Mexican Marines conducted small boat training with marines from Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and Australian soldiers in just one of the training exercises at RIMPAC from June 29 to August 4 in and around the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California.
Twenty-six nations, 38 ships, four submarines, more than 170 aircraft and 25,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC 2022, the 28th exercise in the series first begun in 1971.
The photo below illustrates where these three soggy Marines started. So, you can see turning over an upside down rubber raft while both you and it are in the ocean isn’t easy — but a handy thing to know how to do.
The 4th Marine Regiment is slated to be transformed into one of the new Marine Littoral Regiments as part of the Marine Corps’ larger force design (Force Design 2030), intended to redesign the Corps for naval expeditionary warfare and to better align itself with the National Defense Strategy, in particular, its focus on strategically competing with China and Russia.
(U.S. Marine Corps photo by Corporal Sydney Smith) CLICK on photo to enlarge the image.
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July 21, 2022 at 11:58 pm
EXERCISES/TRAINING WITH PARTNERS.
AFRICAN LION 22: Morocco, Ghana, Senegal and Tunisia.
U.S. Africa Command’s premier annual exercise, African Lion 22, ended nearly a month of training operations across four nations in north and west Africa on June 30.
Sergeant Anthony Ruiz, an infantry squad leader assigned to Echo Company, Battalion Landing Team 2/6, 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, and Tunisian troops participate in an integrated training event during African Lion 2022, near Camp Ben Ghilouf, Tunisia on June 21, 2022. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sergeant Marcela Diazdeleon)
African Lion 22 is a multinational, combined arms joint exercise focused on increasing training and interoperability between U.S. forces and partners and allies on the African continent to increase security and stability within the region.
Led by the U.S. Army Southern European Task Force for Africa, the exercise saw operations ranging from maritime training exercises in the Mediterranean waters off Tunisia and Morocco’s Atlantic Coast to field training and combined arms exercises in Ghana and Senegal.
Military units from Brazil, France, Italy, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the African nation of Chad, joined U.S. and host nations’ troops in the exercises. A total of 7,500 troops, nearly 4,000 of them from the United States, participated in African Lion, which began on June 6.
African Lion also included a Special Operations cyber exercise, a medical readiness exercise, a humanitarian civil assistance program, a joint forcible entry with paratroopers, an air exercise with U.S. heavy heavy lift transport, aerial refueling and bomber aircraft.
Approximately 80 Idaho Army National Guard Soldiers with the 1st Battalion of the 148th Field Artillery Regiment, along other Guard units from from California, Oregon, Texas, Utah and Wisconsin are training with the Royal Moroccan Army in the northern Sahara Desert as part of African Lion ’22.
(U.S. National Guard photo by Master Sergeant Becky Vanshur)
Historically, African Lion has taken place only in Morocco and Tunisia, but this year Ghana and Senegal were added. While Ghana has participated in the past as observers, “This is the first time that we’re actually doing the exercise in Ghana,” Major General Andrew M. Rohling, Commander of U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, told a June 28 U.S. State Department digital press briefing with African journalists. Speaking from Morocco, Rohling noted that Ghana “has chosen to partner with its African neighbors and the United States to help provide peace and security across the continent. Ghana has a growing leadership role in regional security.”
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U.S. Africa Command.
President Biden has nominated Marine Corps Lieutenant General Michael Langley to be the next commander of U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM).
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced the president’s decision June 9. Langley currently heads Marine Forces Command and Marine Forces Northern Command. He is also the commanding general of Fleet Marine Force Atlantic in Norfolk, Virginia.
AFRICOM, based in Stutgart, Germany, oversees U.S. troops dispersed throughout Africa, including conflict zones such as Somalia, where Biden has decided to return up to 500 troops — withdrawn by the Trump administration — to expedite airstrikes for counter terrorism operations, according to Military Times.
If the Senate confirms Langley, he would succeed Army General Stephen Townsend, who has led AFRICOM since July 2019. As head of one of the geographical combatant commands, Langley would also be promoted to the rank of full general, making him the first four-star Marine Corps general.
Langley would be in charge of of all U.S. military operations in Africa. The continent is experiencing a rash of economic and security interests by Russia and China. Russia controls the private military company, Wagner Group, whose mercenaries operate in Libya and the Central African Republic, according to The Hill newspaper site.
Speaking from Morocco to a digital State Department press briefing June 28 about African Lion 22, Major General Andrew M. Rohling, Commander of U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, brought up Wagner Group when asked about the rising number of foreign military operations and bases in Africa. The United States and China each have a base in the East African nation of Djibouti and French and U.S. troops have been assisting several West African nations resist terrorist groups like al Queda and the Islamic State (ISIS).
“I think it’s clear that we’ve seen the impact and the destabilizing effect that Wagner brings to Africa and elsewhere. And I think countries that have experienced Wagner Group deployments within their borders found themselves to be a little bit poorer, a little bit weaker, and a little bit less secure,” Rohling said. “So an exercise such as African Lion aims to build capacity as well as the trusted, long-term relationships to address future challenges. And I think that’s the difference between United States and others that are operating here on the continent.”
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PEACEKEEPING/CONFLICTS
French Troops Leaving Mali.
Concerns have grown that the exit of 2,400 French troops from Mali – the epicenter of violence in the Sahel region and strongholds of both al Qaeda and Islamic State affiliates – is worsening violence, destabilizing neighbors and spurring migration.
Coups in Mali, Chad and Burkina Faso have weakened France’s alliances in its former colonies, emboldened jihadists who control large swathes of desert and scrub, and opened the door to greater Russian influence.
All the logisticians of France’s Barkhane force are involved in the transfer of military equipment out of Mali after nearly eight years fighting armed terrorist groups in the Sahel and supporting the armed forces of partner countries against the threat. (French Ministry of the Armed Forces photo)
With the withdrawal from Mali expected to be completed by the end of the summer French officials were negotiating in neighboring Niger to redefine France’s strategy to fight Islamist militants in the Sahel as concerns mount over the growing threat to coastal West African states, Reuters reports.
France’s plan calls for Niger will become the hub for French troops, with some 1,000 soldiers based in the capital Niamey along with fighter jets, drones and helicopters. Some 300-400 French troops would be dispatched for special operations with Nigerien troops in the border regions with Burkina Faso and Mali, French officials told reporters.
West Africa (CIA World Factbook)
Another 700-to-1,000 would be based in Chad with an undisclosed number of special forces operating elsewhere in the region. French troops will no longer carry out missions or pursue militants into Mali once the exit is complete, the officials said.
A key area of concern is how and whether French and European troops will used to support countries in the coastal Gulf of Guinea nations such Benin, Togo and Ivory Coast, where there has been a rise in attacks. Al Qaeda’s regional arm has said it would turn its attention to the region.
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Trouble between Mali and Ivory Coast.
Meanwhile, the military-led government in Mali says it is suspending all new rotations of United Nations peacekeeping troops due to national security reasons, the BBC reports. The action comes days after soldiers from the Ivory Coast were arrested on arrival in Mali on suspicion of being mercenaries.
Officials in Ivory Coast said they were there to support the U.N. mission, known as MINUSMA, under an agreed contract between the two countries. The junta in Mali, which is trying to put down an Islamist insurgency, says its foreign ministry was not informed of the deployment via the official channels.
Farhan Haq, deputy spokesman for the U.N. secretary-general, said the troops were not officially part of MINUSMA but came as “support of their contingents,” what he described as “a common practice in peacekeeping missions,” the VoA website reported. The Malian government labeled them “mercenaries.” Ivory Coast has called for their release.
Peacekeepers serving with the UN’s Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA). (Photo: MINUSMA/Harandane Dicko)
The arrests were not mentioned in the statement announcing the peacekeeper suspension.
Since April, the U.N. has been seeking access to the town of Moura, where locals told human rights investigators and journalists that the army and Russian mercenaries carried out a massacre over five days.
The mandate for the mission in Mali was renewed during a Security Council meeting on June 29. During renewal talks, Mali’s U.N. representative said the government would not allow the United Nations to carry out investigations of alleged human rights abuses as part of its mandate.
The U.N. mission in Mali has almost 12,000 troops and 1,700 police officers. It is a visible presence in many of Mali’s northern cities, which were taken over by Islamist militants in 2012 and have seen increasing insecurity in recent months following the French army’s withdrawal from the country, according to VoA.
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Egypt Halts Its Mali Troop Rotation.
Egypt has told the United Nations it will temporarily suspend the activities of its contingent in a Mali peacekeeping mission, citing increased attacks on its peacekeepers who escort convoys supplying U.N. bases, Reuters reported July 15.
The attacks have caused the death of seven Egyptian soldiers since the beginning of the year. Egypt has 1,072 troops and 144 police in the U.N. mission in Mali known as MINUSMA.
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July 17, 2022 at 11:59 pm
BIG NEW DRONE.
(U.S. Air Force photo by Samuel King Jr.) Click on the photo to enlarge image.
Team members secure batteries to the LIFT Hexa aircraft’s motors before its first flight at Duke auxiliary airfield near Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, the U.S. Air Force announced July 14, 2022.
The LIFT Hexa, an electric, vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, or eVTOL, completed its flight test via remote control. The aircraft, which used 18 motors and propellers, flew for approximately 10 minutes and reached a height of about 50 feet.
The test was an important first step toward the incorporating the Hexa into operations at a controlled military airfield. Duke Field is located North of Eglin’s main base. This flight was completed by Hexa 09, one of two aircraft stationed at Duke Field. Hexa 05 was used for the first test flight at Eglin in April.
The 413th Flight Test Squadron, the Air Force’s rotary wing developmental test experts, has partnered with AFWERX, the innovation arm of the Air Force and its Agility Prime program, to advance eVTOL test and experimentation.
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July 14, 2022 at 11:30 pm
UNDERWATER FLAG DELIVERY?
(U.S. Navy photo by Chief Mass Communication Specialist Christopher Perez)
As a general rule here at 4GWAR blog, we don’t run photos of activities when we’re not sure of what’s going on.
But this photo is so striking we just couldn’t pass it up. We also encourage visitors to click on the photo to view a larger and more spectacular image.
The caption accompanying this photo simply says it shows members of Naval Special Warfare Group Eight displaying the national ensign as they perform dive operations while underway on the Virginia Class fast-attack submarine USS New Mexico on June 19, 2022 somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean.
A little bit of enlightenment comes from an Independence Day posting on the Commander, Submarine Forces Facebook page, accompanied by the photo above:
#NavalSpecialWarfare is wishing you a happy #4thofJuly celebrating America’s liberty. As our Nation’s naval commandos, we’re always ready to defend freedom and democracy around the world—on, under and over the sea and into the littorals. Happy Birthday, #America!
Attack submarines are designed to seek and destroy enemy submarines and surface ships; project power ashore with Tomahawk cruise missiles and Special Operation Forces; carry out Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions; support battle group operations; and engage in mine warfare, according to Military.com. The Virginia Class fast-attack submarines were conceived as a less expensive alternative to the Seawolf-class attack submarines, designed during the Cold War era, and are replacing older Los Angeles-class submarines, 29 of which have already been decommissioned.
Naval Special Warfare Command organizes, trains, equips, deploys, sustains, and provides command and control of forces — like, but not limited to, Navy SEAL teams — that conduct full spectrum undersea special operations and activities worldwide in support of geographic Combatant Commands, like U.S. Africa Command or U.S. Indo-Pacific Command.
Naval Special Warfare Group Eight is headquartered at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek in Virginia Beach, Virginia with a detachment in Coronado, California and another at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
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July 7, 2022 at 11:58 pm
STILL LIFE WITH GALAXY.
(U.S. Army photo by Staff Sergeant Christopher Stewart ) Click on photo to enlarge the image
Army Sergeant Justin Covert mans an M1A2 .50-caliber machine gun on a Stryker vehicle during training on May 24, 2022 at Fort Irwin, California with the Milky Way galaxy visible overhead.
The original M2 “Ma Deuce” .50 Caliber Machine Gun is a belt-fed, heavy machine gun that mounts on most aircraft and vehicles and can be fired from a tripod. The system is highly effective against light armored vehicles, low- and slow-flying aircraft, boats and enemy personnel.
The Stryker is a wheeled armored vehicle that combines firepower, battlefield mobility, survivability and versatility, with reduced logistical requirements. Manufactured by General Dynamics Land Systems, the Stryker family of vehicles consists of nine variants of eight-wheeled armored vehicles mounted on a common chassis that provide transport for troops, weapons, and command and control.
Fort Irwin, located in the Mojave Desert between Las Vegas, Nevada and Los Angleles, is home to the Army’s National Training Center.
For a short (2:14 minutes) video of Marines learning how to load and operate the M1A2, click here.
A very short National Guard video shows some of the ins and outs of the Stryker. Click here to see it.
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July 1, 2022 at 7:46 pm
4GWAR 