Close Air Support Archives
JCAS Symposium
By Lt Col P
If any loyal Op-Forians happen to be at the JCAS Symposium this week, look me up. I'll be the Marine LtCol with the last name that starts with "P," wearing lead-sled airborne wings.
Beer will flow copiously thereafter.
Prince Harry the JTAC
By Slab
This was forwarded to me by the guy who let me crash at his place on Emerald Isle for two years, now a fellow ANGLICAN and JTAC, and mutual acquaintance of LtCol P.
Looks like I'm in good company in this job.
Prince Harry provided air support for UK troops
I wish it were all as easy as they make it sound in the article. Then again, if you're a Prince, maybe it is. Hey, I'll bet he didn't get "drop-blocked" by an RCT air officer just before he cleared an aircraft hot. I mean, who's going to say no to royalty?
For the record, the air officer made a good call. Although dropping a 500 pounder into the building would have been legit, it wasn't really the best solution to that particular situation. So I'm just funnin'.
F-35B Lightning-II Reports For Duty
By Lt Col P
FIRST SHORT TAKEOFF/VERTICAL LANDING STEALTH FIGHTER UNVEILED AT LOCKHEED MARTIN
FORT WORTH, Texas, December 18th, 2007 -- The Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] F-35B Lightning II, the first fighter to combine stealth with short takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) capability and supersonic speed, made its debut today amid customers from the United States Marine Corps, the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy and Royal Air Force, and the Italian Air Force and Navy.Attendees at the rollout ceremony in Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth assembly plant included Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Conway. “The flexibility that the STOVL variant of the F-35 will add to the contemporary Marine Air Ground Task Force is amazing,” Conway said. “This generational leap in technology will enable us to operate a fleet of fighter/attack aircraft from the decks of ships, existing runways or from unimproved surfaces at austere bases. We find that capability extremely valuable.”
The F-35B, designed to replace Marine Corps AV-8Bs and F/A-18s, is one of three variants of the Lightning II. Its first flight is planned for mid-2008, following a series of extensive ground tests. The F-35A conventional takeoff and landing version began its flight test program in December of 2006. The F-35C, designed for catapult launches and arrested recoveries aboard large U.S. Navy carriers, will make its inaugural flight in 2009.
“Think F/A-18 speed and maneuverability, AV-8B forward deployment, F-22 stealth, and astonishing avionics,” said Dan Crowley, Lockheed Martin executive vice president and F-35 program general manager. “It’s a combination of technologies that may seem like science fiction, but our abundantly-talented international team has made it science fact.”
OUT-STANDING.
Upgraded Warthogs
By Slab
Hershel Smith of The Captain's Journal has a piece on the upgraded A-10C Warthog. With the new mods, the A-10C now has capabilities nearing those of the AV-8B Harrier. Herschel believes in the A-10 as a counterinsurgency tool. Excuse me if I withold judgment for a while.
Update: My entry was cut a bit short, and I didn't get to elaborate much. Mike points out in the comments that it's not fair to blame the A-10 drivers for the incident in Nasiriyah. Indeed, the battalion air officer was found to be ultimately culpable for the incident, and as Richard Lowery will tell you in Marines in the Garden of Eden, 1/2 was embroiled in a chaotic and confusing situation, with an entire company of Marines farther north than anyone suspected at the time. However, I'm not completely willing to give the A-10 community a pass on this one. A-10s attacked friendly units on several occasions in Operation DESERT STORM. One A-10 made multiple passes on a Marine convoy that was south of a berm that clearly delineated the boundaries of where they were allowed to engage. They killed 7 LAV crewmen during the opening stages of the Battle for Khafji, and 9 British soldiers in another incident. In Operation Iraqi Freedom, A-10s attacked AAVs from 1/2, and a few days later attacked a British patrol from the Blues and Royals north of Basra. Last year, a section of A-10s strafed Canadian troops during Operation MEDUSA, and killed Pte Mark Anthony Graham. There are too many incidents to be ignored, and while every A-10 pilot may not be a blue-on-blue waiting to happen, is it any wonder that Marines, especially our terminal controllers, get apprehensive when these guys are on station?
