US Military News, Reports, Data, etc.

In Japan & Korea, were US military been stationed for decades, there is still discontent toward its presence, as was in the Phillipines

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bd popeye said:

BLUEJACKET sez;


BLUEJACKET, you where stationed in Japan. Do you really think there was widespread discontent against the US military in Japan? Was their anywhere you went that you felt hated or unwelcome in Japan..besides those establishments that had "no gijin" signs? I feel that most of the discontent was generated by local politicians. Because that's the way they felt the political winds were blowing.

In the Philippines the vast majority of any discontent was drummed up by politicians who fingers were not in that "American pie" full of US dollars. Or those politicians that were not Marcos "cronies" or whomever was in power after him. Ms. C. Aquino et al... In my experience of living in the Philippines most Filipinos welcomed the US presence or were indiffrent to it. Most also wanted the Philippine government not to be so dependent on US dollars and wanted the Philippines to stand on it's own merit without US help.

I'm sure that someone that lives in the Philippines would have a slightly diffrent view that I would. This will be my last comment on the subject.

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I could feel the hostility in Japan sometimes, and every time we pull in/out of port there there was police boat escort present......If the politicians didn't feel popular support for removal of bases in the PI they would still be there!

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Austrian Rifles via Iran?: Another Crock

An extremely well-informed observer sent me this comment on the story that Iran is sending high-powered Austrian rifles to Iraqi Shiites. Like the whole USG story about Iran supplying deadly weapons to dangerous Shiite militias, this one turns out to be riddled with falsehoods.
' Please allow me to comment on the Austrian Sniper rifles.
There was a deal between Steyr-Mannlicher and the Iranians in the last year of Khatami's presidency, which followed as usual legal procedures, thus the Iranians handed out an end-user certificate. Originally the Iranians wanted 800 but in the end only 300 were delivered.
The rifle has no automatic capability but can pierce metal plate at a distance of 1000meters. The Iranian border guards allegedly use it to shoot at long distance into the motor blocks of the SUVs and pickups of the Drug gangs operating alongside the Afghan border.
There were American and I think also British protests when the deal was concluded. It is important that this was before Ahmadinezhad did his odious speech on Israel and the Holocoust, otherwise I cannot imagine that the Austrians would have concluded the deal.
The original article about Austrian rifles in Iraq appeared in the Daily Telegraph and is full of inconsistencies. For instance they say that the US found 100 of these rifles in Iraq and 170 American and Coalition troops have been killed by that weapon.
As far as I know 170 is the total of US and Coalition troops killed by Shiite militias; total combat casualties are about 3000! The vast majority has been killed by IEDs and other explosives. The article bases its accusations on a US display of weaponry designed to prove that Iran has been supplying Shia insurgents in Iraq, but there is no single line about the Austrian rifles.
But both articles put the Iranian nuclear issue centre stage! Meanwhile the US are unable to provide the Austrians with the guns' serial numbers. Steyr-Mannlicher also hinted at the fact that these guns can easily be rebuilt as the licencing has expired and one can buy them in countries like Canada. '

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Boeing Unveils Tanker for $40B Deal

By Donna Borak
ASSOCIATED PRESS

10:58 a.m. February 12, 2007

WASHINGTON – Boeing Co. on Monday announced a newly designed KC-767 as its proposed aircraft for a $40 billion Air Force contract competition to replace 179 refueling planes.
The Chicago-based company said at a press conference that it tweaked the design of its long-range 767 freighter plane to improve fuel efficiency and allow it to take off and land on shorter runways.

Boeing is competing against Northrop Grumman Corp., which is expected to offer its KC-30, a modified Airbus A330, at a discounted price.
At stake for both competitors is a multiyear contract to replace a portion of the military's older fleet of KC-135 aircraft, a medium-sized refueling plane made by Boeing. The $40 billion contract is the first installment of an expected three-phase deal that calls for more than 500 planes and could be worth an estimated $100 billion.

The Boeing-led team includes Smiths Aerospace, a unit of Smiths Group, Rockwell Collins Inc., Vought Aircraft Industries Inc., Honeywell Inc. and Spirit AeroSystems Inc.

Boeing said it would primarily build the refueling tankers at facilities in Everett, Wash., but that additional work would take place at a plant in Wichita, Kan.

“This KC-767 advanced tanker will support more than 44,000 American jobs and 300 suppliers,” Mark McGraw, a vice president of Boeing's tanker division, said.

Shares of Boeing dropped 63 cents to $89.37 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange, while shares of Northrop gained 61 cents to $74.61.

The tanker program has been on hold for three years, after Boeing lost the contract amid an ethics scandal that resulted in prison terms for a former company executive and a former high-ranking Air Force official.

Boeing's 767 is, on paper at least, more affordable than Northrop's aircraft, with a listed retail price of roughly $130 million. But industry insiders expect Northrop Grumman, which is partnering with European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co., the parent company of Boeing's arch rival, Airbus, to heavily discount its KC-30 to increase its competitiveness. The current retail listing of the A330 is roughly $160 million.

Last week, after much speculation that Northrop would bow out of the competition, the Los Angeles-based defense firm said it would bid on the contract. Northrop officials said changes made by the Air Force addressed concerns it had that the contract specifications would unfairly favor Boeing

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bd popeye said:

Boeing unveils 767 tanker for $40 billion dollar USAF contract

Boeing has entered a tanker version of it's 767 for a proposed $40 billion dollar USAF tanker contract to replace KC-135 & KC-10..

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USS John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group Arrives in 5th Fleet
Story Number: NNS070220-07
Release Date: 2/20/2007 12:16:00 PM

By Lt. Nathan Christensen, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/Commander, U.S. 5th Fleet

USS JOHN C. STENNIS, At Sea (NNS) -- The USS John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group (JCSSG) entered the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations (AOO) Feb.19 to conduct Maritime Security Operations (MSO) in regional waters, as well as to provide support for ground forces operating in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Led by Rear Adm. Kevin Quinn, Commander, Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 3, the strike group includes the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74), Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9, Destroyer Squadron (DESRON)21, the guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG 54), guided-missile destroyers USS O’Kane (DDG 77) and USS Preble (DDG 88), and the fast combat-support ship USNS Bridge (T-AOE 10). More than 6,500 Sailors and Marines are assigned to JCSSG.

“The USS John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group is here to help foster stability and security in the region,” said Quinn. “We look forward to working with our coalition partners to provide support for ground forces operating in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as conducting maritime security operations that help provide a safe environment for shipping within the region. We are ready, we are sustainable, we are flexible and we provide significant capabilities that contribute to regional peace and security.”

MSO help set the conditions for security and stability in the maritime environment, as well as complement the counter-terrorism and security efforts of regional nations. These operations deny international terrorists use of the maritime environment as a venue for attack or to transport personnel, weapons or other material.

U.S. 5th Fleet’s AOO encompasses 2.5 million square miles of water and includes the Arabian Gulf, Arabian Sea, Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman and parts of the Indian Ocean.

For related news, visit the Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/Commander, U.S. 5th Fleet Navy NewsStand page at

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