Study Shows Female Marines Less Combat Ready

The US Marine Corps reported this week results of a lengthy experiment studying women during combat skills tests found . The study that all-male units performed better than mixed-gender ones in most tactical areas and that women suffered more injuries than men.

One measure showed that the musculoskeletal injury rate for women was 40.5%, compared with 18.8% for men.

The report, however, drew swift criticism from leaders who support opening military combat roles to women. On Friday, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus, the civilian head of the Navy and Marine Corps, told National Public Radio that the Marines had used flawed methodology in designing the study and exhibited prejudicial thinking about certain results from the testing.

Check out an LA Times article here describing the study and comments in greater detail.

The DoD has mandated that on January 1, 2016 all military jobs will be open to females. The Air Force already has opened all billets to women, with the remaining services required to follow suit by 01 Jan 16.

Damning F-35 Report

Surprising news about the deficiencies in close-in dog-fighting capability of the F-35. Check out the fighter pilot's report here from the site War is Boring.  If the report is authentic (which based on verbiage and content it appears to be), quite alarming that this $400 billion aircraft would be such a grape.

According to Pentagon officials, the nominated but not yet appointed JCS Chairman, Gen. Joseph Dunford, USMC, has ordered a complete review of the F-35 development and purchasing plan (estimated by some to top out at up to $1.5 trillion).

Top Gun 2

Looks like Top Gun 2 is getting green-lighted.  See latest buzz here and here.  Can't wait to see who they cast other than TC. Can't imagine they'll bring back Val Kilmer, Rick Rossovich or Tim Robbins. Would love to see a Vice Admiral Tom Skerrit!

Blue Angels Transitioning to UAVs

In a surprise announcement today, the US Navy announced that the Blue Angels will transition from their current F-18 Hornets to unmanned F-47 aircraft for their 2018 airshow season. The team will still fly a full ‘delta’ aerobatic routine, including tight formations, using six of the cutting edge drones. The only difference is that the pilots will never leave the ground and will instead monitor the pre-programmed flight routines from special trailers set up at each show site.

Since the aircraft are unmanned, the team will no longer offer media rides but will allow selected media representatives to ‘sit in’ on practice demonstrations using a virtual reality headset that will be known as Blue Angel 7, the same callsign as the team’s current two-seat media jet. The pilots will also be expected to post to social media during the routine to increase their interaction with fans.

“This is a tremendous opportunity for the Navy to showcase our advanced technology and cutting edge aircraft,” said Jack Herndon, the Navy’s Chief of Public Outreach. “Honestly, the Hornets are getting to be quite old and worn out. We saw the need to replace them and decided to take advantage of the timing by leaping straight ahead to our very newest fighter aircraft, the F-47.

The Blue Angels’ primary mission is to inspire America’s young people to join the Navy, and with this transition we are able to demonstrate that even young men and women who only want to sit at a computer all day can have a successful Navy flying career. Those are exactly the people we are looking to recruit in the future.”

Russia Starts Major Show of Force

More than 45,000 Russian troops, as well as war planes and submarines, started military exercises across much of the country today in one of the Kremlin's biggest shows of force since its ties with the West plunged to Cold War-lows.

President Vladimir Putin called the Navy's Northern Fleet to full combat readiness in exercises in Russia's Arctic North apparently aimed at dwarfing military drills in neighboring Norway, a NATO member.

 

"New challenges and threats to military security require the armed forces to further boost their military capabilities. Special attention must be paid to newly created strategic formations in the north," Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said, quoted by RIA news agency.

 

More on the "Cold" War Games reported from CBS News here.

 

Anyone doubt the Big Bad Bear is coming back? Apparently, even a 6-year low in oil prices isn't keeping Russia down [see article here in Moscow Times regarding Kremlin's 2015 record $81B defense budget].

 

 

First Female Submariners Taped in Showers

Navy criminal investigators are looking into who secretly filmed female officers of a submarine crew while they were showering and changing clothes aboard the USS Wyoming's unisex heads.

Petty officers recording female shipmates in showers, really? Really guys?!  It's noteworthy that this is the first submarine to have women serving onboard, and these are the first female submariners. 

According to a Navy Times article, up to a dozen sailors are suspected of viewing secretly recorded videos of their female shipmates undressing in a submarine shower over a period of 10 months.

Navy Vice Adm. M.J. Connor wrote that "an investigation is in progress." He also noted the women affected were provided assistance and the alleged perpetrators were removed from the ship pending the investigation's results.  "The Navy has successfully integrated women into our aviation, surface warfare and expeditionary warfare communities," Connor wrote in the letter. "It would be inaccurate to say that we achieved this without incident, but I can say unequivocally that we are a better force because of that integration."

At least official Navy acknowledges the service has had its share of "incidents" in transitioning into a seamless, fully integrated force.

No More Challenging Carrier Traps?

Saw this article last week in the San Diego Union-Tribune with the catchy title: "No More Tricky Landings" and had to laugh.  Do the pointy-head engineers really think they can program carrier landings to a science?  Hmm, seem to remember ACL and auto-throttle systems from the 70s and 80s. Sure, the technology is leaps and bounds better, but once the ship starts rocking and rolling, turbulence and lightening strike and a black box or two fails, dare to say it is more than "tricky" to land a 60,000-pound jet--even one with the most sophisticated computer system.