Disband the Sec of Army, Navy and Air Force

Lead by example. At least it says it on Detective Spooner’s badge. The new administration wants a 10% cut in the defense budget, during a war no less. Where would one start?

The best place to start and prove one is serious about cutting defense expense would be to remove the office of the secretary of the Army, Navy and Air Force. The people appointed to these positions are nothing more than temporary help that have to be brought up to speed on everything once they arrive. They don’t bring anything to the fight. Nothing. They are a symbol of headquarters largess that we just can’t afford. All of the expensive executive office furniture, office supplies, travel expense, perks of all shapes and sizes, bloated staff including PowerPoint warriors and sycophants, is unaffordable. The Department of Defense has a senior civilian leader. That person is Gates and crew.

The proposed defense cuts are huge. Getting rid of these palace puppies should be an easy decision. Re-roll the HQ staff under the top 4 star of the service and press on.

JASDF Fighters Arrive at Guam

Japanese air force (Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF) or “Jazdaf”)  F-2 fighter jets have arrived at Guam for exercise Cope North. Here are some photos courtesy of the USAF.

JASDF maintainer Staff Sgt. Teraya Miho inspects the vertical stabilizer.  

(U.S. Air Force photos by Airman 1st Class Courtney Witt)

Iraq Vote

I don’t like the Iraq war. I am also not a big fan of the Bush administration. However it is pretty low when a supposedly “respected” news sources, can’t give credit where credit is due. How would this story have read had it happened while Bush was still in office? There wouldn’t be any Iraq vote if it wasn’t for Bush. Is he mentioned anywhere in the story? No.

47 Years

C-130 Hercules no. 1847 passes through the ceremonial water spray from two fire trucks at an air base in Southwest Asia after completing its final combat mission Jan. 28. After 47 years of service, the aircraft is being retired. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Courtney Richardson)

No, we shouldn’t have aircraft that old in the inventory. This looks all nice. However if you are a crew chief maintaining E model C-130 aircraft  you are pulling your hair out because of it breaking all the time.  

Obama Admin-Cut Defense Budget More Than 10%

According to a defense official, the Obama Admin has asked DOD to look forward to cuts in the 2010 budget of more than 10%. This is a reduction of around $55 billion not counting past supplemental funding that supported the DOD in past years.

-Last year’s defense budget was $512 billion. Service chiefs and planners will be spending the weekend “burning the midnight oil” looking at ways to cut the budget — looking especially at weapons programs, the defense official said.-

Russia’s New Nuke Sub

A look at a new class of Russian nuclear ballistic missile sub. There is one political advantage in favor of the Russians. Their system doesn’t treat nuclear deterrence like a red headed step child. The Borei class will use pump-jet propulsion. The first ever use of this for a Russian design. 

Russia expects to commission twelve of these within the next decade. The Borei class was to have its first sea trials in late 2008. This has been pushed to some time in 2009. Its main weapon will be the RSM-56 Bulava missile, which is yet to complete testing. 

Each F-35 Supplier Has A Story

Each F-35 supplier has a story of some kind. Read what Springboard found….

Fools of Pity

A different take on the A-Team…

Now for something really disturbing…

A Letter to Sir Richard

The first how-to for writing a complaint letter to the airlines.

-”Now I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking it’s more of that Baaji custard. I admit I thought the same too, but no. It’s mustard Richard. MUSTARD. More mustard than any man could consume in a month. On the left we have a piece of broccoli and some peppers in a brown glue-like oil and on the right the chef had prepared some mashed potato. The potato masher had obviously broken and so it was decided the next best thing would be to pass the potatoes through the digestive tract of a bird.”-

Now with more muscle…

Solomon writes about the most new and powerful UH-1 for the Marines. Wow!