-Caveat Lector- WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a Prelude to War! ARTICLE 8 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Air Force: Desert Storm - My War Too ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ed: Interesting account from a guy behind the scenes. A reminder, that it takes all kinds of skilled troops to move our armadas to perform their combat mission. THANK YOU to all you dedicated folks behind the scenes that make things happen from the Zman. ********************************************************* By John E. Booth My Desert Shield/Storm experience was in the USAF, starting in Alaska with the Alaskan Air Command asking for, and then denying, volunteers for the buildup. It was due, they said, to duty commitments within the Alaskan Theatre (somebody, so the scuttlebutt went, was worried our new found buddies in Russia or CHICOM's might be brazen enough to jump our ass or to pull something stupid while we were focused on other issues). I had heard (mind you we were in the midst of the coldest winter on record at the time) that over 3,000 USAF folks volunteered. I PCS'd to the UK during the startup of the conflict, and began my introduction to 96 hour shifts, moving 300 aircraft (150 every 6 hours) every 12 hours. I still cannot fathom how the hell we managed it even to this day. There was a "pipeline" of planes (mostly C130's) from Gander, to Iceland, through Shanwick, to us, then downward through (initially) France and onward, eventually retracing their paths backwards. My main job in life was what we call diplomatic clearances, ensuring the flight plan, personnel, equipment, food, (wounded personnel on the return trip), and aircraft were properly documented, signed, sealed, and then, if (very big if) the French ATC controllers weren't on their normal unannounced strikes, delivered at exactly 5 minutes prior to, and no later than, 5 minutes after their "slot times". No acknowledgement from the French, you don't fly. Period. You blow your times, too bad. To put this in better perspective, the official International Civil Aviation Organization publications that deal with this issue covers every signatory on the planet (kind of like the UN, or NATO). The average amount of pages (rules & restrictions, do's and don'ts' to get through each countries airspace and avoid an "international incident") devoted per country run normally about 5 to 6 pages. France? Well, let's just say anywhere from 75 to 80 pages. I had to work clearances for every country these aircraft passed through, and then bring them all back the same way, working yet an entirely new set of clearances for the return leg. One clearance per airplane. I was one typing, calling, transmitting, receiving, posting, distributing, and briefing fool. Most aircrews were realistic about the process. One incident that comes to mind involved a flight of Portuguese A4's. They refused to wait for clearances, took off without approval (fully armed and fueled), and got stuck in the racetrack by the French (circling over the Channel). Back they came 6 hours later, on fumes. Naturally, let's blame the Base Ops guy where he took off from (oh yes, that's me). Needless to say, they were pissed... As far as Iraq is concerned, we need to stop playing around with this piss ant and squash his ass, Patton style. I'm growing weary of our PC environment (oops, let's not piss off our Middle East "friends" or violate some political agenda). Do you think we're suffering from security paranoia? I was on Okinawa for three years (97 - 00), and I feel the security issues are handled with way too much crisis management. If folks were prepared all year long, and followed the basic guidelines like they're supposed to do in the first place, we wouldn't be playing the "failure to plan on my part constitutes an emergency on your part" game. ============================================================== ARTICLE 9 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The LAV - Can it Roll-On and Off a C130 Combat Ready? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ed.: Interesting insight from people who attended some trials...maybe a bit of false advertising? Standing by for comments. ********************************************* Multiple Sources The Interim Brigades are supposed to be equipped with a C-130 deployable vehicle, capable of rolling of the aircraft in combat ready configuration. The following info may provide more insights: * If we want to use C-130s, it probably implies that we plan to use some sort of Forward Landing Strips (dirt, unimproved, poorly paved, etc.) * USAF's answer to max ACL for C-130 ops on a FLS is 32,000 pounds (16 tons). The improved surface runway ACL is something like 42,000 pounds. The last time the USAF waived this restriction was Desert Storm, and then only for very limited reasons. It is believed that they are currently using these restrictions in the Balkans. * If a LAV, empty, weighs 19 tons, how can it land on a FLS with fuel, ammo, personnel, and gear in a C-130? And even if it could land, how many sorties would it take to put any kind of viable force on the ground at 1 vehicle per C-130? A typical combat load for those vehicles probably adds a few tons. * These figures are planning figures, and vary a bit based on distance and aircraft fuel load, but it is possible that we are being blinded when we believe that this vehicle and this force can deploy anywhere in the world by C-130 and roll off, ready to fight. * Look at how much a M113A3 weighs, and ask yourself which vehicle fits best in a C-130, can still land on a FLS with a combat load, and is pretty well proven. ============================================================ ARTICLE 10 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Rules Of Engagement -- ROE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ed.: Interesting new formula -- and I didn't make this up! *********************************************************** >From a reliable Source Here are the ROE that 2nd Brigade 1st Armored Division uses. The unit moved into Kosovo in December. THE 5 S's 1. Shout 2. Shove 3. Butt Stroke 4. Warning Shot AND...5. Shoot to Wound 1st Armored did not have a Task, Condition or Standard for shoot to wound. If this does not speak of the zero defect Army then what does? =========================================================== ARTICLE 11 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Everybody should be a trained Rifleman ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ed.: Excellent point for all those deployed. You can't rely only on "ground-pounders" for personal protection. *********************************************************** By John F. I believe that the rifle should be the basic arm of any service. Marksmanship has been sadly neglected in the military, with the exception of the Marines. While I can only speak for the Air National Guard, which I put 25 years in after leaving active duty, the lack of attention to the subject was frightening. We were deployed to Panama several times including the week before the "balloon went up." To be sitting on the flight line with no means to defend ourselves was not a nice feeling. I doubt if many of the younger people could have loaded a rifle, much less used it effectively. You may not have the Army around to help out if the bad guys show up, as we learned the hard way in Korea. "Peace is not our Profession." Our profession is to kill people and destroy their property, and that applies to a mechanic or a clerk-typist. I question why we have more than enough rifles to give to foreign countries but not enough to arm those in our military. As for that "army of one", they should have shoved that ad up the backside of the guy who thought it up! Individuality makes you nothing but a target, unit cohesion makes the other side your target. =========================================================== ARTICLE 12 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Troop Health: Keesler Doctor awaits Ruling in Anthrax Case ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ed.: Since the big change in Washington, Anthrax hasn't made the headlines. Here is the case of an Air Force Doctor who faces courts martial because of his refusal to rake the shots. His fight highlights again that we need a look at the program. So far, no one in the Bush Administration has looked at it, or even mentioned it. We're still eating our own...A report from the Sun Herald. *********************************************************** By Reni Winter KEESLER AFB -An Air Force investigator will take up to five days to decide whether the government has enough evidence against Capt. John Buck to court-martial him for refusing to take the anthrax vaccine. If he is found guilty, Buck, an emergency room doctor at Keesler Medical Center and the first doctor to refuse the vaccine, could face up to five years in prison. But that is a price he is willing to pay because he believes the military's mandatory anthrax vaccine program goes against the principles of good medicine he has sworn to uphold. "The possibility of going to prison is a reality," Buck said Thursday after the Article 32 investigation, the equivalent of a grand jury. "But I feel I'm not willing to compromise my principles for a short period of time in prison." On Oct. 18, Buck refused to take the anthrax vaccine when he was told to do so before deploying to the Middle East. He was charged with Article 90 of the Military Code of Conduct, "willfully disobeying a lawful command of a senior commissioned officer." On Thursday, Lt. Col. James Flanary, a military judge with the Air Force Legal Services Agency at Bowling AFB in Washington, D.C., heard testimony for and against Buck and received 20 documents in Buck's case - four against him and 16 on his behalf.... Buck's commanding officer, Col. Richard Griffith, a family practice physician and Air Force flight surgeon, filed the initial charge against the captain, who is in line for a promotion to major. While testifying against Buck, Griffith also spoke at length on his behalf. "When he refused the order, his attitude was very respectful," said Griffith, commander of the 81st Medical Group at Keesler. "He wanted me to clearly understand his point of view. He said, 'I'm not trying to be a problem, but this is what I believe.' I believe...that he believes what he is doing is right...that he wants to do what is right for other individuals as well as himself...I do not believe he is trying to subvert the mission (of the military)..." For more than a decade, the Department of Defense has considered the Middle East a high-risk area for biological warfare. Military officials also believe that anthrax is the biological weapon of choice by America's enemies. Testimony from Staff Sgt. Tina Mauro, unit deployment manager for medical readiness at Keesler Medical Center, revealed that while Buck was initially chosen for the deployment team, he would not have eventually gone to the Middle East. After she had been told to find a captain for the three-member medical team, she was then told to find someone with a higher rank to fill his spot. "That's an interesting point that was brought up today," Buck said. "If I would have received the shot, I wouldn't have gone (to the Middle East) anyway." Buck, and other opponents to the mandatory vaccine program, object for several reasons. He has treated patients who have had adverse reactions to the vaccine. The form of anthrax the vaccine is designed to prevent is not the form that defense officials believe would be used as a weapon against American troops. They say the only laboratory that manufactures the vaccine has had numerous bad reports from the Food and Drug Administration. On Nov. 2, the Defense Department announced a cutback in the number of military personnel who would be required to take the vaccine and revealed preliminary plans to improve the anthrax vaccination program. Among the proposed improvements is the construction of a government-run laboratory to manufacture the vaccine. But in the meantime, the mandatory requirements will still be enforced. "That's the crux of the argument," said Buck, who is still working at Keesler's hospital. "How we've come to these crossroads is that the military sees this as a military operation and a military objective. In their attempt to achieve military objectives, they are compromising the practice of medicine. Medicine is founded on three things - science, trust and patients' rights. I feel the mandatory nature of the program violates all three of those."... =========================================================== ARTICLE 13 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ GI HUMOR - Keep the Loser, as long He's on the Other Team! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ed.: A darn good war story that shows true combat humor, although it might not have been as funny at the time. Sent to me by several sources. I'm looking for more of these wartime stories. ******************************************** The following is extracted from: The Battle Of Khe Sanh, History and Museums Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps, Washington, D.C., Reprinted from 1977. By no stretch of the imagination did the 26th Marines have a monopoly on good snipers. The NVA marksmen, armed with rifles and scopes, which were comparable to those of their American counterparts, lurked around the edges of the perimeters--especially the hill outposts--and waited for a target. Although none of this deadly business could be categorized as humorous, there was one sniper incident on Hill 881S that could not help but evoke a chuckle. The men of Company I had been cursed with the presence of a particularly accurate sniper who was located in the bush to the south of their perimeter. The rifleman scored frequently and had wounded 10 Marines in the period of about a week, all of whom were evacuated. In addition to being a hazard, the sniper was also a general nuisance. A man moving from one place to another within the perimeter was always hurried on his way by slugs which kicked up dirt at his heels or buzzed past his head like hornets. Thus, the Marines were constantly waiting for the culprit to expose himself and one day a glint off the telescopic sight proved to be his undoing. The Marines marked his position and, on Captain Dabney's [CO, I/26] order, lugged a 106 mm recoilless rifle from the northern side of the hill, sighted in, and blew the sniper away--tree and all. The victory was short lived because his successor proved equally as effective. More Marines were hit. The second rifleman lasted about as long as the first before he suffered the same fate at the hands of the 106 mm gunners. His replacement, however, was a complete wash-out. Expending between 20 and 30 rounds a day, the misfit flailed away for a week without hitting anyone. In the process, he too gave himself away. After the Marines had manhandled the 106 into position for the third time, and were sighting in, one private, after deep thought, approached the company commander with a proposition: "Skipper, if we pop him, they'll just replace him with some asshole that might be able to shoot. He hasn't hit anyone so why not leave him there until he does?" It was so ordered. The snipers ineptitude had saved his life and he blasted away for the rest of the battle and never touched a soul. =============================================================== ARTICLE 14 - MEDAL OF HONOR ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ed.: Vietnam 1968. A story of heroism, teamwork and exceptional combat leadership. If you know of any MOH recipient who is hospitalized or has passed recently, please write James H. Also, if you would like more info on MOH recipients and their stories, please email James H at [EMAIL PROTECTED] *********************************************************** DIX, DREW DENNIS Rank and Organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, U.S. Senior Advisor Group, IV Corps, Military Assistance Command. Place and date: Chau Doc Province, Republic of Vietnam, 31 January and 1 February 1968. Entered service at: Denver, Colo. Born: 14 December 1944, West Point, N.Y. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. S/Sgt. Dix distinguished himself by exceptional heroism while serving as a unit adviser. Two heavily armed Viet Cong battalions attacked the Province capital city of Chau Phu resulting in the complete breakdown and fragmentation of the defenses of the city. S/Sgt. Dix, with a patrol of Vietnamese soldiers, was recalled to assist in the defense of Chau Phu. Learning that a nurse was trapped in a house near the center of the city, S/Sgt. Dix organized a relief force, successfully rescued the nurse, and returned her to the safety of the Tactical Operations Center. Being informed of other trapped civilians within the city, S/Sgt. Dix voluntarily led another force to rescue 8 civilian employees located in a building which was under heavy mortar and small-arms fire. S/Sgt. Dix then returned to the center of the city. Upon approaching a building, he was subjected to intense automatic rifle and machine gun fire from an unknown number of Viet Cong. He personally assaulted the building, killing 6 Viet Cong, and rescuing 2 Filipinos. The following day S/Sgt. Dix, still on his own volition, assembled a 20-man force and though under intense enemy fire cleared the Viet Cong out of the hotel, theater, and other adjacent buildings within the city. During this portion of the attack, Army Republic of Vietnam soldiers inspired by the heroism and success of S/Sgt. Dix, rallied and commenced firing upon the Viet Cong. S/Sgt. Dix captured 20 prisoners, including a high ranking Viet Cong official. He then attacked enemy troops who had entered the residence of the Deputy Province Chief and was successful in rescuing the official's wife and children. S/Sgt. Dix's personal heroic actions resulted in 14 confirmed Viet Cong killed in action and possibly 25 more, the capture of 20 prisoners, 15 weapons, and the rescue of the 14 United States and free world civilians. The heroism of S/Sgt. Dix was in the highest tradition and reflects great credit upon the U.S. Army. =========================================================== ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ EDITOR'S NOTE: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ For Article Submissions: 1. Try to keep articles to 700 words or less. SUBMIT IN WORD FORMAT, if possible! 2. Submit your piece to one of our subject matter experts who can assist you in pre-editing prior to final publication decision, unless you feel strongly that your issue is so hot that Zimm needs to see it personally and immediately. SFTT is not trying to duplicate a rigid chain of command with titles and perks. R.W. Zimmermann [EMAIL PROTECTED] ============================================= GLOSSARY OF MILITARY ACRONYMS: We've had numerous requests from troops in different branches of the military to establish this link so that we will all know how "all you others" talk that talk. Please see below: http://www.dtic.mil/doctrine/jel/doddict/acronym_index.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ***** HACK BOOK SALES ***** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hack's books About Face*, Hazardous Duty*, The Price of Honor* and The Vietnam Primer can be found at www.hackworth.com. They make a great addition to any library. Hack is offering them at a special SFTT price. ==================================================== ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Defending America Newsletter Administrative Volunteers: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ R.W. Zimmermann, Chief Editor/President of SFTT and Tank Commander David H. Hackworth, Spirit Guide, and undisputed Y2K Expert Barry "Woody" Groton, Chief TECH DROID and Medicine Man John Cloven, Master Web Manager Ed "Edgar" Schneider, Copy Editor, Man of Letters and gentleman: [EMAIL PROTECTED] James H., MOH Editor and NCOIC Jim Leach, News Research Snoop, [EMAIL PROTECTED] Pat Hayes, former Marine and Zimm's Right-Hand Grammar Guru =================================================== Defending America VOLUNTEER EDITORS/SPECIALISTS NOTE: The following list only includes the two primary assistant editors for each service or special area. Please refer to our WEBSITE -- www.sftt.org, for the complete listing. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ALL Letters and Articles for considered publication should be submitted to one of our brave, resolute and caring volunteers. **************************************** U.S. Army: Tig Dupre, Civil-Military relations, weapons expert and Senior Editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] CPT Scott Key, Armor, Generalist, Assistant to Chief Editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] Robert L. Duecaster, Legal [EMAIL PROTECTED] ********************************************** U.S. Navy: Mark Crissman, Naval Aviation, Generalist and Senior Editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] Pat Nisley, Navy Generalist and XO [EMAIL PROTECTED] John J. 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