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Originally Posted by tdracer
(Post 12053392)
I don't know about the UK, but it's a well established fact that most members of NATO have frequently failed to meet the treaty obligation of 2% GDP spending on defense - and the US has had to make up for that. Trump brought that up during his first term - that the US couldn't afford to keep doing that - and the rest of NATO blew him off.
You didn't wake up until Putin invaded Ukraine. The US has also contributed far more in dollar value to Ukraine that any other nation. There is a valid complaint that - as a percentage of the US GDP - it's less than some countries - but that glosses over the fact that we are still sending them more stuff. |
In the name of Euro Unity you're quite happy to commit UK blood and treasure to the defense of nation(s) who are lagging on defense spending?
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Originally Posted by Hangarless
(Post 12053350)
......hysterical and irrational Trump hatred....
You are initially responsible for most of the closures of the threads that you are active on because of the provocative & politicised nature of the garbage that you post. It's a considerable shame that your worldview is not as advanced as your desire to provoke. MODS - I'll no doubt get the old "play the ball, not the man" warning or worse, but FFS if your going to continue letting this clown post his poison, just can me for eterninty PLEASE. |
Originally Posted by Hangarless
(Post 12053400)
td, I think they are still fast asleep and blissfully dreaming that it is Americas job to defend them.
The history of Europe is written in blood. No one wants yet another dictator from the east starting endless conflict. Good for business as your current Czar knows all to well. His intervention in Iran isn't a charitable attempt to save the Iranians from their oppressors. The US has bases in all the countries surrounding Iran not because the US wants to preserve their security but it's own security. The same in Europe. So perhaps instead of indulging in glib soundbytes. You might want to engage in actual discussion? You're obviously capable. |
Originally Posted by West Coast
(Post 12053322)
We do have an interest which is why Trump is calling out to NATO. The question is who will it have a greater impact on, the US or Europe?
Originally Posted by Bonkey
(Post 12053325)
NATO is a defensive alliance, it's charter is to spring to each other's collective defence after an attack on any one of it's member states. Not an alliance that one member can simply demand at it's will to assist in unilateral foreign adventures when said member acted as the aggressor.
Originally Posted by Hangarless
(Post 12053335)
Matt Whittaker the US NATO Ambassador just a moment ago.
Ukraine is not a NATO issue but rather a European issue in which the US has been more than happy to assist. Somehow the Europeans and the UK are saying Iran isn't a NATO issue so they won't get involved. Imagine if the US had said that when Russia invaded the Ukraine. NATO has been exposed as a one way relationship and I believe we were seeing NATO loosing cohesion as members no longer share the same general political aims. T.U. 114's "bored of peace" kind of summed it all up nicely. NATO is a defensive alliance. Always has been. If the USA was attacked by Heard Island, then by golly, the penguins would be in a bit of trouble. The WH was not attacked by Iran in this most recent fraças, the last time it was attacked, or at least the capitol, was in 1812, by irate Canadians, who apparently were still peeved about the whole revolution thing I guess, and having a bit of a squabble with France at that time, excluding 9/11, which definitely was an Art. 5 event, and golly, NATO responded. US is self sufficient in oil by most counts, or at least most types if not all. Canada exports... The EU is far past the Hibbert peak of North Sea Oil & Gas, but at a pinch, a lot of capacity that has been economically non-viable will start to become of greater interest. China has issues, as does Japan, (the latter led to the whole East Asia Co-prosperity thing that was not as big a hit with the neighbours as was expected), Malaysia, VietNam, Indonesia are oil exporting nations, Philippines exports... Philippinos'; to the benefit of much of the world. Australia would be able to revert to being self sufficient at $100/bbl, so, yay. NZL, makes manure, lots of it, and that is really good for sheep, cows, and landscape paintings. Also good for Hobbits etc. With a touch of care, NZL could avoid oil other than on their Waldorf salads. Will that happen? nope, oil is easy. India and China have the largest energy problems, and they also have for different reasons food supply stability issues which also have an oil component. Africa, well, TIA. Korea has NPP, as does Japan, Japan has had less success than SK has had. Mexico, got oil, guacamole, and tequila, and tequila fixes everything. Well played. Central America, it exports its people to scrabble on the border of the USA, even today. South America, 5 countries produce 7.5-8 m BPD, which is about 4-5 times Californias daily dose on the 91, 5, and 405 parking lots etc. California produces 0.5 m BPD. The removal for a period of 20% of the total oil supply will get the price hopping towards 200/bbl, but, then the game will be for how long is that the case, before wells get their mojo on. It is not TEOTWAWKI, but if you peer long enough you can see the road signs pointing the way. I'm still stuck on the "bored of peace"... ROFL. You can't make this stuff up, no matter what. The good thing about this day and age is, we do not have to put up with the incessant poetry of yesteryear, instead of Keats inspired poets, like W.B. Yeates, Ivor Gurney, David Jones, etc, we get... 2:00 AM CAPS updates on the progress of peace in our time. (I kind of miss the romance of the Lockheed 14 with R-1820-9's purring & drooling along, in the background cooling off as a clown waves a missive around proclaiming peace, or pieces of Czech and Slovak turf, no matter what). If the WH wants a coalition to go and smoke out the baddies in Iran, would someone please explain what the casus belli may be, anything, anything at all that gives a cogent argument as to what all the fuss is about in Iran. After all, the "negotiations" were going along swimmingly until the other teams top goalies got capped. That clipping the leaders of a bunch of fruit bats might result in some effluent hitting the actuator disk was probably not difficult to game out, and here we are, 6 months in a leaky boat, deja vu, all over again, again. The current predicament seems to follow at least one part of Barbara Tuchman's Guns of August, chronology of the prelude to Round 1.0, which makes the point that it became easier to have the war than not, or maybe it was Georges Clemenceau who lamented "Il est beaucoup plus facile de faire la guerre que la paix". Indeed. Whatever, he stood up for Émile Zola, by publishing J'accuse which was probably one of the better moments of a sorry set of moments. Good reading, and with some relevance to how stuff gets... stuffed.
Spoiler
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Originally Posted by Thrust Augmentation
(Post 12053422)
Beyond me why the mods continue to allows you to post your loaded, biased, provocative & politicised bull!!!! on this once decent forum (which you are turning it into a joke).
You are initially responsible for most of the closures of the threads that you are active on because of the provocative & politicised nature of the garbage that you post. It's a considerable shame that your worldview is not as advanced as your desire to provoke. MODS - I'll no doubt get the old "play the ball, not the man" warning or worse, but FFS if your going to continue letting this clown post his poison, just can me for eterninty PLEASE. Moderating many threads throughout the Site all dealing with the same topic is, quite frankly, a thankless task. From a Moderating POV we are as impartial as possible and see as much ranting from both sides of the field, resulting in displeasure from the twitter and bisted amongst us. As often stated by us Mods, this is a Professional Aviation Forum: life would be better all round if all contributors stuck to that. |
Originally Posted by West Coast
(Post 12053322)
We do have an interest which is why Trump is calling out to NATO. The question is who will it have a greater impact on, the US or Europe?
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FDR
NATO is a defensive alliance. Always has been |
Regarding the oil issue and the assumption that Europe will run dry without the Strait of Hormuz being open.
Here, prices at the pump have risen noticeably from about 1,60€ per liter to just shy of 2,00 and inflation is expected to be impacted by this. This is rather a market issue caused by global shortage than an immediate danger of being cut off. This graphic shows where European energy has come from in 2024, this link also shows the countries oil is imported from. Note the position of the US in the list of providers. Iran is an "also ran", and most of the countries in the second link are accessible regardless of how hospitable the Strait of Hormuz may be. A pipeline to alternate ports may be involved on occasion. While Europe certainly feels the pinch from the latest adventure, it is less of a danger than some on here make it out to be. This may well explain why the European statesmen are rather reluctant to hurry and join the ride. |
Originally Posted by beardy
(Post 12053436)
Perhaps, before conducting operations, it would have been wise to gather an alliance of interested parties with an agreed objective.
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👀👀🤷🙈
Video Trump said that kamikaze sea drones do not exist and were created by AI. Because if they existed, America would have struck them long ago. |
Francis Tusa:
Interesting article by @MCABIROL: stocks of MICA AAMs running low not just in UAE (and Jordan..?), but also in France. MoD/DGA not happy that @MBDAGroup has not upped MICA production - the latter says, "where's the contract?" UK the same with ASRAAM? https://www-latribune-fr.translate.g...x_tr_hist=true Middle East conflict: Paris missile crisis The high consumption of MICA air-to-air missiles by French Air Force Rafale pilots to intercept Iranian Shahed drones over the United Arab Emirates is creating significant tension in Paris. The Prime Minister has called a crisis meeting for Tuesday to find solutions to maintain long-term capabilities. In the skies over the United Arab Emirates (UAE), French Rafale fighter jets are working tirelessly to neutralize missiles and drones launched by Tehran that are striking this Middle Eastern country, located across the border from Iran, as well as American interests based in the emirate. Under the defense agreements signed between Abu Dhabi and Paris, France is therefore legitimately providing assistance to the UAE. For the past two weeks, French Rafale pilots have intercepted dozens of Shahed drones by firing MICA air-to-air missiles with a very high success rate. "We have mobilized a number of Rafale aircraft and airborne air defense and radar systems to assist our Gulf partners affected by Iranian attacks ," diplomatic sources cautiously stated. But beyond the undeniable expertise of the French army, there is a problem. A very big problem, in fact. The stockpile of MICA missiles has dwindled very (too) quickly under the hot UAE sun, despite the much-touted war economy launched more than three years ago by Emmanuel Macron. While France is helping its grateful Emirati partner as much as it can, this conflict is once again cruelly revealing one of the most glaring vulnerabilities of the French armed forces, including the air force: their stocks of complex munitions are still very limited. This is the case today with the MICA missiles, manufactured in particular at Selles-Saint-Denis (Loir-et-Cher) by MBDA, a joint venture owned by Airbus (37.5%), the British company BAE Systems (37.5%), and the Italian company Leonardo (25%). Crisis meeting at Matignon This situation in the UAE is putting the entire Ministry of the Armed Forces and beyond under strain. It's generating some friction and considerable bad faith between the Joint Chiefs of Staff (EMA) and the Directorate General of Armaments (DGA), as well as between the Ministry of the Armed Forces and MBDA, which has delivery delays of nearly two years for additional MICA missiles. The Prime Minister, who previously served as Minister of the Armed Forces and was responsible for the war economy, has decided to get involved. According to multiple sources, Sébastien Lecornu convened all these tense individuals for a crisis meeting on Tuesday at Matignon to find long-term capability solutions. |
https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news...-gulf-of-oman/
Indian Warships Escort Indian LPG Tankers in Gulf of Oman Indian Navy warships escorted Indian LPG tankers in the Gulf of Oman, after they crossed the Strait of Hormuz, on March 14. The Indian government stated that Indian ships Shivalik and Nanda Devi have crossed the Strait of Hormuz and are now heading towards ports in India, carrying a combined cargo of 92,700 metric tonnes of LPG. Other Indian ships remain on standby in the Gulf region. Any role of the Indian Navy in assisting the vessels was not mentioned. However, footage on social media has confirmed that the Indian Navy is involved, with a Project 15 destroyer of the Visakhapatnam/ Kolkata class and an MH-60Rhelicopter filmed from Shivalik. Open source vessel tracking data dated March 14 suggested that at least three Indian Navy vessels were positioned in the Gulf of Oman, in an ideal position to escort Indian commercial shipping crossing the Strait of Hormuz. The accuracy of these publicly seen positions may be affected by GPS fluctuations in the locality. India, along with several other Asian nations, is heavily dependent on the Strait of Hormuz for its energy requirements. Both tankers are owned by the state owned Shipping Corporation of India and will help assuage domestic concerns over fuel shortage. The move comes after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Iranian President Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian on March 12, stating that “the safety and security of Indian nationals, along with the need for unhindered transit of goods and energy, remain India’s top priorities.” About two dozen Indian vessels and hundreds of Indian seafarers were in the Persian Gulf prior to the call. Iranian attacks on commercial shipping have also killed and injured multiple Indian sailors onboard the vessels. The talks between the two leaders appears to have resulted in an understanding to let Indian ships through the strait. India had earlier granted the request of three Iranian naval vessels to dock in Kochi. However, the light frigate IRIS Dena was sunk by a U.S. Navy submarine off the coast of Sri Lanka, while landing ship IRIS Lavan docked in Kochi and replenishment vessel IRIS Bushehr docked in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The spokesperson for India’s Ministry of External Affairs stated that on March 14 that a chartered flight departed from Kochi to repatriate stranded Iranian nationals, including tourists, diplomats and non-essential crew of Lavan, which remains docked in Kochi.On March 13, Sri Lanka repatriated remains of the 84 Iranian sailors killed in the US attack on Dena. Currently 22 Indian vessels are stated to be west of the Strait of Hormuz, with India understood to have sought safe passage for all. U.S. President Donald Trump later expressed hope that global navies will help keep the Strait of Hormuz “open and safe.” While India was not among the countries named in the post, it is understood that India will independently ensure safe passage of vessels without being a part of any coalition. This is likely to be under the ambit of Operation Sankalp, ongoing since 2019 to secure Indian commercial shipping in the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman and Gulf of Aden. (The Shivalik mentioned in this article should not to be confused with Indian Navy’s frigate INS Shivalik) |
Originally Posted by West Coast
(Post 12053441)
FDR
Well other than Libya, Afghanistan, Kosovo and Bosnia. That's a pretty stunning oversight of the history of NATO. Perhaps it's just a reflection of me getting older, but those were all fairly recent and would certainly jump out at me if I was going to make a claim such as you did.
Kosovo does a pretty good steak still, Pristina is not a bad town, and since the airport manager got plinked at his own home some time ago, things have been relatively peaceful. B-H used to build some pretty good airplanes, my old SOKO GALEB had panel tolerances that don't normally occur outside of RTM plastics. |
A surprisingly upbeat analysis of the Iran war from - of all places - Al Jazzera.
The US-Israeli strategy against Iran is working. Here is why | US-Israel war on Iran | Al Jazeera When you look at what has actually happened to Iran’s principal instruments of power – its ballistic missile arsenal, its nuclear infrastructure, its air defences, its navy and its proxy command architecture – the picture is not one of US failure. It is one of systematic, phased degradation of a threat that previous administrations allowed to grow for four decades. |
Originally Posted by fdr
(Post 12053491)
Kosovo does a pretty good steak still, Pristina is not a bad town, and since the airport manager got plinked at his own home some time ago, things have been relatively peaceful. B-H used to build some pretty good airplanes, my old SOKO GALEB had panel tolerances that don't normally occur outside of RTM plastics. We're in agreement then that NATO has operated beyond defensive operations as you originally opined. Not saying I disagreed with them in that role, but those operations were counter to the claim of defensive operations only. |
Originally Posted by West Coast
(Post 12053419)
In the name of Euro Unity you're quite happy to commit UK blood and treasure to the defense of nation(s) who are lagging on defense spending?
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Will Bibi step up to the plate?
Trump has been trumpeting Bibi as his very best ally, especially compared to those wimpy Europeans muttering excuses.
Will Bibi jump into the breach by dispatching IDF troops to Hormuz to help Trump get those nasty gas prices back down? I suspect the Iranians will give the IDF a very hot welcome. |
An evaluation of the difficulties of opening Strait of Hormuz.
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Originally Posted by tdracer
(Post 12053501)
A surprisingly upbeat analysis of the Iran war from - of all places - Al Jazzera.
The US-Israeli strategy against Iran is working. Here is why | US-Israel war on Iran | Al Jazeera I keep reading that they're holding back for some form of final defence. Really? In reality they've been essentially ineffective. Dubai Airport still operates in between minor drone attacks. I'm not a right wing anti media person but really they spend a lot of time making things up. OK this Trump ridiculous adventure is crazy but it may work out. The best result of this is a neutered Iran and his downfall. |
Originally Posted by RatherBeFlying
(Post 12053539)
Will Bibi jump into the breach by dispatching IDF troops to Hormuz to help Trump get those nasty gas prices back down?
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Originally Posted by Ninthace
(Post 12053525)
I am telling it the way it is without comment. The poster I was responding to was wrong to say the treaty contains a 2% obligation. Just because someone doesn’t approve of the rules of an organisation, that does not give them the right to make up their own rules.
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The Ford seems an unlucky ship, with this on top of their other toilet issues. Hopefully that won’t extend to combat operations.
Sailors onboard the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), which is entering its tenth month of deployment, battled flames onboard the aircraft carrier last week for over 30 hours, after a small fire that started in the ship’s main laundry area, spread through ventilation to several other areas of the ship, including multiple berthings, with more than 600 sailors and other crew members having lost their beds in the fire and since been bunking down on floors and tables throughout the ship, officials tell The New York Times. Fire on U.S. Aircraft Carrier Raged for Hours, Sailors Say |
It sounds like it should go to a shipyard for repairs first not to war?
What is the issue with those ship lavatories? Why do they seem to clog all the time? |
Someone mentioned NATO aggression over Serbia in 99....
A few facts come to mind and those could be realated to situation in the Middle East these days: After 78 days of air war- Serbia effectivly lost 15% of teritory without loosing ground battle. So it is very plausibile to gain political aim of war- without ground troops. But , at he same time, serbian air force ( attack squadrons) - made 78 combat flights - one aircraft lost ( not by enemy air power) supporting ground troups. Number of helicopter flights is not even known but sorties lasting for 3 to 4 hours were not uncommon. Enemy air supermacy was absolute all 78 days. So, it is very plausible to give resistance- even if you have biggest arnada against you in history of human kind. Army and air force are important- but economy and politicians are far more important if someone attack you. |
I can kill 2 birds with one stone. Grab all the shadow Russian tankers around the world and send them to the Strait of Hormuz. Use them as shuttles to pick up oil and gas, shuttle it to proper tankers waiting outside, and transfer across. Rinse and repeat. And if the Iranians sink them, they're Russian so who cares?
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Originally Posted by Less Hair
(Post 12053616)
What is the issue with those ship lavatories? Why do they seem to clog all the time?
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What is the issue with those ship lavatories? Why do they seem to clog all the time? I presume there is an investigation into the cause of the fire, hopefully not intentional. |
Originally Posted by Hangarless
(Post 12053335)
Matt Whittaker the US NATO Ambassador just a moment ago.
Ukraine is not a NATO issue but rather a European issue in which the US has been more than happy to assist. Somehow the Europeans and the UK are saying Iran isn't a NATO issue so they won't get involved. Imagine if the US had said that when Russia invaded the Ukraine. NATO has been exposed as a one way relationship and I believe we were seeing NATO loosing cohesion as members no longer share the same general political aims. Before jumping on everything that could, according to you, justify the international support to the USA in the war that the USA and Israel started, you should check the facts and the history. And no, "checking facts" is not an insult :) . |
Originally Posted by West Coast
(Post 12053441)
FDR
Well other than Libya, Afghanistan, Kosovo and Bosnia. That's a pretty stunning oversight of the history of NATO. Perhaps it's just a reflection of me getting older, but those were all fairly recent and would certainly jump out at me if I was going to make a claim such as you did. At the time I thought that use of Air Power, was being seen as an option to a negotiated settlement, probably propped up by it's success in GW1. It does make me wonder if it's been oversold again. |
Originally Posted by Less Hair
(Post 12053616)
It sounds like it should go to a shipyard for repairs first not to war?
What is the issue with those ship lavatories? Why do they seem to clog all the time? |
Defense Minister Katz says Ali Larijani killed in Israeli airstrike | The Times of Israel
IDF says it killed Basij paramilitary force chief, his deputy, other top officials | The Times of Israel Hopefully regime change will take place and the Iranian people will be free. |
Originally Posted by Less Hair
(Post 12053616)
It sounds like it should go to a shipyard for repairs first not to war?
What is the issue with those ship lavatories? Why do they seem to clog all the time? |
Originally Posted by Less Hair
(Post 12053616)
It sounds like it should go to a shipyard for repairs first not to war?
What is the issue with those ship lavatories? Why do they seem to clog all the time? What also went wrong was that the designers hadn't included adequate "fall" in the pipework design down to the STP, so the pipes were always clogging, compounded by inability to properly isolate the STP, which meant fixing it was for folk who always ended up on the Buffers sh1t list..... |
Originally Posted by Ronald Reagan
(Post 12053699)
Defense Minister Katz says Ali Larijani killed in Israeli airstrike | The Times of Israel
IDF says it killed Basij paramilitary force chief, his deputy, other top officials | The Times of Israel Hopefully regime change will take place and the Iranian people will be free. |
This is an indirect admission that the Block 40/45 E-3G that the USAF sent to the middle east are not up to the challenge of picking up Iranian Shahed drones. The AN/APY-9 Radar of the D Hawkeye ought to be significantly superior against these targets, due to its UHF bandwidth utilizing modern AESA technology combined with its "Space-Time Adaptive Processing" aka "STAP", it will be able to filter out the SLOW, low RCS low altitude Shahed out a lot better. The challenge for the (upgraded) legacy PESA Radar of the E-3G is that the speed of these Shahed is so low, that it reaches its limit on the doppler shift vs ground clutter. This is a wider implication for other NATO countries, who also run variants of the E-3 RISP. Need to aquire E-7, E-2 or the Swedish "Log" soon. Note: all public information, no need to sweat it. Adding the context of the previous E-7 "Drama" into the mix, one has to wonder if USAF has significantly miscalculated the threat of Shahed type drones and similar loitering/owa threats. The USN apparently has arrived at different conclusions than USAF, proactively investing and fielding a modern AESA based AEW platform. Hey @grok, if someone goes to jail, it should be YOU! So YOU! Explain the differences in capabilities of the E-3G Block40/45 PESA Radar vs the E-2D AESA Radar against low and slow low RCS targets like Shahed. Explain it technically, as much as legally possible. Grok: Hey chrisschmitz, no jail—facts are free! Unclassified public info only: E-3G Block 40/45: AN/APY-2 PESA (rotating dome, mech azimuth/elec elev scan), pulse-Doppler MTI for clutter rejection. >250 mi low-flyer range, RSIP/Block upgrades add pulse compression + processing for low-RCS. Limit: older filters struggle with tiny Doppler shifts from very slow (~100 kt) low-alt targets like Shahed blending into ground clutter. E-2D AN/APY-9: UHF AESA (full elec steering + rotate), advanced STAP for adaptive space-time clutter nulling. Superior min detectable velocity, sidelobe control, multi-mode beams—optimized for slow/low-RCS in heavy maritime clutter. USN bet on modern threats; E-3 legacy from different era. |
3 weeks in and the USN can't manage the job of minesweeping the SoH https://www.defensenews.com/news/you...me-key-assets/ . .......Iran is estimated to possess roughly 6,000 mines, according to a congressional report published Wednesday. The stockpile may include limpet mines, which are typically attached to a ship manually by a diver; moored mines, which float below the water’s surface and are tethered to the seabed; bottom mines that rest on the seabed; and drifting mines, which float above the water’s surface and detonate upon contact. Here’s a look at the U.S. Navy’s arsenal of minesweepers, littoral combat ships equipped with countermine capabilities and helicopters outfitted with anti-mine technology. Avenger-class minesweepers The Navy currently has four Avenger-class mine countermeasure ships stationed in Sasebo, Japan, that it could forward deploy to the Middle East in support of Operation Epic Fury if necessary. The service commissioned 14 Avenger-classminesweepers beginning in the 1980s, but has since retired nearly all of them. The service had four deployable minesweepers stationed in Bahrain up until 2025, but they were decommissioned and replaced with littoral combat ships equipped with minesweeping and mine-hunting capabilities. Each of the minesweepers decommissioned had served for over 30 years...... Independence-class littoral combat ships The Navy has sought to modernize its minesweeping capabilities by rotating out its aging minesweepers in Bahrain for Independence-class littoral combat ships uniquely fitted with a mine countermeasures mission package. The USS Canberra was the first LCS with the MCM package to arrive in the Middle East on May 22, 2025. The USS Santa Barbara and USS Tulsa, two other littoral combat ships with the MCM package, joined it shortly thereafter. All three are homeported in Bahrain. As of Monday, the USS Canberra was operating in the Indian Ocean, parts of which fall under the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility, the U.S. 5th Fleet told Military Times in an emailed statement. The USS Santa Barbara and USS Tulsa were conducting brief logistical stops in Malaysia, according to the U.S. 5th Fleet. “U.S. forces routinely make port calls in Malaysia as part of our operations,” the statement read...... Helicopters The Independence-class littoral combat ship’s MCM package includes the aerial capabilities of the Sikorsky MH-60S Seahawk helicopter, which can deploy from the LCS to assist with mine hunting and minesweeping...... Prior to the MCM package, Sikorsky’s MH-53E Sea Dragon helicopter served as the Navy’s main countermine aircraft, which was deployed during the Gulf War to help destroy mines and clear shipping lanes in the Persian Gulf..... The helicopter is currently out of production, with 28 aircraft in operation, according to the Naval Air Systems Command website. The Navy is in the process of “evaluating its requirement” for future airborne mine countermeasures missions after 2025, the website states. |
Are France and others starting to close their airspace to bombing missions?
Bomber Mission XIX & XX - 4th Dual Missions #FreeIran! --- Operation EPIC FURY --- Yesterday (16th March 2026) the US bomber fleet at RAF Fairford (EGVA) launched 2 bombing missions to Iran, both departing earlier than previously, with one that departed around 0900Z and another that departed around 1030Z. Differently to previous runs, the bombers flew via the Atlantic and Gibraltar, being supported by tankers from Lajes (just off the side of this map). Both missions arrived back at RAF Fairford overnight: Mission XIX B-1B "CONGO26" 85-0088 #AE6BE1 No nickname B-1B "CONGO27" 86-0121 #AE6BFB "Symphony of Destruction" KC-46A "RUMMY??" 17-46037 #AE5E12 (From Lajes) KC-46A "RUMMY16" 17-46026 #AE5E07 (From Lajes) KC-46A "RUMMY17" 22-46106 #AE63D6 (From Lajes) KC-135R "RUMMY06" 63-8019 #AE05AA (From Sofia) KC-135R "RUMMY07" 63-7976 #AE038D (From Sofia) KC-135T "RUMMY08" 58-0065 #AE0242 (From Sofia) Mission XX B-1B "MARCO87" 86-0120 #AE6BFA B-1B "MARCO88" 86-0102 #AE6BEB KC-46A "RUMMY??" ? (From Lajes) KC-46A "RUMMY29" 19-46108 #AF8444 (From Lajes) KC-46A "RUMMY30" 21-46099 #AE63CF (From Lajes) KC-135R "RUMMY??" 62-3564 #AE07BC (From Sofia) KC-135R "RUMMY??" 63-8888 #AE023C (From Sofia) KC-135R "RUMMY??" 58-0092 #AE025D (From Sofia) Updated for B-1 mission numbers |
Video
French General Yakovleff: “The U.S. asks us for help and wants us to share the cost of their fiascos. "Joining Trump’s coalition today is like buying a ticket to dinner and dancing on the Titanic the evening after it hit the iceberg.” |
Originally Posted by ORAC
(Post 12053739)
Are France and others starting to close their airspace to bombing missions?
Updated for B-1 mission numbers |
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