Archive for March, 2011

Reagan (CVN-76) Cleanup

U.S.S. Reagan DECON

Marines wash the surface of an F/A-18C Hornet

Lance Cpl. Juan Olguin, from Lakewood, Calif., sprays the surface of an F/A-18C Hornet assigned to the Death Rattlers of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 323 aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan during a countermeasure wash down on the flight deck. Sailors scrubbed the external surfaces on the flight deck and island superstructure to remove potential radiation contamination. Ronald Reagan is operating off the coast of Japan providing humanitarian assistance as directed in support of Operation Tomodachi.

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USS Essex nears the coast of Japan

 USS Essex (LHD 2)U.S. Pacific Fleet

PACIFIC OCEAN (March 27, 2011) USS Essex (LHD 2), with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit aboard, nears the coast of Japan at sunrise. The 31st MEU and Amphibious Squadron 11 delivered food, water, comfort items and commercial repair vehicl…es to residents on the isolated island of Oshima, off the coast of Kessennuma, using U.S. Navy landing craft. Marines and Sailors of the 31st MEU are conducting humanitarian aid and disaster relief missions in northeast Japan in coordination with Japanese Self Defense Forces. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Capt. Caleb Eames)

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Iranian hackers obtain fraudulent HTTPS certificates

From: EFF

Iranian hackers obtain fraudulent HTTPS certificates: How close to a Web security meltdown did we get?

On March 15th, an HTTPS/TLS Certificate Authority (CA) was tricked into issuing fraudulent certificates that posed a dire risk to Internet security. Based on currently available information, the incident got close to – but was not quite – an Internet-wide security meltdown. These events show why we urgently need to start reinforcing the system that is currently used to authenticate and identify secure websites and email systems.

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Reagan Crew Works to Keep Radiation Contamination Down

Navy crew members mop the flight deck March 23 to remove radioactive contamination from the aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan off the Japanese coast.

From: Marine Corps Times

… “I don’t know of any aircraft carrier that’s ever been contaminated like this,” he said.

Powell, the radiation officer, said that he only got two hours of sleep from Sunday until Wednesday. By then, things had calmed down significantly.

That doesn’t mean, however, that the ship has lowered its vigilance. Visitors coming aboard even nine days later were thoroughly checked, as are crews still coming back from relief missions.

The mass cleanup of the ship’s surface Wednesday was considered largely successful, although commanding officer Capt. Thom Burke, in an announcement over the vessel’s public address system the next day, said that some “hot spots” remained.

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Master Sergeant Roy Benavidez

Wiki Page

Roy BenavidezMedal of Honor citation

BENAVIDEZ, ROY P.

Rank and organization: Master Sergeant. Organization: Detachment B-56, 5th Special Forces Group, Republic of Vietnam

Place and date: West of Loc Ninh on May 2, 1968

Entered service at: Houston, Texas June 1955

Born: August 5, 1935, DeWitt County, Cuero, Texas.

Citation: Master Sergeant (then Staff Sergeant) Roy P. Benavidez United States Army, who distinguished himself by a series of daring and extremely valorous actions on 2 May 1968 while assigned to Detachment B56, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces, Republic of Vietnam. On the morning of 2 May 1968, a 12-man Special Forces Reconnaissance Team was inserted by helicopters in a dense jungle area west of Loc Ninh, Vietnam to gather intelligence information about confirmed large-scale enemy activity. This area was controlled and routinely patrolled by the North Vietnamese Army. After a short period of time on the ground, the team met heavy enemy resistance, and requested emergency extraction. Three helicopters attempted extraction, but were unable to land due to intense enemy small arms and anti-aircraft fire. Read the rest of this entry »

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More than 2,000 U.S. Marines are on the ground in Libya

“An ABC affiliate in North Carolina says more than 2,000 U.S. Marines are on the ground in Libya.

WCTI-TV in New Bern reports those Marines, assigned to the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) at Camp Lejuene, are “preserving the sanctity of the city [of Ajdubiyah] and the safety of the civilians within it.”

Capt. Timothy Patrick with the 26th MEU told the station: “In Libya right now they are doing exactly what we need them to do. They are doing what they are told, and right now that’s protecting Libyan people against Qadhafi forces.”

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Security/Default.aspx?id=1316884

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Dennis Tueller Interview (Tueller Drill / 21 ft Rule / Glock)

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Leatherwood ART M-1000 Sniper Scope

“The Leatherwood ART M-1000 2.5-10 x44mm Rifle Scope. The ART Series Scopes were the Brain Child of the Legendary Jim Leatherwood, who’s mounting system gave the U.S. Military Sniper teams the decided edge over the Battlefields in Vietnam. Still in service today, the ART Scope is a quality optic that is rugged and easy to master. And at an affordable price of $349.99 from Natchez Shooting Supply or $389.99 from MidwayUSA.com.”

 

As usual, there are varying opinions on the usefulness of this product. Some other feedback to consider:

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Slain Officer, Craig Birkholz: “You can’t worry about when you’re going to die.”

“Another big thing for me was, when it’s your time, it’s your time. You can’t worry about when you’re going to die, how long you’re going to live. Especially while you’re over there. You just got to do your stuff, do your mission, do what’s asked of you.

If it’s my time to go, it’s my time to go. That really came into realization for me while I was over there. If you sat there and thought about it you weren’t doing your job correctly because that’s all you were thinking about.”

“Two combat tours taught Craig Birkholz the uncertainty of life … He died far from the roadside bombs and terrorists, but still wearing a uniform. Still in service. He was shot in the chest rushing to help a fellow Fond du Lac police officer at the home of a sexual assault suspect.”

http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/118631069.html

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Tactical Combat Casualty Care

From: IDGA

Tactical Combat Casualty Care

LT Brian Ellis of the 3rd Medical Battalion discusses Pre-Deployment Medical Care at IDGA’s Battlefield Healthcare event.  He details advances in pre-deployment medical training specifically relating to tactical combat casualty care.  He talks about adaptability on the ground and teaching deployed medics on the ground to adapt training and supplies to get the mission accomplished.  He gives experiences from Helmand Province, Afghanistan.

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USB Drives left at Dry Cleaners on the Rise

Encrypt your USB Drives

From: SC Magazine UK

A survey of dry cleaners in the UK has found that more than 17,000 USB sticks were left behind in 2010.

More than 500 dry cleaners and launderettes in the UK were asked during December 2010 and January 2011 about removable media that was left behind. Estimated figures suggested that there was an increase on the number of USB sticks left in dry cleaners of more than 400 per cent when compared with figures from 2009, and almost double from what was found in 2008.

…With the best intentions in the world, the reality is devices are often left behind and the information they contain could be devastating if disclosed. Organizations need to plan for this when developing their security strategies.”

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Afghanistan’s New Ambulance

There is a new version of the M-ATV, from Oshkosh Defense, deploying to Afghanistan.

From Army.mil:

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has pressed hard for the past two years to bring medical care in Afghanistan in line with what’s available for U.S. troops in Iraq. This includes medevac capabilities that ensure wounded troops get advanced medical care within one hour of their injury, which is a factor that medical experts agree makes a major difference in survival rates.

…developed in cooperation with the mine-resistant, ambush-protected, all-terrain-vehicle program office, is an M-ATV-like ambulance specifically designed to traverse Afghanistan’s demanding terrain. The first 250 are scheduled to go into production this summer and are expected to be fielded this fall, Lee reported.

Unlike the mine-resistant, ambush-protected, or MRAP, ambulances in Afghanistan that were designed to operate in Iraq, the M-ATV-like versions are being built from the ground up for conditions in Afghanistan. They have improved suspension systems and offer more mobility and speed than the MRAP models.

Additional coverage at Wired’s Danger Room

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E-6B Mercury “Dooms-day” Plane

I happened to glance over at the end of the runway one night at NAS JRB FTW and see this plane parked almost on the numbers with security staged around it. Knowing what the plane is for, it kind of spooked me.

GW was 90 miles away at the ranch that night and I suppose it was positioned there just in case he needed it, although I never saw it there before or after that night and The President spent many nights at the ranch.

This aerial footage is from: snipero2a

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HS-4 Black Knights in Japan

Helicopter AntiSubmarine Squadron 4

Helicopter AntiSubmarine Squadron 4 Nadia Brouillette, a Navy helicopter pilot of the USS Ronald Reagan (CVN76), presents a teddy bear to a baby during “Operation Tomodachi“ to deliver supply to the evacuees in an earthquake and tsunami devastated area in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture in Japan.

 

Helicopter AntiSubmarine Squadron 4

Japanese citizens unload food and water from a Navy helicopter off of the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan, which is providing humanitarian assistance to quake-devastated parts of Japan

From: MSNBC

When United States Navy helicopters swept down on the school in a ruined Japanese village, survivors first looked hesitantly from the windows. Then they rushed out, helping unload food, water and clothes. They clasped hands with the Americans. Some embraced them.

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Women of USS RONALD REAGAN (CVN 76)

This video from 2009 is kind of fun but the really interesting thing is all of the comments on YouTube thanking the crew for their help in the ongoing  tsunami relief effort.

This is typical:

Thank you to you all from Japan!

Japanese ppl never forget your assistance.

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