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JClark

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Posts posted by JClark

  4. The Sorry State of The US Navy

    in Ready Room

    Posted

    Actually, the biggest sub threat is not a Nuke boat. It's going to be a diesel sub, with Air Independent Propulsion...and they can stay under for weeks at a time, are as quiet as a gnat fart, and carry enough torpedos and missles to give a CVBG a really bad day.

    Boats

  6. Let's Jump on This!

    in Ready Room

    Posted

    I started to buy a sci-fi book last weekend, looked like it had an interesting cover. When I opened the fly and started reading, I thought my hands were on fire. It seems that the major player in the platforms dept. was the newest deadliest US Carrier: The USS Hillary Clinton :wtf:

    Boats

  7. The Sorry State of The US Navy

    in Ready Room

    Posted

    Shipmate, I humbly submit, that you copy this post to the Foc'sl. I'm sure that there are a few people who would beg to differ with you. I'll hit a couple of salient points though:

    1) The Raptor: Every, repeat, EVERY airframe with an "F" is fast approaching fatigue limits on the airframe. Yes, the electronics are state of the art. But the airframes are NOT. I cannot see any time in the forseeable future where we will not need air superiority and tactical air. Russia, which this very day is hosting the chairman of the PRC for a big cooperation meeting, is fielding the SU-33, an airframe that is superior in all respects to anything we have today. The PRC is fielding the J-10. Oh, while we're at it, the Indian armed forces are looking at either the Eurofighter or the SU-33. Yes, they will have an aircraft carrier within the next ten years.

    Yes, there are superior aircraft to the Eagle, Hornet, and Falcon.

    2) We have an entire class of ships, the Perry FFGs, which are SEVEN years past their decom dates. I've worked on one thats damned near 30 years old. These ships are tired, and in desperate need of replacement. Frigates have always filled a critical slot in our maritime strategy, and probably always will. Our cruisers are getting long in the tooth as well. They will need replacement in ten years. We MUST begin fielding that replacement by then, or be eaten alive by a cycle of ops/maintainence in which ships spend more on being maintained, than they do performing ops.

    Schatten, you cannot plan your armed forces based on the threat today. Just as you cannot plan to fight the battle of tomorrow based on the battle of today, you must plan for a completely different battle. And more importantly, US forces have always fought at a disparity. We always bring less to the fight at the start than anyone else of comparable size. This forces our strategy to eqiup our forces with better hardware so our people can kill more of them than us..because that's what will keep us at least even. We can't go into tomorrows battle the same way we did after Pearl Harbor: because next time, we won't be afforded the luxury of having those oceans around us.

    Schatt, if you can predict the threat 20 years from now, I'm sure a lot of people in DC would love to hear it.

    Boats

  9. Someone told me you guys play OFP?

    in Ready Room

    Posted

    Welcome Aboard Shiz. I see Doug has already made the rounds through here so you'll be squared away there. Have fun, kill stuff, break things and do your job or I'll shoot you myself.

    sniff, sniff....I feel that Marine Corps love already...sniff... :rofl:

    You sure know how to make a guy feel at home, Gunny :thumbsup:

    Boats

  15. Event Four

    in Ready Room

    Posted

    Neptunus Lex has a little place for some of his favorite commenters (including yours truly) to post up stuff in our very own blog. Nose is a former Naval Aviator who flew E2Cs. Now, I know this isn't as gaudy as a Tomcat or Hornet driver, but the danger and the principle of taking off from a carrier are the same. If you want to know what it's like to take off from a carrier, from start to cat shot, read this article. It's simply the best recounting I've ever read. Feel free to add your comments, I'm sure Nose will appreciate a big BZ from his readers. I know for fact that Nose's typing skills rank right up there with a one fingered epilectic three toed sloth, so this meant a hell of a lot of work for him.

    Event Four

    Enjoy :thumbsup:

    Boats

  16. The Sorry State of The US Navy

    in Ready Room

    Posted

    Head over to the Foc'sl in the Harpoon section for a very interesting article (courtesy of CDR Salamander) on what's happening to the US Navy. Feel free to add your remarks. It's a crappy situation, and I encourage everyone to vent some spleen. And while you're there, feel free to drop by the CDRs blog..it has some very interesting views on current events, including some really good shots at political figures.

    Boats

  17. My weekend

    in Ready Room

    Posted

    I spent the weekend in Savannah, Ga. with the wife. It's a short drive for us down in Jacksonville, a little less than two hours. Savannah is simply a great place to have some fun and eat really good food. The best place (of many!) is down by the waterfront on River St. It's about 10 long blocks of old buildings, two stories high on the river side, and three on the back side. There's a 20 foot deep area between the main part of town and the buildings that front the river. There's interesting shops, restaurants and hotels built into these buildings. Here's a couple of pics for you:

    Front side of River St.

    Savannah003.jpg

    Back side of River St.

    Savannah013.jpg

    River Boat passes the Boat Lady (real person who waved a towel at literally thousands of ships over several decades)

    Savannah008.jpg

    Savannah is also the home of the lady who founded the Girl Scouts (and you can tour Judith Lowes home) as well as the locale for the book, "Midnight in The Garden of Good and Evil", which re-told the events of an actual murder. Way cool place to go, and if you're heading north or south down 95, well worth stopping for a day to rest and enjoy yourself.

    Boats

  22. For those who complain about snow

    in Ready Room

    Posted

    I hate winter period. Snow, Sleet, Freezing rain, cold temps, you name it. Snow I can deal with to a certain extent, but this freezing rain/ice crap is something else entirely. I spent many years driving a wrecker, starting cars in sub zero weather. Pulling cars and trucks out of ditches, etc. I worked in a couple auto repair shops (the old cinder block built service stations built in the '40's and '50's) that you could see your breath in them during the day. Even with the furnace running full bore. I feel I have paid my dues to old man winter and then some.

    I would love to move south, but Lottie won't do it. She hates the hot weather as much as I hate the winter. So unless something changes in our marriage, I'm stuck in this crappy winter weather until the Lord calls me. :( (or the devil) ;)

    My impression of my wife is that she is insane! She loves winter, loves lots of snow, gets pissed off when the weather reports call for a big snow storm and we don't get it or very little of it. She watches the weather channel and comments "those lucky bastards" when she sees a report on someplace getting more than a foot of snow. Says she would love to live in Buffalo, NY. Now THAT is CRAZY!!! My theory is that if she would of ever had to go out every day and work in that crap and cold, she would think differently.

    Of course the only SANE thing she ever did was marry me! z4dwink.gif

    That's debatable :rofl::rofl::rofl:

    Boats

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