China & Chinese Shenanigans

[StoleIt]

https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/ex-marine-corps-harrier-pilot-who-worked-in-china-has-been-arrested

I guess this guy didn't get the memo that he was supposed to be a double-agent before (allegedly) helping the Chinese...

 

[Biff_T]

47 minutes ago, StoleIt said:

https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/ex-marine-corps-harrier-pilot-who-worked-in-china-has-been-arrested

I guess this guy didn't get the memo that he was supposed to be a double-agent before (allegedly) helping the Chinese...

 

Bummer.  I hope it's not true and if so that sucks. Or maybe, just maybe, they're doing the old "fake arrest" and Nicholas Cage will save the day after providing the US government with information how to make better human trafficking CBTs.   

Pitch forks back out!   

[arg]

15 hours ago, FLEA said:

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2022/10/23/retired-military-officials-are-finding-high-paying-jobs-saudi-government-and-can-make-7-figure.html/amp

 

Sort of on the topic. 

That's been going on since at least the 80s

[Clark Griswold]

Ex USMC Harrier dude arrested in Australia and to be extradited for maybe too much helping

https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/ex-marine-corps-harrier-pilot-who-worked-in-china-has-been-arrested


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[FLEA]

https://www.foxnews.com/us/former-us-marine-pilot-accused-conspiracy-training-chinese-pilots

 

Well we have answers on whether Americans were involved now. 

[FLEA]

3 hours ago, FLEA said:

https://www.foxnews.com/us/former-us-marine-pilot-accused-conspiracy-training-chinese-pilots

 

Well we have answers on whether Americans were involved now. 

I'm really curious how they are going to make the case for arms export control act. I've touched issues like this before but my understanding is the government would have to prove that he gave the Chinese materials that were protected as intellectual property tied to a very specific weapon system related to US inventory under the act. Doesnt necessarily need to be classified. That sounds like a reach since he certainly didn't teach the Chinese how to land on US carriers. But admittedly I'm not an expert on this topic. 

My experience before was discussing issues with foreign allies in Asia reselling technology we sold to them to other Asian partners, which is also a violation of the act. We try to hold allies accountable for that but most of them just pretend to care then don't care because they are their own country. 

Edited December 14, 2022 by FLEA

[FLEA]

3 hours ago, FLEA said:

I'm really curious how they are going to make the case for arms export control act. I've touched issues like this before but my understanding is the government would have to prove that he gave the Chinese materials that were protected as intellectual property tied to a very specific weapon system related to US inventory under the act. Doesnt necessarily need to be classified. That sounds like a reach since he certainly didn't teach the Chinese how to land on US carriers. But admittedly I'm not an expert on this topic. 

My experience before was discussing issues with foreign allies in Asia reselling technology we sold to them to other Asian partners, which is also a violation of the act. We try to hold allies accountable for that but most of them just pretend to care then don't care because they are their own country. 

So I talked with a JAG friend of mine who worked in PACOM as an international lawyer. Her take was the Arms Export Control Act applies to goods and SERVICES rendered to foreign militaries, normally requires licensing. The US claims enormous jurisdiction over all US citizens in the matter, even those operating privately overseas. 

[filthy_liar]

7 minutes ago, FLEA said:

So I talked with a JAG friend of mine who worked in PACOM as an international lawyer. Her take was the Arms Export Control Act applies to goods and SERVICES rendered to foreign militaries, normally requires licensing. The US claims enormous jurisdiction over all US citizens in the matter, even those operating privately overseas.

JAG friend.  "Her take."  Volumes right there.  I'm not an INDOPACOM expert, sounds like you actually are, but the second you mentioned a JAG, I turned the volume down.  I found that if you are in a shooting match, which we are not with INDOPACOM, but if you find yourself in one of those, the JAG is the furthermost concern from your mind. Honest question, when has a JAG ever produced any kind of execute value info?  If one of your troops are in trouble all a JAG can do is offer you a laundry list of horseshit info that is highly invaluable. They can't tell you to do anything, all they can do is offer their advice.  Which is a laundry list of horseshit info that your wing commander is going to tell you, no we're not going to do that. And the ADC pads their resume.  JAGs love to get into ROE discussions.  Because they are not accountable for people's lives. JAGs are some of the most useless creatures I've seen in the AF.  Besides Navs and WSOs of course.

[FLEA]

On 12/13/2022 at 8:52 PM, filthy_liar said:

JAG friend.  "Her take."  Volumes right there.  I'm not an INDOPACOM expert, sounds like you actually are, but the second you mentioned a JAG, I turned the volume down.  I found that if you are in a shooting match, which we are not with INDOPACOM, but if you find yourself in one of those, the JAG is the furthermost concern from your mind. Honest question, when has a JAG ever produced any kind of execute value info?  If one of your troops are in trouble all a JAG can do is offer you a laundry list of horseshit info that is highly invaluable. They can't tell you to do anything, all they can do is offer their advice.  Which is a laundry list of horseshit info that your wing commander is going to tell you, no we're not going to do that. And the ADC pads their resume.  JAGs love to get into ROE discussions.  Because they are not accountable for people's lives. JAGs are some of the most useless creatures I've seen in the AF.  Besides Navs and WSOs of course.

I have no idea where to even begin with this? Have you ever worked in a targeting cell? Like..... no man, you don't need to listen to a JAG, it is your decision..... but if you have that mindset, don't cry when interpol takes you into custody on vacation in France because you committed a war crime... I don't know what to tell you, lol.

Your attitude comes off as "my job would be a whole lot easier if I could just break the law to do it." I mean, no shit man, that's everyone. That's why we have the laws. Because when we don't people break them and do worse stuff just to make their job slightly more easy. Ask SBF, dude thought managing a $30B crypto fund was super easy without laws or lawyers....

 

[uhhello]

Wow 

https://open.spotify.com/episode/406fOiiKMU0ot5AS1AIwve?si=_lSA-vKATgajvSWgis3uqg&context=spotify%3Ashow%3A4rOoJ6Egrf8K2IrywzwOMk

 

Edited January 8, 2023 by uhhello

[Bob Uecker]

Zeihan is one of the smartest and most objective analysts out there today. His books are great reads, and his lectures and newsletters are really insightful.

[nsplayr]

 

WTF is this memo real??

[pawnman]

4 minutes ago, nsplayr said:

 

WTF is this memo real??

I wish every MAJCOM commander were as focused as Mini. 

[nsplayr]

😬 I was not saying WTF as in “wow I love it.” Maybe the guy is great, I don’t know him or even of him at all.

I mean mission-focus is one thing, but wishcasting war with China specifically in 2025 is irresponsible. Thanks for your random wag political analysis sir, maybe keep that stuff to yourself or just create a BO.net account so you can vent.

Also when he wrote (sic) “empty a clip” and “aim for the head” lolol. Ok John Wayne 😂 they are Chinese, not zombies.

I would definitely not want to be the US ambassador to China rn having to explain why a 4-star is saying stuff like this in widely distributed memos…

[uhhello]

"Fire a clip into a 7 meter target, Aim for the head".  I'm dying here.  

[Sua Sponte]

“We will fight in 2025.” Pretty big stones for a GO to say that about the #1 adversary state when he isn’t even the CSAF, let alone the Chairman. 

[BFM this]

1 hour ago, nsplayr said:

WTF is this memo real??

That's gotta be a leak of a draft that was never meant to see the light of day.

"KC-135 units will coordinate to provide a conceptual means of air delivering 100 off-the-shelf size and type UAVs from a single aircraft."

That right there was a spitball idea from the back of the peanut gallery, maybe got put up on the whiteboard for discussion purposes, but should have not made it onto paper.

OTS UAV = no legs.  Which means if delivered by air, is done OH or near the target, so...KC-135 means uncontested airspace, which flies in the face of the rest of the memo.

 

...Duffle Blog?

[Prozac]

“Crew servicing/forklift training”:  You pilots have gotta learn how to load those 100 UAVs on the tanker. We’ll be developing a technique whereby we depressurize and open the cargo bay in flight so we can deploy the things over the battlefield. You will then enter an orbit pattern over enemy forces, open the cockpit window, and “empty the clip” of your M9 into the heads of our enemies.  We are calling this concept “gunship lite”. Oh and one more thing men; you will be doing all of this single pilot. Any questions? No? Good. Now, move out, we’re going to war boys! 

[nsplayr]

45 minutes ago, BFM this said:

That's gotta be a leak of a draft that was never meant to see the light of day.

"KC-135 units will coordinate to provide a conceptual means of air delivering 100 off-the-shelf size and type UAVs from a single aircraft."

That right there was a spitball idea from the back of the peanut gallery, maybe got put up on the whiteboard for discussion purposes, but should have not made it onto paper.

Yea that was another head-scratcher. Like, sure work on developing that capability if it can be made viable but it ain’t gonna happen in the next 90 days or probably even before his made-up war with China in 2025.

[Sua Sponte]

50 minutes ago, BFM this said:

That's gotta be a leak of a draft that was never meant to see the light of day.

"KC-135 units will coordinate to provide a conceptual means of air delivering 100 off-the-shelf size and type UAVs from a single aircraft."

That right there was a spitball idea from the back of the peanut gallery, maybe got put up on the whiteboard for discussion purposes, but should have not made it onto paper.

OTS UAV = no legs.  Which means if delivered by air, is done OH or near the target, so...KC-135 means uncontested airspace, which flies in the face of the rest of the memo.

 

...Duffle Blog?

100 UAVs with six pallet positions? Good luck 😂

[Sua Sponte]

19 minutes ago, Prozac said:

“Crew servicing/forklift training”:  You pilots have gotta learn how to load those 100 UAVs on the tanker. We’ll be developing a technique whereby we depressurize and open the cargo bay in flight so we can deploy the things over the battlefield. You will then enter an orbit pattern over enemy forces, open the cockpit window, and “empty the clip” of your M9 into the heads of our enemies.  We are calling this concept “gunship lite”. Oh and one more thing men; you will be doing all of this single pilot. Any questions? No? Good. Now, move out, we’re going to war boys! 

Just like booms have no business critiquing flying, pilots have no business loading cargo. They can barely load crew bags without moderately fucking it up.

[the g-man]

“We will fight in 2025.” Pretty big stones for a GO to say that about the #1 adversary state when he isn’t even the CSAF, let alone the Chairman. 

Good thing my adsc expires 2024


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[uhhello]

Wrong letterhead. Rejected 

[Danger41]

So back in the day, AFSOC started doing a thing called “Air Commando Field Course” which involved tactical driving, shooting, clearing buildings, emergency medicine, etc. We all scoffed it with typical aircrew knowitallism (see above) and how all these people wanted to play GI Joe etc. Fast forward to Iraq 2015 and I found myself in a Hilux, with body armor, loaded M4’s and M9’s, and civilian clothes with another pilot driving to the Consulate that had gotten bombed the previous day and I was wishing I’d spent a little more time paying attention. 
 

Or Kabul when everything went to shit and aircrew guys had to apply similar skills to break into structures and clear them to get food when the people working it said “F this, I’m out”. More stories like that will come out from that deployment and I have the utmost respect for those folks, but they weren’t anything but motivated type A winners making shit happen. Mobility folks can do the same stuff if they’d just stop with the GD pessimism about everything.

From my outside perspective, I love Gen Minihan’s whole program and hope that AMC embraces the urgency and importance of their role in this fight. Easily the most important MAJCOM in this scenario. 

[Prozac]

3 minutes ago, Danger41 said:

So back in the day, AFSOC started doing a thing called “Air Commando Field Course” which involved tactical driving, shooting, clearing buildings, emergency medicine, etc. We all scoffed it with typical aircrew knowitallism (see above) and how all these people wanted to play GI Joe etc. Fast forward to Iraq 2015 and I found myself in a Hilux, with body armor, loaded M4’s and M9’s, and civilian clothes with another pilot driving to the Consulate that had gotten bombed the previous day and I was wishing I’d spent a little more time paying attention. 
 

Or Kabul when everything went to shit and aircrew guys had to apply similar skills to break into structures and clear them to get food when the people working it said “F this, I’m out”. More stories like that will come out from that deployment and I have the utmost respect for those folks, but they weren’t anything but motivated type A winners making shit happen. Mobility folks can do the same stuff if they’d just stop with the GD pessimism about everything.

From my outside perspective, I love Gen Minihan’s whole program and hope that AMC embraces the urgency and importance of their role in this fight. Easily the most important MAJCOM in this scenario. 

I’m all for more focus on the mission, esprit de corps, and treating military members like warfighters. Doesn’t mean the pendulum has to swing to absurdity. Single pilot tankers launching a hundred UAVs into the fight is a bit much. How about AMC just shifts focus back to flying/mission basics for a while & see how that works before crafting grand “outside the box” schemes to utilize platforms in ways they were never designed to operate?