Argghhh!

Although I would have failed the tactics exams of my day had I suggested that using artillery as a sniping tool was a good idea... the times they are a changin'! Golf Battery, 2nd Battalion, 11th Marines, out of Camp Pendleton, Calif., dropped the 155mm M982 Excalibur round on insurgents 36 kilometers away — more than 22 miles — in Helmand province. The strike was launched Feb. 12 from an M777 howitzer on a mountainside at Forward Operating Base Zeebrugge, in Kajaki, to neighboring...

This is an unusual day for the Medal. And a good day. There is only *one* Medal awarded for actions on this day - and the recipient lived to receive his Medal!

Open post for those with something to share, updated through the day. New, complete posts come in below this one. Note: If trackbacking, please acknowledge this post in your post. That's only polite. ********************* For something much more even-handed than I would have expected from either Der Spiegel or the man interviewed, I think this is a must read: An Interview With Charles Krauthammer - SangerM ********************* A long lost WWI diary . History buffs wait with bated breath! H/t...

The Launchers. There were essentially 5 types of V-B launchers in US service. To minimize the time between adoption, production, and issuance, the V-B launcher and grenades were adopted as-is. The only initial changes needed were the dimensional changes required to adapt to US rifle barrel/front sight profiles. When US production caught up there were 4 US- specific Marks of launcher adopted, though the Mark II was never manufactured. 1. The original was the French launcher . While US producers were...

There were at least three types of grenade made for the V-B system. First, was the standard HE grenade , which US industry produced over 20 million of for the war. Next was a message grenade that was used by the French, but rejected by the US. Lastly (that I’m aware of) was a pyrotechnic grenade , used as a carrier for flares, star clusters, and smoke.

Artillerymen with Battery A, 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment fire their Paladins during a live fire training exercise at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, June 20. Photo by Capt. John Farmer

His "Osama bounce" wasn't that large, nor did it last that long , and it didn't really pull up his "performance on the economy" numbers. This despite the hacks in the White House Spin Room tossing OPSEC under the bus in order to sex up the story, regardless of downstream consequences to the people who actually, you know, take *actual* risks with their lives and health. But hey, they're volunteers and expendable to Teh Agenda. Regardless of all that - here at Castle...

Here we are at Memorial Day again. The ninth since these ramparts were erected here in cyberspace. Per the Governor's directive, the flags will fly at half-staff until noon, when they will head back up the pole. It was another mixed year here at the Castle. . We did fewer memorial posts this year than past years at the Castle. But my god, we weren't ready to say goodbye to Lex... They're gathered here, In Memoriam . There is always Mom and Dad . It's in living memory of my mother...