God and Country

According to a few sites supportive of the MRFF, Michael Weinstein was recently a speaker at the US Air Force’s Air Command and Staff College (ACSC) at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama.  There is little public information on the visit, except that which MRFF allies have released.  In one email, a supporter — who is an Air Force officer — described a less than supportive environment in the “Q and A”:  Read more…

US Air Force Maj. Caleb Nimmo became the first American to fly the Soviet-export Mi-35 Hind on a combat mission.  In what appears to be an eclectic career, the Major has also flown UH-1s, T-6 Texans, and the MV-22 Osprey.

According to the official Air Force article, the Air Force flies the Mi-35 as an “enemy” during Red Flag.  Nimmo learned to fly the Hind from a civilian contractor in the US and received additional training with the Czech Republic.

A recent Navy news release notes the beginning of “naval aviator” (ie, pilot) training in its new T-6B.  The Navy has had the T-6A for some time, but only recently acquired the upgraded version.

The T-6 Texan II program was intended to be a joint effort between the Navy and Air Force to develop a common pilot training aircraft.  In fact, the development program was even entitled the Joint Primary Aircraft Training System (JPATS).

After receiving 47 T-6As, however, it appears the Navy has decided to obtain the rest of its fleet as T-6Bs, which have flat screen displays, advanced avionics, a HUD, and advanced controls.  It will ultimately fly over 300 T-6 airframes.  The Air Force, which has no current plans to acquire the T-6B, will have approximately 450 T-6As.

While the Air Force is often maligned for its reliance on technology, it is far from the only service to do so.  US Navy vessels boast some of the most advanced technology in the world on several fronts, and the US Army is no slacker either.  A recent report noted that Special Forces will soon be fielding the XM-25.

The XM-25 is a 25mm projectile rifle that uses a computed sight to determine the range to the target; it then programs the projectile to airburst above Read more…

Previous articles have noted that US forces have taken the advantage of the unique opportunities to see once-in-a-lifetime sights while deployed to Iraq.  Another recent trip to the Ziggurat of Ur near Talil, Iraq, highlighted that these trips are certainly not mere MWR outings:

Since the ziggurat was located outside COB Adder, Soldiers convoyed to the site in Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles. Read more…

A local news story documents the efforts of Utah National Guard Chaplain (Maj) Gaylon Springer, and contains interesting comments about the role of Chaplains and religion in the military.

“I’m in charge of sin and stupidity and sometimes that’s a big job in the military,” Springer said, laughing.

He described the typical flow of spiritual needs during many military deployments:  Read more…

Updated with video, see below.

A few days ago it was Michael Weinstein’s lawyer’s turn to stick his foot in the mouth of the MRFF.  Randal Mathis (of Mathis and Donheiser) is reportedly representing Specialist Zachari Klawonn in an as-yet undefined legal fashion against the Army.  (Mathis is currently suing the CGFC and Chaplain Gordon Klingenschmitt on behalf of Weinstein.)  Read more…

Ret. Col. Walker “Bud” “Honest John” Mahurin, credited with 24.25 kills in both WWII theatres and the Korean War, passed away on May 11 at the age of 91.  Besides shooting down aircraft in three theatres, Mahurin had the dubious honor of being shot down in each one.  He escaped France with the aid of the French resistance (as did Chuck Yeager).  Yeager talked his way into continuing to fly in Europe (despite his exposure to the underground); Mahurin went to the Pacific theatre instead.  In the later conflict, Mahurin was a Korean POW for 16 months.

For those who are wondering, “honest John” Read more…

Thanks to an anonymous donor, the reward leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for stealing the World War I memorial in the Mojave desert is now $125,000.  The cross memorial was cut from its foundation, and an unverified letter provided to a local paper claimed responsibility.

Thus far, the thief has found no quarter even among those who agree with his perspective, if not his actions.  It will be interesting to see if the person who claims to act with honorable intent continues to do so.

The F-15C Eagle, the US Air Force’s only dedicated air superiority fighter, has just seen its last class of students graduate, at least on the active duty side.  The five-man B-course graduated May 14th.  The Oregon National Guard will continue to train Guard pilots, at least until the Air Force finally retires the Eagle.

Their graduation speaker was retired Brigadier General Steve Ritchie, the only Air Force officer to become an ace in Vietnam.

The Tyndall B-course was also the scene for American Fighter Pilot (reviewed here), a short-lived “reality” series following a trio of students through training.

The US military has been in an “advisory” role to the Afghan military for years.  An interesting article at the Air Force Times notes some of the challenges occurring even now, as the deadline for removing forces from Afghanistan begins to approach:

Even after more than a year, the 500 Afghan airmen in Kandahar still grapple with the basics — even personal hygiene. The dining hall workers still have to be told to wash their hands before they handle food.  The pilots sometimes refuse to land their Mi-17s [helicopters] because they’re too tired, forcing their American advisers to take the controls.

Sounds like they still need a little work.

An article at the Stars and Stripes talks about the impact to Airmen due to the Air Force’s decision to reduce the number of Chaplains (previously noted).

Chaplain (Maj. Gen.) Cecil Richardson, Air Force chief of chaplains, said he understands the need for force-shaping, but laments trimming chaplains during wartime.

“We’re fully engaged in the desert,” he said, “and we’re fully engaged stateside.”

Interestingly, the Air Force has a mandated increase of “mental health positions” at the same time it is cutting Chaplains.  Also, the Army is actually increasing its number of Chaplains, and it already has a 350-1 Chaplain-to-Soldier ratio, while the Navy expects to increase its number of Chaplains from its current 700-1 ratio (compared to 785-1 in the Air Force).  As previously noted, Chaplains in some Air Force units are already stretched thin.

As noted earlier, STS-131 pilot LtCol James Dutton was the top 1991 USAFA graduate, flew the F-22 as a test pilot, and is also a Christian and member of OCF.  On May 7th Dutton spoke to a dining out of the USAFA Astro department faculty and cadets.  Col Marty France, the Astro department head, had high praise for Dutton:

Col. Jim Dutton is exactly the kind of officer every cadet in this room should aspire to be… Read more…

The US military Chaplaincy staff at Camp Liberty, Baghdad, Iraq, started a “Mountaintop Experience” to help local Americans “strengthen their resiliency.”  A significant group of servicemembers and civilians meets atop Signal Hill at 0500, overlooking the base, and prays together.

Col. Mike Lembke, the Chaplain, and Sgt Michael Lee, the Chaplain’s assistant, said:

“Spiritual resiliency is the individual ability to exercise your faith on a daily basis so you are able to understand, or you are able integrate the joys and sorrows of each day into your life,” Lembke said…

When a person has a solid, spiritual foundation, they understand that someone has everything under control and they can lean on that during the tough times instead of relying on themselves to make through, Lee said.

The group is made up of many from the base, including, as shown in the picture Read more…

The Alabama National Guard is a prime example of the shortage of military Chaplains (though the Air Force is currently reducing its Chaplaincy ranks).  With 5 Chaplains deployed, the 11,000 member state guard has 12 available Chaplains, or 1 Chaplain for every 900 troops.  It has no Roman Catholic priests or Jewish Rabbis.  A local newspaper article has a good discussion on how Chaplains can deal with the shortage of faith-specific leaders, and it demonstrates the pluralistic support of the military:  Read more…