FReeper Canteen ~ Part XI of Japan: War, Warfare and Weapons ~ June 15, 2004

Victorian.Fortunecity.com ^ | June 15, 2004 | LaDivaLoca

[Lady Jag]

run for the hills on my birthday. BUT they get further away each year.

That's okay. See the hill. Take the hill. And when you start going downhill, you pick up speed.

[MoJo2001]

Yucky weather. Sure. Things are well here. The last week of school. How can you not love that? Hehe!

Anyways, I've gotta go get the boys to bed. Be back in a bit!

[Saint Lucie]

Yeah it was me, gee sorry all, just venting, my feelings got a little bit hurt.

I'm kinda like that, loyal and honest.

[Lady Jag]

And the company ain't bad either. LOL!

If they were my jogging companions? What would you do? My mind just stalled.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Sgt. 1st Class Jeff Myhre, the Program Executive Office NCOIC, sports the Army Combat Uniform, the recently approved wear for Soldiers. It contains 20 new improvements.

The Army unveiled a redesigned combat uniform with a digital camouflage pattern that looks strikingly different from Soldiers' current battle dress uniforms.

Army unveils new combat uniform, replace Battle Dress Uniform (BDU)

by Sgt. 1st Class Marcia Triggs

WASHINGTON - The Army yesterday, on its 229th birthday, officially unveiled its new combat uniform designed with major input by the Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) Corps and enlisted Soldiers, and tested by Stryker Brigade Soldiers in Iraq since October 2003.

Army senior leadership introduced the Army Combat Uniform (ACU) during an Army Birthday Pentagon courtyard cake-cutting ceremony. Soldiers displayed and also suited-up in the wrinkle-free uniform with a digitized camouflauge pattern.

Three different versions of the ACU have been developed, and more than 10,000 uniforms have been produced and battle-tested in the sands of Iraq and at Army training centers. Even more are on American production lines to be issued by April 2005 to Soldiers in deploying units. Current fielding plans call for fielding to the total Army by December 2007, said officials from the Program Executive Office, known as PEO Soldier.

“This isn’t about a cosmetic redesign of the uniform,” said Col. John Norwood, the project manager for Clothing and Individual Equipment. “It’s a functionality change of the uniform that will improve the ability of Soldiers to execute their combat mission.”

Every change was made for a reason. The bottom pockets on the jacket were removed and placed on the shoulder sleeves so Soldiers can have access to them while wearing body armor. The pockets were also tilted forward so that they are easily accessible. Buttons were replaced with zippers that open from the top and bottom to provide comfort while wearing armor.

There were 18 changes made to the uniform, to include removing the color black and adapting the digital print from the Marine Corps uniform to meet the needs of the Army, said Sgt. 1st Class Jeff Myhre, the Clothing and Individual Equipment noncommissioned officer in charge.

The Army's Natick Laboratory in Natick, Mass., took the original digital pattern to the next level by developing a pattern for world-wide theaters to encompass both the BDU and DCU requirements.

Black is no longer useful on the uniform because it is not a color found in woodland areas, Myhre said. The current colors on the ACU are green and sandy brown. The pattern is not a 100-percent solution in every environment, Mhyre said, but a good solution across the board.

Sgt. Maj. of the Army Kenneth Preston, is one of the ACU’s biggest supporters. Major command sergeants major a chance to see the uniform and give advice toward the final version.

“We have not made a major change to our uniforms since the BDUs were introduced in the early 1980s,” Preston said. “This new uniform performs well in multiple environments. "Its new pockets and color designs are a result of feedback from Soldiers in combat. Every modification made on the uniform was designed with a specific purpose and not just for the sake of change. It's only fitting that the next generation of Army uniforms be designed to meet actual wartime requirements."

~snip~

In addition to the overall pattern and color changes, the ACU changes include:

1. Mandarin collar that can be worn up or down

2. Rank insignia affixed above right chest pocket

3. Velcro for wearing unit patch, skill tabs and recognition devices

4. Zippered front closure

5. Elbow pouch for internal elbow pad inserts

6. Knee pouch for internal knee pad inserts

7. Elastic leg cuff

8. Tilted chest pockets with Velcro closure

9. Three-slot pen pocket on bottom of sleeve

10. Velcro sleeve cuff closure

11. Shoulder pockets with Velcro

12. Forward tilted cargo pockets

13. Integrated blouse bellows for increased upper body mobility

14. Integrated Friend or Foe Identification Square on both left and right shoulder pocket flap.

15. Bellowed calf storage pocket on left and right leg

16. Moisture-wicking desert tan t-shirt

17. Patrol Cap with double thick bill and internal pocket

18. Improved hot-weather desert boot or temperate-weather desert boot.

The rest of the story

What say you guys?

[Darksheare]

LOL!
When in doubt, use maximuum font clout.

[trussell]

The fridge was a goner!! But when the new one got ordered, the web page said they would take the old unit for disposal. When the deliver crew got here, they said that wasn't true. Oh well, my landlords said they would take it but I would have to pay an extra $50.00 on my rent next month.

[Darksheare]

Yikes!
You realise I'll be hiding under YOUR chair, no offense intended, but that way they'll get someone else first.

[Lady Jag]

When in doubt, use maximuum font clout.

I have a problem doing one thing at the same time, sort of like compulsive juggling. Then I mess up, usually pretty good, too. It's okay, I'm used to it.

[HiJinx]

Hold off a bit, will the city do a special pick-up? Ours does one every Wednesday, we give 'em a call and they pick up whatever you have for a flat $10 fee...

[Darksheare]

I try not to mess up, but as someone once observed about me once [and she was poking fun at me because she could]: "When I screw up, it isn't just a little, it's spectacular in it's scope of destruction and even at times pyrotechnical display."

[Lady Jag]

Do you have a DPW you can phone? Any classifieds in the paper for used fridges, motors? It might be slim, but out here I've seen classified ads of people who claim they'll do it cheap. It's pretty common to have to pay for removal, so why not see if you can get it done cheaper. Maybe if you put off your landlord shopping for a cheaper price, he'll come down on his.

The place that sold you the fridge, do they advertise anywhere, paper/phone book, about removing appliances for free?

[Kathy in Alaska]

Yippee!! Put the old one on the back porch and seal it shut. Then just leave it there. Do you have Goodwill, or Salvation Army who might want it to try to repair?

[68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub]

"Put the old one on the back porch and seal it shut"

Make sure you seal it so no kids can get in it.
Or remove the door and make sure no kids can get trapped in it.

[HiJinx]

Yeah, well, what about kids who unseal it and hide in it to see if they can scare Mom and Dad...?

Have you ever witnessed cold fury?

[Kathy in Alaska]

Section Sgt. Kyle Emmer and Chief Warrant Officer Jim Kennedy check communications frequencies on the OH-58D’s instrument panel before a flight. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Gary Harp

Before arriving in Afghanistan, the OH-58Ds rode in the belly of a much larger aircraft, the C-17. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Gary Harp

Scouts Introduce Kiowas to Afghan Skies

By U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Terry L. Welch
105th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, June 14, 2004 — For the first time, the Army's OH-58D Kiowa Warrior is taking to the skies above Afghanistan.

Soldiers from 3rd Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment recently deployed to Kandahar Airfield from Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, looking to fill their role as a combat multiplier for ground forces fighting the Global War on Terrorism.

It was commonly thought throughout the Kiowa community that there was no mission for the small observation helicopters here. But these soldiers are here to prove this idea wrong, said 1st Sgt. Robert Kosutic, Troop B, 3rd Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, one of two troops that fly the OH-58D.

"I talked to the 10th Mountain guys and they said, 'We can't wait until you get here,' " he said.

The 58D does seem well-matched to the mission in Afghanistan. Smaller and quieter than other Army helicopters in theater - the ever-present CH-47 Chinooks and UH-60 Blackhawks - the Kiowas are designed to move close to the ground and, most importantly, to actually see what's down there. Each is equipped with a "ball" mounted above its rotors, which offers pilots and commanders in the field several ways to view the battlefield and, therefore, the ability to better define it.

However, there are two parts in the 58Ds that are more important than all the technical gadgetry tacked onto it. "The minds in the cockpit make the mission," said Capt. Jeremy Phillips, Troop B commander. "The pilots are all trained scouts, whether it means they're finding something that just looks off, or the 'horde' coming over the hill.

In order to get pilots' eyes on the details of terrain, flying lower isn't enough. "I flew in a Blackhawk down here to Kandahar going about 120 knots from point A to point B," said pilot Chief Warrant Officer Steve Weaver. "We go a lot slower."

As a former enlisted infantryman, Weaver appreciates what that means to the troops on the ground - eyes in the sky that can both find the enemy early and provide ground troops with close air support, which is the second thing that makes the Kiowa so useful. Though it's primarily a reconnaissance aircraft, the 58D can deliver missiles and .50 caliber machine gun rounds in support of ground troops. It also has the ability to electronically "hand off" targets to other precision-guided weapons systems.

The rest of the story

[Kathy in Alaska]

Point taken. The door should be removed. If kids want in, they WILL get in.

[Soaring Feather]

If I followed your suggestion I would be jailed in a New York second. :-(

[Lady Jag]

it's spectacular in it's scope of destruction and even at times pyrotechnical display.

That's beautiful, man; I like big noises and bright lights. Does that apply to your shopping, too?

[Lady Jag]