Apacheclips Forums

Training Missile Falls from U.S. Army Helo in Texas

jamieooh — Fri, 18 May 2012 00:06:55 GMT

Training Missile Falls from U.S. Army Helo in Texas
May. 17, 2012 - 10:57AM |
By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

WASHINGTON � A U.S. Army Apache helicopter accidentally dropped an inactive missile over central Texas, forcing dozens of homes to be evacuated, officials said May 16.

No one was injured in the incident in which residents in Killeen told police they saw an object falling from an AH-64 attack helicopter into a field late May 15, according to a statement from the army�s Fort Hood base near Killeen.

�Killeen Police Department responded and located the object which was impaled into the surface of the ground. Officials immediately cordoned off the area,� the statement said.

No one was injured in the accident, but local media said about 100 homes were evacuated.

An explosive disposal team found an inert M36 missile, a dummy version of a Hellfire missile used for training, officials said.

�The M36 is an inert training device without a warhead or propulsion system and is designed to enable crews to simulate Hellfire missile engagements in the cockpit without launching from the aircraft,� the Fort Hood statement said.

The dummy missile, just like a real Hellfire weapon, weighs about 100 pounds and is 64 long.

The cause of the incident was under investigation, said Col. Howard Arey, III Corps aviation officer.

Pakistan Air Force Collision Kills 4 Pilots

jamieooh — Thu, 17 May 2012 23:59:28 GMT

Pakistan Air Force Collision Kills 4 Pilots
May. 17, 2012 - 11:02AM |
By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

ISLAMABAD � Two Pakistan air force light aircraft collided midair on May 17 and killed four pilots on a routine training mission northwest of Islamabad, police said.

The crash, which was the sixth crash in seven months and the second in a week, raised concerns over the safety of its largely Chinese and locally made fleet.

The cause of the accident was not immediately clear.

One of the two-seater propeller Mushshak planes crashed on a house and injured a girl and an elderly man. The second fell in nearby fields in the Rashkai area, 160 kilometers (100 miles) northwest of the capital.

Another police official, Hayatullah, who uses only one name, confirmed the casualties.

On May 11, a fighter jet crashed near the southwestern town of Sonmiani, but the pilot managed to eject safely.

The Pakistan Air Force has a fleet of Chinese aircraft including F-7PGs and A-5s, plus U.S.-built F-16s and French Mirages. It recently acquired medium-tech JF-17, or Thunder jets, manufactured jointly by China and Pakistan.

India Inducts 15 MiG-29Ks for Carrier Operations

jamieooh — Thu, 17 May 2012 23:57:25 GMT

India Inducts 15 MiG-29Ks for Carrier Operations
May. 17, 2012 - 12:22PM |
By Vivek Raghuvanshi
NEW DELHI � Fifteen new Russian-made MiG-29K fighter jets have been inducted for Indian Navy carrier-borne operations, Indian Defence Minister, A.K. Antony told the country�s Parliament. These aircraft will operate from the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, formerly called the Admiral Gorshkov when in Russian service, which is planned for induction in December.

Antony also said a contract has been concluded to acquire an additional 29 MiG-29Ks to strengthen the air combat capability of the Navy.

India placed an order for 16 MiG-29Ks for $650 million in 2004 to be used on the Russian-made Vikramaditya. A repeat order for $1.5 billion was placed in early 2010 to purchase the 29 additional MiG-29Ks. The Vikramaditya is undergoing a refit in Russia

A trainer version of the MiG-29K, which was part of the aircraft carrier deal, crashed June 23, 2011, in southern Russia, killing its two-member crew. Although no details are known of the probe into the crash. the finalization of the contract for additional MiG-29Ks suggests Indian officials are satisfied with the aircraft, said an Indian Defence Ministry official.

So, know anything about Africa?

DefensorFortis — Thu, 17 May 2012 22:32:38 GMT

Are there any subject matter experts on Africa? I read that a Brigade from 10th Mountain is going to be deployed to support Africa Command. I hope to God it's 2nd Brigade :) So if they say Africa or bust, I want to know a little bit about the region.

Sniper heard 'man down' after firing

jamieooh — Thu, 17 May 2012 00:37:05 GMT

Soldiers stationed at a remote observation post were not aware of the existence of another post where a British soldier was fatally shot, an inquest heard.

Lance Corporal Michael Pritchard, who was 22, was killed by a gunshot wound to the ribcage believed to have been fired from the remote observation post, known as a sangar, by Lance Corporal Malcolm Graham, of The Royal Scots Borderers, 1st Battalion. He thought he was shooting at Taliban insurgents, the hearing at Eastbourne Town Hall was told.

LCpl Pritchard, who was on secondment with 4th Battalion The Rifles, was deployed to the observation post N30 on December 20 2009 to watch a blind spot on an access road, Route 611, in the Sangin area, central Helmand Province, Afghanistan, to make sure Taliban insurgents did not plant improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in the road, the court was told.

Rifleman Ainsley Nash, who was deployed to the remote sangar that night, said he spotted a heat source using viper night sight at 7.45pm which he believed to be a human figure crouching or kneeling in the road, the court heard.

Mr Nash, who was with Rifleman Nathan Bennett and Lance Corporal Craig Knight, assumed the heat source was on the highway when he saw a second heat source moving towards the first, the inquest heard.

He said: "I recall LCpl Knight saying he had his eyes on the source and that there were two people in the area of the road. He tried to transmit this to the operations room over the radio.

"The comms with our Bowman radio was very difficult and it was not working."

Mr Knight asked Mr Nash to use his personal radio to contact Rifleman Steven Preece in the northern sangar so that he could relay the information about the heat sources to the operations room and ask whether they had permission to fire warning shots, the inquest was told.

Mr Preece told them they could not fire warning shots but they could let off mini flares, the court heard.

The soldiers then started having trouble with their personal radios, Mr Nash said.

He told the court he fired some illumes at the heat sources, making the assumption that someone was digging in the road to place an IED.

The soldiers let off more illumes and fired three to five rounds from a machine gun, the court heard.

He said Mr Bennett would have needed to get permission from his platoon commander to do this.

The inquest heard that Mr Graham and Corporal Jonathan Dolton arrived and Mr Graham set up his sniper rifle in the firing position.

The sniper fired warning shots while illume was fired and the next thing Mr Nash heard was "man down" over the radio.

Mr Bennett said he and Mr Knight believed the figures in the road to be hostile and fired warning shots under the Rules of Engagement, which meant they thought there was an imminent threat to life and they did not need permission to shoot.

He said a message was then relayed from the northern sangar that they could fire single shots only.

He told the court Mr Graham arrived with Mr Dolton and asked for crates to rest his rifle on as his bipod stand was broken.

Mr Bennett said he heard two single shots 30 seconds apart.

He said Mr Dolton told him he thought one of the heat sources had been hit.

Not long after they heard "man down" over the radio, he said.

He added: "LCpl Knight sat down and said he felt sick.

"The sniper then said: 'Don't tell me we have been shooting at our own blokes'.

"I said we could not have been as there was no one near the road."
http://www.bfbs.com/news/afghanistan...ing-57357.html

I hate Tampa

eaglethebeagle — Wed, 16 May 2012 00:03:22 GMT

http://bcove.me/ttd48uy1

I hate Tampa and Florida is a shit hole in general.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/secu...er-in-florida/

dammit...

goinloco1 — Tue, 15 May 2012 23:43:48 GMT

found out today i broke a rib just below my right collarbone. pretty much knew that for over a week before i went to the doc today. so, no doing much for 4-6 weeks as far as lifting anything or going to the range.
hurts like hell to cough or sneeze and its been throbbing all day. dont think shooting the 45-70 helped much sunday.
so I pretty much cant finish projects i needed to get done :(

Best Marijuana Argument Ever?

gazzthompson — Tue, 15 May 2012 17:43:57 GMT

This guy hits EVER fucking nail on EVERY fucking head.

Gunman kills top member of the Afghan peace council

jamieooh — Sun, 13 May 2012 14:36:36 GMT

Gunman kills top member of the Afghan peace council

KABUL, Afghanistan � An assassin armed with a silenced pistol shot dead a top member of the Afghan peace council Sunday at a traffic intersection in the nation's capital, police said. The killing strikes another blow to efforts to negotiate a political resolution to the decade-long war.

Arsala Rahmani was a former Taliban official who reconciled with the government and was active in trying to set up formal talks with the insurgents.

He was shot at an intersection in western Kabul by a gunman in a white Toyota Corolla while being driven to his office, said Mohammad Zahir, head of the city police's criminal investigation division. He did not have a bodyguard with him at the time.

"Only one shot was fired," Zahir said. "Our initial reports are that it was a pistol with a silencer. Rahmani died on the way to the hospital." Zahir said an investigation was under way.

The Taliban denied responsibility for the killing, although they had earlier indicated that they would target peace negotiators.

Rahmani was one of about 70 influential Afghans and former Taliban appointed by President Hamid Karzai to try to convince insurgent leaders to reconcile with the government.

The U.S. has backed the council's efforts to pull the Taliban into political discussions with Kabul as part of its strategy for reducing violence and turning over responsibility to Afghan forces so international combat troops can go home or move into support roles by the end of 2014.

But this effort suffered a major setback in September 2011 when former Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani, who was head of the peace council, was assassinated by a suicide bomber posing as a peace emissary from the Taliban.

The U.S. has its own contacts with the Taliban, but in March the militant organization said they were suspending contacts with the United States over what they said was a lack of progress in releasing Taliban prisoners from U.S. detention in Guantanamo.

The last substantive discussions between U.S. officials and Taliban representatives were in January, and both initiatives to build trust and move toward real peace talks are in limbo.

A year ago, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said the United States was launching a "diplomatic surge to move this conflict toward a political outcome."

The alternative to a political resolution is a protracted conflict that neither the war-weary Afghans, Americans or Europeans want or can afford.

On Twitter, the U.S. Embassy in Kabul called the assassination of another peace council member "a tragedy."

NATO praised Rahmani for "turning his back" on the insurgent movement and said his contributions will be missed.

"The only possible aim of this attack is to intimidate those, who like Rahmani, want to help make Afghanistan a better place for its citizens and the region," the coalition said in a statement.

Afghan Foreign Ministry spokesman Janan Mosazai said work toward reconciliation with the Taliban would continue despite Rahmani's killing.

"No one but the sworn enemies of peace in Afghanistan and the region would commit such a heinous act," he said in a statement.

Rahmani, who was in his 70s, served as deputy minister of higher education during the Taliban regime, which ruled Afghanistan for five years and sheltered Al Qaeda before being driven out of power in the U.S.-led invasion in late 2001. He reconciled with the government established in Kabul after the Taliban's fall and subsequently served in parliament.

Rahmani was one of several former members of the Taliban who were removed from a U.N. blacklist in July 2011. The decision by a U.N. committee eliminated a travel ban and an assets freeze against Rahmani and the others -- a move seen as key to promoting the peace effort.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said in a statement that his group had nothing to do with Rahmani's assassination.

When they announced the start of their annual "spring offensive" earlier this month, the Taliban said that members of the peace council -- who they view as government collaborators -- would be among their primary targets.

The offensive, which comes every year as the weather warms, normally leads to an increase in attacks as the insurgents seek to intimidate the government and retake territory lost over the winter.

Publicly, the leadership of the Taliban has said that it will not talk to the Afghan government, which it calls a puppet regime of the U.S. and its international partners. Privately, however, some representatives of the Taliban who are open to negotiating a settlement have met with U.S., Afghan and other international officials.

Rahmani, along with other members of the peace council, was trying to forge relations with those Taliban amenable to peace talks.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2012/05...#ixzz1ulFg7nte

"We need to take that frickin' hill!"

gazzthompson — Sun, 13 May 2012 14:31:09 GMT

Sgt. Tavis Delaney Awarded Silver Star for Afghanistan Ambush Heroics

Quote:

"Sir, I say we take that hill," he says. "We need to take that frickin' hill or we're going to play this game all day. You want to run up there with me? After this bomb goes off just charge them bitches? We got to. You guys want to go?"

Quote:

With his unit ambushed by more than 200 Taliban fighters and trapped in a firefight that lasted more than 13 hours, Sgt. Tavis Delaney went into hero mode. After coordinating a series of airstrikes, the Washington Air National Guardsman rallied his fellow soldiers for an uphill charge that was caught on camera.

And the best bit?

Quote:

Incredibly, more than 200 Taliban insurgents were killed during the battle, while U.S. troops incurred no casualties.

Read more and watch a video:

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/daily..._frickin_h.php

mind bender...

goinloco1 — Sun, 13 May 2012 07:49:44 GMT

no. matter. how. many. times. you. try. you. will. find. your. mind. pausing. while. reading. this. due. to. your. mind. perceiving. the. period. and. space. as. the. end. and. beginning. of. a. sentence.

Half of May, 2012

shatto — Sat, 12 May 2012 23:23:12 GMT

In San Francisco. Reckon carpenters hang out here?

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3...0/DSC06013.JPG
Tool Art by Hilti.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-y...0/DSC06512.JPG
Barnstormers Return!

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-d...0/DSC06828.JPG
License Plate: 4KISSES.

Aesop Confirmed. Mistletoe sucked the life out of the host Oak Tree and killed them both.
Remember; The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs?

OVERACHIEVERS. TOYOTA TACOMA PICKUPS.

A lift gate?

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-R...0/DSC06867.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-T...0/DSC06860.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-7...0/DSC06699.JPG
Serious grill ornament. Carved Horses.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-m...0/DSC06805.JPG

HOT ROD

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-X...0/DSC06832.JPG
Note the position of the rear view mirror. Yes, the GPS is almost directly in front of the driver.

Blast From ........ The 60's!

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-V...0/DSC06865.JPG
This puzzling building is in San Jose.

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-c...0/DSC06882.JPG
Wonder if they are performing Aaron Copland...

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-G...0/DSC06871.JPG
In front of the SFPD.

And I had a delivery at the Giants. Oh, it's tough, the places I have to go.

Old fart football

jamieooh — Fri, 11 May 2012 22:30:01 GMT

An old married couple no sooner hit the pillows when the old man passes gas and says, 'Seven Points.'

His wife rolls over and says, 'What in the world was that?'
The old man replied, 'its fart football.'

A few minutes later his wife lets one go and says, 'Touchdown, tie score...'

After about five minutes the old man lets another one go and says,
'Aha. I'm ahead 14 to 7.'

Not to be outdone the wife rips out another one and says,
'Touchdown, tie score.'

Five seconds go by and she lets out a little squeaker and says,
'Field goal, I lead 17 to 14.' Now the pressure is on the old man

He refuses to get beaten by a woman, so he strains real hard.
Since defeat is totally unacceptable, he gives it everything he's got, and accidentally shits in the bed.

The wife says, 'What the hell was that?'

The old man says, 'Half time, switch sides

Stupid, but a true story.

Sarge — Fri, 11 May 2012 05:32:15 GMT

I worked in building maintenance for Clatsop county Oregon. One night as I was taking a break in the deputies room in the Sherriff's office, a deputy told me this story.
The on duty deputy got a call about a home burglery.
Upon his arrival at the house, the woman took him into the kitchen.
She opened the freezer department and complained to the deputy that two of her male friends had robber her.
The item they stole?
Her cocaine.

Why I will never go to NYC.

BrendenF11 — Fri, 11 May 2012 03:49:27 GMT

I am a constitutionalist, my signature says it all. Here is why I will never go to NYC or support any politician, without GREAT other measures, which promotes giving the police, ATF, DEA, etc, which supports any kind of law like this. I have never heard of this law, atleast as far as I can remember, but this seriously irks my twinger.

http://www.silive.com/opinion/daniel...st_the_ny.html

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The New York City Police Department has been making more arrests and issuing more summonses on Staten Island�s North Shore as a result of individuals being stopped and frisked, an operation that�s drawn sharp criticism from the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) and a Staten Island City Council member.

The right of police officers to stop and frisk individuals in appropriate circumstances was established by the United States Supreme Court in 1968 in its landmark decision in Terry v. Ohio.

While some civil libertarians still question the soundness of the court�s ruling, as well as its potential for abuse, the decision makes perfect sense when measured against the exigencies faced by police officers on the beat.

View full size
On Oct. 31, 1963, Cleveland Police Officer Martin McFadden saw two men, Richard Chilton and John Terry, take turns walking past a particular store, looking in its window, and returning to a street corner where they conversed with each other. They did this at least 12 times.

McFadden testified that it seemed as if the two men were casing the store to pull a robbery, and that he feared that they had guns. After approaching them in front of the store and identifying himself, he asked for their names.

When they �mumbled something� in response, McFadden grabbed Terry, spun him around, and patted down the outside of his clothing. In the left breast pocket of Terry�s overcoat, he felt what turned out to be a .38 caliber revolver. A similar pat-down of the outside of Chilton�s overcoat revealed yet another revolver.

Both men sought to bar prosecutors from introducing the guns into evidence on the ground that they were the product of illegal searches and seizures.

The Supreme Court, however, held that the weapons were lawfully seized, declaring that even in instances where a police officer lacks probable cause to arrest an individual, �We cannot blind ourselves to the need for law enforcement officers to protect themselves and other prospective victims of violence.�

Therefore, the court continued, �when an officer is justified in believing that the individual whose suspicious behavior he is investigating at close range is armed and presently dangerous,� he may properly �conduct a carefully limited search of the outer clothing of such persons in an attempt to discover weapons which might be used to assault him.�

The Terry decision was written by Chief Justice Earl Warren, a liberal icon, and drew only one dissent.

RACIAL DISPARITIES

Both the NYCLU and Councilwoman Debi Rose, a Democrat who represents Staten Island�s North Shore, are criticizing the NYPD for stopping and frisking a disproportionate number of blacks and Hispanics.

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Last year, 53 percent of those stopped citywide were black, 34 percent were Hispanic, and 9 percent were white.

It is also true, however, that blacks and Hispanics constituted 94 percent of firearms arrestees in 2011. These were individuals from whom at least one firearm was recovered and, as a consequence, faced a dangerous weapon felony charge.

Blacks and Hispanics also constituted 89 percent of those arrested last year citywide for murder and non-negligent manslaughter, 88 percent of those arrested for rape, 81 percent for other felony sex crimes and 91 percent for robbery.

It is, of course, never proper for the police to stop an individual solely because of his race or ethnicity. Which is why the racial disparities in the NYPD�s stop and frisk statistics do raise legitimate questions.

They do not, however, compel the conclusion that city police are wrongfully profiling blacks and Hispanics. Among other plausible explanations is that groups that commit violent felonies in disproportionate numbers do, indeed, act suspiciously in similarly disproportionate numbers.

Ms. Rose also asked some odd questions about those stopped and frisked by the police.

�What are they being arrested for?� she wanted to know. �Are they low-level misdemeanor crimes? Possession of a joint?�

Put aside for a moment the fact that, according to Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly, stops-and-frisks have turned up over 8,000 weapons, including 819 guns citywide.

If Ms. Rose is suggesting that police ought to walk away from any criminal activity, she needs a reality check.

Her district has by far the highest crime rate on Staten Island. Besides the fact that most criminals cut their teeth on petty crimes, the last thing the career predators need to hear is that anything less than a felony is a free ride.

Ms. Rose�s questions are also irrelevant. The operative factor in stop-and-frisk cases is whether police reasonably believe that the individual is armed and dangerous, not the level of crime that he may or may not be committing.

Also, while she claims that many of her constituents strongly oppose the NYPD�s stop-and-frisk policies, the likelihood is that many more support it, even if they are reluctant to do so vocally.

Law-abiding people do not want to cede their communities to criminals.

Stop-and-frisk operations afford police officers meaningful protection while allowing them to do their jobs.

Neither the NYCLU nor Councilwoman Rose has produced any solid reason for the NYPD to curtail their use in its stepped-up initiative against criminal wrongdoing.

Daniel Leddy�s column appears each Tuesday on the Advance Editorial Page. His e-mail address is JudgeLeddy@si.rr.com.

I think that the racial issue is BS but it would make sense.