Its Just All Business. Marines Inc.

[Wagon]

Picked up this article in todays NY Times. What struck me about this article is how much like a business report this article reads. Replace some key words and it reads like a corporate advertising strategy. I wonder if they have rolled budget reponsibility down to the troop level yet.

"No, shit man, you shoot him. I'm 20 dollars over budget, bullets are a dollar a pop."

Also noted they still have hover craft. Have we ever used them in war? If I had stayed in I was headed to LCAC school as a Hover Craft Navigator. 50 knots over water. Yaaahoo!!!

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/10/u...ign-uses-chaos-as-a-selling-point.html?ref=us

Chaos as a perk. Thats funny.

Wagon

 

[Anglesachse]

There is a very good reason why the german army train with 5 rounds per man. Real funny watching them on exercise. Poor bastards.

You just can`t beat 1000 rounds of belt just wasting down the range, or even 66mm. -Pull, point, press- "you want another go?" " hell yeah, Give that f*cker here" "Hey boss, we got any more of this shit"

I mean how the hell are you meant to do your job if you can`t train properly. It was allways fun when you knew that a new batch of ammo had just come in, all of a sudden out on ex or the ranges, you would all get shit loads to get rid of. and all the big guns would come out so you could play.

as for the Hovercraft, I know the Royal Marines have used them.

 

[Wagon]

We used to run an exercise every September on the ships. Spend as much money as you can before the next budget. In the days of Uncle Ronnie, we had limitless money, seemingly. I used to order all sorts of bullshit and throw allot of things away in order to buy new. We couldn't waste ammo because well...... they didn't make it any more. The joys of sailing on a museum piece.

 

[Wagon]

He He. We used to joke about the Navy "Waste, Fraud and Abuse Hot Line"

We always wanted to call it and report "I'd like to report the US Navy, the whole organization is a waste and abusive, furthermore I'm a victim of fraud"

 

[JarHed]

I thought the use of hovercraft was one of the coolest things the Marine Corps ever instituted. I've actually built two many years ago before they became popular. Crashed them both. :ROFLMAO:

More fun than you can imagine. It's kind of weird seeing the MC trying to sell itself like that. Think it's a sigh of the times. Who knows what's next. :rolleyes:

Just as an aside; the osprey project that's been shelved is still getting money from the gov't. I have a friend who's girlfriend is working at Pendlelton on it. Talk about waste in the gov't. Some things just never change.

Jar

 

[tho9900]

I have a lotta hours in CH-46's and trust my life in em.. the CH-53's well... I dunno but I wouldn't disobey an order to fly in one... an Osprey? lol I dunno.. thats a big unknown... I think dying is a lot worse than captains mast...

OMG the LCAC's kick azz... we used em in Somalia... the Marine communications people figured out turning all the ships portside to the coast and aiming every bit of telecommunication equip at them would black them out... and it did for like 75 miles inland.. they were only hoping a few miles in to give the landing team a chance...

The Marines rolled in first on LCACs and secured the beach while the Somalians were still trying to figure out why the TV and radio weren't working... Next thing you know there were almost 10,000 Marines on the beach and settled in...

Gotta love the LCAC... those LCM's etc took hours to get to the beach it seemed...

 

[Wagon]

Ahh Hahh. So they have been used in combat. Ok. I thought they might sit around allot, like the B1 bomber.

The Russians have the Ekranoplan. That thing is pretty cool.

 

[tho9900]

Imma have to google that.. and ya the LCAC is a mainstay of the first reaction team... 1.5k men on the beach in 20 min, 6k in 30 and 9k in 40.... LCACS first, LCM next then the AAV's all in layers... and ya... there is no sight like them rolling up 110 yrds onto the beach, dropping the bow and unloading and backing off to head back to the ship for another load... not only the personnel but they drop the M1A2's and artillery the first round to form the envelope to keep the first wave alive....

 

[Wagon]

I was in the destroyer Navy kind of. Our job was to stand back, lob shells and try not to blow up. Never got to see an amphib op. Always saw the Gators anchored....... and their other default setting..... Anchored.

 

[tho9900]

lol ya when on practice ops on the USS Austin I would look out the hanger door and think to myself hmmmm... I could swim to shore... the Guam sat off out of gun range and provided the vertical envelopment part of it... the LSD and LST's did the land envelopment... man I miss it in a sense... crazy huh? I sure miss my CH-46's, they were like caddilacs of the sky...

 

[tho9900]

and up close and personal on the green side... it was all adrenaline till u made it to shore and secured he beach.. then it was wait... wait ... wait... nothing like the WWII landings...

 

[Wagon]

Oh yeah the Guam. She looked well used when I saw her in Norfolk if I am correct. Not like the new LHD's. I was on two wrecks. One built in 39 the other 42. The Battleship had a helo deck as well, ever been on one?