Weekend Reading

CDR Salamander: Fullbore Friday on the original LCS "Mighty Midgets."

Steeljaw Scribe does a time line of Naval Aviation based on the week that was.

Raptors flying to Guam

Raptors flying to Guam.

That's F-22 Raptors, not potential predators of brown tree snake.

Six F-22A Raptors from Elmendorf Air Force Base in Alaska will be heading to Guam this weekend to participate in the Jungle Shield exercise and Cope Thaw training. The Raptors from the 90th Fighter Squadron will spend two weeks on the island for the 13th Air Force's air defense mission and then participate in Cope Thaw, a series of training events that allow personnel to train in different environments away from their home station.

According to the Air Force, this is the first deployment of Pacific Air Forces-assigned F-22As. It also marks the second deployment of the F-22A to the Pacific theater. In February 2007, F-22As and personnel from the 27th FS at Langley AFB, Va., deployed to Kadena Air Base, Japan.

No Sense of Humor

Jane covers a sensitive politician in Jail for You! .

I guess the politician lacked a "blog squad" to go after humorists...

Nigeria: Sea Robbers Attack Norwegian-flagged Ship

Robbery off Nigeria:

Armed pirates raided a Norwegian freighter in Nigerian waters on Tuesday, officials said.

Norwegian company Spar Shipping AS, which owns the 53,000 dead weight tonnes Spar Gemeni [NB: Gemini?] vessel, confirmed the raid occured and that the crew were again "in control of the ship".

Nils Ole Sunde, sea controller at Norway's maritime Joint Rescue Coordination Centre, said his office received an alarm at 3:15 a.m. (0115 GMT) that pirates had boarded the ship.

"At 6:45, we heard the armed pirates had left the vessel. There were no serious injuries on board. They normally come on board to take money and valuables but it's not immediately clear what was taken," Sunde told Reuters.

Spar Shipping vessel list here. More info (and photo credit) here.

Somalia: Aid groups consider leaving due to violence

Somalia just continues to fall apart - soon it will just be a collection of clans/gangs until some powerful warlord decides to take it all. In the meantime, as thousands starve, Aid groups mull leaving Somalia:

Humanitarian agencies in Somalia are considering suspending operations after two aid workers were shot dead in less than 24 hours.

Some aid organisations are reported to be reviewing their security measures following the attacks.

Violence against aid workers in Somalia has increased dramatically in recent weeks. But it is not clear exactly who is behind the attacks.

Half of Somalia's population needs food aid due to drought and conflict.
***
The BBC's Mohamed Olad Hassan in Mogadishu says it is not clear who is behind the killings, since many factions in Somalia's chaotic war stand to benefit from the violence.

Our correspondent says powerful local leaders have complained that aid workers are feeding Islamic insurgents who had sworn to fight the government, and insurgents have also targeted Somalis affiliated with foreign organisations in the past.

He says the problem has been compounded by the growth of professional kidnapping rings, who security experts say have been encouraged by the large cash ransoms paid by foreigners to release ships taken by pirates.

What you are willing to pay for you surely will get more of.

Reasonable reminder of how the Somalia mess got worse here from the Harvard Political Review:

Since the overthrow of dictator Mohammed Siad Barre in 1991, Somalia has experienced a nearly uninterrupted state of armed conflict between militias loyal to a rival local warlords. After fourteen failed attempts at establishing a unified, sovereign national government, Somalia’s reputation as a “failed state” also makes it a highly desirable haven for foreign terrorists...
***
The primary sources of division within Somalia are neither ethnic nor sectarian interests, but rather clan-based ones. As David Smock of the United States Institute of Peace explained in an interview with HPR, “Even though Somalis speak the same language, share the same culture, and share the same religion, the clan structure is very divisive.” Without a strong central government, different regions of Somalia fall under the jurisdiction of various tribes and local clan leaders. The central and southern regions — which include the capital, Mogadishu — suffer from a political climate in which cooperation rarely extends beyond the most immediate subunits of one’s own clan. In an interview with HPR, James Bishop, the United States’ last ambassador to Somalia, explained that there is “competition for water, pasturage, and… cattle. It is a competition that used to be fought out with arrows and sabers… Now it is fought out with AK-47s.”
***
The way forward in Somalia poses a dilemma for policymakers, as it calls for the simultaneous reconstruction of so many facets of society: political institutions, social order, economic stability, and basic humanitarian needs. To some, the United States’ focus on global terrorism seems to distract from the broader mission of nation-building, and has kept it from getting involved more actively in solving Somalia’s problems. Al-Najjar argues, “The United States’ policy is confused rather than proactive…The UN has a very good plan for the reconstruction of Somalia. It needs political and economic support.” The UN’s agenda involves the construction of transportation and infrastructure across all regions of the country in an effort to stimulate economic growth. The international community must also find a way to replace Ethiopian troops, whom Somalis have long resented for reasons dating back to Cold War-era territorial struggles, with an international peacekeeping force. Meanwhile, the Transitional Federal Government is in the process of drafting a constitution in the hope that parliamentary elections may be completed by 2009.

As you may recall, it was not the U.S.'s "focus on global terrorism" that took it out of "nation-building." It was the deaths of U.S. troops and the unwillingness of the Clinton administration to provide suitable military resources and to stay the course...

See here.

Senator Cornyn: Let the Free Market Produce More Energy

Redstate hosts Senator Cornyn as he suggests a novel idea - Let the Free Market Produce More Energy:

The U.S. is the only country in the world that refuses to develop its own natural resources. We have placed 85 percent of our best energy lands off limits. Yet we are willing to enrich foreign governments—including some that foster anti-Americanism—instead of helping ourselves.

More at the Senator's web site.

USS Momsen to the rescue

Reported here:

USS Momsen (DDG 92) and its embarked helicopter detachment provided assistance at sea to Motor Vessel Lehmann Timber yesterday.

Lehmann Timber experienced trouble with its main engine leaving it unable to operate at sea. Assigned to Combined Task Force (CTF) 150, Momsen is providing food and water to the motor vessel crew until a tug arrives to tow the Lehmann Timber to Salalah, Oman where it will undergo repairs.

The sea state in the area is currently 12-15 feet, with winds in excess of 30 knots. Momsen will remain on scene and continue to provide requested assistance until the tug arrives.

Monday Reading

CDR Salamander: Maritime Strategy Monday: our own ASUW progress.

Fred Fry posts Marime Monday 119 at gCaptain.com featuring GPS Marine and some heavy lifting.

John Rosenthal's France, Colombia and the Hostage Rescue: An Interview with Daniel Pécaut. Politics is messy.

Sunday Ship History: Aiming the Ship's Guns (IV): Analog Computers

Last time we visited this topic, here, an essential element of accurately aiming long range ship guns was discussed - optical range finders. The ability to get accurate ranges was vital to aiming ship weapons - but ranges were only part of the mathematics of accurate gun fire control.

Knowing your own ship's speed was also vital - and the collection of that information became easier with the invention of the "pitometer log" in the 1890's. A pitometer log is a device that measures a ship's speed.

Another invention of the 1890's was the electrically powered ships gyroscope:

A gyroscope will always point to a fixed point in space if left undisturbed. If force is exerted upon it, it will react at right angles to the force applied. This characteristic of a gyro combined with other elements of precession, pendulocity and damping will allow the gyro to settle toward true north. In 1908 Dr. Anschutz patented the first north seeking gyrocompass with the United Kingdom's Patent Office (Patent Number 10382/08). That same year, Elmer Sperry invented and introduced the first ballistic gyrocompass, which included vertical damping (his device was subsequently patented with the British in 1911 - Patent Number 15669/11). Both of these first devices were of the single pendulum type.

And, with the gyroscope, came the first "full gun battery fire control system"

During this period Admiral Joseph Strauss, Chief of Naval Ordnance, encouraged Sperry to examine the basic fundamentals of fire control problems faced by ship borne long range guns. From this beginning, the Sperry Gyroscope Company developed the first full gun battery fire control system, which were ultimately placed aboard every U.S. battleship during World War I (some 30 ships).

Thus, the key elements for targeting came together: (a) range, (b) speed and (c) true compass direction. From range finders and bearings calculations cold be applied that gave the target's range, speed and course (see here). Further calculations could provide an estimate of where the target will be in the near future so that guns can be brought to bear and set to hit that projected spot (like leading ducks when you are hunting - except duck hunters use experience to calculate the lead distance). Of course, one has to calculate where your own ship will be at the projected time of firing and allow for other factors like the "Coriolis effect", weather effects on the air, and other adjustments."

All this calculating takes time - time you don't have in combat. So, several great minds addressed the problem by developing mechanical calculators into which the relevant information was entered and from which spat forth firing solutions. See here and here for discussions on the Royal Navy's Dreyer Fire Control Table:

The addition of director control facilitated a full, practicable fire control system for World War I ships, and most RN capital ships were so fitted by mid 1916. The director was high up over the ship where operators had a superior view over any gunlayer in the turrets. It was also able to co-ordinate the fire of the turrets so that their combined fire worked together. This improved aiming and larger optical rangefinders improved the estimate of the enemy's position at the time of firing. But with the longer practical ranges came the increased time of flight. The Fire Control System now had to account for more variations and more complicated corrections than was originally planned. The Dreyer Table had some mechanical flaws, particularly when additional loads were introduced but on the whole performed in a satisfactory manner. The system was eventually replaced by the improved "Admiralty Fire Control Table" for new build ships after 1927, although Dreyer Tables went to war a second time in World War II, notably amongst Britain's unmodernised battleships and battlecruisers.

For those with the patience, The Dreadnought Project has some video simulations demonstrating the operation of a Dreyer table and subcomponents here.

You should be getting the idea - longer range guns require a lot of data to be fired accurately. The British has one early solution to assembling the necessary information. The American Navy had ...well, the American Navy had an inventor named Ford - Hannibal Ford.

Mr. Ford once worked for Sperry but set up his own shop to address the gun control issues facing the Navy. As set out in this excellent article:

In 1915. Ford resigned from Sperry to organize his own company, the Ford Marine Appliance Corporation, which became the Ford Instrument Company in 1916 ... The company’s mission was to develop and sell fire-control systems to the US Navy. Its first product, Range Keeper Mark 1, was introduced into the US Navy in 1917 on the USS Texas.

Ford’s Range Keeper Mark 1 (abbreviated Mk. 1) performed a remarkable number of continuous functions in real time for a computing system in those days:
1. It generated range rate.
2. By integration of range rate it determined present
range.
3. It generated the relative speed at right angles to the line of sight” but not the present target bearingangle.‘”

But in a world in which war was growing faster, gufire control systems were still very dependent on human input. Not until the late 1930's was more automated input developed. Just before the U.S. entered World War II, Hannibal Ford produced a break through device - the Mark I Gunfire Control Computer:

The system included transmission of data to and from the computer below decks by means of synchros. Designed originally for the 5-inch/38 guns, it was soon modified by Ford Instrument Co. for a number of other guns and ammunition types as well.

Choice of the term “computer” in preference to “range keeper” recognized the growing inadequacy of the term “range keeper” to describe the system. Keeping range was a small part of its function.

Gene Slover points out two vital components of the system here:

One was a device called a Selsyn which was developed about 1925. This was the first really good device that could transmit and receive electrically the mechanical position of anything.

So with this device director information could be transmitted electrically to a remote location, such as a computer. The computer could transmit its output electrically to a gun mount or turret.

The other device that was really important was the mechanical rate integrator. With this device, time and position, for the X, Y and Z axes, could be integrated together.

Integrating time and position together with the other components of the FC problem could predict a future position.

This put Ford Instrument Co. and the USN on the road to producing the finest FC System of the time.

At this time all of the equations and formulae were well known that were necessary to solve the FC problem to the target. This was incorporated into the Mark 1 computer.

Ballistic calculations were available on all sizes of guns in a horizontal plane. I do not know which gun was used for the ballistic calculations for the first Mark 1 computer.

As I understand it, the original Mark 1 computer could solve only the X and Y coordinates of the FC problem.

More about the Selsyn.

How it fit together, summed up here in a description of the working of the Mark 1A:

The Relative Motion Group combines the motions of OwnShip and Target into three rates of Relative Motion in relation to the Line of Sight, Elevation Rate, Deflection Rate, and Range Rate.
The Integrator Group uses these rates to generate changes of Target Position in Range, Elevation, and Bearing. These changes are continuously transmitted to the Director to position the telescopes and the Range Finder.
If the generated values of Target Position do not keep the sights on the Target, the operators in the Director press their Rate Control keys and turn their handwheels to keep the sights on the Target.
Turning the handwheels with the Rate Control keys closed sends Rate Control corrections to the Rate Control Group in the Computer.
The Rate Control Group applies these corrections to the values of Target Motion and sends the corrected values back to the Relative Motion Group.
The Deck Tilt Group computes the correction necessary to convert Director Train in the deck plane to Relative Target Bearing in the horizontal plane.
The Synchronize Elevation Group converts Director Elevation above the deck to Target Elevation above the horizontal.

For the most part, except for the
technicians needed to repair the Mark 1A, the interior workings of the computer probably didn't matter any more to the operators of the machine than do the inner workings of the computer I am typing this on do to me. As you can see from the adjacent photos, the computer was a maze of gears and wheels. If you are interested in more specifics I suggest taking a look at this site maintained by the Historic Naval Ships Association.

However, the net effect of the Mark 1A computer, especially when coupled with radar input, was to greatly increase the accuracy of the gunnery of U.S. Navy ships. In other words, Hannibal Ford's lead to this:

The Computer Mark 1A computes continuous gun orders containing corrections for all the significant factors affecting antiaircraft and surface fire. The corrections allow for motion of own ship and target during the time the projectile is in flight; for the curvature of the projectile path caused by gravity, drift, and wind; for pitch and roll of the ship; and for a number of other factors.

These gun orders, a fuze-setting order, and parallax corrections are continuously transmitted from the computer to the gun mounts. At the mounts, these orders are used to point the guns continuously, and to time the fuzes so that the projectiles will explode at the predicted position of the target.

Modifications of Computer Mark 1A have been developed to control the various calibers of dual-purpose guns in use in the Fleet. All modifications are essentially the same in appearance, function, and operation. They differ mainly with respect to the self-contained ballistic data which adapt them to a particular gun.

Translation: The Mark 1A automated the calculations necessary put shells on target. The electrical circuits and mechanical devices connected to the computer allowed the gun mounts to essentially be fully automatic.

These analog computers served well past WWII and into the 1970's, despite their weakness - they were too slow to keep up with modern high speed aircraft.

More modern digital computers have replaced them. The big guns are gone. But they, and the men who used them, served us well.

Belated Birthday Thanks

InstaPunk reminds us why George W. Bush deserves a wish of a belated Happy Birthday!:

But 9/11 happened. And our doofus president stepped up. He wasn't Lincoln or Truman, meaning that he didn't take office knowing he was looking down the barrel of a huge gun aimed at his forehead. He was a nice guy who thought he'd be fine putting in his time as another do-nothing placeholder president, which is actually the best we can ever hope for. He drew on his Texas simple-mindedness, which was an amazing attainment of character given his Andover-Yale-Harvard education, and spent the next six years kicking ass all over the world. Go figure.

Intellectuals suffer from a syndrome called "paralysis through analysis." Not GWB. He understood the schoolyard rules. Hurt one of mine and I'll go anywhere and do anything to bring the fight to you. That's what he did. He was the perfect president to deal with a lamebrain enemy who thought we weren't tough enough to stand up against a fanatical foe. That's why we went to Iraq. You struck at our heart and now we'll take out your biggest bully. See if you can stop us. Try to stop us, mother f____er. WMDs? Irrelevant. Even if they really were there.

It was actually kind of a miracle. That at the precise moment we needed a schoolyard mentality, we had one. What the liberals and progressives can never forgive Bush, or history itself, is that despite all the U.N. backing and filling and diplomacy-as-usual, Bush went into Iraq and al qaeda responded to the challenge. They sent everything they had at our cowboy president. AND WE KICKED THEIR ASS. Into the middle of the next century.

Here's the plain truth for the downtrodden Republican Party. The much bally-hooed "War on Terror," which was supposed to last for a generation, has been won in less than seven years. There remains a much greater threat -- western surrender to muslim fanaticism in cultural affairs -- but even there GWB has set a precedent that Americans will be yearning for less than a year after he leaves office. The nation that deep-down knows its citizens have the right to bear arms is not going to accept for long the idea that people who want to kill us get to hire a dream team of attorneys and vogue on bail all over Beverly Hills during their consequence-free trial. They can shut down Guantanamo, but they can't erase it from people's memories. When the shit hits the fan again, as it probably will when every terrorist can be an O.J. Simpson, people will know that there is an alternative.
***
The legacy of George W. Bush is already secure. It doesn't need a tidal wave of PR spin. Sometime after he goes home -- whether Obama or McCain is elected -- the American people will begin to miss him. Like Lincoln, he has his "one thing" that will endear him to the ages. He did not go gentle into that good night. He roared back at a world that thought the U.S. was like France in 1940, a lamb ripe for the slaughter. And while his enemies at home mocked and derided him, even the Old World remade itself in his image. France, Germany, Italy, and Canada all rejected anti-American governments in favor of "reactionaries" who remember how much the western "free" world owes to the United States. Al qaeda in Iraq is a dead man. Bin Laden, dead or alive, is an irrelevancy on the world stage, reviled by even his closest allies. Iran is so nervous about American "cowboy" foreign policy that it's trying to conduct international negotiations via Photoshop.

If it weren't for bad luck, they'd have no luck at all...

Captured by pirates, ransomed and now... aground:

The Lehmann Timber was held captive for more than a month off the coast off Somalia.

The pirates were reportedly paid a ransom of $US 750,000 to release it.

After being freed on Tuesday, it headed for a safe port but has run aground.

The 15 crew members have reportedly been unable to start the engine for over a day and have sent out a distress signal.

A U.S. ship is said to be on the way to help.

Tony Snow

Former White House spokesman Tony Snow dies.

Clarity of thought, wit and grace in the face of an awful disease.

Rest in peace.

Mission and Logistics

Not to mention all the ships that would be needed to load all the gear and sail it home...

H/T Powerline

UPDATE: I see Cdr Salamander hits the same note. Good. Professionals talk logistics.

Iran's Defense Plans

One view of what Iran thinks about defending itself from attacks with a "passive defense plan" from without from Memri:

Despite confident pronouncements by Iranian leaders that the West will not dare to attack Iran's nuclear facilities, the Iranian regime has, on orders from Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, been preparing for this eventuality by means of a comprehensive emergency plan called "Passive Defense." Examination of the plan reveals that the regime's main fear is of an attack on Iran's vital infrastructures, which would ultimately lead to its downfall. Therefore, alongside a defense doctrine based on preemptive attack, long-range ballistic missiles, and asymmetric guerilla warfare, it has formulated a doctrine of "passive defense," based mainly on cooperation between regional Passive Defense Councils and the regime's popular militia, the Basij.
***
Jalali expressed Iran's concern that the West would attack Iran from the sea and air with the aim of destroying vital infrastructure, ultimately bringing about the downfall of the regime. He said:

"With military bases and forces around [Iran], America has access to the entire territory of the country. The Islamic Republic of Iran is a political regime that relies upon the [Iranian] people... If the enemy aims to change the regime, it can achieve this by disrupting the [regime's ability] to administer the population. To this end, the enemy will attempt to paralyze infrastructures and the vital institutions of the regime, in order to sow dissatisfaction among the people.

"Under these circumstances, the war and the administration of the population are inseparably linked. That is, the enemy will try to destroy the infrastructures [vital to] people's lives, and we must protect the people while providing necessary services. According to some analyses, the [2006] Lebanon war was 'a war of bridges,' because Israel destroyed all bridges in Lebanon, large and small, in order to cut off all land routes. In other words, in that war, the immediate aim was to [destroy] the infrastructures [that permit] administering the population, but the ultimate aim was to render such administration impossible.

"Asked in an interview about the nature of a possible attack on Iran, and [in particular] on Tehran, a U.S. colonel said that... [U.S. forces] would be deployed around the city, would strike its infrastructures from the air, and would, with the help of elements affiliated with [the U.S.], sow dissatisfaction among people. In other words, using these two methods - destruction of infrastructure and psychological warfare - [they] will instigate a popular uprising against the government. To confront this kind of threat, we must employ all [our] defense strategies and abilities. This is asymmetrical warfare, since our military capabilities are not on par with those of the U.S. Hence, if we want to stand up [to the U.S.], we must employ 'passive defense' along with 'active defense' [i.e. military warfare], striving to achieve a 'combined defense' [strategy]."
***
In a Sobh-e Sadeq article titled "The Role of the Basij in the Passive Defense [Plan]," Jalali described the preparations being carried out as part of this plan, and stressed the pivotal and vital role of the Basij in its implementation:

"Iran's passive defense [doctrine encompasses] all measures that [can] minimize the danger to the country and its stability, and do not involve the use of arms. In light of the threat to [our] political regime, we must reinforce the stability of this regime through effective [measures of] passive defense. [In fact], there are four elements whose vulnerability to an enemy [attack] must be minimized: the regime, the government, the people, and the defense [i.e. the armed forces]. The regime is the main [authority] that has the ability to administer [the country], provide the [citizens'] needs, and [maintain] the contact between the top leaders, the government and the people. The government [maintains] the infrastructures [and provides services] like sanitation, health care, energy, food, information, security etc... [And] the people are the target of the enemy's [psychological warfare]... The defense [i.e., the armed forces] is not part of this discussion...

"Managing the crisis resulting from war - i.e., administering the country's [home front], provinces, cities, neighborhoods, apparatuses and organizations... - is considered an extremely difficult [task]. We believe that the solution to this problem lies in relying exclusively on the abilities of the Basij. In fact, the Basij is indirectly responsible for the management [of the home front] in time of war, and this is its vital role. Luckily, Iran is one the few countries that has an organized Basij force. In order to enable the Basij to manage [the home front] on a national level, in coordination with the Interior Ministry and with the authorization of the President's Office, a region-based apparatus has been established, known as the regional Passive Defense councils. These [councils] are under the authority of the province governor, and of the Revolutionary Guards and Basij [forces, which are likewise under his authority] and which aid him in matters of passive defense.

"As part of these councils, eight work groups have been formed in several provinces, dealing with threats, intelligence, crisis management, sanitation, health care, etc... and efforts are underway [to form similar councils] in other provinces as well... Another step that has been taken is to familiarize the various government ministries and their apparatuses with the Passive Defense Organization...

"The first task of this organization is to gain professional knowledge of the enemy and of the threats he poses. Threats exist in every domain, and this must be taken into consideration. In every [passive defense council], there must be a team that is responsible for identifying potential threats and dangers, and this team must consist of experts.

"The [organization's] second task is to work in coordination... with the Basij. In other words, they must enter the scene and take part [in operations].

"The third task is crisis management, [because] the various mechanisms and organizations [must continue] to function in times of war. Maintaining contact between the leader [Khamenei] and people - [which is crucial] to the people's sense of security - is carried out by means of the [Iranian] broadcasting service, so technical [measures must be taken] to minimize the vulnerability of this establishment. Other apparatuses and ministries must maintain the same level of readiness, [so that] Basij [members] can replace [absent employees] and do the [necessary] work. This does not require a [special] decree - the Basij will act spontaneously [as needed].

"The fourth task is information management. The responsibility for guiding the public rests with the Broadcasting Agency, the universities, the Culture and Education Ministry and with other relevant organizations.

"The fifth task is maintaining security and protecting [sensitive information]. This is carried out independently at the city level, and is the responsibility of the police and other relevant apparatuses. The [ultimate] responsibility rests with the government ministries and agencies, but the Basij must also help [with this task]. And [since] the enemy places special emphasis on the use of a 'fifth column' and agents, the Basij must be alert. If a certain facility is [attacked], the Basij must immediately take control of it and prevent people from entering it." (footnotes omitted)

Mmmm. Infrastructures...

UPDATE: Iran has nine oil refineries. Someone else noticed this earlier. As did Britannica Blog here, which is an excellent read, though they count 10 refineries on their map which is reproduced nearby.
Warfare is so scalable.

UPDATE2 (12 July 08): The Basij:

The Pasdaran was given the mandate of organizing a large people's militia, the Basij, in 1980. Islamic Revolution Guards (Vezarat-e Sepah Pasdaran-e Enqelab-e Islamic) is in charge of the paramilitary national Mobilization of the Oppressed (Baseej-e Mostazafan) Organisation. It is from Basij ranks that volunteers were drawn to launch "human wave" attacks against the Iraqis, particularly around Basra.
***
The Basij, or Baseej paramilitary volunteer forces, come under the control of the Revolutionary Guards. They have been active in monitoring the activities of citizens, enforcing the hijab and arresting women for violating the dress code, and seizing 'indecent' material and satellite dish antennae.
***
The Basij Resistance Force appeared to be undergoing something of a revival under the administration of President Mahmud Ahmadinejad. This could be connected with the organization's alleged role in securing votes for Ahmadinejad during the presidential campaign and on election day. Ahmadinejad appointed Hojatoleslam Heidar Moslehi, the supreme leader's representative to the Basij, as an adviser in mid-August 2005. But the revival -- along with changes in the paramilitary organization's senior leadership -- could also be connected with preparations for possible civil unrest. In late September 2005, the Basij staged a series of urban defense exercises across the country. General Mirahmadi, the first deputy commander of the Basij, announced in Tehran that the creation of 2,000 Ashura battalions within the Basij will enhance Iran's defensive capabilities. Ashura units have riot-control responsibilities.

Gulf of Aden: Pirate Hotspot

Blame it on Somali pirates Gulf of Aden Has World's Most Pirate Attacks, Overtakes Nigeria:

There were a record 19 attacks or attempted attacks in the Gulf of Aden in the period, compared with seven a year earlier, according to an e-mailed report from the Kuala Lumpur-based International Maritime Bureau today. The number of incidents in Nigerian waters dropped to 18 from 19 a year earlier.

Iran: The Missiles of July

Nicely covered by Steeljaw at The Missiles of Summer - Updated.

Defense Secretary Gates tweaks the Bear here:

Secretary Gates indicated that the Iranian test demonstrated enhanced capability for the country's Shahab Three missile, but he said he could not provide details. Previous versions of the missile are believed to have a range of about 2,000 kilometers, enough to reach from western Iran to the western shore of the Black Sea.

Secretary Gates says the test provides evidence to support the U.S. view that Europe needs a system to defend against Iranian missiles.

"This certainly addresses the doubts raised by the Russians that the Iranians won't have a longer range ballistic missile for 10 to 20 years," said Robert Gates. "The fact is they just tested a missile that has a pretty extended range. So, my view, in the first instance, is we've been saying, as we've talked about missile defense in Europe, that there is a real threat. And it seems to me that the test this morning underscores that."

Add in this: Iran's missiles are just for show:

As a political statement, the missile test was impeccable - delivered the exact same day the leaders at the Group of Eight meeting in Japan were calling for Iran to suspend uranium enrichment, to which it has a right under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty to which it is a signatory.

Then there are the internal, rhetorical cross currents - a very delicate ballet. The head of the Iranian air force, General Hossein Salami, said Iran is very much aware of "enemies who in recent weeks have threatened Iran with harsh language". According to the Iranian press, Salami also said, "Our hands are always on the trigger and our missiles are ready for launch."

Predictably, the US government dubbed the test "a threat" - as if Washington and Israel had been sending love letters to Tehran lately.

Brigadier General Mohammad-Najjar was much more conciliatory. He made it clear "our missile capacity is just for defensive purposes, to safeguard peace in Iran and the Persian Gulf region ... Our missiles will not be used to threaten any country, they are only intended for those who dare attack Iran".

And all this happened only one day after Ali Shirazi, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's liaison with the IRGC navy, had said, "If Washington and Tel Aviv are foolish enough to even consider attacking Iran, our initial response would be to target Israel and set US interests in the Persian Gulf ablaze." The Pentagon took no time to register this particular message. The next day, the USS Abraham Lincoln was moved to the Arabian Sea.

Well, the Lincoln was moved -albeit for air support for the troops in Afghanistan, so take Mr. Escobar's analysis however you will

Latest missile test reported here.

MissileThreat.com on the Shahab 3 here:

The Shahab-3 is a medium-range, liquid-propellant, road-mobile ballistic missile. Its range is sufficient to target Israel, Turkey, the Indian subcontinent, and US forces stationed in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Persian Gulf. The missile's low accuracy means the missile would probably only be usable to attack civilian populations and has no military application other than simply holding enemy populations hostage. The Shahab-3 may also be known as the Zelzel-3, although this has not been verified.1

Of course, accuracy is not essential in horse shoes, hand grenades and nuclear weapons...

Somalia: Ransom paid, ship and crew released

Pirates Release Crew of German Cargo Ship:

The Lehmann Timber was seized in the Gulf of Aden on May 28. The crew taken hostage included: the Russian captain, and a crew of four Ukrainians, one Estonian and nine Myanmar nationals.

The pirates are reported to have set July 7 as the ransom deadline and promised to kill the crew if it was not paid. Although shots were heard from the vessel late on Monday, the captain, who was in touch with the Ukrainian authorities, said the pirates fired in the air probably trying to scare the crew and negotiators.

“Today, at 5 a.m., the ransom was brought to the Lehmann Timber board. The pirates counted the money for several hours and then the vessel headed to the closest port. The exact sum of money is unknown, but the hostages said that the bandits had demanded $750,000,” the Segodnya newspaper said on its website.

Monday Reading

Fred Fry'sMaritime Monday 118 at gCaptain.com with a bit on U.S. Shipping Partners and lots more sea related linkage.

Lex does 'yellow cake."

Bud Day does not describe how Greyhawk spent the 4th.

Spook86 remembers an air lift.

Galrahn finds other people window shopping for corvettes. Me, too.

UPDATE: Pinch finds some bozos.

Sunday Ship History: Tank Landing Ships (I)

It's not often that a ship design can be traced to a specific event, but you can come pretty close by looking at the the history of Tank Landing Ships, more well known by their acronym, LSTs. While small landing craft had been around for some time, in the early 1940's there were no sea-going vessels capable of loading and unloading vehicles from and to the beach...until Dunkirk caused some serious thinking:

The British evacuation from Dunkirk in 1940 demonstrated to the Admiralty that the Allies needed relatively large, ocean-going ships capable of shore -to-shore delivery of tanks and other vehicles in amphibious assaults upon the continent of Europe. As an interim measure, three medium-sized tankers, built to pass over the restrictive bars of Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela, were selected for conversion because of their shallow draft. Bow doors and ramps were added to these ships which became the first tank landing ships (LST's). They later proved their worth during the invasion of Algeria in 1942, but their bluff bows made for inadequate speed and pointed up the need for an all-new design incorporating a sleeker hull.

The "Maracaibo" class LSTs had a distinctive look - a very tanker look with a forward bridge (see the before and after photos immediately below from this site).
Following the Royal Navy experiments, discussions with the Americans led to a design being developed:

...John Niedermair of the Bureau of Ships sketched out an awkwardlooking ship that proved to be the basic design for the more than 1,000 LST's which would be built during World War II. To meet the conflicting requirements of deep draft for ocea n travel and shallow draft for beaching, the ship was designed with a large ballast system that could be filled for ocean passage and pumped out for beaching operations.
***
The preliminary plans initially called for an LST 280 feet in length; but, in January 1942, the Bureau of Ships discarded these d rawings in favor of specifications for a ship 290 feet long. Within a month, final working plans were developed which further stretched the overall length to 328 feet and called for a 50-foot beam and minimum draft of three feet 9 l/2 inches. This scheme distributed the ship's weight over a greater area enabling her to ride higher in the water when in landing trim. The LST could carry a 2,100-ton load of tanks and vehicles. The larger dimensions also permitted the designers to increase the width of the bo w door opening and ramp from 12 to 14 feet and thus accommodate most Allied vehicles. Provisions were made for the satisfactory ventilation of the tank space while the tank motors were running, and an elevator was provided to lower vehicles from the maind eck to the tank deck for disembarking. By January 1942, the first scale model of the LST had been built and was undergoing tests at the David Taylor Model Basin in Washington, D.C.

In three separate acts dated 6 February 1942, 26 May 1943, an d 17 December 1943, Congress provided the authority for the construction of LST's along with a host of other auxiliaries, destroyer escorts, and assorted landing craft. The enormous building program quickly gathered momentum. Such a high priority was assi gned to the construction of LST's that the keel of an aircraft carrier, previously laid in the dock, was hastily removed to make place for several LST's to be built in her stead. The keel of the first LST was laid down on 10 June 1942 at Newport News, Va. ; and the first standardized LST's were floated out of their building dock in October. Twenty-three were in commission by the end of 1942.

The basic design of the LST was not complicated - as set out here:

After consideration and calculations for buoyancy, stability, and payload requirements, the final drawings resulted in a 328-foot length, a 50-foot beam, a flat-bottom, a sloping keel, giving a 7-1/2-foot maximum draft (forward), and a 14-foot maximum draft (aft), with about a 16-foot freeboard. The tank deck dimensions were 230-feet long, 30-feet wide, and 12-feet high. John Neidermair insisted upon 3/8” plating for the hull (shell plating), rather than the planned original 1/4”, and the plating under the bow was 1” thick. The firm of Gibbs and Cox, New York, completed the actual design details, and became the contractor charged with the procurement of materials/equipment, and they selected the Dravo Corporation as the first contractor.

John C. Neidermair insisted the design should contain no more shapes and sizes of plates than you have fingers on your hand -- five of each. The LST required 30,000 parts, including such items as steering gear, stern anchor gear, armament, snaking winch, appliances, refrigeration plant, ladders, doors, pumps, engines, stanchions, main generator and power distribution switching gear.
***
The LST was designed to ground evenly (from bow to stern) on a beach with a slope of about one-foot for every fifty-feet (the design gradient). Each propeller (screw) is protected by a skeg which extends forward from it and provides a sturdy “runner” beneath its blades. The twin rudders are mounted directly behind the screws, and thus achieve maximum effectiveness as a result of the propeller discharge. The propellers were spaced almost 40-feet apart and set up clear of the base line of the hull. The sea chests, or intakes for sea water, were located on the sides of the hull.

These ships were powered by two diesel engines and could do about 12 knots. The design was modified as experience grew with these ships as might be expected. Over half of the 1,000 ship LST class were built in shipyards located on rivers well inland from the sea. Modifications to the LSTs included providing hinged masts to allow them to pass under bridges as they headed to the sea. In addition to the hinged mast, some bridges along the routes were modified as set out here:

The need for LST's was urgent, and the program enjoyed a high priority throughout the war. Since most shipbuilding activities were located in coastal yards and were largely used for construction of large, deep-draft ships, new construction facilities were established along inland waterways. In some instances, heavyindustry plants such as steel fabrication yards were converted for LST construction. This posed the problem of getting the completed ships from the inland building yards to deep water. The chief obstacles w ere bridges. The Navy successfully undertook the modification of bridges and, through a "Ferry Command" of Navy crews, transported the newly constructed ships to coastal ports for fitting out. The success of these "cornfield" shipyards of the Middle West was a revelation to the long-established shipbuilders on the coasts. Their contribution to the LST building program was enormous. Of the 1,051 LST's built during World War II, 670 were constructed by five major inland builders.

By 1943, the construction time for an LST had been reduced to four months; and, by the end of the war, it had been cut to two months. Considerable effort was expended to hold the ship's design constant; but, by mid-1943, operating experience led to the incorporation of certain changes in the new ships. These modifications included: the replacing of the elevator by a ramp from the main deck to the tank deck, an increase in armament, and the addition of a distilling plant to make potable water. The main deck was strengthened to accommodate a fully-equipped landing craft, tank (LCT).

See also photos of LST 512 folding her mast and storing it (photos from LST Homeport which has a substantial collection).


Given their number and capacity, it probably isn't surprising that some LSTs were converted to other uses:

The LST proved to be a remarkably versatile ship. A number of them were converted to become landing craft repair ships (ARL). In this design, the bow ramp and doors were removed, and the bow was sealed. Derricks, booms, a nd winches were added to haul damaged landing craft on board for repairs, and blacksmith, machine, and electrical workshops were provided on the main deck and tank deck.

Another successful conversion was the LST "Mother Ship." Thisv ersion of the standard LST hull had two Quonset huts erected on the main deck to accommodate 40 officers. Bunks on the tank deck berthed an additional 196 men. A bake shop and 16 refrigeration boxes for fresh provisions augmented the facilities normally p rovided the crew. Four extra distilling units were added, and the ballast tanks were converted for storage of fresh water.

Thirty-eight LST's were converted to serve as small hospital ships. They supplemented the many standard LST's which removed casualties from the beach following the landing of their cargo of tanks and vehicles. For example, on D day, LST's brought 41,035 wounded men back across the English Channel from the Normandy beaches. Other LST's, provided with extra cranes and handling gear, were used exclusively for replenishing ammunition. They possessed a special advantage in this role, as their size permitted two or three LST's to go simultaneously alongside an anchored battleship or cruiser to accomplish replenishment more rapidly than standard ammunition ships. In the latter stages of World War II, some LST's were even fitted with flight decks from which small observation planes were sent up during amphibious operations. (see here).*

LSTs saw action in WWII in both the Atlantic and Pacific, with landings in France, Italy, the Philippines, Iwo Jima and Okinawa.





While LSTs suffered mine hits, Kamikaze attacks and other horrors of war, one particular event deserves special attention - an ammunition handling accident at West Loch, Pearl Harbor, as described here and here:

Elements of the Saipan landing Force entered Pearl Harbor May 20th, 1944, after practicing for the Saipan Landings off Maui. Twenty-one LSTs (Landing Ship Tanks) proceeded to West Loch and tied up side by side in five rows across the channel from the Naval Ammunition Depot. They were floating bombs crammed with munitions, vehicles and other supplies of the 2nd and 4th Marine divisions, Sea Bees and Army units. More ships were at Pearl Harbor at that time than any other period during WW II.

Sunday morning May 21st, 1944, some of the men went ashore on liberty while others performed shipboard duties or had taken their vehicles and guns ashore for servicing after the salt water dousing they received in rough seas during the invasion rehearsal off Maui. LST 353 was berthed second from the end in the first row and a little after 1500 hours erupted into a huge explosion hurling men, vehicles, pieces of bodies and steel high into the air. Suddenly other LST’s frantically moved away as the fires and explosions spread to other ships.

Six LSTs were destroyed, 163 men killed and 396 injured, the numbers would have been much larger if all personnel had been on duty. This was the second worst disaster in Pearl Harbor during World War II since the Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor December 7, 1941.

A Naval Court of Inquiry concluded the probable cause for the explosion was a defective fuse or carelessness while loading mortar ammunition onto a truck parked on the ship’s elevator.

This could have been a disastrous for the Saipan invasion forces; however replacement men, ships, and equipment were found and the LSTs sailed out of Pearl Harbor on May 25,1944, (only one day late) and that day was made up enroute. The Saipan Invasion was carried out as originally scheduled and became a major supply depot and large airbase for B 29 long-range bombers through the rest of WW II.

See also here.

Workhorses.

Large Slow Targets.

Manned by Navy and Coast Guard crews.

And absolutely vital.


Following the WWII, large numbers of LSTs were decommissioned, mothballed, sunk or transferred to foreign navies. Completing the circle, converted LSTs were used as oilfield support vessels in Venezuela.


In Part II, their "second life" will be visited.


However, if any one knows any more about the following picture and caption, I'd like to hear from you...

Picture of 40 man army tent the Hickman County Hoisted when the engines failed.1968.

*UPDATE: More on the mini aircraft carrier LSTs:

In the latter stages of World War II, some LST's were even fitted with flight decks from which small observation planes were sent up during amphibious operations. These LSTs were converted to mini-aircraft carriers and actually launched fixed wing reconnaissance aircraft from their modified decks. They were used as floating platforms from which small spotter planes were launched and recovered by Brodie Gear, which may very roughly be compared to a giant slingshot.

Many missions that required liaison aircraft were not possible, even with the excellent short field takeoff and landing ability of the L-4, without taking some extraordinary measures. To provide artillery observation during amphibious assaults, the Army employed two unorthodox methods. The first was to convert a Landing Ship Tank (LST), into a mini-aircraft carrier with a plywood runway approximately 60 meters (197 ft) long and 5 meters (16 ft 5 in) wide, which could support no more than ten light planes. These vessels saw extensive service supporting amphibious landings in the Mediterranean and the invasion of the Philippines. However, the conversion of the LSTs into a liaison plane carrier took considerable time and effort and the large scale of amphibious operations frequently required the use of all available LSTs. Thus, a more exotic, but simpler system came into use.



Navy Lieutenant James Brodie, on assignment to the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), forerunner of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), developed a system in which an L-4 or an L-5, with a hook mounted above the cockpit, could catch a trapeze bar suspended off the side of an LST or Liberty ship. The trapeze rolled along a wire suspended between two gantries that hung over the sides of the ship, and allowed the aircraft to come to a smooth stop. A similar rig allowed the aircraft to launch by reaching flying speed while suspended and then disengaging the hook. The advantage of this system was that it did not preclude the use of the ship for standard operations. The Brodie system only saw operational service during the invasion of Okinawa. Brodie also developed a land-based version for use in the Far Eastern theaters in situations where there was insufficient time or capability to construct a suitable airstrip, but the opportunity never arose to use this system.

More on the Brodie System here from when the adjacent photos came, except for the photo of LST 325 which came from here. More photos of LST air ops here.

Somalia: Pirates Don't Care About UN

Or, as headline says, "Somalia: Pirates in Total Defiance of the UN":

It is barely two weeks after the United Nations Security Council members unanimously adopted a resolution to combat the attacks and hijacking along the coastlines of Somalia, pirates have vowed to shoot down the resolution.

The gangs have said that due to the fact that Somalia is not a member of the Security Council, it would be wrong for the country to agree to such a resolution which the pirates say is a clear breach of the sovereignty of the Horn of Africa country. The gangs mainly have their main bases in the northeastern regions of Somalia, known as Puntland.

The pirates have vowed to resist any move by any Security Council member to invade Somalia, saying such a move would be tantamount to breaching the sovereignty of the conflict-ridden nation.

It is however interesting that piracy along the Somali coast acts as a source of economic upkeep catering for a large population of people mainly the jobless residents.

The militias who are a result of lawlessness and unemployment have vested their energies in hijacking ships and vessels in the Indian Ocean waters for huge ransoms.

Mogadishu hosts at least four distinct groups of pirates, organized along clan backgrounds and are led by warlords, corrupt business people and even the town's local authorities.

According to sources privy to the ongoing in Mogadishu, Somali soldiers have allegedly joined forces with the pirates making the work of dealing with them even more difficult.

Gosh, someone ignoring UN resolutions? Who'd 've thunk it?