On May, 21st at 12:01 AM pacific time the United States Air Force carried out unarmed test launch of the Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile from Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif. the launch was carried out by the U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command.
Video of the launch.
The missile was launched from a silo and was carrying a single Mk21 high-fidelity reentry vehicle.
Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile launches during an operational test
For the Minuteman III test launch a randomly selected missile was selected from Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana and brought to the Western Test Range at Vandenberg.
The test range is located on the very coast of the base giving the military a great line of sight for their radars and other sensors to collect telemetry and other data.
Still image showing the missile silo opening at Vandenberg.Image shows the location I believe to be the launch site an Vandenberg.
“This ICBM test launch underscores the strength of the nation’s nuclear deterrent and the readiness of the ICBM leg of the triad,” said Gen. Thomas Bussiere, commander of the Air Force Global Strike Command. “This powerful safeguard is maintained by dedicated Airmen – missileers, defenders, helicopter operators and the teams who support them – who ensure the security of the nation and its allies.”
The test was conducted and overseen by Vanderberg’s 377th Test and Evaluation group. Established in 2021, The 377th are the nations only squadron dedicated to testing the nations ICBM stocks.
Minuteman III remains the bedrock of our nations strategic deterrent and the unwavering dedication of the airmen who ensure its readiness are a testament to its inherent lethality. Their expertise and commitment are vital to maintaining the credible force for peace.” Col. Dustin Harmon, 377th Test and Evaluation group.
According to the measurements taken by the, U.S. Army Space and Missile defense command’s Ronald Reagan ballistic Missile Defense Test Site, the ICBM’s reentry vehicle flew 4,200 miles and impacted a predetermined target spot near the USASMDC’s Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Command, (AKA RTS) on Kwajalein Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
These test launches serve several purposes such as putting the readiness of the U.S. ICBM’s on display as well as testing the reliability and accuracy of the systems and providing important data.
The RTS uses wide an array of systems to collect every bit of data including its advanced, high speed optical and long range tracking and imaging radar systems. RTS also analyzes the data collected.
This all falls under the ‘Glory Trip’ missions.
The Minuteman III is currently being phases out and replaced by the LGM-35A Sentinel. The Sentinel is set to replace all 450 Minuteman III missiles and have a service until the 2070’s.
Yesterday, North Korea’s leader, Kim Jung Un along with a group of military and state leaders were present for the launch of the countries newest warship from the shipyard in the northeastern port of Chongjin.
The ship is the 2nd of the yet officially unnamed class of guided missile ships launched in the past two months. The first in the series was called the Choe Hyon.
Choe Hyon diagram.
That launch was an absolute disaster as the guided missile destroyers stern slipped off the transport cradle that was to carry it into the water. The stern of the ship was thus stuck while the rest of it kept moving causing an as of yet unknown amount of damage to the destroyer as it capsized.
In a shocking turn, the North Korean state run news were quick to confirm what happened and KCNA put out this statement
“Due to inexperienced command and operational carelessness, the parallel movement of the bogies could not be guaranteed, resulting in the launching sled in the stern detaching first and causing the ship to capsize. The ship’s balance was destroyed due to a rupture in the hull in some sections, and the bow section was unable to detach from the keel.”
This is a sharp contrast to the North Koreans love of secrecy with all things involving their military. Washington analyst have speculated this indicates a shift in North Korean thinking as they move forward with their attempt to build a blue-water capable fleet to extend their maritime presence into the pacific and beyond. Adding in the idea that the country likely wanted to get ahead of the news cycle before the satellites had a chance to do a fly over.
Kim himself was more than displeased as he threw fury and accusations out in the aftermath. According to NK state run media Kim accused the military and the shipbuilders of incompetence. He called the incident as followed
“…serious accident and criminal act caused by absolute carelessness, irresponsibility and unscientific empiricism.”
-North Korean leader Kim Jung Un
Further, KCNA reported
“Kim Jong Un made [a] stern assessment, saying that it was a serious accident and criminal act caused by absolute carelessness, irresponsibility … and could not be tolerated,”
He has called for a meeting of the ruling Workers party in June where the “irresponsible errors” can be delt with.
Satellite image showing the aftermath of the destroyer launch accident. NK has covered the ship in tarps to hide as much from view as possible.
Satellite footage was released showing the current condition of the ship. Tarps were used to hide specific information. This type of side launch is a more difficult way to launch a ship requiring grater skill than simply sliding it in bow first.
“The urgent restoration of the destroyer is not a simple practical issue, but a political issue directly related to rhetoric authority kd the country”
Kim Jung Un.
Kim has called for the ship to be repaired and operational within a month which is unlikely. The damage caused is likely to be severe.
While North Korea has a small Navy building a missile destroyer is not something North Korean shipyards have done more than once, launching the Choe Hyon last month in April. However many have wondered just how North Korea managed to build a ship like the Choe Hyon so quickly. One reason is the new military cooperation between Russian and North Korea, Russia is able to offer help and advice on shipbuilding to North Korea and North Korea has given soldiers, missiles and other support. Another reason the ship was built so quick is because the ship has zero propulsion as of when it was photographed during some live fire weapons testing. A sign of corners being cut during its production in an effort to rush a destroyer program, a program that Kim Jung Un knows will give his country more renown.
A shot of North Korean guided missile destroyer Choe Hyon during its live fire weapons testing. We can see a large open spot where the propulsion machinery for the ship would usually be.
Without propulsion the Choe Hyon was almost certainly towed out of the harbor for its weapons testing.
Choe Hyon and its unlucky sister ship carry an impressive arsenal of weapons that were seen during the before mentioned weapons demonstration. A large amount of Vertical Launch System (VLS) cells. One of the main missiles loaded will likely be a before, unknown air defense missile that we have little info on. Other missile include a supersonic cruise missile and extra large launch cells for ballistic missiles. In total these destroyers have 76 VLS cells broken up into 4-5 different sizes for different munitions.
While the different size launch cells have some advantages, having your missile stock made up of that diverse of a stock also has its drawbacks, especially if you want these ships to focus on air defense as has been reported.
The launch of an apparent surface-to-air missile from the foward set of 32 VLS cells. Launch of a Hwasal-2 (or a similar)Long Range Cruise Missile.Another shot of Hwasal-2 taken from the flight deck.Close up of the missile.
The ships are also equipped with the 127mm caliber main gun on the bow as well as 2 AK-630 CIWAS (Close in weapons system).
The ability of these destroyers to be utilized as long range missile platforms is the most interesting and strongest assets for this set of ships. Analysts have questioned whether this ability, even on what probably only amounts to a token capability for North Korea is enough to put it high on the list of targets should hostilities break out with the U.S. or other western powers.
Over the past several days the North Atlantic Treaty organization or NATO has carried out a series of large navel focused exercises across the Baltic, North Atlantic, Mediterranean and Norwegian Seas.
For those who don’t know NATO is a military alliance between 32 member nations. Formed in 1949 as a way to provide collective defense to its members from the then perceived threat posed by the Soviet Union. It remained in place after the fall of the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact.
The fighting forces of of NATO are made up of the military’s of the nations that make up the treaty by rotating voluntary forces. However NATO keeps several permanent navel fleets standing as apart of NRF- NATO’s Response Force. The fleets are made up of mostly destroyers and frigates from rotating in from member nations with the supply ships used by the fleet being the only constant.
Some of rhe ships of Standing NATO Maritime Group Two (SNMG2).
The past weeks exercises not only focused on their specific goals (which I’ll get to below) but showcased the just massive amount of firepower and capabilities that NATO and its combined nations can field. Let’s take a closer look.
Dynamic mongoose 25
“Dynamic Mongoose is NATO’s largest and most intensive annual anti-submarine warfare exercise in Northern European waters. This year’s version, Dynamic Mongoose 25, has come to an end. It was both a great success and a memorable experience. With over 10 countries participating—with submarines, frigates, support ships, helicopters, Maritime Patrol Aircraft, and coast guard vessels—we have truly shown we are stronger together.”
Royal Netherlands Navy Commodore Arjen S. Warnaar, Commander of Standing NATO Maritime Group 1 (SNMG1)
Brining together frigates, submarines, support ships and aviation maritime patrol craft Dynamic Mongoose is the largest ASW exercises conducted annually by NATO. The event was hosted by the Icelandic Coast Guard and involved personnel and equipment from more than 10 member nations all led by NATO’s Allied Maritime Command (MARCOM). Carried out in the waters of the North Atlantic the forces would carry out different scenarios all designed around Anti Submarine Warfare and all of its complexities. The event teaches the crews how different crews and assets with very different abilities can work together to solve problems.
Dynamic mongoose had the participating sides rotate through hunting and evading in complex undersea warfare scenarios in the challenging conditions of the North Atlantic waters.
The GIUK-N Gap was a big focus for the event and is a key maritime corridor between Greenland, Iceland, and the United Kingdom/Norway. This event focused on an area that would be one of the most important areas should the capabilities become necessary. In a war between NATO and Russia for example, thag corridor would likely be a hot spot for submarines and has been considered strategically important since the beginning of the 20th century.
A map showing the GIUK-N Gap. Images from a previous year’s Dynamic Mongoose.
Formidable shield 25
Belgian navy frigate BNS Louise-Marie fires off a Sea Sparrow missile.
Participating nations include crews, ships from Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, U.K., and U.S. with the Australians providing a radar sensor for data collection only.
Formidable Shield is the biennially (During the odd numbered years) occurring largest live fire exercise carried out in Europe. This year the event was carried out from Norway and the United Kingdom and the North Sea and Atlantic.
This exercise focuses on Integrated air and missile defense among the different nations focusing on interoperability and the different procedures. In an overall defense plan, knowing your allies capabilities and their procedures and process is a positive. Learning what they can do, how do they do it, and how can everybody come together to strengthen everybody else.
This years event was carried out with the ships of the U.S. 6th Fleet and executed by Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO (STRIKFORNATO) and with participation from 11 member nations.
NATO’s SNMG1 fleet taking part in Formidable shield 25.
“There is simply no substitute for the training and learning that occurs when we operate in these intensely realistic scenarios…Training as a collective using NATO command and control reporting structure forges the bonds of interoperability and strengthens the alliance as a whole. Exercises like ASD/FS are critical for refining our collective integrated air and missile defense capabilities, ensuring we can respond effectively to any threat from any direction and maintain a credible deterrent posture.”
Capt. Michael Dwan, Commander, Task Group 154.64 and STRIKFORNATO’s U.S. Maritime Ballistic Missile Defense Assets Advisor
Netherlands Navy HNLMS De Ruyter (F804) De Zeven Provinciën-class guided-missile frigate served as the command ship for the event which will last for 3 weeks. During that time the participating ships will conduct live fire drills against unmanned drone and surface targets as well as subsonic, supersonic, and ballistic targets. Multiple nations ground based air defense systems will also be involved with the exercise.
The event is in part put together by UK defense company QinetiQ who supply alot of the targets that will be used as well as helps with range measurements.
Mediterranean strike
Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales (RO9), left and Italian Navy aircraft carrier ITS Cavour (550), right, lead the Mediterranean fleet.
Med strike is a large exercise ptaking place in the Mediterranean. It’s brought together one of the largest military navel fleets seen in decades and includes, 21 ships from the UK and Italian navy’s. 3 submarines, 41 aircraft( half of which are F-35B’s) 19 helicopters and 10 maritime patrol aircraft and more than 8,000 crew and sailers.
Like most of these events this one has a large focus on multi-national cooperation between the different nations involved. Canada, France, Italy, Portugal, Norway, Spain,Turkey, UK and the United States. The participants will work together on several drills including, live fire exercises, air defense exercises, anti-submarine warfare, and drill covering defense against hostile drones. Also one drill will focus on cross deck flying between some of the F-35s utilizing both carrier decks for takeoff and landing.
Some images from the exercise.
Open Spirit
Ships from 11 nations come together in the Baltic for Open Spirit.
Open spirit is less of an exercise and more of a yearly operation however I thought I would mention it as well since it is happening now.
During the world’s two great wars, WW1 and WW2 the waters of the Baltic were heavily mined. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania rotate yearly on leading this NATO event which see ships coming in to attempt to locate and destroy these “Historic weapons”. Last year’s event found around 40 weapons in the waters off of Estonia and was joined by a ship from the Finnish Navy for their very first NATO operation.
This year the focus will be on Lithuania and success is already at hand as the first of the years weapons have been found and disposed of. An explosive device was located some 38 nautical miles from Klaipėda port gate, in Lithuania by French minesweeper FS Andromeda which is currently sailing with Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1 (SNMCG1)
An image from Open Spirit 24 showing the destruction of a historic weapons on the seabed.
This operation makes the waters of the Baltic much safer for general maritime activities. Since 1997, just in Lithuania more than 200 mines, bombs, torpedoes, the remains of 17 sunken ships and two aircraft have been discovered.
All of these exercises have one major theme in common which I think is important. All of them focus mainly on how to accomplish the task while utilizing every nations strengths and working together. The working together part is a big one. NATO would crumble if these very different nations didn’t share a common focus. I suspect that the early days of the treaty were filled with a lot of communication breakdowns.
I want to thank each and every one of you for being here and reading. It’s through the support I’ve received that has brought GCR to where it is today. While I feel we have accomplished some major goals I still want to do more and with you all behind me it’s not a question of if but when. I have some major projects in the works right now and a good number of you will already have access to those when they drop on Patreon.
I can finally say that the plan is to do a big weekly recap show and possibly another if I can find some people interested in being interviewed. I’m looking to talk to people who are knowledgeable about the regions we cover or people who have interesting stories related to conflict or geopolitics. That will all drop for the members on Patreon, they have been patient long enough and I think they deserve something special. If you want access to that when it drops as well as other future benefits I’ll link to the Patreon below. It’s $1 dollar a month.
Anyway I just wanted to let everybody know about what I have going on and what I’d like to accomplish this week. I’m excited to do something new. I love writing but this will have me outside of my comfort zone and that will be good. If people like it maybe I’ll make it a daily or every couple days kind of thing.
Today according to the U.S. Navy an F/A-18 Super Hornet was lost overseas from the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75). The jet and its two aviators were attempting to land when an “arrestment failure” occurred. The plane failed to catch it wire or the wire broke, either way the plane went off the end of the ahip causing the pilot and weapons officer to eject into the Red Sea.
Both pilot and weapons officer were picked up by a rescue helicopter from the Truman. They suffered minor injuries but are alive. The jet was not recovered.
This is the second loss of a Super Hornet this week. The first was caused by an accident during a high speed turn where the hanger crew lost control of the jet and a towing trailer. No injuries reported there.
Super Hornet and towing tractor.
The Truman was also reportedly fired upon earlier on Tuesday according to CNN. This was in the hours before the ceasefire was announced. I don’t believe the two events from today are related.
The F/A-18 cost around 70 million dollars.
Reached out to centcom for a statement, I’ll update with a response if received. I’ve had good luck when emailing them but it’s hit or miss with the DoD.
Thank you for reading. I hope you get as much out of what I’m doing here as I get out of making these reports. If so I would invite you to join my Patreon. Doing that would help me more than I can describe. I’ve kept it as cheap as possible to become a member. It’s only a $1.00. However a dollar from even half of my Facebook followers would be a life changing amount of money for me and for this page.
Thank you for all the support over the years and as we continue to grow and evolve.
Today after many weeks and several false starts the U.S. and Ukraine have signed a mineral deal giving the US access to Ukraines large swath of natural resources as well as acting as an implied security guarantee for Ukraine. While the U.S. has provided support through the course of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, there were times when that support was seen as lacking or even pulled completely this deal should see the U.S. as having a stake in the future of Ukraine. This comes as US president Donald Trump attempts to negotiate a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.
A map showing the vast mineral deposits in Ukraine.
“this partnership allows the United States to invest alongside Ukraine, to unlock Ukraine’s growth assets, mobilize American talent, capital and governance standards that will improve Ukraine’s investment climate and accelerate Ukraine’s economic recovery.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
From Ukraine
“Together with the United States, we are creating the Fund that will attract global investment to our country.”
Ukraine’s Economic Minister Yulia Svyrydenko
This deal gives the US some stake in Ukraine’s future which will likely translate into other trades and deals down the road.
While this deal doesn’t stop the way it does cause a problem for Russia, as does anything that strengthens the ties between US and Ukraine.
This deal was announced earlier this year but was put on hold after a blow up in the Oval Office the two presidents, Donald Trump and Ukraine President Zelenskyy, got into an argument over the war essentially boiled down to Ukraine wanted a security guarantee and the U.S. didn’t want to commit under those terms. There is more but it’s been talked about enough elsewhere.
This is a developing story and will be updated later.
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On wendsday morning, April 16, in Promontory, Utah, authorities are investigating a large explosion that destroyed a building that was apart of the Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems facility involved in building rocket motors.
The building is a complete loss after yesterday mornings explosion.
Local police received the report of the explosion at 7:38am. Soon after they asked that people stay clear and evacuate the area if necessary as the fire was still going.
Video taken from KSL chopper 5 that shows the aftermath at the scene.
“There was an incident in one building at our Promontory, Utah facility this morning and we are working to determine the cause. Employees working in or near the building today are accounted for and there are no significant injuries reported,”
-a statement from Northrop Grumman.
Before being squired by Northrop Grumman in 2018 the facility was owned by a company called Orbital ATK. The facility specializes in making solid rocket motors for the military as well as NASA and other commercial aerospace companies. This facility is making the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) stage-one solid rocket motor.
Full-scale qualification static fire test of the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) stage-one solid rocket motor at Northrop Grumman’s facility in Promontory, Utah, March 6, 2025.
The Sentinel ICBM program will eventually field 400 missiles in silos and 259 additional units for testing and demonstration. Northrop Grumman is the largest SRM production company in America and one of the o my companies. The only other major company The only other major SRM producer in the United States is Aerojet Rocketdyne, which became part of L3Harris in 2023
Thank you for reading. I hope you get as much out of what I’m doing here as I get out of making these reports. If so I would invite you to join my Patreon. Doing that would help me more than I can describe. I’ve kept it as cheap as possible to become a member. It’s only a $1.00. However a dollar from even half of my Facebook followers would be a life changing amount of money for me and for this page.
Thank you for all the support over the years. Here’s to many more.
F-35C’s with Strike Fighter Squadron 97 (VFA-97) and EA-18G “Growlers” with Electronic Attack Squadron 136 (VAQ-136), both attached to Carrier Air Wing 2 (CVW-2).
April 14, 2024
Yesterday video footage was sent to me showing some footage taken in the USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) confirming that the ship had arrived at the Gulf of Oman. The USS Carl Vinson has joined the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) in carrying out strikes against Houthi targets in western Yemen.
The USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) spotted entering the Gulf of Aden., passing to the north of Socotra Island. She was spotted by satilites of the European space agency.Location of USS Carl Vinson when photographed by satellites.
Media in Yemen is reporting Houthi areas receiving nearly daily strikes by US forces.
Aftermath of one of the strikes outside of Sanaa.
Targets have included Houthi weapons manufacturing and storage as well as platforms for launching these weapons. Also radar, and air defense systems as well as high level officers in the Houthi organization.
Thank you for reading. I hope you get as much out of what I’m doing here as I get out of making these reports. If so I would invite you to join my Patreon. Doing that would help me more than I can describe. I’ve kept it as cheap as possible to become a member. It’s only a $1.00.
Today the U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet released several images showing the USS Nimitz (CVN 68) on their final deployments before her planned 2026/2027 decommissioning.
However, while the Nimitz is a good looking ship the rare part was one of its escorts in Carrier Strike Group 11 (CSG 11). Included in the pictures was USS Michael Monsoor (DDG 1001). One of only three commissioned Zumwalt-Class Stealth Missile Destroyer.
The Zumwalt-class Michael Monsoor, along with the Nimitz and the rest of CSG 11 are currently on deployment in the Pacific Ocean region.
Also included in the image are Arleigh Burke-Class Guided-Missile Destroyers; USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG l54), USS Gridley (DDG 101), and USS Lenah Sutcliffe Higbee (DDG 123) And U.S. Navy Replenishment Tanker, USNS John Lewis (T-AO-205).
To the future… and beyond.
The Zumwalt class was originally designed with littoral operations in mind and they were given a pair of Advanced Gun System (AGS) for their main guns. The AGS was designed for shore bombardment fire missions in support of ground operations however the ammo was very expensive (estimated at $800,000 to $1,000,000 per round in 2016) and only one ammo type was designed so now the gun has no ammo and the weapons is useless. The navy will eventually replace the guns with other systems like large Vertical Launch Cells for the navy’s hypersonic missile currently being tested by the USS Zumwalt. The AGS was designed around the time of the battleships being decommissioned. The navy was nervous about giving up its ability to carry out shore bombardment so the AGS was designed. The now canceled round that would have been fired by the AGS is the Long Range Land Attack Projectile (LRLAP) a rocket assisted precision GPS guided 155mm high explosive warhead that could fire 100 nautical miles.
USS Michael Monsoor.
Zumwalt’s odd shape came from the SC-21 (Surface Combatant for the 21st Century) research and development program started back in 1994. The program came up with many interesting designs such as the DD-21 or the destroyer for the 21st century, which has the distinctive hull now used by the Zumwalt class.
I see a bit of inspiration from the French La Fayette-class stealth frigate in both ships.
Concept art for the DD-21. The ship was thought up as a capable land, air and sea attack ship for the 21st century. This design went on to inspire the Zumwalt class. .
Aside from the DD-21 the SC-21 had several other interesting ideas I found in my research. One was called an arsenal ship. A massive floating missile platform with as many as 500 VLS cells loaded with Tomahawk cruise missiles. The ship was to be controlled by either a small crew or remotely piloted by crew members on one of the other ship. Todays navy thinking would have an aegis equipped cruiser other ship manually controlling this ship or possible one of the AWACS or AEW planes.
Concept art for the Arsenal ship.
The role this arsenal ship would have played is largely filled by the U.S. submarine fleet at the moment as the four oldest of the ballistic missile SSBN subs have been converted to the SSGN configuration. This change took the Trident missile cells and changed them out their nuclear payload for smaller but more numerous cruise missiles.
Tomahawk test-fire from USS Florida. 2008.
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Two days ago GCR reported that a number of US cargo planes were moving equipment to the Middle East. We have some more information on that today after Admiral Samuel J. Paparo revealed today at a hearing with the Senate Armed Services Committee, that several Patriot battery’s had been taken from South Korea and the Indian Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) and transferred to Central Command (CENTCOM). The airlifts were cauteries out by dozens of C-17’s.
Admiral Samuel J. Paparo, Senate Armed Services Committee hearing.
INDOPACOM covers the pacific and Indian Ocean region and is one of the most important military commands for the U.S. as they struggle against Chinese territorial interest with Taiwan as well as other parts of the first island chain. CENTCOM on the other hand, covers the Middle East region and is currently carrying out operations against the Iranian backed Houthis in Yemen. US assets have been reported as being moved to the Middle East in a suspected threat to Iran. US president Donald Trump has made it clear that if negotiations aren’t started with Iran, concerning Irans nuclear program, bombs will be the next step.
While Iran has little in the way of modern aircraft capable of defending against these hypothetical US strikes, what they do have is hundreds of medium and long range ballistic missiles. High level officials from the Iranian government have made threats towards U.S. military bases in the region as well as the bases of anybody who could help the US with a strike on Irans. This is where the patriot systems come in.
Patriot missile test
A patriot battery is made up of the following.
6-8 launchers
1 radar set (AN/MPQ-53 phased-array radar)
An Engagement Control station.
An Electrical Power Plant
And an Antenna Mast Group.
Patriot PAC 2 launcher in service in Israel. AN/MPQ-53 phased-array radar
A patriot battalion is made up of anywhere from 4-6 battery’s and 24-48 launchers as well as the single radar, power, and Fire Control Station each.
The Patriots in South Korea are apart of an I rig rated defense system and cover US assets in the country like Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek and Osan Air Base.
South Korea has asked the U.S. Department of Defense to temporarily deploy substitute assets, such as alternative air defense systems or combat aircraft, on a rotational basis to cover the hole left in their air defense network with the removal of these systems between February and March. The Patriots are expected to remain in the Middle East for the next at least six months.
The U.S. has dozens of bases and locations in the region that could come under fire in the near future as tensions rise in the region. Iran has already threatened US forces as a retaliation for a possible strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities. Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Israel all have their own defense networks (some supplemented by THAAD and Patriot systems.)
Thank you for reading. I hope you get as much out of what I’m doing here as I get out of making these reports. If so I would invite you to join my Patreon. Doing that would help me more than I can describe. I’ve kept it as cheap as possible to become a member. It’s only a $1.00. However a dollar from even half of my Facebook followers would be a life changing amount of money for me and for this page.
Audio content coming very soon. I’m also looking for interesting people to interview. If that’s you, contact me through my email.
Thank you for all the support over the years. Here’s to many more.
Video footage released on the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) social media channels show some recent launches from the USS Harry S. Truman as fighter F/A-18 Superhornets and EA-18G Growlers conduct air attacks on Houthi targets in Western Yemen.
Our dedicated service members of the Harry S. Truman carrier strike group are on station, launching continuous operations 24/7 against Iran-backed Houthis…#HouthisAreTerroristspic.twitter.com/37K8ktC1QB
Videos showing launches from USS Harry S. The Truman, currently deployed to the Red Sea.
Info has been limited coming out of Yemen on the exact nature of these strikes. Almost no pictures showing battle damage have been released by either side, leaving little to be analyzed. However footage was released by the U.S. president Donald Trump showing a strike on a large group of people he said were Houthis who had gathered to discuss military plans. The video shows only people an and isn’t close enough to distinguish between fighter and non combatants which has caused some to claim the strikes might have been on civilian tribals during a normal gathering. Even if this was a legitimate strike, the video doesn’t really show one way or another. It’s too far away to distinguish much beyond it’s a group of people gathered. In today’s world, where everything can be turned into your enemy’s propaganda it’s important to be as thorough as possible with your evidence. If the US President is going to release video like this I would like to see more details included.
Video released by the President showing a strike on alleged Houthi terrorist. This clip has caused some controversy since its release.
Moving the Pieces
The Middle East/ Central Command area has continued to witness an increase in US military assets and soldiers being transferred into the region. A large number of heavy and super heavy cargo lifters have been tracked making delivers to any of the various airbases. Dozens of C-17s and several C-5s arriving at Bahrain’s Isa Airbase. Units are even being pulled from other areas with the Pentagon reportedly ordering 2 Patriot batteries as well as a Thermal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD).pulled from South Korea and moved to the Middle East.
Also F-35s are reportedly being moved to Al Udeid Airbase in Qatar and Djibouti International Airport in the UAE. Diego Garcia is now housing at least 6 B-2 “Spirit” long range strategic stealth Bombers, as was reported by multiple outlets (including GCR).
It’s clear to those of us who have followed the region for any considerable amount of time that tensions between Iran and the combined United States and Israel are at the highest they have been since Irans ballistic missile attacks on Israel On 1 October 2024.
🇮🇱⚔️🇮🇷 Iranian ballistic missile barrage on Israel.
No amount of American "de-escalation" talk will save Iran from what Israel is about to do now. pic.twitter.com/2CIfEwiHa0
A post from Twitter showing the October 1sr attack on October 1St 2024.
Right now the U.S. and the rest of the western world are concerned what would happen if Iran were to produce nuclear weapons. They believe that them doing so would be a threat to the safety of the Middle East and everybody else. And so, Iran doing so is a red line for the U.S. and more so Israel. Where so the Yemeni Houthis fit in all of this? After all, it’s the Houthis that the U.S. is currently attacking with almost daily bomb and missile strikes.The Houthis are just apart of the game. They are a sort of proxy of Iran in that Iran supplies them with military equipment and training as well as support on the economic side. While their attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea have caused some economic woes for the worlds seafaring nations who traverse the Red Sea, I can tell you that the Houthis are not the people being talked about when the pentagon ask to bring a THAAD system into the Middle East. It’s not why they are shipping in mass amounts of supplies and airplanes (along with the squadrons to fly them and their support crews.) While the USS Harry S Truman might be parked in the Red Sea it’s a good bet the USS Carl Vinson will go into the Gulf Of Oman or through the Strait of Hormuz.
It takes alot to get the U.S. military machine moving as much and as fast as they are right now. Once that machine starts cranking, getting it stopped is another matter.
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As always and from the bottom of my heart. Thank you.
Global Conflict Reporting 
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