JP76er

Sorta off topic, sorry! I saw a program on TV; I believe it was "Gangland" & it was on the Motorcycle club, “The Mongols”. Believe me, I wouldn’t go near them because I quite despise taking a severe beating but one of their members related themselves to our Special Forces, they were the best of the best. Their president would give them a speech & they answered with a reply that I can only remember they used “Hooahh!” at the end. I found that kinda strange since in my humble opinion & please, no beatings, I don’t think the whole club could not make it through one day at the 1st day of any Special Forces training. Unless they are a former member of the SF. Mean, dangerous & fearless, yes, Special forces no. I’m not knocking motorcyclists or MC clubs either, like I said, I wouldn’t confront one member of a 1%er club. Did I mention no severe beatings??????????? Back to topic. And you heard none of this from me.

Thanks Matt. slug88's link is quite nasty. Something so simple & so deadly.

Thanks for the link & yikes!!!!

Non-military & I don't know; what's an EFP?

Oh, he's torturing us! I hope whatever they do, it has you & the other Stryker troopers being the most up to date, safe & dangerous (to the enemy) units out there. Be Safe & Thanks for Serving! Jamie

Hi Mike, You don't think the ERA will come to fruition for the Stryker? Why do you think that? I was thinking they would be pretty much pushed into it because of the new RPG rounds that are evolving & arriving. Thanks for any input!

I was wondering if they would ever do this. That means new kits for the 1/35 model world. Working on the photo etched slat armor is a nightmare. Thanks for the link.

Hi Raiton, Clavicula_Nox is right, it's a huge game. I was never in the military but have learned tons by playing the game & coming to the forums & asking questions. There a lot of good & knowledgeable people here that would be glad to help you out. I really enjoy the game & I ask questions on things new to me or things I'm not sure about. Play away & ask away, the forum members will help you out.

"I enjoy talking to and meeting guys from all of those "small" wars because the atmosphere is so much different, especially Somalia where there was a grouping of high speed;low drag infantry-types, SF, and considerable air assets...but yet, they weren't ever allowed to take the gloves off." After getting to know these guys, Somalia is very, very lucky that they weren't allowed to take their gloves of. I took Dale deer hunting for the very first time & we jumped a small 11 pointer & it ran right to him. He shot twice at it on the run & then radioed me that he had it on the ground. Forgetting about the double tap, I started giving him trouble about having to shoot twice. We turned the deer over & one shot overlapped the other shot right in the lung/heart kill box. Never made fun of that again! I was with him when he killed two Russian boars with his Desert Eagle up at Ted Nugent's Sunrize Acres hunting preserve. I'm an excellent shot, Dale is an incredible deadly shot.

I did a quick search through Brad Kasal's book & couldn't find a note on it but I did find it in Bing West's "No True Glory"; another excellent book, in my opinion. It’s from Chapter 27, “The House From Hell” on page 303. Here's the excerpt: "The Marines peppered the house with fire and hooted and hollered as if they were still inside while Gonzalez prepared a twenty-pound satchel charge-sufficient to blow down two houses. Gonzalez crept inside the house and placed the satchel on top of a dead insurgent’s body. A few seconds later he ran out outside. “Fifteen Seconds!” They ducked for cover. The house exploded in a huge flash of red, followed by chunks of concrete thudding down as a vast cloud of dust. A pink mist mixed with the dust and gunpowder in the air. Grapes was happy to see it. The Marines waited several minutes, then moved forward into the dusty rubble. They saw two bodies lying among the slabs. As they drew closer, they noticed one of them move. “They’re still alive!” An arm flickered limply forward, and a grenade tumbled toward the Marines. They turned and ran for cover. Sanchez saw Grapes and Crossan racing by him. “I’m too slow! I’m f*****!” he thought. The grenade went off, injuring no one. Seven Marines climbed back up the rubble and fired two hundred rounds into the two insurgents.” That could ruin your day.

Thanks for that. I will definitely check that out. Is there a book out on that or should I just Google it? Looks like you're a Ranger. I'm friends with Dale Sizemore & Steve Anderson from Somalia & Black Hawk Down. They're both great guys. Interesting item about them is if they tell you they are going to do something, they do it. You can bank on it. The Rangers definitely have a particular mind set & in my opinion, that's why they along with other Special Forces truly are the best of the best. Most of all, welcome home & thanks for what you do! That goes for all of our servicemen & women, who have served, are serving & will serve in the future. That's from the heart.

I have the book on a bookshelf & handy in our master bedroom. I'll double check that & report back later. I thought it was Fallujah where the "house from hell" was.

Ah, reminiscent of Cu Chi.

I know I would have one itchy trigger finger wanting to launch one. It's definitely a good thing that even the lowest ranking guy out there can & will come up with good solutions at the right time & be listened to. Plus, he really did want to fire that baby off! On another thing I thought was a bug in the game at first; leveling a building & then have an enemy soldier pop up & fire at you later on in the mission. Usually a well aimed RPG at one of your Strykers. Correct me if I’m wrong but I believe it was the “Hell House” in Fallujah where the marines were ambushed in a heavily fortified house. The marines got their wounded out & then leveled the place. An insurgent still tossed out a grenade from the rubble after the house was destroyed. I read the book, “My Men Are My Heroes: The Brad Kasal Story” awhile back & I believe that is where I read it. It's an excellent book for those who have not read it yet. In the game, I now always sweep the area after leveling a building just to make sure I’m not regretting a survivor shot later. Definitely not a bug but a hard earned lesson you don’t forget.

I forgot about that. Now that was funny.

I just found a resin kit & some decals for a 1/35 model of the Australian M1A1 Aim. Think I'm going to pick them up & build an Aussie Abrams. Thanks to everyone for the information on the thread.

"As for using these expensive missiles (IIRC $78,000 a pop) to whack inexpensive light infantry... happens all the time. I was at a conference with a Lt. Colonel who specifically authorized a Javelin to be used against an annoying sniper who was on a rooftop. When they got up there they found very little left of the sniper and whomever was up there with him. That was first couple of weeks into OIF." I'm more than happy to see them use our tax dollars & the Javelin to whack out troublesome combatants instead of putting soldiers in harm's way. I know the brass won't be too happy to see it happen frequently, but it's much better seeing your folks healthy & in one piece. Does any one know how far up the chain of command you have to go to be able to fire a Javelin this way? Is it fluid per how dangerous the situation it is to the troops?

Thanks for posting that link. With the input I have received on this thread, I've learned a lot on the Javelin. Looking foward to the upcoming adds to the game.

That would be great wouldn't it? Remember the science fairs you had back in school? Yes, little Jonny here has built a working model of the Javelin ATGM, we're so proud of him. Let's go outside & let him test it on a school bus. Empty bus of course. Then the parents of the kid that built a working model of an AT-4 would get their noses out of joint thinking that Jonny is getting special treatment. Schools these days.

Could it be that politicians are the same in every country? Nah. What other contracts were taken up at that time? The Abrams AIM is an excellent tank & Kwazydog said that Australians were fielding LEO1s at the time, not LEO 2s. That brings up in my mind of was there a better price in the AIM. I have no idea what the price tag is on either.

Thanks Dan. How would the Leopard 2 compare to the Abrams? Was it a cost issue, if you know?

When I buy one, I'll invite you over & we can entertain the neighborhood. I know a few police officers & I'm sure they would line up for a chance to fire a Javelin. Havoc without the headaches. I see what you mean on top down versus direct fire & I think the game models this. I'll watch next time I'm playing but it seems like if you fire at a building the missile comes in flat, armor & it arcs high & comes top down. I'm not sure if that was intended or not but it fits what you are saying. Thanks for the info.

I'm not sure of what goes into firing the Javelin. Can you explain it? Doesn't the operator have to sight the target negating the use of an indirect fire mode? On firing, doesn't the operator actually snap a picture with acquisition of the needed data & fires the Javelin? I think I read that but I'm not sure. If those things actually happen, I agree that is not a bug. Still is a scary event though. It’s good that they can fire & scoot.

I'm wondering if anyone has any input on the Australian M1A1 AIM Abrams. Changing from the LEO to the M1s is interesting. The LEO is a top notch tank, I was wondering why the Australians went to the Abrams?

I'll open a thread on the Australian Abrams.