Blackhorse Posted May 30, 2000 Share Posted May 30, 2000 Troops Land in Sweden by Mistake .c The Associated Press STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AP) - With their field packs, camouflage uniforms and weapons, the 116-member elite Italian military unit was ready for anything except, perhaps, map reading. The heavily armed Alpini, as Italy's elite alpine corps is called, hit the ground in neutral Sweden instead of in NATO-member Norway, where they were supposed to join the Cooperative Banners exercise. It was not clear why their Airbus passenger plane mistakenly landed in southern Sweden's Kristianstad instead of Kristiansand, which is in southern Norway, on Thursday. The soldiers did not know they were in Sweden until immigration officials pointed out the navigational error, Swedish and Norwegian news reports said. It was the first time immigration officers in Kristianstad turned back a NATO advance, the news media noted. ``This happens now and then,'' airport director Lennart Nilsson said about the mix-up between Kristianstad and Kristiansand. ``There are just a couple of letters - but 400 kilometers (250 miles) - separating the two cities.'' After about two hours in Sweden, the troops re-boarded their plane and headed for Kristiansand. AP-NY-05-26-00 1152EDT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G4A Posted May 30, 2000 Share Posted May 30, 2000 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tss Posted May 30, 2000 Share Posted May 30, 2000 Well, that seems to be the first military victory for Sweden in, what, about 180 years. - Tommi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
von shrad Posted May 30, 2000 Share Posted May 30, 2000 The Italians didnt surrender. Now thats a shock! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maximus Posted May 30, 2000 Share Posted May 30, 2000 Well, they were men. I guess there were no women there to ask for directions. ------------------ "While stands the Collosseum, Rome shall stand. When falls the Collosseum, Rome shall fall. And when Rome falls -- the World." **Byron** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geier Posted May 30, 2000 Share Posted May 30, 2000 <BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by tss: Well, that seems to be the first military victory for Sweden in, what, about 180 years. - Tommi<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> 191 actually. We're presently launching an amphibious assault to take back some old provinces. Finland, Estonia, Pommern, Norway and a roadside café in Delaware. Blame the Italians. The full weight of the entire Swedish Armed forces (3 and a half platoons and a trawler) has just hit Vaasa and are asking for directions. We're very confused right now. ------------------ Geier, formerly Kettle Black. "The succesful execution of a well devised plan often looks like luck to saps." Dashiell Hammett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tss Posted May 30, 2000 Share Posted May 30, 2000 About Swedish military: 191 actually. Didn't you have some clash with Denmark after losing us to Russia? Or did it happen also in 1809? The full weight of the entire Swedish Armed forces (3 and a half platoons and a trawler) has just hit Vaasa and are asking for directions. At Korsnäs, I presume... Well, they should have taken Earl Birger's memoirs with them. Of course, Tavastehus is nowadays easier to find because you can just walk East until you hit the railroad and then turn South following it. (For those who don't know Finnish medieval history: Hämäläiset (= Finns living at Tavasteland) revolted in 1248 against Swedes the were taxing them. Next year the Swedes sent a punitive expedition that was led by Earl Birger. The Finns started the revolt with the traditional Finnish way of starting revolutions: kill all tax collectors, get drunk, and try to find something to burn down (not necessarily in that order).) - Tommi [This message has been edited by tss (edited 05-30-2000).] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geier Posted May 30, 2000 Share Posted May 30, 2000 Originally posted by tss: About Swedish military: 191 actually. Didn't you have some clash with Denmark after losing us to Russia? Or did it happen also in 1809? Don't think so. Apparently we sent some useless joint expedition against ol Bony in 1813 I believe but I don't think a state of war was declared. Btw, we have the World Record for peace actually. No other nation has been at peace for as long as Sweden has. How we managed it is quite another story, let's not go there. Update: The Swedish Armed forces has now boarded a Silja Line ferry and have liberated the bar. Since the ferry was headed for Stockholm, the operation has been cancelled. ------------------ Geier, formerly Kettle Black. "The succesful execution of a well devised plan often looks like luck to saps." Dashiell Hammett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobVarak Posted May 30, 2000 Share Posted May 30, 2000 tss wrote: (For those who don't know Finnish medieval history: Geez, Come on tss. What do you think we are, a bunch of morons? We all know LOADS about Finnish medievil history. ------------------ Rob Varak Editor Site on Sound: The Web's Premier Site For Musical Discussion www.siteonsound.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G4A Posted May 30, 2000 Share Posted May 30, 2000 <BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by tss: Didn't you have some clash with Denmark after losing us to Russia?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Yes, Sweden joined the last part of the war against Napoleon, but didn't take a very active part in that. Instead, they attacked Denmark, who were forced to give up Norway. That was in 1814, so Sweden had 186 years of peace before the Italian invasion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geier Posted May 31, 2000 Share Posted May 31, 2000 <BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by G4A: That was in 1814, so Sweden had 186 years of peace before the Italian invasion.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Roger that. Thanks for clearing that one up for me. Not my area of expertise. -Let's do a coin toss, heads is Russia, tails is Denmark. If it stands on its end we'll attack Istanbul. How Swedish Kings decided foreign policy. ------------------ Geier, formerly Kettle Black. "The succesful execution of a well devised plan often looks like luck to saps." Dashiell Hammett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tss Posted May 31, 2000 Share Posted May 31, 2000 -Let's do a coin toss, heads is Russia, tails is Denmark. If it stands on its end we'll attack Istanbul. How Swedish Kings decided foreign policy. Oh, don't forget Poland and Germany. There were good many wars with Poland after Sigismund Wasa decided that wanted to rule both Poland and Sweden. (Note for the casual readers: Sigismund was the king of Poland, even though his father, grandfather, and two uncles were kings of Sweden). In particular, I think that "The Deluge" of 1650's has been the worst war for Poland through the recorded history, WWII included. Speaking of Swedish military achievements... How high is Lars Radeström among the all-time Swedish fighter aces? After all, he destroyed two modern fighters and his kills were confirmed pretty well. In fact, it probably wouldn't be possible to confirm them any better... - Tommi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshK Posted May 31, 2000 Share Posted May 31, 2000 A friend of mine is a dual U.S./Italian citizen. In 1998, after many successful delaying actions, he finally was given an ultimatum to fulfill his conscription requirements. Because his last Italian residence was in the Alpine region, he served in the above-mentioned Alpini brigade. He took a lot of pride in his prestigious unit history. I took a lot of pride in my constant ability to mock the Italian military. For example, he described the Alpini uniform to me in great detail. Their distinctive feature is a pointed hat with a bird's feather. NCOs and enlisted men have a white feather, while officers have a black feather. The rationale for this was lost on him, but to me it was clear. The Italians didn't want to give their officers anything white that could be waved in order to aid and abet their inevitable surrender. Just when I was running out a material, they go an invade Sweden. Lucky me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackhorse Posted May 31, 2000 Author Share Posted May 31, 2000 I'm shocked that Sweden refused to accept their surrender. I guess they figured Norway was better equipped to handle POWs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tss Posted May 31, 2000 Share Posted May 31, 2000 I took a lot of pride in my constant ability to mock the Italian military. There's nothing inherently wrong in mocking Italian military, as long as you remember that they too had some really tough units. In particular, the 10th Light Flotilla was a pretty extraoridinary unit. - Tommi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geier Posted May 31, 2000 Share Posted May 31, 2000 <BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by tss: Speaking of Swedish military achievements... How high is Lars Radeström among the all-time Swedish fighter aces? After all, he destroyed two modern fighters and his kills were confirmed pretty well. In fact, it probably wouldn't be possible to confirm them any better... - Tommi<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> I've actually never heard of him... or any other Swedish pilot other than von Rosen. Was he a volunteer in the Winter War or are you just pulling my Swedish leg? Congo perhaps? My guess is with two victories (if that is what you are saying) he would be no.1. Geier Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tss Posted May 31, 2000 Share Posted May 31, 2000 I've actually never heard of him... Well, does the name "Jas Gripen" say anything to you Was he a volunteer in the Winter War Actually, I would also be interested to know how many air victories did the Swedish volunteers get. I haven't seen any figure for that. They fought in a quiet sector but they had a couple of air combats. I know that there were two Danish volunteers who got air victories, and I think that one of them got two or three. Also, one Italian volunteer got three or four Soviet planes. - Tommi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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