Friday, September 3, 2010

21 Gun Salute

Gun salutes are the firing of cannons or arms as an (military or naval) honor. The custom originates in naval tradition, where a warship would fire its cannons harmlessly out to sea, until all ammunition was spent, to show that it was disarmed, signifying the lack of hostile intent.
As naval customs evolved, 21 volleys came to be fired for heads of state, with the number decreasing with the rank of the recipient of the honor. While the 21-gun salute is the most commonly recognized, the number of rounds fired in any given salute will vary depending on the conditions. Circumstances effecting these variations include the particular occasion and, in the case of military and state funerals, the branch of service, and rank (or office) of the person to whom honors are being rendered.

Pararescue Jump

Pararescuemen (AFSC 1T2X1), also called PJs (a nickname pronounced 'pee jays'), are United States Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) and Air Combat Command (ACC) operatives tasked with recovery and medical treatment of personnel in humanitarian and combat environments. They are the only members of the DoD specifically organized, trained and equipped to conduct personnel recovery operations in hostile or denied areas as a primary mission. PJs are also used to support NASA missions and have been used to recover astronauts after water landings. Of the 22 enlisted Air Force Cross recipients, 12 have been awarded to Pararescuemen. They wear the maroon beret as a symbol of their elite status. Part of the little-known Air Force Special Tactics community[4] and long an enlisted preserve, the Pararescue service began commissioning Combat Rescue Officers early in the 21st century. You can read the true account of one PJ in the book That Others May Live written by PJ Jack Brehm and Pete Nelson.

Tactical Operations Center

A tactical operations center (TOC) is a command post for police, paramilitary, or military operations. A TOC usually includes a small group of specially trained officers or military personnel who guide members of an active tactical element during a mission. Even though a form of TOC is used in any sort of tactical mission situation, in a non-military context it is generally associated with groups of "elite" police units called SWAT.

Gunny's Crib

Ermey read and answered questions submitted by viewers regarding weapons and equipment used by all branches of the U.S. military now or in the past, as well as by other armed forces in history. Ermey often takes his viewers on location to military training areas to film demonstrations. When not on location, Ermey broadcasts from a set resembling a military outpost, including a tent, a Jeep, and various other pieces of military gear which have changed throughout the series.

Bazooka

Bazooka is the common name for a man-portable rocket launcher widely fielded by the US Army. Also referred to as the "Stovepipe", the innovative bazooka was amongst the first-generation of rocket propelled anti-tank weapons used in infantry combat. Featuring a solid rocket motor for propulsion, it allowed for high explosive (HE) and high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) warheads to be delivered against armored vehicles, machine gun nests, and fortified bunkers at ranges beyond that of a standard thrown grenade or mine. The universally-applied nickname arose from the M9 variant's vague resemblance to the tubular musical instrument of the same name invented and popularized in the 1930s by US comedian Bob Burns. An alternative etymology ascribed the name to the unique sound the weapon made when fired.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Flyer 21 American Special Forces

In this clip from "Mail Call", R. Lee Ermey test-drives the Flyer 21, a lightweight off-roading multipurpose vehicle currently being used by American special forces.

Jetpack

Jet pack, rocket belt, rocket pack, and similar names, are various types of device, usually worn on the back, that use jets of escaping gases (or in some cases liquid water) to allow a single user to fly.
The concept of these devices emerged from science fiction in the 1920s and popularised in the 1960s as the technology became a reality. Currently, the only practical use of the jet pack has been extra-vehicular activity for astronauts. Despite decades of advancement in the technology, the challenges of Earth's atmosphere, Earth's gravity, and the human body (which is not well suited for this type of flight) remain an obstacle to its potential use in the military and as a means of personal transport.