Chickenboy
Posts: 24520
Joined: 6/29/2002 From: San Antonio, TX Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: AW1Steve quote:
ORIGINAL: USS America quote:
ORIGINAL: AW1Steve What I find intresting is what they are NOT saying. They used SEAL team six, which is the hostage rescue team (equivalent to the Army's Delta force). Also, despite it being a SEAL team, that evacted to the USS Carl Vinson , the op used BLACKHAWK helicopters. That means US Army. (The USN uses Seahawks, the USAF uses Night Hawks and Pave Hawks, the USMC doesn't use that type at all). Could The 160th SOAR have been used? Or some other unit ? I notice that in the photo the wreckage is painted OD, which suggests US Army. Anybody else pick up anything? Just recently listening the the White House staffer in charge of counter terrorism give a press conference, something tweaked my radar. He described the strike force taking measures to ensure they would not be attacked by any Pakistani AF jets, because no one in the Pakistani government or military was informed they were going. They flew from somewhere to this compound and then all the way out of the country without being detected or intercepted. If the point of origin/return was the sea, then they basically flew across the entire country, in and again out. I think there were considerably more aircraft involved than a couple of USA Blackhawk Helicopters. Of that I have no doubt. But From Afganistan to the CV would be a very long flight unrefueled. So it might be a truly multi service OP. USN SEALS flown by 160 SOAR, refueled by USMC MC or KC-130's to a USN CV. And no doubt J-STAR , AWACS and RIVET JOINT (provided by the USAF) providing electronic control and cover. Truly a fully joint OP. I'll be watching "The Strategy Page" over the next few days for the "rest of the story". Why not some upcountry (and remote) refueling / dropoff site with sufficient range for the little birds to get to the target site? Have longer range (CH-53 or kin) rotary or Osprey variable wing assets located there to shuttle the assets out of country. The idea behind Desert One wasn't a bad one-they just picked a bad site and had some miscommunication in execution and withdrawal strategies. No matter how they did it or what they did it with-that's just idle curiosity getting the better of me-kudos to them on a job very well done. I do appreciate the very clever idea of burial at sea here. Quite appropriate, considering the alternatives. The 'id' part of me wanted to watch OBL suffer a little more. A double tap to the head, while appropriate, seems almost anticlimactic. Since it was to be a naval operation, couldn't they have at least keel hauled him from the Nimitz (at flank speed, natch) or somethin'?
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