SPEARHEAD Command Reshuffle Complete

In the aftermath of the tragic death of SPEARHEAD Supreme Commander General "Knuckles" McKenzie, British Army in December and with the recall of high ranking Russian Federation officers to Moscow in the wake of the Ukranian conflict, the UNSC (United Nations Security Council) ordered a high level personnel reshuffle to ensure command continuity for SPEARHEAD. The changes were confirmed by the UNSC today.

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SPEARHEAD Acting Supreme Commander Vice-Admiral "Smokestack" Henderson, USN (United States Navy) [left] has been promoted to the grade of admiral and confirmed as Supreme Commander. He previously served as SPEARHEAD Deputy Supreme Commander in 2018 after a year as SPEARHEAD Staff Director. In 2011, then Rear Admiral (lower) Henderson was UNETIDA Director in an acting capacity until his promotion to rear admiral to become SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Operations in 2012 and Deputy Chief of Staff in 2013. In 2009, Captain Henderson was the UNETIDA Naval Tactical Support officer for the Pacific region 2009.

Acting SPEARHEAD Deputy Supreme Commander, Army Corps General "Faucon" Davout was confirmed to the Deputy Supreme Commander billet permanently. He will be promoted to Army General later in the month by the French Army as the UNSC has raised the SPEARHEAD Deputy Supreme Commander billet to 4-star grade. Davout had been dual-hatting as Acting SPEARHEAD Deputy Supreme Commander and as SPEARHEAD Staff Director since December 2023. He was appointed to Staff Director in 2017 after serving as SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Global Strategic Plans while a division general. In 2013 then Brigade General Davout was SPEARHEAD Regional Operations Commander [Europe].

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Air Marshal "Buzzard" Farington, RAF (Royal Air Force) is the new SPEARHEAD Staff Director replacing Army Corps General "Faucon" Davout who has been elevated to SPEARHEAD Deputy Supreme Commander.  Farington returns after previously serving UNETIDA earlier in his career as a wing commander in the UARF (UNETIDA Arial Reaction Force). More recently since 2021 then Air Vice-Marshal Farington was responsible for plans and policy during the establishment of the UKSC (United Kingdom Space Command).

Major General "Whopper" Creedon, USMC (United States Marine Corps) [right] has been promoted to lieutenant general and appointed as SPEARHEAD Vice Commander for Global Operations and Force Integration. He replaces Vice Admiral "Sextant" White who will retire from the Royal Navy. Creedon was most recently SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Global Security since 2018. As a brigadier general, Creedon was SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Intelligence and Information in 2013. In 2003 then Colonel Creedon, he served as UNETIDA Special Operations Commander and later as UNETIDA/UNPASID Director of Intelligence.

Zhong Jiang (lieutenant general) "Besra" Hu of the People's Liberation Army Air Force of China was appointed as SPEARHEAD Vice Commander for Strategic Weaponry in 2022 after succeeding Zhong Jiang "Huǒjiàn" Li of the People's Liberation Army of China who returned to his nation's command. As a Shao jiang (major general), Hu was appointed as the first SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Operations and Integration [Eastern] in 2017. In 2011 Da xiao (senior colonel) Hu was UNETIDA Air Operations Commander.

The billet of SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Satellite and Cyber Systems has been elevated to 3-star grade and redesignated SPEARHEAD Vice Commander for Space, Satellite and Cyber Systems. Air Vice Marshal "Nakshatra" Singh has been appointed to air marshal in the Indian Air Force to serve in the new position. He was previously appointed as the SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Satellite and Cyber Systems in 2022 replacing Major General "Circuits" Anderson, USAF (United States Air Force).

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Major General "Shellshock" Hollister of the South African Army remains as SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Operations and Integration [Western]. He has held the position since 2018 and previously served as SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Recruitment and Selection.

Phon tri (major general) "S̄eụ̄x" Tham-boon of the Royal Thai Army is now SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Operations and Integration [Eastern] replacing Sojang (major general) "Sang-eo" Chang, ROKN (Republic of Korea Navy) who has been reassigned as the Republic of Korea military attache to NATO.

Brigadier "Magnum" Pike has been appointed a major general in the Royal Marines and will succeed Major General "Whopper" Creedon as SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Global Security. Pike was previously SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Security and Surveillance.

Canadian Army Major General "Tucker" Reid [left] remains as SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Manpower and Personnel since 2018. He previously served as SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Training and Instruction. 

Vice Admiral "Tridente" Carlos of the Spanish Navy, SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Global Strategic Plans remains in his position since 2018. He previously served as SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Naval Operations [Western] as a counter admiral.

The new SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Financial Management is Generalmajor "Freya" Hansen of the Norwegian Army. She replaces Wing General "Altísimo" Hernandez who has returned to a senior position the Mexican Air Force.

Tuğamiral (rear admiral) "Balina" Demirci, SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Naval Operations [Eastern] is to be promoted to the rank of koramiral in the Turkish Naval Forces and assigned as the SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Civil Affairs. He will replace Aluf (major general) "Jackal" Dahan who will return to Israel Defense Forces.

Generale di divisione (major general) "Calzone" Manganiello of the Italian Army remains Judge Advocate General of SPEARHEAD since 2022 when he replaced Air Vice Marshal "Magpie" Brown who retired from the Royal Australian Air Force.

The SPEARHEAD Director for Science, Technology and Research, Dr. "Quantum" Pataal of India [right] will remain in the position held since 2013.

The SPEARHEAD Inspector General Major General "Bugs" Casey, US Army replaced Generalmajor "Schakal" Nilsson, of the Swedish Army who retired in 2023.

Liwa (brigadier general) "Sphinx" Al-Khatib of the Egyptian Army replaced Major General "Sangja" Park of the Republic of Korea Army as SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Global Logistics and Installations in 2023.

The SPEARHEAD Surgeon General Major General "Scalpal" Johnson M.D, USAF will remain in the position held since 2018 when he replaced Major-general "Scrubs" Janssens M.D. of the Medical Component of the Belgian Armed Forces.

Mr. B will assume the duties of the Chief of Shadow Directorate when Mr. G leaves service in October. 

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1-star appointments were not available at press time.

General and Flag Officer Nominations Finally Confirmed

In March Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) stood off against the Pentagon over its reproductive health policies, which provide funds to service members to travel out of state to seek services (including abortions) by voting to withold confirmations of general and flag officers for the entire year.

He finally lifted the block this week with the press statement “I’m not going to hold the promotions of these people any longer, We fought hard.” On Tuesday The Senate confirmed senior military nominations of some 421 officers, a massive bloc that built up over months.

SECDEF Austin released the following statement:

Below is a sample of the huge amount of confirmations: 

"It's always Weather Balloons" - SPEARHEAD

On the heels of a third UAP being downed by U.S. fighter aircraft in as many days, the commander of NORAD General Glen VanHerck, U.S. Air Force was asked yesterday if he had ruled out an extraterrestrial origin for them. "I'll let the intel community and the counterintelligence community figure that out. I haven't ruled out anything." which the world's media will now assume to be confirmation that the U.S. military believes aliens exist.

The Pentagon stated that China operates surveillance balloons on a global scale collecting data on military bases, including the balloon downed last week. However the last three objects shot down have not been confirmed to be linked to China - or anyone else for that matter.

 

A visibly irate Major General "Whopper" Creedon, SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Global Security was questioned by press in the UNHQ Monday and he responded with "It's not aliens and Glen never said it was," shaking his fist "It's always Weather Balloons! Nothing to see here! Go home!"

The Wall Street Journal reported the third UAP downed on Sunday was octagonal and hovered at 20,000 feet which the Pentagon said posed a "hazard to civilian aviation."

First Chief of Space Operations sworn in

Vice President Mike Pence swore in General John “Jay” Raymond today as the first Chief of Space Operations, the title of the officer in charge of the newly created sixth branch of the U.S. armed forces - The United States Space Force.

When I began this multi-part series in 2017 and even following it up last year with the inevitable realisation that this was probably actually going to happen, I still didn't think I'd be writing this today. But once the chief is assigned, the ball is rolling and over the next few weeks and months Raymond will work with the Department of Defence in establishing immediately, a force of space specialists drawn from what was the Air Force Space Command, the administrative, training and procurement entity of the USAF for space. Gen. Raymond will also command the United States Space Command, the joint-service combatant command that conducts space operations.

According to it's mission statement, The U.S. Space Force is to "organize, train, and equip space forces in order to protect U.S. and allied interests in space and to provide space capabilities to the joint force. Its responsibilities include developing military space professionals, acquiring military space systems, maturing the military doctrine for space power, and organizing space forces to present to the Combatant Commands".

A force of 16,000 personnel will be stood up over the next 18 months but Gen. Raymond suggested that adopting a new uniform, logo and of course, a song will take much time in the months, if not years ahead.

Although that said, I thought they had the song sorted:

Sources: 
US Space Force Fact Sheet - https://www.spaceforce.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheet 
Twitter account of Mike Pence -  @Mike_Pence
Video: Starship Troopers 3 - Youtube

In memoriam, 2018

Let us remember those we lost in 2018:

Paul Allen, 65, American businessman and co-founder of Microsoft.

Stanley Anderson, 78, American actor who played the President in both "The Rock" and "Armageddon".

Kofi Annan, 80, Ghanaian diplomat, Secretary-General of the United Nations (1997–2006), Nobel Prize laureate (2001).

Captain Alan LaVern Bean, USN Ret., 86, American naval officer, naval aviator, aeronautical engineer, test pilot, and NASA astronaut. The the fourth person to walk on the Moon.

Ken Berry, 85, American actor, "F Troop".

David Bischoff, 66, American novelist and television writer "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episodes "Tin Man" and "First Contact".

Steven Bochco, 74, 10-time Emmy winning American television producer and writer "Hill Street Blues", "L.A. Law", "NYPD Blue".

Anthony Bourdain, 61, Four time Emmy winning American chef, author and television host

Jim Bowen, 80, English television presenter and comedian, "Bullseye".

Peter Brace, 94, British actor and stuntman, "Raiders of the Lost Ark", "Batman", "Highlander" and Peter Mayhew's stunt double in "Star Wars".

Staff Sgt. Russell Brown, USA Ret., 96, 82nd Airborne Division. Made every combat jump during World War II.

Barbara Bush, 92, American political matriarch, First Lady (1989–1993) and Second Lady (1981–1989).

President George H. W. Bush, 94, American politician, President (1989–1993), Vice President (1981–1989), Director of Central Intelligence (1976–1977).

Montserrat Caballé, 85, Spanish opera singer, "Barcelona" w. Freddie Mercury.

Joseph Campanella, 93, American actor "Mannix", "Silent Running", "Meteor".

Frank Carlucci, 87, American politician, Secretary of Defense (1987–1989), National Security Advisor (1986–1987).

Bunny Carr, 91, Irish television presenter (Quicksilver).

Debbie Lee Carrington, 58, American actress and stunt woman "Return of the Jedi", "Total Recall".

Reg E. Cathey, 59, Emmy winning American actor "House of Cards", "Luke Cage".

Colonel Joseph Gordon Clemons, Jr. USA Ret., 90, American soldier, subject of "Pork Chop Hill".

A1C Adrian Cronauer, USAF Ret., 79, American disc jockey, subject of "Good Morning, Vietnam".

L-R: Professor Stephen Hawking, Margot Kidder, John Mahoney

Steve Ditko, 90, American comic book writer and artist "Spider-Man", "Doctor Strange"
Sir Ken Dodd, 90, English comedian.
Rear Admiral Alene Duerk, USN Ret., 98, American Navy admiral, first female admiral in U.S.Navy.
John M. Dwyer, 83, Oscar/Emmy nominated American set decorator, "Star Trek", "Star Trek: The Next Generation" movies "Star Trek IV, V, Generations, First Contact, Insurrection" and "Nemesis".
Ssgt. (Hon GnySgt.) R. Lee Ermey, USMC Ret., 74, American drill  instructor and actor "Full Metal Jacket", "Toy Story"
Carlos Ezquerra, 70, Spanish comics artist,"Judge Dredd", "Strontium Dog"
Michael D. Ford, 90, Oscar winning English art director and set decorator "Raiders of the Lost Ark", "The Empire Strikes Back".
Miloš Forman, 86, Oscar winning Czech-American film director, "Amadeus".
Gary Friedrich, 75, American comic book writer, "Captain Marvel", "Iron Man" #45–46, co-creator of "Ghost Rider".
Aretha Franklin, 76, 18 time Grammy winning American Hall of Fame singer, "Respect"
William Goldman, 87, Oscar winning American author "The Princess Bride" and screenwriter "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid".
Leslie "Dirty Den" Grantham, 71, English actor "EastEnders" and convicted murderer.
Korvettenkapitän Reinhard Hardegen, 105, German U-boat commander (Battle of the Atlantic).
Stephen Hawking, 76, English theoretical physicist, professor (University of Cambridge) and writer "A Brief History of Time".
Brig. Gen. Anna Mae Hays, USA Ret., 97, American military officer and nurse, first female U.S. General.

L-R: Derrick O'Connor, Tim O'Connor, David Ogden Stiers

Tom Jago, 93, British liquor executive and distiller, creator of Baileys Irish Cream.

Jóhann Jóhannsson, 48, Icelandic film composer, "Arrival".

Mickey Jones, 76, American drummer and actor.

Ingvar Kamprad, 91, Swedish retail furniture-home design executive and philanthropist, founder of IKEA.

Gloria Katz, 76, American screenwriter and film producer, "American Graffiti", "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom", "Best Defense".

Margot Kidder, 69, Canadian-American actress, "Superman"

Richard H. Kline, 91, American cinematographer, "Star Trek: The Motion Picture".

Sonny Knowles, 86, Irish singer.

Charles Krauthammer, 68, Pulitzer Prize winning American political commentator (Fox News) and writer (The Washington Post).

Gary Kurtz, 78, American film producer, "American Graffiti", "Star Wars".

Stan Lee, 95, American comic book writer and publisher (Marvel Comics).

Sondra Locke, 74, American actress, "The Outlaw Josey Wales", "Sudden Impact".

John Mahoney, 77, English-American actor, "Frasier".

Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, 81, South African anti-apartheid activist and politician, MP.

Al Matthews, 75, American actor, "Sgt. Apone" in "Aliens".

Bill Maynard, 89, English actor

Sen. John McCain, 81, American politician and Navy officer, member of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.

Chuck McCann, 83, American voice actor, "G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero", "Iron Man".

Capt. Ernest Medina, USA Ret., 81, American army officer, commander of unit responsible for the My Lai Massacre.

Donald Moffat, 87, British-born American actor, "The Thing", "Clear and Present Danger", "License to Kill".

Derrick O'Connor, 77, Irish actor, "Lethal Weapon 2", "Daredevil".

Tim O'Connor, 90, American actor, "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century"

William O'Connor, 47, American artist, "Dungeons & Dragons", "Magic: The Gathering".

David Ogden Stiers, 75, American actor "M*A*S*H".

L-R: Soon-Tek Oh, Donnelly Rhodes, John Young

Soon-Tek Oh, 85, South Korean-American actor, "The Man with the Golden Gun", "Missing in Action 2", "Death Wish 4", "The Muta-Do" in "Babylon 5".

Dolores O'Riordan, 46, Irish singer and guitarist, "The Cranberries".

Richard Arvin Overton, 112, American super-centenarian, oldest living World War II veteran in U.S.

Roger Perry, 85, American actor "Star Trek" episode "Tomorrow Is Yesterday" as "Captain John Christopher".

Burt Reynolds, 82, Emmy winning American actor, "Smokey and the Bandit", "Boogie Nights".

Donnelly Rhodes, 80, Canadian actor, ""Doc" Cottle" in "Battlestar Galactica (2004)".

Robert Scheerer, 89, Emmy nominated American director, "Star Trek: The Next Generation", "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" and "Star Trek: Voyager".

Frank Serafine, 65, American sound designer and editor, "Star Trek: The Motion Picture", "Tron", "The Hunt for Red October".

Marie Severin, 89, American Hall of Fame comic book artist, "Iron Man"#82–83, 85 (inker), #108 (colorist), G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero" #28 (penciller), co-creator of Spider-Woman.

Jon Paul Steuer, 33, American actor "Alexander" in "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episode "Reunion".

Dudley Sutton, 85, British actor, "Lovejoy".

Verne Troyer, 49, American actor, "Austin Powers".

Dame June Whitfield, 93, English actress, "Terry and June".

Scott Wilson, 76, American actor, "The Walking Dead".

Celeste Yarnall, 74, American actress, "Yeoman Martha Landon" in the "Star Trek" episode "The Apple".

Capt John Young, USN Ret. 87, American astronaut (Apollo 16, STS-1).

May they rest in peace.

The United States Space Corps - The Resurrection

It was understood that due to it's previous rejection in the U.S. Senate last autumn that the fate of the proposed sixth branch of the U.S. armed forces dubbed "The Space Corps" by it's proponents was sealed and sent to whatever page in history pipe dreams go. That was until Monday morning at least when POTUS45 announced that he was directing the Department of Defence and The Pentagon to begin work on establishing the new branch of the armed forces responsible for asserting U.S. dominance in space, apparently a "recent idea of his" which he has designated "Space Force".

However, this bizarre directive which can't actually be enacted without Congressional approval (something that was refused last year) may be years before such a force could be fully established. The announcement apparently took the Pentagon by surprise although as part of last years NDAA deliberations, it has been working to deliver an interim report to Congress by August on whether it's feasible to carve out a separate Space Force branch from the U.S. Air Force. If POTUS45 got wind of it, he likely made up his own mind about it and simply told people to get it done.

However, the creation of a new military service is not a small policy that can be simply added to an annual budget request, it's "major legislation. It is going to take years. I don't think Congress will get around to authorizing it until next year at the earliest," said Todd Harrison, director of the Aerospace Security Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in an interview on Monday.

It's conjectured that the creation of the space force may not have a huge impact on the annual budget request due to the DOD likely leveraging personnel and capabilities it already has but if requires an accompanying service academy like the Air Force Academy, then it will all add up exponentially.

"Renewed space threats are driving this -- Russia and China," Harrison said "This is what reignited this in 2016, and the concern was the Air Force wasn't moving fast enough. But the biggest winners if a space force happens? Contractors. Anywhere from 15,000 to 20,000 personnel could be added to the space force, augmented by a force of contractors and civilians that may be double that number. That's where the experts are."

Air Force leaders past and present almost unanimously agreed against the previous suggestions of establishing a Space Corps last year. However, following POTUS45's order Monday, Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldstein (left) voiced agreement with the president's position that the U.S. military approach to the space domain must become more robust to meet current and future challenges (as publicly disagreeing would likely need to be followed by their resignations). A statement from the Air Force brass included: "The President's statement to the National Space Council adds emphasis to the Air Force position -- space is a warfighting domain and the entire national security space enterprise must continue to enhance lethality, resilience and agility to meet the challenge posed by potential adversaries," they wrote. "We look forward to working with Department of Defense leaders, Congress, and our national security partners to move forward on this planning effort."

Source: Military.com

Over-zealous General attempts to wrest control of 5G roll-out!

Brig. Gen. Robert Spalding USAF, the senior director for strategic planning with the National Security Council, left the White House this week following the leak of a memo that advocated for a government takeover of development of the nation’s 5G mobile telecom network.

Last week the Wall Street Journal reported some White House officials viewed next-gen 5G wireless service as a “key area of competition,” and saw a potential threat from China as justification for a “moonshot” government effort behind the network’s development. Moonshot in this context being an ambitious, exploratory and ground-breaking project undertaken without any expectation of near-term profitability or benefit and also, perhaps, without a full investigation of potential risks and benefits.

Spalding was the memo's author which irked the telecom industry and irritated the White House according to the Washing Post, but was not implicated in the leak. However it was decided his backing of the potential government takeover of the 5G network exceeded his NSC role.

FCC chairman Ajit Pai told the New York Times that he opposed the idea of a government-built 5G network, and industry group USTelecom said government involvement would likely slow the technology's development.

"What can seem like a logical idea can often be derailed in the way it's presented," said Brigadier General "Whopper" Creedon, USMC, SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Intelligence and Information who as a Colonel in 2005 served the NSC as Military Assistant to the Deputy National Security Advisor for Extraterrestrial Encounters. "My proposal for AMDI, the Alien Mothership Deterrent Initiative needed to make it look like it was coming directly from the advisors never by me. If it got shot down - fair enough, if it got accepted - all good but if it crashed and burned it would have been difficult for the advisors to pin it on me without looking like they were idiots for suggesting it."

"One doesn't just suggest taking government control of a new telecommunications standard roll-out! You give the companies 'incentives' to get them all to do the job faster themselves. You have to know how to play the game but more importantly you have to know the players, sadly Spalding was too over-zealous with his proposal for the current administration to handle or likely even understand," said Gen. Creedon.

Source: Fox News / WSJ / NYT / Washing Post

The United States Space Corps - Part XII: The Finale

Continued from Part XI

The Congressional committee reconciling the differences between the House and Senate NDAA versions have finally axed the Space Corps as a provision. While this means that the new military branch will not be created for January 2019 the final NDAA, will contain language for the deputy SECDEF to have a federally-funded research and development centre not affiliated with the USAF  to examine the long-term prospects of creating a military department to deal with space.

There will also be significant changes to the relationship between the Air Force and space as a domain. The NDAA now includes a number of provisions taken from the Space Corps framework to fix what the conference report termed a "broken national security space enterprise." It places emphasis on "streamlining Air Force acquisition authorities, eliminating burdensome red tape, empowering a single accountable organization for space forces within the Air Force, placing renewed emphasis on the organization and management of space in the DoD, and holding the deputy secretary of defense responsible for the full and faithful execution of these improvements."

The legislation also eliminates multiple space authorities, including the Principal DoD Space Adviser and the Defense Space Council, instead consolidating authority within Air Force Space Command. The NDAA also strips Secretary Wilson of her role as primary space adviser to the secretary of defense.

While the dream of a Space Corps is now finished for the time being, there may be nothing preventing it from appearing in the future.

Sources: Space News / The Hill / Popular Mechanics

The United States Space Corps - Part VIII

Continued from Part VII

The U.S. Senate plans to begin to discuss it's version of the FY2018 National Defense Authorization Act this week. Its provisions include the creation of a Chief Information Warfare Officer (CIWO) reporting to the SecDef with responsibility for DOD space, cyber and information programs. This contrasts the House-passed plan to create a Space Corps. Should the Senate proposal survive debate, then the debate between chambers will be one to watch.

Sen Bill Nelson, then NASA Payload Specialist

Sen. Bill Nelson, has filed an amendment to scuttle any attempts by the House to create a Space Corps by prohibiting that or any other type of new corps in the services.

Last week Maj. Gen. Earl Matthews U.S.A.F. (Ret.), vice president of DXC Technology‘s U.S. public sector enterprise security solutions group, has said other priority areas for the U.S.A.F. and DoD are at risk of being sidelined due to discussions on the creation a Space Corps. He wrote that developing U.S. space capability should concentrate on situational awareness as the current budget calls for the Air Force to spread its resources across several mission areas.

Former Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James said the creation of a Space Corps would lead to “enormous upheaval” without solving the key problems faced by the national security space enterprise today. While she admitted that the U.S.A.F. still has “a long way to go” with regards to efforts to adapt the space mission to current threats, she insisted the formation of a Space Corps would not help any of those efforts.

Meanwhile Rep. Mike Rogers continued to argue that he time is now to create a Space Corps, or something akin to it. “The Air Force is as fast as a herd of turtles as far as space is concerned,” he said, adding that a Space Corps would be a better steward of space matters than the Air Force, because there would be no competing interests as there are now with space falling under the Air Force’s aviation-focused structural umbrella. The Air Force’s inability to put space first has created acquisition and operational problems, he said. “I don’t think the Air Force can fix this. You can’t have two No. 1 priorities. The Air Force is focused on air dominance, as it should be.”

Continued in Pat IX

Sources: Air Force magazine / The Washington Examiner / Space Policy Online.com / Govconwire.com / Spacenews.com / Breaking Defense

SPEARHEAD's Deputy Commander slate announced

The UNSC today announced the slate for SPEARHEAD's two-star commanders, projected to assume office before September 1st 2018. The sixteen general and flag officers of grade OF-7, or non-military equivalent, will occupy the SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander billets of it's senior leadership between the OF-8 SPEARHEAD Vice Commanders and the OF-6 SPEARHEAD Assistant Commanders.

Brigadier General "Tucker" Reid [right], SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Training and Instruction will be promoted to the grade of Major General in the Canadian Army and assume duties of the SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Manpower and Personnel following the retirement of Major General "Stargazer" Smith from the U.S. Air Force early in 2018.

Two new OF-7 billets of SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Operations and Integration one each for the Western and Eastern regions have been created to support Colonel General "Voran" Kerimov, the Vice Commander for Global Operations and Force Integration. Senior Colonel “Besra” Hu, SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Air Operations [Eastern] will be promoted to the grade of Shao jiang [Major General] in the Peoples Republic of China Air Force and become the first SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Operations and Integration [Eastern]. Brigadier General “Shellshock” Hollister, SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Recruitment and Selection will be promoted to the grade of Major General in the South African Army and become the first SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Operations and Integration [Western].

Brigadier General "Whopper" Creedon [left], SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Intelligence and Information, selected for promotion to the grade of Major General in the U.S. Marine Corps, will become the SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Global Security following the retirement of Major General "Jäger" Brandt from the Bundeswehr in 2018.

Counter Admiral "Tridente" Carlos, SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Naval Operations [Western] will be promoted to the rank of Vice Admiral in the Spanish Navy and assume the position of Deputy Commander for Global Strategic Plans which was vacated by new SPEARHEAD Staff Director Division General "Faucon" Davout.

Group General "Altísimo" Hernandez SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Support and Sustainment is to be promoted to Wing General in the Mexican Air Force and will assume the duties of Deputy Commander for Financial Management following the reassignment of Rear Admiral "Nafasat Pasand" Kundi to the Central Punjab command of the Pakistan Navy.

Commodore "Sextant" White, SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Naval Operations [Western] is to be promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral in the British Royal Navy and assigned as the SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Civil Affairs. Commodore White has already served in an acting capacity in the role following the unexpected recall of of Division General "Banquero" Ramos by the Venezuelan government in late June.

The SPEARHEAD Judge Advocate General is being elevated to a 2-Star [OF-7] billet. Air Vice Marshal "Magpie" Brown [right], Royal Australian Air Force is to be appointed replacing Sub-Thousandman "tzédek" Levy of the Israeli Defence Force who will remain with SPEARHEAD as Assistant JAG.

Mr. P will assume the duties of the Chief of Shadow Directorate which has been elevated to a non-military OF-7 equivalent grade following the retirement of Mr. G. The changeover is believed to be scheduled between September and December 2017, but this cannot be confirmed or denied.

A number of officers will remain in their currently held positions:

The SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Missile Defence [Eastern] Lieutenant General "ракета" Vasiliev of the Russian Strategic Missile Troops and Deputy Commander for Missile Defence [Western] Major General "Rockets" Thompson of the U.S. Air Force will both remain in their roles to support the new Vice Commander for Strategic Weaponry Middle General "Huǒjiàn" Li.

The SPEARHEAD Director for Science, Technology and Research, Dr. "Quantum" Pataal of India will remain in the position held since 2013.

Deputy Commander for Global Logistics and Installations Major General "Sangja" Park of the Republic of Korea Army will remain in the position held since 2015.

Deputy Commander for Global Satellite and Cyber Systems Major General “Circuits” Anderson [left] of the U.S. Air Force will remain in the position held since 2014. 

SPEARHEAD Inspector General Generalmajor "Schakal" Nilsson, of the Swedish Army was appointed earlier this year following the elevation of the position to 2-Star [OF-7].

The SPEARHEAD Surgeon General, Major-general "Scrubs" Janssens M.D. of the Medical Component of the Belgian Armed Forces will remain in the position held since 2014.

Source: UN

The United States Space Corps - Part VII

Continued from Part VI

The House Rules Committee did not approve for floor debate an amendment by Rep. Scott Perry that would prohibit funding for creating a Space Corps. Rep. Mike Turner chair of the Tactical and Land Forces subcommittee, tried to bring the matter to the full House during debate on the bill, but the Rules Committee did not approve this amendment. Thusly the bill, including the Space Corps directive, has passed. The U.S. Senate has not yet passed its own version of the NDAA. This has to happen before two chambers negotiate a compromise before funding can be secured to implement their decisions.

In their latest media volley this week Representatives Mike Rogers and Jim Cooper voiced their anger at the additional delays for the Air Force's FAB-T for another year and the costs of the OCX program, the next-generation GPS operational control system which has now grown to $6bn, with no sign of costs not increasing even more. “Recent news that GPS OCX has blown through the latest schedule and cost estimates … casts greater urgency on the debate on space reorganization,” they said and that the delays in the two programs cast “greater urgency on the debate on space reorganization.”

“The current system is wasting billions of dollars and failing to deliver capability to the warfighter,” Cooper and Rogers said. “Our adversaries have already reorganized their space programs and are reaping the benefits. Those who continue to oppose reform need to explain to the warfighter, the American people, and their elected representatives how the status quo is acceptable.”

Rogers’ and Cooper’s argument is that the Space Corps will go a long way to address the issue of space acquisition, while the crux of Rogers’ arguments in favour of a Space Corps is that Russia and China have reorganized their military space enterprises and have caught up with the United States in many ways in the last few years, and so the U.S. must act.

Continued in Part VIII

Source: Breaking Defense / Defense Times

The United States Space Corps - Part V

Continued from Part IV

During his confirmation hearing to be reappointed Vice Chairman of the Joint Chief's of Staff for another two years, Air Force General Paul Selva said “I do not believe now is the right time to have a discussion about developing a space force with all of the leadership and infrastructure that would go with it. It would also complicate the command and control of the space constellation, which is critical to our military operations.”

Sen. Ted Cruz asked Selva what else the military could do to better address space issues, Selva listed three in-progress reforms: the consolidation of the military’s command and control of space into The National Space Defense Center in Colorado Springs, continue moving authorities to the Air Force secretary on acquisition for satellite constellations that are “critical to military defense” and giving the commander of Air Force Space Command the responsibility to manage the Pentagon’s entire constellation of satellites, as opposed to having various pieces managed through subcomponents, as well as elevating Air Force Space Command from a three-star to a four-star role. "I support allowing time to implement this reorganization and to evaluate its efficacy,” said Selva.

But the HASC representatives spearheading the Space Corps agenda have stated "The time for study is over: We must now act.” and have continued efforts to create a new Space Corps. On Tuesday HASC Chairman Mac Thornberry held a classified hearing and on Wednesday, a closed briefing by the Government Accountability Office on current problems with space operations. “The GAO report cited numerous failed or failing acquisition programs, with billions of dollars of cost overruns because the current acquisition system is so complicated that no one is in charge,” Rep. Mike Rogers and Rep. Jim Cooper said in a release.

The representatives were critical of the Air Force for Secretary Wilson's claim that the Space Corps would create unneeded bureaucracy offering that sixty Pentagon offices currently deal with space operations.

Military analyst Viktor Murakhovsky, the editor-in-chief of Arsenal of the Motherland considers that the setup of a separate Corps counter-productive as "Experience has shown that such an approach is ineffective. Such units can't operate on their own. They will certainly need a ground infrastructure, communication and guidance systems, as well as a logistics system, so they will use the systems of the Air Force." 

Murakhovsky explained that Russia used to have a separate unit of Space Troops which proved to be ineffective and in 2015 merged two branches of its armed forces, its Space Troops and Air Forces, into the Aerospace Forces and that China does not have a separate branch of Space Corps. Beijing was discussing the setup of a similar structure, but it has not been implemented so far. It's unknown whether China has abandoned or just postponed such plans.

Continued in Part VI

Sources: Defence News, SPACEWAR.com, The Hill, The Washington Examiner

In memory of Martin Landau

New York born actor Martin Landau dated Marilyn Monroe, was friends with James Dean, turned down the role of Mr. Spock and worked with Hitchcock. He was just as at home on the small screen in Space: 1999 and Without a Trace as on the big in Cleopatra and The Greatest Story Ever Told. Despite being awarded an Oscar for Ed Wood and a Golden Globe for Mission: Impossible among many other awards and nominations, Landau was not above lending his voice to the Spider-Man animated series and The Simpsons.

My favourite Martin Landau performance however is in the 1979 disaster movie "Meteor" in which he plays Major General Adlon, the U.S. Air Force commander of an underground control centre for Hercules, an orbital nuclear missile launcher. The movie itself is awful; it is rated only 5% on Rotten Tomatoes and has been selected by John Vaughan for inclusion in his world famous Video Vault of Horror presentation. It is however an important precursor for ideas brought to the screen decades later with more technical superiority (and more money) in Armageddon and Deep Impact. 

 

In Meteor, Landau despite obvious hamming, easily delivers the best performance over Sean Connery, Karl Malden, Peter Fonda, Natalie Wood and Brian Keith, and convincingly expresses the frustration of a dedicated and decorated military commander sidelined to pander to scientists - alas a feeling I have known all too well.

Landau died Saturday, at the age of 89 at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Westwood, Los Angeles, California; he had been briefly hospitalized and, according to his representative, died of "unexpected complications." May he rest in peace.

The United States Space Corps - Part IV

 Continued from Part III

As the U.S. House of representatives passed the Space Corps legislation on Friday, former Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley and former Commander of U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM) Gen. C. Robert Kehler (Ret.) argued against it at a seminar across town at a meeting sponsored by George Washington University's Space Policy Institute and the Aerospace Corporation.

Gen. Kehler [right] who also headed Air Force Space Command from 2007-2011 said the proposed solution does not fit the problem, which is acquisition.  "That's why people are frustrated," not because of how DOD is organized.  "Most organizational change doesn't fix the problem and is a distraction," costs more than expected and soon changes again.  "The space enterprise is filled with examples of the wreckage of some of the other things we've tried."

The problem that needs to be solved is how to "posture ourselves to be prepared for conflict that extends into space" the same way we think about conflict extending into air or sea. "We know how to do this," Kehler insisted.  It is a matter of "the grunt work of joint warfighting" and the military services providing combatant commanders with "forces that can operate and accomplish their missions in the face of a contested domain."  Reorganization is not the answer.  "We have a warfighting organization in place today with all the authority and responsibility necessary.  It's called STRATCOM."

Donley agreed. "I don't favour this proposal.  It is the opposite of the trends we're trying to achieve" of integrating space into airspace and cyberspace.  The result will be more bureaucracy, "exactly what Congress has been telling the Department not to do." Kehler summed it up by repeating that the problem is acquisition. "That's what we need to fix" and it's not magic. Many studies have been done.  "We know what's broken. Fix it."

Brigadier General Ballista Jackson USAF (Ret.) [left] who formerly served as Missile Defence Commander (Northern) for UNETIDA one of the precursor organisations to today's SPEARHEAD gave a different opinion. "Not long before I retired we ran an exercise to destroy space targets on course to earth, one towards North America, the other towards Russia. The Russians launched within 6 minutes, and destroyed their target well before it was in range. The US launched within 11 minutes and destroyed the target but not before it was in already within attack range of the U.S. Eastern seaboard."

"Bureaucracy" said Jackson who currently advises the National Security Council's Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Defense Policy and Strategy "Is the single most delaying factor in U.S. military action and is even worse when dealing with space than it is with missiles. It took five cuts of red tape for our instructions to be acted upon by STRATCOM whereas the Strategic Rocket Forces of the Russian Federation were almost gleeful at the prospects of launching an interception missile. We don't envision bypassing the executive, but we need to bypass the unified command and service bureaucracy and sub-organisations of both before we were able to act especially on space matters. I firmly believe a single separate Space Corps would allow SPEARHEAD's task to be much more fluid in that regard."

Continued in Part V

Source: SPACEPOLICYONLINE.com

The United States Space Corps - Part II

Continued from Part I

 
The proposal to create the U.S. Space Corps "combat-ready space forces that enable the commanders of the combatant commands to fight and win wars", is still only in the house bill and thus a significant distance away from getting the level of approval required for it to become law. The Senate's version of the National Defense Authorisation Act has no similar USSC provision which means that once the House and the Senate bills are combined, it could be removed entirely, altered slightly or significantly or however unlikely - even approved. The Senate will certainly study the proposal before the two chambers combine their bills, but there's already scepticism in the upper chamber that the Space Corps concept has been proven necessary and it's possible the Senate could follow the expert advice from the Air Force themselves, who are none to happy about the bill.

Opposition to the creation of the USSC as an entity is considerably vocal and includes the U.S. Air Force itself. The Secretary of the Air Force Heather Wilson, Under Secretary of the Air Force Lisa Disbrow, Air Force Chief of Staff General David L. Goldfein [left], former Secretary of the Navy and NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe and former commander of U.S. Northern Command and NORAD General Victor E. Renuart Jr. among others all oppose the suggestion. "The Pentagon is complicated enough. This will make it more complex, add more boxes to the organization chart and cost more money," said Secretary Wilson. "If I had more money, I would put it into lethality, not bureaucracy."

Even given the fact that Republicans control all three branches of government and the fact that it's clear from the formation of the proposal that both House Republicans and Democrats can apparently agree on it at this inception stage (it was voted 60-1 by the HASC), the battle will be convincing enough Representatives and Senators going forward that the proposal is in the best interests of the United States.

As it stands, the other two major world powers already have significant military presences in space with  their own military branches dedicated to space or space/cyberwarfare. The Russian Space Forces are one of three sub-branches of the Russian Aerospace Forces [a merger of the Russian Air Force and the Russian Aerospace Defence Forces]. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Strategic Support Force (SSF) has a broader scope than just space dominance as it's mission includes cyberwarfare and electromagnetic domains but it is partly composed of the Aerospace Systems Department, which has consolidated control the PLA’s space-based C4ISR systems. Many see that the U.S. Air Force appear to be concentrating more or their air-superiority citing the years long design and deployment debacle of the F-35 Lightning II fighter jet which will cost US$1.508 trillion.

Brigadier General "Whopper" Creedon, [right] SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Intelligence and Information welcomed the proposal telling reporters: ".. no other group will oppose the creation of the US Space Corps as vehemently as the Air Force themselves. They along with many at the Pentagon, are notoriously adverse to change but seem to forget that not long ago they they themselves were simply created from a branch of the US Army much as it's envisioned to create the Space Corps from them."

"I'm concerned" continued the general "that the Air Force is not spending enough on space and that instead too much of their considerable budget has been funnelled into incrementally bloated projects such as the F-35 which by 2014, was more than $150 billion over budget and seven years behind schedule. A formal entity, with it's own budget and administrative goals is needed drastically in the US to properly militarise space at least on par with the Russians and the Chinese to maintain global security and peace."

The general also cited co-operation between international space-warfare forces to unite against a potential extra-terrestrial threat was one of SPEARHEADs primary goals and it was currently the U.S. Air Force that was the weakest thread in a global security blanket against that threat. "It's such a good idea that it will never happen." concluded General Creedon.

Continued in Part III

Source: CNN

The United States Space Corps - Part I

As the US House House of Representatives Armed Services Committee prepares to vote on the National Defense Authorization Act, their strategic forces subcommittee released proposed additions to the bill including a provision in their version of the 2018 US defense budget that would create a new separate military service dedicated to the cause of space as a warfare domain, calling it the United States Space Corps.

It is envisioned that this Space Corps would operate as a separate service represented at the Pentagon by a new Joint Chief but report to the Secretary of the Air Force and operate under their department just as the US Marine Corps do under the Department of the Navy.

The genesis of this idea spawned from a 2001 report from the Commission to Assess United States National Security, Space Management and Organization, which was headed by future SecDef Donald Rumsfeld. The report claims that "The US is more dependent on space than any other nation... Yet the threat to the US and its allies in and from space does not command the attention it merits."

The plan appears in the appropriations bill with the backing of House Armed Services Committee Chairman Republican Representative Mac Thornberry and the HASC ranking Democrat, Adam Smith and was put together by the ranking party members of the HASC's strategic forces subcommittee, Republican Representative Mike Rogers [left] and Democratic Representative Jim Cooper who claim that the USAF has not given adequate priority to space. US military interests in space have been traditionally administrated by the US Air Force.

In a statement, the subcommittee said: “There is bipartisan acknowledgement that the strategic advantages we derive from our national security space systems are eroding. We are convinced that the Department of Defense is unable to take the measures necessary to address these challenges effectively and decisively, or even recognize the nature and scale of its problems. Thus, Congress has to step in. We must act now to fix national security space and put in place a foundation for defending space as a critical element of national security.  Therefore, our Mark will require the creation, under the Secretary of the Air Force, of a new Space Corps, as a separate military service responsible for national security space programs for which the Air Force is today responsible.  We view this as a first, but critical step, to fixing the National Security Space enterprise.”

Reactions to this and the potential future of this proposal are outlined in Part II

Source: Ars Technica, FAS.org, Spacenews.com,

Laser satellites on the way

The recent destruction of the U.S. Air Force's 20-year-old Defense Meteorological Satellite Program Flight 13 and the resulting cloud of space debris adding to an already dangerous amount of clutter traveling at high speeds in orbit of the planet has brought to light a plan by Japanese researchers to fit a laser to the ISS.

The Extreme Universe Space Observatory (EUSO) telescope, originally designed to detect cosmic rays, could be put to use for a more 'useful' project. The EUSO which is scheduled to be installed on Japan's module on the ISS in 2017, could help the orbiting complex detect dangerous debris. Researchers say that a powerful laser under development could then help shoot down this space garbage.

Toshikazu Ebisuzaki, an astrophysicist and chief scientist at the RIKEN (Rikagaku Kenkyūsho) Computational Astrophysics Laboratory in Wako, Japan, and his team reasoned that the EUSO's wide range of view and powerful optics could also help it detect high-speed debris near the ISS. Then a Coherent Amplification Network (CAN) laser could then blast the debris. The CAN laser consists of many small lasers working together to generate a single powerful beam and is currently under development to drive particles at high speeds in atom smashers. The laser would vaporize a thin film of matter off the surface of debris and the resulting high-speed plasma would act like a rocket plume, nudging the junk downward to eventually burn up in Earth's atmosphere.

A full-scale version of the system would be armed with a 100 kilowatt ultraviolet CAN laser that can fire 10,000 pulses per second, each lasting one-tenth of one-billionth of a second. The researchers say this system could blast debris from a range of about 60 miles (100 kilometers), and the laser would need about 17 lbs. (8 kilograms) of lithium-ion batteries.

A proof-of-concept version of the system is first intended to be deployed, consisting of a miniature version of EUSO and a prototype 10-watt ultraviolet CAN laser firing 100 pulses per second. A RIKEN spokesman noted that the mini-EUSO telescope has been accepted as a project on the ISS and could perhaps go up in 2017 or 2018, but the laser system is still a concept that has not been built.

Simulation of Earth's orbiting space junk - NASA

If the concept and full versions are successful, the researchers suggest developing a satellite devoted solely to blasting space debris. They suggest the satellite should assume an orbit that takes it over both of Earth's poles, allowing it to shoot down debris all over the planet, and be armed with a 500 kilowatt ultraviolet CAN laser that can fire 50,000 pulses per second. They estimate it could blast one piece of debris every five minutes, or 100,000 pieces of space junk each year.

"The biggest obstacle is funding," Ebisuzaki said. "There are some technical challenges, of course, but the main issue is getting funding for development and launch."

It was noted that Major General "Jäger" Brandt, SPEARHEAD Deputy Commander for Security and Surveillance and Brigadier General "Whopper" Creedon, SPEARHEAD Assistant Commander for Intelligence and Information both visited RIKEN recently, fueling online conspiracy rumours that SPEARHEAD had deliberately destroyed DMSP-13 in an effort to fast-track extra funding for the Japanese project. Neither RIKEN or SPEARHEAD have answered questions on the issue.

Sources: Space.com

Issues continue at Malmstrom

SPEARHEAD has declared it has grave concerns regarding new revelations last week that the number of US airmen embroiled in a nuclear cheating scandal has now practically tripled to almost a hundred.

During investigations into alleged drug use by personnel at other bases, 34 US Air Force officers in charge of launching nuclear missiles were suspended in January due to accusations of cheating in monthly proficiency tests. It was not immediately clear whether the additional 58 or so airmen implicated were alleged to have participated in the cheating or were involved in an indirect way.

The Air Force said that the entire team at Malmstrom AFB in Montana in charge of overseeing missile launches would be re-tested after the Air Force OSI discovered that one missile officer had shared test questions with 16 other officers. It said another 17 admitted to knowing about this cheating but did not report it. The tests in question are designed to ensure proficiency by launch officers in processing classified “emergency war orders,” received through their chain of command to launch a missile.

The scandal has led to security clearance suspension and temporary removal from duty of a substantial near 20% of the 500 strong Air Force cadre of nuclear missile launch control officers. Malmstrom is home to the 341st Missile Wing, responcible for 150 nuclear Minuteman 3 ICBMs, a third of the entire ICBM force. The Air Force has not clarified how that affects the mission, beyond requiring the remaining nuclear crew to bear a bigger share of the work. This has naturally lead to fear that the U.S. nuclear response capability is at least been temporarily diminished.

Recently appointed Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James said she was “profoundly disappointed” at the alleged cheating and drug possession. The Air Force Chief of Staff General Mark Welsh, said there is “absolutely no excuse” for cheating. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel ordered a review of the problems inside the ICBM force saying he was "deeply concerned" about morale and discipline among nuclear officers - but insisted that US nuclear arms were safe. Hagel met with senior officers involved in the nuclear force last Wednesday at the Pentagon to discuss how to attack the problems.

Questions were also raised by the UNSC about the United States ability to support SPEARHEAD’s Skyshield initiative, by where ICBMs from the U.S., Russia and China are interlinked to use their combined launches to destroy belligerent extra-terrestrial craft. SPEARHEAD’s Missile Defence Commander Brigadier General "Rockets" Thompson said should SPEARHEAD conclude that the U.S. is no longer capable of sustaining it’s third of Skyshield; they could retask and station Russian and Chineese nuclear submarines inside U.S. territorial waters to make up for the deficiency – even if there’s no imminent threat. “Something I doubt the Pentagon would be overly happy about.” he added.

To honour those who have served

Falling Stars

A brazen assault by 15 insurgents on Camp Bastion, a fortified coalition base in Afghanistan last September left two US Marines dead and more than 12 aircraft destroyed or damaged. In the wake of the attack, several investigations were conducted to find out how security could have been breached and what factors allowed the attack to happen. The results of the investigations however did not adequately address issues of responsibility.

The Commandant of the US Marine Corps, General James Amos requested that CENTCOM, the parent command for Middle Eastern operations, conduct a more thorough review of the Camp Bastion incident, with specific focus on determining accountability. 

The finding revealed that Maj. Gen. Charles “Mark” Gurganus, then commander of Regional Command Southwest in Afghanistan, and Maj. Gen. Gregg Sturdevant, then commander of the Marines’ aviation wing in the region, underestimated the enemy and should have been prepared for a range of attacks as opposed to their focus on ones coming from inside the perimeter.

[L] Maj.Gen. Mark Gurganus, [R] Maj. Gen. Gregg Sturdevant

The highly organised and bold assault took the coalition by surprise however, as the insurgents cut through a fence at night and crept toward the flight line. They targeted aircraft and what they believed to be a living area for troops. They completely destroyed six $24m AV-8B Harrier jets, severely damaging two others and six more assorted aircraft. More than 100 coalition troops responded, triggering a furious counterattack that lasted at least four hours. Marine Sgt. Bradley Atwell and Harrier squadron commander, Lt. Col. Christopher Raible [who charged at the insurgents armed only with his sidearm] lost their lives in the attack. 

Gen. Amos said the two commanders did not take adequate security measures or exercise the high level of judgment expected of general officers. “In their duty to protect their forces these two generals did not meet that standard,” he said. The Commandant formally requested the resignations of both Maj. Generals Gurganus and Sturdevant. Additionally recommended that Gurganus’ already announced nomination to the rank of lieutenant general be rescinded and that Sturdevant receive a letter of censure from the secretary of the Navy, a rarity during war. Amos said it was the “hardest decision I have had to make as commandant of the Marine Corps” and that he had served with both men in combat, calling them “extraordinary Marine officers.”

Some of the flag officers in the other services haven't been doing so well either this month. Two weeks ago Navy Vice Admiral Timothy Giardina deputy commander of US Strategic Command  which oversees everything from America's land-based nuclear missiles to space operations governing military satellites, was relieved of command. He became subject of an NCIS investigation after being accused of using counterfeit gambling chips in "a significant monetary amount" at an Iowa casino. Giardina's loss of assignment means he automatically reverted to a 2-star rear admiral.

[L] Maj. Gen. Michael Carey, [R] Vice Admiral Tim Giardina

At the same time the Air Force announced that Maj. Gen. Michael Carey had been relieved of command of the 20th Air Force which is responsible for three wings of intercontinental ballistic missiles - a total of 450 missiles at three bases across the country. The measure was taken in response to an investigation into alleged personal misbehavior.

Last Friday, Stars and Stripes revealed that Army Brig. Gen. Bryan Wampler, commander of the 143rd Expeditionary Sustainment Command, currently deployed in Kuwait was “temporarily suspended” on Oct. 10th, pending the outcome of an investigation.

It was widely reported earlier in the year that due to the withdrawal of permanent forces in Afghanistan, that the Pentagon would require fewer general officers going forward. However it was assumed that natural retirement attrition would reduce the numbers in an organised and reasonable fashion; not something that looks almost suspiciously like a purge.

Sources: BBC / FOX News / Military Times / Stars and Stripes