FUCK: U.S. Amasses Stealth-Jet Armada Near Iran

[originalpckelly]

"The U.S. Air Force is quietly assembling the world’s most powerful air-to-air fighting team at bases near Iran. Stealthy F-22 Raptors on their first front-line deployment have joined a potent mix of active-duty and Air National Guard F-15 Eagles, including some fitted with the latest advanced radars. The Raptor-Eagle team has been honing special tactics for clearing the air of Iranian fighters in the event of war.

The fighters join a growing naval armada that includes Navy carriers, submarines, cruisers and destroyers plus patrol boats and minesweepers enhanced with the latest close-in weaponry.

It’s been years since the Air Force has maintained a significant dogfighting presence in the Middle East. During the 2003 invasion of Iraq Boeing-made F-15Cs flew air patrols from Saudi Arabia, but the Iraqi air force put up no resistance and the Eagle squadrons soon departed. For the next nine years Air Force deployments to the Middle East were handled by ground-attack planes such as A-10s, F-16s and twin-seat F-15E Strike Eagles.

The 1980s-vintage F-15Cs, plagued by structural problems, stayed home in the U.S. and Japan. The brand-new F-22s, built by Lockheed Martin, suffered their own mechanical and safety problems. When they ventured from their home bases in Virginia, Alaska and New Mexico, it was only for short training exercises over the Pacific. The F-15Cs and F-22s sat out last year’s Libya war."

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2012/04/armada-masses-near-iran/

[KG]

1. tut-tut. let's not view this as 'sabre rattling'

[originalpckelly]

2. Because if a nation moved a bunch of planes like that to Canada, we'd be fine with it.

You know.

This country is stuck on stupid.

[aquart]

3. Because you missed the International Relations 101 lesson: Show of Force?

"Bases near Iran" would be WHERE, exactly? What countries are so nervous about Iran that they would happily host this build up?

PS: Have you checked what's on the Russian border?

[Earth_First]

6. I'll take "A mass of Russian troops for 500, Alex..." n/t

[dixiegrrrrl]

8. Bases near Iran" would be WHERE, exactly?

[IMG][/IMG]

[KG]

11. for me, that map just proves the paranoid world view of the Iranian leadership

is totally unjustified..

[tech3149]

18. Excellent map Dixie!

It really says it all in a second. Iran is virtually surrounded by US and UN forces. If they made any aggressive move toward another nation they wouldn't stand much of a chance.

[dixiegrrrrl]

26. And, as my previous post shows, that pesky northern area above Iran must be controlled.

Geography dictates a lot of grand schemes.
Add an overlay map of the gas and oil pipelines in that area, for the ultimate truth.
(lots of those maps as close as google)

One reason things are being put into play NOW is that Iran and China and Russia and some other countries
(in Africa, for example)
are getting together to form their own trade system, and not using the "world curency"..ie the dollar.
That is mighty threatening to Western powers.
look up "currency war" and follow some links.
A whole other layer of complexity there.

[nadinbrzezinski]

21. On the bright side you can take out all the bases in Iraq

that map is dated.



Now for serious, a local tea party candidate claimed in a debate oh a month ago that we still had troops all over Iraq.

I dutifully took notes.

[dixiegrrrrl]

22. I am not hearing you clearly, I think.

are you saying the statement that we have troops all over Iraq was incorrect?

[nadinbrzezinski]

27. Yes, we have pulled out

we have troops at the embassy.

What there is in Iraq are a few thousand mercenaries working for State, but the United States no longer has bases in Iraq.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/18/us-iraq-withdrawal-idUSTRE7BH03320111218

The final pull out happened in December of 2011

[liberalhistorian]

12. I think you forgot the sarcasm thingie.

At least, I hope you did!

[unhappycamper]

4. At $418 mil a pop, I hope no one augers in with hypoxia.

AFAIK, they never did figure out the root cause of hypoxia problems on the F-22. (A bigger lever on the oh-shit-i-can't-breathe-gonna-switch-to-emergency-oxygen system ain't the answer.)

Like I said, $418 million a copy.

[2on2u]

5. This will teach them to threaten us. n/t

[Kaleva]

7. Much of this is conjecture. People want to believe it 'cause it reinforces their world view

Following the links provided by the story:

"The planes have a constant presence with the 380th AEW, with different squadrons swapping out every few months. The 44th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron from Kadena Air Base, Japan, currently carries the baton for the Eagle community. The commander, Lt. Col. Joel Carey, said his squadron has embraced its current mission sets."

http://www.kadena.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123292624

Another link to a story about F-22s is dead so I'll have to find another source, if there is one, for info on that.

[ronnie624]

16. Which world view?

The one in which the U.S. is an empire with a trillion dollar 'defense' budget and hundreds of military bases all over the world?

[Kaleva]

28. Read the OP and then read the comments made by others

I don't see much fact checking going on to see how much truth there is in the article.

[ronnie624]

29. The U.S. has been inceasing its naval presence in the ME.

It has been widely reported for months now.

[dixiegrrrrl]

9. Plans for Iran also found here:

PLAN TO INCREASE STRATEGIC REGIONAL PARTNERSHIPS.

(a) Findings- Congress finds the following:

(1) The United States should ensure that it has the broadest set of geographic approaches to militarily access Iran.

(2) United States Armed Forces and support staff currently have access from the eastern, southern, and western borders of Iran.

(3) Azerbaijan borders the northern frontier of Iran closest to nuclear sites near Tehran and the Government of Azerbaijan cooperates with the United States on Caspian Sea security and energy issues.

(b) Policy- It shall be the policy of the United States to--

(1) increase pressure on Iran by providing United States Armed Forces with the broadest set of geographic approaches to militarily access Iran; and

(2) explore means to enhance access to military facilities on the northern border of Iran.

(c) Plan-

(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Secretary of State, shall develop a plan to increase the strategic partnership with regional allies to provide United States Armed Forces with the broadest set of geographic approaches to militarily access Iran.

(2) MATTERS TO BE INCLUDED- The plan required under paragraph (1) shall include the following information:

(A) Mechanisms to broaden the geographical approaches to militarily access Iran.

(B) The need, if any, to strengthen the self-defense capabilities of regional allies as a result of such partnerships.

(C) The viability of increasing access for United States Armed Forces to bases in Azerbaijan to augment the viability of a credible military option.

Source:
H.R. 4485: Credible Military Option to Counter Iran Act
( a bill introduced in Congress, which contained the facts listed above)
The bill can be read here:
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d112:hr4485:

[Kaleva]

10. That's not actually a plan. It's a bill that's been refered to committee where it'll probably die.

[dixiegrrrrl]

13. Does not matter if the bill dies.

Within the bill there are FACTS and findings that the Gov is using
and which are worth knowing.

FACT:
(2) United States Armed Forces and support staff currently have access from the eastern, southern, and western borders of Iran.

(3) Azerbaijan borders the northern frontier of Iran closest to nuclear sites near Tehran and the Government of Azerbaijan cooperates with the United States on Caspian Sea security and energy issues.

Also, it sounds as if this time around, Congress will be involved with "giving permission" for a future military response to Iran.

[Kaleva]

15. The OP suggests there's been a recent buildup...

but in following the links in the article, I see routine training missions and replacements of forces already in place.

[tech3149]

19. I've got an even better place to start mitigating any potential threat.

Restart diplomatic relations. I think it's pretty clear to even those international relations experts that tend to so often be wrong that we really don't understand the makeup and mentality of Iran.
We shut off diplomatic relations back in 79 and pretty much barred private travel and interaction since then. How can you know what the interests and goals of a person or a people are if you don't talk or listen to them?
The best way to know your neighbors, next door or the other side of the world is to have a conversation.
I've worked and lived with many people of different cultural backgrounds and from what I've seen we all have much more in common than not.

[dixiegrrrrl]

25. Very workable idea...unless you WANT an excuse to war on a country/area

The snips from the bill clearly show how the Gov prefers to look at the world:
a big globe full of profit making energy and other resources
that must be grabbed before anyone else can grab it.
Which the timeline of history clearly tells us has been the case for eons.
It is just our turn, for a few decades of the long era of history, to play Rome.

[woo me with science]

14. And where are the people in all this?

We have no say, no input. We pay for all this, but they just do whatever the hell they want now. Just like in economic matters.

We don't have representatives anymore. We have rulers.

Occupy.

[Strelnikov_]

17. America . . . Fuck Ya!

[gratuitous]

20. Oh, you're being all alarmingly alarmist

Of course, once things start blowing up in Iran (which has recklessly situated its country provocatively close to a bunch of our military bases), then it will be too late, and why didn't you say something sooner? Well, too late anyway. Now it's time to support our troops as they massacre civilians willy-nilly under the guise of "national security."

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

23. America has adopted the Swaggering Adolescent school of foreign policy.

But, the bluster no longer works and we keep losing the wars it engenders.

[UnrepentantLiberal]

24. Armageddon party!

[GeorgeGist]

30. Must justify grossly overpriced war toys.

Create false war.

Sell more overpriced war toys.