Now the thing with this is that recently it was reported that weapons from Libya have been flooding markets in places like Egypt. And no telling where those weapons will end up at. I am sure Israel is not happy? Either way I am glad they are sending more folks and giving this some urgency. –Matt
U.S. Sending More Contractors to Secure Libya’s Weapons Stockpile
By ERIC SCHMITT and KAREEM FAHIM
October 14, 2011
WASHINGTON — The State Department is sending dozens of American contractors to Libya to help that country’s fledgling efforts to track down and destroy heat-seeking antiaircraft missiles looted from government stockpiles that could be used against civilian airliners.
The contractors, weapons and explosives specialists, are part of a growing $30 million American program to secure Libya’s conventional weapons arsenal, which was ransacked during the fall of the government of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi.
American and other Western officials are especially concerned that as weapons slip from state custody, they can be easily sold through black markets to other countries, fueling regional wars or arming terrorist groups. Analysts are particularly worried about the dispersal of the SA-7, an early-generation, shoulder-fired missile in the same family as the more widely known Stinger.
You know, out of all of the countries that I have followed, Spain has been one of those countries willing to work with private security and shipping companies the most to achieve a good level of security. Unless someone can point out a better arrangement?
Especially when Spain is paying grants to Tuna boats that cover 25% of the cost to hire security, or providing military training to that security, and most of all, allowing those PSC’s to use heavy weapons. That last one is a big plus for me, just because it reflects the reality of what is out there.
I also like the idea of placing conditions on these grants. Although why not just grant the Letter of Marque? But this is an interesting way of mitigating the principal-agent problem. Here is the quote:
“No aid shall be granted in cases of breach of Community law, Common Fisheries Policy or legislation to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing activity. In these cases the aid will be refunded depending on the severity of the infringement,” the Ministry added.
Armed guards on boats are having some fantastic success against piracy. We have a 100 percent success rate. But that is no reason to get comfortable or to not evolve and stay one step ahead. Today’s pirates are consolidating, they are innovating, they are attacking using wolfpack tactics, they are using NVG’s to attack at night, and they are using weapons of war. With that kind of enemy, we must give today’s armed guards every advantage we can. So with that said, I give Spain high marks for this new weapons policy. –Matt
Heavy weapons allowed in tuna fishing vessels in the Indian Ocean
September 28, 2011
In order to combat pirates’ action in the Indian Ocean, the Ministry of Defense of Spain authorized the use of large caliber weapons — 12.70 mm — in tuna vessels fishing in these waters.
So far, the boats have been able to carry weapons of 7.62 millimetres, but the current ones are much more powerful and they are usually anchored using some kind of support.
The measure was announced by Defence Minister, Carme Chacón, after meeting with representatives of tuna vessels and of shipowners of the Spanish fleet in the Indian Ocean.
Thus, Spain is the only country with permission to carry heavy weapons and ar 15 parts on board to fight Somali pirates, Diario Montañes reported.
The initiative will be implemented as soon as the Government of Seychelles comes to approve the protocol submitted by the Spanish government with details of the agreement.
According to Chacón, it is “almost imminent” to carry such weapons in the Spanish vessels.
When asked about the possibility of managing an operation similar to Atalanta in the Gulf of Guinea, following the increase of crime in these waters, Chacón dismissed it.
The more I read about this particular aspect of the Libyan conflict, the more I just shake my head. If there are 20,000 MANPADS in this country, and it has been torn apart by a civil war that we are assisting in, then why are we not putting more of an effort into locating and securing every MANPAD there is? How is assigning ‘5 contractors’ to the problem an effective solution? lol I mean contractors are good, but are five guys going to be able to physically accomplish the task of actually securing these things?
Or are these five contractors there to just train Libyans with the hopes that they ‘might’ locate and turn them in to a secure location? I say might, because if you look at the economics of the situation, either they could locate and turn them in for free, or they could sell them on the black market and make a good little profit.
The other reason why I mention the economics of this type of deal, is that who is the command and control of all of the field units of such a rag tag army of rebels? Are we seriously saying that there is any kind of control at all with this motley crew? And especially in the beginning stages of the war when these weapons depots were first getting ransacked? Ha! I will say this, I guarantee that these things have found their way out into the black market.
But probably the most concerning aspect of this story, is that Al Qaeda has a presence in Libya. And they would certainly have an interest in these rocket launchers. Oh, and did I mention that many of the suicide bombers in Iraq that killed our troops were from Libya? So to me, how could anyone assume that Al Qaeda ‘has not’ put their grubby little hands all over these things? pfffft.
So what does this all mean? Well, if we start seeing helicopters being shot out of the sky in Afghanistan, that might be a sign. Or I imagine some key airline passenger jets will be shot down using these things. I mean there are all sorts of uses for this kind of weapon, and it was incredibly irresponsible of us to not instantly recognize this issue very early on and effectively deal with it.
Didn’t we learn anything from Iraq? The insurgents there ransacked the arms depots right after the invasion, and the scene was akin to what happened with the looters in Walmart during hurricane Katrina. All because we did not make it a priority to secure those depots. The result? Lots and lots of IEDs made from artillery rounds captured from those depots. –Matt
Hey Alli, how much do you think these things go for on the black market?
U.S. ramps up weapons search in Libya
September 16, 2011
The United States is taking an increasingly active role to secure thousands of rocket launchers, mines and small arms from Muammar Qaddafi’s once vast arsenal in Libya and prevent them from fueling an insurgency or falling into the hands of al Qaeda or other extremist militants operating across North Africa, government officials said Friday.
As an urgent measure, the Obama administration is sending several additional weapons experts to Libya to help train local units to locate and destroy weapons, the officials told The Associated Press. The top focus is on the estimated 20,000 shoulder-launched missiles called MANPADs which Qaddafi assembled during his four-decade rule. The weapon can be used to shoot down helicopters or civil jetliners.
“My team has no higher priority than addressing this threat,” said Andrew Shapiro, the assistant secretary of state for political-military affairs. “We are utilizing every possible tool to reduce the availability of loose missiles from Libya.”
The decision to increase weapons-related aid comes after U.S. officials received a request Friday from Libya’s National Transitional Council for greater assistance in securing Qaddafi’s former stocks of conventional weapons. The deposed Libyan dictator, who is still at large, halted his weapons of mass destruction programs in 2004. U.S. and international officials believe his leftover stocks of chemical and nuclear material are safe — and in a form that cannot be quickly be weaponized.
This is an interesting development. Many folks were speculating that a much higher number of troops would stick around, and then this rumor of 3,000 troops came out and all hell broke loose. lol The article below mentions politics as a driver for this type of decision making….go figure?
The concern here is that if there is too small of a footprint, that these troops will be sitting ducks in Iraq, or Iraq will not be able to deal with their security issues without sufficient troop presence. My concern though is that companies in Iraq that are dependent upon the security services of the current troops, will have to once again re-adjust to the politics of the matter. Planning might have included a certain amount of US troop presence in specific areas, and all of their war fighting tools and capabilities that come with that presence. So if they were planning on a 10,000 troop presence, and now it is 3,000, that can have an impact.
It also can impact the logistics. If contracting companies were planning for a set amount of troops based off the feedback war planners were giving them, then those companies have made their moves and planed for those contracts. So yet again, the back and forth on the troop presence in Iraq has an impact on this industry. Of course companies will flex and adapt, but I am sure this is causing a lot of headaches.
The other aspect of Iraq that needs to be mentioned is the Iranian influence there. As we speak, rockets and mortars continue to fall on the various FOBs and outposts in Iraq. These munitions come from all sorts of sources, but the biggest arms provider is Iran. Their goal is to help along the exit of US Troops and destabilize the region so their pet leaders can rise to the top (like Sadr). So the environment in Iraq is less troops, but tons of contractors, and lots of Iranian weapons and influence pouring into the country to help destabilize it and in the long run control it with puppet leaders.
Iraq is also in dire need of maintenance of weapons and equipment, foreign investment to include oil contracts, training and upkeep of security forces, etc. If Iraq cannot depend upon a US troop presence to help in these areas, then they will probably depend on contractors to fill these needs. Which our industry will fill the need, but yet again we have the wolf called Iran and Al Qaeda still doing their best to do harm.
I contend that private industry can deal with these sets of problems, but private industry does not have the same freedom of war fighting and weapons/hardware that US troops enjoyed. So in essence, private industry will have to accomplish what the military used to do, and yet with one hand tied behind it’s back. If Iraq sinks into Civil War again, or the pace of war and problems pick up, contractors will be right in the middle of that. –Matt
US says no decision on keeping troops in Iraq
By LARA JAKES
September 7, 2011
The Obama administration pushed back Wednesday on reports it has decided to keep a few thousand troops in Iraq next year — a number that will do little to ease security concerns but may be too big for White House advisers who are worried about the slumping U.S. economy and the president’s re-election chances.
In Washington, new Joint Chiefs chairman Army Gen. Martin Dempsey and Undersecretary of State nominee Wendy Sherman separately said there has been no decision on how many troops might stay.
U.S. Ambassador to Iraq James F. Jeffrey went a step further, soundly dismissing as false news reports that about 3,000 troops would remain in Iraq beyond the final Dec. 31 withdrawal deadline.
He said that figure has not been part of ongoing discussions in Baghdad, where both governments have been weighing whether as many as 10,000 U.S. forces should stay.
This is a very interesting rifle. To be able to shoot sub-MOA after 6,000 rounds worth of testing at HP White is impressive for a piston AR. Not to mention the excellent durability and lack of malfunctions during the HP White testing. This rifle will be competing in the Army’s Improved Carbine competition, and it looks like a contender.
The thing about this rifle that grabbed my attention is the free floating barrel. To not have anything touching that barrel, is a radical departure from the norm. That equates to some excellent accuracy capability, and I would really like to see this rifle chambered in 7.62 or other interesting calibers. With nothing touching the barrel, then folks could experiment with different barrels and really explore the field of AR accuracy. But for a standard battle rifle, this is awesome. (it would be cool to see different offerings of barrels, with different twists like 1/8)
The one piece anti-tilt bolt carrier assembly is smart as well. With a recessed lug going into the carrier, that will only increase the strength and durability of the connection between the piston rod and bolt carrier. There is a lot of force in this particular area of the rifle, and anything to make that system more robust is good. Attaching the piston rod to the carrier just makes sense and you won’t see carrier tilt like you would with other systems that do not attach the piston rod to the bolt carrier.
The other really cool thing with this rifle is the regulator. Having the ability to regulate the piston operation is crucial to keeping it running good, or to operating the weapon with a suppressor. Although honestly I was not able to determine the full scope of this regulator, and it would be cool to hear Adcor expand further on this part of the weapon.
The non-reciprocating charging handle can be placed on either side of the weapon, which is cool too. It is just a more natural position for a charging handle than where it currently is located. You can still charge the weapon with the original charging handle though. It gives the shooter options, and I like that.
The dust wiper shield is another feature I am interested in, but really cannot make a judgement. If it is made out of polymer, then it will wear down I would think? Or polymer pieces might break off and fall into the operating system. So to me, I just don’t know about that part of the weapon.
Overall, I think it is pretty cool that Adcor went from designing and building intricate parts for missiles and aircraft, to designing a better piston gun. It is almost like a black swan event where a designer from a totally different discipline comes in, and changes the field of weapons design by making a different and highly accurate version of a piston gun. The free floating barrel and one piece piston rod/bolt carrier set up will please many shooters out there that have been looking for a good piston AR. So we will see what the Army thinks and what the shooting community thinks about the Adcor Defense BEAR Elite. –Matt
B.E.A.R.™ Elite: A world class automatic rifle from Adcor Defense
• Magpul MOE™ rifle stock
• Magpul MOE™ ergonomic rifle grip with aggressive texturing
• FN Manufacturing 1:7 twist, hammer-forged, chrome-lined barrel with M249 rifling profile for long life and exceptional accuracy
• Available with sights or optics ready
• Forward placed, reversible/ambidextrous charging handle
• Gas piston system with multi-position regulator
• Free-floating barrel
• Chambered for 5.56
• Ejection port dust wiper
• Two-piece keyed quad rail system
• Tool-less field strip design
• Aircraft-grade 7075-T6 aluminum alloy receivers and rail systems
A New Perspective on the Automatic Rifle: The B.E.A.R.™ combines design innovation and precision manufacturing built upon the tried and true M4/M16 rifle platform.
The Adcor Defense B.E.A.R.™ springs from the M4/M16 rifle platform but offers a completely new twist. Available in many configurations, it offers the operator many significant improvements:
A Revolutionary Gas Piston System (Patent # 065111.00128)
• Free-floating barrel and increased accuracy: A gas-driven piston incorporated into the upper half of the forward rail system never touches the barrel.
• No carrier tilt: The operating rod is connected to the bolt carrier by hex head bolts reinforced with industrial grade Loctite® 262™ high strength threadlocker. They are then drilled and pinned to prevent loosening under adverse conditions. The operating rod then rides through a machined boss in the receiver rail system interface keeping the bolt carrier in a linear plane as it operates.
• No fouling of chamber and action: Hot gases and carbon particulates are prevented from entering the receiver. Because heat reaching the upper receiver is diminished, lubricant lasts longer and maintenance is simplified.
• Easily detached lower rail system: No special tools needed for quick cleaning and easy maintenance.
• Wear on critical parts is minimized: The operator can easily adjust the piston’s cyclical rate for a controlled rate of fire.
• No need for piston rings: Extremely close machine tolerances of the piston eliminate the need.
Exclusive Port Dust Wiper with Cover
• Prevents entry of dust, sand or debris: The spring-loaded dust shield mounted on the bolt carrier allows the bolt carrier’s return to ready position; the port dust wiper moves into the ejection port opening flush with the inside geometry of the upper receiver.
• Withstands temperature extremes because of the highly durable, self-lubricating polymer shield.
Ambidextrous Forward Placed Charging Handle: Simplicity is Beautiful.
• Simple design allows the operator to keep his or her strong hand on the firearm and use the other hand to clear the rifle.
• Ambidextrous handle detaches easily without special tools and returns to locked position once used. It folds forward, recessed, and easily swings back out in a single motion.
• Non-reciprocating handle only engages when the operator charges or clears.
Rail System ( 7075-T6 )
• Innovative, key locked, highly rigid rail system mounts seamlessly to the upper receiver: Design ensures proper alignment of the rail with a redesigned boss, spline and groove system.
• Upper and lower rail guards separate with the push of a button: No special tools necessary.
• Fully compatible with optical, image intensification or thermal sights; laser targeting systems; bipods; tactical lights and Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement System (MILES).
Link to website here.
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