U.S. soldiers fire at an enemy hiding position during Operation Tofan 2 in Suri Khel, Afghanistan, Sept. 16, 2011. Soldiers worked to clear insurgents from the town and prevent their return. The soldiers are assigned to 6th Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Joseph Watson Budget Cuts Would Hollow Military — Washington Times A new congressional report spells out in detail how the military would become “hollow” if Congress‘ supercommittee fails to agree on deficit reductions, triggering $1.2 trillion in automatic spending cuts. The Army and Marine Corps would lose 200,000 troops, bringing active strength “well below” pre-Sept. 11, 2001, levels, and the armed forces would not be able to carry out its essential mission, says a 14-page analysis by the Republican majority staff of the House Armed Services Committee. The report also says the cuts would deplete weapon systems, further degrading the fighting capabilities of the armed forces. Read more …. More News On The Debate On Impending U.S. Defense Cuts White House seeks more Pentagon budget cuts — Reuters Some fear cuts may hurt US defense industry base — Reuters Analysts assess impact of defense cuts on US jobs — Reuters Shocking reality of a shrinking military — Simon Mann, Sydney Morning Herald Cohen: Cuts Need Not Hobble U.S. Military — Defense News Analysts Call for More ‘Honesty’ in Defense Budget Debate — National Defense Elites Are Wrong; Deep Cuts Won’t Damage Military — Winslow Wheeler, Aol Defense

Defence Secretary Liam Fox has been accused of undermining the military covenant after scrapping a £1.5bn programme to upgrade decaying barracks. The Telegraph Fox Says Ex-MoD Chiefs Partly To Blame As Job Cuts Loom — BBC The defence secretary says former senior military and MoD figures are partly to blame for £5bn budget cuts leading to defence force job losses. Some 1,020 Royal Navy personnel have been hearing they are being made redundant as cuts continue. Liam Fox told the Guardian the MoD had “consistently dug a hole for itself”. Former navy chief Admiral Lord West said the military had been cut to a “dangerously low capability” but it was “no good blaming things in the past”. Shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy said Mr Fox had to take responsibility for his actions. Read more …. Update #1: Liam Fox in row with military brass over financial problems — The Telegraph Update #2: Liam Fox says MoD has to accept share of blame for depth of cuts — The Guardian My Comment: Opponents to Liam Fox do not agree. Update: The Guardian editorializes on this issue.

Royal Navy Sackings ‘Will Lose Aircraft Carriers Skills Forever’ — The Telegraph One of the Royal Navy’s most senior officers has expressed serious concerns over the loss of skilled aircraft carrier crew following redundancies. The officer, who plays a key role in maintaining the Fleet, has also told colleagues that there are substantial doubts over whether the Navy will have enough sailors to man its ships after it will lose one in seven sailors in defence cuts. The lack of adequately training personnel could delay the carrier coming into service by another three or four years, the Navy commander has said. Another officer has told The Telegraph that the loss of carrier deck handling skills could prove “disastrous” with fatal accidents caused by inexperienced ratings. Read more …. More News On Cutbacks In The British Navy Navy redundancies: Military cut to ‘dangerously low’ capabilities — The Telegraph Royal Navy Axes 1,020 Jobs in First Cuts, 350 Staff Forced Out — Bloomberg Businessweek UK News: Around 350 sailors to be forced out of Navy — Scotsman Navy redundancies ‘are difficult for everyone’ — The Telegraph Navy cuts ‘may do long-term damage to morale’ — The Telegraph Row as 350 Navy redundancies announced — The Independent Navy issuing first 1,000 redundancy notices — BBC Sailors sacked in savage cuts. 1,000 axed from Royal Navy — The Sun Lord West: Navy cuts are worrying — Defence Management

Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor (Source: Lockheed Martin ) F-22s For The Marine Corps? — DoD Buzz Yes, you read it correctly, Marines flying F-22s. One Marine is making the case for just that. Writing in this month’s Marine Corps Gazette, Maj. Chrisopher Cannon, argues that it’s time the Corps begins looking at a plan B for the short take-off and vertical landing B-model– which has suffered numerous cost and schedule delays and was placed on a two year probation by former Defense Secretary Robert Gates last spring. Keep in mind that the plane is making considerable flight test progress and that just yesterday, the Marines’ top aviation officer reiterated the Corps long-held stance that there is no plan B for the Bravo. Read more …. My Comment: The Marine Corps is dreaming.

Russian submarine infographic Red October No More: Russia Scraps Cold War-Era Typhoon Submarine — The Telegraph Russia is to definitively scrap its legendary typhoon class nuclear-powered submarine, the deadly Soviet-era vessel that inspired the Hollywood blockbuster The Hunt for Red October. The decision, which was disclosed by military sources in the daily Izvestia newspaper, marks the end of an era that will see the three remaining Typhoon class submarines that remain in service in Russia’s Northern Fleet cut up and turned into scrap metal by 2014. The giant Typhoon-class submarine was a fixture of the Cold War and at 562 feet long and 80 foot wide was the biggest submarine ever built. Read more …. More News On Russia Scrapping It’s Typhoon Submarine Fleet No plans to retire Typhoon class subs soon – Russian military — RIA Novosti Russia’s gigantic Typhoon submarines to be scrapped — Pravda Last three Typhoons to be scrapped in 2014 — Barents Observer Russia’s Typhoon: facts and figures — The Telegraph Russia scraps Typhoon nuclear submarines: timeline of a Cold War Symbol — The Telegraph Submarine: The Great Russian Fade — Strategy Page