BlackFive

-- According to Danger Room, even the military's own assessment of the Afghan surge gives it an "F".  Of course it's not particularly hard to get an "F" when you announce that you're really not serious about victory by setting a pull out date at the same time as the surge.

--Looks like the F-35 will be getting a new engine in the 2020 timeframe.  This is the first new engine we've develped in 50 years.   More thrust (power) and better fuel economy.  That will extend its combat radius.

--Okay, this is just cool.  How about skydiving from a B-17.  Some soldiers recently did that.

--The Army is under fire for its camouflage patterns:

Critics allege that the Army has wasted $5 billion on uniforms and equipment all printed in the inadequate UCP. The GAO estimates that the Army will have to spend another $4 billion on uniforms and equipment over the next five years when it selects its new family of camouflage patterns.

Wonderful.

--Skidmarks on a Chinese carrier deck (yeah, not those kind of skidmarks, although there's no report about the pilot's unmentionables)?  A picture has analysts wondering if the Chinese may actually be further ahead in their employment of Naval air than previously thought.

--If this sort of info is important to you, the Ranger Medic's Handbook has been updated:

The book is written by the 75th Ranger Regiment and includes 70 additional pages of updates since the 3rd Edition, which was published in 2007.

“This is an extremely popular book,” Matt Westra, vice president of sales for North American Rescue, said at Modern Day Marine 2012. “This has got everything in it from their medical protocols to drug doses. They use it for sick call and for treating trauma. There’s new packing lists for how they pack up their kit.”

NAR is the sole distributor of the Ranger Medic Handbook. It retails for $40 and all proceeds go to the Sentinels of Freedom, a non-profit, wounded-warrior foundation chosen by the Ranger Regiment, Westra said.

Nice.

--Meanwhile, in Iraq, you likely never heard a word about this:

Prisoners seized weapons and set off hours-long clashes with security guards at a prison in Saddam Hussein's hometown that left 12 dead, including 10 guards, before dozens of inmates managed to escape from the facility, Iraqi officials said Friday.

The escaped prisoners included al-Qaida suspects, said a provincial spokesman, though he could not say whether the terror group was behind the jailbreak in Tikrit, 130 kilometers (80 miles) north of Baghdad.

It was the latest embarrassing security lapse in Iraq, raising questions about the Shiite-led government's ability to ensure the country's security in the wake of the U.S. troop withdrawal last December.

Things are just going along ... swimmingly, aren't they?

--Finally, over at SpouseBuzz, they give advice on what NOT to wear to a military ball.  Looking at the picture heading the post, I'm going to be a respectful dissenter here.

Enjoy the weekend. 

~McQ