No I do NOT say that CNN is unbiased. On the contrary, it is very much a US biased news channel. (But at least the International version is less so then many other US news media)
I don’t think it is a “Commie” channel though, unless you have a very different view of what constitute Communism from me and most other people in the world.
But now we are getting too far into OT territory.
The international conference of the United Nations in 1967 established a ruling for narrow straits such as The Straits of Hormuz, enshrining the right of innocent passage and placing the boundaries of territorial waters equidistant from the coast of two states. The law does however lay down rules for vessels maintaining the right of innocent passage. I can understand the reaction of the USS Boxer taking out the drone but it does raise the question of what threat did the drone pose? Without evaluating the threat posed we could have naval vessels opening fire on a couple of kids fishing from a dinghy or an airliner. Okay we’ve been there and done that.
The detention of the tanker of Gibraltar could be defended on the grounds that the ship was breaking the law of the country whose territorial seas the vessel was transiting. The seizure of the tanker by Iran can only be defended on the grounds that the crew of the ship did something illegal. Hence the claim that they were in collision with a fishing vessel.
Yeah, like if an Iranian drone hit the ship it might have poked someone’s eye out. Given the propaganda value of photos like the supposed limpet mine removal, where are the pics of the drone shootdown or the wreckage?
Again, so who do you think is onboard that drone to listen? That is like using an underwater telephone to fend off torpedoes.
This really is another case of Trumped up tail wagging. The only people hurt so far are the 290 onboard Iran Air Flight 655. Them and the only democratically elected government that ever existed in the Middle East.
I’d expect any surveillance drone worth its salt to listen on a broad spectrum of radio frequencies, not least those commonly in use for voice comms. I’d also be very careful of taking a drone I care about within a k of a warship, since that opens up a whole selection of motivations for them to shoot it down, one of which is that it might pose a legitimate threat. A drone you don’t care so much about, on the other hand, might teach you a lot about how close you can get before they react, and at which point their patience runs out.
You do know that many other country’s UAVs have warheads integrated into them like little robot kamikaze right?
“The UCAV is specially designed to loiter the battlefield and attack targets by self-destructing into them.”
Considering Iran has anti-ship missiles that can do some real damage, what is the point in sending a little drone with a relatively tiny warhead to create the same military and political response as a full on missile attack?
If scratching the paint on a carrier is going to start a war then it is better to sink the carrier while you still can.
The Iranians are not as demented as our president.
Deniability? “Oh, that was a recon drone that we lost control of, no, not offensive at all.”
Having gone to school with the daughter of an Embassy hostage, I beg to differ on their current government’s dementedness.
Step back from your political BS for a moment, and try focus on the public information.
Klaveness addressed the spectrum of radio freqs, and I’d like to embellish a bit. I’m pretty sure the decision-makers on BOXER are well aware that a drone is unmanned. However, the drone MAY of ELINT capabilities, and be able to receive & relay radio comms. Maybe it doesn’t have ELINT. However, by issuing warnings on a variety of freqs, one could presume (and hope) that the controllers of the drone, located either on another vessel or on shore, would hear the warning.
It hasn’t been disclosed, either by USA or IRAN, what kind of drone was flying. Was it big as a Predator at 5000 lbs/2250kg, which is big enough to be armed 134kg of munitions? Or was it one of the smaller ones, like their Mohajer, which is 187 lbs/85kg, which has a 15kg payload?
I don’t know if you fell asleep during your physics classes, but either one of those drones would do damage to the steel hull of BOXER - and if it hit one of the aircraft on deck, destroy that aircraft!! And the resultant fire from the aircraft destruction would cause additional damage to BOXER.
And do you want to be on the exposed flight deck if the drone was to strike?
True, there has been, so far, no reports of Kamikaze drone strikes, and I’m not privy to INTEL about the potential for same.
The commanding officer of BOXER is charged with keeping his ship, aircraft, AND CREW safe. He would be severely reprimanded for not performing his duty.
And lastly, given what you said about “propaganda value of photos like the supposed limpet mine removal”, you would discount any photos of the drone defense as the same.
Look, you probably won’t change your thoughts about Trump & the USA, - but I want you to attempt to try and open your eyes to real-world situations that happen. If you served in combat, you will understand; if you never served in combat, you will never understand.
Hmm. Demented?
take over an embassy.
tanker war
Beirut
Kobar
Kenya
nope. they aren’t demented
Get a grip pal. You are suffering from your severe case of trump derange syndrome. Your politics are blinding you to reality. (I’m not saying that in support of POTUS, but rather to highlight your lack of objectivity due to your political views.
Concur with you.
What bubble is Steamer living in?
It seems that you are not really up to speed in this area as ELINT is gathering data from sensors etc. What you probably mean is COMINT. COMmunications INTelligence is information gathered from the communications of individuals, including telephone conversations, text messages and various types of online interactions. Time and duration of communication. Frequencies and other technical details of note in the transmission.
ELINT and COMINT are both part of SIGnal INTelligence (SIGINT).
Thank you for the clarification. It’s been a few decades since I played the EW (electronic warfare) game. With this new clarification, I’d rewrite the sentence to read:
“However, the drone may have SIGINT capabilities, so as to receive & relay radio comms. And then again, maybe it doesn’t.”
Heck, I don’t know if the drone was only a TV camera in the sky, or enabled with a full electronic detection suite, or armed. All I was trying to do was allow for the possibility that warning communications could be relayed to the remotely located pilot.
Let’s have a look at the realities behind your list of events that is contributed to the Iranians:
Tanker war; That was a war instigated by Iraq and supported by USA. (Many call it a proxy war) Most of the tankers and oil installations was hit by Iraqi rockets, not Iranians.
When Iran got involved they targeted tankers of the Gulf state allies of Iraq as well as international ships involved in Iraqi and Kuwaiti oil. As you well know, US Navy and Air Force then got more directly engaged in the fighting. Even re-flagging Kuwaiti ships to the US flag.
Beirut; The bombing of the US and French barracks was carried out suicide bombers belonging to Hezbollah, a Lebanese group which is supported by Iran and Syria. No direct Iranian involvement has been proven in any International Court.
Khobar Tower bombing; This was also carried out by an offshoot of Hezbollah, but by Saudi nationals. Although the US blame it on Iran no Iranian have been indicted and the Saudi authorities does not recognise any US jurisdiction for anything that happens on Saudi soil.
The arrested perpetrators were never extradited.
Kenya(??): I assume this referrers to the East African Embassy bombings in 1998, which was carried out by Al Qaeda, an enemy of Iran.
But you are right, the Iranian leadership is not demented. They are fully capable of managing their own affairs and not a pushover that will easily be bullied by Trump, or any others.
The world is replete with contrived situations weaponized as propaganda to feed chumps. Put down your Kool-Aid mug and pick up some history books.
By the way, I sailed through Hormuz on an unarmed merchant ship a few times during the first Gulf war so your time spent eating ice cream off the coast of 'Nam doesn’t intimidate or impress me.
Why spoil a right-wing mythology with inconvenient facts and history? History makes fools of them so every generation or so they need to find something or someone new to hate. Judging by current events, they have run out of fresh meat and are recycling the old 1930s sausage.
FUCK YOU ASSHOLE!!
I WAS THERE WHEN THIS HAPPENED TO OUR SISTER SHIP A FEW THOUSAND YARDS AWAY FROM US!!
FUCK YOU!!
Ah, the famous “Battle of Dong Hoi Gulf.” The battle where they claimed to have sunk a couple of attacking gunboats - a claim that was proven false.
What are you so upset about, no one got killed, the turret was unmanned because of faulty ammunition or maintenance. Yelling at me won’t make your Kool-Aid taste any better.
History shows that more sailors died from poor maintenance, equipment failure, and lack of training than from heroic battlefield actions - all the same things that are killing them these days.
FUCK YOU ASSHOLE. YOU WEREN’T THERE.
An analysis conducted 20 years after the event SUGGESTED there was no styx missiles shot at US ships. SUGGESTED is not, “DETERMINED”.
4 SAILORS WERE INJURED, ASSHOLE.
FUCK OFF. EAT SHIT AND DIE, YOU SANCTIMONIOUS ELITIST PRICK.
WE’RE DONE HERE.
Well this turned the corner… not exactly fast, but nevertheless.
I sailed with a guy who if he didn’t swear he would have been completely lost for words. He was known as our cultural ambassador.