Category Archives: weapons

And the real color of the Royal Navy’s Wildcats in WWII was…

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The Fleet Air Arm Museum at RNAS Yeovilton has recently restored a 1940-vintage Grumman Martlet I (G36A/F4F-3), AL246, in its collection.

Over the past several years, she was “carefully restored by the museum team with the paint removed layer by layer and analyzed, enabling the original camouflage to be identified and repainted to its very original pattern.”

The aircraft had been overpainted several times between 1940 and 1964 for various reasons, and all references to the very unusual original color scheme had seemingly been lost.

Only a few color images of these aircraft exist from the 1940’s, and due to color variations in image processing, have led to many debates about exactly what colors these aircraft were painted.

The wings, tail plane, rudder, and a few small panels still retained their original Grumman factory finish beneath the later over-painted layers, and after 6 years of skilled detail conservation work, the team has revealed and preserved these original and unique painted areas.

Sadly, the fuselage section had been stripped to bare metal before 1964, and so the team has recreated this missing portion with a newly painted finish.

Originally ordered by the French Navy, 81 of these aircraft were diverted to Britain with the fall of France in May 1940. By the end of the war, only a few of the French batch remained; by 1946, AL246 was the only known survivor.

AL246 spent most of her service life in Scotland at Donibristle and Machrihanish. From 1944, she was used as an instructional airframe at Loughborough Aeronautical College and transferred to Yeovilton in the late 1950s. In 1964, she was presented to the Fleet Air Arm Museum and has been on permanent display ever since.

Initially named the Martlet by the Royal Navy, they were re-named Wildcats in 1944 to align with combined U.S. and British operations.

A staggering 1,123 Fleet Air Arm Martlets operated in all theatres of war, including Norway, the Mediterranean, North Africa, and the Far East, making the stubby little Grumman catfighter one of the most numerous of British WWII RN aircraft.

Martlet fighters aboard HMS Formidable in the Mediterranean Sea, 1942

Martlet MkII British Fleet Air Arm F4F Wildcat No. 888 Squadron, parked at La Senia air base, Oran, Algeria, 14 December 1942, USN photo

Sub-Lieutenant Eric M.Brown, R.N.V.R., Fleet Air Arm, with a Grumman Martlet Mk. I, circa 1941.

Marines are getting FPV drone serious

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A Neros Archer first-person view drone sits on a case during a demonstration range at Weapons Training Battalion on Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, March 7, 2025. The Marine Corps Attack Drone Team used the Neros Archer FPV drone to engage targets on the range to showcase the drone’s capabilities on the battlefield. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Joshua Barker)

The Marines have a new training program for drones, which is currently standing it up at the battalion level, and “By May 2026, all infantry, reconnaissance battalions and littoral combat teams across the Corps will be equipped to employ FPV attack drone capabilities.”

Seven organizations are designated as regional training hubs with the authority to immediately begin conducting the pilot courses, while the newly formed Marine Corps Attack Drone Team is taking the show on the road.

A recent effort with 22nd MEU Marines certified 14 attack drone operators and 11 payload specialists “fully trained, equipped and ready for contingency operations” on Neros Archers. 

From a presser: 

Six approved pilot courses will certify Marines while testing instructional methods and curriculum. These courses include training for drone operators, payload specialists, and instructors, with specific prerequisites such as simulator experience on Training and Education Command-approved systems. The courses aim to ensure proper integration and supervision of new drone capabilities. The Training and Education Command has also established a process to grant certifications to Marines who have existing qualifications and experience through an exception to policy.

The Corps is looking to pick up 10,000 American or Allied-made FPVs at $4K a pop. 

Depending on the configuration, the Archer costs about $5K and is “capable of carrying a 2 kg/4.5 lb payload over 20 kilometers.” It has already been tapped by Big Green. 

There is also a three-week counter-drone, or C-UAS, course in both soft and hard kill methods, which is equally important.

Check out this from 1st Marines at Pendleton.

Shooting Illustrated Prints Final Issue, Ends 25 Year Run

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In my opinion, the only decent NRA pub…

As part of a restructure and streamlining of operations, the NRA-published magazine, Shooting Illustrated, ended its run this month.

The final issue, Vol. 25 No. 1, officially the January 2026 issue, is the last for Shooting Illustrated, capping a quarter-century run.

The end was not a total surprise as the NRA had announced last October that it was ending publication of both America’s 1st Freedom and Shooting Illustrated, along with halting the Shooting Sports USA digital magazine (but not the website), and trimming the publishing of print issues of its two remaining media titles, American Hunter and American Rifleman, to “premium monthly digital editions with quarterly print issues.”

The moves came, as NRA EVP & CEO Doug Hamlin explained, to “create a leaner NRA that allows us to fight harder for our members.”

Shooting Sports Illustrated was unique in a number of ways.

When it was first released in 2001, the NRA offered a choice from four magazines available for free to members (American Rifleman, American Hunter, America’s 1st Freedom, and Woman’s Outlook) while NRAinSights was available for junior members. Meanwhile, Shooting Sports USA and Shooting Illustrated were subscription-only (you had to pay extra for them), with the latter being the only magazine in the organization’s stable that was available on newsstands. This meant that even those who weren’t NRA members would see Shooting Illustrated on magazine racks down to the gas station level. There it was, mixed in with the big boys like Guns & Ammo, the Shotgun News, and American Handgunner.

It long featured Richard Mann’s Bullet column, which first appeared in 2007, and the most recent issues carried Sheriff Jim Wilson, Steve Adelmann, Tamara Keel, Jeff Johnson, Tatiana Whitlock, Guy Sagi, and others on its masthead.

The magazine was only offered to NRA members as a journal choice after 2016.

The most current circulation figures available for Shooting Illustrated, as compiled by the Alliance for Audited Media in 2023, stood at just over 600,000. Comparatively, America’s 1st Freedom had 560,000; American Hunter, some 780,000; and American Rifleman, 1.5 million. So the math makes sense if you were going to snuff out two of the four, which two should get the ax.

The two volumes will be treasured in the collections of firearms enthusiasts. They will join the likes of print issues of Soldier of Fortune, which switched to digital only in 2016, the myriad of titles printed by Paladin Press, which closed in 2017, and even the Guns.com print magazine, which was published in 2023-24. Last November, the news came that the print editions of GUNS Magazine and American Handgunner magazine are ending after 70 years, leaving only digital issues.

Other gun publications have come and gone, then made a resurgence, such as Field & Stream, which recently returned to newsstands, and assorted titles from Harris Publications, which were down and out in 2023, then found a new home with Athlon/Bleecker Street– at least for now.

In 2020, Field & Stream, the outdoor magazine that first appeared in 1871, ceased publication of its print edition but recently reemerged after a three-year hiatus under new ownership– so never say never! (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)

So are print gun magazines dead?

Our friend Ian McCollum opines on that question, below.

Tomcat over Kresta

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Some 50 years ago this month. A half-century.

Where has the time gone?

Cold War, Soviet Ships. Mediterranean Sea. January 1976.

A Fighter Squadron 32 (VF 32), F-14A Tomcat fighter aircraft seen in full color livery while in flight near a Soviet “Kresta II” class guided missile cruiser underway below. The Tomcat was assigned on board the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67).

Note that the Cat is “dressed for work,” carrying a mixture of Phoenix, Sparrow, and Sidewinder missiles.

Photograph received January 1976. U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. 428-GX-K-112540

The squadron has a lot of “firsts” on its sheet.

VF-32, the “Fighting Swordsmen” or “Gypsies” depending on which year you are talking about, originated on 1 February 1945, as Bombing Fighting (VBF) 3, after the old “Felix the Cat” Fighter Squadron (VF) 3 was split into two squadrons. VBF-3 joined Carrier Air Group 3 aboard USS Yorktown (CV 10) operating in the Pacific theater. Flying F6F-5 Hellcats, VBF-3 pilots became the first Navy carrier-based pilots to attack the homeland of the Japanese Empire. During heavy action, the squadron shot down 24 Japanese aircraft for which the Swordsmen received the Presidential Unit Citation.

By 1948, they had been redesignated VF-32 and were flying Corsairs, aircraft they would use to good effect in Korea from the deck of USS Leyte (CV 32). The squadron had Jesse Brown and Thomas Hudner for that cruise.

Ensign Jesse L. Brown, USN. In the cockpit of an F4U-4 Corsair fighter, circa 1950. He was the first African-American to be trained by the Navy as a Naval Aviator, and as such, he became the first African-American Naval Aviator to see combat. Brown flew with Fighter Squadron 32 (VF-32) from USS Leyte (CV-32). Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. USN 1146845.

Finishing out that war, they were the first squadron to field the F9F-6 Cougar and later the Navy’s first supersonic squadron when they switched to a different Corsair, the F-8, which they flew during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

By 1966, in early F-4B Phantoms, they logged 940 sorties over Vietnam from USS Franklin D. Roosevelt (CVA 42).

Then they entered their Tomcat period in 1974– an aircraft they used to good effect, often from JKF, over Lebanon, Grenada, against Libya, Bosnia, the Gulf War, and OIF, also grabbing the Admiral Clifton Award numerous times.

They hugged the “Bombcat” a tearful goodbye in 2005, capping a 31-year run with the F-14 platform, and shifted to Rhinos, flying F-18F Super Hornets since then as the NAS Oceana-based VFA-32.

In addition to multiple GWOT deployments, on 14 July 2024, an unidentified female pilot in VFA-32 became the first American female pilot to engage and kill an air-to-air contact as part of 1,500 combat missions in support of Operations Inherent Resolve and Prosperity Guardian.

CMP Production Inventory status on M1903, M-1 Garand, and M1911s

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From the latest CMP Director’s annual report on Production. Keep in mind that the NDAA also included the provision to transfer milsurp pump-action shotguns, which will probably start in 2027. 

Drill Receiver Reclamation Project: The Drill Receiver Reclamation Project is a landmark initiative designed to restore tens of thousands of previously deactivated M1 Garand and 1903A3 drill rifles into safe, functional firearms. With original receiver inventory nearly exhausted (note: CMP continues to work with the US Government to identify options for the return of US-provided M1s from foreign countries), CMP identified this project as a critical way to sustain future rifle production and preserve important historical assets. Extensive testing, engineering oversight, and transparent communication have positioned this program as a model for responsible firearm reclamation and safety assurance.

    • Scope and Inventory: Began with ~75,000 serialized drill rifles (M1 Garand and 1903A3)
      • 10,000 M1s classified as ‘good’ (Category A)
      • 26,000 M1s classified as ‘medium (Category B)
      • 15,000 M1903/A3s in a condition supporting reclamation
      • 24,000 as ‘scrap’ (Category C – deferred due to cost and condition)
    • Partnerships: CMP partnered with Heritage Arms (manufacturing) and Prospector Training of Florida (ballistic testing and validation).
    • Testing: A rigorous validation program included destructive testing and proof loads exceeding 80,000 psi—demonstrating exceptional strength and safety.
    • Production: CMP placed an initial purchase order for ~20,000 receivers across the recoverable categories.
    • Identification: All reclaimed rifles and receivers carry an “RC” item number prefix to clearly differentiate them from legacy products.
    • Customer Reception: Initial market skepticism was overcome through education, transparent documentation, and in-person demonstrations at the 2025 National Matches.
    • Sales Strategy: CMP introduced stripped and barreled receiver sales at low margins to build customer trust and demonstrate quality firsthand.
    • Sustainability: Sales velocity has stabilized, providing a multi-year supply of reclaimed receivers for production and sales.
    • The project inventory will support nearly 2-3 years of sales.
       

CMP 1903A3 Expert Rifle Program: A key component of the Drill Receiver Reclamation initiative is the development of the CMP 1903A3 Expert Rifle, CMP’s first bolt-action rifle to carry the Expert Grade designation. The project utilizes reclaimed 1903A3 receivers from the drill inventory, each carefully inspected and refurbished to CMP’s Expert standards. This launch expands CMP’s product line and appeals to collectors and shooters seeking historically accurate bolt-action rifles.

      • All supply chain inventory has been acquired, and the Armory is staged to begin assembly.
      • Production Start: Scheduled to begin in November 2025, with initial inventory and public release expected in January 2026.
      • Configuration: Each rifle features a new Criterion barrel, new Minelli walnut stock, refinished metal parts, and authentic GI-style hardware.
      • Grading and Finish: Rifles will meet the same cosmetic and performance criteria as CMP’s M1 Expert Grade rifles.
      • Variants: Plans include a scoped 1903A4 model using Hi-Lux M82 optics and potential chambering in .308 Winchester and .30-06 Springfield.
      • Strategic Impact: This expansion diversifies CMP’s product offerings and ensures efficient use of reclaimed assets while appealing to both historical and modern shooters.
         

New CMP M1 Rifle Project: The New CMP M1 Rifle Project represents a return to U.S.-based production of forged, USGI-spec M1 Garand receivers. This is CMP’s first move into commercial firearms manufacturing.  

We have partnered to manufacture parts and components for several years, but never receivers. This program ensures the long-term viability of M1 rifle sales after the depletion of legacy and reclaimed receiver inventories while offering a quality product for those who do not wish to purchase a reclaimed offering.  

For those more interested in performance over collectability, the newly manufactured CMP M1 is the clear choice. It delivers a product that is both faithful to the original design and built to modern manufacturing tolerances and materials standards.

    • Purpose: Ensure long-term rifle production continuity through a newly manufactured, USGI-spec forged receiver
    • Partnership: Multi-year R&D collaboration with Heritage Arms covering 3D scanning, CAD modeling, prototype machining, and validation
    • Prototypes cleared for test batch “T Lot” production in early 2025
    • Testing: Over 100 serialized T-prefix test rifles produced, fired through 16,000+ rounds during developmental validation
    • Numerous iterations and improvements between small lots within the “T” series
    • T Lot proving conclude mid-summer, and preorders were opened for eager customers
    • Founder Series: We received 607 preorders placed in 2025 under the FNDR prefix (231 in .308 and 376 in .30-06), representing the first commercial batch
    • Production Status: Full production underway. Initial Founder Series shipments began in early November 2025.  Standard production units will begin shipping early in 2026.
    • Specifications: Forged USGI Spec receiver, Criterion or Faxon barrel, forged reproduction stainless steel gas cylinder, and new walnut stock. MSRP: $1,950 for either caliber (.30-06 or .308 Win)
    • Future Models: Planned expansion to include M1D, and “Tanker” variants, as well as alternative calibers. Development is also underway on several other exciting variants that will be announced as we roll into the new year.
    • Strategic Value: Ensures a sustainable, U.S.-based manufacturing capability that preserves authenticity while meeting modern expectations for quality and precision

M1911 Pistols: Our inventory and sales of M1911 pistols remain strong. The limit of four pistols per person per lifetime remains in effect for 2026. We do intend to bring in-person sales to the Talladega Marksmanship Park store in the March/April timeframe and to the Camp Perry store in the June timeframe, and before the National Matches. More information on this will be forthcoming after the new year.

Lucid’s Labor of Love

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The U.S. Navy ocean minesweeper USS Lucid (MSO-458) underway in the Pacific Ocean, February 1970. Official U.S. Navy photo USN 1143191 from the U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command

The Stockton Maritime Museum is currently restoring the USS Lucid (AM-458/MSO-458), the last of 53 Cold War-era Agile/Aggressive-class, ocean-going minesweepers in the U.S, and is “dedicated to honoring local sailors, shipbuilding companies & laborers, and maritime culture in Stockton, California.”

Built at the famous (for WWII LCVPs and PT boats) Higgins Yard in New Orleans, Lucid was commissioned on 4 May 1955 and only served 15 years in the fleet before she was mothballed and later disposed of in 1976. Used as a California houseboat and scrapyard headquarters hulk for over thirty years, the Stockton MM has been slowly restoring her since 2011.

They’ve come a long way and are trying to take it the extra mile.

Lucid circa 2011

Lucid today

Members of the museum last year visited Taiwan, where the Republic of China Navy allowed them to strip the recently decommissioned ROCS Yung Yang (MSO-1306)— the former Aggressive-class minesweeper USS Implicit (AM-455/MSO-455), to improve the Lucid.

They filled two 40-foot shipping containers with specialized equipment and MCM gear.

Bravo Zulu!

First Look at the New 2K11 Comp Double-stack 1911 9mm

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Featuring a built-in forward barrel port and matching compensated slide, the newKimber 2K11 Comp series offers a significant reduction in felt recoil while keeping the same popular features as the rest of the series.

Alabama-based Kimber went double-stack 1911 in 2024 after at least a 30-year run in the field of making single stacks. We have reviewed a couple of these excellent pistols since then, and are past the 3K round mark on our original test gun with no hiccups to report, leaving us more than happy to report on the new Comp series.

The guns, launching just in time for the upcoming SHOT Show, will all be chambered in 9mm and available in both 5-inch full-sized (Government) and 4.25-inch Pro (Commander) sizes, shipping with flush-fit 20 and 19-round magazines, respectively.

Each will also be offered in either a black DLC or matte stainless variant, giving Kimber four new 2K11 Comp models for 2026: 5-inch black (669278350783) and stainless (669278350806) and 4.25-inch black (669278350738) and stainless (669278350752) with an MSRP running between $2,345 and $2,499, with the DLC guns hitting the higher end, because of DLC.

The new Kimber 2K11 Comp series 
A sampling, showing that big ol’ comp. (Photo: Kimber)

“The 2K11 Comp is the culmination of years of preparation and hundreds of thousands of rounds of testing to deliver the most fully featured comprehensive handgun we have ever produced,” said Pedi Gega, Director of product development, assembly, and finishing. “The new 2K11 family of compensated models creates the highest class of firearms for the discerning enthusiast and competitive shooter.”

Kimber sent us an SST (stainless) 2K11 Pro Comp model for testing.

The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm. 
The pistol looks great, which is no surprise as the 2K11 series is crafted with superb attention to detail, one at a time, by skilled technicians, not just slapped together. Being a Pro model, its 4.25-inch barrel gives an overall length of 7.79 inches. (All photos unless noted: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm. 
Note the external extractor, ambidextrous thumb safety, and bumped grip safety, which are standard across the line.
The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm. 
Weight is 33.4 ounces, even with a full-length rail on the dustcover of the frame. Note the lightening cuts to the slide, seen previously on Kimber’s top-shelf Rapide series, which provide faster lock-up. 

The most noticeable enhancement to these guns over the standard 2K11 series is the massive 0.16 square inch integrated compensator forward of the front sight. This feature noticeably reduces muzzle rise and felt recoil, plus it creates an incredibly fun and controllable shooting experience.

The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm. 
The integral comp is big enough to double as an ashtray if needed. 
The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm. 
The four new compensated models also feature Kimber’s brand-new carbon fiber grip infused grip module that is compatible with corresponding Stan Chen Magwells. We found the grip to be aggressive but not overly. 

The Comp guns also share the current 2K11 features, such as Kimber’s in-house toolless guide rod, an external extractor, a bushing-less, crowned, and fluted barrel, a GT trigger, and more.

The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm, compared
The Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST 4.25 compared to the standard full-sized Black DLC 2K11. 
The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm, compared
And compared with the non-comped Kimber 2K11 Pro SST, which sports a Kimpro Granite finish and Kevlar carbon fiber grips. Released last August, this gun hinted at what the Pro Comp would become. 
The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm, compared
Note the top ends of the Kimber 2K11 Pro SST and Pro Comp SST
The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm. 
The Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp features a cover plate with an adjustable rear sight. A TAG Precision FiberLok 2 front sight with additional red and black fiber-optic inserts is included. All models ship with a TAG Precision RMR adapter plate that takes the place of the rear sight. 
The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm. 
Our test gun shipped with two 19+1-round Checkmate Double Stack Ultra-Hi Capacity 126mm mags. Full-length models ship with a flush 17+1, and two extended 20+1 round mags. The mags, reverse 2011-compatible, are all metal, including an aluminum base pad and steel retainer for maximum made-in-the-USA durability and longevity. Word of caution: they are a beast to fully load. 
The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm. 
The Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp has an easy takedown without tools due to its toolless guide rod system, a feature it shares with the rest of the series.
The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm. 
The aluminum match-grade skeletonized GT trigger has an advertised 3-to-4-pound pull. We found it broke at 3.6, with a short take-up to the wall and a crisp break. Reset is similarly short and is both audible and tactile. Kimber advises that the shoe length has been reduced by 3/32 of an inch, making for a more comfortable overall length. IMHO, the GT is the best production factory 1911 trigger on the market. 

Check out the trigger pull and reset here:

How’s it shoot?

Well, we’ve only had the gun for a couple of weeks and have about 200 rounds through it thus far, so it is a little early to say, but we have experienced no jams and smooth shooting, with less recoil.

Stay tuned for more feedback as we up the round count.

The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm. 
The new Kimber 2K11 Pro Comp SST in 9mm.

Silent Protectors

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Some 60 years ago this month

“Navy moves a Gurkha Patrol in the Jungle, Malaysia, January 1966. A Naval Wessex Mk V (Sikorsky S-58) helicopter of 848 RN Air Squadron from the Centaur-class Commando Ship HMS Albion (R07), ascends from its pad after returning a Gurkha patrol to their jungle base.”

Image: IWM A 35005

The simmering Borneo “Konfrontasi” conflict between Indonesia and Malaysia, with the Soviet Union backing the Indonesians and the Commonwealth/West backing Malaysia, was one of the myriad proxy undeclared wars during the Cold War. Running some 42 months across 1963-66, the Commonwealth lost some 140 killed– about a third of those Gurkhas– against about four times as high a loss as felt by Jakarta.

No fewer than 44 Gurkha were killed and 83 wounded during the Konfrontasi.

Westland Belvedere HC.1 XG453 of No 66 Squadron Krokong, Sarawak Ghurkhas during the Indonesian Confrontation, 1964 IWM (RAF-T 5262)

Gurkha troops using a step ladder to climb aboard a Bristol Belvedere twin rotor helicopter of No. 66 Squadron RAF at Kuching, British Borneo, during operations in Indonesia. IWM (RAF-T 5257)

The Gurkas still stand watch in the region today with a battalion of the 2RGR stationed in Brunei.

The Royal Brunei Gurkha Reserve Unit, established in 1974, is composed of former and retired military Gurkhas residing in the sultanate. They stand some 500 strong, and you can bet they stand ready to defend their now-homeland to their last breath.

The Singapore Police, meanwhile, maintain a 2,000-strong (not a misprint) Gurkha Contingent wholly separate from the British Army’s Brigade of Gurkhas “to provide a ‘strong-arm’ within the Police Force capable of quelling civil disturbance and carrying out specialist security tasks.”

The Carter Special, Spotted in the Wild

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So I saw this DW piece on how the “ELN plays key role in Colombia’s cocaine economy,” and the cover thumbnail image caught my eye.

Without the titles, you get a better look at the very interesting gatt, complete with Israeli Thermold magazine and paracord sling with brass swivel snaps.

This is not a frankengun; this thing left the factory like this.

Meet the Olympic Arms K23B “Stubby” carbine:

Only manufactured between 2007 and 2020, it was a Mil/LE-only factory SBR offered by Washington-based Olympic Arms. Chambered in 5.56 NATO, it ran a 6.5-inch chrome moly steel button rifled barrel with A2 flash suppressor, forged A2 upper with fully adjustable rear sight, an A2 style post front sight, had no bayonet lug, and used a distinctive free-folding aluminum tube handguard with knurling.

It ran a carbon recoil buffer in the back of the frame and, just 22.5 inches overall, weighed 5.12 pounds. It was offered in two variants, with (K23P-FT) or without (K23P) a flat-top receiver.

It caught some LE/Mil contacts, including at least some (apparently) in Colombia and in Taiwan as seen in this image:

Its last MSRP was $876, although they typically only run $550ish today, plus stamps.

It is, however, sought after by Stargate superfans as it is the basis for the “Carter Special.”

Since you came this far, enjoy this deep dive into fake Colts interdicted in Colombia, which were destined for FARC Guerrillas.

The ‘For’ in IFOR

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And you think it is cold outside where you are!

How about the below, some 30 years ago.

Queen’s Royal Hussars, Petrovac, Bosnia, early 1996, an FV4030 Challenger 1 of 3rd Troop, A Squadron, and a FV107 Scimitar of RECCE Troop, with an AAC Lynx AH.7 overhead. In January 1996, the QRH was the first unit deployed in Challengers to Bosnia with NATO’s British-led Implementation Force.

Cold War veterans who served in the Falklands and Op Granby against Saddam, among other places, Lynx and Scimitar have long since been retired, while Challenger 1 has been superseded by Challenger 2 since 2001.

As for the QRH, today they are the senior-most armored regiment in the British Army, equipped with C2s, and are based at Assaye Barracks, Tidworth, since moving from Germany home (for technically the first time) in 2019.

Formed in 1993 from an amalgam of the Queen’s Own Hussars and the Queen’s Royal Irish Hussars (both of which were formed from amalgamations of other historic cavalry regiments in 1958), the QRH and its myriad antecedents have been awarded 172 Battle Honours going back to 1685, and remember eight Victoria Cross holders, while observing Regimental days for Dettingen, Balaclava, and El Alamein.

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