‘I knew if he was going to throw anything– it wasn’t going to be a cream puff…’
Keep it clean!
Happy Red Hackle Day
Today is Red Hackle Day! This annual celebration on 5 January commemorates the award to The Black Watch (3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland, 3 SCOTS) of the right to wear the Red Hackle in their caps.
The Black Watch at Quatre Bras, 1815, by William Barnes Wollen. Note the red hackles in their caps
Forward! 42nd Highland (Black Watch) at the Battle of Alma, 1854, Crimean War. Note the red hackles
The origin of the wearing of the Red Hackle is uncertain. There is evidence that it was worn by the 42nd in North America in the 1770s, however a 19th Century tradition ascribes the award of the Red Hackle to an action at the battle of Geldermalsen in 1795 when the 11th Light Dragoons retreated, leaving two field guns for the French. The Black Watch promptly mounted an attack and recovered the guns.
It was for this action that the Red Hackle was allegedly awarded and on the King’s birthday on 4 June 1795, there was a parade at Royston in Hertfordshire, when a Red Hackle was given to every man on parade. It was not until 1822 that the Adjutant General issued an order, confirming that only The Black Watch would have the privilege of wearing the red “vulture feather” in their bonnets.
In 1919 the Central Committee of The Black Watch Association formalised the date on which the Regiment should celebrate “Red Hackle Day”.
The tradition is carried on to this day.
![Date 03/09/11 Location Fort George Invernes-shire Photo by Mark Owens: His Royal Highness The Duke of Rothesay inspects troops at Fort George today. Photo Caption: DUKE OF ROTHESAY VISITS 3 SCOTS Today [Saturday, 3 September 2011] His Royal Highness The Duke of Rothesay visited The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland at their Fort George base. The Battalion paraded its new Colours in the presence of HRH and Battalion’s families. The Parade was followed by a BBQ lunch, which led into a number of afternoon activities, encompassing military stands, entertainment for the children, and an inter-company competition. The day provided an opportunity to assemble the Battalion community for the final time prior to 3 SCOTS forthcoming deployment to Afghanistan , and allowed HRH – the Battalion’s Royal Colonel - to meet soldiers and their families. ENDS Note my new DII e-mail address: 2XX-G3Media-Ops-Edin-PIO (Jamieson, Bill Mr) Bill Jamieson Press Officer Army G3 Media and Communications (Based at G3 Media and Communications HQ 2nd Division) 94740 2611 - HQ 2nd Division (Military) 0131 310 2611 - HQ 2nd Division (Civilian) 07900 607919 (Mobile) bill.jamieson678@mod.uk](https://i0.wp.com/laststandonzombieisland.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/red-hackle-3-scots.jpg?resize=519%2C319&ssl=1)
Date 03/09/11 Location Fort George Invernes-shire , Photo by Mark Owens: His Royal Highness The Duke of Rothesay inspects troops at Fort George today.
Photo Caption: DUKE OF ROTHESAY VISITS 3 SCOTS, Today [Saturday, 3 September 2011] His Royal Highness The Duke of Rothesay visited The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland at their Fort George base. The Battalion paraded its new Colours in the presence of HRH and Battalion’s families. The Parade was followed by a BBQ lunch, which led into a number of afternoon activities, encompassing military stands, entertainment for the children, and an inter-company competition. The day provided an opportunity to assemble the Battalion community for the final time prior to 3 SCOTS forthcoming deployment to Afghanistan , and allowed HRH – the Battalion’s Royal Colonel – to meet soldiers and their families.
For those who always wanted a Glock 19…with just a little…more
Sure, 15 pieces of flair are the minimum but don’t you want to go 17, or 18, or even 19 or 20 when it comes to 9mm without giving up your slide length?
That’s where the new Glock 19X (eXtended capacity?) comes in.
It’s been hush-hush for awhile, but the basic concept is that it is a Gen 5 G19 upper with a modified Gen 5 G17 frame and some tweaked internals, which gives you a “1917” (1719?) concept of a Glock 19 with a full-sized grip and bump in mag capacity. It is also in a factory Coyote finish, comes with night sights, and lots of other neat-o add-ons like extended mags.
[Of course, I would prefer a G19 Frame with G26 grip and a G17 slide, which would give more sight radius while allowing better concealability while maintaining the ability to add a laser/light, and you could always use extended mags if you want more capacity, but hey, at least they have something to work on for 2019!]
I’ve been shooting it for the past couple weeks and have to say that I find it kinda groovy in a Colt Commander kind of way. Be sure to check out the first look piece over at Guns.com on it, and stay tuned for an in-depth review after I get a couple thou parabellums through it.
Meet Nomad. It lives in a tube and could be a very interesting
The Naval Research Laboratory has been testing a light rotary drone called the Nomad from USS Coronado (LCS-4). The cool thing about it is that it is CO2 launched from a tube, and they can carry (and operate) multiple Nomads at once.
Civilian contractors from the Office of Naval Research conduct a test on a Nomad drone system aboard the littoral combat ship USS Coronado (LCS 4)
A Nomad drone launches from the flight deck of the littoral combat ship USS Coronado (LCS 4). The four -pack as shown looks like it is on a rolling cart and has a small footprint
Nomad drone lands on the flight deck of the littoral combat ship USS Coronado (LCS 4). Note the second incoming at the top of the image
According to NRL:
The Nomad is a highly affordable expendable design, allowing for execution of its mission without concerns for returning to the ship. This new upgrade retains the original affordable expendable design, but now has a recovery feature that allows operators to retrieve and reuse the Nomad vehicles multiple times in support of development, testing, training, and potentially future operational missions.
A kinda interesting concept, especially if you allow the tech to grow to where a single LCS could serve as a “drone carrier” flying dozens or even possibly hundreds of small tube-launched Nomads or weaponized successors operating in swarms. Now that actually sounds like a useful littoral combat ship.
The ‘three months volunteer’ at home
#Loc LC-USZ62-126968
Soldier saying to Boy “No, Bubby, take that away. I won’t take off my boots, but jest have a cup of tea and be off again!” – Illus. in: Harper’s weekly, v. 6, no. 299 (1862 Sept. 20), p. 608.
It is notable that the cartoon ran in Sept. 1862, more than a year after the war began.
In April 1861, at the start of the Civil War, Lincoln, called for a “75,000-man” volunteer militia to augment the tiny regular Army and serve for three months following the bombardment and surrender of Fort Sumter. This was in-line with the Militia Act of 1795 for both the maximum number that could be called to the colors and the longest time periods.
The men were soon quartered in every federal space in Washington as seen by this woodblock of the barracks sleeping bunks of the 1st Rhode Island Infantry regiment inside the U.S. Patent Office at Washington DC in the spring and summer of 1861.
LC-USZ62-102672
In May 1861, with the consent of Congress, he authorized 500,000 men for three years. In all, the Union Army fielded more than 2 million during the conflict and most for far longer than 90 days.
Warship Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2018: One of the luckier sugars
Here at LSOZI, we are going to take off every Wednesday for a look at the old steam/diesel navies of the 1859-1946 time period and will profile a different ship each week. These ships have a life, a tale all their own, which sometimes takes them to the strangest places. – Christopher Eger
Warship Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2018: One of the luckier sugars
Photo by famed Boston Herald cameraman Leslie Jones via The Boston Public Library, colorized by my friend and the most excellent Postales Navales https://www.facebook.com/Postales-Navales-100381150365520/
Here we see the somber crew of the early “Government-type” S-class diesel-electric submarine USS S-8 (SS-113) — back when the Navy just gave ’em numbers– as she pulls into Boston’s Charlestown Navy Yard some 90-years ago today: 3 January 1928, in the twilight of her career. They are no doubt still reeling from the loss of her close sister, S-4 (SS-109) just two weeks prior, to which the boat stood by to help rescue surviviors without success.
The S-class, or “Sugar” boats, were actually three different variants designed by Simon Lake Co, Electric Boat, and the Bureau of Construction and Repair (BuC&R) in the last days of the Great War in which U.S.-made submarines had a poor record. Looking for a better showing in these new boats, of which 65 were planned, and 51 completed in several subgroups. These small 1,000~ ton diesel-electrics took to the sea in the 1920s and they made up the backbone of the U.S. submarine fleet before the larger “fleet” type boats of the 1930s came online.
The hero of our tale, USS S-8, was 231-feet oal, could dive to 200 feet and travel at a blistering 15-knots on the surface on her twin MAN 8-cylinder 4-stroke direct-drive diesel engines and two Westinghouse electric motors for 11-knots submerged. Armament was a quartet of 21-inch bow tubes with a dozen fish and a 4″/50 cal popgun on deck for those special moments. Crew? Just 38 officers and men.
Her Government-type sister, USS S-4 (SS-109) Interior view, looking aft in the Crew’s Quarters (Battery Room), 25 December 1919. Portsmouth Navy Yard, Kittery, Maine. Note folding chairs and tables, coffee pot, Christmas decorations door to the Control Room. NH 41847
USS S-4 Description: (Submarine # 109) Interior view, looking forward in the Crew’s Quarters (Battery Room), 25 December 1919. Taken by the Portsmouth Navy Yard, Kittery, Maine. Note folding chairs, table, benches, and berths; also Christmas decorations. U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph. Catalog #: NH 41848
S-8 was technically a war baby. A BuC&R design Government-type boat, she was laid down 9 November 1918 at Portsmouth Navy Yard, just 48-hours before the Armistice. Commissioned 1 October 1920, she was attached along with several of her sister ships (including the ill-fated Portsmouth-built USS S-4 whose interior is above) to SubDiv 12 and, together with SubDiv18, sailed slowly and in formation from Maine via the Panama Canal to Cavite Naval Station with stops in California and Hawaii.
USS S-8 (SS-113) Underway during the 1920s. U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph. Catalog #: NH 41749
In all, the journey from Portsmouth to the Philippines took a full year, but according to DANFS, “set a record for American submarines, at that time, as the longest cruise ever undertaken. Other submarines, which had operated on the Asiatic station prior to this, were transported overseas on the decks of colliers.”
S-8 and her sisters formed SubFlot 3, operating in the P.I. and the coast of China while forward deployed for three years, the salad days of her career.
USS S-8 (SS-113) At the Cavite Navy Yard, Philippine Islands, circa 1921-1924. Note the awning and the type’s “chisel” bow. Collection of Chief Engineman Virgil Breland, USN. Donated by Mrs. E.H. Breland, 1979. U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph. Catalog #: NH 103259
Submarine tender USS Camden (AS-6) Photographed circa the middle or later 1920s, with ten S type submarines alongside. The submarines are (on Camden’s starboard side, from left to right): USS S-18 (SS-123); unidentified Electric Boat type S-boat; USS S-19 (SS-124); USS S-12 (SS-117); and an unidentified Government type S-boat. (on Camden’s port side, from left to right): unidentified Government type S-boat; USS S-7 (SS-112); USS S-8 (SS-113); USS S-9 (SS-114); and USS S-3 (SS-107). Note the awnings. Collection of Vice Admiral Dixwell Ketcham, USN. U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph. Catalog #: NH 100459
By Christmas 1924, S-8 was at Mare Island, California and was a West Coast boat for a minute before chopping to the Panama Canal for a while.
Submarine tender USS Holland (AS-3) in the Canal Zone, with several S type submarines alongside, circa 1926. Note the Submarine Division Eleven insignia on the fairwaters of the two inboard subs. Submarines present are (from inboard to outboard): unidentified; USS S-25 (SS-130); USS S-7 (SS-112); USS S-4 (SS-109); USS S-6 (SS-111); and USS S-8 (SS-113). U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph. Catalog #: NH 53436
May 1927 found S-8 and several her SubFlot 3 alumni sisters stationed on the East Coast at the big submarine base in New London.
It was during this time that tragedy occurred off New England.
On 17 December 1927, sister USS S-4, while surfacing from a submerged run over the measured-mile off Provincetown, Cape Cod, Mass., was accidentally rammed and sunk by the U.S. Coast Guard-manned destroyer USS Paulding (DD-22/CG-17), killing all on board. An inquiry later absolved the Coast Guard of blame.
As noted by Naval History.org, “The two ships had no idea the other would be there.”
Per DANFS on the incident:
The only thing to surface, as Paulding stopped and lowered lifeboats, was a small amount of oil and air bubbles. Rescue and salvage operations were commenced, only to be thwarted by severe weather setting in. Gallant efforts were made to rescue six known survivors trapped in the forward torpedo room, who had exchanged a series of signals with divers, by tapping on the hull. However, despite the efforts, the men were lost. S-4 was finally raised on 17 March 1928 and towed to the Boston Navy Yard for drydocking. She was decommissioned on the 19th.
Diver descending on the wreck of the USS S-4 from USS Falcon (AM-28)
Half submerged S-4 sub after accident. Charlestown Navy Yard – Pier 4 Leslie Jones Boston Public Library 3 12 1928
USS S-4 Description: (SS-109) Interior of the Battery Room, looking aft and to port, 23 March 1928. Taken while she was in dry dock at the Boston Navy Yard, Charlestown, Massachusetts, after being salvaged off Provincetown, Massachusetts, where she had been sunk in collision with USCGC Paulding on 17 December 1927. The irregular object running the length of the compartment, just above the lockers on the right (port) side, is the collapsed ventilator duct through which water entered the Control Room. Into this duct water forced the curtain and flag, which clogged the valve on the after side of the bulkhead, preventing it from closing. It was this water which forced the abandonment of the Control Room. S-4 flooded through a hole, made by Paulding’s bow, in the forward starboard side of the Battery Room. See Photo # NH 41847 and Photo # NH 41848 for photographs of the Battery Room, taken when S-4 was first completed. U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph. Catalog #: NH 41833
SS-8 went to the aid of her sister, but it was to no avail.
Sub S-8 at the Navy Yard after standing by S-4 off Provincetown when she was rammed and sent to the bottom by USS Paulding. Leslie Jones, Boston Herald Photographer, via Boston Public Library collection.
U.S. sub S-8, Charlestown Navy Yard Jan 15, 1928. Leslie Jones, Boston Herald Photographer, via Boston Public Library collection.
U.S. sub S-8, Charlestown Navy Yard Jan 15, 1928. Leslie Jones, Boston Herald Photographer, via Boston Public Library collection.
With just a decade of service under their belt, the age of the Sugar boats was rapidly coming to an end as the Depression loomed, and precious Navy Department dollars were spent elsewhere on more modern designs. Three others of the class were lost in peacetime accidents– S-5, S-48, and S-51— while a number were scrapped wholesale in the 1930s.
Departing New London on 22 October 1930, S-8 sailed to Philadelphia where she was decommissioned on 11 April 1931.
Subs S-3/S-6/S-7/S-8/S-9 going out of commission at Philadelphia Navy Yard. Leslie Jones, Boston Herald Photographer, via Boston Public Library collection.
She was struck from the Navy list on 25 January 1937 and scrapped.
Though obsolete, several S-boats remained on the Navy List and served the Navy well in both the Atlantic and Pacific (including several lost to accidents) during WWII. A half-dozen were even transferred to the Royal Navy as Lend-Lease including class leader and former submersible aircraft carrier, USS S-1.
None of these hardy, if somewhat unlucky, craft endure though Pigboats.com keeps their memory alive.
Specs: (Government-type S-class boats which included USS S-4-9 & 14-17)
Displacement: 876 tons surfaced; 1,092 tons submerged
Length: 231 feet (70.4 m)
Beam: 21 feet 9 inches (6.6 m)
Draft: 13 feet 4 inches (4.1 m)
Propulsion: 2 × MAN diesels, 1,000 hp (746 kW) each; 2 × Westinghouse electric motors, 600 hp (447 kW) each; 120-cell Exide battery; two shafts.
Speed: 15 knots (28 km/h) surfaced; 11 knots (20 km/h) submerged
Bunkerage: 148 tons oil fuel
Range: 5,000 nautical miles (9,000 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h) surfaced
Test depth: 200 ft. (61 m)
Armament (as built): 4 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (bow, 12 torpedoes)
1 × 4 inch (102 mm)/50 caliber Mark 9 “wet mount” deck gun
Crew: 38 (later 42) officers and men
If you liked this column, please consider joining the International Naval Research Organization (INRO), Publishers of Warship International
They are possibly one of the best sources of naval study, images, and fellowship you can find. http://www.warship.org/membership.htm
The International Naval Research Organization is a non-profit corporation dedicated to the encouragement of the study of naval vessels and their histories, principally in the era of iron and steel warships (about 1860 to date). Its purpose is to provide information and a means of contact for those interested in warships.
With more than 50 years of scholarship, Warship International, the written tome of the INRO has published hundreds of articles, most of which are unique in their sweep and subject.
PRINT still has its place. If you LOVE warships you should belong.
I’m a member, so should you be!
Ha-Go on the roll, 76 years ago today
National Museum of the U.S. Navy# 80-G-179029
“A tank unit of our victorious army roaring by the Philippine legislature (Japanese caption).”
Image taken from the captured Japanese propaganda booklet, Victory on the March (3月の勝利), published in 1942 at the high water mark of the Empire.
General Douglas MacArthur declared Manila an open city to prevent its destruction on Dec. 24, 1941 and withdrew U.S. forces from the capital. The neoclassical-style Legislative building was constructed in 1921 and was the seat of the Philippine government.
The building, much like Manila itself, was largely destroyed in February 1945 when the Japanese withdrew, with many historians remarking that no other national capital with the exception of Warsaw suffered the same amount of destruction. The building was restored and used by the Philippine Senate until 1997 and is now the home of the National Art Gallery and Museum complex.
National Museum of Fine Arts (Old Legislative Building) reopened in 2012, National Museum of Anthropology (Old Finance Building) inaugurated in 1998, and the National Museum of Natural History (Old Tourism Building) to open in 2018.
The vehicles in the top image, of a column of Type 95 Ha-Go light tanks, likely of the 4th Tank Regiment of the 14th Army, was taken when Japanese forces occupied Manila on 2 January 1942, some 76 years ago today.
The 4th was a crack veteran unit, as it had taken part in the Nomonhan against the Soviets in 1939 and would go on to be used in the Dutch East Indies within weeks of this image (bringing captured M3 Stuarts with them), then remain there in Java as garrison forces until 1945.
As for the Ha-Go, the 16-ton tank was the most numerous Japanese armored fighting vehicle ever made and saw extensive use from China to Siam. With its 37mm gun it 25mph road speed, it was roughly comparable to the M3 Stuart, though with just 12mm of armor it could easily be knocked out with a 37mm anti-tank gun (or the British comparable QF 2-pounder) from as far away as 1,400 yards, or the average bazooka later in the war at ranges much closer.
In short, it had pretty thin armor for a WWII-era tank.
Ruger brings back the old pistol caliber carbine concept
After a decade-long hiatus, Ruger announced last week the return of a pistol caliber carbine series to their catalog with lots of updated features.
The new PC series provides a compact and lightweight carbine aimed at plinkers and the home defense market with a wide-range of magazine well adapters to accommodate a variety of users. The handy takedown carbine ships capable of accepting Ruger SR-series or the new Security-9 series pistol magazines right out of the box, while a Glock 9mm well is included for those who already have a stockpile of those mags. Already have a Ruger American Pistol in 9mm? They offer that magazine well for sale separately.
The gun also has swappable left and right charging handles, a fluted threaded barrel (1/2-inch-28TPI), and lots of other goodies.
More in my column at Guns.com.
A foggy New Year
Went for a Polar Bear dip on the First to celebrate making it out of 2017 alive. But back in December on a foggy winter’s night I roamed around and soaked in some sea smoke.
A couple of 87 foot WPBs at the Coast Guard station with the smoke rolling in. They are the fire-damaged USCGC Brant and I believe the Razorbill
Also saw this guy chilling out in a standoff with a sea serpent. Greetings from the 228!
Greetings, 2018
Yet, I always feel a century or two behind…
German sentry welcomes in the new year, 1918. Photo colourised artificially