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It was unclear whether the missiles caused any damage, they said.On Wednesday, Russia said it had launched 26 cruise missiles at targets in north and north-west Syria. It has reiterated comments made at the time that all reached their targets.The news came as Nato renewed assurances to defend its allies in view of Russia’s “escalation” in Syria.Nato is boosting its response forces to be able to deploy troops speedily.The US officials provided no details of where the missiles might have landed.Iran’s Irna news agency reported on Wednesday that an unknown flying object had crashed in the village of Ghozghapan in the Iranian province of West Azerbaijan, said to be under the missiles’ flight path.But conservative Iranian media described the reports of missiles landing in Iran as “psychological operations by the US against Moscow”.”Since Russia began its operations in Syria, Western media and officials have launched an all-out assault against Moscow,” the Fars News Agency, thought to have close affiliations with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, said.

Source: Syria crisis: Russian missiles ‘fell on Iran’ – BBC News

It’s unclear if Russia coordinated the strike with Iran, or simply launched and overflew Iran on its own initiative. Either way, considering their  de facto alliance in the Syrian war, Iran isn’t going to make too much noise.

Four missiles out of 26 launched is a pretty high failure rate. But then, Russian missiles have always had a pretty high failure rate. They compensate for that by having lots and lots of missiles.

The video at the BBC site is pretty interesting, also showing FSA rebels using TOW missiles against Syrian armor, and showing what certainly looks like Russian multiple launch rockets pounding a position.

Other news reports state that in addition to EW assets, fighters, bombers and transports, the Russians have sent TOS-1 multiple launch rocket systems, and conventional artillery as well. Those reports certainly align with the traditional Russian reliance on artillery in battle.

The relationship between Russia and the West is becoming increasingly dangerous with potential flashpoints developing in both eastern Europe and Syria. After repeated incursions into Turkish airspace by Russian warplanes on bombing raids over Syria, NATO’s secretary general Jens Stoltenberg warned Moscow that it stands ready to “defend all allies”. Meanwhile Britain announced it would send troops to Baltic states to defend NATO’s eastern boundaries against possible Russian aggression beyond Ukraine.Russia’s military presence in Syria has been steadily increasing over the past few months. Its warplanes are carrying out regular bombing raids against both Islamic State position and, reportedly, other rebel groups opposed to the regime of Bashar al-Assad. Its warships are launching cruise missiles against the same targets. But the latest reports are that Russia has also deployed its most modern electronic warfare system to Syria – the Krasukha-4 (or Belladonna) mobile electronic warfare (EW) unit.

Source: How Syria is becoming a test bed for high-tech weapons of electronic warfare

The downside is, the Russians are displaying a capacity to jam and disrupt some of our critical systems. For instance, if you can jam GPS signals, our bread and butter precision weapon, JDAM, is greatly (though not completely) degraded, as are a host of other precision weapons that rely on GPS to update their inertial navigation.

On the upside, simply being able to watch a jamming system in action gives us information and lets us learn now to counter those countermeasure, known as ECCM, or Electronic Counter-Countermeasures. It is often worthwhile to not actually employ that ECCM at the present time, and instead reserve that capability until a time of your own choosing, so the enemy can’t then find a counter-counter-countermeasure.

French train attack hero Spencer Stone was in a stable condition after being stabbed early Thursday morning.

Source: Spencer Stone, French Train Attack Hero, Stabbed in Sacramento – NBC News

He’s apparently quite badly wounded from stab wounds to the torso.

Nothing good happens in a bar after midnight.

 The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is reportedly launching a formal investigation after passengers alleged a pilot and copilot of a Delta Air Lines flight gave up their seats to honor airmen home from Afghanistan this week.The gesture, while well meaning, caused a security scare and shutdown the Detroit Metropolitan Airport for five hours.Manifests indicate the Air Force fuel specialists en route to Las Vegas — 19-year-old Airman First Class Ted Farnsworth and 21-year-old Senior Airman Wayne Stryker — were not in any way qualified to pilot an aircraft, commercial or private. However, that did not cross the mind of the plane’s recently suspended captain, James Reynolds.“They were in the Air Force, so I honestly didn’t see a problem,” said Reynolds. “Based on all of those commercials I see on TV I just assumed everyone in the Air Force was a pilot. They really have to be more clear.”

Source: Delta Flight Unable To Takeoff After Pilots Give Up Their Seats For Veterans

The Clinton Foundation is, legally, a private organization with absolutely no status allowing it to legally receive classified US information. It is not, as a legal matter, what as Hillary Clinton imagines it to be, which is Hillary’s Shadow Government In Waiting.But she treats it like it was just that.Hillary treated the United States’ national intelligence apparatus as if it were simply the research staff of her fundraising operation.

Source: Ace of Spades HQ

At this point, Hillary Clinton and the Clinton Global Initiative are like Frau Farbissina and the militant wing of the Salvation Army, only without the looks and personal charm.

The Army just delayed the discharge of the sergeant accused of shoving an Afghan police commander to the ground for raping a small boy.Army Secretary John McHugh’s decision to grand a 60-day reprieve for Sergeant First Class Charles Martland follows on the heels of a discussion earlier Tuesday with GOP Rep. Mac Thornberry, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Army Times reports.Thornberry asked McHugh in a phone call and subsequent letter to delay Martland’s discharge in order to allow him adequate time to mount an appeal. Now, Martland will have just a little more time to file with the Army Board for the Correction of Military Records.

Source: Thornberry: Allow Appeal Of Green Beret Who Assaulted Rapist | The Daily Caller

I have a sneaking suspicion that new Army Chief of Staff GEN Mark Milley might have whispered in SecArmy’s ear that the delay would be a good idea.

First, on the practical side, sooner or later GEN Milley will have to appear before the House Armed Services Committee. And some Representative would be sure to ask him just how committed the Army is to preventing sexual assault in the ranks when it discharges someone who acted to prevent as sexual assault against a minor.

Secondly, every general officer in the Army makes a big deal of preaching the gospel of the Army Values.

Many people know what the words Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage mean. But how often do you see someone actually live up to them? Soldiers learn these values in detail during Basic Combat Training (BCT), from then on they live them every day in everything they do — whether they’re on the job or off. In short, the Seven Core Army Values listed below are what being a Soldier is all about.

Loyalty

Bear true faith and allegiance to the U.S. Constitution, the Army, your unit and other Soldiers. Bearing true faith and allegiance is a matter of believing in and devoting yourself to something or someone. A loyal Soldier is one who supports the leadership and stands up for fellow Soldiers. By wearing the uniform of the U.S. Army you are expressing your loyalty. And by doing your share, you show your loyalty to your unit.

Duty

Fulfill your obligations. Doing your duty means more than carrying out your assigned tasks. Duty means being able to accomplish tasks as part of a team. The work of the U.S. Army is a complex combination of missions, tasks and responsibilities — all in constant motion. Our work entails building one assignment onto another. You fulfill your obligations as a part of your unit every time you resist the temptation to take “shortcuts” that might undermine the integrity of the final product.

Respect

Treat people as they should be treated. In the Soldier’s Code, we pledge to “treat others with dignity and respect while expecting others to do the same.” Respect is what allows us to appreciate the best in other people. Respect is trusting that all people have done their jobs and fulfilled their duty. And self-respect is a vital ingredient with the Army value of respect, which results from knowing you have put forth your best effort. The Army is one team and each of us has something to contribute.

Selfless Service

Put the welfare of the nation, the Army and your subordinates before your own. Selfless service is larger than just one person. In serving your country, you are doing your duty loyally without thought of recognition or gain. The basic building block of selfless service is the commitment of each team member to go a little further, endure a little longer, and look a little closer to see how he or she can add to the effort.

Honor

Live up to Army values. The nation’s highest military award is The Medal of Honor. This award goes to Soldiers who make honor a matter of daily living — Soldiers who develop the habit of being honorable, and solidify that habit with every value choice they make. Honor is a matter of carrying out, acting, and living the values of respect, duty, loyalty, selfless service, integrity and personal courage in everything you do.

Integrity

Do what’s right, legally and morally. Integrity is a quality you develop by adhering to moral principles. It requires that you do and say nothing that deceives others. As your integrity grows, so does the trust others place in you. The more choices you make based on integrity, the more this highly prized value will affect your relationships with family and friends, and, finally, the fundamental acceptance of yourself.

Personal Courage

Face fear, danger or adversity (physical or moral). Personal courage has long been associated with our Army. With physical courage, it is a matter of enduring physical duress and at times risking personal safety. Facing moral fear or adversity may be a long, slow process of continuing forward on the right path, especially if taking those actions is not popular with others. You can build your personal courage by daily standing up for and acting upon the things that you know are honorable.

Every single one of those values calls out for SFC Martland to help the young victim of rape. Were there other ways possible that he might have pursued? Possibly. How effective they would be is unknown. But this discharge certainly seem to make a mockery of standing up for what is morally right, and certainly sends a bad message through the ranks that the nail that sticks up will get hammered.

They say they struck IS targets.  26 Klub land attack cruise missiles from a frigate and corvettes in the Caspian Sea. Which is interesting, because to get to Syria, they have to overfly some other countries. Did Russia give prior notice of the overflight? Did they work to deconflict the airspace? Or did they just shoot, and expect everyone else to just deal?

The Klub missile is basically a Russian clone of our Tomahawk missile.

Russian fighter jets shadowed U.S. predator drones on at least three separate occasions high above Syria since the start of Russia’s air campaign last week, according to two U.S. officials briefed on this latest intelligence from the region.“The first time it happened, we thought the Russians got lucky. Then it happened two more times,” said one official. Both officials said that the incidents took place over ISIS-controlled Syria, including its de facto headquarters in Raqqa, as well as along the Turkish-Syrian border near Korbani. Another occurred in the northwest, near the highly contested city of Aleppo.The U.S. military’s MQ-1 Predator drone is not a stealth aircraft.”It is easy to see a predator on radar,” said one official.The Russians have not attempted to shoot down any of the U.S. drones, but instead have flown “intercept tracks,” a doctrinal term meaning the Russians flew close enough to make their presence felt, according to one official.

Source: EXCLUSIVE: Russian jets ‘intercept’ US predator drones over Syria, officials say | Fox News

Russia will either get around to shooting down a drone (which, you know, the US isn’t going to go to war with Russia over) or more likely, in the next round of “deconfliction” talks, pressure the US to move its drone orbits to avoid possible mid-air collisions with Russian fighters.

Either way, they’re pretty blatantly trying to shoulder aside the US led effort in Syria.