http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/ ... 61,00.html

A SECOND US aircraft carrier arrived in Middle Eastern waters today as promised by US President George W Bush amid an escalating crisis with nearby Iran over its nuclear program.

The USS John C Stennis and its accompanying strike group joined the USS Dwight D Eisenhower in the Sea of Oman but has not yet entered Gulf waters, the US Fifth Fleet said from its base in Manama.

The Stennis "entered the US 5th Fleet area of operations ... to conduct maritime security operations in regional waters, as well as to provide support for ground forces operating in Afghanistan and Iraq", said a US statement.

Mr Bush on January 10 unveiled his new strategy for Iraq which included deploying a second aircraft carrier group and a Patriot anti-missile defence system "to reassure our friends and allies".

Washington accuses arch-foe Tehran of stoking the insurgency in Iraq and of seeking to develop a nuclear bomb, charges denied by the Islamic republic.

Days after Mr Bush's announcement, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said the Stennis's redeployment was a signal to Iran, which, he said, has a "very negative" attitude.

Iran has also been carrying out military exercises in the region, including test-firing missiles and building drones that military commanders boasted could hit the US navy.

The White House has repeatedly insisted it has no plans to strike Iran, and downplayed the significance of reinforcing the US military presence in the Gulf region.

Please correct me if I'm wrong but isn't Petreaus a Navy-Man,(and spells his name differently)?

Watch how the Democrats play this -- they'll howl and scream publicly, secretly grateful they don't have to deal with it (or the .com bubble burst or 9-11 or Afghanistan or Iraq or the Florida Hurricanes or Katrina, Rita, and New Orleans).

Nope.
http://www.wws.princeton.edu/qzalumni/t ... raeus.html

P.S. pay no attention to the advanced degrees, we all know that people only go into the Military because they are losers.

The one thing that Bush still impresses me with is his determination to do what he thinks needs to be done against the Ragheads, without regard as to what the Dems think.

grog writes

Thanks for the link,grog.
I knew I could count on you.

I read you can cut the tension in the air with a Warthog.

pity the navy does use em...

I don't know. I still think that Iran is posturing and that we shouldn't pay so much attention to the idiot.
But damn! That's one impressive boat!!

um.... BOAT????

But this boat isn't as impressive, I don't think.

Please stop referring to it as a boat... please... your killing me.

Ahem!...

Carrier:




Boat:

Nimitz class Air Craft Carrier.
That better??

(But I'm PRO ARMY since my kid's been in Boot camp!!!)

Now this is a boat!! HEE HEE HEE!!!

Ahmadinejad would like nothing more than to take out a U.S. warship, preferably a carrier based on the notion that the U.S. was threatening Iran with imminent attack. He can also be expected to immediately retaliate upon a first strike.

I hope the Navy has 'their ducks in a row' in terms of defenses against an Iranian missile attack! This would be a very bad time/place for another major intelligence failure.

Can one of you carrier guys answer this? I asked the guys at the Naval Aviation Museum, and they thought that they might be antennas.

It's those long poles hanging over the edge of the carrier. I know that they are positioned all around the carrier. Are they antennas they serve as landing aids for the returning flights to position the ship?

If they are landing aids, can they be turned OFF quickly to not help an enemy?

All answers appreciated.
Thanks.

Curb scrapers; so you don't scratch the carrier when parallel parking.

Autozone sells them in certain neighborhoods.

Anyone who's been around knows they're trolling for marlin using a teaser and outriggerd mains.

Any chance they are there to catch a plane in case it misses the wire and falls off the side?

Sweet... More cruise missiles in the Gulf now.

Yup, fixin' the broken sewer main while the libs try to distract him by pissin' on 'im.

"You don't need nearly that many words: Just tell them the reports of our victory's demise are greatly exaggerated."
-- Sammy Clemens --

I would expect (and also hope) that both of these strike groups are well-prepared to defend against the Iranian missle threat. I would also expect that there is a plan in place to pretty much sink the entire Iranian Navy present in the Gulf once hostilities commence. If they don't sink every Iranian vessel they can find then that will not bode well for future shipping through that area. We CAN deprive them of the bulk of their Military without putting boots on the ground...and I hope we do it soon.

We can't attack them now. We'll destroy the cure for AIDS.

There is something wrong with that story - on several different levels.

Since the ship is a woman, could they be like those wirey hairs that old women get on their chins, you know, the one's that grow out of warts?

This is a good move. I think Imahandjob is posturing as well, but he needs to learn just how dangerous that game can be. He won't attack the carrier first, be may seem crazy but I doubt he is stupid.

I think it is almost time for the wake-up call....

http://www.washtimes.com/world/20070222 ... -8914r.htm

If I were to take a serious guess, I'd say they may have something to do with communicating with submarines or below horizon objects.

It would be truly funny if something started up with Iran. It would make liberals apoplectic. (And I'm always up for making liberals apoplectic.)

-Iacobus

Whip antennas. They can rotated to different positions. Not good to have them up during flight ops for obvious reasons. Not landing aides.

When I did my disassociated tour, I qualified Officer-of-the-Deck on one of those dreadnoughts. 4 1/2 acres of soveriegn US territory anywhere, anytime or 90,000 tons of run your arse over. Fun either way.

BTW, the new commander of US Central Command is Admiral "Fox" Fallon.

I still like my Old Lady's Wart Whiskers....you think you're soooo smart don't you...you probably are

Nice!

Hate to disagree with you, Mel, but a CVN with planes on the catapult is a lot more impressive than one with planes parked on the deck.

Like a loaded gun is more impressive than an unloaded one...

And: Navy People get upset when you call a ship a boat.

A CVN is a ship.

A submarine, however, is always a boat.

Go figure.

Well, maybe to the "black shoes" (Surface Navy). Aviators refer to the Carrier as "The Boat" if not only to antagonize the "shoes".