All that and more on The Briefing for Aug. 25, 2020.

It was an event senior leaders at the Jacob Javits Convention Center had already thought about holding if a veteran died in the hospital’s care, explained Sgt. Maj. Robert Jenks in a new release. Jenks, a member of the New York Army National Guard’s 53rd Digital Liaison Detachment, is serving as the sergeant major for the Incident Command.

Senior NCOs coordinated with chaplains at the facility to determine the protocols to follow, and worked with American Legion Post 178 in Dutchess County to obtain 15 casket flags.

The male veteran died Saturday, April 18, but because of the high number of COVID-19 deaths, the funeral home was unable to say when it could send staff to the field hospital to pick up the veteran’s remains.

With a five-minute warning before a hearse arrived to collect the remains the next day, Command Sgt. Maj. Morgan Cady and Sgt. Maj. Nicholas Pardi, members of the New York Army National Guard, put their plan into action.

Calls went out to hospital staff and word quickly spread — at least 60 people gathered in the loading area to bid farewell to a veteran they did not know. Those in attendance represented each of the military services, as well as federal, state and local first responders.

Army Maj. Ivan Arreguin, chaplain for the 44th Medical Brigade, conducted a short service, according to the release.

“It felt like I was participating in the burial of an unknown soldier known only by God,” Arreguin said.

“It was solemn, respectful, honoring, and with the key elements normally performed at a military funeral,” he added.

Military wife Veronica Alvarez-Rodriguez said she and her husband purchased the Baby Einstein bouncer Sunday while on their way to a baby shower in Valparaiso, Fla., according to a Facebook post. She said the box hadn’t even been opened, and only cost $10.

But upon opening the box at the shower, they found it contained a loaded Mossberg 715T semi-automatic rifle inside.

Alvarez-Rodriguez told the Northwest Florida Daily News, who identified her as a military wife, that the dad-to-be was thrilled and shouted: “You guys got me a gun!”

A few of the guests were amused, but the Alvarez-Rodriguez said she and her husband were astonished, per the Daily News.

Crestview Police Department officials confirmed to Military Times that the incident was reported on Dec. 1 and that an investigation was ongoing as of Wednesday. The police department said the family who received the gun contacted them, and voluntarily relinquished the weapon for investigation.

Additionally, the police department verified the weapon had not been stolen, and are now running it through a database with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives to check its purchase history. Crestview and Valparaiso Police Departments have also determined that the the firearm could have been donated at collection points between Tallahassee and Pensacola before heading to the Goodwill location Alvarez-Rodriguez purchased it from.

So far, police say there is no evidence of foul play and all signs indicate someone dropped the baby-bouncer off without knowing what it contained.

Crestview is home to Florida’s Army National Guard Armory, and is less than 50 miles from Eglin Air Force Base in northwest Florida. It’s unclear what branch Alvarez-Rodriguez’s husband belongs to.

As reported by Defence Blog, one of the people who took notice was Graham Warwick with Aviation Week, who posted these pics to Twitter that show the concept and scale models of the Advanced AH-64 Block 2 Compound:

Some aviation enthusiasts and media, such as War is Boring, have pointed out that the concept looks similar to a Lockheed Martin helicopter that first flew in 1967, the Cheyenne.

As the Lockheed Martin photo notes, many of the technologies in the Cheyenne eventually made their way to the Apache.

With the high-speed Apache gunship, Defence Blog quotes Boeing as wanting to keep the AH-64 Apache “on the highly complex multi-domain battlefield of the future through 2060.”

While there have been significant steps toward a deal to end the nearly 18 years of war, those diplomatic gains have come with some costs — namely travel costs for the Taliban, according to the spokesman for the Democratic chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense.

Kevin Spicer, the spokesman for Indiana Democrat Pete Visclosky, told Roll Call that the Trump administration asked Congress for funds to cover the Taliban’s costs for transportation, lodging, food and supplies.

“The Defense Department requested fiscal 2020 funding to support certain reconciliation activities, including logistic support for members of the Taliban and, in March 2019, they sent a notification letter to the Committee on using fiscal year 2019 funds for similar activities,” Spicer said. He added that the request “would implicate provisions of law concerning material support to terrorists… .”

Consequently, Visclosky’s committee approved a defense spending bill for fiscal 2020 on Wednesday that bars reimbursing the Taliban.

And as noted in the Roll Call story, the Taliban is a well-funded organization that gets much of its money from opium sales.

Steve Ellis, executive vice president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, told Roll Call that the request for reimbursing the Taliban is like “life imitating The Onion.”

“Even if you leave aside that they are still conducting operations against our interests and allies, having to pay for someone to be at the table undercuts our bargaining position and demonstrates their lack of enthusiasm for a deal,” Ellis told CQ Roll Call.

But Joshua Yabut’s trial has been put on hold because the 30-year-old first lieutenant plans to plead not guilty by reason of insanity, according to WTVR. A new hearing in Nottoway County, Virginia, is set for July 2.

Yabut is accused of stealing the military vehicle and leading police on a more than 60-mile chase to Richmond, Virginia, while under the influence of drugs. He said he had permission to take the APC, but Virginia National Guard officials denied that in initial reports.

The charges of driving under the influence and unauthorized use of a vehicle were dismissed in a deal in September, but he still faced a charge of felony eluding police, according to the AP. He was found competent after a 2½-month evaluation at a mental hospital.

Yabut’s case took another twist in January when he violated the terms of his bond and traveled to Iraq, somehow losing his ankle monitoring bracelet along the way.

He used his valid military ID to board a flight at Naval Station Norfolk before flying commercially from Charlotte, North Carolina, the rest of the way to Baghdad. He returned to Norfolk two days later, according to WTVR. His military ID is no longer valid and he was put back behind bars.

WTVR also reported that Yabut’s online activity showed he researched making bombs and posted to his Twitter account information on how to make “train derailment devices” and pressure cooker explosives.

A mental examination hearing is set for June 21 at Richmond Circuit Court.

The story, which was submitted for the blog’s science fiction writing contest, follows hostility between the fictional nations of Otso, a close ally of the U.S., and Donovia, a near-peer competitor of the U.S., in the year 2030. The U.S. is compelled to intervene in combat operations when Donovia launches an invasion against its neighbor on April Fool’s Day.

Here are some of the themes we picked up from the “pre-mortem” of the Battle of Otso, as well as some of the wild predictions of what war fighters might face in the future:

• Keep humans in the decision-making loop and avoid relying on automation. Removing human authority from lethal force can lead to escalations.
• Don’t rely on stealth technology to keep pilots safe.
• A “Four-ship” concept of each F-35 controlling three Unmanned Combat Air Vehicles.
• Unmanned vehicles in the air and under water proved to be lethal.
• Most battlefield wounds were burns inflicted by non-lethal microwave projectors, but medical triage was aided by medical sensors woven into uniforms.

Read the full excerpt here or the complete short story at the Small Wars Journal.

About 1,700 Marines began arriving in Darwin, Australia, in April for training and exercises, and their ranks eventually are expected to grow to 2,500.

And despite being in its eighth iteration of Marine Rotational Force–Darwin — not to mention speaking the same language — Australian troops have been ordered to avoid using slang around American counterparts.

“Imagine an American asking an Aussie soldier if they can see the enemy approaching and they respond with the classic local phrase of ‘nah, yeah’. The Yank would have no clue if they meant yes or no, which is understandable for someone who doesn’t get our slang,” the site LADbible said.

It seems that communication should be crystal clear if you’re operating military equipment. Here’s what Australian Air Force Group Captain Stewart Dowrie, from Robertson Barracks, explained to news site 10 Daily:

“We have lost in translation moments more than you would realise.”

“The time to figure that out is not on the battlefield when the bullets are flying.”

“Classic phrase ‘lucked out’ ― for some people it means you get lucky, for others it didn’t happen.”

“So you start using colloquialisms and all of a sudden you have complete misunderstandings about whether something is going to happen.”

Football, anyone?

Citing an email notification to Pentagon staffers, the report says the bases would be used for minors who arrive at the border without an adult relative or after the government separated them from their parents.

The bases include Fort Bliss, Goodfellow Air Force Base and Dyess Air Force Base ― all in Texas ― while Little Rock Air Force Base will also be evaluated.

The site visits are characterized as preliminary assessments, according to the Post.

“No decisions have been made at this time,” the email states.

If the plans are implemented, it wouldn’t be the first time military facilities have been used to house immigrant children until an adult relative or sponsor can assume custody.

A complex with an 1,800-bed capacity was used in 2016 at Fort Bliss to house unaccompanied minors who immigrated to the U.S. And about 700 immigrant children stayed at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico that same year. The minors spent about a month at the facilities.

Both soldiers were assigned to the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division.

They are Chief Warrant Officer 3 Ryan Connolly and Warrant Officer James Casadona.

Connolly, 37, was an instructor pilot in the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade. He joined the Army in 2001 and arrived at Fort Campbell in 2016.

Connolly’s awards and decorations include two Air Medals, three Army Commendation Medals, the Army Achievement Medal, the Meritorious Unit Commendation, the Army Superior Unit Award, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, and the Iraq Campaign Medal.

Casadona, 28, was a pilot in the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade.

He served in the Marine Corps as a communication signals collection operator/analyst from February 2012 to August 2016, earning the rank of sergeant, according to information from the Corps.

Casadona joined the Army in October 2016 and arrived at Fort Campbell in 2018. according to the 101st Airborne Division.

His awards and decorations include the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, and an Army Service Ribbon.

“The Destiny Brigade has suffered a great tragedy and our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the deceased,” said Col. Craig Alia, commander of the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, in a statement. “This is an unfortunate event, and we are saddened by the loss of our fellow Soldiers. We ask that everyone respect the privacy of the families as they grieve the loss of their loved ones.”

The crew was conducting routine training at the time of the accident, according to the 101st Airborne. There were no other casualties.

The cause of the accident is under investigation.

The crash occurred at the end of a deadly week for military aviation.

On April 3, a Marine Corps CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter crashed during a training flight in California, killing the four crew members on board.

The next day, on April 4, an F-16 from the Air Force’s Thunderbirds crashed near Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, killing the pilot.