Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- March 2, 2021

In some units, nearly three-quarters of enlistees are turning down the coveted shots- a figure that is alarming commanders given that the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage across the United States.Pictured: Military personnel preparing for the opening of a mass Covid-19 vaccination site in New York last month

Daily Mail: A THIRD of all military personnel are refusing to receive the COVID-19 vaccine with alarmed commanders aiming to make the shot mandatory 'as soon as possible'

* A third of all military personnel are refusing the COVID-19 vaccine

* Some are citing the rushed rollout of the anthrax vaccine in the 1990s as the reason why they do not want to receive the new COVID jab

* In 1997, the military made it mandatory for service personnel to receive the anthrax shot; thousands subsequently complained of debilitating side effects

* A lengthy legal battle ensued, before the courts determined that the FDA hadn't 'adequately studied' how effective the shot was against the inhalation anthrax

* Commanders concede they need to do a better job of messaging and allaying fears among military members that they are being used as 'testers' for the jab

* Other personnel are citing wild conspiracy theories about the vaccine, including one who refused the shot for fear it was implanting a tracking device

A third of all military personnel are refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine, and in some units just 30% of enlistees are willing to have a shot, according to a new report.

The figure is alarming commanders as the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage across the United States. Personnel who refuse the vaccine will face no repercussions due to a federal law that 'prohibits the mandatory application of medicines within the military that are not fully licensed by the US Food and Drug Administration', The Nation reports.

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Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- March 2, 2021

The Military Can’t Get Troops to Take the Covid Vaccine. Come Again? -- The Nation

Nearly 100 US Naval Academy midshipmen moved off campus after testing positive for COVID-19 -- Navy Times

Navy Sailor Killed, 5 Service Members Hurt in Convoy Crash -- AP

Nimitz To Begin Maintenance Period On Time After Returning Home From 9-Month Deployment -- USNI News

USS Kearsarge departs Norfolk for sea trials -- UPI

How The Biden Administration Can Save A Bundle Building Warships—Without Giving Up Anything -- Loren Thompson, Forbes

Navy Optimizing Shipyards With Digital Twin Technology (Updated) -- National Defense

After 36 Years, Marines' F/A-18 Hornets Have Completed Their Final Carrier Deployment -- Military.com

US Army’s newest tracked vehicle will undergo initial operational test in early 2022 -- Defense News

Pentagon planners are looking to replace Sikorsky's Black Hawk, middle-aged and slower than the next generation of helicopters -- War Is Boring