war birds

Lockheed To Provide Sniper ATP and LANTIRN ER Pods to Turkish Air Force

2010-01-10T05:21:00.001-08:00

Lockheed Martin has signed a foreign military sales contract to deliver Sniper Advanced Targeting Pods (ATPs) and LANTIRN Enhanced Resolution (ER) navigation pods to the Turkish Air Force. Valued at $118 million, the contract will provide Sniper ATP and LANTIRN ER navigation pods to equip Turkish Air Force F-16 Block 40 and Block 50 Peace Onyx aircraft.

"Sniper ATPs and LANTIRN ER navigation pods will provide a significant capability upgrade to the Turkish Air Force's F-16 fleet," said Rich Lovette, program director for Fixed-Wing Fire Control at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control.

"LANTIRN ER's 3rd generation navigation FLIR and enhanced image processing will allow aircrews to go far beyond their current capability. The Sniper ATP will provide enhanced target detection and identification capability, expanding the F-16's ability to conduct non-traditional intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations."

Packaged in a single lightweight pod, the Sniper ATP provides critical long-range, positive identification of both moving and stationary air and ground targets.It also possesses a video downlink equipped with the widely used Rover ground receiver to relay high-resolution streaming video to forward-deployed forces for non-traditional intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and rapid target coordination.

Designed, developed and manufactured by Lockheed Martin, the Sniper ATP provides unrivaled precision engagement through its high-resolution, mid-wave forward-looking infrared (FLIR) and TV sensors, which operate in conjunction with a dual-mode laser, permitting eye-safe operation and precise geolocation in urban environments.

Combat proven on the F-16, F-15E, B-1, A-10 and Harrier GR7 and GR9 aircraft, the Sniper ATP is also flying on the F/A-18 and B-52. With advanced integration across U.S. Air Force and multinational aircraft, the Sniper ATP's common software and hardware interface design enables users to "plug and play" across services and multiple platforms, providing a common software and hardware configuration across aircraft fleets for greater interoperability.

LANTIRN ER navigation pod, an upgraded version of the highly successful LANTIRN navigation pod, delivers multi-mission success with a significantly reduced cost of ownership. Featuring terrain-following radar, a 3rd generation mid-wave FLIR, enhanced image signal processing and increased image quality, the LANTIRN ER navigation pod allows aircrews to operate worldwide, in daylight or darkness, at mission altitudes from sea level to 40,000 feet.

Russia to produce T-95 tanks, Mig-35 fighter jets

2010-01-10T05:20:00.001-08:00

Moscow: Russia will begin the serial production of its new state-of-the-art weapons which include a new Main Battle Tank T-95 and a multi-role fighter jet Mig-35, as the country braces to compete for a share in the global arms market, with India being a potential buyer.

"The specifications of new main battle tank T-95, to be serially produced from 2010, are being tightly kept under the warps of secrecy," defence expert Igor Korotchenko told state-run Vesti FM radio.

"However, judging from the reports it would provide better survivability for the tank crew in the battle field, which will sit in an armoured capsule inside the T-95 MBT," Korotchenko said.

Russia's RAC MiG - part of the United Aircraft Corporation is also beginning the serial production of four-plus generation MiG-35 MMRCA, which is also bidding for the Indian Air Force's global tender for the acquisition of 126 fighters, according to Vesti FM radio.

In January-February Russia is also beginning flight tests of the prototype of new fifth generation fighter aircraft (FGFA) T-50 developed by Sukhoi Corporation under the secret PAK-FA project, in which India is also a partner.

In December at the KNAAPO aircraft plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur in the far eastern part of Russia the taxiing trials of the prototype were successfully carried out. "A satellite cluster of American CIA and Google, which is also a cover for CIA is constantly monitoring the airfield of KNAAPO, to get the glimpse of T-50, developed to counter US F-22 Raptor," a defence analyst Ruslan Pukhov told Vesti FM radio.

He also said in 2010 Russia's global satellite navigational system (GLONASS) would be fully operational.

Under an agreement signed in 2005, Russia has agreed to provide India with the access to military segment of GLONASS.

IAF's Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter fleet is equipped with dual band GPS/GLONASS receivers to avoid a Balkan like situation, when Pentagon had switched off GPS before striking at Serbia.

Despite repeated failures in 2010 Russia will continue the development of multiple warhead submarine launched (SLBM-MIRV) 'Bulava' nuclear missiles, which would be able to pierce present and future American missile shields, the Vesti FM radio said.

PTI

Indian Air Force May Acquire More Su-30MKIs

2010-01-09T23:03:00.001-08:00

NEWTOWN, Conn. - A total of 230 Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter aircraft have been ordered for the Indian air Force (IAF), including 140 that are being assembled under license in India by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL). Recently, the commander of the IAF indicated that his service was interested in acquiring 50 additional Su-30MKIs, which would thus bring the total IAF acquisition to 280 Su-30MKIs.

Fifty Su-30MKIs, produced in Russia by Irkut, were delivered to the IAF by the end of 2007. Under an October 2007 deal valued at around $1.6 billion, Irkut is currently producing 40 additional Su-30MKIs for the service.

Meanwhile, licensed assembly by HAL of the aforementioned 140 Su-30MKIs is under way. Deliveries to the IAF of HAL-built aircraft began in 2005 and are scheduled to be completed in 2014.

Sidewinder to take aim at ground targets

2010-01-09T14:44:00.001-08:00

A software tweak will transform the venerable Sidewinder missile, known for its air-to-air precision, into a weapon that can strike rapidly moving targets on the ground.

With three tests already proving that the AIM-9X Sidewinder can zero in on a boat or armored personnel carrier, the next step is to refine the way pilots aim and launch them, said Jeffrey White, AIM-9X program manager at Raytheon Co., which developed the missiles. Those tests begin this year.

Versions of the supersonic Sidewinder have flown on Air Force fighters since the mid-1950s as a missile intended to shoot down aircraft. The Air Force pays about $84,000 apiece for the AIM-9X, the latest Sidewinder variant, but the cost of the additional air-to-ground capability has not been determined.

Air Combat Command requested the upgrade because it wants one missile capable of attacking air and ground targets. This would allow the same fighter to fly air patrols and ground combat missions without having to land and change the mix of weapons onboard. “This capability could prove useful in limited air-to-surface scenarios if time is critical and a more suitable air-to-ground weapon is not available,” said Col. Eric Theisen, chief of ACC’s Advanced Programs Division.

The air-to-ground capability would be a first for the F-15C Eagle, which flies only air-to-air combat patrols. The missile also is standard gear for F-16 Fighting Falcons, A-10 Thunderbolts, F-22 Raptors, Navy F/A-18s and joint F-35 Lightning IIs.

Just like in air-to-air combat, the pilot points the missile’s infrared sensor at a ground target, waits for the missile to lock on to its target, and fires. The AIM-9X then chases down its prey with its heat-seeking guidance system. The capability of shooting targets on the ground would not require a change to the hardware, but new software would have to be downloaded into each missile’s guidance system.

In September, a Sidewinder launched from an F-16C destroyed a rapidly moving boat in the Gulf of Mexico. Another F-16 fired an AIM-9X that sank a boat in April 2008, and in 2007 a missile fired from an F-15C destroyed a fast-moving armored personnel carrier, Raytheon officials said. Raytheon would not disclose the altitude from which the missiles were launched.

The F-22 and the F-35: Aircraft with advantages, or the next generation of wasted money?

2010-01-09T14:43:00.002-08:00

The Air Force is spending hundreds of billions of dollars on two fighter jets that probably will never be used to support troops on the ground in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Congress has decided to cap production of the F-22, removing funding for the fifth-generation fighter from the 2010 military budget. And the F-35 — also known as the Joint Strike Fighter — won’t be ready for prime time before 2013, according to the latest estimates.

Critics of the new fighters say they are too expensive and not needed in today’s warfare, while proponents argue that the current aircraft are not as advanced as the F-22 and F-35, both of which would help the U.S. maintain air superiority for decades to come.

The programs have come under heavy criticism, mainly for cost overruns.

Each F-22 — there are about 140 of them assigned to six stateside bases — will have cost about $350 million under current estimates. The U.S. is awaiting delivery of roughly 50 more of them.

Winslow Wheeler, director of the Straus Military Reform Project of the Center for Defense Information and a vocal critic of both programs, predicts each F-35 might eventually cost almost $200 million.

Guy Ben-Ari, a fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the costs are "raising eyebrows left and right. At the end of the day, it comes down to resources, and they’re not endless."

Despite those concerns, the fighters’ advantages cannot be ignored, some officials say.

Maj. John Peterson, requirements officer for the F-35A at Air Force headquarters, said each fifth-generation fighter has four features that make it superior to fourth-generation models such as the F-16, F-15 and F/A-18. Some fourth-generation models might have some of the capabilities, but none has all four, he said.

Those four are the ability to evade enemy radar; maneuverability; the ability to take on varied tasks; and the ability to translate more data into usable information for the pilot.

A look at each aircraft:

F-22 Raptor

Christopher Preble, writing on the blog he maintains for the Cato Institute, said he believes the F-22 "likely never will" participate in actions over Iraq or Afghanistan. But Preble, director of foreign policy studies for the institute, said that doesn’t necessarily make it a bad aircraft.

"I have no reason to question the F-22’s capability," he said in a recent telephone interview.

Ben-Ari, a member of CSIS’ Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group, agreed with that assessment.

He said the F-22 might be able to carry out missions to support ground troops, but said that other aircraft such as the F-16 and A-10 are better designed to do so. The F-22 is thought to be better suited for taking on enemy aircraft and anti-aircraft positions as opposed to enemy forces engaged with friendly troops on the ground.

But there is the cost factor.

Preble cited a Washington Post article that stated that the cost of flying an F-22 is about $40,000 per hour.

So using the F-22 for a mission that other aircraft could handle, Ben-Ari said, "would be in the same manner as a Lamborghini used to bring your kids to school. You could do it, but do you really need to?"

Maj. Clay Bartels, F-22 requirements officer for Air Force headquarters at the Pentagon, said he believes the F-22 could take on ground-support missions today if called upon. But he said its primary role — ensuring U.S. superiority in the skies — isn’t needed in today’s wars.

"Air superiority is achieved already," he said in a phone interview.

Supporters say the F-22 is so technologically superior to other fighters that it will use advanced detecting and targeting systems to take out enemy planes from miles away. In such cases, enemy planes might not have even known they were in a fight until it was too late.

F-35A Joint Strike Fighter

The Air Force expects to receive the first of its 1,763 aircraft in 2013 — if testing goes according to plan.

The Marine Corps recently took possession of the first versions of the F-35 from Lockheed Martin and has begun its own testing. Congress overrode Pentagon misgivings and decided to spend an additional $465 million on an alternative engine for the F-35.

The Air Force, which projects that the F-35 will make up half its fleet in 2025, is involved in a system development and demonstration phase that Peterson said is set to last until 2014.

Wheeler, who once worked for the General Accounting Office, said that means the service will have purchased a significant number of aircraft that haven’t been fully tested. And he said he believes too much of the current testing is in the form of simulated models and table-top theories. He said more tests must involve actually flying the F-35.

———

Peterson and Bartels said the F-35 and F-22 are designed to provide specific, complementary roles for the service. But they’re only part of the picture. The service projects that some of the current generation of fighters will be used for decades to come.

Ben-Ari said the Air Force needs to not only deal with conflicts today, but also plan for future ones. "For the missions we’re conducting today, the current fleet is capable," he said. "For future ones … I’m not so sure.

"You can’t just draw up a design for a new aircraft and produce it in six months," he said. "You’re hedging against future risk. No politician or military officer wants to be the one who, looking back through history, canceled a project or ignored a risk."

India will commission its first indigenous aircraft carrier in 2014. A sneak peek into the making of the big ship

2010-01-09T14:43:00.000-08:00

A dream is being crafted on this dock in Cochin Shipyard. Groups of workers in red and navy blue are shaping a vessel that will make the Indian Navy a truly blue-water force. On the dock, welders are hunched over their torches, plasma cutters are shaping sheet iron and crane operators are guiding huge hull blocks to their slots. These men with calloused hands and half-moons of dirt under their fingernails are erasing a history of hand-me-downs. They are making India’s first Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC).

There is a momentary hush as a huge gantry crane hoists a super-lift module to be slotted into the carrier. The crane operator deftly works the controls and gently guides the unit home. As the crane moves off, the welders take over and attach the lift-module to its neighbouring modules. After the lift-module is welded in place, plumbers and electricians hook up the wires and pipes. If all goes well, the Indian Navy will commission the carrier in 2014.

The 22 functional aircraft carriers in the world are owned by nine navies. Only the US, Russia and the UK have built carriers exceeding 40,000 tonnes. India is the fourth country to build a ship in this class. “It was our dream to equip India with an aircraft carrier,” said Commodore M. Jitendran, chairman and MD, Cochin Shipyard.

Work on the IAC started in November 2006 and 70 per cent of the hull blocks are done. Displacement tests, defining the hull form and structure, space analysis and hydrodynamic modelling have also been completed. “The IAC will be launched in 2010 and commissioned in 2014,” said Jitendran. “There will be no delays from our side.” Italian firm Fincantieri is assisting with the integration of the propulsion system and Russia’s Naval Design Bureau is helping with aviation systems.

The indigenous aircraft carrier project signifies not only an attempt to modernise the Navy, but also a shift in strategy. In the past, India had planned only to counter threats from Pakistan and China. But now it is aiming at global reach. International maritime laws recognise aircraft carriers as sovereign territories in almost all of the ocean.

“As long as a carrier does not get too close to a nation’s coast, it does not need permission from host countries for landing or overflight rights,” a Navy officer said. “A forward-deployed Navy provides the country with unique strategic options.” Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Kumar Verma said India’s goal for the next decade was to have a fleet of 160 ships and over 300 aircraft.

India’s naval role becomes more important because of its proximity to two strategic commercial straits—Hormuz and Malacca. Almost 40 per cent of international seaborne oil shipments pass through Hormuz. In 2006, Malacca averaged 1.5 million barrels of crude oil per day. These figures alone highlight the strategic nature of these straits.

“The IAC will be a milestone in the Navy’s history,” said former Navy chief Admiral Arun Prakash. “It is a symbol of power projection, which will simply resonate in other countries as it resonates in India. It [the IAC project] shows India’s seriousness to become a true blue-water Navy.” An accomplished carrier pilot, Prakash had commanded the INAS 300 when it updated to Sea Harriers in 1983.

Aircraft carriers are designed to support multiple activities. They transport a variety of aircraft, launch and land specific aircraft, serve as a mobile command centre for military operations and house personnel involved in these activities. “We have to fit a ship, an air base and a small housing colony in the carrier,” said a senior officer of the Southern Naval Command.

Designed by the Directorate of Naval Design (DND), the IAC will be powered by four General Electric LM2500 gas turbines. The turbines will generate an optimum 88MW, giving the carrier a cruising speed of 28 knots. The LM2500 is licence-built in India by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. The carrier will be 260m long and 60m wide with an endurance of 8,000nm.

The 40-year-old DND has designed 40 classes of ships and is the only government organisation worldwide to design ships. Elsewhere, the work is done by public sector companies or private shipbuilders.

Takeoffs and landings on carriers are a tricky business. Commander P.V. Satish, who served on the INS Viraat, said a night landing on a carrier’s flight deck is the most harrowing exercise in military aviation. Seated at the controls of a fighter that could weigh up to 25 tonnes, the pilot approaches the carrier and all he can see are the tiny lights lining the flight deck. “Imagine that! In the middle of the ocean and he has to land on a 200m-long runway,” said Satish.

The IAC’s flight deck will be in STOBAR (Short Take-Off But Arrested Recovery) configuration with a ski-jump. The ski-jump will give aircraft additional lift during takeoff. All carrier-ready aircraft have a tailhook under their tail. Three arrestor wires fitted on to the flight deck are supposed to snag the tailhook and bring the plane to a stop. If a pilot misses all three wires, he has to take off and attempt another landing.

The IAC will have aircraft elevators before and after the ‘island’, the command and control centre of the carrier. The elevators move aircraft to the flight deck from the hangar deck. Sources said the IAC is designed to support and maintain 30 aircraft including the MiG-29K and the naval variant of Tejas, the indigenous light combat aircraft. The carrier will have two 200m runways, a helicopter deck and a 1,600-strong staff.

The team overseeing the project is currently finalising the carrier’s weapons systems. Obviously, the exact details are top secret. Carriers being ‘runways at sea’, the IAC will have systems capable of stopping attacks from enemy aircraft and missiles. There will also be a long-range surface-to-air missile system with multi-function radars and close-in weapon systems. The carrier will have anti-submarine defence systems. All defence systems on board will be integrated through a combat management system. Sources in the Southern Naval Command said the carrier would have “jamming capabilities over the expected electromagnetic environment.”

The quest for the IAC began in 1989 when the Navy wanted to replace its ageing British-built carriers with two new 28,000-tonne carriers. The first vessel was to replace the INS Vikrant, which was set to be decommissioned in early 1997. French company Direction des Constructions Navales (DCN) was contracted to study designs for a 25,000-tonne vessel with a speed of 30 knots.

The plans were dropped in 1991 when the defence ministry shifted focus from conventional-sized carriers to the Italian Giuseppe Garibaldi class. The new class put the carrier at around 17,000 tonnes with capability to support up to 15 aircraft. In 1997, the Navy whittled down DCN’s model to a 24,000-tonne Air Defence Ship (ADS). “But somehow it still did not fit India’s requirement,” said Deba Ranjan Mohanty, senior fellow at the Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi.

Finally, in August 2006 the vessel was re-designated from ADS to a 252m-long IAC with a displacement of 37,000 tonnes. Because of design changes, the length was later increased to 260m and the displacement to 40,000 tonnes.

The project’s initial delay was due to the unavailability of high-grade steel. Though there was an initial agreement with Japan, it fell through after Pokhran II. Eventually, the Steel Authority of India Ltd produced the required steel under just about a year.

Senior Navy officials have confirmed that another core issue was the lack of funds. Prakash said the committee on defence expenditure had asked for downsizing to the Garibaldi class because of budgetary constraints. Many Navy officials said the current budget of Rs 3,260 crore was barely sufficient.

The IAC project has had other problems, too. Cochin Shipyard officials said IAC got delayed because of the ‘plan-as-you-build’ attitude. A minor alteration in the contracted design would lead to modifications of dozens of modules. But the Navy blames the shipyard for the “cost growth”. Commodore C. Uday Bhaskar, director, National Maritime Foundation, said delays occurred because the shipyard did not have basic equipment to build the carrier. This was solved by a special allocation of Rs 200 crore to Cochin Shipyard by the defence ministry.

Bhaskar said, “There was no clarity at the highest national level what kind of aircraft carrier India needed. There was a lot of confusion within the defence ministry about the nature of the carrier. Moreover, India is lagging behind in shipbuilding. We do not have good dockyard facilities and shipbuilding technology.” Perhaps this is why the IAC project is a matter of pride. Said Mohanty: “It is about achieving a long cherished dream and about a belief that, despite many odds, we can build a world class warship.”

In a bid to boost its blue-water credentials, the Navy is expected to operate three aircraft carriers by 2017. It is acquiring the Kiev-class Admiral Gorshkov (renamed INS Vikramaditya) from Russia and is planning a 50,000-tonne IAC 2 with CATOBAR (Catapult Assisted Take Off But Arrested Recovery) capability. CATOBAR will help IAC 2 to launch conventional aircraft. Only three countries have CATOBAR-capable carriers—the US (Nimitz class super-carriers and USS Enterprise), France (Charles de Gaulle) and Brazil (Sao Paulo).

Senior Navy officers said the order for IAC 2 was likely to be placed in 2010, after the launch of the first carrier. “The fate of IAC 2 will be decided by the performance of the first carrier,” said a senior Navy officer. On its part, Cochin Shipyard is using a modular approach to reduce construction time on IAC. If all goes well, after the initial launch the carrier will spend a year in the refit dock where all major components and underwater fittings would be fixed. Then it would be relaunched for outfitting.

The Navy has another external issue on its hands. The Defence Research and Development Organisation’s Tejas, which has to operate from the IAC, is behind schedule. The DRDO is thinking of installing the indigenous Kaveri engine in Tejas. But the engine has had multiple problems and French company Snecma is currently working on it.

The Navy might be forced to test Tejas with the current General Electric F404 engine. The test will ascertain its flight characteristics and whether its structural strength is sufficient for carrier deployment. When Tejas is fitted with Kaveri, the Navy will start operating it from a carrier. Reports said the Tejas naval variant was supposed to be ready for carrier trials by 2013.

Far away from the military planners, strategists and ‘Eyes Only’ files, the worker on the ground seems to have gauged the project’s significance better. Said a steelworker at the shipyard: “What is important for us is that we are doing something nobody else in India has done.”

Navy to set up key station near city

2010-01-08T18:38:00.005-08:00

Nearly 1400 acres of forest land will be allotted to the Indian Navy at Pudur mandal in Ranga Reddy district which is about 65 kms from the city.

The state government has agreed to allot the required land to Indian Navy to set up Very Low Frequency (VLF) station and Communications Station at Pudur. The Navy will monitor the Arabian sea, Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean signals from this station, which according to them is a strategic location for the purpose.

Indian Navy Commadore (signals) Capt Alok Khanojo, T V Rao, joint director of Designing Chief Engineer Office, Indian Navy, Visakhapatnam and Ranga Reddy district joint collector M Jagan Mohan and sub-collector Mutyala Raju conducted joint inspection at Pudur on Friday.

“A survey will be conducted for demarcation of the required land for Indian Navy by January 20. The state government has agreed to give the land which is a reserve forest land,” Jagan Mohan told TOI on Friday.

Officials said there are about 2700 acres of forest land in Pudur. Since the Navy wanted an entire 1400 acres at a stretch in that area, the state government gave a green signal for the allotment.

While the revenue department will allot the same extent of the land to the forest department, the Indian Navy will bear the expenditure to grow trees in the allotted land.

Prior to that, the Navy had sought 1,000 acres of land at Vikarabad mandal in RR district which is about 70 km from the city. The defence wing also expressed its readiness to pay compensation to private land owners if there was government land around the area, but the revenue department informed them that there was no government land and it would be impossible to acquire private land in such a huge extent. Following this, the Navy reportedly chose the forest land at Pudur.

Navy to set up key station near city

2010-01-08T18:38:00.003-08:00

India ready to battle against Pak, China: EAC Chief

2010-01-08T18:38:00.001-08:00

Echoing the view of Indian Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor about simultaneous wars against Pakistan and China, the Indian Air Force (IAF) today said the country is ready to battle against these two countries at the same time if ”pushed to the wall” through a ”defence-offensive” strategy.

”Although, wars simultaneously with China and Pakistan are far remote, if we (India) are pushed back to the wall, then we are fully ready to battle it out,’‘ Eastern Air Command (EAC) chief Air Marshal Kishan Kumar Nohwar told reporters here.

He, however, said international diplomatic pressure would ensure that India did not engage in wars with China and Pakistan.

Indian Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor had recently said the Army, Navy and Air Force were effectively ready to face Pakistan and China at the same time.

According to the Army chief, India, if attacked simultaneously by Pakistan and China, would launch self-contained and highly-mobile ”battle groups”, backed by superior air cover and artillery fire.

”The chances of such a war on the two fronts are remote due to international diplomatic pressure. But if such a situation arises we have force multipliers which can be swung into action from one place to the other and defend one sector and attack another to safeguard the nation,” Air Marshal Nohwar stated.

He, however, raised concern regarding China building anti-satellite missiles and stealth Unmanned Aerial Vehicles.

”India is not in competition with China, but India too is in the process of developing new technologies,” he added

Govt set to ink record $2.2bn arms deal with US

2010-01-08T18:37:00.001-08:00

NEW DELHI: The stage is being set for what will be the largest-ever Indo-US defence deal till now. New Delhi has now formally approached Washington for a direct government-to-government deal for acquiring 10 C-17 Globemaster-III giant strategic airlift aircraft, each of which comes for over a whopping $220 million.

This would well supplant the $2.1 billion contract for eight Boeing P-8I long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft inked last year and the $962 million one for six C-130J `Super Hercules' planes clinched in 2007.

With US aggressively muscling into the lucrative Indian market, often bagging deals under its direct Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme instead of vying in global tenders, the Europeans are getting increasingly upset.

Some of them even see "American influence'' at work behind the Indian defence ministry's scrapping of the almost-finalised deals like the $1 billion contract for 197 Eurocopter light utility helicopters and $1.5 billion project for six Airbus-330 MRTT mid-air refuelling aircraft.

Defence ministry officials, however, dismiss such `fanciful' claims. The biggest prize, of course, is still to be awarded: the $10.4 billion project to acquire 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft for IAF.

Two American fighters, F/A-18 `Super Hornet' and F-16 `Falcon', are competing with French Rafale, Russian MiG-35, Swedish Gripen and Eurofighter Typhoon in this hotly-contested race.

As for the Globemaster project, India sent `a letter of request' for the acquisition of 10 C-17s to the US government last week after getting the nod from the Defence Acquisitions Council headed by defence minister A K Antony. "Under FMS, we will get C-17s at the same price the US government buys them from Boeing, plus some service charges,'' said an MoD official.

IAF certainly needs to augment its strategic airlift capability to swiftly move large combat systems and troops over large national and international distances, given that it has barely a dozen Russian-origin IL-76 `Gajraj' aircraft. IAF's medium-lift fleet, in turn, includes 104 Russian AN-32 aircraft.

The massive four-engine C-17 dwarfs them all. Capable of carrying a payload of up to 170,000 pounds, it can transport tanks and troops over 2,400 nautical miles.

With mid-air refuelling, the C-17 can go even longer distances. Rugged as it is, a C-17 can even land at a small forward airbase on a semi-prepared runway or airdrop over 100 combat-ready paratroopers directly into a battlezone. "It can take-off and land in 3,000 feet or less,'' said an official.

There are 212 C-17s in service around the globe at present, with the major chunk of them deployed with US Air Force. Other customers include UK, Qatar, Canada, Australia and Nato.

Incidentally, India and US have already finalised the End-Use Monitoring Agreement (EUMA), and the inking of the Communication Interoperability and Security Memorandum of Agreement (CISMOA) is now on the cards, to smoothen defence deals. The two pacts are required under US domestic laws to ensure compliance with sensitive technology control requirements.

Indo-US defence deals

* 2002: $190 million for 12 AN/TPQ-37 firefinder weapon-locating radars

* 2006: $53.5 million for amphibious transport vessel USS Trenton, with another $39 million for six UH-3H helicopters to operate from it

* 2007: $962 million for 6 C-130J `Super Hercules' aircraft

* 2009: $2.1 billion for 8 P-8I maritime reconnaissance aircraft

* And now, stage set for $2.2 billion acquisition of 10 C-17 Globemaster-III aircraft

Israel readies new anti-missile system

2010-01-08T18:36:00.001-08:00

TEL AVIV, Israel, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- Israel has completed testing its Iron Dome short-range missile defense system, the second component of a planned multi-layered network to shield the Jewish state from missile attack by Iran, Hezbollah and Hamas.

The long-range, high-altitude Arrow-II system, which has been operational since 2000, is designed to knock out ballistic missiles, with Iran being the primary threat in that sector.

The third layer, to counter intermediate-range missiles, is still being developed. This system, known as David's Sling, is at least two years from deployment.

The first Iron Dome battery, which will be deployed in the south to counter Hamas' rocket fire, will be delivered to the Israeli air force in about six weeks. It is expected to be operational by May. Others will be sited in the north later this year.

"Making Iron Dome operational will transform Israel's political and security situation on the northern and southern fronts," said Pinchas Buchris, director general of the Defense Ministry.

Iron Dome, developed over the last two years at a cost of $200 million by state-owned Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd., uses small guided missiles to destroy short-range rockets used by Hezbollah and Hamas.

The number of batteries that will be required and the cost remains a troubling question.

It is generally accepted that the military would need about 20 batteries to defend the entire northern and southern borders from Hezbullah and Hamas bombardment. Each battery costs $14 million. The high operational costs are also causing some consternation.

Each interception of Hamas' Gaza-manufactured Qassam rockets, which cost around $200 apiece, would cost around $100,000.

All this "will require either diverting substantial funds from other defense projects or significantly increasing the defense budget," the Haaretz daily noted.

The deployment of Iron Dome, when completed, will provide for the first time a defense against Hezbollah and Hamas rockets that have plagued Israel for years. The barrages inflicted few casualties and little damage, although the political and psychological impact was considerable.

Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein fired some 309 Scud ballistic missiles at Israel during the 1991 Gulf War, the first time the Jewish state's population centers had come under bombardment. These were largely ineffective.

But Hezbollah's relentless rocket bombardment of northern Israel during the 34-day war in July and August of 2006 changed that. The Iranian-backed Hezbollah unleashed some 4,000 rockets of various calibers -- an average of 150-200 per day right up to the final minutes of the conflict.

Northern Israel was paralyzed. Some 50 people were killed. Israelis understood that missile bombardment was the shape of things to come.

The Iron Dome project emerged from the 2006 crisis to meet that security threat.

Iran now has Shehab-3 ballistic missiles capable of hitting anywhere in Israel. These are targets for the long-range, high-altitude Arrow-II missiles developed by state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries and the Boeing Co. with U.S. funding.

Hezbollah is now reported to have in excess of 42,000 Syrian and Iranian rockets -- around three times the number it had in 2006. These will now be countered by Iron Dome.

The military and geopolitical implication of the advent of Arrow, Iron Dome and David's Sling being developed by Rafael and Raytheon of the United States, are considerable. When all three interlocking systems are in place Israel will be in a position, to a large extent, to counter every type of missile and rocket its enemies possess.

Doubtless it will not be able stop every missile if they are fired en masse but the Jewish state will have greater protection than any other state on the planet.

The Arab News, published in the Gulf, noted in an editorial Friday that Iron Dome "represents a change of strategic balance in the same way that the Russians believe that the U.S. missile shield affects the global balance of nuclear weaponry …

"Israel will soon apparently have cover against rocket assault from anywhere in the Middle East.

"Moscow fears that the proposed U.S. missile shield will allow Washington to launch a strategic atomic strike and then defend itself against retaliation," Arab News said.

"Precisely the same analysis must be applied to Israel with its undeclared and illegal nuclear arsenal."

Boeing says, India keen to acquire 10 C-17 aircraft

2010-01-08T05:16:00.001-08:00

NEW DELHI: US aircraft manufacturer Boeing Co said on Friday the Indian Air Force is keen to acquire 10 C-17 Globemaster III aircraft, in a deal

which Indian defence ministry officials said is potentially worth more than $2 billion.

"Boeing is very pleased that the Indian government has expressed interest in acquiring the C-17 to modernize its airlift capabilities, and we look forward to working closely with them," Vivek Lall, India country head of Boeing's Integrated Defense Systems, said in a statement.

Boeing said the U.S. government has received a letter of request from New Delhi.

"The final (deal) price will change once you take the additional costs, including landing gears and maintenance contract into account," a senior defence ministry official said.

The C-17 is a heavy-lift aircraft, capable of carrying large combat equipment and troops, Lall said.

India is looking to spend more than $50 billion over the next five years to modernise its armed forces and largely Soviet-era equipment, especially after the 2008 November Mumbai attacks revealed security loopholes.

Boeing, which is eyeing the Indian defence market, has already submitted two proposals to the Indian Air Force, offering AH-64D Apache and CH-47F Chinook helicopters in a deal worth $2 billion.

India signed a separate $2.1 billion contract with the company last year to procure eight P-8I aircraft for its navy, which Boeing officials say New Delhi wants to be delivered by 2013.

Last August, New Delhi began field trials to buy 126 fighter jets in a $10.4 billion deal to modernise its air force.

Boeing's F/A-18 Super Hornet, France's Dassault Rafale, Lockheed Martin Corp's F-16, Russia's MiG-35, Sweden's Saab JAS-39 Gripen and the Eurofighter Typhoon, produced by a consortium of European companies, are in the race for the contract, one of the biggest in play.

Chhattisgarh to have air base soon

2010-01-08T05:15:00.001-08:00

Raipur, Jan 7 (PTI) The Indian Air Force has decided to build an air base in Chhattisgarh, which they consider useful due to its central location, officials said here today.

Air Marshal S Vardhaman in a meeting with Chief Minister Raman Singh and other senior officials in Mantralya discussed various options about choosing the location for the air base, they said.

About 2,500-3,000 acres of land would be needed to build the air base, the officials said.

Boeing, United Arab Emirates Announce Order for 6 C-17s

2010-01-07T20:52:00.003-08:00

ST. LOUIS, Jan. 6, 2010 -- Boeing [NYSE: BA] and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Air Force and Air Defence today announced that the UAE has signed a contract for the acquisition of six Boeing C-17 Globemaster III advanced airlifters. The UAE, which announced in 2009 that it would modernize its airlift capabilities with the C-17, is the second Middle East nation to order the airlifter.

"The C-17 will give the UAE the ability to perform a variety of humanitarian and strategic lift operations around the world in support of both national and international missions," said Major General Staff Pilot Faris Mohamed Al Mazrouei. "These missions require us to be ready for any contingency at any time and any place, and the C-17 meets our requirements."

Under the agreement, the UAE will take delivery of four C-17s in 2011 and two in 2012. Financial terms are not being disclosed.

"Boeing is pleased that the UAE Air Force has selected the C-17 to meet its airlift requirements for the 21st century," said Jean Chamberlin, Boeing vice president, Global Mobility Systems. "The C-17 consistently posts mission capability rates that are among the best in the world, earning it high marks for its industry-leading quality and reliability."

Boeing will provide support for the UAE C-17s through the C-17 Globemaster III Sustainment Partnership, an agreement under which Boeing is responsible for all C-17 sustainment activities, including material management and depot maintenance support.

"As a tactical and strategic airlifter, the C-17 is a perfect fit for the requirements of the United Arab Emirates Air Force," said Tommy Dunehew, Boeing Global Mobility Systems vice president of Business Development. "In addition to being able to land and take off on short, unimproved runways, it has the highest mission capability rate of any airlifter."

The C-17 can carry large combat equipment and troops or humanitarian aid across international distances directly to small austere airfields anywhere in the world. With a full payload of 170,000 pounds, the C-17 can fly 2,400 nautical miles and land in 3,000 feet or less.

There are currently 212 C-17s in service worldwide -- 19 with international customers. The U.S. Air Force, including active Guard and Reserve units, has 193. International customers include Qatar, the UK Royal Air Force, the Canadian Forces, the Royal Australian Air Force, and the 12-member Strategic Airlift Capability initiative of NATO and Partnership for Peace nations.

Lockheed Martin Awarded $118 Million Contract To Provide Sniper® Advanced Targeting Pods and LANTIRN ER Navigation Pods To Turkish Air Force

2010-01-07T20:52:00.001-08:00

ORLANDO, FL, January 6th, 2010 -- Lockheed Martin has signed a foreign military sales contract to deliver Sniper® Advanced Targeting Pods (ATPs) and LANTIRN™ Enhanced Resolution (ER) navigation pods to the Turkish Air Force. Valued at $118 million, the contract will provide Sniper ATP and LANTIRN ER navigation pods to equip Turkish Air Force F-16 Block 40 and Block 50 Peace Onyx aircraft.

“Sniper ATPs and LANTIRN ER navigation pods will provide a significant capability upgrade to the Turkish Air Force’s F-16 fleet,” said Rich Lovette, program director for Fixed-Wing Fire Control at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. “LANTIRN ER’s 3rd generation navigation FLIR and enhanced image processing will allow aircrews to go far beyond their current capability. The Sniper ATP will provide enhanced target detection and identification capability, expanding the F-16’s ability to conduct non-traditional intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations.”

Packaged in a single lightweight pod, the Sniper ATP provides critical long-range, positive identification of both moving and stationary air and ground targets. It also possesses a video downlink equipped with the widely used Rover ground receiver to relay high-resolution streaming video to forward-deployed forces for non-traditional intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and rapid target coordination.

Designed, developed and manufactured by Lockheed Martin, the Sniper ATP provides unrivaled precision engagement through its high-resolution, mid-wave forward-looking infrared (FLIR) and TV sensors, which operate in conjunction with a dual-mode laser, permitting eye-safe operation and precise geolocation in urban environments.

Combat proven on the F-16, F-15E, B-1, A-10 and Harrier GR7 and GR9 aircraft, the Sniper ATP is also flying on the F/A-18 and B-52. With advanced integration across U.S. Air Force and multinational aircraft, the Sniper ATP’s common software and hardware interface design enables users to “plug and play” across services and multiple platforms, providing a common software and hardware configuration across aircraft fleets for greater interoperability.

LANTIRN ER navigation pod, an upgraded version of the highly successful LANTIRN navigation pod, delivers multi-mission success with a significantly reduced cost of ownership. Featuring terrain-following radar, a 3rd generation mid-wave FLIR, enhanced image signal processing and increased image quality, the LANTIRN ER navigation pod allows aircrews to operate worldwide, in daylight or darkness, at mission altitudes from sea level to 40,000 feet.

Lockheed Martin F-35B Begins In-Flight STOVL Operations

2010-01-07T20:51:00.001-08:00

NAVAL AIR STATION PATUXENT RIVER, Md., January 7th, 2010 -- The Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] F-35B Lightning II short takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) stealth fighter engaged its STOVL propulsion system in flight for the first time today. The successful test is the first in a series of planned STOVL-mode flights that will include short takeoffs, hovers and vertical landings.

"The joint F-35 industry and government team has already shown during extended ground tests that the STOVL propulsion system performs well, and thousands of hours of component testing has validated its durability. Now we are seeing early proof that the system operates in flight as our team predicted," said Dan Crowley, Lockheed Martin executive vice president and F-35 program general manager.

The aircraft is powered by a single Pratt & Whitney F135 engine driving a Rolls-Royce LiftFan®. The system, which includes a Rolls-Royce 3-bearing swivel duct that vectors engine thrust and under-wing roll ducts that provide lateral stability, produces more than 41,000 pounds of vertical thrust. The F135 is the most powerful engine ever flown in a fighter aircraft.

F-35 Lead STOVL Pilot Graham Tomlinson of BAE Systems took off at 1:53 p.m. EST, climbed to 5,000 feet and engaged the shaft-driven LiftFan propulsion system at 210 knots (288 mph), then slowed to 180 knots (207 mph) with the system engaged before accelerating to 210 knots and converting back to conventional-flight mode. The STOVL propulsion system was engaged for a total of 14 minutes during the flight. Tomlinson landed at 2:41 p.m. EST.

STOVL-mode flights will continue, with the aircraft flying progressively slower, hovering, and ultimately landing vertically. Most STOVL-mode testing will be conducted at NAS Patuxent River.

The F-35B will replace U.S. Marine Corps AV-8B STOVL fighters, F/A-18 strike fighters and EA-6B electronic attack aircraft. The United Kingdom’s Royal Air Force and Royal Navy, as well as the Italian Air Force and Navy, also will employ the F-35B. With its short takeoff and vertical landing capabilities, the F-35B will enable allied forces to conduct operations from small ships and unprepared fields, enabling expeditionary operations around the globe.

The Lockheed Martin F-35 is a 5th generation fighter, uniquely characterized by advanced stealth with supersonic speed and high agility, sensor fusion, network-enabled capabilities and advanced sustainment. The three F-35 variants are derived from a common design, are being developed together and will use the same sustainment infrastructure worldwide, bringing economies of commonality and scale. The United States and eight international partners are planning to buy more than 3,000 F-35 aircraft.

Lockheed Martin is developing the F-35 with its principal industrial partners, Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems. Two separate, interchangeable F-35 engines are under development: the Pratt & Whitney F135 and the GE Rolls-Royce Fighter Engine Team F136.

Pentagon May Cut Production For Lockheed's F-35 -Reports

2010-01-07T20:50:00.002-08:00

The Pentagon is proposing delays and production cuts for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter through 2015, in a setback for Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT), on concerns that the military contractor has fallen behind schedule on development and testing, according to media reports Thursday.

The Defense Department will release its official budget request for fiscal 2011 on Feb. 1, and a representative said there have been no final decisions and no official statement on the reported cuts.

Lockheed Martin, Bethesda, Md., said the total number of planes would be the same, though some would be pushed out into later production.

"Should these changes become reality, they may have implications for fiscal 2011 and beyond production quantities, but not necessarily the program budget," company spokesman Christian Geisel wrote in an email.

More than $2.8 billion was to be set aside in the next fiscal budget to purchase the stealthy jet fighter, but that would instead be used to continue its development, reports said.

The rollback would be a short-term blow to Lockheed, which is looking to ramp up its production rate for the F-35 to one a day within the next five to six years. Higher production rates help lower the individual cost for each plane, and the company is relying heavily on automated and assembly-line manufacturing to reach its target.

Just last year, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said he wanted to accelerate the program's ramp-up to squeeze out even more costs. At the time, Gates sought to purchase 513 F-35s through 2015, and ultimately have a fleet of 2,443.

According to Thursday's reports, the Pentagon is considering a cut of 10 planes from its planned F-35 purchases for 2011, and a total reduction of 122 through 2015.

In a note, equity-research firm Broadpoint AmTech lowered its rating on Lockheed Martin to neutral from buy, citing the reported delays.

"A pending adjustment to the JSF program was well telegraphed; however, the extent of the actual production delays exceeds expectations," Broadpoint AmTech said.

The firm cut its price target for Lockheed stock to $73 from $86.

Shares of Lockheed traded recently at $74.49, off nearly 3%. For the year, the stock is down about 9%.

The United States is not the F-35's only customer, but it is by far the largest. The United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, Norway, Denmark, Australia and Turkey also are members of the program.

Sales of the F-35 are expected to exceed $16 billion by 2016, or about 25% of Lockheed's total revenue, according to data provided by Bernstein Research.

The fly-away cost for the jet is about $83 million, according to the military, though Lockheed expects that to drop to $80 million by 2014.

India Expresses Interest In Purchasing Boeing C-17 Aircraft

2010-01-07T20:50:00.000-08:00

On the heels of yesterday’s announcement that the United Arab Emirates recently finalized the purchase of six Boeing C-17 aircraft, Boeing released a statement today revealing that the nation of India has expressed interest in possibly purchasing ten additional aircraft.

India’s Ministry of Defence and the Indian Air Force submitted a Letter of Request to the United States government, inquiring about a potential deal. Boeing recently completed a series of C-17 demonstration flights in India, as the nation has been interested in replacing its current fleet of airlifters (Russian AN-32 and IL-76 aircraft).

Nineteen of the 212 C-17 aircraft currently operating around the world belong to international customers, Boeing said.

"Boeing is very pleased that the Indian government has expressed interest in acquiring the C-17 to modernize its airlift capabilities, and we look forward to working closely with them," said a statement from Tommy Dunehew, Boeing Global Mobility Systems vice president of Business Development. "We believe the C-17 can fulfill India's needs for military and humanitarian airlift to help it meet its growing domestic and international responsibilities."

The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is produced almost entirely in Long Beach, providing upwards of 5,000 jobs to the area. The program was nearly cut this year when the Department of Defense debated whether or not to renew orders for the aircraft, however in recent months there has been a significant push towards ordering new aircraft and keeping the assembly line moving.

The gathering storm

2010-01-07T20:49:00.000-08:00

SHORTLY after four in the afternoon on June 7th 1981, the late King Hussein of Jordan looked up from his yacht off the port of Aqaba and saw eight Israeli F-16 jets, laden with weapons and external fuel tanks, streaking eastward. He called his military staff, but could not find out what was going on. An hour or so later, the answer became clear. After a ground-hugging infiltration through Saudi Arabia, the jets climbed up near Baghdad and bombed Saddam Hussein’s Osiraq nuclear reactor.

Zeev Raz, the squadron’s leader (pictured bottom right), still recalls every phase of “Operation Opera”: his constant worries about running out of fuel; the risky move to jettison tanks, while the bombs were still attached to the wings, to reduce drag; and the loss of a key navigational marker. He overshot his target and had to loop back. He later discovered that his deputy, Amos Yadlin (now Israel’s military-intelligence chief), had slipped ahead and, annoyingly, dropped the first bombs. Somehow the Iraqis were surprised. King Hussein’s tip had not been passed on. And even though Iraq was then at war with Iran, there were no air patrols or active surface-to-air missile batteries. The Israelis encountered only brief anti-aircraft fire. In the cockpit video of the last and most exposed plane, Ilan Ramon (top left), who later died in the Columbia shuttle disaster in 2003, is heard grunting nervously. Their mission completed, the jets flew home brazenly on the direct route over Jordan.

The Osiraq raid, condemned at the time, is often seen these days as the model for “preventive” military action against nuclear threats. It set back Iraq’s nuclear programme and, after America’s two wars against Iraq in 1991 and 2003, Saddam never built nuclear weapons. Such methods were repeated in September 2007, when Israeli jets destroyed a suspected nuclear reactor under construction in Syria. Now that Iran is moving inexorably closer to an atomic bomb, will the Israeli air force be sent to destroy its nuclear sites?

By Israel’s reckoning, Iran will have the know-how to make nuclear weapons within months and, thereafter, could build atomic bombs within a year. Even if Iran does not seek to realise its dreams of wiping out the Jewish state, Israeli officials say a nuclear-armed Iran would lead to “cataclysmic” changes in the Middle East. America would be weakened and Iran become dominant; pro-Western regimes would become embattled, and radical armed groups such as Hizbullah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza would feel emboldened.

Saudi Arabia, Egypt and others could, in turn, seek their own nuclear arms. In a multi-nuclear Middle East, Israel’s nuclear arms may not ensure a stabilising, cold-war-style deterrent. “If Iran gets nuclear weapons, the Middle East will look like hell,” says one senior Israeli official. “I cannot imagine that we can live with a nuclear Iran.” For Israel, 2010 is the year of decision. Yet its ability to destroy the nuclear sites is questionable, and such a strike may precipitate a regional war, or worse.

Mr Raz, for one, thinks Israel cannot repeat the Osiraq feat. Iran’s nuclear sites are farther away; they are dispersed, and many are buried. The disclosure last year of a secret enrichment facility being dug into a mountain near Qom suggests that there are others undiscovered. “The Iranians are clever. They learnt well from Osiraq,” says Mr Raz. “There is no single target that you can bomb with eight aircraft.”

For Mr Raz, Israeli air power could, at most, set the Iranian nuclear programme back by a year or two—not enough to be worth the inevitable Iranian retaliation, which might include rockets fired at Israeli cities by Iran and its allies, Hizbullah in Lebanon and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. A more thorough action would require ground troops in Iran, but nobody is contemplating that.

Though he now works for a defence-electronics contractor and lives comfortably in a flat with a commanding view over Israel’s narrow coastal plain, Mr Raz exudes gloom. His four children, all adults, are applying for foreign passports—German ones, of all things. His eldest daughter, a mother of two, “does not think Israel is safe any more”—not just because of the prospect of a nuclear Iran, but because years of suicide-bombings and rockets have sapped belief in peace. Her siblings, he says, were persuaded to apply too.

This is a surprising admission, particularly from a kibbutz-bred former fighter pilot. Most Israelis still believe in the mystique of their air force. And for much of the past year Israel has been unusually calm. Palestinian suicide-bombings are very rare, and the morale-sapping showers of rockets have all but stopped.

In Israel’s view this is thanks to the tough security measures it has taken, among them the contentious security barrier in the West Bank, and its willingness to go to war against Hizbullah in 2006 and against Hamas a year ago. “Deterrence is working wonderfully,” says one defence official. But both militias are rearming, partly thanks to help from Iran, with missiles of even greater range that could reach the crowded Tel Aviv region from either Gaza or Lebanon. And the lull has been bought at a serious cost to Israel’s diplomatic standing. An inquiry commissioned by the UN Human Rights Council and headed by a South African judge, Richard Goldstone, found that Israel (and to a lesser extent Hamas) may be guilty of war crimes in Gaza. Europe is regarded as increasingly hostile, a region where Israeli government and military officials travel warily to avoid war-crimes lawsuits.

There are doubts even about Israel’s great ally, America, after a spat over Jewish settlements in the West Bank. President Barack Obama may be clever, Israelis say, but he lacks the empathy with Israel shown by his predecessors, Bill Clinton and George Bush. One minister, Limor Livnat, recently said that Israel had “fallen into the hands of a horrible American administration”.

Israel thus finds itself in a paradoxical state: more secure for now, but acutely anxious about the future; closer than ever to some Arab regimes because of a perceived common threat from Iran and its radical allies, yet more demonised by its Western friends. Israelis see a global campaign of “delegitimisation” akin to efforts to isolate white-ruled South Africa. “I’m sure the Afrikaners felt like we feel now,” says Mr Raz.

For many Israeli strategists, the decision over whether to bomb Iran is the most important in decades—some say since the birth of the Jewish state in 1948. The Israeli prime minister, Binyamin “Bibi” Netanyahu—the son of a staunchly nationalist professor of Jewish history, and the younger brother of Yonatan “Yoni” Netanyahu, who died leading the famed rescue of hostages from Entebbe in 1976—is said to feel the weight of history. His office is adorned with portraits of two of his political idols. One is Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism. But the other, Winston Churchill, is unusual in a country that regards Britain as having betrayed the Zionist cause when it ruled Palestine.

Bibi as Winston
Mr Netanyahu draws inspiration from the British wartime leader for reasons both tactical and strategic. Political courage in Israel is often deemed to mean willingness to surrender, after decades of colonisation, the territories captured in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war; to act like Charles de Gaulle, who gave up Algeria. By holding up Churchill, Mr Netanyahu is saying that courage consists of holding tenaciously to one’s beliefs, regardless of popularity.

This model carried special force on the question of Iran. As opposition leader, Mr Netanyahu recalled Churchill’s efforts to awaken the world to the danger of Nazi Germany. “It’s 1938 and Iran is Germany,” he said in 2006. Now that he is in power, pundits ask, might Bibi see himself as the Churchill of the Battle of Britain, fighting alone against Hitler and desperately trying to draw America into the war?

Iran is central to Mr Netanyahu’s thinking. It helps explain his surprisingly strong partnership with Ehud Barak, the leader of the Labour Party (and a former army chief of staff and prime minister), trusted as the only man able to handle the big security issues. It helps that he served in Sayeret Matkal, the elite commando unit once led by Mr Barak—and by brother Yoni.

Iran affects Mr Netanyahu’s calculations on the Palestinian issue too. He came to office convinced that tackling Iran was a bigger priority than peacemaking with Palestinians. This may have been a convenient argument for a sceptic of the “peace process”. In truth, a peace deal has been difficult ever since the Palestinian movement split violently in 2006 between the Islamists of Hamas who seized Gaza, and the more secular Fatah faction that clings on to bits of the West Bank (with Israeli and American help) under President Mahmoud Abbas. Mr Netanyahu argued that even if a deal were possible, a nuclear-armed Iran would unravel any agreements. But in the view of prominent Palestinians such as Ghassan Khatib, a former planning minister, peacefully resolving the nuclear stand-off would help push Hamas into more moderate positions.

Under pressure from Mr Obama, who argued that progress on the Palestinian issue would help galvanise an Arab coalition to confront Iran, Mr Netanyahu has since adjusted his positions. He belatedly accepted the idea of a Palestinian “state”, albeit a demilitarised one. And having upset the Obama administration by rejecting its demand for a complete halt to settlement-building, he later announced a unilateral, partial, ten-month suspension.

Something is now stirring. During a recent trip to Cairo, Mr Netanyahu seems to have offered enough to win praise from Egypt and start a new flurry of diplomacy that may yet lead to new peace talks. Mr Netanyahu’s aides now speak in Labour-like aphorisms: “We must make progress with Palestinians as if there is no Iran, and confront Iran as if there is no Palestinian issue,” says one. Perhaps there is a bit of de Gaulle in Mr Netanyahu after all. Or perhaps, as one Haaretz columnist, Aluf Benn, noted, the parallel is that Churchill brought America into the war, but lost the empire.

Mr Netanyahu has gone along with the Obama administration’s decision to talk directly to Iran. In contrast with the threats issued by the government of his predecessor, Ehud Olmert, his cabinet has been told to keep quiet about military planning, saying only: “All options are on the table”. As one aide puts it: “Those who know will not speak; and those who speak do not know.”

Clues in the wind
The few public signals seem contradictory. Mr Netanyahu has boosted the defence budget, and the army is planning to distribute gas masks to all citizens next month. Joint missile-defence exercises were held with America in October, and a simulated biological attack is to be rehearsed this month. Despite all this, Mr Barak seemed to recognise the difficulty of curbing Iran’s nuclear programme last month when he told a closed meeting with members of parliament that the Qom site “cannot be destroyed through a conventional attack”.

Two war games run recently by academics add to the despondency. In one, played out at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, America was ready to live with a nuclear Iran through containment and nuclear deterrence, and exerted strong pressure on Israel not to take military action. In another war game, held at Tel Aviv University’s Institute for National Security Studies and designed to explore diplomatic options, Iran continued to build up its stock of enriched uranium—even after a simulated Israeli commando raid on one facility under construction.

All this suggests that Israel is drawing up military options to attack Iran, but none of them is very appealing. This may explain Israel’s enthusiasm for sanctions. The emergence of an Iranian protest movement raises hopes that the regime could be restrained, perhaps even toppled, by stoking internal pressure.

America is rethinking the wisdom of targeting Iran’s most obvious vulnerability: its dependence, because of inefficient refining capacity, on imports of petrol and other fuels. Hillary Clinton, the secretary of state, now says America will seek to impose penalties on the increasingly powerful Revolutionary Guard, “without contributing to the suffering of the ordinary [Iranians], who deserve better than what they currently are receiving.”

Mr Netanyahu’s lieutenants seem inclined the other way. They say ordinary Iranians will blame their government, not the outside world, for any sanctions; so the embargo should be as crushing as possible. Domestic instability should be encouraged. Only a direct threat to the survival of the regime, they believe, will make it think again about seeking nuclear weapons. It is a harsh view, but for Israel the alternatives are even worse.

Defending Lebanon Or Israel?

2010-01-07T19:14:00.003-08:00

In December, the Lebanese Web site Qifa Nabki featured a satirical "news story" discussing U.S. arms transfers to Lebanon. According to the article, the U.S. gifted "cutting edge" military material to the Lebanese Armed Forces that included camouflage-print bandages and, more menacingly, the USS Tadpole, a decommissioned World War II vessel that "until recently had been used for target practice by U.S. Navy gunners in Norfolk."

Humor aside, the article highlights a serious and increasingly prevalent critique of U.S. military assistance. Since the 2005 Cedar Revolution and the balloting that brought to power the only pro-West democratically elected government in the Arab world, Lebanon received nearly $500 million worth of military material from Washington. Yet many in Lebanon are concerned that U.S. weaponry enables the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) to defend the state neither from Israel nor from local al-Qaida affiliates.

This line of thinking has some prominent and diverse proponents. In 2008, leader of the Shiite militia Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah complained that U.S. support for Israel prevented the transfer of sophisticated weapons to the LAF; in 2009, Minister of Defense Elias Murr implicitly criticized Washington for not providing fighter jets. "If we had aircraft," during the 2007 fighting against Islamist militants, "we would not have lost one martyr from the army," he said. This past December, from the White House podium, Lebanese President Michel Suleiman asked for increases in U.S. military assistance to finally enable the LAF to "defend Lebanon from enemy attacks and confront terrorism."

U.S. officials deny Lebanon is being given short shrift, but the perception articulated by Nasrallah and Sulieman is partly correct and stems from a fundamental Lebanese misreading of U.S. policy priorities: While U.S. taxpayer generosity, currently slated at over $100 million this year, will enhance LAF domestic counterterrorism capabilities, it is not meant--and will never be meant--to help Lebanon deter or defend against Israeli strikes.

For Washington, Hezbollah--which controls south Lebanon--not Israel's violations of Lebanese sovereignty, is the problem. Because Hezbollah receives virtually all of its armaments via Syria, Washington has also been far more concerned about the lack of security on the Lebanese-Syrian frontier than about the Israeli-Lebanese border.

BATS Real-Time Market Data by XigniteToday, both Israel and Lebanon are violating U.N. Security Council Resolutions. Israel's ubiquitous over-flights violate Lebanese sovereignty, while the Government of Lebanon fails to take sufficient steps to prevent the movement of arms to Hezbollah. More problematically, the new, if deeply divided, pro-West/pro-Iran government seemed to repudiate the core element of UNSCRs 1559 and 1701 when it explicitly legitimized Hezbollah's weapons in its Ministerial Statement. Given these violations, Washington may see Israel's ability to surveil Lebanon as the best way to prevent another war.

China slams missile sales to Taiwan

2010-01-07T19:14:00.001-08:00

China slams missile sales to Taiwan

BEIJING, Jan 8 — The United States has approved a sale of advanced missiles to Taiwan, drawing an immediate rebuke from Beijing and a rare call from a Chinese vice-admiral for retaliatory sanctions.

The US Defence Department announced late on Wednesday a contract giving American firm Lockheed Martin the green light to sell an unspecified number of Patriot air defence missiles to Taiwan.

The deal represents the first US arms sale to Taiwan completed under President Barack Obama, who took office last year — even though it is part of a US$6.5 billion (RM22.1 billion) weapons package approved by his predecessor George W Bush in 2008.

The missiles, among the most advanced in their class, are capable of shooting down Chinese short- and mid-range missiles, say defence experts.

“This is the last piece that Taiwan has been waiting for”, Wendell Minnick, the Asia bureau chief for Defense News, told Reuters.

By pushing through the deal, Washington hopes to assuage growing concerns in Taipei that the US has become less committed to Taiwan’s defence in the face of expanding US-Sino cooperation.

China and Taiwan have been governed separately since they split in 1949 at the end of a civil war, but Beijing sees the island as a part of its territory that is awaiting reunification - by force if needed.

Taiwan estimates that China has 1,000 to 1,500 missiles aimed at the island.

The arms deal drew a swift rebuke from Beijing yesterday.

Beijing had “already made stern representations to the US side”, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Jiang Yu said at a routine press briefing.

“We urge the US to clearly recognise the severe consequences of arms sales to Taiwan.”

Just before the contract was announced, Chinese Vice-Admiral Yang Yi talked tough, proposing that China take “defensive countermeasures” against US companies that sell weapons to Taiwan while hawking their aircraft and other products to China.

“Apart from just protesting to and taking action against the US government, why not impose sanctions on these troublemakers?” he said in an interview with the semi-official China News Service that was published yesterday.

“We must let these enterprises and interest groups face heavy losses here. We should make their economic losses here heavier than what they gain from selling arms to Taiwan.”

While keeping ties between China and the US on an even keel is vitally important, ‘on matters of principle, we cannot always give way’, said Vice-Adm Yang, who is also a researcher with the Strategic Studies Institute at China’s National Defence University.

Last month, in the local press, at least two other scholars also called for sanctions to deter arms sales.

China suspended military ties with the US when the Pentagon announced the arms deal in October 2008. Ties were resumed only after US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited Beijing last February.

Even if Beijing once again freezes military exchanges, sanctions might not be on the cards, said Professor Shi Yinhong, who heads the Centre for American Studies at Renmin University.

He said: ‘Arms sales to Taiwan are just one part of China-US ties now. The Chinese government will consider the whole picture.’

He noted that the deal was ‘smaller than originally expected’. The sale approved on Wednesday did not include the advanced F-16 fighter jets, which Taipei had requested but which Beijing had specifically opposed.

“It seems President Obama wanted to honour the deal, but took efforts to limit its impact on bilateral ties,” said Prof Shi. ‘He tried to keep a bad deed limited, so to speak.’

Taiwan has remained a thorny issue in ties between the US and China - two global heavyweights whose economic and political interests are now more interlinked than before.

Some analysts predict a rough year ahead for Sino-US ties, given ongoing trade friction, arms sales to Taiwan and Obama’s plans to meet Tibet’s exiled Dalai Lama. — The Straits Times

Navy pilot convicted of stealing gun parts

2010-01-07T17:09:00.001-08:00

NORFOLK, Va., Jan. 7 (UPI) -- A U.S. naval officer who said he took decommissioned fighter jet parts as souvenirs pleaded guilty to stealing government property, court records show.

Matthew Sutton, 44, a retired Navy chief petty officer, readily led Navy inspectors investigating a bribery plot to his back yard shed, where he kept parts of an ejection seat and a 20mm machine gun barrel, among other pieces, The (Norfolk) Virginian-Pilot reported Thursday.

The government agreed to drop more serious charges, but Sutton faces a maximum of 10 years in prison at his April sentencing hearing, the newspaper said.

Sutton was assigned in 2005 to a unit at Oceana Naval Air Station for the purpose of decommissioning of F-14 fighter jets. All the parts were to have been destroyed, but Sutton took some home, The Virginian-Pilot reported.

Sutton, along with co-defendants Wayne Miller and Jody Goucher, was charged with conspiracy to steal fighter jet parts in exchange for gifts and cash.

Miller, a director of a New Jersey aviation museum, and Goucher, who worked in an office with Sutton, pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges.

Miller planned to build an F-14 simulator close to his home, court records showed.

Sutton never received any payments and was uninvolved with the bribery conspiracy, Sutton's attorney, Andrew A. Protogyrou, said

Ballistic trajectory - China develops new anti-ship missile

2010-01-07T11:34:00.001-08:00

It seems a cliché to cite Sun Zi's maxim "in war, the way is to avoid what is strong and to strike at what is weak". Yet, this universally accepted approach does seem to correspond to Chinese military planning. Nowhere is this more true than in such ballistic missile developments as its anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM) programme, one of several weapons designed to exploit relative Chinese military strengths against relative military weaknesses of the United States.

Through this approach, China is working to make it more difficult for the US to intervene militarily in China's maritime periphery. An ASBM, if developed and deployed successfully, would be the world's first weapons system capable of targeting a moving aircraft carrier strike group from long-range, land-based mobile launchers. This could make defences against it difficult and raise the prospect of potentially highly escalatory strikes against launchers or associated targets in China.

However, there are various obstacles that could limit China's ability to deploy ASBMs effectively, particularly the issues of joint service operations and information usage. Further, the missile deployment could act as a significant escalation in military rivalry and may only prompt US forces to deploy countermeasures rather than prevent carrier strike group employment

IAF bid to acquire A-330 MRTT refuellers turned down news

2010-01-07T09:45:00.001-08:00

New Delhi: In what can only be seen as a prudent decision, the Government of India has turned down a bid made by the Indian Air Force to purchase six new Airbus-330 MRTT (multi-role tanker transport) refuelling aircraft. Taking onboard the finance ministry's objections that the A-330MRTT was far too costly a buy, as compared to the Russian Il-78 refuellers that the Indian Air Force is already equipped with, the government decided to cancel an agreed upon $1.5 billion contract with European aerospace major EADS.

Airbus-330 MRTT
Airbus is a subsidiary unit of EADS.

''The RFP (request for proposal) will be re-floated and will go to EADS, Boeing and Ilyushin among others, for a global competition now,'' a defence ministry official said Wednesday.

Defence minister AK Antony had earlier informed Parliament that the finance ministry had ''expressed certain reservations relating to the competitiveness of the bids and the reasonableness of the price'' for the refueller aircraft.

Though it already deploys at least six of the Il-78 'Midas' tankers, the IAF opted for the A-330s as it felt they better met its future requirements.

The IAFs mid-air refueller squadron is based in Agra.

World gone mad - Airplane gets backup by fighter jets for disruptive passenger

2010-01-07T09:42:00.001-08:00

Portland, USA - The world has gone mad. Today they turned around an airplane because a passenger did not want to store his luggage. A airplane was heading towards Hawaii but was turned back after a passenger became disruptive, then two F-15 fighter jets escorted the flight back to Portland international airport. This all happened yesterday.

The TSA said he "made threatening remarks" and did not want to store his hand luggage. The captain of the paranoid airship then declared an emergency upon which they turned around and the two jets assisted them.

Today the man got set free after they figured out he was not a terrorist