TECHNIQUE - MILITARY ZONE

Common mistakes of newbie blogger

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Wed, 6 Apr 2011 15:51:00 +0700

Many people believe that when they create a blog and then copy content from Internet or other source to their blog is a good way.
However this is one of the biggest mistakes they ever make.

Before create a blog we should determine the main target so the content will focus on this target. Many bloggers create entry by sudden inspiration. When surfing Internet they find usefull articles but maybe these articles do not have any relationship with their blog.
Poor layout

AGM-114 Hellfire

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Tue, 5 Apr 2011 16:35:00 +0700

Loại: Air-to-surface và surface-to-surface missile
Xuất xứ: USA
Hãng sản xuất: Lockheed Martin

Chiều dài: 64 in (163 cm)
Đường kính: 17.8 cm
Đầu đạn: High Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT); 20 lb (9 kg) tandem anti-armor
Metal augmented charge (MAC); 18 lb (8 kg) shaped-charge
Blast Fragmentation
Động cơ: Solid-fuel rocket
Tầm hoạt động: 500 -> 8 km
Vận tốc: 425 m/s (1530 km/h)
Hệ thống dò đường: Semi-active laser homing
sóng radar dò đường

AGM-114 Hellfire (lửa địa ngục) là một tên lửa không-đối-đất đa nhiệm vụ, đa mục tiêu, dẫn hướng bằng laser được Mỹ sử dụng. Nó được trang bị trên các trực thăng Mỹ là chủ yếu. AGM-114 có thể chống lại xe tăng và các xe bọc thép. Nó cũng có thể làm tên lửa đất-đối-đất. Loại tên lửa này được quân đội Mỹ sử dụng từ năm 1974.

AgustaWestland Apache

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Mon, 4 Apr 2011 17:00:00 +0700

From Wikipedia and others
The AgustaWestland Apache is a licence-built version of the Boeing AH-64D Apache Longbow attack helicopter for the British Army.

The first eight helicopters were built by Boeing; the remaining 59 were assembled by Westland Helicopters (now part of AgustaWestland) at Yeovil, England from Boeing-supplied kits. Changes from the AH-64D include Rolls-Royce engines, a new electronic defensive aids suite and a folding blade mechanism allowing the British version to operate from ships. The helicopter was named "WAH-64" by Westland Helicopters. It is designated Apache AH Mk 1 (or shortened to Apache AH1) by the UK's Ministry of Defence.

Development

The requirement for a new attack helicopter was identified in the early 1990s with initial suggestions that 125 would be ordered, however an invitation to bid was not issued until February 1993. Bids made included the Eurocopter Tiger, a version of the AH-1 SuperCobra, the AH-64 Apache, the RAH-66 Comanche, and the Agusta A129 Mangusta. The Apache was selected in July 1995 and a contract for 67 helicopters was signed in 1996. The first helicopter, built by Boeing (which merged with McDonnell Douglas in 1997), was delivered in September 1999. The 67th and final Apache was handed over in July 2004.[5] The cost of the helicopter fleet was around £3.1 billion, this high cost and questions of reliability over the Apache's performance in US service led to calls for a cancellation in 1999.

The UK's Strategic Defence Review called for Apaches to undertake amphibious attack missions, operating from the helicopter carrier HMS Ocean, the Invincible class aircraft carriers and their successors, the (Royal Navy CVF programme), and possibly the amphibious assault vessels HMS Bulwark and Albion.

There were several delays to the WAH-64's in service date due to complications in the adaptions made for British service. Before its introduction into service in 2004 several problems were noted, including lacking the ability to securely communicate with other helicopters and a risk of damage to the tail rotor upon use of the Hellfire missiles; the latter problem having been corrected as Hellfires are now routinely carried and used by WAH-64s in British service. In 2002, full operational capability was set to be achieved by 2010.

Design
Several deviations were made to the standard Apache design used by the US and other foreign countries. One of the major differences between the UK WAH-64 and US AH-64 variants is the folding blade mechanism to stow the helicopters in confined spaces;[12] the rotor blades also have anti-ice protection to allow operations in arctic environments. Another is the use of Rolls-Royce Turbomeca RTM322 01/12 engines instead of the General Electric T700-GE-701Cs. The Rolls-Royce engine produces 1,565 kW (2,100 hp) vs 1,410 kW (1,890 hp) for the GE T700C engine. The Westland Apache can also carry and fire up to 76 CRV7 rockets.

There are changes to the sensor and avionics outfitting the craft as well; connectivity with the BOWMAN secure communications system to interact with other British military units being a significant one. SELEX (formerly BAE Systems Avionics) Helicopter Integrated Defensive Aids System (HIDAS) were also fitted, as well as an eye-safe training laser to allow the Apache to function as a target designator, as the standard tactical laser could not be used in the United Kingdom due to range restrictions.

Like the US AH-64D Apache Longbows; the Apache AH Mk 1 carries a fire-control radar (FCR) and Radar Frequency Interferometer (RFI), providing an integrated surveillance and attack system. The 'Longbow’ radar is the bulbous unit over the rotor hub assembly; radar placement above the rotors allows the Apache to hover behind cover scanning for targets, with only the radar unit exposed

Vertol CH-21B Workhorse

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Mon, 4 Apr 2011 07:58:00 +0700

From S.Harding "U.S.Army Aircraft since 1947", 1990 and other Internet source.
From the all-metal PV-17 built in 1948, the following year Piasecki derived the HRP-2 Rescuer and an improved version of the Rescuer, the H-21 Workhorse. The USAF acquired 214 of the latter, and 334 of a similar model, the H-21 Shawnee, were built for the US Army.

The B and C variants of the H-21 were used in Vietnam, equipped with 12.7 or 7.62mm light machine guns which were fired through the cabin doors. The H-21 used the classic single engine formula with tandem three-blade rotors. While the Navy's helicopters had a 600hp Pratt & Whitney R-1340 engine, those for the Army had a Wright R-1820. Thirty-three of the H-21A were assigned to SAR units in the Arctic and another five were sent to Canada. Foreign operators of the H-21 included the German Army (26), French Army (98), French Navy (10), Japanese armed forces (10) and Swedish Navy (11).

Developed from the US Navy's HRP-2, the Piasecki PD-22 tandem-rotor helicopter prototype (US Air Force designation XH-21) was first flown on 11 April 1952. Eighteen YH-21 helicopters had been ordered in 1949 for USAF evaluation, these being followed by an initial production batch of 32 H-21A helicopters, named Workhorse in USAF service. For use by the Military Air Transport Service Air Rescue Service, the H-21As were each powered by a derated 932kW Wright R-1820-103 engine; the first flew in October 1953. Six more were built to USAF contract but supplied to Canada under the Military Assistance Program.

The second production variant was the H-21B, which used the full power of the 1063kW R-1820-103 to cover an increase in maximum take-off weight from 5216kg to 6804kg. Some 163 were built, mainly for Troop Carrier Command, and these had autopilots, could carry external auxiliary fuel tanks, and were provided with some protective armour. They could carry 20 troops in the assault role.

The US Army's equivalent was the H-21C Shawnee, of which 334 were built. This total included 98 for the French army, 10 for the French navy and six for Canada; 32 Shawnees were supplied to West Germany, serving with the army's Heeresfliegerbataillon 300. The H-21C, redesignated CH-21C in July 1962, had an underfuselage sling hook for loads of up to 1814kg. Production deliveries were made between September 1954 and March 1959, later helicopters acquiring the company designation Model 43 when the Piasecki Helicopter Corporation became the Vertol Aircraft Corporation in 1956. The H-21 A and H-21B retrospectively became the Model 42.

Two turboshaft conversions of H-21C airframes were the Model 71 (H-21D), with two General Electric T58 engines first flown in September 1957, and the Model 105 which had two Avco Lycoming T53s. From the latter was designed the Vertol 107 (Boeing Vertol H-46 series).

On April 11, 1952, the YH-21 Work Horse — Piasecki's best helicopter yet — took to the air with Len LaVassar and Marty Johnson at the controls. Winner of a USAF competition for an arctic transport helicopter, the new craft looked almost like the HRP-2, but weighed 6630kg fully loaded, more than twice the earlier machine. A 1425hp Wright R-1820 engine (derated in early models to 1150hp) and a 0.9m increase in rotor diameter to 13.4m gave it much better performance than the HRP-2. Structurally, it was a new aircraft.

The company had come up with a winner. The Work Horse could carry fourteen fully equipped troops or an equivalent weight of cargo. Features included a rescue hoist and inflatable donut-shaped floats around its wheels for landings even on marshy tundra. Winterized to support Distant Early Warning (DEW) Line radar stations far to the north, it was just the aircraft the Air Force had wanted. Extensive cold-weather testing was performed atop Mount Washington, the highest peak in New Hampshire's beautiful White Mountains, as well as in the climate hangar at Eglin Air Force Base.

In 1949 the U.S. Air Force ordered eighteen examples of the Piasecki Model PD-22 single-engined, tandem-motor helicopter for evaluation in the SAR and general transport roles. The YH-21 Work Horse, as the type was designated, made its maiden flight in April 1952. The Air Force was quite pleased with the YH-21, and eventually purchased thirty-two production H-21A SAR models and 163 of the more powerful H-21B assault transports.

The Army became aware of the H-21's potential as a medium utility helicopter soon after the type's maiden flight, and in 1952 awarded Piasecki a contract for the production of the H-21C variant. This aircraft retained the H-21B's extensive armor plating and ability to carry two external fuel tanks, but had such additional features as increased troop capacity and a 4000-pound capacity belly sling hook. The Army procured 334 H-21C Shawnees, with deliveries beginning in August 1954. In addition, the Army obtained at least sixteen H-21B aircraft from the USAF; the majority of these machines were ultimately brought up to H-21C standard, and all were known as Shawnees despite their origins as Work Horses. The Army also funded Vertol's development of the XH-21D, which was essentially a standard H-21C whose single piston engine had been replaced by two General Electric T58 shaft turbines. Two H-21Cs were so modified and flight tested in 1957 and 1958, but the variant was not adopted for production. In 1962 the H-21B and H-21C were redesignated as, respectively, the CH-21B and CH-21C.

Despite its rather ungainly appearance the H-21 Shawnee was a very capable and well-liked machine, and the type ultimately secured for itself a unique place in post-World War II Army aviation history. It was a Shawnee dubbed 'Amblin' Annie that made the first non-stop helicopter flight from one coast of the United States to the other, being refuelled in flight from a U-1A Otter. More significantly, the H-21 was the first American military helicopter type to be deployed in appreciable numbers to South Vietnam: the first four Shawnee units arrived in that country between December 1961 and September 1962. Inevitably, perhaps, the H-21 also gained the dubious distinction of being the aircraft in which America's first Vietnam casualties were killed; four Army aviators died in July 1962 when their Shawnee was shot down near the Laotian-Vietnamese border. The machine gun-equipped H-21s used in Vietnam were also, of necessity, the first American military helicopters to be fitted with door-mounted defensive weapons as a matter of course. Several additional aircraft were experimentally fitted with a variety of offensive weaponry and used as interim gunships pending the arrival in Southeast Asia of the first units of armed UH-1 Iroquois in the summer of 1963. The H-21 remained the backbone of the Army's aviation effort in South Vietnam until finally supplanted by the UH-1 in 1964, and most Shawnees were withdrawn from the active inventory within the following year.

The Vertol CH-21B Workhorse

Vertol CH-21C Specifications:

Crew: Two
Capacity: 22 troops or 12 stretchers
Length: 52 ft 6 in (16.0 m)
Rotor diameter: 44 ft 0 in (13.4 m)
Height: 15 ft 9 in (4.80 m)
Empty weight: 8,950 lb (4,058 kg)
Loaded weight: 15,200 lb (6,893 kg)
Engine: Single Wright 1,425 hp (1,063 kW) R-1820-103 radial engine
Maximum speed: 127 mph (110 kn, 204 km/h)
Range: 265 mi (230 nmi, 426 km)
Service ceiling 9,450 ft (2,880 m)

Armament:

Twin or quad .50 (12.7 mm) machine guns
Some photos of this airplane:

The SAAB JAS 39 Gripen

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Sun, 3 Apr 2011 06:34:00 +0700

Since World War II, the Swedish SAAB aircraft firm has maintained a tradition of building cutting-edge fighter aircraft for the defense of Sweden. The latest of this series of aircraft, the SAAB "JAS 39 Gripen (Griffin)", is now in operational service. The Gripen is a state-of-the-art multirole combat aircraft, arguably the first "fourth-generation" jet fighter to reach service. It maintains the tradition of excellence in Swedish fighter design, but departs from tradition in proving a competitive item for export sales. This document provides a history and description of the Gripen.

In the 1970s, the SAAB 37 Viggen began to go into service with the Flygvapnet (Swedish Air Force) as the nation's first-line combat aircraft. Swedish military planners then began to look down the road for a next-generation fighter to follow the Viggen. While US-made aircraft such as the F-16 or F/A-18 were considered, the Swedes had proven capable of building their own first-class combat aircraft, tailored precisely to their specifications -- and besides, modifying a foreign aircraft to fit into the tightly-linked Swedish defense network system would have been troublesome.
In 1980, the Swedish Defense Materiel Administration (FMV) issued a requirement to Swedish manufacturers for a next-generation combat aircraft, then known as the "JAS (Jakt, Attack, & Spaning / Fighter, Attack, & Reconnaissance)". As the name implied, it was to be a multirole combat aircraft, with excellent performance and high agility to counter new Soviet fighters then going into service. It was to be simpler and cheaper to maintain than the Viggen, and easy to turn around quickly to ensure a high combat sortie rate. Long range was not a requirement, since the Flygvapnet's traditional focus was on the defense of Sweden, not power projection.

A consortium named "IndustriGruppen JAS" was formed between SAAB-Scania, Volvo Flygmotor, Ericsson, and Foerenade Fabriksverken (now FFV Aerotech). The group's proposal, with the company designation "SAAB 2110", was accepted in the spring of 1982, with a contract signed in June for five prototypes featuring some modifications from the original proposal, plus an initial production batch of 30 aircraft and an option for 110 more.
* Work on the prototypes began in 1984, with a full-size mockup completed in early 1986. The program ran into technical problems, cost increases, and schedule slips, leading to political pressure for its cancellation and purchase of a foreign aircraft. However, the first single-seat "JAS 39A Gripen (Griffin)" prototype flew on 9 December 1988, with test pilot Stig Holmstroem at the controls, and the controversy faded. Design work on the "JAS 39B" two-seat version for operational conversion training began in 1989.

Unfortunately, the first JAS 39A prototype, the "39-1", was lost on 2 February 1989 due to a software glitch in the flight-control system. The aircraft became unstable on landing and cartwheeled, with the pilot, Lars Raadstroem, suffering a broken arm. The whole ugly event was filmed and caused a bit of a public sensation. Work on cleaning up the software and fixing engine problems led to additional schedule slips. The problems were resolved, and the second prototype, "39-2", took to the air on 4 May 1990. The third prototype to fly, which was actually designated "39-4" and featured operational avionics but no radar, performed its initial flight on 20 December 1990. The next prototype, the "39-3", was fitted with radar and flew on 25 March 1991; followed by the last of the five prototypes, "39-5", which was close to production spec, and flew on 23 October 1991.
By this time, the bugs had been largely ironed out. The Flygvapnet decided the Gripen had been worth the wait and trouble, since it easily exceeded many of its design specifications -- and the fact that it was a pretty aircraft didn't hurt. In June 1992, SAAB got the go-ahead for building the two-seat JAS 39B, and the government formally signed off on the option for 110 more Gripens, which were to be built to an improved "Batch 2" standard. The new order included 96 JAS 39As and 14 JAS 39Bs.
The first production Gripen performed its maiden flight on 4 March 1993, with Raadstroem at the controls. The second production item was the first to be handed over formally to the Flygvapnet, with delivery on 8 June 1993. However, the first production machine crashed during a flight demonstration in Stockholm on 8 August 1993, Raadstroem ejecting without serious injury. Once again, the problem turned out to be a glitch in the flight control system software. All the Gripens were grounded until the bug was traced down and fixed.
The first JAS 39B was rolled out on 29 September 1995. It was actually a production-line modification of one of the 30 Batch-1 JAS 39As. The JAS 39A reached initial operational status in 1995 and full operational status in 1997. The first Batch 2 machine was delivered in December 1996, the same month that an order for 64 improved "Batch 3" machines was placed, including 50 single-seat "JAS 39Cs" and 14 two-seat "JAS 39Ds".

[2] GRIPEN DETAILS

* The Gripen is a true lightweight fighter, with 78% of the empty weight of an F-16C and about half the empty weight of the Viggen, the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, or the Dassault Rafale. The Gripen's airframe features extensive use of composite assemblies to reduce weight. The modest size reduces purchase cost to a degree and definitely reduces operating cost; makes the machine easier to handle on the ground; and gives it a lower radar signature.
The Gripen is a canard-configuration aircraft, featuring a cropped delta wing with a sweep of 45 degrees and all-moving canard forewings with a sweep of 45 degrees and dihedral. The wings are midbody-mounted to provide clearance for underwing stores, and each has a leading-edge flap plus two trailing-edge drooping "elevons" to improve short-field performance, as well as maneuverability. There are two tiny strakes on the nose to generate vortices that improve flight control at high angles of attack.

The Gripen is powered by a Volvo Aero "RM-12" bypass turbojet engine with afterburner. The RM-12 was developed in cooperation with General Electric and is derived from the GE F404J turbofan used on the Boeing F/A-18 Hornet. The F404J was selected due to its reliability and growth potential. The Swedish version of the engine features a larger fan to provide more airflow and greater power; greater resistance to birdstrikes; and a Swedish-designed afterburner. The RM-12 provides 81.9 kN (8,350 kgp / 18,400 lbf) thrust in afterburner. 60% of the engine's components are built by GE and shipped to Sweden, where they are integrated with the Swedish-built components.
Unlike the Viggen, the Gripen does not have a thrust reverser. The canard foreplanes can be tilted almost 90 degrees to act as airbrakes on landing. There are carbon brakes on all the wheels of the tricycle landing gear to reduce landing roll. Interestingly, pilots using the Gripen flight simulators have performed simulated carrier landings, without an arresting hook; it seems a bit unlikely that this will ever be done in practice, though no doubt some Gripen pilots would give it a shot if they got the chance. The landing gear has an antiskid system. The two-wheel nose gear retracts backward, while the single-wheel main gear retract at a forward angle.

   SAAB 39 GRIPEN:
   _____________________   _________________   ___________________
 
   spec                    metric              english
   _____________________   _________________   ___________________

   wingspan                8 meters            26 feet 3 inches
   length                  14.1 meters         46 feet 3 inches
   height                  4.7 meters          15 feet 5 inches

   empty weight            6,620 kilograms     14,600 pounds
   max loaded weight       12,470 kilograms    27,500 pounds

   maximum speed           Mach 2 at altitude
   service ceiling         15,240 meters       50,000 feet
   combat radius           800 km              500 MI / 430 NMI
   _____________________   _________________   ___________________

Swedish defense plans include a concept known as "BAS 90", which envisions dispersal of aircraft in groups of four to six to "road bases" organized around specially reinforced lengths of highway, with associated dispersal areas. This scheme dictates the Gripen's short-field capabilities. The Gripen can take off and land in less than 600 meters (2,000 feet). Once deployed to a road base, the Gripens are serviced by a ground crew of six, including one highly trained specialist and five minimally trained conscripts. A service team can refuel and rearm a Gripen in ten minutes. The Gripen features an auxiliary power unit (APU) to reduce its dependence on ground systems, and the fighter's onboard digital systems include "built-in self-test" capabilities that can download diagnostic data to a tech's laptop computer. Service doors to critical systems are at head level or lower, allowing easy access by technicians. Flygvapnet experience shows that the Gripen requires 40% less maintenance work-hours and only half the fuel of the Viggen.The Gripen cockpit layout contains three multifunction displays (MFDs), plus a wide-angle head-up display (HUD) with a 28-by-22 degree field of view. The left MFD contains flight data and reflects HUD information; the lower MFD contains a tactical image in a "horizontal situation display" format; and the right MFD provides imagery from the radar, and potentially FLIR or an optical reconnaissance pod. Batch 1 and 2 machines used monochrome (green) MFDs.

The pilot flies the machine with an "hands on throttle and stick (HOTAS)" controls, including a center-mounted short-throw "ministick", and a throttle control that also operates as a joystick to perform selections on the MFDs. The cockpit is climate-conditioned and pressurized, and fitted with a Martin-Baker Mark S10L zero-zero (zero altitude, zero speed) rocket-propelled ejection seat. The Gripen is the first Swedish fighter not to use a SAAB-built ejection seat, and in fact the machine has considerable foreign content. The canopy hinges open sideways to the left.
The aircraft is controlled by a digital fly-by-wire (FBW) system with triple redundancy and an analog backup. The analog backup system provides a simple, reliable capability, and is automatically activated if two of the three digital FBW systems go down. The pilot can also activate the analog system with the push of a button. The Gripen was designed from the outset to use the FBW system, which was evaluated on a modified Viggen. The FBW system compensates automatically for the degree of instability built into the Gripen to increase its maneuverability. The FBW system also allows the aircraft to adapt to combat damage, for example using differential control of the canards to fly the aircraft if the ailerons are disabled.
The Gripen's Ferranti-Ericsson PS-05/A X-band pulse Doppler radar has three times the processing power of the Viggen's PS-46/A radar, but only 60% of its volume and weight. The PS-05/A has all-altitude look-down capability, resistance to jamming, and provides a number of operating modes, including:

   air to air:

      long range search and track
      multiple target (up to ten) track while scan
      short range, wide angle search and track
      automatic gun and missile fire control

   air to ground:

      search and track
      ground and sea target track while scan
      high resolution mapping
      air to surface ranging

A mission computer alerts the pilot to priority threats. The Gripen has a ring-laser inertial navigation system (INS), and a suite of electronic warfare (EW) aids. The initial EW suite was built around the CelsiusTech (now Saab Avionics) AR830 radar-warning receiver (RWR), with receiving antennas on the front and back of the wingtip missile launch rails. The EW system controls a set of chaff-flare dispensers, all built by Saab Avionics. BOL dispensers are built into the end of the missile launch rails and have a total capacity of 160 chaff packs or flares. BOP/C dispensers are built into the fuselage, while BOP/B dispensers are built into the end of the wing pylons. The BOP/B dispenser can trail a "BO2D" towed repeater RF decoy, which can be deployed at supersonic speed and programmed to operate in several different modes.Avionics are linked by three MILSTD 1553B data buses, one for basic aircraft and flight data; one for cockpit displays and data; and one for tactical and weapons data.
* The Flygvapnet was a pioneer in the development and deployment of datalinked combat systems, secretly fielding an initial version of a national defense datalink network with the SAAB 35 Draken fighter in the mid-1960s. The service has continued to refine the network.
The Gripen is fitted with the "Tactical Information Datalink System (TIDLS)", which gives the fighter four high-bandwidth, two-way datalinks with a range of about 500 kilometers (310 miles) and very high resistance to jamming. The datalinks allow the Gripen to engage in combat using another aircraft's sensors or from targeting data provided by other defense systems. Data acquired from remote sources is fused and displayed on the fighter's main MFD. The link is fully operational when the aircraft is on the ground, allowing a pilot on standby to have high situational awareness of the battle environment.
One Gripen can provide radar sensing for four of its colleagues, allowing a single fighter to track a target, while the others use the data for a stealthy attack. TIDLS also permits multiple fighters to quickly and accurately lock onto a target's track through triangulation from several radars; or allow one fighter to jam a target while another tracks it; or allow multiple fighters to use different radar frequencies collaboratively to "burn through" jamming transmissions. In addition, TIDLS gives the Gripen transparent access to the SAAB-Ericsson 340B Erieye "mini-AWACs" aircraft, as well as the overall ground command and control system. This system provides Sweden with an impressive defensive capability at a cost that, though still high, is less than that of comparable systems elsewhere.
* The Gripen's built-in armament consists of a single Mauser BK-27 27 millimeter cannon, housed in a fairing on the aircraft's belly, offset to left to the rear of the engine intake. Given the aircraft's relatively small size, it generally carries guided weapons to ensure maximum combat effectiveness. Possible external stores include:

Air to air missiles (AAMs). The primary AAM is the Raytheon AIM-120 AMRAAM, and the Gripen's PS-05A radar can guide four of these weapons simultaneously. Swedish AMRAAMs have minor modifications to fit Swedish specifications. Other possible AAM stores include the French Matra Mica; the British Aerospace Sky Flash, built in Sweden as the "Rb-71"; and the Anglo-French MBDA ramjet-powered Meteor BVRAAM or German BGT IRIS-T AAM, now in development. IRIS-T is a short-range heat-seeking AAM with "off-boresight" capability. The Flygvapnet intends to obtain the IRIS-T to replace Swedish-built Sidewinder AAMs, along with the Cobra helmet-mounted sight required by the IRIS-T.
Antiship missiles, such as the SAAB RBS-15 turbojet-powered sea-skimming missile. A precision land-attack version of the RBS-15 is now in development.
Air to surface missiles, such as the Raytheon AGM-65 Maverick, built in Sweden as the "Rb-75", as well as the "BK (BombKapsel) 90 Mjoelnir" guided gliding submunitions dispenser, also known as "DWS 39". The Mjoelnir was developed by Daimler-Benz Aerospace (now part of EADS), with the Gripen as the first intended flight platform. Of course, dumb bombs and unguided rocket pods have been qualified as well.

The Gripen's rapid turnaround time will help increase its combat effectiveness, allowing to be rapidly rearmed and sent on consecutive missions.
* The two-seat JAS 39B Gripen is 67 centimeters (2 feet 2 inches) longer than the single-seat version. Fuel capacity is the same for both aircraft. There is no HUD for the back-seater in the two-seat version, though HUD and other video information can be linked into the back-seat display system. The JAS 39B has twin clamshell canopies. One of the interesting features of the machine is an airbag to protect the back seater from flying shards from a front-seat ejection. The airbag pops full in an instant, and then just as rapidly deflates to allow the back-seater to eject.

The JAS 39B is not really intended for flight training as such, since the Gripen is a very docile aircraft. Its primary purpose is tactical training, and except for the lack of a built-in cannon, it is fully combat capable. Flight training for the Gripen is supplemented by four ground-based "Multi-Mission Trainer (MMT)" simulators built by Loral. Each MMT contains three wide-screen displays and a Gripen cockpit with a head-up display. The MMTs can be linked with dome simulators and other MMTs to provide interactive combat training.
* After obtaining initial production machines, the Flygvapnet moved on to deliveries of Batch 2 Gripens, which featured a Sundstrand APU, replacing the older Microturbo APU, which was too noisy and not reliable enough; a new Lockheed Martin flight control system computer, replacing a Lear-Siegler unit; a Kaiser HUD, replacing the Hughes-built HUD; and a new display processor. The Sundstrand APU was retrofitted to Batch 1 Gripens, as well as early Batch 2 aircraft that had an interim improved Microturbo APU.
Current deliveries are of Batch 3 machines, which feature:

An inflight refueling probe that retracts over the right engine intake.
A cockpit with new color MFDs and compatible with night vision goggles.
A new inertial navigation system with GPS, and an improved "Communication & Data Link 39 (CDL 39)" system. This is apparently in addition to the older TIDLS datalink.
An "on board oxygen generating system (OBOGS)".
More computing power and five MILSTD 1553B data buses, instead of three.
An improved "RM12UP" engine, with a full authority digital engine control (FADEC) and other improvements.
The improved "EWS-30" EW system, built around the new Saab Avionics "BOW-21" RWR, capable of recognizing a wider range of threats and targeting them more accurately. The EWS-30 includes an onboard, automatic active jammer, and can support improved towed decoys.

The last 20 Batch 2 aircraft included some Batch 3 features, such as the color MFDs, CDL 39, and the five data buses. The changes in Batch 3 provided a substantial increase in capability, and the Batch 3 JAS 39C/D machines are sometimes referred to as "Super Gripens".
Gripen production quantities have been steadily decreasing. When the type went into formal service, the Flygvapnet expected to obtain a total of 204 aircraft, but in 2007 the total buy was cut to 100. In compensation, all earlier production was to be brought up to Super Gripen standard by 2012. This represents a major downsizing of the air force, since in the late 1980s the country had 425 combat aircraft in 26 squadrons, and the original plan had been to obtain 350 Gripens.

[3] GRIPEN IN FOREIGN SERVICE / FUTURE ENHANCEMENTS

* Although the Swedes have traditionally been reluctant to export weapons, the end of the Cold War led to some relaxation of this policy, and in June 1995 SAAB formed a partnership with BAE Systems named "Gripen International" to sell the Gripen on the world market. SAAB was forced to seek international sales for the Gripen, since the Swedish government contract for the fighter was so tight-fisted that Gripen International's president, Hans Kruger, once said he'd "lost his shirt, tie, and jacket on the Batch 1 deal."
The arrangement allowed SAAB to leverage off the British firm's international marketing clout. BAE Systems felt that the Gripen would neatly fit in their product line, between the Hawk and the Eurofighter Typhoon. Three years later, BAE Systems obtained a 35% share in Saab. In 2005, BAE Systems finally reverted all marketing to Saab, the Swedish company having acquired enough marketing clout to do the job on its own.
There was skepticism in the aircraft industry that the Gripen could meet the competition from American and French manufacturers, but events have proven the skeptics wrong. The first export success for the Gripen occurred in 1999, when South Africa ordered 28, with initial deliveries in the spring of 2008.
The South African deal wasn't heavily contested, but late in 2001, Hungary committed to a ten-year lease for 14 Gripens from the Flygvapnet, with an option to buy at the end of the lease term, which will almost certainly be exercised. Deliveries of the Hungarian Gripens began in 2006 with final deliveries in late 2007. Immediately after the Hungarian win, the Czech Republic announced a preliminary agreement to buy a batch of Gripens. Although the deal was put on hold in 2002 after Central Europe was hit with some of the worst floods in the entire history of the region, with governments scrambling to respond to the emergency, it was revived, resulting in a lease deal established in late 2003 for twelve single-seaters and two two-seaters. All deliveries were performed in 2005, with the lease deal ending in 2015. Czech Gripens are armed with US-built AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles.
The success of the Gripen in Hungary and the Czech Republic was a real surprise, since there had been strong competition from US and French offerings. Thailand was the next customer, buying six in 2008, with deliveries in 2011. SAAB is pursuing other foreign sales, most significantly a requirement from the Indian Air Force for 136 aircraft.
Export Gripens are generally Batch 3 standard aircraft -- the Hungarians, being an early adopter, settled for a "near-Batch 3" configuration, with mixed features of Batch 2 and Batch 3 machines. The British ASRAAM and Israeli Rafael Python 4 short-range heat-seeking AAMs, and the Rafael "Litening" targeting and navigation pod are being qualified for the Gripen to support export sales. The Thales "Vicon 70" reconnaissance pod will be qualified for export Gripens, though the Flygvapnet will use a pod being developed by SAAB.
BAE Systems is working to integrate the NATO-standard "Link 16" datalink system. The primary drive for Link 16 was the export market, but as the Flygvapnet becomes more involved in operations with other forces, it has become more important to the Swedes as well, and the plan is to upgrade the Flygvapnet Gripen fleet to Link 16 in addition to the more capable TDLS. More radar modes are in the works as well, as is carriage of the 120 kilogram (250 pound) GPS-guided Small Diameter Bomb.

* SAAB has developed a demonstrator for a next-generation Gripen, rebuilt from a Flygvapnet aircraft, which performed its initial flight on 28 May 2008. The "Gripen Demonstrator" features ten hardpoints to provide an external load of 6,000 kilograms (13,200 pounds); a GE F414G engine with 25% uprated thrust; and fuel capacity increased by at least 35% to provide a range of up to 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles).
Of course avionics will be enhanced as well, in particular with the demonstrator fitted with an Italian Selex ES-05 Raven "active electronically-scanned array (AESA)" radar. An AESA consists of an array of programmable "transmit-receive (TR)" modules that can operate in parallel to perform separate or collaborative functions, performing, for example, jamming and target acquisition at the same time. The Gripen Demonstrator will be used to evaluate the AESA, and in general will pave the way for continuing updates of Flygvapnet Gripens, the ultimate goal being the "JAS 39E/F Gripen NG" with the AESA, F414G engine, more fuel and stores attachments, plus a wide range of other enhancements.
SAAB has even proposed a carrier-based "Sea Gripen", a Gripen NG with ruggedized landing gear, some airframe reinforcement, plus carrier-deck launch and recovery kit. Given the short span of the Gripen, folding wings would not be necessary. The concept was floated in response to an Indian Navy requirement.

Update - Libya Assault

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Sat, 2 Apr 2011 14:26:00 +0700

From Weapons and Technology

From Weapons and technology

Canadian Jets First flight

Canadian jet fighters have flown their first mission in the skies over Libya as part of a coalition effort to rein in Moammar Gadhafi’s crackdown on pro-democracy rebels. 4 CF-18 fighters accompanied by two CC-150 Polaris refuelling aircraft flew a Monday morning mission to patrol the northern coast of Libya. No shots were fired.Over the weekend, Gadhafi’s forces were the target of airstrikes and dozens of cruise missiles by the international air force.Monday’s flight marks the first time in more than a decade Canadian air fighters have been engaged in an active military mission abroad. While the fighters are routinely used to safeguard Canadian sovereignty, they last flew combat sorties in 1999, when they flew bombing missions during the NATO bombardment of Yugoslavia.In 1991, CF-18s flew during the first Gulf War – flying combat air patrols, escort missions and reconnaissance.The morning mission over Libya was to achieve air superiority, protecting not only other coalition aircraft but also coalition ships engaged in enforcing the arms embargo. Another six fighter planes are on standby to deploy if needed, though he didn’t think that would be happening soon.

France Campaign

A French warplane has opened fire on a target in Libya, kicking off a coordinated international campaign to prevent strongman Muammar Gaddafi's forces from crushing an uprising.

They opened fire at 5:45pm (on Saturday - 0345 AEDT Sunday) on an unspecified vehicle.

In the rebel camp, celebratory gunfire and honking of car horns broke out in Al-Marj, 100km from Benghazi, to welcome the first air strike. A military air base in Sirte, east of the capital, and another in Sebha in the south as likely targets of a strike. And as thousands were fleeing the rebel stronghold of Benghazi in eastern Libya, French President Nicolas Sarkozy told a summit of world leaders in Paris that French fighters were poised to attack. The aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle was being sent toward Libya to help enforce the Security Council resolution.

A warplane crashed in flames in a residential area of Benghazi, triggering celebratory gunfire from the rebels, but an insurgent commander later admitted it was one of theirs and had been shot down by Gaddafi's forces.

Royal Airforce

Tornado jets, submarines and stealth bombers fired 112 Tomahawk missiles and dropped explosives on 20 coastal locations as Gaddafi's men tried to take control of rebel-held Benghazi.A Royal Navy Trafalgar-class submarine stationed in the Mediterranean took part in the co-ordinated assault, which also involved forces from the U.S., France, Italy and Canada under the operational control of US Africa Command. A British nuclear-powered submarine was among the vessels in the Mediterranean that targeted Gaddafi’s defences near Tripoli and the town of Misurata. Stormshadow missiles were launched from GR4 fast jets which had flown 3,000 miles from RAF Marham in Norfolk and back - the longest range bombing since the Falklands.

Spanish Assault

Two F-18 Spanish fighter planes have taken off on their first mission over Libya today, where they will contribute to the establishment of a no-fly zone over the country.

The two jets took off from the Decimonannu Italian military base on the island of Sardinia. The F-18’s are armed with air to air missiles, and will patrol the airspace to stop any hostile plane from taking off.

The Spanish Boeing 707 air refuelling tanker plane has also taken off from the Italian base. The Spanish frigate, ‘Méndez Núñez’ which is based in Férrol, left there at 5pm on Sunday, destination Rota, and will shortly join the operation in the Mediterranean.

Norwegian jets

Norway dispatched six F-16 fighter jets Monday as part of its contribution to the no-fly zone operation over Libya. But the planes would not immediately see action until 'rules of engagement' have been clarified.The Norwegian planes were to operate from a base on the southern Greek island of Crete.

In addition to the jets, a Hercules transport plane was on its way with equipment and personnel to service the jets.

Scandinavian neighbour Denmark, also a NATO member, at the weekend deployed six F-16s, of which two were to serve as back-up planes, at the Naval Air Station Sigonella in southern Sicily.

Qatar Jets in Greece

Greece expects six fighter jets and a cargo plane from Qatar to land at a military base on the island of Crete by Tuesday, a defence ministry official told Reuters.

European and U.S. forces have sent warplanes against Libyan targets under a U.N. Security Council resolution authorising military action to protect civilians from leader Muammar Gaddafi's forces.

Qatar submitted a flight plan for six Mirage jets and one C-130 cargo plane to arrive Monday or Tuesday but it was not clear what their role in Libya would be.

The United Arab Emirates had also requested refueling at Souda base for 12 F-16 jets and 12 Mirage jets on their way to Sicily but it was not clear when and if they would arrive.

Summary

# U.S. military: 'We are not going after Gaddafi'
# Libyan military forces announce ceasefire from 19:00GMT
# RAF Tornado jets launch 3,000-mile missile assault from Norfolk
# Arab League criticises strikes for going beyond the international agreement and killing civilians
# 94 people reported to have died in Gaddafi's strike on Benghazi
# Italy says it will do whatever it can to free crew of tugboat captured off the coast in Tripoli
# Cameron says 'what we are doing is necessary, legal and right'
# Chancellor George Osborne says no ground troop invasion on the cards 'at the moment'
# Three US B-2 stealth bombers dropped 40 bombs on Libyan airfields
# 112 Tomahawk missiles fired at Libyan air-defence by coalition troops

From
F

Libya: rebels seek to break stalemate

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Sat, 2 Apr 2011 14:25:00 +0700

From The Telegraph
Libyan rebels moved heavier weapons and a top commander towards the disputed town of Brega on Friday, seeking to break the military stalemate against better-equipped troops loyal to Col Muammar Gaddafi.

Rebels said neither side could claim control of Brega - one of a string of oil towns along Libya's Mediterranean coast that have been taken and retaken by insurgents and Gaddafi's forces in recent weeks.

But on Friday there were signs the rebels were seeking to regain momentum, marshalling their rag-tag ranks into a more disciplined army and moving rockets and other equipment westward towards the front line.

To the cheers of rebels who fired their guns into the air, Abdel Fattah Younes al Abidi, who was appointed head of the rebel forces after defecting as Gaddafi's interior minister, arrived at a checkpoint outside Brega. He later mounted his convoy and headed towards the front line.

Members of the opposition movement seeking to end Gaddafi's more than 40 years in power have praised the enthusiasm of their fighters but have often voiced frustration at the lack of discipline or military strategy at the front.

On the road from Ajdabiyah to Brega, rebels manning checkpoints screened unarmed Libyans who were trying to join the battle

Google Translate Flags Widget For Blogger

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Sat, 2 Apr 2011 14:11:00 +0700

I’m sure that we are all not from the same country, and we all can’t read and understand all languages in the world, and as a blogger my self, sometimes i want to translate some blogs from various languages to English. The usual way is to copy the page url and then i go to google translate service and paste the url there then hit enter.
We can all short cut all this steps for our visitors by adding a great widget to our blog. it’s easy and one step trick.

Widget Features

This widget is a great one and the best translate widget ever and here are the features.

This Widget Auto detect your blog language and translate it to the readers chosen language.
Support 12 different languages, English, French, Germany, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Brazilian, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Arabic And Chinese.
Auto Adjustment, No matter where do you add this widget, it’ll be auto adjusted with your blog template.

widget to our blog. it’s easy and one step trick.

How To Add It To Blogger.

It’s very easy to add this widget to your blog, just go to your blogger dashboard >> Layout >> and on page elements page, Click Add A Gadget and choose HTML/JavaScript
Leave the title empty or type any title for your widget, and in the content area paste the following code.

<style>

 .google_translate img {
        filter:alpha(opacity=100);
        -moz-opacity: 1.0;
        opacity: 1.0;
        border:0;
        }
        .google_translate:hover img {
        filter:alpha(opacity=30);
        -moz-opacity: 0.30;
        opacity: 0.30;
        border:0;
        }
        .google_translatextra:hover img {
        filter:alpha(opacity=0.30);
        -moz-opacity: 0.30;
        opacity: 0.30;
        border:0;
        }
  </style>

 <div>

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 <a class="google_translate" href="#" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="French" onclick="window.open('http://translate.google.com/translate?u='+encodeURIComponent(location.href)+'&langpair=auto%7Cfr&hl=en'); return false;"><img alt="French" border="0" align="absbottom" title="French" height="24" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgzFCtmBxhcoG4H6AyqemXVf48lixnaS_Tg_iUudrsYRpKgIBXtzMs6WYUKfRelLG0dAALH-dZ71s3IBZw6t3RlC0EKamQOAmTVF_ZspQkIow3SDjkydIEajWXiXL6oEFvkV2dCVcYtKg/s200/France.png" style="cursor: pointer;margin-right:8px" width="24"/></a>

 <a class="google_translate" href="#" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="German" onclick="window.open('http://translate.google.com/translate?u='+encodeURIComponent(location.href)+'&langpair=auto%7Cde&hl=en'); return false;"><img alt="German" border="0" align="absbottom" title="German" height="24" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZZBBsGpM2HKaZOf2LjmbzQtDqOBDaJakx3K220u-pVSimoX9FwhGa6J8ByuE5QqsXKqSz6pbShspnrmXZljCB9PSY6_UWrE58EYSyYkz2pqwFZOpRIMTShdssjAOen5XTSUqrTLyevxo/s200/Germany.png" style="cursor: pointer;margin-right:8px" width="24"/></a>

 <a class="google_translate" href="#" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Spain" onclick="window.open('http://translate.google.com/translate?u='+encodeURIComponent(location.href)+'&langpair=auto%7Ces&hl=en'); return false;"><img alt="Spain" border="0" align="absbottom" title="Spain" height="24" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLnwsrseQuGC5rH2zgmuqpd-L1Qklg_MyKxbGH_z0tACfVTmMLBTtQTeQJXASqiChM5IrpD0ibj_QAnj0Qy9jBrob7rtKeHI3I4XkpmKm8iNnSeTPGF-sOfRgkBxGICFwEI8hzS9e8jzM/s200/Spain.png" style="cursor: pointer;margin-right:8px" width="24"/></a>

 <a class="google_translate" href="#" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Italian" onclick="window.open('http://translate.google.com/translate?u='+encodeURIComponent(location.href)+'&langpair=auto%7Cit&hl=en'); return false;"><img alt="Italian" border="0" align="absbottom" title="Italian" height="24" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1SqlXuB1F73t2jhmenLgI2XGr1Md8mLT8GBxQQI8u6bRFXNwpaBqAIDivj3Kv5nV5LV4kz1kwJ9nQeldyrXfP_Z_6TMUXGkSN2qeVjP3qN4pqZNZNdINJx8QVGVWmF2WQ1P-boI9C83w/s200/Italy.png" style="cursor: pointer;margin-right:8px" width="24"/></a>

 <a class="google_translate" href="#" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Dutch" onclick="window.open('http://translate.google.com/translate?u='+encodeURIComponent(location.href)+'&langpair=auto%7Cnl&hl=en'); return false;"><img alt="Dutch" border="0" align="absbottom" title="Dutch" height="24" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi49rdZQ8RyS2X68Sc3iJe5-93_AZKxIOABburCOvCEss_V3I1q3pOR16z6D0X_7eSG3qb06YEUi8x81CauPrLYho8myfjGzOanlFSjgILlKni29mVrQUbDYRSmvWKmho2xUmZuJWVICNE/s200/Netherlands.png" style="cursor: pointer;margin-right:8px" width="24"/></a>
      <a class="google_translate" href="#" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Russian" onclick="window.open('http://translate.google.com/translate?u='+encodeURIComponent(location.href)+'&langpair=auto%7Cru&hl=en'); return false;"><img alt="Russian" border="0" align="absbottom" title="Russian" height="24" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsNVIA4_7zlq6ouSV4FUGFHcpuSxi1TJF22xBRfB6nusKtJYQu59EYDBGstLvK-zykosWL7XKQBT7xB-IEWSjp4ldfwWRnFEmDQwnMBTVM-ziXWKOgiiLmOM6W1IlCg95PdlU9PoBlftg/s200/Russian+Federation.png" style="cursor: pointer;margin-right:8px" width="24"/></a>

 <a class="google_translate" href="#" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Portuguese" onclick="window.open('http://translate.google.com/translate?u='+encodeURIComponent(location.href)+'&langpair=auto%7Cpt&hl=en'); return false;"><img alt="Portuguese" border="0" align="absbottom" title="Portuguese" height="24" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRqxbmchyphenhyphenxua2YpAEkeKkyTbOirrlVscWDLgWo61qq2xIEYdHeuHfMoEJAk8SuyfCphtV13gOHerN1oUoHpwdpwT_GXdetJxeytqMn8HwluWWVHPJpHCMQJHnEbid2mAfRuvzNru0ucMY/s200/Brazil.png" style="cursor: pointer;margin-right:8px" width="24"/></a>

 <a class="google_translate" href="#" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Japanese" onclick="window.open('http://translate.google.com/translate?u='+encodeURIComponent(location.href)+'&langpair=auto%7Cja&hl=en'); return false;"><img alt="Japanese" border="0" align="absbottom" title="Japanese" height="24" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHMN9HZQVqxPsKBmBLhymUk6xw3ugZ0WyNIaCvADHUK84-dFQkO4kpWgwfzjGU4EeaZgxmqNNE8Q580pB7pnZdPqvy3R5etVJfLshMTLA1fIOiC4xSx8xcaHTGxYo1qee6mvAhEK8xolA/s200/Japan.png" style="cursor: pointer;margin-right:8px" width="24"/></a>

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 <a class="google_translate" href="#" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Chinese Simplified" onclick="window.open('http://translate.google.com/translate?u='+encodeURIComponent(location.href)+'&langpair=auto%7Czh-CN&hl=en'); return false;"><img alt="Chinese Simplified" border="0" align="absbottom" title="Chinese Simplified" height="24" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibPFKwJFHvrF_cxiBAb2OGBkqoRg9oKrFchLDYjazR5g0O7M2meWlbEdks7MexaU8oEWDWtFcI42O3-Q8KQyzmUnEwqfQxcOGvSbohmpVuCrjE73E-g40-U8Tfuygbix0UD_S7l3-qccc/s200/China.png" style="cursor: pointer;margin-right:8px" width="24"/></a>      </div> 
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Change the Favicon in Blogger

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Sat, 2 Apr 2011 14:03:00 +0700

What is a Favicon?
A favicon is a small 16X16 image located at the top of your browser in the url bar.

How to Change your Favicon

    First go to Layout >Edit HTML in your Blogger Dashboard.
    Backup your existing template before making any changes!
    Place the code below directly below the </head> tag in your template

<link href='http://bsaves.com/HowHero/Blogger%20Templates/moonspot/images/favicon.ico' rel='shortcut icon' type='image/vnd.microsoft.icon' /> <link href='http://bsaves.com/HowHero/Blogger%20Templates/moonspot/images/favicon.ico' rel='icon'/>

Creating your own Favicon

Replace the image URL (2X) with your own 16 pixel by 16 pixel image hosted on the internet.

http://bsaves.com/HowHero/Blogger%20Templates/moonspot/images/favicon.ico

You can host your own favicon blogger image at sites such as ImageShack; PhotoBucket; Flickr; etc.
Check out this Favicon Generator Tool which allows you to upload an image and it will format it for you!

Adrian Zecha

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Sat, 2 Apr 2011 10:56:00 +0700

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Adrian Zecha (born 1933) is an Indonesian hotelier who is best known as the co-founder of Regent International Hotels and founder of Aman Resorts
Born to a family of wealthy Indonesian-Czech plantation owners, Zecha had a privileged upbringing that included being educated in the United States.

In 1956, when President Sukarno nationalized the country's private businesses, the Zecha family fled to Singapore. At the time the 23-year-old Zecha was in New York, working at Time magazine. In 1961, Zecha launched Asia Magazine, the first regional newspaper colour supplement in Asia. When the magazine faltered a year later, Rupert Murdoch was persuaded by Zecha to invest in the magazine (in what was his first Asian investment). The magazine was a part of English speaking familys until 1998. It was held above water for its last ten years by Mr.Giro Semba and Mr. Olav Mueller-Uri until it finally closed in 1998. Olav Mueller-Uri is the person responsible for getting Air France back into Vietnam.

In 1970, Adrian started a new travel and lifestyle magazine named Orientations based in Hong Kong. With the advent of in-flight magazines, Orientations dropped its travel content and progressed over the years to become a publication focused on the arts of East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia and the Himalayas. It is now the leading magazine in this field and its contributors are renowned scholars and researchers from around the world.
Zecha's first experience of the hotel business was when a friend asked him to help the Marriott Hotel chain broker land deals in Asia. This experience led to Zecha joining with Robert Burns and Georg Rafael in 1972 to found Regent International Hotels, which was one of Asia's first luxury hotel groups. The trio built 12 hotels before in 1986 Zecha sold his 30% stake for $30 million. He then moved into real estate speculation, forming an investment fund that, among other deals, bought Bangkok's Regent Hotel and London's Dorchester Hotel before eventually on selling them.

While in Phuket looking for a site upon which to build a holiday home, Zecha was walking along Pansea Beach when he came across a coconut plantation which occupied a prime location. [2] Plans to build a home on a site soon developed into an idea to build a small boutique resort in partnership with longtime friend Anil Thadani. The two spent mainly their own money as no banks would lend for the project due to the small number of planned rooms, instead of the 500-room hotel they thought would be more practical.

Amanpuri opened in January 1988 at a cost of US$4 million with only 40 rooms. Its success, followed by that of Amandari in Bali, confirmed to Zecha the viability of a chain of minimalist boutique resorts in remote, natural settings. Each resort in the chain has been unique, with no more than 50 rooms. Initially concentrated in South East Asia, the chain has expanded to the United States, Morocco and Sri Lanka.

In 1992, needing additional money to fund expansion, he sold a controlling interest in Silverlink, the holding company which owned Aman Resorts to Clement Vaturi, an old friend whose family owned the Hoteliere Immobliere chain of French hotels. Zecha was left with only 45% of the share holdings. The arrangement was satisfactory to both parties until, in a convoluted series of financial events, Vaturi’s controlling interest effectively came under the control of Los Angeles-based Colony Capital, a real estate investment fund. A lawsuit between Vaturi and Colony Capital promised to drag on, putting on hold indefinitely Zecha's own plans to expand the number of Aman resorts. Dispirited and by now owning only 45% of Silverlink’s shares he resigned from his position at Aman Resorts in 1998.

By 2000 Colony Capital and Vaturi had settled their lawsuit, which led to Vaturi getting his Silverlink shares back. He soon onsold his shares to Lee Hing Development, a Hong Kong property fund which was affiliated with Thadani's Schroder Capital Partners (a Singapore-based fund). With investors in control whom he felt shared his vision, Zecha returned as chairman and CEO.

In the intervening period Zecha founded Maha Resorts, which opened its Hacineda de San Antonia in Mexico in October 2000.

On 27 November 2007, Zecha announced that he had reached an agreement with DLF Ltd, India's largest real estate company, to form a partnership to acquire a controlling interest in Aman Resorts. The entire transaction, when completed, is estimated to be valued at US$400 million with an assumed debt of approximately US$150 million.
In addition to his position at Aman Resorts, Zecha is also chairman and director of General Hotel Management Ltd (GHM), a developer and manager of luxury hotels and resorts.
Zecha was also a partner with Georg Rafael in Rafael Hotels Limited, a company that was sold to Mandarin Oriental Group in May 2000.
In 2005 Adrian Zecha was awarded the Innovation Award at the 16th annual Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP)

Some nice Blogspot Themes

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Sat, 2 Apr 2011 10:34:00 +0700

Here are what I collect from Internet: nice themes for Blogspot.

Alias theme

Features:
Instructions:	How to use this template
Template author:	PBTemplates
Designer:	New WP Themes
Description:	Alias is a free blogger template adapted from WordPress with 2 columns, right sidebar, magazine-styled, rounded corners, space for ads, slideshow, posts thumbnails and drop down menu. Download Alias for free in BTemplates.

Download

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Presentation of Ho Le Thu, famous singer

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Fri, 1 Apr 2011 16:39:00 +0700

I started pursuing my dreams when I first joined the "Talented Kids Club" at the age of 9. With the encouragement of my family, friends, and teachers I continued singing and entered many singing contests. In my Senior High year, I had joined two amateur bands called "Stars" and "Thien Thanh". In 1991, I entered in in the contest "Tieng Hat Truyen Hinh" where I was welcomed by the audience with great love and support. During this time, I had many decision to pursue singing as a professional career.

All my life I had love taking on new challenges-so in 1996, I decided to explore a career in "acting". From there, I landed a few roles on videos produced by "Ben Thanh Audio" and "Hang Phim Tre". In 1999, I was filmed in my first drama movie tittled " Canh Cua Cuoc Doi" and completed five movies by the end of 2002.
In 2003, I moved to France with my family and settle down.

Missing the stage so much I decided to resume my career and in 2004, i was invited to perform at a concert in the city of Marseille; a concert that united different ethnic groups in France and I had the honor to represent the Vietnamese community. In 2004, I joined Thuy Nga Paris By Night and I have been appearing in their shows since Paris by Night 73

Tomahawk Cruise Missiles Hit Targets in Libya

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Fri, 1 Apr 2011 14:16:00 +0700

More than 112 Tomahawk cruise missiles struck over 20 targets inside Libya today in the opening phase of an international military operation the Pentagon said was aimed at stopping attacks led by Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and enforcing a U.N.-backed no-fly zone.
President Obama, speaking from Brazil shortly after he authorized the missile attacks, said they were part of a "limited military action" to protect the Libyan people.

"I want the American people to know that the use of force is not our first choice and it's not a choice I make lightly," Obama said. "But we cannot stand idly by when a tyrant tells his people that there will be no mercy."

The first air strikes, in what is being called Operation Odyssey Dawn, were launched from a mix of U.S. surface ships and one British submarine in the Mediterranean Sea at 2 p.m. ET, Vice Adm. William E. Gortney told reporters at a Pentagon briefing.

They targeted Libyan air defense missile sites, early warning radar and key communications facilities around Tripoli, Misratah, and Surt, but no areas east of that or near Benghazi.

From ABC News

Create backlink copyright with Tynt publisher Tools

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 10:44:00 +0700

This service helps us to create backlink whenever people copy content from your website. Simply follow this link and register an account: http://tynt.com
After input your website or blog address, user name and password press Next to go to the next phase. Here you can customize the settings of how the backlink will appear.

Recommendation:
You should choose as the image below:

Final copy the code to the <head>..........</head> section.
That's all.
Just copy a paragraph in this thread and past into Word or Google you will see the resutl.
Thanks for reading.

3d Max : Simple Shape Modify

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 16:00:00 +0700

Tutorial 1:
In this tutorial we learn how to:
Modify Simple Shape
Detail inside

Simple shape modify
Rescale an object in the modify tab

Chapter 02 Edit Mesh

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 08:02:00 +0700

This tutorial show me how to edit mesh

I will show in detail by writing in a few day.

Chapter 01 Polygonal Modeling

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 07:50:00 +0700

Here is a video tutorial of 3DsMax: Polygonal Modeling

From: Youtube

A transquil bay on the central coast

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 16:45:00 +0700

Waves lapping against the shores and coral reefs swaying gently in the ocean are two of the sites enjoyed by tourists traveling to Vinh Hy, a small bay nestled on the central coast of Vietnam.

Vinh Hy Bay surrounded by Nui Chua National Park, (inset) Seafood at Vinh Hy Bay.

The gentle waves and breezes blowing in from Ninh Thuan Province appeals to holiday goers looking to immerse themselves in nature and tranquility.

The bay’s numerous islets have been shaped through the years by winds and waves into a number of unique figures. An islet known to locals as Tai (ear), is known to tourists as Rua due to its turtle-like appearance from a distance. Nearby, one will find a rock resembling a hand with fingers stretching to the sky.

Boat tours of the bay will give visitors an opportunity to observe fishermen catching cod. Nguyen Quoc Nam, a tour guide from Ninh Thuan Tourism Co., told the Daily that Vinh Hy Bay has the largest codfish population. Visitors can recognize which boat harvested the largest volume of codfish last season by the height of the boat’s flag. Peak season for harvesting codfish is April.

Nam says that the cod fishermen always place offerings and burn incense at a little temple onshore at the beginning of the harvest season to pray for good harvests, good luck and safety.

The temple is located 42 kilometers northeast of Phan Rang Town on a beach covered with colorful stones and can be reached by boat.

Ba Dien (crazy woman) and Coc (toad) are two beaches suitable for swimming on sunny days when the weather is warm. These unspoiled beaches are also good for those interested in deep-sea diving and swimming.

Visitors who are not strong swimmers should wear a life jacket because the sandy beach immediately leads to deep waters. Another good option for those not inclined to swim is to stay onshore and nosh on fresh shrimp, squid, fish, snails and other seafood.

Visitors to Vinh Hy Bay must make time to view coral reefs from a glass-bilge boat or through a diving tour. The bay is home to more than 300 species of coral whose colors shine brightly on a sunny day. The best time to view the coral reefs is during the summer when the sun shines and the sea is calm.

In the spring, hoa mai vang (yellow apricot) and other wild flowers bloom between the cracks of the rocky mountains of Nui Chua National Park.

Organized package tours to Vinh Hy Bay can be booked through many travel agencies in HCMC including Saigontourist and Vietravel. Travelers can also head to Phan Rang by train or car and hire a motorbike taxi to the bay.

At the bay, visitors can hire a glass-bilge boat capable of accommodating 20 people for a two-hour voyage at VND750,000-800,000. Visitors can also buy a ticket on a boat for VND50,000.

(Source: SGT)

Vietnamese Food & Cooking

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Wed, 9 Mar 2011 10:46:00 +0700

Vietnamese Food & Cooking
Hermes House | 2006 | ISBN: 0681375841 | English | 259 pages | PDF | 51 Mb

Discover the deliciously fragrant cuisines of Indo-China, with over 150 authentic recipes, illustrated step-by-step. Explore the rivers and deltas of Vietnam, the bustling markets of Ho Chi Mihn City and Hanoi, and the colorful celebrations and rich traditions that pervade everyday life in this fascinating region. Features a comprehensive visual guide to Vietnamese and southeast Asian ingredients, and step-by-step descriptions of preparation and cooking techniques. Recipes range from mouthwatering snacks such as crisp yet succulent Vietnamese Spring Rolls, and delicious main dishes including Garlic-roasted Quails with Honey and Shellfish Curry with Coconut Milk and Basil, to sumptuous sweet treats such as Coconut Sorbet or Vietnamese Fried bananas.

More than 750 specially commissioned photographs, including pictures showing the important stages of each recipe, wonderful evocative shots of the finished food, and scenic images of the landscape and people. complete nutritional information is given for every recipe.

============================

http://rapidshare.com/files/403946571/streammedias.com.vfC.7z

French for Beginners - How to say hello and goodbye in French

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Wed, 9 Mar 2011 09:52:00 +0700

In this beginner French lesson, Sonia teaches us how to say hello and goodbye, both in formal and informal contexts. Presented by Diplomat Language School, in Toronto, Canada.

French for Beginners - How to Tell Time in French

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Wed, 9 Mar 2011 09:40:00 +0700

In this lesson, Rita explains how to tell time in French. Includes a variety of useful phrases and expressions related to time. Presented by Diplomat Language School in Toronto, Canada.

Speaking French for beginner series: How to Ask Questions in French

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Wed, 9 Mar 2011 09:37:00 +0700

Learn to speak French with beautiful teacher from Toronto, Canada.

My biography

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Fri, 4 Mar 2011 15:04:00 +0700

Indeed it’s very difficult to know how to start so I decide to write as my free thought. I’m not a writer and I do not want to become a writer, too. But I’m learning to be a blogger and write anything I like, things I meet in my daily life, about my family and my baby…

I’m now 34 and I’m married. I have a 16 months old baby girl. I work as a interpretor and safty manager for a construction company. I spend 1 hour to go to work with 40km faraway from my house. I usually stay a whole week at the construction site and just come home at the weekend. However I get enough to support for my family and a sum of money for my debt.

I love working with computer and at the company we usually spend hafl of working time for working with Internet and computer and the other half for working out at the site.

My hooby is watching TV and the favourit channels are English Premier Leaguge Football, action film..

Weapons of the Cold War

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Wed, 2 Mar 2011 10:58:00 +0700

Procrustes in modern dress, the nuclear scientist will prepare the bed on which mankind must lie; and if mankind doesn't fit-well, that will be just too bad for mankind.

Aldous Huxley

A Note on Military Jargon

Throughout this book I use as few acronyms and specialized military terms as I can. These terms are not needed to grasp the general picture. Unlike their counterparts in the natural sciences and mathematics, these terms do not economize or clarify discussions of which they are a part, but needlessly encumber them, thereby making it harder for citizens to critically evaluate military policies. And, once we begin to use the war intellectuals' terms, we tend to think about military affairs in their terms too. For example, it mattered little to the Russians whether a bomb which could destroy Moscow made its home in a Nebraskan or a German missile site.

Endowing these bombs with two different names, however, made it easier for our war intellectuals to act as if locations and other trivial characteristics of these bombs made all the difference in the world. This, in turn, was used to support the fallacious argument that the cause of peace was served by negotiating small reductions in one kind of bomb and large increases in another Western governments and military organizations employ terms like "Minutemen," "Polaris," "initiative," and "shield" (which evoke in most of us positive associations) to promote weapons and policies of mass destruction. This miscalling started early; for example, giving the name "Peacemaker" to a 1940s' aircraft whose deadly cargo could destroy at least one large metropolitan area. This miscalling still continues; for example, giving the name "Peacekeeper" to a ballistic missile which could wipe a few cities off the face of the earth. The least this book can do is break away from this inglorious tradition.

Conventional Weapons

In the 1980s, deployment, production, and research of conventional weapons accounted for some 75 percent of the United States' military budget. These weapons are familiar to most of us, and only call for a few generalizations.

In this century, dramatic increases in the technological sophistication and effectiveness of conventional weapons have taken place. As a result, modern conventional wars are, to a considerable extent, wars between machines and their operators, not between soldiers in open combat. It follows that the side with a more advanced scientific base and a stronger economy has a decisive edge. Because most poor nations have neither, they must import most of their weapons, and they often settle internal political conflicts not through an open fight between the well-armed state and its poorer opponents, but through guerrilla warfare.

A new weapon might confer a decisive edge in conventional warfare on the side which deploys it first. However, soon opponents acquire the new weapon or invent effective countermeasures against it, so the edge is of a short duration. Hence, though new weapons have often helped the side possessing them win battles, in the long run they have harmed the human prospect by steadily raising the costs of war.

Weapon development often leads to obsolescence. Cannons replaced catapults, rifles replaced swords, tanks replaced horses, and modern anti-tank weapons may outdate tanks.

Throughout history, some devices which were not ordinarily viewed as weapons found use in warfare. This practice still continues, albeit at a more advanced technological level. The primitive method of fighting wars by setting forests or fields on fire was replaced by methodically poisoning, plowing over, and setting ablaze large tracts of land. The ancient tactic of defending a city under siege by pouring boiling oil on its attackers has given way to the use of incendiary materials that stick to people's skin and burn them alive.

Chemical and Biological Weapons

Chemical and biological weapons may be used to kill and injure people and other living organisms and to damage non-living materials. Chemical weapons are made of inanimate substances. Biological weapons are living organisms.

In comparison to nuclear weapons neither weapon is, at the moment, very effective. They have both been used in the past and will be used in the future, but, except for their psychological impact, and (like all other weapons) their inhumanity, there is nothing particularly unusual or devastating about them. In 1990, the USA and USSR agreed to eliminate their stockpiles of chemical weapons, a decision which may further diminish their importance. On the other hand, their successful deployment in some recent Third World conflicts may increase their appeal, especially for hard-pressed non-nuclear countries.

The chief concern, then, is not with what people can do with these weapons now, but with what they might be able to do with them in the future. In this context, biological research appears more ominous. Over many decades, some biologists have been trying to develop new varieties of disease-causing living organisms.⁴ Future advances along these lines might tempt nations or terrorists to vaccinate their people against one such organism in secret, then let it loose, or threaten to let it loose, on the world. Today this is only a script for a science fiction thriller, but we have all learned by now the bitter-sweet lesson that today's science fiction may become tomorrow's commonplace realities.

Nuclear Bombs

Let us move on to nuclear weapons, the "backbone of American military power."⁵ In the late 1980s, the entire nuclear program accounted for about a quarter of America's military spending.³ The nuclear bombs themselves, are, comparatively speaking, cheap; their production probably consumed less than 1 percent of America's total defense budget.^2a Their yields cover a considerable range; single bombs in the American arsenal could cause roughly as much as 100 times, or as little as 1/100th, the damage in Hiroshima.

A bomb's yield determines, in part, its wartime use. Small bombs are destined for such things as battlefield situations, mines, artillery shells, and anti-submarine operations. Medium bombs are destined against small military targets. Large bombs could be used against metropolitan areas or against large well-protected military targets.

Pound for pound, the Hiroshima bomb had a far greater destructive power than non-nuclear explosives. Since 1945, nuclear scientists have made even more impressive strides in this respect. In the 1980s, a modern bomb weighing as much as the Hiroshima bomb (about five metric tons), could have as much as 150 times its explosive yield. In fact, by 1980 at the latest, humanity came close to the theoretical limit of weight reductions; as far as contemporary theoretical physics is concerned, further research in this direction was fruitless.

Delivery Vehicles

Bombers and Cruise Missiles

From 1945 through 1991, several types of airplanes could be used to deliver nuclear bombs to a target, depending in part on their starting points. In the event of war between the USA and the USSR, a large number would have taken off from the USA and flown to targets in the USSR and elsewhere. These bombers were large, they could fly to the Soviet Union and back without landing, and they could carry bombs or cruise missiles (see below). Smaller airplanes which could carry fewer nuclear bombs and could not fly so far were stationed in Europe, Korea, and on aircraft carriers.

American bombers were once destined to drop bombs above targets, but, allegedly, the Soviets air defense system could have prevented as many as half of our bombers from reaching their targets. Though the remaining half could still obliterate Soviet cities and military targets many times over, war planners-who like to play it safe-developed countermeasures against Soviet air defense. Of these countermeasures, two deserve special mention.

The so-called stealth bomber should be able to penetrate the Russian air defense system better than existing American bombers.

The second countermeasure equipped bombers with cruise missiles. These missiles could be released hundreds of miles from target, thereby reducing a bomber's vulnerability to Soviet air defense. A cruise missile is a small, pilotless airplane which can fly close to the ground. It is equipped with a built-in navigational system which allows it to deliver its single warhead to target with great accuracy. By early 1992, the USA was deploying cruise missiles by the thousand, with the Commonwealth of Independent States trailing some distance behind. Because these missiles could be launched from airplanes, they maximized the bomb's chances of reaching the target and the crew's safe return (it is not clear, however, whether there will be anyplace safe to return to in an all-out nuclear war). In addition to large bombers, these little unmanned airplanes can be readily launched from almost any platform. As seen in the Persian Gulf War, cruise missiles can also carry a large load of conventional bombs.

Ballistic Missiles

Among delivery vehicles, ballistic missiles have for a long time been held in the highest regard by Western and Soviet analysts. These missiles are equipped with bombs, which, together with the mechanisms that set them off, guidance systems, and some other components, are called warheads. A ballistic missile is essentially a rocket which shoots its warheads out to space and from there propels them toward their targets. From then on, the warhead's trajectory is determined by gravity. Because there is no air resistance in space, warheads there fly with amazing speed-some 25 minutes after a Midwestern missile has been launched, its warheads would begin exploding over Asian or European soil.

At first, ballistic missiles had only one warhead each. Later, new missiles were often equipped with several warheads and many of the old ones were similarly retrofitted. Some ballistic missiles carried as many as ten warheads (ten MIRVs in jargon), and each of these warheads could hit a different target. All the bombs delivered from a single missile have, however, a limited range, and must fall within an area not exceeding some 90 miles in length and 30 miles in width.⁶ For instance, bombs from a single missile could destroy targets in both Baltimore and Washington, D.C. (30 miles apart), but not in Baltimore and Pittsburgh (210 miles apart).

Ballistic missiles in the American arsenal could be launched from land and sea. In the 1980s, most Western land missiles were stationed in Europe and in the American Midwest. The European-based missiles were smaller, had a shorter range, were not well protected, and, towards the end of the decade, were being negotiated out of existence. The Midwestern missiles (ICBM in jargon) were placed underground, had a longer range, and were protected by massive concrete silos.

Ballistic missiles could also be launched from submarines. Each missile-submarine carried a number of ballistic missiles, and each missile could be equipped with multiple warheads. On the American side, all missile-submarines were powered by nuclear reactors. Because these reactors enabled missile-submarines to stay under water (without surfacing) for more than two months at a time and to make less noise than conventional submarines, nuclear submarines were harder to detect and destroy.

Strategic Requirements of Nuclear Weapons and Delivery Vehicles

Ideally, all warheads and delivery vehicles must meet the following requirements:

Reliability. Delivery vehicles must take off and discharge their warheads properly; warheads must reach and pulverize their targets. Though the U.S. has never fired ballistic missiles over the North Pole (as it would have in time of war with Russia), most experts believe that American warheads and delivery vehicles were reliable.

Penetrability. They must get past any obstacle on their way to target. Most ballistic missiles are unstoppable, but a certain fraction of bombers and cruise missiles may have been prevented by Soviet air defenses from reaching target.

Accuracy. They must hit Moscow and not Paris; a missile site and not a preschool two miles away. The U.S. has made great strides in this regard: In 1991, about half of all American bombs, regardless of their point of origin and delivery vehicle, were reportedly able to land within one-quarter mile of target.

Survivability. Enough warheads and delivery vehicles must survive the worst imaginable surprise attack to assure the sufficient destruction of the attacker in a retaliatory strike. Only this, it is believed, can deter nuclear blackmail.

Command, Control, and Communication

A nation's Armed Forces must be continuously integrated into one functional unit. This integration has been achieved through a rigid chain of command which went all the way to the Presidents in the USA and the USSR; through various means of gathering intelligence, including advance warning of impending or actual nuclear attack; and through an extensive communication network.

The most important mission of the American and Soviet militaries in times of peace was prevention of accidental or unauthorized launch of nuclear weapons. For this purpose, a complicated (and so far remarkably effective) network of safeguards and codes has been used. The command, control, and communication network was also believed to be vital to the national interest because it helped assure nuclear retaliation. Though substantial efforts have been expended in this direction, it is doubtful whether this network would have survived a surprise attack in either the USA or the USSR.⁷

For obvious reasons, each side had to know what the other was up to. In part, the needed information has been gathered through traditional activities such as spying and analysis of open publications. In part, it has been gathered through sophisticated technologies such as radar and satellites. Early detection is considered particularly important in deterring nuclear war. Thus, if the Soviets knew that Americans were likely to be forewarned of a surprise attack and save their bombers (by putting them in the air on time), the Soviets might have been less inclined to launch an attack in the first place.

Satellites

Like some nuclear warheads, satellites are carried into space by rockets. But, instead of being propelled back to earth, they are propelled into orbit around it. In the early 1980s, some three-quarters of all space missions had military purposes,^8a and every third day saw the launch of a new military satellite.^8b Throughout the 1980s, military satellites were not involved in direct warfare; they only constituted a vital element in integrating the entire military machine. Their integrative functions included (1) reconnaissance, which provided, among other things, surveillance of the entire earth and advance warning of a missile attack; (2) communication, in fact, 80 percent of all military communications were carried out via satellites; and (3) navigation, for example, by helping missile submarines pinpoint their exact location, satellites enabled them to improve the targeting accuracy of their warheads.^8c

Satellites are gradually being equipped with means of destroying fellow satellites and of defending themselves from attack. If military competitions among major world powers overtake humanity again, these developments could turn out to be critically important to warfare and to the fate of the earth. In contrast, although America's spaced-out 1980s' rush to render satellites capable of missile destruction (SDI in jargon) might produce some unexpected technological spin-offs, the contribution it will make to our national security is sure to be far too slight to justify the costs. Sooner or later, this attempt will be given up as a bad job.

This then is what those exciting first years of peaceful space exploration have come to. Many among us are too young to remember the early promise of humanity's reach to the stars. Some people disdained it even then. Others cannot forget the quarrels which set them apart from their fellow passengers to the grave. But those of us who shared the excitement, those of us whose compassion for their fellows transcends national and ideological boundaries, can only view the 1980s' militarization of space as a letdown from that wonderful moment in 1969 when a man first walked on the moon.

Summary

As much as possible, modern military terms are eschewed in this book because they only served to encumber, obfuscate, and degrade the moral and intellectual quality of discourse in Cold War America. Conventional weapons include such old standards as tanks and rifles and such relative newcomers as anti-tank guided missiles and laser beams. Throughout the Cold War, conventional weapons have been used extensively in international warfare and consumed a much larger fraction of the world's military spending than nuclear weapons. Chemical weapons such as mustard gas may be defined as substances which can be gainfully used to harm human beings, other living organisms, or non-living materials. Recent years have seen a marked increase in their use in local conflicts, but they were not expected to play a major role in a worldwide conflagration. Biological weapons are toxic or harmful living organisms, e.g., disease-causing bacteria or submarine-destroying dolphins. Although they have been relatively unimportant throughout the Cold War, future research might greatly increase their significance and appeal. Despite their overwhelming military importance, nuclear bombs consumed a relatively small portion of America's total military budget; a far greater proportion was expended on the development, production, and maintenance of delivery vehicles. Nuclear bombs could be launched from many corners of the globe; from air, sea, and land; from the ocean's and earth's surfaces and subsurfaces; from aircraft carriers and infantry cannons; from submarines and bombers. They could be delivered to target through bombers, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and cannons. These delivery vehicles and the warheads they carried were expected to meet minimum standards of reliability, penetrability, accuracy, and survivability. Each nation has used various means to integrate its armed forces into one functional unit and gain information about the activities of its adversaries and allies. Space satellites played important roles in the military machines of the United States and the Soviet Union, roles which included reconnaissance, communication, and navigation.

Source: Nissani, M. (1992). Lives in the Balance: the Cold War and American Politics, 1945-1991.

Russian Army - Overview

noreply@blogger.com (minhpeter) — Tue, 1 Mar 2011 13:50:00 +0700

Despite its position as the second service in the armed forces hierarchy, the Ground Forces were the most politically influential Soviet service. Senior Ground Forces officers held all important posts within the Ministry of Defense as well as the General Staff.

Even after Mikhail Gorbachev came to power and encouraged the policy of arms control and international cooperation, the dominant role and the overwhelming strength of the military did not significantly change. Although Secretary General Gorbachev himself proclaimed during the 27th Party Congress in 1986 a concept of " reasonable sufficiency", in 1988 the Soviet army still maintained more than 200 divisions and more than 50,000 main battle tanks. In 1989 the Ground Forces had 2 million men, organized into four combat arms and three supporting services.

By 1996 the ground forces included in their armaments some 19,000 main battle tanks, 20,000 artillery pieces, 600 surface-to-surface missiles with nuclear capability, and about 2,600 attack and transport helicopters. At that time the Ground Forces of the Russian Federation were estimated to number approximately 670,000 officers and enlisted personnel. Of that number, about 170,000 were contract volunteer enlistees and warrant officers, and about 210,000 were conscripts. Presumably, the remaining 290,000 were commissioned officers, suggesting that some 43 percent of ground forces personnel were officers. This extraordinarily high percentage reflected both the Soviet and Russian tradition of giving little authority to the enlisted ranks, as well as the vestiges of the much larger military cadre inherited from the Soviet army. Much of this bulge is made up of senior field-grade officers and generals who no longer are needed in a smaller military but who are too young to retire. In the mid-1990s, this situation was one of the most difficult personnel problems facing the ground forces command.

The issue of gradually replacing Russia's ineffectual conscription system with a volunteer force has brought heated discussion in the defense establishment. The semiannual draft, which has set about 200,000 as its regular quota, has been an abysmal failure in the post-Soviet era because of evasion and desertion. During evaluation of an initial, experimental contract plan, in May 1996 Yeltsin unexpectedly proposed the filling of all personnel slots in the armed forces with contract personnel by 2000. In 1996 some units already were more than half staffed by contract personnel, and an estimated 300,000 individuals, about 20 percent of the total nominal active force, were serving under contract. At that time, more than half of new contractees were women.

Military service became particularly unpopular in Russia in the mid-1990s. Under conditions of intense political and social uncertainty, the traditional appeal to Russian patriotism no longer resonated among Russia's youth. The percentage of draft-age youth who entered the armed forces dropped from 32 percent in 1994 to 20 percent in 1995. The Law on Military Service stipulates twenty-one grounds for draft exemption, but in many cases eligible individuals simply refuse to report; in July 1996, a report in the daily Pravda referred to a "daily boycott of the draft." In the first half of 1995, about 3,000 conscripts deserted, and in all of 1995 between 50,000 and 70,000 inductees refused to report. According to a 1996 Russian report, such personnel deficiencies meant that only about ten of Russia's sixty-nine ground forces divisions were prepared for combat.

The two most compelling reasons for the failure of conscription are the unfavorable living conditions and pay of soldiers (less than US$1 per month at 1995 exchange rates) and the well-publicized and extremely unpopular Chechnya operation. The Russian tradition of hazing in the ranks, which became more violent and was much more widely reported in the 1990s, also has contributed to society's antipathy toward military service.

On 07 April 1995 the Duma passed a bill which altered the Law on Military Service in Russia. Changes extended the length of required military service from 18 months to 2 years from 01 October 1995 and act retroactively for those drafted in 1993-1994. Only about 19,000 of the approximately 230,000 troops scheduled for discharge in December 1994 were released on time. The bill also introduced universal conscription of young men graduating from institutes of higher learning.

By 1997 the total strength of the ground forces was at an all time low of 400,000 men and officers. Regulations for conscription provided easy loopholes to escape it to over 70 per cent of the eligible age group. In 1996, only 13 per cent of the eligible age group were conscripted, the majority proving themselves "unfit" to serve and the rest successfully prolonging student deferral, or bribing their way out. The deferment allowed to students also meant that only those with minuscule career chances who serve. As of the late 1990s a quarter of draftees had not completed secondary education, and a fifth had a criminal record.

At the outset of the Chechen campaign in December 1994, the Russian Army had no money and little support. The army had not conducted a regiment or division-scale field training exercise in over two years and most battalions were lucky to conduct field training once a year. Most battalions were manned at 55% or less. The Russian Army invaded Chechnya with a rag-tag collection of various units, without an adequate support base. When the Chechens stood their ground, the state to which the Russian Army had sunk became apparent to the world.

To the extent that the Chechnya conflict of 1994-96 was a fair test of combat capability, Russia's armed forces were far from fighting form, even by their own evaluation. As they received pessimistic assessments of the current and future situation, Russian policy makers faced a complex of other adjustments.

According to the resolutions of the Security Council meeting of 11 August 2000, the major reform measures of the general purpose forces will be accomplished by 2006. By that time these forces will have over 800,000 servicemen, for a total reduction of 400,000 troops [possibly as soon as 2003]. The army would lose 180,000 men.

In November 2002 Russian defense minister Sergei B. Ivanov, outlined a package of military reforms. By 2007 soldiers, paratroopers and marines in the most combat-ready units — 10 divisions, 7 brigades and 13 regiments — would all be professionals. Under earlier plans supported by the uniformed leadership, the transition to a contracted, rather than conscripted force would not begin in earnest until 2011.

The Russian armed forced totalled approximately 1.2 million troops by the end of 2006. Plans were implemented to reduce the length of mandatory service for personnel from 2 years to 18 months in 2007, and down to 1 year in 2008. Russian planners also outlined plans for the military to be comprised of 70% volunteers by 2010.

Main weapons:

Su-27

Source globalsecurity.org