An article by Michael Larkin of Investor’s Business Daily reveals there are major category 1 deficiencies in the F-35 as the program is just about to hit full rate production. Documents obtained by Defense News point out that pilots are forced to limit flight speeds in order to avoid damaging the F-35’s airframe. F-35 program executive Vice Adm. Mat Winter says that, and 12 other category 1 deficiencies should be successfully downgraded to category 2 status before a decision is made to enter full rate production at year’s end. Of those issues, two will be addressed afterwards with software … [Read more...]
Could Chinese Nuclear Submarines be Headed to the Arctic?
In recent years, the Arctic has seen a massive military buildup by Russia. Lyle Goldstein of The National Interest discusses the possibility of Chinese nuclear armed submarines putting in at Russian Arctic ports. He goes on to discuss the possibility of joint Russian and Chinese anti-aircraft systems and anti-missile defense systems in the Artic. Goldstein writes (abridged): […] Turning back to China’s undersea deterrent and potential parallels to earlier Soviet naval dilemmas, this Russian military expert observes that, geographically, the Chinese coast is a “huge distance [огромное … [Read more...]
Has the U.S. Navy Cracked the Code on Electromagnetic Railgun Power Generation?
The U.S. Navy has spent around $500 million in funding over the past decade for the research and development of its much-hyped electromagnetic railgun. The main obstacle to overcome was the massive 25 megawatts needed to power the weapon. That’s enough to power an average U.S. home for just over two years. It appears the U.S. Navy may have finally cracked that code as they are planning to test the railgun aboard surface warships, says Jared Keller of Task & Purpose. After more than a decade of research and development and upwards of $500 million in funding, the Navy finally plans on … [Read more...]
Remote Controlled Terror
Houthi rebel drone attacks are on the rise, and they’re getting more sophisticated. United Nations investigators have said the rebels, with their newest UAV-X planes, can travel 150mph and just over 900 miles. They are also using remote-controlled boats to target ships off the coast of Yemen. According to the U.N., these unmanned threats put much of the Gulf, including Saudi and Emirates capitals, and one of the busiest shipping routes, the strait of Bab-el-Mandeb within range. Dion Nissenbaum and Warren Strobel of The WSJ write (abridged). Yemen’s Houthi rebels have launched armed drone … [Read more...]
New Secret Weapon is Like Dropping Anvils on Terrorists Heads
This is a variant of the Hellfire missile called the R9X. The secret missile has no warhead and is used by the U.S. to reduce civilian casualties by using kinetic energy. A regular Hellfire missile with a warhead has a kill radius of 50 feet. The R9X has a kill radius of about 10 to 15-feet thanks to blades that flip outward just before impact. The footprint covers the interior of a vehicle, or in this case, Al-Qaeda deputy leader Abu al-Khayr al-Masri’s KIA Optima as seen in the picture. You can see the blade marks from the R9X highlighted in red. It’s like dropping an anvil from the sky … [Read more...]
Russia’s Next Generation Stealth Bomber May Never Take Flight
Michael Kofman, a Russian military affairs specialist at the Center for Naval Analyses, said that Russia’s next generation PAK-DA stealth bomber program is more or less still in the research and development phase. The National Interest adds that the Kazan Aviation Plant (KAZ) in charge of building the prototype has a shortage of highly skilled specialists, and may not be up for the task. Russia is gearing up for the eventual start of production for the PAK-DA stealth bomber even though the aircraft will not be ready for many years to come. One of the many challenges for the Russians to … [Read more...]
A Deadly Combo: The F-35 and F-15X
The U.S. Airforce surprised the aviation community recently when it said it was evaluating the purchase of Boeing’s F-15X fighter jet. The Airforce could be looking for ways to make up for the F-35’s shortcomings and the limited number of F-22s in its inventory. Purchasing jets from the proven Boeing F-15 program could help the military bypass the costly development and testing phases that would accompany any new design. One problem the F-15x could address is the ability of the F-35 to only carry a limited number of internal AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAMs). The … [Read more...]
New Technology Could Put Stealth Submarines in its Crosshairs?
Anti – submarine warfare is about to get a little more-high tech. Satellite based laser surveillance systems could soon help track and kill stealth submarines submerged as deep as five hundred meters. China is one country researching such systems, along with other groundbreaking tech, says Sebastian Roblin of The National Interest. According to some evaluations, today’s cutting-edge submarines like the Virginia- and Sea Wolf-class attack submarines have been evaluated to run only five decibels louder than average oceanic background noises. Even less-expensive Swedish air independent … [Read more...]
Who is Behind the Murderous Cyber Weapon, Triton?
Experts are warning of a sophisticated new cyber weapon that could target the last line of defense in U.S. water treatment facilities, transportation systems, and nuclear power stations. FireEye, a cyber security firm believes Russia is fine tuning a cyber weapon aimed at disabling safety systems that prevent catastrophic industrial accidents. There has never been “a blatant, flat out intent to hurt people”, warns Bradford Hegrat, a consultant who specializes in industrial cyber security. Martin Giles of MIT Technology Review discusses Triton, the world’s most murderous malware, and warns of … [Read more...]
The Father of GPS Warns of its Vulnerability
The U.S. economy has become too dependent on GPS (Global Positions System), warns Dr. Bradford Parkinson, the “father of GPS.” Dr. Parkinson and many other experts are calling for a backup system to augment GPS, not in space, but here on earth where it’s harder to hack. The concept is known as PTA, which stands for protect, toughen, and augment. It’s a single point of failure for U.S.’s most critical infrastructure. The direct value of GPS to the U.S. has ballooned to $66 billion dollars a year, yet there is still no viable backup system. It’s believed other countries, most notably … [Read more...]