A Quick and Cheap Power Projection Alternative for Japan
by KYLE MIZOKAMI on Jan 26, 2012 • 4:53 pm
Helicopters and air-cushioned landing craft ferry troops and equipment ashore in a computer-generated conceptual image of an afloat forward staging base. The AFSB concept provides an afloat platform for in-theater military operations and enhances the U.S. military’s force projection capability.
Over at the USNI Blog, Galrahn posted a link to a marketing article by the shipping company Maersk Line. Galrahn calls it “ A Potential Plan B for Seabasing “. The article discusses converting Maersk commercial container ships into Afloat Forward Staging Bases, complete with everything from a 14 V-22 Osprey-capable flight deck to the ability to load LCACs at sea.
This may be a “ Plan B ” for the U.S. Navy, but it’s also a compelling “ Plan A ” for other countries, in this case the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Forces. A converted shipping vessel would plug a lot of holes in Japan’s limited power-projection capability. The ships would still have a fundamentally defensive function, and would accommodate the following roles :
• Support of amphibious operations. Japan has a need for dedicated amphibious ships, particularly in the Senkaku Islands. A ship like this could provide command and control and act as mother ship to a number of smaller ships, particularly Joint High Speed Vehicle-type ships. Another vessel would have to carry LCACs into theater, but that’s where the Osumi-class LSTs come in.
• Disaster relief. A 1,140 foot ship with a 140 foot beam could pack a lot of disaster relief supplies. Build in extra water desalination, electricity generation, and an extensive medical suite on par with the Wasp-class amphibious ships and you’d have a capable platform for responding to natural disasters of the 3/11 variety.
• Sea control. Due to their size, most of the islands in the Senkaku chain are incapable of basing warplanes, meaning that air power has to be projected from Okinawa and the mainland. This could be a compelling and affordable first step for Japan in the direction of fixed-wing naval aviation. Modifying the Hyuga-class helicopter destroyers for fixed-wing is not a good solution : American big-deck amphibious ships such as Wasp and Makin Island can only accommodate 13-15 F-35Bs in a sea control mission. Hyuga and her sister ship Ise are only half as large in displacement, with a flight deck 50 meters shorter than the Wasp-class, which doesn’t bode as well for F-35 accommodations. A float Forward Staging Base has lots of flight deck.
Such a ship would be very useful in defending Japan’s far-flung archipelago, carrying a small F-35 complement, ground troops, transport helicopters, medical services, command and control–the whole package, or some mix of it. Offload the helicopters to Hyuga to increase deck space for F-35s. Even better, have more than one AFSB.
There are downsides. Having the bridge 2/3 of the way down the flight deck is not ideal for aircraft, especially fixed-wing. A converted shipping vessel is not built to take damage the way purpose-built naval vessels are. The ship would need to be strongly defended. But you can’t have everything.
Can’t buy a big amphibious vessel outright ? The Diet can’t decide to fund a disaster relief ship ? Don’t have $8-13 billion dollars to fund a supercarrier ? AFSB can sort of do all of these things, for less money! It’s not a perfect solution to everything, but it’s a far more affordable one.
It's proven that when war struck an Islamic country, the ulama was always were the pillar of resistance. While the politicians, lawyers, engineers and so on, spend their fortune to secure passage out of the country.
kalau Pemimpin Islam kita macam Iran... sokong pihak Tentera... tak akan ada isu...
Babur (Urdu : بابر) (named after the first Mughal Emperor Zahir ud-Din Babur), also designated Hatf VII, is the first land attack cruise missile to be developed by Pakistan.
Launched from ground-based transporter erector launchers, warships and submarines, the Babur can be armed with a conventional or nuclear warhead and has a reported range of 700 km (430 mi). The missile is designed to avoid radar detection and penetrate enemy air defences. Serial production of the Babur started in October 2005.
It has been speculated that Babur is based on the BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missile, after six Tomahawks crash-landed on Pakistani territory in 1998 during US airstrikes on targets in Afghanistan, and its design seems to show this influence. The propulsion system appears to approximate that of BGM-109 Tomahawk according to videos of its launch. However, there is no confirmation of this and the Pakistani missile development organisation NESCOM has rejected this theory. Some members of NESCOM have stated, off the record, that Pakistan has been working on cruise missiles since 1995
Babur is believed to have been developed in response to reports that India was planning to acquire Patriot missiles from the US, in order to set up a ballistic missile defense system to counter Pakistan's arsenal of ballistic missiles.
Type : Medium-range subsonic cruise missile
Manufacturer : National Defence Complex (NDC)
Engine : Turbofan (Solid-fuel rocket booster during launch)
The trade of Mauser guns from the city of Oberndorf served as one of the milestones of Turkish-German friendship during the 19th century. (PHOTO AA, ARiF YAKICI)
1 January 2012 / ZEYNEP KILIÇ , OBERNDORF
Oberndorf am Neckar is a small city in southern Germany, unknown to many Germans.
With a population of 14,000, a river flowing through the middle, cute buildings lining both sides of the river and the woods giving the city a natural background, it is a typical German city. It has a small cemetery. Among many well-tended graves, decorated with crosses and flowers, are two modest ones. As we come closer to one of them and see an inscription reading, “ Ottoman Captain İbrahim Efendi, 1854-1882, ” we wonder what the Ottomans might have been doing in this small German city. Our quest for the answer takes us on an interesting trip back in time.
Oberndorf is a small city, but it has fame far beyond its size. Its fame is attributable to the Mauser arms manufacturer, which is known in Turkey as “ mavzer. ” While Turkey tends to regard mavzer as a type of firearm, the name is actually derived from an arms factory that produced hundreds of thousands of arms and sold them to big states in the 19th century. It is even said that if the rifles produced by this company were attached to each other, they would travel around the world twice. The Ottoman Empire contributed to their impressive production by buying its share of guns from Mauser. In fact, the Ottoman state was among Mauser’s major customers. A delegation of Ottoman officials arrived in Oberndorf to discuss a contract and receive firearms training, and these Turks stayed in the city for some time and became very popular among locals.
The arms deal in question actually served as one of the milestones of the Turkish-German friendship. Historian Mehmet Beşirli believes that the German arms industry helped avert the financial crisis of 1891-1894, thanks to Mauser’s weapons sales to the Ottoman state in Oberndorf and Loewe, in Berlin.
It was largely due to the famous Von der Goltz Pasha that the Ottoman Empire chose Germany over the UK and France as their source for buying about 1 million arms to modernize its army. Beşirli says that Goltz Pasha, an influential partner for German arms companies, acted like the representative to Turkey for German companies during the 12 years he stayed in Turkey. Pasha was trading in İstanbul when he learned about Abdülhamit II’s plans to modernize the Ottoman army. He quickly went to Oberndorf and came back with a weapon specifically produced for the Ottoman sultan. Abdülhamit was impressed with the gun and wanted to buy more for the army. So he sent an Ottoman delegation consisting of experts and military officers to Oberndorf in 1879, but they were unable to return as quickly as they had left. As the Ottoman sultan ordered more and more arms, the delegation had to stay longer in the city. Turks established warm relations with German peasants and they even attended the city’s traditional carnival, Fasching. This festival was how inhabitants of Oberndorf came to know oranges.
The custom was that during the festival, people in the procession would throw breads, sausages and candies to onlookers. Thanks to the Ottoman delegation, they started to throw oranges as well.
Mahmut Şevket Pasha, the head of the Ottoman delegation, saw that breads called “ bretzel ” were being thrown by the festival procession, and he suggested to Germans that they might throw oranges instead. Germans complied with the pasha’s wish and the Ottoman palace learned about this development. The Ottoman sultan liked the idea very much, and he started to send oranges to Oberndorf during festival time every year. Oberndorf Museum Director Andreas Kussman Hochhalter explains that the Ottoman palace continued to send oranges until the 1920s. Oranges are still thrown during the festival today.
Cengiz Taştan, who spent his childhood and youth in Oberndorf, says that he clearly remembers that oranges were thrown during festivals when he was a child. However, he adds, no one except old Germans know that this tradition was introduced by the Ottomans. Taştan indicates that Turks living in the vicinity do not know about the Ottoman presence in Oberndorf, but those who know it pay a visit to two graves in the city cemetery.
Mauser, established by King Frederick I of Württemberg in 1811, stopped producing arms in 1946. It was replaced by Heckler-Koch, which now produces hunting rifles and small firearms. In the city cemetery, there are two graves. One is small, belonging to an unknown Ottoman, and the other belongs to Captain İbrahim Efendi. Both are waiting for visiting Turks to say prayers for their souls.
PDRM to end peacekeeping mission in Timor Leste by year-end
Doosan S-5 APC
SEPANG, NOV 13 – The Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) team participating in the United Nations (UN) peacekeeping mission in Timor Leste since October 2011 will be ending its stint by the end of this year.
Malaysia Unpol contingent commander, Supt Mohamad Salleh Khalid said Malaysia which had been taking part in the mission since 1999 had been acknowledged as one of the countries that had carried out its responsibilities well.
He said this to reporters at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, here, today to welcome the arrival home of 77 PDRM officers and other personnel comprising 65 men and 12 women who were also received by Bukit Aman principal assistant director (personnel management), SAC Hasanuddin Hassan.
According to him, another 19 officers and other personnel would return home tomorrow while four more by next month.
Mohamed Salleh said although the PDRM members were favourably received by the police and people in Timor Leste, there had been anxious moments as well.
He cited an incident on July 17 where almost 90 vehicles carrying the peacekeeping mission groups were pelted with stones by the residents, breaking the glass screens.
“ The people appeared to be venting their dissatisfaction after the parliamentary election that was held in that country, ” he said.
He added that the extremely hot weather and limited water supply were also a challenge to the team.
Meanwhile, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar in his speech read out by Hasanuddin, said PDRM personnel were assigned to assist the police in Timor Leste in various aspects, besides carrying out community service.
“ The competence and professionalism of our personnel have been acknowledged by the highest management level at the UN mission in New York, which we can be proud of, ” he said.
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