Italy's ruling party divided over order for F-35 combat jets


(Reuters) - Italian opposition parties and some lawmakers from the ruling Democratic Party called on the government on Thursday to abandon its plans to buy 90 Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets.

Italy's total planned investment in the new Lightning II Joint Strike fighters (JSF) exceeds 10 billion euros ($12.97 billion) even though it cut its order last year to 90 aircraft from the 131 it had originally penciled in to buy more than a decade ago, a move it said would save 5 billion euros.

Defense Minister Mario Mauro, a member of Monti's party, said last week the month-old government wanted to go ahead with the purchase, saying, "we need defense tools to guarantee peace".

The deal includes a provision to give maintenance contracts to state-controlled defense group Finmeccanica as Italy's aerospace industry is a development and production partner in the F-35 project and Italy has already invested about 2 billion euros in it.

However, the project is seven years behind schedule and 70 percent over initial cost estimates. Other countries have also cut their provisional orders for the plane because of the economic crisis that has shrunk defense budgets worldwide. ($1=0.7712 euros)


More at : Reuters

This post has been edited by noavatar: Jun 1 2013, 08:53 PM

Analysis: Israel could swoop on S-300 missiles in Syria, but with risks


(Reuters) - Israel could overcome advanced S-300 anti-aircraft missiles if they were deployed in Syria but any strikes on the system would be difficult and risk alienating its supplier, Russia.

Israel has pledged to take preventive action, seeing a future Syrian S-300 as a "game-changing" threat to its own airspace as well as to the relative free rein with which it now overflies its northern foe and neighboring Lebanon.

Experts agree that Israeli sabotage or open force to disrupt delivery by Russia is extremely unlikely - a view seemingly shored up by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's announcement on Thursday that the first missiles had arrived.

That leaves Israel lobbying Moscow to slow down the shipment in hopes it would be overtaken and scrapped if Assad fell to a more than two-year-old rebellion, and in parallel preparing counter-measures to neutralize the S-300 on the ground in Syria.

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz quoted National Security Adviser Yaakov Amidror as warning European diplomats that Israel would "prevent the S-300 missiles from becoming operational". That may be achieved by ensuring Assad does not get the full system, experts say, or by disabling it militarily if he does.

"The S-300 would be the pinnacle of Russian-supplied arms for Syria," Colonel Zvika Haimovich, a senior Israeli air force officer, told Reuters in an interview. "Though it would impinge on our operations, we are capable of overcoming it.

He said Israel's "red line" on the S-300 was "between Syria and others". This was a hint Israel might hold off on bombing the batteries as long they did not appear set on shooting down planes within Israeli airspace, of being transferred to Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas or to Iran - both staunch allies of Assad and enemies of Israel, or of being looted by Islamist rebels.

MARKETING MOSCOW

The Israelis excel in electronic warfare. In 1982, they "blinded" Soviet-supplied Syrian anti-aircraft units in Lebanon, then destroyed 19 of them without Israeli losses. Similar technologies helped Israeli jets destroy a suspected nuclear reactor in Syria in 2007 and, this year, to hit Syrian targets on at least three occasions to prevent what intelligence sources called attempts to move advanced weaponry to Hezbollah.

A source close to Russia's defense ministry agreed that the Israelis "likely have a million ways to combat the S-300 electronically". But he questioned their feasibility because they had not been tested in war.

"So, whether the S-300 would fail or not cannot be known".

Robert Hewson, an IHS Jane's air power analyst, predicted Israeli prowess would prevail in Syria while cautioning that the S-300 would be the most formidable air defense system it had ever faced. "Israel has had nasty surprises from these things before," he said, noting its steep losses to the Soviet anti-aircraft missiles used by Syria and Egypt in the 1973 war.

Hewson felt Israel would prefer to destroy the S-300 in Syria but may opt instead just to circumvent it as required for missions, especially if there was the risk of inadvertently killing or wounding Russians helping to install the system.

Security sources have put the number of Russian military personnel in Syria at several hundred.

"The Russians would react badly to losing their people, and Israel knows that equally," Hewson said.

Former Israeli defense minister Moshe Arens said Moscow should be mindful of the harm that seeing the S-300 defeated in Syria would do to exports of the system elsewhere.

Past clients include Cyprus, whose S-300, posted on the Greek island of Crete, may have given Israel's air force a chance for test runs during maneuvers over the Mediterranean.

"I'd be very surprised if the Russians deliver this system (to Syria)," Arens told Israel Radio. "It would become apparent that our air force is capable of besting this system, and that would not make for good advertising."

Playing down the strategic challenge that would be posed to Israel by a Syrian S-300, Arens added. "We are not afraid. This would simply change the situation, and we are not interested in the situation being changed to our detriment."

HAZY DEPLOYMENT TIMELINE

The timeline for the anticipated Syrian deployment of the S-300 remains hazy. Hewson said it could be "up and running within a minimum of a few weeks" once all components were in, and provided qualified Syrian personnel were available.

But the Russian defense ministry source said he knew of no Syrians who had already been trained by Moscow, and put the completion of the S-300 delivery at "six to 12 months from now".

Assuming Assad survives in power, such a lag could provide Israel with thwarting opportunities.

Hewson said the truck-towed S-300 would be physically hard to conceal. Its radar, if activated, would emit a distinctive signal that Israel could easily monitor, he added.

Diplomatic alternatives may not have been exhausted, though.

Yuval Steinitz, a senior member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet, held on Thursday what political sources described as a discussion of the Syrian S-300 deal with Russian Ambassador Sergei Yakovlev.

In 2010, following Israeli appeals, Russia scrapped an S-300 sale to Iran. In what may have been a quid pro quo, the Israelis also agreed that year to sell Russia surveillance drones that would narrow its technological military gap with rival Georgia.

Russia now has other strategic interests - for example, investment in Israel's Mediterranean gas fields. Silvan Shalom, another Israeli cabinet minister, told Reuters that Russian President Vladimir Putin mentioned the gas fields while hosting Netanyahu in Sochi on May 14 for talks that focused on Syria.

But Zvi Magen, a former Israeli ambassador to Moscow, was skeptical that Israel could offer anything that would spur Putin to slacken his support for Assad. "There's too much at stake here for the Russians," he said.

He was alluding to the conflagration's wider geo-strategic dimensions - pitting a Russian preference to keep Syria under Assad's control to preserve Moscow's last significant toehold in the Middle East against a Western and Gulf Arab desire for the downfall of Assad to roll back Iranian influence in the region.


Source: Reuters

Finally! New F-35 IOC Dates are Firm





After years of ambiguity on when the U.S. services would introduce their F-35 variants into service, they are finally acknowledging firm plans.

The ambiguity was driven largely by repeated program restructurings that made availability of the aircraft a moving target for the services. Now, however, they have been forced by Congress to declare a path forward. This not only allows for overseers to better craft retirement plans for legacy aircraft, but it also puts the pressure on for Lockheed Martin, the prime contractor, to deliver the aircraft and software as planned.

Below are the dates for the services.

U.S. Marine Corps: December 2015 (with 2B software capability)

U.S. Air Force: December 2016 (with 3I software capability)

U.S. Navy: February 2019 (with 3F software capability)

USMC and USAF officials stress that the IOC dates are just that -- an initial capability. Thus, they are willing to accept the limited engagement envelope and weapons package of the 2B/3I with a growth plan to introducing the 3F software, which provides far more extensive multi-role capability, into the fleet with a full operational capability.

This strategy is likely to generate criticism from F-35 critics, who point out that the price of the aircraft -- at just over $100 million for the A variant in the latest lot -- calls for a far greater capability. And, they note, the aircraft continues to be later than promised.

The Navy, by contrast, is willing to wait for a more robust capability before placing the F-35C aircraft carrier variant onto decks in the fleet. The service has this luxury, in part, because it has invested in a hedge buy of F/A-18E/Fs while awaiting the Joint Strike Fighter.


Source: Aviation Week


NOTE:

IOC - Initial Operational Capability : the state achieved when a capability is available in its minimum usefully deployable form. The specifics for any particular system IOC are defined in that system’s Capability Development Document (CDD) and Capability Production Document (CPD). The date at which IOC is achieved often defines the in-service date (ISD). Once the capability is fully developed, Full operational capability (FOC) may be declared.







This post has been edited by noavatar: Jun 1 2013, 09:26 PM

Iraqi Payment Unblocks Russian Arms Deal


AMMAN May 31, 2013 --- Russia has started fulfilling its recent arms exports contract with Iraq after receiving an advance payment from Baghdad, Russian Technologies (Rostech) CEO Sergei Chemezov said.

“The contract is being implemented, the production [of ordered equipment] has started,” Chemezov told RIA Novosti at the opening ceremony of a Russian grenade-launcher assembly facility in Jordan on Thursday.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki signed an arms package purchase agreement with Russia worth $4.2 billion during his visit to Moscow in October 2012.

Under the deal, Moscow is to supply 30 Mil Mi-28NE night/all-weather capable attack helicopters, and 50 Pantsyr-S1 gun-missile short-range air defense systems.

The deal was suspended by Iraqi authorities a few weeks after the signing over suspicions of corruption. The Iraqi Parliament initiated an investigation into several officials suspected of taking kickbacks.

However, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said in March 2013 that Iraq and Russia had initialed a revised deal and deliveries under the contract would start by summer.

The corruption investigation was closed shortly after but resumed in May. Iraqi officials said at the time the probe would not affect the Russian contract.

Source: RIA Novosti / Defence Aerospace




Mil Mi-28 Havoc

Iranian television showcased a collection of transporter erector launchers (TELs) capable of launching the Iranian Shahab-3 guided ballistic missiles





Iran could have enough launchers to send a salvo of medium range ballistic missiles that would overwhelm Israeli ballistic missile defense systems, according to a Wednesday report from IHS Jane’s.

“Iranian television footage showed at least 26 TELs lined up in two rows for the event, which marked their purported delivery to the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force, which operates the country’s ballistic missiles,” according to the report.

The Shahab-3 is based on a North Korean design and is capable striking Israel from Iranian territory.

“The delivery of such a large number of missile launchers demonstrates the Islamic Republic of Iran’s self-sufficiency in designing and building the strategic system and shows the Iranian Armed Forces’ massive firepower and their ability to give a crushing response to the enemy,” Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi said in a report carried by Iranian state news.

The more missiles Iran can launch at once, “the greater its chances of overwhelming defensive systems, such as Israel’s Arrow, which only have a limited number of interceptors ready to launch at incoming targets,” according to the Jane’s report

Arrow is a joint U.S.-Israel BMD system which saw its first deployment in 2000.

Dynamit Nobel presents its full range of RGW 90 short-range anti-armour weapon systems At FED 2013



The German-made anti-armour weapon system RGW 90-AS at FED 2013, business meeting for buyers and suppliers of Defence Industry.


The RGW 90-AS is specially designed to support troops in an urban environment. The tandem warhead with a Break In Charge (BIC) and a Follow Through Bomb (FTB) is extremely effective against a variety of structures.

The smart fuze of the FTB bomb allows the gunner to select from two modes: a "blast mode" to detonate inside the building so as to remove the protective value of the building and a "mousehole mode" to create a man-sized hole.

The high penetration capability of the BIC combined with the FB acting as a blast warhead, also proves particularly effective against light armoured vehicles. The high muzzle velocity of 200 m/s and the use of a sustainer rocket motor, which keeps the velocity constant over the whole flight path, result in an excellent hit probability over distances from 10 m to 400 m.

Designed to operate on the Davis Gun principle, the RGW 90-AS uses only a small amount of propellant together with a gel countermass. This enables the weapon to be fired from enclosures whilst remaining compliant with the noise requirements of Def Stan 00-27 and Mil-Std 1474.

The RGW 90-AS is man portable, weighing less than 10 kg, requires minimal logistics, and is fully disposable.

First Air-cushioned Landing Craft for China Arrives in Guangzhou



A cargo ship named HHL New York carries a Zubr-class LCAC hovercraft for the Chinese navy on the Zhujiang River in Guangzhou, capital city of south China's Guangzhou Province on Friday, May, 24, 2013. [Photo: newpobeda.org]


After a month long sea journey, an air-cushioned landing craft, Zubr-class LCAC built for the Chinese navy was delivered at Guangzhou, the capital city of south China's Guangzhou Province last Friday.

China's first Zubr LCAC hovercraft was built at the Feodosiya Shipbuilding Company in the Ukraine and adapted to Chinese needs so that no military weapons and electrical systems were installed.

Construction of a second hovercraft is ongoing for the Chinese navy, which has placed an order for four craft at a reported cost of 315 million US dollars. Two are being built by the Feodosiya Shipbuilding Company, and a second pair of vessels will be built in China under the supervision of Ukrainian technicians.

The Zubr-class LCAC is a class of air-cushioned landing craft of Ukrainian design. This class of military hovercraft is the world's largest hovercraft. It is designed to sealift landing assault units from equipped/non-equipped vessels to non-equipped shores, as well as to transport and plant mines.

Development of Zubr landing ships started in the former Soviet Union in 1978, and the first serial ship joined the Soviet navy in 1988. It has the carrying capacity for 3 main battle tanks with an overall mass of 150 tons or 10 armored personnel carriers weighing up to 131 tons plus 140 marines, or 8 infantry fighting vehicles with mass of up to 115 tons. If not equipped with armor, Zubr is capable of carrying 366 men.

Source: CRIENGLISH

HM King Abdullah II of Jordan fires a rocket

This is the MATADOR (Man-portable Anti-Tank, Anti-DOoR). Looks almost the same because it was also developed by Dynamit Nobel Defence (DND).






Singaporean Army

Wiki says



This post has been edited by noavatar: Jun 2 2013, 06:34 PM

MATADOR Variants

The MATADOR is a rocket launcher of German origin. It was developed in the late 1990's by Dynamit Nobel at the request of the Singapore Armed
Forces, in order to replace the Armbrust in Singaporean service. The original MATADOR was developed in conjunction with the Singapore Defence
Science & Technology Agency. The later specialized versions were developed together with the Israeli company Rafael in the early 2000's. The name
MATADOR stands for Man-portable Anti-Tank, Anti-DOoR. Dynamit Nobel markets it as the RGW 90 or Panzerfaust 90.

The first and main user of the MATADOR are the Singapore Armed Forces. The RGW 90 models have been sold to a few European nations and the wall
breaching model has been used by Israeli forces in combat situations.


MATADOR
The MATADOR is the original version developed for Singapore and is also known as the RGW 90. The MATADOR features a multi mode warhead that
serves in the HEAT mode against armored vehicles and in the HESH mode against buildings and bunkers. The weapon normally functions in HESH model
until the nose probe is manually extended in order to select the HEAT mode. Dynamit Nobel and Rafael have developed three other warhead options under
the RGW 90 (or PZF-90) designation.

RGW 90 MP
The RGW 90 MP is a model with a multi purpose warhead for use against fortified positions, normal structures and light vehicles at ranges between 20
and 500 meters. The name MP stands for multi purpose. The name PZF-90 MP is sometimes used as well. In its penetrating model it can be used against
bunkers and concrete walls. The HESH mode is similar to the original MATADOR and allows it to be used against conventional structures and light
armored vehicles. The RGW 90 MP is marketed with a reflex sight with its reticle adjusted by a laser range finder for greater effectiveness at longer ranges.

RGW 90 AS
The RGW 90 AS or Anti-Structures Munition (ASM) is a derivative of the MATADOR developed for military operations in urban terrain. The RGW 90
AS has a tandem warhead with selectable fuzing options. The forward warhead is used to create a small hole in the wall for the second warhead to enter the
building and explode inside. The fuze options allow for a detonation within the wall to creata a 80 cm hole or a detonation inside. Due to the heavier
warhead the range has decreased from 500 to 400 meters. The name PZF-90 AS is sometimes used for the RGW 90 AS as well.

RGW 90 WB
The RGW 90 WB is a further development of the MATADOR and features a wall breaching warhead developed by Rafael. The explosive formed ring
warhead will pierce a tripple brick wall and create man size hole at ranges between 20 and 120 meters. The RGW 90 WB launch tube is shorter since less
propellant is needed at the shorter ranges it is to be used. The RGW 90 WB is marketed with standard sights and a reflex sight. The name PZF-90 WB is
sometimes used as well.


Source: Weapon Systems

F/A-18C Hornet Firing an AIM-7 Sparrow Missile

Fighter pilots have so many things to react to at any time.....coords, navi, engines, armament and so on.....think tactically under extreme pressure and make split-second decisions....fitness and strength to pull Gs







This post has been edited by noavatar: Jun 3 2013, 10:53 AM

My opinion...They let the tanks go first without infantry support.... to engage the enemy....the tank should advance where the infantry has already gone

Syrian Rebels homemade armoured vehicle made by the Al-Ansar brigade








Sham II, named after ancient Syria, is built from the chassis of a car and touted by rebels as "100 percent made in Syria."

It required a "month of work" for the design, assembly and development of the vehicle, says its designer Mahmud Abud from the Al-Ansar rebel brigade in the Aleppo region of northwest Syria.

The fully-enclosed vehicle made from light steel is about four metres (yards) in length and two metres across, mounted with a 7.62 mm machinegun controlled from inside the cabin.

The vehicle has five cameras: three at the front, one in the back and another attached to the gun.

The crew inside the cabin are fully protected, with the driver manoeuvring the vehicle by watching a screen which displays video from the cameras.

The gunner, seated next to the driver, can activate the machinegun by watching another screen and using a control stick equipped with push buttons.

Pictures taken by an AFP photographer show at least two crew members comfortably sitting inside the cabin.

The metal walls are 2.5 centimetres thick and said to be able to resist up to 23 mm cannon fire. The vehicle, however, can not withstand a rocket-propelled grenade or tank fire.

"This is my brother, a trained engineer, who got the idea. We got a car, left its diesel motor on the chassis and built the engine," says Abud, based in a rebel command centre in Bishqatin, near the flashpoint city of Aleppo.

"Not including from the gun, the vehicle costs about $10,000," he said.

Sham II, as the name suggests, is an enhanced version of its predecessor. The earlier model shielded the driver but the rest of the crew were exposed to enemy fire.

Sham I has already been deployed in combat while Sham II is soon to join the fray in Aleppo as part of the Saad Benmoaz battalion of the Al-Ansar brigade, says Abud.


Source: AFP

It's becoming a war by proxy -- Iran, Hezbollah and Syria, Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, plus Russia, Israel and the United States

Malaysia interested in Indonesian-made CN295 planes


Kuala Lumpur (ANTARA News) - The Malaysian government has expressed keen interest in buying Indonesian-made CN295 military transport aircraft, considering it is very competitive particularly in Southeast Asia, Indonesian Deputy Defense Minister Lt. Gen. (ret) Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin said.

"The presence of the Malaysian air force chief and other air force and police officers (in the road show) indicates that they have great interest in making an observation of CN295 aircraft," Sjafrie said on the sidelines of CN295 military transport aircraft road show at Subang airport in Malaysia on Friday.

Sjafrie said he had earlier met with Malaysian counterpart who responded positively to a plan for an observation of CN295. "This is a good initial step for the two neighboring Asean member states," he said.

But he stopped short of revealing how many CN295s the Malaysian government was interested to buy.

Besides Malaysia, Sjafrie said other Asean member states to which he had visited such as the Philippines, Brunei Darussalam, Thailand and Myanmar also had given positive responses to the aircraft whose several parts of components were produced domestically.

"During my trip to a number of Asean member states, they gave positive responses to the aircraft. In the Philippines, we also took part in a limited tender. In Thailand, Myanmar and Vietnam, the aircraft also has good market prospect," he said.

The CN295 is made by state aircraft maker PT Dirgantara Indonesia (DI) in Bandung, West Java. <br><br>

Asked about the financing of the aircraft`s production, he said PT DI had good capacity so it would not be a problem for banks to support it. "About funds, it is not difficult for PT DI because it has good capacity and even many of its products have penetrated the global market. Several of its products such as wings has been exported to Spain and other 14 countries," he said.

PT DI President Director Budi Santoso meanwhile said the company was focusing on fulfilling the Indonesian military (TNI)`s order.

"Hopefully, the TNI`s order can be met this year. After that, we will meet orders from neighboring countries," he said.

Source: Antara

Indonesia, Malaysia to have joint military exercise in June


JAKARTA, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia and Malaysian militaries are to jointly conduct military exercise in North Sumatra of Indonesia from June 7 to 12, a senior Indonesian military official said here on Tuesday.

Vice Admiral Widodo, deputy assistant for Indonesian military commander said that the exercise was aimed at boosting professionalism of military officers from both countries.

Officers from the two countries are expected to exchange their expertise and experience, he said.

"Carry out the exercise well to reach the goal of the event," Widodo told Indonesian participants here.

"Use the momentum of Indonesia-Malaysia joint exercise to share knowledge, as an effort to boost skill and professionalism," he said.

Military in the region, including those from Indonesia and Malaysia, face great challenges, such as terrorism and transnational crimes, he noted.

Source: Xinhua