French eyes for a Russian tiger





https://euobserver.com/investigations/129953

Boeing Lands $1.5 Billion Deal to Supply P-8s to US, Australia





http://www.dodbuzz.com/2015/08/28/boeing-w...-u-s-australia/

China's largest drone 'Rainbow 5' makes debut



Footage shows the home-grown "Rainbow 5" drone lands after its maiden flight in China's Gansu province. (China Central Television)

(ECNS) - China's home-grown drone, the Rainbow 5, has successfully completed its maiden flight in Northwest China's Gansu province, China Central Television (CCTV) reported.

The drone, twice the size of other unmanned aerial vehicles developed by China in the past, also took the lead internationally, CCTV said.

The Rainbow 5 started its trial flight early in the morning to minimize influences over civil flights. It landed steadily after about 20 minutes of flying, and completed the scheduled procedures before pulling up.

Chief designer Ou Zhouming says he is very satisfied with the trial flight.

The flagship drone has a maximum takeoff weight of three tons, a maximum payload of 900 kilograms, and an endurance of over 30 hours. Made of composite materials, it has a wingspan of 20 meters and is designed to perform tasks of air reconnaissance and strikes.

http://www.ecns.cn/cns-wire/2015/08-31/179290.shtml

India may acquire 600 UAVs to enhance its sea, land patrol capabilities



A UAV being used to spray pesticides in a field in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province. (File photo/Xinhua)

The Indian Army is planning to buy 600 miniature unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) jointly developed and manufactured by Indian and foreign companies, reports Xinhua-run news website Reference News, citing Tokyo-based magazine the Diplomat.

India has proposed the project to meet its increasing needs in patrolling critical shipping lanes and disputed border regions of the country contested with Pakistan and China. UAVs are gradually taking a greater role in India's defense due to their low cost.

Two Israeli companies and two US firms responded to India's Directorate General of Infantry's request for information regarding their UAVs' capabilities. Companies interested in the project are required to partner with an Indian company, which is part of New Delhi's Make in India initiative, aimed at encouraging companies to manufacture in the country. Israel's Aeronautics has not found an Indian partner but another Israeli company Elbit Systems will reportedly work with Hindustan Aeronautics. Boeing is working with Tata Advanced Systems and may offer the ScanEagle, a small, long-range UAV produced by its subsidiary Insitu. California-based AeroVironment has been developing an UAV named Cheel with Indian precision engineering company Dynamatic Technologies.

Their co-developed UAV systems will be required to include three UAVs, a portable ground control station, launch and recovery systems, three sets of sensor packaging that can be operated at night and in all-weather conditions, two-way data relay and spare batteries and battery chargers for the UAV, according to Aviation International News.

Tension between India and Pakistan intensified in July after the Pakistani military shot down a UAV in Kashmir. The UAV was later confirmed to be the Phantom 3 manufactured by Shenzhen-headquartered company DJI, according to the International Business Times. Indian foreign secretary Subrahmanyam Jaishankar was cited by the Diplomat as stating that the device was not on the Indian military's UAV list.

http://www.wantchinatimes.com/news-subclas...=20150829000098

Old Soviet Missile Makes Easy Work of US M1 Abrams Tank (VIDEO)



The video below shows what are said to be Houthi rebels in Yemen using old Soviet-designed Fagot anti-tank guided missiles to destroy American-made, Saudi Arabian-owned and operated Abrams M1 main battle tanks.

A direct hit by a Fagot missile at the M1’s turret led to the detonation of the tank’s ordnance payload stored in the turret’s back.

This is the weakest spot of America’s main battle tank, which leaves the crew with virtually no chance of survival.



It was with this possibility in mind that Russia’ new Armata tank features an uninhabited turret.
The Fagot antitank missile system entered operational service in 1970.

Its missile uses a 2.5 kg High Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT) warhead which can penetrate up to 600 mm of conventional steel armor and has an effective range of up to 2,500 m through the use of an improved solid propellant sustainer rocket motor and lengthened guidance wire.

http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150831...ms-missile.html

Houthis captured Saudi M1 Abrams tank



Read more at: http://defence-blog.com/army/houthis-captu...brams-tank.html

Recent Saudi/UAE combat losses in the Yemen conflict (2)





Saudi military Gurkha rapid patrol vehicle (RPV), abandoned and captured near Jizan by Ansarullah or allied forces



Saudi Toyota-platform LTV and Gurkha rapid patrol vehicle (RPV) destroyed by Ansarullah or allied Yemeni Army forces, apparent victims of ambush near Jizan.





United Arab Emirates Army Oshkosh M-ATV destroyed by Ansarullah or allied forces in the Mukayris region

http://www.uskowioniran.com/2015/08/recent...s-in-yemen.html

This post has been edited by BorneoAlliance: Aug 31 2015, 06:27 PM

Invisible Cloak for Military UAV’s, I’ll Have Some





http://science.dodlive.mil/2015/08/30/invi...-ill-have-some/

From Scorpene scandal to Mistral mysterY







Read more : - http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/...istral-mystery/

This post has been edited by BorneoAlliance: Aug 31 2015, 07:21 PM

PLA's nuclear subs still unable to strike US homeland: Kanwa



China's 12 nuclear-powered submarines are still unable to launch a direct attack against the US homeland, reports the Kanwa Defense Review, a Chinese-language military magazine based in Canada.

An estimated three of the PLA Navy's Type 094 Jin-class ballistic missile submarines and two Type 093 Shang-class attack submarines are currently stationed at Sanya, the base of the PLA's South Sea Fleet in the southern island province of Hainan. The base is the most proximate location for deployment to the South China Sea, where Beijing disputes vast swaths of maritime territory with competing neighbors.

None of the three Type 094 submarines have carried ballistic missiles on board since the beginning of this year, the report said.

Unlike the Russian Navy, China is very unlikely to launch an attack against the US from North Pole waters. An attack would be more likely be launched from the Pacific against the US territory of Guam or the states of Hawaii and Alaska. A Chinese missile strike could reach as far as Australia if launched from South China Sea waters. A similar attack targeting the west coast of the US would still, however, be exceedingly difficult, the report said.

To strike Los Angeles, the Jin-class submarine would have to fire a JL-2 missile from the Second Island Chain, extending from Honshu to New Guinea. The notoriously loud Type 094 sub venturing into this area would be easily detected by the US Navy's P-8A patrol aircraft, the report said. However, the submarine still poses a highly dangerous threat to Russia since Moscow is only 7,200 kilometers away from Hainan.

http://www.wantchinatimes.com/news-subclas...=20150831000034

Ukrainian kids learn to fight at military summer camp




STARE, Ukraine (AP) — More than 100 Ukrainian schoolchildren will have unusual tales to tell their mates when classes resume, after spending part of their summer vacations undergoing training by the National Guard.

The training at a National Guard camp about 75 kilometers (45 miles) from Kiev taught children aged 11-15 rudimentary military skills and gave them a taste of army life in courses over three days. At night the children were quartered in army tents; by day they got instruction in marksmanship, hand-to-hand fighting, weapons maintenance, first aid, map reading and orienteering.

For 11-year-old Oleksander Olinichenko, whose mother and father are both in the Ukrainian army, the camp was a chance to pursue his interest in all things military, as well as show his patriotism.

"''I like everything here, they teach me to take apart and to assemble the assault rifle, they teach us hand-to-hand fighting, first aid - it's very interesting," said Oleksander, his face disguised by military goggles and a regulation helmet.

Some children are from military families in Kiev, others are refugees who relocated to the Ukrainian capital, having left their homes in eastern Ukraine when fighting broke out in 2014. Some of the children chosen to attend the camp come from low-income families, according to the National Guard press office.

National Guardsman Oleksander Honcharenko gave the children instruction in hand-to-hand fighting and karate. He told The Associated Press he and all the other instructors at the camp had served in the Ukrainian army during the conflict in East Ukraine.

"I think every person has to be able to defend himself and his relatives, his nearest and dearest, his family and property. The most important thing is to be able to react quickly in an extreme situation and to make the right decision. The kind of the hand-to-hand fighting that we teach helps them develop such abilities," said Honcharenko, who is vice president of the Ukrainian Karate Association.

Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko recently vowed to increase troop numbers to fend off attacks by Russia-backed separatist rebels and warned his countrymen that there is still the threat of a "large-scale invasion." He claimed that Russia had massed about 50,000 troops on the border with Ukraine, still had 9,000 soldiers in eastern Ukraine and had supplied the rebels with about 500 tanks and 400 pieces of artillery.

http://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/...o-military-camp

This post has been edited by BorneoAlliance: Sep 1 2015, 11:41 AM

Russian jets in Syrian skies





http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4696268,00.html

French Defense Chief Attempts to Sell at Least One Mistral to Malaysia



On Tuesday, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak held a meeting with Le Drian and French defense industry officials.
According to Bernama, Le Drian and his Malaysian counterpart Hishammuddin Hussein will head a Franco-Malaysian defense committee.

Earlier, the French newspaper Tribune reported that Malaysia had expressed interest for the purchase of a Mistral-class helicopter-carrier within 10 years. Among other contenders is India which Le Drian to visit at the end of his Asian journey.

In early-August, Moscow and Paris agreed on the cancellation of a €1.2 billion contract on the delivery of two Mistral-class ships. After the Russian equipment is dismantled from the carriers France will be able to take charge of the ships.

On August 26, the administration of French President Francois Hollande announced that France paid off compensation to Russia. The sum of the compensation will be made public after a bill on the issue is submitted to the French parliament.

http://sputniknews.com/military/20150901/1...stral-deal.html

Russia's Most Anachronistic Warship Is Getting an Overhaul





http://www.themoscowtimes.com/business/art...aul/529158.html

Russian Military Launches Cybertraining Program for Youth


Alexander Demianchuk / Reuters
First year cadets of the Military University of Communication smile before an oath-taking ceremony in St. Petersburg.

The Russian military launched a new cybersecurity training program for young military cadets at a St. Petersburg military academy on Tuesday, the Defense Ministry was quoted as saying by the RIA Novosti news agency.

“The unique educational institution was established at the Military Academy of Communications in accordance with a decision of the defense minister,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement Tuesday, RIA Novosti reported.

Cadets enrolled in the program will study cybersecurity-related topics, and the school will offer specialized classes focusing on network technology, multimedia hardware, software and robotics.

The announcement coincided with Russia's nationwide back to school day, and 40 cadets enrolling in courses at the St. Petersburg Military Academy of Communications have been selected to take part in a brand new information technology program as part of a wider effort to educate Russia's next-generation military personnel in cyber-operations.

Russia and China have been accused in recent months of sponsoring a wave of serious cyber-attacks against the U.S. government — a suspicion that has prompted some U.S. officials to propose additional sanctions against Moscow, Reuters reported Tuesday.

Russia was singled out in early August as the leading suspect in a sophisticated attack on the unclassified portion of the e-mail network used by the U.S. military's Joint Staff in the Pentagon, and in April U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter blamed Russia for a similar attack on military networks.

Russian espionage and cybersecurity expert Andrei Soldatov explained that the Russian military is trailing far behind the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) in cyber-operations and training personnel to conduct them.

“The military was not the main player. Russian security services took the lead — first it was an agency known as FAPSI, the Russian analogue to the U.S. National Security Agency or British GCHQ. Later, FAPSI was partly absorbed by the FSB,” Soldatov said.

The Russian Defense Ministry has only in the last two or three years began to focus on strengthening national cybersecurity — which is intimately tied to the study of cyberwar — and Russia is working to formulate a national cyberstrategy, RIA reported.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/529210.html

The 'Clown Hat': Ukraine's Latest Piece of Military Equipment From Israel



The removable helmet covering, known as a mitznefet in Hebrew, admittedly resembles a shower cap or a chef's hat but is said to be a potent piece of military gear. The flopping fabric is intended to obscure the familiar round shape of a soldier's helmet and protect against the light reflecting off the helmet's surface.

The Israeli Defense Forces introduced the mitznefet in 1994 but the covering is not really used elsewhere.

The use of the term could be traced back to the biblical Book of Exodus. It was employed to describe a turban worn by the Jewish high priests in the Temple of Jerusalem. The term is often mistranslated as a "clown's hat" but its root meaning is believed to come from the verb to wrap.

Ukraine's military will receive 20 mitznefet coverings in the near future, Zvezda asserted, citing Tzvi Arieli of the Kiev Jewish community.

The Ukrainian government has been persistently pushing Western countries to provide military aid, including offensive weapons, to suppress self-defense forces in the Donbass region. The US has already delivered Humvees, lightweight counter-mortar radar units, medical kits, night-vision goggles and Kevlar vests to Kiev.

http://sputniknews.com/military/20150901/1...e-military.html

Russia Could Sell Mistral-Designed Helicopters to Potential Mistral Buyer



The Ka-52K rotorcraft are specifically tailored for the amphibious assault ships. Russia built a total of four machines to serve on the Mistrals before the arms deal was cancelled in August.

No nation has formally confirmed its decision to buy the helicopter carriers but many speculate that Brazil, Egypt, India, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates are contemplating adding the amphibious assault ships to their fleet.

A source told the daily that Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah al-Sis discussed the Mistrals with Vladimir Putin while on a visit to Moscow last week.

"Sisi expressed interest in the possibility of buying the helicopter carriers from the French but it was a purely theoretical interest. … Obviously, they need financial assistance from a third party to purchase the ships," the source added but declined to comment on whether Russia could serve as a creditor.

Earlier, reports emerged that Saudi Arabia could buy the two Mistrals which would likely be docked in Egypt. The oil kingdom views the amphibious assault ships as a means to project its own power in the region. They could also become part of the joint Arab force project which was recently unveiled by Riyadh and Cairo.

Regardless of who will buy the two Mistral, France will have to discuss the matter with Russia since Moscow has power to veto such a transaction. Meanwhile, the Vladivostok and the Sevastopol built under a $1.3 billion deal are docked at a shipyard in Saint-Nazaire.

http://sputniknews.com/military/20150902/1...ance-egypt.html

China's new fighting vehicles demonstrated at V-J Day parade



The drawing of a Chinese PGZ-07 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun. (Internet photo)

In addition to new aircraft and ballistic missiles, the People's Liberation Army will demonstrate its new assault fighting vehicles during a military parade held on Sep. 3 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the victory over Japan in World War II, according to the state-run Global Times.

The PGZ-07 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun is among the new military vehicles which will be displayed to the public for the first time. Equipped with two 35mm cannons, the vehicle has been developed to attack enemy helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles and missiles on the battlefield. It can be equipped with different types of ammunitions scch as High Explosive Incendiaries, High Explosive Incendiary Tracers, Semi-armor-piercing high-explosive incendiaries and Target Practice Tracer cartridges.

Also, a new type of ZBD-07 8×8 wheeled infantry fighting vehicle fitted with HJ-10 anti-tank missile will be shown at the parade as well. This new type of missile is capable of destroying targets 10 kilometers away. On the battlefield, it will serve the ground forces of the PLA just like a sniper against an enemy's main battle tanks, the Global Times said. Each ZBD-07 can be equipped with eight anti-tank missiles.

Other new weapon systems to be demonstrated at the military parade will include the YJ-12 supersonic anti-ship missile. Both the YJ-83 subsonic anti-ship missile and YJ-12 supersonic anti-ship missile participating the parade are models. However, the event is going to show that the YJ-12 can be carried and launched from trucks. With an attacking range of 400 kilometers and a speed of Mach 3.5, the YJ-12 has been developed to be launched primarily from strategic bombers in the air.

http://www.wantchinatimes.com/news-subclas...=20150902000146

Russia Military Update: India Approves $1.1B Helicopter Contract With Moscow





http://www.ibtimes.com/russia-military-upd...-moscow-2079238

France submits Rafale purchase proposal to Malaysia



KUALA LUMPUR - France has submitted a proposal to Malaysia for the purchase of 18 Rafale fighter jets, its defence minister said during a visit to Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.

"We provided a full offer to the Malaysian authorities," Jean-Yves Le Drian said at a news conference with his Malaysian counterpart Hishammuddin Hussein.

"This offer will be studied by the authorities." He added: "This proposal marks the beginning of formal discussions with Malaysia over the acquisition of 18 Rafale planes." Malaysia has said it intends to replace its ageing fleet of Russian-made MiG aircraft, and along with the Rafale, the American F-18, Sweden's Gripen and the Eurofighter have been mooted as potential replacements.

But Hussein warned that Malaysia would have to judge whether any short-term plans to replace the fleet were affordable, with the country grappling with an economic slowdown and a sharp fall in its currency.

- See more at: http://news.asiaone.com/news/malaysia/fran...h.smoKCyTq.dpuf