USA military developments

[nandu]

Boeing predicts up to 30 new orders for EA-18Gs

A Boeing executive today predicted the US Navy could buy 26 to 30 EA-18Gs more than the 88 already in the budget, potentially addresssing a shortfall created by the US Air Force 12 years ago.

For several years, the US Navy's Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowlers have been pulling double-duty. The EA-6B serves primarily as the carrier battle group's radar and communications jammer.

The USAF retired the General Dynamics EF-111 Raven in 1997. Ever since, some Prowlers have also been assigned to a primarily land-based mission, escorting strike packages of fighters and bombers into combat zones.

With the USN EA-6Bs scheduled to phase out in Fiscal 2012, the Pentagon faces a problem. The USAF still has not funded a replacement for the EF-111. The USN needs all 88 EA-18Gs to replace Prowlers serving only the carrier-based mission. In an age when electronic threats are growing, US forces will lose ground if the land-based EA-6Bs are not replaced.

According to Rick Martin, Boeing's EA-18G program manager, the USN could fill this gap by boosting the currently planned EA-18G fleet by about one-third. The move could also extend Boeing's common production line for F/A-18E/F Super Hornets and Growlers by up to two years at current production rates.

Gen James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told senators at his confirmation hearing in early July that the US Air Force's prized Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor was canceled partly to pay for additional EA-18Gs that are highly in demand.

"When you hear it in the testimony from individuals like Gen Cartwright it certainly supports the need for electronic attack in theater," Martin says.

The EA-18G integrates the same suite of sensors and jammers, including ALQ-218 receiver and analog ALQ-99 jamming pods, found on the EA-6B. The Growler also adds the Raytheon APG-79 active electronically scanned array (AESA).

Last week, the USN announced that the EA-18 has cleared its operational evaluation. In September, Boeing must verify that it has resolved undisclosed software anomalies found during the evaluation. The EA-18G remains on track to reach initial operational capability later this year, Martin says. Boeing is also expecting to receive a full-rate production deal covering the next 54 EA-18Gs, with 34 already on contract and 12 delivered.

In addition to the potential domestic order boost, Boeing continues to pursue export orders, a market one executive previously estimated could stretch to 50 aircraft. So far, Australia has agreed to pre-wire the last 12 of 24 F/A-18Fs on order for possible conversion to the EA-18G configuration. Boeing has also proposed the idea of a "Growler Lite" suite, which would include only the sensors and exclude the jammers.

http://www.flightglobal.com/article...predicts-up-to-30-new-orders-for-ea-18gs.html

 

[nandu]

US' Joint Air-To-Ground Missile passes 'dirty battlefield' test

Lockheed Martin-designed Joint Air-To-Ground Missile (JAGM) has successfully completed a series of flight tests, validating its tri-mode seeker’s capability to detect and defeat the desired targets.

Lockheed Martin's Joint Air-To-Ground Missile.
The missile underwent a series of static, tower-based and captive-carry flight tests during which its seeker was tested against both active and passive countermeasure systems.

The three seeker modes of the JAGM system – the semi-active laser, the imaging infrared and the millimeter wave radar – were put to test in a “limited dirty battlefield/countermeasure rich environment” at Redstone Arsenal, Albama.

Test results demonstrated all three sensor modes successfully communicated and worked collaboratively to effectively address and defeat each countermeasure and obscurant, Lockheed said.

Earlier, the system was put to test in clean, non-dirty-battlefield flight environments, in both favourable and adverse weather conditions.

The JAGM programme has been designed to develop an air-to-surface missile that will replace the AGM-114 Hellfire II missiles, the Maverick missiles and the BGM-71 TOW missiles presently used the US Army, Navy and Marine Corps.

The new missile system will be deployed in the rotary-wing, fixed-wing and unmanned platforms of the army, navy and marine corps.

The JAGM’s body and multi-purpose warhead have been provided by Boeing while Raytheon has designed its tri-mode seeker which enables the weapon to hit a fixed or a moving target in all weather conditions.

The US Army, Navy and Marine Corps are expected to procure around 35,000 JAGM systems.

http://www.brahmand.com/news/US-Joi...-passes-dirty-battlefield-test/3632/1/11.html

 

[nandu]

U.S. Air Force gets 28 C-130J Super Hercules

U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff has delivered first of 28 Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules to the 317th Airlift Group at Dyess Air Force Base.

"The delivery of this C-130J and others like it is a step toward modernising our airlift inventories, we'll continue to make progress in this area over the next few years," Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton A. Schwartz said in an Air Forse official new release.

The 317th Airlift Group will replace its existing Dyess fleet of 33 aging C-130 from the newly developed aircraft C-130J

Lockheed will complete the final delieveries of C-130J Super Hercules fleet by 2012.

"We are seeing more and more that when the time comes to replace aging C-130 fleets, or establish new fleets, the choice is made to acquire the Super Hercules. There is no other airlifter that has the capability, flexibility and proven track record of the C-130J, "said Ross Reynolds, Lockheed Martin vice president for C-130 programs in the release.

"From airlift recapitalization in the U.S., to the growing list of countries selecting the C-130J, this aircraft has the capability to meet whatever operational challenges the future holds," he added.

C-130J Super Hercules is the world's most advanced tactical airlifter, with the range and flexibility for emerging theaters and evolving concepts of operation.

http://www.brahmand.com/news/US-Air-Force-gets-28-C-130J-Super-Hercules/3666/1/14.html

 

[nandu]

Obama Admin to release a new National Security Strategy

The United States would soon release a new National Security Strategy, a top Obama Administration official has said.

"The new approach would be rooted in and guided by America's national security interests. These interests are clear and enduring," National Security Advisor General (rtd) James Jones said at Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

He said the US had an enduring interest in security of America, its citizens and allies and partners. "We have an enduring interest in a strong, innovative and growing US economy in an open international economic system that promotes opportunity and prosperity," he said, adding US had an enduring interest in upholding universal values, at home and around the world.

"We have an enduring interest in an international order advanced by US leadership that promotes peace, security and opportunity through stronger cooperation to meet global challenges," Jones said. Since taking office, the NSA said, US President Barack Obama has made it clear that his first and foremost priority was the safety and security of the American people and he had pursued a new era of US leadership and comprehensive engagement based on mutual interests and mutual respect.

"Security, prosperity, universal values, and an international order advanced by American leadership-these are the interests that the President and his Administration are working to advance around the world every day, including in the Middle East," Jones said. "To strengthen our security, we are responsibly ending the war in Iraq," he said, adding that as evidenced by the successes this weekend of military operations against al Qaeda in Iraq, Iraqi security forces are in the lead.

"The United States will end our combat mission by the end of August. In accordance with the US-Iraq Security Agreement, all US forces will be out Iraq by the end of next year. Now, the most immediate challenge is for Iraqi political leaders to form an inclusive and representative government," Jones said.

As they face the longer-term challenges of expanding prosperity and opportunity, the Iraqi people will continue to have a partner in the United States, he said in his remarks. Jones said the US is forging partnerships that isolate extremists, combat corruption and promote good governance and development-all of which improves the daily lives of ordinary people and undermines the forces that fuel violent extremism.

"To confront the greatest threat to global security - the danger that terrorists will obtain nuclear weapons or materials - the President hosted last week's historic Nuclear Security Summit, where 46 nations joined the goal of securing the world's vulnerable nuclear materials in four years," Jones noted.

"To advance our prosperity, the President has worked with allies and partners to expand the global economic recovery, pursue growth that is balanced and sustained, launched a national export initiative to double American exports and support two million American jobs... and reformed the international economic architecture so that the G-20 is now the premier forum for international cooperation," Jones said.

To advance a just and sustainable international order, the United States is working to ensure that both the rights and responsibilities of all nations are upheld. For example, the new START Treaty with Russia is part of the President's comprehensive agenda to pursue a world without nuclear weapons-an agenda that reflects the three pillars of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty: nations with nuclear weapons will reduce them, nations without nuclear weapons will forsake them, and the recognition that nations have a right to peaceful nuclear energy, he said.

"Whether or not the rights and responsibilities of nations are upheld will in great measure determine whether the coming years and decades result in greater security, prosperity and opportunity-for Americans and for people around the world," Jones said.

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/65231/obama-admin-release-national-security.html

 

[nandu]

US Air Force launches hypersonic glider vehicle

The first Minotaur IV Lite launch vehicle, carrying the Hypersonic Technology Vehicle 2,
blasts off from the Vandenberg Air Force Base on April 22, 2010, A USAF photo

A Minotaur IV Lite rocket carrying an unmanned hypersonic glider air vehicle blasted off from the US' Vandenberg Air Force Base in California last week.

The rocket carried the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's Falcon Hypersonic Technology Vehicle 2, the US Air Force said.

While the launch vehicle successfully delivered the Falcon HTV-2 glide vehicle to the desired separation conditions, telemetry assets experienced a loss of signal from the HTV-2 approximately nine minutes into the mission, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which is working on the project in partnership with USAF, said.

An engineering team is reviewing available data to understand this event, DARPA said in a statement.

The launch on April 22, 2010 was the first test launch of the ambitious Falcon HTV-2 project.

The programme aims at developing an unmanned, rocket launched, maneuverable hypersonic air vehicle that will glide through Earth's atmosphere at a speed of Mach 20 and above.

The vehicle will feature high lift-to-drag aerodynamic shape, advanced lightweight, autonomous hypersonic navigation guidance and control systems and an autonomous flight safety system.

http://www.brahmand.com/news/US-Air-Force-launches-hypersonic-glider-vehicle/3737/1/11.html

 

[nandu]

Now complete, submarine USS Missouri will launch in July

Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/04/26/1903606/now-complete-submarine-uss-missouri.html#ixzz0mINK5xqq


JEFFERSON CITY | The newest naval vessel to be named for the Show-Me State is proceeding toward commissioning.

The USS Missouri is a $2 billion, nuclear-powered attack submarine. The Virginia Class sub will belong to the Navy's Submarine Group 2.

Gov. Jay Nixon received an update on the Missouri last week from Rear Adm. Michael McLaughlin, who commands all attack submarines in the North Atlantic.

McLaughlin says the Navy will begin trials next month to see if the submarine is seaworthy. The Missouri will undergo several rigorous tests before its scheduled commissioning July 31 in Groton, Conn.

The sub was christened in December as the fifth USS Missouri. The most famous was the battleship on which the Japanese surrendered at the end of World War II. It is now a floating museum in Hawaii.

http://www.kansascity.com/2010/04/26/1903606/now-complete-submarine-uss-missouri.html

 

[plugwater]

Northrop Grumman - X-47B UCAS First Low Speed Taxi

 

[nandu]

Lockheed delivers 10,000th GMLRS to US Army

Lockheed Martin has delivered the 10,000th Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) to the US Army.

The GMLRS rocket being fired from the White Sand Missile Range in New Mexico earlier this year. A Lockheed Photo

The GMLRS was delivered to the Army at Lockheed's facility here in Arkansas on Tuesday, the company said.

GMLRS is an all-weather, precision strike, artillery rocket system that achieves greater range and precision accuracy requiring fewer rockets to defeat targets and limiting collateral damage. It is used by the US Army in tactical and operational missions.

The weapon is the latest variant of the Lockheed-designed Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS).

The GMLRS features a unitary warhead with a multi-mode fuze to expand the MLRS target set to include point targets within urban and complex environments, thereby significantly minimising collateral damage.

Lockheed had delivered the first batch of 72 GMLRS to the US Army in 2005. The first 900-plus rockets were delivered to the US in 2005 and 2006.

http://www.brahmand.com/news/Lockheed-delivers-10000th-GMLRS-to-US-Army/3755/1/11.html

 

[Pintu]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...reveal-N-arsenal-size/articleshow/5882002.cms

Setting example? US may reveal N-arsenal size
PTI, May 2, 2010, 02.24am IST

WASHINGTON: In an effort to strengthen the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, the US is likely to reveal the size of its atomic stockpile — a closely guarded secret — during the key NPT review conference at the UN headquarters in New York next week, a media report said on Saturday.

"The numbers could be released as soon as Monday when Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is to address the NPT Review Conference in New York," officials were quoted as saying. She will speak after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who is likely to repeat his demand for more global controls over the stockpiles of the nuclear nations, 'The Washington Post' reported.

According to The Post, US officials fear Ahmadinejad could hijack the conference with such demands, diverting attention from his own nuclear programme, which is widely seen as violating the non-proliferation treaty. Arms-control groups estimate the US arsenal contains 9,000 weapons, with roughly 5,000 of them active and the rest in line for dismantlement, it said. Experts interviewed by the paper termed it as a major initiative, saying that the United States has not got enough credit for the reductions it has made.

"That's even true of the Bush administration.... It makes it easier for us to make the case we are in fact reducing the number of nuclear weapons," Jeffrey Lewis, director of the Nuclear Strategy and Non-proliferation Initiative at the New America Foundation, was quoted as saying.

 

[Agantrope]

Gates: Speed FCS Replacement, Define Future USMC Role

DEFENSE SECRETARY ROBERT M. Gates speaks with members of the press on board a C-40 aircraft on May 7. (Cherie Cullen / U.S. Defense Department)
Last year, Gates terminated the Army's Future Combat Systems program and directed the service to begin a new modernization effort. The service responded with a new program that's slated to field the first vehicles in seven years.

Speaking to an audience here, Gates noted the Pentagon took the mine resistant ambush protected (MRAP) program from an idea to full-rate production "in a year." To Gates, that experience says, "we can shave a little time off" the post-FCS program's time line.

He said he has been discussing just that with senior Army leaders.

Gates said he has been interviewing candidates to replace retiring Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Conway. His first question to them: What's your vision for the future of the Corps? The question provides a window into the secretary's thinking about amphibious operations. Gates said he is unsure just where American Marines would be asked to storm a beach in the future - especially as potential foes continue fielding more and more advanced weapons, like large stocks of missiles.

But Gates said that America "will always have a Marine Corps," and "we will need some amount of amphibious capability."

On shipbuilding, Gates cited his May 3 speech to a Navy League conference, saying, "They didn't much like what I had to say." During that talk, the secretary said the Navy must find a way to build ships more cheaply, while also thinking of new ways to use its ships against ever-more sophisticated foes.

Today, Gates said that the Navy will not reach its 313-ship fleet goal unless it cuts shipbuilding costs.

He also said he does not want a situation to occur where Washington "is dependent on a foreign shipyard to build U.S. warships."

http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=4617217&c=AME&s=LAN

 

[nandu]

Boeing Launches Phantom Ray Airborne System

Boeing has launched the Phantom Ray unmanned airborne system, which will begin taxi tests shortly.

Developed from the X-45C programme for the US Air Force, the Phantom Ray aircraft will primarily support intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.

It will also support suppression of enemy air defences, electronic attack, strike operations and autonomous aerial refuelling.

It will undergo its first flight test in December 2010, which will be followed by up to nine additional flights in six months.

Boeing Defense, Space & Security has developed the Phantom Ray in its Phantom Works division.

The programme has received its propulsion and power distribution systems from General Electric-Aviation and the brake system from Honeywell.

Phantom Ray will also be fitted with flight control actuation system from Woodward-HRT, brake controls from Crane Hydro-Aire and landing gear Heroux-Devtek.

http://www.airforce-technology.com/news/news84836.html

 

[nandu]

Raytheon links combat systems for networked lethality

MCKINNEY, TEXAS : Raytheon networked an array of combat systems during a US Army experimental force exercise to evaluate existing and emerging capabilities for improved situational awareness and targeting efficiency.

As the network systems integrator for the Army Expeditionary Warrior Experimen (AEWE), Raytheon integrated more than 25 technologies from more than 20 different companies and government agencies.

That effort included using its MAINGATE mobile ad-hoc communications system as a network backbone for the experiment.

AEWE is a live, operational experiment that provides insights to evaluate the mission effectiveness of technologies and concepts for soldiers and small units.

The tactical network included a 3rd-generation electro-optical Mast Mounted System, the Long Range Advanced Scout Surveillance System, an Improved Target Acquisition System, and the Javelin Command Launch Unit, a company statement said.

Raytheon said networking these systems significantly reduced target acquisition and engagement timelines through slew-to-cue target handoffs and automated target reports.

"We increased situational awareness through transmission of streaming sensor video and imagery that supports targeting and battle damage assessments," said Glynn Raymer, Vice President of the company's Network Centric Systems Combat Systems.

"These ready and near-ready netted systems reduce time-to-target, improve accuracy and help save war fighter lives," he said.

http://www.brahmand.com/news/Raytheon-links-combat-systems-for-networked-lethality/3886/1/11.html

 

[nandu]

LCS Price Gives Navy Pause

At last week's Navy League expo, Lockheed Martin's Paul Lemmo told DoD Buzz he thinks the decision on which of the two Littoral Combat Ship offerings will win the Navy's down select this summer, his company's steel mono-hull or General Dynamics' all aluminum trimaran, is an easy one.

Lockheed Martin's steel mono-hull LCS can be built in most any shipyard and, more importantly, it can put in for repairs at many more dry-docks than can GD's trimaran. How many more? There are roughly 10 dry-docks in the Norfolk area, Lemmo said, only two of which could fit the trimaran. Lockheed's mono-hull fits in all of them. That ease of maintenance will result in lower LCS lifecycle costs, Lemmo says.

The issue of LCS lifecycle costs is a hot one. GD contends that the Navy's down select criteria doesn't sufficiently emphasize lifecycle costs. GD says its trimaran will burn much less fuel than Lockheed's LCS-1 mono-hull over the life of the ships.

At the request of Sen. Jeff Sessions R-Ala, who supports the GD design, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) examined LCS-1 lifecycle costs and how projected fuel usage will impact those costs. CBO found that LCS-1 fuel costs would be largely insignificant. Fuel costs would account for somewhere between 8 and 18 percent of total costs; whereas the ship's price tag accounts for up to 66 percent of total costs.

Lockheed's Lemmo said they've been able to bring down LCS-3 production costs about 30 percent compared to LCS-1. LCS-3 is over 40 percent complete and on track for a 2012 delivery. He said much of the work on LCS-1 was done at pier side, versus while it was still on land, a far costlier way to build a ship. Most of the pre-outfitting on LCS-3 will be done on land.

While the two builders argue over competing costs, the cost that is causing the Navy staff heartache is the ship's price tag. CBO estimates that once the Navy selects a single design, ship costs will come down to about $550 million. Of course that doesn't include the cost for the mission modules.

As CRS naval analyst Ron O'Rourke points out in a new report on the LCS program, $550 million is a heck of a lot more than the initial cost estimate of $220 million. At $220 million a copy, the Navy's planned buy of 55 of these "inexpensive" ships made some sense. Now things may be changing.

Navy sources tell DoD Buzz that there is a lot of dissatisfaction on the Navy staff with the LCS. "It's sucking up money better spent on a real warship," said one source. It's way over-engineered for the missions it will conduct, such as counternarcotics and counter-piracy, said another. Those same sources said they're hearing not altogether encouraging things about progress with the LCS mission modules, particularly the mine sweeping and the anti-submarine warfare modules.

From what we're hearing, there's a good chance the final number may end up being much lower.


http://www.dodbuzz.com/2010/05/12/lcs-price-gives-navy-pause/

 

[nandu]

Northrop gets $187M Navy carrier design contract

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Northrop Grumman Corp. on Wednesday said it was awarded a $186.6 million contract modification from the U.S. Navy to continue engineering and design for the USS Gerald R. Ford, a nuclear powered aircraft carrier now under construction.

The official kickoff ceremony for construction of the $7 billion carrier named for the 38th president was held in November.

Northrop's shipbuilding unit is the prime contractor on the project.

The carrier, scheduled for delivery to the Navy in 2015, will be the first in the Ford-class series in honor of Ford's service in the Navy. It represents the first major carrier design change since the 1960s, when the 10-ship Nimitz class was introduced.

The latest contract modification funds additional design, planning and system integration activities and analysis. Northrop said the effort is now focused on the production of instructions for the ship assembly.

The design will allow for more flights and improvements that will reduce the workload for sailors, enabling the ship to operate with a smaller crew size than existing carriers.

Northrop shares closed Wednesday's trading up 86 cents at $65.75.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gR6EijsXhpYB3oNV6HxGwqVW1-1gD9FLIVH05

 

[bhramos]

Video of new LCS
http://www.defensenews.com/video.php?bctid=

 

[nandu]

US DoD agrees to buy 124 F/A-18E/Fs and EA-18Gs over 4 years

The US Department of Defense has agreed to buy 124 F/A-18E/Fs and EA-18Gs manufactured by Boeing over the next four years for an undisclosed sum, a source familiar with the deal tells Flightglobal.com.

DoD notified Congress today that it will pursue a package deal called a multi-year procurement. The arrangement locks the government into a long-term contract, and the manufacturer provides a discounted price in exchange for the commitment.

Missouri Rep Todd Akin announced that DoD had approved the third multi-year procurement (MYP) for orders during Fiscal 2010-2014, but he did not provide numbers.

The source, however, confirms the package includes 66 F/A-18E/Fs and 58 EA-18Gs, raising the total fleet 515 F/A-18E/Fs and 114 EA-18Gs after the last deliveries occur in late 2015.

The cost for the four-year contract has not been disclosed. Boeing released a statement saying the package deal will cost 10% less buying the aircraft in annual lots.

"It is encouraging to see the Navy and DoD come to their senses on this issue, after I have spent two years arguing that a multi-year contract made sense on all fronts," Akin says.

Last year, DoD officials rejected Boeing's initial multi-year proposal, saying the three-year, 89-aircraft bid lowered the cost of procurement by less than 7%.

The Congressional Research Service extrapolated that even if Boeing's offer was extended to cover 150 aircraft over five years, it would still fall slightly short of DoD's 10% threshold for approving multi-year procurement (MYP) contracts.

The deal means that Boeing will continue producing the F/A-18E/F and EA-18G through at least calendar year 2015.

Extending the production line even further will depend partly on ongoing efforts to sell the aircraft abroad. Australia launched the export campaign for both aircraft types, and Boeing also is offering the fighter to India, Japan, Greece, Denmark, Kuwait and Canada.

But the programme's future also depends on the fate of the Lockheed Martin F-35B and F-35C for the Marine Corps and Navy, respectively. Both services intend to buy 680 F-35B/Cs to replace about 620 F/A-18C/Ds and about 120 AV-8B Harriers.

Meanwhile, the navy is also managing a projected fighter shortfall growing to at least 177 jets by FY2017.

http://www.flightglobal.com/article...s-to-buy-124-fa-18efs-and-ea-18gs-over-4.html

 

[nandu]

U.S. 7th Fleet Controls Tomahawk Launch from 5,000 Miles Away

USS CHEYENNE, At Sea (NNS) -- Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS Cheyenne (SSN-773) in conjunction with Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet and members of Naval Special Warfare Group (NSWG) 3 successfully fired a Block IV-E Tomahawk Land Attack Missile May 5.

The missile launch took place off the southern coast of California into China Lake Test Range and marks the first time a forward-deployed operational command acted as the Tomahawk strike coordinator and primary missile controller for an operational test launch.

"The Navy's ability to conduct strike operations on re-locatable targets is currently very challenging," said Master Chief Fire Controlman (SW) David Brewer, U.S. 7th Fleet Tomahawk strike coordinator. "By proving an operational commander's ability to use the Tactical Tomahawk Command and Control System's ability to receive real-time targeting coordinates and applying them to a tactical Tomahawk missile in flight will significantly improve the Navy's ability to shape the battlefield and project power from the sea, particularly, when naval surface strike is the only fires option available to the commander."

"I am proud of the work we have accomplished during this exercise," he said. "With this being the staff's first time providing real time operations in flight, the job by the entire team was exceptional. The training value gained from a live firing event has no substitute, and will absolutely improve C7F's ability to conduct actual launch operations when required.

NSWG-3 provided updated target data used by 7th Fleet to modify the missile's flight path, resulting in a destroyed target. The test launch demonstrated a complex strike capability and was a tremendous success for all involved.

"Teamwork is critical in naval fires," Brewer said. "This test launch is the ultimate use of different operational assets we provided during this exercise to achieve common goal. "

This test continues the Navy's formal government testing of the Tactical Tomahawk Weapons Systems from surface/sub-surface launch platforms.

The Tomahawk missile is ship and submarine launched and was first employed operationally during Desert Storm. Since then, the missile has been heralded for its accuracy and lethality in numerous operations. The tactical Tomahawk boasts several enhancements as demonstrated today, which increase warfighter effectiveness and responsiveness, while significantly reducing acquisition and life cycle costs.

http://www.deagel.com/news/Tactical...way-by-the-US-Navys-7th-Fleet_n000007391.aspx

 

[nandu]

Boeing B-52 set to receive major radar upgrade

The US Air Force is moving forward with a major new upgrade for the half-century-old Boeing B-52H fleet, focused on replacing the bomber's radar, which is roughly 30 years old.

The Northrop Grumman APQ-166 strategic radar is nearing the end of its useful life and will be replaced on 76 B-52Hs, the USAF says in a request for information issued to industry. The new system will perform all of the mission functions now performed by the APQ-166 mechanically scanned array, but provide "new and enhanced capabilities", the air force says.

Although active electronically scanned array (AESA) technology is now available off the shelf and being integrated on the Northrop B-2A bomber fleet, the air force document stops short of demanding that level of technology integration for the B-52H.

"The main focus of the [Strategic Radar Replacement (SR2)] programme is sustainability/supportability," the air force says.

Budget documents indicate the programme is well-funded. The SR2 line item in the air force's fiscal year 2011 budget request contains $151.3 million to complete development and production through 2022. The air force plans to launch the development in late FY2013, following an analysis of alternatives phase and a competitive contract selection.

The SR2 requirement is the latest major B-52 upgrade to emerge as the air force protects its investment in a fleet that entered service in the mid-1950s, but continues to be relied on heavily today in combat operations.

The USAF also is upgrading the B-52's ability to communicate with other forces in the combat network communication technology programme. It is also integrating extremely high-frequency antennas on the B-52 fleet.

http://www.flightglobal.com/article...-b-52-set-to-receive-major-radar-upgrade.html

 

[nrj]

Rust and Roll For F-22; HASC Watches JSF

Rust is not something the average person thinks much about when it comes to designing high-tech weapons. But several years ago I reported on a major missile test defense test that was ruined because a part rusted that helped hold the missile in place before liftoff. And in February the entire F-22 fleet was grounded "due to poorly designed drainage in the cockpit." The affected parts were ejection seat rods. Congress is worried that similar problems could afflict the Joint Strike Fighter and has requested a report about lessons learned from the F-22's experience.

Regardless of how lowly rust might seem at first glance, it is a huge problem for the military, costing about $20 billion each year. According to the House Armed Services Committee, roughly $7 billion of that rust is preventable. So, the committee, doing its job of congressional oversight, wants to substantially increase the budget of a little known Pentagon entity, the Office of Corrosion Policy and Oversight, to improve the military's ability to stop rust from crippling major weapons systems.

"The Office of Corrosion Policy and Oversight has a proven record of successfully reducing corrosion costs, with a 50-to-1 return on investment on the 169 programs that have been implemented through it," the HASC says in the summary of its bill. So the committee is increasing the office's budget to a paltry $10.8 million, up from a tiny request of $3.6 million. Doing the math, that should result in a return of $540 million to the taxpayer. Kudos to Daniel Dunmire, director of Corrosion Policy and Oversight.

Of course, there's usually a rub, and there is a little one this time. The HASC says that it has not yet gotten a "congressionally directed report" from Dunmire about those lessons learned from the F-22's rust problems: "The Committee notes that it has yet to receive the congressionally directed report from the Director of Corrosion Policy and Oversight assessing the corrosion control lessons learned from the F-22 Raptor fleet—which was grounded in February 2010 for corrosion on ejection seat rods due to poorly designed drainage in the cockpit—as they apply to the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program."

We hear little evidence of congressional irritation and expect the prospect of a bulging purse will only encourage OSD to cough up the report forthwith. Dunmire, who responded promptly to our inquiry about when the report would be done, said it should be ready by August.

Source

 

[nandu]

Boeing to Begin QF-16 Aerial Drone Development

Boeing has received the first retired F-16 Falcon aircraft that it will convert into a QF-16 aerial drone for the US Air Force.

The USAF awarded a $69.7m contract to Boeing in March 2010 to begin the first phase of the QF-16 programme.

In the first phase, Boeing, together with BAE Systems, will begin engineering, manufacturing and development of the full-scale manned and unmanned QF-16 aircraft.

The drones will be used as aerial targets for newly developed weapons and tactics, and will replace QF-4s.

After the modifications, the QF-16 will be used as a prototype for engineering tests and evaluation before low-rate initial production.

The Boeing team will receive six F-16s in the development phase and will create up to 126 QF-16 drones by 2014.

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