Army to send even more troops, tanks to Europe: Just months after bringing home the last of its M1 Abrams tanks and Bradley Fighting Vehicles from Europe, the Army's heavy vehicles are back in the region as it faces a new but familiar threat.
In the last 10 months, Russia has annexed the Crimea region, secured a vital port in the Black Sea and sponsored a civil war in Eastern Ukraine that has claimed thousands of lives — all within a few hundred miles of NATO's borders.
Russia's military also has taken on an aggressive swagger. In the Black Sea, NATO ships like the U.S. destroyer Donald Cook have been buzzed by Russian fighters. Russian Tu-95 Bear Bombers have reportedly been tracked near Canada conducting missile strike drills within range of targets in the United States, and Russian airplanes have been tracked as close as 50 miles from the California coast — the closest they've come since the end of the Cold War.
"My concern about those kinds of activities is there can be a miscalculation or mistake that could lead to a confrontation," said Lt. Gen. John Nicholson, commander of NATO Land Command. "When you look at the history of warfare, it's replete with examples where a miscalculation or mistake can spin into war."
Tuesday, January 6, 2015
Kauffman to deploy Thursday, the last frigate cruise
Kauffman to deploy Friday, the last frigate cruise: The frigate Kauffman will depart on its final deployment Friday, a day later that had been scheduled.
It will be the last deployment for an Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate.
While there have been 51 frigates of the Oliver Hazard Perry class, the Navy has reduced that number to single digits. Lawmakers and Navy leaders, faced with diminishing budgets, made the decision to sell most frigates to foreign navies as the ships' hulls hit their three-decade lifespan.
The service will bid farewell to its remaining FFGs — McClusky, Vandegrift, Taylor, Gary, Elrod, Simpson, Samuel B. Roberts, Kauffman, Rodney M. Davis and Ingraham – this year. McClusky is scheduled to be decommissioned on Jan. 14. Congress on Dec. 18 authorized that frigate and Curts to be transferred to Mexico. The frigates Taylor, Gary, Carr, decommissioned on March 15, 2013, and Elrod will go to Taiwan.
Kauffman will be the last to be decommissioned, in October, marking the first time in more than 70 years that the fleet will be without a frigate.
It will be the last deployment for an Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate.
While there have been 51 frigates of the Oliver Hazard Perry class, the Navy has reduced that number to single digits. Lawmakers and Navy leaders, faced with diminishing budgets, made the decision to sell most frigates to foreign navies as the ships' hulls hit their three-decade lifespan.
The service will bid farewell to its remaining FFGs — McClusky, Vandegrift, Taylor, Gary, Elrod, Simpson, Samuel B. Roberts, Kauffman, Rodney M. Davis and Ingraham – this year. McClusky is scheduled to be decommissioned on Jan. 14. Congress on Dec. 18 authorized that frigate and Curts to be transferred to Mexico. The frigates Taylor, Gary, Carr, decommissioned on March 15, 2013, and Elrod will go to Taiwan.
Kauffman will be the last to be decommissioned, in October, marking the first time in more than 70 years that the fleet will be without a frigate.
Changing sea duty: Marines prep to deploy aboard new ships
Changing sea duty: Marines prep to deploy aboard new ships: Marines and sailors are at the center of a test that could change naval warfare.
Officials from the Corps and Navy are considering a new way of deploying Marines on a wide spectrum of vessels well beyond the standard pumps aboard amphibious assault ships. If the test runs are a success, aircraft carriers, destroyers, and even military cargo ships could become home to Marines headed to the world's next crisis.
Putting Marines on new ships could help military leaders and planners struggling with the shortage of amphibious assault ships. With fewer amphibs at sea, the Corps has stood up two land-based crisis response forces so Marines can be forward deployed to regions where contingencies could erupt. But being at sea is still ideal, according to service leaders, and putting Marines on new vessels could help meet growing mission requirements around the world.
The plan is in the early stages, and officials said it could give combatant commanders an additional company of Marines at the ready to recover a downed pilot, pull Americans out of an embassy under attack, or provide humanitarian assistance after a disaster. For Marines, it would mean new types of sea duty on ships across the Navy fleet.
Officials from the Corps and Navy are considering a new way of deploying Marines on a wide spectrum of vessels well beyond the standard pumps aboard amphibious assault ships. If the test runs are a success, aircraft carriers, destroyers, and even military cargo ships could become home to Marines headed to the world's next crisis.
Putting Marines on new ships could help military leaders and planners struggling with the shortage of amphibious assault ships. With fewer amphibs at sea, the Corps has stood up two land-based crisis response forces so Marines can be forward deployed to regions where contingencies could erupt. But being at sea is still ideal, according to service leaders, and putting Marines on new vessels could help meet growing mission requirements around the world.
The plan is in the early stages, and officials said it could give combatant commanders an additional company of Marines at the ready to recover a downed pilot, pull Americans out of an embassy under attack, or provide humanitarian assistance after a disaster. For Marines, it would mean new types of sea duty on ships across the Navy fleet.
Monday, January 5, 2015
Amid Criticism, US Navy Confident in New Arresting Gear System for Next Carrier
Amid Criticism, US Navy Confident in New Arresting Gear System for Next Carrier: A host of new technologies and systems will begin to enter service when the new aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) is delivered in the first half of 2016, and for over a decade it's been a good question whether all the new whiz-bang technology will be ready in time.
While the US Navy and its suppliers remain under scrutiny to make it all happen, they're also increasingly confident the key new technologies — including the dual-band radar (DBR), electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) and advanced arresting gear (AAG) — will be delivered.
The latter two technologies represent a major shift for carrier operations, allowing aircraft to be launched and recovered without bulky and manpower-intensive steam catapults and hydraulic wires.
But, program officials have acknowledged, testing and development of the systems will continue past the ship's planned March 2016 delivery date. Initial operational test and evaluation work isn't to start until the second half of 2017, with integration testing continuing to the end of that year. The ship's initial deployment is scheduled to take place in 2019.
While the US Navy and its suppliers remain under scrutiny to make it all happen, they're also increasingly confident the key new technologies — including the dual-band radar (DBR), electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) and advanced arresting gear (AAG) — will be delivered.
The latter two technologies represent a major shift for carrier operations, allowing aircraft to be launched and recovered without bulky and manpower-intensive steam catapults and hydraulic wires.
But, program officials have acknowledged, testing and development of the systems will continue past the ship's planned March 2016 delivery date. Initial operational test and evaluation work isn't to start until the second half of 2017, with integration testing continuing to the end of that year. The ship's initial deployment is scheduled to take place in 2019.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019 - The Daily Beast
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019 - The Daily Beast
The Pentagon’s newest stealth jet, the nearly $400 billion Joint Strike Fighter, won’t be able to fire its gun during operational missions until 2019, three to four years after it becomes operational.
Even though the Joint Strike Fighter, or F-35, is supposed to join frontline U.S. Marine Corps fighter squadrons next year and Air Force units in 2016, the jet’s software does not yet have the ability to shoot its 25mm cannon. But even when the jet will be able to shoot its gun, the F-35 barely carries enough ammunition to make the weapon useful.
The JSF won’t be completely unarmed. It will still carry a pair of Raytheon AIM-120 AMRAAM long-range air-to-air missiles and a pair of bombs. Initially, it will be able to carry 1,000-pound satellite-guided bombs or 500-pound laser-guided weapons. But those weapons are of limited utility, especially during close-in fights.
“There will be no gun until [the Joint Strike Fighter’s Block] 3F [software], there is no software to support it now or for the next four-ish years,” said one Air Force official affiliated with the F-35 program. “Block 3F is slated for release in 2019, but who knows how much that will slip?”
The tri-service F-35 is crucial to the Pentagon’s plans to modernize America’s tactical fighter fleet. The Defense Department hopes to buy 2,443 of the new stealth jets in three versions—one for the Air Force, one for the Navy, and one for the Marines. Versions of the jet will replace everything from the air arm’s A-10 Warthog ground attack plane and Lockheed F-16 multirole fighter, to the Navy’s Boeing F/A-18 Hornet carrier-based fighter, to the Marines’ Boeing AV-8B Harrier II jump-jet. But the F-35 has been plagued with massive delays and cost overruns—mostly due to design defects and software issues. There have also been problems with the jet’s engine. An F-35 was destroyed on takeoff earlier in the year when a design flaw in its Pratt & Whitney F135 engine sparked a fire.
Another Air Force official familiar with the F-35 confirmed that the jet won’t have the software to fire its gun until the Block 3F software is released to frontline squadrons sometime in 2019. Neither Lockheed nor the F-35 Joint Program Office responded to inquiries about the status of the jet’s gun.
America’s $400 billion Joint Strike Fighter, or F-35, is slated to join fighter squadrons next year—but missing software will render its 25mm cannon useless.
Even though the Joint Strike Fighter, or F-35, is supposed to join frontline U.S. Marine Corps fighter squadrons next year and Air Force units in 2016, the jet’s software does not yet have the ability to shoot its 25mm cannon. But even when the jet will be able to shoot its gun, the F-35 barely carries enough ammunition to make the weapon useful.
The JSF won’t be completely unarmed. It will still carry a pair of Raytheon AIM-120 AMRAAM long-range air-to-air missiles and a pair of bombs. Initially, it will be able to carry 1,000-pound satellite-guided bombs or 500-pound laser-guided weapons. But those weapons are of limited utility, especially during close-in fights.
“There will be no gun until [the Joint Strike Fighter’s Block] 3F [software], there is no software to support it now or for the next four-ish years,” said one Air Force official affiliated with the F-35 program. “Block 3F is slated for release in 2019, but who knows how much that will slip?”
The tri-service F-35 is crucial to the Pentagon’s plans to modernize America’s tactical fighter fleet. The Defense Department hopes to buy 2,443 of the new stealth jets in three versions—one for the Air Force, one for the Navy, and one for the Marines. Versions of the jet will replace everything from the air arm’s A-10 Warthog ground attack plane and Lockheed F-16 multirole fighter, to the Navy’s Boeing F/A-18 Hornet carrier-based fighter, to the Marines’ Boeing AV-8B Harrier II jump-jet. But the F-35 has been plagued with massive delays and cost overruns—mostly due to design defects and software issues. There have also been problems with the jet’s engine. An F-35 was destroyed on takeoff earlier in the year when a design flaw in its Pratt & Whitney F135 engine sparked a fire.
Another Air Force official familiar with the F-35 confirmed that the jet won’t have the software to fire its gun until the Block 3F software is released to frontline squadrons sometime in 2019. Neither Lockheed nor the F-35 Joint Program Office responded to inquiries about the status of the jet’s gun.
Pentagon’s New Kill Vehicle Strategy Expected Soon | Defense content from Aviation Week
Pentagon’s New Kill Vehicle Strategy Expected Soon | Defense content from Aviation Week: The U.S. Missile Defense Agency is weighing two options for the long-awaited procurement of a new Exoatmospheric Kill Vehicle (EKV)—dubbed the Redesigned Kill Vehicle—for its Ground-Based Missile Defense system, a shield for the U.S. against ICBM attack.
In 2014, the GMD program was under intense scrutiny until its successful intercept of a complex, long-range target in July, ending an unsuccessful flight test streak that stretched from December 2008.
The test allowed program officials to turn their attention toward envisioning an improved, more reliable vehicle. Previously, they were consumed with trying to fix reliability problems and a decade-long problem with EKV vibrations impacting the inertial measurement unit in the guidance section.
The procurement strategy likely will be released with the fiscal 2016 budget plan early next year. The Pentagon is exploring two options: a full competition or picking the best attributes of existing design options and having the government manage them to produce a best-of-breed option, MDA Director Vice Adm. James Syring said in December
In 2014, the GMD program was under intense scrutiny until its successful intercept of a complex, long-range target in July, ending an unsuccessful flight test streak that stretched from December 2008.
The test allowed program officials to turn their attention toward envisioning an improved, more reliable vehicle. Previously, they were consumed with trying to fix reliability problems and a decade-long problem with EKV vibrations impacting the inertial measurement unit in the guidance section.
The procurement strategy likely will be released with the fiscal 2016 budget plan early next year. The Pentagon is exploring two options: a full competition or picking the best attributes of existing design options and having the government manage them to produce a best-of-breed option, MDA Director Vice Adm. James Syring said in December
Exclusive: U.S. Drone Fleet at ‘Breaking Point,’ Air Force Says - The Daily Beast
Exclusive: U.S. Drone Fleet at ‘Breaking Point,’ Air Force Says - The Daily Beast: The U.S. Air Force’s fleet of drones is being strained to the “breaking point,” according to senior military officials and an internal service memo acquired by The Daily Beast. And it’s happening right when the unmanned aircraft are most needed to fight ISIS.
The Air Force has enough MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper drones. It just doesn’t have the manpower to operate those machines. The Air Force’s situation is so dire that Air Combat Command (ACC), which trains and equips the service’s combat forces, is balking at filling the Pentagon’s ever increasing demands for more drone flights.
“ACC believes we are about to see a perfect storm of increased COCOM [Combatant Commander] demand, accession reductions, and outflow increases that will damage the readiness and combat capability of the MQ-1/9 enterprise for years to come,” reads an internal Air Force memo from ACC commander Gen. Herbert “Hawk” Carlisle, addressed to Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh. “I am extremely concerned.”
The Air Force has enough MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper drones. It just doesn’t have the manpower to operate those machines. The Air Force’s situation is so dire that Air Combat Command (ACC), which trains and equips the service’s combat forces, is balking at filling the Pentagon’s ever increasing demands for more drone flights.
“ACC believes we are about to see a perfect storm of increased COCOM [Combatant Commander] demand, accession reductions, and outflow increases that will damage the readiness and combat capability of the MQ-1/9 enterprise for years to come,” reads an internal Air Force memo from ACC commander Gen. Herbert “Hawk” Carlisle, addressed to Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh. “I am extremely concerned.”
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