Tag Archive for: General

Sea, air and land updates

U.S. Army Pfc. Richard Mills, Security Forces rifleman attached to Provincial Reconstruction Team Zabul, secures his eyes and ears as Afghan National Army soldiers conduct a controlled detonation of a Taliban-planted improvised explosive device found on a road in Shinkai, Afghanistan, Oct. 8. ANA soldiers detonated the IEDs after being trained by PRT Zabul on proper controlled detonation techniques. Mills is deployed from Charlie Company, 182nd Infantry Division, Massachusetts National Guard.Sea State

The Commander of the US 6th Fleet has warned that Russia is a growing maritime power capable of putting ‘nearly all NATO maritime forces at risk’. In an article for the US Naval Institute’s Proceedings, Vice Admiral James Foggo III detailed a new era in US–Russian submarine warfare, calling it ‘the Fourth Battle of the Atlantic’. The author drew comparisons between Russia’s submarine posture today to that which existed between the Allies and Germany during WWI and WWII, and between the Soviet Union and the US during the Cold War. He believes that Russia is stepping up its submarine operations in order to form an ‘arc of steel’ from the Artic to the Black Sea. The article comes in the wake of a number of improvements to Russia’s diesel-electric engine and nuclear-powered submarine capabilities.

Eat your heart out, Iron Man. The US Navy unveiled the ‘next generation’ system for its diving community last week—high-tech dive helmets. The Divers Augmented Vision Display is a high-resolution, see-through head-up display that’s built into the helmet in order to expand situational awareness and increased accuracy in navigation. The system overlays what the diver is seeing with real-time information—including sector sonar, diagrams, images, text messages and videos. Divers are scheduled to conduct in-water simulation testing in October, after which time the system will be used for ship husbandry, underwater construction and salvage operations. The Christian Science Monitor takes a look at the helmet, and other applications of augmented reality, here.

Flight Path

The South China Morning Post reported last week that China is preparing to announce an air defence identification zone (ADIZ) in the South China Sea, dependent on the regional security situation and particularly on US military presence in the region. The US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Sunday that Washington would consider an ADIZ a ‘provocative and destabilising act’. But some experts doubt that an ADIZ is imminent; Emeritus Professor Carl Thayer of the Australian Defence Force Academy has suggested that China doesn’t currently have the military capability to enforce a SCS ADIZ. The South China Sea has been the stage for aerial incidents between China and the US in the past, as we’ve reported previously. Over the weekend, US Pacific Command Chief Harry Harris said that unsafe incidents involving Chinese fighter pilots are ‘rare’ and an outlier in China’s generally positive behaviour.

The future of strategic bombers received some attention last week. At Defense One, a new article looks at the proposal of an unmanned option for the B-21, arguing that the uninhabited option should be incorporated from the outset to increase the US military’s operational flexibility and could save money. This piece from Breaking Defense argues that the US Senate Armed Services Committee shouldn’t attempt to create a fixed-price contract for the Long Range Strike Bomber on the grounds that it would risk delays and cost growth. And a new article over at The National Interest compares American and Russian strategic bombers, concluding that American strategic aviation has the advantage from a quantitative perspective, but Russian bombers are better equipped.

Rapid Fire

The Syrian Army is making significant advances towards Raqqa, Daesh’s de facto capital, after Russian forces conducted heavy air strikes on the neighbouring eastern areas of Hama province on Friday—the first time that Syrian government forces have entered Raqqa province since August 2014 when they were forced out by Daesh forces. It’s the third significant assault on Daesh in the last week, with Iraqi troops advancing on Fallujah in central Iraq and Syrian militia closing in on northern Syrian town of Manbji.

Hearing loss is a significant concern for armed forces, with over 60% of all soldiers concluding their service in Iraq and Afghanistan suffering hearing damage due to noise exposure. The US military are addressing that concern by providing their troops with the Tactical Communication and Protective System (TCAOS, a hearing protective system that dampens ‘explosive noise, but can enhance whispers’. Costing US$2,000 each, deployment of the TCAPS began in 2014; there are now 20,000 devices in the field. You can check out a video detailing the TCAPS system here.

In a notable first for military healthcare injectable sponges were used for the first time last week to stem the bleeding of a gunshot victim. A ‘sizable cavity’ had been made in the left thigh of a US soldier, whom a surgical team had struggled to stabilise until they applied the sponges. The XSTAT, manufactured by RevMedx, releases several small sponges into the wound, which then rapidly increase in size to stem the bleeding within 20 seconds. While the XSTAT was authorised for field use in 2014, only now has it been utilised.

Sea, air and land updates

Image courtesy of Flickr user Gonzalo Alonso

Sea State

USS Zumwalt, the lead ship of the US Navy’s next-generation guided missile destroyers, was formally delivered by shipbuilder General Dynamics Bath Iron Works last Friday. The eagerly awaited 610-foot ship features a tumblehome hull form and is designed for surface warfare, anti-aircraft warfare and naval gunfire support. Its due to be commissioned in Baltimore on 15 October—after which point it will be up to the US Navy and Raytheon to complete the ship’s combat systems. After the successful conclusion of combat system operational testing, expected by 2018, the ship will be available for deployment. Two additional Zumwalt-class ships are currently under construction in Bath. To mark the occasion, The Guardian features an informative video of the impressive destroyer. However, not everyone is impressed with the ship, with a Russian military analyst calling it a ‘giant washtub’.  

A small naval force from the Indian Navy’s Eastern Fleet left Indian shores on 18 May, setting off on a two-and-a-half month operational deployment to the South China Sea and North Western Pacific. The fleet—which includes two Shivalik-class guided-missile stealth frigates, a Deepak-class fleet tanker and a Kora-class guided-missile corvette—will visit Vietnam, the Philippines, Japan, South Korea, Russia and Malaysia, as well as participate in Exercise Malabar off the coast of Okinawa in mid-to-late June. China has voiced its disapproval at India taking part in maritime exercises in the South China Sea, with a senior Chinese official calling it a ‘matter of concern’.

Flight Path

Last week, two Chinese J-11 fighter jets intercepted an American EP-3 reconnaissance aircraft flying over the South China Sea. The US Department of Defense, probably with the April 2001 EP-3 collision in mind, deemed the intercept ‘unsafe’ and reported that the jets approached within 50 feet of the EP-3. China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei refuted the claim stating that the Chinese aircraft kept a ‘safe distance’ and demanded an end to US surveillance in China’s ‘coastal waters’.

A new article from TIME looks at what the recent spate of buzzing incidents by China (and Russia) mean—some say US resolve, others say US weakness. Sputnik News’ Loud & Clear podcast has an 18-minute talk with journalist Mark Sleboda who assesses the incident from an anti-US viewpoint and describes the latest EP-3 incident as Beijing’s response to ‘US hegemony [and] US control and access for its military to all parts of the world’. In response to the incident, US Pacific Command has said it urgently needs cameras on its planes to record evidence of aerial misbehaviour—as the internet mantra goes, pics or it didn’t happen.

Vice News has wrapped up its three-part series on the F-35. Part II looks at what makes the Joint Strike Fighter different from other fighter jets and which countries are F-35 customers, while the final part examines whether or not the JSF is worth the cost—issues and criticism as well as dollars—and concludes that it’s too early to judge if the program has been worthwhile.

Rapid Fire

Once an anti-war candidate, President Obama has now been at war longer than any other American president. The firsts don’t stop there for Obama, with Foreign Policy outlining how he has ‘authorised the continuation or re-emergence of two of the most contractor-dependent wars in US history’. In Afghanistan there are three contractors to each US trooper, while the total number of contractors (7,773) nearly doubles that of US troops (4,087) in Iraq. For those keen for a little extra background knowledge, Defence News has put together a handy infographic on the top 100 US Defence Department contractors in 2015.

The Thai military junta announced on 17 May that Thailand’s 2017 defence spending would increase by 3% over the 2016 figure. This announcement coincided with the Royal Thai Army (RTA) indicating that it will spend around US$150 million to purchase the MBT-3000 battle tank from China. The RTA also recently signalled its intent to replace its CH-47D Chinook helicopters with 12 Mil Mi-17V-5 helicopters from Russia.

From 1984 to 2007, Russia had three divisions of combat rail-based missile systems, or more simply, military trains with missiles. Russia is now set to restart the production of those systems. Dubbed the Barguzin rail-based missile system (after the strong eastern wind that blows over Lake Baikal), they’ll be in use by Russian forces from 2020 and will be equipped with six MS-26 Rubezh multiple-warhead missiles.

Sea, air and land updates

Sea State

The US Department of Defense released its annual report to Congress on China’s military and security developments on Friday, drawing particular attention to China’s actions in the South China Sea. The Pentagon review detailed that China had reclaimed more than 3200 acres of land in the Spratly Islands over the past two years, and alleged China was using ‘coercive tactics short of armed conflict’ in order to advance its interests in the region. The report also estimated China’s military spending in 2015 at more than $180 billion—approximately $40 billion more than China’s official defence budget. In response, China’s defence ministry expressed ‘strong dissatisfaction’ with the report, and had severely damaged trust between the two countries. The National Interest has an in-depth analysis of the report, while VICE takes a look at China’s response.

Hidden underwater drones may be the next frontier in naval warfare. The US Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) is developing Upward Falling Payloads, giant 15-foot high pods that would allow the US Navy to deploy UAVs to provide surveillance or potentially house weapons systems. The pods would be pre-positioned on the ocean floor, where they would enter hibernation to be released at any time. Once released, it would use a buoyancy collar to move rapidly to the surface. DARPA is currently working on Stage 3 of the project, which will include sea demonstrations. On the topic of UAVs, a newly released report from the US Department of Defense has found that 41 hand-launched drones purchased by US Special Operations Command failed military tests and may not be able to meet mission requirements.  

Flight Path

In F-35 news this week, US Senate Armed Service Committee Chairman John McCain is looking to disband the F-35 joint program office after the F-35 reaches full-rate production in 2019. McCain argues that the devolvement of the program to the individual services would help ensure the proper alignment of accountability, but a source familiar with the issue said the decision fails to take into account the international aspect of the program. Speaking of the love-it or hate-it Joint Strike Fighter, Vice News is looking at the innovations and problems of the F-35 in a three-part series. Part I—released this week—looks at how and why the jet will be used, based on talks with some US Navy F-35 test pilots.  

Keeping the debate alive over the future of the A-10, two new articles look at the proposed retirement of the Warthog and come to different conclusions. A blog post over at On Strategy and War argues that the time has come to retire the A-10, as the main reason to keep it—to provide Close Air Support—is outweighed by the platform’s inflexibility. From a different perspective, this piece published for the Modern War Institute argues that the A-10 should be retained for its CAS role, which can’t be replaced by the F-35.

Must see: footage has appeared online showing a sneak preview of Russia’s new counter-UAV weapon—the Surface-based Precision Elimination of Aerial Robots, or SPEAR. Watch the new SPEAR technology in action here.

Rapid Fire

With a track record that includes inadvertently shipping live anthrax, the US Department of Defense military laboratories are under scrutiny again thanks to a recent report which revealed DoD was ‘risking dangerous lapses in biosafety practices’ in their laboratories. Evaluating the biological safety and security implementation, the DOD is now in the process of altering the management of its laboratories.

The US Army will now be equipping its light infantry units with the Saab 84mm Carl-Gustaf M3E1 Multirole Anti-Armor Anti-Personnel Weapon System (MAAWS). Starting with the Army Rangers in 1989, the M3 had been initially limited to US Special Operations Command (SOCOM), but will now be the standard issue tactical support weapon for light infantry with a full material release in late 2016—all brigade combat teams will be given twenty seven launchers, which is roughly equates to one per platoon. Check out an M3 in action here.

 

National security wrap

The Beat

Report: Australia’s advocacy for the abolition of the death penalty

The Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade released its final report  to conclude the inquiry into Australia’s advocacy for the abolition of the death penalty last week. The report discusses the issue of drug trafficking and law enforcement and recommends that the Australian Federal Police amend its guidelines on international police-to-police cooperation in death penalty situations, in order to prevent the exposure of people—not just Australians—to charges that bring the death penalty. The report’s release comes almost exactly one year after two Australians were executed in Indonesia for drug trafficking. The Committee asked the AFP to examine the UK’s approach to police-to-police information sharing and a formal review has begun to benchmark and inform death penalty governance framework in Australia.

Jailing kingpins mightn’t reduce crime

A recent article from Foreign Policy explores the effect that high-profile arrests of drug kingpins have on the organised crime syndicates they head. Following the recent capture of a number of Latin American kingpins—such as Joaquin ‘El Chapo’ Guzman in January and Gerson ‘El Caracol’ Galvez last week—the article argues that kingpin arrests can actually lead to an increase in crime as organisations without a clear successor to continue transnational operations seek to fill the gap with local crime.

CT Scan

New counterterrorism plan for France

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls presented his government’s ‘plan of action against radicalisation and terrorism’ on Monday. One of the major announcements was the creation of 13 deradicalisation centres, which will see radicalised Islamists undergo psychological treatment and re-education classes run by specially trained social workers, psychoanalysts and teachers. The strategic document, which also includes tougher prison sentences for convicted terrorists and support for more university research into modern terrorism, adds 50 new measures to the 22 France adopted in April 2014 and the eight announced in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo attacks last year.

Twitter blocks US intelligence agencies

A senior US intelligence official has confirmed Twitter has cut off US intelligence agencies from accessing a service which sends out alerts in the event of unfolding terrorist attacks, political unrest and other large-scale disasters. The service—which had been provided to US intelligence agencies for the past two years—is provided by Dataminr Inc., a private company that mines public Twitter feeds for its clients. Twitter has a policy of preventing third parties from selling its data to government agencies for surveillance purposes, and told The Wall Street Journal in a statement that the US government can review public accounts on its own.

Checkpoint

Slippery when wet (not the 1986 Bon Jovi Album…)

Due to concerns that foreign crews on international vessels are circumventing border security forces, an Australian Senate committee hearing into Flag of Convenience shipping has called for greater scrutiny of the ‘potential security risks posed by flag-of-convenience vessels and foreign crews’. The second interim report of the inquiry has made nine recommendations, with the foremost suggesting a need to review the Australian maritime sector with widespread consultation with the Australian shipping industry. The inquiry comes in the wake of the government’s intention to allow international ships to transport cargo between Australian ports with crews from abroad.

A new visa assessment capability at Australia’s borders

The Coalition’s first funding pledge of the election campaign began yesterday when Australia’s Immigration Minister Peter Dutton announced the creation of a new ‘visa risk assessment capability’ within the Department of Immigration and Border Protection. The new system will merge immigration and border data, and link up with Australian law enforcement and intelligence agencies’ databases to bolster the visa processing system. The announcement comes in the wake of the release last week of the department’s budget.

First Responder

New global resilience index

Australia has ranked ninth in the 2016 FM Global Resilience Index (PDF) released on Tuesday. The index ranked 130 countries and territories on a combination of their vulnerability to supply chain disruption (including a dramatic fall in oil prices, natural disasters, corruption and terrorist attacks) and their ability to subsequently recover from the disruptions. Nine drivers of resilience were identified, such as political risk, exposure to natural hazards and commitment to risk management, with the drivers then being aggregated into three broad factors—economic, risk quality and supply chain. Overall, Switzerland came out on top, while Venezuela—faced with high levels of corruption and exposure to natural hazards—was ranked last.

Pacific islands disappear due to sea-level rise

Five Pacific islands have been completely submerged due to the effects of sea-level rise, a new Australian study (PDF) has found. The paper, published in Environmental Research Letters on 6 May, confirmed the six uninhabited islands—which ranged in size from one to five hectares—were part of the Solomon Islands. Notably, six other islands saw dramatic reductions in their coastlines, with large areas of land and a number of villages swept away by rising sea levels. To establish their findings, scientists studied aerial images of the islands from 1947 onwards and conducted radiocarbon dating of the area.

Sea, air and land updates

Sea State

Germany has offered India a formal proposal to build six diesel-electric Type 214 submarines. According to Indian defence officials, the Ministry of Defence is currently reviewing the proposal, which would see the submarines be built by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft in Kiel, Germany. It’s been a big few weeks for India’s navy; on 1 May INS Kalvari— first of India’s new indigenous diesel-electric attack submarine class—completed sea trials outside Mumbai Harbour, while the country’s first indigenous nuclear-powered submarine is expected to be commissioned in coming months. In light of these developments, The Diplomat has taken a look at why India requires both nuclear and conventional submarines.

Iranian forces have declared they will prevent the US and its allies from accessing the Strait of Hormuz if they continue to ‘threaten’ the country, according to Iranian state media on 4 May. The two countries have a history of tensions regarding the strait—including the capture of 10 US sailors by Iran in January 2016. Foreign Policy has an interesting analysis of the strategic implications of the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz here.

For a look into the operations of the USN’s Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines, CNN joined the crew of USS Missouri last week for exercises off the Florida coast. You can check out the footage of their visit here.

Flight Path

In preparation for reaching full rate production of the F-35 in 2019, Lockheed Martin is reshaping its final assembly line. Defense One has taken a look at how the Joint Strike Fighters are being assembled in a mile-long building formally known as Air Force Plan 4, with bits and pieces coming from around the world to form the fifth generation fighter. Last week, Lockheed received a nearly US$1.3 billion contract for the F-35 program during fiscal 2016 budget negotiations to deliver 13 jets. Motley Fool has crunched the numbers and the cost of the F-35 is going down—they’ve estimated it’s now costed out to around US$116 million per plane, consistent with USAF budget figures, compared to the Government Accountability Office’s estimate of US$138 million.

The US aerospace industry is experiencing a new lease on life with a growing number of cutting-edge experimental airplanes, or ‘X-Planes’, under development. This article from Reuters looks at the shift towards X-planes in the US and argues that the shift could lead to advances in civil and military aviation, boost the American economy and strengthen US military power. Looking at American competitiveness, a recent article on War on the Rocks examines the threat to US air dominance and argues that the USAF needs to respond by building an innovative, adaptable and resilience air force.

Rapid Fire

The other week ASPI suggests brought you headcam footage from a Daesh fighter during a battle against the Kurds in northern Iraq—this week The Guardian has released exclusive footage taken from a cellphone showing US special forces, Kurdish commandoes and Daesh fighters during a battle. The fighting resulted in the death of US Navy seal Charles Keating IV, who is the third US fatality of the US latest engagement in Iraq.

The US  is bolstering its military presence in the Middle East region, announcing on 25 April that they will be sending in another 250 US troops to Syria to fight Daesh militants and will provide military support, intelligence, ships and special operations forces to Yemen as the Yemeni fight al Qaeda militants. This last pledge comes on top of a ‘small number’ of US soldiers already on the ground in Yemen supporting operations headed by the Yemeni military and the UAE, which have recently taken the port and airport city of Mukalla, once a bastion of al Qaeda.

Interested in the size range of the US military arsenal? YouTube channel MetaBallStudios have put together a virtual tour going from the small .45 calibre bullet and working their way through a series of rifles, vehicles, planes, and ships right up to the Gerald R. Ford-Class aircraft carrier.

Sea, air and land updates

Sea State

A US Navy flotilla was refused entry by the Chinese government to the port of Hong Kong last week. Pentagon spokesman, Commander Bill Urban, said the US Navy had asked the Chinese to let aircraft carrier John C. Stennis and several other vessels to visit the port this week but had been denied access. This wasn’t without precedent—the PRC similarly denied a US aircraft carrier entry to Hong Kong in August 2014. In response, Randy Forbes, chairman of the House Armed Services Seapower and Projection Forces subcommittee has suggested the US should allow its aircraft carriers to visit Taiwan.

As we’ve discussed in previous weeks, Chinese fishermen are becoming increasingly bold in their attempts to expand the country’s maritime presence in the disputed waters of the South China Sea. Their actions have come under increased scrutiny in the past few months, due to run-ins with maritime authorities in Malaysian, Vietnamese and Indonesian waters. Last week, Reuters took a look at the strategic implications of China’s ‘fishing militia’, and The Washington Post has an in-depth analysis at the role Chinese fishermen are playing on the frontline of the dispute.

Flashback: Former US Navy research vessel Melville, which appeared in the 1976 monster thriller King Kong, has been donated to the Philippine Navy. The 46-year-old ship was turned over last Wednesday during a christening and commissioning ceremony in San Diego, and will arrive in the Philippines in June, where it will be used for hydrographic surveys and marine scientific research.

Flight Path

After last week’s debate about restarting F-22 production, the Raptor showed its continued importance to the US Air Force last week when two jets arrived in Lithuania after concluding a training mission in Romania. The F-22s are in Europe as part of the European Reassurance Initiative which, in the face of a resurgent Russia, is intended to reinforce the US’s commitment to the region. The discussion about whether to restart production of the Raptor has continued this week. This article from The Wall Street Journal argues that serious consideration is necessary, while this piece from The Diplomat suggests that export prospects would be key to restarting production. (Here’s a bonus video showing the F-22 Raptor’s first run of the famous British Mach Loop.)

Turning to East Asia, Japan’s experimental fifth-generation fighter X-2 prototype took its maiden flight last week—making Japan the fourth country to test-fly an indigenously developed stealth aircraft (the footage is here and here.) It’s been announced that Japan’s Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency has planned a one-year test campaign for the X-2, involving around 50 flights, and will decide by 2018 whether it will develop a fighter out of the X-2 prototype.

The debate continues over whether or not the F-35 will be an adequate replacement for the A-10 in performing close air support roles. Last week, US Senator Kelly Ayotte sought clarification about conflicting statements made by the USAF regarding close air support and which aircraft would perform the role at the Senate Armed Services Committee’s update on the F-35 program. You can read more and watch the exchange here.

Rapid Fire

A report commissioned by the government of Finland suggests that if Finland joins NATO it could instigate a ‘serious crisis with Russia, for an undefined period of time’. Released on Friday, the report also argued that it would be strategically advantageous if both Finland and Sweden joined the military alliance together rather than separately. However an assured path into NATO membership for Finland and Sweden is not guaranteed, with Estonian President Toomas Hendrik recently warning its Baltic neighbours of the risks associated with joining the Western alliance.

The US is developing a new lightweight .50-caliber machine gun to replace their M2 .50-cal model, the latter having the most sustained active service record in the US army armoury. Though the machine gun will take at least another year to reach production stage, it will be 30% lighter—in part due to a lighter titanium body.

Sea, air and land updates

Sea State

Breaking: Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has announced France’s DCNS as the winner of RAN’s $50 billion future submarine contract during a surprise visit to Adelaide this morning. The construction of the 12 conventionally-powered submarines, based on France’s nuclear-powered Barracuda-class will be based in Osbourne, South Australia, and will generate an additional 2,800 jobs.

Russia’s new hypersonic cruise missile is likely to go into serial production in 2018, four years ahead of schedule, according to a Russian defence industry source. The 3M22 Zircon hyper cruise missile, capable of speeds of Mach 5.0 to Mach 6.0, is currently completing tests which are due to finish in 2017. It’s expected the Kirov-class Admiral Nakhimov will be the first Russian warship to be equipped with the new missile, when returns to service in 2018 at the conclusion of a modernisation process.

Tensions between China and Indonesia are once again at risk of escalating, after the Indonesian navy detained a Chinese trawler allegedly fishing illegally in Indonesian waters. The incident comes only weeks after a Chinese-owned fishing vessel was caught operating close to Natuna islands. The vessel was intercepted on 22 April in Aceh, northwest of Sumatra, after Indonesia received information that the ship was wanted in Argentina. The boat, which had been fishing illegally in Argentine waters in late February, has been taken to a naval base in North Sumatra for investigation.

Russia has found the dolphins it’s been looking for. Following up from our post last month, Russia has announced Moscow’s Utrish Dolphinarium as the winner of the Ministry of Defense’s contract to supply five dolphins to the Russian military. The dolphinarium will supply three males and two females by 1 August. As we’ve previously mentioned, both the US and Soviet Union used dolphins for military purposes during the Cold War.

Flight Path

Last week, the US Armed Services Committee asked the US Air Force to work out how much it would cost to restart production of its F-22 Raptor, five years after the last stealth fighter came off the assembly line. The request was spurred by a growing perception of weakening US air superiority due to adversaries closing the technology gap. Defense One has looked at what it thinks it would take to restart F-22 production, including finding the money, reengineering the plane and finding a place to actually build it. The editorial team at Breaking Defense don’t think it would be a good idea—it would divert lots of money, time and expertise from the F-35 and B-21 programs and would take a few years before new F-22s would roll off the production line.

There’s been plenty of discussion about the new US future bomber, the B-21. A report released last week by the US House Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces has directed the USAF to submit an assessment by February next year estimating the number of B-21 bombers needed to meet combatant commander requirements. Independent testimony suggests the number needed would be between 174 and 205, almost doubling the magic number of 100 that has been touted to date. Whilst final numbers will take a while to determine, the USAF has said that it won’t make the B-21 contract value public, claiming that doing so would make it easier for adversaries to work out the aircraft’s range and weapons payload.

We’re sad to say that the future of Flight Path’s favourite blimp, the JLENS, doesn’t look good. The House Armed Services Committee chairman’s mark of the fiscal 2017 defence policy bill came out last week with huge slashes to the blimp program’s funding—down to a mere US$2.5 million compared to the requested $45 million. Thanks for the memories, JLENS.

Rapid Fire

The third rotation of Australian troops deployed to Iraq—including the 7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (7RAR)—are undergoing pre-deployment training near Adelaide prior to heading off to train Iraqi troops to fight Daesh as a part of the international Building Partner Capacity (BPC) training mission. For your ocular pleasure, an ABC team attached a 360-degree camera to the rifle being used in combat exercises.

Australian war veteran support groups utilised Anzac Day celebrations on Monday to highlight not only servicemen and women who have died fighting for the nation, but also the increasing number of soldiers who have taken their lives at home. In the last 20 years there have been more deaths of serving and retired Australian soldiers from suicide than on the battlefield. Post-traumatic stress disorder has been recognised as the cause for many of the suicides.

And if you’ve ever wondered about the accuracy of Hollywood war battle scenes, the Task & Purpose blog have put together a short list of the ones that get the optics right.

Sea, air and land updates

Sea State

Navigating the dangerous iced-covered waters of the Antarctic just got easier for the British Royal Navy, with the entry into service of its new, low-cost 3D-printed drone. The SULSA unmanned aerial vehicle, which was launched from naval patrol vessel HMS Protector, is designed to utilise real-time imagery to scout a safe route for vessels. The £7,000 drone can cruise at speeds up to 97km per hour, and its four nylon-based parts can be snapped together by hand. Gizmodo has footage of the plane’s test flight off the coast of Dorset.

Adelaide will remain a hub for the shipbuilding industry, with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Defence Minister Marise Payne announcing on Monday that 12 offshore patrol vessels will be built in the city from 2018. Minister Payne confirmed construction of the vessels will begin in Adelaide, before moving to Henderson in Western Australia, and coupled with plans to build up to 21 Pacific patrol boats in Henderson, will directly secure more than 2,500 jobs in coming decades.

It’s official. RRS Boaty McBoatface emerged as the overwhelming winner of a public poll for naming rights of Britain’s new £200 million polar research vessel. Voting closed on 16 April with the memorable winning name collecting more than 124,000 votes. Regrettably, Britain’s science minister told the Daily Telegraph that ministers were unlikely to endorse the result.

Flight Path

Last week, two Russian Sukhoi Su-24 attack planes buzzed over the USS Donald Cook in the Baltic Sea—watch the videos from the deck of the ship here. The US embassy in Moscow issued formal concerns to the Russian government about the incident, which White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest described as ‘unsafe and unprofessional’. A piece on Observer has explained Russia’s actions by likening it to the animal kingdom—Russia was marking its territory in the Baltic Sea. For some background on the topic, The Washington Post looks at the recent history of Russian jets buzzing US Navy ships. And here’s a USN take on why it didn’t shoot down the aircraft. Only a few days after the buzzing incident, a Russian Su-27 Flanker fighter jet did a barrel roll over a US Air Force RC-135 spy plane also in the Baltic Sea. The US is lodging a protest with the Russian government.

In F-35 news, the US Government Accountability Office released a report (PDF) last week looking at the Joint Strike Fighter’s Autonomic Logistics Information System, recommending that the Department of Defense come up with a plan to ensure that the ALIS is fully functional as program milestones approach—such as full-rate production beginning in 2019. What’s been described as the F-35’s ‘brain’ has a few bugs and there currently aren’t any alternatives to ALIS if the problem is persistent. However, Defense One has reported that DoD officials have said that the problem isn’t severe enough to ground the fleet.

Rapid Fire

While Nordic Noir drama ‘Ockupationen’—a fictional drama about Russia occupying parts of Scandinavia—has enraged some in the Kremlin, Sweden’s ability to actually defend against such an occurrence is dubious given Sweden given low force numbers since mandatory conscription was abolished in 2010. With 5,600 full-time soldiers, 10,500 reservists and 22,000 Home Guardsmen’s, it’s only a fraction of the nearly 500,000 troops Sweden was endowed with in the 1980’s. Check out the in-depth article over at Foreign Affairs on Sweden’s military recruitment predicament.

As a part of the annual National Army Day parade in Tehran on April 17, Iran displayed its S-300 air-defence missiles which it recently acquired from Russia. In a speech on the same day President Hassan Rohani maintained that the ordnances are purely for defensive purposes.

And now for something completely different: at a hearing earlier this year for the US Senate Committee on Armed Services, it was revealed that the US Department of Defence spent $6 million on a failed goat-mating initiative in Afghanistan. The effort was part of post-war attempts to rebuild the country, and aimed to bolster the Afghani economy through the production of cashmere by sending nine rare blond male Italian goats to breed with Afghan goats – which was unsuccessful. No kidding.

Sea, air and land updates

Image courtesy of Flickr user manhhai

Sea State

The Navy Times has published an article claiming that the White House prevented US commanders from criticising China ahead of a meeting between President Obama and President Xi at last month’s Nuclear Security Summit in Washington DC. According to two unnamed defence officials, National Security Adviser Susan Rice imposed a gag order on 18 March to ensure ‘maximum political manoeuvring’ on issues ranging from nuclear non-proliferation to trade. US PACOM Commander Admiral Harry Harris and others have been pushing for the US to confront China and its strategic gains in the South China Sea. The Pentagon has denied the claims.

Thirty nations are taking part in maritime exercises in the Persian Gulf and other Middle Eastern waters. Aimed at protecting international trade routes from militant threats, the International Mine Countermeasures Exercise, led by the US Navy, runs for the next two weeks. It’ll feature operations focusing on mine countermeasures, infrastructure protection and maritime security operations, and will also present an opportunity to demonstrate new technologies, including unmanned underwater vehicles and the expeditionary fast transport ship USNS Choctaw County.

Is that a destroyer or a fishing boat? That’s the question being asked by observers and analysts after the future USS Zumwalt participated in sea trials last month. The destroyer has a radar signature 50 times smaller than the current fleet, due to its angular shape and reflective material. USS Zumwalt is due to be fully operational in 2018.

Flight Path

War on the Rocks has published a two-part series by Colonel Mike Pietrucha of the US Air Force on the challenges facing the USAF’s combat aviation capabilities in the future. In part one, Pietrucha looks at what he calls the USAF’s ‘unwavering commitment’ to a stealth force, arguing that the attributes often needed in combat aircraft—like range and payload—aren’t deliverable in stealth fighter designs. In part two, he claims that the USAF needs to return to one of its most effective tactics against air defence threats: low altitude.

Last week, the USAF released the initial findings of the Enterprise Capability Collaboration Team. The group conducted a year-long study on developing capability options to ensure air superiority in 2030, and concluded that an integrated and networked family of capabilities operating across air, space and cyberspace was the most viable option. The team also suggested moving away from the concept of a ‘sixth generation fighter’, with USAF’s decision to delay its analysis of alternatives to January 2017 reflecting that thinking.

Rapid Fire

Tammy Barneet of Robeline, Louisiana, became the first ever woman to be enlisted in the US infantry last Thursday. Barneet’s enlistment came in the wake of Defense Secretary Ash Carter’s statement four months ago that all combat jobs in the military would be available to women. It isn’t the only reform that Ash Carter has been pushing; last week he gave a speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies which outlined his ambitions to reform the US Department of Defense.

A lightweight metal foam has been developed that causes bullets to completely shatter upon impact. Created by researchers at the North Carolina State University, the composite metal foam is only about an inch thick and is much lighter than current armour plating. It’s hoped that it’ll eventually be used for body and vehicle armour. You can see it in action here.

And now for something completely different: the Israeli Army has launched a month-long, no-questions-asked campaign dubbed ‘Clear out your closet—return equipment to the army’. With 100 collection points at bases and police stations, former soldiers are being urged to return weapons and ammunition they have collected. 220 firearms and 1,000 explosives have been returned so far.

SAL Feature: the B-52 Stratofortress

When you think ‘B-52’ you might imagine an 80s pop group ; but alas, this week’s SAL feature looks instead at one of the most iconic aircraft of all time—the B-52 Stratofortress.

15 April marks the anniversary of the maiden flight test of the B-52 Stratofortress back in 1952. Boeing was awarded the contract for America’s first long-range, swept-wing heavy bomber in 1946. The original XB-52 design was for a six-engine, propeller-powered heavy bomber, but on 21 October 1948, the Air Force’s chief of bomber development told Boeing Chief Engineer Ed Wells and his team to scrap the propellers and come up with an all-jet bomber. In an Ohio hotel room, the team designed a new eight-engine jet bomber—still called the B-52—and presented the concept over 33 pages, accompanied by a wooden model of the bomber. And thus was born the B-52 that we know and love.  

The B-52 entered service in 1955 and a total of 744 were built with the last, a B-52H, delivered in October 1962. The Stratofortress can carry nuclear or precision guided conventional weaponry and is capable of dropping or launching the widest array of weapons in the US inventory. The B-52 was used extensively as a conventional bomber during the Vietnam War. The full potential of the bomber was applied during Operation Linebacker II—the 1972 Christmas air offensive which represented the biggest bombing campaign by the US over North Vietnam. Between 18–29 December, the USAF flew 729 night-time sorties over North Vietnam, dropping at least 20,000 tonnes of explosive.

The Stratofortress formed the cornerstone of America’s nuclear deterrent during the Cold War. The B-52 dropped the first hydrogen bomb over the Bikini Islands in 1956. In 1960, B-52s began 24-hour nuclear deterrent flights across the globe, with several nuclear-armed bombers in the air at all times. Those flights ended eight years later after a number of bombers crashed and crews were instead put on 24-hour ground alert.

The Stratofortress was a key platform during Operation Desert Storm, flying 1,741 missions and dropping 27,000 tonnes of munitions—amounting to 30% of the total Gulf War tonnage. The bomber also played a part in Operation Allied Force, the air campaign conducted against Serbia in 1999. In the first air strikes, seven B-52s carried conventional Air Launched Cruise Missiles aimed at the Serbian Integrated Air Defence System and played a vital psychological role in the conflict.

The B-52 continues to serve an important function to the USAF, particularly in ‘assurance and deterrence’ missions. As recently as January, a B-52 flew over South Korea as a demonstration of force and solidarity in response to provocations by North Korea. The B-52 is the longest serving military aircraft in the world and will remain a major part of the US arsenal until 2044 with life-extending upgrades and maintenance. If you want to experience what it’s like to fly a B-52, this video from Gizmodo shows an entire training mission from pre-checks to aerial refuelling and low pass flybys.

Sea, air and land updates

Sea State

The British Ministry of Defence (MoD) rejected claims made by The Independent last week that the Falkland Islands have been left without the protection of a warship for the first time since the 1982 Falkland’s War. The report alleged that due to a major manpower crisis, engine difficulties with the Type 45 destroyers and preoccupation with monitoring Russian naval movements, there hadn’t been a warship dispatched to the region since November 2015. A MoD spokesman rebutted the claims, stating that the Falklands remained well protected by an offshore patrol vessel and approximately 1,200 UK personnel operating Royal Air Force Typhoons and ground defences.

A Japanese submarine docked in the Philippines for the first time in 15 years on Sunday, signalling the strengthening ties between the two countries. Oyashio and two Japanese destroyers docked in the former US naval base at Subic Port—just 200km from a Chinese-held shoal—as part of a routine visit. In February, Japan offered to supply military hardware to the Philippines—including the lease of three TC-90 surveillance planes—to help it to improve its naval capabilities and surveillance capacity in the South China Sea. The visit coincides with military drills between the US and the Philippines, which commenced on Monday in Manilla.

Flight Path

Breaking Defense is hosting a lively debate on the meaning of nuclear deterrence and the role of bombers in signalling and strengthening deterrence strategies. The series began last month when Adam Lowther and Chris Winklepeck argued that B-2 and B-52 exercises over the Korean Peninsula are important signalling tools for establishing credible nuclear deterrence. It received a response by Chris Doyle who argued that nuclear bomber signalling doesn’t work—and this was then followed-up by another article from Lowther defending his argument. Last week Mike Benitez, a nuclear certified weapons officer from the Royal Air Force Lakenheath in the UK, contributed in the debate by arguing that bombers  used in a conventional configuration for deterrence signalling actually erode nuclear power messaging.

With the future of the A-10 up in the air, as now seems to be perennially the case at Pentagon budget request time, War Is Boring has published an article that outlines what work has been done on new light attack aircraft projects. It takes a look at the A-29A Super Tucano, the AT-6C, OV-10X, KA-1 Wongbee, Textron Scorpion and the Air Tractor 802U and concludes that without a new development program, the AT-6C and A-29 are the only viable, short-term options for USAF purchase based on their cost, maintainability and weapons.

Rapid Fire

Lebanon’s army will receive US$30 million in funding from the UK and US militaries years to train Lebanon’s Land Border Regiment in ‘urban counterterrorism’. The US has also given the Lebanese army three Huey II helicopters to help bolster its ability to respond promptly to isolated areas of hostility on its borders. However, this support only amounts to a fraction of what the Lebanese have recently lost, with Saudi Arabia announcing last month that they’d suspend billions in funding to Lebanese security forces due to Beirut’s ‘non-condemnation of the blatant attacks against the Saudi Embassy in Tehran’.

Last week the Australian Department of Defence announced that it would extend, for an undisclosed period, the evaluation phase to pick a shortlist of candidates to provide 225 Combat Reconnaissance Vehicles to the Army under Project Land 400 Phase 2. This time will be used to ensure that risk management actives are aligned with the latest Industry Policy, which was released with the new Defence White Paper in February.

Over the weekend the Australian Military Police celebrated their centenary of service with a public ceremony at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra. As one of the oldest units in the Australian Army, the Military Police have served in all military and peacekeeping operations Australia has participated in since their inception in 1916.