Current Events in Asia-Pacific

Panel: China Will Likely Continue Aggressive Naval Expansion (USNI News)

Just come across this article from yesterday. Did something go seriously wrong with the carrier groups procedures? 2 x Tu-142 Bears got within 1 nautical mile of the US Ronald Reagan. One mile!?!?! That sounds pretty close to me? I thought they would have been escorted or directed away well before they got within one mile? http://edition.cnn.com/2015/10/29/politics/us-aircraft-carrier-russian-plane-encounter/

Fourth Stealth Destroyer for Korean Navy English.Chosun.com The Navy will launch another Korean Destroyer Experimental (KDX) II class destroyer armed with the latest anti-ship and anti-air missiles on Wednesday, when the "Wang-geon" steams out of the Hyundai Heavy Industries shipyard in Ulsan. The 4,200 ton stealth destroyer, the fourth KDX-II class destroyer after the Chungmugong Yi Soon-shin, Munmudaewang and Daejoyeong, takes its name from the founder of the ancient Korean kingdom of Goryeo. It's 150 meters long with a beam of 17 meters and height of 9.5 meters and has a top speed of 30 knots. The Wang-geon packs a powerful punch with its Harpoon anti-ship mis…

From DefenseNews U.S. Navy To Shift Carrier George Washington to Japan By ANDREW SCUTRO A newly overhauled aircraft carrier George Washington will be home-ported in Asia. “The Navy has slotted George Washington to relieve Kitty Hawk in 2008 in Yokosuka,” a senior U.S. defense official told Navy Times. The official announcement from the U.S. Navy is expected in the next few weeks, pending shifts in the massive restructuring plan known as the Quadrennial Defense Review. “Navy is waiting until there’s closer understanding of how the QDR is coming until they make a final carrier force distribution,” the official said. News of the move ends speculation abo…

From AOL Defense [excerpt]

China has deployed PLANAF J-11 fighters to Woody Island (Phu Lam Island to Vietnam), largest island of the Paracels in the East Vietnam Sea. No reaction yet from the Vietnamese government (looking for a Chinese link probably from www.81.cn , photo showing J-11 with air-to-air loadout (2xPL-8+2xPL-15) landing in Phu Lam).

China’s ‘aircraft-carrier killer’ missiles successfully hit target ship in South China Sea, PLA insider reveals

Roughead says Chinese carrier would be concern By Ken The - The Associated Press Posted : Tuesday Apr 21, 2009 12:56:10 EDT QINGDAO, China — A future Chinese aircraft carrier may worry neighboring navies because Beijing has not specified what role the warship would play in the region, the U.S. chief of Naval Operations said Tuesday. China, meanwhile, said a more powerful navy would not pose a threat as it mulls adding its first aircraft carrier to an increasingly sophisticated fleet. The comments by Adm. Gary Roughead came amid growing signs that China plans to build a carrier as the country puts on a major display of naval weaponry this week in the north…

From DefenseNews [excerpt]

Walking softly and sticking to big carriers The U.S. military is more cautious than wary as China rearms and challenges for regional dominance 2005-11-20 / The Christian Science Monitor / By Robert Marquand TaiwanNews An F/A-18C Hornet attempts an arrested landing aboard the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) in this file photo. The Kitty Hawk is based in Yokusuka, Japan. / Knight ridder This 30-mile-long volcanic island appears on a map like stray bit of tropical spackling flung out in the Pacific. Honolulu is eight hours east, Tokyo four hours north, Hong Kong and Jakarta four hours west and south. The rest is ocean. Guam has been a sleepy supply …

From Ares [excerpt]

Leaked by SOAB Snowden: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/defence/our-french-submarine-builder-in-massive-leak-scandal/news-story/3fe0d25b7733873c44aaa0a4d42db39e

Report: Japanese navy leaked missile data The Associated Press Posted : Tuesday May 22, 2007 9:05:19 EDT TOKYO — Classified information about a U.S.-developed missile defense system was leaked from Japan’s navy to students at a naval academy, a news report said Tuesday, as officials investigated security gaps in military information shared between the allies. Investigators say the leak involved ship-to-air SM-3 interceptor missiles that are to be deployed on Japanese ships later this year, Kyodo News agency reported, citing unidentified officials. Investigators are already looking into the alleged leak of information about the U.S.-developed high-tech Aeg…

From Jane's India pays extra $102m for carrier conversion By Rahul Bedi 10 June 2009 India has paid Russia an additional USD102 million to refurbish the Kiev-class aircraft carrier Vikramaditya (ex- Admiral Gorshkov ), ahead of a deal to conclude the final cost of the ship's troubled refit. The latest instalment brings the cost of the work at the Sevmashpredpriyatiye shipyard to USD602 million so far, a spokesman for the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) told Jane's . Another MoD official said: " Gorshkov is by far the most problematic of the deals with Russia. But by 15 July we will work out the scope of the carrier's trial and its final cost after which…

What to Expect From a North Korean Nuclear Test (Foreign Policy)

From DefenseNews Taiwan Plans To Buy Mini-Submarines from United Arab Emirates: MP By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, TAIPEI Taiwan plans to buy up to 12 mini-submarines from the United Arab Emirates for 1.6 billion Taiwan dollars ($50.96 million US), an opposition legislator said May 10. Lin Yu-fang from the Kuomintang party said Deputy Defense Minister Chu Kai-sheng confirmed the plan to buy the twin-seat subs for the Marines during a closed meeting of parliament’s national defense committee. The United Evening News said the deal was part of Taiwan’s efforts to secure approval for President Chen Shui-bian’s stopover in Abu Dhabi last week on his way to Latin America. …

From Jane's China considers next-generation Su-33s for aircraft carrier programme By Reuben F Johnson 28 October 2008 China's People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) is close to reaching a decision on the procurement of aircraft for its aircraft carrier programme, Russian industry sources have told Jane's. Negotiations between the PLAN and the Komsomolsk-na-Amure Aviation Production Association (KnAAPO) in Russia have been held intermittently for several years, with the Chinese military said to be unsure whether to purchase a version of the Sukhoi Su-33 carrier-capable fighter or develop its own carrier aircraft based on the Chengdu J-10. Russian sources ha…

I noticed this in 'The Australian' newspaper (november 24th). The link to the www article is: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/natio...f-1225802738569 The summary: OFF-the-shelf military purchases offer big savings and reduced risk for taxpayers compared with do-it-yourself, but come with a major trade-off -- a potential sacrifice of the nation's defence self-sufficiency, a federal government-backed security think tank warned yesterday. The article mentions some of our recent less than ideal R&D and design/ building efforts and compares them to some recent success with straight purchases such as USA battle tanks. Considering we don't even make our own washing …

From Defense Aerospace [excerpt]

Some troves in the unspected miscellaneous "Gallery" I and II sections, including construction numbers of the ten J-15 carrier fighters (updated today casually!): http://chinese-military-aviation.blogspot.com.es/p/gallery-i.html