Current Events in the Americas

Lockheed awarded $6.9 billion F-22 upgrade contract (Flight Global)

313-Ship U.S. Navy Fleet Plan Sent to Congress By CHRISTOPHER P. CAVAS DefenseNews The long-awaited 30-year shipbuilding plan of Adm. Mike Mullen, U.S. Navy chief of operations, is now official. The strategy to build a 313-ship fleet was sent to Congress Feb. 7 after having been endorsed by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. The official plan mirrors earlier draft versions that were reported on by Defense News. It commits the Navy to a force of 11 aircraft carriers — dropping to 10 in fiscal 2013 and rising to 12 ships beginning in 2019. The submarine force dances around a median of 48 boats, from a high of 55 subs in 2018 to a low of 40 in 2028, before r…

From Aviation Week Development On Latest Upgraded AMRAAM Slips May 30, 2008 Amy Butler/Aerospace Daily & Defense Report The U.S. Air Force is again extending Raytheon’s contract to design and produce a significant upgrade to its radar-guided Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM). The AIM-120D – which adds a Global Positioning System receiver, conformal front-end antenna and a two-way datalink to the weapon – has recently encountered problems during the transition from design work into the production phase, according to program officials at the Air Armament Center, Fla. The improvements are expected to boost the missile’s accuracy and range, a…

The Pentagon's 'Concurrency Myth' Is Now Available In Supercarrier Size (Foxtrot Alpha) Too true.

Argentine navy loses contact with submarine (CNN) TR1700 class ARA San Juan (S-42)

Ship named in honor of 9/11 to be christened By Alan Sayre - The Associated Press Posted : Friday Feb 29, 2008 16:21:38 EST AVONDALE, La. — Standing before the massive New York, Jennifer Adams seemed moved by the spirits of the 2,750 people killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks at the World Trade Center. “Our angels will watch over the men and women serving on this ship so the events of Sept. 11 will never happen again,” said Adams, who co-founded an association of family members and friends of 2,974 people who died when terrorist-hijacked airliners crashed into the twin towers in Lower Manhattan, the Pentagon and a Pennsylvania field, and of survivors, recov…

If you don't love the F-22 Raptor, here are all of Dr Kopp's reasons why you should ... Why America Needs More F-22 Raptors (I do not necessarily endorse all of the conclusions, but post it for your information just the same).

From Reuters [excerpt]

From DEW Line [excerpt]

Carl Vinson strike group using first deployment with F-35C, beefed-up air wing to hone advanced operations (DefenseNews, 10 August 2021) Note the expanded contingent of EA-18G and E-2D.

From Defense Aerospace Op-Ed: Fate of Surface Navy Rides on Littoral Combat Ship (Source: The Lexington Institute; issued March 20, 2007) By Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D. When the cold war ended, the U.S. Navy faced a crisis of relevance. For the first time in living memory, no Red Navy or Imperial Fleet challenged America's control of the high seas. Having spent the entire 20th Century preparing for such an enemy, the Navy was poorly postured for conducting combat operations closer to shore. Fearing that the Marine Corps would become the tail wagging the Navy Department bulldog, senior admirals began formulating plans for making their warships more useful in fight…

De Gustibus Naval Gazing: A Top Gun Fantasy Comes True By Bret Stephens Aboard the USS Harry S Truman -- An hour before dusk, the air crew of the USS Truman -- several hundred men and women of every rank and job description -- gathers at the front end of the deck to walk its 1,100 foot length, looking for tiny pieces of debris. A stray piece of metal sucked into the intake of a fighter jet could cause catastrophic damage to the plane and the pilot and terrible damage to the ship. "We don't think of this as a dangerous business," says Rear Adm. Bill Gortney, an F-18 pilot who also commands the Truman's battle group of cruisers, destroyers and submarines. "It's …

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2007/03/defense_dunham_destroyer_032007/ From Marine Corps Times Destroyer to be named for Medal of Honor Marine By Christopher P. Cavas - Staff writer Posted : Wednesday Mar 21, 2007 8:33:43 EDT The name of a Marine who gave his life to save his comrades in Iraq will grace a new destroyer, the Navy announced Tuesday. Cpl. Jason Dunham received the Medal of Honor on Jan. 11 for his actions April 14, 2004, when he grappled with an insurgent after his unit was ambushed in Karabilah, Iraq. Dunham threw himself on a live grenade to shield fellow Marines and, although he survived the initial explosion, died of his injur…

Navy Completes Initial Development of New Carrier Landing System (USNI News)

New Budget Preserves Navy High End Combat Power (USNI News)

ATK and Lockheed Martin to Develop Conventional Ballistic Missile for U.S. Navy Tuesday July 12, 8:30 am ET Global Strike Builds on ATK/Lockheed Martin Strategic Deterrence Partnership Yahoo.com MINNEAPOLIS, July 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Alliant Techsystems (NYSE: ATK - News) and Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT - News) have been awarded a $9.2 million contract by the U.S. Navy's Strategic Systems Program (SSP) office to demonstrate and validate solid rocket motor technologies suitable for a Submarine Launched Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (SLIRBM). SLIRBM is a conventional missile concept that builds on the heritage the two companies share in U.S. Navy st…

Honolulu Star-Bulletin February 8, 2006 Navy's Top Admiral Endorses Strategic Shift To The Pacific By Gregg K. Kakesako The Navy's top admiral said yesterday that the majority of the Navy's 12 carriers will be based in the Pacific, reflecting the shifting security demands on the military and his plans to expand the fleet to 313 warships. Adm. Michael G. Mullen, the chief of naval operations, said at a Pentagon news conference that he endorsed the Pentagon's recently unveiled strategic analysis, which calls for six carriers and 60 percent of its submarine fleet to be stationed in the Pacific. He did not comment on a nearly 3-year-old proposal to base …

War Over the Warthogs (Time, Swampland)

From Defense Aerospace First Aurora with Modernized Sensor - Sharpest Eyes in the Sky (Source: Canadian Department of National Defence; issued July 12, 2005) GREENWOOD, NS --- The first CP-140 Aurora modernized with new electro-optics and infrared sensors has rejoined the fleet at 14 Wing Greenwood after successful integration of this leading edge surveillance technology. The Air Force formally accepted the modified aircraft from contractor Lockheed Martin Canada upon completion of a rigorous joint testing program with the company and Air Force members. “This state-of-the-art technology builds on the new defence policy's pledge for increased maritime …

Defense Today February 9, 2006 Pg. 2 Henry: Raptor Is Needed, But Should Be Cut Rather Than JSF By Dave Ahearn The Air Force needs the F-22A Raptor supersonic stealth aircraft to provide air dominance, but cutting the number of Raptors to 183 from an Air Force request for 381 makes more sense than cutting the numbers of future F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft. So said Ryan Henry, principal deputy under secretary of defense for policy, speaking to journalists at a Defense Writers Group breakfast. During a periodic Pentagon assessment of long-range needs, ranging from personnel strength to weapons platform procurement, the study found that the…