Current Events in the Americas

From AOL Defense [excerpt]

Hagel: Navy to Lay Up 11 Cruisers, Carrier Cut Decision Delayed until 2016 Budget (USNI News)

Lockheed starts final assembly on last F-22A or Lockheed finds new structural weaknesses on two F-35 variants

From ACC Public Affairs Raptors wield 'unfair' advantage at Red Flag by By Tech. Sgt. Russell Wicke Air Combat Command Public Affairs 2/21/2007 - NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. (ACCNS) -- "Undercover" is an understatement for the F-22A Raptor. A point clearly illustrated by pilots of the 94th Fighter Squadron, who delivered an aerial sucker punch to the seasoned Red Force opponents during the F-22A's debut at Red Flag here Feb. 3 -16. Among the Blue Force participants were foreign pilots from the Royal Air Force of England and Royal Australian Air Force, flying the GR-4 and F-111C respectively. In addition, the F-22s flew with the B-2 Spirit and F-117 Ni…

Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet Demonstrates Network Capability in Multiple JDAM Drop here (Source: Boeing Co.; issued April 18, 2006) ST. LOUIS --- Boeing has successfully demonstrated the capability of an F/A-18E/F Super Hornet to provide targeting coordinates to other aircraft using the Raytheon APG-79 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar system. During the test at the Naval Air Weapons Center at China Lake, Calif., an AESA-equipped F/A-18F created a long-range, high resolution synthetic aperture radar map and designated four closely-spaced stationary targets. The aircraft then data-linked two target designations to non-AESA equipped Super…

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/paris-raytheon-takes-aim-at-lockheeds-lrasm-387510/ (Flight Global) So, what should replace Harpoon? LRASM (aka JASSM-ER) or JSOW-ER? Or something else? Or is a replacement even necessary?

A little sad as endings go: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/10/23/forrestal-navy-first-supercarrier-sold-for-1-penny/ I never served aboars her, but, like all of us, I've seen "Trial by Fire" numerous times. Buddha

From Air Force Times Joint missile program called back on track By Erik Holmes - Staff writer Posted : Thursday Sep 18, 2008 8:09:09 EDT The future of the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile, or JASSM, seemed in doubt last year due to severe cost overruns and four failed flight tests in a span of a few days. But the Air Force and Lockheed Martin say the program is back on target, with a batch of the stealthy cruise missiles delivered in July and a contract for an additional 111 awarded in June. And the reliability issues have been solved, according to Air Force and Lockheed officials. The development team flew 16 flight tests in four days in February, …

Red Alert: The Growing Threat to US Aircraft Carriers (CNAS, pdf)

US Navy Launches UAV from a Submarine (USNI News)

Reactivation Creates Wing For Remotely Controlled Planes Ceremony at Creech Air Force Base signals step in spy warfare By Keith Rogers, Review-Journal INDIAN SPRINGS -- Air Force leaders set a new mark in military history Tuesday by creating the nation's first combat wing for remotely piloted spy planes at their base here, 45 miles northwest of Las Vegas. In a ceremony attended by hundreds of airmen at Creech Air Force Base, Lt. Gen. Norman R. Seip reactivated the 432nd Wing. The unit has roots dating back to World War II and now consists of six operations squadrons and a maintenance squadron for the Air Force fleet of 60 MQ-1 Predator and six MQ-9 Reaper …

Revolutionizing Electronic Warfare JSF Will Combine Strike, Jamming, Intelligence ISRJournal By MICHAEL FABEY August 23, 2005 The U.S. Marine Corps wants its F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) to be more than an affordable replacement for the Harrier close-air-support plane; it wants the next-generation aircraft to jam the cell phones that trigger roadside bombs. “For about the past six months, the Marines have been coming to us and asking if there was anything the JSF could do to support the guys on the ground, to shut down a communications system,” said David Jeffreys, a program manager with F-35 maker Lockheed Martin. And in February, the Marines…

Jane's Defence Weekly April 12, 2006 USMC Looks To Revive OV-10s For Use In Iraq By Joshua Kucera, JDW Staff Reporter, Washington, DC The US Marine Corps is looking at the possibility of reviving the retired OV-10 Bronco observation aircraft for use in Iraq, according to a top service official. The aircraft, which was retired from US service in 1994, would be used to augment surveillance of roads in Iraq. Having additional aircraft there could increase the chances of US forces detecting the emplacement of roadside bombs or improvised explosive devices (IEDs), some service officials believe. "If this is a capability we think that will take out the…

From DefenseNews [excerpt]

From Defense Aerospace Multimission-Capable Sub Readies for Full Operation (Source: US Navy; issued April 12, 2006) NAVAL SUBMARINE BASE KINGS BAY, Ga. --- The guided-missile submarine USS Florida (SSGN 728) arrived at its new home of Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Ga., April 11, completing the sub’s three-year refueling and conversion at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Va. Florida is the second Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine the Navy has reconfigured, replacing its 24 Trident missiles with nearly 154 Tomahawk cruise missiles, switching the boat from a nuclear deterrent to a source of more conventional firepower in the global war on terrorism…

Inside a B-2 in attack mission: http://www.popularmechanics.com/military/aviation/a25070/to-libya-and-back-inside-obamas-last-strike-against-isis/?src=nl&mag=pop&list=nl_pnl_news&date=020917

2018 Nuclear Posture Review (pdf)

Best to have a thread on this - especially as it may well affect military pay and ultimately budgets.

http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=69657 (h/t Alert 5)

Robots Clear Waterways of Deadly Mines Associated Press | July 27, 2007 PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. - As it slowly moves in the shallow water along a beach, the robot splashes its fins like a small child playing in the surf. But the prototype device has a serious mission: destroying mines that could kill Marines and Navy SEALs as they come on shore. Such technology is considered the future of underwater bomb detection. "It's a kamikaze vehicle, a suicidal robot," said Mathieu Kemp, a scientist with Durham, N.C.-based Nekton Research, LCC, which created the Transphibian. The 3-foot-long device, which will some day carry 14 pounds of plastic explosives and at…