Current Events in the Americas

From Flight International Northrop Grumman outlines B-2 bomber enhancements as USAF reveals plan to also boost strike fleet with new aircraft design By Graham Warwick USAF to also boost strike fleet with new aircraft design High-energy laser weapons are a potential future upgrade for the Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit bomber, which is expected to remain in service beyond 2050. Improved passive and active stealth techniques are also expected to be needed beyond 2020 to keep the type viable as a penetrating bomber, the company says. A US Air Force advanced concepts simulation exercise in November evaluated use of a solid-state laser system for positive combat ide…

From DefenseNews Posted 12/01/06 10:39 Russia Delivers First Sukhoi Fighters to Venezuela By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, MOSCOW The first two Sukhoi Su-30 fighter jets destined for Venezuela under a deal slammed by Washington have been dispatched from Russia, officials said Nov. 30. “Two Su-30MK2 have been sent on board an An-124 transport plane to the Venezuelan Air Force” from Komsomolsk-on-Amur, a city in far eastern Russia where the planes are made, said an official from Russia’s arms export agency. Two other fighter jets destined for Venezuela according to a deal that has riled the United States will be delivered by the end of the year, the official told RIA-No…

Here is the link to an interesting article that I read. It may not be new news to some of you, but I did. Find it here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15757360/ Air Force details secret MiG program U.S. pilots were given chance to practice dogfighting against Soviet jets The Associated Press Updated: 6:43 a.m. ET Nov 17, 2006 DAYTON, Ohio - A once-secret program that enabled thousands of U.S. military pilots to practice dogfighting against Soviet-designed MiG fighter jets was detailed Thursday by the Air Force as part of the first public acknowledgment of the program's existence. The classified air combat training program ran from 1977 to 1988 at the…

Frigate pretends to be the enemy Fredericton tries to sneak up on other navy ships in exercise By Rachel Boomer The Daily News ABOARD HMCS FREDERICTON - Her motto is "Stalker of the Seas" - and this week, that's exactly what HMCS Fredericton is doing. Sometime between midnight and 7 a.m. today, the Fredericton will sneak up on comrades from the Canadian task group, including HMCS Halifax, HMCS Athabaskan and HMCS Preserver. By disguising her lights and speed to make her look like a container ship or a fishing vessel, Fredericton may just get close enough to - theoretically - do some damage. This, of course, is exactly what an enemy might do, given th…

Excerpt from: Stealth fighters Two years after a fire at sea crippled HMCS Chicoutimi, killing a sailor and triggering a parliamentary probe, the navy is embracing a new plan to prove the worth of its second-hand submarine fleet David Pugliese, The Ottawa Citizen Published: Saturday, November 18, 2006 ABOARD HMCS WINDSOR - It's early morning and a team of Canadian army commandos are swimming in the Atlantic Ocean, making their way towards a submarine periscope just barely visible in the water. Inside the sub, its captain, Lt.-Cmdr. Christopher Ellis is trying to manoeuvre the 70-metre long vessel as close as he can to the men. About a metre of HMCS Winds…

Navy ship to be sunk during target practice exercise Last Updated: Thursday, November 16, 2006 | 11:16 AM PT CBC News A Canadian warship that has been tied up at the dock at CFB Esquimalt since 2001 will be towed out to sea off the west coast of Vancouver Island next year and used for target practice. HMCS Huron was commissioned in 1972 and saw service in the Persian Gulf during the first Gulf War. If it gets environmental approval, the navy will tow the decommissioned destroyer to a firing range 100 kilometres out in the Pacific Ocean next May. There the Canadian and U.S. navies will open fire and send the 34-year-old ship to the bottom, Cmdr. Stan Bates sa…

From Defense Aerospace Air Force Selects Developer for Combat Search And Rescue Replacement Vehicle (Source: US Air Force; issued Nov. 9, 2006) WASHINGTON, D.C. --- The Honorable Michael W. Wynne, Secretary of the Air Force, announced today the selection of Boeing Co., Boeing Helicopter, Ridley Park, Pa. to provide the new Combat Search and Rescue Replacement Vehicle, also known as CSAR-X. The announcement comes at the end of a fair and open competition, and thorough evaluation of multiple proposals allowing the Air Force to fulfill its number two acquisition priority. "The Air Force is the only service with forces dedicated to the critical mission of…

From DefenseNews [That little ship some people love to hate is attracting attention again ... ] Posted 10/26/06 13:57 Lockheed’s LCS Draws International Interest By CHRISTOPHER P. CAVAS, LE BOURGET, France A steady stream of uniformed and civilian visitors from many countries stopped by the Lockheed Martin desk during Euronaval, the biannual European naval show here that showcases the latest in naval concepts and hardware. And while the American company touted its Aegis combat system and approaches to open architecture, the majority of visitors wanted to know about the flashiest thing on the Lockheed stand — the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). “There have bee…

Find it here. I have heard grumblings of this the past few weeks. October 06, 2006 Mine commands merge By Christopher P. Cavas Times staff The Navy’s new Naval Mine and Anti-Submarine Warfare Command (NMAWC) was created Oct. 1, merging the former Mine Warfare Command (MINEWARCOM) in Corpus Christi, Texas, with the San Diego-based Fleet Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Command. The move — controversial among many mine warfare professionals — merges the mine community’s staff and research elements with similar work being done in the ASW area. Along with the staff, the ships at the Corpus Christi base — slated for closure in 2009 — will move to San Dieg…

From Navy Times October 04, 2006 Carrier George H.W. Bush to be christened Saturday By William H. McMichael Staff writer NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — President George W. Bush will deliver the principal address at the christening of the aircraft carrier bearing the name of his father, President George H.W. Bush, during a Saturday ceremony at the Northrop Grumman Newport News shipyard. The former president, his wife Barbara and their daughter, Doro Bush Koch, will attend the event. Koch, who serves as the ship’s sponsor, will perform the time-honored tradition of breaking a bottle of wine across the bow to formally christen the ship. George H.W. Bush, the nation’s…

From Defense Aerospace Small Diameter Bomb Makes Combat Debut (Source: US Air Force; issued Oct. 5, 2006) SOUTHWEST ASIA --- The Guided Bomb Unit-39/B small diameter bomb was flown into combat for the first time Oct. 5 by members of the 494th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron. The unit, deployed to the Southwest Asia area of operations, launched a two-ship formation of F-15E Strike Eagles at 1:30 a.m. EDT carrying the new air-to-ground bomb on a mission to provide close-air support for ground troops operating in Iraq. "Today, we added an extraordinary capability to our warfighter's arsenal," said Lt. Gen. Gary L. North, the Combined Forces Air Component …

From Defense Aerospace Air Force Strategic Plan Released (Source: US Air Force; issued Oct. 5, 2006) WASHINGTON --- The Air Force Strategic Plan 2006 - 2008 has been released and now is available online, announced Secretary of the Air Force Michael W. Wynne and Air Force Chief of Staff General T. Michael Moseley in a joint letter. The plan articulates the Air Force mission. "The Air Force Strategic Plan embodies how we will defend the nation against current and emerging threats," the letter said. "It demonstrates scalable choices, not limited by distance or time. Our strategic choices -- what we choose to prioritize, our actions in support of our prioriti…

From Jane's Defence Weekly DoD group seeks to give autonomy to armed drones By Stephen Trimble JDW Americas Bureau Chief Washington, DC A proposal, unveiled publicly in September but never before publicised, would give "armed autonomous systems" the authority to shoot to destroy hostile weapon systems but not suspected combatants. Accordingly, any people killed or injured in the attack would be considered the collateral damage of a successful strike on a legitimate target. "If you stop and think about what this is, it really is a new paradigm for conducting warfare," John S Canning, a chief engineer at the Naval Surface Warfare Center and one of the authors …

Find it here. MEU BLT Preps for Nighttime Boat Raids Marine Corps News | Lcpl. Bryan A. Peterson | September 25, 2006 Kin Blue, Okinawa, Japan - More than 100 Marines and sailors with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit's battalion landing team rehearsed boat landing raids Sept. 11 at Kin Blue. The daytime rehearsals helped prepare the A Company Marines and sailors of 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, for a difficult nighttime operation at Camp Schwab later that day, according to 1st Sgt. Tracy Offutt, the company first sergeant. "We need to be able to sustain our capabilities in over-the-horizon small boat amphibious operations," Offutt said. "Practicing d…

From Navy Times September 22, 2006 Goodbye to the F-14 By Tom Vanden Brook USA Today VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The Navy today is holstering the F-14 Tomcat, the top gun in its Cold War arsenal and one of the most recognizable warplanes in history. Maintenance costs for the F-14 have soared, and a more versatile, cheaper-to-keep replacement, the F/A-18 Super Hornet, has taken its place. Yet the Super Hornet is unlikely to surpass the F-14’s following. Furiously fast, deafeningly loud and lethal to enemy aircraft, the Tomcat had already attained legendary status by the 1980s. The 1986 film “Top Gun,” in which Tom Cruise portrayed an F-14 pilot in training, ce…

Find it here. Navy Christens Littoral Combat Ship Freedom The U.S. Navy will christen Freedom, the first littoral combat ship (LCS) at 10 a.m. CDT on Saturday, Sept. 23, during a ceremony at Marinette Marine Corp. in Marinette, Wis. The future USS Freedom acknowledges the enduring foundation of our nation and honors American communities from coast to coast which bear the name Freedom. States having towns named Freedom include California, Indiana, Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Wyoming. The 378-foot Freedom will be the first U.S. Navy ship to carry this class designation. Birgit…

Lexington Institute on "The Dumbest Weapons Decision of the Decade" Posted 19-Sep-2006 09:36 Defense Industry Daily With all of the recent C-17 related purchases by NATO, Canada, et. al., a reader drew our attention to a recent piece by military analyst Loren Thompson at the Lexington Institute think-tank in Washington, DC. Pulling no punches, it's titled "The Dumbest Weapons Decision of the Decade." People from other countries often underestimate the role of think tanks in Washington, because there are no comparable players in their own countries. That's a big mistake. American academia's growing irrelevance means that the policy agendas and talking points of …

Tight budget forces Navy to put squeeze on sub But analysts say subtracting Dolphin will only add to costs By Steve Liewer UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER August 28, 2006 Navy budget cutters are about to achieve what flood and fire could not: sink the Dolphin submarine. Less than a year after completing a $50 million project to repair and upgrade the San Diego-based research vessel, the Navy will decommission it Sept. 22. It is the country's last diesel-electric sub. Pentagon officials say the Dolphin's age and uniqueness caught up with it, making it expensive to operate and maintain. The research vessel is based at Point Loma. Axing the Dolphin will sav…