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i know i am!
with her doing the body paint. lol
i sure smell bacon. lol
the helo isnt the problem, its all the crap they are trying to stuff into it. this program is an example of the worst of the military procurement programs out there. they are planning to build maybe 24 of these helos, even without more money being spent each helo would be worth more than an F-22
this was posted by Bruce on the Dream Machine board
that is extremely disturbing!
only an arrogant ass would make that comment after signing a truce. definitely looking forward to watching it
Gulf War pilot's remains found in Iraq desert
By PAULINE JELINEK and PAMELA HESS, Associated Press Writer Pauline Jelinek And Pamela Hess, Associated Press Writer – 24 mins ago
WASHINGTON – Navy pilot Capt. Michael "Scott" Speicher was shot down over the Iraq desert on the first night of the Gulf War in 1991 and it was there he apparently was buried by Bedouins, hidden in the sand from the world's mightiest military all these years.
In a sorrowful resolution to the nearly two-decade old question about his fate, the Pentagon disclosed Sunday it had received new information last month from an Iraqi citizen that led Marines to recover bones and skeletal fragments — enough for a positive identification.
The top Navy officer said the discovery is evidence of the military's commitment to bring its troops home. "Our Navy will never give up looking for a shipmate, regardless of how long or how difficult that search may be," said Adm. Gary Roughead, Chief of Naval Operations.
Over the years, critics contended the Navy had not done enough, particularly right after the crash, to search for the 33-year-old Speicher. A lieutenant commander when he went missing on a combat mission, Speicher later reached the rank of captain because he kept receiving promotions while his status was unknown.
The Pentagon initially declared Speicher killed. But uncertainty — and the lack of remains — led officials over the years to change his status a number of times to "missing in action" and later "missing-captured." The family Speicher left behind, from outside Jacksonville, Fla., continued to press for the military to do more to resolve the case.
Speicher's story has never waned in that city. A large banner flying outside a firefighters' credit union has a photo of him with the words: "Free Scott Speicher." At his church, a memorial was put up in his honor and the swimming complex at his alma mater, Florida State University, was named for the pilot.
Family spokeswoman Cindy Laquidara said relatives learned on Saturday that Speicher's remains had been found. "The family's proud of the way the Defense Department continued on with our request" to not abandon the search, she said. "We will be bringing him home."
Laquidara said the family would have another statement after being briefed by the defense officials; she did not know when that would be.
The U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 finally gave investigators the chance to search inside Iraq. That led to a number of new leads, including the discovery of what some believed were the initials "MSS" scratched into the wall of an Iraqi prison.
More than 50 sites were checked by military search crews in the months after the Iraq invasion, when Anbar province grew increasingly dangerous. The teams checked hospitals, prisons, security archives, homes, and the original site where Speicher's plane crashed, about 100 miles north of the Saudi Arabian border. Crews first visited the site in 1995. They found wings, the canopy and unexploded ordnance, but the cockpit and Speicher were missing.
The search also led investigators to excavate a potential grave site in Baghdad in 2005, track down Iraqis said to have information about Speicher and make numerous other inquiries in what officials say was an exhaustive search.
Officials said Sunday that they got new information last month from an Iraqi citizen, prompting Marines stationed in the western province of Anbar to visit a location in the desert which was believed to be the crash site of Speicher's FA-18 Hornet.
The Iraqi said he knew of two other Iraqis who recalled an American jet crashing and the remains of the pilot being buried in the desert, the Pentagon said.
"One of these Iraqi citizens stated that they were present when Captain Speicher was found dead at the crash site by Bedouins and his remains buried," the Defense Department said in a statement.
The military recovered bones and multiple skeletal fragments and Speicher was positively identified by matching a jawbone and dental records, said Rear Adm. Frank Thorp. He said the Iraqis told investigators that the Bedouins had buried Speicher. It was unclear whether the military had information on how soon Speicher died after the crash.
Some had said they believed Speicher ejected from the plane and was captured by Iraqi forces, and the initials were seen as a potential clue he might have survived. There also were reports of sightings.
While dental records have confirmed the remains to be those of Speicher, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Rockville, Md., is running DNA tests on the remains recovered and comparing them with DNA reference samples previously provided by family members.
Speicher was shot down over west-central Iraq on Jan. 17, 1991.
Hours later, the Pentagon publicly declared him killed. Then-Defense Secretary Dick Cheney went on television and announced the U.S. had suffered its first casualty of the war. But 10 years later, the Navy changed his status to missing in action, citing an absence of evidence that Speicher had died. In October 2002, the Navy switched his status to "missing/captured," although it has never said what evidence it had that he ever was in captivity.
A review in 2005 was conducted with information gleaned after Baghdad fell. The review board recommended then that the Pentagon work with the State Department, the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and the Iraqi government to "increase the level of attention and effort inside Iraq" to resolve the question of Speicher's fate.
Last year, then-Navy Secretary Donald Winter ordered yet another review of the case after receiving a report from the Defense Intelligence Agency, which tracks prisoners of war and service members missing in action.
Many in the military believed for years that Speicher had not survived the crash or for long after. Intelligence had never found evidence he was alive, and some officials felt last year that all leads had been exhausted and Speicher would finally be declared killed.
But after the latest review, Winter said Speicher would remain classified as missing, despite Winter's strong reservations about the pilot's status and cited "compelling" evidence that he was dead.
Announcing his decision, Winter criticized the board's recommendation to leave Speicher's status unchanged, saying the review board based its conclusions on the belief that Speicher was alive after ejecting from his plane. The board "chose to ignore" the lack of any parachute sighting, emergency beacon signal or radio communication, Winter said.
Speicher's family — including two college-age children who were toddlers when Speicher disappeared — believed more evidence would surface as Iraq becomes more stable.
One of Speicher's high school classmates who helped form the group "Friends Working to Free Scott Speicher" said Sunday his biggest fear was that Speicher had been taken alive and tortured.
"This whole thing has been so surreal for all of the people who have known Scott," said Nels Jensen, 52, who now lives in Arkansas.
Jensen said the group was frustrated the military didn't initially send a search and rescue team after the crash, and then grew more perplexed as reports of his possible capture emerged. "Never again will our military likely not send out a search and rescue party for a downed serviceman," Jensen said.
___
Associated Press writers Ron Word in Jacksonville, Fla., and Jacob Jordan in Atlanta contributed to this report.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090802/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_gulf_war_missing_pilot
thanks for the heads up EZ, ill check it out
Google Earth In Pakistan
August 2, 2009: The Pakistani Air Force admitted that they have been using Google Earth to locate targets, and help guide pilots operating in the tribal territories. The Pakistani government has never been flush, thus any major mapping effort in the tribal territories, never got done. So, like many of the players in this war, including the Americans, the Pakistanis use Google Earth. No one in the military is surprised anymore by this. In the last four years, Google Earth (earth.google.com) has revolutionized military intelligence, but the military doesn't like to admit it. But by putting so much satellite photography at the disposal of so many people, in such an easy-to-use fashion, Google Earth has made much more information available to military professionals (and terrorists, and criminals and academics, etc), who quickly appreciated what a splendid new tool they had.
To the U.S. Department of Defense, Google Earth's major problem was not it's ease-of-use, but the manner in which it showcased the shortcomings of the American NGA (National Geospatial Intelligence Agency). The NGA is responsible for taking the satellite photos, spiffing them up as needed, and getting them to the troops. Trouble is, the stuff still isn't getting to the troops that need it, when they need it. This was made very obvious when Google Earth showed up, and demonstrated how you can get satellite images to anyone, when they need it, with minimal hassle.
For over two decades, the generals, and other officers with access to "satellite imagery", have been complaining about the difficulty they have in getting their hands on this stuff. Hundreds of billions of dollars has been spent on photo satellites since the 1960s, and the troops always seem to get leftovers, if anything. Yet the satellite people regularly con Congress out of more money so they can build more satellites, and neat systems that will get the satellite imagery "to the troops." The goods never arrive, or never arrive in time. Generals gave angry testimony before Congress about this non-performance after the 1991 war. The satellite people seemed contrite, and said they would make it right. If given the money to do it. They got the money and the troops got nothing.
Now the troops got access to Google Earth, and have seen what they have been missing. To make matters worse, the software Google Earth uses to get the job done, was first developed for the NGA. But the way the NGA operates, you have to worry about security considerations, and all manner of bureaucratic details, before you can deploy a useful tool. The troops are fighting a war, you say? Well, we still have to deal with security and keeping the paperwork straight. But now the troops are beating NGA over the head with Google Earth, and Congress took notice. However, NGA bureaucrats are close at hand, and the angry troops are far away. Progress is still slow. But at least the troops have Google Earth, unfortunately, so does the enemy.
But, as has been demonstrated in Pakistan, while the Taliban may have access to Google Earth, they don't have access to F-16s. In the last ten weeks, Pakistani F-16s have flown over 400 sorties against Taliban targets in the Swat valley, and Waziristan. Google Earth showed the pilots what they were bombing, and how a pilot would see it. The U.S. supplied the Pakistanis with high quality aerial cameras, and soon the Pakistanis had high quality (and higher resolution than Google Earth) digital photos of the key areas their bombers were operating over. But Google Earth remained the go-to tool when some obscure area, that the expensive U.S. cameras had not gone over yet, suddenly showed up as a potential new target. The Pakistanis are also using more laser guided bombs. While their accuracy reduces civilian casualties, you need detailed aerial photos of the target area, before you send the F-16s in. Another problem the Pakistanis have is that they have no bombers that can operate at night. So the Taliban tend to move at night.
http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htmurph/articles/20090802.aspx
nitro was the last one in there i think. i take a shot at it latter or set hoagie on the job.
putting a pic of your kid and her friend in there might be wrong without their permission
your welcome.
some of this stuff is probably more scifi than tech. lol
Laser-Powered Lightcraft "At the Cusp of Commercial Reality"
The Lightcraft's laser propulsion engine undergoes hypersonic shock tunnel tests in Brazil
By Jeremy Hsu Posted 07.29.2009 at 2:58 pm 13 Comments
Future business travelers may literally ride a laser to work. The U.S. and Brazilian Air Forces are experimenting with Lightcraft technology that could become part of your daily commute, using plain old air to fuel 45-minute transcontinental jaunts.
The design uses a ground-based laser to beam the Lightcraft skyward on a series of blast waves. A parabolic mirror on the back of the craft would capture and focus the pulsing laser beam so that it heats air to 5 times the sun's temperature, creating mini-explosions that propel human passengers or cargo to any point on the planet in under an hour, or into orbit.
If successful, a laser propulsion system could pave the way for cheaper launches for both NASA and the private space industry.
Recent tests have taken place in a hypersonic shock tunnel with lasers that can reach the gigawatt range. The experiments involving laser-heated airspikes have been hosted by the Henry T. Nagamatsu Laboratory of Hypersonics and Aerothermodynamics in Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil.
Such efforts represent the highest-powered laser propulsion experiments ever performed, according to an exclusive SPACE.com interview with Lightcraft founder Leik Myrabo.
Previous Lightcraft prototypes flew at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, and also claimed the world altitude record for laser-boosted vehicles in flight. Now Myrabo has funding from the United States Air Force Office of Scientific Research and the Brazilian Air Force, as well as access to the hypersonic shock tunnel that can simulate airstreams reaching Mach 25.
Hear those loud bangs? Sounds like the future -- not to mention 45-minute commutes halfway around the world.
http://www.popsci.com/military-aviation-amp-space/article/2009-07/high-powered-lightcraft-experiments-hint-future-space-travel
Blackout Bomb: Air Force's High-Powered Microwave Weapons Fry Enemy Equipment
An experimental stealth weapon could blind enemy surveillance
By Susannah F. Locke Posted 07.30.2009 at 12:36 pm 7 Comments
In modern warfare, where missions are sometimes over in minutes, a blind enemy is a defeated enemy. The electromagnetic pulse from a nuclear weapon detonated miles aboveground would zap an army’s surveillance equipment, but not without causing heavy collateral damage. Instead, a new Air Force tool will fry electronics using high-power microwaves emitted by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).
The U.S. Air Force recently secured $40 million for the project, and while program leader Robert Torres will confirm successful ground and in-flight tests of an earlier device, he’s tight-lipped on future details. Edl Schamiloglu, a high-power microwave expert at the University of New Mexico, speculates that the weapon would focus microwaves on a target, where they would induce a power surge in unshielded wires, destroying circuits in satellite dishes, radars and anything else electronic. This would clear the way for troops or airstrikes and could even wipe out gear in hidden bunkers.
A UAV, such as Boeing’s upcoming stealth Phantom Ray, will probably be the conveyance of choice, because it can fly into enemy territory without risking a pilot’s life. This raises a challenge for powering the instrument, Schamiloglu says. Although a UAV’s small engine could provide some power, it will take high-capacity batteries to produce the gigawatt microwave pulses. Torres will say that he expects a prototype to be ready for flight tests in 2012, during which his team will adjust the beam to ensure that it inflicts damage only on the target.
http://www.popsci.com/military-aviation-amp-space/article/2009-07/experimental-microwave-weapon-could-fry-enemy-equipment
Company Last Seen Making Lightning Guns Is Now Attaching Lasers To Planes
By Dan Smith Posted 07.31.2009 at 2:00 pm 1 Comment
We at PopSci appreciate new weapons. And lasers. And laser weapons. Which is why we're excited to tell you that the Navy and the Marines have given a company called Applied Electronics about a million dollars to attach lasers onto planes. The weapons would be ultra-short-pulse (USP) lasers, which shoot beams of frequent-pulse light that create a path through the air, via which bolts of electricity can travel toward a target.
Applied Electronics used to exist in the form of the company called Ionatron, which was tasked with creating military-grade lightning weapons (above). The project and company failed -- hence the lack of lightning-based weaponry today -- so it'll be interesting to see if USP laser weapons are more successful. If so, they might be able to test the lasers on popcorn-filled houses.
http://www.popsci.com/military-aviation-amp-space/article/2009-07/company-tried-make-lightning-guns-now-attach-lasers-planes
Pentagon Reassessing F-35 Cost Estimates
Jul 30, 2009
By Graham Warwick
FORT WORTH, Texas — Lockheed Martin briefed U.S. Defense Department cost estimators July 29 as they reassess projections for the F-35 amid concerns that continued disagreement between higher independent and lower program office development cost figures could spell trouble for the Joint Strike Fighter.
Officials from the Pentagon’s Office of Program Analysis & Evaluation, Cost Analysis Improvement Group and Joint Estimating Team (JET) were to be briefed on progress with the development program July 29 at Lockheed’s plant here, F-35 Program General Manager Dan Crowley said at the July 28 rollout of the first U.S. Navy F-35C variant.
The previous JET report estimated development would cost an additional $5 billion and take two more years to complete than estimated by the Joint Program Office (JPO) in 2008. The team cited engineering destaffing, manufacturing span times, software development and flight-test productivity as drivers of expected cost and schedule growth.
Because of delays in flying test aircraft, JSF Program Executive Officer Brig. Gen. David Heinz does not expect the updated assessment to change the JET estimate by much. But Crowley hopes to convince the independent estimators that destaffing, manufacturing and software is on track to deliver the JPO’s lower projections.
“The JET has been tasked with updating its assessment in September,” Heinz says. “Without significant flight-testing, I do not expect a major revision.”
While it has been budgeting F-35 development at the lower cost estimated by the JPO, for fiscal 2010 the Pentagon opted for the JET’s higher estimate and added $480 million to the budget to cover projected cost growth in flight-test.
This raises the specter of a major cost jump for the development program, and potential cuts to aircraft procurement numbers, if the Pentagon abandons the JPO estimate and embraces the JET projections.
Crowley continues to hope the Pentagon and Congress will give the JSF program another year or two to prove its projected improvements in flight-test productivity over legacy fighter development efforts.
With 99 percent of drawings released for all three variants, engineering destaffing is “following a profile close to predictions,” he says, with the numbers working on the program expected to be cut from 4,000 to around 2,000 by year’s end.
Flight-test aircraft are between two and four months behind schedule, “but we are seeing rapid reductions in span times” as it begins assembling the first low-rate initial production aircraft, he says.
While the JET assessment expected growth in the amount of software needed and doubted the industry team could meet its software productivity targets, Crowley says software content is stable and productivity is beating estimates.
With only around 100 of a planned 5,000 development sorties expected to be accumulated by year’s end, flight-testing remains the biggest cost and schedule challenge. “It’s still difficult to estimate,” Heinz says.
Crowley says the team will not have enough data to support its flight-test productivity projections until it has completed 10 percent of planned sorties, expected late in 2010. “It’s too early to prove them wrong,” he says.
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_generic.jsp?channel=aerospacedaily&id=news/F35JET073009.xml&headline=Pentagon%20Reassessing%20F-35%20Cost%20Estimates
SM-3 Scores Hit After Fixes Implemented
Jul 31, 2009
By Amy Butler
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) successfully intercepted a subscale short-range ballistic missile target with an Aegis destroyer-launched SM-3 Block IA during a flight test July 30.
The target missile was launched at 11:40 p.m. EDT at the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Kauai, Hawaii. Two minutes later, the USS Hopper fired the interceptor, which collided with the target about 100 miles above the Pacific Ocean, according to MDA officials.
This test was added to the schedule to evaluate changes made after last year’s failed attempt to intercept a target with an SM-3 Block IA launched by a Japanese Aegis-equipped ship (Aerospace DAILY, Nov. 21, 2009). After the Nov. 19 test, MDA officials said, “Target performance, interceptor missile launch and flyout, and operation of the Aegis Weapon System by the crew were successful, but an intercept was not achieved.”
A root cause has not been identified, and an MDA spokesman did not say whether fixes have been made to hardware or operational procedures resulting from the failure review. It is also unclear why a subscale target was used in the July 30 trial.
During the test, three U.S. Navy Aegis ships, the cruiser USS Lake Erie and destroyers USS Hopper and USS O’Kane detected and tracked the target with their SPY-1 radars, and each developed fire control solutions.
This was the first test in which the USS Lake Erie employed its upgraded software, which is needed to introduce the SM-3 Block IB into service. This interceptor, with an advanced seeker, will be flight tested in late 2010. During the test, the USS Lake Eerie exercised all fire control functions of this new software, MDA officials say.
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story.jsp?id=news/MDA-SM3073109.xml&headline=SM-3%20Scores%20Hit%20After%20Fixes%20Implemented&channel=defense
Brazil, Chile, Spain question US bases in Colombia
Venezuelan's fiercely anti-US president, Hugo Chavez, said he viewed the bases as a sign a "Yankee military force" was preparing to invade his country from Colombia.
by Staff Writers
Sao Paulo (AFP) July 30, 2009
Brazil, Chile and Spain on Thursday challenged the United States' decision to use and expand military bases in Colombia, saying they feared the move could heighten simmering tensions in Latin America.
Presidents Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil and Michelle Bachelet of Chile said in Sao Paulo they would put the issue before an August 10 meeting of a nascent South American Defense Council in Ecuador.
Spain's foreign minister, Miguel Angel Moratinos, and his Brazilian counterpart, Celso Amorim, simultaneously told reporters in Brasilia that they would demand explanations from Washington over the bases.
The Colombian government's announcement July 15 that three of its military air bases were to be used by the United States as part of joint anti-drug operations has ignited concerns and anger among Colombia's neighbors.
Venezuela and its ally Ecuador have warned the move could aggravate already deep tensions with Colombia.
The two almost went to war last year against Colombia over a raid its army made into Ecuador to destroy a Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebel camp.
Venezuelan's fiercely anti-US president, Hugo Chavez, said he viewed the bases as a sign a "Yankee military force" was preparing to invade his country from Colombia.
Chavez this week signed deals with Russia reinforcing military ties that have already seen him acquire new tanks, combat helicopters and fighter jets.
He also on Tuesday froze diplomatic links to Colombia over allegations from Bogota that weapons Venezuela bought from Sweden in the 1980s ended up in the hands of the FARC.
Ecuador has cut off links to Colombia since its March 2008 cross-border raid.
In Brasilia, Moratinos said: "We are going to be in contact with Colombia and the United States so they can explain, tell us the reasons for this opening of the bases."
He said that while the use of the bases was a bilateral issue between the United States and Colombia, he hoped the deal "will not create more tensions and, above all, avoid a militarization of Latin America."
Brazil's Lula told a media conference in Sao Paulo that "I'm not happy with the idea of another US base in Colombia," he said, but added that he was not going to criticize Colombian President Alvaro Uribe over the matter.
He said the South American Defense Council could be asked to look at the broader issue of border sovereignty in light of the US base announcement.
Bachelet said she, too, respected Colombia's sovereign decisions but noted that "there are countries that are unsettled by this situation."
A broader Union of South American nations gathering in Ecuador which is to include the defense council meeting "will be an opportune time to see... how to come up with a solution permitting all countries to calmly accept this type of decision," she said.
http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Brazil_Chile_Spain_question_US_bases_in_Colombia_999.html
thats the problem, they are putting every new whiz bang they can think of into the new helo.
i wonder if the osprey is viable?
Out of Whole Cloth: Tarian Rocket Protection
30-Jul-2009 17:04 EDT
Related Stories: Britain/U.K., Contracts - Awards, Design Innovations, Materials Innovations, Other Corporation, R&D - Contracted, Tanks & Mechanized, Trucks & Transport
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TARIAN on HET
Tarian close-up
(click to view full)
Working with Britain’s Ministry of Defense, a transatlantic firm named AmSafe has come up with a novel solution to anti-tank rockets: fabric panels mounted on the sides of trucks and armored vehicles.
“BAE’s LROD Cage Armor” discussed the front-line threat of Rocket Propelled Grenades like the popular RPG-7, the uses of steel “cage armor,” and BAE’s much lighter aluminum solution. AmSafe’s Tarian (Welsh for “shield”) has been deployed by British forces, remains in development for new vehicle types, and offers several advantages over cage armor. Not least of which is a 50% weight savings over aluminum, and 85% savings over steel cage options…
* The RPG-7 Problem, and Solutions
* Tarian: Development and Performance
* Tarian: Next Steps
* Contracts and Key Events
The RPG-7 Problem, and Solutions
ORD_RPG-7_Terrorists.jpg
RPG-7
RPGs are almost as ubiquitous as “AK-47” Kalashnikov assault rifles – and almost as widely copied. The 1960s-era RPG-7 is the most widely produced and imitated variant; at the moment, it is also the most common front-line threat. These weapons are a serious threat to vehicles in urban zones, where the terrain makes their short range a non-issue, and creates a vast array of firing angles. They’re also very popular and common in Afghanistan, where vehicles like the Royal Marines’ BvS10 Vikings were being forced to mount cage armor that exceeded their weight limits.
At the most passive end of the scale, Western main battle tanks like the M1 Abrams, Leopard 2, and Challenger carry very heavy layered composite armoring that can simply ignore RPG-7 strikes. At the most active end of the scale, expensive and maintenance-intensive new “hit to kill” systems like RAFAEL/IAI/GD’s Trophy can sense an incoming rocket, then fire projectiles to destroy it.
If that level of weight, or that level of complexity and expense, aren’t viable options, there are 2 general approaches to stopping rockets like RPGs.
MCV-80 Warrior Wrap-2
Warrior in Wrap-2 armor
(click to view full)
One is reactive armor tiles that explode outward when hit, disrupting the blast.
The other is “cage armor” or screens. They can sometimes prevent detonation, or prevent the shaped charge jet from forming properly. That can mean shorting the crush fuze’s transmission, so its electric charge can’t ignite the explosive. Or it can mean preventing the shaped charge from forming a proper jet, turning the warhead into a big bang and a burning splatter of goo. Premature detonation, which prevents the shaped charge warhead from “focusing” its plasma jet properly and having its full effect, may also help, especially in fixed emplacements.
Appendix A of “BAE’s LROD Cage Armor” explains cage armor principles in more detail, and also explains their limitations.
Tarian: Development and Performance
AmSafe
(click to visit)
Back in early 2005, AmSafe approached the British MoD’s Defence Science & Technology Laboratory (DSTL) with an outline concept, based on research they had been doing in other areas of their business.
“Cold” approaches can be difficult in the defense industry, but AmSafe had built up contacts and credibility by applying engineered textiles to defense aerospace problems for many years. The firm has deep expertise at finding new textiles and figuring out how to create items that catch objects. They’re the leading NATO provider of aircraft and helicopter cargo nets outside the USA, for instance, and their products include the A400M’s net – which is the largest in the world, and can withstand 9g. They’re also the leading cargo net provider to the global airline market, which creates a constant pressure toward lighter weight materials.
AmSafe
(click to visit)
One of those materials had caught AmSafe’s eye. The firm kept hearing from the field that deployed vehicles were consistently 20% or more above their weight limit, a useful thing to know for a firm also makes vehicle barrier nets. The reason for that extra weight usually involves added armor, and steel cage armor is a major contributor.
Could this new material be used to solve that problem? If so, it would be much lighter. As a fabric, it would also allow something that bar armor does not: the addition of camouflage patterns.
DSTL became interested, and the program accelerated in 2007 after initial evaluations went well. In order to create a product that could meet the extreme environments and uses needed by the military, the joint AmSafe/DSTL project worked to continue development, conducted testing, and undertook extensive vehicle trials. DSTL’s fact sheet lists development costs at GBP 500,000, or about $825,000.
LAND RG-31 LROD Armor
RG-31 w. LROD
(click to view full)
Tarian works like cage armor, albeit at 50% less weight than aluminum and 1/7 the weight of steel. Its panels are not larger than traditional cage armor, and fit into place using traditional bar/cage armor fixings and mountings. AmSafe representatives also describe it as “equally effective,” which is to say a significant improvement over no protection, but not 100%.
The weight saved can be used to help vehicles last longer by remaining within their designed weight limits, or it can be traded to add more protection on the vehicle itself. Camouflage patterns can also be applied, in order to improve overall survivability by making the vehicle a more difficult target.
AmSafe says that the material used in Tarian is fully flame retardant, which is very important if the RPG’s explosives are triggered but its plasma jet doesn’t form correctly. DSTL also says that the vehicle has been tested against “petrol bombs,” aka. “Molotov Cocktails.” It’s also highly resistant to abrasion and cutting, which is necessary for an attachment that’s guaranteed to take a certain amount of punishment in the rigors of use.
In military situations, Trian needs to remain effective after taking a hail of small arms fire. DSTL personnel later added that Tarian ” has been tested to the highest standards using a variety of grenades, rockets and small arms fired at different angles.” The British Ministry of Defence is reluctant to discuss further details for obvious reasons, but it does say that:
“Testing has shown that Tarian is very robust, and more than capable of withstanding battlefield wear and tear… and functioning as intended. If it does get damaged, it is very easy to replace in the field [due to its light weight].”
The last set of required tests involved potential visibility issues for troops driving or riding in Tarian protected vehicles. That seems to have gone well for Britain’s Oshkosh HET heavy trucks, which are now in service with the new fabric armor.
Tarian: Next Steps
TARIAN on Spartan
TARIAN on Spartan
(click to view full)
Under the mutual agreement with DSTL, Tarian’s intellectual property is wholly AmSafe’s, and patents are currently in place or pending related to different stages of the product. In the UK, trials are underway on different vehicles, including armored personnel carriers and armored fighting vehicles. If testing goes well, AmSafe expects additional orders from the UK.
While the company would not comment on specific trials, the British Army’s popular MCV-80 Warrior light armored fighting vehicles already carry cage armor, and would be obvious candidates for Tarian. In the course of a different discussion, a BAE spokesperson said that:
“We are looking at using fabric armour to [protect] Warrior, but how a crew is supposed to see through this, I’m not sure. More on this soon.”
LAND_BvS-10_Viking_Afghanistan_Aerial.jpg
BvS-10, Afghanistan -
note anti-RPG ‘cage armor’
(click to view full)
Another obvious candidate would the Royal Marines’ BvS10 Viking vehicles, which were replaced with ATTC Warthogs in Afghanistan for reasons that included armor requirements and operating weight issues.
Tarian can also offer additional protection for fixed installations like checkpoints, whose protection is frequently built of sand bags and similar materials. While HESCO barriers and similar “pre-fab filled form” systems have proven to be very effective against RPGs, they require engineering equipment to set up and take down. Tarian offers an option that’s lightweight enough to carry in on regular vehicles, and quickly set-up or take down using minimal equipment.
Beyond Britain’s shores, interest in vehicle and fixed installations picked up quickly after Tarian was unveiled at the June 2009 DVD show. UK DSTL have been cooperative with respect to channels into equivalent foreign defense departments, and the firm is at an early stage of discussions with several countries.
The American market will be more of a challenge, despite AmSafe’s facilities in Phoenix. It’s also a far larger opportunity, given the number of vehicles that could benefit from a Tarian-type solution. AmSafe has a long history of its own working with agencies like the US Army ARDEC, and the firm recently partnered with QinetiQ to offer its barbed X-Net vehicle arresting systems. The firm has supplied more than 4,000 over the last 6 years, including a 5-year military contract, and non-military use by Arizona’s border patrol. A program is underway for a larger X-Net version that would help arrest large trucks, something that would undoubtedly be popular for embassies and other key facilities. As was the case in Britain, an array of prior contacts and experience can be expected to help, if AmSafe’s offering matches priorities within the US military’s various agencies.
http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/Out-of-Whole-Cloth-TARIAN-Rocket-Protection-05603/#more-5603
we need to keep those working on the F-22 line working or lose all that technical expertise, kind of like they lost all those engineers who worked on our major rocket systems. ie the aries pos rocket
the vh-71 helicopter should be slimmed down or scraped, tremendously over budget because they are trying to put 10 lbs of shit in a 5 lb bag.
im amazed that 3 C-17 cost $674 million dollars
will do, thanks.
i was thinking you might be able to adjust the door a little bit
they should develop an export version for japan
Eternal Joy
July 30, 2009: A U.S. Army colonel (Henry A. Moak Jr.) recently retired, and at the ceremony took out a forty year old can of C Ration pound cake. He opened it and ate it, and invited others to join him, and a retired general did so with gusto. Colonel Moak had picked up the small can of pound cake in 1973, when it was already four years old, and vowed that, if he made it to retirement, he would eat the damn thing.
So what's the big deal about forty year old canned cake? Well, for forty years (until 1979, when it was replaced by MREs), the C Ration was what you ate a lot of the time you were in the field. If there were no field kitchens nearby, you got tossed cans of C Rats (and the accessory pack, which contained crackers, cigarettes, condiments and toilet paper, all useful stuff). The C Ration was unpopular from the start. A day's worth of food weighed five pounds and consisted of three 12 ounce cans of entrees, that could be eaten cold (and usually were). There was little variety, which was a killer when troops were forced to subsist on C-Rats for weeks on end. The daily ration also had three smaller cans with desert type items (of which the pound cake was the most popular), and three accessory packets. The cans were bulky and, for troops in a combat zone, noisy. The canned stuff was built to last, with American troops in the 1960s still getting C Rations stamped "1944". There was so much of these World War II surplus stuff, that in some Basic Training units, several nights a month, you got "C-Rat Stew" (and the trainees on KP spent hours opening hundreds of C-Ration cans and putting the contents into large pots for "cooking." Yum.)
When the C Rations disappeared in the 1970s, they were not missed, except possibly for the pound cake. The new MREs were lighter and easier to carry in a pack (or pockets). The MREs were tastier as well.
The only thing that was missing was the old World War II, ultra portable, "assault ration." That eventually showed up in 2003, after an absence of over fifty years. The new, lightweight, "assault ration" was designed for combat troops, especially those who march long distances carrying all their gear. During World War II, two special, lightweight, rations were developed for troops going into an offensive where they might not be resupplied for a few days. The "K Ration" was smaller and lighter than the C Ration, using more food in pouches. Three meals, containing 3,000 calories, weighted 2.31 pounds and could be carried in the large pockets of the combat uniform. There was also the "D Ration," a concentrated four ounce "food bar" containing chocolate and a lot of other stuff, as well as 600 calories. It tasted terrible, but if you were hungry enough, you would eat it.
The concept of an "assault ration" actually goes back to the 19th century, when American troops fighting Indians adopted jerky and precooked grain as a lightweight food supply for long marches. During World War I, an assault ration that could be used in moist environments (where jerky goes bad quickly) was developed. Jerky (dried or smoked meat), of course, is an ancient form of portable food, but it wasn't formally adopted by the U.S. Army until after the Civil War.
Wartime is sort of a lie detector for military equipment developed during peacetime. Case in point is the MRE (Meals, Ready to Eat), which have been around for over three decades. You'd think that by now all the kinks would have been worked out. Well, sort of. It turns out that for years, the minority of troops (some commandoes and light infantry) spent a lot time marching, carrying all their weapons, equipment and food with them. During the Afghanistan campaign, it became widely known that troops would strip non-essential stuff from their MREs so they could carry less weight with them. Normally, a MRE weighs 1.5 pounds (24 ounces) and contains about 1200 calories. Stripping out packaging, heat tabs and the like could remove almost half a pound. The new "first strike" ration weighs about 14 ounces and has about a thousand calories. So a day's worth of food is three pounds and is more nutritionally complete than the "stripped" regular MREs. The new ration has been tested by Special Forces and SEALs, who liked it. The new ration was issued two years ago, and is used by all services. In the air force, for example, pilots carry emergency rations in case they have to bail out.
It's ironic that food in pouches was developed during World War II (although not using MREs retort pouch, which wasn't invented until the 1950s), but wasn't used more. Apparently the need to produce as much of the C Rations as possible was a more important consideration. Many starving civilians survived because Allied troops freely distributed C Rations as they advanced into enemy territory. But once the MREs began showing up in the 1970s, they eventually caught on not just because of the superior packaging, but because the military finally wised up to the need of variety (going from 12 to 24 entrees, and regularly dropping unpopular ones and trying new stuff).
In one area, however, the C Rats have MREs beat; shelf life. No MRE is believed capable of still being edible after forty years. And the MREs have yet to come with something as tasty as than canned pound cake.
http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htmurph/articles/20090730.aspx
its a lazy susan cabinet, the one that spins around with a tray. i would think it has no hinges, that it would spin around a pole that runs through both top and bottom trays.
i havent seen it because its at my brothers house in VA
A SUPER FAST, (SUPER LOUD) MINISUB
superfast-sub.jpg
The Day (New London, CT) on Monday had an intriguing article about DARPA's Underwater Express. This program aims to prove engineering approaches for a manned minisub able to carry high value cargoes submerged at 100 knots -- a "super-fast submerged transport," or SST. Underwater Express was announced with a request for proposals in 2005. The RFP specified supercavitation, a form of enhanced submerged propulsion exploiting a self-made vacuum cavity or gas envelope between hull and ocean to reduce flow resistance by "60 - 70%." Supercavitation, such as used in the Soviet-Russian Shkval rocket torpedo, is extremely noisy. Even allowing for a breakthrough in how the gas cavity is created and maintained, the classic power-versus-speed formula makes it highly likely that only a rocket engine could achieve the required 100-knot speed for the SST. Yet the RFP mentioned nothing about silencing the technology demonstrator minisub.
After a competition, General Dynamics Electric Boat was awarded a contract which by completion is expected to total $38 million. The deliverable will be a quarter-scale unmanned version of its winning design, to be demonstrated in the waters off New England in spring 2010. The demo is to include runs at up to 100 knots for 10 minutes, with maneuvers to show that the SST is safe at such speeds. GDEB says they've solved the challenges of maintaining a stable gas envelope while accurately controlling the test vessel's depth, course, angle of attack, and speed. Details are top secret.
I'd been wondering what good there might be to a manned minisub that, unlike a rocket torpedo, has to be reusable and survivable -- but which would, whenever moving fast, make a huge passive sonar signature, broadcasting its presence to any enemies for miles around. Besides, what missions would it be used for that couldn't be done by a HALO insertion and Osprey extraction, or for that matter by a slow moving battery-powered mini like some Improved ASDS? When The Day's article came out, I decided to ask a source. The rest of this is my interpretation of the answers I got, sprinkled with public info and my own conjectures and commentary.
Underwater Express might for instance be used to extract a SEAL team from a beach, perhaps along with an important defector or prisoner, or maybe with some "confiscated" nuke warhead cores or other nuclear tech, in environments where air control is disputed by cheap but lethal man-portable missiles, but local undersea surveillance is weak due to the local regime's technical limitations plus coastal environmental noise. Such missions need not be planned for actual wartime. They could be used instead for smash-and-grab police actions against rogue states or terrorists threatening to use WMDs. They might be used to rescue kidnap victims, hostages, or POWs. The key to an SST's possible utility is that it provides the option to go in and out fast but noisy, rather that quiet but slow.
The tactical advantage of going in and out real fast, underwater, would be the plausible deniability of the whole operation afterward, combined with the rapidity -- barely 7 minutes each way -- at which the mini and its commandos and passengers/cargoes could dart inshore and away again from the relative sanctuary of international waters beyond the 12-mile limit. (Presumably, the U.S. could attribute any sonar recordings of the SST op, flogged to CNN or Al Jazeera, as "just the usual lava displacements.") Total surprise, and speed and precision of mission execution, would obviously be essential, but Navy SEALs and other elite special ops folks excel at exactly such traits.
The mini could be quietly dropped off by a full-size nuclear sub that stealthily leaves the area, before the mini starts the mission clock ticking by firing up its main engine(s). It might be picked up right after the mission, quickly and somewhat covertly, via one of the flooded amphibious warfare docks available within a passing surface-ship strike group, with SSN escort, that would certainly provide a powerful 3-D self-defense envelope. This strike group might be deployed to do broad racetracks off the hot-spot coast from the moment when tensions first start to heat up toward a crisis point, keeping the enemy guessing as to what sort of raid(s) might be attempted, where, when. In fact, the strike group might conduct repeated LCAC exercises outside territorial waters, before and after the undersea raid. Rather deafening themselves when zooming along on their air cushions about as fast as a fleeing SST would go, they could lull hostile defenses in advance, and serve as very handy diversions and mobile noisemakers when the time came.
While the noise of a supercavitating SST would make acoustic detection likely, even without LCAC support its corresponding high speed and ability to zig-zag could render the rest of the opposition force's targeting cycle -- localization, identification, tracking, and accurate attack -- extremely difficult. With a sustained top speed of 100 knots, the mini could outrun any conventional torpedo; due to its speed and maneuverability, it would be very hard to hit with even a supercavitating anti-submarine weapon. It could be there and gone before the enemy has any chance to start to react, say by launching some helos with active sonobuoys, or vectoring in patrol boats with depth charges.
At least that seems to be the idea. The Day's piece points out that controllable, maneuverable supercavitation might yield big dividends in more efficient propulsion systems for civilian ocean transportation. Remember, Underwater Express is a proof of technology project only. The current EB contract is not meant to produce an operational SST.
-- Joe Buff
http://www.defensetech.org/archives/004955.html
Crack Of Doom
July 29, 2009: A one inch, hairline crack, was found on the pressure hull of the 14 year old USS Toledo (a Los Angeles class SSN, or nuclear attack submarine). The crack was in the metal plate, not a weld. After carefully examining the crack, the plate will be replaced. Above the crack, there was a 21 inch hairline crack in the outer (non pressurized) hull, which was under the sail. The USS Toledo had just undergone a three year refit, costing $179 million. The sub will be sent to a nearby (to New London, Connecticut) shipyard, for the repairs.
Such a crack in the pressure hull is a serious problem, because it makes it more likely that the pressure hull would fail, and flood the boat, at less than the "test depth" (about two thirds the "design depth," which is the maximum depth the sub can operate at). Going a little deeper gets you to the collapse (or "crush") depth, at which the pressure hull is crushed and implodes. The deepest diving U.S. subs, the Seawolf class, are believed to have a test depth of 490 meters (1,600 feet) and a collapse depth of 730 meters (2,400 feet). During World War II, collapse depths were never more than a thousand feet. Since then, larger boats, built of stronger metals, have greatly increased the depth subs can operate at. But that only works if the crew knows the limits of their boats, and cracks in the pressure hull reduce those limits.
http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htsub/articles/20090729.aspx
only a couple hundred billion dollars worth of this crap to go
can you adjust a lazy suzanne cabinet? the door is scraping when you open it
R.I.P.!
my friends grandfather served in both theaters, and he would tell us very short versions of what happened. we never pushed for the whole story knowing it would be tough on him.
i would have no idea, lacy. hoagie might though. i wont touch the i box, probably screw it up. lol
they could raise a lot of funds. lol
not sure if there is anywhere in DC that you could hunt, unless they start a season on politicians. lol
i hope the SC will shoot the whole law down as violating the 1st Amendment
Obama to Bestow Medal of Honor on Soldier Killed in Afghanistan
By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, July 24, 2009 – President Barack Obama will posthumously award Army Sgt. 1st Class Jared C. Monti the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry in Afghanistan, White House officials announced today.
The ceremony, scheduled for Sept. 17 at the White House, will mark the first time Obama confers the highest military honor, making Monti the sixth servicemember to receive the Medal of Honor for service in Afghanistan or Iraq since Sept. 11, 2001, all of which have been awarded posthumously.
Then a staff sergeant, Monti, 30, was killed June 21, 2006, while deployed to Afghanistan with the 10th Mountain Division. He was posthumously promoted to sergeant first class.
“He displayed immeasurable courage and uncommon valor – eventually sacrificing his own life in an effort to save his comrade,” according to the White House news release announcing the upcoming ceremony.
The fallen soldier’s parents, Paul and Janet Monti, are scheduled to attend the White House ceremony. Monti also is survived by his sister, Niccole; his brother, Timothy; and his niece, Carys.
During his Army career, Monti earned several military decorations, including a Bronze Star, a Purple Heart, five Army Commendation Medals, four Army Achievement Medals, three Good Conduct Medals, and three National Defense Service Medals.
A native of Raynham, Mass., and a graduate of Bridgewater-Raynham High School, Monti enlisted in the Army in March 1993 and attended basic training at Fort Sill, Okla. His first assignment was as a forward observer in the 10th Mountain Division’s Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 3rd Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment.
The nonprofit Jared C. Monti Memorial Scholarship Fund has been established to provide a scholarship annually to an eligible student.
The Medal of Honor has been conferred on 3,447 men and one woman since President Abraham Lincoln signed it into law on Dec. 21, 1861. It is reserved for those who are distinguished “by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while engaged in an action against an enemy of the United States.”
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/news/2009/07/mil-090724-afps03.htm
Poisonous Ground
July 25, 2009: Israeli defense firms would like to work together with their American counterparts to develop new weapons and equipment. There have been many attempts to do this, and most have ended in a quiet divorce. The cause is usually the American tendency to add bells and whistles that, while popular with American politicians, and their Pentagon allies, are anathema to the frugal Israelis. As a result, the Israelis go on to produce a cheaper, and just (if not more so) effective item. Sometimes the U.S. will end by cancelling their own effort, and buying the Israeli model. The Israelis are hoping that, eventually, the Americans will catch on and learn to do things fast and cheap. This is already happening with the RFI (Rapid Fielding Initiative).
The original RFI program allowed U.S. Army commanders to go out and buy equipment, and even weapons, immediately, without going through the usual lengthily acquisition process. The army began doing this in the 1990s, based on decades of success by Special Forces with a similar approach. So far, this has put over 400 new technologies into Iraq and Afghanistan, and more to come.
The primary problem with RFI is getting repairs and spare parts for the new gear. When the army officially accepts equipment into service, it makes spare parts available through the army supply system, and trains soldiers to do the maintenance. With RFI gear, the users have to go direct to the manufacturer for spares and repairs. Sometimes, civilian technicians will be flown to the combat zone. But more often, army technicians will get in touch with the manufacturer and get advice on how to make the repairs themselves. If possible, broken equipment will be sent back to the factory. The army does this itself, sending all sorts of gear back to army maintenance depots. These are usually run and staffed by civilians. While it's more work to maintain the RFI gear, this helps by making it easier to drop RFI items that don't perform up to expectations. The RFI gear really has to deliver the goods if the troops are going to put up with the additional maintenance burdens.
Now many politicians are noticing the similarity between RFI and the way the Israelis go about military procurement. The seed of reform has been planted. But that's no guarantee that it will grow in the poisonous ground of the Pentagon and the American Congress.
http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htmurph/articles/20090725.aspx
hope it helps!
i would adjust the fridge backwards, turn the legs in front to jack it up. if the magnets in the weather stripping are weakening that would shift the weight of the door towards the back of the fridge helping the doors close. that or you need new weather stripping
and good morning!
Paper: Bush considered sending troops into Buffalo
AP
WASHINGTON – The Bush administration in 2002 considered sending U.S. troops into a Buffalo, N.Y., suburb to arrest a group of terror suspects in what would have been a nearly unprecedented use of military power, The New York Times reported.
Vice President Dick Cheney and several other Bush advisers at the time strongly urged that the military be used to apprehend men who were suspected of plotting with al Qaida, who later became known as the Lackawanna Six, the Times reported on its Web site Friday night. It cited former administration officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The proposal advanced to at least one-high level administration meeting, before President George W. Bush decided against it.
Dispatching troops into the streets is virtually unheard of. The Constitution and various laws restrict the military from being used to conduct domestic raids and seize property.
According to the Times, Cheney and other Bush aides said an Oct. 23, 2001, Justice Department memo gave broad presidential authority that allowed Bush to use the domestic use of the military against al-Qaida if it was justified on the grounds of national security, rather than law enforcement.
Among those arguing for the military use besides Cheney were his legal adviser David S. Addington and some senior Defense Department officials, the Times reported.
Opposing the idea were Condoleezza Rice, then the national security adviser; John B. Bellinger III, the top lawyer at the National Security Council; FBI Director Robert Mueller; and Michael Chertoff, then the head of the Justice Department's criminal division.
Bush ultimately nixed the proposal and ordered the FBI to make the arrests in Lackawanna. The men were subsequently arrested and pleaded guilty to terrorism-related charges.
Scott L. Silliman, a Duke University law professor specializing in national security law, told the Times that a U.S. president had not deployed the active-duty military on domestic soil in a law enforcement capacity, without specific statutory authority, since the Civil War.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090725/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_terror_domestic_raid
3 uncles and a grandfather are locksmiths, i probably have 3 or 4 tubes of graphite around
graphite would work very well. its what you use to lube locks