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2014-08-28 According to a press release today from Airbus Defence and Space:
The Airbus A400M new generation airlifter has performed successfully air-to-air refueling tests with a F/A-18 Hornet fighter.
The tanker test campaign was developed in five flights in which the A400M performed 33 dry contacts and dispensed 18.6 tons of fuel to an F/A-18 Hornet in 35 wet contacts.
With a basic fuel capacity of 50.8 tons, which can be increased by the use of extra cargo hold tanks, the A400M is the most capable tactical tanker in the market.
The standard A400M aircraft has full provisions for Air-to-Air Refueling (AAR) operations already installed as standard and only requires the rapid installation of the optional air-to-air refueling kit to become a tanker.
Designed from the outset to be a dual-role transport and tanker aircraft, the A400M provides air forces with a cost-effective way to acquire an air-to-air refueling capability in addition to a versatile logistic and tactical airlifter.
A400M Tanking F-18. Credit: Airbus Defence and Space
Earlier, we looked at the potential synergy between the A400M and the A330MRTT in an articled entitled: The A400M Refueling Tests with A330 Tanker: A Task Force for the the 21st Century?
An Airbus Military A400M new generation airlifter has successfully performed simulated refueling contacts with an Airbus Military A330 MRTT Multi Role Tanker Transport.
The A400M made some 30 contacts with the hose and drogue of the A330 MRTT´s Fuselage Refueling Unit (FRU). No fuel was passed in these tests, which consisted of “dry contacts”. The A330 MRTT that took part in the tests is one of the aircraft to be delivered to the UK Royal Air Force, where it is known as Voyager, as part of the Future Strategic Transport Aircraft (FSTA) program.
The FRU is typically used to refuel large aircraft such as the A400M and the tests demonstrated the stability of both aircraft when flying in close formation and when refueling.
Earlier, SLD did an interview with a senior Airbus Military Executive with regard to the possibilities of working the two planes into a joint task force element.
SLD: Could we talk about potential synergies between the A400M and the A330MRTT? The fact that the tanker holds the fuel in its wings, frees up the space inside the aircraft for cargo or passengers.
Conceivably, this could allow flexibility in shaping a tanker-lift task force?
Pablo Quesada: Indeed, but not only in terms of the A400M providing lift and the A330MRTT providing the tanking.
The A400M can be a tanker as well, which can allow an interesting combination of tactical and strategic refueling capabilities over a long distance, which can then operate at low altitudes via the A400M to refuel tactical assets.
In terms of complementarity with the A400M; the A400M is easily configured to refuel a wide range of types from helicopters to fighters, and by taking advantage of the great stability it provides in flight, it is a very effective tanker for lower altitude refueling to the last tactical mile – from a forward operating base, for instance.
In terms of transport, the complementarity of the A400M and A330MRTT is also clear.
The A400M is a superb transport aircraft, which combines tactical and strategic capabilities in a single aircraft.
It could be effectively used in long-range deployment missions either with refueling or with stopovers. But the combination of the operation of the A330MRTT with its true multiple capabilities, plus the tactical capabilities of the A400M will provide a very effective insertion force for either humanitarian or military operations.
Although, either one of them in isolation is also able to fulfill the kind of missions that you are mentioning, the combination of the tactical features of the A400M or the strategic and global reach of the A330 MRTT, could allow one to craft an extremely capable task force.
New Delhi. Some years ago, Boeing offered assistance to India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in building the much-needed wind tunnel for aerospace projects as part of the offsets for the company’s C 17 Globemaster III aircraft sales to the Indian Air Force (IAF).
The offer was initially appreciated but found unacceptable, thanks to an accompanying note that prescribed many DO NOTs and restrictions.
DRDO Chief Dr Avinash Chander told India Strategic that the US Government, which would have dictated the restrictions to Boeing, would apparently not have weighed the inadequacy of the offer.
The informal talk I had with Dr Chander was just before the high level visits of US Secretaries of State, Commerce and Defense over the past few weeks in the run up to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s coming visit to Washington in September.
The three top US officials have spoken highly of the need to strengthen Indo-US relations, and specifically, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, who was here Aug 7-9, said: “We can do more to forge a defense industrial partnership, one that would transform our nations’ defense cooperation from simply buying and selling to co-production, co-development and freer exchange of technology.”
Indian officials have welcomed the US sentiment, and pointed out that India already has a policy of encouraging defense industrial production in India under the ‘Make’ category, and that the new Government of Prime Minister Modi is insisting on this with vigor.
European officials, including that of Airbus, and French diplomats say that India needs to indicate its requirements and the response from Europe should be positive. In fact, top officials of Airbus managed to meet Mr Modi just before his electoral victory to offer cooperation in defense industrial ventures in India.
India is interested in western technology both from Europe and the US.
The French Dassault has won the Indian MMRCA tender for its Rafale aircraft while Airbus Defence and Space has won the order for six midair refuelers called Airbus A330 MRTT.
But the flavor of the day is about Indo-US strategic, defense and nuclear relations, and both New Delhi and Washington are serious about sorting out any differences and moving forward to build on the spirit envisaged by the George Bush administration in 2005 that led to the Indo-US Nuclear deal.
In an address to New Delhi’s strategic community at an Observer Research Foundation (ORF) function on the final day of his visit, Mr. Hagel said that the two countries could build on their Defence Technology and Trade Initaitve (DTTI) agreement to “transform” their bilateral relations.
He welcomed proposals from India in this regard, and observed: “The fundamentals of the U.S.-India partnership are strong. The question is whether India and the United States can achieve the enormous potential for this partnership – whether we can transform our potential into results. Following my conversations yesterday, I’m more confident than ever that we can.”
An official statement by the Ministry of Defence after Mr Hagel’s meetings with Prime Minister Modi and Defence Minister Arun jaitley said: “With co-development and co-production of Defence products in mind, India and the United States have agreed to take the (two-year old) Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) forward.”
The statement also noted that Mr Jaitley had pointed out to the visiting dignitary that “the development of our own indigenous capabilities is a major objective that guides our present policies. In this direction, we have taken steps to raise the FDI cap in the defense sector. We look forward to work closely with the US in this regard.”
In the meeting, both sides took note of the progress made over the years in deepening defense ties. Both the sides reaffirmed their desire to further enhance bilateral defense cooperation, especially in technology and discussed ways for strengthening this partnership. Stressing on indigenization of the Defence industries.
Mr Jaitley would also be visiting the US, and top-level meetings at the Pentagon have been arranged to follow up the dialogue here.
Sec Def Hagel Meeting in India. Credit Photo: India Strategic
The US Defense Secretary was apparently supportive of the Indian requests for technology, and told the strategic community at ORF that he was making an “unprecedented offer” to India to jointly develop a next generation of anti-tank missiles.
The Indian Army has been interested in Raytheon-Lockheed Martin’s Javelin missile but with coproduction, and that was earlier not agreeable to Washington.
Mr Hagel noted that the two countries had concluded deals worth over USD 9 billion already and a few, including for Boeing Chinook and Apache helicopters are on the table. He pointed out that Boeing C 17 strategic airlifter and Lockheed Martin’s C 130J Super Hercules had given tremendous advantages to the Indian Air Force.
From the US side, he pointed out, he had brought along the Under Secretary for Acquisition, Technology and Licensing at the Pentagon Frank Kendall, with clear instructions to speed up cooperation with India.
He made some other significant offers also, saying that the challenge is not about the shortage of proposals but “to seize the opportunities.”
“One such opportunity is a plan for both nations to jointly develop a next generation anti-tank missile. And this is an unprecedented offer that we have made only to India and no one else,” he emphasized.
The US Defense Secretary also called for limits on bureaucratic red tape.
As for the Wind Tunnel, perhaps it would come up again for discussions, and then, hopefully for action and fructification. It has not been on the two countries agenda for quite some time although delivery of the 10 C 17s ordered so far is due to be completed by end-2014.
On mutual diplomatic relations, Mr Hagel agreed that the two countries would not agree on every thing but pointed out that as India looks east and the US looks at rebalancing its interests in the Indo-Pacific region, the interests of the two countries “are aligned more closely than ever.”
He also urged closer cooperation between India and Japan in this perspective, adding that both Washington and New Delhi could maintain positive ties with Beijing.
Editor’s Note: India will be the operators of C-17s next to the United States.
2014-08-28 The focus of both the commercial and military worlds with regard to space and UAVs is upon payloads.
What can deliver the digital content which I need for critical requirements now and be effective in the years ahead?
Space and UAVs are in competition with one another for this, and one contribution which UAVs can provide that satellites can not is much more rapid upgradeability. A challenge facing satellites has been the rapidly changing electronics and digital worlds which make putting up satellites with long life less desirable than in the past, because of how rapidly technology is changing.
A good business to be in is the payloads business with an ability to be flexible about where those payloads go, whether upon manned aircraft, unmanned aircraft or space systems.
Airbus Defence and Space is testing a high altitude UAV which fits nicely into the payload revolution.
Called the Zephyr, Airbus Defence and Space provided a press release on the progress of the system.
Airbus Defence and Space has announced that the Zephyr 7 High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite (HAPS) has just completed its most demanding mission to date and thus set a new benchmark in persistent, year-round operations for this class of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS).
Zephyr UAV in flight. Credit: Airbus Defense and Space
The test consisted of over 11 days of non-stop flight, in winter weather conditions with a new primary payload, including flight controlled through satellite communications – three more benchmarks reached by Zephyr 7.
HAPS run exclusively on solar power, which is used during the day to charge a battery that is used to power the flight through the night, so this flight in shorter days and longer nights was significantly more demanding than any previous one.
“During this most recent flight of the Airbus Zephyr, we successfully demonstrated a number of advancements that are critical to achieving the operational readiness of the technology and that increase its operational value for our customers,” said Jens Federhen, Head of the Airbus HAPS program.
“We have furthermore reached an important milestone in our regulatory roadmap.”
The flight, which was executed for the UK Ministry of Defence (UK MOD), was approved in controlled airspace, which required the close cooperation of the Military Aviation Authority (MAA), the Type Airworthiness Authority (TAA) and the Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) team of the MOD Defence Equipment and Support Group, leading to the Zephyr 7 being assigned its military registration, PS001 – the first Pseudo-Satellite registered.
“This is the first time that the UK’s military aviation authorities have expanded our well-proven procedures and regulations into the domain of these novel, long-duration pseudo-satellites,” said Group Captain Paul Lloyd of the TAA, “and it has been both instructive and encouraging to see how effectively the regulations and the Airbus approach to Zephyr were brought together to enable such an operation.”
Apart from flying a new primary payload, Jens Federhen highlighted the fact that for the first time, satellite communications had been used to control and monitor the aircraft.
“The use of the SatCom link to control the aircraft beyond line of sight of the ground station is another critical aspect that we needed to test to move towards a pseudo-satellite form of operation where the Zephyrs can be controlled across the world from a central control station,” he said, also pointing out the fact that this helps to further reduce the cost of service which is already low compared to other means.
The flight was a breakthrough in terms of proving the year-round capability of the Airbus Zephyr, as Chris Kelleher, the Technical Director of the Airbus HAPS programme, said.
“While Zephyr 7 holds the world record for flight endurance and has flown continuously ten times longer than any other UAV, all previous long duration flights have been carried out in the summer months when the longer days, shorter nights and better weather make flights significantly easier.
This latest flight was undertaken in the Southern Hemisphere winter so the aircraft had to show it could remain operational through the longer nights, re-charge sufficiently in the shorter periods of daylight and cope with the harsher weather conditions.”
This most recent flight allowed over 250 hours of flight testing of the Zephyr 7 prototype, which will now be used to refine the final design of Zephyr 8, the next-generation HAPS vehicle currently being developed by Airbus.
In an article earlier this year, Space News’s Peter B. de Selding provided a perspective on the approach and the market:
Airbus Defence and Space on April 23 called for customer proposals for flight tests of a new-generation high-altitude “pseudo satellite,” or HAPS, that would enhance the capability of the company’s existing HAPS, which has been performing test flights since mid-2013.
The announcement comes less than two weeks after Google announced its purchase of U.S.-based Titan Aerospace, which is designing its own HAPS for future use as an Internet relay and an intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platform.
Facebook has announced its interest in high-altitude platforms for Internet relay in areas without broadband.
An Airbus spokesman said the company hopes to elicit customer interest in a HAPS whose basic design has already flown, which has received flight test certification from four flight test sites in the United States, Europe and Australia, and whose enhanced version could be in the air in 2015.
Airbus said its Zephyr 8 HAPS would have expanded night-flight range compared with the Zephyr 7 demonstrator, which flew at 21,000 meters for two weeks on solar power only in 2013.
Airbus purchased the Zephyr technology from QinetiQ of Britain in mid-2013 and since then has been using Airbus’ in-house toolbox, from its satellite and defense electronics divisions, to add performance.
HAPS are designed as platforms located between lower-flying drones and satellites.
Advances in solar-cell efficiency, battery autonomy and onboard sensors have made credible — if the Google purchase is any guide — a technology that has been talked about for years.
Airbus has been working on HAPS since 2008 and has since created an in-house team, led by Jens Federhen, that borrows from the company’s satellite and aviation-technology divisions.
The HAPS work is now embedded in the Airbus Unmanned Aerial Vehicle business unit.
“We are now building the next generation of Airbus Zephyr that will allow customers to test payloads and applications,” Federhen said in a statement. “We are ready and look forward to demonstrating its unique capabilities to customers in flight.”
Germany’s Economy Ministry has approved plans by defense group Rheinmetall to deliver an armored vehicle assembly plant to Algeria, according to a reply sent by the ministry following a request from a member of parliament.
Rheinmetall’s delivery to Algeria includes a production line to assemble the Fuchs armored vehicle, as well as other parts valued at more than 28 million euros ($37 million), according to the document.
German magazine Der Spiegel had earlier reported on the approval, according to Reuters.
The planned factory, located about 400 km east of Algeria’s capital Algiers, is to build nearly 1,000 armored vehicles, Der Spiegel said, adding parts would be exported to the country, where workers would assemble them.
Fuchs APC. Credit: defenceWeb
It was earlier reported that 980 Fuchs 2 vehicles will be built as part of a 2.7 billion euro deal. Apparently Algeria has agreed not to sell the vehicles to other countries.
The deal is the result of a visit to Algeria by German Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2008 and was largely approved by the previous government, Der Spiegel said.
Algeria has ordered around ten billion euros worth of military equipment from Germany in the last few years, including two Meko A200 frigates from Thyssen-Drupp and SUVs and trucks from Daimler.
Last year Algeria purchased 825 million euros worth of tank parts, SUVs and trucks from Germany.
In 2011 Germany authorized the export of 54 Fuchs vehicles worth 195 million euros to Algeria, as well as other military vehicles worth 286 million euros, according to Der Spiegel.Algeria is greatly expanding its military and just this year ordered two Kilo class diesel electric submarines from Russia, and in 2015 the Algerian Navy will take delivery of the landing and logistic support ship Kalaat Beni-Abbes. 42 Mi-28N Night Hunter attack helicopters and six Mi-26T2 cargo helicopters were ordered this year in a nearly $3 billion deal from Russia.Also this year it emerged that Algeria’s military has acquired self-propelled artillery from China.
Earlier this year, Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel said he would tighten rules on arms exports, curbing sales to states such as Qatar and Saudi Arabia, whose purchases had previously helped make Germany the world’s third largest arms exporter, Reuters reported.
Germany earlier this month permanently halted Rheinmetall’s planned export of combat simulation equipment to Russia, going beyond recently imposed European Union sanctions which block future defence contracts.
As a result, Rheinmetall cut its 2014 operating profit aim, and now expects group earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) of between 200 million euros and 220 million euros, down from a previous target range of 230 million to 250 million.
Republished with permission of our partner defenceWeb.
SLD: Let’s talk generally about the world of air power in Korea and beyond. What does air power bring to the party in the defense of Korea, and our ability to provide for deterrence in depth?
LT. GENERAL JOUAS:Air power, not unlike in 1950, will initially stem the flow of aggression against the ROK.
Historically, the reason we were able to establish a defensive perimeter in 1950 was because air power was able to slow the advance of the North Korean Army as it moved south.
Air power is always able to attack in depth; we’re able to operate at the strategic level, the operational level, and the tactical level.
With a nuclear North Korea, it is clearly a “come as you are war.” 1954 is not 2014. Credit: Bigstock
An air campaign on the Korean peninsula would follow that blueprint, establishing air superiority and creating effects across the spectrum of a joint battle space.
In doing so we would provide ground and naval forces the freedom to maneuver and engage, so that we jointly defeat the adversary.
SLD: So to summarize this, whatever the realities perceived elsewhere, you are the point of the spear in a traditional air force sense, and that you really need to be able to conduct simultaneous operations.
You need to be able to manage effects on the battlefield, so you need a real capacity to be multi-mission, and have a lot of similitude and reach, any decent reach.
So those are the functions that you need to execute. Does that make sense?
LT. GENERAL JOUAS: Absolutely. We need to be able to attack in depth.
We also need to be able to attack at the forward edge of the battle space.
We need to be operating against targets that will create not just tactical effects, but operational and strategic.
We need to be operating cross domain, and by that I mean kinetic and non-kinetic effects, one reinforcing the other.
One of our greatest advantages is our air operation center that will oversee the entire air campaign, and where I will be situated as the air component commander.
We picked up from the earlier discussion to get an update on developments.
Question: Since we last spoke, the South Koreans have decided to buy the F-35 which means that the 7th USAF will be flying with the South Korean Air Force with a core force of F-35s a decade out?
How will that affect your approach as a 7th USAF commander?
Lt. General Jouas:
One of the failures to understand the impact of the F-35 is the propensity to focus on its dogfighting capability or stealth.
What is missed is the impact of the fused combat systems and what a fleet of interconnected F-35s will be able to do within the battlespace.
The F-35 is not simply a replacement aircraft. We are looking to fulfill one of the promises of network-centric warfare, namely flattening the chain of command and control and connecting warfighters within the battlespace.
This is not an evolution, but a whole new way for warfighting.
And we will have to train to be able to take full advantage of an F-35 fleet. We are going to have to adapt our way of warfighting to the emergence of these new capabilities.
Question. Lt General (Retired) Deptula and Colonel (Retired) Rob Evans, both of whom you have worked with in the past have focused on the significant changes in C2 correlated with the coming of the F-35 fleet.
From your perspective in managing one of the most crucial air components in the USAF, in a theater facing an unsteady nuclear power, how do you view this transition?
Lt. General Jouas:
We’ve always talked about decentralized execution in the Air Force.
This plane will play a forcing function role with regard to C2.
We are going to reshape how we do centralized control and decentralized execution with the situational awareness, interconnectivity, and capabilities that this particular airplane will bring to us, and to our allies and partners.
Notably with regard to functions like electronic attack, in the past we have flown specialized assets to achieve those effects.
These were mission-defined aircraft and operations.
With the F-35 fleet we will have at our disposal an aircraft with both kinetic and non-kinetic options at our disposal to attack the enemy.
We are clearly just on the edge of understanding what such capabilities can deliver and over time our concepts of operations will clearly evolve.
Question: You are sitting in a theater which is characterized by what Paul Bracken has referred to as a second nuclear age power facing you directly.
This is not 1954, and one cannot assume that if conflict unfolds that the “Dear Leader” will follow a ladder of escalation approach. How does this affect your thinking about and approach to the theater?
U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Jan-Marc Jouas, United Nations Command Korea, deputy commander, U.S. Forces Korea, deputy commander, Air Component Command, Republic of Korea/U.S. Combined Forces Command, commander, 7th Air Force, commander, addresses the ceremony attendees, during the 67th anniversary of the United Nations, Nov. 29, 2012, at New Sanno Hotel. (U.S. Air Force photo by Osakabe Yasuo)
Lt. General Jouas:
We have a tough problem with North Korea, obviously. You have to understand that this is a different type of adversary with capabilities that concern us, and we need the best tools possible in order to contend with it.
We should not mirror image when we consider the North Korean nuclear strategy.
North Korea has seen what happened in Libya, and with Kaddafi, and that’s reinforced their strategy.
And while this may be a North Korean problem right now, there’s a strong possibility it won’t remain so.
And that creates real danger to our allies and our homeland.
We have to think about a world in which we have more than one North Korea, in which those capabilities are held by other nations whose interests and strategy are very different from ours.
Question: Our allies in the Pacific are adding capabilities and working towards a more effective Pacific defense approach. How does that affect the US position in the region?
Lt. General Jouas:
The upgrading of capabilities throughout the Pacific contributes to our overall coalition capabilities.
The addition of airlift, aerial refueling, command and control and other combat capabilities among core partners will enhance our position and our overall capabilities, whether it is for dealing with a humanitarian or crisis situation.
I welcome these improvements in the region.
Question: The South Koreans are buying the F-35.
How does that affect the future position of the 7th USAF?
Lt. General Jouas:
It provides a significant boost in capability. When we look at the threats posed by North Korea, a US and South Korean F-35 fleet is a crucial asymmetric advantage. The decision to buy the F-35 was certainly forward-looking because this is the airplane for the future. And not just because it’s going to be interoperable with our forces, but with those of our allies as well in enhancing the kill chain to deal with the North Korean threat.
Learning to shape coalition interoperability with the F-35 and share situational awareness across the force will be a major improvement in the period ahead.
As South Korea modernizes its air arm, the ability to defend itself and contribute to defense in the region will go up. For example, like Australia, South Korea has bought an airborne command and control platform, the E-737 Peace Eye. They now have operational experience with a flying C2 platform, and are starting to learn more and more about exploiting its capabilities. As the F-35 comes onboard, that’ll be a great marriage between that platform and the F-35.
Question: Some may still look at South Korea and its defense through the optic of 1954. But the acquisition of nuclear weapons and strike missiles has really altered the challenge faced by allied forces in preparing to execute a South Korean defense. How do you look at the change?
Lt. General Jouas:
We anticipate minimal warning before the start of any conflict, and so it really is a “come as you are” theater of operations.
The need for modern interconnected fifth generation aircraft that are able to rapidly respond to any crisis on the peninsula is vital to us.
So whether they’re Marine assets, or Navy assets, or Air Force assets, I can assure you that as the air component commander, I’ve got them in my plan, and we will integrate and make the best use of them.
Slideshow: Kunsan Air Base, Republic of Korea, is home to the 8th Fighter Wing, known as the “Wolf Pack.”
Located seven miles west of Gunsan City, the base is on the west coast of the peninsula near the Kum River estuary. The 8th Fighter Wing is the base’s host unit and is assigned to 7th Air Force at Osan Air Base, Republic of Korea. The numbered Air Force falls under Pacific Air Forces headquartered at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. Mission
The motto of the Wolf Pack is, “Defend the base, accept follow-on forces, [and] take the fight north.” The 8th Fighter Wing is responsible for conducting air-to-ground and air-to-air missions in the approximately 40 F-16s assigned to the wing. Its mission includes air interdiction, close air support, counter air, air superiority and suppression of enemy air defenses. The base is also home to the U.S. Army’s 2nd Battalion, 1st Air Defense Artillery. Equipped with Patriot Advanced Capability, or PAC-3, missiles, the battalion’s one battery helps protect the base against tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and advanced aircraft.
In the first three photos, 80th Fighter Squadron F-16s take off during the first go of exercise Beverly Bulldog 14-2 at Kunsan Air Base, Republic of Korea, May 5, 2014.The pilots launched to participate in the first of many peninsula-wide sorties in order to train to “Take the Fight North.”
In the fourth photo, Staff Sgt. Stephen Toussaint, 8th Force Support Squadron Force Management journeyman, prepares cots for a large-scale bed down at Kunsan Air Base, Republic of Korea, May 5, 2014.During Exercise Beverly Bulldog, the bed down system allowed the Wolf Pack to test and showcase its ability to “Accept Follow on Forces.”
The status of South Africa’s currently modest shipbuilding industry is set to change with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) this week confirming it as one that has been earmarked for local procurement.
“Local procurement requirements set out in the sixth iteration of the Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP) and accompanying designations and instruction notes are binding on all government departments at national, provincial and municipal levels and all state entities,” according to a DTI statement.
The maritime arm of service of the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) has already issued, through Armscor, a Request for Proposals (RfP) to replace SAS Protea. Navy Chief Vice Admiral Mosuwa Hlongwane is upbeat that capital acquisition is on track.
“It remains on track for the renewal of both offshore patrol and hydrographic capabilities,” he told defenceWeb soon after taking over command of the Navy from Johannes Mudimu, who is now chairman of Armscor.
“Both projects are in the final acquisition study phases and once completed will give a clearer indication of the capability we will receive and when delivery can be expected,” he said.
The hydrographic capability has moved to the RfP stage with a compulsory bidders’ conference scheduled for next month.
South African OPV. Credit: defenceWeb
At the same time there are indications that Project Biro is also moving up in priority.
This because it appears conversion of a fourth strikecraft to an offshore patrol vessel (OPV) is not going to happen.
The Navy has taken delivery of three of these vessels with the third – SAS Makhanda – now doing counter-piracy duties in the Mozambique Channel.
The other converted strikecraft now serving as OPVs are SAS Galeshewe and SAS Isaac Dyobha. SAS Adam Kok was slated as the fourth strikecraft to undergo conversion but indications are this will not happen which navy watchers say opens the door for new OPVs. Hlongwane and his predecessor, Mudimu, as well as now retired Chief Director: Maritime Strategy, Bernhard Teuteberg, have all publicly supported local build of the new OPVs.
This ties in with the DTI view of the South Africa boat- and shipbuilding industry.
Minister Rob Davies said the sector had been identified as a strategic industry with “strong and extended linkages for economic growth and employment multipliers”.
“It is critical for South Africa to retain and build its capacity for engineering and technical capabilities to make working vessels to global standards,” he said.
An example of the value of a strong shipbuilding industry comes from the United Kingdom where the Ministry of Defence said more than 800 Scottish jobs have been protected by a multi-million pound contract to build three new OPVs for the Royal Navy.
Announcing the contract Defence Secretary, Michael Fallon, said: “UK warships are only built in UK shipyards. This contract shows our commitment to investing in new ships for the Royal Navy and maintaining in the UK the expertise needed to build the warships of the future. It will benefit the dedicated workers of the Clyde, their families and the local economy in Glasgow.
“This sort of investment by the UK government is vital for the sustainment of shipbuilding in the city and the hundreds of specialist manufacturing and engineering roles that play an important role in providing war fighting capability for the Royal Navy.”
The first new OPV is expected to be handed to the Royal Navy in 2017.
Republished with the permission of our partner defenceWeb:
Iraq 2014 is really about dealing with an extremist group aggregating power, trying to build an army and shaping a leadership role in a volatile region.
The rejection of all groups other than their own or join us or die is the mantra for these folks.
ISIS is dedicated to the violent destruction of those who object to their leadership of a mythical Middle Ages dream which is directly opposed to any Western values of religious freedom, secularism and tolerance.
When you have a group grabbing for power that Al Qaeda finds extreme the United States, Europe and many countries in Middle East, from Israel to Saudi Arabia have a major problem.
When the chance was lost for the Obama Administration to have a meaningful and productive relationship with a potentially viable Iraqi in 2012, the fragmentation of Iraq seemed inevitable.
This is now well on the way.
The President’s National Security team was caught by surprise which is amazing because ISIS was not shy in using terror and Information War as a fighting domain.
Fortunately, the US has the USS George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group 2 on station along with a Marine/Navy Amphibious Ready Group, the 22nd MEU.
The President and his NSC team can leverage the US sea base to influence events. Trying to negotiate new basing arrangements with a regime that the US might well not want to work with, pay money to or in any way legitimize is a difficult challenge.
There is one area of Iraq that has immediate promise of thwarting, rolling back and beginning the process of destroying ISIS.
The defendable area is Kurdistan, and is especially true because of a combat tested effective fighting force ,the Peshmurga.
The leaders of Kurdistan also deserve great praise because of the tolerance and life saving physical sanctuary they provided to the Christians and others.
The Kurds can now play a key role in shaping a relatively stable island in a violent region, and provide an important focal point for the United States and its allies.
A notable difference between Iraq in 2014 and 2003 is the Turkish-Kurdish relationship and the ability of the US to build upon that relationship.
Turkey’s relations with Kurds were once one of the region’s most toxic relationships, as Ankara fought a three-decade war against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party that left more than 40,000 people dead. But since the U.S. invasion of Iraq more than a decade ago, Turkey has built close ties to the Kurdish government in its regional capital of Erbil, expanding bilateral trade and coordinating on vital policy issues, including the Syrian conflict.
Security analysts said Iraqi Kurdistan is not only an ally, but is also forming an important security buffer for Turkey that is helping to shield its borders from an influx of refugees and insulating it against the Islamic State militants in Iraq.
Turkish companies have invested heavily in Erbil’s booming oil-rich economy, and Turkish brands dominate the Kurdish region’s consumer market. Turkish exports to the Kurdish government, or KRG, make up the bulk of its total trade with Iraq, which surged to a record $12 billion last year, ranking second only to Germany.
Working with the Kurds and augmenting their autonomy within Iraq, including control of critical oil infrastructure, is a clear objective for the operation of US forces.
The ability of the USN-USMC team to operate without the need for basing rights in Iraq proper provides a very powerful tool set to deal with the technologies which the ISIS captured , tanks, major artillery, rockets, and other road mobile transportation, such as Humvees, MRAPS and their pick-up trucks with automatic weapons in the bed.
These are all visible items of war from the air.
Destroying military hardware, which enables ISIS to operate and maneuver is a key priority.
Isis fighters raise their weapons as they stand on a vehicle mounted with the trademark Jihadists flag in Anbar province. It is time to make them walk and fight from that position. Photo: AFP/GETTY
If the ISIS forces loses their maneuver ability and their crew-served weapons and armored vehicles, especially tanks, to seize terrain and key choke points, they will be forced back into the cities or be forced hide in small units in the countryside.
If US forces can see them outside of cities they can kill them. City fights should be left to what is remaining of the Iraq Army.
Even though there are many analysts justifying COIN tactics yet again who point to the Chinese revolution as the beginning of modern insurgency warfare with Mao’s notion of the population providing a sea to hide in, the ISIS leadership is not all that popular.
ISIS actually might find themselves drowning in that sea or being hit by a targeted Small Diameter Bomb!
The point of the Chinese revolution was that the seizure of power did not happen by blending into the population but by building out the Peoples Liberation Army which allowed the PRC to seize the cities.
ISIS was well on the way to fielding an Army when the US finally engaged.
Focusing upon what is needed to pulverize military capabilities of ISIS to move rapidly and lethally, can buy some strategic maneuver space for the US and allies to sort out what kind of aid the Kurds might really need to protect their augmented territory within a fragmenting Iraq.
It also allows the US to sort out what to do with Baghdad and the current regime, which has reached out to the Russians among others to enhance their power position.
But there is more of a vacuum than a system of authority; and the choices for Prime Minister beyond Maliki are not immediately attractive as strategic allies.
Frankly without a regime to support, it is hard to engage in shaping stability with that regime.
Because the US has the option of leveraging the seabase in conjunction with whatever force capabilities might be shaped to support the Kurds, the US is NOT forced to have agreements with a collapsing regime to influence events.
The sea-based force can function as the foundation for a scalable and tailored force, able to operate without the need for the agreement of the fractious factions of Baghdad.
The USAF certainly has air assets which can operate from bases outside of Iraq and provide crucial combat capabilities which can shape an effective outcome.
The US currently has the option of leveraging both our sea base aviation strike assets all throughout Iraq, and combined with the global strike reach of the USAF bomber fleet and tanker support for their tactical jets.
For example, one B-1 can deliver over 100 Small Diameter Bombs, to cite one example.
ISIS will encounter death from above delivered by Air Force and Navy combat pilots, this is war tipping capability.
The ISIS fighters challenged to not send Drones; so we need to let them know that there are other options.
And as additional tasks are deemed important, additional forces clearly calibrated to missions – notably in support of the Kurds – can be involved.
But what we don’t want is a blank check for the insertion of forces of COIN-determined size packages and prop up an ally who is not; we have already done that one.
The US has the option of leveraging both our seabase, and also generate USAF combat airpower over Iraq utilizing tankers.
Those military capabilities can be in conjunction with whatever force capabilities have been and might be additionally shaped to support the Kurds such as ISR drones.
The US is NOT forced to have agreements with a collapsing regime to influence events.
The USN-USMC team has been practicing in recent years in the Bold Alligator series for the kind of events happening in Iraq right now.
There is a Bold Alligator 2014 exercise scheduled for the Fall, but it makes a great deal of sense to shape a real world experience right now.
Buying strategic maneuver space for the immediate period ahead, and pulverizing ISISs military capabilities – trucks, cars, artillery pieces, etc. — are the crucial objectives and is an airpower strike mission.
And by so doing sorting out the evolving relationship with the Kurds and thereby influencing the evolution of the rest of Iraq is good enough for now.
We do not have to own Iraq and build it in our image; we simply have to protect our interests and to have ways to shape the way ahead.
The President of Kurdistan, Masoud Barzani, has made the challenge crystal clear:
It is true that the antecedents of this crisis are political. The same was true of the rise of Nazism. But now that the terrorists have become an operating military force, this is no longer a political crisis; it is a security crisis, and the world must act to prevent genocide and the slaughter of innocents.
Any position held by the terrorists should immediately be considered a target, not just those around Irbil and Mount Sinjar. This fight will have to be waged by the civilized world at some stage. The longer the delay, the more difficult the fight will become.
Editor’s Note: USN strikes generated from the USS Bush on August 11, 2014. Credit: Navy Media Content Services
For our reports on the Bold Alligator series see the following:
A neglected aspect of the ISIS assault is in the domain of information warfare.
IW is even more central to US capability than is cybersecurity.
Yet IW remains in the fallow ground, while US and Western competitors hone their skills.
Is ISIS winning or losing?
ISIS is doing everything they can through twitter and other means to project an inevitability about “their” victory; indeed, who is the “they”?
ISIS is projecting themselves as a state actor not a non-state actor. Accepting this assertion is tantamount to accepting them as a legitimate force, which they clearly are not.
The ISIS are playing the game of trying to position themselves as an inevitable force, something akin to a rock rolling down the mountain. We see regular “press” releases from ISIS forces via the social media, but a key element of the ability to dominate the battlespace and to defeat ISIS is in the world of ideas.
ISIS is a brutal force which asserts that only themselves have the right to rule in the Middle East and beyond. We can call them extremist; but that is not enough. We need to engage in the battle of ideas as well for it is Western secularism and tolerance which is the enemy, not “Jews” or “Christians,” Shiites or Sunni; it is about power dominance via exploiting ideological purity and mobilization of the “faithful” to achieve the purity of rule desired by the ISIS leadership and followers.
Clearly, a number of stakeholders in Western values get this.
The Dutch have outlawed the ISIS flag.
The Australians are working the problem as a fundamental challenge to their values.
The country was ill-prepared for the high cost of fighting a war that would be paid in “blood and treasure” and would require pre-emptive as well as reactive action.
“Australia is involved in the early stages of a war which is likely to last for the rest of the century,” he said. “We must be ready to protect ourselves and, where necessary, act pre-emptively to neutralise the evident threat. Get ready for a long war….”
Professor Leahy said politicians needed to “develop an honest and frank dialogue” with the Australian public.
“They should advance a narrative that explains that radical Islamism and the terrorism it breeds at home and abroad will remain a significant threat for the long term, it will require considerable effort, the expenditure of blood and treasure and it will, of necessity, restrict our rights and liberties,” he said.
Professor Leahy is the director of Canberra University’s National Security Institute and part of the Abbott government’s team carrying out a comprehensive review of Defence.
He said radical Islamists intent on a new world order were already a threat to the survival of nations in the Middle East and Africa.
If the declared caliphate in Syria and Iraq survived, bases would be established there for attacks on the West and that would embolden “home grown” radicals to attempt attacks in Australia. Military action would be needed to eliminate the threat.
Radicals saw the West as “the far enemy” and they were undoubtedly planning more attacks in Australia. Senior intelligence believes the view that the threat posed by radical Islam would pass was “optimistic….”
Professor Leahy said the threat was likely to worsen as radicals returned from overseas and the internet dumped Islamist propaganda into Australian
living rooms.
Some efforts at deradicalisation had begun but a much greater effort must be made to engage Muslim clerics and Islamic thought leaders to debunk radical ideologies being offered to young Australians.
“Dual nationality must be reviewed and, where appropriate, terrorists and their sympathisers either expelled from Australia or denied re-entry,” he said.
Professor Leahy said Australia must support moderate nations with radical Islamist problems, such as Indonesia and The Philippines.
Another way to fight the ISIS-type propaganda is to shape solidarity among those forces being threatened with extinction by ISIS-type radicalism.
Information War is now being engaged in by US and freedom loving people against ISIS.
We did an interview with Joseph Kassab and he described to us that there are many very decent and well intentioned individuals representing religions that are paying a terrible price by the murderous intent of ISIS.
And with Secretary Hagel’s warning about ISIS attacking America every US talking head on TV defending Islam as the Religion of Peace or commenting on moral parity between Hamas –Vs Israel- should first denounce ISIS before they start any of their talking points.
Denouncing ISIS over and over really will begin to change the narrative for the good of our safety.
Recently, Pope Francis weighed in on the importance of dealing with the threat posed by an extremist force such as ISIS.
Pope Francis, deliberately avoiding kinetic war, understands and has spoken out forcefully on the need for moral Information War against ISIS.
The world is crafting a powerful message about stopping those who kill innocents in the name of Islam.
“In these cases, where there is an unjust aggression, I can only say that it is licit to stop the unjust aggressor,” Pope Francis told journalists.
“I underscore the verb ‘stop.’ I’m not saying ‘bomb’ or ‘make war,’ just ‘stop.’ And the means that can be used to stop them must be evaluated.”
Pope Francis also went out of his way to deal with the unspeakable acts of ISIS with regard to beheading a journalist.
Moved by the grisly images of James Foley’s murder, Pope Francis expressed his condolences to the slain journalist’s parents in a heartfelt phone call.
And to be clear, IW is not simply a foreign policy contest; it is about security at home as well.
According to a story on CBS Colorado published on August 21, 2014:
The director of the FBI visited Colorado this week and detailed how the terror organization ISIS is recruiting Americans to take up their cause.
It’s not just the recruitment of Americans that’s concerning to the FBI, it’s the method of recruitment — the Internet.
FBI Director James Comey said how they are recruiting new members is getting the attention of the U.S. government.
“We have seen an emergence since I was last in government of the people we call home grown violent extremists,” said Comey on Wednesday.
The most recent case in Colorado is Shannon Conley from Arvada, also known as Halima Conley, who became radicalized via the Internet.
Conley has been charged with aiding the foreign terrorist organization Isis, or Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
Court documents claim Conley joined the Army Explorers to be trained in U.S. military tactics and firearms, and that she told the FBI she wanted to wage Jihad and to go overseas and fight.
The FBI tried on numerous occasions to talk her out of going through with her plans to provide support to ISIS to no avail.
“These are the people who are directed by Al Qaeda, may not even personally know somebody in Al Qaeda but the Internet makes that irrelevant,” said Comey.
