If I'm not mistaken, this proposal would mean a 4 % growth of the budget. So there is actually more money. Even in real terms if I'm correct.
That is correct. That's why I would consider the headlines used by many of the news organizations reporting this change as incorrect - you see "Gates cuts budget, Gates slashes budget", where in reality this is more like a shift in procurement strategy and priority.
Mystery UAV operating in Afghanistan
April 10, 2009
Afghanistan maybe the testing ground for a new, advanced but as yet undisclosed UCAV programme.
Pictures shown exclusively to Unmanned Vehicles magazine and taken at an airbase in the war-torn country reveal a large flying wing-type design, adopted by UCAV designers, but not yet seen on an operational type.
The image shown in the link below has been drawn directly from the photograph but none of the experts consulted by UV had any concrete idea of what the system might be.
The image shown to UV was taken from a long distance, as the aircraft taxied in on a hazy day, but the image was clear enough to show that this UAV’s design is like no other UAV in current operational service.
Amongst the distinctive features of the type is the ‘fat’ wing chord, and a large central fuselage fairing. The aircraft engine nozzle is the same half moon shape as the Lockheed P175 Pole Cat, but the wing is not cranked on its trailing edge like the Pole Cat is.
The fuselage fairing could support a large squared off intake, but is more likely to house a large satellite communications and sensor mix. Two large blisters either side of the central fairing are likely to the intakes for a single turbofan engine. These features probably won’t help the aircraft’s radar cross-section, although this probably isn’t important considering the theatre of operations in which it is flying.
The large doors inboard of the main landing gear may be bomb bay doors, indicating a strike capability for the type.
There are clearly the technological capabilities to build something like this inside Northrop Grumman, Boeing or Lockheed Martin. Looking at the shaping, our analyst said he would be inclined to think this comes from either Northrop or Lockheed.
The shaping is also suggestive of UCAV concepts around the start of the 2000s.There is a whole raft of wing design work that has gone on since 2002 in terms of how the X-47B has evolved, and the sorts of designs that Boeing was working with prior to the ending of that effort.
An artist’s impression of the aircraft can be viewed by clicking
Aviation Week said:Predator C Avenger Makes First Flights
Apr 17, 2009
By David A. Fulghum and Bill Sweetman
A new, reduced-signature, unmanned aircraft—the long-rumored, 20-hr.-endurance, pure-jet Predator C Avenger—has emerged from General Atomics Aeronautical Systems’ workshops after a 3½-year gestation period paced by massive growth in UAV production and the use of unmanned designs in combat.
The UAV’s undeniably stealthed-up exterior offers several clues about how the aircraft could be employed.
A weapons bay allows internal carriage of 500-lb. bombs with GBU-38 JDAM tail kit and laser guidance. Given the aircraft’s 41-ft. length (which will expand by at least 2 ft. in the second test aircraft), the weapons bay appears to be 10 ft. long.
The weapons bay doors can be removed to allow installation of a semi-submerged, wide-area surveillance pod, says Tom Cassidy, president, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems’ Aircraft Systems Group. Cassidy has earned a unique reputation by using company funds to develop what he believes the military needs rather than chasing Pentagon requirements that shift with disheartening regularity to produce cost increases and production delays. The result is a family of Gnat and Predator designs that are used by all the services and intelligence agencies.
The Predator C, like the B-variants, is designed to carry about 3,000 lb. of weapons and sensors. In a non-stealthy environment, weapons could also be attached externally on the fuselage and wings. For an additional 2 hr. of flying time, fuel tanks can be installed in the weapons bay. Normal fuel storage is split 50/50 between the wings and fuselage.
The Avenger’s electrical power is expected, at least initially, to be less than the 45 kva. available on Predator B variants. A long, featureless underside provides a low-distortion design for carriage of a wide-area surveillance sensor such as an all-weather, active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar. The wide-area surveillance system—to be provided by the Air Force—has yet to be defined. However, it would be carried by a specialized all-reconnaissance version of the Avenger. A Lynx SAR is likely carried in the lower part of the nose. Absent from the prototype is the EO/IR sensor turret used by the Predator family. A retractable installation may have been developed.
The vertically-oriented V-tail both deflects radar and shields the 4,800-lb. thrust Pratt & Whitney Canada’s PW545B engine exhaust’s infrared signature. Predator C has two all-flying tail surfaces with two servos each for flight-control redundancy. The humpbacked design of the engine compartment offers room enough for a serpentine exhaust that eliminates radar observation of the engine. Pratt & Whitney has been developing an S-shaped exhaust that offers protection from radar observation and cooling to reduce the IR signature. The engine is expected to provide an airspeed of at least 400 kt., but Cassidy says envelope expansion tests may produce speeds “considerably greater” than that. Its operational altitude is up to 60,000 ft.
The Avenger’s 17-deg. swept wing (66-ft. span) and tail edges are all parallel in plan view with one or the other leading edges. It is the same shaping discipline used on classic stealth designs like the B-22 and B-2. The cranked trailing edge provides the aerodynamic and structural benefits of a tapered wing and helps shield the engine inlet from radar. Canted upper and power body sides meet at a sharp chine line, continuous from nose to tail, thereby avoiding the radar cross-section hot spot caused by a curved side.
The thickness and curvature of the inboard wing are noteworthy, pointing to an effort to achieve laminar flow over as much of the wing as possible. The prototype carries tufts over the left wing/body junction that allow engineers to visualize airflow in that area.
General Atomics Aeronautical’s parent company includes a division that produces materials for controlling radar, optical and infrared signatures. Adjacent to the company’s Rancho Bernardo, Calif., facility are the world’s largest indoor radar cross section testing ranges. Likely challenges would have included building a “bandpass” radome for the satcom antenna above the nose. It must be transparent at the Ku-band used by most airborne satcoms, but opaque at lower frequencies used by fighter and missile radars. Again, that capability mimics the F-22 and F-35.
The aircraft was designed so the wings can be folded for storage in hangars or aircraft carrier operations if a naval customer is found. Cassidy, a retired admiral, has talked about a possible Navy role for Predator C since 2002. The Navy was interested in the Predator B’s capabilities, but didn’t want to introduce any new propeller-driven aircraft onto carrier decks. The UAV also comes with a tailhook, suggesting that carrier-related trials are planned. The inner section of the cranked wing is deep, providing structural strength for carrier landings and generous fuel volume while maintaining a dry, folding outer wing. Right now, the U.S. Air Force and Royal Air Force are considered the most likely users.
The Avenger has landing gear from the F-5 aircraft and anti-skid brakes. It uses a laser altimeter and a vertical indicator has been added to the head-up display. At 100 ft. the laser altimeter comes on. If the pilot puts a “caret” in the middle of the indicator it will keep the aircraft at a proper pitch for the landing and eliminate pilot-induced oscillations caused by the parallax effect between a pilot’s vision from a manned aircraft cockpit and that of the UAV’s onboard visual sensor.
The Avenger made its first flights Apr. 4, 13 and 14 in a test program that is slated to last 2-3 months. With customer funding, in 10-12 months operational aircraft could be rolling out of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems’ new, expanded production facilities in Poway, Calif., that opened four weeks ago, Cassidy says.
Predator A and B production had been occupying the company’s Rancho Bernardo facility, but two factors have left plenty of room for manufacturing the Avenger and what’s being described as a highly modified Predator B-plus design. First, Predator A production is being phased out as more advanced models are fielded. Second, six buildings have been acquired at the new Poway facility with 1.2 million sq. ft. for manufacturing, about three times that at Rancho Bernardo. The research and development facility at Adelanto has also doubled in size. The composite fabrication facility remains in Sabre Springs.
While company officials won’t discuss their investment in the Avenger program, they will say it is about twice what they spent to develop the Predator B, primarily because it took longer.
The piston-engine Predator A (MQ-1) first offered long endurance and a weapons-firing capability. The turboprop Predator B (MQ-9) greatly increased the weapons payload, speed and operational altitude. The Predator C now adds additional speed for quicker response and rapid repositioning for mission flexibility and survivability.
With first flight of the Predator C and plans to start cutting the manned aircraft force structure, opponents are gearing up to object.
In a roundtable for reporters, Marine Corps Gen. James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, revealed a vision for a new tactical aircraft force structure that includes a high, medium and low cost and performance mix of aircraft wrapped around the F-22 Raptor, F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and armed UAVs like the turboprop-powered Predator B Reaper. However, the Reaper, unlike the manned Raptor and JSF, is not low-observable. In contrast, the Avenger’s signature has been reduced through shaping and elimination of a propeller.
The tactical force structure would be supplemented with F-16Cs, F-15Cs and F-15Es upgraded with active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars that increase radar ranges by 2-3 times and allow detection of small, even stealthy objects including cruise missiles, stealth aircraft and very small ground targets.
Opponents see a threat in the decision by Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Cartwright to include armed UAVs within the fighter force structure. Critics view this as a first, false step driven by economic rather than military considerations that will lead to the substitution of “Reapers, and later Predator Cs, for F-35 JSFs,” says a long-time fighter pilot, acquisition official and senior Air Force leader.
However, this does overlook a basic planning element in the JSF program from the start: that the stealthy strike aircraft would be pitted—for competitive reasons in later production lots—against unmanned combat aircraft.
The T50 seems better suited too the mission then the T45 too me besides that they could also be used too Phase out the F5's used in DACM by the Navy and Marines via using F/A50'sNew trainer may refuel in air, fly 9-G turns
By Bruce Rolfsen - Staff writer Air force Times
Posted : Thursday Apr 16, 2009 20:06:21 EDT
Whatever airplane the Air Force settles on to replace the aging T-38C Talon training jet will do a better job preparing students to fly the F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II.
The new jet will fly 9-G turns and be refueled in the air, capabilities the T-38C lacks.
The Air Force set the wheels in motion for a new trainer last month when it went to manufacturers looking for suggestions about aircraft, simulators and other gear. The call-out lists 2017 as a possible operational date for a plane.
Companies have until April 30 to offer up their ideas. Then, the Air Force will digest the information and come up with options as early as 2010, said Dave McDonald, a former T-38 instructor pilot who is overseeing the advance trainer replacement program for Air Education and Training Command at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas.
The options could include replacing the Talon, switching to a simulator or using both to train student pilots moving into fighters and bombers.
It has been 50 years since the Talon took on the role as the standard advanced training jet. Earlier this decade, the service upgraded all of its approximately 500 T-38 trainers with digital and glass cockpit displays, similar to those in operational jets. The improved aircraft were designated T-38Cs.
Related reading: Talon celebrates its 50th anniversary
Despite the improvements, the T-38Cs are showing their age.
“It’s well past its original design specifications,” McDonald said.
Intended to fly 7,000 hours, the typical T-38C has logged 15,000 hours. By 2017, the flight hours will be up to 17,500, McDonald said.
The wear and tear is taking a toll. A cracked lever inside a wing brought down a Talon last spring, killing the instructor and student pilots. The service immediately grounded all T-38Cs to replace the levers.
In addition to safety concerns, AETC officials believe a new trainer is needed to help student pilots make the transition from flying trainers to F-22s and F-35s, McDonald said.
A replacement may need to have aerial refueling capability, which the T-38C doesn’t. With the exception of the A-10, new fighter pilots fly their initial refueling missions in two-seat versions of their operational fighter. Students in the F-22 and F-35 won’t have that opportunity because there are no two-seat versions of the jets.
The new aircraft could also have a cockpit display similar to the F-22 and F-35, McDonald said. Even with its new avionics, the T-38C can’t prepare students for the deluge of target, reconnaissance and flight information that the fighters generate.
Officials also want a trainer that lets students match the 9-G turns of the fighters. The maximum stress a T-38 pilot experiences is 7.3Gs, but turns of 5-Gs to 5.5-Gs are more common because of performance limitations, McDonald said.
An interim solution for moving pilots from the T-38C to the F-22s is letting them fly in the two-seat F-16D Fighting Falcon for a few weeks before they go off to the F-22 school at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla.
Three years ago, the Senate considered ordering the Air Force to compare T-38C costs with those of two other training jets in production at the time — the Boeing T-45 Goshawk flown by the Navy and the supersonic T-50 Golden Eagle, a joint project of Lockheed Martin and Korea Aerospace Industries, destined for South Korea’s air force. Air Force officials objected to the proposed mandate, saying they were satisfied with the T-38C. The measure never became law.
Yet another Raptor Accident we might bee needing 300 raptors just too make up for the Downed ones of late... . For the Record I blame Canada who said they could park there? JKF-22 smacks into CF-18 on ground at Tyndall
Staff report Air force Times
Posted : Tuesday Apr 21, 2009 13:19:25 EDT
Even fighter pilots have parking lot accidents.
A taxiing F-22 Raptor ran into a parked Canadian air force CF-18 fighter April 8 at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla.
The F-22 had just returned from a training mission when the accident occurred about 9 p.m., an Air Force report said. Tyndall’s 325th Fighter Wing is home to the Air Force’s F-22 school house.
Damage estimates to the jets came in at $1 million or more. The damage, mostly to the planes’ wings, is considered repairable.
The Air Force is investigating the cause of the accident.
Cyber hackers breached jet fighter program
The Associated Press - The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Apr 22, 2009 6:10:14 EDT
WASHINGTON — Cyber hackers nearly two years ago breached a high-tech jet fighter program developed for the Pentagon by Lockheed Martin Corp., but classified information about the aircraft was not compromised, a senior defense official said Tuesday.
No details about the attacks were provided. The defense official spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the issue.
In confirming the attack on Lockheed's F-35 Lightning II program — also known as the Joint Strike Fighter — the defense official said it is not clear who did it, or whether it was an attempt at corporate thievery or a hacker trying to harm the program. The Pentagon is expected to pay about $300 billion to buy nearly 2,500 of the F-35 jets for the Air Force, Navy and Marines.
The cyber spying revelations come as the White House is poised to release its review on the nation's cyber security. There have been increasingly frequent warnings that the nation's networks are at risk and repeatedly are being probed by foreign governments, criminals or other groups.
Lockheed officials issued a carefully worded statement saying that "to our knowledge there has never been any classified information breach" but that the company's systems are continually attacked, and there are measures in place to detect and stop the hacking.
The statement did not specifically deny a breach into unclassified information or less sensitive areas of the program. The cyber attacks were first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said Tuesday that Defense Department networks are probed repeatedly every day and that the number of intrusion attempts have more than doubled. While he would not discuss the Lockheed incident, he said that there are obviously some computer programs that are far less sensitive or classified than others. Whitman cautioned that hackers' ability to get information out of military systems should not be overestimated.
Whitman described a layered approach to the government's protections, saying that as the information becomes more sensitive, it is more walled off and safeguarded.
"We view cyberspace as a war-fighting domain ... and we are going to defend it and protect it," Whitman said. "The key is to stay one step ahead of your enemy."
Another official familiar with the program said that the more classified portions of the fighter program are digitally walled off and have heightened protections built in.
That official added that outside cyber scans of the fighter program are not new, and that they could well involve subcontractors and suppliers around the world. Those scans may not involve critical, classified systems, the officials said.
Lockheed Martin Corp. is the lead contractor on the jet, with a number of other companies that include Northrop Grumman Corp. and BAE Systems making parts and systems for the plane.
According to U.S. counterintelligence officials, this is not the first military jet program that has been hacked.
During a speech in Texas earlier this month, Joel Brenner, head of the U.S. Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive, said that officials have seen counterfeit computer chips "make their way into U.S. military fighter aircraft."
Brenner added: "You don't sneak counterfeit chips into another nation's aircraft to steal data. When it's done intentionally, it's done to degrade systems, or to have the ability to do so at a time of one's choosing."
His comments were not related to the F-35, according to administration officials. But Brenner has also warned that careless, laid-off or disaffected employees can often be the root of corporate cyber leaks. Foreign governments or groups, he said, plan computer attacks that take advantage of sloppy workers or bad network management practices.
In a series of recent speeches, Brenner has repeatedly raised the alarm that foreign governments and other groups are accessing government systems and installing malicious software.
"The Chinese are relentless and don't seem to care about getting caught. And we have seen Chinese network operations inside certain of our electricity grids. Do I worry about those grids, and about air traffic control systems, water supply systems, and so on? You bet I do," Brenner told an audience at the University of Texas at Austin
Iraq: No future role for ex-Blackwater units
By Brian Murphy - The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Apr 21, 2009 18:43:56 EDT
BAGHDAD — Iraq's government spokesman insisted Tuesday that the former Blackwater Worldwide can have no long-term presence in the country and said authorities will continue to press for compensation for a deadly September 2007 shooting.
Ali al-Dabbagh confirmed that the company — now known as Xe — will have a presence at least until summer in some ground and air protection roles, but gave no other details of when the last former Blackwater units could be out of Iraq.
Iraq is currently making plans to take over some of the company's roles, such as helicopter patrols, but needs at least until May 2010 to train local units. He said a "company will extend its work" to help protect Iraqi airspace until next year, but he later clarified that he was not referring to the former Blackwater. He did not say what company could serve in the stopgap role.
"We do not want Blackwater to work in Iraqi airspace or land ... under one name or another," he said. "We will press for compensation."
Some Iraqis wounded in the Sept. 16, 2007, shooting in Baghdad's busy Nisoor Square said they were dismayed to hear the company will work in Iraq longer than previously thought.
After the Nisoor Square melee, which left 17 Iraqis dead and another 20 wounded, Iraqi officials ruled that North Carolina-based Blackwater would be barred from operating in the country. Despite the ban, the State Department renewed Blackwater's contract seven months later, in April 2008.
In January of this year, Iraqi authorities denied the company an operating license.
Hussein Jabir, a Baghdad lawyer hit by gunfire in Nisoor Square, says he was outraged at the Iraqi government for not taking a harder stance.
"The Blackwater personnel are mercenaries. The Iraqi government knows that very well," said Jabir, who still has bullet fragments in his arm and side.
The bloodshed strained ties between Iraq and the U.S. and raised questions about Washington's use of private security in Iraq and other conflict zones.
The State Department said this month that Xe guards would stop protecting U.S. diplomats on the ground in Baghdad on May 7, when the company's contract for that specific job expires and a new security provider, Triple Canopy, takes over. Last February, Blackwater changed its name to Xe — pronounced ZEE — in a bid to leave the stigma of the Nisoor Square shooting behind.
State Department officials told The Associated Press that the company will remain in some areas of southern Iraq into the summer and that its aviation service, Presidential Airways, will provide air security for U.S. diplomatic convoys into September.
Jabir said he plans to travel to the U.S. if the manslaughter charges against five former Backwater guards proceed.
In February, a federal judge denied two motions to dismiss the case against the five men accused in the 2007 shootings. The five argue they are not subject to U.S. civilian criminal laws because they were working overseas under a contract with the State Department to help provide security for diplomats.
"A case is proceeding in America, but I'm surprised our own government had not paid attention to the pain of the victims," Jabir said.
Samir Hobi, a teacher wounded in the shooting, insisted that Iraqi authorities should seek direct compensation from the company.
"No one is asking for our rights," he said. "The government doesn't care about us. This case no longer interests them."
Sami Hawas Hamoud al-Iz, a vendor who was shot in the leg, also demanded that the company face trial in Iraq.
"They should be punished," he said. "We pray to God that they will not escape justice."
SWO, sub communities face midgrade officer gap
Retention still high among career aviators
By Andrew Scutro - Staff writer NAVY TIMES
Posted : Tuesday Apr 21, 2009 5:09:47 EDT
Despite high retention in the enlisted ranks, the officer community still is seeing shortfalls among surface warfare officers and submariners in the control grades, which cover lieutenant commander to captain, according to manpower data.
At the same time, the aviation officer community is having no trouble filling its ranks, the data show.
A variety of factors, from the steady drawdown over the past few years to major force cuts in the mid-’90s to individual career decisions, have affected manning in the control grades. It also comes from the growth of joint and individual augmentee requirements without the requisite growth in people.
But the mismatches have not affected the Navy’s ability to go to sea, said Capt. John Schultz, head community manager at Navy Personnel Command.
“When we are talking SWO no-kidding, get-underway, go-to-sea fleet requirements, we are meeting every one of those, 100 percent,” he said. “If you’re talking about a staff billet out in San Diego, we’re probably meeting every one of those. If you’re talking about what I’d call a ‘secondary staff billet,’ there may be some gaps there.”
While overall retention has increased as the economy has faltered, the long-term effects persist from officers who left the Navy years ago.
“SWOs reach a point where they decide to continue as a SWO, lateral transfer or do something outside the Navy. That’s something that’s been going on as long as there’s been a seagoing service,” Naval Personnel Command spokesman Cmdr. Alvin Plexico said. “The control grade shortage is probably a function of things that were happening 10, 15, 20 years ago.”
Chief of Naval Personnel Vice Adm. Mark Ferguson described the shortages in written testimony to Congress on March 19.
“Though officer retention rates have generally increased, there remain select shortfalls in the control grades,” he wrote, referring to aggregate numbers across all the officer communities. “Commander and lieutenant commander inventories are below requirements; though, for the first time in many years, unrestricted line captain inventory exceeds officer programmed authorizations. Special and incentive pays and quality of life initiatives remain the primary tools to reduce these shortfalls.”
The submarine service is also seeing control-grade shortages. Ferguson said goals were met only once in the past five years, adding that the force is short 452 critical billets Navy-wide.
He also noted shortages among junior nuclear-trained SWOs, but he did not include data.
“Additionally, the nuclear-trained surface warfare community continues to experience the lowest junior officer retention of any [unrestricted line] community,” he wrote in his statement.
Saving the Navy’s ‘seed corn’
Manpower officials try to retain the right number of officers after their initial service obligation runs out, usually around the O-3 and O-4 timeframe. At that point, those officers must choose between what could become at least a 20-year Navy career — and extended time away from family — or getting out for a high-paying civilian job.
Schultz uses the farming analogy of “seed corn” for junior officers, a valuable resource for future needs.
“One of the things we’re working today is clearly defining what that agriculture base should be. We put a lot of emphasis on the control-grade work, but you don’t get people in the control grades unless you have a healthy O-1 to O-3, the seed corn,” he said.
But the thin ranks at the top also come from a military tendency to ask for an O-6 when an O-5 might do, he said, along with the growth of joint billets.
“Over the last 10 years, there’s been a substantial growth in control-grade requirements without aggregate growth in non-control-grade requirements,” said Schultz, who is prior enlisted. “We’ve never filled 100 percent of our billet requirements since I’ve been in the Navy, for 37 years.”
Schultz said the control-grade problem is being handled in the short term with reserve recalls — 100 per year across all officer ranks — in the midterm with promotions, including for warrant and limited duty officers, and long-term through officer accessions, including from the enlisted ranks.
“We are working this very hard. We are trying to close the gap on the control-grade shortages,” he said. “You can’t just promote your way out of it.”
And while the Navy is short SWOs and submariners, aviators are thick in the control grades because of a longer initial obligation after winging — eight years — and an aviation bonus that takes an officer to 14 years. Also, turbulence in the airline industry has tightened up a traditional exit for military aviators.
“Aviation URL community is over-inventory in the control grade,” Schultz said. “When you start talking in the control grade the squadron [commanding officers], the air wing captains, those requirements are met.”
Schultz said his office, responsible for officer and enlisted community management, continuously examines billet structure.
“We’ve done it in pieces in the past,” he said. “We’re trying to get the overall snapshot now.”
The Navy has ended its drawdown after several years of force cuts, which will affect the officer corps for several years to come.
“Any time you have a manpower curve and you are stabilizing, that’s when you really have to get it right, and that’s what we’ve been doing in community management,” Schultz said.
Look up in the Sky it's a bird NO IT'S A PLANE NO IT's OSAMA AGAIN! nope Just OBAMA!Army times
Army eyes new, lighter machine gun
By Matthew Cox - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Apr 27, 2009 10:51:33 EDT
The Army wants to field a new .50-caliber machine gun that’s about 64 percent lighter than the venerable Ma Deuce.
Weapons officials classified the General Dynamics-made lightweight .50-caliber machine gun as the XM806 in March, clearing the way for further testing of the radical new design.
While it would not replace the M2 .50-caliber machine gun, also known as Ma Deuce, the Army hopes to field the 30-pound XM806 in 2012 as a lightweight alternative to the 84-pound M2, said Lt. Col. Mike Ascura, product manager for crew-served weapons.
“Now that it is an experimental weapon, we will look at the design … and determine if the gun meets the needs of the Army to move forward as a program of record,” he said. “There is some real potential here.”
The XM806 is an offshoot of the XM307, a crew-served weapon that fired 25mm airburst ammunition and featured a high-tech fire control system.
The Army began developing the XM307 in the 1990s for its Future Combat System, but the program was shelved as the result of budget cuts in 2007.
But the Army’s Infantry Center released a new requirement for a lightweight .50-cal machine gun later that year, giving the futuristic design a second chance.
The XM806 no longer features the computerized fire control system but can now fire the same M9 linked ammunition that the M2 uses.
The rate of fire on the XM806 is much slower than that of the M2 — 250 rounds per minute compared to the M2’s 500 rounds-per-minute rate. This helps to make the weapon easier to control and more accurate, Ascura said.
The lighter recoil also means the XM806 can use a lightweight aluminum frame instead of a more rigid steel frame like that of the M2, which greatly reduces the XM806’s weight.
Currently, the M2 is mounted on everything from Humvees to heavy armored vehicles.
Army officials maintain that the XM806’s lightweight design would allow combat units to use it in a limited dismounted role such as over-watch and support positions, Ascura said.
If all goes well, the Army plans to buy 12 XM806s for developmental and operational tests between now and 2011, Ascura said. The Army has not decided how many XM806s it intends to field, Ascura said, adding that he could not give cost estimates for the program.
“We hope to field this as early as 2012,” he said. “Right now, the plan for it is to augment the M2; the maneuver forces still need that high rate of fire found in the M2.”
Airforce times
White House apologizes for botched photo op
By Ula Ilnytzky - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Apr 27, 2009 17:59:52 EDT
NEW YORK — A Boeing 747 used by the president was escorted over lower Manhattan by an Air Force fighter jet Monday as part of a government photo opportunity and training mission, causing a brief panic among office workers near the site of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Workers from several office buildings poured out onto the streets before they learned that the flights were innocuous.
White House military office director Louis Caldera said federal officials notified local and state authorities in New York and New Jersey, but he also apologized in a statement on Monday for the confusion and disruption.
Caldera's office provides military support for White House functions, including food service, presidential transportation and medical services. The office oversees all military operations aboard Air Force One on presidential trips.
John Leitner, a floor trader at the New York Mercantile Exchange Building, said about 1,000 people "went into a total panic" and ran out of the building around 10 a.m. after seeing the planes whiz by their building, which is near the World Trade Center site.
"Apparently, nobody in the building was informed that this was going to happen," he said. "Everyone panicked, as you can certainly understand."
He said the workers gathered along the Hudson River until a security officer with a bullhorn told them it was a planned exercise.
"The FAA and the presidential airlift group conducted an aerial photo mission" and training for crew members of the president's flying fleet, said Air Force spokeswoman Capt. Angela Webb. She declined to release any other information about the nature of the photos being taken.
She said the flight involved a VC-25, a Defense Department version of the 747 that is called Air Force One when the president is aboard, and an Air Force F-16 jet fighter. They flew over the upper New York Bay and Newark Bay.
The Federal Aviation Administration said it notified city law enforcement about the mission.
The NYPD said the flight "was authorized by the FAA for the vicinity of the Statue of Liberty, with directives to local authorities not to disclose information about it, but to direct all inquiries to the FAA."
Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the flyover so near the World Trade Center site showed "poor judgment" and was insensitive. He says he is furious that the police and another city agency were notified last week, but did not tell him.
Navy times
Damaged sub crossing ocean, amphib in dry dock
By Andrew Scutro - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Apr 27, 2009 10:52:09 EDT
After being out of action in the Middle East for more than a month, a submarine and amphib that collided just outside the Strait of Hormuz on March 20 have begun the next phase of their repairs.
The week of April 19, the attack submarine Hartford began a surface transit back to the U.S., and amphibious transport dock New Orleans went into dry dock Saturday in Bahrain, said Lt. Nate Christensen, a 5th Fleet spokesman.
Christensen said the mishap and safety investigations are not yet complete.
The collision occurred with Hartford submerged but near the surface as both were entering the Persian Gulf at night. The contact tore a 16-by-18-foot hole in the hull of New Orleans, ripping open a fuel tank and two ballast tanks. There was “substantial” flooding after the accident, Christensen said.
Hartford’s sail was bent and partially torn off the hull. A bowplane was also reported damaged.
Both were able to limp into Bahrain.
Ship repair teams from Naval Sea Systems Command have been working on the ships since shortly after the accident.
“There were repairs made to Hartford when it was in port,” he said. “They made the ship safe for transit.”
By Saturday, Hartford was scheduled to have cleared the Strait of Hormuz. Christensen said he didn’t know Hartford’s final destination, but the ship will likely return to its home port of Groton, Conn., for repairs. Experts have said such a submarine surface transit would require an armed escort.
The Navy relieved Hartford’s commanding officer, Cmdr. Ryan Brookhart, on April 14. Christensen said there have been no other personnel changes on either ship, pending completion of the two inquiries.
The ship left San Diego as part of the Boxer Expeditionary Strike Group on Jan. 9. This is New Orleans’ maiden deployment.
By ROBERT H. REID, Associated Press Writer Robert H. Reid, Associated Press Writer – 38 mins ago
BAGHDAD – A U.S. soldier opened fire at a counseling center on a U.S. base Monday, killing five fellow soldiers before being taken into custody, the U.S. command and Pentagon officials said.
The shooting occurred at Camp Liberty, a sprawling U.S. base on the western edge of Baghdad near the city's international airport and adjacent to another facility where President Barack Obama visited last month.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs called the shooting a "terrible tragedy" and said Obama planned to meet with Defense Secretary Gates later in the day to discuss the matter. Gibbs said the president's heart goes out to the victims' families and wants to know what happened.
A brief U.S. statement said the soldier "suspected of being involved with the shooting" was in custody but gave no further details. A senior military official in Washington said three others were wounded, but the U.S. military in Baghdad said nobody else was hurt.
In Washington, Pentagon officials said the shooting happened at a stress clinic, where troops can go for help with the stresses of combat or personal issues. It was unclear whether those killed were workers at the clinic or were there for counseling. No details were released about the gunman or what might have provoked the shooting.
"Anytime we lose one of our own, it affects us all," U.S. military spokesman Col. John Robinson said in Baghdad. "Our hearts go out to the families and friends of all the service members involved in this terrible tragedy."
Separately, the military announced Monday that a U.S. soldier was also killed a day earlier when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle in Basra province of southern Baghdad.
The death toll from the Monday shooting was the highest for U.S. personnel in a single attack since April 10, when a suicide truck driver killed five American soldiers with a blast near a police headquarters in Mosul.
Attacks on officers and sergeants, known as fraggings, were not uncommon during the Vietnam war as morale in the ranks sank. However, such attacks are believed to be rare in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In 2005, Army Sgt. Hasan Akbar was sentenced to death for killing two officers in Kuwait just before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
In June 2005, an Army captain and lieutenant were killed when an anti-personnel mine detonated in the window of their room at the U.S. base in Tikrit. National Guard Staff Sgt. Alberto Martinez was acquitted in the blast.
Additionally, there have been several incidents recently when gunmen dressed as Iraqi soldiers have opened fire on American troops, including an attack in the northern city of Mosul on May 2 when two soldiers and the gunman were killed.
Also Monday, a senior Iraqi traffic officer was assassinated on his way to work in Baghdad. It was the second attack on a high-ranking traffic police officer in the capital in as many days.
A car cut off Brig. Gen. Abdul-Hussein al-Kadhoumi as he drove through a central square in the capital and a second vehicle pulled up alongside and riddled him with bullets, police said, citing witnesses. Al-Kadhoumi was director of operations for the traffic authority.
The gunmen were armed with pistols equipped with silencers, the police added on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Incidents involving gunmen armed with sophisticated weapons, including silencers, have been on the rise since a string of high-profile robberies in April.
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Associated Press Writer Pauline Jelinek contributed to this report from Washington.
Looks like some US "allies" want their cake with ice cream and candles...It's a form of blackmail. They know the DoD is strapped for cash..so..maybe they figure they can squeeze the US for all the cake ice crean, clown ballons etc..
Those folks from Project On Government Oversight(POGO) seem to me to be nothing but alarmist.
One of their concerns is the PRC stealing techno info about the F-22 if it is indeed sold to Japan. say they do steal it. How long would it take for the PRC to duplicate some sort of F-22 clone??? 10-15 years??? By then the US will be using new UAV's. Just my opinion.
What are they are going to do bribe a member of the self defense force to get access to a F-22. Scan it with a LASER interferometer to gain a profile of the F-22.
How can you reverse engineer a plane with out a sample of the plane to study.
DAGR live-fire tests imminent
Boeing will conduct live-fire tests of the Lockheed Martin Direct-Attack Guided Rocket (DAGR) system on its developmental AH-6i armed reconnaissance and light attack helicopter before the end of May.
AH-6 International Capture Team Leader Fred Jernigan told reporters at the company's Meza facility in Arizona that the test - which is designed to prove both the weapon and the platform - will take place at the army's proving ground at Yuma on either 16 or 17 May.
The AH-6i is being developed as the export version of the AH-6S Little Bird being offered for the US Army's Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH) requirement. The export version differs from the domestic model in that there are a number or ARH-specific requirements such as an upgraded avionics that are not necessary for the export market.
According to Jernigan, there are 12 potential customers who are "seriously interested in the AH-6i", although he declined to be more specific. "[The AH-6i] is a great option for them because not everyone can afford an Apache and not everyone needs a Hellfire. This aircraft with its precision guided rockets fits [their requirements] very nicely," he said.