May 30, 2016, 07:02:00 AM EDT By Zacks Equity Research, Zacks.com
Integrated Defense Systems division has won a contract from the U.S. Navy for the production of Aegis Weapon System AN/SPY-1D(V) Radar Transmitter Group, Missile Fire Control System MK 99 equipment, and associated engineering services. The contract is valued at $365.8 million.
This contract has options which, if exercised, will bring the total contract value to $423 million. The contract falls under the Foreign Military Sales program that includes purchases for South Korea and Japan apart from purchases for the U.S. Navy. Work under this contract is expected to be completed by Oct 2022.
The SPY-1D(V) Transmitter and the MK 99 Fire Control System are an essential part of the Navy’s Aegis missile defense system. Over the past 35 years, these systems have been in continuous production and are in use aboard 108 warships worldwide, comprising 17 ships sailed by foreign nations.
The SPY-1D(V) is a high-powered radar transmitter that supports search, track and missile guidance functions, while the MK99 system communicates with the mission control station to identify and illuminate air targets.
Raytheon is one of the best-positioned, large-cap defense players and will continue to gain traction on the back of its strong fundamentals, focus on technological innovation and improvement of its product offering, which will ensure more contract wins and an enhanced growth trajectory.
The company has been enjoying a steady stream of contracts from several government establishments. As a result, total backlog at the end of the first quarter of 2016 was $34.8 billion, up from $32.5 billion at the end of the year-ago quarter.
The SPY-1D(V) radar upgrade is the newest improvement to the SPY-1D. The SPY-lD( V) littoral radar upgrade will supersede the SPY-1D in new-construction ships beginning in FY 1998, and will deploy in DDG 51 Flight IIA ships starting in approximately 2003. The third variant of this radar, known as the Littoral Warfare Radar, will improve the radar’s capability against low-altitude, reduced radar cross-section targets in heavy clutter environments and in the presence of intense electronic countermeasures. The SPY-1D radar system is the multi-function, phased-array, three-dimensional (range, altitude, and bearing) radar which conducts search, automatic detection, and tracking of air and surface targets. The SPY-1D also provides mid-course guidance for the SM-2 missile, and has also demonstrated a capability to track theater ballistic missiles. The AN/SPY-1D(V), under development for installation in some Flight IIA ships, is an improved system with better performance against targets in clutter, additional moving target indicator (MTI) waveforms, and greater ability to counter deceptive Electronic Attack measures. Source fas.org
Mk 99 Missile Fire Control System
The Mk 99 MFCS controls the loading and arming of the selected weapon, launches the weapon, and provides terminal guidance for AAW (Anti-Air Warfare) missiles. It also controls the target illumination for the terminal guidance of SM-2.
Radar and weapon systems on an AEGIS class cruiser.
The radar system associated with the Mk 99 MFCS is the missile illuminator AN/SPG-62.
AN/SPG-62 RADAR
AN/SPG-62 RADAR
AN/SPG-62 RADAR.-The AN/SPG-62 is I/JBand fire control radar. The SPY-1 radar system detects and tracks targets and then points the SPG-62 toward the target, which in turn provides illumination for the terminal guidance of SM-2 missiles. Refer to chapter 1 for discussion on the different phases of missile guidance and the way radar is used for missile guidance. Remember that in order to track a target you need a very narrow beam of RF energy. The narrower the beam, the more accurately you can tell if you have one target or multiple targets (this is called radar resolution). This narrow beam radar is normally a second radar that works with a primary search or track radar. The AN/SPG-62 illuminating radar works as a second radar with the AN/SPY-1 series radar.
In addition to the Mk 99 MFCS, the AEGIS SPY 1 series radar works with the Gun Fire Control System. Source tpub.com
Minister says Pakistan to approach other countries if US refuses to deliver F-16 aircraft
By: APP 30-May-16
ISLAMABAD: Minister for Defence Production Rana Tanveer Hussain has said that Pakistan is in negotiations with Russia for procurement of MI-35 attack helicopters, expressing confidence that there would be significant development in two months in this regard.
“I hope we will be able to materialise this project (to buy MI-35 helicopters) in two months,” he said while talking to reporters here. He said that the JF-17 fighter aircraft were capable enough to meet defence requirements of Pakistan. Pakistan had a fleet of state-of-the-art JF-17 Thunder aircraft which carried all specifications of any advanced fighter jet, he said.
Pakistan was at top among 10 countries having JF-17 fleet, he said, adding that the country’s defence was impregnable and had the capability to meet all challenges. Commenting on the country’s defence production quality, he said that the Pakistan Ordnance Factory (POF) was producing and exporting small arms to different countries including US, Britain and Germany.
He said that the Ministry of Defence Production was working day and night to meet requirements of the armed forces, adding that a proposal had been forwarded to the quarters concerned for separate budget of the ministry. Answering a question, Tanveer said Pakistan was in contact with US for delivery of F-16 aircraft, and in case the deal was not materialised, it would approach other countries for the purpose.
To another question, the minister said a protest had been launched with US over the recent drone attack, adding that US ambassador had been called in by the Foreign Office. Both civil and military leadership expressed serious concerns over the attack, he added.
Two developments in the past month indicate that Washington’s mixed policy of engagement and containment (or “congagement”) toward China has begun to tilt more toward containment. The first development was the visit of Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter to India in mid-April and the signing of a bilateral cooperation agreement on military logistics. The other episode is President Obama’s just-completed trip to Vietnam and the announced lifting of the long-standing arms embargo on that country. As usual, American officials insist that the marked change in U.S. policy toward Hanoi is not in any way directed against China. But such statements strain credulity, especially when viewed in the larger context of U.S. warships conducting “freedom of navigation” patrols in the South China Sea and bluntly reminding Beijing of America’s security obligations to the Philippines under a bilateral defense treaty.
The containment side of U.S. policy has gone from merely assembling some of the necessary components, to be activated at a later date if necessary (first gear), to the initial phase of activation (second gear). More emphasis is likely to be placed on China as a serious strategic competitor, if not an outright adversary. But developing any kind of a containment policy against China is almost certain to prove hopelessly difficult. Despite the sometimes inflammatory rhetoric coming from Donald Trump and some other China bashers, the bilateral economic relationship remains quite extensive and crucial. China is America’s second largest trading partner. In 2015, the United States exported $116 billion in goods to China while importing $482 billion. Disrupting that relationship would be extremely costly and painful for both countries.
That point underscores one key reason why reviving anything even faintly resembling the Cold War–era containment policy that worked against the Soviet Union is a hopeless quest. America’s economic relations with the USSR were minuscule, so there was little sacrifice on that front in taking a hardline stance against Moscow. That is clearly not the case today regarding America’s economic connections to China.
There is also the matter of assembling a reliable alliance against Beijing. Conducting a containment policy against the Soviet Union during the Cold War was feasible because (at least during the crucial formative stages) neither the United States nor its key allies had much of a political or economic relationship to lose with Moscow. The costs, therefore, of shunning Moscow were minimal. That is clearly not the case with China. Most of the East Asian countries, including close U.S. allies Japan and South Korea, already have extensive economic links with Beijing. Indeed, China is Japan’s largest trading partner, accounting for one-fifth of that country’s total trade. It would not be easy for those countries to jeopardize such stakes to support a confrontational, U.S.-led containment policy aimed at Beijing. Tokyo undoubtedly has concerns about China’s behavior in the East China Sea (and about overall Chinese ambitions), but it would still be a reluctant recruit in a hostile containment strategy.
Indeed, as time passed during the Cold War, even the containment strategy directed against the Soviet Union proved increasingly difficult for U.S. leaders. That was especially true after the early 1970s, when West Germany’s policy ofOstpolitik sought better relations with communist East Germany, and indirectly with Moscow and the rest of the Soviet bloc. As connections deepened between democratic Europe and the USSR, support for hard-line U.S. policies began to fade. That point became evident in the 1980s, when U.S. leaders attempted to persuade their European allies to reject the proposal for a natural gas pipeline from the Soviet Union to Western Europe, fearing that it would give Moscow an unhealthy degree of policy leverage. Much to Washington’s frustration, key European allies rejected the advice.
If the United States attempts to mobilize regional support for a containment policy against China, it will start out operating in an environment even less conducive than the policy environment regarding the Soviet Union in the 1980s. Washington’s courtship might be welcomed by very small countries, such as the Philippines, that are already on extremely bad terms with Beijing. Larger powers, though, are more likely to see what benefits they can entice and extract from Washington, without making firm commitments that would antagonize China and jeopardize their own important ties to that county.
There is a final reason why an overt containment policy against China would be a poor option for the United States. Several troublesome global or regional issues will be difficult to address without substantial input and cooperation from China. It is nearly impossible, for example, to imagine progress being made on the difficult and complex issue of North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs without China’s extensive involvement.
The United States needs to lower, not increase, its level of confrontation toward China. That also means restoring respect for the concept of spheres of influence. In attempting to preserve U.S. primacy in East Asia and the western Pacific, U.S. leaders are intruding into the South China Sea and other areas that logically matter far more to China than to America. Such a strategy is likely to result either in a humiliating U.S. retreat under pressure or a disastrous military collision. A containment strategy is a feeble attempt to evade that reality.
Ted Galen Carpenter is a senior fellow in defense and foreign policy studies at the Cato Institute and a contributing editor at the National Interest. He is the author of ten books and more than six hundred articles on international affairs.
I would say this article is probably true as China trade with the whole world and China have invested heavily in Africa and Pakistan so that corridor is very hard for the US to shut. The building of rail network running from China to Europe and the future network that would run through Thailand, Malaysia and into Singapore is another route……..
Image @orientalreview.org
It may be the fact that suddenly USA have become interested in Africa and have redeployed back into Libya. The sudden generosity of providing free weapons to some African nations is also another indicator……….
I doubt Vietnam, Japan, S. Korea, Taiwan or India for that matter would want a conflict with China. Vietnam and India share a common border with China so it is unwise to consider any conflict.
There seems to be a rush into SE Asia, India look East as I perceive India tries to increase her influence as seen by the road linking Myanmar and Thailand soon to be opened…….
The Raptor (Project 03160) high-speed patrol boats are designed and being built by Open JSC Pella Shipyard based in Leningrad, Russia. The boat can be deployed in a wide range of missions, including patrolling, search-and-rescue, anti-sabotage and anti-terrorism. It can transport up to 20 crew members of distressed ships or aircraft and has the ability to intercept and arrest light ships.
Project 03160 “Raptor”
The Pella Shipyard of St Petersburg, mainly known for their tug boats, last week officially launched the first series produced vessel of their new Project 03160 ‘Raptor’-class (ru. “Раптор”). This boat is rather interesting, if not for anything else, then at least because it bears a striking resemblance to a 30 year old Swedish design…
Project 03160 “Raptor”. Picture from Pella Shipyard.
The internet seems to differ whether the boat is in fact a licensed version of Dockstavarvets Combat Boat 90/Stridsbåt 90, or if it just “happens” to look like one. However, what is certain is that Dockstavarvet sold a number of its Interceptor Craft 16 M, a patrol craft based on the CB 90 concept, to the Russian border guards (FSB)[1]. The Raptor, however, seems to be based on the original CB 90 instead of the IC 16 M, and it is clearly stated that this time the customer is the Russian Navy, with at least four boats slated for the Black Sea Fleet.
Is the boat then a copy of the CB 90. If it is unlicensed, I believe the answer is ‘No’. The general layout certainly seems copied, but it is hardly revolutionary. Pella might have borrowed more than is considered “fair”, but the general characteristics of the CB 90 is conventional enough. To try and reverse engineer the details of the CB 90 would probably not have been worth the hustle. To begin with, Pella would have to send a number of engineers to a boat and measure it up, down to what size the bottom stringers are and how high the masthead light is, as well as document every little detail of the equipment. After this, the engineers would have to create the whole drawing package from scratch, after which they would have to adopt it to Pella’s materials and standards. What is the size of the Swedish chairs? Does Pella’s standard choice fit? What can be used instead? How is the Russian ballistic protection attached, compared to the original?
Image bastion-karpenko.ru
Simply using a proven general layout, and starting an own design from there, is far faster than “true” reverse engineering. And I think speed is the issue here. Projecting boats from the keel up is a long process, even when it is a relatively small and straightforward one as the Raptor. Going through all the normal stages, with a preliminary round of tenders, choosing a winner, nailing down the details of the design, producing and testing a prototype, building a pre-production run, and then finally going into series production, usually takes at least a few years. Here it seems like the first steps have been skipped, and the project jumped straight into the detailed design phase. The result is a stop-gap vessel, built to expand on current capabilities (and numbers), rather than revolutionize them. This also fits the general trend of rapid expansion of the Russian armed forces. Edit 22:45 (GMT +2 DST) 25062014corporalfrisk.com
The Russian Navy plans to procure a series of eight boats by 2015. Four of them were rolled-out in 2014, while the remaining four are scheduled to be launched in 2015. The boats will be operated by the Russian Navy’s Black Sea Fleet and will be based at the Leningrad Naval Base.
Orders and deliveries
The first Raptor patrol boat was launched in August 2013 and underwent builder’s sea trials in the same month. The boat was demonstrated to the Russian Navy in September.
The Russian Ministry of Defence awarded a contract to OJSC Pella to build and deliver a series of eight patrol boats for the Russian Navy in June 2014.
The first Raptor boat in the series was launched in June 2014 followed by the second in August 2014. The state acceptance board signed an acceptance act for a patrol boat in March 2015 and the boat was commissioned into the Russian Navy’s Black Sea Fleet in August 2015.
Completed
8 + 9 units
Ships
Pella Shipyard, Otradny
Name
Yard №
Laid Down
Launched
Commissioned
Note
P-274
№701
–
15.08.2013
5.03.2015
P-275
№702
–
17.06.2014
5.03.2015
P-276
№703
–
2014
5.03.2015
P-281
№704
–
2014
25.03.2015
P-280
№705
–
–
19.08.2015
from 7.10.2016 – P-280 Yunarmeets Baltiki
P-344
№706
–
–
10.08.2015
P-845?
№707
–
2015
9.12.2015
P-838?
№708
–
14.11.2015
25.12.2015
P-415?
№709
–
14.12.2016
8.05.2017
P-413
№710
–
14.12.2016
05.2017
P-425?
№711
–
–
8.05.2017
P-
№712
–
30.05.2017
29.09.2017
P-
№713
–
24.08.2017
plan 2017
under construction
P-
–
–
–
plan 2017
under construction
P-
–
–
–
plan 2018
under construction
P-
–
–
–
plan 2018
under construction
P-
–
–
–
plan 2018
under construction
Source russianships.info
Last two high-speed Raptor patrol boats delivered to Russian Navy:Here
The Russian Defense Ministry and Pella Shipyard have signed a contract for over 10 Project 03160 Raptor-class patrol boats before 2018, according to the Gazeta.ru online news agency. Under the contract, the fast boats are to be delivered before year-end 2018. In addition, the manufacturer will build Project 16609 special harbor tugboats for the Russian Navy.
The Navy will conduct tests to evaluate the navigation and communications systems, life support systems, airborne weapons, as well as running and seaworthiness of the patrol boats before commissioning them into the Black Sea Fleet.
The crew of Raptor patrol boat will undergo a comprehensive and multi-level training at the Joint Training Centre of the Russian Navy in St Petersburg.
Design and features of Project 03160 patrol boat
The Project 03160 patrol boat accommodates two crew members and 22 personnel. It has maximum length of 17m, maximum width of 4m, a fixed height of 3.5m, and a depth of 0.9m. It has special cabins to house anti-terrorist groups, divers, lifeguards, inspection and rescue teams.
General characteristics – Project 03160
Schematics
Special boat – Project 03160 (var.1)
Special boat – Project 03160 (var.2)
Source russianships.info
Medical version
The boat is integrated with modern navigation systems, communications, radar and radios to provide high-navigability. The bridge is equipped with operator workstations and consoles for command and control.
Note: Some speculate that the Raptor have been deployed to Syria
Remotely operated weapon station to hold a 14.5mm machine gun Image @bastion-karpenko.ru
The boat is fitted with a remotely operated weapon station to hold a 14.5mm machine gun, as well as a gyro-stabilised, electro-optical module. The gun has a firing range of 2,000m and is used for defence against weapon systems and armoured targets. The electro-optical module provides target detection up to a range of 3,000m.
Version 2
Version 3
Specifications KPVT
Caliber: 14.5 mm
Cartridge: 14.5×114
Weight machine gun without: 52.5 kg
Overall length: 2000 mm
Barrel length: 1350 mm
Bullet muzzle velocity: 990-1000 m/sec
Effective rate of fire: 70-90 rds/min
Rate of fire: 600-650 rds/min
Sighting range: 2000 m
Ammunition belt capacity: 50 rds
7.62mm 6P41 Pecheneg machine gun is intended to engage hostile manpower, fire means and aerial targets.
The whole range of rifle cartridges is used to fire from the machine gun. The availability of gas regulator ensures the reliable operation of machine gun automatics in various operation conditions.
The high degree of commonality with the PKM machine gun and similar layout of automatics action ensure the reliability of the Pecheneg machine gun in any operating conditions.
The machine gun incorporates some design novelties aimed to increase the effectiveness of barrel cooling, which has allowed a spare barrel to be eliminated from the machine gun set.
The enhanced rigidity of the barrel, annihilation of its thermal deformation due to wind and actually the absence of thermal air flow from the heated barrel has made it possible to improve aiming conditions and increase accuracy of fire more than 2 times.
Two bracket mounts are fitted at the stern to carry a 7.62mm 6P41 Pecheneg machine gun each. The gun has an aiming range of 1,500m and a rate-of-fire between 600 and 800 rounds a minute.
Protection features of Raptor patrol boat
Armour panels fitted on the hull provide level 5 and 5A protection against bullets. The 39mm-thick bulletproof glass windows offer ballistic protection for the occupants.
Propulsion and performance
Image @bastion-karpenko.ru
Powered by a 2,000hp engine, the Raptor patrol boat can reach a top speed of approximately 50k. It can execute missions in a radius of 100 miles (160km) from its operating base.
The boat is capable of operating in coastal waters, estuaries and straits both during day and at night.
Caterpillar C18 diesels
Pella has not given out their engine of choice on their homepage, but a secondary source of uncertain value gives the engines as Caterpillar C18’s. This seems logical, as several of Pella’s tugs have been fitted with Caterpillar diesels. The C18 has a dryweight of 1950 kg, or 400 kg more weight for the pair of marine diesels.
Caterpillar C-18 Marine EngineThe stern with the water jets of the Raptor. Source: Pella JSC.
I have not found the model or manufacturer of the waterjets of the Raptor stated anywhere. However, if one looks closely at the drawings provided by Pella, it becomes very clear.
That, my dear friends, is a Rolls-Royce Kamewa A3-series water jet, most probably of the 40A3-model. Unlike the axial-flow FF-series, the A3 provides a hybrid-flow design, giving higher performance. However, another major difference is in the material.
Rolls-Royce Kamewa A3-series water jet
Roll-Royce Kamewa A3 series waterjet @maritimejournal.com
Where the FF-series is made of aluminium, the A3 is of an all-steel construction. This raises the dryweight to 850 kg apiece, with an entrained water volume of 186 litres/kg. In total, a simplified calculation of the weight of the drive package (not counting liquids, turbocharger, transmission, shaftes, …) of the Raptor gives a total weight of 5970 kg, with the corresponding value of the CB 90 being 4755 kg. This is a 25% increase in the mass of the drive train (compared to a total increase in displacement of 28%). In fact, the increase in weight of the engine and water jet accounts for roughly 24% of the total increase in displacement. Source corporalfrisk.com
TUCSON, May 27 (UPI) — Small and lethal loitering airborne systems are to be jointly developed by Raytheon and Israel’s UVision for U.S. military requirements.
The first system for the Army’s Lethal Miniature Aerial Missile Systems capability will be UVision’s Hero-30 manpack, canister-launched system, which will be modified for lethal engagement, Raytheon said.
“Raytheon and UVision will offer U.S. Army small units a new capability with a fully-developed, portable, lethal loitering system,” said Dr. Thomas Bussing, Raytheon vice president of Advanced Missile Systems. “This system significantly enhances the situational awareness and combat power of small units operating on the battlefield.”
The electric-powered Hero-30 comes in several variants. The smallest has a 30-minute endurance and features an electro-optical/infrared sensor.
“The Hero-30 plays a significant role for ground forces regardless of the operating environment,” said Noam Levitt, UVision chief executive officer. “Our partnership with Raytheon provides valuable battlefield intelligence and the capability to directly engage enemy threats when necessary.”
Man-pack portable, Hero 30 is the smallest system in the UVision family of smart loitering systems. Deployable within minutes, Hero 30 is capable of speeds of up to 100 knots and is ideal for anti-personnel missions.
Weight (kg): 3 Warhead (kg): 0.5 Range (LOS): 5, 10, 40 km Endurance (min): 30 Engine: Electrical Launch method: Canister
The Royal Thai Navy’s sole aircraft carrier HMTS Chakri Naruebet, seen here alongside in Sattahip naval base in 2013, is participating in Exercise ‘Guardian Sea’ with the US Navy from 23 to 27 May. Source: US Navy
Key Points
Navies of Thailand and the United States are conducting anti-submarine exercises in the Andaman Sea
Drills are being conducted against the backdrop of submarine proliferation in the Southeast Asian region
The USN Navy (USN) and the Royal Thai Navy (RTN) are carrying out a series of drills that includes the “most complex” anti-submarine warfare (ASW) exercise conducted between the two services to date.
The drills, which are being conducted as part of the annual bilateral naval exercise known as ‘Guardian Sea’, are being held in the Andaman Sea from 23 to 27 May. The exercise in 2016 involves a USN Los Angeles-class attack submarine, a P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol craft and the RTN’s sole aircraft carrier, the 182 m HTMS Chakri Naruebet .
Also participating from the USN is the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Stethem , the RTN’s two Chinese-made Naresuan-class frigates, HTMS Naresuan and HTMS Taksin , and an unspecified number of S-70B naval helicopters, according to information provided to IHS Jane’s on 25 May.
“Guardian Sea provides our navies the opportunity and challenge of detecting and tracking submarines, and to practice procedures related to anti-submarine warfare,” said Capt H. B. Le, commodore of the USN’s destroyer, Squadron Seven , in a statement on the bilateral drills.
“This year’s exercise will be the most complex to date and we look forward to working alongside the Royal Thai Navy ashore and at sea to improve our skills and enhance our interoperability,” he added.
Exercise ‘Guardian Sea’ in 2016 will also feature a shore phase with seminars and exchanges between subject-matter experts from both navies.
เรือฟริเกตชุด ร.ล.นเรศวร ทั้งสองลำคือ ร.ล.นเรศวร(421) และ ร.ล.ตากสิน(422) FFG-421 HTMS Naresuan and FFG-422 HTMS Taksinเรือดำน้ำโจมตีพลังงานนิวเคลียร์ SSN-711 USS San Franciscoฮ.ปด.๑ SH-60B กองการบินทหารเรือ และ ร.ล.จักรีนฤเบศร(911) CVH-911 HTMS Chakri Naruebet and SH-60B Royal Thai NavyRoyal Thai Navy FFG-421 HTMS Naresuan, FFG-422 HTMS Taksin and US Navy DDG-63 USS StethemSH-60B Royal Thai Navy carrying a Mark 46 lightweight torpedo(training torpedo)
China will send nuclear weapons to patrol the South China Sea amid rising tensions with the U.S. over the disputed region, the Guardian reported Thursday. The area has become a point of contention between the U.S. and China, as Beijing claims it has sovereignty over the zone. The U.S. says the area is in international waters until competing land claims from neighboring countries are resolved.
Beijing is expected to send submarines equipped with nuclear missiles to patrol the region after working on the technology for ballistic missile submarines for nearly three decades. However, Chinese military authorities did not say when exactly these nuclear patrols would begin.
“Because China’s SSBNs [nuclear missile submarines] are in the South China Sea, the U.S. navy will try to send spy ships in there and get close to the SSBNs. China’s navy hates that and will try to push them away,” Wu Riqiang, an associate professor at the School of International Studies at the Renmin University in Beijing, told the Guardian.
China has submitted a vast land claim over the region and sought to bolster that claim by building artificial islands in the South China Sea, including the Spratly Islands. While the islands are small and mostly unpopulated, they sit in the middle of popular trade routes and could also contain precious natural resources. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei, have also submitted competing claims over some part of the region.
The U.S. has accused China of militarizing the zone, and the U.S. military sent ships to sail through part of the South China Sea that Beijing claims as its own as a way to insist that the region is in international waters. The announcement of the planned use of nuclear-armed submarines came little over a week after two Chinese fighter jets nearly collided with a U.S. military reconnaissance aircraft in the region.
Actually they have been doing that for sometime now from what I read! So I guess this news is just blowing more hot air since China gave the US the ultimatum of war!
It seems the Chinese Type 096 are already in operation so it means only one thing either China is making this up or that it is so good that the US haven’t been able to track it!
“Wall Street Journal’s report on China’s strategic nuclear marines shows widespread ignorance of China’s military capabilities, especially China’s nuclear submarines” – Dire US Ignorance of China’s Advanced Strategic Nuclear Submarines – posted Aug 29, 2014. (See below)
Type 098 is said to be already in development
Type 098 Nuclear SubmarineType 098 Nuclear Submarine
Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said that ministry plans to renew the production of Mi-14 Haze nuclear-capable amphibious anti-submarine helicopters.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Russian Defense Ministry plans to renew the production of Mi-14 Haze nuclear-capable amphibious anti-submarine helicopters, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said Thursday.
“Yes, work is already being done in regard to this issue,” Borisov told RIA Novosti at the HeliRussia-2016 exposition in Moscow.
The production of the Mi-14s was halted in 1980 and were removed from service in 1996 apparently under US pressure.
In order to produce a replacement for a large numbers of Mi-4 Hounds in Soviet naval service, a version of the Mi-8 Hip with a boat-like hull was developed as the Mi-14 Haze. The prototype of the series, designated V-14, flew for the first time in 1973, to be followed by the initial production Mi-14PL Haze-A anti-submarine warfare helicopter. It was adopted in 1975. Production of the Mi-14 ceased in 1986. However in 2015 it was announced that there are plans to restart production of this amphibious helicopter.
Improvements incorporated during production included more powerful engines and the switching of the tail rotor from the starboard to the port side for increased controllability. The Mi-14 can land and taxi on water. It can also take off from water.
The Mi-14PLM (Haze-A) helicopter has revised equipment which includes a repositioned MAD system.
The final production Haze variant was the Mi-14PS (Haze-C) SAR helicopter. Built primarily for the Russian naval aviation, The Mi-14PS was also exported to Poland. Polish designation of this helicopter is Mi-14PW.
2 x TV3-117 turboshaft engines
Mil Mi-14PL ‘Haze-A’
Entered service
1975
Crew
2 – 3 men
Dimensions and weight
Length
25.23 m
Main rotor diameter
21.29 m
Height
6.93 m
Weight (empty)
8.9 t
Weight (maximum take off)
14 t
Engines and performance
Engines
2 x TV3-117A / TV3-117MT turboshaft engines
Engine power
2 x 1 700 / 1 923 hp
Maximum speed
230 km/h
Service ceiling
4 km
Range
925 km
Armament
Torpedoes
1 x AT-1 or APR-2
Bombs
1 x nuclear depth bomb or 8 x depth charges in place of torpedoes
May 26, 2016, 06:15:00 AM EDT By Dow Jones Business News
SEOUL—General Electric Co. has clinched a deal to supply engines for South Korea’s next-generation fighter jets.
The U.S. conglomerate beat Eurojet Turbo GmbH, a European engine maker, to provide the F414-GE-400 engines, South Korea’sDefense Acquisition Program Administration said Thursday. A final contract will be signed next month, it said.
The agency didn’t disclose the deal value, but a person familiar with the matter estimated it at $3.5 billion.
Korea officially launched the KF-X project early last year with plans to develop its own fighter jet by 2025, but it pushed back the target date because of a dispute with the U.S. over the transfer of key technology. It now plans to deploy 120 fighter jets by 2032.
A consortium of Korea Aerospace Industries, the country’s sole military aircraft maker, and its technology-support partner, Lockheed Martin Corp., is leading the project.
Officials at Seoul’s arms-procurement agency said they would develop, acquire or localize all technologies needed for the project, but concerns remain over whether they can do so because Washington is reluctant to allow Lockheed to transfer key technologies related to radar and other core components.
As for the jet engines, Korea will initially purchase them from GE, which will later transfer the technology to local arms manufacturer Hanwha Thales Co. for production, the officials said.
Israel’s Rafael Advanced Systems looks set to win the Indian Army’s short-range surface-to-air missile (SRSAM) contest with its Spyder system . According to the Economic Times, the Spyder seems poised to win after offerings from Sweden’s Saab and Russia’s Rosoboronexport failed to comply with the Army’s requirements during technical trials. The competition has been running for five years.
Defense Industry Daily
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Israel beats Sweden and Russia to become the frontrunner in Indian Army’s quest for air defence system
MAY 25, 2016, 01.02 PM
The Indian Army has posed a requirement for a fast reaction air defence cover against enemy aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles, and the probable solution has been found in the form of Israeli Spyder system, which has emerged as the frontrunner in this quest.
It was in 2011 that the Indian Army had started a short-range surface-to-air missile (SRSAM) programme, and it is now nearing final selection, for a contract valued at over Rs 18,000 crore.
As per sources, the Israeli Spyder system, which has been manufactured by Rafael Advanced Systems, has come up as the frontrunner, given that its competitors, SAAB (Sweden) and Rosoboronexport (Russia), were not able to perform during technical trials that the Indian Army carried out last year.
This could mean a possible go ahead for the Israeli system to reach the the opening of the price bid, which is the next stage of procurement.
The winning company would need to transfer the technology to India, so that the system can be locally manufactured.
The Indian Air Force has already ordered Spyder, which has been inducted to protect sensitive air fields along the border.
Talking of ‘Make in India,’ the Indian Army has already ordered the Indian-made Akash SAM systems, however, these have been assigned the task of protecting static or defensive units, given that they carry limited mobility and take a larger reaction time to an incoming attack.
Anyway, the SRSAM project was launched with a ‘global buy’ clause, so that the Indian private industry could also be given a chance to invest in it. As per sources, the project is valued at close to Rs 6,000 crore and would need investment from joint ventures and production facilities in India. Source businessinsider.in
AN/SPG-62 RADAR
Image @repubblica.it
Image @orientalreview.org
Image @portphillippublishing.com.au
Image @repubblica.it
Project 03160 “Raptor”. Picture from Pella Shipyard.
Image: hisutton.com
Remotely operated weapon station to hold a 14.5mm machine gun Image @bastion-karpenko.ru
7.62mm 6P41 Pecheneg machine gun Image @bastion-karpenko.ru
Image @bastion-karpenko.ru
Caterpillar C-18 Marine Engine
The stern with the water jets of the Raptor. Source: Pella JSC.
Roll-Royce Kamewa A3 series waterjet @maritimejournal.com
The Royal Thai Navy’s sole aircraft carrier HMTS Chakri Naruebet, seen here alongside in Sattahip naval base in 2013, is participating in Exercise ‘Guardian Sea’ with the US Navy from 23 to 27 May. Source: US Navy
เรือฟริเกตชุด ร.ล.นเรศวร ทั้งสองลำคือ ร.ล.นเรศวร(421) และ ร.ล.ตากสิน(422)
เรือดำน้ำโจมตีพลังงานนิวเคลียร์ SSN-711 USS San Francisco
ฮ.ปด.๑ SH-60B กองการบินทหารเรือ และ ร.ล.จักรีนฤเบศร(911)
Royal Thai Navy FFG-421 HTMS Naresuan, FFG-422 HTMS Taksin and US Navy DDG-63 USS Stethem
SH-60B Royal Thai Navy carrying a Mark 46 lightweight torpedo(training torpedo)
Type 098 Nuclear Submarine
Type 098 Nuclear Submarine
Type 094 Jin class nuclear submarine
2 x TV3-117 turboshaft engines
Thai Military and Asian Region