Russian NATO envoy to discuss Iranian missiles in Tehran

ussia's ambassador to NATO announced on Friday plans to travel to Iran later this month to discuss its ballistic missile program and the U.S.-led missile shield in Europe.

NATO's defense plan received a boost on Friday after Turkey joined the ambitious scheme, aimed at countering missile threats from Iran.

Russia has agreed to cooperate on the plan, but warned it may strengthen its own defenses if it is not made a full partner in the U.S.-led shield.

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From Russia with love: PAK FA’s debut makes Washington ponder

Russia’s fifth generation fighter, the PAK FA, will enter service by 2015, according to Russian Air Force Commander-in-Chief Colonel General Alexander Zelin speaking earlier this week, Defence Talk reports.

Almost simultaneously, in 2016, the US will put into service two new fighter versions: the F-35A for the Air Force and the F-35C for the Navy.

For the United States, this means that it must at any cost implement its plan to manufacturing the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

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PAF to acquire air defense radars

The Philippine Air Force will acquire at least three air defense radars during the term of President Aquino to boost its capabilities in securing the country’s territory.

Air Force spokesman Lt. Col. Miguel Okol said the radars would be used to protect the country’s airspace.

“We are looking at two to three radars. These may be placed in traditional areas like La Union or Mindoro or possibly in the West Philippine Sea,” Okol told The STAR in a telephone interview yesterday.

He said they are still estimating the cost of the radars. Officials have yet to finalize the details of the acquisition plan.

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Obama moves to sell Northrop drones to South Korea

The Obama administration has begun consulting Congress on plans to sell remotely piloted Global Hawk surveillance planes to South Korea, which came close to all-out war with North Korea last year, two people familiar with the matter said.

Among those briefed have been the Senate's and House of Representatives' foreign affairs committees, which have jurisdiction over arms sales, the people familiar with the matter said.

There was no immediate word on when formal notification of a proposed sale might take place, nor on the potential overall value.

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Russia to lease nuclear submarine to India

Russia will provide a leased Nerpa nuclear submarine to the Indian Navy this month, the Russian Navy General Staff said Friday.

According to a navy spokesman, Indian crew and Russian instructors have fully completed the submarine's tests.

India paid Russia 650 million U.S. dollars for the 10-year lease of the submarine which would be renamed to Chakra, reported Interfax news agency.

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The U.S. Army has awarded AeroVironment a contract worth almost $5 million for the first deliveries of Switchblade agile munition, the company announced today.

The contract was awarded two month ago, on June 29, 2011, culminating a selection process for a loitering light weight munition.

The procurement is part of the Army’s rapid fielding initiative. The U.S. Army Close Combat Weapons Systems (CCWS), Program Executive Office Missiles and Space (PEO MS) is the awarding office.

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US Plans Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Test on International Day of Peace

In 1981, the United Nations General Assembly created an annual International Day of Peace to take place on the opening day of the regular sessions of the General Assembly.

The purpose of the day is for “commemorating and strengthening the ideals of peace both within and among all nations and peoples.”

Twenty years later, in 2001, the General Assembly, desiring to draw attention to the objectives of the International Day of Peace, gave the day a fixed date on which it would be held each year: September 21st.

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Bulava missiles to be put into service in 2012

Russia’s Bulava submarine-launched intercontinental ballistic missiles may be put into service in 2012, Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov told reporters on Thursday.

Earlier, it was reported that the Bulava missiles and the Yuri Dolgoruky nuclear-powered submarine will be put into before the end of this year.

Last week saw the Bulava’s successful launch from the Yuri Dolgoruky submarine based in the White Sea.

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Test of new U.S. interceptor missile results in failure

A modernized version of the SM-3 missile has failed to intercept a ballistic missile target during a test over the Pacific Ocean, the U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) said.

A Standard Missile 3 (SM-3) Block 1B interceptor missile was launched on Monday from the cruiser USS Lake Erie (CG-70) to intercept a short-range ballistic missile target launched from the U.S. Navy's Pacific Missile Range Facility on the island of Kauai.

"This was the first flight test of the advanced SM-3 Block 1B interceptor missile," the agency said in a statement. "Program officials will conduct an extensive investigation to determine the cause of the failure to intercept."

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Lockheed F-35 Fighter Has ‘Design Flaw’ in Wing Part, Pentagon Tester Says

Two of three models of Lockheed Martin Corp.’s F-35 jet have a “design flaw” that reduces the expected life of a wing structure to 1,200 hours, which is “significantly less than” the expected 8,000 hours, according to the U.S. Defense Department’s testing office.

The “defective” aluminum beam was detected in November on Air Force and Marine Corps test aircraft after an unrelated bulkhead crack surfaced in the Marine Corps model, the office said. The Air Force plans to buy 1,763 of the 2,443 total in the $382 billion U.S. program, the Marines 371.

The flawed part is the forward root rib, an aluminum beam at the forward-inboard corner of the wing that supports a fuselage fairing panel on the Joint Strike Fighter’s leading edge flap, according to Lockheed.

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China’s new military ‘transparency’

When DoD’s top man on China, Michael Schiffer, rolled out this year’s China report not too long ago, he renewed a familiar American criticism: Beijing isn’t open and transparent about what weapons it’s building, and that ultimately is bad for everyone, because it forces the U.S. and commanders around the Western Pacific to assume the worst.

Sometimes this criticism gets taken a little too far, as when the State Department was widely mocked in August when it asked “why” China wanted its new aircraft carrier, the Shi Lang.

But fundamentally, transparency is a good thing for everyone, and it’s worth pointing out that anyone in the world can bring up almost any detail you can imagine about American ships, aircraft or weapons with a few mouse clicks. Doing anything about that information in a tactical situation is a whole other matter.

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Turkey to Station U.S. Radar to Counter Iranian Rockets

Turkey has agreed to station a high-powered U.S. radar on its territory as part of a missile defense system to protect NATO allies from the threat of long-range Iranian rockets.

The deal for Turkey to host the so-called X-Band radar at one of its military bases accelerates deployment of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization-backed early warning system.

The deal could also ratchet up tensions between Turkey and Iran, which sees the system as a threat.

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Cat's'n'traps a costly addition to suit F-35 variants

A report by the UK’s National Audit Office (NAO) has listed some risks arising from the decision by UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) to switch its Joint Strike Fighter selection from the F-35B STOVL (short takeoff and vertical landing) version to the F-35C carrier version.

The decision was part of a defence review that delayed the in-service date of one of two new aircraft carriers to which the MoD was already fully committed, until 2018.

The other new carrier will be kept in reserve or sold.

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Bath Iron Works sends newest destroyer to military service

The newest Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer built at Bath Iron Works cruised down the Kennebec River on Thursday to fanfare that has been uncommon in recent memory.

It has been many years since BIW installed a land-level transfer facility and dry dock that pushed into history the days when the ships slid down slanted ways from the shipyard to the water.

While BIW still holds christening ceremonies for every ship, several people at a first-of-its-kind ceremony Thursday at Maine Maritime Museum remarked that they miss the drama of 500-foot ships hitting water for the first time.

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Russia begins trials of stealth frigate for Indian Navy

Russia on Thursday commenced sea trials of the India Navy's first of the three advanced stealth frigates in the Baltic Sea and the first of these warships will be delivered by early next year.

'Teg', the frigate of the Project 11356, also known as Talwar Class, is first of the three frigates ordered by the Indian Navy in 2006 under a 1.5 billion dollar deal with Russia.

India Navy already operates three of these stealth frigates and had ordered three more to bolster its fleet.

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Raytheon wins $569M contract to supply missiles, related items

Tucson-based Raytheon Missile Systems has won a $569 million Air Force contract to provide Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) missiles and related items, the Defense Department said Wednesday.

The contract pays for current fiscal year production of 234 AMRAAM AIM-120D missiles, the latest version; and 203 AIM-120C7 missiles for foreign military sales. The contract also includes related items including test missiles, warranties, parts, software and support services.

The AMRAAM AIM-120D is the latest in a 20-year-old series of air-to-air missiles. The all-weather weapon provides an array of improvements, including an enhanced data link, improved navigation and guidance.

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Navy ready to let Wrens serve in subs

The ban on women serving in Royal Navy submarines is set to be lifted after medical experts told the Ministry of Defence wrens face no more danger on boats than their male colleagues.

The News has learnt the MoD has changed its long-held stance on not allowing women to serve beneath the waves due to supposed health risks after researchers at the Gosport-based Institute of Naval Medicine found levels of carbon dioxide on subs are suitable for both males and females.

The equality issue has been under review at the MoD for two years and a decision is expected soon.

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Russia successfully completes tests of nuclear submarine

All tests for the fourth-generation strategic nuclear submarine Yuri Dolgoruky have successfully completed, officials of the submarine's producer Sevmash shipyard said Thursday.

During the five-day sail on the open sea, the submarine's crew also successfully tested the launch of the new Bulava intercontinental ballistic missile from underwater last Saturday.

The Bulava, expected to become Russia's main naval strategic missile, is capable of carrying 10 warheads to a range of 8,000 km.

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Patria to provide Finland with NH90 ballistic protection

The Finnish Defence Forces and Patria have signed an agreement on ballistic protection for NH90 helicopters. Patria will design and manufacture protective equipment for NH90 helicopters, which can be installed when operations so require.

Ballistic protection shields both pilots and transported personnel during airlifts by the Army's NH90 helicopters.

"The ballistic protection project is a prime example of how Patria's expertise and design knowledge gained during the assembly of NH90 helicopters can be used to improve the NH90 fleet's performance, while ensuring that the fleet can be used in all security situations", comments Lassi Matikainen, President of Patria Aviation.

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Enter the Dragon As The Fourth Type 45 Arrives In Portsmouth

DRAGON, the fourth Type 45 anti-air warfare destroyer built by BAE Systems for the Royal Navy, has arrived in Portsmouth Naval Base, where she will be handed over to the Ministry of Defence (MOD) at a ceremony today.

Members of the ship’s company will raise the white ensign for the first time onboard DRAGON, as the Head of Destroyers, Commodore Stephen Braham, formally accepts the destroyer on behalf of the MOD in Portsmouth, where she joins her sister ships HMS DARING, HMS DAUNTLESS and HMS DIAMOND.

Paul Rafferty, Type 45 Programme Director at BAE Systems’ Surface Ships business, said: “DRAGON is the most advanced Type 45 destroyer delivered to date.

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Lightning Strikes Twice: Two F-35s Arrive at Eglin Air Force Base

Two Lockheed Martin F-35As, AF-10 and AF-11, along with two F-16 chase aircraft, are poised for takeoff to Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., Wednesday morning.

They officially arrived at the base at 1:19 p.m. CDT today.

On Friday, the F-35 Joint Program Office authorized a return to flight operations for F-35 production aircraft.

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Taiwan sets sights beyond US weapons

The chances that Taiwan will get its hands on a fresh supply of United States-made advanced weaponry now seem more remote than ever.

To all appearances, the administration of President Barack Obama has made up its mind, stalling meaningful weapons sales and acquiescing authoritarian China to absorb the democratic island for the sake of smooth US-China relations.

The Taiwanese, though, are light-years away from wholeheartedly embracing cross-strait unification.

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China's aircraft carrier succeeds in maiden sea trials

China says the maiden sea trial of the country's refitted aircraft carrier has attained its objectives.

National Defense Ministry spokesperson Yang Yujun said at a press briefing on Wednesday that the carrier has returned to the shipyard, and all systems were operating as normal.

The vessel, former Soviet aircraft carrier Varyag, has been totally refitted for its new role as a research and training platform for the Chinese military.

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Brazil releases funds to develop surface to surface missile system for the Army

The Brazilian government gave a clear signal Monday that is intends to advance in the consolidation of a defense industry in the country. A decree signed by President Dilma Rousseff releases 45 million Real in funds for the launching of the Astros Project 2020 to equip the Brazilian army.

The project with a total value of almost 1.1 billion Real provides for the acquisition of the most advanced surface to surface missile launch system developed in Brazil. The Astros 2020 is an evolved version of the Astros II, the best selling product manufactured by Avibras Aerospace.

Exported to many countries the Astros (Artillery SaTuration ROcket System) is considered a market-leader among the small and highly competitive group of manufacturers of such systems.

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Iron Dome system deployed in Ashdod

A day before the beginning of the school year, the Air Force began deploying parts of the Iron Dome missile defense system near the city of Ashdod, in preparation for its final operational deployment.

IDF confirmed that the deployment of the battery has begun, but refrained from giving details as to its exact location.

Defense Minister Ehud Barak, who announced Monday that the battery will be stationed in Ashdod within 10 days, lauded Chief of Staff Major-General Benny Gantz and the security establishment for successfully deploying a third Iron Dome battery ahead of schedule.

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