Navy Wants Rail Guns to Fight Ballistic and Supersonic Missiles Says RFI

Fighting ballistic missiles, stealthy targets, swarmed surface and supersonic threats are high on the Pentagon’s wish list for its future electromagnetic rail gun, according to a request for information (RFI) for a rail gun fire control systems from Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) that posted in Dec. 22 but was quickly taken down.

The RFI for rail gun fire control systems was pulled because it posted earlier than intended due to a clerical error, NAVSEA officials told USNI News on Monday. The final announcement will repost on FedBizOpps later this month.

Regardless, the rescinded RFI — issued by NAVSEA on behalf of Directed Energy and Electric Weapons Program Office (PMS 405), the Office of Naval Research (ONR) and the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) — gives major hints in how the U.S. wants to employ future rail guns.

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Lithuania receives Polish shoulder-fired air defense missiles

Lithuania's Ministry of National Defense has added Polish-made shoulder-launched anti-aircraft missiles to its air defense missile inventory.

The short-range man-portable missiles, or MANPADS, are the GROM, a 72mm weapon with an operational range of about 3.4 miles and an infrared guidance system.

The first batch of missiles and launchers, provided by Poland's MESKO S.A., were delivered late last month under a contract worth more than $30 million, the ministry said.

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Navy to Set Up UCLASS Introduction Team

A team tasked with smoothing the introduction of future carrier-based unmanned aerial system into the fleet will be established later this year.

The Unmanned Carrier-Launched Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) Fleet Introduction Team (FIT) is scheduled for establishment at Naval Air Station Point Mugu, Calif., on Oct. 1.

According to a Navy directive, the team will plan the effort to establish the initial and full operational capability of the UCLASS and determine the “squadron requirements for manpower, training, maintenance, logistics, carrier integration, optimized fleet response plan, information technology, interoperability, security and budget” for the system. The team also will “determine infrastructure and base operating requirements.”

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Spending chief welcomes fighter jet milestone

Contracts for the first batch of fighter jets for the Royal Navy’s new aircraft carriers have been hailed as a key milestone by the Ministry of Defence’s spending chief.

Bernard Gray, the Chief of Defence Materiel, said the military is on target for operational capability on land and at sea with the aircraft.

It comes after the MoD signed the contract for the first 14 jets, some of which will fly from HMS Queen Elizabeth when she is based in Portsmouth.

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USS Nimitz coming to Bremerton on Tuesday

The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz will arrive Tuesday at Naval Base Kitsap-Bremerton for a 16-month planned maintenance period at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility.

Nimitz's homeport will be shifted from Naval Station Everett to Bremerton during the stay so the ship's crew can move their families here.

Bremerton Mayor Patty Lent sees advantages to the shift for the families and city.

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Venerable C-1s and A-4s Being Upgraded for Brazilian Carrier

The Brazilian Navy is proceeding with a project to refurbish four venerable Grumman C-1A Trader carrier-onboard delivery (COD) aircraft, despite initial problems in returning the 50-year-old aircraft to service.

Elbit Systems recently announced that M7 Aerospace, its wholly owned U.S. subsidiary based in San Antonio, Texas, would perform the upgrade, which includes the addition of air tanking capability.

The Brazilian Navy will use the aircraft to resupply its aircraft carrier, the NAe São Paulo, and for in-flight refueling of its forthcoming fleet of refurbished A-4 Skyhawk combat aircraft.

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No final decision on 2 more US-made Perry-class frigates

The Ministry of National Defense (MND) yesterday said it has not yet made a decision on whether to buy all four Perry-class frigates the U.S. has offered to Taiwan, pending a review on the nation's defensive needs.

During a Legislative interpellation session, Defense Minister Yen Ming (嚴明) said the ministry has already been in talks with its U.S. counterparts in preparation for receiving the two of the four frigates that are still in active service with the U.S.

The ministry will be sending a group of military personnel to the U.S. soon to check the other two ships, one already decommissioned, another soon to be decommissioned.

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Kauffman deploys Wednesday, the last frigate cruise

The frigate Kauffman will depart on its final deployment Wednesday.

It will be the last deployment for an Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate.

While there have been 51 frigates of the Oliver Hazard Perry class, the Navy has reduced that number to single digits. Lawmakers and Navy leaders, faced with diminishing budgets, made the decision to sell most frigates to foreign navies as the ships' hulls hit their three-decade lifespan.

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South Australian shipbuilding criticises Japanese Government submarine plan

Australian industry would be involved in the construction of the navy’s new submarines but Japan would be responsible for assembling the boats, under a proposal reportedly floated by the Japanese Government.

Proponents of South Australian shipbuilding yesterday criticised the plan, dismissing it as a “con of a compromise”.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government had proposed that Japan and Australia jointly develop the Future Submarines, Japan’s Mainichi Shimbun newspaper reported.

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Boeing, U.S. Air Force Achieve Successful First Test Flight for KC-46 Tanker Program

Boeing and the U.S. Air Force successfully completed the first flight of the KC-46 tanker test program today.

The plane, a Boeing 767-2C, took off from Paine Field, Wash., at 9:29 a.m. (PST) and landed three hours and 32 minutes later at Boeing Field.

The aircraft will receive its military systems following certification.

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IMP Aerospace Delivers First Interim Beyond Line Of Sight (IBLOS) CP-140M Aurora Aircraft to the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF)

IMP Aerospace delivered the first of three CP-140M Aurora fitted with an advanced Beyond Line of Sight (BLOS) satellite communications system on schedule and under budget today approximately a month after its arrival.

Participation at the delivery ceremony included the Commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force, Lieutenant General Yvan Blondin, as well as Director Air Requirements, Colonel Ian Lightbody, and 14 Wing Commander Iain Huddleston.

The prototype CP-140M Aurora aircraft will provide an improved Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) capability in support of Canada’s military requirements internationally.

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Iran Shows Off Deceptive Missile Drone, Home-made Torpedo And Coast-To-Sea Cruise Missiles

Iran made world's first drone equipped with a deceptive system that enables it to escape missiles by flying at a maximum altitude of 8,000 metres, hiding from laser optics and evading infrared light at night.

The drone is also capable of self-disintegration, destroying its own parts when landing in a hostile and unfamiliar territory is inevitable.

Iran's Sarallah drone can surmount technical problems during flights with its safety system that enables it to land in a secure location in just a matter of 40 minutes, flying at 160 kilometres per hour. Without the safety system, the drone can fly non-stop an hour after it detects technical problems.

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Elbit wins MoD contract to maintain all of the IAF's F-16 fighter jets

The Ministry of Defense awarded Elbit Systems an 11-year contract to maintain all of the Israel Air Force’s F-16 squadrons, the defense company announced Sunday.

According to terms of the $90 million contract, Elbit will establish a national maintenance center that will look after all the onboard avionics of the IAF’s F-16 A/Bs (Netz), F-16 C/Ds (Barak) and F-16Is (Sufa).

All of the planes’ systems, except the body and engine, will be maintained under the contract, an Elbit spokeswoman said.

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Navy safety boss grapples with '14 spike in aviation mishaps

Fresh off its safest year on record, the Navy saw its manned aviation Class A mishaps — the most serious type of mishap — more than triple

Manned aviation experienced only four Class A mishaps in fiscal 2013, a rate of 0.48 mishaps per 100,000 flight hours. But there were 14 Class A mishaps — those involving a fatality, permanent total disability or upwards of $2 million in damage — in fiscal 2014, according to official summaries.

The head of the Naval Safety Center isn't sounding the alarm yet, noting that "one year, a trend does not make."

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China To Build More Warship Destroyers In 2015 As It Enhances Nuclear Submarine Fleet By 2020

China is working to build more warship destroyers in 2015, the Want China Times reported, citing Fujian-based Quanzhou Evening News. A massive number of Type 052 destroyers, China will particularly build a Type 052C ship and seven more Type 052D ships.

The Type 052C, a guided-missile destroyer, resembles the US Navy's Arleigh Burke-class destroyer. China launched on Dec 22 the Jinan, one of six Type 052C destroyers meant to accompany the Liaoning, China's first aircraft carrier.

Apart from the Type 052C, China also has five other Type 052D destroyers, according to the PLA Navy. Known as the "Chinese Aegis," these destroyers are equipped with an "active electronically scanned array multi-function phased array radar system," Want China Times said.

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MoD’s warship promises face public scrutiny

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) yesterday attempted to quash reports that it has missed the deadline to order the building of 13 warships.

Defence secretary Michael Fallon was adamant as recently as November last year that the Type 26 Global Combat frigates would be built by BAE Systems on the Clyde.

Fallon was forced to confirm that the boats would be built in Scotland after Sir George Zambellas, head of the Royal Navy, told a publication in the US that the £4bn contract could be awarded abroad rather than staying within Britain.

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Thailand’s Military Once Again Eyes Submarine Fleet

Thailand’s Military backed Government may look to procure two or three submarines as part of an increased 2016 defense budget, finally giving the country a capability it has lacked for more than sixty years, The Bangkok Post reported Friday.

According to a source from Thailand’s defense ministry, the Royal Thai Navy (RTN) is expected to propose the procurement of two to three submarines in the 2016 budget, with the country’s Defense Minister Retired Gen Prawit Wongsuwon already backing the plan in principle pending cost considerations.

The navy has been considering submarines from various sources, but the South Korean Chang Bogo Class submarine is reportedly the least expensive at around $330 million each.

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Nigerian Navy Takes Delivery Of New Warship 'NNS Okpanana'

The Nigerian Navy (NN) on Friday took delivery of a new warship called “NNS Okpanana”, as part of its efforts to tackle maritime related challenges.

Receiving the vessel in Lagos, the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Usman Jibrin, said the addition of the vessel would boost the navy’s war against maritime crimes.

According to him, Okpanana was the second of the Hamilton class of cutters to join the NN fleet between 2014 and 2014.

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PLA's Type 096 submarine can carry 24 missiles

China's new Type 096 Tang-class ballistic missile submarine, thought to be in development, may become a serious threat to the United States in the Western Pacific as it is estimated to be able to carry 24 missiles, according to the Russian Military Analyst based in Moscow.

The article China's Nuclear Potential published on Dec. 30 said that it will still take decades for China to establish sufficient second-strike capability.

However, China has taken much less time to develop its nuclear arsenal than most Western observers had previously expected, though the People's Liberation Army Air Force still relies on H-6K bombers and Q-5 attackers for nuclear strike capability.

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Taiwan Kicks Off Domestic Attack Sub Program

After waiting on the U.S. to make good on plans to develop a diesel electric attack submarine (SSK) for almost 15 years, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence announced it was kicking off its own domestic attack submarine construction program this week, the agency told Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan.

Defense officials told the legislative body preparation work would begin this year starting with a modest $315,000 start into a $94.46 million four-year effort, beginning in earnest in 2016.

The planned result would be around four SSKs to replace the island’s current boats — two Dutch-built, 1980s vintage 2,600-ton Hai-lang-class SSKs and two World War II era U.S. Guppy-class boats used for training.

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China May Have Started Construction of Next Generation Destroyer Type 055 for the PLAN

A picture has just emerged on the Chinese internet showing that construction of the first Type 055 destroyer may have started. The Type 055 guided missile destroyer is the next generation destroyer designed for the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN or Chinese Navy).

According to Chinese sources, the picture was taken last week at the Changxing Jiangnan shipyard (member of CSSC - China State Shipbuilding Corporation) near Shanghai. It shows a sign with the mention "Commencement Ceremony for the Construction of 055 destroyer number 1".

Such ceremonies are common practice in Chinese naval shipyards and should the picture be authentic, this would indicate that construction of the first Type 055 destroyer has indeed just started with the first cut of steel ceremony.

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France hopeful of $6-billion Maitri missile project

With the Indo-French $6 billion surface-to-air missile systems project in doldrums, France is hoping that new government's push for "Make in India" will lead to inking of the long delayed deal.

France remains hopeful of signing the deal even though Indian armed forces are sceptical about the missile since indigenously developed Akash is in play.

Titled Maitri, the project for joint development and production between India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and France's MBDA, was initiated in 2007 and a MoU to co-develop the surface-to-air missile (SRSAM) was signed during French President Francois Hollande's visit to India in February last year.

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Iran Test-Fires Shalamcheh Ground-to-Air Missiles in Wargame

The Iranian Air Defense Force equipped its entire launchers, stationed at the areas where a large-scale military exercise is being held, with the indigenous ‘Shalamcheh’ missiles.

The home-grown ground-to-air missiles were mounted on the whole Air Defense launchers across the wargame zone as part of tactical measures to boost the air defense forces' capability to arm the launchers in the shortest time and hit the mock enemy’s aircraft.

The “Muhammad Rasulullah” (Muhammad, the messenger of God) wargame, which began on Thursday with the participation of different Army units, resumed this morning in south and southeastern Iran.

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‘Nuke trains’ with up to 30 Yars missiles rolling out from 2018 – Russian defense source

A Russian military source outlined the capabilities of Barguzin strategic missile train. The country may roll out five such disguised mobile launch platforms each carrying six RS-24 Yars missiles in five years.

A ‘nuclear train’ – properly called BZhRK, short for ‘combat railway missile complex’ in Russian – is a mobile platform for transporting and launching strategic nuclear missiles.

Similarly to nuclear submarines, such trains are hard to wipe out in a preemptive strike because of their mobility and ability to be disguised as regular freight trains.

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No transfer of US frigates to Turkey due to political concerns

The US Congress has approved the transfer of six frigates being decommissioned by the US Navy to Taiwan and Mexico, but an expected transfer of ships to Turkey was not even part of the bill this year due to concerns about Turkish political developments.

After the US House of Representatives passed a bill approving the transfer of the frigates on April 7, on Dec. 19 the Senate “finally” approved the ships' transfer, according to a story by the US weekly Defense News.

“The 2012 version of the Naval Transfer Act, containing a number of ships for Turkey, also failed, largely due to concerns in Congress about Turkish political policies,” reported Defense News.

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