Tuesday, 31 December 2019

Japan takes first steps towards refurbishment of JMSDF destroyer Izumo

sixfeeetunder (flickr)

 Japan takes first steps towards refurbishment of JMSDF destroyer Izumo - Naval News: 

 Japan's Ministry of Defense (MoD) has announced in its FY2020 defense budget that it will invest 3.1 billion yen (approximately US $ 28.3 million) to refurbish the destroyer Izumo which is the largest vessel in Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF).
Yoshihiro Inaba  30 Dec 2019

 The purpose of this refurbishment is to give Izumo the operational capabilities of the state-of-the-art STOVL fighter jet, the F-35B.

 To begin with, Izumo has been designed to operate the F-35B from the design stage. For example, Izumo’s aircraft elevators are designed to fit the size of the F-35B and to withstand its weight.

 As such, the refurbishment, which has been budgeted this time, is intended to complete those capabilities that were originally provided to operate the F-35B.

 Specifically, it is assumed that the flight deck will be heat-treated to withstand the high-temperature exhaust heat that the F-35B blows out upon landing, and that the CIWS fitted at the bow might be relocated to another location.

 The refurbishment will be phased in during the scheduled repairs of Izumo after 2020, and will probably be done at the Japan Marine United (JMU) facility in Yokohama.........read rest of article
Japan Confirms F-35B Acquisition
Officials Admit Japan's 'Helicopter Destroyers' Were Also Designed For Jets

Izumo-Class Helicopter Destroyer: Details
F-35 Lightning II: Details
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Chinese navy's Weibo 人民 海军 account confirms ground attack cruise missile on the destroyer Type 055



East Pendulum on Twitter: "Le compte Weibo 人民海军 de la marine chinoise confirme l’existence du missile de croisière d’attaque au sol sur le destroyer Type 055. Ce missile devrait être une variante de YJ-18. https://t.co/RVCEbqCNgw" / Twitter

 Chinese navy's Weibo 人民 海军 account confirms the existence of the ground attack cruise missile on the destroyer Type 055. This missile should be a variant of YJ-18

Warships launched in 2019
龙龑之

China’s new Type 055 destroyer among best in the world: experts
Type 055 destroyer ‘pillar’ of North China Sea fleet: report
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China Navy 71st 056 Corvette launch today Dec 30, 2019

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Monday, 30 December 2019

The big problem: what's wrong with the Su-57 fighter

Sputnik

 The big problem: what's wrong with the Su-57 fighter - Hi-Tech Mail.ru: 

 Translated by google

 Russia lost the first production Su-57 fighter, why did it happen?

 Promising Russian fifth-generation fighter Su-57, which produces the Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Plant (KnAAZ) named after Yu.A. Gagarin, who produces this aircraft, crashed on December 24   in the taiga 111 kilometers from Dzemgi airfield. The pilot managed to eject - he was not injured, and he was already discharged from the hospital.

 According to sources, the cause of the disaster  was the  failure of the tail control system. The plane spontaneously entered a steep descending spiral at an altitude of 8 km, the pilot did not manage to level it. 

 Is there any serious problem behind the fall of pride in the domestic aviation industry? Military expert Vladislav Murygin said that the accident was a regular situation, from which "no car is safe", recalling similar incidents with the American F-22 and F-35. However, before that, US experts spoke out on the underfunding of the Russian fighter.

 The American publication The National Interest believes that the Russian Ministry of Defense will not purchase a fifth-generation Su-57 fighter in large quantities. Despite the fact that journalists call the Russian aircraft “beautiful” and “a rock star in the world of armaments,” the fighter is too expensive for mass production and purchase.

 The National Interest  does not name the  exact or approximate cost of the new aircraft. Presumably, the price of the Su-57 can be compared with the American F-35 - about $ 100-110 million for one fighter. 

 Aviation expert Vadim Lukashevich, who worked at the Sukhoi Design Bureau in the late 80s,  refused the  Su-57 the right to be considered a fifth-generation fighter. The device has high maneuverability, but it still has not received the engines of the second stage (“Product 30”), which would allow it to move at supersonic speed in the afterburner mode. Indicators of stealth aircraft also do not correspond to the level of the fifth generation.

 The attitude to the Su-57 was probably influenced by the economic situation. The development of the aircraft and its testing were carried out under other circumstances. Now Russia will have to cut its military budget, and the Su-57 may simply not fit in there. In addition, in 2018, India ceased to cooperate with Russia, which planned to get a fifth-generation fighter based on the Su-57. As a result, the plane lost some of the funding.

 Last fall, the head of the State Duma commission on legal support of the Russian military-industrial complex, Vladimir Gutenev, said in an interview that Russia would not buy Su-57 for its airborne forces. At the same time, Gutenev noted that the new aircraft has "excellent export potential."

The Russia`s Su-57 Fighter Jet is a "Criminal" - NATO
MAKS 2019: Russia unveils export variant of Su-57
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"Photos from the JF-17 block Ⅲ first flight show the prototype features wide field HUD and MAWS.

dafeng cao

 dafeng cao on Twitter: "Photos from the JF-17 block Ⅲ first flight show the prototype features wide field HUD and MAWS. https://t.co/D3dCO3K5U2" / Twitter

dafeng cao
dafeng cao

 オーロラ−E型HUD，J−20用HUD，JF−17 BLOCK 3はこのモデルの改良モデルを用いた。
Aurora borealis − E type HUD, J − HUD, JF for 20 − 17 BLOCK 3 used an improved version of this model.

桜小路才華
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Saturday, 28 December 2019

Shipyard in St. Petersburg floats out Project 636.3 diesel-electric sub for Russian Navy

admship.ru

 Shipyard in St. Petersburg floats out Project 636.3 diesel-electric sub for Russian Navy - Military & Defense - TASS: 

 The Project 636.3 sub will join the Pacific Fleet’s Primorye Flotilla of All-Arms Forces

 ST. PETERSBURG, December 26. /TASS/. The Admiralty Shipyard in St. Petersburg in Russia’s northwest has floated out the Project 636.3 diesel-electric submarine Volkhov for the Russian Navy.

 "The submarines of this series have proven more than once their capabilities in combat conditions and confirmed their performance characteristics," Shipyard CEO Alexander Buzakov said at the launch ceremony.

 Commander of the Pacific Fleet’s Primorye Flotilla of All-Arms Forces Vladimir Yakushev also thanked the Shipyard’s personnel. "Your labor helps increase the Navy’s might <…> The crews are ready for the combat employment and operation of these submarines," he stated.

 The Project 636.3 sub will join the Pacific Fleet’s Primorye Flotilla of All-Arms Forces.

 Overall, the Admiralty Shipyard (part of Russia’s United Shipbuilding Corporation) will build six Project 636.3 submarines for the Pacific Fleet. The first of them, the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, entered service with the Fleet in November.

 The Admiralty Shipyard earlier built a series of six Project 636.3 submarines for the Black Sea Fleet. All of Project 636.3 submarines are armed with Kalibr-PL cruise missiles. The submarines of this Project built for the Black Sea Fleet earlier delivered missile strikes against terrorist targets in Syria from the Mediterranean Sea.

 The Russian Navy Command is also considering building Project 636.3 diesel-electric submarines for the Baltic Fleet, sources in the shipbuilding industry earlier told TASS. The Admiralty chief executive said in December that the Shipyard expected to sign the relevant contract in 2020 and start implementing it in 2021.

 Project 636.3 submarines (NATO reporting name: Improved Kilo-II) are 74 meters long and displace more than 3,900 tonnes. Due to its strong hull, the submarine has an operational depth of 240 meters and can dive to a maximum depth of 300 meters. Submarines of this Project have an operational range of up to 7,500 miles. They are armed with Kalibr-PL cruise missiles that are launched from torpedo tubes from the sub’s submerged position.

 Project 636 submarines are considered among the world’s most noiseless underwater cruisers. They can develop a speed of up to 20 knots, have their sea endurance of 45 days and a crew of 52 men.

russianships.info


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Lockheed Martin awarded F-16 upgrade contract

NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization @flickr

 Lockheed Martin awarded F-16 upgrade contract | News | ekathimerini.com: 

 Greece will pay Lockheed Martin Corporation $279 million to upgrade the country’s fleet of F-16 fighter jets, state-run Athens-Macedonia news agency reported Friday.

 The Security of Supply and Information (SSI) Agreement was signed Tuesday between the General Directorate for Defense Investments and Armaments (GDDIA) and the US company on Tuesday. The deal was recently approved by Greece’s Parliament.

 The upgrade, which will expand the operational capability of Greek F-16s, is expected to be completed by 2027.
Lockheed Martin awarded a $997 million contract for upgrades of 84 F-16 aircraft to the V-configuration from Greece

Greece approves F-16 fighter jet upgrade deal with the United States

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China tested a missile capable of reaching anywhere in the United States

JL-2 submarine-launched ballistic missile

 China tested a missile capable of reaching anywhere in the United States: 

 BEIJING, (BM) – A submarine of the Navy of the People’s Liberation Army of China has tested a ballistic missile, which can reach anywhere in the United States. This was reported by The Washington Post, citing a source in the Pentagon, learned BulgarianMilitary.com.

 The latest JL-3 rocket was tested from a Jin-class nuclear-powered submarine from Bohai Bay (northwestern Yellow Sea) on Sunday, December 22. The start was recorded by American intelligence satellites, which tracked the missile throughout the flight in a westerly direction.

 Other launch details are not reported. The publication indicates that the tests were conducted against the backdrop of reports that US intelligence expects the launch of long-range missiles in the DPRK.

 In November last year, China successfully conducted the first test of a ballistic missile submarine (SLBM) Julong-3 (JL-3). The projectile was created on the basis of an intercontinental ballistic missile ground-based DF-41. It is compared with the American Trident II D-5 missile and the Russian P-30 Bulava-30. The maximum range of SLBMs is 14 thousand kilometers.
Ju Lang 3 (Giant Wave 3)
china-arms.com

The Ju Lang 3 (Giant Wave 3), or JL-3 for short, is a new Chinese submarine-launched intercontinental ballistic missile, which is currently being developed. The first test launch occurred in 2018. Though China's authorities have not publicly confirmed the test. It is planned that the JL-3 missiles will be carried by the new China's Type 096 ballistic missile submarines. Some sources report that these submarines are being constructed already and should begin sea trials in the early 2020s.

    The JL-3 is a solid-fuel missile. Most likely that it has broadly similar dimensions as the previous JL-2.

    It has an estimated range of over 9 000 km. It is a considerable range extension over the previous JL-2 missile, that is currently carried by China's Type 094 (Western reporting name Jin class) ballistic missile submarines. Such range allows the Chinese boats to hold US territory within missile range, while operating from Chinese costal waters. This range is also sufficient to reach all areas of Europe, India, and Russia.

    There is no reliable information on warhead of this missile. It is possible that this missile carries either a single 250-1 000 kT warhead, or a couple of low-yield Multiple Independent Re-entry Vehicles (MIRVs).

    The JL-3 has astro-inertial navigation system with indigenous Chinese BeiDou satellite navigation system update. So the new missile is pretty accurate. Its CEP should be no more than 100 m.

    This missile astro-inertial  navigation system with indigenous Chinese BeiDou satellite navigation system. It is estimated that this missiles has a CEP of less than 100 m.

    Once China has been attacked, these submarine-launched missiles have a high probability of surviving the first strike. Once on high alert the submarines can leave their bases and operate in China's coastal water, protected by the China's fleet. Source: military-today.com
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Navy Buys Three MQ-4 Tritons, Pays For Growler Jamming Upgrade Development - USNI News

US Navy - cropped

 Navy Buys Three MQ-4 Tritons, Pays For Growler Jamming Upgrade Development - USNI News: 

 The Navy awarded Northrop Grumman a pair of contracts worth nearly $287 million to buy unmanned surveillance aircraft and to develop upgraded tactical jamming capabilities on manned aircraft.

 The Navy announced the contracts just before Christmas.

 The Navy awarded Northrop Grumman a $251.6 million contract modification to build three low-rate initial production MQ-4 Triton reconnaissance aircraft. The aircraft are massive for unmanned aerial vehicles – wingspan of 130.9 feet and length of 47.6 feet, according to a Naval Air Systems Command fact sheet.

 The Navy planned for the Triton to reach initial operational capability in 2021, according to a presentation made by NAVAIR officials during the Navy League’s 2018 Sea Air Space Exposition. The first squadron deployed to Guam in September, reported Breaking Defense.

 In September 2018, one of the Navy’s MQ-4 Tritons crashed.

 The Navy also awarded Northrop Grumman a $35.2 million to develop upgrades for the tactical jamming capabilities on EA-18G Growler aircraft.

 “The AN/ALQ-218 tactical jamming receiver is designed to provide a high probability of intercept under “look-through” operations – a meshing of jamming and listening,” according to Northrop Grumman.

 Northrop Grumman is developing an upgrade to the AN/ALQ-218 system to it can both support enemy radar threat jamming and allow for direction finding and geo-location, parameter measurement and intentional modulation-on-pulse detection, according to Northrop Grumman.

 “Improved connectivity and linked displays are the primary design features implemented to reduce the operator workload,” according to a specifications list by the Pentagon’s office of the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation, DOT&E.

 Northrop Grumman expects to finish installing the upgraded equipment by May 2022.

 Northrop Grumman is already in the middle of developing the Next Generation Jammer – Low Band or NGJ-LB to replace the ALQ-99 Tactical Jamming System on Growlers. The old ALQ-99 equipment on Growlers dates back to the EA-6B Prowler aircraft.

 This effort will likely cost about $1 billion when it is completed.


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Thursday, 26 December 2019

Next two Virginia-class subs to be named for Pearl Harbor heroes

milpower.org

 Next two Virginia-class subs to be named for Pearl Harbor heroes - UPI.com: 

 The first two Block V Virginia-class submarines will be named for the USS Arizona and USS Oklahoma and the 1,600 sailors who died when the vessels were sunk during the Pearl Harbor attack on Dec. 7, 1941.

 ByStephen Feller

 Dec. 24 (UPI) -- The acting secretary of the Navy this week announced that the next two Virginia-class submarines -- the first two of Block V of the class -- will be named for the sailors who during the Pearl Harbor attack.

 The USS Arizona and USS Oklahoma, currently referred to as SSN-802 and SSN-803, will be named for the USS Arizona and USS Oklahoma that were sunk in the Dec. 7, 1941, attack and the roughly 1,600 sailors who died on them, the Navy said on Tuesday.

 "It's an honor that the U.S. Navy will carry our state's values and history around the world," U.S. Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., said in a statement. "It has been more than 100 years since the Battleship Oklahoma was commissioned and proudly served."

 The decision brings the names back into active-duty service more than 75 years after the two vessels were in use.

 "It is my fondest wish that the citizens of the great states of Arizona and Oklahoma understand and celebrate our Navy's desire to memorialize the 1,177 heroes who perished on USS Arizona (BB-39) and the 429 more in USS Oklahoma (BB-37) in Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941," Thomas Modly, acting secretary of the Navy, said in a statement.

 The new Arizona and Oklahoma will be the first two in Block V of the Virginia-class submarine program, which have been named about a month after the Navy awarded a $22.2 billion contract to General Dynamics Electric Boat for first nine vessels of the block.


Newport News Shipbuilding Division Delivers Virginia-Class Submarine Delaware (SSN 791) to US Navy
Navy, Shipbuilders Working On Final Details Of Block V Virginia-Class Submarine Deal
Huntington Ingalls Completes Initial Sea Trials of Virginia-Class Submarine Delaware
General Dynamics Wins Extra $346.5 Million to Upgrade, Redesign Virginia Class Submarines

Virginia class attack submarine: Details
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Boeing awarded $400M contract for B-1, B-52 engineering services

MilitaryPorn @imgur.com

 Boeing awarded $400M contract for B-1, B-52 engineering services - UPI.com: 

 ByStephen Feller

 Dec. 24 (UPI) -- Boeing has been awarded a $400 million contract by the U.S. Air Force for engineering work on two of the United States' three strategic bomber aircraft.

 The deal, announced Tuesday by the Department of Defense, covers recurring and non-recurring engineering services on the B-1 Lancer and B-52 Stratofortress long-range bombers.

 Work under the new deal will be performed at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma, Edwards Air Force Base in California, Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana and at other locations in Oklahoma City, Okla.

 Boeing has previously been awarded the service contract, including one covering work in 2019 that the company received roughly one year ago. The new contract runs through Dec. 31, 2020.

 Boeing, in April, was awarded a $14 billion contract for modernization and sustainment work on the both the B-1 and B-52 over the next decade, upgrades which are meant to increase lethality, enhance survivability, improve supportability and increase responsiveness.

 The two aircraft, with the B-2 Spirit, often referred to as the stealth bomber, form the U.S. military's trio of long-range strategic bombing aircraft.

 B-1 Lancer deliveries to the Air Force started in 1986, with it entering service as a nuclear bomber. In the early 1990s, as the B-2 program started to mature -- it reached initial operational capacity in 1997 -- the Lancer was redesignated as a conventional bombing platform. The B-1 fleet is expected to remain in use through 2036.

 The B-52 Stratofortress has been in service with the Air Force since 1955, dropping conventional bombs for most of that time. In June, however, the Air Force test launched a hypersonic missile from the aircraft for the first time, which is expected to stay in use through 2050.
Repair work on extending life of B-1 Lancer nears completion
Aging B-1 Bomber May Soon Have to Restrict the Way it Flies
Air Force Bomber Plan: B-2, B-52 & B-1 to Fly into 2040
USAF may retire B-1s to free funds for B-21 Raider
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