Details remain scarce at the moment, but news reports and the photos above purportedly show an Islamic State attack on an Egyptian Navy ship off the coast of Rafah. The Islamic State has been extremely active near and on the Sinai Peninsula, with a massive string of coordinated attacks occurring just weeks ago leaving over 100 dead.
Well this has always been the nightmare scenario for the USN/USMC.
Big deck amphibs and carriers transit the Suez Canal and if they're able to do rocket attacks on the Egyptian Navy then lobbing a few dozen RPGs into the side of one of our ships will be no problem.
If those RPGs are the latest anti-armor model...and if the primitives have even the slightest bit of common sense then the damage potential is .... shocking.
The junior varsity is trying real hard to move up a rung. I wonder if the White House and State Dept are paying attention.
It should be obvious to all that the F-35 is dead meat in a dogfight.
Additionally it should be obvious that unless a major breakthrough is achieved in our missile technology, that even the mighty F-22 will be fighting at a disadvantage against numerically superior foes.
Connor’s focus in the paper isn’t on getting into the nuances of the CUDA/SACM’s capabilities, but the higher performance of the CUDA concept indicated by the data is supported by his observations within the text as well:
The main characteristics of the new missile technology examined in our research include hit-to-kill technology in which the missile uses a kinetic warhead to attack the target, agility in that the missile’s guidance, propulsion, and control surfaces allow it to maneuver more flexibly towards a target, and a smaller size allowing each fighter to carry more missiles. These new weapons have the potential for dramatically changing the range of possible tactics and mission roles allowed. (p.1) And…
Tactics best suited to the new missile are ones that maintain BVR to take advantage of the increased engagement ranges and possibly combined tactics that allow the flexible maneuvering characteristics of the new missiles to engage enemy aircraft at angles that the enemy aircraft will be unable to counter. (p.102) There’s a lot of other ‘food for thought’ on many air combat topics in the paper. Connor was meticulous in documenting what he could of the methodology that he used including the limitations, ground-rules and assumptions. There’s also some excellent sources listed for further reading in the list of references.
So there you have it.
The stealth zealots in the USAF are betting the farm not on the failed F-35....they're quietly betting it all on the F-35's payload.
A new wonder missile that will sweep the skies of enemy fighters while being 25% faster and longer ranged than the missile we currently have in service?
Payloads over platforms except that in this case the platform is breaking the bank.
What I will be interested in finding out is how will this affect LEGACY aircraft? If a F-35 can carry 12, then a Super Hornet will be able to carry twice as many! What about the Typhoon and the Rafael?
Long story short?
Planes that are fast, high flying, carry big AESA array's are super maneuverable and have great range will still (in my opinion) have the advantage over the F-35.
Pacific Command released the above photo of MV-22's getting ready to take off and I was wondering what the hell are all those yellow shirts huddled around?
Missed it? Check out the pic below...
There it is again but highlighted.
Its a deck plate to protect the deck. Personally I thought that the issue with the MV-22 over heating decks had been positively solved...but to see another work around? Just wow. I did a little digging and NAVAIR has some pics (below)...
What I'm curious about is how this system works in high seas or bad weather....how many sailors are diverted to take care of this task....if it slows down the tempo of operations.
I use this to point out a larger issue with the F-35.
We shouldn't be fooled. The current testing is a pencil whip affair. The outcome is already determined and they will declare IOC for the F-35. But how many more workarounds can we accept from supposedly high tech gear?
Singapore is the closest thing Asia has to an economic barometer. Its highly open, trade-reliant economy usually signals when trouble is approaching the global stage. And at the moment, Singapore is flashing clear warning signs. The city-state's gross domestic product plunged 4.6 percent last quarter, a downturn almost certainly triggered by China. Singapore's plight may mark a dangerous inflection point not just for Asia, but for the entire global economy.
So lets see.
We lifted sanctions off Iran, a known sponsor of terrorism, but they remain for Russia. Meanwhile everyone is ignoring the economy killing Chinese woes and the US/Europe continue to stagger along.
Poor economic conditions at home HAVE continuously been a source for leaders to invent outside threats to attack to rally their citizens.
If you thought things were a little less dangerous because of the questionable Iranian nuke deal then you're wrong.
People are being dazzled by bullshit while the world teeters.
The above video showed up in my news feed and it makes me wonder. Are we seeing the groundwork being laid for increased NATO activity in Ukraine?
Yeah...I get it...NATO Channel has been "pimping" the case for more US involvement in the conflict (at least in my opinion), but when you add the comments that US generals have made, along with the Iranian nuclear treaty being signed and it makes me think that this is the next thing on the State Dept's agenda.
You have an assembly of US Navy amphibious ships hovering 100 miles off shore. Marines are already in the process of landing to take out anti-ship missiles with the "vaunted Company Landing Team" concept.
They miss over half of them....some of the MV-22's never made it to shore having been taken out by anti-air complexes ashore but planners are still confident because the rest of the ASM's have been neutralized and what remains will be targeted by cruise missiles.
What they didn't know was that the biggest bad was on trucks, extremely mobile and was aimed at the task force offshore.
10 of the trucks launched at the same time and the YJ-18's streaked to the LHDs, LPDs, and MLPs at supersonic speed. The three Burke class destroyers opened up as soon as launch was detected but a combination of high speed and the ability to maneuver at up to 10g's means that they were only successful at killing three of the 10 missiles incoming. Close in Weapon Systems technically killed another 5....but it was a victory that no one celebrated. The missiles were moving at over Mach 2 so the debris of the missiles continued on into the amphibs.
The amphibs were the combination of two Marine Expeditionary Units with two MLPs activated for the mission. The Chinese were cunning. They targeted the two LHDs and the LPDs. They ignored the MLPs and LSDs entirely.
Two of the missiles that remained intact struck the USS America at the waterline. 1000 Marines died or were presumed dead. The Marine Air Component lost all of its Harriers, most of its CH-53's, AH-1Zs, UH-1s and half of its MV-22s. The USS Bonhomme Richard faced the same fate. Who knew that a broken missile flying at supersonic speed could be so destructive? The USS New York was trashed beyond recognition and the San Antonio was already limping to Hawaii.
The YJ-18. A missile I thought was vaporware and Chinese fanboy fiction is real. Via Defence Blog.
In China spotted new YJ-18 coastal defence missile system based on the chassis 8×8. The YingJi-18 (YJ-18 or Eagle/Hawk-18) is a vertically-launched, long-range, supersonic, anti-ship missile The system is designed for the destruction of various surface ships from an enemy’s landing squadrons, convoys, carrier strike groups, as well as single vessels and land-based radiocontrast targets in conditions of intensive fire and electronic countermeasures. After the vertical launch the missile’s turbojet engine is capable of flying at a cruise speed of Mach 0.8 for about 180 kilometers after that point the warhead section separates and a solid rocket engine ignites allowing at a top speed of Mach 2.5-3 for about 40 kilometers. The missile can maneuver at 10G acceleration to avoid enemy interception by air-to-air or surface-air missiles.The missile design and performance is very similar to Russia’s 3M54E which may have been the template for the YJ-18.
Someone wake me when this nightmare is over.
While we deal in triviality, our enemies are getting stronger. At this rate, surrender before a shot is fired will be the only logical course of action.
The Royal Marine recruiting commercial has a lesson for the USMC. After a sprint thru the woods, after crossing obstacles and navigating a trench...when you reach the other side...and before you continue....YOU MUST COMPOSE YOURSELF!
That's exactly what the USMC has been through with the F-35. A sprint, obstacles, and now it must compose itself before it makes the foolish mistake of declaring IOC.
There are several reasons why this move could backfire to detriment of the Marine Corps for several generations....
1. Reputation.
Soldiers will never admit it. SOCOM absolutely fucking hates it, but the reality is that when it comes to military virtue, the USMC is the leader of the pack. That reputation has been built on the sacrifice of many, on the leadership of a few and its been protected by all that have worn the uniform. How will the public react if the USMC declares a plane operational when every news organization on the planet will be calling us liars? You can't spin it. People will see that the Marines are just like everyone else. The Corps can't afford to let that happen. The US Army can be ordinary. The Marine Corps must remain extraordinary!
2. The Law.
This one is fuzzy. It appears the USMC, Program Office, Pentagon and Lockheed Martin have all conspired to find a "hole" in the law. One thing is clear. An airplane cannot be put into full rate production without completing several requirements. A stable design being one of them. All system operational is another. Its obvious that this was intended to prevent the services from buying gear and then "fixing it" once it was in service. By declaring IOC this year the Marine Corps is violating the spirit if not the actual letter of the law. That's not the type of ground that the Marines should be willing to cross.
3. Budgets.
This is the big beast in the room. Putting an airplane into service before its ready could wreck the budget in ways that will make it impossible to recover from. We must not make the financial trainwreck that the USMC is facing worse. Now is a time to preserve the Corps, not take foolish risks to put forward pet ideas.
In summation, the F-35B might deliver what the ORIGINAL architects of the Marine Corps portion of the program wanted. A STOVL jet that would provide the speed of the F-18 with the vertical landing of the Harrier....but until we're sure we should stop playing the USAF card of deep strike, first day of war fighter. Stop tweaking the Navy by talking about LHD's replacing carriers.
Stay in your lane Marines. Don't over sell. Don't over commit. But do deliver.
That means delaying IOC till 2019. After the plane is ready.....if it truly can be made ready that is....
NOTE: Lockheed Martin's behavior with the ACV project cannot be over looked. This company is bordering on criminal organization. A full audit should be conducted. I would bet body parts that just like their dealings with Patria, we will find evidence of waste, fraud and abuse rampant in the F-35 program.
