A Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey went down in southern Morocco earlier today killing two and injuring two American troops, Reuters is reporting.
The aircraft was in Morocco for the annual African Lion exercise that focuses on joint training between American troops and African counterparts.
Source: Defense Tech
Wow, look wh0 turns 60 on Sunday. Yup, April 15 marks the 60th anniversary of the first flight of the nation’s ubiquitous B-52 Stratofortress bomber.
On April 15, 1952 legendary Boeing test pilot Alvin “Tex” Johnson brought the XB-52 (shown above) prototype aloft for the first time, six years after the company was awarded the contract to develop the plane by the ARMY Air Force and two years before it entered service with the newly independent Air Force. Think about this, 60 years before the B-52’s first flight, airplanes didn’t exist. Remember, the Air Force’s newest B-52 just turned 50.
(The Air Force fact sheet on the aircraft incorrectly lists its initial operational capability date as 1952. The B-52 entered limited service in 1954.)
Read up on the history of the B-52’s development. It took nearly ten years of fits, starts and redesigns to get the revolutionary and long-lasting jet bomber into service. It may give you some perspective whenever you get frustrated with how long it’s taking to field the current crop of next-generation weapons like the new long-range bomber.
Here’s what Air Force Global Strike Command, the 21st Century successor to the legendary Strategic Air Command, has to say about the incredible milestone that its BUFFs have reached.
Air Force Global Strike Command will commemorate the 60th anniversary of the first flight of the B-52 Stratofortress on April 15, 1952. This flight was made by the YB-52 prototype in Seattle.
Air Force Global Strike Command will commemorate the airframe’s anniversary with events centered around the theme: “The B-52: An Icon of American Airpower.”
During the celebratory campaign, AFGSC will recognize the heritage and accomplishments of the B-52 and the people — both past and present — responsible for the development, acquisition, operation, maintenance and security of the weapon system.
The B-52’s long and rich heritage is illustrated by stories of families who have up to three generations of Airmen who worked on the B-52, such as 1st Lt. Daniel Welch, a B-52 co-pilot at Minot. Welch is a third-generation crew member on the airframe.
According to Welch, his grandfather flew every B-52 model and commanded Welch’s current squadron at Minot, the 23rd Bomb Squadron. Welch’s father was also a B-52 crew member during his time in the Air Force.
Through the course of the year, the Command will highlight the history of deterrence and combat capabilities the B-52 has provided through its distinguished career, in conflicts from Vietnam to Operation Enduring Freedom.
Some accomplishments to be highlighted throughout the year include:
April 15, 1952 - The first flight of the YB-52 Stratofortress will be commemorated with a long-duration flight from AFGSC Headquarters at Barksdale.
May 10 through Oct. 23, 1972 - Operation Linebacker — Linebacker was the first continuous bombing effort conducted against North Vietnam since the bombing halt instituted by President Lyndon B. Johnson in November 1968.
June 18, 1965 - Operation Arc Light — The first use of the B-52D Stratofortress as a conventional bomber from bases in the U.S. to Guam to support ground combat operations in Vietnam.
Aug. 2, 1994 - B-52’s first round-the-world bombing mission.
Oct. 26, 1962 - Strategic Air Command received the last B-52 from production line
Dec. 18 through 29, 1972 - Operation Linebacker II — This operation saw the largest heavy bomber strikes launched by the U.S. Air Force since the end of World War II.
Source: Defense Tech
Well, the Army wants to replace its 117-strong fleet of C-12 Huron twin turboprop planes that it uses for everything from ISR to light cargo hauling.
Wait a second, you say; didn’t the Army just pass a big effort to buy a fleet of twin turboprop transport planes to the Air Force only to see the boys in blue abandon that program? Yes indeed. But that program was aimed at replacing the Army’s C-23 Sherpa mid-sized airlifter with the C-27J Joint Cargo Aircraft, you know, the tactical hauler the Army wanted to use to provide on-deman resupply to remote bases in Afghanistan.
The Army is now kicking off an effort to replace the Hawker Beechraft King Air-based C-12 with something similar that can perform similar duties as the C-12. Remember, the civilian-looking Huron’s have often been converted into spy planes outiftted with a ton of signals (SIGINT) and imagery intelligence collection tools. (The pic above shows the one of the Army’s RC-12N Guardrail spy planes from a while ago.) Heck, the Air Force even uses the MC-12 Liberty variant as a type of manned UAV, providing ISR overwatch to troops on the ground.
It will be interesting to see if the Army goes for something in the same size category as the C-12 or opts for a bigger airframe capable of replacing its relatively small Sherpa fleet and performing the wide-ranging duties of the C-12.
Source: Defense Tech
Here’s our quick mention of the North Korean Rocket fail — that made everyone angry — yesterday. Yup, the big, what turned out to be an almost non-event that everyone’s been obsessing over and will now promptly forget. (but, wait, you know someone’s going to start raising whether the failiure of the long-ragen rocket aimed at putting a “communications satellite” on orbit was due to western sabotage.) Ok, wow, enough about the DPRK’s damn rocket already.
Now to talk about some rockets that actually pose a threat. NATO yesterday said it blew up 5,000-shoulder-fired surface to air missiles (called Man-Portable Air Defense Systems; MANPADS. I love that ridiculous acronym, btw) that were rounded up after the fall of Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi last year.
That’s all well and good, but those were only a quarter of the 20,000 or so shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles that Gadhafi’s military had stockpiled around the country. We’ve written about this potential insurgent treaasure trove for a while now and just last month we saw that some of Gadhafi’s most advanced MANPADs have made their way into the hands of Levantine bad boys Hezbollah and Hamas. Remember, Gadhafi’s loose SAM stockpiles don’t just include ancient Soviet-made SA-7s that can barely find a target, they include the Russian-built SA-24 Grinch, one of the newest and most advanced shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles out there.
Now it appears that the Krazy Kolonel’s missiles and other weapons are making their way accross Africa and they may even be fueling violence everywhere from Mali to the waters off Somalia. In fact, Somali pirates may even be using naval mines looted from Gadhafi’s old bases!
Per Reuters:
“We found that Libyan weapons are being sold in what is the world’s biggest black market for illegal gun smugglers, and Somali pirates are among those buying from sellers in Sierra Leone, Liberia and other countries,” said Judith van der Merwe, of the Algiers-based African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism.
“We believe our information is credible and know that some of the pirates have acquired ship mines, as well as Stinger and other shoulder-held missile launchers,” Van der Merwe told Reuters on the sidelines of an Indian Ocean naval conference.
I’m sure no on needs to be reminded of what a terrorist hiding near the flight path of a major airport could do with an SA-24.
Source: Defense Tech
Here you have it, the Pentagon’s annual 30-year aviation plan.
Click through the jump to read all about how the Defense Department plans on buying two new VC-25 presidential transports (Air Force One) by the end of this decade, kicking off an effort to replace the ancient T-38 Talon around 2018, new bombers and a fleet of more than 600 UAVs by 2022. Most interestingly, the plan lists an effort to develop a 6th-generation fighter, dubbed F-X, to replace the Air Force’s F-22 Raptors and another 6th-gen jet called F/A-XX that’s slated to replace the Navy’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. (H/t to Marcus for pointing this out.)
All in all the document shows that the Pentagon’s aviation fleet will grow slightly from 14,340 aircraft today to 14,415 by 2022, with aviation spending totaling about $770 billion during that time.
Via Bloomberg.
Source: Defense Tech
Yup, the Air Force is moving to buy a brand new pair of big jets for the president. Well, whomever is president at the end of the decade, anyway.
We mentioned (tweeted) this last September when Air Force Secretary Michael Donley mentioned that the service will look at buying a new presidential transport in the next decade. The Air Force has been looking to do this for a while now, but in light of numerous acquisition priorities and difficulties it faced with them (think the CSAR-X, KC-X and next-gen bomber. Oh, don’t forget the Marines’ cancelled VXX presidential helo program.) in the last decade, the effort never really got of the ground.
Apparently, the service outlines its intent to buy two new airliters to replace the iconic Boeing 747-based VC-25s that began carrying the president in 1990 and 1991. Remember, their Boeing 707 predecessors served from the early 1960s until the 1990 as the president’s airplane, so this timeframe for replacement makes sense. One of the biggest reasons for replacing the current VC-25s is their lack of power compared to newer versions of the 747 (c’mon, you know the next Air Force One is going to be made in the USA).
From Defense News:
Current and former military sources have said power demands are straining the two quad-engine jetliners due to the aircraft’s extensive communications equipment and other systems. Newer Boeing aircraft feature engines with thousands of pounds of more thrust than those on the current Air Force One aircraft.
The inclusion of a VC-25 replacement in the aviation plan comes at an interesting time, since recapitalization of Air Force One is typically directed by a president in a second term.
George W. Bush’s administration had tried to get the ball rolling on Air Force One and Marine One helicopter recapitalization before the end of his second term in the White House.
Barack Obama is up for re-election in November and, particularly during recent government bailouts of shaky corporations, has been highly critical of executive use of corporate jets.
Shortly after Obama took office in 2009, then-Defense Secretary Robert Gates canceled the helicopter effort following a severe spike in costs attributed to the piling on of White House-mandated requirements.
The Marine One replacement effort has been restarted though a program called V-XX, but is not supposed to begin operating until 2023, according to the 30-year aviation plan.
Following Obama’s harsh corporate jets comments, the Air Force put the VC-25 recapitalization plan on hiatus, with internal plans of replacing the current aircraft later this decade, according to the current and former military sources.
Since then, the service has been conducting low-level research and development of Air Force One-type systems, without identifying a specific airframe, these sources said.
Boeing has expressed interest in pitching its new, larger 747–8 as an Air Force One replacement. In September 2011, EADS North America said a VC-25 replacement did not fit its U.S. business model.
Since Boeing will likely be the only bidder in the competition, the Air Force has considered requesting bids for the integration work of sophisticated communications equipment.
Source: Defense Tech
No, this isn’t tech related but it’s damned interesting and important. Our sister site Line of Departure just posted this guest piece by Michael Yon detailing his efforts to determine the status of the only American POW in Taliban custody, Sgt. Bowie Bergdahl.
We’re publishing this here because its important not to forget about Bergdahl, captured while on a foot patrol in June 2009, as America starts thinking of how to leave Afghanistan.
Anyway, Yon’s post indicates that Berghdal may be in good health several months after he is rumored to have made an escape attempt.
Here’s an excerpt from Yon’s post.
Numerous times I have asked the Taliban to allow me to visit Bowe. In each case, the Taliban have declined by citing security issues.
It has been said that I am negotiating with the Taliban for Bowe’s release. This is untrue. I have asked only to visit. Nothing more.
This morning, I received two emails from the account of Zabihullah Mujahid, a high-level Taliban spokesman in regard to Bowe Bergdahl:
===Begin Taliban message===
dont worry , we are not like Americans who are doing to bad with their presnors in their preson , may be you remember or not the lady who was in our preson b4 and then she became muslim . it was because of good behaviour of our comanders . He is safe and have good health and sorry for this to say that we will invite you to see him becase of some security reasons .
But I asure you that he is happy and have good health . our holy prophet (Hazrat muhammad ) pbuh teach us how to deal with presnors . so once again dont worry abut him , and my reqards and about his health to his family .
be safe.===End Taliban message===
Click here t0 read more.
Source: Defense Tech
Well, it’s Monday. To start things off nice and easy, let’s start with this video of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter refueling from a KC-135 at night for the first time. Welcome back to work, everyone.
Click through the jump for the video.
Source: Defense Tech
In case you haven’t seen it yet, here’s the video of the Coast Guard yesterday sinking a derelict Japanese fishing trawler that’s been adrift since the tsunami that devastated Japan last year. The 164-foot long Ryou Un Maru was sitting in a Japanese port waiting to be scrapped last year when the tsunami pushed it out to sea. In the months since, the unmanned, unpowered ghost ship drifted to within 180 southwest of the Alaskan town of Sitka. Rather than letting the ship run aground closer to shore or risk a collision with other vessells the Coast Guard decided to sink her with the badass Mk 38 25 MM chain gun of an Island class cutter.
Click through the jump for the video.
Source: Defense Tech
No, this picture doesn’t show a black and white image of the rebel base on the ice planet Hoth. It’s part of a secret, nuclear-powered U.S. Army base that was built under the Greenland ice cap only 800 miles from the North Pole. The base was officially built to conduct scientific research but the real reason was apparently to test out the feasibility of burying nuclear missiles below the ice under an effort known as Project Iceworm. Remember, Greenland is way closer to Russia than the ICBM fields located in the continental U.S. Rumor has it that the Danish government had no idea that the U.S. was considering installing nuclear missiles on Greenland.
The 200-man base was massive , described by some as an underground city, and consisted of 21 steel-arch covered trenches; the longest of which was 1,100-feet long, 26-feet wide and 26-feet high. These tunnels contained numerous prefabricated buildings that were up to 76-feet long. The base was powered by a portable PM-2A nuclear reactor that produced two megawatts of power for the facility.
In all, the base featured:
Living quarters, a kitchen and mess hall, latrines and showers, a recreation hall and theater, a library and hobby shops, a dispensary, operating room and a ten bed infirmary, a laundry facility, a post exchange, scientific labs, a cold storage warehouse, storage tanks, a communications center, equipment and maintenance shops, supply rooms and storage areas, a nuclear power plant, a standby diesel-electric power plant, administrative buildings, utility buildings, a chapel and a barbershop.
The base operated from 1959 to 1966 when shifting icecap made living there impossible. Today, it’s buried and crushed beneath the Arctic snows.
Click through the jump to see more pictures of the base and to watch a great video on its construction. The last photo shows a map of the base’s location in Greenland.
Source: Defense Tech
