Posted on 12/23/2008 7:30:52 PM PST by Free ThinkerNY
One of first the first decisions of US defence that the President-elect will face in office will be whether or not to continue funding for the futuristic Airborne Laser weapons programme.
The system aims to send an invisible, ultra-powerful laser beam from aircraft hundreds of miles from their targets, and could one day alter the nature of aerial warfare.
Primarily designed to strike enemy missile silos, the US Missile Defence Agency has called the ABL the answer to "rogue states" or terror groups equipped with intercontinental ballistic missiles.
The first, very limited, test firing was staged in late November. The laser was loaded on to a Boeing 747 and fired from a stationary plane at a target on the ground just a few yards away.
But already 12 years in the making and way over budget at $4.3 billion (£2.9 billion), developers Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Northrup Grumman fear it could fall victim to the new administration as it seeks to save costs. Mr Obama has stated a preference for abandoning weapons whose efficacy is not yet proven.
Boeing is now planning to develop the weapon's planned target range to include aircraft and enemy ballistic missiles in flight.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
“0bama has stated a preference for abandoning weapons whose efficacy is not yet proven. “
So, a free market solution would be ok? Asshat.
Not even a slingshot will be approved by the Indonesian illegal alien president.
What about the sharks with the laser beams attached to their head?
Shows a mental midget's attitued toward the process of weapons science, engineering, testing and development.
With this attitude, Enrico Fermi's grandchild would still be messing around with an "atomic pile" under the stands of the Chicago University stadium.
I actually worked on the first airborne laser lab (c-135) in the early 1970’s. USAF Kirtland AFB New Mexico.
That was when Nixon was president. How did it work out?
High tech stuff is usually above the paygrade of even the most expensive lawyer.
It could hit a one foot circle on another aircraft with both flying. It was never designed to be an operational system. It used a chemical laser that occupied the whole aircraft.
It showed that the concept worked. The target acquisition and targeting system is vital.
Me Tarzan. Me break thunersticks. No bring thundersticks into forest.
Obama the new Tarzan. Rahm Emmanuel his mini-me.
In other words, any new weapon system.
He seems to be all for unproven, if not unpractical experimental energy technologies that virtually any company could have created during the past decades, but chose not to for obvious reasons.
> It used a chemical laser that occupied the whole aircraft.
Yikes!
...or something like that.
Sad sad day in America.............
“Primarily designed to strike enemy missile silos, ...”
This also shows the author has no idea what he is talking about. Stupid statement!
I can’t believe we got stuck with this Kenyan community organizer.
I actually flew the first airborne laser system called the Airborne Laser Lab (ALL).
The headline makes it sound like the President-Elect is going to shoot the plane down personally.
Thanks for the pic of Good Ole 123!
The project was a success, though the technology was not sufficient to lead to an operational system. Even the current ABL will see technology changes before it becomes operational. But the general concept is a good idea for missile defense and other missions.
With him at the helm, we'll be weakened considerably....in sooooo many ways.
I also remember the first airborne laser laboratory as well. I was with the 4950th Test Wing at WPAFB, OH in the early 80’s.
ALL didn’t use a chemical laser – it was an electric discharge laser operating at 10.6 um. Both ABL and ATL use chemical (oxygen iodine laser, or COIL) devices.
And then this little gem later in the article. It is clear that the author was just too lazy to do any work for this article.
Where’s Dale Brown?
How many campaign contributions did Obama get from China and/or Russia?
Looking Glass Looking Glass, this is Skybird, this is Skybird - do not reply
Message follows
Delta
Xray
Charlie
Foxtrot.......
about 2 pages later
Skybird, Out.
SOOoooooo glad those days are over. Aren’t they?
Actually, (from memory since that’s one of my fav movies) but far from perfect:
Pilot: Start all engines
Co-pilot: Good start, all engines
Sky King, Sky King, stand by to copy your red dot 5 message
Message is: Alpha, Golf, Hotel, India, Delta
Authentication is Sierra, Foxtrot
Sky King, Sky King
Pilot: Navigator, co-pilot confirm
Navigator: That’s a valid message
Co-pilot: It’s valid
Pilot: Prepare for scramble take off
Pilot: Co-pilot ready?
(silence)
Pilot: CO-PILOT READY?!?!?
Co-pilot: ... ready ...
In “Fail Safe” I think the go code was CAP800 — been awhile
I thought it was OPE163 or OPE153 in “Dr. Strangelove” but that’s been too long. Correct though, was the General Buck Turgedson who said there were over 17 million permutations of 3 alpha and 3 numeral codes.
No more B-52’s circling at fail safe points, but yeah, those days are not over yet. At least Pooty-Poot is going to have a harder time finding more cash these days with oil down, at least for the moment.
I used to work in SAC command posts fixing the SLFCS rigs. Funky TTY rigs. But easy enuf to work on.
Used to hear this chatter all the time over the squak box.....
Seemed like they used a real SAC crew on an exercise in “The Day After”. Back in the 80’s I used to drive by a hot silo next to the highway while I was attending a different college one semester.
I noticed the B-52 scrambled was painted in a SAC black scheme, or so it looked.
Yikes. Remember when the Russian tanks accidentally wandered into Germany? Good thing public folks like me didn’t know it happened, LOL.
In 78 or 79 SAC did a full scale ‘war flush’ at Fairchild AFB near Spokane.
MITO takeoff and an aluvial fan formation... the real deal. Scared the crap of the entire county. Nothing like seeing a B-52 and a pair of KC-135s at near treetop level and blasting away on a full out boogie.....
I found out the results of the exercise - we won, sorta.
Were they ‘lost’ or just looking for beer?
Status- Canceled
Reason- White folks' laser beams not required to defend against primary enemies: Corporate greed and white supremacy.
Proposed replacement: Counseling program (TBD)
Cool. Mother Russia would be signing her death warrant, even today. But they could hurt us pretty bad with those Topol’s.
Friend of mine lives more than a few miles off the end of the Whiteman runway. On the morning of 9/11, he had broken his arm apparently a few days before so he was sitting out on his front porch, taking some time off work, having a cup of coffee ....
When all of a sudden the entire ready fleet of B-2’s flew overhead, one right after another. They sortied all their capable birds (dunno if it was all they had — he didn’t count).
He didn’t have the TV on and didn’t know what happened.
What kills me is all the conspiracy theories about what plain white 747 was circling over DC on 9/11. Obviously it was a unmarked E-4/NAOC or something pretty similar to a NAOC bird, and probably with all the capabilities, if not more.
I thought the E-6 TACAMO’s had been retired but I think they were upgraded, Looking Glass was retired, and NAOC birds took over the Looking Glass functions as well.
LOL. Story was they actually got lost in the woods or fields and accidentally wandered over the lines. Caused a few folks to be startled.
There was another wild story from the 1980’s. A Russian pilot in a MiG-23 began a takeoff roll. I think from a Moscow AB or one really near. Plane catches on fire during the roll but he can’t abort and lifted off. Then ejects.
Aircraft flew on pilotless and crashed into an apartment or townhome in Germany killing a woman. I saw the picture of the -23’s tail in the wreckage in the news.
No laser, no NASA, no border control, no drilling, high taxes and yes, meetings with our enemies.
How could 57 million people vote for this maggot? I think McCain would have been as bad in many aspects, but he would have kept the military strong.
Every Liberal will dismantle the military for handouts and domestic boondoggles.
(OPEN SOURCE)
The MERCURY birds are still active.
I haven’t bothered to listen to any Zulu net traffic in a while or any Blue Grass for that matter. I have a HF-GCS station about two miles from the house - hard to miss them while I am SWL.
I would guess it was a ‘spare’ NAOC bird loaned out to FEMA? Ok by current rules and the bird is in the inventory.
How can Obama’s attorneys clear Obama and Emanuel?
How can Madoff’s contributions not be front page news?
How can Odinga/Obama/Corsi not be reported?
How can one person garner 10 Time Magazine covers in a year, not including Man of the Year?
How can a photoshopped photo of Obama make international news?
The Media has created a monster that the all gush and fawn over...for no reason, other than he is 1/2 black and Liberal. No questions on associations, family memebers, grades, medical records, voting records, legal clients, shady RE deals, pork barrel spending...and the denial/cover-up continues every day...every article is postive, upbeat and “he will save us”/ Nothing negative about Democrats, ever.
I hate the Media...I am not even looking for RNC/Hannity cheerleading, I just want an obvious fraud to be exposed for what he is...this isn’t a hard task, but the MSM refuses to no support the Marxist Messiah.
How hard is it to get an FCC license and start our own network?
Lived in Midwest City as a kid. Used to stand in my yard and watch all the fighters and other birds flying low overhead.
Was on my Honda at a cycle park while the Blue Angels were doing a show at Tinker in F-4 Phantom II’s. One came right over the motorcycle park, low. Wow.
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