Free Republic

Navy's £1bn+ destroyers set to remain unarmed for years Ex-British miracle missiles in new test FAIL By Lewis Page Posted in Science, 2nd December 2009 14:46 GMT The "Sea Viper" missile system for the Royal Navy's new Type 45 destroyers looks set to suffer further setbacks following a reported failure during test firings. The weapons are already so late that the first £1bn+ Type 45 has been in naval service for nearly a year - almost completely unarmed. News of the test failure comes courtesy of the Ares blog, reporting remarks by Andrew Tyler of the UK Defence Equipment and...

Russia is getting another five S-400 (also known as the Triumf/Triumph or SA-21) missile battalions in the next year. Russia already has two battalions, with the first one entering service two years ago. Belarus is buying the S-400, and part of a battalion was sent to the North Korean border recently (to make a political point, not that the Russians fear a missile attack from North Korea any time soon.) Within the next six years, Russia plans to buy 18 S-400 battalions, while exporting as many as possible. An S-400 battalion has eight launchers, each with four missiles, plus a...

Russia has ensured that it will honor a deal providing Iran with the S-300 sophisticated anti-aircraft system, Tehran's envoy to Moscow says.

The FBI says a Centerville man is charged with buying and shipping about 7,000 stolen cell phones in connection with an international ring trafficking weapons and stolen goods. According to the FBI, Hussein Ali Asfour of Centerville is charged with conspiracy to transport stolen property and faces up to five years in prison. A criminal complaint in the case listed his address as 100 Cross Link Trail. USA Today reports that Asfour was charged along with four other men, including three accused of trying to buy Stinger anti-aircraft missiles and machine guns destined for Syria or Iran. USA Today describes...

Russia's KBM has been briefing Middle East and other militaries on the Igla man-portable air defense system. The Igla-S, an enhanced version of Igla-9K38, was touted as effective against fighter-jets, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles and cruise missiles. Iran and Syria have received a legacy variant of Igla-S. The Igla-S has been touted as capable of downing a range of U.S. UAVs deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq. "It also has night-firing capability," KBM said. "Igla-S MANPADS is a new-generation system featuring considerably extended firing range and enhanced kill probability against aerial targets and possessing a new quality for this class of...

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's reported promise to Israeli President Shimon Peres that Moscow will reconsider the sale of powerful S-300 air-defense missiles to Iran could determine whether Israel - and the United States for that matter - launches pre-emptive strikes against Tehran's nuclear facilities. "President Medvedev promised to review this issue once again after I explained that it would have an impact on the balance of forces in our region," Peres said Wednesday following his meeting with the Russian leader in Moscow on Tuesday. Israel has been threatening to attack Iran's controversial nuclear program for many months because the Jewish...

Sam The Eagle presents Stars & Stripes Forever. (See link.)

PORTLAND, Ore. - Portland Mayor Sam Adams could lose two homes in north Portland after falling behind on his mortgage payments. The homes in question sit side-by-side on North McClellan Street in the Kenton neighborhood and both are now in pre-foreclosure. KATU obtained a copy of two notices of default against the properties, showing the mayor has not paid a mortgage payment on either home for five months. With late fees, that adds up to over $10,000 in back payments. Adams said Tuesday his financial problems stemmed from the fact that he had to pay up front for legal bills...

Federal and local authorities are trying to find the source of a "strange object" the pilot of a Continental Express plane reported flying about 150 feet beneath his plane in southeast Texas.

Note: The following text is a quote: Arms Trafficker Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Plot to Smuggle Shoulder-Fired Surface-to-Air Missiles, Rocket-Propelled Grenades, and Other Military Weapons LEV L. DASSIN, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that CHRISTIAAN SPIES, a leader of an international arms trafficking operation, was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for plotting to smuggle shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles ("SAMs"), rocket-propelled grenades ("RPGs"), anti-tank guided missiles, and other high-powered military weapons into the United States for sale. United States District Judge RICHARD J. HOLWELL imposed the sentence today in...

India, Israel sign USD 1.4 billion deal on air defence system Harinder Mishra Jerusalem, Mar 27 (PTI) India has signed its biggest defence deal with Israel for the purchase of a state-of-the- art air defence system at a whopping cost of USD 1.4 billion (Rs 7,042). Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) hasofficially acknowledgedthat the defence deal between the two countries was inked on February 27 under which Israel willdevelop and manufacture seaborne and shore-based systems against missile attack on India,business daily 'Globes' reported. The signing of the deal comes as India is in advance stage of testing of its own anti-missile...

The Australian think-tank, Air Power Australia (APA), has released another in their series of techno-strategy papers, this time analysing the advancements in Russian-built Integrated Air Defense Systems (IADS) (http://www.ausairpower.net/APA-2009-02.html), and what it means in global strategic terms for the Americans. The APA report is direct and unequivocal – Russian radar and missiles have improved to the point where the US fleet of F-15s, F-16s and F/A-18s, as well as the planned Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), are not capable of surviving against these systems and unless the Americans build another four hundred-plus F-22s, they will lose the strategic advantage they have...

“Mark Crutcher, president of Life Dynamics, Incorporated, says Brownback -- a self-professed pro-life Catholic -- "abandoned" the unborn by backing Sebelius... Crutcher says Brownback's desire to become the next governor of Kansas may be driving his support of Sebelius. "All of Brownback's flowery words in the past don't really mean much," he says. "When push comes to shove, he'll throw the unborn under the bus for some political advantage -- and that's what's happened here." http://www.onenewsnow.com/Politics/Default.aspx?id=437992 I must say that this doesn't surprise me in the least. Throughout the primary debates I remember saying to my wife that this guy...

The 24-page booklet by the National Education Association and American Psychological Association, tells students that homosexuality is a "normal expression of human sexuality". "What's so scary and dogmatic about this report is that it communicates that religious-based viewpoints are harmful, and even dangerous," said Candi Cushman, education analyst for Focus on the Family Action. The booklet particularly targets the idea that homosexuality is a condition that can be changed. It instructs educators, "Schools should be careful to avoid discussions of transformational ministry in their curriculum." Brian Raum, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, said that the talk of...

The founder of a hedge fund that invested more than $1 billion with Bernard Madoff has been found dead at his Manhattan office. A source told NBC News Tuesday afternoon that Rene-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet slit his wrists with a boxcutter and bled to death. He was sitting at the desk in his office at 509 Madison Ave., and sleeping pills were found nearby, the source said. de la Villehuchet was despondent after having lost as much as $1.4 billion in Madoff's alleged Ponzi scheme, according to a French business newspaper, which quoted a family member of de la...

Syria Expected to Reach Arms Deals 22 August 2008 By Oleg Shchedrov / Reuters SOCHI — Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad backed Russia's military action against Georgia at talks with President Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday that were expected to cover purchases of Russian arms. A diplomatic source in Moscow told Interfax on Wednesday that Russia and Syria were preparing a number of deals involving anti-aircraft and anti-tank missile systems. Syria, a foe of Israel in the Middle East that stands accused by the United States of supporting international terrorism, became only the second country after Belarus to voice public backing for...

The Indian general who commanded the military campaign that led to the creation of Bangladesh has died at the age of 94. Sam Manekshaw, whose career spanned four decades, was one of India's best known and well-respected soldiers. Under the British, he was decorated for gallantry in World War II for his part fighting the Japanese army in Burma. After India gained independence, he became chief of the army in 1969 and in 1973 was made field marshal. 'The brave' Under his command, India went to war with Pakistan in 1971, supporting Bengali nationalists in what was then East Pakistan....

The recovery of the ozone layer is considered essential for the health of the planet's living creatures, but new research suggests it could also assist in the fight against global warming. In the 13 June issue of Science, climatologists report that ozone recovery could restore wind patterns in the Southern Hemisphere that have blown out of kilter due to ozone depletion and the buildup of greenhouse gases. Ever since 191 nations signed the 1987 Montreal Protocol, which banned the manufacture of ozone-destroying chemicals called chlorofluorocarbons, the fragile ozone layer has been set on a slow path to recovery. The layer's...

HONG KONG, May 2 (UPI) -- Russia will deliver to China four battalions of 200-kilometer-range S-300PMU2 surface-to-air missiles this summer, the last batch in a series ordered by China. The first batch of four battalions of the same missiles was delivered in July 2007. Starting in 1993, China received 12 battalions of S-300 SAMs, four of them S-300PMUs and eight S-300PMU1s. This means there are a total of 20 battalions of S-300 SAMs deployed in China. These missiles are expected to play a major role in China's core air defense system. These missiles now cover the whole of the Chinese...

MOSCOW: Russia will set up a massive anti-missile shield in Iran that will virtually guarantee the country against military attacks. Moscow will supply Tehran with the advanced long-range S-300 surface-to-air missile complexes, informed Russian sources said. “Several dozen S-300PMU-1 complexes will be delivered to Iran under a contract signed several years ago,” the Interfax news agency quoted a defence industry source as saying on Wednesday. He said deliveries could start as early as next year. Another Russian defence source told the Kommersant daily that Moscow was planning to sell Iran five batteries of S-300 launchers at a price of $800...

If you are a South Carolina politico, you know that Hal Stevenson is a guy you want on your team. He, and perhaps State Senator Kevin Bryant, are about the only good things Senator Sam Brownback has going for him in South Carolina. That’s why we were very shocked to see Stevenson tell Lee Bandy that Brownback “can’t go on much longer.” Ouch! That hurts coming from one of your top supporters…especially one the caliber of Stevenson. We’ve always liked Sam Brownback. He’s been a good Senator, but lately he has a been a real jerk. We would like to...

NEW DELHI: The government on Thursday cleared a gigantic Rs 10,000-crore project with Israel to develop an advanced medium-range surface-to-air (MR-SAM) missile system capable of detecting and destroying hostile aircraft, missiles and spy drones at a range of 70 km. The project, approved by Cabinet Committee on Security, will provide IAF with nine advanced air defence squa-drons, each with two MR-SAM firing units, for "protection of vital and strategic ground assets and area air defence". The project is crucial because, as highlighted by TOI earlier, there are still "many gaping holes" in India’s radar network and the armed forces only...

Rep. Sam Johnson, a veteran and former POW in Vietnam, speaks out on the congressional vote to begin bringing troops home from Iraq.

AFP via translation - Somalia: a plane is crushed after its takeoff of Mogadiscio MOGADISCIO - A plane was crushed Friday to have taken off shortly after of the international airport of the Somali capital Mogadiscio, one learned from airport source and near witnesses. “I assure you that the plane was crushed after having taken off of the airport, but we are not sure cause” of this incident, indicated to AFP Abdiwelli Said, a person in charge for the safety of the airport, without specifying if it is about a civil aircraft or military. It was not either possible in...

Iraqi security forces found 50 surface-to-air missiles in a weapons cache near Baghdad on Saturday, an Iraqi military spokesman said. "These were Russian-made surface-to-air missiles that were still useable," said Brigadier Qassim Moussawi, spokesman for the Iraqi general in charge of a new security crackdown in Baghdad. Moussawi did not give the location of the cache, one of the largest to be found since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. He said no arrests had been made. Seven U.S. military and private security helicopters have been shot down in Iraq over the past month. The U.S. military said "sophisticated...

In December 2001, as the investigation into the U.S. anthrax attacks was gathering steam, coalition soldiers in Afghanistan uncovered what appeared to be an important clue: a trail of documents chronicling an attempt by al-Qaeda to create its own anthrax weapon. The documents told of a singular mission by a scientist named Abdur Rauf, an obscure, middle-aged Pakistani with alleged al-Qaeda sympathies and an advanced degree in microbiology. Using his membership in a prestigious scientific organization to gain access, Rauf traveled through Europe on a quest, officials say, to obtain both anthrax spores and the equipment needed to turn them...

Yefremov: the weapons designer who outwitted the Pentagon 21:41 | 03/ 10/ 2006 MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti military commentator Viktor Litovkin) - The late Veniamin Yefremov, general designer of the Almaz-Antei Air Defense Concern, developed a number of unique weapons systems that the United States, the United Kingdom and France still lack. Yefremov's trick The two-volume Large Encyclopedic Dictionary offers a brief five-line entry on Yefremov, who is referred to as a Soviet scientist in the sphere of automation, a member of the Soviet Academy of Sciences since 1984 and Hero of Socialist Labor since 1976. According to the Dictionary, Yefremov...

Rafael close to signing $239m deal with Indian Air Force “Aviation Week”: Rafael will supply its Spyder short-range air defense system. Amnon Barzilai 25 Sep 06 15:07 The Indian Air Force (IAF) is in advanced negotiations with Rafael Armament Development Authority Ltd. and MBDA of France for a $239 million contract to procure the Spyder SR short-range air defense system. The Spider air defense system combines two types of air-to-air missiles developed by Rafael which have been converted into an air defense system. One missile is the Python 5, designed for short-range aerial combat; the other is the Derby, designed...

The FBI says it's all part of an ongoing investigation into a group of Sri Lankans with terrorist plans. The FBI says there were no plans to attack Americans, but that the group, known as the "Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam" was targeting their home country of Sri Lanka. Officials say that terror group is responsible for assassinating a former prime minister of India. The Joint Terrorism Task Force raided the Amherst home. Neighbors say three men were taken out in handcuffs. They say the task force also removed files, a computer and suitcases. While it's not clear what role...

RAF fighter jets have been fired upon by surface-to-air missiles in Afghanistan. The Harriers provide crucial air support for British troops carrying out operations against the Taliban in the lawless Helmand province to the south of the strife-torn country. Squadron Leader Damien Killeen, 33, operational commander for the Harrier detachment based in Kandahar, said Taliban forces had a number of American, Russian and Chinese weapon systems at their disposal. Sqn Ldr Killeen said: "There have been engagements against aircraft, isolated engagements, whilst low flying - small arms, rocket propelled grenades, small rockets - the standard arsenal. We haven't suffered any...

London: Iran will supply Hezbollah with surface-to-air missile systems in the coming months, boosting the guerrillas' defences against Israeli aircraft, according to a report by specialist magazine Jane's Defence Weekly on Friday, citing unnamed Western diplomatic sources. In a meeting, held late last month, the Lebanese Shiite Muslim militia called on Tehran to "accelerate and extend the scope of weapon shipments from Iran to the Islamic Resistance, particularly advanced missiles against ground and air targets."

Iran will supply Hezbollah with surface-to-air missile systems in the coming months, boosting the guerrillas' defenses against Israeli aircraft, according to a report by specialist magazine Jane's Defense Weekly on Friday, citing unnamed Western diplomatic sources. In a meeting, held late last month, the Lebanese Shiite Muslim militia called on Tehran to "accelerate and extend the scope of weapon shipments from Iran to the Islamic Resistance, particularly advanced missiles against ground and air targets." Hezbollah's representatives pressed for "an array of more advanced weaponry, including more advanced SAM (surface-to-air missile) systems," Jane's said. "Iranian authorities conveyed a message to the...

Iran to supply Hezbollah with surface-to-air missiles 2 hours, 1 minute ago Iran will supply Hezbollah with surface-to-air missile systems in the coming months, boosting the guerrillas' defences against Israeli aircraft, according to a report by specialist magazine Jane's Defence Weekly, citing unnamed Western diplomatic sources. In a meeting, held late last month, the Lebanese Shiite Muslim militia called on Tehran to "accelerate and extend the scope of weapon shipments from Iran to the Islamic Resistance, particularly advanced missiles against ground and air targets." Hezbollah's representatives pressed for "an array of more advanced weaponry, including more advanced SAM (surface-to-air missile)...

WASHINGTON, July 25, 2006 – "Operation: S.A.M.," or Saluting All Military, is working to ease servicemembers minds about how much support they have back home. Troops stationed in Iraq display packages they received from Operation S.A.M. The packages contain hygiene, snack, comfort and entertainment items. Servicemembers' gratitude is reflected in thank you letters S.A.M. receives, a representative said. Courtesy photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. "Almost in all the communication we have with the troops, there seems to be an unspoken desire to know if their efforts are appreciated and supported by Americans," Penny Redmon, S.A.M.'s past president...

WASHINGTON, May 19, 2006 – The United States is depending on every one of its Defense Department employees, military and civilian alike, to contribute their talents to winning the war on terror, the defense secretary and top-ranking U.S. military officer said today at a Pentagon town hall meeting. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld reminded the Pentagon town hall audience May 19 that the U.S. has to pressure the terrorists. "We can't just play defense," he said. "We have to play offense. ... We have to go after them and put pressure on them and make everything they do more difficult."...

London, May 13 – Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) had provided the insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq heavy weapons including anti-aircraft missiles, it emerged on Friday. The Iraqi daily az-Zaman which is published in London and Baghdad quoted credible Iraqi sources as revealing that the IRGC had given al-Qaeda in Iraq, Strela-type SAM-7 surface-to-air missiles, modern explosives, and a large number of personnel arms including Kalashnikovs and BKC machineguns. Al-Qaeda in Iraq is believed to be led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who is on the United States’ wanted list. The report said that representatives of al-Zarqawi’s group met in...

Uncle Sam might not want youOf the 32 million Americans in its prime recruiting age group of 17 to 24, the Army deems most unqualified to serve. BY PAULINE JELINEK Associated Press Posted on Mon, Mar. 13, 2006 WASHINGTON - Uncle Sam wants YOU, that famous Army recruiting poster says. But does he really? Not if you're a Ritalin-taking, overweight, Generation Y couch potato -- or some combination of the above. As for that fashionable "body art" that the military still calls a tattoo, having one is grounds for rejection, too. With U.S. casualties rising in wars overseas and more...

China's communist leaders are advising the new leftist government in Bolivia to avoid upsetting the United States, but at the same time have offered to replace shoulder-fired missiles that a CIA-led operation removed from the South American country last year, U.S. intelligence officials said... Before Mr. Morales' election in December, the CIA led an operation that secretly took 38 Chinese-made HN-5 surface-to-air missiles. The agency was helped by Bolivian security officials concerned that the weapons would fall into the hands of terrorists linked to the new ruling Movement to Socialism (MAS), Mr. Morales' party. The official said a Chinese missile...

India, Israel to develop long-range Barak defence system Tribune News Service New Delhi, February 2 India and Israel have worked out an agreement to develop and produce the long-range Barak air defence system for both the Indian and the Israeli militaries. An agreement to this effect was signed between Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad and the Israeli Aircraft Industries. The pact is based on joint investment by both the companies to develop and manufacture unspecified numbers of Barak systems. According to defensenews.com, the initial co-development funding is about $ 350 million, of which IAI will finance 50 per...

Eighteen months after the Chicago City Council torpedoed a South Side Wal-Mart, 24,500 Chicagoans applied for 325 jobs at a Wal-Mart opening Friday in south suburban Evergreen Park, one block outside the city limits. The new Wal-Mart at 2500 W. 95th is one block west of Western Avenue, the city boundary. Of 25,000 job applicants, all but 500 listed Chicago addresses... "we saw a little bit of everything -- people who hadn't worked for a long time, people who saw an opportunity to do something with themselves. That's the information I got from applicants."

The new Wal-Mart Stores Inc. location opening Friday in suburban Evergreen Park received a record 25,000 applications for 325 positions, the highest for any one location in the retailer’s history... The only other site that’s come close to the number of applications is a store in Oakland, California that received 11,000 applications for about the same number of positions last year. Wal-Mart's Chicago-area manager Chad Donath said generally stores receive between 3,000 and 4,000 applications for about 300 to 450 positions. He says Wal-Mart has been participating in job fairs and advertising the positions as it does in other communities...

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1097047089375967500&q=s-300

Britain buys Russian surface-to-air missiles in fight against terrorism By Thomas Harding, Defence Correspondent (Filed: 13/12/2005) Britain has secretly bought dozens of sophisticated Russian surface-to-air missiles, some of which are believed to have fallen into terrorist hands, to develop counter measures against them. There are significant fears that the weapon, which can be packed into a golf bag and assembled and fired very rapidly by one person with minimal training, will be targeted at civil and military aircraft. [Skip] But there are worries that in Iraq the missile has already fallen into the hands of insurgents who could use it...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- FBI agents and Homeland Security officials have been investigating the report of a possible missile fired at an American Airlines plane taking off from Los Angeles International Airport. Sources told ABC News in Los Angeles that the pilot of American Airlines Flight 621, en route to Chicago, radioed air traffic controllers after takeoff from LAX. He told them a missile had been fired at the aircraft and missed. The plane was over water when the pilot said he saw a smoke trail pass by the cockpit. FBI agents believe it was a flare or a...

Russia sells anti-missile systems in Iran MOSCOW - Iran signed a contract with Russia on the sale of 29 Russian systems anti-missile Tor M-1, affirmed Friday the financial daily newspaper Russian Vedomosti, quoting sources in Russian military industry. "Iran will defend itself against the United States and Israel with the Russian systems Tor M-1", titrated Vedomosti with the one. According to the sources of the daily newspaper, expressing itself under cover of anonymity, 29 systems' anti-missile Tor M-1 able to intercept cruise missiles and airborne bombs were manufactured by the military factory Koupol with Ijevsk (the Volga) for Greece...

Rocket jet plot is foiled Leader ... Sir Ian Blair     By RICHARD WHITEA SUSPECTED terrorist plot to stage a Christmas murder blitz in Britain was smashed yesterday by police and MI5. A 28-year-old Asian man was snared as he allegedly tried to buy a rocket launcher near the M25 South Mimms services. It is feared he planned to blast a holiday flight at a major UK airport. The British-born Muslim was kept under surveillance for weeks by Met chief Sir Ian Blair’s anti-terror cops and MI5 agents. He was lured to a road near the service station...

An Islamic terror cell has smuggled two surface-to-air missiles into Europe in a plot to shoot down planes at one of France's main airports, it was claimed Friday. French and Algerian extremists with links to al-Qaeda bought the Russian SA-18 Grouse missiles from Chechens in 2002 and smuggled them via Georgia and Turkey, according to French anti-terror sources quoted in Le Figaro. French anti-terrorism investigators learned of the missile terror plan while interrogating a Jordanian al-Qa'eda operative close to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the head of the Islamic terror group in Iraq.

TWO GROUND-to-air MISSILES of Soviet manufacture, of type SAM 18, imported into Europe remain untraceable. Acquired in 2002 by a group of French and Algerian islamists near the Maffia tchetchene, these weapons are in the center of a terrorist project aiming at cutting down a civil aircraft near an airport of the Hexagon. Until now, Bruguière judge, who inquires into this cell of radical islamists, suspected them of having prepared attacks chemical or bacteriological in Paris. But the testimony of a high person in charge for Al-Qaida held in Jordan revealed that this group involved in Tchétchénie had other...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 28, 2005 – Elements of the Texas National Guard continue supporting relief efforts for areas affected by Hurricane Rita, and Fort Sam Houston, in San Antonio, has been providing essential support, military officials reported. The Texas National Guard is placing fuel-distribution sites in the Texas towns of Beaumont and Lufkin today. The National Guard will be used to supply fuel to state and local emergency vehicles and facilities in the areas affected by Hurricane Rita. After establishing the stationary fuel supplies, Guard units will provide unleaded gasoline and diesel fuel on heavyweight flatbed trucks. Each truck can transport...

***scroll down for an important update*** A number of us in the blogosphere have been catching wind of rumors that a surface-to-air missile was fired at an America West flight originating out of New York. Here's a post at Little Green Footballs, where many commenters are wisely skeptical but wanting more info. I just got off the phone with Phil Gee, associate manager of media relations at America West, who promptly returned my late evening call. Here's what he told me: On Sept. 15 (Thursday), America West Flight 17 took off from JFK Airport at 6:05pm EDT [Update: The actual...