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More details and reflections on the Syrian Su-22 USMC shoot-down: http://www.combataircraft.net/2017/06/2 ... rn-aim-9x/

Thanks for posting that. Not sure I would read too much into a single AIM-9X missing. Geopolitical tactics at work perhaps. Could have been a warning shot or some in-flight ID/ROE mishap. Who knows. But what is known is that the combined Russian/Syrian/Iranian air forces would be smothered in a major engagement. Moving forward, the USN made a geopolitical point.

Kevin

More Russian cruise missiles launched:

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/russia-launch ... 40142.html

MAST Asia 2017: JMSDF Tested its XSSM Anti-Ship Missile against Barracuda USV-MT Target

At MAST Asia 2017 (Maritime Air Systems & Technologies), the naval defense exhibition held last week in Tokyo, Navy Recognition learned that Japan's Acquisition Technology and Logistics Agency (ATLA), a branch of the MoD, used a surface target from Canadian company Qinetiq Target Systems to test one of its latest generation anti-ship missile: the XSSM.

http://www.navyrecognition.com/index.ph ... arget.html


Schiebel CAMCOPTER S-100 VTOL UAV Completes Qualification with French Navy Mistral-class LHD
http://www.navyrecognition.com/index.ph ... s-lhd.html

Raytheon Restarts SM-2 Production for the Netherlands Japan Australia and South Korea
http://www.navyrecognition.com/index.ph ... korea.html

First Project 22220 Nuclear Icebreaker Arctika for Russian Navy to be Commissioned in June 2019
http://www.navyrecognition.com/index.ph ... -2019.html

DCNS's F21 Heavyweight Torpedo has Entered its Final Development Phase
http://www.navyrecognition.com/index.ph ... phase.html

Rosatom and Russian Shipyards Welcome Project 10510 Leader Icebreaker Project
http://www.navyrecognition.com/index.ph ... oject.html


The 24th frigate of the class in just 9 years...

China's 24th Type 054A Frigate Commissioned with PLAN South Sea Fleet

The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN or Chinese Navy) commissioned its 24th Type 054A Frigate (Jiangkai II-class) "Xuchang" (hull number 536). The Commissioning ceremony took place on June 23rd at Zhanjiang naval base, headquarter of the PLAN South Sea Fleet. The frigate joins the PLAN East Sea Fleet.

http://www.navyrecognition.com/index.ph ... fleet.html

Hmmm, that radar on the forward mast of the Type 054A looks pretty strange. I wonder what the reasons are for that antenna placement?

ORIGINAL: Gneckes

Hmmm, that radar on the forward mast of the Type 054A looks pretty strange. I wonder what the reasons are for that antenna placement?

You mean those two large, spinning rectangle arrays? Well, the radar runs in dual-band -- bigger one is for long wavelength and smaller for short.

It is functioning like Soviet Top Plate radar, hence to be called a Top Plate copy even it's based on older Type 381:

MR-760MA (Top Plate):


Type 382 (The copy of Top Plate):

Probably Global Hawk was shouted down by S-300 near Tartus http://halturnershow.com/index.php/news ... iterranean

Uh-oh..

Looks like that story / report is two days old and nothing came of it.

Kevin

ORIGINAL: Filitch

Probably Global Hawk was shouted down by S-300 near Tartus http://halturnershow.com/index.php/news ... iterranean

Yeah I'm going to go ahead and call that one fake news.

A U.S. Space Corps? It could happen if the House and Senate approve the NDAA bill this year.

Lawmakers within the House Armed Services Committee have introduced legislation that would require the U.S. Air Force to establish a "Space Corps" as a distinct branch of the military by January 1, 2019, according to Space News. The proposed legislation would create a Space Corps to serve "as a separate military service within the Department of the Air Force and under the civilian leadership of the Secretary of the Air Force."

U.S Space Corps
Lawmakers lay groundwork for new military branch

So structurally it's like the relationship of the US Marine Corp and the Dept of the Navy. Planning for the future

If this new "Space Corps" were to be created and a subsidiary of the Air Force, wouldn't it make sense to just rename the whole branch "United States Aerospace Force".

And what would be the initial operations, units and responsibilities of this "Space Corps"?

off the top of my head:

-Taking over all US military satellite operations

-Operations of any ASAT weapons except those that might be on US Navy ships, so if something like the ASM-135 ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASM-135_ASAT ) were to be put into active service, the Space Corps would have it's own squadrons of launch aircraft.

-Possible responsibility for Ballistic Missile Defense? (like ASAT, except the defense systems on USN ships)

-Operations of whatever the hell the X-37 is, and any successor craft.

-Eventual Space Combat Units, when warfare is brought beyond Earth's atmosphere at some point in the future.

ORIGINAL: HalfLifeExpert

If this new "Space Corps" were to be created and a subsidiary of the Air Force, wouldn't it make sense to just rename the whole branch "United States Aerospace Force".

And what would be the initial operations, units and responsibilities of this "Space Corps"?

off the top of my head:

-Taking over all US military satellite operations

-Operations of any ASAT weapons except those that might be on US Navy ships, so if something like the ASM-135 ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASM-135_ASAT ) were to be put into active service, the Space Corps would have it's own squadrons of launch aircraft.

-Possible responsibility for Ballistic Missile Defense? (like ASAT, except the defense systems on USN ships)

-Operations of whatever the hell the X-37 is, and any successor craft.

-Eventual Space Combat Units, when warfare is brought beyond Earth's atmosphere at some point in the future.

It would take over all of USAF's operational space functions:
- Space Situational Awareness: surveillance of the low orbit with the network of ground station, surveillance of high orbits including the GEO belt through ground stations and satellites (for instance GSSAP)
- Space Weather
- CounterSpace capabilities. The only public one is the Counter Space Communication jammers
- Launch
- Orbital control of USAF satellites, and maybe all US satellites in case of emergency
- Maybe control of space communications. Reconnaissance would still be handled by the NRO I think
- Maybe control of SBIRS for missile launch detection
- Probably the ASAT program (at least the SM-3 mod that can shoot low orbit satellites)

And then it would probably be an organic command for everything space-related, except reconnaissance satellites.

Air Fan magazine has published a special issue on the Paris Airshow, with lots of stuff on the Rafale. There is a description of the development for Rafale F4, IOC 2025 for France:

* Electronics
- New Low Probability of Intercept intra-patrol datalink (in addition to the standard L16)
- New LPI satcom datalink
- Use of GaN modules in radar and Spectra jammers: 2x more power compared to current
- Radar will be able to do jamming and electronic attack
- New ultra-high resolution ground imaging mode on the radar
- Potentially multifunction jammer/radar panels to extend radar coverage
- New GMTI mode on the radar
- Spectra will be able to jam lower and higher bands
- Improved emitter localization capabilities, with localization of moving emitters in 3D, quickly and from a single plane.
- New IRST

* Weapons
- Mid-life update for Scalp cruise missile
- New MICA NG air to air missiles, with new seekers
- New version of the AASM air to ground missile, without rocket booster
- Potentially a new AASL light air to ground weapon with more range than AASM (from other sources)

* Other
- Helmet sights

For a future Rafale F5, DIRCM and RCS reduction kits are envisionned

DoD constantly reorganizes as people in management move up and around. My wife worked for the Army's "Space and Terrestrial Communication Directorate" at Fort Monmouth in the 90's. There is a lot of duplication (some say useful redundancy) in the DoD. It's odd that Congress has to legislate this and it can't be done within the existing structure. Elevating Space to a branch is sort of a public relations thing. I think is means they want more tax dollars. The most impotent thing is that all branches cooperated related to how they utilize earth orbit.

Kevin

If a Space Corps were to be authorized, it is opposed by senior USAF leadership, it would receive its own budget and have a Chief of Staff position that could appeal directly to Congress for project funding.

In a related move, probably to respond to Congressional pressure to raise space operation priorities
SecAF Wilson creates a DCS for Space Operations position

Trump knew that the Syrian did not use chemical weapons in Khan Sheikhun
“This was not a chemical weapons strike,” the adviser said. “That’s a fairy tale."
https://www.welt.de/politik/ausland/art ... -Line.html

The first Type 055 RENHAI-class Cruiser/DDG has been launched this afternoon.

But the Chinese internet police is clamping down hard on the amateur watcher's photos.

The only picture that survived the purge is this shot of its bow.

one wonders what the objective of preventing civilians from taking a picture of a ship is considering everyone relevant already knows what it looks like and probably has a pretty good guess of what's under the hood anyway.