Arrow Intercepts Target in Test, Validates New Software

TEL AVIV - The U.S.-Israel Arrow program passed another milestone Feb. 22 with the spectacular, nighttime head-on intercept of a long-range target off the California coast.
Part of the ongoing, jointly funded Arrow System Improvement Program, the test validated new Block 4 versions designed to improve discriminating capabilities of the Arrow 2 interceptor, the Green Pine search-and-track radar and the Citron Tree battle management control system.

"To see that explosion off the shores of California was truly gratifying. It was a body-to-body impact that completely destroyed the target," Arieh Herzog, director of the Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) told reporters via teleconference shortly after the nighttime launch at the U.S. Navy's Point Mugu Sea Range.
Herzog said validation of the Block 4 software would provide the Israel Air Force "with a better system than they have now." The software upgrades, he said, improve detection capabilities and lethality needed to defend against "new and different threats."
In a Feb. 22 statement, the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency (MDA) noted that the Green Pine radar successfully detected and tracked the target, transferred information to the Citron Tree management control system and launched the Arrow interceptor, "which performed its planned trajectory and destroyed the target missile."
The MDA statement noted that the test "represented a realistic scenario" and involved operationally ready elements of the Arrow weapon system.
In an interview earlier this month, Herzog said the sea-based target, provided by the MDA and launched from a mobile launch platform, was "representative of threats we face in this theater."
Herzog declined to provide details, but experts here said the target simulated increasingly longer-range missiles equipped with decoys designed to disorient and confuse defensive interceptors. A program official cited projected threats from upgraded versions of Syrian Scud-D and Iranian Shahab, Ashura and BM-25 missiles as drivers for continuous upgrades to Israel's defensive capabilities.
"We need to create all kinds of bodies in space to do discrimination against decoys. These features went into production with the Block 4," the program official said.
Herzog was more reticent on threats driving Block 4 requirements. He acknowledged, however, that Block 4 upgrades "improve the process of discrimination of what happens in the sky and the transmission of target data [to the Citron Tree battle management center] for much better situational control."
Finally, Block 4 upgrades to Arrow 2 interceptors refine midcourse guidance which, when coupled with improved target identification and discrimination capabilities, improves lethality.
Herzog added that Block 4 upgrades would be retrofitted into current Arrow 2 interceptors, as well as other program elements.
Udi Shani, MoD director-general, credited the close cooperation with the Pentagon's MDA and other U.S. defense establishment agencies for supporting the IMDO and Israel's efforts to deploy cutting-edge defense capabilities against escalating threats.
Meanwhile, IMDO and MDA are developing an upper-tier Arrow 3, an exoatmospheric, two-stage intercepting missile that uses pivoting optical sensors and its own upper-stage kick motor instead of separate control rockets to steer itself precisely into incoming targets. The so-called high-divert Arrow 3 is expected to weigh about half that of Arrow 2 and intercept maneuvering targets high in Earth's atmosphere.
In parallel, IMDO is working on a Block 5 upgrade aimed at merging the lower-tier Arrow 2 and the planned exo-atmospheric Arrow 3 into a single national missile defense system. The planned Block 5 Arrow weapon system will include new ground and airborne sensors, a command-and-control system, and a new high-performance target missile to simulate the Iranian Shahab and other potentially nuclear-capable delivery vehicles developed by Tehran.
The MLM Division of Israel Aerospace Industries is prime contractor for Arrow 2 and Arrow 3, with Chicago-based Boeing serving as subcontractor for production of critical components.
Last week's test completes a milestone held in abeyance since a July 2009 so-called "no test" due to software glitches. The glitch occurred when data transferred from the Green Pine radar to the battle management center erroneously showed intercept would take place out of the prescribed safety range, causing automatic mission abort.
Herzog said he expected the Israel Air Force to declare Block 4 versions of the Arrow 2 fully operational later this year.

Merkel 'Regrets' U.S. Tanker Decision

ERLIN - The U.S. Air Force's decision to award a huge tanker contract to Boeing is disappointing and Washington has missed a chance to deepen the transatlantic relationship, Germany's chancellor said Feb. 25.
"The chancellor ... took note of the decision with regret. From the German point of view this is a missed opportunity to deepen the transatlantic partnership," a spokesman for Angela Merkel told a regular briefing.

The Pentagon on Feb. 24 announced that Boeing had won the contract, worth over $30 billion, to supply aerial refueling tankers to the U.S. Air Force, at the end of a long and tortuous contest.
The head of EADS, Airbus' parent company, has already said he was "disappointed and perplexed" by the decision.
Germany's economy minister Rainer Bruederle also said Berlin considered the EADS offer an attractive one.
The U.S. firm is now tasked with delivering 18 aircraft by 2017, but the contract is expected to grow to 179 tankers.
The planes, effectively flying filling stations, give the U.S. aircraft global reach and allow Washington to project military power well beyond its borders.
The decision capped a nearly 10-year attempt by the U.S. Air Force to begin to replace an aging Boeing-built fleet of 400 tankers dating back to the 1950s.
But it was an upset, with most experts predicting the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company would land the contract.

France's Lagarde Confident About Airbus

SINGAPORE - French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde said Feb. 25 confident about Airbus' ability to compete in the global market after the European aircraft maker lost a key U.S. military contract to rival Boeing.
Lagarde, who is on a visit to Singapore, would not comment on the Pentagon's decision on Feb. 24 to award the $30 billion contract to supply aerial refueling tankers for the U.S. air force to Boeing.

"I have no comment at this stage," she told reporters.
"All I know is Airbus is a magnificent company and I have full trust and confidence in its ability to face competition and challenges of the markets," Lagarde told reporters.
A spokesman for German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in Berlin on Feb. 25 that the Pentagon's decision was disappointing and Washington had missed a chance to deepen the transatlantic relationship.
The head of EADS, Airbus' parent company, has also said he was "disappointed and perplexed" by the decision.
Boeing is now tasked with delivering 18 aircraft by 2017, but the contract is expected to grow to 179 tankers.
The planes, effectively flying filling stations, give the U.S. air force global reach and allow Washington to project military power well beyond its borders.
The decision capped a nearly 10-year attempt by the U.S. air force to begin to replace an ageing Boeing-built fleet of 400 tankers dating from the 1950s.

Father Of Soviet Submarines Dead At 91

SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia - Sergei Kovalyov, the father of the Soviet Union and Russia's nuclear submarine program, has died at the age of
91 in his native Saint Petersburg, his colleagues said Friday.

A towering figure in the secret world of strategic arsenals, Kovalyov is credited with designing 92 types of submarines at a time when Moscow and Washington fought a bitter war for supremacy of the world's seas.
He began his career in 1948, working at first on the design of a revolutionary S-99 model that became the fastest submarine in the Soviet Union's nascent naval forces.
Kovalyov began designing his first nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine in 1958, the same year he was appointed in charge of the Soviet Union's entire strategic naval forces program.
In a congratulatory message issued on Kovalyov's 90th birthday, President Dmitry Medvedev called him "a designer who has made an outstanding contribution to the development of the national ship building industry."
Most recently, Kovalyov was involved in designing off-shore oil and natural gas production platforms, an industry vital to Russia's efforts to develop the energy reserves trapped off its Pacific coast.

Pakistan Navy to participate in Aman 11 exercise

The top Pakistan and Chinese defense officials held a meeting where the new projects to expand their military cooperation, were discussed. The timely completion of the current projects was also an important part of the meeting.
Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee of the Pakistan Army Gen Khalid Shameem Wynne met Administrator of China”s State Administration of Science Technology and Industry for National Defence Chen Qiufa discussed the issues related to defense cooperation and the present and future projects that the two countries are involved together.
General Wynne is in China to take part in the eight round of Pakistna-China security dialogue and he publicly thanked Chen Qiufa for the support in all defense projects and showed his appreciation for the active of SASTING in ensuring the timely completion of all current joint projects.
At the moment the major supplier of weapon systems for Pakistan – China, is being involved in a list of defense projects which include the development of the new modern fighter – The JF-17 Thunder which is currently being produced in both countries and the engines for the fighters are being supplied by the Russian military.
China is also involved in the construction of Naval Frigates for the Pakistan Navy which has so far received three of those frigates and the fourth one is currently being constructed in the Karach Shipyard and Engineering Works with the cooperation of the Chinese navy.

Raytheon discussing pilot training with Pakistan

The US defence major Raytheon has just won a competition for a $42.8 million contract to train the Afghan airforce pilots in the Middle East. This is the first contract of this type in the region.
According to Vice President of Raytheon, Kevin Massengill, the company is also negotiating for the training of Pakistan pilots as well. Massengill said that the contract has been signed and the training will take place in an Arab Gulf country. However, he declined naming the country where the training programme will be performed. The entire programme is expected to last a couple of months by the end of which, the Afghanistan army will have a batch of well-trained pilots

Former military officers say cuts will damage defence

Harrier jump jets were among the victims of the strategic defence review

Ten retired senior military officers have written to the prime minister to voice their concerns over the loss of the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal.

A former field marshal, three generals and six admirals say the loss of Ark Royal and its fleet of Harrier jets has damaged Britain's defence capabilities.
They say Britain can no longer mount amphibious operations without putting troops' lives at "considerable risk".
Defence Secretary Liam Fox has defended the "difficult decisions".
The BBC's defence correspondent, Jonathan Beale, said the letter, which was leaked to the Daily Telegraph, raises questions about what military rescue operation forces could mount in the future.
In December, Dr Fox announced that the frigate sent to evacuate British nationals from Libya - HMS Cumberland - is to be decommissioned in April, following the strategic defence and security review (SDSR).

“Start Quote

The government's plans were based on strategic and international geo-political assumptions, many of which have been shaken over the past month”

End Quote Shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy

Our correspondent says this is not the first time former military top brass have warned that recent cuts in the armed forces have left Britain dangerously exposed.

Labour has already called for the defence review to be reopened in light of events in Egypt, Bahrain and Libya.
The letter - written before the current evacuation operation in Libya - is signed by, among others, Field Marshal Lord Bramall, a former chief of the defence staff; Maj Gen Julian Thompson and Adm Sir Jeremy Black, who commanded the carrier Invincible during the Falklands conflict.
Dr Fox insists Britain still has the "right military assets" in place to respond to crises.
But this group of former military commanders is calling on the prime minister to reassess the decisions made in the defence review.

HMS Cumberland is due to be scrapped in April

They have called for a re-evaluation of the SDSR, which they say is "unduly trusting in an uncertain, fast-moving and dangerous world".
However Dr Fox defended the steps taken to tackle the £38bn deficit left by Labour and said the review would not be reopened.
"For our future carrier strike capability, it makes strategic sense to move towards greater inter-operability with the US and France and installing catapult and arrestor gear will deliver this.
"Sustaining both Tornado and Harrier would be prohibitively expensive in this current economic climate and Tornado continues to provide vital support to the front line in Afghanistan," he said.
Referring to Libya, he said Hercules C-130 aircraft had lifted 51 UK citizens to safety on Thursday - and more than 100 were on their way to Malta on HMS Cumberland.
"None of our allies have seen fit to position an aircraft carrier off the coast of Libya as this is not the tool required for this task; there is no requirement for ground attack aircraft, but even if there were we would use our extensive regional basing and overflight rights," he said.
But shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy said: "The government's plans were based on strategic and international geo-political assumptions, many of which have been shaken over the past month.
"Recent dramatic events mean that the defence review must be reopened and perhaps even rethought. It would be sensible to stop and reflect again on our nation's strategic defence needs."