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    More U.S. Helicopters Arrive in Pakistan to Support Flood Relief
    Erik
    By Erik,
      More U.S. Helicopters Arrive in Pakistan to Support Flood Relief   Two U.S. Navy MH-53E Sea Dragon helicopters arrived in Pakistan today as part of the continued U.S. humanitarian assistance to Pakistan in support of flood relief from the monsoon floods. The two aircraft are part of the contingent of 19 helicopters urgently ordered to Pakistan on Wednesday by U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates. The incoming aircraft flew into Pakistan today from aboard the USS Peleliu, which is positioned in international waters in the Arabian Sea. They will join the four U.S. Marine Corps CH-53E helicopters and one other MH-53E helicopters which arrived earlier this week at Ghazi Air Base, bringing to seven the total number of aircraft in Pakistan from the USS Peleliu.   The remaining aircraft will arrive over the next few days and will include 12 U.S. Marine Corps CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters. The U.S. helicopters will operate in partnership with the Pakistan military throughout the country's flood-affected areas.   Since August 5, the U.S. military helicopters have rescued more than 3,500 people and transported more than 412,000 lbs. of emergency relief supplies in spite of bad weather.   For more information please visit www.state.gov/pakistanflooding   Source: U.S. Department of State

    French warships for Russia to be armed with Ka-52 helicopters
    Erik
    By Erik,
      French warships for Russia to be armed with Ka-52 helicopters   14/08/2010 RIA Novosti Anton Denisov   Mistral-class helicopter carriers, which Russia plans to buy from France, will be armed with Russian Ka-52 Alligator helicopters, Air Force Commander Colonel General Alexander Zelin told the Ekho Moskvy FM station on Saturday.   He emphasized that the Ka-52 Alligator helicopters are very advanced and are equal to best foreign models.   The Ka-52 is armed with 30-mm cannon, Vikhr (Whirlwind) laser guided missiles, rockets, including S-24s, as well as bombs.   The Ka-52 is a modification of the basic Ka-50 Hokum model. The development of the Ka-52 started in 1994 in Russia, but its serial production began only in 2008.   The helicopter is also equipped with two radars, one for ground and one for aerial targets and a Samshite nighttime-daytime thermal sighting system.   Russia is negotiating the purchase of at least one French-built Mistral-class amphibious assault ship and plans to build three more vessels of the same class in partnership with the French naval shipbuilder DCNS.   A Mistral-class ship is capable of transporting and deploying 16 helicopters, four landing barges, up to 70 armored vehicles including 13 battle tanks, and 450 personnel.   The Russian military has said it plans to use Mistral ships in its Northern and Pacific fleets.   Many Russian military and industry experts have questioned the financial and military sense of the purchase, and some believe that Russia simply wants to gain access to advanced naval technology that could be used in the future in potential conflicts with NATO and its allies.   In April, the head of the Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation, Mikhail Dmitriev, said the Mistral deal would be concluded by the end of the year.   MOSCOW, August 14       RIA Novosti

    Government to use drones to study how hurricanes intensify
    Erik
    By Erik,
    New to the data collection effort this year is the Global Hawk, a high-altitude, jet-powered unmanned surveillance drone about the size of a corporate jet. AP FILE   Government to use drones to study how hurricanes intensify By TONY WINTON Associated Press   The U.S. government is preparing to launch a study to solve one of the most vexing questions about hurricanes: Why do some storm systems rapidly intensify into destructive cyclones, while most remain weak?   Starting this week, a squadron of manned and unmanned aircraft is poised to investigate an intriguing theory that one leading researcher has likened to a kangaroo's pouch -- the pocket where the animal's offspring develop.   Michael Montgomery, the lead investigator and a meteorology professor at the U.S. Naval Post Graduate School, said researchers believe there are pockets or ``pouches'' within a storm system that somehow nurture a hurricane's development.   If it exists, the pouch, or column of air, would be hidden from space-based weather satellites, which take visual and heat readings, but cannot see deep inside a storm.   Where nine out of 10 thunderstorm systems never coalesce into a hurricane, those pockets may help answer why the 10th storm becomes a monster.   ``We basically invoke an analogy from biology,'' Montgomery said as he flashed an image of a kangaroo on a screen Wednesday at NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory.   The theory suggests that such regions, or pouches, can be detected by sampling areas that otherwise wouldn't ever be scanned by hurricane hunter planes, or by technology that weather satellites lack, Montgomery said.   The combined fleet of manned aircraft and unmanned high-altitude surveillance drones, able to drop probes deep into the clouds, will be able to send back a real-time, wide-ranging image of an entire storm system, not just observations from a single plane or distant satellite.   ``The reason we're sampling the whole domain with this many aircraft is that we can get a better idea of what these embryonic systems look like, said Frank Marks, the director of NOAA's Hurricane Research Division.   The research is being driven by forecasters' inability to make good predictions about when storms will rapidly strengthen.   ``Ninety percent of the time, we simply don't catch the rapid intensification,'' said Bill Read, director of NOAA's National Hurricane Center. ``You miss the fact that it goes up 40 or 50 miles per hour in a 24-hour time frame.''   Forecasters have made steady progress on predicting where a storm will go, but it's critical for the public and emergency managers to know how likely a storm is to intensify, Read said.   New to the data collection effort this year is the Global Hawk, a high-altitude, jet-powered unmanned surveillance drone about the size of a corporate jet. It's used by the military to do reconnaissance in Afghanistan and Iraq. The aircraft -- given to NASA by the Air Force -- will launch missions from Dryden, Calif., fly over the U.S.-Mexico border, and then into the Gulf of Mexico. Unlike a piloted craft, which must return to land so the crew can rest, it can spend 24 hours on station, Marks said.   While forecasters are hoping to catch a storm in formation, they know that most won't.   ``We're going to sample a lot of duds,'' he said.   Still, researchers believe that even knowing what weather systems are ``duds'' is worthwhile, if it leads to more accurate forecasts.       Miami Herald

    Russian air force completing MiG-31BM modernization program
    Erik
    By Erik,
      Russian air force completing MiG-31BM modernization program   13/08/2010 RIA Novosti. Skrynnikov   The Russian air force is completing a modification program for its MiG-31 interceptor aircraft to the MiG-31BM standard, the force's commander Col.Gen. Alexander Zelin said on Friday.   "The air force is currently carrying out the vital task of deep modification of the MiG-31 aircraft to MiG-31BM standard. This task is being successfully carried out," he said.   The MiG-31BM is fitted with upgraded avionics and digital datalinks, a new multimode radar, color multi-function cockpit displays, a new, more powerful computer and ability to carry new air-to-air and possibly air-to-surface missiles such as the AS-17 Krypton anti-radar missile.   Information on display next to a MiG-31BM in 2009 associated the aircraft with air-to-air missiles including the Vympel R-73 (AA-11 Archer), R-77 (AA-12 Adder), and R-33S (upgraded AA-9 Amos) and the K-37M (AA-X-13 Arrow).   The air force is also accepting other new aircraft, including the Su-34 strike aircraft, the forthcoming Su-35, the Yak-130 advanced trainer, and Ka-52 and Mi-28 helicopters, he said.   Manufacturer's tests are also underway on the Sukhoi T-50 fifth generation fighter prototype.   Zarya (Moscow Region), August 13               RIA Novosti

    Indra’s Electronic Defense Systems for Italian U212 Submarines
    Erik
    By Erik,
      Indra’s Electronic Defense Systems for Italian U212 Submarines   By Indra on August 13, 2010   Indra will implement its electronic defence systems in two new U212 submarines to be acquired by the Italian Navy after signing an agreement with Fincantieri - Cantieri Navali Italiani.   The system will allow this traditional submarine, which is one of the most noiseless and hard to detect, to notice any active radar within a certain range. The analysis capacity of the system enables detection of nearly 100% of the signals, not only the weakest but also those with low probability of detection.   The solution will also facilitate followup of the signal transmitter and identification. The analysis of the radio electric spectrum takes place in real time which offers an advantage for the submarine crew over other platforms.   This is possible thanks to the high information processing capacity of the system and its intelligence since it is capable of recognising the electronic finger print which distinguishes radar types. Besides this, it offers the possibility to record all the data for further analysis.   Another distinguishing feature of the solution is its high integration capacity with other systems, either command and control systems and communications or with other transmitters embarked on the U212.   Already into service for the German Navy   One of the key aspects which made this contract possible was the successful implementation of the system for the German Navy's U212. In addition to this, the solution meets NATO requirements for international missions. All this offers a significant advantage over competitors and has granted Indra this important international reference.   The company is also broadly experienced in the sector of electronic defence and is the supplier of this type of systems for the Spanish fleet. The system has been implemented in the new F100 frigates, the Strategic Projection ship or the future S80 submarines. Indra's equipment is also present in cutting edge platforms such as Eurofighter or the A400M, among others.   Indra is the premier Information Technology company in Spain and a leading IT multinational in Europe and Latin America. It is ranked as the first European company in its sector according to investment in R&D and is the second Spanish company in absolute value investments in R&D. In 2009 revenues reached EUR 2,513 M of which a 40% came from the international market. The company employs more than 29,000 professionals and has clients in more than 100 countries.                 Defense Talk

    Logistics system release transforms combat support
    Erik
    By Erik,
      Logistics system release transforms combat support   By Air Force News Agency on August 13, 2010   WRIGHT-PATTERSON AFB, Ohio: A new age for Air Force logisticians began when a pilot version of the Expeditionary Combat Support System went live July 31 at Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass.   The Expeditionary Combat Support System will transform business processes, alter management and control systems, and affect personnel roles and organizational structures across the entire logistics arena.   "Developing and fielding ECSS is a monumental task that requires transformational changes in the way the Air Force does business," said Col. Stefan Dosedel, an ECSS Release One program manager.   The previously used, stove-piped systems often resulted in duplicated efforts, non-standardized reporting and data integrity issues. When fully implemented, ECSS will provide standardized business processes, an enterprise view of the supply chain and efficiencies across the Air Force, while also impacting personnel roles and organizational structures.   "The end result is to have one, single database, no matter what Air Force location you are at, that has consistent processes and data," said Scott Argo of Computer Sciences Corporation, the system integrator. "It moves the Air Force from base-centric, standalone systems to an enterprise approach."   The ECSS program, managed by the Electronic Systems Center's Enterprise Logistics Systems Program Executive Office at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, is an integrated data environment that combines financial, manufacturing, distribution and other business processes into a single, commercial off-the-shelf, Oracle-based technology solution hosted on the Air Force Global Combat Support System.   It replaces more than 240 Cold War-era standalone, or stove-piped, systems being used today.   Hanscom AFB was chosen as the pilot base for implementing ECSS because of its small size and relatively low number of impacted users. Planned for release in increments, this first phase, known as Release One-Pilot A, focuses on vehicle maintenance and involves about 40 to 50 Hanscom AFB users. Pilot B will expand to equipment custodians at Hanscom AFB, and Pilot C, which will involve supply functions, will bring the potential number of Hanscom AFB ECSS users to between 75 to 100 people.   Hanscom AFB will continue to be the ECSS pilot base until 2011, when the program enters Initial Operational Test and Evaluation at MacDill AFB, Fla., and Ellsworth AFB, S.D.   The first work order for Pilot A was opened Aug. 2 when mechanic Bruce Trainer of the 66th Logistics Squadron opened the "Scheduling Workbench" on his computer screen. From the workbench, he accessed ECSS and scheduled the first job of the day: replacing a faulty light bulb on a base fire truck.   Shortly thereafter, Rick Lord, also of the 66th LRS, started the maintenance operations, recorded the use of the replacement part, recorded his time and completed the work order.   Since ECSS standardizes processes, the same job will be done the same way at Air Force bases around the world, Mr. Argo said. It also transfers the process from a paper-based system to an electronic one.   "While Pilot A is primarily being conducted by the 13 vehicle maintenance workers at Hanscom (AFB), there are 300-plus people at the Program Management Office at Wright-Patterson (AFB) and more than 500 CSC employees in Beavercreek, Ohio, working to implement the system across the Air Force," Mr. Argo said. "Engineers at Robins Air Force Base, Ga., are also working the related vehicle engineering bill of materials and routings so that maintenance activities have a standard set of activities, tools and parts."   Robins AFB engineers essentially will build the processes used Air Force-wide, and load them into ECSS, Mr. Argo said.   Aug. 2, the ECSS Logistics Management and Support Office hosted a gathering at Wright-Patterson AFB to mark the Air Force's first ECSS implementation.   Lynn Moad, the Systems Integration Division chief and Air Force Materiel Command ECSS champion, said she was thrilled with the progress of the system.   "Everyone at Hanscom (AFB) and Warner Robins (AFB) is so enthused," she said. "Each person has worked so hard to make this happen, and is so excited."   While this release signals a big stride in Air Force logistics, the ECSS program executive officer said that more program developments are on the horizon.   "Today is a big day for ECSS, but it marks just another step in a long journey to delivering the full promise of ECSS," said Brig. Gen. Kenneth J. Moran, the director and Air Force program executive officer of Enterprise Logistics Systems. "We can, and should be, immensely proud of what's been achieved; but we must remain diligent and focused on the work ahead."         Defense Talk

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