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Brumby said:

This single paragraph from the article is instructive on the traditional and different approach of the US relative to its potential adversaries in anti-ship missile development i.e. stealth vs. speed. "Think of the LRASM as the ninja of anti-ship cruise missiles. It relies on stealth, intelligence, guile, avoidance, silent communication and keen observation to win the day, not brute force or high-speed alone."

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shen said:

The second picture is the cancelled suepersonic LRASM-B. So supersonic speed is desired, just can't afford it.

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In addition to the IRST system, next-generation capabilities incorporated in the Navy’s F/A-18E/F Flight Plan include advanced fused sensors, Active Electronically Scanned Array radar, counter electronic attack, Distributed Targeting System, multi-sensor integration, anti-surface warfare, IP-based linked networks and advanced air-to-ground and air-to-air precision weapons operating on an open architecture.

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Like boxers, every missile has a reach, a range, a limit to how far it can hit. In the not-too-distant future, the AMRAAM might also be out-ranged by new weapons that are being developed around the world. Particularly, Russia is known to be developing an extremely long-range weapon called the K-100 that has far better reach than anything currently in existence.

“While we are stealthy, we will have a hard time targeting Russian Su-35s and our missiles will have a hard time killing them.”The problem is not a new one. Historically, the Pentagon has always prioritized the development of new fighters over the development new weapons—it’s a uniquely American blind spot. During the 1970s, the then brand new F-15A Eagle carried the same antiquated armament as the Vietnam-era F-4 Phantom II. It wasn’t until the 1990s that the F-15 received a weapon in the form of the AMRAAM that could take full advantage of its abilities. The same applies to short-range weapons—it wasn’t until the early 2000s with the introduction of the AIM-9X that the U.S. had a dogfighting weapon that could match or better the Russian R-73 Archer missile.

The Air Force officials all said that some of the American missiles would get through during a fight—there is no question of that—but it would take a lot more weapons than anyone ever expected. The problem is that fighter aircraft don’t carry that many missiles.

The Raptor carries six AMRAAMs and two shorter range AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles inside its weapons bays. At the moment, the F-35 carries only four AMRAAM missiles inside its weapons bays, but that might be expanded to six in the future. Older fighters like the Boeing F-15 Eagle carry no more than eight missiles—while the F-16 usually carries no more than six weapons.

That means that if a fighter has to fire—for instance—three missiles to kill a single enemy fighter, the Pentagon is facing a serious problem.

“Getting a first shot is one thing,” said a former Air Force fighter pilot with extensive experience with Russian weapons. “Needing another shot when you have expended your load is another when your force structure is limited in terms of the number of platforms available for a given operation.”

There are some potential solutions, but all of them mean spending more money to develop new missiles. former Air Force intelligence chief Lt. Gen. Dave Deptula said it’s “critical” that the U.S. and its allies move “air-to-air weapons into a future where they can effectively deal with adversary electronic attack.”

One relatively simple fix would be to develop a missile that picks out its targets using radars with a completely different frequency band. Current fighter radars and missiles operate on what is called the X-band, but they don’t necessarily have to. “Getting out of X band is on option,” said one senior Air Force official.

The Pentagon could also develop a new missile that combines multiple types of sensors such as infrared and radar into the same weapon—which has been attempted without much success in the past.

Right now, the Defense Department—led by the Navy—is working to increase the range of the AIM-9X version of the Sidewinder by 60 percent to give the Pentagon’s fighter fleet some sort of counter to the jamming problem. But even with the extended reach, the modified Sidewinder won’t have anywhere close to the range of an AMRAAM.

The other option is to stuff fighters like the F-22 and F-35 with more missiles that are smaller. Lockheed Martin, for example, is developing a small long-range air-to-air missile called the “Cuda” that could double or triple the number of weapons carried by either U.S. stealth fighter. “Look to a new generation of U.S. air-to-air missiles, like Cuda, to neutralize any potential numerical advantage,” one senior industry official said.

The industry official said that despite the small size, new weapons like the Cuda can offer extremely impressive range because it doesn’t have an explosive warhead—it just runs into the target and destroys it with sheer kinetic energy.

But the senior Air Force official expressed deep skepticism that such a weapon could be both small and far-reaching. “I doubt you can solve range and the need for a large magazine with the same missile,” he said.

This official added that future weapons would be far better at countering enemy jamming—so much so that future fighters will not need to have the sheer speed and maneuverability of an aircraft like the Raptor. “I think top end speed, super cruise, and acceleration will all decline in importance as weapons advance in range and speed,” he said.

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As the plane lifted off, engineers and technicians monitored images of the belly of the aircraft and its precious cargo, a prototype of a complex electronic attack system known as the Next-Generation Jammer (NGJ).

There had already been airworthiness tests and pod check flights, but this was the main event. The jet was headed to California’s Mojave Desert and Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake for a three-hour mission to assess aircraft integration, jamming techniques, beam agility, array-transmit power and jammer management.

The test would essentially demonstrate how air defense radars, posing as enemy threat radars, could be disrupted. The jammer would use its own, wind-driven generator for power.

In a control center ringed by monitors and instrumentation, a small team evaluated system effectiveness. Raytheon engineer Tom Brukiewa began the test by speaking three coded phrases: “Music on. See music. Data good.”

That signaled to his colleagues to begin their planned mission scenarios. The first-of-its-kind electronic warfare system performed flawlessly, meeting or exceeding all objectives and earning the operator’s highest ratings.

The test was “a critical step in demonstrating readiness of the core enabling technologies for the next generation of EW systems,” said Travis Slocumb, vice president of Electronic Warfare Systems at Raytheon’s Space and Airborne Systems.

Slocumb marveled that the flight test was successful on its first sortie; just eight months after the U.S. Navy awarded the contract. The test platform used a high power, Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) front end and multichannel techniques generator that are common building blocks for the U.S. Navy’s NGJ and other airborne, maritime and ground-based EW systems.

In its gray, cigar-shaped pod, the Raytheon-built system will ultimately hang from EA-18 Growler jets to provide warfighters with a considerable upgrade in capability over existing equipment.

When the team members met the next day, they decided there was no need to fly a second mission test. All the fundamental subsystems required for NGJ were checked in a representative environment against real world threats.

“We’re dealing with a lot of cutting-edge technology,” said Nader Khatib, Raytheon’s NGJ Flight Demonstration Pod program lead. “Putting it together as a full system and seeing it work as intended was just so exciting.”

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Navy engineer tried to steal schematics of aircraft carrier, feds say



NORFOLK, Va. – A Navy civilian engineer has been indicted on charges he tried to steal schematics of an aircraft carrier under construction and have them sent to Egypt.

Federal prosecutors said Mostafa Ahmed Awwad, 35, of Yorktown, Virginia, was arrested Friday on two counts of attempted exportation of defense articles and technical data.

Prosecutors said Awwad tried to steal technical data in the designs of the USS Gerald R. Ford in late October. Awwad provided computer drawings downloaded from the Navy to an undercover FBI agent posing as an Egyptian intelligence officer.

The Ford is the lead ship in a new class of carriers. It is scheduled for delivery to the Navy in 2016.

According to an FBI affidavit, Awwad began working for Navy last February in the Norfolk Naval Shipyard's nuclear engineering and planning department.

An undercover agent speaking in Arabic contacted Awwad in September and the pair met the next day at a park in Hampton. At the meeting, Awwad asserted that was his intention to use his position of trust with the Navy to obtain military technology for use by the Egyptian government.

The pair also met in October at a hotel where Awwad described a plan to circumvent Navy computer security by installing software enabling him to copy documents without tripping a security alert, the affidavit said.

The undercover agent was given aircraft carrier drawings marked with warnings that foreign distribution could result in criminal prosecution. Awwad indicated he understood the computer drawings would be used in Egypt. He agreed to provide the agent with passport photos to produce a fake Egyptian passport so Awwad could travel without alerting U.S. government officials.

Awwad also asked for $1,500 to buy a tiny camera to enable him to photograph restricted material around the shipyard, the affidavit said.

On Oct. 23, Awwad retrieved $3,000 in cash from a pre-arranged drop site along a secluded hiking trail and left behind a container with an external hard drive and two passport photos. The FBI later collected the container.

Awwad was observed at his Navy office on Nov. 28 holding what appeared to be aircraft carrier design schematics, which he placed on the floor and photographed, the affidavit said.

Awwad is scheduled for a detention hearing on Dec. 10 in federal court in Norfolk.

The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each count upon conviction.

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thunderchief said:

Looks like security clearances are given to just about anybody these days

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