US Military News, Reports, Data, etc.
- Thread starter tphuang
- Start date
Isn't this footage at least 13-14 year old?
Yup. Demonstrates how even old AESA have overmatch against mechanically steered antennas.
No wonder Trump and Hegseth increased the DoD budget to $1 Trillion. All that smuggling must add up to the programs cost.
In other news, here's an opinion piece from Frank Kendall, former Secretary of the Air Force. It gives some nice insights on the procurement of the NGAD/F-47. Some choice quotes below:
"When I returned to the Pentagon as Secretary of the Air Force in 2021, I found that the Air Force had decided to pursue a follow-on to the F-22, a fighter designed for manned Penetrating Counter Air, or PCA, missions. Such missions involve flying deep into enemy airspace and fighting against robust, state-of-the-art defenses. The PCA emphasis brought with it significant costs — tens of billions for development and hundreds of millions per aircraft for production. These expenses limit the potential aircraft inventory to small numbers. We currently have fewer than 200 F-22s. These airplanes are precious, and we can’t tolerate high losses in this fleet. ...
If the Trump administration’s strategy emphasizes homeland security and defensive scenarios, wouldn’t a lower cost design more focused on Defensive Counter-Air, or DCA, make more sense? Would a multirole next-generation design, like the F-35, make more sense? Would an aircraft designed to work with uncrewed tactical aircraft, like the Air Force uncrewed , make more sense? The decision to buy the F-47 needs to be the right choice for the future — this is the only new crewed fighter aircraft the Air Force will likely pursue for a long time. ...
The F-47 will be able to control uncrewed aircraft, but it isn’t optimized for that function. Congress needs to ensure that the Trump administration has considered the relationship between the F-47, the Trump defense strategy and the overall future of the Air Force. ...
When I left the Pentagon, the Department of the Air Force had a list of unfunded strategic priorities that were higher priority than NGAD. At the top of the list were counter-space weapons and airbase defense. Neither of these is a direct Air Force responsibility, but both are critical to the success of the entire Joint Force. China is well on its way to fielding robust space-based targeting systems that threaten all of our land- and sea-based forces. We must acquire counter-space systems at scale or China will be able to target all of our assets at sea and on the ground with impunity and in real time. China also has an ever-expanding arsenal of sophisticated weapons ready to strike our airbases in the Pacific. Those bases are limited in numbers, not well defended and each is subject to attack by literally hundreds of missiles of all types. Our new F-47s — and all of our forward-based aircraft — will never get off the ground if we don’t address these threats through substantial budget increases."
Kauai, Hawaii, March 25, 2025 – The USS Pinckney (DDG 91) successfully completed Flight Test Other 40 (FTX-40), also known as Stellar Banshee, using Lockheed Martin’s Aegis Combat System to detect, track and perform an engagement against a live advanced hypersonic Medium Range Ballistic Missile (MRBM) target using a simulated SM-6 Block IAU.
FTX-40, backed by the Missile Defense Agency, United States Navy, Lockheed Martin, and industry partners, tested a real-world hypersonic scenario, showcasing several capabilities. Stellar Banshee introduced a new target and simulated missile, marking the successful use of the latest Aegis software in a virtualized configuration for a Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) Flight Test mission.
The Hypersonic Highlight
“Our Aegis Combat System successfully defended against a simulated hypersonic threat,” said Chandra Marshall, vice president of Multi-Domain Combat Solutions at Lockheed Martin. “Aegis Baseline 9’s hypersonic defense advantage against a MRBM target brings incredible capability that allows our warfighter to see the unseen, sooner, ensuring our sailors get in front of threats quickly.”
The successful test also highlights the Aegis Combat System's capacity to adapt to the constantly evolving defense environment. With both sea-based and land-based configurations, Aegis demonstrates the flexibility and scalability of the system, making it a key pillar of missile defense.
Personally I find it very disingenuous of LockMart to label a SM-6 simulation of a Medium Ranged Ballistic Missile as 'hypersonic'. It's not a HGV, it's a ballistic missile. This capability isn't anything new.
Sounds like SpaceX (with a couple partners) is bidding to build a constellation of Early Warning & Tracking satellites. Obviously pretty similar to Starlink and there are zero other companies in the world with anywhere-near-comparable cred for quickly building, deploying, and operating a major global satellite constellation.
SBI (hit to kill in orbit) is estimated to cost 'hundreds of billions of dollars' so it remains to be seen if this is to augment the existing GBI and Aegis or a new program.
The wave riding glide body was designed by Sandia National Laboratories over the past several years and launched via an MRBM. The target was engaged using an simulated SM-6 Block IAU.
MRBM launched from C-17
Footage of the MRBM launch from a C-17 for FTX-40
Hopefully that clears the test articles up a bit.
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broadsword
Brigadier
They mean they have no trouble manipulating(reneging) treaties and agreements.
Yeah, so does China. It's called the Three Gorges Dam.
EDIT: Lmao, didn't read it past the headlines at first due to how stupid this was but decided to give it a go anyways on my second look. Did Donald really just threaten us with time travel just because we won't trade with him? I'll save him the effort, there is no reality or timeline that China will back down.
Literally apologizing and begging for forgiveness is easier than time travel donny.
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