Air Defense Push Inspired by 9/11 Gets a 2nd Look - NYTimes.com

Air Defense Push Inspired by 9/11 Gets a 2nd Look - NYTimes.com: "The commander of military forces protecting North America has ordered a review of the costly air defenses intended to prevent another Sept. 11-style terrorism attack, an assessment aimed at determining whether the commitment of jet fighters, other aircraft and crews remains justified."

China ramps up espionage against US: study

China ramps up espionage against US: study: "China is sharply stepping up espionage against the United States as the rising Asian power grows more sophisticated in cyber warfare and spy recruitment, a report to Congress warned Thursday.
'China is changing the way that espionage is being done,' said Carolyn Bartholomew, the chair of the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission.
In its wide-ranging annual report to Congress, the commission reported a steep rise in the disruption and infiltration of websites of the US government"

Boeing Receives Contract To Develop Miniature Weapon Technology

Boeing Receives Contract To Develop Miniature Weapon Technology: "Boeing has received a $500,000 U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory contract on Sept. 30 for the first phase of a program to demonstrate miniature weapon technology for use on unmanned airborne vehicles (UAV).
'UAVs are increasingly called upon to perform strike operations, and this weapon technology is designed specifically for those missions,' said Carl Avila, director of Boeing Phantom Works' Advanced Weapons and Missiles.
'The concept behind this technology is designed to generate very low collateral damage and allows warfighters to engage a variety of targets, including those in a suburban terrain environment.'"

BAE Precision Targeting System Begins Final Testing

BAE Precision Targeting System Begins Final Testing: "BAE Systems has entered the final phase of testing on its Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS), a technology that increases the accuracy and cost-effectiveness of airborne weapon systems.
The tests seek to confirm the production readiness of the APKWS rocket and its ability to meet Navy and Marine Corps requirements, including safely launching from a helicopter, and reliably acquiring, tracking, and hitting laser-designated targets.
In the most recent testing, a laser-guided rocket fired from a U.S. Marine Corps Cobra helicopter hit a stationary target."

Boeing's MATRIX Laser Destroys Flying UAVs

Boeing in May demonstrated the ability of mobile laser weapon systems to perform a unique mission: track and destroy small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

During the U.S. Air Force-sponsored tests at the Naval Air Warfare Center in China Lake, Calif., the Mobile Active Targeting Resource for Integrated eXperiments (MATRIX), which was developed by Boeing under contract to the Air Force Research Laboratory, used a single, high-brightness laser beam to shoot down five UAVs at various ranges. Laser Avenger, a Boeing-funded initiative, also shot down a UAV. Representatives of the Air Force and Army observed the tests.

"The Air Force and Boeing achieved a directed-energy breakthrough with these tests," said Gary Fitzmire, vice president and program director of Boeing Missile Defense Systems' Directed Energy Systems unit. "MATRIX's performance is especially noteworthy because it demonstrated unprecedented, ultra-precise and lethal acquisition, pointing and tracking at long ranges using relatively low laser power."

Bill Baker, chief scientist of the Air Force Research Laboratory's Directed Energy Directorate, praised his team and Boeing for these successful UAV shootdowns.

"These tests validate the use of directed energy to negate potential hostile threats against the homeland," Baker said. "The team effort of Boeing and the Air Force in developing MATRIX will pay major dividends for the warfighter now and in the years ahead."

As part of the overall counter-UAV demonstration, Boeing also successfully test-fired a lightweight 25mm machine gun from the Laser Avenger platform to potentially further the hybrid directed energy/kinetic energy capability against UAV threats.

Boeing Directed Energy Systems, based in Albuquerque, developed MATRIX, a mobile, trailer-mounted test bed that integrates with existing test-range radar. Directed Energy Systems and Boeing Combat Systems in St. Louis cooperatively developed Laser Avenger, which integrates a directed-energy weapon together with the existing kinetic weapons on the proven Avenger air defense system developed by Combat Systems.

 

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M/V Maersk-Alabama Repels Suspected Pirate Attack

M/V Maersk-Alabama Repels Suspected Pirate Attack: "Four suspected pirates in a skiff came within 300 yards of M/V Maersk-Alabama and used small arms weapons in an attempt to board the ship.

The security team embarked aboard Maersk-Alabama responded to the attack by using evasive maneuvers, Long-Range Acoustic Devices (LRADs) and small arms fire, causing the suspected pirates to break off their attack.

'Due to Maersk Alabama following maritime industry's best-practices such as embarking security teams, the ship was able to prevent being successfully attacked by pirates,' said Vice Adm. Bill Gortney, commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command. 'This is a great example of how merchant mariners can take pro-active action to prevent being attacked and why we recommend that ships follow industry best practices if they're in high-risk areas.'"

Parachute Passion

PARACHUTE PASSION The U.S. Air Force Academy Parachute Team performs during the Aviation Nation air show on Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., Nov. 15, 2009. The demonstration team includes cadets and instructors. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Michael R. Holzworth

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