Links of Interest 30-1-21

 Russian Navy expects to add 40 ships this year.

China launches 2nd Type 054A/P frigate for Pakistan Navy

Philippine Air Force (PAF) receives 2x former USAF C-130H

USAF B-52 and Saudi Arabia F-15 "presence patrol" mission

USMC 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing gets COVID-19 shots before deployment

Pentagon Hints It Could Abandon the JEDI Cloud Effort

"In the document, the department argues that it still urgently needs an enterprise cloud to meet mission needs but it is willing to look at other options if the court battle continues. DOD originally selected Microsoft for the $10 billion contract in October 2019, but work halted when AWS challenged certain evaluation criteria. DOD awarded JEDI to Microsoft a second time in September and AWS renewed its protest." 

US Army heads into future tactical unmanned aircraft rodeo next month

 

LM as it is

 Keeping track of LM leadership should be a requirement considering all of the government contracts they receive. And, the performance of those contracts.

Six months after stepping into the CEO and president role at Lockheed Martin Corp., James Taiclet is adding chairman to his title.

The Bethesda defense giant said Friday that Taiclet will step into the board chairman role on March 1.

He is replacing Marillyn Hewson, Lockheed’s current executive chairman and Taiclet’s predecessor in the CEO spot. Hewson said she is planning to retire from the chairman role and also exit her seat on the company’s board.

Chair Force II

 Its' five year mission... to go where no executive office furniture procurement has gone before.

The Space Force during its first year made considerable progress organizing and laying out a foundation for the future, said Hyten, and cautioned the service should stay focused on its national security responsibilities and not get distracted. 

“They’ve done amazing work the first year creating a structure, but it’s important to remember it’s all about the threat,” said Hyten. “What’s going to happen to the Space Force in the next year? I can’t tell you,” he added. “I give military advice as vice chairman and will continue to do that.”

$1B RAN upgrade, Gov drunk on spending.

 This announcement in regards to updating RAN weapon systems, ignores the fact of there being around $1T in Fed debt and hundreds of billions in state debt.

All while destroying business with lock downs, thus reducing tax revenue for the government.

And, government just can't stop spending.

Unreal...

Blogging

 

I don't know if I have much to write which has already not been written, but, maybe I will try. 

Regardless, keep CDR Salamander and SNAFU (Solomon) on your reading list.

Starting up the band again

 Toying with the idea of starting up this blog again.

New and wild F-35 advert in Canada

This is an advert that has been published in Canada within the last few days.

Go ahead and comment on each bold white subject.

And then I will add my comments in a new post along with yours.



(click on image to make larger)

Reason number 438 why nothing in the F-35 program impresses me.

By the way, I am very familiar with the actual F-105 history.

Be that as it may... if it was JDAM capabile today.... well....

Sit through the whole thing and jot down some numbers.




Also, this if you may.

.

Two --- Reader comments --

"Sebastian" 

You can never promise "affordable" in advance, not before the price is known... that's beyond crazy.


.

Reader comments - Australian budget...

Bushranger 71 •

Both of the major political parties are treating the electorate contemptuously by peddling economic bullshit projected 10 years ahead, when their immediate challenge is to get elected for a 3 year term in office and so should inform voters what they intend within that window to tackle the problems facing the nation.

The Treasurer this AM rabbited on about how projecting defence outlay 10 years ahead is sound financial planning. Really; when it is impossible to predict what the economic status of the nation will be a decade hence!!!

A few years back, Labor Minister for Defence Joel Fitzgibbon attempted to enforce financial discipline by pulling defence spending projections back to 4 years; but ultimately got shafted by lobbying from the big multinational arms corporates who dominate Canberra and 10 year defence outlay forecasting was reinstated.

Loss of AAA credit rating is well overdue for the Australian Government and also downgrade of the major banks. The sooner these happenings eventuate, the better because they will have cascading effects that will force wider financial discipline.

.

Aviation author Robert F. Dorr passes

Via his Facebook page.




.

Additional thoughts from the last two posts

Had an interesting note from a Labor friend after I had pointed out the debacle in the previous two posts.

He stated, that, no joke, this made him almost physically ill.

It can be like that when someone that is important to you; who's moral compass appears to be presented to your beliefs, later disappoints you in a big way.

Along with that, how do we pay for this big ticket items in this terrible election cycle? These people are making promises on credit.

I could not have said this any better:

"The Australian economy’s external position is worsening and the currency will fall below US50¢ once foreign investors realise the nation is spending like it is “stuck in 2006” and rates decline, a top bond fund manager argues."

Red emphasis added.

.

My sincere hope

Evidence that points to the onset of dementia.It is my sincere hope he gets the professional help he needs https://t.co/FUJSU79TFN #ausdef

— Eric Palmer (@E_L_P) June 10, 2016

Recent Australian Ambassador to the U.S., Kim Beazley, joins Lockheed Martin

Get comfy job in U.S. on the taxpayer's efforts.

Then get another comfy job with those connections.

It is all about who you know...

"Announcing the appointment, Lockheed Martin said Mr Beazley was "one of Australia's pre-eminent international policy thought leaders – a reputation established over a remarkable career that has to date spanned the highest echelons of politics and international diplomacy".

No conflict of interest here. No Sir.

"But, at the end of the day, there’s no doubt to Australia that the F-35 is the best thing around."

-2012, Kim Beazley, then Australian Ambassador to the United States-

More here.



---



-Defence covered up chemical contamination at RAAF Williamtown in order to pass $1B F-35 upgrade
-When will Marine Air leadership stop misinforming the public over the F-35?
-DOT&E Report: The F-35 Is Not Ready for IOC and Won't Be Any Time Soon
-Time's Battleland - 5 Part series on F-35 procurement - 2013 
-Summary of Air Power Australia F-35 points
-Bill Sweetman, Aviation Week and the F-35
-U.S. Government Accounting Office (GAO) F-35 reports
-F-35 JSF: Cold War Anachronism Without a Mission
-History of F-35 Production Cuts
-Looking at the three Japan contenders (maneuverability)
-How the Canadian DND misleads the public about the F-35
-Value of STOVL F-35B over-hyped
-Cuckoo in the nest--U.S. DOD DOT&E F-35 report is out
-6 Feb 2012 Letter from SASC to DOD boss Panetta questioning the decision to lift probation on the F-35B STOVL.
-USAFs F-35 procurement plan is not believable
-December 2011 Australia/Canada Brief
-F-35 Key Performance Perimeters (KPP) and Feb 2012 CRS report
-F-35 DOD Select Acquisition Report (SAR) 2011-2013
-Release of F-35 2012 test report card shows continued waste on a dud program
-Australian Defence answers serious F-35 project concerns with "so what?"
-Land of the Lost (production cut history update March 2013)
-Outgoing LM F-35 program boss admits to flawed weight assumptions (March 2013)
-A look at the F-35 program's astro-turfing
-F-35 and F-16 cost per flying hour
-Is this aircraft worth over $51B of USMC tac-air funding?
-Combat radius and altitude, A model
-F-35A, noise abatement and airfields and the USAF
-Deceptive marketing practice: F-35 blocks
-The concurrency fraud
-The dung beetle's "it's known" lie
-F-35's air-to-air ability limited
-F-35 Blocks--2006 and today
-The F-35B design is leaking fuel
-F-35 deliveries
-ADF's wacky F-35 assumptions
-Gauging performance, the 2008 F-35, Davis dream brief
-Aboriginal brought out as a prop
-Super Kendall's F-35 problem
-LM sales force in pre-Internet era
-History of F-35 engine problems
-Compare
-JSF hopes and dreams...early days of the Ponzi Scheme
-The Prognostics
-2002--Australia joins the F-35 program
-Congressional Research Service--Through to FY2013, F-35 has received $83.3B in funding
-F-35 choice gives Dutch a shocking high cost per flight hour
-More indications that the F-35 is a failed program
-From the year 2000. Very insightful. The JSF: One More Card In The House (PDF) 


“It will be affordable because already there are 3,000 aircraft on the order books.”
—27 June 2002, Air Marshal Houston, Defence press announcement, Australia joins the F-35 program—

Jutland ...

Some think Jutland assured British sea domination.

I'm not so sure. It was only part of sea fighting.

The following, showing Allied tonnage lost to German U-Boats in WWI. This is not British domination of the sea.

Via Wikipedia:

Allied and Neutral Tonnage sunk by submarines in World War I

Month	1914	1915	1916	1917	1918
January		47,981	81,259	368,521	306,658
February		59,921	117,547	540,006	318,957
March		80,775	167,097	593,841	342,597
April		55,725	191,667	881,027	278,719
May		120,058	129,175	596,629	295,520
June		131,428	108,851	687,507	255,587
July		109,640	118,215	557,988	260,967
August	62,767	185,866	162,744	511,730	283,815
September	98,378	151,884	230,460	351,748	187,881
October	87,917	88,534	353,660	458,558	118,559
November	19,413	153,043	311,508	289,212	17,682
December	44,197	123,141	355,139	399,212
Total	312,672	1,307,996	2,327,326	6,235,878	2,666,942

Grand Total 12,850,815 gross tons

1917:

In April, US Rear Admiral William Sims arrived in London as US Naval Liaison. He was dismayed to be informed by the Admiralty that Germany would win the war if its submarines went unchecked, and cabled Washington to have USN destroyers despatched to Queenstown, Ireland, from where they were to patrol to the west.

Had America not come into the war, Britain would have starved.

.