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30 septembre 2015 3 30 /09 /septembre /2015 11:35
S-3 Viking anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft - photo US Navy

S-3 Viking anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft - photo US Navy

 

September 24, 2015: Strategy Page

 

South Korea is seeking to buy about twenty retired American S-3 anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft to augment South Korean ability to find and destroy North Korean submarines. The United States retired the last of its S-3s in 2009 but put dozens in storage, just in case. Before putting these aircraft in storage the navy took advantage of new, lightweight, search radars and targeting pods and in 2006 began equipping S-3 aircraft with Lantirn targeting pods. This was in an effort to extend the life of the S-3s, as reconnaissance aircraft. That did not prevent the retirement decision.

 

The S-3 was originally designed as an anti-submarine aircraft, and served in that capacity from its introduction in the mid-1970s, to the late 1990s. The end of the Cold War ended most of the submarine threat so after 1999 the S-3 has served as a patrol aircraft and aerial tanker. It was hoped that a reequipped S-3, with the long endurance (ten hours per sortie), day/night video capability of the Lantirn, and lightweight search radar, would make it a much more effective maritime patrol aircraft. The Lantirn pod costs two million dollars, and is hung off a hard point like a bomb or fuel tank. Despite this effort some 90 late model S-3s, about half the 188 manufactured, are in storage and can be brought back to service in a few months. South Korea would add some of its own electronics and begin using the S-3s for ASW work.

 

The 23 ton S-3 is a twin-jet ASW aircraft designed to operate from aircraft carriers. It carries a crew of four (two pilots and two equipment operators) and up to 2.2 tons of weapons (bombs, mines, depth charges, ant-submarine torpedoes). Cruise speed is 650 kilometers an hour and stall (slowest) speed is 180 kilometers an hour. Also carried are sixty sonobuoys plus extensive electronics (search radar, night vision camera and magnetic anomaly detector).

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21 mars 2015 6 21 /03 /mars /2015 17:35
A V-22A Osprey from Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 262 lands aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu (LHA 5)

A V-22A Osprey from Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 262 lands aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu (LHA 5)

 

 

March 21, 2015: Strategy Page

 

China has responded to Japanese efforts to defend the Senkaku Islands by building a helicopter base on a Chinese island 335 kilometers from the Senkakus, This is within range of transport helicopters that could bring in troops and weapons in under two hours. This is seen as a response to the Japanese decision in late 2014 to purchase 17 American MV-22 transports. This the Japanese did to defend the Senkaku Islands from possible surprise Chinese attack. The V-22s are faster than helicopters but Japanese territory is about a hundred kilometers farther away than Chinese land. So given sufficient warning the Chinese and Japanese occupation forces would arrive on the Senkakus at the same time.

 

Japan first raised the possibility of buying MV-22 “Osprey” tilt rotor transports in 2013. These would be able to quickly move reinforcements to the Senkakus if the Chinese decided to land troops there and declare such an occupation as proof of Chinese ownership. The Senkakus are uninhabited islets 320 kilometers southeast of the Chinese mainland, 167 kilometers northeast of Taiwan, and 426 kilometers west of Japan's Okinawa Island. Taiwan also claims the Senkakus, which have a total area of 6.3 square kilometers. The islands were discovered by Chinese fishermen in the 16th century and taken over by Japan in 1879. They are valuable now because of the 380 kilometer economic zone nations can claim in their coastal waters. This includes fishing and possible underwater oil and gas fields.

 

The U.S. has also noted the usefulness of V-22s in the Western Pacific. In 2013 the U.S. moved 23 of its MV-22s to an American base on Okinawa. Both the U.S. and Japan long assumed that the biggest threat was the new Chinese Zubr air cushion craft that could get troops and vehicles to the Senkakus in five hours. From Okinawa MV-22s could reach the Senkakus within an hour. China has been getting more aggressive about its claims on the Senkakus, sending more warships and aircraft near the islands, which Japan considers a provocation and possible prelude to a Chinese attempt to establish small bases on the larger islets. One has 4.3 square kilometers of space and its tallest point is 383 meters above sea level. The next largest has 1.08 square kilometers and reaches 177 meters above sea level. The next smaller islets are .32 and .45 square kilometers and basically the peaks of underwater mountains, as are four even smaller ones, three of which only appear during low tide. The largest island has wild goats and some other small mammals as well as vegetation. The only source of fresh water is rain that collects in depressions and crevices. The five largest islands are frequented by sea birds, sometimes for breeding. For a long time the only human visitors were fishermen with boat trouble or in need of fresh water or some of the unique herbs found on the larger islands. Because of the dispute with China there are now more Japanese tourists.

 

China has a history of installing small numbers of troops on islets or reefs (via structures built on stilts) whose ownership China disputes. China then supplies these troops at great expense via boat from the mainland and threatens to strike back if its “garrisons” are attacked. Thus the Japanese watch the Senkakus carefully, in case China tries to send in “occupation forces.” The U.S. has made it clear that its MV-22s in Okinawa would be available to move Japanese troops to the Senkakus in the event of an emergency.

 

Zubr class air cushion vehicle

Zubr class air cushion vehicle

The 27 ton MV-22B cruises at 445 kilometers an hour and its endurance is about 3.5 hours per sortie. The MV-22B can carry up to 32 troops or 9 tons of cargo. The Zubr class air cushion vehicles are 555 ton craft that can carry 130 tons (three tanks or a combination of lighter armored or non-armored vehicles). Top speed is 110 kilometers an hour and range is 480 kilometers. The crew of 31 usually stays out less than 8 hours per mission. The Zubrs also carry two stabilized MLRs (multiple tube rocket launchers), 4 short range anti-aircraft missiles systems (Igla-1Ms) and 2 AK-630 six-barrel 30mm close-in weapon systems (CIWS), for defense against anti-ship missiles. Currently China has two Zubrs and two more are on order. The most likely Chinese transport helicopter for this mission is the Russian Mi-8 with a max speed of 260 kilometers an hour.

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5 mars 2015 4 05 /03 /mars /2015 12:35
China‬ builds scale model aircraft carrier on land to test future chinese navy‬ equipment - Google Earth

China‬ builds scale model aircraft carrier on land to test future chinese navy‬ equipment - Google Earth

 

March 4, 2015: Strategy page

 

Satellite photos show China making rapid progress in building new islands in the Spratly islands. Some of these new islands are large enough for airstrips long enough to support warplanes, but most are suitable only for light transports and helicopters. This, however, makes these new islands suitable as staging areas for helicopter raids on nearby small islands claimed, or even occupied, by another nation. In effect, these new islands have become permanent aircraft carriers dotting the disputed islands of the South China Sea.

 

In the last year or so China has rapidly gone from building platforms to bringing in dredging ships and piling up sand into new islands. Thus Hughes reef, which has had a 380 square meter (4,100 square feet) raised platform since 2004 has in the last six months had that expanded by dredging to a 75,000 square meter (18 acre) island with an airstrip and buildings now under construction. Similar platform building and island creation is under way at other reefs (Johnson South, Gaven Reefs and Fiery Cross Reef) in the Spratlys.

 

China is particularly concerned about gaining control of the Spratlys, a group of some 100 islets, atolls, and reefs that total only about 5 square kilometers (1,200 acres) of land, but sprawl across some 410,000 square kilometers of the South China Sea. Set amid some of the world's most productive fishing grounds, the islands are believed to have enormous oil and gas reserves. Several nations have overlapping claims on the group. About 45 of the islands are currently occupied by small numbers of military personnel. China claims them all, but long occupied only 8 while Vietnam has occupied or marked 25, the Philippines 8, Malaysia 6, and Taiwan one. Now China is building platforms and new islands all over the Spratly chain giving it a legal (at least according to China) claim to all of the Spratly Islands.

 

All these new islands have to be supplied with food, water, fuel and other necessities from the mainland. Most of this is by ship but the addition of airstrips provides the ability to make emergency deliveries by air. The platforms are kept because during major storms these low lying artificial islands are often flooded. The platforms provide an emergency refuge for the small garrisons on these islands. Other nations believe all this platform and island building can mean only one things, an eventual Chinese attack on the claims (and island garrisons) of other claimants.

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4 octobre 2014 6 04 /10 /octobre /2014 16:50
UK CVF Royal Navy aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth

UK CVF Royal Navy aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth

 

October 4, 2014: Strategy Page

 

On August 28 th , 2014 the last of Britain's Invincible class carriers, HMS Illustrious, was decommissioned. This comes only three years after Illustrious returned to service after a $60 million refurbishment. At that point the Illustrious no longer carried Harrier vertical takeoff/landing jets. Instead, 20 helicopters were on board and crew size had been reduced to 600. At that time it had already been decided to replace Illustrious with HMS Ocean in 2014. Ocean is an amphibious assault ship that was out of service from 2012 until 2014 for upgrades and maintenance. The 22,000 ton Ocean is now in service. The ship carries 18 helicopters, along with 840 marines and 40 vehicles. Ocean can also operate up to 15 Harriers.

 

Meanwhile the Royal Navy is looking for someone to adopt the Illustrious as a museum ship. The three Invincible class carriers entered service in the early 1980s and the other two were scraped in 2011 and 2014. All three were originally built for anti-submarine operations against Soviet subs in the North Atlantic. But the Soviet Navy disappeared in the early 1990s and the Invincibles were converted to more varied uses.

 

In early 2011, only 18 months after returning to service (after another round of upgrades) another Invincible, the HMS Ark Royal was decommissioned. Thus for a few months Britain had no aircraft carrier in service. The HMS Ocean did not count, as it only carried helicopters. But until the end of the decade, all British carriers will carry only helicopters. That's because in 2011 Britain retired all its Harrier vertical takeoff jets, which were the principal warplanes on the Invincible class carriers.

 

It was in late 2009 that the Ark Royal returned to service after seven months in the shipyard (for $20 million worth of repairs and upgrades). The Ark Royal also had a $47 million refit in 2006, and a more extensive, $210 million one, in 1999-2001, that resulted in a larger flight deck. The Ark Royal was to remain in service until the first of the two Queen Elizabeth class carriers entered service at the end of this decade. The Queen Elizabeths have been in the works since the late 1990s and the first one is expected to enter service by 2020.

 

The 22,000 ton Ark Royal entered service in 1985, one of three Invincible class carriers. It carried 24 aircraft and helicopters, and was operated by a crew of 1,100. The most notable aspect of a recent refit was the addition of accommodations for 400 marines. This made the Ark Royal into an amphibious carrier, and it could deliver the marines via helicopter, or boats. Earlier this year, the Invincible was towed to Turkey, where it is being broken up for scrap.

 

The new "Queen Elizabeth" class carriers are planning on having a ship's crew of 800 (or less) and an air wing complement of 600 personnel. Currently, you need a ship crew of about 2,000 for a carrier that size, plus nearly as many for the air wing. These carriers are going to cost about $5 billion each, and are to be in use for half a century (via periodic refits and refurbs). But the biggest cost will be personnel. Currently, it costs the U.S. Navy a bit over $100,000 per sailor per year. Do the math ($7 billion in crew costs over the life of each carrier.) So the smaller the crew, the greater the savings, and the more you can spend on upgrading the ship, buying new aircraft and the like.

 

These carriers will haul 34-45 aircraft and helicopters each and be able to handle about 110 flight operations every 24 hours. That's with current aircraft. The F-35C will be the primary warplane on the British carriers. But it's also likely that many, or all, of the next generation of aircraft on these ships will be robotic.

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31 janvier 2014 5 31 /01 /janvier /2014 17:40
photo Royal Navy

photo Royal Navy

 

 

January 31, 2014: Strategy Page

 

In early January Russia’s only aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kuznetzov passed through the English Channel on its way to the Mediterranean. The carrier had five escort vessels and military pilots flying close by could not help but notice that there was a lot of rust on the deck of the carrier. This was not a good sign.

 

The Kuznetzov left its base in northern Russia on December 17th and heading for the Syrian port of Tartus, where Russia has been building basing facilities for over a year.  Western navy officers who have seen the Kuznetzov up close (it was in the Mediterranean two years ago) have noted that the ship is long overdue for a major overhaul. The second ship of the Kuznetzov class was purchased by the Chinese a decade ago and completely refurbished. It is now in service as the Shi Lang and looks a lot better.

 

The Kuznetzov has had some updates since the 1990s but a lot of this work is suspect. Back in 2012 a military procurement official was prosecuted for substituting cheaper, substandard parts for new ones meant for the Kuznetzov. The corrupt official used forged documents to get away with this but members of the crew noticed the substandard parts and reported it. The Kuznetsov has been sent back to the shipyard several times during the last decade to fix problems and update equipment. Much was wrong with the ship, due to poor design, sloppy workmanship, or corruption. It’s gotten so bad that lackadaisical sailors are threatened with being sent to serve on the Kuznetsov as a way of motivating them.

 

The Kuznetsov continues to have problems with missing or malfunctioning equipment. This not only degrades the combat capabilities of the ship but also its habitability. At times there was no heat in the living quarters and many of the toilets didn't work. There is no money for a major overhaul, which would cost over half a billion dollars, at least for the Kuznetsov. So essential repairs are made and the ship continues to rust away, often quite visibly.

 

Kuznetsov class carriers began building in the 1980s and the lead ship was finally launched in 1995 and entered service in 1995. Originally the Kuznetsovs were to be 90,000 ton, nuclear powered ships, similar to American carriers (complete with steam catapults). Instead, because of the high cost and the complexity of modern (American style) carriers, the Russians were forced to scale back their plans and ended up with 65,000 ton (full load) ships that lacked steam catapults and used a ski jump type (STOBAR) flight deck instead. Nuclear power was dropped but the Kuznetsov class was still a formidable design. The 323 meter (thousand foot) long ship normally carries a dozen navalized Su-27s (called Su-33s), 14 Ka-27PL anti-submarine helicopters, two electronic warfare helicopters, and two search and rescue helicopters. But the ship was meant to regularly carry 36 Su-33s and sixteen helicopters, and a lack of money and facilities on the ship limits the number of aircraft that can be brought along. Other weapons include a dozen SS-N-19 anti-ship missiles and 18 vertical launch tubes for 192 anti-aircraft missiles. There are also 16 auto-cannon for anti-missile work plus some depth charges.

 

Officially called an "aircraft carrying cruiser", the ship carries 2,500 tons of aviation fuel, allowing it to generate 500-1,000 aircraft and helicopter sorties. Crew size is 2,500 (or 3,000 with a full aircraft load). Only two ships of this class exist, the original Kuznetsov, which is in Russian service, and the Varyag, which China bought unfinished from Ukraine and has rebuilt as the Shi Lang.

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13 juin 2013 4 13 /06 /juin /2013 16:40
Ilyushin Il-38N

Ilyushin Il-38N

June 13, 2013: Strategy Page

 

A year after receiving its first upgraded Il-38N maritime reconnaissance aircraft the Russian recently navy ordered more of its remaining IL-38s to be upgraded to the IL-38N standard. The Russian Navy only has about 18 IL-38s operational. These four engine aircraft are roughly equivalent to the American P-3s, but have not had their sensors and communications equipment updated since the Cold War. Only 59 were built between 1967 and 1972. This upgrade has already been installed on five Indian IL-38s a decade ago, but it took until 2010 to get the upgrade working reliably. Getting the upgrade for more Russian aircraft was mainly a matter of finishing development and then getting the money. The Il-38N upgrade was first proposed in the 1980s, but the end of the Cold War and a shortage of money delayed work for decades.

 

There have been several more upgrades since the Il-38N was first proposed to India in 2001. These were major upgrades of an aircraft that had been in service since the 1960s. The latest upgrades enable the aircraft to detect ships within 320 kilometers. There is also a new thermal (heat) sensor, more powerful computers, and increased capability in all sensors.

 

Existing Il-38Ns can detect surface vessels and aircraft and submarines up to 150 kilometers away. Sensors carried include a synthetic aperture/inverse synthetic aperture radar (for night and fog operations), high-resolution FLIR (forward-looking infrared), LLTV (low light television) camera, ESM (electronic support measures) system, and a MAD (magnetic anomaly detector). The aircraft can carry anti-ship missiles, in addition to torpedoes, bombs, depth charges, and electronic decoys.

 

The Il-38N is a 63 ton, four engine turboprop aircraft with a crew of ten, endurance of about ten hours, and it can carry nine tons of weapons. The 63 ton American P-3 has very similar characteristics. Russia built 176 Il-38s while the U.S. built over 600 P-3s. The Indians are replacing their Il-38s with the new American P-8, a twin engine jet based on the American B-737 transport. The P-8s are replacing all the American P-3s as well.

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