DEVASTATING Ground ATTACK Exercises of US Air Forces NATO and Slovak Military

Israel Receives Fifth German Nuclear-Capable Submarine

The Israeli regime has received of a fifth submarine from Germany, amid pressure on Berlin to halt the delivery of the state-of-the-art weaponry that is capable of being armed with nuclear warheads. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday welcomed the delivery of the advanced Dolphin-class submarine at the Haifa port north of the occupied Palestinian territories. The submarine, said to be capable of remaining submerged for up to seven days, can be equipped with missiles armed with nuclear warheads.

A German-made Dolphin-class submarine arrives at the military port north of the occupied Palestinian territories on January 12, 2016.

The Tel Aviv regime pursues a 'policy of ambiguity' over its nuclear arsenal, which is widely believed to contain up to 400 nukes. The new submarine has cost Israel about 500 million euros (USD 540 million), with the German government paying one third of the cost. Berlin is also to deliver a sixth submarine in two or three years. Many have criticized Germany for the sales of the modern military equipment to Israel. The administration of German Chancellor Angela Markel claims Germany has an obligation to guarantee the security of Israel.

German media say the delivery of the four previous Dolphin-class submarines have cost German taxpayers over 1 billion euros (USD 1.12 billion). Israel’s ministry of military affairs announced in May 2015 that it had reached a deal with a German shipbuilding company to have four major warships built for the Tel Aviv regime. It said the government in Berlin would pay for one fourth of the deal, which was reported to be more than 400 million euros.

Germany Going to Put on Steps in Syrian Soil

Germany is planning to deploy 1,200 troops to help France in the fight against Islamic State jihadists in Syria, its army chief said Sunday, in what would be the military's biggest deployment abroad.

"From a military point of view, around 1,200 soldiers would be necessary to run the planes and ship," army chief of staff Gen. Volker Wieker told Bild am Sonntag newspaper, adding that the mission would begin "very quickly once a mandate is obtained."

"The government is seeking a mandate this year," said Wieker.

Berlin on Thursday offered France Tornado reconnaissance jets, a naval frigate, aerial refueling and satellite images in the fight against the IS group.

Between four and six Tornados would be deployed to deliver images of the ground, even in poor weather and during the night, Wieker said.

Asked why Germany had shied away from participating in direct air strikes, Wieker said the coalition already had "sufficient forces and means" dealing with that aspect of the battle.

"What is needed is reconnaissance on the ground, so that these forces can be deployed effectively. Our Tornados can contribute a lot in that area," he said.

Talks are ongoing with Turkey and Jordan on stationing the planes in Incirlik — which also serves as a base for US jets, as well as in Amman.

Wieker swiped aside any criticism that Germany had opted for "the least dangerous" tasks, saying: "This allegation is not justified. What is the difference when you fly a bomber jet or a reconnaissance plane over the same area? The levels of threat and danger are the same."

Post-war Germany has been traditionally reluctant to send troops abroad, although it has joined UN-mandated missions in the Balkans and elsewhere, and the NATO coalition in Afghanistan.

Germany has not taken part in air strikes against the IS in Syria and Iraq, which have been mainly flown by US and French aircraft.

After France last week invoked a clause requiring EU member states to provide military assistance after the Paris attacks, Germany swiftly announced its participation in the fight in Syria.

Oman Considering To Acquire German Leopard Tanks

The Sultanate of Oman is interested in acquiring tanks from German company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW), according to a press report.

The German magazine Der Spiegel writes that a possible deal could result in delivery of more than 70 Leopard main battle tanks for about  €2 billion (US $2.2 billion).

A German parliamentary official confirmed the details of the report.

In addition to KMW, the sultanate also invited a Turkish producer to bid for the tank contract, says the article.

No spokesman at KMW was available for comment.

Turkish company Otokar developed the Altay battle tank on the basis of a South Korean license. However, in October it was made public that Austrian company AVL LIST was contracted to support Turkish engine producer Tümosan on the project.

Germany`s federal security council recently cleared the shipment of a Leopard 2 to Oman for demonstration purposes. But the export of arms to Mideast countries regularly sparks fierce debates in Germany as many people oppose such deliveries.

Shortly before the news about Oman broke, Germany`s Minister of Economics Sigmar Gabriel declared that he was not happy with the delivery of more than 60 Leopard 2s and two dozen howitzers to Qatar, but that he could not stop the deal as it was approved by the previous government.

So far, Oman has relied on the British-built Challenger 2. The Challenger, unusual among main battle tanks used by Western armies, has a rifled main gun. Experts said it is unclear if future improvements to the ammunition used by the tank will continue. The British Army is the only other operator of the tank.

Ukraine Begins Artillery Withdrawal From Front-Lines

Ukrainian troops have towed artillery away from the front-line in the war-ravaged east, in a step that seems to augur well for a ceasefire agreement signed with Russia-backed rebels.

The military on Thursday showed reporters seven or eight guns being towed away from the front at the village of Paraskoviyvka north of the government stronghold of Artemivsk.

Earlier, Reuters journalists saw a larger convoy of 30-40 vehicles also towing guns away from the front on a highway.

However, the Ukrainian defence ministry said in a statement carried by Associated Press news agency that it reserved the right to revise its withdrawal plans in the event of attack by rebel forces, who control large swaths of the east bordering Russia.

Ukraine 'preparing' nation for a long war
"Today Ukraine has begun the withdrawal of 100-millimetre guns from the line of confrontation," the military said, saying the step would be monitored by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

A team of about 600 OSCE personnel is overseeing the implementation of the deal signed between Russia and Ukraine and brokered by France and Germany.

The intensity of fighting has declined notably in recent days, although the warring sides have continued to trade accusations of violations in the ceasefire that came into force on February 15.

The move was Kiev's most direct step to acknowledge that the ceasefire was finally holding a week after losing the strategic town of Debaltseve to rebels.

Rebels have been pulling back heavy weapons for two days, but Ukraine had until now held back from implementing the withdrawal, arguing that fighting had not yet ceased.

Since capturing Debaltseve, rebels have taken pains to emphasise that they now intend to abide by the peace deal to end the conflict that the UN says has claimed more than 5,000 lives since April last year.

The Ukrainian army reported no combat fatalities at the front for a second straight day on Thursday, the first time no troops have been killed since long before the truce was meant to take effect.

New sanctions

The withdrawal of artillery is "point two" of the peace agreement reached in the Belarus capital Minsk, so beginning it amounts to an acknowledgement that "point one" - the ceasefire itself - is being observed.

Western countries denounced the rebels and their presumed sponsor, Russian President Vladimir Putin, for advancing on Debaltseve despite the truce.

But they have since held out hope that the ceasefire will now hold, with the rebels having achieved that objective.

In the days after its troops were driven from Debaltseve, Ukraine maintained that it believed the rebels were reinforcing for another advance, particularly expressing fear for the city of Mariupol, a port city of 500,000 people.

Western countries have threatened to impose new economic sanctions on Moscow if the rebels advance further into territory the Kremlin calls "New Russia".
Russia, which denies aiding its sympathisers in Ukraine, said on Thursday the threats of more sanctions were cover for Western efforts to undermine the truce.

Those all-metal Junkers

A Luftwaffe's Junkers Ju 52 dropping off troops

Italian Navy Test Fires Vulcano Ballistic Extended Range Projectiles

On 6 March 2014, the Italian Navy carried out a number of firing trials on board the frigate Bersagliere to test the 127/54 C gun equipped with Vulcano-Kit (V-kit). The firing trials, conducted with 127 Vulcano Ballistic Extended Range (BER) ammunition, proved to be successful, with projectiles achieving a range of over 38 km. The field of fire was limited to 40 km for security reasons.

Oto Melara has conducted firing tests of the Ballistic Extended Range Vulcano 127 projectile designed for the 127/46 gun mounted on the Italian FREMM and German F125 frigates. Photo: Oto Melara/

The Vulcano BER ammunition used in the firing trials are part of a pre-production lot; the production-line qualification is underway on a first pilot lot of ammunition. It is the first time a military ship, not equipped with the naval gun systems used in the Second World War, has reached such ballistic ranges. Vulcan BER ammunition provide very accurate and high precision firing actions at ranges beyond 60 km.

Commenting on the successful test OTO Melara said it is ready to supply Vulcano BER ammunition to the Navies employing the new 127/64 LW weapon system and those employing the previous version 127/54 C naval gun with the V-kit upgrade.

Vulcano 127 has already performed firing testing verifying the enhanced ballistic characteristics of the projectile. The one in the photo is the 127mm Guided Long Range projectile, showing the canard section and GPS/INS guidance and advanced multi-mode fuse section installed in the nose. Photo: Oto Melara 

In addition to the BER variant, Vulcano guided ammunition family also include the Guided Long Range (127GLR) and Semi Active Laser (GLR-SAL) guided versions, which will be available on board ships for firing trials starting from next year. The entire family of trajectory-corrected and guided projectiles will be able to conduct naval fire support at ranges from 35 km up to over 100 km, utilizing the OTO Melara naval guns systems.

NATO aircraft to monitor Ukraine crisis

Alliance to deploy reconnaissance aircraft over Poland and Romania to monitor situation in neighbouring country. 

NATO aircraft to monitor Ukraine crisis

NATO has said it will start reconnaissance flights over Poland and Romania to monitor the situation in neighbouring Ukraine where Russian forces have taken control of Crimea.

The AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) flights will take place solely over NATO territory, the alliance said on Monday.

Ukraine is not a NATO member but Russia's intervention in Crimea has alarmed neighbouring countries, including alliance members that used to be dominated by the Soviet Union.

The announcement comes as the United States is sending a dozen F-16 fighter jets and 300 service personnel to Poland as part of a training exercise.

The US and Russia are bitterly divided over how to ease the crisis, with each challenging the other to show they are really interested in a peaceful outcome.

Russia denounced alleged lawlessness by far-right activists in eastern Ukraine on Monday, in a statement likely to trigger fear in Ukraine over possible Russian intervention.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said it was outraged by lawlessness in the country’s east, blaming the group Right Sector for "conniving" with the new government in Kiev.

Right Sector is a grouping of several far-right and nationalist factions who were actively involved in the uprising against Moscow-backed President Viktor Yanukovich.

The movement uses swastika signs, is blamed for various attacks, and according to its leader Dmitro Yarosh, has “enough weapons to defend all of Ukraine”. 

 
Its activists were among the most radical and confrontational of the demonstrators in the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, and organised “self-defence” brigades for the protest camp.

Witnesses in eastern Ukraine told Reuters news agency that tensions had been fuelled by pro-Russian activists to provide Russian President Vladimir Putin with a justification for invading Ukraine to protect Russians. 

NATO Force

Pro-Russia sentiment is at a high and there are fears Russia could seek to incorporate that area as well.

Violence against Russians

A referendum has been called in Crimea for March 16 on whether the region should split off and seek to become part of Russia.

Russia has criticised the West for being silent over violence and detentions taking place against Russians, highlighting the attack on a pro-Moscow demonstrators in the eastern city of Kharkiv on March 8 and the detention of Russian journalists.

"The shamefaced silence of our Western partners, human rights organisations and foreign media is surprising. It raises the question, where is the notorious objectivity and commitment to democracy?" it said.

Ukraine's government and Western leaders have accused Russian officials and media of distorting the facts to portray the protesters who Yanukovich's rule as violent extremists.

On Wednesday, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk will be received in Washington by President Barack Obama.

Obama has warned that the March 16 vote in Crimea would violate international law. But on Sunday, Putin made it clear that he supports the referendum, in phone calls with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Minister David Cameron.

“The steps taken by the legitimate leadership of Crimea are based on the norms of international law and aim to ensure the legal interests of the population of the peninsula,” said Putin, according to the Kremlin.

Putin has refused to have any dealings with the new Ukrainian leaders who replaced fugitive pro-Kremlin Yanukovich.

Anka May Lose Its Engine

Chinese Avic’s acquisition of German Thielert, leaves the first Turkishmade drone, the Anka, without an engine. Turkish officials are worried that buying of Thielert, engines supplier of Anka, may delay the project.

It looked entirely like any other business takeover between the Chinese and Germans with no relevance to Turkey. But the news that a Chinese group had acquired the troubled German maker of aircraft engines means Turkey must now find a new engine supplier for its first indigenous unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the Anka.

Turkish officials and the Anka team are now worried that Chinese group Avic International’s acquisition of Thielert, a bankrupt German maker of diesel engines for aircraft may further delay the Anka which would otherwise have been powered by Thielert’s Centurion engine.

Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) which develops the Anka had ordered the Centurion for a batch of 10 aircraft. Now TAI must look elsewhere to find a new engine to power the Anka.

The ANKA is a medium-altitude long-endurance MALE-category drone. Such UAVs usually operate for 24 hours at an altitude of 10,000 feet.

ANKA, meaning Phoenix in English, is the first MALE-type UAV to be produced by TAI. One of the prototypes crashed during a test flight in September but several other flight tests have been carried out successfully.

ANKA+, another version of the ANKA, calls for an armed vehicle, using a rocket attached to its body and sensors.

An engine maybe developed to replace

“An immediate replacement could be a difficult task,” a TAI official said. “We may, though, ask TEI (TAI’s sister company that manufactures engine parts) to develop an engine for the Anka.” Both TAI and TEI (Turkish Engine Industries) are owned by a military support fund.

The engine problem occurred at a time when defense procurement authorities are preparing to sign a contract for the acquisition of 10 ANKAs. Separately, the Turkish police force is also preparing to place an order for the Anka.

Before the engine snag, another problem had delayed the Anka program. A locally-developed electro optical sensor, by military electronics firm Aselsan, did not fit Anka’s specifications and TAI was mulling to opt for a foreign pod.

Avic said in August that it was merging Thielert into its Continental Motors division and was giving up military business. Deliveries had stopped, the state-run Chinese company announced.

Thielert was supplying engines for aircraft including a U.S. Army version of the General Atomics Predator. General Atomics has acquired the engine data package and intends to continue production and support.

Satellite-controled version of ANKA

The ANKA had successfully passed acceptance tests late in January. The final, decisive tests on Jan. 20-21 involved a full endurance, 18-hour flight, successful auto landing, data link performance at a distance of 200 km (approx. 120 miles) under winds up to 45 knots, and night take-offs and landings. The ANKA has so far did more than 150 flight hours. There is a possibility that TAI could develop a satellite-controlled version of the ANKA, company officials say.

A defense industry expert said that finding a new engine supplier may not resolve the entire problem. “Any new engine will have to be fitted into the Anka which was designed for the Thielert engine. This will require new (engine) integration work. New tests should also be done,” he said.

HDN

17 Firms Vie To Supply Tank, Vehicles to Poland

Seventeen foreign and Polish defense companies have applied to participate in the technical dialogues to supply new light tanks and tracked infantry fighting vehicles to Poland’s Army.

 

The procurements are being carried out by the Polish Defense Ministry’s Armament Inspectorate.

The local companies include Polish Defense Holdings subsidiary OBRUM, PCO S.A., KenBIT, Huta Stalowa Wola, WB Electronics, Etronika, ZM Tarnow, IMS-Griffin, M.K. Szuster, Aycomm and Radiotechnika Marketing. Foreign manufacturers and their subsidiaries include the UK’s BAE Systems, France’s Nexter and Thales, Germany’s Rheinmetall and PSM Projekt System & Management, Rheinmetall’s joint venture with Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, and Sweden’s Saab.

The technical dialogue for the light tank program is expected to take about two months, and the prototype is scheduled for completion in 2016, local news site Defence24.pl reported. The Polish military is aiming to acquire about 300 tanks with a weight of up to 35 tons to replace the country’s outdated T-72s.Under the technical dialogue terms, the new infantry fighting vehicles are to be offered in a combat support and technical support variant, according to the Armament Inspectorate.

UAE decides against Typhoon

 

Official Eurofighter logo

The United Arab Emirates has chosen not to purchase Eurofighter Typhoon combat aircraft despite high-level talks between UK and UAE officials, according to BAE Systems.
 

An RAF Typhoon in flight

“The UAE have advised that they have elected not to proceed with these proposals at this time,” says a 19 December media release from BAE.

“BAE Systems and the UK government have been in discussions with the government of the United Arab Emirates regarding a range of defence and security capabilities, including the potential supply of Typhoon aircraft,” BAE adds.

Typhoon was seen as a challenge to France’s Dassault, which for years has been seeking to sell its Rafale fighter to the UAE.
 

German ground crew mount an IRIS-T to a Eurofighter

But two years ago on the day before the Dubai air show, news broke that the UAE had asked the Eurofighter consortium to submit a proposal.

BAE’s media release says “all parties have invested significant effort in drawing up Typhoon proposals for the UAE.”

“Recognising the risk, scale and complexity of such a transaction, the group had not built this prospect into its planning assumptions,” it adds.

Choosing French Submarines over German?

 

A German team is due in few days probably on August 5th according to sources to look into possibility of signing the accord for provision of U-214 submarines to Pakistan Navy.
However reports appearing in the media suggest that the deal may hit snags due to change of mind in the current Pakistani government over purchase of German submarines.

In 2008 Pakistan Navy under chief of navel staff Admiral Muhammad Afzal Tahir made efforts for including German 214 Class submarines in its fleet and owing to Navy’s persistent efforts, the government had approved plans for acquisition of these submarines to be built at Karachi Shipyard under transfer of technology programme.

The details were later worked out between the two countries when a Pakistan Navy delegation visited Germany in April.

However recently quoting Pakistani government sources, the Financial Times Deutschland says President Asif Zardari may overrule his military’s preference for the German subs to take up a “better offer” from France.

But what better submarines France can offer to Pakistan? That is a question to ponder because France has no better submarines to offer Pakistan at the moment whereas French are indeed not ready to offer us nuclear submarine.

What France has in store? :

There are three options 1. Scorpion, 2. Marlin and 3. Barracuda submarines. But again the Scorpions are not superior to U 214, neither these will be having any benefit for Pakistan because French company DCN is already going to provide Scorpion to Indian Navy ahead of Pakistan.

U-214 is way better than French design given to India. Marlin is just on drawing board and will take forever to go to prototype stage and then test and evaluation and finally induction into Pakistan Navy meanwhile India will have all its Scorpion in sea. DCN (Direction des Constructions Navales ), France will not be able to fulfill Pakistani order ahead of Indians. The success of Marlin, or weather or not it will be better than U-214 German sub cannot be predicted. Currently, U-214 for the best non-nuclear submarine in the world, and our friends in Turkey will soon produce it at home with the license of production.

Now the only option for Pakistan will be to ask for Barracuda submarine but it is unlikely that France will sell us nuclear submarine. Barracuda is a nuclear powered submarine and France does not currently allow the sale of nuclear-propelled submarines.

Despite having French Agosta-90B submarines, the Pakistani Navy opted for purchasing German Torpedoes for fitting to Agosta-90B due to the superior German technology.
Pakistan Navy needs German submarines because the German U-214 subs are far better than the French Scorpion.

If the current government goes for inferior quality French submarines then it will indeed give weight to suspicion of many Pakistanis who see bribes as main factor behind any irrational decisions viz viz defence deals.

Already the Pakistani senators have demanded in an incamera briefing from Pakistani Naval chief in the Senate.

Whereas some eyebrows have also been raised over the fact that foreign secretary Salman Bashir in the current government of Zardari is the brother of Naval Chief, Noman Bashir and there are also some reports that PIA chairman is going to be named Pakistani envoy to France. Some political pundits see such an appointment an attempt to muster a deal for French submarines.

On the other hand submarine acquisition project (SMAP) a group composed of Naval officers who have recommended U-214 submarines over other options after extensive study has been disbanded and the officers have been posted out at different stations.

Though earlier the Germans have delayed the deal due to political situation of Pakistan but can kickoff cutting of hull for first submarine immediately after signing the deal.

In such a situation going for something which does not fulfill the requirement of Pakistan Navy would be tantamount to putting the national defence at risk.

There is no reason not to go for German submarines specially when Berlin even granted federal export credit guarantees worth nearly $1.4 billion for the purchase of the same.

Submarine Vesikko - The Only Existed U-Boat Type

 

One of the few survived submarines of the Second World War is located in Suomenlinna Sea Fortress, Helsinki.

Finnish submarine Vesikko was the prototype of the first submarine type of German Navy in 1930's, the Typ II. Vesikko was real hi-tech in its time. 

 

It served both the raise of Germany’s submarine weapon and the Finnish Navy in its fight against the Baltic fleet of Soviet Navy.

...........................................

Infographs of "Airbus A400M"

The "Airbus A400M" - Photos of The Day