The Government of Singapore has requested a possible sale of 670 KMU-572B/B Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) Guidance Kits, 670 DSU-38/B Precision Laser Guidance kits for GBU-54(V)1/B (MK-82)670 KMU-572B/B Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) Guidance Kits for GBU-28B(V)1/B (MK-82), 670 DSU-38/B Precision Laser Guidance Kits for GBU-54(V)1/B, support equipment, repair and return, tools and test equipment, spare and repair parts, publications and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment, U.S. Government and contractor technical and logistics personnel services, and other related elements of logistical and program support.

The estimated cost is $40 million.

This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to improve the security of a friendly country that has been and continues to be an important force for economic progress in Southeast Asia.

Singapore needs the JDAM kits to help meet current and future threats of enemy air-to-ground weapons. Singapore will use the enhanced capability as a deterrent to regional threats and to strengthen its homeland defense. Singapore, which already has JDAM guidance kits in its inventory, will have no difficulty absorbing these additional enhanced kits.

The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region.

The principal contractor will be The Boeing Company of St. Louis, Missouri. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.

Implementation of this proposed sale will not require the assignment of any additional U.S. Government and contractor representatives to Singapore.

There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale.

This notice of a potential sale is required by law and does not mean the sale has been concluded.

Laser Joint Direct Attack Munitions for Singapore is a post from: DefenceTalk | Defense & Military News - Forums - Pictures - Weapons

Topol-M (SS-27 Stalin) missiles are the mainstay of the ground-based component of Russia's nuclear triad. As of the beginning of 2009, the SMF operated 50 silo-based and six road-mobile Topol-M missile systems.

"We will complete the rearmament of the second missile regiment in the Teikovo division with mobile Topol-M systems," the new SMF commander, Lt. Gen. Andrei Shvaichenko told reporters in Moscow.

The first Topol-M mobile missile regiment has already been put on combat duty with the 54th Strategic Missile Division near the town of Teikovo, about 150 miles (240 km) northeast of Moscow.

Shvaichenko also said that a sixth regiment of silo-based Topol-M systems will be put in service with the Tatishchevo Missile Division near Saratov in southwestern Russia in 2010.

The Topol-M missile, with a range of about 7,000 miles (11,000 km), is said to be immune to any current and future U.S. ABM defense. It is capable of making evasive maneuvers to avoid a kill using terminal phase interceptors, and carries targeting countermeasures and decoys.

It is also shielded against radiation, electromagnetic pulse, nuclear blasts, and is designed to survive a hit from any form of laser technology.

At present, six types of silo-based and mobile ICBM systems are on combat duty with the SMF, including the heavy Voyevoda (SS-18 Satan) capable of carrying 10 warheads, and the Topol-M systems.

Shvaichenko said Russia will continue work to extend the service life of the SS-18 missiles to 31 years and the SS-25 Topol and RS-20B missiles to 23 years.

Russia continues to modernize its nuclear triad is a post from: DefenceTalk | Defense & Military News - Forums - Pictures - Weapons

The Tomahawk Block IV was launched from the USS Princeton (CG-59), a Ticonderoga-class Aegis cruiser underway in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California. The missile flew a land attack mission into San Nicolas Island in support of a Special Operations team.

"This test proves that Tomahawk provides a key enabler for time-critical strike," said Tomahawk Program Manager Capt. Dave Davison. "As the only network-enabled, land attack weapon, Tomahawk can re-target, loiter, or provide last minute weapons coverage to deployed forces from on-station naval combatants."

The missile destroyed a time-critical target after receiving targeting information from a combined U.S./United Kingdom Special Operations Team on the island using the Precision Strike Suite - Special Operations Forces (PSS-SOF) and Joint Strike Planning and Execution Auto Router (JSPEAR) portable units. Live target updating was conducted from the field using these portable units and confirmation was provided by satellite and unmanned systems imagery.

The mission was initiated from JSPEAR and sent to the fleet commander and USS Princeton. Seconds after launch from the ship's vertical launch system, the Tomahawk missile transitioned to cruise flight. The total flight time was short and the test was conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of the Tomahawk's new eight channel anti-jam GPS receiver (AGR-4). The results of this test confirmed the ability of Tomahawk Block IV to be used in time critical strike operations to meet the requirements of U.S. Special Forces.

The Tomahawk is ship and submarine launched, and was first employed operationally during Desert Storm. The enhanced capabilities of Tomahawk Block IV increase fleet effectiveness, with network enabled communication, battle damage imaging, while at the same time significantly reducing acquisition and life cycle costs.

Tomahawk missiles are deployed throughout the world's oceans. Tomahawk operational test launches are conducted throughout the year from Navy surface ships and submarines. These tests are designed to maintain the operational readiness of the Atlantic and Pacific fleets, as well as test and prove upgrades and enhancements to the missile, platforms, or control software.

The Tomahawk program, PMA-280, is managed by the Program Executive Office, Unmanned Aviation & Strike Weapons at Patuxent River, Md. The missile is manufactured by Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson, Ariz. The weapon control system aboard the combatants is integrated by the Navy.

Tomahawk Test Demonstrates Time-Critical Use is a post from: DefenceTalk | Defense & Military News - Forums - Pictures - Weapons

The Government of Chile has requested a possible sale of 100 AIM-120C-7 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM), containers, warranty, spare and repair parts, support equipment, publications and technical data, personnel training and training equipment, U.S. Government and contractor technical assistance, and other related elements of logistics support.

The estimated cost is $145 million.

This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to improve the security of a friendly country which has been and continues to be an important force for political stability and economic progress in South America.

Chile intends to use these missiles to improve its capability to meet current and future threats of enemy air-to-air weapons. This will contribute to the Chilean military’s goal to update its capability while further enhancing greater interoperability between Chile, the U.S., and other allies. Chile, which already has AMRAAM missiles in its inventory, will have no difficulty absorbing these additional missiles into its armed forces.

The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region.

The principal contractor will be the Raytheon Corporation in Tucson, Arizona. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.

Implementation of this proposed sale will not require any additional U.S. Government or contractor representatives to Chile.

There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale.

This notice of a potential sale is required by law and does not mean the sale has been concluded.

Chile Requests AIM-120C-7 AMRAAM Missiles is a post from: DefenceTalk | Defense & Military News - Forums - Pictures - Weapons

The Government of Chile has requested a possible sale of 36 AVENGER Fire Units, 378 STINGER-Reprogrammable Micro-Processor (RMP) Block 1 Anti-Aircraft missiles, 12 STINGER Block 1 Buy-to-Fly missiles, 42 Captive Flight Trainers, 36 AN/VRC-92E Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio Systems (SINCGARS), 42 Captive Flight Trainers (CFTs), S250 Shelters on High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWV), support equipment, tools and test equipment, spare and repair parts, publications and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment, U.S. Government and contractor technical support services, and other related elements of logistics support.

The estimated cost is $455 million.

This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to improve the security of a friendly country which has been and continues to be an important force for political stability and economic progress in South America.

Chile intends to use these defense articles and services to modernize its armed forces. and expand its existing air defense architecture to counter threats posed by air attack. These systems will contribute to the Chilean military’s goal of updating its capability while further enhancing greater interoperability between Chile and the U.S. and other allies.

The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region.

The principal contractors will be Boeing Aerospace Company of Huntsville, AL, Raytheon Missile Systems of Tucson, AZ, and Thales Raytheon Systems Company, LLC of Fullerton, CA. There are no offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.

Implementation of this proposed sale will require 10 U.S. Government or contractor representatives to travel to Chile for 8 weeks for equipment checkout and training.

There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale. This notice of a potential sale is required by law and does not mean the sale has been concluded.

Avenger Fire Units, Stinger Missiles for Chile is a post from: DefenceTalk | Defense & Military News - Forums - Pictures - Weapons

"We have some criticisms about the conduct of our Russian friends," the Mehr news agency quoted the general as saying.

"Why haven't they delivered the S-300 missiles?... Six months have now passed since they were supposed to deliver them."

It was the first time an Iranian official has spoken of a delivery date for the missiles under the deal which has never been officially confirmed by Moscow.

On Wednesday, Iranian Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi urged Russia to ignore Israeli pressure to scrap the deal and to honour its obligations.

"We have a contract with Russia to buy S-300 missiles. I don't think it is right for Russia to be seen in the world as a country which does not fulfil its contractual obligations," Vahidi told the ILNA news agency.

"Russia has to fulfil the contract and not be influenced by Zionist pressure."

Last month, Russia's Interfax news agency reported that Iran had not yet paid for the missiles because Moscow has not given its final approval for the deal, which has also set alarm bells ringing in the West.

Under the contract, Russia would sell Iran five batteries of S-300PMU1 missiles for around 800 million dollars (530 million euros), Interfax reported.

The S-300PMU1 -- codenamed the SA-20 Gargoyle by NATO -- is a mobile land-based system designed to shoot down aircraft and cruise missiles.

Western governments fear Iran could use the system to boost defences around its nuclear sites against an eventual Israeli or US air strike.

Neither country has excluded the possibility of military action to prevent Tehran acquiring an atomic bomb, an ambition Iranian officials strongly deny.

Iran insists its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful and its right under the Non-Proliferation Treaty, of which it is a signatory, unlike Israel, which has the Middle East's sole if undeclared nuclear arsenal.

Iran says Russian missile delivery six months overdue is a post from: DefenceTalk | Defense & Military News - Forums - Pictures - Weapons

"The AIM-120C-7 provides unparalleled air combat and air defense capabilities," said Col. Michael Andersen, commander of the U.S. Air Force's 328th Armament Systems Group. "By equipping our allies with the AIM-120C-7 through the Foreign Military Sales program, the U.S. government strengthens regional security and promotes coalition interoperability."

The three countries will receive an undisclosed quantity of missiles for use in both air-to-air and air defense missions.

"No other missile in production or in development can match AMRAAM for lethality, reliability and overall affordability for the entire life cycle of the missile," said Jim Knox, Raytheon's AMRAAM program director. "AMRAAM, in both the air-to-air and surface-launch applications, is the weapon of choice to protect the people, critical infrastructure and resources of our Arab allies."

AMRAAM gives the warfighter flexibility because it can be quickly transferred from a fighter aircraft to a missile launcher to fulfill its air defense role. Using one missile for two critical missions gives the warfighter a cost-effective logistics and maintenance solution.

AIM-120C-7 has been integrated on the F-16, F-15, F/A-18, Typhoon and the Joint Strike Fighter aircraft. It is also the baseline missile for the U.S. Army's Surface Launched-AMRAAM and the NATO-approved Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System.

AMRAAM has more than 1.7 million captive-carry hours and more than 2,400 live firings.

Raytheon Company, with 2008 sales of $23.2 billion, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, homeland security and other government markets throughout the world. With a history of innovation spanning 87 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration and other capabilities in the areas of sensing; effects; and command, control, communications and intelligence systems, as well as a broad range of mission support services. With headquarters in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs 73,000 people worldwide.

Three Arab Nations Purchase Raytheon AMRAAM is a post from: DefenceTalk | Defense & Military News - Forums - Pictures - Weapons

Russia signed a contract with Iran on the supply of S-300 air defense systems to the Islamic Republic in December 2005. However, there have been no official reports about the start of the contract's implementation since then.

"The issue of S-300 deliveries [to Iran] is still under discussion. There are some technical and other problems," said Konstantin Biryulin, deputy director of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation.

The possible deliveries of S-300 missiles to Iran have aroused serious concern in the West and in Israel.

The official denied media speculations that Russia could freeze the Iranian contract in exchange for Washington's decision not to place interceptor missiles in Poland and a missile tracking radar in the Czech Republic.

"I do not understand why there is so much media frenzy over the deliveries of S-300 to this region...Russia has the right to decide on its own whether to deliver these systems to any country which is not under the UN Security Council's sanctions," Biryulin said.

He also denied the link between recent talks on delivery of S-300 systems to Saudi Arabia and the Iranian contract. Media reports earlier speculated that Russia could sell S-300 to Saudi Arabia instead of Iran to compensate for potential financial losses.

"If Saudi Arabia asks us to deliver S-300s, we will consider the request without linking it to other countries. Russia has never delivered military equipment to a country while hurting the interests of another country," the official said.

The latest version of the S-300 series is the S-300PMU2 Favorit, which has a range of up to 195 kilometers (about 120 miles) and can intercept aircraft and ballistic missiles at altitudes from 10 meters to 27 kilometers.

It is considered one of the world's most effective all-altitude regional air defense systems, comparable in performance to the U.S. MIM-104 Patriot system.

Iranian Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi urged Russia on Wednesday to fulfill its contract on the supply of S-300 air defense systems to Iran.

S-300 missile deliveries to Iran under review is a post from: DefenceTalk | Defense & Military News - Forums - Pictures - Weapons

In keeping with the spirit of the 2008 Oslo accord, the UK and France are already looking at means of de-stocking and demilitarising their inventory of sub-munition equipped MLRS rockets (27,000 in the case of the UK and 22,000 for France). As a result, NAMSA (the NATO Maintenance and Supply Agency), has issued an RFP (Request For Proposals) on behalf of the UK MoD while DCMAT (the materials and maintenance arm of the French Army) has issued an RFI (Request For Information) to elicit solutions from industry. In response, MBDA is putting forward a highly cost-effective solution that is fully compliant with the wide range of safety, security and environmental issues involved.

This solution benefits from MBDA’s extensive experience as a manufacturer of guided missiles, involving not only large-scale dismantling of complex munitions for customers during servicing and product upgrades but also experience in the handling of pyrotechnics. It also has the full backing of the regional civil authorities in the area of central France known as Région Centre where MBDA has several facilities. It is one of these, Bourges-Subdray, that has been earmarked for the demilitarisation operation because it already has existing buildings that fully meet the required regulatory norms for such an activity.

Up to now, demilitarisation has generally involved the detonation of munitions in the open air with all the negative environmental issues this implies. Given the quantities of MLRS rockets involved, MBDA will, however, employ the latest equipment including robotic handling devices to ensure that operators are not endangered by proximity to energetic materials. The process will also include a special furnace capable of burning at very high temperature the propergol (the rocket propellant) and the explosives contained within the MLRS rocket. Several filtration stages have been identified to ensure that the most stringent of European environmental emissions regulations are met. Recycling also plays a large part in MBDA’s solution with 97% of the inert material in each MLRS rocket scheduled for re-use.

Referring to the project, Antoine Bouvier, CEO of MBDA, said: “The MBDA proposal is both comprehensive and mature in offering the most cost-effective and efficient solution to both NAMSA and DCMAT. For MBDA, the setting up of an industrial demilitarisation capability will provide the necessary long term expertise that is becoming increasingly expected of a weapon system company. Indeed, right at the beginning of the conceptual phase of a new programme, military customers are demanding that the through-life cost of ownership right up to the end of equipment life is taken into account”.

Plans have already been drawn up in readiness for an area to be adapted within the Bourges-Subdray facility. Suppliers of the necessary equipment have been sourced and the site would be capable of commencing full-scale demilitarisation activities within about 24 months of contract award.

BACKGROUND NOTES:

Led by many of the same advocates of the1997 Ottawa Convention banning the use of anti-personnel mines, an international agreement prohibiting the use of cluster munitions is close to being finalised. In Dublin, Ireland in May 2008, 107 countries participating in the Oslo Process agreed on a draft text requiring the destruction of all cluster munitions within eight years. This agreement concerning the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) was available for signature in Oslo in December 2008. This CCM agreement will pass into force six months after it has been signed and ratified by 30 governments.

Manufactured by Lockheed Martin of the USA, MLRS or the Multiple Launch Rocket System is a rocket artillery system that is in use in several NATO countries. The system launcher supports two pods, each housing six, M26, 227mm rockets capable of being fired in rapid succession out to a range of around 40km. Each rocket contains a warhead with 644, M77 sub-munitions (each one slightly smaller than a tennis ball) with anti-tank and anti-personnel properties and a solid ammonium perchlorate rocket motor. There are several variants of the rocket but in general they measure about 4m in length and weigh around 300kg. The system, with M26 rockets, was used in the 1991 Gulf War and more recently in the 2003 Iraqi Freedom campaign.

Several hundred thousands of the M26 rockets are reaching the end of their lifetime and await disposal within the coming 10 years. The significant quantity and the increasing environmental pressure call for environmentally sustainable industrial processes for both the disposal and the recycling of the materials involved.

With industrial facilities in four European countries and within the USA, MBDA has an annual turnover of EUR 2.7 billion and an order book of EUR 11.9 billion. With more than 90 armed forces customers in the world, MBDA is a world leader in missiles and missile systems.

MBDA is the only group capable of designing and producing missiles and missile systems that correspond to the full range of current and future operational needs of the three armed forces (land, sea and air). In total, the group offers a range of 45 missile systems and countermeasures products already in operational service and more than 15 others currently in development. MBDA is jointly held by BAE Systems (37.5%), EADS (37.5%) and Finmeccanica (25%).

Demilitarization – Getting Shot of the MLRS Rocket Stock is a post from: DefenceTalk | Defense & Military News - Forums - Pictures - Weapons

"On November 1, the Northern Fleet's nuclear-powered missile-carrying submarine, Bryansk, successfully test-launched an intercontinental ballistic missile in the Barents Sea from a submerged position," the ministry said in a statement.

"The warheads reached the target area at the designated time," the statement said.

Russia's nuclear triad comprises land-based ballistic missile systems, nuclear-powered submarines armed with sea-launched ballistic missiles, and strategic bombers carrying nuclear bombs and nuclear-capable cruise missiles.

Russian submarine successfully test-launches ballistic missile is a post from: DefenceTalk | Defense & Military News - Forums - Pictures - Weapons