Military and Aviation News Thread (NO DISCUSSION)

Future Fires to Focus on Precision, Clean Weapons - Defense Update - Military Technology & Defense News

In recent years the role of armaments and weapons in military exhibitions is diminishing, reflecting the diminishing role of kinetic effects and the complex public perception as to their role in modern asymmetric warfare. Hence, the armaments and munitions presented at AUSA and the Modern Day Marine Expo emphasized focused precision effect and low collateral damage as outstanding qualities. This reflected the concern of manufacturers and users alike to those issues.

 

Examples included sniper rifles with precision fire control enabling the shooter to achieve higher precision at long range; weapons offering ‘man in the loop’ control, and ‘clean’ artillery projectiles or aerial munitions providing effective area saturation effect without the hazardous duds (unexploded ordnance – UOX), complying with the limitations derived from the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM).

 

Two manufacturers are offering new versions of munitions designed to cover a wide area but leave no UXO after the attack. At AUSA 2012 IMI unveiled at AUSA 2012 a new M-454 Super-High Explosive (S-HE) round, a 155mm artillery projectile fitted with two fuses. According to IMI, the M454 is more efficient than standard HE rounds, requiring less ammunition to complete each mission, thus reducing logistics footprint. The new round is compatible with all NATO 39, 45 and 52 Caliber Guns. Textron Systems is offering a new area attack weapon system that is highly effective against soft targets including light vehicles, enemy combatants and air defense sites. Textron Systems is also using the AP-BLU as a unitary warhead for the Guided Clean Area Weapon (CLAW), designed to engage soft targets in open area, attacked form an unmanned aerial vehicle.

 

Armies using the MLRS or HIMARS systems could find the new Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GL-SDB) an interesting prospect to modernize combat capabilities in compliance with the CCM. Boeing, the producer of SDB is planning to strap its bombs on existing M29 rockets emptied from their DPICM bomblets. Using the rocket motor to accelerate the bomb into a trajectory bringing it to an altitude and speed from where it can deploy its wings and glide to hit the designated as it would do when launched from an aircraft.

 

To enhance precision, while maintaining low cost, Boeing is developing the ‘Laser SDB’, utilizing the Laser JDAM guidance kits. ‘With the laser SDB pilots can now prosecute moving, relocateable and maritime targets travelling at highway speeds’ Boeing officials said. The first application of Laser SDB will be with the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) as the US Air Force plans to equip the new AC-130W ‘Stinger II’ gunships with this capability.

 

Boeing is also promoting new ideas about future weapons supporting expeditionary naval and ground forces. Among these conceptual designs is the Joint Air-Breathing Multi-role Missile (JABMM), extending the strike range of ground-launched weapons well beyond the range of rocket-propelled weapons. Such weapons could be deployed on surface combatants such as the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) or carried on tactical vehicles supporting expeditionary ground forces, airborne or Marine Corps.

 

Supporting future amphibious assault, the Marine Corps will have to rely on precision artillery fire delivered from the sea, by the Navy warships. However, today’s destroyers are armed with 5“ (127mm) guns that are not designed to provide precision fires. Such capability will be fielded with the Zumwalt class (DDG-1000) guided missile destroyers currently under construction, that will be equipped with 155mm Advanced Gun Systems (AGS) firing specially developed Long Range Land Attack Projectiles (LRLAP). Both are developed by BAE Systems. With an effective range of 60 nautical miles, these guns will be capable of supporting Marine Corps units on the ground, from positions over the horizon. The 155mm LRLAP is a rocket assisted precision attack projectile using GPS/INS guidance techniques. The AGS is designed to fire up to 10 rounds per minute and has a storage capacity of 600 rounds.

 

While the AGS and LRLAP offer great future capabilities, the Navy plans to have only three such vessels. Hence the need to upgrade the current Mk45 Mod 4 5” gun system operational on DDG 51 guided missile destroyers and CG-47 guided missile cruisers. BAE Systems is developing such capability under the 5” Standard Guided Projectile (SGP) program. A sabot version of the 5” SGP projectile will also be compatible with the 155mm howitzers, enabling Marine and Army Artillery Corps to engage targets with high precision.

 

A futuristic weapon that has already passed the concept definition is the electromagnetic rail gun. A prototype developed by General Atomics Electromagnetics system (GA-EMS) group for the Office of naval Research has successfully performed initial firings at the Naval Surface Warfare Center at Dahlgren, VA. And at the Army Dugway Proving Ground in Utah. The gun is designed to deliver significantly higher muzzle energies that ever demonstrated in a tactical relevant configuration. The full scale ‘Blitzer’ EM Rail Gun System is currently undergoing a series of full energy tests and evaluation by the navy.

 

You don’t always need a big bang to win a fight. Sometime, all it takes is one bullet fired by a trained sniper, to deal with a serious situation. But snipers activities are often limited by weather conditions to medium or short range. In few years, snipers will be able to double their range and improve accuracy, therefore becoming even more useful in combat, as DARPA’s ‘One Shot’ system is fielded.

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/national/2013/08/16/28/0301000000AEN20130816005600315F.html

SEOUL, Aug. 16 (Yonhap) -- In a last-ditch effort to win South Korea's fighter jet project, two of the three bidders -- Boeing and EADS -- offered proposals below the state budget of 8.3 trillion won (US$7.2 billion) during the final bidding on Friday, government officials and industry sources said.

The third company, Lockheed Martin, selling its F-35 stealth jets through the foreign military sales (FMS) program, offered a price higher than Seoul's budget, according to sources, effectively being eliminated from the race to win the country's largest arms procurement deal.

 

As the bidding process ended, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) will conduct a comprehensive assessment of the jets and officially announce the winner next month.

 

"As there were companies that offered price within the program budget, we will proceed to the next step," DAPA spokesman Baek Yoon-hyung said in a press briefing, without elaborating the names citing the ongoing procedure.

 

"Although all jets will be evaluated, aircraft exceeding the budget will not be qualified for the contract," Baek said.

I guess L.M. expect the US govt to persuade the SK Govt their budget is too low..

4 crew members eject, survive B-1B bomber crash in Montana after leaving South Dakota base

Ion Thruster Sets World Record | NASA

While the Dawn spacecraft is visiting the asteroids Vesta and Ceres, NASA Glenn has been developing the next generation of ion thrusters for future missions. NASA's Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) Project has developed a 7-kilowatt ion thruster that can provide the capabilities needed in the future.

 

An ion thruster produces small levels of thrust relative to chemical thrusters, but does so at higher specific impulse (or higher exhaust velocities), which means that an ion thruster has a fuel efficiency of 10-12 times greater than a chemical thruster. The higher the rocket's specific impulse (fuel efficiency), the farther the spacecraft can go with a given amount of fuel. Given that an ion thruster produces small levels of thrust relative to chemical thrusters, it needs to operate in excess of 10,000 hours to slowly accelerate the spacecraft to speeds necessary to reach the asteroid belt or beyond.

 

The NEXT ion thruster has been operated for over 43,000 hours, which for rocket scientists means that the thruster has processed over 770 kilograms of xenon propellant and can provide 30 million-newton-seconds of total impulse to the spacecraft. This demonstrated performance permits future science spacecraft to travel to varied destinations, such as extended tours of multi-asteroids, comets, and outer planets and their moons.

I check out this site a couple of times a week, they usually have some good articles...

Breaking Defense

Hoss

Serbia to buy MiG-29 'Silent Fulcrum'

http://theaviationist.com/2013/08/21/serbian-air-force-mig29/#.UhTJOBv4k9w

According to various media outlets the negotiations between Russia and Serbia are in a process.

 

Serbians wants to upgrade their armed forces defense capabilities by buying S-300 missile systems along with MiG-29 fighters in a “stealth” variant.

 

Serbia is not the sole country that seeks ways to update their Fulcrums as the Polish MiGs are also undergoing an upgrade program.

 

The MiG-29 fighters are to be purchased in their newest variant, M2. According to the MiG CEO, Viktor Korotkov, the plane is to feature composite airframe along with RAM (Radar Absorbent Material) coating, which both contribute for a diminished radar echo.

 

Besides that, the airplane features modern avionics, that is able to integrate both Russian and Western armament.

 

The price tag is significantly lower than the one on the Western designs. Still, the price of 6 airframes would be about 150 million USD.

 

What is more the training process would be much easier, as the Serbian pilots are already familiar with the Fulcrum.

 

156. Mig-29 OVT. RSK MIG. Krumovo 04.09.2011_2

 

Mig-29 OVT. Image Credit: Tony Lovelock

 

M2 is one of the export versions of MiG-35 that was initially designed for the Indian Air Force (that selected the Rafale for its MMRCA requirement). Thrust vectoring, as that of the Mig-29OVT is believed to be offered on customers’ request.

 

What is interesting is the fact that the Russian Air Force contract to buy MiG-35 was delayed synchronically with the Serbian contract being negotiated even if, according to various media outlets, Serbians intend to buy only 6 airframes (whereas the Russians had planned to buy 37 aircraft).

 

Option of extending the contract with 6 further airplanes later is also considered.

 

Earlier this year, in May, First Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Aleksandar Vucic said that Serbians are to buy the aircraft and pay the money back in separate installments. It was said that the costs will depend on the final shape of the avionics, weapon systems and the volume of spare parts that would come together with the MiGs.

 

During the meetings in May, Serbian PM Ivica Dacic said that the Serbian army needs advanced vehicles, weapons and equipment. Also during the May meetings it was stated that industrial cooperation between Serbia and Russia might also start in the field of armored vehicles.

 

At the time of the negotiations modernization and maitenance of the Serbian MiG-21s was also considered as an option.

Helicopter crash in North Sea involving Super Puma: http://www.scotsman.com/news/scotland/top-stories/shetland-helicopter-crash-super-pumas-grounded-1-3061544

175th Wing Air National Guard Warthog drops a practice bomb in tavern parking lot

http://www.airforcetimes.com/article/20130830/NEWS/308300021

They're obviously unhappy about being cut and are acting up.

175th Wing Air National Guard Warthog drops a practice bomb in tavern parking lot

 

http://www.airforcetimes.com/article/20130830/NEWS/308300021

I've read about bombs being accidentally dropped in circumstances that defy reason, ie. the bomb shouldn't drop under the circumstances it did, but it did nonetheless.

Could be a malfunction. In fact, I can't think of how else to explain it, other than the ground crew failed to secure it correctly.

Could be a malfunction. In fact, I can't think of how else to explain it, other than the ground crew failed to secure it correctly.

If the GC's didn't secure it correctly, the pilot SHOULD have noticed it on his walkaround unless, of course, he did a shoddy job at it.

Could also be pilot error, or as you mentioned, a malfunction that caused the round to release. Could be a mechanical issue in the pylon, the lugs on the round or something as simple as a malfunctioning SMS that caused it.

Russia Developing Attack Drone From T-50 Fighter Jet ? UAC | Defense | RIA Novosti

MOSCOW, August 26 (RIA Novosti) – Russian designers are proceeding with development of an unmanned “sixth-generation” fighter jet, former Air Force chief Pyotr Deinekin said Monday.

“The sixth generation of aircraft will most likely be pilotless. Naturally, we are actively working on this,” Deinekin said in an interview with RIA Novosti.

Russia will probably not be able to skip a generation and will need to complete all of its fifth-generation projects, he added.

 

Russia is currently testing its prototype fifth-generation Sukhoi T-50 fighter, a manned aircraft that made its first public appearance two years ago. The US is introducing its F-35, and European powers such as the UK and France have their Typhoon and Rafale fighters in service. All those nations have carried out research into pilotless designs, analysts say.

Deinekin did not specify which design bureaus were working on pilotless sixth-generation designs, but Russian military aircraft maker MiG said in May it was ready to go ahead with a research and development project for an unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV) based on its Skat prototype, after signing a deal with the Trade and Industry Ministry earlier that month.

 

Mikhail Pogosyan, president of United Aircraft Corporation, the holding that unites the Russian aerospace industry, said last November that Sukhoi would focus on creating reconnaissance and strike unmanned air vehicles (UAV) in the near future.

Aviation news weekly Flight Internati

http://en.rian.ru/military_news/20130826/182971084.html

http://breakingdefense.com/2013/08/14/adm-winter-x-47-aborted-bush-carrier-landing-not-a-problem/

AUVSI: The Navy’s experimental carrier stealth drone, the X-47B, would have made a third landing on the USS George H.W. Bush last month but for the fact the plane knew it was doing a test and decided to waive itself off, Adm. Mathias Winter said here this morning.

 

Think about that. This is a plane that essentially flies itself and made a decision based on its mission requirements and the state of its instruments and redirected itself to its base, just as a pilot might have — if he was prudent enough.

 

Winter told me the Navy had found no systemic problem with the aircraft and is still examining the faulty circuit board that was removed from the plane after it landed at Patuxent River, where it is based. But he made clear Northrop Grumman’s X-47B would have landed on the carrier if it had not been engaged in a test flight.

 

“Absolutely. If it had not been a test environment it would have landed,” he said. The plane’s backup systems were operating normally and the plane could have made a safe landing on the carrier, he said.

 

In terms of the X-47B’s operational successor, now known as UCLASS, Winter said the Navy is ”in the process of preparing” a draft RFP that will be released in September, followed by an industry day in October. Then the Navy should issue a full RFP in the second quarter of fiscal 2014. However, this RFP is not for the full system. It is only for the aircraft. The aircraft contract should be issued in the first quarter of fiscal 2015.

 

One interesting facet to this competition. The Navy is the lead system integrator for all control systems and software, Winter noted. But the companies likely to bid – Boeing, General Atomics, Lockheed Martin and Northrop — will still design and provide the software that flies each aircraft and provide weapons software.

British Typhoons and Turkish F-16's almost clash...

http://famagusta-gazette.com/breaking-british-typhoons-in-near-clash-with-turkish-jets-over-cyprus-p20439-69.htm#.UiYR5i5zZcc.facebook

The anticlimax is that the Typhoons were home for tea before the Vipers arrived.

175th Wing Air National Guard Warthog drops a practice bomb in tavern parking lot

 

http://www.airforcetimes.com/article/20130830/NEWS/308300021

I guess there is a crew chief in Baltimore who is putting in a little bit of overtime!! ;)

http://www.navyrecognition.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1152

The 337th Test and Evaluation Squadron successfully completed their first captive carry test of a Long Range Anti-Ship Missile on-board a B-1 Bomber June 17, marking a significant step forward toward the B-1's role in the maritime environment.

 

Designed and developed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the Office of Naval Research, the LRASM is based off the Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile Extended Range and was constructed as part of an effort to overcome challenges faced by current anti-ship missiles penetrating sophisticated enemy air defense systems.

http://www.darpa.mil/NewsEvents/Releases/2013/09/06.aspx

Adversaries’ sophisticated air defense systems can make it difficult for current air- and surface-launched anti-ship missiles to hit their targets at long range. To engage specific enemy warships from beyond the reach of counter-fire systems, warfighters may require launching multiple missiles or employing overhead targeting assets such as radar-equipped planes or Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites—resources that may not always be available. To help address these challenges, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Office of Naval Research (ONR) are collaborating on the Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) program, which successfully launched its first prototype on August 27.

 

Designed for both surface and air launch,LRASM seeks to develop an autonomous, precision-guided anti-ship standoff missile based on the successful Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile Extended Range (JASSM-ER) system. LRASM aims to incorporate sensors and systems to create a stealthy and survivable subsonic cruise missile with reduced dependence on intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) platforms, network links and GPS navigation in electronic warfare environments. The program also focuses on precision lethality in the face of advanced countermeasures.

 

“This fully functional test is a significant step in providing the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force with a next-generation anti-ship missile capability,” said Artie Mabbett, DARPA program manager for LRASM. “This test is the culmination of the five-year development and integration of advanced sensors in an All-Up-Round (AUR) missile. It also represents the first time we’ve integrated advanced sensors and demonstrated the entire system, resulting in performance that substantially exceeds our current capabilities.”

 

DARPA designed the free-flight transition test (FFTT) demonstration to verify the missile’s flight characteristics and assess subsystem and sensor performance. Beyond the primary objectives of the free-flight transition, the test vehicle also detected, engaged and hit an unmanned 260-foot Mobile Ship Target (MST) with an inert warhead.

 

A B-1 bomber from the 337th Test and Evaluation Squadron conducted the mission from Dyess AFB, Tex., to the Point Mugu Sea Test Range off the coast of southern California. Once in position, the B-1 released the LRASM, which followed a pre-planned route towards the target. Approximately halfway to its destination, the weapon switched to autonomous guidance, in which it autonomously detected the moving MST and guided itself to hit the desired location on the target. A F/A-18 fighter from the Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 31 in China Lake, Calif., followed the weapon during the flight.

 

Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control (LMMFC) is the prime contractor for the demonstration of the LRASM weapon. BAE Systems’ Information and Electronic Systems Integration division is the prime contractor for the design and delivery of LRASM’s onboard sensor systems.

Sorry about the source.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2396001/The-RAFs-secret-spies-Declassified-CIA-documents-reveal-British-pilots-flew-U2-missions-Soviet-Union-Cold-War.html#ixzz2eCqzCFME

The RAF's secret spies: Declassified CIA documents reveal British pilots flew U-2 missions over Soviet Union during the Cold War

 

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2396001/The-RAFs-secret-spies-Declassified-CIA-documents-reveal-British-pilots-flew-U2-missions-Soviet-Union-Cold-War.

Interestingly there were SR-71s based in the UK too.

USAF B-1 test squadron demonstrates Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM)

The 337th Test and Evaluation Squadron successfully completed their first captive carry test of a Long Range Anti-Ship Missile on-board a B-1 Bomber June 17, marking a significant step forward toward the B-1's role in the maritime environment.

 

Designed and developed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the Office of Naval Research, the LRASM is based off the Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile Extended Range and was constructed as part of an effort to overcome challenges faced by current anti-ship missiles penetrating sophisticated enemy air defense systems.

http://www.darpa.mil/NewsEvents/Releases/2013/09/06.aspx

Adversaries’ sophisticated air defense systems can make it difficult for current air- and surface-launched anti-ship missiles to hit their targets at long range. To engage specific enemy warships from beyond the reach of counter-fire systems, warfighters may require launching multiple missiles or employing overhead targeting assets such as radar-equipped planes or Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites—resources that may not always be available. To help address these challenges, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Office of Naval Research (ONR) are collaborating on the Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) program, which successfully launched its first prototype on August 27.

 

Designed for both surface and air launch,LRASM seeks to develop an autonomous, precision-guided anti-ship standoff missile based on the successful Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile Extended Range (JASSM-ER) system. LRASM aims to incorporate sensors and systems to create a stealthy and survivable subsonic cruise missile with reduced dependence on intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) platforms, network links and GPS navigation in electronic warfare environments. The program also focuses on precision lethality in the face of advanced countermeasures.

 

“This fully functional test is a significant step in providing the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force with a next-generation anti-ship missile capability,” said Artie Mabbett, DARPA program manager for LRASM. “This test is the culmination of the five-year development and integration of advanced sensors in an All-Up-Round (AUR) missile. It also represents the first time we’ve integrated advanced sensors and demonstrated the entire system, resulting in performance that substantially exceeds our current capabilities.”

 

DARPA designed the free-flight transition test (FFTT) demonstration to verify the missile’s flight characteristics and assess subsystem and sensor performance. Beyond the primary objectives of the free-flight transition, the test vehicle also detected, engaged and hit an unmanned 260-foot Mobile Ship Target (MST) with an inert warhead.

 

A B-1 bomber from the 337th Test and Evaluation Squadron conducted the mission from Dyess AFB, Tex., to the Point Mugu Sea Test Range off the coast of southern California. Once in position, the B-1 released the LRASM, which followed a pre-planned route towards the target. Approximately halfway to its destination, the weapon switched to autonomous guidance, in which it autonomously detected the moving MST and guided itself to hit the desired location on the target. A F/A-18 fighter from the Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 31 in China Lake, Calif., followed the weapon during the flight.

 

Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control (LMMFC) is the prime contractor for the demonstration of the LRASM weapon. BAE Systems’ Information and Electronic Systems Integration division is the prime contractor for the design and delivery of LRASM’s onboard sensor systems.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/syrian-warplanes-flee-after-testing-2259425

Syrian warplanes flee after testing defences at British air base in Cyprus

RAF Typhoon fighters won a mid-air showdown with two Syrian warplanes heading towards Britain’s main base in Cyprus, the Sunday People can *reveal.

 

The dramatic confrontation came after President Bashar al-Assad’s air chiefs sent two Russian-made Sukhoi Su-24s to probe our air defences.

 

The Syrian bombers refused to respond to repeated attempts by the control tower at the UK’s Akrotiri air base to contact them.

 

RAF pilots flying the world’s most advanced combat jet were scrambled before the Sukhois could enter our 14-mile air exclusion zone.

 

The Typhoons – which can scream from runway standstill to seven miles high in 90 seconds – soared into the sky to make visual contact with the Syrian pilots.

 

But the moment the Syrians *spotted our planes on their radar they high-tailed for home.

 

If the bombers had pressed on into our exclusion zone they would have been shot down, military experts said last night.

 

And despite Parliament’s refusal to sanction military strikes against Syria, the RAF’s swift response is a warning to dictator Assad’s forces not to mess with Britain.

 

Defence analyst Edward Hunt told the Sunday People: “If they will not turn back then they have to be shot down.”

 

The showdown happened on Monday before David Cameron and US President Barack Obama went to the G20 summit in Russia to

 

press for strikes against Syria *following a nerve gas attack in the capital Damascus that killed nearly 1,500 civilians.

 

Two Turkish F-16s were also scrambled from their Incirlik air base in Turkey.

 

But they arrived on the scene long after the British Typhoons.

 

And as the Syrian planes codenamed Fencer by Nato were still in international air space all the scrambled allied planes were recalled.

 

A military source said: “If there’s no communication between the guys on the ground and the aircraft then this is what we do.

 

“These guys were heading in our direction.”

 

Flying at 600mph the planes could have reached Cyprus within 15 *minutes of taking off from their base at Tiyas in the east of the country.

 

But AWAC spy planes detected them on radar and signalled the red alert.

 

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: “The MoD can confirm that Typhoon air defence aircraft operated from RAF Akrotiri on Monday to investigate unidentified aircraft to the east of Cyprus.

 

“The aircraft were flying legally in international airspace and no *intercept was required.”

 

The UK air base at Akrotiri is packed with US and French *warplanes ready to strike Syria when President Obama gives the go-ahead.

 

A military source told the Sunday People: “Recent intelligence reports have warned of an attack

 

on Akrotiri.

 

“The RAF Typhoons were launched after sensitive airborne early-warning radar picked up the ‘contacts’ flying low and fast.” The British typhoons are part of a squadron of six sent to Cyprus to guard our bases there as the Americans prepare for an attack.

 

A Navy Type 45 anti-aircraft *destroyer is also sitting off Cyprus to provide early warning of Syrian fighters or missiles launched against the island.

 

Two French Navy Atlantique spy planes have also been moved to RAF Akrotiri.

 

And US aircraft and special *operations helicopters are on *standby there as planning continues for Syrian strikes.

 

Officially Monday’s Syrian warplanes are still being classified as “unidentified aircraft”.

 

But the Su-24 is feared as the most dangerous aircraft in the former Soviet arsenal.

 

It is a low-level bomber with capabilities similar to those of the American F-111 but the Su-24 is lighter and more powerful.

 

It is capable of supersonic speeds at low level and is equipped with terrain-following radar and laser-designators for guided weapons. These features give the SU-24 the ability to streak towards enemy targets beneath radar and attack with pinpoint accuracy.

 

The Sukhoi Su-24s used by the Syrian Air Force are assigned to Assad’s 819 squadron and based at Tiyas air base.

 

Meanwhile International Development Secretary Justine Greening said countries opposed to military action against Syria should think about doing more to help the country’s two million refugees.

 

The Prime Minister welcomed offers of new humanitarian assistance from Canada, Italy and Qatar at the G20 summit, following his announcement of an additional £52million in British aid. But Miss Greening warned: “What we can agree on surely as an international community is the need for a humanitarian *response and right now that response is not great enough.

 

“The UN appeal is not even half funded and it’s time to step up.”

Suicidal...

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/syrian-warplanes-flee-after-testing-2259425

 

RAF pilots flying the world’s most advanced combat jet were scrambled before the Sukhois could enter our 14-mile air exclusion zone.

lol what? Did the typhoon suddenly get upgraded to 6th gen or something?