Turkey Moving Toward Decision on Defenses
February 23, 2006 :: News
Turkey is moving toward a decision on purchasing surface-to-air missiles to protect against missile attack from Syria and Iran, and, reports The New Anatolian. The Defense Industry’s Executive Committee will convene tomorrow to discuss high-altitude missile threats and to decide whether an initiative for the procurement of anti-long range missiles is necessary. Among the systems to be discussed are the U.S. Patriot, Russian S-300, and Israeli Arrow-2 anti-missile systems. Turkey already has an air defense system for medium-altitude attack (10-50 km), including Hawk systems that could be extended to 75 km, and low-altitude attack (4-8 km), including Stinger and Rapier missile batteries. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Policy
MDA Test Plans for 2006
February 13, 2006 :: News
Defense Daily reports that MDA’s schedule for FY 2006 and 2007 includes tests of its Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GMD), Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (Aegis BMD), Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), and Patriot systems. The FY 2006 schedule comprises four GMD tests including one planned intercept, five THAAD tests against simulated and live targets, and two Aegis BMD flight tests. The agency also plans to conduct a critical measurements and countermeasures flight test, participate in two test launches of ICBMs, assist in a Japanese Cooperative Target test, and participate in three Israeli Arrow tests. The FY 2007 schedule includes three GMD tests, one THAAD flight test, two Aegis BMD flight tests, and one Patriot flight test. MDA will also take part in at least two ICBM flight tests and one Israeli Arrow flight test. (Link)
» More stories on: Policy
Upcoming GMD Tests
January 11, 2006 :: Fairbanks Daily News :: News
MDA plans to conduct four tests of the ground-based missile defense system in 2006. The first will involve a target missile launched from Kodiak Island, Alaska, which will be tracked by GMD radars. The second will be the first interceptor test launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The third will be a “data-collection fly-by,” using a target missile from Kodiak and an interceptor from Vandenberg. The fourth will be a live intercept attempt, again using a target missile from Kodiak and an interceptor from Vandenberg. As of yet, no dates have been set for the four tests. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Policy
» Missile system details for: Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD), Kodiak Launch Complex
Victor Davis Hanson on Missile Defense
January 9, 2006 :: Analysis
Victor Davis Hanson, military historian and fellow of the Claremont Institute, takes note of the subject of missile defense in a recent piece for The Washington Times. Hanson discusses the geopolitical stakes in the games being played by Russia and Iran, and notes that missile defenses will prove an important element in these maneuvers.
Hanson notes that Russia and China would play the role of “spoiler,” despite their (apparent) interest in keeping rogue nations from obtaining nuclear weapons. Yet the Russians currently make enormous profits from trade with the oil-rich Iran, and “derive a certain satisfaction from tweaking the United States.” Likewise, the Chinese see advantages in allowing North Korea to preoccupy their rivals, especially Japan, Taiwan, and the United States.
“Strategic missile defense will prove invaluable in the decades ahead against regimes that have only a few dozen warheads,” writes Hanson. Of course, truly “strategic” missile defense capabilities would be arrayed against all threats, and not only those by Iran and North Korea. In the parlance, “strategic defenses” are those which, like Ronald Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative, are meant to replace the reliance upon purely offensive deterrence (or mutually assured destruction) with a defense against large-scale or “strategic” threats, such as those posed by Russia and China. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Analysis, Policy
Congress Requires Studies on Ship-Launched Threat
January 1, 2006 :: Inside Defense :: News
Congress has directed the Missile Defense Agency, the Defense Intelligence Agency, and U.S. Northern Command to each examine and report upon how to defend against the threat of a ship-launched missile: short-range missiles fired from cargo ships off the U.S. coast. As quoted in the December 22, 2005 edition of Inside the Pentagon, the conference report on the FY 2006 defense appropriations bill recommends “$10 million to conduct a comprehensive analysis on the need for and deployment of an asymmetric missile defense capability, including both land- and sea-based solutions, against the full range of asymmetric missile threats.” In particular, the MDA director will be required to submit a report to Congress by June 1, 2006, with MDA’s recommendations for deployment options. The DIA’s report is due March 1, 2006.
Such salutary action by Congress requiring the MDA to directly consider the ship-launched threat and the architecture necessary to combat it could represent an initial first step toward transforming a Clinton-administration missile defense architecture into a much more robust and layered defense. A report, however, is only the first step. After all, the 1998 Rumsfeld report warned of such a threat, as did the 2001 report submitted by the Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) commission. (Link)
» More stories on: Policy, Ship-Launched Threat
Senate Committee Calls for Ship-Launched Threat Report
October 18, 2005 :: Inside Defense :: News
The Senate Appropriations Committee recently asked the Defense Intelligence Agency to prepare a report on possible attacks by terrorists from ship-launched ballistic missiles, according to the October 12 edition of Inside Missile Defense. The request is said to be for a “recommendation for the nearest-term, lowest-cost solution to the threat described in the intelligence report.” The report is said to be due no later than March 1, 2006. (Link)
» More stories on: Policy, Ship-Launched Threat
Hackett on the Senate’s Review of Missile Defense
October 11, 2005 :: Washington Times :: Analysis
Roughly one year after the first interceptors of the ground-based missile defense system were placed into their silos, the Senate Appropriations Committee has completed an important review of missile defense expenditures and goals, and the appropriations bill has now moved onto the House. James Hackett writes in the Washington Times summarizing the progress made in missile defense over the past several years, and what remains to be done.
Hackett notes in particular, and with just praise, the Senate Committee’s support and additional funding for completing the GMD midcourse interceptor program begun in Alaska and California, their additional funding of the Airborne Laser, and also of the relative cutbacks for the Kinetic Energy Interceptor (KEI), a ground-based boost defense system whose worthy aim to destroy a missile in its boost phase requires that the interceptor be placed quite near the enemy missile’s launch site. The pursuit of faster interceptors is a laudable technological pursuit, as is boost-phase intercept—but land-basing raises too high the standard of being in the right place at the right time for the interceptor to be practical or widely useful. Writes Hackett, “Many think this an infeasible chimera that would waste resources needed to complete and improve more practical defenses.”
Hackett concludes that “the House should accept the Senate’s missile defense changes.” (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Analysis, Budget, Policy
Hackett: MDA Needs to Keep Eye on Goal
May 25, 2005 :: Washington Times :: Analysis
James T. Hackett of The Washington Times reports that U.S. senators have urged the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) to keep its eye on the goal: near-term deployment. In recent statements, Senators Ted Stevens (R-AK), Daniel Inouye (D-HI), and Jon Kyl (R-AZ) have emphasized that the MDA should spend its limited funds on deploying ground-based midcourse interceptors and ship-based missile defenses, rather than on duplicative or long-term projects such as the Kinetic Energy Interceptor (KEI). Many proponents of missile defense believe that the KEI project diverts attention and resources from more promising programs. The MDA has earmarked $5 billion for the KEI over the next four years.
Members of Congress are correct to urge the MDA to remain focused on the primary goal of deploying missile defenses in the near term. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Analysis, Policy
» Missile system details for: Kinetic Energy Interceptor (KEI)
MDAA Poll: 79% of Americans Favor Missile Defense
April 12, 2005 :: MDAA :: Analysis
The Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance recently released polling data conducted by a public opinion research firm, AmericanPublic.US, detailing Americans’ broad support for ballistic missile defense. In a sample of 1,000 registered voters representative of the national population with regard to gender, age, income, education, and region, 79% of Americans overall support a missile defense. By party, the support was 70% Democrats, 70% Independents, and 91% Republicans. A more extensive breakdown of the polling data is available from MDAA’s site. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Analysis, Policy
PAC-3 Contract
January 31, 2005 :: Lockheed Martin :: News
Lockheed Martin reports the completion of a contract for the first international sales of the PAC-3 Patriot missile interceptors. The contract is to build 156 PAC-3 missiles and spare parts for the United States Army, The Netherlands, and Japan, and is worth $532 million dollars. Lockheed will deliver to The Netherlands some 32 interceptors, and Japan 16, by 2006. The sale of units of 16 is due to the fact that 16 interceptors load onto a single launcher. The older version, the PAC-2, carried only four missiles per launcher. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Policy
» Missile system details for: Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3)
