US military news, discussions and history

[AMDR]

Pentagon designing cyber 'scorecard' to stay ahead of hackers
Pentagon designing cyber 'scorecard' to stay ahead of hackers| Reuters

The U.S. Defense Department is building a massive, electronic system to provide an overview of the vulnerabilities of the military's computer networks, weapons systems, and installations, and help officials prioritize how to fix them, the deputy commander of U.S. Cyber Command said on Thursday.

Air Force Lieutenant General Kevin McLaughlin told Reuters officials should reach agreement on a framework within months, with a goal of turning the system into an automated "scorecard" in coming years.

The effort, being led by the Pentagon's chief information officer, grew out of a critical report about cyber threats released earlier this year by the Pentagon's chief weapons tester, and escalating cyber attacks by China and Russia.

The report by Michael Gilmore, the Pentagon's director of testing and evaluation, warned that nearly every major U.S. weapons system was vulnerable to cyber attacks.

Initial data entry would be done by hand, but the goal was to create a fully automated system that would help defense officials instantaneously detect and respond to cyber attacks, McLaughlin said after a speech at the annual Billington Cybersecurity Summit.

McLaughlin told the conference that Cyber Command had already set up about half of 133 planned cyber response teams with about 6,200 people, and all of them would achieve an initial operational capability by the end of 2016.

He said the initial focus of the new scorecard would be on the greatest threats, including weapons systems fielded 30 years ago before the cyber threat was fully understand, as well as newer systems that were not secure enough.

"There’s probably not enough money in the world to fix all those things, but the question is what’s most important, where should we put our resources as we eat the elephant one bite at a time," he said.

McLaughlin said the scorecard was initially intended to look at weapons and networks, but the Pentagon was now looking at a broader and more sophisticated approach that also accounted for how data was moved among agencies within the military.

U.S. Army, Navy and Air Force officials, who also spoke at the event, mapped out their own cybersecurity efforts, citing new levels of communication and collaboration among the services around these issues.

McLaughlin said U.S. military commanders were far more attuned to cyber threats than in earlier years. He said Cyber Command spot checks and inspections were now being flagged to the command's top leader, Admiral Mike Rogers, which had spurred greater accountability than in earlier years.

 

[AMDR]

AFSOC’s AC-130s will soon be able to deploy tube-launched UAVs
Alert 5 » AFSOC’s AC-130s will soon be able to deploy tube-launched UAVs - Military Aviation News

U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) has initiated one quick concept-demonstrator program to employ a tube-launched small unmanned aerial vehicle from the AC-130 gunship.

The Raytheon-Sensintel Coyote UAV was selected for this demonstrator program. A longer term project will seek to find a UAV with an endurance of one hour.

 

[AMDR]

Undersea Warfighting Development Center Holds Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
Undersea Warfighting Development Center Holds Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
Story Number: NNS150921-18Release Date: 9/21/2015 3:00:00 PM
By Kevin Copeland, Submarine Force Atlantic Public Affairs

GROTON, Conn. (NNS) -- The ceremonial opening of the Undersea Warfighting Development Center (UWDC) occurred during a ribbon cutting ceremony, Sept. 21, at U. S. Naval Submarine Base New London.

Under the command of Rear Adm. Jeffrey E. Trussler, the UWDC became operational, Sept. 1.

Featured speakers were Vice Adm. Joseph E. Tofalo, Commander, Submarine Forces, and Rear Adm. Trussler.

"The Undersea Warfighting Development Center will integrate our "undersea concept of operations and tactics, techniques and procedures in support of theater, anti-submarine warfare forces; prepare submarine crews to conduct all combat missions; and prepare carrier strike groups and independently deploying surface ships to perform integrated anti-submarine warfare," said Tofalo. "Our undersea forces have always been about being first: first to the fight and first to come to grips with the enemy. RDML Trussler and his people will ensure we stay poised to do that. This is crucial work and UWDC are the right people to do it."

UWDC will be responsible for training the submarine force in advanced tactics, techniques, and procedures for Anti-Submarine Warfare. The center has assumed the training missions, tasks, and functions for Theater and Integrated Strike Group Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) from the Naval Mine and Anti-Submarine Warfare Command (NMAWC), based in San Diego.

"The establishments of Warfighting Development Centers have been several years in the making," said Trussler. "The stand-up of the UWDC is one of the last pieces of that puzzle to come together. As we move forward to support the undersea forces and undersea effort, our organization will be committed to being innovative, adaptive, and responsive."

In calendar year 2014 the Chief of Naval Operations ordered the establishment of Warfighting Development Centers (WDCs). The CNO approved Commander, U.S. Fleet Forces and Commander, Pacific Fleet in establishing WDCs for air, undersea, surface, and expeditionary forces. WDCs will conduct integrated advanced tactical training under the administrative control of supported Type Commanders now assigned responsibility for theater-to tactical-level warfare mission areas.

WDCs will provide advanced warfighting tactical training across air, sea, and space domains. This will enhance warfighting effectiveness by creating cohesiveness across all warfare communities.

 

[AMDR]

Drones Armed With High-Energy Lasers May Arrive In 2017
Drones Armed With High-Energy Lasers May Arrive In 2017 - Defense One

Flying military robots armed with high-energy lasers? It’s a future that is exciting, terrifying — and perhaps just two years away.

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc., or GA-ASI, the San Diego-based company that makes the Predator and Reaper drones, is undertaking a privately funded study to integrate a 150-kilowatt solid-state laser onto its Avenger (née Predator-C) drone. If the company succeeds, a drone with a high-energy laser will be a reality at some point in 2017, company executives toldDefense One.

“We’re funded right now to develop a laser module compatible with the aircraft and study putting it on the Avenger,” Michael Perry, Vice President for Mission Systems at GA-ASI, toldDefense One. “We hope to be funded to do that,” he said.

The company is far better known for its MQ-1s and MQ-9s — the backbones of the Pentagon’s drone strike force — than for its work with lasers. But in June, the company delivered a 150-kilowatt liquid laser to the Pentagon for extensive testing at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. For comparison, the 30 kw laser (output) currently on the Ponce in the Persian Gulf has more than enough output to destroy an enemy drone or blow a hole in a boat. In addition to 5 times the power, the significant increase in beam quality provides significantly higher lethality than the system on the Ponce.

Bringing these two technologies together involves a lot more than strapping a laser cannon under the drone’s wings. Hitting a target with a laser mounted on a vibrating platform moving quickly through air laden with dust and water vapor is tougher than launching a Hellfire at a moving vehicle.

“Before you spend any money on a laser you better darn well show that you can acquire, ID, and track the objects of interest so that you could put a laser on them,” said Perry. “You have to be able to compensate for aero-optic distortion.”

After you solve the targeting problem, the laws of physics present their own challenges. Lasers in the 150-kilowatt range are big, heavy, and power-hungry. Shrinking size-weight-and-power, or SWAP, scores to workable levels remains the biggest obstacle to arming aircraft with lasers. Weight alone will likely bar 150 kw lasers from the MQ-1; engineers have set their sights on building weapons for the Predator-C and its 3,000-pound payload capacity.

GA-ASI has designed a power system for drone lasers that works almost like a hybrid car, the non-plugin kind. “You use the aircraft power to charge an intermediate storage system, and then that runs the laser when it’s doing laser shots,” said Perry.

He said the current design can get off five or six shots before needing to recharge, which happens in the air, over the course of several minutes.

“If there’s enough time between shots you never have to recharge at all. It depends on how much time you have to re-target,” said Perry.

While GA-ASI is underwriting the current research, the military is keen get lasers onto aircraft. The Missile Defense Agency, orMDA, has funded research on tracking and targeting capabilities for drones.

“The work that we’re doing with the General Atomics Reaper and the work that we did with the Boeing Phantom Eye starts to show it can be done, in terms of these long-range sensing and tracking capabilities that we need,” MDA director Vice Adm. James Syring told reporters last month.

“We’ve been funded for years to develop high-energy laser systems. The maturity of our approach is further along than others because we’ve been working on it for a long time, for 15 years. [high-energy laser research is] coming out of the laboratory in a leakage-type way” GA-ASI’s Perry said.

The company has another advantage over its competitors in the race to build laser-armed drones: they make the ground control stations, including the next generation ground control station that the Pentagon hopes will improve the dreary job of drone operation. This gives them an advantage when it comes to creating the virtual gunsights and trigger for the laser.

“What we’ve shown is that the laser control is compatible with the new ground station,” he said. ”From a hardware standpoint, all the hardware exists to control it inside the station.”

However, Perry says that laser drones will require an entirely new software load, and that’s not all: “You’ll have a whole new concept of operations. Completely new training will be required,” he said.



If GA-ASI — or someone else — succeeds in making lasers into a practical wing-mounted weapon, it will usher in a new battlefield role for medium-sized tactical drones. Perry imagines a completely different mission than simple loitering and striking targets, one more geared toward protecting U.S. forces from enemies that are firing on them.

“You would have a capability for close-air support, aircraft defense, counter-air, and even some types of non-lethal actions. You would really be expanding the mission space… The focus at this point is principally defensive missions,” he said.

 

[AMDR]

U.S. Navy Naval Air Warfare Center puts the ‘next generation’ in Next Generation Jammer
U.S. Navy Naval Air Warfare Center puts the ‘next generation’ in Next Generation Jammer

Big things are happening in the world of electronic warfare at Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD) Point Mugu. NAWCWD is bulking up its electronic warfare capabilities to make Raytheon’s Next Generation Jammer the most effective device in the Navy’s electronic warfare arsenal, relayed Jeff Anderson, technical lead for Jammer Technique Optimization (JATO), late August aboard Naval Base Ventura County, California.

The schematic above highlights an EA-18G Growler flying with Next Generation Jammers, fully loaded with preprogrammed electronic warfare measures developed at Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division Point Mugu. (U.S. Navy illustration)

“The Next Generation Jammer (NGJ) is exactly the tool that we need to continue supporting the warfighter on the next level,” Anderson said. “This new system is essentially software loaded, which means that our aircrews can more readily use the wide spectrum of electronic countermeasures developed here at Point Mugu.”

According to Anderson, the NGJ gives operators the ability to load a broader variety and higher capacity of electronic attacks with ease and flexibility.

“It used to take up to 90 days for a contractor to manufacture the design of one of these application specific integrated circuits (ASIC) chips,” Anderson said. “Now we can program our jammer to go against it within hours.”

Next Generation Jammer model showcased by Raytheon during Paris Air Show 2015


Around the 1990s, jamming technique types were burned into unmodifiable ASICs. Previous mission preparation required operators to load a limited number of parameters for a fixed set of jamming waveform types into the aircraft’s ALQ-99 jamming pod - based on inferences made by analysts studying an adversary’s capabilities.

“Radar technologies are quickly advancing,” Anderson said. “They’re faster and smarter, sensing interference on other frequencies and automatically switching to frequencies and waveforms with less interference.”

Keeping up with those improvements can be challenging, but the JATO group at Point Mugu, in conjunction with JATO personnel at the Naval Research Lab and Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab, specializes in jamming technology and other electronic warfare methods.

Raytheon reports active testing for NGJ at China Lake, California, and Weapons Division authorities say there are joint plans to integrate the new design into the EA-18G Growler, a variant of the F/A-18F Super Hornet.

 

[T-55]

First sboros KAB external suspension assembly F-35C

23 September. Dropping GBU-12 "Paveway II"
Первый сборос КАБ с внешнего узла подвески F-35C.: sandrermakoff

 

[T-55]

F-35C Lightning II Arrival Aboard USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) - October 2, 2015

Видео первых посадок F-35 на Айка.: sandrermakoff

 

[T-55]

American escort carrier USS Charger; June 1942

В защитном окрасе - 477768

 

[AMDR]

$460M CYBERCOMContract Will Create Digital Munitions
$460M CYBERCOM Contract Will Create Digital Munitions - Defense One

The first job under a forthcoming $460 million U.S. Cyber Command contract to outsource all mission support involves, among other activities, a lot of digital munitions-making.

An 84-page draft task order released Sept. 30 runs the gamut of hacking and counterhacking work, plus traditional ITsupport activities.

The proposed solicitation was accompanied by a 114-page draft of the full 5-year contract. In May,CYBERCOM officials cancelled a similar $475 million project announced earlier that month. At the time, officials explained a reorganized request for bids with more details would be out in the fall.

The initial work order will support “cyber joint munitions effectiveness” — by developing and deploying — “cyber weapons” and coordinating with “tool developers” in the spy community, the documents state. In addition, the prospective vendor will plan and execute joint “cyber fires.”

CYBERCOM is in the midst of recruiting 6,200 cyberwarriors for teams positioned around the world. The command’s duty is to thwart foreign hackers targeting the United States, aid U.S. combat troops overseas and protect the dot-mil network.


In the past, some military academics have voiced concerns about the unintended outcomes of such maneuvers. Malicious code released into networks could backfire and harm U.S.individuals or allies, they warned.

“Due to the ‘system of systems’ nature” of cyberspace, it is very difficult to know exactly what effect” defensive or offensive actions will have on U.S. and ally assets “since we can’t be sure exactly how far out the cyber action might spread,” Dee Andrews and Kamal Jabbour wrote in a 2011 article for Air Force Space Command’s Journal for Space & Missile Professionals. “The difficulty in doing a damage estimate before cyber action is taken makes cyber friendly fire difficult to identify and mitigate.”

There are dozens of bullet points on training support work in the contracting documents.

For example, the hired contractor will run exercises on “USCYBERCOM Fires processes” with the Joint Advanced Cyber Warfare Course, the Army Cyberspace Operations Course, the Air Force Weapons School, the Joint Targeting School and other outside groups, the documents state.

Certain contract personnel supporting these so-called cyber fires will be subjected to additional background reviews and will have to comply with “need-to-know” classification rules, according to officials.

Beyond unleashing malware, the chosen contract employees will help repel attacks on Defense Department smartphones housing sensitive data, according to the government. This assignment involves analyzing forensics reports on hacked mobile devices and conducting security assessments of mobile apps, among other things.

There also is some cyber espionage work entailed. The selected contractor will aid the “fusion,” or correlation of clues, from “reliable sources,” network sensors, network scans, open source information, and “situational awareness of known adversary activities,” the documents state

The professionals hired will probe lurking, well-resourced threats inside military networks and identify ”signatures” of the hacker footprints discovered, they add. The signatures, such asIP addresses and strings of code, will be used to determine if there is malicious activity elsewhere inside Pentagon and defense industry networks, according to officials.

Another CYBERCOM duty will be proposing procedures for facilitating “all-source intelligence analysis of the foreign threat picture” — information collected from spies, data surveillance, public information and other inputs.

A final comprehensive solicitation and task order are scheduled to be released later this month. The government is accepting questions about the drafts from companies until Oct. 7.

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Navy Resurrects Mine Countermeasures Training Squadron
SEAPOWER Magazine Online

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Navy has reactivated a helicopter mine countermeasures (HM) squadron to assume training of crews and maintenance personnel for its MH-53E Sea Dragon helicopters.

HM-12 was reactivated in Oct. 1 ceremonies at Naval Station Norfolk with five MH-53Es. The squadron, disestablished in 1994, will train crews for HM-14 and HM-15, two operational squadrons also based at Norfolk. These squadrons also maintain reserve components formed when Reserve squadrons HM-18 and HM-19 were shut down.

HM-12 assumes the training role from the Airborne Mine Countermeasures Weapon System Training School, which used helicopters from HM-14 for training crews. Prior to that, training for the MH-53E was conducted by Marine Helicopter Training Squadron 302 at Marine Corps Air Station New River, N.C., where it flies the CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter.

The Navy plans to fly the MH-35E through 2025. It recently acquired two MH-53Es from Japan to alleviate shortages through attrition. HM-14 and HM-15 deploy detachments overseas, to the Republic of Korea and Bahrain, to provide mine countermeasures support and vertical on-board delivery.

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USAF to integrate SDB I and Laser SDB onto AC-130W/J gunships
USAF to integrate SDB I and Laser SDB onto AC-130W/J gunships - IHS Jane's 360

The US Air Force (USAF) is looking to integrate the Boeing GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bomb (SDB I) and GBU-39B/B Laser Small Diameter Bomb (LSDB) on board its special operation forces aircraft, it was disclosed on 23 September.

A notification posted on the Federal Business Opportunities website by the Department of the Air Force requests information on integrating and fielding the SDB I and LSDB on board its Lockheed Martin AC-130W Dragon Spear/Stinger II and AC-130J Ghostrider gunships.

The request for information (RfI) covers integration, test, training, and sustainment of the SDB I and LSDB weapon systems on the AC-130W and AC-130J, including clearance of the SDB and LSDB systems from the BRU-61/A launcher rack at 150 to 200 kt, 10,000 to 25,000 ft, and with an aircraft bank of up to 30°.

As set out in the notification, flight trials will include eight captive carry sorties out of Eglin Air Force Base (AFB) in Florida, four guided test-vehicle missions at Eglin AFB, and two live-fire demonstrations at the White Sands Missile Range and the Pacific Missile Range Facility.

Responses to the RfI are due no later than 15:00 (Central Standard Time) on 23 October.

The US Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) currently fields 12 AC-130W and 17 AC-130U Spooky gunships, and has received the first of 37 AC-130Js. Once all the AC-130Js have been received by about the mid-2020s, the AC-130Ws will revert back to their baseline MC-130W Combat Spear special mission configuration, and the AC-130Us will be retired.

The AC-130Ws and AC-130Js are both equipped with the same palletised Precision-Strike Package (PSP), which comprises a single 30 mm Mk44 Bushmaster cannon, precision-guided munitions, as well as a 105 mm cannon. The SDB I and LSDB are precision, low-cost and lightweight munitions that are intended to combine the destructive effect of much larger bombs with a stand-off range afforded by pop-out wings.

 

[AMDR]

US Navy and Raytheon test Tomahawk missile in flight
US Navy and Raytheon test Tomahawk missile in flight - Naval Technology

The US Navy and Raytheon have tested a network-enabled Tomahawk Block IV cruise missile, successfully demonstrating that it can take a reconnaissance photo and follow orders to re-target in mid-flight.

Launched from the guided missile destroyer USS Gridley (DDG 101), the missile used its onboard camera to capture battle damage indication imagery during the test.

In addition, the missile was able to transfer the image to fleet headquarters through its two-way UHF SATCOM datalink.

Raytheon Tomahawk senior programme director Dave Adams said: "We have once again proven the flexibility and utility of the Tomahawk Block IV missile, which has an unprecedented record of reliability and combat success."

As part of the test, strike controllers at the US Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain retargeted the missile to a new aim point on the navy's range at San Nicolas Island, off the coast of southern California.

According to Raytheon, the missile performed a vertical dive and struck the designated target.

The latest test was aimed to demonstrate that the missile's strike controllers can control and redirect multiple missiles simultaneously.

Adams added: "Tomahawk continues to be the weapon of choice for combatant commanders requiring very long range, precision strike, with the flexibility to loiter and re-direct after launch.

"No other weapon has this capability."

The test used only one of the large salvo of missiles for a live launch to reduce the cost. However, the remaining were flown through computer simulation.

In August, the US navy and Raytheon conducted a flight test of Tomahawk Block IV, demonstrating the mission missile recording a direct hit on its target.

The flight test proved that the missile can operate with an improved, more flexible mission planning capability

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

not news but spotted a cool commercial

 

[Osmanovic]

@AMDR @jhungary @LeveragedBuyout @Hamartia Antidote @Transhumanist @SvenSvensonov
Found this new forum when browsing twitter

American Military Forum

 

[AMDR]

@AMDR @jhungary @LeveragedBuyout @Hamartia Antidote @Transhumanist @SvenSvensonov
Found this new forum when browsing twitter

American Military Forum

Thanks for the link ! I will definitely join it and be posting, it looks relatively new

 

[T-55]

Assembling ICBM "Titan" in front of the Capitol; Washington; March 1959

Демонстрационно-показательное - 477768

 

[TechnoFox]

American Military Forum

Thanks for the link, I've joined

@Nihonjin1051 I know you're getting a bit miffed with some of the discussions here, especially in the China & Far East section, so come join us at AMF!

I'm already a member, we could use another quality person.

*Follow the link in Osmanovic's post, since this account can't post links yet due to a low post count.

**Probably should add this too. I'm AMF's Sven, AMF's Technofox is @Transhumanist / @Technogaianist

Since AMF names are less than 12 characters, both my SvenSvensonov and her names wouldn't fit.

***LeveragedBuyout, AMDR, Myself, Technogaianist and F-22Raptor are all members, we could use you too @Nihonjin1051

Assembling ICBM "Titan" in front of the Capitol; Washington; March 1959

I really appreciate your contributions to this thread. If I still had my account credentials, (my primary account SvenSvensonov) I'd give you a positive rating. You deserve one.

Please keep up the good work!

...

@AMDR I see you in the "users viewing this thread" bar, does my explanation make things easier. I hope so. People here already confuse Maddy and I, I don't want AMF to do the same.