Mod. Notice Technological advances in weaponry

[Mofra]

Yes, a lot of that ISR work by subs will be replaced by UUV's. Without folks on board they will be able to sit still for very long periods of time. Should free up manned subs for other missions.

The nuke subs may very well act as underwater AWACs in time - there is already significant interoperability between the latest block F-35 systems and larger drones. That seems to be the model the US is working towards at sea as well.

 

[CD Xbow]

The nuke subs may very well act as underwater AWACs in time - there is already significant interoperability between the latest block F-35 systems and larger drones. That seems to be the model the US is working towards at sea as well.

Yes, some sorts of networked sea environment, pretty easy to implement on the surface or in the air, much harder under the surface. Need those quantum communications ASAP! Probably not in my lifetime.

 

[CD Xbow]

We have ordered from the US the Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System–Expeditionary (SURTASS-E) system, a passive submarine detection system. There is no mention of numbers or which platforms they will be deployed from. They could be the ASW module for the Arafura class(OPV)

Australia Getting U.S. Containerized Submarine-Tracking Sonar System

The passive submarine detection system should help overhaul Australia’s anti-submarine warfare capabilities to face a growing Chinese threat.

www.thedrive.com

There has been reports the RAN have investigated C-Dome for the Arafura class, this is a sea based version of Israels Iron Dome. It's designed for use against rockets and artillery, not so much antiship missiles. Perhaps more will come out.

Added - found the link

Australia Considering Modular C-Dome For Arafura OPVs - Naval News

The Royal Australian Navy is in talks to procure a containerized variant of Rafael's C-Dome to increase the firepower of its future OPVs.

www.navalnews.com

 

[CD Xbow]

JORN is the over-the-horizon (OTH) HF radar we use to monitor our north west approaches with a published range of 100-3000 km. It's one of our few technological crown jewels. As part of it new upgrades it's getting an upgrade to its clock.

'Cryoclock works by using a sapphire crystal to generate an extremely stable signal in HF and microwave frequencies. The sapphire crystal is cryogenically cooled to six degrees Kelvin (-267 degrees Celsius). The extreme purity of the signal frequency is what will provide JORN with the ability to search further and identify smaller targets.'

BAE Systems working on JORN technology - APDR

The BAE Systems Australia team upgrading the Jindalee Operational Radar Network (JORN) has been working alongside Adelaide-based QuantX Labs to install a cutting-edge technology – which has been 30 years in the making – across JORN’s three operating sites.

asiapacificdefencereporter.com

JORN is also being upgraded in its coverage with new radars that will give more cover the north east. The system has been progressively upgraded with improved processing. This article talks about the current upgrades and a bit about the history of JORN.

JORN: a world leading OTHR capability - Australian Defence Magazine

With antecedents stretching back to the UK’s Chain Home radar system of WWII, Australia’s world-leading Jindalee Over-The-Horizon Radar Network (JORN) is embarking on a major upgrade to combat future ...

www.australiandefence.com.au

Added - map of current coverage, IIRC the plan is to extend coverage east wards to cover the South Pacific.

There have been many claims about range and this depends on ionspheric conditions. There were stories that it could sometimes see ballistic missile launches from southern china. Hence the Yanks interest is BMD. This is from a resonable source-

'Several decades back, what’s known in my trade as a senior government source told me that Jindalee could sometimes track the Russian Backfire bombers taking off from the airbase at Vietnam’s Cam Ranh Bay.'

 

[CD Xbow]

The Conversation has a good article about Hypersonic weapons.

China’s hypersonic missiles threaten US power in the Pacific – an aerospace engineer explains how the weapons work and the unique threats they pose

China’s newest hypersonic missile, the DF-27, could sideline US aircraft carrier groups in the Pacific, while missiles in the works in China, Russia and the US threaten global security.

theconversation.com

 

[CD Xbow]

One of our MQ28 Ghost Bats is hanging out on the US with its Boeing stablemate the USN's MQ25 Stingray aerial tanker. This article in the WarZone talks about it.

First Image Of MQ-28 Ghost Bat In The United States

Boeing released the first picture of the Australian-born MQ-28 Ghost Bat drone in the United States face-to-face with the MQ-25 Stingray.

www.thedrive.com

 

[Werewolf]

A couple of new arrivals in the world of fighter planes - the Turkish TFX Kaan and South Korean KF-21:



Both strongly resemble the F-22 Raptor, but early specifications say the Kaan is ~10% longer while the KF-21 is ~10% shorter than the F-22. On that note I'm a little surprised both designs use the conventional looking air intakes instead of the diverterless air intake (e.g. F-35 and J-20).

For aircraft identification nerds, the Kaan has an electro-optical targeting system (EOTS) mounted above the nose in front of the cockpit and also below (resembles the one underneath the F-35 nose) and the KF-21 has an infrared search and track (IRST) bulb up front which is also standard on many modern fighters (inc. Russian), although most recent US fighters mount IRST in an external pod. The Kaan also has a more prominent bubble canopy.

From the rear, the Kaan has a tail boom between the engines (like the Su-57) which might also have something to do with countermeasures (?). Both the Kaan and KF-21 have the usual rounded engine nozzles while the F-22 has the vertical thrust vectoring rectangular nozzles.

The KF-21 first flew last year and the Kaan is set to fly late this year. Not a moment too soon for the Turks (who were expelled from the F-35 program), but one wonders whether their Kaan can equal or outperform the F-22 which was designed in the 1990's (the KF-21 should better the F-22).

 

[CD Xbow]

I have posted earlier about the Australian company Hypersonix and it's hypersonic Dart hypersonic vehicle, which has been chosen by the US DOD as a hypersonic test vehicle. First full tests are starting in the US, with the Dart being launched from a commercial rocket before the scramjet kicks in.

Defense Innovation Unit eyes first flight of hypersonic testbed

The agency awarded a contract through its Hypersonic and High-Cadence Airborne Testing Capabilities, or HyCAT, program in March.

www.defensenews.com

Cosmos Magazine had a good article about the project from a year ago. Other than being a workable scramjet there are a number of innovative things in the project, the Spartan scramjet motor is 3D printed and the engine is green, as it uses hydrogen.

DART AE: Australia's contribution to hypersonic flight

Australia’s persistence in pursuing high-velocity engineering has lead to DART-AE, our contribution to hypersonic flight.

cosmosmagazine.com

 

[CD Xbow]

Not new tech, but old tech. The Warzone has an article about US tactical nukes in the 50's & 60's. These became so small that they could be carried by a paratrooper, fired from a mortar etc. The paratrooper in the feature picture can only be described as 'ballsy'. I did wonder if he ever had children, if so how many heads and fingers did they have?

Special Forces Parachuted With Nukes Strapped To Them During The Cold War

Special Forces "Green Light" teams trained to deploy small nuclear bombs called Special Atomic Demolition Munitions during the Cold War.

www.thedrive.com

The old videos feel like something straight out of Fallout and as you can imagine there are some good comments, too. Worth a read.

 

[CD Xbow]

The Strategist has an article about the 8 different strike missiles we are (probably) acquiring, in many cases replacing the venerable Harpoon and in others adding new capabilities. This is a vast upgrade for all branches of the ADF.

A guide to Australia’s planned strike missiles | The Strategist

Australia is planning to acquire a remarkable variety of strike missiles—weapons designed to hit distant surface targets. They will differ in capabilities and will variously be carried by aircraft, ships and trucks. Despite the differences, ...

www.aspistrategist.org.au

The JSM is still speculative, but given it's the only maritime strike missile that fits in the F35 bays, the RAAF will probably get some once the F35 supports them, I think that occurs with the forever delayed block4. SM6 and PRSM increment 4 are also speculative, the other missiles are being acquired or have been acquired.

 

[CD Xbow]

This was an innovation at the time, just one that didn't get any legs, much as these planes didn't have wheels.

Aircraft Carriers With Rubber Decks Were A Bad Idea

The British and Americans toyed with the idea of flexible aircraft carrier decks from which to operate wheelless jet aircraft.

www.thedrive.com

It actually worked, they did 200 landings and it had benefits in that they could stack more aircraft in to the carriers because they didn't have the extra height of an undercarriage. However the disadvantages that the planes couldn't land elsewhere and required custom equipment to be moves on the ground meant it was never deployed. I was pleased to see Eric 'Winkle' Brown, possibly the worlds greatest ever test pilot, featured.

 

[CD Xbow]

Long endurance high flying electric aircraft are close to deployment. The article is about the BAE PHASA-35 which the company are aiming at very long endurance, up to a year. Airbus is working on a similarly solar-powered high-altitude craft known as Zephyr, and Boeing has their own called the Odysseus. These offer great persistence and much lower cost than satellites. Balloons and blimps also operate in this space.

Extreme High Altitude Aircraft Successfully Flies into the Stratosphere over White Sands Missile Range - The Debrief

A revolutionary high-altitude aircraft from BAE Systems that flies on solar power successfully completed a test flight into the stratosphere.

thedebrief.org

 

[CD Xbow]

DishBrain, an Aussie company that wires neuron to computer chips to make cyborgs learning machines has received funding from the ONI and has famously managed to get the neurons to learn to play pong. This article talks a bit about it.

DishBrain Mixes Human and Mouse Brain Cells With AI, Receives Military Funding

Luckily, very little can go wrong while merging human brains and AI, right? Right?

www.tomshardware.com

 

[CD Xbow]

Hanwha have won the contract to provide their Redback (K21) as the IFV for the ADF. These are very capable vehicles vastly superior to the M113 they replace. The article talks in details about them and the deal.

Hanwha wins lucrative Army IFV contract - Australian Defence Magazine

Hanwha Defense Australia has secured the contract to build 129 Redback infantry fighting vehicles for the Commonwealth under Land 400 Phase 3.

www.australiandefence.com.au

 

[Werewolf]

Hanwha have won the contract to provide their Redback (K21) as the IFV for the ADF. These are very capable vehicles vastly superior to the M113 they replace. The article talks in details about them and the deal.

Hanwha wins lucrative Army IFV contract - Australian Defence Magazine

Hanwha Defense Australia has secured the contract to build 129 Redback infantry fighting vehicles for the Commonwealth under Land 400 Phase 3.

www.australiandefence.com.au

About time we had this capability! The final decision took ages as both options were good, but I preferred the Redback over the Lynx. Maybe the Redback won due to being lighter - you can fit two in a C-17 Globemaster. Anyway South Korea have become a big player in global arms deals. Not bad considering they had no substantial industry 100 years ago!

I see the Redback is fitted with continuous rubber band track, which has some advantages over regular steel track with rubber pads. Lower weight capacity (hence unsuitable for tanks), but lighter, quieter and more road friendly.

 

[CD Xbow]

About time we had this capability! The final decision took ages as both options were good, but I preferred the Redback over the Lynx. Maybe the Redback won due to being lighter - you can fit two in a C-17 Globemaster. Anyway South Korea have become a big player in global arms deals. Not bad considering they had no substantial industry 100 years ago!

I see the Redback is fitted with continuous rubber band track, which has some advantages over regular steel track with rubber pads. Lower weight capacity (hence unsuitable for tanks), but lighter, quieter and more road friendly.

Apparently the Army had the Redback as the preferred option, I don't know enough to have an opinion. I think the long term strategic link to South Korea could be very beneficial and the ability to build our cavalry vehicles (Boxers) and our heavy mechanised vehicles (Redback) in the future is critical.

I'd like to see the Army get 120mm mortars, it has about the cheapest guided munition and with a range of 10+km. Nice match for low end drones. There have been 120mm autoturrets developed in recent years that can be mounted on a variety of platforms including maritime. The army could put some Boxers or the M 113 robots, Navy could use them on the OPV to give it some teeth. Naval mortars mainly belong to history, the development of guided rounds may see them return. What's old is new.

 

[sdfc]

I'd rather we spend our money on lots of missiles.

 

[CD Xbow]

I'd rather we spend our money on lots of missiles.

It's not an either or thing, different capabilities. Sure, we all want more missiles, but it's a cost thing. Allegedly prices for guided mortar rounds < $10,000 per round whereas the cheaper surface to surface missiles start at over $200,000 (M31 GMLRS). The mortar is very flexible and can also launch traditional ballistic rounds at around $1000 a pop, special munitions like IR or visible spectrum illumination, smoke and even small drones.

 

[CD Xbow]

Defence has 2 part article on robots in the army. The first talks generally about the tech and the Army’s Robotic and Autonomous Systems Implementation & Coordination Office (RICO). It has a nice pic of the robot M113, note that it's a ute. Should be a very useful piece of gear. The second talks about a demonstration deployment at Puckapunyal in June.

https://www.defence.gov.au/news-events/news/2023-08-14/staying-ahead-game

https://www.defence.gov.au/news-events/news/2023-08-15/swarm-technological-advances

 

[CD Xbow]

The Warzone has an article describing the US defence dept. new concept - 'The Replicator'. Sadly not a device like in Star Trek, rather a system of autonomous drones. They also say they want it in place within 2 years, so put that date in your calendar and prepare for the coming of Skynet.

Replicator Is DoD's Big Play To Build Thousands Of Autonomous Weapons In Just Two Years

Replicator could significantly change how the U.S. military fights and is aimed squarely at overcoming China's quantitative advantage.

www.thedrive.com

 

[CD Xbow]

EOS is an Australian company that started out making sensors then moved in turrets and weapon systems. They have recently demonstrated a 34 kW laser destroying drones and burning holes in 8mm steel. You will probably need an order of magnitude or two increase in power to have enough power to take down hypersonic missiles.

Silent and deadly: Australian directed energy pitched against hypersonics

Canberra-based defence company Electro Optic Systems has pitched a ‘silent and deadly’ directed energy laser system during a live fire demonstration earlier this week. Members of the media (inc

www.defenceconnect.com.au

The CoA bought EOS turrets for use by Ukraine and I think they were proposed for some of the army's vehicles.

 

[CD Xbow]

CoA have just announced the purchase of unknown quantity of an unknown model of sea mines (SEA 2000 program),from Rheinmetall of Germany, via its Italian subsidiary, RWM Italia S.p.A. The purchase is covered in detail here.

Australia Procures New Smart Sea Mines - Naval News

Australia will purchase new, smart sea mines, which will reinvigorate Defence’s maritime mining capability.

www.navalnews.com

There is a video at the end where Xavier Vavasser interviews the vendors at the the IndoPacific 2022. Next he talks to Lockheed Martin about the LRASM anti-ship missile of which we have acquired 200. There are other vendors but the interesting one is at the 11:00 mark, L3 Harris with it's underwater tech. Very, very interesting. Note the Whale shaped UUV at the 13:40 mark, one of CoA most secretive projects.

 

[CD Xbow]

The ABC has an article about the test of the EOS laser I posted about earlier which includes video of the event, which is in the infrared. Note how long it takes, it's going to be a while before fast moving missiles and planes are able to be bought down, a little evasion will make it even harder.

'Good at hitting high-speed targets': Drone-killing laser gives glimpse into future AUKUS projects

A Canberra-based defence company is using a high-powered and lethal laser to shoot down drones for the first time on Australian soil.

www.abc.net.au

 

[CD Xbow]

First side view images of the B21 Raider have been seen in pubic, and surprise, surprise, it looks much like the old B2

B-21 Raider Seen Like Never Before In New Images

We have just been given our first side view of Northrop Grumman's B-21 Raider stealth bomber, an aircraft that remains cloaked in secrecy.

www.thedrive.com

 

[CD Xbow]

More killer robots! A special report by Reuters on Drones within the US - PRC strategic competition, it starts out talking with the guys from Anduril and their 'Ghost Shark', the large unmanned subs they have built for the RAN

In U.S.-China AI contest, the race is on to deploy killer robots

Washington and Beijing are in a contest to develop AI-controlled weapons that will operate autonomously. The outcome could decide the global balance of power.

www.reuters.com