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Immensity
of the War Emerges
Excerpts
of details on the war as of 11:35 AM Central Time, U.S. ...
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The
immensity of the task that confronts the United States and its
allies after the opening air campaign began to become clear
as the US moved to daytime bombing of Afghanistan yesterday
following two nights of punishing raids.
On
separate fronts officials indicated they are considering a Special
Forces "commando-style" ground hunt for the man accused
of masterminding the September 11 terrorist attacks, Osama bin
Laden; and a massive military distribution of food and medicine
to millions of Afghans displaced by war and drought.
Both
would be long-term operations that would require thousands of
troops and, inevitably, would risk combat engagement with the
remnants of the ruling Taliban's 45,000-strong army - in a country
that might still be gripped by civil war.
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Source:
Nuke
'em From On High
Tactical
nuclear weapons - there is a possibility they may be used in
the war on terrorism:
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Though
large "theater" thermonuclear devices -- doomsday
bombs -- don't fit the Bush administration's war on terrorism,
smaller tactical nukes do not seem out of the question in the
current mindset of the Defense Department.
The
most likely candidate is a tactical micro-nuke called the B61-11,
an earth-penetrating nuclear device known as the "bunker
buster."
The
B61-11 was designed to destroy underground military facilities
such as command bunkers, ballistic missile silos and facilities
for producing and storing weapons.
However,
it could be used against the warren of tunnels and caves carved
under the Afghan mountains that are often cited as a potential
refuge for the U.S. government's prime suspect, Osama bin Laden.
...
Depending
on the yield of the bomb, the B61-11 can produce explosions
ranging from 300 tons of TNT to more than 300,000 tons. This
is significantly less than the B53, but still far larger than
even the greatest conventional non-nuclear device in U.S. stockpiles.
And it is several times more powerful than the atomic weapons
dropped on Japan in 1945.
Studies
by the Natural Resource Defense Council estimate that more than
150 B61-11s are currently in the U.S. arsenals.
...
Any
debate inside the corridors of power about using tactical nukes
will be heightened by the intelligence buzz surrounding bin
Laden's possible ownership of Russian nuclear "suitcase"
bombs purchased from Chechen mafia.
Those
weapons are said to be hidden in deep caves and fortified tunnels
in remote regions of Afghanistan.
Following
the Sept. 11 attacks, the discussion of ways to eradicate this
potential nuclear threat -– while simultaneously destroying
bin Laden and his teams -— may have led to talk about tactical
weapons that can destroy even heavily fortified underground
shelters.
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Source:
A
Modern War Waged Over Old Time Religion
Excerpts
from an opinion expressing concern that the war being waged
is heavily religious in nature:
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The thing to remember is that nobody anywhere is leveling with
us.
If
that's sometimes hard to bear in mind when the flags are streaming
and the bugles sound, I have a harder time getting my mind around
the idea that, at the beginning of the 21st century, we're neck
deep in a religious war that's been going on for 1,400 years.
To
fundamentalist Islam, anyone who embraces, or exists within,
Western civilization is an "enemy of God.'' Muslims dwell
in the "House of God,'' non-Muslims inhabit the "House
of Unbelief.'' The duty of God's soldiers is to speed God's
enemies to God so he can deal with them personally, and harshly.
The
West is led by a fundamentalist Protestant American who believes
that, if the world wasn't literally created in six days, God
spent a busy 13 billion years turning out kazillions of frivolous
stars in the course of warming up for what he really had in
mind: creating us. Those who buy this accept that the unsaved
(even the unbaptized) will go to hell.
The
difference comes down to knocking the unbeliever off now, or
not bothering to since he's done for anyway, in the long run.
In the calculus of fundamentalism, it is a matter of degree.
Q.
Is it true that there are no atheists in foxholes?
A.
I have a feeling I'm going to get a chance to test the proposition.
I just kind of wish the shots on the future of mankind weren't
being called by men whose moral clocks stopped in the Middle
Ages.
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Source:
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New
Weapons Developed or Designed Since the Gulf War
Excerpts
from article detailing some of the new weapons developed since
the Gulf War and some of the weapons currently being designed
(some of the following links were not present in the referenced
"Wired News" article):
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- AH-64D
Apache Longbow: This is the newest version of the Army's
favorite combat helicopter. ... For increased effectiveness
in darkness, the Apache Longbow features infrared target sensing
cameras and night vision, which it displays in an eyepiece
in the pilot's helmet.
The AH-64D is reported to hit 400 percent more of its targets
than the AH-64A, which it replaces. It can detect and classify
more than 128 targets, prioritize the most dangerous and share
the information with other aircraft and ground troops.
- RAH-66
Comanche: If the conflict in Afghanistan continues through
next year, expect the Comanche to make its battlefield debut.
When scheduled delivery begins in early 2002, the Comanche
will be the most advanced helicopter in the world -- and the
first to use stealth technology ... the Comanche is designed
for armed reconnaissance, attack and special operations.
Its slender body hides a heat-reducing exhaust system, noise
suppressors and bays that conceal weapons when not in use.
A sealed cockpit is designed to protect the crew from biological
or chemical threats. ...
- F-22
Raptor: The F-22 is important for two reasons: It replaces
the Air Force's aging F-15 design, and it will be the first
stealth air-to-air fighter. ... the Raptor can "supercruise"
at Mach 1.5 and use relatively low amounts of fuel. The airframe
is titanium, aluminum, composites and steel. ...
- F/A-18E/F
Super Hornet::
The newest addition to the Navy's line of fighters, the Super
Hornet is designed to succeed the venerable F-14 and A-6.
A combination fighter-bomber, the narrow-nosed plane is now
flying from all of the Navy's 12 aircraft carriers. ...
- Harrier
II Plus AV-8B:
The Falklands war made famous the original Harrier "jumpjets,"
and they've been continuously improved ever since. The
latest version entered military service in 1993 and was jointly
developed by the United States, Spain and Italy.
Because the jet can take off vertically, U.S. Marines use
it for air support in areas where traditional landings are
difficult. The latest cockpit has digital radar, night vision
goggles and infrared sensors to let it operate day and night.
- Joint
Strike Fighter:
Early versions look a bit tubby -- but then again, the Joint
Strike Fighter is still in the design stage. This fighter
is designed to meet the needs of the Navy, Air Force and Marines,
as well as the British military.
... The three variants will be a carrier-based aircraft for
the Navy, a conventional fighter for the Air Force and a short
take-off and vertical landing version for the Marines. ...
- A-10/OA-10
Thunderbolt II:
Known by some of the least flattering nicknames of any military
plane -- "warthog" is the most common -- the A-10
is anything but a joke on the battlefield.
According
to the military's official stats: "The Thunderbolt
II's 30mm GAU-8/A Gatling gun can fire 3,900 rounds a minute
and can defeat an array of ground targets to include tanks....
The aircraft can survive direct hits from armor-piercing
and high explosive projectiles up to 23 mm."
The
A-10's weapon systems were upgraded in 1990 to include a
collision-avoidance system, better computer-aided targeting
and a system to stabilize the plane while the gun was firing.
Additions in 1999 included GPS-based navigation and a thoroughly
revamped computer system.
- B-2
Spirit: Each one of these 21 stealth bombers set U.S.
taxpayers back $2.1 billion. Developed in the 1980s, the B-2
entered service in 1993.
It's
intended to be nearly invisible to radar thanks to a blend
of reduced infrared, acoustic, electromagnetic, visual and
radar signatures. Its surface is smooth, with no rivets
or edges protruding. The flying wing's range lets it fly
some 6,000 miles -- or around the world with one refueling
-- and it can deliver conventional and nuclear weapons.
...
- Tactical
Tomahawk:
Anyone who remembers the Gulf War should recall the Tomahawk
cruise missile, which the United States also launched this
week against Afghanistan. It's currently being upgraded
and called a "Tactical Tomahawk" scheduled to
enter service in 2002 if Congress agrees. New
features include the ability to redirect the missile in
flight to the GPS coordinates of any target within range.
- ABL
YAL-1A: Attack Laser [link inactive]:
It's hardly President Reagan's Star Wars dream or President
Bush's national missile defense plan -- the Airborne Laser
system is far more modest.
When
attached to a modified Boeing 747-400 craft, it provides
an airborne anti-missile defense system. The multi-megawatt
chemical laser bounces its beam off a computer-controlled
mirror and through a mobile turret in the nose of the plane.
Ballistic missiles will be targeted, and -- if everything
works as planned -- destroyed immediately after launch.
...
- RQ-1A/B
Predator: About as speedy as a lowly prop-driven Cessna,
the RQ-1 Predator aircraft is designed to go slow and stay
aloft for a long time. (The "R" in its title means
reconnaissance, and "Q" means unmanned aircraft
system.)
RQ-1s
each cost $25 million each and are reported to be able to
hover, unmanned, over a battlefield for some 16 hours before
having to land and refuel. The Air Force has successfully
launched a missile from one, an important step toward making
it into an attack vehicle. The RQ-1 is operated from a ground
control station and equipped with a color nose cam, an infrared
camera, and radar. It can capture full motion video and
still radar frame images.
- C-17
Globemaster III:
The newest cargo aircraft in the Air Force, the C-17 made
its maiden flight in 1991. Best known as a cargo and troop
transport, C-17s began dropping humanitarian supplies over
Afghanistan this week. ...
The
C-17 is 174 feet long, with a wingspan of 169 feet and a payload
of 170,900 pounds. It has a range of 2,400 miles and can airdrop
102 paratroopers -- or enough food for about 19,000 hungry
people.
- V/MV-22
Osprey:
... this hybrid aircraft can take off and land like a helicopter,
but once in the air its engines rotate and it becomes a
turboprop airplane. ...
The Marines say: "The MV-22 is the highest priority
for Marine Corps aviation.... The V-22 will fly twice as
fast, several times further and with a heavier payload than
the helicopters it replaces." The
plan is for the Osprey eventually to be used by all branches
of the military.
- Sea
Shadow:
Think stealth destroyer. The U.S. Navy approved development
of the Sea Shadow in the mid-1980s, nixed it in 1994 and
resuscitated it in 1999. The program hopes to test new technologies,
such as "artificial intelligence" ship control
and combat systems, automatic piloting and new hull designs
nearly invisible to radar.
It's
being developed by ARPA, the Navy and Lockheed Martin. In
1996, Britain's Vosper Thornycroft showed off a similar
design called the Sea
Wraith,
a frigate that masks its presence with a radar-absorbing
composite super-structure, a deflecting angled design and
-- think dry ice -- an artificial cloud of mist.
- Javelin:
U.S. troops fighting in cities will be glad to have this
portable, shoulder-fired, anti-tank missile. Introduced
in 1996, the Javelin can be unholstered and fired in half
a minute and reloaded in less than 20 seconds. This infrared-guided
missile has a range of 2,500 meters, and can take out helicopters,
vehicles and ground installations.
- M1A2
Abrams Tank System Enhancement Package [link inactive]:
The latest tech addition to the Army's rugged M1 tank series,
this upgrade will be in service by 2004. The System Enhancement
Package includes beefier processors, high-resolution flat
screen displays and -- just like a Handspring Visor -- expansion
possibilities. It also adds infrared vision and thermal imaging
to the gunner's sight.
- M6
Bradley Linebacker:
Introduced in 1997, this Boeing-manufactured accessory adds
Stinger missiles to the Bradley fighting vehicle. Benefit:
Short-range air defense against planes, helicopters and,
theoretically, cruise missiles. A digital compass and gyro-stabilized
turret lets the system lock on to targets while moving at
speeds up to 40 kilometers per hour.
- Line-of-Sight
Anti-Tank:
You won't find any explosives in this anti-tank missile,
just a whole lot of speed. The Army calls it a "kinetic
energy missile," meaning the LOSAT barrels toward its
target at a velocity of 5,000 feet per second. ...
The
LOSAT is still in development, and production is planned
to begin in 2002 with continued testing through 2003. It's
designed to be mounted onto a Humvee and has a range of
5 kilometers.
- Enhanced
Fiber Optic Guided Missile:
Mounted onto the back of a Humvee, this late-1990s technology
uses infrared cameras and GPS mounted on the missiles as
guidance for the gunner. The EFOGM's launcher assembly contains
eight ready-to-fire missiles. With a range of 15 kilometers,
the EFOGM is designed to destroy tanks, helicopters -- or
whatever else the missiles are aimed at.
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Source:
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