DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: Asia's Military Spending Likely To Overtake Europe This Year

DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: Asia's Military Spending Likely To Overtake Europe This Year
*Asia, led by China, is becoming increasingly militarised as a result of rapid economic growth and strategic uncertainty
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Richard Norton-Taylor ~ guardian.co.uk
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - March 8, 2012: Military spending by Asian countries, led by China, is rising fast and for the first time is likely this year to outstrip Europe, where governments are cutting their defence budgets, according to a leading London-based thinktank.

"While the west reduces its spending on defence, Asia is becoming increasingly militarised as a result of rapid economic growth and strategic uncertainty," John Chipman, director general of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said at the launch of its latest annual Military Balance survey.

Asian countries increased their defence budget by more than 3% in real terms last year, the IISS said. China increased its share of total military expenditure on weapons in the region to more than 30%. Official Chinese military spending totalled nearly $90bn last year, more than two-and-a-half times the 2001 level.

Western analysts point to China's plans for naval "force projection" to defend its growing economic interests in Africa and elsewhere, and secure maritime lanes of communication.

Most attention has focused on China's first aircraft carrier, the former Soviet ship the Varyag, and its new J-20 combat aircraft. "But China's technological advances are more modest than some alarmist hypotheses of its military development have suggested", Chipman said. "They represent nascent rather than actual capability. China, for example, does not yet have the capability to operate fixed-wing aircraft from a carrier."

More immediately significant is China's development of anti-satellite capacities, anti-ship ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and cyber-warfare capabilities. "Managing tensions in the South China Sea will be an increasing challenge," said the IISS report.

Defence analysts also pointed to potential tensions between the US and China being aggravated by Beijing refusing to agree to confidence-building measures along the lines of those between the US and the Soviet Union during the cold war. "China does not want to give a seatbelt to the US," one defence analyst said.

Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam are all investing in improving air and naval capacities, as are India, Japan and South Korea. India, for instance, plans to boost maritime capacities with submarines and aircraft carriers, said the IISS.

In Europe, defence budgets remain under pressure and cuts to equipment programmes continue. Between 2008 and 2010 there were reductions in defence spending in at least 16 European Nato member states. In a significant proportion of these, cuts in real terms exceeded 10%.

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Richard Norton-Taylor ~ guardian.co.uk
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DTN News: U.S. Department of Defense Contracts Dated March 7 & 8, 2012

DTN News: U.S. Department of Defense Contracts Dated March 7 & 8, 2012

 Source: U.S. DoD issued No. 159-12 March 7, 2012 & U.S. DoD issued No. 163-12 March 8, 2012

(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - March 8, 2012: U.S. Department of Defense, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs) Contracts issued  March 7 & 8, 2012 are undermentioned;

*U.S. DoD issued No. 159-12 March 7, 2012 

CONTRACTS

AIR FORCE

            Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc., McLean, Va., is being awarded a $44,300,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity and cost-plus-fixed-fee type contract for the Technology, Research, Integration And Demonstration Program.  Through the use of task orders, air and space vehicle structures research and development will be conducted to deliver future air and space vehicle capabilities to the war fighter. This research and development will include conceptual design studies, experimental data analyses, systems engineering assessments, technology assessments and evaluations, and computational analyses.  The location of the performance is McLean, Va.  Work is expected to be completed June 3, 2019.  AFRL/PKVA, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8650-12-D3211; FA8650-12-D-3211 0001).

            University of Dayton Research Institute, Dayton, Ohio, is being awarded a $44,300,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity and cost-plus-fixed-fee type contract for the Technology, Research, Integration And Demonstration Program.  Through the use of task orders, air and space vehicle structures research and development will be conducted to deliver future air and space vehicle capabilities to the war fighter. This research and development will include conceptual design studies, experimental data analyses, systems engineering assessments, technology assessments and evaluations, and computational analyses.  The location of the performance is Dayton, Ohio.  Work is expected to be completed on June 3, 2019.  AFRL/PKVA Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8650-12-D-3212; FA8650-12-D-3212 0001).

            Northrop Grumman Corp., Aerospace Systems, El Segundo, Calif., is being awarded a $24,484,465 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for Multi Platform Radar Technology Insertion Program radar system development and demonstration alignment with the Global Hawk Block 40 program schedule.  The location of the performance is El Segundo, Calif.  Work is expected to be completed on Aug. 31, 2013.  Electronic Systems Center, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity (F19628-00-C-0100 P00213).

            MacAulay-Brown, Inc., Dayton, Ohio, is being awarded a $24,125,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to conduct electro-optical threat warning research at the Air Force Research Laboratory, electro-optics countermeasures, in the area of missile warning, hostile fire indication, sense, avoid, and space situational awareness and intelligence collection.  The location of the performance is Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.  Work is expected to be completed March 6, 2018.  AFRL/PKVA Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8650-12-D-1375 and 0001).

            Ultra Electronics Advanced Tactical Systems, Inc., Austin, Texas, is being awarded a $17,889,807 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract with labor hour, firm-fixed-price, and cost reimbursement for supporting the Air Force, other Department of Defense services; and the Department of Homeland Defense’s Joint Air Defense Systems Integrator systems, including development, sustainment, technical refresh, and field support by modifying and upgrading JADSI capabilities in response to validated operational requirements, and effectively sustaining deployed JADSI and related equipment in the field.  The location of the performance is Austin, Texas.  Work is expected to be completed April 4, 2013.  Air Force Material Command, Electronic Systems Center, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity (FA8726-07-D-0001 P00014).

            BAE Systems, Burlington, Maine, is being awarded a $13,784,273 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the finder program.  This program aims to build on existing research systems to develop technology that augments the analyst’s abilities to address the geolocation task.  The location of the performance is Burlington, Maine.  Work is expected to be completed March 6, 2012.  AFRL/PKVA Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8650-12-C-7211).

            Science, Engineering, and Technology Associates Corp, Arlington, Va., is being awarded a $9,948,200 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to develop technologies to aid the analyst in geolocating images and videos in any outdoor terrestrial location in the world.  The location of the performance is Arlington, Va.  Work is expected to be completed Aug. 7, 2016.  AFRL/PKVA Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8650-12-C-7213).

            Northrop Grumman Technical Services, Clearfield, Utah, is being awarded a $8,409,493 cost-plus-award-fee contract to incrementally fund the Air Force Global Strike Command Systems Engineering Program on the ICBM prime integration contract.  This is a modification to contract F42610-98-C-0001.  The location of the performance is Clearfield, Utah.  Work is expected to be completed Sept. 30, 2012.  AFNWC/PKME Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the contracting activity (F42610-98-C-0001).

NAVY

            Environmental Chemical Corp., Marlborough, Mass., is being awarded a $38,228,490 firm-fixed-price contract for energy and structural repairs to the consolidated submarine operations, Building 178, at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.  The work to be performed provides for structural repairs and modernizes Building 178 to create a consolidated state-of-the-art shipyard industrial material handling facility.  The project goal is to provide 25,062 million metric British Thermal Units of annual energy savings and achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Silver certification.  Work will be performed in Kittery, Maine, and is expected to be completed by December 2014.  Contract funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website, with nine proposals received.  The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic, Norfolk, Va., is the contracting activity (N40085-12-C-1726.

            Raytheon Missile Systems, Tucson, Ariz., is being awarded a $22,194,889 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract (N00024-12-C-5400) for standard missile engineering and technical services to perform evaluations of advanced missile configurations and advanced technology efforts with potential for current and future standard missile development programs.  This contract includes options, which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $42,043,432.  Work will be performed in Tucson, Ariz. (80 percent); Camden, Ark. (10 percent); and Andover, Mass. (10 percent).  Work is expected to be completed by January 2013.  Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  This contract was not competitively procured.  The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

            Sikorsky Aerospace Maintenance, Stratford, Conn., is being awarded a $22,754,002 modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00019-09-C-0024) to exercise an option for organizational, selected intermediate, and limited depot-level maintenance for aircraft operated by adversary squadrons.  Work will be performed at Naval Air Station (NAS) Key West, Fla. (40 percent); NAS Fallon, Nev. (30 percent); and Marine Corp Air Station, Yuma, Ariz. (30 percent).  Work is expected to be completed in December 2012.  Contract funds in the amount of $22,754,002 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

            BAE Systems Mayport, Jacksonville, Fla., is being awarded a $22,130,130 modification to previously awarded contract (N40024-10-C-4406) to perform dry dock, ship alterations, maintenance and repair work for the Docking Selected Restricted Availability (DSRA) of USS Carney (DDG-64).  This DSRA will include a dry docking, hull, machinery, electrical, electronics, ship alterations, piping alteration, and repair work.  The primary ship alterations being performed during this DSRA include Ballistic Missile Defense System upgrade, Vertical Launch System Ventilation upgrade, and the bow strengthening modification.  Extensive coordination will be required in support of the dry dock evolution and the numerous alterations and repairs planned for accomplishment during this DSRA.  The modification includes options, which if exercised, would bring the cumulative value to $25,645,719.  Work will be performed in Jacksonville, Fla., and is expected to be completed by November 2012.  Contract funds in the amount of $20,773,362 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  The Southeast Regional Maintenance Center, Jacksonville, Fla., is the contracting activity.

            Huntington Ingalls, Inc., Newport News Shipbuilding, Newport News, Va., is being awarded $11,069,510 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-08-C-2110) to purchase previously planned materials in support of USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) construction.  Work will be performed in Newport News, Va., and is expected to complete by September 2015.  Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  Supervisor of Shipbuilding Conversion and Repair, Newport News, Va., is the contracting activity.

            Computer Sciences Corp., Norco, Calif., is being awarded a $10,897,478 modification to previously awarded contract (N63394-12-C-5001) for engineering, technical, operational, and ancillary support services in support of the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Corona Division.  Work will be performed in Norco, Calif., and is expected to be completed by September 2012.  Contract funds in the amount of $150,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  The Port Hueneme Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme, Calif., is the contracting activity (N63394-12-C-5001).

---

*U.S. DoD issued No. 163-12 March 8, 2012

CONTRACTS

AIR FORCE

            The Boeing Co., Mo., is being awarded an $11,399,100,000 firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee, time-and-materials contract to fulfill the Foreign Military Sales requirement of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to procure 84 new F-15 Saudi advanced aircraft with systems and munitions.  This particular undefinitized contract action covers development efforts for the new aircraft and retrofit as well as procurement of the 84 new production aircraft.  The locations of the performance are El Segundo, Calif., Ocala, Fla., and Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  Work is expected to be completed October 2020. ASC/WWQ, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8634-12-C-2651).

            Modern Technology Solutions, Inc., Alexandria, Va. (FA8626-12-D-2120); Aegis Technologies Group, Inc., Huntsville, Ala. (FA8626-12-D-2117); and Cedar Creek Applied Technologies, Inc., Fairborn, Ohio (FA8626-12-D-2118), are each being awarded an $80,000,000 firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee, time-and-materials contract.  Air Force Material Command, Aeronautical Systems Center Capabilities Integration Directorate activities, and the Simulation and Analysis Facility, located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, require performance-based services to support capabilities managers with integrated analyses for future capabilities development.  The locations of performance are Alexandria, Va., Huntsville, Ala., and Fairborn, Ohio.  Work is expected to be completed Dec. 30, 2017.  ASC/WNWK, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity.

            ObjectVideo, Reston, Va., is being awarded a $15,636,013 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the FINDER Program, which aims to build existing research systems to develop technology that augments the analyst’s abilities to address the geolocation task.  The location of the performance is Reston, Va.  Work is expected to be completed June 6, 2016.  AFRL/PKDB, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8650-12-C-7212).

            Silence Applications International Corp., McLean, Va., is being awarded a $9,989,452 firm-fixed-price and cost-plus-award-fee contract that will extend the GPS systems engineering and international contract by 60 days.  The global positioning systems at Los Angeles Air Force Base are responsible for sustaining, modernizing, developing, and managing the GPS mission in order to support capabilities for military and civilian users worldwide.  The locations of the performance are McLean, Va., and Fairfax County, Va.  Work is expected to be completed May 7, 2012.  Air Force Space & Missile Systems Center is the contracting activity (FA8807-07-C-002, P00091).

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

            Draeger Medical, Inc., Telford, Pa., was issued a modification exercising the first option year on contract SPM200-07-D-8003/P00039.  The award is a fixed-price with economic price adjustment contract with a maximum $98,341,974 for entire line of anesthesia machines, monitors, ventilators, and related accessories.  There are no other locations of performance.  Using services are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, federal civilian agencies, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.  There were 61 responses to the Web solicitation.  Type of appropriation is fiscal 2012 Defense Working Capital Funds.  The date of performance completion is March 11, 2013.  The Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa., is the contracting activity.

NAVY

            URS Federal, Inc., Germantown, Md. (N00189-12-D-Z016); Raytheon Technical Services Co., L.L.C., Dulles, Va. (N00189-12-D-Z017); Technical Software Services, Pensacola, Fla. (N00189-12-D-Z018); Camber Corp., Huntsville, Ala. (N00189-12-D-Z019); General Dynamics Information Technology, Needham, Mass. (N00189-12-D-Z020); Northrop Grumman, Herndon, Va. (N00189-12-D-Z021); Logistics Services International, Inc., Jacksonville, Fla. (N00189-12-D-Z022); and Sonalysts, Inc., Waterford, Conn. (N00189-12-D-Z023), are being awarded a cost-plus-fixed-fee, firm-fixed-price multiple award contract for education training products and services for the Naval Education Training Command in conjunction with Naval Education Training and Professional Development and Technology Center, which works to educate Navy sailors in a variety of ways.  The maximum contract value, including the base period and two 12-month option periods, for all eight contracts combined, is $97,361,843.  The contract minimum amount will be subject to the availability of fiscal 2012 Operation and Maintenance Navy.  The minimum amount of the contract will be $25,000 to be divided among the eight awarded contracts.  These eight contractors will compete for task orders under the terms and conditions of the awarded contract.  Work will be performed in Pensacola, Fla. (90 percent), and the remaining will be divided among the eight contractors (10 percent).  Work is expected to be completed March 6, 2013.  If all options are exercised, work will continue to March 6, 2015.  Contract funds will not expire before the end of the current fiscal year.  This contract was competitively procured under a full and open competition and solicited through the Navy Electronic Commerce Online and Federal Business Opportunities websites, with 28 offers received.  The Fleet Logistics Center Norfolk in Philadelphia, Pa., is the contracting activity.

            Honeywell Technology Solutions, Inc., Columbia, Md., is being awarded $28,979,511 for firm-fixed-price task order 0009 under a previously awarded multiple award service contract (N62473-07-D-4020) for Anti-Terrorism Force Protection (ATFP) Ashore global sustainment.  The work to be performed provides for the sustainment of life cycle ATFP Ashore projects to include all system-related hardware and software.  Services to be provided include corrective and preventative maintenance of the equipment/systems, and the response and resolution of service calls.  The task order provides the support necessary to carry out the day-to-day operations and maintenance of ATFP Ashore hardware, software, and related services.  Work will be performed at various locations worldwide and is expected to be completed by March 2013.  Contract funds in the amount of $28,979,511 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  Two proposals were received for this task order.  The Specialty Center Acquisition, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Port Hueneme, Calif., is the contracting activity.


*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources U.S. DoD issued No. 159-12 March 7, 2012 & U.S. DoD issued No. 163-12 March 8, 2012
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DTN News - ISRAELI DEFENSE NEWS: U.S. Denies Obama Promised Bunker Busters To Netanyahu

DTN News - ISRAELI DEFENSE NEWS: U.S. Denies Obama Promised Bunker Busters To Netanyahu

*White House statement comes after Israeli media reports claim U.S. President agreed to give Israel the GBU-28 bombs; Netanyahu: Strike on Iran could be matter of weeks or years.

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources By Reuters and Haaretz
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - March 8, 2012: President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not discuss in their meetings this week a reported Israeli request for advanced U.S. military technology that could be used against Iran, the White House said on Thursday.

"In meetings the president had there was no such agreement proposed or reached," White House press secretary Jay Carney told reporters. Obama and Netanyahu meet in the Oval office for two hours on Monday and then had lunch together.

Carney's comment came after an Israeli official quoted by the Maariv newspaper earlier on Thursday indicated that Israel has asked the United States for advanced "bunker-buster" bombs and refueling planes that could improve its ability to attack Iran's underground nuclear sites.

On Tuesday, Haaretz quoted a U.S. official as indicating that Netanyahu had asked Defense Secretary Leon Panetta for the GBU-28 bunker busting bombs as well as for advanced refueling aircraft.

The source added that Obama then instructed Panetta to start work on a request to work directly with Defense Minister Ehud Barak on the matter, indicating that the U.S. administration was inclined to look favorably upon the request as soon as possible.

Referring to the prospect of a military strike against Iran's nuclear facilities, Netanyahu told Channel 10 earlier Thursday that a strike of Iran's nuclear facilities could be a matter of years, saying:" If I don't make the right call [on Iran] maybe there won't be anyone to explain to."

"Who will I explain it to? The next generations? The ones that will not come?" the PM asked.


 
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*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources By Reuters and Haaretz
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DTN News - PHILIPPINE DEFENSE NEWS: Philippine Air Force To Get 4 Polish-Made Brand New Helicopters

DTN News - PHILIPPINE DEFENSE NEWS: Philippine Air Force To Get 4 Polish-Made Brand New Helicopters 
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Sun Star
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - March 8, 2012: Four brand new choppers for the Philippine Air Force (PAF) will be turned over on Friday by a Polish manufacturer to the Philippine government, Malacañang said Thursday.

The four new aircraft signals the near completion of the initial phase of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Modernization Plan aimed at making the air force more equipped in performing its mandate, it said in a statement.

Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin will be the guest of honor during the formal turn-over of the choppers in a simple ceremony to be held at Air Force City in Clark, Pampanga.

PZL-SWIDNIK SA, a Polish manufacturing company headed by its president Mieczyslaw Majewski, will turn-over the initial four of eight SOKOL multi-purpose Combat Utility Helicopters (CUH) to the fleet of PAF under the Aquino administration's AFP modernization program.

The arrival of the brand new combat helicopter is part of the P2.8 billion acquisition contract between the AFP and PZL-SWIDNIK SA.

Certified by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), these six-tonne class twin-engine helicopters have been proven to be effective and reliable in all weather conditions. An added feature of the SOKOL helicopter includes its high flexibility and significant internal and external cargo capacity, making it capable of performing a wide range of operations and an excellent utility chopper.

Dubbed as "Back to Basics," the first phase of the Modernization Program focuses on improving the AFP’s ability to conduct Internal Security Operations. Under this phase, the target acquisition include eight combat utility helicopters, seven attack helicopters, one C-130 aircraft, a long-range patrol aircraft and 18 basic trainer aircraft.

For the Capability Upgrade Program, more advanced aircrafts are expected in Phases 2 and 3 where PAF-related components are grouped into the "Horizon Programs" with Horizon 2 expected to begin in the 2012 to 2016 time frame.

Under the Horizon 2, the Air Force expects the delivery of Territorial Defense assets such as Surface Attack Aircraft, Lead-in Fighter Trainers, Long-Range Patrol Aircraft, Air Defense Radar and a Special Mission aircraft, among other that will greatly boost the country’s defense stance against external threats.

Republic Act 7898 or the AFP Modernization Act of 1995 has provided the military an opportunity to modernize with a total fund of P331 billion.

The plan follows a strict schedule for upgrades in order to modernize the AFP to a level where it can effectively and fully perform its constitutional mandate to defend the sovereignty and protect and preserve the patrimony of the Republic. (SDR/Sunnex)

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*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Sun Star
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DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: The Defense Budget And American Power

DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: The Defense Budget And American Power
*Editor's Note: In testimony before the Senate Budget Committee, Michael O'Hanlon discusses cuts to the U.S. defense budget. O'Hanlon identifies changes in force structures, weapons plans and other military programs that could be considered, along with the rough ten-year savings that could result.
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Michael E. O'Hanlon, Director of Research and Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy, 21st Century Defense Initiative U.S. Senate Budget Committee (Brookings)
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - March 7, 2012: Mr. Chairman, Mr. Ranking Member, other Members of the Committee, it is an honor to appear before the committee today. That is especially true for a Congressional Budget Office alum like myself who remembers well working for senators Domenici and Sasser and others some two decades ago, when the Cold War ended and we were collectively trying to reduce defense budgets responsibly. 

That is again our challenge today. As former chairman of the joint chiefs, Admiral Mike Mullen, has persuasively argued, federal debt and with it the possible erosion of our national economic foundations have become national security threats themselves. I begin from the premises that the right dose of defense budget cutbacks, as part of comprehensive deficit reduction, can strengthen American power and influence over time. Put differently, it can be the least risky option—accepting some near-term, modest, and calculated reductions in military strength now to help shore up our longer-term economic prospects and with them our long-term national security. 

As I argued in my 2011 book, The Wounded Giant, no great power in history has remained great while its economy eroded. Trillion dollar deficits are not compatible with U.S. economic health, as Brookings colleagues such as Alice Rivlin have convincingly shown, and thus they are not compatible with long-term American global leadership. And as another Brookings colleague, Robert Kagan rightly argues in his new book, there is no credible alternative to U.S. leadership at present. Absent such leadership, the general stability among major powers that we take for granted in today’s world would no longer be such a given, and extremist states such as Iran and North Korea might feel further emboldened to assert themselves aggressively in their respective regions as well. The trick is to get the balance right, and to combine defense budget reductions of the right magnitude and character with other measures of fiscal restraint and revenue increases. 

The Obama administration’s new defense strategy and budget plan, building on earlier cuts made by Secretary Gates during his tenure in office, is a good step in the right direction in my eyes. In fact it gets us, responsibly, most of the way towards where we need to go in defense—even if I would submit respectfully that neither the administration nor the Congress has done as well in regard to entitlement spending or tax reform. As a result of this budget, national security spending would decline from current levels of about 4.5% of GDP to just over 3%. (For comparison, norms were 8 to 10 percent of GDP in the 1950s and 1960s, 5 to 6 percent in the 1970s and 1980s, 3 percent by the end of the 1990s, and 4 percent during most of the Bush presidency). Looked at differently, U.S. defense spending as a share of the global total will decline from about 45 percent in recent years to 35 percent or so, and the American military edge over China might decline from roughly 4:1 today (using Pentagon estimates of China’s actual military spending adjusted for purchasing power parity) to 3:1 within half a decade. 

While the above statistics, especially defense spending as a percent of GDP, show that it would be wrong to view the Pentagon’s budget as the main fiscal challenge facing the nation, I believe modest additional cuts are possible and could be helpful. Sequestration would be far too drastic and abrupt, and the law requiring sequestration to begin in January should be overturned sooner rather than later, as my colleague from AEI Mackenzie Eaglen and I have argued in a written article. But some further economies still seem possible (here of course I speak just for myself), beyond those currently proposed. 

Some cuts in programs and forces will be needed, I estimate, simply to comply with the first tranche of cuts mandated by the Budget Control Act (that is, the $487 billion in ten-year savings, or $350 billion when scored against the CBO baseline). I believe the Obama force posture and weapons modernization plan is more expensive than the Pentagon believes, and that sustaining it will require more funding than presently allowed under the Budget Control Act. Like most administrations before it, this one appears to have been optimistic in its assessments of how much its preferred force posture will cost. 

But rather than couch my argument in those terms, I will use the rest of this testimony to identify additional changes in force structures and weapons plans and other military programs that could be considered, along with the rough ten-year savings that could result. One key warning is worth underscoring: I believe they would involve some modest national security risk. .They would not amount simply to cutting waste, fraud, and abuse within the Pentagon budget. There is still fat at DoD, to be sure, but it is so marbled into the military’s muscle that it is very hard to extricate the former without also damaging the latter. As such, cuts should in my view be made only if additional parts of the federal budget that have to date been largely spared are also brought into the deficit reduction efforts, and only if net revenues are also increased. 

My recommended additional defense reforms and reductions are made from the starting point that there are certain irreducible U.S. defense requirements that should not be compromised under any foreseeable circumstances:

• Responsibly ending the nation’s current war, with sustained modest commitments to Afghanistan thereafter for a potentially extended period.
• Deterring an assertive Iran in the broader Persian Gulf and Middle East.
• Helping keep confidence and stability in East Asia in the face of major structural change—notably the rise of China
• Keeping a sufficiently robust NATO alliance to provide some basis for global action by a community of democracies and lower whatever remote risks remain of Russia’s again becoming disruptive.
• Maintaining enough combat capability to wage one substantial and extended regional war while also carrying out up to two smaller operations at a time, perhaps in support of the ongoing struggle against transnational extremism in the turbulent broader Middle East region.
• Retaining a reliable, safe nuclear deterrent that is the equal of Russia’s and superior to China’s, even as the United States pursues lower force levels through arms control.
• Maintaining a strong all-volunteer military.
• Retaining and promoting the world’s best scientific and defense industrial base.
• Maintaining some capacity to help stop genocide as part of a coalition, since America’s values are part of what help it hold together a large network of nations in common strategic cause.

This list of foundations upon which future U.S. defense capabilities should be based leads me to several specific suggestions of where further economies can be considered without jeopardizing the core elements of future American power or international stability. They go beyond those already planned by the administration (changes that are summarized at the end of my testimony): 

Sea Swaps by which the Navy rotates crews using airplanes (having more than one crew share a given ship), allowing for a somewhat smaller Navy to maintain current forward presence requirements in the Western Pacific and Persian Gulf. At present, the Navy assigns a single crew to a single ship for vessels except minesweepers and ballistic missile submarines. But this practice leads to major inefficiencies in terms of time wasted in transit across the oceans. Typically, 5 ships are needed in the fleet to keep 1 on station with this traditional practice. 

Sea swaps, also known as crew swaps, can make a given ship at least 35 percent more efficient (in terms of time on station per vessel), and allow the Navy to cut perhaps 20 to 30 ships from its fleet without a reduction in forward presence in the Pacific or Persian Gulf. I would not apply this concept to large aircraft carriers (or CVNs), at least at first, given their size and complexity, but I would also cut the carrier fleet by one ship (and rely on large-deck amphibious ships rather than the much larger and more expensive CVNs for missions in places like the Mediterranean). 

Modestly Smaller Active-Duty Army and Marine Corps Forces. The Army and Marine Corps are slated to remain larger under President Obama’s new plan than they were in the 1990s. That will be true even once the main phase of the Afghanistan war is over, and even with Iraq no longer a pressing overland threat to its neighbors as it was in the 1990s as well as earlier eras. 

I believe the size of the active Army and Marine Corps can instead be slightly smaller than in that period, rather than slightly larger, with a net reduction of about 40,000 to 50,000 uniformed personnel in the active-duty force structure (and perhaps some modest growth in the National Guard). 

Smaller F35 Fighter Program. A fundamental rethinking of the F35 fighter program is appropriate, in light of the dramatically increased effectiveness of drones and other new technologies and the large size and cost of this manned aircraft program. 

Specifically, I would consider sizing the F35 program primarily to the possible China threat. Imagining a major deployment of F35s to the region around Taiwan, for example, on land bases and on ships, might result in a halving of the program’s size (with refurbishments of planes like F16s making up for the difference). In other words, it is hard to see how we could deploy more than 800 to 1,000 F35s to the vicinity of Taiwan even in such an extreme scenario—yet the F35 program currently envisions buying almost 2,500 planes. 

Dramatically Restructured LCS Program. A rethinking of the troubled Littoral Combat Ship program is also sensible. This was supposed to be an inexpensive ship but has become in effect a small and rather costly frigate. 

Rather than purchase some 55, I would consider buying only 15 to 20 (perhaps even purchasing the Coast Guard’s National Security Cutter instead of the current LCS designs). This smaller number of vessels could serve as “mother ships” within flotillas that included “swarms” of less expensive ships such as the Sea Hawk (which captures its own wake, rides high in the water, goes up to 60 knots, and costs less than $20 million) for purposes such as mine warfare and countering irregular maritime threats by countries such as Iran. 

A More Economical Nuclear Force. It is important to keep strategic nuclear parity with Russia, in my judgment, as well as a reliable, safe, and dependable inventory of nuclear warheads in the post-nuclear-testing era. But these goals can be achieved more economically. 

Adequate warheads can be deployed on 8 SSBN submarines rather than 14, and on 250 ICBMs rather than 450. The bomber fleet, useful for conventional missions and thus almost cost-free as a complement for ICBMs and SLBMs, can be tasked with a higher proportion of the nuclear mission. 

Within the Department of Energy, Livermore laboratory can, in my eyes, be reoriented increasingly around civilian energy as its central mission, with only Los Alamos remaining principally a nuclear design and stewardship laboratory (in addition to associated work at places like Sandia and the Nevada Test Site). A conservatively designed nuclear warhead, not requiring testing, can someday be added to the portfolio of warheads in the decades ahead to ensure a reliable and safe deterrent even without any future nuclear tests. 

An End to Commissaries and Exchanges. On the benefits and compensation side of things, an end to military commissaries and exchanges should be seriously considered. These provide benefits unequally and somewhat anachronistically to military service members and their families, and it makes more sense to eliminate them than to consider further cuts in other forms of military compensation. 

In rough terms, savings from the above ideas would be as follows. The adoption of sea swaps as standard practice within the major surface combatant fleet combined with the reduction in the carrier fleet could save about $4 billion to $5 billion annually. The further reductions of the ground forces would save about $10 billion a year once phased in. Cutbacks in the F35 and LCS programs would yield net savings of $5 billion a year and $1 billion a year. Elimination of exchanges and commissaries could save $1.5 billion annually. Certain other ideas not discussed here could save money too, such as a scaling back of the V-22 Osprey and missile defense programs, to the tune of another $2 billion a year. Altogether, as discussed in greater depth in my book, further savings of up to $25 billion a year (eventually) could be found responsibly—though again, I hasten to add that some of these dollar savings could be needed simply to comply with the first tranche of Budget Control Act budget reductions, as the current Obama defense program will likely cost a good deal more than those caps will permit. 

The United States is hardly yet in serious and inevitable decline. Not only does it remain the most competitive large economy in the world according to the World Economic Forum, not only does it have a diversified and gradually growing “melting pot” population, not only does it retain the world’s best scientific and high-technology manufacturing base, not only does it possess far and away the best military in the history of the planet. But it also leads the largest system of alliances and security partnerships ever seen, with some 70 countries collectively representing ¾ of global GDP and military spending formally or loosely aligned with it. It is a giant, even if a wounded giant, and its long-term future prospects are at least as good as China’s. 

Yet America is at a crossroads. Trillion dollar a year deficits are not only bad for our economy, if not fixed they portend doom for our role as the world’s key leader—and with it the prospects for a generally stable international system, as there is no clear alternative to American leadership. But with comprehensive deficit reduction, in which defense plays a key though not disproportionate part, the nation’s long-term economic pillars of power can be repaired and the country’s security protected. Defense cuts are not without costs and dangers. But if undertaken at the right size and pace, and as part of comprehensive fiscal reform, they represent the best way to minimize overall risks to American security and enhance the country’s future prospects and possibilities. 

APPENDIX: SUMMARY OF OBAMA DEFENSE CHANGES, 2012The Obama strategy and budget has a number of key features and provisions: 

• Reducing the respective sizes of the active-duty Army and Marine Corps to 490,000 and 180,000 uniformed personnel, roughly—down about 12 to 15 percent from their recent highs but still greater than typical 1990s levels
• Modifying the “two-ground-war” planning framework to something more like a “one-war plus” capability. Any second simultaneous land conflict would be fought with less ambitious goals, a longer time horizon, and more use of the Guard/reserves 
• Focusing much less on large-scale counterinsurgency missions for planning and training
• Deferring a number of procurement programs to save money in the near-term budget, as with the F35 joint strike fighter
• Making targeted cancellations of certain generally smaller military systems (advanced versions of the Global Hawk unmanned aircraft, a new weather satellite, the C-27 passenger aircraft) but leaving most large programs unscathed 
• Eliminating some older ships and airlifters from the force but in modest numbers
• Scaling back Air Force combat aircraft units by roughly 10 percent
• Making modest changes in military compensation, especially for retirees (in regards to health care and pensions), but targeting military compensation for only 1/9 of overall spending cuts even though it constitutes 1/3 of the defense budget, all told
• Carrying out further rounds of base closures if possible 
• Bringing two of four Army brigades home from Europe, and relocating several thousand Marines now on Okinawa to Guam and Australia (and perhaps also stateside locations)

Not all changes would consist of cutbacks. Specifically, the administration is: 

• Underscoring that the Western Pacific and Persian Gulf/Middle East are the top two areas of military interest and priority for the United States
• Making no cuts in the aircraft carrier fleet, large-deck amphibious fleet, attack submarine fleet, long-range bombers, nuclear forces, or missile defenses (beyond those made in previous years), and adding more special forces
• Making no near-term reductions in planned military pay raises
• And making no cuts whatsoever in Veterans Administration budgets (which are separate from defense budgets, and expected to rise from $124 billion in 2012 to $169 billion in 2017) or in any other benefits for deployed or wounded personnel

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Michael E. O'Hanlon, Director of Research and Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy, 21st Century Defense Initiative U.S. Senate Budget Committee (Brookings)
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DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: Pentagon Helps New Stealth Fighter Cheat On Key Performance Test

DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: Pentagon Helps New Stealth Fighter Cheat On Key Performance Test
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources David Axe - Wired
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - March 7, 2012: It seemed like a promising step for America’s next stealth fighter: The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter passed a key Pentagon test of its combat capability. But it turns out that the family of jets cleared the mid-February exam only because its proctor agreed to inflate its grade. In essence, the military helped the F-35 cheat on its midterms.

The collusion between the Pentagon testing body, known as the Joint Requirements Oversight Council (JROC), and the F-35 program — first reported by Inside Defense – confirmed that the US’ most expensive warplane met previously established performance criteria. Specifically, the review was meant to show that the jet can fly as far and take off as quickly as combat commanders say they need it to.

But the review council, which includes the vice chiefs of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps, eased the standard flying profile of the Air Force’s F-35A model — thereby giving it a range boost of 30 miles. And it tacked an additional 15m onto the required takeoff distance for the Marines’ F-35B version, which US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta just took off budgetary probation.

The grade inflation comes at a critical time for the new warplane. The military’s new five-year budgeting blueprint, also released in February, cut more than 100 existing Air Force fighters while leaving intact plans to produce nearly 2500 F-35s — essentially doubling down on the new plane despite a recent report listing13 serious design flaws. The total cost to buy and fly the full fleet of F-35s over 50 years is estimated at around $US1 trillion, once inflation is factored in, making it the costliest defence program in human history.

In fairness, it’s not unknown for capability standards, also known as “Key Performance Parameters”, to shift during a weapon’s development. But the shifts usually reflect the evolving needs of the military or some change in the operational environment, such as a likely enemy tweaking its own defence plans. In this case, the JROC gave the F-35 a pass that was apparently designed so the over-weight, over-budget, long-delayed stealth fighter could avoid yet another embarrassing scandal.

Citing earlier efforts to boost the Joint Strike Fighter’s image, defence analyst Winslow Wheeler accused the Pentagon of “putting lipstick on the pig”. That’s an apt characterization of recent moves by the Pentagon’s F-35 boosters.

Last month, the Marine Corps held a lavish ceremony marking the arrival of two F-35 training models at the main Joint Strike Fighter “schoolhouse” in Florida. “It’s a significant jump in technology,” said Marine Lt Col David Berke, who neglected to mention that the training jets were not even cleared to fly locally. That clearance came a couple of weeks later, but again with an asterisk: Only specially qualified test pilots would be permitted to fly the jets, for now.

Increasingly, it seems the F-35 only passes tests when the tests are rigged. The good news for the fighter program typically comes with buried caveats. In response to Wheeler’s criticism, Stephen O’Bryan, then a vice president for stealth-fighter contractor Lockheed Martin, insisted that “the F-35 is meeting or exceeding every single one of the Key Performance Parameters that the services have mandated”. Of course, it’s easy to ace a test when the teacher’s already decided you passed.

     
*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources David Axe - Wired
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*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
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