Warplanes: <b>October 19, 1999</b>

Russia plans to buy the new M-55 recon plane (similar to the U-2) to provide real-time reconnaissance in regional conflicts. The Russians have no dreams that the aircraft could fly over Western Europe or the US. The plane was designed by the Myasishchev Design Bureau starting in the mid-80s. It flies at very high altitudes, and the Russians expect to need it in the future when Caucasian rebels and other nations acquire high altitude air defense systems that could bring down the current MiG-24 and Su-24 recon planes. The M-55 is 22.6m long and has a wingspan of 37.4m. It is powered by two PS-30V12 turbofans. Myasishchev is working to increase the endurance from 6.5 hours to 8 hours and the payload of recon systems from two tons to three.--Stephen V Cole

Russia plans to buy the new M-55 recon plane (similar to the U-2) to provide real-time reconnaissance in regional conflicts. The Russians have no dreams that the aircraft could fly over Western Europe or the US. The plane was designed by the Myasishchev Design Bureau starting in the mid-80s. It flies at very high altitudes, and the Russians expect to need it in the future when Caucasian rebels and other nations acquire high altitude air defense systems that could bring down the current MiG-24 and Su-24 recon planes. The M-55 is 22.6m long and has a wingspan of 37.4m. It is powered by two PS-30V12 turbofans. Myasishchev is working to increase the endurance from 6.5 hours to 8 hours and the payload of recon systems from two tons to three.--Stephen V Cole

Upgrading Search & Rescue Helicopters: In order to keep the helicopters around longer the Air Force has begun a two year long study to determine the best way to maintain the utility of 95 of its older HH-60 helicopters. Five HH-60s are already scheduled for a Service Life Extension Program(SLEP). Options that will be examined include extending the SLEP to all of the older helicopters, buying new helicopters, upgrading the helicopters, buying something new-such as the V-22 tiltrotor-or starting a new development program with NATO. The five helicopters which are scheduled for service life extension were purchased in 1980 and are at least 6 years older than the other 95. --Tom Trinko

Joint Standoff Weapons: Testing has begun for the AGM-154B (the JSOW glide bomb). This version is equipped with BLU-108 Sensor Fuzed Weapons(SFW) submunitions. GPS is used to achieve high terminal accuracy. In the initial test the weapon was launched from an F-16 10 miles from the target and it achieved hits on 7 of the 8 targets. The smart SFW replaces the BLU-97 bomblets that had been in the AGM-154A. The AGM-154C will be used to attack hardened targets and will have a penetrator warhead. AW&ST Brilliant autonomous munitions made a lot of sense when the threat was hordes of Soviet tanks swarming over Europe. The march of Soviet units to the front would have provided target rich environments for weapons such as the AGM-154. Unfortunately there don't seem to be any near term threats that fit that mold. Instead the limited conflicts that seem to be increasing in frequency are ones where the key priority is avoiding casualties. What is needed are weapons that can distinguish between military and civilian targets. In fact the SFW is a step in the right direction. Bomblets, such as those used in cluster bombs, saturate an area and kill or injure everyone in sight. Will go after larger targets leaving civilians who happen to be in the area a bit safer. One scenario where the AGM-154B will be useful is in helping undersized US forces fight off large middle eastern armored units either by forcing the threat armor to significantly disperse or by dramatically increasing the number of tanks that can be destroyed per airplane sortie. --Tom Trinko

Japanese Anti-Armor: The Japanese are considering modifying the Kawasaki OH-1 helicopter into a tank killer. It could serve as a replacement for the aging AG-1S antitank helicopter which was built by Bell/Fuji. The current plan has the Army selecting a replacement for the 92 AH-1 currently in service by 2003. If all things go according to plan the AH-1swill be phased out starting in 2006. Currently the Japanese are planning to buy 100 of the OH-1 light recon helicopters so using a modified version would provide commonality and, presumably, reduced maintenance costs. The changes to the OH-1 are projected to include lengthening of the fuselage, armor, higher power engine, new rotor blade, and a new transmission. Selection of the OH-1isn't a done deal though. Competition would presumably include other antitank helicopters such as the AH-64, the AH-1Z, and the Eurocopter Tiger. AW&ST DMSP(Defense Meteorological Satellite Program) launch delayed During testing on the launch pad a government furnished solid-state recorder began producing random errors. This has forced a delay of the Oct. 4 launch to December in order to allow the problem to be fixed. This vehicle, called the block 5D-3, was built by Lockheed Martin Missiles & Space. It has a more memory, a larger payload, and a bigger power supply than previous vehicles. --Tom Trinko

Air support in East Timor: EP3-E Navy signals intelligence aircraft are providing support to the UN force in East Timor. These planes are aiding the UN command by monitoring Indonesian military communications. The US is also providing other non-combatant support in the form of logistics flights using C-130s and C-141s and fuel support using KC-130s and KC-135s. --Tom Trinko

F-22 Software: The House/Senate compromise on the F-22 attaches the production fate of the aircraft to successful testing of the complex avionics needed to insure the planes ability to maintain complete dominance of the sky. Initial production of the plane has been delayed a year, assuming the Block 3.0 software passes its flight test, but the total funding has only been reduced by $500M. Other production money, $1B, was moved into the Research and Development budget. --Tom Trinko

The F-22 presents a complex problem for industry and the Pentagon. There is more than a bit of truth in the fact that the plane may not be needed. On the other hand if it is canceled it would take at least a decade to deploy a successor. If the threat gets worse, say the most advanced Soviet fighters are purchased by China in large numbers, the US could be caught in a very dangerous situation. Another consequence of canceling the F-22 is the damage to the supplier base. Not just the fiscal impact but the psychological one as well. Many companies have invested a great deal of their money and resources into this program with the expectation that when the plane was built they'd get a lot of business. If the Congress terminates it this late in the process, just prior to production, those companies may be reluctant to enter into long term activities with the government that don't promise immediate short term profits. While the upper tier companies don't have a lot of choice lower tier organizations may find more lucrative, lower overhead, markets more appealing. Of course if the F-22was a failure then the situation would be different but if it meets its requirements and its still terminated there could be repercussions in the defense industry that would have long term adverse consequences for future long term high technology projects. --Tom Trinko