Iran attempts nuclear missile parts buy

Iran Seeks Missile Components in Norway, Official Says

"...Norway yesterday said it had thwarted a number of attempts by Iran to obtain from small domestic firms components suited for incorporation in nuclear-armed missiles, Reuters reported..."

Reference: www.globalsecuritynewswire.org .

Russia proceeds with missile sale to Syria

Russia proceeds with missile sale to Syria

"...Russia has signaled its intent to press ahead with plans to supply Syria with Yakhont supersonic cruise missiles...."

Reference: www.upi.com .

Raytheon Missile Test Successful

Raytheon (NYSE:RTN) Reports Successful Missile Defense Test

"...Frank Wyatt, the vice president of Raytheon (NYSE:RTN)’s Air and Missile Defense Systems product line said that, “The test demonstrated the fire control loop of the kinetic warhead on the ground, which is a key indicator that we’re on track for the first SM-3 Block IB intercept in space this year...."

Reference: dailynewspulse.com .

Teledyne Brown competing in missile defense

Teledyne Brown Going for Missile Defense Contract

"...A subsidiary of Teledyne Technologies Inc. has been joined by Lockheed Martin Corp and Raytheon Co. to pursue a contract for missile defense modeling and simulation technology. The contract from the Missile Defense Agency is expected to be awarded in..."

Reference: www.sfvbj.com .

UAE in talks to buy Lockheed anti-missile defence system

UAE in talks to buy Lockheed anti-missile defence system

"...The first two THAAD batteries have been delivered to the US Army, and awaiting material release in 2011. Some of the features THAAD offers include being able to defend against short-, medium- and possibly intermediate-range ballistic missiles; unique high endo- and low exo-atmospheric intercept; high lethality with proven hit-to-kill ability..."

Reference: gulfnews.com .

'Iran missile man' to appeal ruling

'Iran missile man' to appeal ruling

"...A retired businessman from Orpington has vowed to appeal to Britain's highest court after a judge ruled he could be extradited to America on charges of conspiring to sell parts for Iranian missiles...."

Reference: www.google.com .

Israel wary of Iranian warships in Suez Canal

Israel wary of Iranian warships in Suez Canal

"...Iran has shipped arms to the anti-Israel terrorist group Hamas in Gaza, a strip of land bordering Egypt and Israel. Iran also has smuggled thousands of missiles to Hezbollah, a U.S.-designated terrorist group that fought a war against Israel in 2006. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for Israel to be wiped off the map. ..."

Reference: www.usatoday.com .

One Hundred Percent Chance of WMD Attack

FBI: 100 Percent Chance of WMD Attack

"...would most likely employ chemical, biological, or radiological weapons rather than a nuclear device...."

Reference: www.newsmax.com .

Missile Agency Seeks Funds for Defensive Systems

Missile Agency Seeks Funds for Defensive Systems

Defense Press Release, By Terri Moon Cronk, American Forces Press Service, http://www.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=62811

WASHINGTON, Feb. 15, 2011 – A ground-based system for homeland defense and interceptors for regional defense highlight the Missile Defense Agency’s portion of the Defense Department’s fiscal 2012 budget request.

The agency requested more than $8.6 billion for fiscal 2012, compared to last year’s requested $8.4 billion, Navy Rear Adm. Randall M. Hendrickson, the agency’s deputy director, told Pentagon reporters yesterday via video teleconference from Colorado Springs, Colo.

“The 2012 budget is predicated on and assumes the eventual approval of [fiscal] 2011's requested levels of $8.41 billion," he said.

If approved, the $8.6 billion budget would be used to pay for completing the initial fielding of the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense System for homeland defense, in addition to enhancing regional defenses with at least two interceptor systems against short-, medium- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles, Hendrickson said.

Homeland security projects include completing the purchase of six ground-based interceptors and the purchase of five more, as well as finishing 14 missile-launching silos at Fort Greeley, Alaska, and starting work on a new East Coast communications terminal, the admiral said.

Regional defense plans include purchasing 68 Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense interceptors, six launchers and a tactical station group. The plan calls for purchasing 46 standard sea-based interceptors, among other projects.

The third phase, Robust Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile Defense, is expected to be completed in 2018. System improvements would include expanded shooter coordination and improved radar, Hendrickson said.

The fourth phase, Early Intercept and Regional Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Defense, is scheduled to be completed in 2020.

The projects to complete the third and fourth phases include completing the preliminary design for the Precision Tracking Space System satellite, and finishing the final designs and engineering models for its spacecraft bus, optical payload and communication payload components.

Reference: Terri Moon Cronk, American Forces Press Service .

U.S. Reassures Poles on Russia Missile Defense Role

U.S. Reassures Poles on Russia Missile Defense Role

"...U.S. President Barack Obama has scrapped Bush-era plans for radar and interceptor missiles in Eastern Europe that Moscow saw as a threat to its own security and has invited Russia to join a revised blueprint that involves shorter-range interceptors. ..."

Reference: www.themoscowtimes.com .

Missile Defense Interceptor Gets $1.7 Billion U.S. Budget Boost

Missile Defense Interceptor Gets $1.7 Billion U.S. Budget Boost

"...The Pentagon has shifted $1.7 billion in efficiency savings through 2016 to pay for development of a new interceptor intended to let U.S. forces hit long-range Iranian missiles, according to a congressional memo obtained from a staff member who didn’t want to be identified. ..."

Reference: www.bloomberg.com .

Raytheon and Aerojet Complete System Integration Test for SM-3 Kinetic Warhead

Raytheon and Aerojet Complete System Integration Test for SM-3 Kinetic Warhead

"...Raytheon is developing SM-3 as part of the Missile Defense Agency's Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System, and more than 130 SM-3s have been delivered to date. The missiles are deployed with both the U.S. and Japanese navies to defend against short- to intermediate-range ballistic missile threats in the ascent and midcourse phases of flight. ..."

Reference: www.prnewswire.com .

U.S. , UK , and Russia Missile START issue a hot topic

UK paper and blog claims: Administration betrays Britain to appease the Russians over New START

"...Washington lobbied London in 2009 for permission to supply Moscow with detailed data about the performance of UK missiles. The UK refused, but the US agreed to hand over the serial numbers of Trident missiles it transfers to Britain...."

Reference: telegraph.co.uk .

Huntsville stands to gain from $600M missile contract

Huntsville stands to gain from $600M missile contract

"...for a contract to develop and sustain the Ground-based Midcourse Defense portion of the national ballistic missile defense..."

Reference: www.bizjournals.com .

European Phased Adaptive Approach missile defense plan (White House Fact Sheet)

Fact Sheet on U.S. Missile Defense Policy - A "Phased, Adaptive Approach" for Missile Defense in Europe

"...Starting around 2011, this missile defense architecture will feature deployments of increasingly-capable sea- and land-based missile interceptors, primarily upgraded versions of the Standard Missile-3 (SM-3), and a range of sensors in Europe to defend against the growing ballistic missile threat from Iran. This phased approach develops the capability to augment our current protection of the U.S. homeland against long-range ballistic missile threats, and to offer more effective defenses against more near-term ballistic missile threats. The plan provides for the defense of U.S. deployed forces, their families, and our Allies in Europe sooner and more comprehensively than the previous program, and involves more flexible and survivable systems...."

Reference: www.whitehouse.gov .

GAO questions U.S. plans for missile defense system in Europe

GAO questions U.S. plans for missile defense system in Europe

"...“DOD has initiated multiple simultaneous efforts to implement [the European Phased Adaptive Approach missile defense plan], but faces three key management challenges—the lack of clear..."

Reference: www.stripes.com .

Boeing, Lockheed Martin teams submit proposals for big Missile Defense Agency contract

Boeing, Lockheed Martin teams submit proposals for big Missile Defense Agency contract

"...HUNTSVILLE, AL -- After more than a year of preparation, teams led by defense giants Boeing and Lockheed Martin have submitted proposals to the Missile Defense Agency this week, competing for the contract to develop and sustain the Ground-based Midcourse Defense..."

Reference: al.com .

Lockheed’s Aegis ballistic missile test successful

Lockheed’s Aegis ballistic missile test successful

"...test occurred off Wallops Island, Va., making it the first Aegis test to take place on the East Coast. Lockheed Martin Mission Systems & Sensors..."

Reference: www.bizjournals.com .

Iran Tests Missle: Is Program Cover To Develop Nuclear Weapons

"...The missile which was warm-tested near the Khondab nuclear sites, near Central Arak city, hit the target successfully, Far Mahini was quoted as saying, adding that Iran will conduct such tests periodically nationwide to stay in full alert...."

Reference: atomstack.com .

HASC briefing ops / intel scheduled (Classified Meetings Jan. 25 and Jan. 26)

HASC to get head start on 2012 budget plans

"...McKeon told the 63-member committee to prepare for a busy year that will start with the first of what should be several intelligence briefings on ongoing operations...."

Reference: www.navytimes.com .

LM Missile Defense Programs Led Ballistic Missile Defense Efforts In 2010

LM Missile Defense Programs Led Ballistic Missile Defense Efforts In 2010

"...The MDA has announced that it will award the contract May 31, 2011, and that the acquisition is expected to have an approximate annual value of $600 million. ..."

Reference: www.spacewar.com .

Hey China: U.S. is Prepping New Ship-Killing Missiles, Too

Hey China: U.S. is Prepping New Ship-Killing Missiles, Too

"...Yeah, yeah, so the Chinese are working hard on a potentially deadly ballistic missile, designed to kill ships. That missile has long prompted a lot of debate about whether surface ships are ultimately a losing proposition for the U.S. Navy. If so, no one’s told the seafarers, who are moving forward with their own anti-ship missile upgrade...."

Reference: www.wired.com .

Navy conducting missile defense exercise off Eastern Shore

Navy conducting missile defense exercise off Eastern Shore

"...the exercise will “provide realistic training for our BMD ships and give them the opportunity to track a live target and simulate intercept of a short-range target missile in the midcourse phase of flight.” ..."

Reference: hamptonroads.com .

Yesterday's Delta IV-Heavy rocket launch: a personal impression

Yesterday's Delta IV-Heavy rocket launch: a personal impression

"...the Delta IV-Heavy rocket launch at Vandenberg Air Force Base in Lompoc, California on January 20. With the capacity to lift 23 tons of payload to low-Earth orbit, the rocket was the biggest to launch from the west coast of the United States to date, and it was a spectacular show...."

Reference: arstechnica.com .

Taiwan missile test fizzles out

Taiwan missile test fizzles out

"...Seventeen types of missiles were test-fired Tuesday, including the region's self-developed Tien Kung, or "Sky Bow," surface-to-air missile, the US-made Hawk surface-to-air missile and the vehicle-launched Tien-chien I, local military authorities said...."

Reference: military.globaltimes.cn .