pigfarmer
tall, thin, irritable
I've seen snake shot for handgun calibers.
Bat shot for .50 Browning Machine Gun ? I suppose if you want to lug around a 30lb rifle to shoot rats with that you are free to do so. That's Freedom.
Last edited:
Unofficial Military (and other cool) Stuff Thread
Bat shot for .50 Browning Machine Gun ? I suppose if you want to lug around a 30lb rifle to shoot rats with that you are free to do so. That's Freedom.
pigfarmer
tall, thin, irritable
This was a little factoid out of that video I never heard of that surprised me
President Roosevelt Used to Ride Around in Al Capone’s Limousine
Hours after Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the Secret Service found themselves in a bind. President Franklin D Roosevelt was to give his infamy speech to Congress the next day, and although the trip from the White House to Capitol Hill was short, agents weren’t sure how to transport him safely.
The White House did already have a specially built limousine for the president that he regularly used, it wasn’t bulletproof, and the Secret Service realized this could be a major problem now that the country was at war. FDR’s speech was to take place at noon December 8th, and time was running out. They had to procure an armored car, and fast.
Above: Al Capone’s armored Cadillac
There was one slight problem. US government rules at the time restricted the purchase of any vehicle that cost more than $750 ($10,455 in today’s dollars). It was pretty obvious that they weren’t going to get an armored car that cheap, and certainly not in less than a day.
One Secret Service agent was a quick thinker. The federal government did already have in its possession a car that just might fit the bill: Al Capone’s, which had been sitting in a Treasury Department parking lot ever since it had been seized from the infamous mobster during the IRS’ tax evasion suit years earlier.
Capone’s car was a sight to behold. It had been painted black and green so as to look identical to Chicago’s police cars at the time. It also had a specially installed siren and flashing lights hidden behind the grille, along with a police scanner radio. To top it off, the gangster’s 1928 Cadillac 341A Town Sedan had 3,000 pounds of armor and inch-thick bulletproof windows. Mechanics are said to have cleaned and checked each feature of the Caddy well into the night of December 7th, to make sure that it would run properly the next day for the Commander in Chief.
And run properly it did. The car apparently performed perfectly– so perfectly that Roosevelt kept using it– at least until his old car could be fitted with identical features (and to this day, Presidential limousines have flashing police lights hidden behind their grilles).
Above: FDR in his limousine convertible, before and after bulletproof glass and armor was installed.
The old car was a 1939 Lincoln V12 Convertible built by Ford (and affectionately nicknamed the “Sunshine Special,” supposedly because FDR liked to enjoy the sun while riding around with the top down… hardly safe, although the use of presidential convertibles was not eliminated until after JFK’s assassination). Roosevelt was apparently so enamored with his convertible however that he had it bullet-proofed. The Lincoln was now undoubtedly worth more than $750, so the White House got around the spending cap regulation by making a special arrangement to lease it from Ford at the rate of $500 per year.
When he was told his car’s origin (probably on December 8th as he rode to Capitol Hill), Roosevelt reportedly quipped, “I hope Mr. Capone won’t mind.”
President Roosevelt Used to Ride Around in Al Capone’s Limousine
Hours after Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the Secret Service found themselves in a bind. President Franklin D Roosevelt was to give his infamy speech to Congress the next day, and although the trip from the White House to Capitol Hill was short, agents weren’t sure how to transport him safely.
The White House did already have a specially built limousine for the president that he regularly used, it wasn’t bulletproof, and the Secret Service realized this could be a major problem now that the country was at war. FDR’s speech was to take place at noon December 8th, and time was running out. They had to procure an armored car, and fast.
Above: Al Capone’s armored Cadillac
There was one slight problem. US government rules at the time restricted the purchase of any vehicle that cost more than $750 ($10,455 in today’s dollars). It was pretty obvious that they weren’t going to get an armored car that cheap, and certainly not in less than a day.
One Secret Service agent was a quick thinker. The federal government did already have in its possession a car that just might fit the bill: Al Capone’s, which had been sitting in a Treasury Department parking lot ever since it had been seized from the infamous mobster during the IRS’ tax evasion suit years earlier.
Capone’s car was a sight to behold. It had been painted black and green so as to look identical to Chicago’s police cars at the time. It also had a specially installed siren and flashing lights hidden behind the grille, along with a police scanner radio. To top it off, the gangster’s 1928 Cadillac 341A Town Sedan had 3,000 pounds of armor and inch-thick bulletproof windows. Mechanics are said to have cleaned and checked each feature of the Caddy well into the night of December 7th, to make sure that it would run properly the next day for the Commander in Chief.
And run properly it did. The car apparently performed perfectly– so perfectly that Roosevelt kept using it– at least until his old car could be fitted with identical features (and to this day, Presidential limousines have flashing police lights hidden behind their grilles).
Above: FDR in his limousine convertible, before and after bulletproof glass and armor was installed.
The old car was a 1939 Lincoln V12 Convertible built by Ford (and affectionately nicknamed the “Sunshine Special,” supposedly because FDR liked to enjoy the sun while riding around with the top down… hardly safe, although the use of presidential convertibles was not eliminated until after JFK’s assassination). Roosevelt was apparently so enamored with his convertible however that he had it bullet-proofed. The Lincoln was now undoubtedly worth more than $750, so the White House got around the spending cap regulation by making a special arrangement to lease it from Ford at the rate of $500 per year.
When he was told his car’s origin (probably on December 8th as he rode to Capitol Hill), Roosevelt reportedly quipped, “I hope Mr. Capone won’t mind.”
Dejan Corovic
As above, so bellow
Dejan Corovic
As above, so bellow
A proof that soldier is nothing but just a mule:
Dejan Corovic
As above, so bellow
Interesting video about how general Caster died. He was killed by a red indian women who was seeking revenge for family members Caster killed in one of his previous battles:
View: https://youtu.be/zo4EvYudKKY
View: https://youtu.be/zo4EvYudKKY
pigfarmer
tall, thin, irritable
https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/03/science/ghost-ship-pacific-wreck-california-scli-intl/index.html
USS Stewart (DD-224)
By Jack Guy, CNN
3 minute read
Published 10:52 AM EDT, Thu October 3, 2024
High-resolution sonar image showing the wreck of the USS Stewart.
Ocean Infinity
CNN —
The wreck of a US Navy destroyer known as the “Ghost Ship of the Pacific” has been found off the coast of California by undersea investigators.
The USS Stewart was deliberately sunk during a US Navy exercise in May 1946 and its final resting place has now been located, according to a statement from the Air Sea Heritage Foundation and Search Inc, which were both involved in the investigation, published Tuesday.
Three autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) deployed by robotic marine survey firm Ocean Infinity scanned the ocean floor in the Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary off northern California over the course of 24 hours starting on August 1, with sonar and mulitbeam echosounder data revealing that the Stewart was sitting 3,500 feet (1,036 meters) below the ocean’s surface.
USS Stewart pictured arriving in San Francisco Bay in March 1946.
Donald M. McPherson/Naval History and Heritage Command
“Preliminary sonar scans revealed that the Stewart is largely intact and that its hull — which remains sleek and imposing — rests nearly upright on the seafloor,” reads the statement.
“This level of preservation is exceptional for a vessel of its age and makes it potentially one of the best-preserved examples of a US Navy ‘fourstacker’ destroyer known to exist.”
The team also carried out another sonar survey and sent down a remote-operated vehicle equipped with a camera to carry out a visual inspection.
Commissioned in 1920, the USS Stewart had a tumultuous life.
The ship was damaged in combat against Japanese forces in 1942 and was captured by the enemy, becoming the Imperial Japanese Navy’s Patrol Boat No. 102, according to the release.
“Soon, far-ranging Allied pilots began reporting the strange sight of an old American destroyer operating deep behind enemy lines,” reads the statement.
A view of the bow of th
e ship.
Ocean Infinity
“It was not until the Stewart was found afloat in Kure, Japan at the end of the war that the mystery of the Pacific ghost ship was finally solved.”
Related articleDivers find 19th-century shipwreck laden with unopened bottles of champagne and precious mineral water
It was then towed back to San Francisco before it was used as a target ship during a naval exercise, sinking after absorbing fire for more than two hours.
“In the following decades, the Stewart’s story drew the interest of historians, archaeologists, and naval enthusiasts, and the rediscovery of its wreck became a top national priority for exploration,” reads the statement. “More than 78 years would pass before it was found.”
Retired US Navy admiral Samuel J. Cox, director of Naval History and Heritage Command and curator for the US Navy, praised the team that found the ship.
“Whether lost in battle or sunk as a target, a warship remains sovereign property in perpetuity,” he said in the statement.
“It is important to know the location and condition of such wrecks so that they may be protected from unauthorized disturbance under the US Sunken Military Craft Act.”
USS Stewart (DD-224)
Wreck of US warship known as ‘Ghost Ship of the Pacific’ found in ‘exceptional’ condition
By Jack Guy, CNN
3 minute read
Published 10:52 AM EDT, Thu October 3, 2024
High-resolution sonar image showing the wreck of the USS Stewart.
Ocean Infinity
CNN —
The wreck of a US Navy destroyer known as the “Ghost Ship of the Pacific” has been found off the coast of California by undersea investigators.
The USS Stewart was deliberately sunk during a US Navy exercise in May 1946 and its final resting place has now been located, according to a statement from the Air Sea Heritage Foundation and Search Inc, which were both involved in the investigation, published Tuesday.
Three autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) deployed by robotic marine survey firm Ocean Infinity scanned the ocean floor in the Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary off northern California over the course of 24 hours starting on August 1, with sonar and mulitbeam echosounder data revealing that the Stewart was sitting 3,500 feet (1,036 meters) below the ocean’s surface.
USS Stewart pictured arriving in San Francisco Bay in March 1946.
Donald M. McPherson/Naval History and Heritage Command
“Preliminary sonar scans revealed that the Stewart is largely intact and that its hull — which remains sleek and imposing — rests nearly upright on the seafloor,” reads the statement.
“This level of preservation is exceptional for a vessel of its age and makes it potentially one of the best-preserved examples of a US Navy ‘fourstacker’ destroyer known to exist.”
The team also carried out another sonar survey and sent down a remote-operated vehicle equipped with a camera to carry out a visual inspection.
Commissioned in 1920, the USS Stewart had a tumultuous life.
The ship was damaged in combat against Japanese forces in 1942 and was captured by the enemy, becoming the Imperial Japanese Navy’s Patrol Boat No. 102, according to the release.
“Soon, far-ranging Allied pilots began reporting the strange sight of an old American destroyer operating deep behind enemy lines,” reads the statement.
A view of the bow of th
e ship.
Ocean Infinity
“It was not until the Stewart was found afloat in Kure, Japan at the end of the war that the mystery of the Pacific ghost ship was finally solved.”
Related articleDivers find 19th-century shipwreck laden with unopened bottles of champagne and precious mineral water
It was then towed back to San Francisco before it was used as a target ship during a naval exercise, sinking after absorbing fire for more than two hours.
“In the following decades, the Stewart’s story drew the interest of historians, archaeologists, and naval enthusiasts, and the rediscovery of its wreck became a top national priority for exploration,” reads the statement. “More than 78 years would pass before it was found.”
Retired US Navy admiral Samuel J. Cox, director of Naval History and Heritage Command and curator for the US Navy, praised the team that found the ship.
“Whether lost in battle or sunk as a target, a warship remains sovereign property in perpetuity,” he said in the statement.
“It is important to know the location and condition of such wrecks so that they may be protected from unauthorized disturbance under the US Sunken Military Craft Act.”
nivek
As Above So Below
His fake IDs saved hundreds of Jews from death camps - then it was his turn to flee and his previously untold story is among the most daring great escapes of World War II
Cioma Schonhaus was number one on the Third Reich's most wanted list. A master forger, he had helped hundreds of Jews escape Nazi death camps by creating fake IDs widely acknowledged to be almost indistinguishable from the real thing. But, 80 years on - unlike the stories of Oskar Schindler and Anne Frank - his name is almost unknown, beyond Germany and Switzerland, where he eventually settled.
(More on the link)
.
Dejan Corovic
As above, so bellow
Interesting, most likely "Red Team" operation above many US domestic installations:
View: https://youtu.be/4Wf_vvdHLOs
View: https://youtu.be/4Wf_vvdHLOs
pigfarmer
tall, thin, irritable
CIA Has Secret "Nonviolent" Way To Disable Large Ships: Report
Joseph Trevithick
Posted on Nov 4, 2024 4:47 PM EST
https://www.twz.com/news-features/c...nt-way-to-disable-large-ships-report#comments
The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency reportedly has at least one mysterious system capable of “covertly (and nonviolently)” disabling ships, including very large ones. The secret system is said to have been considered for use against fuel tankers sailing between Venezuela and Cuba during President Donald Trump’s term in office.
A mention of the CIA ship-disabling system is included in a detailed exposé about the Trump administration’s unsuccessful efforts to overthrow dictatorial Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro that Wired published on October 31 and is worth reading in full. The report describes a host of efforts that the U.S. government and foreign partners undertook to try to unseat Maduro between 2018 and 2020. This includes a cyber attack on the payroll system for Venzeuzla’s armed forces, sabotage raids by Colombian operatives targeting the Venezuelan Air Force’s Russian-made Sukhoi Su-30 fighters, and support for opposition leader Juan Guaido’s attempt to overthrow Maduro’s government.
President Donald Trump, at left, and Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, at right, at the White House on February 5, 2020. Mark Wilson/Getty Images
“Cuba relies on oil from Venezuela. In return, US officials believe, the Cuban security services have helped protect Maduro, essentially serving as an on-the-ground praetorian guard for the embattled socialist autocrat,” per Wired‘s report. “The Trump administration thought if the US could somehow intercept or sabotage the oil ships sailing from Venezuela to Cuba, it could strike a blow against both regimes.”
“At least one option involved the CIA, which had a mobile system that could covertly (and nonviolently) disable ships. Trump administration officials wanted the agency to move the system near Venezuela, to hit some of its fuel tankers,” the story continues. “The agency balked. CIA officials explained that it only had one of these systems, that it was currently in another hemisphere, and they didn’t want to move it to the northern end of South America. The idea was shelved.”
An oil tanker and other ships are seen off the coast of Venezuela in January 2024. GUSTAVO GRANADO/AFP via Getty Images
No specific details about the CIA’s ship-stopping system, including its ‘nonviolent’ method of function, are provided in Wired‘s piece, but there are some clear possibilities.
What comes to mind first is the possibility that the system in question creates the intended effects by pumping out bursts of high-power microwave (HPM) energy. This could allow for the destruction, disabling, or disruption of key systems, such as radars, computerized navigation gear, communications suites, steering systems, and electronic engine control systems, in turn stopping a vessel, but also leaving its crew unharmed.
“HPM weapons create invisible beams of electromagnetic energy within a specific spectrum of radio and microwave frequencies that can cause a range of temporary or permanent effects on electronic targets. Examples include non-kinetic disabling of computer systems, damaging targeted electronics, disrupting security and industrial control systems, etc,” a 2023 press release related to a U.S. Air Force/U.S. Navy program called High-power Joint Electromagnetic Non-Kinetic Strike (HiJENKS) explains. “Electromagnetic energy from an HPM weapon can couple to an electronic target directly through a transmit or receive element (like an antenna), or indirectly, through an aperture or cable points of entry (e.g., cracks, seams, external wires). Currents and voltages can be induced in target circuitry, resulting in erroneous signals, system lock-up, system failure, and/or physical damage.”
Publicly available details about HiJENKS remain limited, but this capability was successfully demonstrated at least once during a live-fire test event at the Navy’s sprawling China Lake test center in 2022. HiJENKS also follows on from the similarly secretive Counter-Electronics High-Power Advanced Microwave Project (CHAMP) missile containing an HPM generator payload, which Boeing is understood to have delivered at least a small number of to the Air Force.
The U.S. military is also known to have at least funded work in the past on lower-tier HPM systems designed to stop smaller watercraft, as well as vehicles, including ones rigged up as suicide bombs, on land.
A 2016 briefing slide discussing HPM “vehicle and vessel stopper” work at that time and plans for future developments. USN via FOIA
An HPM-based system could require getting the source relatively close to the target, which might also be difficult to do covertly. Employing uncrewed aerial or maritime platforms, or disguised ‘civilian’ ones, configured to launch an ‘attack’ of this kind would potentially offer ways to reduce the chance of detection and/or attribution. A nuclear submarine-based capability is also possible.
The CIA’s ship-stopping system might also be capable of launching some other kind of highly-targeted electronic or cyber warfare attack to produce broadly similar effects. An electronic attack that blinds key sensors and communications could stop or slow a vessel. A cyber attack could disable key industrial control systems on a ship, bringing it to a halt, but it would require a vector to breach those systems externally from the vessel.
All of this evokes the memory of still unsubstantiated reports of the U.S. government’s use of less-than-lethal “stun bombs” in Libya in 2011 and “electricity bombs” in Syria in 2017. The War Zone previously explored the potential legitimacy of those claims, including as evidence of novel directed energy and/or electronic/cyber warfare attacks, as well as other possibilities, in detail.
A system designed to initiate a physical less-than-lethal attack sufficient enough to hamper the movement of a large ship like an oil tanker, and doing so covertly, seems less likely than the aforementioned, less physically invasive options. Getting an obstructing device of some kind successfully in place discreetly, especially in front of or on a vessel in motion, could present significant challenges.
It’s unknown whether or not the CIA has expanded its inventory of the system that Wired reported on in recent years or has any other similar ones in its toolkit now. The fact that there was just one, at least at the time, points to a somewhat exotic and/or experimental capability.
The CIA is certainly well-known at this point for developing or supporting the development of novel means of targeting adversaries, lethally and non-lethally. For instance, the Agency had a hand in the development of the specialized low-collateral damage AGM-114R9X version of the Hellfire missile, which features an array of pop-out knife-like blades rather than a high-explosive warhead.
The details from Wired‘s story that the CIA “only had one of these systems, that it was currently in another hemisphere, and they didn’t want to move it,” are also very interesting regardless of how the reported ship-stopping capability works. This would seem to point to the system in question being forward deployed outside of the Western Hemisphere already, and possibly with a very specific target set in mind. This might also indicate a reticence to potentially expose what this system can do absent an especially serious crisis or very high priority, clandestine operations.
An oil tanker sits just off the coast of Venezuela in 2019. A fisherman is seen in the foreground working with a net. JUAN BARRETO/AFP via Getty Images
Regardless of its specific mode of function, it is not at all hard to see how a covert and less-than-lethal ship-stopping capability would be highly attractive. For instance, it could be of great use for visit, board, search, and seizure (VBSS) operations. Stopping a ship, and even possibly cutting off its sensors and power, could make boarding and seizing control over it much easier. In areas where a VBSS or other special operations boarding teams are not present and will take too much time to there, such a system could stall the ship in preferred waters until critical capabilities arrive. Beyond just making a raid easier and safer, this all could be especially useful for responding on very short notice to top-priority actionable intelligence, such as alerts about the smuggling of particularly worrisome cargoes like nuclear material.
There are many other applications, as well. When used against military vessels, we are talking about taking the ship offline, or at least stopping it from moving and leaving it more vulnerable without firing a shot.
Altogether, while Wired‘s report provides limited details, the ship-stopping capability described therein would make good sense for the U.S. government to have up its sleeve.
UPDATE: 6:50 PM EST —
User @PutinIsAVirus on X has called attention to how cyber warfare was reportedly an important component of a reported clandestine Israeli campaign against Iranian oil tankers at around the same time the U.S. government was considering using the CIA ship-stopping system against Venezuela, though there are no indications that two things were related. Other Iranian infrastructure was also reportedly hit by cyber attacks in that time frame.
It is also worth noting that the U.S. government reportedly launched cyber attacks earlier this year against the M/V Behshad, an Iranian vessel operating in and around the Red Sea and acting as a covert mothership and intelligence-gathering platform. An Iranian frigate was also reported to have been targeted. Again there are no indications one way or the other that this is related to the CIA’s reported ship-stopping capability.
Contact the author: joe@twz.com
CIA Has Secret “Nonviolent” Way To Disable Large Ships: Report
President Trump's administration is said to have considered using the CIA's secret ship-stopping system against Venezuelan oil tankers.Joseph Trevithick
Posted on Nov 4, 2024 4:47 PM EST
https://www.twz.com/news-features/c...nt-way-to-disable-large-ships-report#comments
The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency reportedly has at least one mysterious system capable of “covertly (and nonviolently)” disabling ships, including very large ones. The secret system is said to have been considered for use against fuel tankers sailing between Venezuela and Cuba during President Donald Trump’s term in office.
A mention of the CIA ship-disabling system is included in a detailed exposé about the Trump administration’s unsuccessful efforts to overthrow dictatorial Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro that Wired published on October 31 and is worth reading in full. The report describes a host of efforts that the U.S. government and foreign partners undertook to try to unseat Maduro between 2018 and 2020. This includes a cyber attack on the payroll system for Venzeuzla’s armed forces, sabotage raids by Colombian operatives targeting the Venezuelan Air Force’s Russian-made Sukhoi Su-30 fighters, and support for opposition leader Juan Guaido’s attempt to overthrow Maduro’s government.
“Cuba relies on oil from Venezuela. In return, US officials believe, the Cuban security services have helped protect Maduro, essentially serving as an on-the-ground praetorian guard for the embattled socialist autocrat,” per Wired‘s report. “The Trump administration thought if the US could somehow intercept or sabotage the oil ships sailing from Venezuela to Cuba, it could strike a blow against both regimes.”
“At least one option involved the CIA, which had a mobile system that could covertly (and nonviolently) disable ships. Trump administration officials wanted the agency to move the system near Venezuela, to hit some of its fuel tankers,” the story continues. “The agency balked. CIA officials explained that it only had one of these systems, that it was currently in another hemisphere, and they didn’t want to move it to the northern end of South America. The idea was shelved.”
No specific details about the CIA’s ship-stopping system, including its ‘nonviolent’ method of function, are provided in Wired‘s piece, but there are some clear possibilities.
What comes to mind first is the possibility that the system in question creates the intended effects by pumping out bursts of high-power microwave (HPM) energy. This could allow for the destruction, disabling, or disruption of key systems, such as radars, computerized navigation gear, communications suites, steering systems, and electronic engine control systems, in turn stopping a vessel, but also leaving its crew unharmed.
“HPM weapons create invisible beams of electromagnetic energy within a specific spectrum of radio and microwave frequencies that can cause a range of temporary or permanent effects on electronic targets. Examples include non-kinetic disabling of computer systems, damaging targeted electronics, disrupting security and industrial control systems, etc,” a 2023 press release related to a U.S. Air Force/U.S. Navy program called High-power Joint Electromagnetic Non-Kinetic Strike (HiJENKS) explains. “Electromagnetic energy from an HPM weapon can couple to an electronic target directly through a transmit or receive element (like an antenna), or indirectly, through an aperture or cable points of entry (e.g., cracks, seams, external wires). Currents and voltages can be induced in target circuitry, resulting in erroneous signals, system lock-up, system failure, and/or physical damage.”
Publicly available details about HiJENKS remain limited, but this capability was successfully demonstrated at least once during a live-fire test event at the Navy’s sprawling China Lake test center in 2022. HiJENKS also follows on from the similarly secretive Counter-Electronics High-Power Advanced Microwave Project (CHAMP) missile containing an HPM generator payload, which Boeing is understood to have delivered at least a small number of to the Air Force.
The U.S. military is also known to have at least funded work in the past on lower-tier HPM systems designed to stop smaller watercraft, as well as vehicles, including ones rigged up as suicide bombs, on land.
An HPM-based system could require getting the source relatively close to the target, which might also be difficult to do covertly. Employing uncrewed aerial or maritime platforms, or disguised ‘civilian’ ones, configured to launch an ‘attack’ of this kind would potentially offer ways to reduce the chance of detection and/or attribution. A nuclear submarine-based capability is also possible.
The CIA’s ship-stopping system might also be capable of launching some other kind of highly-targeted electronic or cyber warfare attack to produce broadly similar effects. An electronic attack that blinds key sensors and communications could stop or slow a vessel. A cyber attack could disable key industrial control systems on a ship, bringing it to a halt, but it would require a vector to breach those systems externally from the vessel.
All of this evokes the memory of still unsubstantiated reports of the U.S. government’s use of less-than-lethal “stun bombs” in Libya in 2011 and “electricity bombs” in Syria in 2017. The War Zone previously explored the potential legitimacy of those claims, including as evidence of novel directed energy and/or electronic/cyber warfare attacks, as well as other possibilities, in detail.
Some kind of physical mode of attack, such as one that causes an obstruction to certain features of ship, including elements of its propulsion system and rudders, and that doesn’t cause permanent damage, could be another option. Systems designed to slow or stop a vessel by fouling its propellers do exist, as seen in the video below, though they are generally intended for use against smaller watercraft. Prop foulers have been used to disable larger ships, but usually during harassment activities with a ship towing a long chain with floaters on it or other improvised obstruction mechanisms. It’s possible an unmanned craft could be adapted for this, but those are very dynamic operations that require a lot of situational awareness to pull off successfully. Innocuous accidents involving ship propellers getting tangled up in a fishing net also do just happen.
A system designed to initiate a physical less-than-lethal attack sufficient enough to hamper the movement of a large ship like an oil tanker, and doing so covertly, seems less likely than the aforementioned, less physically invasive options. Getting an obstructing device of some kind successfully in place discreetly, especially in front of or on a vessel in motion, could present significant challenges.
It’s unknown whether or not the CIA has expanded its inventory of the system that Wired reported on in recent years or has any other similar ones in its toolkit now. The fact that there was just one, at least at the time, points to a somewhat exotic and/or experimental capability.
The CIA is certainly well-known at this point for developing or supporting the development of novel means of targeting adversaries, lethally and non-lethally. For instance, the Agency had a hand in the development of the specialized low-collateral damage AGM-114R9X version of the Hellfire missile, which features an array of pop-out knife-like blades rather than a high-explosive warhead.
The details from Wired‘s story that the CIA “only had one of these systems, that it was currently in another hemisphere, and they didn’t want to move it,” are also very interesting regardless of how the reported ship-stopping capability works. This would seem to point to the system in question being forward deployed outside of the Western Hemisphere already, and possibly with a very specific target set in mind. This might also indicate a reticence to potentially expose what this system can do absent an especially serious crisis or very high priority, clandestine operations.
Regardless of its specific mode of function, it is not at all hard to see how a covert and less-than-lethal ship-stopping capability would be highly attractive. For instance, it could be of great use for visit, board, search, and seizure (VBSS) operations. Stopping a ship, and even possibly cutting off its sensors and power, could make boarding and seizing control over it much easier. In areas where a VBSS or other special operations boarding teams are not present and will take too much time to there, such a system could stall the ship in preferred waters until critical capabilities arrive. Beyond just making a raid easier and safer, this all could be especially useful for responding on very short notice to top-priority actionable intelligence, such as alerts about the smuggling of particularly worrisome cargoes like nuclear material.
There are many other applications, as well. When used against military vessels, we are talking about taking the ship offline, or at least stopping it from moving and leaving it more vulnerable without firing a shot.
Altogether, while Wired‘s report provides limited details, the ship-stopping capability described therein would make good sense for the U.S. government to have up its sleeve.
UPDATE: 6:50 PM EST —
User @PutinIsAVirus on X has called attention to how cyber warfare was reportedly an important component of a reported clandestine Israeli campaign against Iranian oil tankers at around the same time the U.S. government was considering using the CIA ship-stopping system against Venezuela, though there are no indications that two things were related. Other Iranian infrastructure was also reportedly hit by cyber attacks in that time frame.
It is also worth noting that the U.S. government reportedly launched cyber attacks earlier this year against the M/V Behshad, an Iranian vessel operating in and around the Red Sea and acting as a covert mothership and intelligence-gathering platform. An Iranian frigate was also reported to have been targeted. Again there are no indications one way or the other that this is related to the CIA’s reported ship-stopping capability.
Contact the author: joe@twz.com
Dejan Corovic
As above, so bellow
Comparison of US, British, German and Russian WW2 boots. Apparently Russia had 35M soldiers, but because of big leather shortage US provided Russia with 15M boots through land lease program As one can imagine one can't go to war without boots. So without US aid Russia would only have 20M soldiers to send to the front.
View: https://youtu.be/k2HFGojz0qQ
View: https://youtu.be/k2HFGojz0qQ
pigfarmer
tall, thin, irritable
So now I know the story of the old girl just sitting down the road. I see this thing all the time - it's sitting out there right now most likely.
They also have a remnant of some amphib with a foreign roundrel on it I didn't immediately recognize but I haven't seen it in a while.
It's in a spot that's not easy to get pics of. You can see it as you drive by but with a huge fence and a busy road there isn't anywhere to get a better look.
Years ago at another much smaller airport I rolled up to find a B-24 sitting there and I just asked if they'd show it to me. They did inside & out ! One of the old timers told me a story of being aboard one trying to get a stuck mine or depth charge out of it. Whatever they paid him it wasn't enough.
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
1Lt. Richard H. Lum, Pilot
1Lt. Ralph C. Lundgren, Co-Pilot
1Lt. Merton E. Eckert, Co-Pilot
1Lt. William E. Vaughn, Navigator
SSgt. Ed Tunison, Radio Operator
TSgt. Eddie A. Apodaca, Crew Chief
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
They also have a remnant of some amphib with a foreign roundrel on it I didn't immediately recognize but I haven't seen it in a while.
It's in a spot that's not easy to get pics of. You can see it as you drive by but with a huge fence and a busy road there isn't anywhere to get a better look.
Years ago at another much smaller airport I rolled up to find a B-24 sitting there and I just asked if they'd show it to me. They did inside & out ! One of the old timers told me a story of being aboard one trying to get a stuck mine or depth charge out of it. Whatever they paid him it wasn't enough.
"WWII War Hero" Can Be Found at Hudson Valley Regional Airport
Gallery Credit: Conor Walsh
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation is a non-profit flying museum, dedicated to preserving the memory of the Greatest Generation through our active, airworthy memorials to their service in World War II and beyond. Headquartered at Hudson Valley Regional Airport (KPOU) in Poughkeepsie, NY, the Foundation endeavors to educate the general public about the Second World War and the sacrifices made to ensure freedom and democracy for millions around the world.
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation was formed in 2017 by James Lyle and Eric Zipkin to preserve aircraft in tribute to the history of World War II. The Foundation is named after Ed Tunison, the wartime radio operator aboard the Foundation's flagship aircraft, the C-47 Placid Lassie, who was the last remaining member of Lassie's wartime crew.
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
Before passing away in 2016, Ed Tunison was reunited with Placid Lassie in Normandy for the 70th anniversary of D-Day in 2014. The Foundation returned to Europe in 2019 as the lead aircraft of the D-Day Squadron, in commemoration of the 75th anniversary, and are making final preparations to return once again for the 80th this summer.
The Tunison Foundation
Conor Walsh
The Tunison Foundation
Since 2022, their aircraft have been based in Wappingers Falls, NY, where they continue to pursue the preservation and operation of Placid Lassie, the restoration of their PBY Catalina, and other projects as resources allow. The Tunison Foundation is fortunate to count more than 125 volunteers that work to keep our historic airplanes flying.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
On Sunday, March 3rd, I met up with Tunison Foundation volunteer Kevin Oldenburg. Outside of the Tunison Foundation, Kevin is a park ranger for the National Parks Service and works at The Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site. When it comes to Placid Lassie, Kevin is spearheading the mission to get the upcoming Placid Lassie exhibit to the public. He was showing me what they had already, from photos, plaques, documents, miniatures and more. I was given a very clear picture of how things will look when it is completed, and I am very excited. Kevin said he hopes to have it open for school field trips and tour groups.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Placid Lassie is the Tunison Foundation's 1943 Douglas C-47 Skytrain. Unlike many warbirds operating today, she is a real war hero. She is not an replica, or a deep restoration based upon parts from multiple separate airplanes. These same rivets crossed the English Channel on June 6th, 1944 and continued across Europe in service of our country.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Placid Lassie was built by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Long Beach, CA as a C-47 in July 1943 with S/N 42-24064. She cost $109,683 to build (just short of $2 million in 2023). She was assigned to the 74th Troop Carrier Squadron, 434th Troop Carrier Group, in August 1943. The 74th TCS was based in Alliance, NE, where Lassie trained with her crew, who named her and her engines: Idling Ada (L) for Apodaca's wife and Eager Eileen (R) for Tunison's.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Her crew would remain the same for the duration of the war, with the exception of Eckert, who replaced Lundgren, who became the captain of his own C-47 after Operation Neptune. Lundgren was killed during Operation Market Garden in September 1944 when his C-47 crashed.1Lt. Richard H. Lum, Pilot
1Lt. Ralph C. Lundgren, Co-Pilot
1Lt. Merton E. Eckert, Co-Pilot
1Lt. William E. Vaughn, Navigator
SSgt. Ed Tunison, Radio Operator
TSgt. Eddie A. Apodaca, Crew Chief
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
After seeing what will become the Placid Lassie Museum, Kevin asked if I was ready to see her. It was so exciting, I felt like a little kid. It also felt like I shouldn't have been there, as if I was getting to see something classified or something. Kevin brought me into the hanger where several volunteers were working on Lassie. Let me tell you, I've been up close to several planes, but staring at Lassie and knowing the history behind her, the enormity of the moment was not lost on me.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
We were even able to go inside of the plane. I was blown away by the lack of insulation or protection within the plane. When I mentioned my surprise, Kevin called it a "flying soda can" with how simple the inside is.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
The flight controls; however, were anything but simple. I trod carefully as I took my pictures, afraid to mess up anything. It blew my mind that something that came across so simple and bare-bones was involved in one of recent history's greatest wars. It gave me a lot more perspective as to what those young soldiers were using and dealing with.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Whether I was inside Placid Lassie or taking pictures from the outside, I felt a certain weight come over me. It's one thing to read about this, but it is another thing altogether to get to experience her firsthand. I do not take for granted the fact that I got to visit her. Not many aircraft from her day are still around, and I saw firsthand the amount of hands and effort it takes to keep her operating.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
As we reach the 80th anniversary of D-Day, Kevin and I discussed how many of the people who lived during that time and who had served are dying off. Keeping aircraft like Placid Lassie alive are perfect reminders of why we need to preserve and teach our history.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
As I mentioned before how I felt the weight of the history being there, and that I was as excited as a child, I couldn't help but also notice the darkness, the sacrifices, and the pain associated with her. Remember, these were just kids operating and jumping out of her. We wouldn't have many of the freedoms that we have today if it weren't for the sacrifices of those who served.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Kevin told me that Placid Lassie was nearly lost, and it was found again in a freak coincidence. After Lassie was deemed derelict in the 1990s, James Lyle, a British businessman based in New York, and Clive Edwards, a noted UK aircraft restoration specialist, teamed up in January 2010 to restore a DC-3 to airworthiness for the 75th anniversary of the type's first flight in 1935, hoping to bring one to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
From 2010 to 2014, N74589 was known as Union Jack Dak in recognition of the Britannic roots of its owner. James Lyle had originally intended to sell the aircraft, but he greatly enjoyed flying N74589, particularly after historical research revealed that the DC-3 was actually a C-47, and, more importantly, a combat and D-Day veteran.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
He had her repainted in D-Day colors in advance of bringing Union Jack Dak to Normandy for the 70th anniversary of D-Day in 2014, where Dutch historian Hans de Brok told the team that Ed Tunison, the wartime radio operator, was still alive and well. Ed was quickly flown to Normandy to reconnect with his airplane, where he told the team that she was known as Placid Lassie during the war.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Placid Lassie is on the road just as much as your favorite touring bands! Though Placid Lassie lives in the Hudson Valley, The Tunison Foundation is proud to take her all across the globe. They are currently finishing up Winter Maintenance, but Lassie will be touring the globe between mid-March through late November. And of course, Placid Lassie will be a major staple in the D-Day Squadron Atlantic Crossing happening May 19th through May 24th, as it visits Presque Isle, ME; Goose Bay, NL; Narsarsuaq, Greenland; Reykjavik, Iceland; and Prestwick, Scotland, UK. You can click here to see Lassie's full tour schedule.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Please consider joining our devoted group of donors who contribute to keep historic aircraft in the skies. You can click the link here in order to donate.
Dejan Corovic
As above, so bellow
So now I know the story of the old girl just sitting down the road. I see this thing all the time - it's sitting out there right now most likely.
They also have a remnant of some amphib with a foreign roundrel on it I didn't immediately recognize but I haven't seen it in a while.
It's in a spot that's not easy to get pics of. You can see it as you drive by but with a huge fence and a busy road there isn't anywhere to get a better look.
Years ago at another much smaller airport I rolled up to find a B-24 sitting there and I just asked if they'd show it to me. They did inside & out ! One of the old timers told me a story of being aboard one trying to get a stuck mine or depth charge out of it. Whatever they paid him it wasn't enough.
"WWII War Hero" Can Be Found at Hudson Valley Regional Airport
Gallery Credit: Conor Walsh
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation is a non-profit flying museum, dedicated to preserving the memory of the Greatest Generation through our active, airworthy memorials to their service in World War II and beyond. Headquartered at Hudson Valley Regional Airport (KPOU) in Poughkeepsie, NY, the Foundation endeavors to educate the general public about the Second World War and the sacrifices made to ensure freedom and democracy for millions around the world.
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation was formed in 2017 by James Lyle and Eric Zipkin to preserve aircraft in tribute to the history of World War II. The Foundation is named after Ed Tunison, the wartime radio operator aboard the Foundation's flagship aircraft, the C-47 Placid Lassie, who was the last remaining member of Lassie's wartime crew.
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
Before passing away in 2016, Ed Tunison was reunited with Placid Lassie in Normandy for the 70th anniversary of D-Day in 2014. The Foundation returned to Europe in 2019 as the lead aircraft of the D-Day Squadron, in commemoration of the 75th anniversary, and are making final preparations to return once again for the 80th this summer.
The Tunison Foundation
Conor Walsh
The Tunison Foundation
Since 2022, their aircraft have been based in Wappingers Falls, NY, where they continue to pursue the preservation and operation of Placid Lassie, the restoration of their PBY Catalina, and other projects as resources allow. The Tunison Foundation is fortunate to count more than 125 volunteers that work to keep our historic airplanes flying.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
On Sunday, March 3rd, I met up with Tunison Foundation volunteer Kevin Oldenburg. Outside of the Tunison Foundation, Kevin is a park ranger for the National Parks Service and works at The Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site. When it comes to Placid Lassie, Kevin is spearheading the mission to get the upcoming Placid Lassie exhibit to the public. He was showing me what they had already, from photos, plaques, documents, miniatures and more. I was given a very clear picture of how things will look when it is completed, and I am very excited. Kevin said he hopes to have it open for school field trips and tour groups.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Placid Lassie is the Tunison Foundation's 1943 Douglas C-47 Skytrain. Unlike many warbirds operating today, she is a real war hero. She is not an replica, or a deep restoration based upon parts from multiple separate airplanes. These same rivets crossed the English Channel on June 6th, 1944 and continued across Europe in service of our country.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Placid Lassie was built by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Long Beach, CA as a C-47 in July 1943 with S/N 42-24064. She cost $109,683 to build (just short of $2 million in 2023). She was assigned to the 74th Troop Carrier Squadron, 434th Troop Carrier Group, in August 1943. The 74th TCS was based in Alliance, NE, where Lassie trained with her crew, who named her and her engines: Idling Ada (L) for Apodaca's wife and Eager Eileen (R) for Tunison's.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Her crew would remain the same for the duration of the war, with the exception of Eckert, who replaced Lundgren, who became the captain of his own C-47 after Operation Neptune. Lundgren was killed during Operation Market Garden in September 1944 when his C-47 crashed.
1Lt. Richard H. Lum, Pilot
1Lt. Ralph C. Lundgren, Co-Pilot
1Lt. Merton E. Eckert, Co-Pilot
1Lt. William E. Vaughn, Navigator
SSgt. Ed Tunison, Radio Operator
TSgt. Eddie A. Apodaca, Crew Chief
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
After seeing what will become the Placid Lassie Museum, Kevin asked if I was ready to see her. It was so exciting, I felt like a little kid. It also felt like I shouldn't have been there, as if I was getting to see something classified or something. Kevin brought me into the hanger where several volunteers were working on Lassie. Let me tell you, I've been up close to several planes, but staring at Lassie and knowing the history behind her, the enormity of the moment was not lost on me.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
We were even able to go inside of the plane. I was blown away by the lack of insulation or protection within the plane. When I mentioned my surprise, Kevin called it a "flying soda can" with how simple the inside is.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
The flight controls; however, were anything but simple. I trod carefully as I took my pictures, afraid to mess up anything. It blew my mind that something that came across so simple and bare-bones was involved in one of recent history's greatest wars. It gave me a lot more perspective as to what those young soldiers were using and dealing with.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Whether I was inside Placid Lassie or taking pictures from the outside, I felt a certain weight come over me. It's one thing to read about this, but it is another thing altogether to get to experience her firsthand. I do not take for granted the fact that I got to visit her. Not many aircraft from her day are still around, and I saw firsthand the amount of hands and effort it takes to keep her operating.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
As we reach the 80th anniversary of D-Day, Kevin and I discussed how many of the people who lived during that time and who had served are dying off. Keeping aircraft like Placid Lassie alive are perfect reminders of why we need to preserve and teach our history.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
As I mentioned before how I felt the weight of the history being there, and that I was as excited as a child, I couldn't help but also notice the darkness, the sacrifices, and the pain associated with her. Remember, these were just kids operating and jumping out of her. We wouldn't have many of the freedoms that we have today if it weren't for the sacrifices of those who served.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Kevin told me that Placid Lassie was nearly lost, and it was found again in a freak coincidence. After Lassie was deemed derelict in the 1990s, James Lyle, a British businessman based in New York, and Clive Edwards, a noted UK aircraft restoration specialist, teamed up in January 2010 to restore a DC-3 to airworthiness for the 75th anniversary of the type's first flight in 1935, hoping to bring one to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
From 2010 to 2014, N74589 was known as Union Jack Dak in recognition of the Britannic roots of its owner. James Lyle had originally intended to sell the aircraft, but he greatly enjoyed flying N74589, particularly after historical research revealed that the DC-3 was actually a C-47, and, more importantly, a combat and D-Day veteran.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
He had her repainted in D-Day colors in advance of bringing Union Jack Dak to Normandy for the 70th anniversary of D-Day in 2014, where Dutch historian Hans de Brok told the team that Ed Tunison, the wartime radio operator, was still alive and well. Ed was quickly flown to Normandy to reconnect with his airplane, where he told the team that she was known as Placid Lassie during the war.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Placid Lassie is on the road just as much as your favorite touring bands! Though Placid Lassie lives in the Hudson Valley, The Tunison Foundation is proud to take her all across the globe. They are currently finishing up Winter Maintenance, but Lassie will be touring the globe between mid-March through late November. And of course, Placid Lassie will be a major staple in the D-Day Squadron Atlantic Crossing happening May 19th through May 24th, as it visits Presque Isle, ME; Goose Bay, NL; Narsarsuaq, Greenland; Reykjavik, Iceland; and Prestwick, Scotland, UK. You can click here to see Lassie's full tour schedule.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Please consider joining our devoted group of donors who contribute to keep historic aircraft in the skies. You can click the link here in order to donate.
It would be a crime to lose these craft for future generations.
pigfarmer
tall, thin, irritable
Never heard that - very interesting. I have noted that some the gear that comes with M91/30s and some for the SKS of that era are made from a weird sort of brown supple fake leather I couldn't identify. I wonder if it's that stuff. The oiler pouch for example, I have one sitting on the desk in front of me at the moment.
I knew that we delivered so much Spam they called it 'Roosevelt Sausage'. I've also read that when FDR made public the actual production numbers and quotas in speeches the Axis did not believe them to be true. They obviously found out otherwise.
World War II Allies: U.S. Lend-Lease to the Soviet Union, 1941-1945
Do you know that you can still get unused materiel made for WW2 but still warehoused? Years back various places bought up lots at government auctions and a few still exist. Naturally things are getting a bit thin but about 8 years ago I had no problem ordering up a half dozen M1 carbine magazines that were still in their original wrapping, never issued.
I had to bake them in an oven at low heat for a while to remove the wrapping and the smell is something I don't even know how to describe. Like, every old Army Navy surplus store I've ever been to with a hint of carcinogens and feet. Stinky.
Come to think of it, the Soviets did something similar with small arms. I have two Mosin Nagant M91/30s that are all #s matched including the bayonets that came right out of their original packing boxes still slathered with cosmoline (or whatever they used). I think they made over 44 million of them. I believe some of them have turned up in Ukraine recently.
pigfarmer
tall, thin, irritable
“We Didn’t Know What It Was at First.” Buried Beneath Arctic Ice, a Secretive Underground Military Base Emerges in New Radar Images - The Debrief
(Credit: NASA Earth Observatory)
When it first appeared in their radar images, NASA scientist Chad Greene and his team of engineers weren’t sure what they were seeing.
Flying above northern Greenland in a Gulfstream III in April of this year, Greene and his crew were monitoring radar information collected from the ice sheet below when, about 150 miles east of Pituffik Space Base—formerly Thule Air Base and still the northernmost installation operated by the U.S. Armed Forces—they spotted something unexpected.
The aircraft’s radar system had detected some kind of structure buried beneath the ice.
“We didn’t know what it was at first,” recalled cryospheric scientist Alex Gardner with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). In the radar imagery, what appeared to be a massive structure had been revealed deep beneath the frozen landscape.
“We were looking for the bed of the ice,” Gardner said, “and out pops Camp Century.”
Also known as the “city under the ice,” this forgotten Cold War relic consists of a network of tunnels hewn into the near-surface portions of the ice sheet. Today, the remnants of the secretive base lay hidden beneath close to 100 feet of snow and ice that have continued to accumulate since it was decommissioned.
Above: The approximate location of Camp Century as seen from the Gulfstream III flown by Greene, Gardner, and their NASA engineering team in April 2024 (Credit: NASA Earth Observatory).
Unlike those past surveys, in April when Greene, Gardner, and their NASA crew passed overhead, they were armed with the space agency’s Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR), a radar system mounted directly to the underbelly of their aircraft that enables enhanced radar imaging capabilities.
“In the new data, individual structures in the secret city are visible in a way that they’ve never been seen before,” Greene said, noting that the cryospheric science team from JPL was successfully able to corroborate their radar images with historical maps depicting Camp Century’s sprawling tunnels and other structural features.
The remnants of Camp Henry’s Cold War activities pose no threat at the abandonned facility’s present depth. However, as melting continues to wear away the Greenland Ice Sheet, scientists are aware that it could someday be exposed once again, meaning that any radioactive waste and other potentially harmful chemical or biological waste that was left behind when the facility was decommissioned in 1967 could also resurface.
Trench construction as seen at Camp Century in 1960 (Credit: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory).
Although the radar imagery obtained in April by Greene and Gardner could prove useful in terms of ongoing monitoring of such threats as melting continues, the researchers said the images of this forgotten vestige of the Cold War they obtained occurred entirely by chance.
“Our goal was to calibrate, validate, and understand the capabilities and limitations of UAVSAR for mapping the ice sheet’s internal layers and the ice-bed interface,” Greene said.
“Without detailed knowledge of ice thickness, it is impossible to know how the ice sheets will respond to rapidly warming oceans and atmosphere, greatly limiting our ability to project rates of sea level rise,” Gardner added.
The radar imagery of Camp Century obtained by Greene and Gardner was showcased as the Image of the Day for November 25, 2024 at NASA’s Earth Observatory website, as reported by Kathryn Hansen with images by Michala Garrison and Jesse Allen.
(Credit: NASA Earth Observatory)
“We Didn’t Know What It Was at First.” Buried Beneath Arctic Ice, a Secretive Underground Military Base Emerges in New Radar Images
Micah Hanks·November 25, 2024When it first appeared in their radar images, NASA scientist Chad Greene and his team of engineers weren’t sure what they were seeing.
Flying above northern Greenland in a Gulfstream III in April of this year, Greene and his crew were monitoring radar information collected from the ice sheet below when, about 150 miles east of Pituffik Space Base—formerly Thule Air Base and still the northernmost installation operated by the U.S. Armed Forces—they spotted something unexpected.
The aircraft’s radar system had detected some kind of structure buried beneath the ice.
“We didn’t know what it was at first,” recalled cryospheric scientist Alex Gardner with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). In the radar imagery, what appeared to be a massive structure had been revealed deep beneath the frozen landscape.
“We were looking for the bed of the ice,” Gardner said, “and out pops Camp Century.”
A Cold War Relic Reemerges
A remote U.S. military base once used as a top-secret testing site for the deployment of nuclear missiles from the Arctic, Camp Century was constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers within the Greenland Ice Sheet in 1959. Remaining in use for less than a decade, the base was decommissioned after just eight years and abandoned beneath Greenland’s frozen landscape.Also known as the “city under the ice,” this forgotten Cold War relic consists of a network of tunnels hewn into the near-surface portions of the ice sheet. Today, the remnants of the secretive base lay hidden beneath close to 100 feet of snow and ice that have continued to accumulate since it was decommissioned.
Rediscovering a City Under the Ice
This wasn’t the first time the U.S. military’s forgotten Cold War stronghold in Greenland had been detected during airborne surveys. In the past, aircraft using ground-penetrating radar have also detected signs of the hidden underground facility, albeit resembling little more than a small disturbance within the surrounding deformed layers of ice.Unlike those past surveys, in April when Greene, Gardner, and their NASA crew passed overhead, they were armed with the space agency’s Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR), a radar system mounted directly to the underbelly of their aircraft that enables enhanced radar imaging capabilities.
“In the new data, individual structures in the secret city are visible in a way that they’ve never been seen before,” Greene said, noting that the cryospheric science team from JPL was successfully able to corroborate their radar images with historical maps depicting Camp Century’s sprawling tunnels and other structural features.
A Potential Concern Amid Melting Ice
Based on the data from the radar images, the ice bed the researchers had been studying appears to lay close to a mile below the surface of the ice, which is still far below Camp Henry, even at its current depth.The remnants of Camp Henry’s Cold War activities pose no threat at the abandonned facility’s present depth. However, as melting continues to wear away the Greenland Ice Sheet, scientists are aware that it could someday be exposed once again, meaning that any radioactive waste and other potentially harmful chemical or biological waste that was left behind when the facility was decommissioned in 1967 could also resurface.
Trench construction as seen at Camp Century in 1960 (Credit: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory).
Although the radar imagery obtained in April by Greene and Gardner could prove useful in terms of ongoing monitoring of such threats as melting continues, the researchers said the images of this forgotten vestige of the Cold War they obtained occurred entirely by chance.
“Our goal was to calibrate, validate, and understand the capabilities and limitations of UAVSAR for mapping the ice sheet’s internal layers and the ice-bed interface,” Greene said.
“Without detailed knowledge of ice thickness, it is impossible to know how the ice sheets will respond to rapidly warming oceans and atmosphere, greatly limiting our ability to project rates of sea level rise,” Gardner added.
The radar imagery of Camp Century obtained by Greene and Gardner was showcased as the Image of the Day for November 25, 2024 at NASA’s Earth Observatory website, as reported by Kathryn Hansen with images by Michala Garrison and Jesse Allen.
Standingstones
Celestial
A beautifully restored airplane!So now I know the story of the old girl just sitting down the road. I see this thing all the time - it's sitting out there right now most likely.
They also have a remnant of some amphib with a foreign roundrel on it I didn't immediately recognize but I haven't seen it in a while.
It's in a spot that's not easy to get pics of. You can see it as you drive by but with a huge fence and a busy road there isn't anywhere to get a better look.
Years ago at another much smaller airport I rolled up to find a B-24 sitting there and I just asked if they'd show it to me. They did inside & out ! One of the old timers told me a story of being aboard one trying to get a stuck mine or depth charge out of it. Whatever they paid him it wasn't enough.
"WWII War Hero" Can Be Found at Hudson Valley Regional Airport
Gallery Credit: Conor Walsh
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation is a non-profit flying museum, dedicated to preserving the memory of the Greatest Generation through our active, airworthy memorials to their service in World War II and beyond. Headquartered at Hudson Valley Regional Airport (KPOU) in Poughkeepsie, NY, the Foundation endeavors to educate the general public about the Second World War and the sacrifices made to ensure freedom and democracy for millions around the world.
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation was formed in 2017 by James Lyle and Eric Zipkin to preserve aircraft in tribute to the history of World War II. The Foundation is named after Ed Tunison, the wartime radio operator aboard the Foundation's flagship aircraft, the C-47 Placid Lassie, who was the last remaining member of Lassie's wartime crew.
The Tunison Foundation
The Tunison Foundation
Before passing away in 2016, Ed Tunison was reunited with Placid Lassie in Normandy for the 70th anniversary of D-Day in 2014. The Foundation returned to Europe in 2019 as the lead aircraft of the D-Day Squadron, in commemoration of the 75th anniversary, and are making final preparations to return once again for the 80th this summer.
The Tunison Foundation
Conor Walsh
The Tunison Foundation
Since 2022, their aircraft have been based in Wappingers Falls, NY, where they continue to pursue the preservation and operation of Placid Lassie, the restoration of their PBY Catalina, and other projects as resources allow. The Tunison Foundation is fortunate to count more than 125 volunteers that work to keep our historic airplanes flying.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
On Sunday, March 3rd, I met up with Tunison Foundation volunteer Kevin Oldenburg. Outside of the Tunison Foundation, Kevin is a park ranger for the National Parks Service and works at The Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site. When it comes to Placid Lassie, Kevin is spearheading the mission to get the upcoming Placid Lassie exhibit to the public. He was showing me what they had already, from photos, plaques, documents, miniatures and more. I was given a very clear picture of how things will look when it is completed, and I am very excited. Kevin said he hopes to have it open for school field trips and tour groups.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Placid Lassie is the Tunison Foundation's 1943 Douglas C-47 Skytrain. Unlike many warbirds operating today, she is a real war hero. She is not an replica, or a deep restoration based upon parts from multiple separate airplanes. These same rivets crossed the English Channel on June 6th, 1944 and continued across Europe in service of our country.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Placid Lassie was built by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Long Beach, CA as a C-47 in July 1943 with S/N 42-24064. She cost $109,683 to build (just short of $2 million in 2023). She was assigned to the 74th Troop Carrier Squadron, 434th Troop Carrier Group, in August 1943. The 74th TCS was based in Alliance, NE, where Lassie trained with her crew, who named her and her engines: Idling Ada (L) for Apodaca's wife and Eager Eileen (R) for Tunison's.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Her crew would remain the same for the duration of the war, with the exception of Eckert, who replaced Lundgren, who became the captain of his own C-47 after Operation Neptune. Lundgren was killed during Operation Market Garden in September 1944 when his C-47 crashed.
1Lt. Richard H. Lum, Pilot
1Lt. Ralph C. Lundgren, Co-Pilot
1Lt. Merton E. Eckert, Co-Pilot
1Lt. William E. Vaughn, Navigator
SSgt. Ed Tunison, Radio Operator
TSgt. Eddie A. Apodaca, Crew Chief
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
After seeing what will become the Placid Lassie Museum, Kevin asked if I was ready to see her. It was so exciting, I felt like a little kid. It also felt like I shouldn't have been there, as if I was getting to see something classified or something. Kevin brought me into the hanger where several volunteers were working on Lassie. Let me tell you, I've been up close to several planes, but staring at Lassie and knowing the history behind her, the enormity of the moment was not lost on me.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
We were even able to go inside of the plane. I was blown away by the lack of insulation or protection within the plane. When I mentioned my surprise, Kevin called it a "flying soda can" with how simple the inside is.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
The flight controls; however, were anything but simple. I trod carefully as I took my pictures, afraid to mess up anything. It blew my mind that something that came across so simple and bare-bones was involved in one of recent history's greatest wars. It gave me a lot more perspective as to what those young soldiers were using and dealing with.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Whether I was inside Placid Lassie or taking pictures from the outside, I felt a certain weight come over me. It's one thing to read about this, but it is another thing altogether to get to experience her firsthand. I do not take for granted the fact that I got to visit her. Not many aircraft from her day are still around, and I saw firsthand the amount of hands and effort it takes to keep her operating.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
As we reach the 80th anniversary of D-Day, Kevin and I discussed how many of the people who lived during that time and who had served are dying off. Keeping aircraft like Placid Lassie alive are perfect reminders of why we need to preserve and teach our history.
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
Conor Walsh
My Visit to See Placid Lassie
As I mentioned before how I felt the weight of the history being there, and that I was as excited as a child, I couldn't help but also notice the darkness, the sacrifices, and the pain associated with her. Remember, these were just kids operating and jumping out of her. We wouldn't have many of the freedoms that we have today if it weren't for the sacrifices of those who served.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Kevin told me that Placid Lassie was nearly lost, and it was found again in a freak coincidence. After Lassie was deemed derelict in the 1990s, James Lyle, a British businessman based in New York, and Clive Edwards, a noted UK aircraft restoration specialist, teamed up in January 2010 to restore a DC-3 to airworthiness for the 75th anniversary of the type's first flight in 1935, hoping to bring one to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
From 2010 to 2014, N74589 was known as Union Jack Dak in recognition of the Britannic roots of its owner. James Lyle had originally intended to sell the aircraft, but he greatly enjoyed flying N74589, particularly after historical research revealed that the DC-3 was actually a C-47, and, more importantly, a combat and D-Day veteran.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
He had her repainted in D-Day colors in advance of bringing Union Jack Dak to Normandy for the 70th anniversary of D-Day in 2014, where Dutch historian Hans de Brok told the team that Ed Tunison, the wartime radio operator, was still alive and well. Ed was quickly flown to Normandy to reconnect with his airplane, where he told the team that she was known as Placid Lassie during the war.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Placid Lassie is on the road just as much as your favorite touring bands! Though Placid Lassie lives in the Hudson Valley, The Tunison Foundation is proud to take her all across the globe. They are currently finishing up Winter Maintenance, but Lassie will be touring the globe between mid-March through late November. And of course, Placid Lassie will be a major staple in the D-Day Squadron Atlantic Crossing happening May 19th through May 24th, as it visits Presque Isle, ME; Goose Bay, NL; Narsarsuaq, Greenland; Reykjavik, Iceland; and Prestwick, Scotland, UK. You can click here to see Lassie's full tour schedule.
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Conor Walsh
Placid Lassie was Almost Lost to Time
Please consider joining our devoted group of donors who contribute to keep historic aircraft in the skies. You can click the link here in order to donate.
pigfarmer
tall, thin, irritable
Stealth destroyer to be home for 1st hypersonic weapon on a US warship
1 of 5 |
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
2 of 5 |
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
3 of 5 |
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
4 of 5 |
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
5 of 5 |
FILE - The deckhouse of the future USS Zumwalt, the U.S. Navy’s newest guided-missile destroyer, stands past a member of the U.S. Navy in Baltimore, Oct. 13, 2016. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
By DAVID SHARP
Updated 3:06 PM EST, November 30, 2024
The U.S. Navy is transforming a costly flub into a potent weapon with the first shipborne hypersonic weapon, which is being retrofitted aboard the first of its three stealthy destroyers.
The USS Zumwalt is at a Mississippi shipyard where workers have installed missile tubes that replace twin turrets from a gun system that was never activated because it was too expensive. Once the system is complete, the Zumwalt will provide a platform for conducting fast, precision strikes from greater distances, adding to the usefulness of the warship.
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
“It was a costly blunder. But the Navy could take victory from the jaws of defeat here, and get some utility out of them by making them into a hypersonic platform,” said Bryan Clark, a defense analyst at the Hudson Institute.
The U.S. has had several types of hypersonic weapons in development for the past two decades, but recent tests by both Russia and China have added pressure to the U.S. military to hasten their production.
Hypersonic weapons travel beyond Mach 5, five times the speed of sound, with added maneuverability making them harder to shoot down.
Murray scores career-high 28 points as No. 23 Ole Miss beats BYU 96-85 in OT
Last year, The Washington Post reported that among the documents leaked by former Massachusetts Air National Guard member Jack Teixeira was a defense department briefing that confirmed China had recently tested an intermediate-range hypersonic weapon called the DF-27. While the Pentagon had previously acknowledged the weapon’s development, it had not recognized its testing.
One of the U.S. programs in development and planned for the Zumwalt is the “Conventional Prompt Strike.” It would launch like a ballistic missile and then release a hypersonic glide vehicle that would travel at speeds seven to eight times faster than the speed of sound before hitting the target. The weapon system is being developed jointly by the Navy and Army. Each of the Zumwalt-class destroyers would be equipped with four missile tubes, each with three of the missiles for a total of 12 hypersonic weapons per ship.
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
In choosing the Zumwalt, the Navy is attempting to add to the usefulness of a $7.5 billion warship that is considered by critics to be an expensive mistake despite serving as a test platform for multiple innovations.
The Zumwalt was envisioned as providing land-attack capability with an Advanced Gun System with rocket-assisted projectiles to open the way for Marines to charge ashore. But the system featuring 155 mm guns hidden in stealthy turrets was canceled because each of the rocket-assisted projectiles cost between $800,000 and $1 million.
Despite the stain on its reputation, the three Zumwalt-class destroyers remain the Navy’s most advanced surface warship in terms of new technologies. Those innovations include electric propulsion, an angular shape to minimize radar signature, an unconventional wave-piercing hull, automated fire and damage control and a composite deckhouse that hides radar and other sensors.
The Zumwalt arrived at the Huntington Ingalls Industries shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi, in August 2023 and was removed from the water for the complex work of integrating the new weapon system. It is due to be undocked this week in preparation for the next round of tests and its return to the fleet, shipyard spokeswoman Kimberly Aguillard said.
FILE - The deckhouse of the future USS Zumwalt, the U.S. Navy’s newest guided-missile destroyer, stands past a member of the U.S. Navy in Baltimore, Oct. 13, 2016. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
A U.S. hypersonic weapon was successfully tested over the summer and development of the missiles is continuing. The Navy wants to begin testing the system aboard the Zumwalt in 2027 or 2028, according to the Navy.
The U.S. weapon system will come at a steep price. It would cost nearly $18 billion to buy 300 of the weapons and maintain them over 20 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
Critics say there is too little bang for the buck.
“This particular missile costs more than a dozen tanks. All it gets you is a precise non-nuclear explosion, some place far far away. Is it really worth the money? The answer is most of the time the missile costs much more than any target you can destroy with it,” said Loren Thompson, a longtime military analyst in Washington, D.C.
But they provide the capability for Navy vessels to strike an enemy from a distance of thousands of kilometers — outside the range of most enemy weapons — and there is no effective defense against them, said retired Navy Rear Adm. Ray Spicer, CEO of the U.S. Naval Institute, an independent forum focusing on national security issues, and former commander of an aircraft carrier strike force.
Conventional missiles that cost less aren’t much of a bargain if they are unable to reach their targets, Spicer said, adding the U.S. military really has no choice but to pursue them.
“The adversary has them. We never want to be outdone,” he said.
The U.S. is accelerating development because hypersonics have been identified as vital to U.S. national security with “survivable and lethal capabilities,” said James Weber, principal director for hypersonics in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Critical Technologies.
“Fielding new capabilities that are based on hypersonic technologies is a priority for the defense department to sustain and strengthen our integrated deterrence, and to build enduring advantages,” he said.
Stealth destroyer to be home for 1st hypersonic weapon on a US warship
1 of 5 |
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
2 of 5 |
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
3 of 5 |
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
4 of 5 |
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
5 of 5 |
FILE - The deckhouse of the future USS Zumwalt, the U.S. Navy’s newest guided-missile destroyer, stands past a member of the U.S. Navy in Baltimore, Oct. 13, 2016. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
By DAVID SHARP
Updated 3:06 PM EST, November 30, 2024
The U.S. Navy is transforming a costly flub into a potent weapon with the first shipborne hypersonic weapon, which is being retrofitted aboard the first of its three stealthy destroyers.
The USS Zumwalt is at a Mississippi shipyard where workers have installed missile tubes that replace twin turrets from a gun system that was never activated because it was too expensive. Once the system is complete, the Zumwalt will provide a platform for conducting fast, precision strikes from greater distances, adding to the usefulness of the warship.
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
“It was a costly blunder. But the Navy could take victory from the jaws of defeat here, and get some utility out of them by making them into a hypersonic platform,” said Bryan Clark, a defense analyst at the Hudson Institute.
The U.S. has had several types of hypersonic weapons in development for the past two decades, but recent tests by both Russia and China have added pressure to the U.S. military to hasten their production.
Hypersonic weapons travel beyond Mach 5, five times the speed of sound, with added maneuverability making them harder to shoot down.
Murray scores career-high 28 points as No. 23 Ole Miss beats BYU 96-85 in OT
Last year, The Washington Post reported that among the documents leaked by former Massachusetts Air National Guard member Jack Teixeira was a defense department briefing that confirmed China had recently tested an intermediate-range hypersonic weapon called the DF-27. While the Pentagon had previously acknowledged the weapon’s development, it had not recognized its testing.
One of the U.S. programs in development and planned for the Zumwalt is the “Conventional Prompt Strike.” It would launch like a ballistic missile and then release a hypersonic glide vehicle that would travel at speeds seven to eight times faster than the speed of sound before hitting the target. The weapon system is being developed jointly by the Navy and Army. Each of the Zumwalt-class destroyers would be equipped with four missile tubes, each with three of the missiles for a total of 12 hypersonic weapons per ship.
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
The USS Zumwalt is seen at the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
In choosing the Zumwalt, the Navy is attempting to add to the usefulness of a $7.5 billion warship that is considered by critics to be an expensive mistake despite serving as a test platform for multiple innovations.
The Zumwalt was envisioned as providing land-attack capability with an Advanced Gun System with rocket-assisted projectiles to open the way for Marines to charge ashore. But the system featuring 155 mm guns hidden in stealthy turrets was canceled because each of the rocket-assisted projectiles cost between $800,000 and $1 million.
Despite the stain on its reputation, the three Zumwalt-class destroyers remain the Navy’s most advanced surface warship in terms of new technologies. Those innovations include electric propulsion, an angular shape to minimize radar signature, an unconventional wave-piercing hull, automated fire and damage control and a composite deckhouse that hides radar and other sensors.
The Zumwalt arrived at the Huntington Ingalls Industries shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi, in August 2023 and was removed from the water for the complex work of integrating the new weapon system. It is due to be undocked this week in preparation for the next round of tests and its return to the fleet, shipyard spokeswoman Kimberly Aguillard said.
FILE - The deckhouse of the future USS Zumwalt, the U.S. Navy’s newest guided-missile destroyer, stands past a member of the U.S. Navy in Baltimore, Oct. 13, 2016. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
A U.S. hypersonic weapon was successfully tested over the summer and development of the missiles is continuing. The Navy wants to begin testing the system aboard the Zumwalt in 2027 or 2028, according to the Navy.
The U.S. weapon system will come at a steep price. It would cost nearly $18 billion to buy 300 of the weapons and maintain them over 20 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
Critics say there is too little bang for the buck.
“This particular missile costs more than a dozen tanks. All it gets you is a precise non-nuclear explosion, some place far far away. Is it really worth the money? The answer is most of the time the missile costs much more than any target you can destroy with it,” said Loren Thompson, a longtime military analyst in Washington, D.C.
But they provide the capability for Navy vessels to strike an enemy from a distance of thousands of kilometers — outside the range of most enemy weapons — and there is no effective defense against them, said retired Navy Rear Adm. Ray Spicer, CEO of the U.S. Naval Institute, an independent forum focusing on national security issues, and former commander of an aircraft carrier strike force.
Conventional missiles that cost less aren’t much of a bargain if they are unable to reach their targets, Spicer said, adding the U.S. military really has no choice but to pursue them.
“The adversary has them. We never want to be outdone,” he said.
The U.S. is accelerating development because hypersonics have been identified as vital to U.S. national security with “survivable and lethal capabilities,” said James Weber, principal director for hypersonics in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Critical Technologies.
“Fielding new capabilities that are based on hypersonic technologies is a priority for the defense department to sustain and strengthen our integrated deterrence, and to build enduring advantages,” he said.
pigfarmer
tall, thin, irritable
Ye Gods these young men had some set of ****s on them.
The author's father won the MoH in the Pacific for actions in these boats. It tells the story of their development, production and use. It's definitely dry but as the author points out, approved as the record of the US Navy on this topic drawn directly from the participant's logs. Not ships, boats. The squadrons were commissioned not the individual torpedo boats.
This is real, not fiction and that's what takes it from dry to bit hair raising at certain points. And these young guys came home to .... absolutely zero counseling. If anyone reads this, which I doubt, as yourself if you could do some of those things. I wonder if they really were The Old Breed of some kind, IDK if people are made of that stuff anymore
The author's father won the MoH in the Pacific for actions in these boats. It tells the story of their development, production and use. It's definitely dry but as the author points out, approved as the record of the US Navy on this topic drawn directly from the participant's logs. Not ships, boats. The squadrons were commissioned not the individual torpedo boats.
This is real, not fiction and that's what takes it from dry to bit hair raising at certain points. And these young guys came home to .... absolutely zero counseling. If anyone reads this, which I doubt, as yourself if you could do some of those things. I wonder if they really were The Old Breed of some kind, IDK if people are made of that stuff anymore