PARS 3 LR for German Tiger Helicopter Passes into Full Scale Production

Launch of a PARS 3LR guided missile. (Photo: MBDA)

PARS 3 LR, the main armament for the German Army’s Tiger helicopter, passes into full scale production. This follows the successful completion of the system’s validation programme for the German customer, an event marked by a direct hit against an intended target during a test firing carried out at the Meppen test range (located in Lower Saxony, NW Germany) on 20 September 2012. The target was provided by a tank moving in between houses. In the final firing, the PARS 3 LR missile struck the target with exceptional precision in a demanding urban combat scenario at a range of approximately 3 km. All test firings were carried out from a German Tiger helicopter. The tests confirm that PARS 3 LR completely fulfils the specified system performance requirements under operational conditions. 

After formal clearance by the BAAINBw (Bundesamt für Ausrüstung, Informationstechnik und Nutzung der Bundeswehr Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support), PARS 3 LR is now ready to go into full-scale series production for the German Army’s Tiger helicopter. 

“The successful conclusion of the firing campaign sends a strong signal to our national customers and potential export customers”, declared Thomas Homberg, Managing Director of MBDA Germany. This guided missile system will make an important contribution to the Bundeswehr, enabling it to fulfil the demanding missions it is expected to perform even better in the future.” 

“We have impressively demonstrated the exceptional capabilities and high precision of the PARS 3 LR. This success was made possible by the joint contribution of all parties concerned, from the German Army, the German Federal Office of Defence Technology and Procurement (BWB) including the technical commands, the weapon system command and industry. I want to thank everyone for their enormous dedication,” added Siegfried Bücheler, Programmes and Sales Director at MBDA Germany. 

With the PARS 3 LR, the German Army will receive what is currently the most high-performance fire-and-forget guided missile system for precision strikes against stationary and moving high-value targets while simultaneously assuring maximum protection for both helicopter and crew. The PARS 3 LR fire-and-forget system allows the helicopter to quit its position immediately after firing a missile, thereby limiting to the absolute minimum its exposure to the threat of retaliation. Salvo firing allows the engagement of various targets at the same time. Its technical lay-out design enables unambiguous target identification, target designation, and highly precise effects against a large target spectrum over the whole range spectrum. 

Manufacture for the German Army will be carried out by PARSYS, a joint venture between MBDA Germany and Diehl BGT Defence. The procurement contract for the PARS 3 Long Range precision fire-and-forget missiles was signed by the Federal Office of Defence Technology and Procurement (BWB), MBDA Germany and Diehl BGT Defence. The contract covers industrialization and delivery of 680 missiles for the German Army. 

The weapon is already generating significant interest in the export market. To meet a helicopter-launched air-to-ground Anti-Tank Guided Missile requirement in India, MBDA has proposed the PARS 3 LR multi-target, long range weapon system which has now been short-listed by the Indian MoD. Within the framework of this competition, PARS 3 LR has achieved an outstanding level of performance during two firing campaigns comprising six firings all of which struck their targets at the optimal hit point.

Read more at: http://www.defpro.com/

The Entebbe Option

How the U.S. military thinks Israel might strike Iran.

BY MARK PERRY

While no one in the Barack Obama administration knows whether Israel will strike Iran's nuclear program, America's war planners are preparing for a wide array of potential Israeli military options -- while also trying to limit the chances of the United States being drawn into a potentially bloody conflict in the Persian Gulf. 

"U.S.-Israeli intelligence sharing on Iran has been extraordinary and unprecedented," a senior Pentagon war planner told me. "But when it comes to actually attacking Iran, what Israel won't tell us is what they plan to do, or how they plan to do it. It's their most closely guarded secret." Israel's refusal to share its plans has persisted despite repeated requests from Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, a senior Pentagon civilian said.

The result is that, at a time of escalating public debate in both the United States and Israel around the possibility of an armed strike on Iran, high-level Pentagon war planners have had to "fly blind" in sketching out what Israel might do -- and the challenges its actions will pose for the U.S. military.  "What we do is a kind of reverse engineering," the senior planner said. "We take a look at their [Israeli] assets and capabilities, put ourselves in their shoes and ask how we would act if we had what they have. So while we're guessing, we have a pretty good idea of what they can and can't do."

According to several high-level U.S. military and civilian intelligence sources, U.S. Central Command and Pentagon war planners have concluded that there are at least three possible Israeli attack options, including a daring and extremely risky special operations raid on Iran's nuclear facility at Fordow -- an "Iranian Entebbe" they call it, after Israel's 1976 commando rescue of Israeli hostages held in Uganda. In that scenario, Israeli commandos would storm the complex, which houses many of Iran's centrifuges; remove as much enriched uranium as they found or could carry; and plant explosives to destroy the facility on their way out.

Centcom, which oversees U.S. military assets in the Middle East, has been given the lead U.S. role in studying the possible Israeli strike. Over the past year its officers have met several times at Centcom headquarters in Tampa, Florida, and with Fifth Fleet naval officers in Doha, Qatar, to discuss their conclusions, the sources say.  

The military analysis of Israeli war plans has been taking place separate from -- but concurrent with-- the controversy surrounding Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's insistence that the United States present Tehran with a "red line," which, if crossed by Iran's nuclear program, would trigger a U.S. military strike. "That's a political question, not a war question," the senior Pentagon war planner said. "It's not in our lane. We're assuming that an Israeli attack could come at any time."

But it's not clear that Israel, even with its vaunted military, can pull off a successful strike: Netanyahu may not simply want the United States on board politically; he may need the United States to join militarily. "All this stuff about 'red lines' and deadlines is just Israel's way of trying to get us to say that when they start shooting, we'll start shooting," retired Admiral Bobby Ray Inman told me. "Bottom line? We can do this and they can't, because we have what the Israelis don't have," retired Air Force Colonel Sam Gardiner said.

One thing is clear: the U.S. military, according to my sources, currently has no interest in a preventive strike. "The idea that we'll attack with Israel is remote, so you can take that off your list of options," former Centcom commander Joe Hoar told me. Nor will the United States join an Israeli attack once it starts, the senior U.S. planner said. "We know there are senior Iranians egging for a fight with us, particularly in their Navy," a retired Centcom officer added. "And we'll give them one if they want one, but we're not going to go piling in simply because the Israelis want us to."

That puts the military shoulder to shoulder with the president. Obama and the military may have clashed on other issues, like the Afghan surge, but when it comes to Iran, they are speaking with one voice: They don't want Iran to get a nuclear weapon, they don't want Israel to start a war over it, and they don't believe an Israeli attack should automatically trigger U.S. intervention. But, if they are to avoid becoming part of Israel's plans, they first need to know what those plans are.

Read more at: http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/09/27/the_entebbe_option

Lockheed Martin to Upgrade 145 Taiwanese F-16 Fighters

$1.85 billion contract includes addition of AESA radars and avionics upgrades

FORT WORTH, Texas | Lockheed Martin was awarded a contract valued up to $1.85 billion by the U.S. Government to initiate the upgrade of 145 Block 20 F-16A/B aircraft for the Republic of China (RoC). This retrofit program will include the addition of an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar, embedded global positioning, as well as upgrades to the electronic warfare and other avionics systems of Taiwan’s F-16s. 

Lockheed Martin has a proven track record of upgrading more than 1,000 existing F-16s for a combination of the U.S. Air Force and international customers. Most recently, Lockheed Martin was named the prime integrator to upgrade the USAF F-16 fleet. Both new upgrade programs will be based on the F-16V configuration announced by Lockheed Martin earlier this year. 

“Lockheed Martin looks forward to a continued partnership with the Republic of China in upgrading their F-16s,” said Jeff Babione, vice president and general manager of the F-16/F-22 Integrated Fighter Group. “Based on elements of the F-16V configuration, Taiwan’s air force will receive the most advanced F-16 upgrades. This program reinforces the strong value proposition associated with commonality between the USAF F-16 program and the worldwide F-16 user community.” 

The F-16 is the choice of 26 nations. More than 4,500 aircraft have been delivered worldwide from assembly lines in five countries. The F-16 program has been characterized by unprecedented international cooperation among governments, air forces and aerospace industries. Major upgrades to all F-16 versions are being incorporated to keep the fleet modern and fully supportable over the aircraft’s long service life. 

Read more at: http://www.defpro.com/