U.K. No Air-defense Cover!

 The Bloodhound Last!

We once lead the world in military production, but with joining the European union and having various Labor parties in government, we have lost out in many areas including air defense, because NATO relied on the U.S.

But now that relations have soured with the U.S. we will either have to buy from Europe or develop a new system, despite the big words to Russia over the Ukraine, we are really defenseless to Russian attack?

Hoping that they won't attack is a bit arrogant and asking the U.S. is now off the table, so where do we go and what do we do, who knows and who cares!

Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker's!

 Susceptible?

Overnight we have seen two more of these air refueling aircraft damaged in Saudi-Arabia, about two weeks ago one crashed and the other was damaged over Iraq, with the loss of eight crew and now another twelve injured!

The C-135 was a 1954 concept and went into service in 1957, most of today adapted fleet are fifty years old and they may not be able to deal with new weapons enemy fire, but its pot luck with these Iranian missiles barrages, that Israel is experiencing hourly?

Since 1961 they have been had several adaptions made to them, as there is so many you can do your own research into the differing versions!

The aircraft are not armed, but they do operate at very great heights and so far they are only operated by France and the U.S.A?

New fuel for Shipping!

 Cheaper than the Electric engines for the New Year?

It is amazing that this has now been discovered and that battery powered tramps working on a loop keep steady power, something that could be adapted in the U.K. for the London Underground Circle line and also the clockwork orange in Glasgow in Scotland!

If investment could open the Hirwaun loop in south-Wales it would be an eye opener for travel and business, with many other applications in Cardiff and elsewhere?

Military drones are becoming more effective in the Ukraine and its security situation with Russia, but this is not same in the Middle-East, so one has to wonder is it really true or just British/European propaganda!

Despite all the advances, it looks like the U.S. will start mining coal again and the fossil fuel issues is not going away with the piracy of the high seas, driving prices up for all?

Happy New Year and a peaceful Eastern-Christmas!

Demise of the flying Boat?

 Beriev A-40 and Be-200.

Russia now is the only country to still build and sell flying boats that are dedicated to that particular role and the Be-200, which is a civil version of the larger A-40 has proved itself in the fire fighting role, easy to fill on landing, with an immediate take-off it can just keep working!

Very little is known about the Russian A-40 flying boat and what its long-range role with the Russian navy is, but perhaps this is the last line of a successful aircraft that maintained the Soviet naval defenses from 1945?

Other countries that maintain the flying boat is the peoples republic of China, which have adapted the Antonov An-12 to this role, but it is believed Russia has supplied the Chines navy with the A-40 and the BE-200!

While the rest of the world has abandoned this effective concept, with Japan and the U.S. retiring the last of there aircraft, many other countries have purchased the civil Be-200 for several roles, Greece, India and others and so the story will continue for some time yet?

New supersonic Travel?

 Forgetting Concorde!

The way that the media are reporting supersonic travel is something new, the XB-1,when we have thousands of combat jets that can break the sound barrier many times over, but we also have the possibility of converting an America B-1 bomber to a civilian aircraft or re-start the Concorde program, but this is where the U.K. has given way to the states again?

Concorde could seat 100-110 passengers, but the current jets 20 to a planed 60, costs may be the main factor, but a converted B-1 could seat 28+ for starts!

So all the hype gives us the impression that this is something new when it is not, but many younger people may be fooled into believing another lie, such as that of Boeing and Space-X being the only things developed over the defunct Space Shuttle that could do the job!

Red Sea Crises?

 Fuel at the petrol pump Rises?

Another Middle-East situation that has the potential to spread through the region, because the U.S. administration will not deal with Iran in the right way wither over the situation in Israel or proxy attacks on its own forces across the region!

Ships are being sunk, up to three have already been abandoned to the elements and one has gone down, but there remains no let up in the threats by the Houthis and despite bombing raids this weekend they will not give in?

Eventually the price at the pump will go up as shortages will come to the fore if Iran directly blocks the straits of Hormuz between Oman and Itself, causing a world crises that the International community will have to go to war with!

Concorde is too fly again!

 U.S. Competition is serious?

Over twenty years since Air France lost one aircraft after the Paris crash, this sleek and stylish dream machine was grounded, but now with new technology and the backing of perhaps Sir Richard Branson and others it is to be revived!

The U.S. is now in the field with a serious contender and there remains a big market for super-sonic speed and travel by the wealthy of this world, who want to get from A to B/Z quickly, with comfort, privacy and style?

It is not clear at this time with Concorde will remain a 100 seat aircraft, being slightly smaller to 90 seats in former French service or that it will be bigger, but new materials and fuels with electric conversion are all on the cards even to go hyper-sonic at some state, which will be interesting, even into limited space flight?

7/10/23.

 A new kind of warfare inspired by the U.S.Backed Ukraine.

How the scorpion always has a sting in its tail and this was proved on the morning of October 7th, when three thousand Hamas fighters and their affiliates poured in across the Gaza border fence into southern-Israel, deploying a armed flight wing of two man motorized para-gliders with their militants dressed in Israeli army uniforms.

Drones were also deployed and later backed up with mortar, short and long range rocket firing in to C-Israel, all of what happened on this Saturday morning was an almost U.S. copy book of what the Ukrainians were taught to do to the Russian in the eastern Ukraine?

900 Israeli civilians and 300 IDF soldiers were killed, it is unknown how many foreign workers died or were among the 300+ kidnapped!

Terrorism has moved on now to a new level of Para-gliding, speedboats and drones, apart from home-made rockets and the simple use of light weapons and more of this is to come, unless there are more restrictions on the use of these technologies!

Meanwhile the Arab Media is playing the same baby-children propaganda as in the Ukraine too to win the heart strings of the naive?

Modern Military Armour?

Since 2001 Decline of Information!

The worlds armour of today has become more technical than it ever was before, many new developments for the U.S./British Abrams/Challenger MBT (Main battle Tank) is now standard in all new armour and the world of the robotic drone is coming to the fore on the battlefield as much as in air power?

Automated drones will save the lives of soldiers in difficult places, but to what extent these vehicles are being deployed is not known! 

Most wars being fought today against militants in the Middle-East and C-Asia are light pick-ups known as ''Technicals'' and these are so light that aerial drones can pick them off the field!

Armour protection with Kevlar and many new materials are being deployed, but upgraded vehicles are nearly always based on existing system's !

China Rising!

Taking the world by Storm?

Our western media is not telling us the truth about China in that it is in decline, when actually it is rising! For a nation to get into Space on its own, while landscaping the Spratly Islands, taking the world market with its Huawai phones and has a strong aviation industry is not very weak and in decline?

The truth about China is that it has never really had a decline of empire or nation status, it is the oldest probably in the world and a lot of technology that we use today originated there in the first place! Rockets, fireworks, paper, porcelain, printing blocks and much more!

Today China has five aircraft carriers larger versions of the one Russia sold to it for a planned Casino, it has several stealth jets designs on the go and the MC-21 commercial airliner and other military hardware that can bee seen at the annual North-Korean military parades.

Despite the jealousy of Europe and the U.S. China has made it to the back of the Moon and the west in all their claims do not seem to be much of an issue in relation to the Uighur Concentration camps, despite seventy-four years of hypocrisy over the last Holocaust?

Happy New Year 2019!

Britain takes a lead in Electric Aircraft?

It would seem that the world is in a rush now to develop the electric engine in aviation and we here in the U.K. are making some leaps and bounds of our own? Norway, Poland, Israel and the U.S. have several of their own projects that we are hearing mush about, but so far they are limited in their viability!

Battery power has been around since the 19th Century, despite advances in Solar power cells and their adaption, the battery still remains the same in power outage and range! Space will perhaps help us replace the diesel engine, which has turned out to be more polluting than was once thought?

Yet about 85% of the worlds power is based on this engine alone, trains, trucks, farm machinery, construction and shipping! The task may look daunting but once electric engines are built on an industrial scale perhaps the world will be a cleaner place? 

Auxiliary Ships. Part-One

Replenishment at Sea!

Every navy needs and auxiliary fleet to keep it at sea and the British Royal navy, since being the first real power at sea perhaps since the Roman empire has some of the best expertise at this role?

Food is the essential need to survive at sea, post and communications is the other, but today it is fuel, fresh water and weapons supply that are the essentials.

There are many different types of vessels for these roles, from Ships like HMS Argus seen at Falmouth yard in Cornwall for re-fitting and others that are solely tankers either for chemicals or crude oil refuelling at sea.

Other roles are also undertaken by the auxiliary fleets and both Russia and the U.S. have now, with China built up their own to meet their own needs?

Canadian Bombardier CS100/300. Part-Two.

N-Ireland Costs.

It looks as if the deal with the DUP has now paid off with the probable closure of the Sydenham Bombardier works and the loss of two-thousand skilled jobs? The British government will not give in to the U.S. now that BAE has laid off workers in connection to its reduced production of Hawk and Typhoon jets, with a slump in the Persian Gulf sales department?

The U.S. will just keep increasing the tax tariffs on Canada, until they are re-assured that the U.S. aviation industry is secured. The one point of a thorn in the flesh is the Belfast plant and the incentives that have been poured into over the years peace-process or none the U.S do not care!

Canada's hope now lies in the world market, but these aircraft are up against similar competition by Brazils Embraer E-170.190/5, Russia's MC-21 and the  Sukhoi Superjet-100/200. Meanwhile both China and Japan are developing similar sized aircraft for their own markets?

Both Boeing and Airbus currently hold the world market in a very large range of aircraft, Boeing 737-6/700, Airbus A321neo, A319/18, that are all similar to the CS100/300?

But what Bombardier has, is that their aircraft meets the replacement criteria for the recently retired Boeing 737-300 series and its short runway ability? This does not mean its a STOL type, but rather it can handle smaller runways and airports, where other aircraft need longer runways?

Perhaps the real truth is U.S. Jealousy over missing a small advantage in the aviation market? AFRICA?

Canadian Bombardier CS100/300. Part-One.

Boeing Lawsuit!

This is the problem that one faces today in the aviation industry and business, that new aircraft types are being penalised by the new U.S. administration if they want to enter the U.S. market? The U.S., China and Russia dominate the world, because of land mass size and difficult environments from cold to hot and mountains to deserts!

The U.S. remains the most busiest air lanes in the world, after Europe and the Far-East, Boeing is perhaps the worlds largest supplier of both civil aircraft to military and its sees Bombardier over the border as serious competition in relation to several of its current models.

The Canadian CS100/300 is a breakthrough for Canada as its first viable Jet airliner, Bombardier is also successful in its business class Jets!. In recent years Swiss Air has seen a potential new market for the Bombardier biz jet in short haul and low seating capacity and the CS100 meets their needs.

Delta Airlines in the U.S. has also seen a gap in the market in relation to seating with the new Canadian jet and this will outdo Boeing in relation to their popular Boeing 737 family, types 600/700/800 and the newer version of the 900/MAX.

Submariners. Part-One.

Submarines, and Drones.

Many nations around the world still build, buy and use the submarine, technology has moved on with computing, nuclear power and drone ability? The early vessels were cramped and many crews on board died from fumes poisoning. The U.S lead with the first Holland Class vessels, which the British and many other nations copied and adapted.

But it was Imperial Germany that made the advances in the submariner world, with their own design which remained effective into the 1920's. With the advance of National-Socialism in Germany a new improved class of boats came into effect that was well ahead of all the nations.

Britain and the U.S. did catch up quickly during the second world war (1939-45), while others lagged behind such as Italy. It was the development of Sonar from Radar that gave Britain and the U.S the advantage of knowing where the enemy was. Many other nations opted for the Midget subs along with Britain and these small boats if they survived their missions could be quite effective, but they were really very limited?

From the Cold War era (1948-1994) it was the Soviet Union and the U.S.A that have dominated the design and construction of some seriously advanced vessels, while Britain and France have not been left out of the picture with their own. Nuclear powered vessels do not need to surface to be refuelled, they can remain hidden for months at great depths.

Advancements in miniaturization has allowed for drones of various type and robotic subs to be put into service doing dangerous work, without the cost of human life and losses.

The Motorbike. One.

A passion on two wheels!

The Motorbike has an interesting history and has been around over 100 years, its first hey day was perhaps World War-I (1914-18), when it was devised for dispatch riding and went on twenty-five years later to be an invaluable tool in military intelligence.

The concept was to motorise the bicycle and many original ideas are actually being re-invented today as we move into battery power over that of petrol. Racing bikes did develop better motorbikes between 1919-1939, but there was a plethora of makers, who took up their tooling after 1945.

Apart from the famous names of today Britain was one of the worlds leading producers and much of the 1950's technology went out to India, while the United States is most famous for the Harley. The motorbike of rockers and Hells Angel's chapters, or the road riders of many great motion movies.

New Life. Part-One.

Secondhand military Market.

Most of the worlds military forces have to decommission their stock after a number of years and these end up in storage. So begins the journey of a Newer Life for this equipment, refurbished and checked with perhaps a new paint scheme they are sold on to whoever the government permit them to go to.

U.S. machines have ended up in Afghanistan, the Balkans and Iraq, Meanwhile British vehicles are sold world-wide to both other military and also to missionary agencies. France, Germany, Spain and Italy follow suit.

Vehicles from Land rovers, Unimogs, trucks are the versatile types to sell on to both civil and military usage? MBT, armoured cars ARV's go along with artillery to developing countries. The sale of older type helicopters and training aircraft is very popular. The life span of most machines, with re-fits may be endless? 

Aircraft are a different subject, after withdrawal they have a limited time because of wing fatigue which is hard to detect and expensive to repair. The training jets such as BAE Hawks and French Alpha jets have done well.

Unmanned Craft. Part-One.

At Sea.

We tend to quickly forget that when we come to discuss unmanned its either in the air such as the U.S. Reaper or the Israel Scout drones or other Robotic devices used on land?

But there are as many equally strange under-water counterparts also and many of them have still never been seen from mini-subs (Midgets) to remote torpedoes?

In fact the first remote Torpedo was a development by a man called Brennan at the Chatham British Royal Naval yard in Kent, SE-England. U.K. From the expertise gathered by manned mini-subs during World War-II (1939-45), remote devices have proved very successful ever since.

Many more countries have developed their own types from the major powers, some are simple while others expensive and very complex.

Invisible Bombers. Part-One.

From the B1 to the F35.

Being invisible is a fantastic advantage over enemy radar and it would seem that the U.S has lead the way in the development of black ops and ghost radar or dark aircraft. Despite having sinister names for the types and the projects, many by know may be out of date.

The B1 strategic long-range supersonic bomber is the first line defence for the U.S, backed up by the B2. The F117 was a state of the art fighter up to the Yugoslavian war of collapse, but this has now been replaced by advanced fighters such as the F35.

Perhaps in the forthcoming war with Russia we will see how these types really operate against the TU-160 Blackjack and Sukhoi Su-50, Mikoyan-Gurevich Mig-35.