Agrégateur de flux

Summary and Key Points: The F-15 Silent Eagle (F-15SE) was developed by Boeing as a stealthier upgrade to the fourth-generation F-15, intended to compete with the more advanced and expensive fifth-generation F-35 Lightning II.

-First flown in 2010, the F-15SE featured conformal weapons bays, radar-absorbing materials, and reconfigured stabilizers to enhance stealth and extend range.

-Despite its innovative design and potential for cost savings, the Silent Eagle failed to attract buyers, with South Korea and Saudi Arabia opting for other aircraft. Consequently, the F-15SE was never produced, leaving its potential untapped.

F-15SE Silent Eagle: A Missed Opportunity for Cost-Effective Stealth

Stealth is the name of the modern air warfare game. The harder a bird is for enemy radar systems to detect, the better. 

The F-15SE, aka the Silent Eagle, was the Air Force’s quiet acknowledgement that its ubiquitous fourth-generation F-15 would need greater stealth capabilities to keep pace in the increasingly contested modern era. 

First flown in 2010, Boeing developed this upgraded fourth-generation warplane to better compete with Lockheed Martin’s pricier fifth-generation warplane, the F-35 Lightning II. 

The F-35 is not only a U.S. military warplane. It is one of Lockheed’s most important export systems as well. Boeing hoped to cut into that business by producing a stealthier variant of the F-15 that was highly effective, stealthy like the F-35, but far more affordable than the Lightning II. 

Interesting Features of the Silent Eagle

One of the most interesting upgrades for the Silent Eagle over its predecessors was its conformal weapons bays. These not only made the plane stealthier, but also meant that the bird could carry more missiles. 

All these increased capabilities helped to ensure the Silent Eagle’s excellence in the Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses operations that have come to define much of the F-15’s post-Cold War existence. 

Engineers on the Silent Eagle project made some adjustments to the F-15’s body as well. One thing they did was move the twin vertical stabilizers around so they were canted outward by 15 degrees. This modest change added nearly 100 miles to the F-15SE’s range. The Silent Eagle was coated in Radar Absorbent Materials (RAM), and this is where the aircraft was most innovative – and most interesting. 

The reason for the RAM coating was to help reduce the radar cross section of areas of the plane that were simply not stealthy. Remember, despite all the upgrades and changes to assorted F-15 variants, at its core the basic airframe remains the same. There are certain unchangeable features of the bird. 

The F-15 was not originally designed to be stealthy. It was designed for speed. But the RAM, while not making the Silent Eagle completely stealthy, certainly helped cut down on its visibility to enemy radar systems.

The F-15 Silent Eagle Isn’t Wanted

Sadly for Boeing, this sweet new F-15 variant was never purchased. Initially, the bird was developed as part of a larger deal with South Korea’s air force, but Seoul later opted for the F-35. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia expressed an initial interest in the Silent Eagle, but Riyadh chose to purchase F-15C and D variants. 

So neither the U.S. Air Force nor any of America’s major partners wanted to purchase this stealthier variant of the F-15. It died in the womb. It would have been interesting to have seen a small grouping of these warbirds purchased, if not by a foreign military, then by the United States, to see if they were worth greater investment. 

Certainly, they are not as advanced as the F-35 or F-22. But the F-15 Silent Eagle might have helped keep costs down while maintaining key capabilities for the Air Force. Alas, we will never know. 

About the Author 

Brandon J. Weichert, a National Interest national security analyst, is a former Congressional staffer and geopolitical analyst who is a contributor at The Washington Times, the Asia Times, and The-Pipeline. He is the author of Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower, Biohacked: China’s Race to Control Life, and The Shadow War: Iran’s Quest for Supremacy. His next book, A Disaster of Our Own Making: How the West Lost Ukraine, is due October 22 from Encounter Books. Weichert can be followed via Twitter @WeTheBrandon.

Image Credit: Creative Commons and/or Shutterstock. 

Summary and Key Points You Need to Know: The sequence of catastrophic accidents aboard U.S. Navy aircraft carriers in the 1960s, culminating in the devastating fire on the USS Enterprise in 1969, underscores the painful process of learning and implementing safety reforms in high-stakes environments.

-The Enterprise fire, triggered by the heat from a huffer unit that accidentally ignited a Zuni rocket, led to a chain reaction of explosions and fires that claimed 28 lives and injured 314 crew members.

-Despite the tragedy, the incident ultimately drove the Navy to critically reassess and improve its safety protocols, training, and equipment—changes that have helped prevent similar disasters in subsequent decades.

Lessons in Blood: The Tragic Fire Aboard USS Enterprise and the Evolution of Navy Safety

A series of collisions involving U.S. Navy destroyers in 2016 and 2017—including two incidents this summer that left sixteen sailors dead—have raised questions as to why the maritime fighting branch appears to be suffering the same accident again and again.

However, it can take time for organizations to learn from mistakes and implement solutions to deal with them. This fact was illustrated when it took no less than three catastrophic fires on U.S. aircraft carriers between 1966 and 1969 that killed more than 200 sailors before major reforms decisively improved safety onboard the giant flat tops. This final article in a three-part series looks at the last incident which occurred on the USS Enterprise.

All three of the disasters were triggered in part by rocket munitions. In 1966, a magnesium flare tossed into an ammunition locker caused rockets to detonate aboard the USS Oriskany, killing forty-four. Then in 1967, a Zuni rocket mounted on a fighter onboard the USS Forrestal accidentally launched due to a power surge, blasting into the side of an A-4 attack jet. This began a chain-reaction of detonating bombs and jet fuel that threatened to consume the conventionally-powered supercarrier.

However, these last two incidents occurred while the crew were undergoing the stress of launching dozens of jet aircraft a day into combat over Vietnam. Such was not the case for the USS Enterprise as she cruised seventy miles southwest of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on in January 1969. The 1,100-foot long Enterprise was the world’s first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. Escorted by the destroyer USS Rodgers and the missile cruiser USS Bainbridge, the supercarrier was undergoing flight drills in preparation for another deployment to Vietnam.

At 6:45 AM on January 14 the carrier began launching a mix of F-4J Phantom fighters, A-6 and A-7 attack planes, and E-2 and KA-3 support aircraft. By 8:15 AM there were a total of fifteen aircraft prepping for launch on the flight deck. These included Phantom fighter 405 which was loaded with six 500-pound Mark 82 bombs and two LAU-10 rocket-launching pods, each containing four unguided five-inch Zuni rockets. As usual, an MD-3A huffer—a tractor-mobile heating unit used to warm up jet-engines—was positioned on the starboard side of the fighter, ready to prepare for it takeoff.

However, several crewmen noticed that the exhaust from the huffer was gusting onto one of the Phantom’s rocket pods only two feet away. At that distance, the heat would have amounted to more than 320 degrees while Fahrenheit the huffer was idling. The crew were not trained to know the cook-off temperature of the weapons they were handling, but several mentioned their concern to a nearby ordnance chief and other personnel. However, they were either preoccupied with fusing bombs in time for launch, or he couldn’t hear what was being said over the noise of nearby jet engines. Despite four different surviving crewmen admitting afterwards that they were aware of the unsafe positioning of the huffer, nobody acted on the situation in time.

The Zuni rocket employed a Composition B warhead, composed of 60 percent RDX and 40 percent TNT mixed with wax that was prone to cooking off when exposed to roughly 350 degrees of heat. M65 bombs made of Composition B had inflicted the lion’s share of the damage in the Forrestal fire, and the navy was then in the process of converting to more stable Composition H6 munitions.

At 8:18 the exhaust heat triggered the fifteen-pound warhead of one of the Zuni rockets. The resulting blast ruptured the Phantom’s fuel tank, which poured burning JP-5 jet fuel onto the deck, catching three more Phantoms on fire. Amongst the first victims of the conflagration were two operators of the huffer unit and the F-4 pilot.

A horrible chain reaction unfolded, similar to that which had occurred on the USS Forrestal. The heat from the burning fuel caused three more Zuni rockets to explode after two minutes, blasting a hole into the aircraft hangar below—allowing burning jet fuel to pour in.

The devastation had only just begun. The growing blaze then caused a 500 pound bomb mounted on the Phantom to detonate, gouging an eight-foot diameter hole into the deck, setting off secondary fires three decks below.

In his definitive book on the incident, Enterprise crewman Michael Carlin recalled the moment:

Everyone was stunned by the explosion and the shrapnel that hit all about the island…. Both twin agent units [full of flame-retardant foam] were knocked out. Hoses flopped about wildly, geysering spumes of foam and salt water. Men were on fire, the wounded moved feebly, the dead were still.

As ordnance detonations rippled across the ship, a rack of three Mark 82 bombs detonated all at once, blowing out a giant eighteen by twenty-two foot hole in the deck and causing a large KA-3 tanker to ignite with thousands of gallons of fuel onboard, sending a massive fireball scything into damage control crews.

More than eighteen explosions would tear open the Enterprise’s deck in eight places. Fortunately, her crew reacted efficiently to combat the blaze. Her skipper, Captain Kent Lee, turned the ship portside into the wind to blow away smoke, while sailors rushed forwards to combat the fire despite the detonating munitions, managing to roll the remaining bombs off the deck into the ocean before they could catch fire. The destroyer Rodgers put herself at risk by slewing in closely beside the Enterprise in order to spray her down with fire hoses. The efforts paid off—despite suffering a total of eighteen ordnance detonations, the crew brought the fire under control after forty minutes, and extinguished it entirely by noon.

The raging blaze had injured 314 crewmen and killed twenty-eight. Fortunately, this was significantly lower number of fatalities than had occurred on the Oriskany and Forrestal. Indeed, Captain Lee attributed the lower death toll to firefighting lessons learned from the earlier catastrophes.

Twisted and scarred by the blaze, with fifteen of her jets reduced to smoldering wrecks, the Enterprise limped back into Pearl Harbor, where she underwent fifty-one days of repairs costing $126 million ($866 million in 2017 dollars). The venerable carrier went on to serve forty-three more years before being retired in 2012. As for Captain Kent Lee, he would play an important role in the development of the FA-18 Hornet fighter jet. He passed away this August of 2017.

The painfully won experience from the Enterprise fire inspired a final round of introspection from the navy, which you can read in the mandatory JAG investigation here. Prior to the fire, sailors were already aware of the danger posed by the huffer heating units to aircraft weapons, due to earlier, nonlethal incidents. The crew of the USS Constellation had even devised longer huffer hoses for safer use. However, this awareness did not lead to navy-wide policies which could have prevented the accident, and the ordnance crew on the Enterprise’s deck failed to react promptly to a deadly threat to their safety despite spotting it in advance.

The succession of devastating accidents in the 1960s cost hundreds of lives. However, they did have one positive aftereffect: they confronted the navy with major deficiencies with its safety culture, and forced it to implement serious reforms to training and upgrades to its equipment, including the installation of flight deck “wash down” systems and employing more stable munitions. While carrier operations remain an inherently dangerous business, there have so far not been any catastrophic accidents on the scale of those that occurred in the 1960s. Tragically, those lessons were paid for in blood before their importance was fully realized.

About the Author

Sébastien Roblin holds a master’s degree in conflict resolution from Georgetown University and served as a university instructor for the Peace Corps in China. He has also worked in education, editing and refugee resettlement in France and the United States. He currently writes on security and military history for War Is Boring.

All images are Creative Commons. 

Summary and Jey Points: In August, Ukraine took a bold step by invading Russia's Kursk Oblast, catching Moscow off guard. Ukrainian forces have made significant gains, threatening key areas, including a major nuclear power plant.

-Despite these advances, Ukraine faces challenges such as high attrition rates and a shortage of munitions, particularly in artillery, air defense, and long-range strike capabilities.

-U.S. military aid, resumed after a prolonged freeze, is arriving gradually, but Ukraine struggles to match Russia's overwhelming artillery firepower.

Pentagon Assesses Ukraine’s Kursk Offensive: Operational Gains, But Attrition Woes Continue

The invasion of Kursk is seen as a strategic move to draw Russian forces away from other fronts, giving Ukraine the operational initiative in the region. However, the conflict remains a battle of attrition, with Russia maintaining sufficient reserves to hold captured Ukrainian territory but unable to advance further.

In August, the Ukrainian military seized the initiative and invaded Russia’s Kursk Oblast. Moscow was caught off guard, thinking it was the only side that could invade other countries. In more than two weeks of fighting, Ukrainian forces have made significant gains, capturing several settlements and even threatening a major nuclear power plant. 

Military Aid, Artillery, and Operational Initiative in the Ukraine War

Despite its advance into Russia, the Ukrainian military faces important challenges, including attrition and lack of munitions. 

The Pentagon’s Inspector General's Office published a series of assessments on the course of the war by the Defense Intelligence Agency. 

“The UAF continued to suffer heavy attrition rates and lack sufficient capabilities and munitions—particularly artillery, air defense, and long-range strike capabilities—to overcome Russia’s air and ground advantages,” the DIA assessed.

A fierce domestic political debate in Congress froze security aid to Ukraine for over a year. In April, Congress passed a bill approving military assistance to Kyiv worth over $60 billion. Kyiv won’t receive this sum all at once. Rather, it will get periodic packages of security aid according to its needs. Weapons systems and munitions didn’t begin to arrive in Ukraine until early June. 

And yet the Russian forces continue to enjoy fire superiority. Despite resumed military aid from the U.S. and a steady influx of weapons and munitions from other countries, the Ukrainian military can’t match the Russian forces’ daily rate of approximately 10,000 rounds of artillery fire. As we have discussed here at The National Interest, artillery remains the king of the battle. As many as 90% of casualties on both sides have been caused by artillery fire. As such, gaining artillery superiority is key to winning the war. 

The DIA assessed that “Ukraine probably remains capable of continuing defensive operations but not conducting large-scale counteroffensives for at least the next 6 months, according to the DIA.” 

Clearly, the Pentagon doesn’t consider the invasion of Kursk Oblast to be a large-scale operation. And indeed the Ukrainians don’t consider it as such. According to Ukrainian defense officials, the main goal of the foray into Russia is to draw Russian units from other parts of the contact line, thus lessening the pressure on Ukrainian defenders, but also creating the conditions for future Ukrainian counteroffensives. 

By invading Kursk Oblast, the Ukrainian military seized the operational initiative in that part of the contact line and is now dictating the course of the battle. 

According to the DIA, the Russian military retains sufficient reserves to maintain the buffer zone it has created by capturing large swaths of Ukrainian territory, but not enough forces to advance deeper into Ukraine. 

“Russia is deliberately exploiting its quantitative advantage to exhaust Ukraine. Russia’s current pace of offensives is designed to seize additional Ukrainian territory, especially in Donetsk, albeit at high personnel and equipment costs,” the DIA assessed. 

About the Author: 

Stavros Atlamazoglou is a seasoned defense journalist specializing in special operations and a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ). He holds a BA from the Johns Hopkins University and an MA from the Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). His work has been featured in Business Insider, Sandboxx, and SOFREP.

Image Credit: Creative Commons and/or Shutterstock.

A few wedge issues could help determine who ends up in the White House.

Aujourd’hui, Abdelhak Saihi, ministre de la Santé, a souligné l’urgence de réguler l’usage des antibiotiques en raison de leur utilisation abusive. Il a insisté sur […]

L’article Santé : les antibiotiques bientôt interdits à la vente sans ordonnance est apparu en premier sur .

« Les Américains sont essorés par les grandes banques et les élites financières depuis trop longtemps », a écrit ce jeudi le candidat républicain à l'élection présidentielle américaine sur X et son réseau social Truth Social. « Il est temps que nous résistions, ensemble », a-t-il ajouté.

Ce mercredi, l’artiste de renommée franco-algérien DJ Snake a manifesté sa contrariété après que l’une de ses chansons, « Turn Down for What », ait été utilisée lors […]

L’article Présidentielles US : l’artiste algérien DJ Snake critique l’utilisation non autorisée de sa musique est apparu en premier sur .

C'est le président Nicolas Maduro lui-même qui avait saisi début août le Tribunal supérieur de justice (TSJ) pour faire valider sa victoire. L'opposition, qui revendique la victoire, avait déclaré « nulle et non avenue » toute décision de la haute juridiction sur le sujet

Picking Tim Walz as her running mate signals that Kamala Harris is all-in on the post-neoliberal shift.

Summary and Key Points: The Sukhoi Su-35 "Flanker," designed as an advanced multirole fighter for air superiority and precise ground strike missions, has faced significant challenges in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

-Despite its advanced technology and capabilities, including enhanced maneuverability, improved radar systems, and powerful engines, the Su-35 has struggled to establish air superiority over Ukraine.

-Recent reports highlight the downing of multiple Su-35s, with Russian forces suffering heavy losses in the conflict. The aircraft's performance issues underscore the broader difficulties facing Russia's military efforts in Ukraine.

Su-35 Fighter Jet Struggles in Ukraine: Advanced Russian Aircraft Fails to Dominate the Skies

The Sukhoi Su-35 “Flanker” was designed to serve as an advanced multirole fighter that could establish air superiority and execute precise ground strike missions.

Yet, over the skies of Ukraine, the Su-35 has struggled to survive.

Failing to establish air superiority

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has made Russian President Vladimir Putin and his regime the pariahs of the international community. Simultaneously, the invasion, which has dragged on ineffectively for over two years, has invited scrutiny of Russia’s military machine.

The fact is that the invasion did not go as planned or expected for Russian forces; Russia was supposed to be able to make significant territorial gains and secure airspace over the warzone. Yet, as the conflict enters its third year, neither objective has been accomplished.

Russia’s inability to win the airspace over Ukraine is one of the ingredients that has led to a war of attrition, stagnant and viscously fought, where both sides have suffered immense casualties. Russia especially has endured heavy losses with respect to its tanks, troops, and aircraft. One of the aircraft that Russia has had trouble keeping airborne against the pesky Ukrainians is the Su-35.

Derived from the Su-27

The Su-35 is derived from the Su-27. Yet, the Su-35 is visually discernible from its predecessor thanks to canards placed forward of the wings on the fuselage. The Su-35’s canards, plus a reshaped wing leading-edge extension, allow for the redirection of airflow—which has solved a buffeting problem that plagued the Su-27 during flight at high angles of attack.

The Su-35 can sustain flight at up to 10gs with the updated flight surfaces. Its flight surfaces, along with a sophisticated fly-by-wire system, allow the jet to achieve enhanced maneuverability over its predecessor.

Additional upgrades include a new weapons-control system featuring a phase-arrayed radar with pulse-Doppler tracking, known as the N011 Bars. The new N011 Bars allows the Su-35 to track targets below the horizon—which enhances the Su-35’s ability to interact with ground-based targets. Indeed, the N011 offers a significant upgrade over the N001 Myech radar found on the Su-27. Whereas the N001 could only track ten targets and fire two missiles simultaneously, the N011 can track fifteen targets and fire six missiles simultaneously.

With two Saturn Al-41F1S turbofan engines providing 30,900 pounds of thrust each (with afterburner engaged), the Su-35 can reach a top speed of Mach 2.25.

The Su-35 Fighter Is in Trouble over Ukraine While the Su-35 has an impressive array of technological features, the jet has none the less struggled to survive during the Russia-Ukraine war. In the last few months, multiple Su-35s have been shot down, one of which was off the coast of Sevastopol, Crimea.

“Footage online showed a jet on fire, spiraling into the sea and exploding,” reported The Guardian. “The Russian-installed governor of the illegally occupied region, Mikhail Razvoshayev, said on Thursday the pilot ejected and was picked up by rescuers but have no details as to the cause of the crash.”

While the exact cause of the Sevastopol crash may not be clear, the incident is hardly isolated. In February alone, Ukrainian forces downed thirteen Russian aircraft—two of which were the Su-35. “The Russian air force has lost 95 jets since February 2022,” Forbes reported. “That’s four per month.” Yet, in February 2024, “the air force has written off warplanes at a rate of 60 per month.”

About the Author: Harrison Kass

Harrison Kass is a defense and national security writer with over 1,000 total pieces on issues involving global affairs. An attorney, pilot, guitarist, and minor pro hockey player, Harrison joined the US Air Force as a Pilot Trainee but was medically discharged. Harrison holds a BA from Lake Forest College, a JD from the University of Oregon, and an MA from New York University. Harrison listens to Dokken.

Image Credit: Shutterstock and Creative Commons. 

Recent events in Bangladesh show how the Hindu nationalist project has harmed India’s regional interests.

DÉCRYPTAGE - Le président de la République croit encore possible de dégager une coalition, six semaines après des législatives anticipées perdues par son camp.

DÉCRYPTAGE - Ce mercredi, l’ancienne première ministre a annoncé vouloir briguer la direction du parti présidentiel, également visée par Gabriel Attal.

A 2,492-carat stone has been unearthed, in the biggest find since the Cullinan diamond in 1905.

Nigeria striker Victor Boniface is eager to help Bayer Leverkusen reach new heights after going unbeaten to win a domestic double last season.

Summary and Key Points: The MiG-35 Fulcrum, Russia's 4.5-generation multirole fighter jet developed by Mikoyan, has failed to live up to its anticipated legacy. Despite being an upgrade to the MiG-29 series and boasting advanced radar capabilities, the MiG-35 has seen limited production and no combat testing, even amidst Russia's ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

The aircraft has struggled to attract foreign buyers, likely due to a lack of operational use and the impact of international sanctions. The MiG-35's challenges highlight the difficulties Russia faces in maintaining its position in the global defense market.

MiG-35 Fulcrum: The Russian Fighter Jet That Failed to Impress

Russian aerospace giant Mikoyan has produced some of the world’s most capable aircraft. 

The Kremlin and Mikoyan would claim that the MiG-35 Fulcrum is a worthy continuation of a Russian air combat legacy stretching back to World War Two. But facts beg to differ. 

The MiG-35 Fulcrum Fighter Jet

A 4.5-generation multirole fighter jet, the MiG-35 is an upgrade to the MiG-29M/M2 and MiG-29K/KUB fighter jets. Its NATO designation is “Fulcrum-F.”

The MiG-29M is the advanced multirole version of the aircraft with a new airframe, a fly-by-wire system, and new, more powerful engines. The M2 is the two-seat version of the MiG-29M, with almost identical capabilities to the one-seater. 

The MiG-29K is the naval version of the aircraft and sports folding wings, arrestor gear, and a reinforced landing gear so the fighter jet can operate from aircraft carriers. The aircraft also has some low observability features – not amounting to full stealth – mainly radar-absorbing paint coatings. The KUB is the two-seat version of the MiG-29K with identical performance to the one-seater. 

The MiG-35 was first presented in 2017 during an international air show in Moscow. Since then, there has been little to show for all the marketing behind the aircraft. Although the MiG-35 entered operational service in 2019, Mikoyan has produced only a few of these fighter jets.  

According to Russian defense officials, the MiG-35 fighter jet sports advanced radar capabilities and an overall superior performance compared to its predecessors. They claim its capabilities can even match the U.S. F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter. As is often the case with Russian assertions, these claims are very likely inaccurate, or gross exaggerations. 

MiG-35: Operationally Untested, Internationally Unmarketable 

To begin with, the MiG-35 is completely untested. The likely limited operational fleet of MiG-35 fighter jets hasn’t seen any combat to test its capabilities, unlike the F-35. Despite more than 900 days of fighting in Ukraine, the Russian Aerospace Forces have yet to deploy the new fighter jet in the conflict. And it is not like the Russian military can’t use the help. 

Although air combat is relatively rare in the war due to the prevalence of strong air defense weapon systems on both sides, the Ukrainian Air Force has been using fighter jets equipped with long-range munitions to take out key Russian logistical functions. Right now, for example, Ukrainian fighter jets are destroying bridges in the Kursk Oblast to trap Russian units and prevent an influx of reinforcements. Russian fighter jets, however, are largely absent. 

The MiG-35 was developed with an eye toward foreign exports, but it hasn’t attracted as much interest from foreign buyers as the Kremlin would like. This is likely the result of a lack of operational testimonials combined with international sanctions on Russia. Russian foreign military exports have dropped significantly since the war began, and the poor performance of Russian weapon systems and munitions in the fighting has reduced the overall marketability of Moscow’s military wares. 

About the Author 

Stavros Atlamazoglou is a seasoned defense journalist specializing in special operations and a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ). He holds a BA from the Johns Hopkins University and an MA from the Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). His work has been featured in Business Insider, Sandboxx, and SOFREP.

Image Credit: Creative Commons and/or Shutterstock. 

Herbert Raymond McMaster affirme dans ses mémoires que le président russe manipulait l’ego de l’ancien président américain en s’appuyant sur ses failles. Le Guardian s’est procuré une copie du livre, qui paraîtra le 27 août.

Summary and Key Points: China's People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has reportedly launched its most advanced diesel-electric submarine, sparking interest and concern among naval analysts. Though details are scarce, satellite images suggest the new submarine could be a variant of the Type 039A-C, featuring advanced technologies like a Vertical Launch System (VLS).

-If confirmed, the VLS would significantly enhance the submarine's capabilities, allowing it to carry a variety of missiles, including land attack and anti-ship ballistic missiles.

-This development reflects China's continued expansion and modernization of its submarine fleet, raising questions about the strategic implications for regional and global security.

China Has a New Submarine – Should We Worry?

Earlier this year, China's People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) reportedly launched its most advanced diesel-electric submarine to date. The boat was floated out in April, but few details about the submarine are actually known. China, unlike most nations, launches its submarines with little to no fanfare. Beijing has made no official announcement about the submarine, and details are sparse.

Spotted by Satellite 

The submarine was first spotted in satellite photos taken soon after it was launched. It could be a new variant of the Type 039A-C.

Tom Shugart, a former U.S. Navy submariner and naval analyst, noted the presence of the boat in July, and posted on X: "I recently acquired this interesting image of the shipyard from 26 April 2024. On the left, you can see what appears to be a freshly-launched Hangor II-class submarine, the 1st of 8 being built for Pakistan. You can also see the other, possibly new class of boat."

The PLAN continues to expand its fleet of non-nuclear-powered submarines. Newsweek cited U.S. Department of Defense estimates that 25 or more Yuan-class submarines could be produced by the end of 2025, while Beijing could operate as many as 80 submarines by the mid-2030s.

Naval analyst H I Sutton, writing for Naval News on Wednesday, further reported that, "The new boat is larger than existing ones and is the first in the country to feature X-form rudders. There are indications that it may have a vertical launch system (VLS)."

Sutton indicated the newly launched boat "has similar proportions to its forward section as the Yuan." That could suggest that the submarine's forward hull, where the sonar and torpedo room are located, would also be similar. But the hull section behind the sub's sail was "significantly longer," which could suggest the presence of a VLS, something that certainly wasn't present on existing variants of the PLAN's Yuan class.

Vertical Launch Systems Would Enhance the Boat's Capabilities 

A VLS is common on surface ships – such as the U.S. Navy's Arleigh Burke-class destroyers and Ticonderoga-class cruisers – and on nuclear-powered submarines. Many of America’s and Russia's nuclear-powered submarines are equipped with VLS.

The presence of a VLS is far less common on diesel-electric boats, which are smaller. Introducing a VLS onto a conventionally powered boat would add to the types of armament the attack submarines carry. These could include land attack missiles too large to launch through a boat's torpedo tubes, as well as anti-ship ballistic missiles.

"The trend in non-nuclear submarines has been set by the South Korean KSS-III and Israeli Drakon Class. If this new submarine does have a VLS behind the sail it can likely accommodate between four and eight missiles, depending on their diameter," wrote Sutton. "China has been experimenting with VLS on submarines since the introduction of the Type-032 Qing class test boat. This has four small diameter VLS tubes forward of the sail. These were recently modified with a raised deck over them, suggesting a new missile is being tested."

No doubt the U.S. Navy – and likely other powers – will be watching closely, trying to glean any additional insight on this new PLAN submarine.

Author Experience and Expertise: Peter Suciu 

Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.

Image Credit: DoD Image of older Chinese Kilo-Class Submarine. 

Avec le réchauffement climatique, un nombre croissant de personnes, surtout parmi les plus pauvres, souffrent de la chaleur chez elles. Une situation encore négligée par les pouvoirs publics, dénonce la Fondation abbé Pierre.

Breznóbánya terén nemrég egy páncéltörő ágyút helyeztek el, amely mellett egy fotókiállítást is nyitottak az 1938 és 1945 közötti időszak eseményeiről.