The Falcon bit the dust after 9 minutes, as did the first time they tried this.
Mach5 is the point we can not get past, it is very unstable to fly anything past that.
surely they will attempt it again in the future when they can get some funding in order.
The Los Angeles Times
A test flight of an experimental aircraft traveling at 20 times the speed of sound ended prematurely Thursday morning when the arrowhead-shaped vehicle failed and stopped sending back real-time data to engineers and scientists who were monitoring the mission.
The unmanned aircraft, dubbed Falcon Hypersonic Technology Vehicle 2, was meant to test new technologies that could give the Pentagon the capability to deliver non-nuclear military strikes anywhere on the globe in less than an hour.
But the Falcon's test flight ended prematurely and it plunged into the Pacific Ocean. It was the second and last scheduled flight for the Falcon program, which began in 2003 and cost taxpayers about $320 million. Both flights failed to go the distance.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Falcon hypersonic vehicle test flight fails
Monday, January 31, 2011
Sikhs hope to take edge off over ceremonial dagger in Plymouth-Canton school
"It's not an assault weapon," said Tejkiran Singh, 47, of Canton, a Sikh community leader. "It's so small, so blunt. ... The whole purpose of wearing it is that it's a reminder of our spirituality."
So this came about in December, when a young kid brought a Kirpan to school with him.
What is a Kirpan you say, Not much just a ceremonial knife.
boys, after being baptised in the Sikh religion, are required to wear one at all times.
but... you are not supposed to bring weapons or anything resembling a weapon to school.
Ah but the school superintendent even said,
"the right of all students to practice their religion and wear religious symbols," the district will ban "all religious emblems that resemble a weapon."
Nice eh? To bad they just said that they can wear them in school now.
I guess if some of the Hezbollah supporters that live in Dearbornistan, send their kids to school with "Non working suicide vests" it will be O.K., you know they aren't real!
How about a mock AK-47, some Islamists praise those so much they put them on their Flag!
The Detroit Free Press
Tensions over a Sikh boy who brought a religious sword to an elementary school have prompted a public meeting tonight to introduce the Sikh religion to metro Detroiters.
Last month, controversy erupted after a fourth-grade boy at Bentley Elementary in Canton was found with a 3- to 5-inch saber.
After they are baptized, Sikh males are expected to carry the religious symbol, called a kirpan. The principal initially decided to allow the boy to have it, since it had a blunt edge and was a religious item. The district did not identify the boy.
But after concerns expressed by parents and a legal review, the Plymouth-Canton Community Schools district decided to ban the kirpan because it violated local, state and federal polices against bringing weapons or items that look like weapons to school.
That concerned some Sikh parents, who say the kirpan is a nonthreatening item that symbolizes their commitment to fighting against evils, such as greed. Similar disputes have erupted in other parts of the U.S.
"It's not an assault weapon," said Tejkiran Singh, 47, of Canton, a Sikh community leader. "It's so small, so blunt. ... The whole purpose of wearing it is that it's a reminder of our spirituality."
Monday, November 29, 2010
U.S. Army Unveils 'Revolutionary' XM25 Rifle
With explosive rounds that can be detonated right in front of or behind their intended target the Taliban will not be happy about these guns.
Foxnews
Since the dawn of modern warfare, the best way to stay alive in the face of incoming fire has been to take cover behind a wall. But thanks to a game-changing "revolutionary" rifle, the U.S. Army has made that tactic dead on arrival. Now the enemy can run, but he can't hide.
After years of development, the U.S. Army has unleashed a new weapon in Afghanistan -- the XM25 Counter Defilade Target Engagement System, a high-tech rifle that can be programmed so that its 25-mm. ammunition does not necessarily explode on impact. Instead, it can be set to detonate either in front of or behind a target, meaning it literally will go through a wall before it explodes and kills the enemy.
It also has a range of roughly 2,300 feet -- nearly the length of eight football fields -- making it possible to fire at targets well past the range of the rifles and carbines that most soldiers carry today.
Watch the Video
Sunday, June 20, 2010
U.S. Testing Pain Ray in Afghanistan
The Pain Ray ?
Sitting in Afghanistan this puppy is doing no good , It must be put to use , I'm sure the Military can find a few Guinea pigs ( Taliban ) To try it out on ! 
Wired
The U.S. mission in Afghanistan centers around swaying locals to its side. And there’s no better persuasion tool than an invisible pain ray that makes people feel like they’re on fire.
OK, OK. Maybe that isn’t precisely the logic being employed by those segments of the American military who would like to deploy the Active Denial System to Afghanistan. I’m sure they’re telling themselves that the generally non-lethal microwave weapon is a better, safer crowd control alternative than an M-16. But those ray-gun advocates better think long and hard about the Taliban’s propaganda bonanza when news leaks of the Americans zapping Afghans until they feel roasted alive.
Because, apparently, the Active Denial System is “in Afghanistan for testing.”
An Air Force military officer and a civilian employee at the Air Force Research Laboratory are just two of the people telling Danger Room co-founder Sharon Weinberger that the vehicle-mounted “block 2″ version of the pain ray is in the warzone, but hasn’t been used in combat.
Read More http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/06/u-s-testing-pain-ray-in-afghanistan/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+wired%2Findex+%28Wired%3A+Index+3+%28Top+Stories+2%29%29#ixzz0rS57bl00
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
2 in Custody at Florida Air Force Base
What idiots .
It takes a lot of nerve to try and do something as stupid as this .
Obviously these two just wanted to go shoot some guns with the US Military , maybe hang out a little while ,you know , have a good time !
NYTimes
A man and a woman were taken into custody Monday evening after they tried to gain unauthorized access to MacDill Air Force Base outside Tampa, Fla., and weapons were found in their vehicle, military officials said.
The base is home to the United States Central Command, which oversees the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The pair tried to enter the base around 5 p.m. through the base’s Bayshore Boulevard gate, said Senior Airman Katherine B. Holt, a spokeswoman for the base. When they were unable to show proper identification, their vehicle was inspected and security personnel found military-style weapons and gear inside, officials said.
Members of the base’s fire department and an explosives unit were summoned, but no explosives were found, the base said in a statement. Later, officials said the Bayshore gate was closed, as it normally is at night, and the rest of the base was operating normally.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Video: The deadliest army weapoon
Meet the XM-25 Individual Airburst Weapon, a weapon that can fire 25mm HE rounds that explode at a distance set by the soldier. Afghan veterans who tried out the new weapon called it a 'game changer' and the Green Berets will be introducing the taliban to the Army's newest weapon. Military.com
Friday, April 30, 2010
German police say pigs find WWII anti-tank weapon
65 Years later !
El Paso Times
BERLIN—German police said a couple of hungry pigs digging for food came nose-to-nose with a long-buried World War II anti-tank weapon. Police said Friday the two pigs found the single-shot "panzerfaust" on private land southwest of Dresden. The pigs' owner secured the animals in their stall then called police who were able to remove the weapon and destroy it.
The inexpensive and easy-to-operate panzerfaust was used extensively during the defense of Germany and through the rest of the war. Such finds are still relatively common, even 65 years after the end of the war.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
North Korea's Kim pledges to remove nuclear weapons
And this should be believed this time Because ...?
SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea's leader pledged again to remove nuclear weapons from the peninsula, a news report said Tuesday, and also sent his top nuclear envoy to Beijing in a move that could bode well for stalled disarmament talks.
While Kim Jong-il has made, and broken, similar pledges before, analysts said pressure has been mounting through U.N. sanctions imposed after its nuclear test last year, as well as a botched currency reform that the South said sparked inflation and rare civil unrest.
China's Xinhua news agency said Kim reiterated his country's "persistent stance to realize the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula" during a meeting Monday with senior Chinese official Wang Jiarui.
North Korea's top nuclear negotiator, Kim Kye-gwan, arrived in Beijing Tuesday, suggesting a possible resumption of stalled discussions hosted by China and including Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States.
"Dispatching Kim Kye-gwan indicates that some sort of understanding is being worked out between China and North Korea on restarting the nuclear talks," said Cheong Seong-Chang, a senior fellow at the Sejong Institute think tank near Seoul.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Iranian busted for trying to smuggle US weapons to Mullahcracy
H/T: GM (RoA's Iran expert) who wrote to me:
This is very informative: (a) The Mullahcracy is determined that there will be a war (b) Apparently the Chinese, Korean and Russian systems that the regime has procured are substandard otherwise the regime wouldn't be so desperate to bring back to life old American equipment from Shah's era.
U.S. authorities revealed today that an international sting operation resulted in the apprehension of Amir Ardebili, an Iranian arms dealer who was smuggling American weapons to his native country. U.S. authorities say he was working for the government of Iran More... Ardebili believed that he was helping to prepare for war between American and Iran.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Soviet Russia had plans for own Star Wars system
According to Soviet space scholar Asif Siddiqi, a historian at Fordham University in New York City, Moscow began working on space-based weapons well before Reagan kicked the U.S. program into high gear with his March 23, 1983 Star Wars speech. "[The Soviets] funded two massive R&D studies in the late 1970s and early 1980s to explore how to counter imaginary American missile defense ideas," he says. Two concepts emerged: Skif—a laser "cannon" in orbit—and another weapon known as Kaskad (Cascade), designed to destroy an enemy's satellites with missiles fired from another craft in orbit.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Video shows taliban with US ammo
This isn't the first report of the taliban possessing American weapons and ammo. Ammunition destined for the Afghan security forces is occasionally diverted to the taliban by sympathizers within the Afghan forces. The taliban also regularly raid NATO supply convoy traveling from Pakistan to Afghanistan. Oh yeah, and a lot of that ammonium nitrate, fertilizer, used for road side bombs was destined for Afghan farmers who either use it to grow opium or give it to the taliban.
From Yahoo! News
KABUL – Television footage broadcast Tuesday showed insurgents handling what appears to be U.S. ammunition in a remote area of eastern Afghanistan that American forces left last month following a deadly firefight that killed eight troops.[...]Here's the video from al Jazeera.
The Al-Jazeera video showed insurgents handling weapons, including anti-personnel mines with U.S. markings on them, but it was unclear when the video had been filmed. The television station reported that insurgents said they seized the weapons from two U.S. remote outposts in Nuristan province.
The ammunition could be used against U.S. and Afghan forces, although the amount shown was not extensive. However, the footage will no doubt be used by insurgent propagandists to promote their "victory" over the Americans and encourage their supporters.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
IDF forces discover ship with 100s of tonnes of weapons and ammo bound for Syria and Hizbollah
Special Israeli Defense Forces have uncovered a massive cache of advance weapons on board a cargo ship headed for Syria. The weapons are believed to have been sent from Iran destined for Syria and Hizbollah.
Some of the advanced weapons included anti-aircraft missiles, Katyusha rockets, mortars, grenades and of course AK-47s. Up to 500 tonnes of weapons may have been seized.
From Jerusalem Post
Special Navy forces discovered a massive amount of weapons and ammunition on a cargo ship some 100 nautical miles west of Israel overnight Tuesday after boarding the vessel, which was flying an Antiguan flag.[...]
Hundreds of tons of weaponry were on board in dozens of containers, they said.
A significant amount of 122-millimeter Katyusha rockets, likely made in Iran, assault rifles, mortar shells and grenades were found on board, added the officials.
Israel Radio reported that advanced anti-aircraft platforms never before found in the region were also on board. [...]
According to the officials, the vessel carried advanced weaponry including missiles, and the incident was apparently 10 times in scope to the seizing of the Karine A ship intercepted in January 2002 off the coast of Gaza. That boat carried some 50 tons of military equipment including Katyusha rockets, antitank missiles, and high explosives.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
German ship caught smuggling Iranian arms to Syria
US soldiers discovered a German container ship smuggling 7.62 mm ammunition to Syria from Iran. The ammunition was most likely destined for Hizbollah. Currently Germany along with the US, Britain and France are calling for tougher sanctions against Iran in light of their refusal to stop uranium enrichment for nuclear weapons.
A German diplomat was quoted as saying this was "an embarrassing affair". That might be a tad of an understatement. Germany while calling for tougher sanctions against Iran, which threatens to wipe Israel of the global map, is smuggling Iranian arms destined for Hizbollah who's sole purpose is to destroy Israel. Haaretz
American soldiers stationed in the Gulf of Suez discovered containers of ammunition aboard a German-owned cargo ship allegedly transporting the arms from Iran to Syria, the influential German daily newspaper Der Spiegel reported on Monday.
The newspaper quoted a German diplomat as saying that the incident represents "an embarrassing affair" for Berlin, the consequences of which could be troublesome for trans-Atlantic relations.
The ammunition, which comprised 7.62 millimeter bullets suitable for Kalashnikov rifles, is believed to have been intended for either the Syrian army or Hezbollah.
U.S. soldiers boarded the freighter Hansa India, which is registered to a Hamburg-based shipping company known as Leonhardt & Blumberg, according to Der Spiegel.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Weapons failing our soldiers in heat of battle
"The M4 has served us well but it's not as good as it needs to be,
From My Way
WASHINGTON (AP) - In the chaos of an early morning assault on a remote U.S. outpost in eastern Afghanistan, Staff Sgt. Erich Phillips' M4 carbine quit firing as militant forces surrounded the base. The machine gun he grabbed after tossing the rifle aside didn't work either.
When the battle in the small village of Wanat ended, nine U.S. soldiers lay dead and 27 more were wounded. A detailed study of the attack by a military historian found that weapons failed repeatedly at a "critical moment" during the firefight on July 13, 2008, putting the outnumbered American troops at risk of being overrun by nearly 200 insurgents.[...]
The soldiers said their weapons were meticulously cared for and routinely inspected by commanders. But still the weapons had breakdowns, especially when the rifles were on full automatic, which allows hundreds of bullets to be fired a minute.
The platoon-sized unit of U.S. soldiers and about two dozen Afghan troops was shooting back with such intensity the barrels on their weapons turned white hot. The high rate of fire appears to have put a number of weapons out of commission, even though the guns are tested and built to operate in extreme conditions.
Cpl. Jonathan Ayers and Spc. Chris McKaig were firing their M4s from a position the soldiers called the "Crow's Nest." The pair would pop up together from cover, fire half a dozen rounds and then drop back down.
On one of these trips up, Ayers was killed instantly by an enemy round. McKaig soon had problems with his M4, which carries a 30-round magazine.
"My weapon was overheating," McKaig said, according to Cubbison's report. "I had shot about 12 magazines by this point already and it had only been about a half hour or so into the fight. I couldn't charge my weapon and put another round in because it was too hot, so I got mad and threw my weapon down."
The soldiers also had trouble with their M249 machine guns, a larger weapon than the M4 that can shoot up to 750 rounds per minute.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
US Congress quietly approves fast tracting Super Bunker Buster Bomb
Congress has quietly approved to fast track the deployment of the BGU-57A/B or Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP). The Pentagon plans to rush the deployment of 10 BGU-57A/B "bunker buster" bombs by June 2010. The MOP is so enormous that it can only be delivered by a B-52 or a B-2A. In fact, the B-2 bombers will need to be refitted in order to carry two MOPs.
The MOP weighs in at a whopping 30,000 pounds, it's warhead weighs in at 5,300 pounds and it can penetrate 200 ft (61 m) of 5,000 psi (34 MPa) reinforced concrete, 26 ft (8 m) of 10,000 psi (69 MPa) reinforced concrete, or 130 ft (40 m) of moderately hard rock.
The bell tolls for thee Ahmadinejad. Energy Publisher
The Pentagon is accelerating by three years plans for a super bunker buster, the GBU-57A/B or Massive Ordnance Penetrator or MOP, a powerful new bomb aimed squarely at the underground nuclear facilities of Iran and North Korea. The gargantuan bomb—longer than 11 persons standing shoulder-to-shoulder or more than 20 feet base to nose, weighs 30,000 pounds. Some 18 percent of its total weight is comprised of explosives.
Guided by a precision GPS system, the MOP can penetrate an unprecedented 200 feet down before exploding with devastation into an underground bunker, such as those buried in Iran and North Korea currently used to shield rogue nuclear programs. Now Congress has quietly advanced $68 million into the 2009 budget to accelerate the purchase and deployment of ten such super bunker busters making clear they are for possible use against the regimes in Iran or North Korea. Pentagon planners are rushing to beat by months the latest June 2010 deadline for just four such bombs, and have been subsequently directed to increase the number of MOPs to at least ten.
In early July 2009, the Defense Department told a Congressional committee that the MOP was the "weapon of choice" for an “urgent operational need” enunciated by both the U.S. Pacific Command, tasked with North Korea, and the Central Command, tasked with Iran. In doing so, the Pentagon accelerated the program by three years.
The GBU-57A/B MOP is so immense it can only be carried by either a B-52 or a B2a Stealth bomber. The weapon’s explosive power is 10 times greater than its predecessor, the BLU-109. Moreover, the GBU-57A/B MOP is one third heavier than the MOAB dubbed the Mother of All Bombs.
Monday, September 21, 2009
US weapons falling into the hands of al Shabaab
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had authorized $10 million in aid to the Somali government in order to purchase 40 tonnes of weapons and munitions from Uganda which in turn was supplied by the US. Turns out that some of the weapons and munitions are falling into the hands of al Qaida linked al Shabaab. Globe & Mail
As the Somalia conflict spirals into a new proxy war between al-Qaeda and the United States, there is mounting evidence that U.S. weapons and Somali soldiers are ending up under the control of Islamic terrorists, Somali politicians say.[...]
The United States has pumped at least 40 tonnes of weapons into Somalia in recent months to help the government fight the Islamic warriors who are linked to al-Qaeda. But the Somali army is so weak and ill-trained that its soldiers have begun defecting to the Islamists and their U.S.-supplied weapons are being traded to the insurgents, known as al-Shabab, the politicians say.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Officials: Discovery of Weapons Cache Suggests Iranian Meddling in Afghan War
Fox news....
The discovery of a weapons cache in western Afghanistan has raised concerns that Iran is interfering in the war-torn country, much like it did in Iraq, by supplying weapons used to attack and kill U.S. and coalition troops, U.S. officials tell FOX News.
Afghan and NATO forces uncovered the weapons cache on Aug. 29 in Herat. It included a small number of Iranian-made "explosively formed penetrators," hyper-powerful roadside bombs similar to the weapons used to kill U.S. forces in Iraq, a senior U.S. Defense Official told FOX News.
Also seized during the raid were 107 Iranian-made BM-1 rockets and dozens of blocks of Iranian C4 plastic explosives.
There are questions about when these weapons entered Afghanistan, but a top U.S. military official tells FOX News that an Iranian rocket was recently fired at a base in Herat. Additional intelligence suggests that Iranians have been providing support directly to the Taliban.
Other coalition countries allege the Iranian influence is even deeper and that Iranian intelligence is funneling money to Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
"There have been a lot of reports of the Iranian government one way or another having an influence on Karzai, including a lot of reports that they have provided him with a lot of money," said Fred Kagan, a member of Gen. Stanley McChrystal's recent Afghan review and a scholar from the American Enterprise Institute.
"They have succeeded at having a government in Kabul that is rather friendly to them. Karzai was one of the first leaders to acknowledge Ahmadinejad's victory in Iran's contested presidential elections and to congratulate him for it," Kagan said.
The Iranians package the C-4 explosive to look like it is American-made, and the EFP's are machine made, suggesting that Iran is home to a lucrative industry for producing these weapons, sources said. The goal remains to push U.S. forces out of Afghanistan and Iraq and to make both look like defeats.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Pakistan illegally refits US missiles for land attacks against India
Pakistan which should be focusing its energy to destroy the taliban is instead focusing its energy in weapons to destroy India. Pakistan has refitted Harpoon anti-ship missiles ad P-3C aircraft, purchased from the US, for land based attacks against India.
At the moment, the taliban is Pakistan's greatest threat but the Pak government intent on beefing up its military against India. Recently, Pakistan stated that they will not attack the taliban because it would be "too difficult".
Hey, why don't we give Pakistan $7.5 billion in aid? You can't trust the Paks. Press Trust India
New York, Aug 30 (PTI) Validating New Delhi's fears that Islamabad was using US security aid to beef up its military against it, the Obama administration has accused Pakistan of illegally modifying the Harpoon anti-ship missile and maritime surveillance aircraft P-3C for land attacks for potential use against India.
The Obama Administration, reported 'The New York Times' in a front page story, lodged its protest in this regard with Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in June, adding to the tension between the two countries.
Quoting unnamed officials from the Administration and the US Congress, the daily said Washington has also accused Pakistan of modifying American-made P-3C aircraft for land-attack missions, another violation of United States law.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Illegal Lebanon arms may have been Hezbollah's: U.N.
O.K. so Hezbollah , has been stockpiling weapons where it is not supposed to , they have been actively maintaining their stockpile , Stockpile goes Boom !
The U.N says it is a Serious violation of resolution 1701 , And they scold Hezbollah ! ( Sort of ) , now what ?
will the U.N do anything else ?
Hell No !
Will the U.N. levy sanctions against hezbollah or Lebanon ?
Hell No !
Will the U.N. just sit on their ass and do nothing ?
Hell yeah !
....
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. peacekeeping chief has said there are signs an illegal weapons stockpile that exploded last week in southern Lebanon belonged to the Lebanese guerrilla movement Hezbollah.
In a speech delivered behind closed doors to the Security Council Thursday, U.N. peacekeeping chief Alain Le Roy also said that some of the people who tried to prevent U.N. peacekeepers in Lebanon (UNIFIL) from investigating the site were Hezbollah members dressed in civilian clothes.
"A number of indications suggest that the depot belonged to Hezbollah, and, in contrast to previous discoveries by UNIFIL and the Lebanese Armed Forces of weapons and ammunition, that it was not abandoned but, rather, actively maintained," he told the 15-nation council in the speech, obtained by Reuters.
Le Roy said the mere presence of such arms south of the Litani River represented a "serious violation of resolution 1701." U.N. diplomats told Reuters it was the first time the world body has criticized Hezbollah so directly and sharply.
Security Council resolution 1701, which ended the 34-day war in 2006 between Israel and Hezbollah, banned all unauthorized weapons between the Litani River and the Blue Line, the U.N.-monitored border between Israel and Lebanon.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Wired for warfare
There's definitely a robotics race going on right now. I just hope it doesn't end up like it did in the Terminator. The Cutting Edge NewsSome gadgets look like they came straight out of a James Bond movie. One is a softball-sized camera that can be thrown into a suspect house and transmit images to soldiers outside. Another is a special door-buster that is connected to an M-16 and can blow open booby-trapped portals.
On February 18, the IDF Ground Forces Command put these weapon systems and others - most of them used during last month's Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip - on display in a military base in the South.[...]
Another product from the same company is the Eyedrive, a lightweight, four-wheel, remote-controlled, observation and surveillance mini-robot that provides continuous, real-time 360ยบ audio and video surveillance. Due to its durability, the robot can be thrown on the ground, go down stairs, flip over and keep on going.
