What does the Defense Department want from Congress?

Well the Pentagon has sent its wish list up to Capitol Hill and there the battles will continue. There are many fights going on and some of the most pitched are around programs to modernize our forces, DefenseTech take a quick look at the funding requests for those.

"Let’s start of the with F-35 program. It’s getting a total of $9.4 billion under the request with more cash put into R&D funding for the jet while reducing the total buy of F-35s in 2012 to 32 jets and locking the troubled F-35B Short Take Off and Vertical Landing version into a two year probationary program.

Next, let’s talk long range nuclear strike. The Pentagon is asking for $2 billion to fund the Air Force’s new long range bomber and sustaining its Minuteman III ICBMs along with modernizing the Navy’s Trident III submarine launched ballistic missiles.

Another $1 billion is being requested to fund research into the SSBN(X) ballistic missile submarine replacement program.

The request also extends Navy F/A-18E/F Super Hornet buys through 2014 with $2.4 billion to buy 28 Super Hornets in FY-12. (These are being bought to offset delays in the F-35 program.) Another $1.1 billion is being requested to buy 12 EA-18G Growler electronic attack jets in FY-12."

There is more info on other programs at the link. The upcoming budget process ought to be even more interesting than usual with new Tea Party members looking to get our spending in line with our revenues. Crazy talk I know, but President Obama's proposed budget goes another 10 years without balancing the budget. Who does he think is going to keep lending to us if we never stop spending.

The problem we have is that our national security needs and the dangerous world we live in don't take time off because we have spent all the money we could find. Entitlements are the real budget killers and any real cuts will have to come out of those. The effects to our readiness and ability to deter others from causining trouble can start as soon as we are seen as weakening. We need to hold firm on the mainstays of our ability to project strength, and if we need to cut some federal spending I would prefer a few bureaucrats and regulators get the can, rather than the folks building the weapons that will protect us all.

We are betting our future security on the F-35 as our main plane. The program has had some trouble and as noted the vertical takeoff version is on double secret probation, but they other two variants are doing well.

"Military and civilian test pilots in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program said they are making good progress in testing the stealth aircraft's ability to fly at various speeds and altitudes, take off and land vertically, and operate its avionics.

Testers said the new single-engine warplane has been reliably tested up to Mach 1.2 in maneuvers up to 1 G. They are testing its ability to handle maneuvers of up to 5 Gs -- five times the force of gravity -- and angles of attack up to 20 degrees."

There is just something completely awesome about afterburner.

Asia’s Attack Helicopter Programmes

Indonesia’s Mil Mi-35 (photo : Kaksus Militer)

The use of attack helicopters in Asia is not a new phenomenon, and several nations have had such a capability for many years. Indeed at least two countries, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have recently used them operationally and, in the case of the former, these operations are ongoing.

However several countries in the wider Asia-Pacific region have embarked on ambitious acquisition program mes and others are developing their own capabilities in-house. Not all are progressing smoothly, with some beset by technical and sustainability problems and - in more than one case - byzantine procurement processes.

Other nations, such as the Philippines, are strapped for cash and cannot afford such complex weapons platforms as the Boeing AH-64D Apache, Eurocopter Tiger, AgustaWestland A129 Mangusta or Russia's Mil Mi-28 Havoc and Kamov Ka-50/52 Alligator and are looking to a light attack helicopters such as Boeings AH-6i.

The potential for further sales in the region remains strong, with countries either looking to upgrade from earlier generation platforms or as in the case of Malaysia, acquire the capability for the first time. Manufacturers see the Asia-Pacific region as a growth market and there is a potential requirement for over 300 attack helicopters over the next few years.

Current Status

Philippine's Boeing MD-530/OH-6 (photo : Aero Image)

Bell's AH-1 Cobra has been service in Asia for many years, beginning with the Japan Ground Self Defence Force (JGSDF) which acquired 90 AH-1Js between 1979 and 1986. Built under licence in Japan by Fuji Heavy Industries, many were subsequently upgraded to AH-1S standard. Today they are being replaced by Fuji-built Apache Longbows.

South Korea and Taiwan also have substantial Cobra fleets that are due for replacement, but it is Pakistan which is arguably the most active operator of the type. Deliveries of refurbished US Army AH-1Fs began in 1986 and a further eight were also recently delivered from US stocks, bringing the total 34. Pakistani Cobras have been in action against Taliban insurgents in the rugged Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA) of Western Pakistan since 2002 and the action continues to this day.

Similarly, Sri Lanka's Mil Mi-24V/Mi-35M Hinds saw action against Tamil Tigers in the Eeelam Wars, which finally resulted in the defeat of the latter in 2009. India also has a number of Soviet-era Hind gunships listed on their books, but domestic media reports suggest the type is not operationally effective above 9000 feet, rendering them only of limited use in the disputed Kashmir region This is one of the main reasons why India wishes to introduce a dedicated attack helicopter in the near future and has most recently released Requests For Proposal (RFP) for 22 aircraft. Indonesia is also purchasing Hinds, and took delivery of six Mi-35Vs in 2008, adding to two aircraft acquired in 2003.

Singapore’s Boeing AH-64D Apache (photo : Cyberpioneer)

Finally Singapore is a recent addition to the attack helicopter club, with the acquisition of 20 advanced AH-64D Apache Longbows from 2002, under the 'Peace Vanguard' programme. Singapore worked its Apaches up in the United States for four years, before their arrival finally in the city state in June 2006. Alongside the Japanese Apaches, Singapore has arguably the most sophisticated and network-capable attack helicopter in Asia.

Acquisition and Development Projects

Slightly further afield, Australia is grappling with the task of introducing its 22 Eurocopter Tiger Armed Reconnaissance Helicopters (ARH) into operational service. To date 13 out of 22 have been delivered, but the type is still on the road to operational use, some six years after the first two helicopters were delivered.
Australia's Tigers are based upon the French Helicoptère d'Appui Protection (HAP), which is currently deployed with notable success in Afghanistan. However the ARH programme has been beset by a disappointing rate of effort in its early days of service, with Army sources blaming the delays to the French and German programmes, which in turn have slowed initial training. In addition, some sustainment issues have emerged which have hampered the flying rate. When fully operational, Australia will have two reconnaissance squadrons of Tigers.

Australia’s Eurocopter Tiger ARH (photo : Australian DoD)
Tiger ARH differs from the French HAP variant mainly in the weapons system, being capable of firing the Lockheed Martin AGM-114 Hellfire and the Australian Army says the helicopter should be operationally deployable by the fourth quarter of 2011.

China has been developing its own attack helicopter for several years now although most of the details have been shrouded in secrecy. Western observers report that it is being developed by Changhe Aircraft Industries Group in collaboration with industry and known as the Z-10.

The helicopter, which began test flying back in 2003, is reported to have a primary anti-tank role and will use a millimetre-wave fire control radar and helmet-mounted sight to control the weapons, which include guided anti-tank missiles and cannon. Initially to be powered by a version of the PT-6C turboshaft engine, reports emerging from the 2010.

Singapore Airshow suggest that this has now been replaced by an indigenous engine. Chinese sources predicted an in-service date of 2009 but there is no evidence available in the west to suggest this has actually occurred.

China currently operates an armed version of the Z-9 helicopter, which itself is a locally- developed version of the Eurocopter Dauphin.

Thailand's Bell AH-1 Cobra (photo : Militaryphotos)
India's quest to acquire an attack helicopter capability has been tortuous to date and at the time of writing, the future of the programme is still unclear. As noted earlier, the country wishes to replace its now elderly Hind fleet with a modern type, and the geography of the country has produced a unique set of very demanding requirements.

An initial RFP was released in May 2007, with contenders reported to be the AgustaWestland AW-129 Mangusta, Bell AH-1Z Cobra, Boeing AH-64D Apache, Eurocopter Tiger and Mil Mi-28N NightHunter. Bell and Boeing withdrew their bids later that year, for different reasons: Bell could reportedly only offer the AH-1Z through a Foreign Military Sales program me which would (then) have precluded stipulated offsets and Boeing because it could not get an eight-week extension to the August deadline. The Indian Government stipulated an in-service date of May 2011 on the project, but later cancelled the RFP in March 2009, saying that three of the remaining companies in the competition, "could not meet qualitative requirements".

Two months later the RFP was again released to industry and Indian press reports suggested that this time Eurocopter and AgustaWestland withdrew bids, leaving the Russians and Americans to slug it out. Certainly trials have been carried out in Rajasthan and Kahsmir and Boeing has confirmed its Apache is still in the race. Eurocopter is also still hopeful of selling Tiger in India, despite press reports, saying as recently as October that it considers India a possible market.

As noted earlier, Japan is acquiring the Apache Longbow and is currently undertaking construction of the majority of its 50 helicopter order at Fuji Heavy Industries at Utsunomiya. The Apache beat Bells AH-1Z in the competition, known locally as the AH-X, and the decision was announced the victor in 2001. Known as the AH-64DJP, Japan's first aircraft was handed over at Boeing's Mesa Arizona facility in December 2005, before being shipped to Japan. It was ultimately delivered to the JGSDF in March 2006. The first aircraft was also the first Apache to be delivered with the capability to launch the AIM-92 Air to Air version of Raytheon's Stinger missile.

Malaysia has also linked to the Turkish T.129 programme (photo : FlightGlobal)

Malaysia is a potential customer for attack helicopters, having recently begun modernising its Army Aviation force (Tentera Darat Malaysia) with the acquisition of the AgustaWestland A109LOH. As far back as 2005 (then) Deputy Prime Minister Najib was predicting Malaysia would one day own an attack helicopter, but the defence budget has been under strain in recent years and no formal competition exists at this point in time. Eurocopter has long considered Malaysia as a potential Tiger customer, but the country has also been linked to the Turkish T.129 programme (a derivative of the AW.129 developed by Aselsan and TAI in conjunction with AgustaWestland), as has Pakistan.

The defence budget of the Philippines cannot afford 'high end' attack helicopters such as Apache, Cobra or Tiger, so it is reportedly very interested in the light attack helicopter, designed specifically for work alongside Special Forces. Examples of this genre include Bell's OH-58D (and most recently the proposed OH-58F) Kiowa Warrior and Boeing's AH¬6i.Little Bird. Boeing displayed the AH-6i at this years' Singapore Airshow and revealed that it had held talks with both the Philippines and Singapore, who were interested in setting up a Special-Forces aviation support capability.

South Korea is perhaps the most lucrative market in the foreseeable future, though it revised its Korean Multi-Role Helicopter (KMH) program me in 2005 to concentrate on a military utility helicopter with assistance from Eurocopter, known as the Korean Helicopter Programme (KHP). The country has a requirement for around 270 light- medium attack helicopters to replace its existing MD-500 and a two-year study to define the Korean Attack Helicopter (KAH) is currently underway. Both Eurocopter and AgustaWestland have expressed their interest in working with South Korea on the programme, which is planned around a 2018 in-service date.

In addition, its AH-X project has been developed to provide a heavy attack helicopter capability to replace the AH-1S Cobra fleet. The purchase of 36 refurbished AH-64D Block I Apaches for upgrade to the latest Block III standard has been widely reported, but this is very much an on again-off again proposition, and once again Eurocopter (at least) considers the country a potential Tiger customer.

Taiwan is also looking to replace or upgrade its ageing Cobra fleet and has attempted to acquire the Apache on several occasions; however political sensitivities seem to have hindered this process. Most recently, the US Defense Security Co-operation Agency (DSCA) advised Congress of a possible sale in October 2008, but it is not known if this will be consummated.

With all this activity, attack helicopter salesmen are waiting in the wings, with order books ready and pencils sharpened.

Sources : defenceasiareview

Marshall Aerospace Pitches C-130 Upgrade to Malaysia

UK maintenance, repair and overhaul company Marshall Aerospace has revealed details of its bid to modernise the capabilities of Malaysia's Lockheed Martin C-130 tactical transports.

Marshall says it hosted Royal Malaysian Air Force chief of staff Gen Tan Sri Dato' Sri Rodzali bin Daud in a visit to its Cambridge airport facilities on 10 January.

The company has identified a Malaysian requirement "for an upgrade of their C-130H avionics to provide a capability to fly in CNS/ATM [communications, navigation and surveillance/air traffic management] airspace", says head of business development Peter Taylor.

Marshall has recently conducted an extensive avionics and cockpit upgrade on two refurbished C-130Hs for the Royal Netherlands Air Force and will perform the same work on two more Dutch aircraft. Last year it identified a possible market to offer a similar service to Hercules operators in Asia, Europe and North Africa.

The Royal Malaysian Air Force has an active fleet of 12 C-130H/H-30s and two C-130T tankers, as listed in Flightglobal's MiliCAS database. The five oldest of these entered service in 1976, it says.
As well as operating its Hercules fleet, Malaysia is the lone export buyer for Airbus Military's larger A400M. Kuala Lumpur has ordered four of the European type.

Sources : flightglobal

RM6 Billion Approved for Six Patrol Vessel

LUMUT, (Bernama) -- The government has agreed to allocate RM6 billion to build six second generation patrol vessels for the Royal Malaysian Navy, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said Saturday.

The construction of the ships will boost the economy while benefiting 632 vendor companies, he told reporters here after a briefing on the project.

"Thus, we will ensure that at least RM2 billion of the allocation will benefit these vendor companies which are strategic partners of Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd," he added.

Ahmad Zahid said that he would himself monitor the progress of the project, due to start next year, and ensure that all concerned benefit from it and that there was no delay in paying the vendors.

He said that Boustead Naval Shipyard had constructed several new generation vessels for the RMN and shown itself to be on par with other ship builders in the world.

Ahmad Zahid also said the Lumut-Bagan Datoh coastal area here has been identified for a world-class shipyard to be developed over the next 10 to 20 years.

He said the defence industry, including shipping, had immense potential in the Asean region and now generated income of US$25 billion a year.

If Malaysia could attract at least 20 per cent of the defence spending, US$5 billion or RM15 billion could be generated by companies in the country, he said.

Ahmad Zahid the government was now trying to attract more defence industry-based projects, including ship building, to the country.

Sources : bernama

Arms Control by Anup Shah

As the more powerful countries show less commitment to reducing their own arms substantially and continue to pursue their own “national interests”, they affect many others around the world.

* This has led to an increase in resentment against them.
* One option for nations that feel threatened has been to improve their defensive capabilities and increase arms purchases and spending.
* Neighboring countries will often feel the pressure to keep up, “just in case.”
* The military industrial complexes of the wealthier (and more powerful) nations will highlight how so many other countries have increasingly sophisticated weapons (often sold by the wealthier and more powerful nations!) and how that means that they should consider urgently increasing their own military spending and proliferation.
* An increase in arms leads to an arms race and an increase in insecurity.

Many nations around the world today possess, or have the means to procure, weapons of mass destruction. They may be nuclear, chemical, biological or other types of weapons, which can be delivered through a variety of means. It is mainly the more powerful wealthy countries that have such weapons although some poorer nations are also acquiring them.

In recent years, there have been movements and treaties to help control the flow and deployment of arms, be they landmines, small arms, or weapons of mass destruction such as nuclear weapons.

This part of the global issues web site starts by looking in to some of those arms control measures in the nuclear weapons arena and at some of the controversial decisions that have been made.

Sourses : globalissues

Military-Industrial Complex Speech, Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1961

My fellow Americans:

Three days from now, after half a century in the service of our country, I shall lay down the responsibilities of office as, in traditional and solemn ceremony, the authority of the Presidency is vested in my successor.

This evening I come to you with a message of leave-taking and farewell, and to share a few final thoughts with you, my countrymen.

Like every other citizen, I wish the new President, and all who will labor with him, Godspeed. I pray that the coming years will be blessed with peace and prosperity for all.

Our people expect their President and the Congress to find essential agreement on issues of great moment, the wise resolution of which will better shape the future of the Nation.

My own relations with the Congress, which began on a remote and tenuous basis when, long ago, a member of the Senate appointed me to West Point, have since ranged to the intimate during the war and immediate post-war period, and, finally, to the mutually interdependent during these past eight years.

In this final relationship, the Congress and the Administration have, on most vital issues, cooperated well, to serve the national good rather than mere partisanship, and so have assured that the business of the Nation should go forward. So, my official relationship with the Congress ends in a feeling, on my part, of gratitude that we have been able to do so much together.

II.

We now stand ten years past the midpoint of a century that has witnessed four major wars among great nations. Three of these involved our own country. Despite these holocausts America is today the strongest, the most influential and most productive nation in the world. Understandably proud of this pre-eminence, we yet realize that America's leadership and prestige depend, not merely upon our unmatched material progress, riches and military strength, but on how we use our power in the interests of world peace and human betterment.

III.

Throughout America's adventure in free government, our basic purposes have been to keep the peace; to foster progress in human achievement, and to enhance liberty, dignity and integrity among people and among nations. To strive for less would be unworthy of a free and religious people. Any failure traceable to arrogance, or our lack of comprehension or readiness to sacrifice would inflict upon us grievous hurt both at home and abroad.

Progress toward these noble goals is persistently threatened by the conflict now engulfing the world. It commands our whole attention, absorbs our very beings. We face a hostile ideology -- global in scope, atheistic in character, ruthless in purpose, and insidious in method. Unhappily the danger is poses promises to be of indefinite duration. To meet it successfully, there is called for, not so much the emotional and transitory sacrifices of crisis, but rather those which enable us to carry forward steadily, surely, and without complaint the burdens of a prolonged and complex struggle -- with liberty the stake. Only thus shall we remain, despite every provocation, on our charted course toward permanent peace and human betterment.

Crises there will continue to be. In meeting them, whether foreign or domestic, great or small, there is a recurring temptation to feel that some spectacular and costly action could become the miraculous solution to all current difficulties. A huge increase in newer elements of our defense; development of unrealistic programs to cure every ill in agriculture; a dramatic expansion in basic and applied research -- these and many other possibilities, each possibly promising in itself, may be suggested as the only way to the road we wish to travel.

But each proposal must be weighed in the light of a broader consideration: the need to maintain balance in and among national programs -- balance between the private and the public economy, balance between cost and hoped for advantage -- balance between the clearly necessary and the comfortably desirable; balance between our essential requirements as a nation and the duties imposed by the nation upon the individual; balance between actions of the moment and the national welfare of the future. Good judgment seeks balance and progress; lack of it eventually finds imbalance and frustration.

The record of many decades stands as proof that our people and their government have, in the main, understood these truths and have responded to them well, in the face of stress and threat. But threats, new in kind or degree, constantly arise. I mention two only.

IV.

A vital element in keeping the peace is our military establishment. Our arms must be mighty, ready for instant action, so that no potential aggressor may be tempted to risk his own destruction.

Our military organization today bears little relation to that known by any of my predecessors in peacetime, or indeed by the fighting men of World War II or Korea.

Until the latest of our world conflicts, the United States had no armaments industry. American makers of plowshares could, with time and as required, make swords as well. But now we can no longer risk emergency improvisation of national defense; we have been compelled to create a permanent armaments industry of vast proportions. Added to this, three and a half million men and women are directly engaged in the defense establishment. We annually spend on military security more than the net income of all United States corporations.

This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence -- economic, political, even spiritual -- is felt in every city, every State house, every office of the Federal government. We recognize the imperative need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave implications. Our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved; so is the very structure of our society.

In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the militaryindustrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.

We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together.

Akin to, and largely responsible for the sweeping changes in our industrial-military posture, has been the technological revolution during recent decades.

In this revolution, research has become central; it also becomes more formalized, complex, and costly. A steadily increasing share is conducted for, by, or at the direction of, the Federal government.

Today, the solitary inventor, tinkering in his shop, has been overshadowed by task forces of scientists in laboratories and testing fields. In the same fashion, the free university, historically the fountainhead of free ideas and scientific discovery, has experienced a revolution in the conduct of research. Partly because of the huge costs involved, a government contract becomes virtually a substitute for intellectual curiosity. For every old blackboard there are now hundreds of new electronic computers.

The prospect of domination of the nation's scholars by Federal employment, project allocations, and the power of money is ever present

* and is gravely to be regarded.

Yet, in holding scientific research and discovery in respect, as we should, we must also be alert to the equal and opposite danger that public policy could itself become the captive of a scientifictechnological elite.

It is the task of statesmanship to mold, to balance, and to integrate these and other forces, new and old, within the principles of our democratic system -- ever aiming toward the supreme goals of our free society.

V.

Another factor in maintaining balance involves the element of time. As we peer into society's future, we -- you and I, and our government -- must avoid the impulse to live only for today, plundering, for our own ease and convenience, the precious resources of tomorrow. We cannot mortgage the material assets of our grandchildren without risking the loss also of their political and spiritual heritage. We want democracy to survive for all generations to come, not to become the insolvent phantom of tomorrow.

VI.

Down the long lane of the history yet to be written America knows that this world of ours, ever growing smaller, must avoid becoming a community of dreadful fear and hate, and be instead, a proud confederation of mutual trust and respect.

Such a confederation must be one of equals. The weakest must come to the conference table with the same confidence as do we, protected as we are by our moral, economic, and military strength. That table, though scarred by many past frustrations, cannot be abandoned for the certain agony of the battlefield.

Disarmament, with mutual honor and confidence, is a continuing imperative. Together we must learn how to compose differences, not with arms, but with intellect and decent purpose. Because this need is so sharp and apparent I confess that I lay down my official responsibilities in this field with a definite sense of disappointment. As one who has witnessed the horror and the lingering sadness of war -- as one who knows that another war could utterly destroy this civilization which has been so slowly and painfully built over thousands of years -- I wish I could say tonight that a lasting peace is in sight.

Happily, I can say that war has been avoided. Steady progress toward our ultimate goal has been made. But, so much remains to be done. As a private citizen, I shall never cease to do what little I can to help the world advance along that road.

VII.

So -- in this my last good night to you as your President -- I thank you for the many opportunities you have given me for public service in war and peace. I trust that in that service you find some things worthy; as for the rest of it, I know you will find ways to improve performance in the future.

You and I -- my fellow citizens -- need to be strong in our faith that all nations, under God, will reach the goal of peace with justice. May we be ever unswerving in devotion to principle, confident but humble with power, diligent in pursuit of the Nation's great goals.

To all the peoples of the world, I once more give expression to America's prayerful and continuing aspiration:

We pray that peoples of all faiths, all races, all nations, may have their great human needs satisfied; that those now denied opportunity shall come to enjoy it to the full; that all who yearn for freedom may experience its spiritual blessings; that those who have freedom will understand, also, its heavy responsibilities; that all who are insensitive to the needs of others will learn charity; that the scourges of poverty, disease and ignorance will be made to disappear from the earth, and that, in the goodness of time, all peoples will come to live together in a peace guaranteed by the binding force of mutual respect and love.

DTI Will Continue Other Project

DT-1 multiple launch rocket system (photo : TAF)

New rocket battalion planned

The army has plans for a new battalion to be equipped with multi-barrel rocket launchers (MBRLs), attached to the existing Lop Buri-based Artillery Division, an army source said.

Under the plan, a large number of MBRLs will be bought from the Defence Technology Institute (DTI), an organisation under the Defence Ministry.

DTI, in collaboration with the army of China, has produced a prototype DTI-1 MBRL, using technology transferred from China.

On Monday, Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwon and army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha visited the Artillery Division in Lop Buri where they took receipt of the first of the MBRLs developed by DTI.

MBRL systems are in wide use with the Cambodian military, which has large numbers of them.
The source said the plan ned new battalion has the support of the prime minister, who sees it as a way of boosting the army's capability.
China has transferred WS-1B technology to DTI (photo : Military Today)
At the hand-over ceremony, Gen Prayuth said it has been the army's wish since 1988 to have a rocket company. At present, the defence minister has approved in principle the development of MBRLs and the newly developed weapon has been tested.

Lt-Gen Thitinan Tunyasiri, the DTI director, said the MBRL prototype is very important as its technology can be use to develop a guided missile system to respond to demands from various army units.

In the near future, the DTI will proceed with other projects to build unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), signal jammers, combat auxiliary systems, and amphibious assault vehicles (AAV), to reduce reliance on imports from abroad, he said.


Sources: http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews/218093/new-rocket-battalion-planned

AFP Needs P42.1 Billion for Security Program

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ACV-300 of the PAF (photo : Sandy)

MANILA, Philippines - The military needs at least P42.13 billion in the next five years to upgrade its capability and implement security programs.

Military data showed P11.66 billion of the program has been allotted to the Army; P14.36 billion for the Air Force and P14.49 billion has been earmarked for the Navy.

The remaining P1.62 billion has been allocated to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) General Headquarters and various support units.

Senior military officials presented the data before members of the House of Representatives defense committee in a hearing held at Camp Aguinaldo yesterday.

“The P42 billion (for 2012 to 2016) is a practical modest budget... it can still be adjusted,” Defense Undersecretary Pio Lorenzo Batino said during the committee hearing.

AFP vice chief Lt. Gen. Reynaldo Mapagu said the program would involve allotting equipment to 12 Army battalions.

He said this would also entail the creation of three mechanized battalions, which will be equipped with Army fighting vehicles.

Mapagu said they are still determining which battalions would be provided with new equipment.

Mapagu, however, said this might include troops deployed in some areas in Mindanao.

The P42-billion program includes the purchase of 110 units of infantry fighting vehicles, 4,464 units of night fighting system, 8,103 units of assault rifles, 8,103 units of force protection equipment, grenade launchers, trucks, and radios for the Army.

For the Air Force, the items in the shopping list include four units of combat helicopters, four units of surface attack aircraft and lead-in fighter trainers, six units of close air support aircraft, a long-range patrol aircraft and an air surveillance radar.

For the Navy, the program seeks to acquire two offshore patrol vessels, a strategic sealift vessel, a command and control communication system, two units of multi-purpose helicopters, a bases support system, a Coast Guard watch system and an anti-bunker and tank system.

The program also aims to fund, among others, security, mobility, information and weapons systems, communication networks, rehabilitation of military structures and dental and medical equipment.

Muntinlupa Rep. Rodolfo Biazon, chairman of the House defense committee, said they would have to study the AFP medium-term capability program.

“The first thing that we will be doing is (to) identify what equipment should be acquired. Only then can we determine how much is needed to support the acquisition,” Biazon said.

“The next phase is to determine how to provide the funds and define the sources of funding,” he added.

Biazon, however, said the AFP should not include in its proposal the equipment used by civilian agencies to implement developmental projects.

“These items should not be mixed with the modernization (program) because whatever they will acquire should be determined by the requirement of providing national security and defense for the country, not agriculture,” he said.

The AFP is currently implementing Bayanihan, an internal security plan that focuses on development programs designed to attack the roots of rebellion.