Israel Approves New Joint SOF Command

TEL AVIV - Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Dec. 15 approved the formation of a joint special operations force oriented to multidisciplinary missions far from Israel's borders.

The force will be led by Maj. Gen. Shai Avital and will report directly to Lt. Gen. Beni Gantz, chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces.

Defense News first reported the likelihood of the proposed force - known as Depth Corps - in its Nov. 14 editions.

The force will integrate elite commando units into a single special operations command for counterterror, anti-smuggling, anti-proliferation and other operations beyond its immediate and intermediate circles of enemy states. Israel's military censor did not allow reference to these outer circle states, but foreign sources have defined them to include Iran and countries lining the Horn of Africa.

"The primary task of the Corps will be to extend joint IDF operations into the strategic depth," noted an IDF statement released late Dec. 15.

Final Upgraded Lynx Helo Returned to British

LONDON - AgustaWestland has handed over the last of 22 Lynx helicopters to the British Army in a deal aimed at improving the machine's ability to operate in Afghanistan.

The Ministry of Defence has spent 92 million pounds ($142.4 million) upgrading the light helicopter with a new engine, surveillance sensors, secure communications, a .50-caliber heavy machine gun and other equipment changes under an urgent operational requirement procurement which started in late 2008.

The first new Lynx Mk9As were delivered to theater in May last year and about a quarter of the fleet now operates in support of British troops and others in Helmand province.

AgustaWestland said the upgrade program, undertaken at its Yeovil plant in southwest England, had been completed on budget and three months ahead of schedule.

Prior to the upgrade, earlier versions of the helicopter using the Rolls-Royce Gem engine had been unable to effectively operate in the hot and high conditions of an Afghan summer. The M3M machine and new sensor suite allows the Mk9A to perform a variety of roles, including convoy overwatch, helicopter support, and surveillance and reconnaissance tasks.

The Italian helicopter company pulled through technologies such as the powerful CTS800-4N engine, which is destined for the Lynx Wildcat program being developed for the Royal Navy and British Army, to deliver the first Mk9A within 18 months of the project starting.

The Wildcat is now undergoing flight trials ahead of being delivered for duty with the Navy in 2014 and the Army a year later.

Chinese Carrier Photographed During Sea Trials

WASHINGTON - A satellite image of China's first aircraft carrier has been captured while the vessel was undergoing sea trials in the Yellow Sea, a U.S. company said on its website Dec. 15.

THIS SATELLITE IMAGE from the DigitalGlobe Analysis Center shows the Chinese aircraft carrier Varyag during its second sea trial in the Yellow Sea, approximately 100 kilometers south-southeast of the port of Dalian. (AFP Photo / DigitalGlobe)

The 300-meter (990-foot) ship, a refitted former Soviet carrier, was photographed on December 8, said Colorado-based DigitalGlobe Inc., and an analyst from the company spotted it when reviewing images five days later.

The ship underwent five days of trials in August that sparked international concern about China's widening naval reach amid growing regional tensions over maritime disputes and a U.S. campaign to assert itself as a Pacific power.The Beijing government said earlier this month that the carrier had started its second sea trial after undergoing refurbishment and testing.

The South China Sea, which is believed to be rich in oil and gas and is claimed by several countries, has dominated such disputes involving China, leading to run-ins with rival claimants including Vietnam and the Philippines.

Chinese President Hu Jintao on December 7 urged the navy to "accelerate its transformation and modernization" and "make extended preparations for military combat" to safeguard national security.

Beijing only confirmed this year that it was revamping the Soviet ship, the Varyag, and has repeatedly insisted that the carrier poses no threat to its neighbors and will be used mainly for training and research purposes.

But the August sea trials were met with concern from regional powers including Japan and the United States, which called on Beijing to explain why it needs an aircraft carrier.

China only provided the first official acknowledgment of the carrier in June when Chen Bingde, the nation's top military official, gave an interview to a Hong Kong newspaper.

The Chinese have yet to announce a name for the ship, which is commonly referred to by its old Soviet name. Although some media have used the name Shi Lang - a 17th century admiral who led a Chinese conquest of Taiwan - Chinese media often omit a name reference.

Coincidentally, the Varyag's sistership, the Russian carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, is also at sea - the first time both ships have been under way on their own power at the same time.

The Kuznetsov left its Northern Fleet base in Murmansk earlier this month for a three-month cruise to the eastern Mediterranean, where it may call at the Syrian port of Tartus. The carrier was reported off Scotland earlier this week. ■

Staff writer Christopher P. Cavas contributed to this report.

U.S. Forces Mark End of Iraq Mission

BAGHDAD - U.S. forces formally marked the end of their mission in Iraq with a low-key ceremony near Baghdad on Thursday, after nearly nine years of war that began with the invasion to topple Saddam Hussein.

There are a little more than 4,000 U.S. soldiers in Iraq, but they will depart in the coming days, at which point almost no more American troops will remain in a country where there were once nearly 170,000 personnel on more than 500 bases.

The withdrawal ends a war that left tens of thousands of Iraqis and nearly 4,500 American soldiers dead, many more wounded, and 1.75 million Iraqis displaced, after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion unleashed brutal sectarian fighting.

"Your dream of an independent and sovereign Iraq is now reality," U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said at the symbolic flag-lowering ceremony held near Baghdad's airport.

"Iraq will be tested in the days ahead - by terrorism and by those who would seek to divide it, by economic and social issues, by the demands of democracy itself," he said.

But the U.S. "will stand by the Iraqi people as they navigate those challenges."

"This is a time for Iraq to look forward. This is an opportunity for Iraq to forge ahead on a path to security and prosperity," said Panetta.

"And we undertake this transition today reminding Iraq that it has in the United States a committed friend and partner. We owe it to all of the lives that were sacrificed in this war not to fail."

He described the U.S. withdrawal as "nothing short of miraculous" and "one of the most complex logistical undertakings in U.S. military history."

Gen. Lloyd Austin, the commander United States Forces - Iraq (USF-I), cased the colors at the ceremony, rolling the USF-I flag around its pole and covering it with a camouflage bag.

He noted that "eight years, eight months and 26 days ago, as the assistant division commander for maneuver for the 3rd Infantry Division, I gave the order for the lead elements of the division to cross the border" into Iraq.

"I was here when we originally secured this airfield," he said.

The ceremony was also attended by U.S. ambassador to Iraq James Jeffrey, Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Gen. James Mattis, the head of the U.S. Central Command, and about 160 U.S. soldiers.

Iraq was represented by military chief of staff Lt. Gen. Babaker Zebari and defense ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mohammed al-Askari.

"For over 20 years, Iraq has been a defining part of our professional and personal lives," said Dempsey.

"We will remember you and those that have gone before - what you risked, what you learned, how you sacrificed ... and the fallen comrades for whom we all still grieve."

The ceremony comes a day after hundreds of people in Fallujah marked the impending departure of American forces by burning U.S. flags and shouting slogans in support of the "resistance."

Fallujah, a city of about half a million people west of Baghdad, remains deeply scarred by two American military offensives in 2004, the latter of which is considered one of the fiercest for the United States since Vietnam.

Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush, ordered the invasion of Iraq in 2003, arguing Saddam was endangering the world with weapons of mass destruction programs.

Saddam was ousted from power and later executed, but such arms were never found.

Obama made his political career by opposing the war. In late 2002, he said he was against "dumb wars" such as Iraq, and rode anti-war fervor to the White House by promising to bring troops home.

The war was launched in March 2003 with a massive "shock and awe" campaign, followed by eight-plus years in which a U.S.-led coalition sought not only had to rebuild the Iraqi military from the ground up, but also to establish a new political system.

Iraq now has a parliament and regular elections, and is ruled by a Shiite-led government that replaced Saddam's Sunni-dominated regime.

The pullout, enshrined in a 2008 bilateral pact, is the latest stage in the changing U.S. role in Iraq, from 2003-2004 when American officials ran the country to 2009 when the United Nations mandate ended, and last summer when Washington officially ended combat operations.

Poland To Spend $42M on Tank Modernization

WARSAW - Poland's Ministry of Defense has set aside 138.6 million zloty ($42 million) for two contracts to modernize its T-72M1 and PT-91 main battle tanks, the Army's First Regional Logistics Base in Walcz said in a statement.

A 32.2 million-zloty deal for the overhaul of 20 T-72M1s was recently awarded to the repair plant Wojskowe Zaklady Motoryzacyjne (WZM). Of these, 10 units are to be modernized by Nov. 30, 2012, and a further 10 by Nov. 29, 2013.

"By the deadline for submission of bids, three bids were submitted for the first contract, and one bid for the second contract," the statement said.Meanwhile, the ministry has decided to rerun its 106.4 million-zloty tender to upgrade 40 PT-91 tanks after a bid submitted by Poland's biggest defense manufacturer, Bumar Group, was rejected. Under the plan, some 20 PT-91s are to be upgraded by Nov. 30, 2012, and the remaining 20 by Nov. 29, 2013.

WZM is part of Wojskowe Przedsiebiorstwa Remontowo-Produkcyjne, the country's second-largest defense group. In 2010, the Poznan-based plant reported revenues of 32.2 million zloty, up 1.2 percent over a year earlier, and a net profit of 8.3 million zloty, compared with a loss of 12.9 million zloty in 2009.

Introduced to the Polish Army in 1995, the PT-91 is a locally built, modernized version of the Soviet-designed T-72M1. Both tanks are manufactured by Bumar's subsidiary, Bumar-Labedy.

The Land Forces have about 590 T-72M1s and 230 PT-91s, according to figures from the ministry.

USAF Board Blames Pilot, Not Oxygen System, in F-22 Crash

A U.S. Air Force Accident Investigation Board (AIB) report is blaming the Nov. 16, 2010, crash of an F-22 Raptor on Capt. Jeff "Bong" Haney - despite a malfunction of the jet's bleed air intakes, which caused an automatic shutdown of multiple aircraft systems including the primary oxygen system.

An aircraft's engine bleed air system extracts air from a jet engine's compressor section to generate power and supply gases for an aircraft's life support system, among other systems.

The AIB report confirms Defense News' Sept. 8 report, in which an industry source and a pilot both said that a bleed air malfunction had caused the crash by shutting down the oxygen system. The AIB, however, places the blame on Haney for not reacting quickly enough to activate the jet's emergency oxygen system or recover from a dive he inadvertently entered into as he struggled to regain his air supply.

"I find the cause of the mishap was the MP's [mishap pilot] failure to recognize and initiate a timely dive recovery due to channelized attention, breakdown of visual scan and unrecognized spatial disorientation," wrote Brig. Gen. James Browne, president of the AIB.

The F-22's On-board Oxygen Generating System (OBOGS), which supplies breathing air to the pilot and has been under investigation for most of the year, did not malfunction and wasn't a contributing factor, the report said. But the crucial device did shut down because of the bleed-air problem. In September, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz said oxygen had not played any role in the crash.

The report notes that "the MP most likely experienced a sense similar to suffocation," but also rules out hypoxia as contribution factor however despite the shut down of the oxygen system.

"Due to the high affinity of oxygen to hemoglobin, the MP would have had adequate blood oxygen supply after the OBOGS failed," the AIB report states. "It was concluded that the late recognition of the MA's [mishap aircraft's] unusual attitude and appropriate corrective actions attempted by the MP demonstrates that hypoxia was not a factor in this mishap."

A knowledgeable source agreed that Haney would not have fully succumbed to hypoxia, but would have been showing symptoms. Despite what the report says, the source said hypoxia would have played a role even if the pilot had not been rendered unconscious.

"The rate at which he descended, though, he would have been at a hypoxia-safe altitude within time to have not fully succumbed to hypoxia and should have only had symptoms versus unconsciousness," the source said.

The environmental control system (ECS), air cycle system, On-Board Inert Gas Generating System (OBIGGS), cabin pressure and OBOGS were all shut down when the aircraft's computer shut off the malfunctioning bleed-air system, according to the AIB report. The bleed-air system remains closed in the event of a malfunction to prevent fires.

The aircraft's memory unit showed "partial pressure to the MP's [mishap pilot] oxygen stopped shortly after 19:42:37 L, which would lead to severely restricted breathing," the accident report reads.

However, Haney did retain enough consciousness to attempt a recovery from a steep dive the aircraft entered into right before the crash. It was too late, however, as the Raptor impacted the ground a scant three seconds later.

However, Haney did not manage to active the Emergency Oxygen System (EOS) to supply him with air, which he needed to do in case the OBOGS shutdown. As the report notes "severely restricted breathing is a physiological symptom which would have prompted the [mishap pilot] to active the EOS."

Pilots have said that the emergency oxygen supply is notoriously difficult to use in the Raptor.

The AIB report states that as Haney struggled for air, "he channelized his attention on restoring airflow to his oxygen mask."

As Haney fought to restore his oxygen supply, he inadvertently began to roll the aircraft and his "visual scan" of the aircraft's instruments and external situation broke down. He entered into a state of "unrecognized spatial disorientation," according to the AIB report. The aircraft rolled 240 degrees and dropped to a 53 degree nose down attitude. Had Haney not been distracted by trying to breathe, he would have recognized the problem, the report reads. Haney didn't make any intentional control inputs for some 39 seconds.

"The fact that the [mishap pilot] went from a controlled flight regime to an unusual attitude and did not take corrective actions for 30 seconds suggests he had unrecognized spatial disorientation," the AIB report reads. "At 19:42:24L the [mishap pilot] recognized the [mishap aircraft's] position and attempted to perform a dive recovery."

Ultimately, the Air Force chose to blame Haney rather than attribute the crash to a malfunctioning bleed-air system and a difficult to use emergency oxygen supply.

Crash Temporarily Grounds India's Su-30 Fleet

NEW DELHI - India's mainstay fleet of Russian-made Sukhoi-30MKI aircraft have been temporarily grounded following a Dec. 13 crash in Pune. Though no reason has been attributed for the latest crash, an inquiry has been set up by the Indian Air Force.

Air Force sources said the entire fleet of Sukhoi-30MKI aircraft have been temporarily grounded for technical checkups. The Air Force has lost three Sukhoi-30MKI aircraft since 2009.

India license-produces Sukhoi-30 MKI at its Bangalore facility of state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics. So far, about 130 Sukhoi-30 MKI aircraft have been delivered to the Air Force. The total fleet strength of the Sukhoi-30 MKI will reach about 275 aircraft in 2015.

In 2009, the crash of Sukhoi-30 MKI was attributed to fault with the fly-by-wire system.

The Sukhoi-30 MKI aircraft are capable of carrying a nuclear weapon, and can fly deep inside China with the help of midair refuelers, as they have a range of more than 2,500 kilometers (1,550 miles).