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Canada's plan to shop for used Australian fighter jets rather than buy new Boeing Super Hornets may backfire, according to defence experts, because the U.S. government will ultimately have a say on whether a deal proceeds. Even though the FA-18 Hornets are nearly three decades old, require regular corrosion maintenance and are nearing obsolescence, their proposed resale would still require Washington's approval because they are advanced warplanes, originally manufactured in the U.S., a former Royal Australian Air Force officer told CBC News. "I imagine all of it is going for a fair bargain price," said Peter Layton, a fellow at...

THE hunter stalks through the bush in full camouflage gear and combat boots, binoculars in hand, tracking that afternoon’s prey. When the deer is in sight, the hunter waits patiently for the perfect moment to strike, aiming a rifle with skill and firing one, clean shot, straight to the heart. A manicured hand with dark red nails reaches up to adjust the hunter’s hijab, her carefully made-up face relaxes and she whispers an Arabic prayer. Then, Kadeja Assaad sets off to skin and butcher her kill and take it home for her children’s dinner. This is a regular adventure for...

One of the strangest sagas in defense procurement over the last decade has been Canada's meandering road to a new fighter aircraft to replace, or even augment, the country's relatively small fleet of aging CF-18 Hornets. We have talked in great depth about this issue, and although the Super Hornet is clearly the right jet for Canada, a recent trade spat has made it politically unsavory for the Trudeau Administration to order even a handful of the strike fighters as a interim measure before selecting a fighter to replace the entire CF-18 fleet sometime in the future. In the meantime,...

A hole the size of Maine—or larger than the Netherlands, depending on which geographic mass means more to you—has opened up in the Weddell Sea in Antarctica. In an otherwise thick layer of sea ice, still frozen from the Antarctic winter, the hole is an aberration. Ice scientists aren’t sure what’s going on, but they’re all talking about it. “It looks like you just punched a hole in the ice,” atmospheric physicist Kent Moore, of the University of Toronto, told Vice’s Motherboard. Autonomous float deployed in 2015 has resurfaced unexpectedly inside polynya & started transmitting data https://t.co/qnyTYRVoOy @NSF pic.twitter.com/JgfwdDtBoc —...

A government lawyer told Australia’s High Court on Tuesday that it could not take a constitutional ban on dual citizens being elected to Parliament literally when deciding the fates of seven lawmakers. Solicitor-General Stephen Donaghue told the High Court judges that five of the lawmakers, including three government ministers, should not be disqualified from Parliament for breaching the constitution because they did not voluntarily acquire or retain citizenship of another country. The hearing began on Tuesday and is expected to take three days. Under Section 44 (i) of the 116-year-old constitution, “a subject or citizen of a foreign power” is...

Benjamin Faulkner, 26, and Patrick Falte, 27. Two men who sexually abused a child and uploaded photographs to their child pornography website were each sentenced Friday to life in prison. Benjamin Faulkner, 26, and Patrick Falte, 27, pleaded guilty in federal court in Richmond earlier this year to the aggravated sexual abuse of a minor. They were taken into custody after Faulkner, of Canada, and Falte, whose address is unavailable but is from out of state, traveled to an undisclosed address in Hanover County — which had no apparent connection to the offenses — and then to Northern Virginia...

Both men stiffen as VG confronts them. – Go ahead and publish what you know about us now, if you think it’s true, but be prepared for the consequences, says Jon. Next to him in a Brisbane hamburger pub sits Paul. VG has just told them what we’ve uncovered: that they run the world’s largest online forum for child sexual exploitation, “Childs Play”. Jon, the Australian, turns pale. Paul, who is British, flushes crimson. It is January 2017. At this point the two have been running the Childs Play website for three months. Under their supervision, thousands of members have...

snip Another Australian man staying at the Mandalay Bay Resort has spoken about his close call with the Las Vegas gunman - claiming he launched his murderous attack from the room next door. Australian Brian Hodge, who previously worked at Jupiters Casino on the Gold Coast, claimed he was staying in the room next to the shooter on level 32 at the Las Vegas resort. He said he managed to escape the initial horrific scenes inside the hotel but found himself forced to hide in a bush for several hours after the event. “I got outside safely and was hiding...

I arrived in Australian on 1 July, 2017, the first day of the gun amnesty in Australia. I will be returning to the United States on 26 September at the tail end of the three month amnesty.This amnesty is completely different from the mandatory confiscation/turn-in that happened in 1996. In 1996 people were paid to turn in firearms. Some types of guns were effectively outlawed for nearly everyone. Perhaps the strictest firearms regulatory scheme in Western Civilization was implemented on the wave of emotion promoted by the media and John Howard.In 2017, some sanity is returning to firearms regulation...

A three-month amnesty in Australia has seen more than 51,000 banned guns surrendered to authorities. A homemade machine gun, a rocket launcher and a mini-pistol were among the weapons handed in. They will now all be destroyed. Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has said that maintaining strict gun laws is key to preventing a Las Vegas-style mass shooting in the country. "We've seen the shocking tragedy in Las Vegas," he said. "This killer there had a collection of semi-automatic weapons, which a person in his position would simply not be able to acquire in Australia." Semi-automatic rifles and guns were...

Israeli firm Rafael took the opportunity afforded by the Pacific International Maritime Exposition in Sydney to internationally launch its latest variant of the Typhoon remote-controlled naval gun, the Mk 30c. The ‘c’ represents compact, an indication that size is an important feature of this gun that weighs around 1t. Meanwhile, the ‘30’ refers to the ATK Mk44 Bushmaster II 30mm cannon that the system hosts. However, an important evolution on the Typhoon Mk-30c is the ability to change the gun barrel to 20mm, 25mm or 30mm. The interchangeable barrel, which also encompasses changes to the fire control system to update...

Here’s a thought experiment: what if, suddenly, all the world’s submarines could no longer submerge? There they would be, on the surface of the ocean, slow, unwieldy, with no effective protection against attack. They’d be sitting ducks. Fanciful? Perhaps not. With a high probability, something very like this awaits the world’s submarines within the next couple of decades. Submarines are classic stealth predators. They have only one big trick — their invisibility — and they rely on it utterly to mount a successful attack. In that respect, they are no different from sabre-tooth tigers or trapdoor spiders. And like such...

The US State Department has approved the sale of 3,900 Raytheon GBU-53/B Small Diameter Bombs Increment II (SDB II) weapons to Australia for use with its Lockheed Martin F-35As. The $815 million Foreign Military Sale package includes the 3,900 weapons, test equipment, training equipment, and other support, says the Defense Security Cooperation Agency on its web site. "The proposed sale of SDB II supports and complements the ongoing sale of the F-35A to the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF)," says the DSCA. "This capability will strengthen combined operations, particularly air to ground strike missions in all-weather conditions, and increase interoperability...

SYDNEY, Oct 3 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said on Tuesday nine war ships set for construction in 2020 will be fitted with long-range ­anti-missile defence systems to counter the threat of rogue nations. Australia's proposed frigates will use Aegis combat systems, produced by Lockheed Martin, in conjunction with SAAB Australia technology, Turnbull said. Tensions in the region have spiked considerably in recent months as North Korea conducted a series of tests of its medium- and long-range ballistic missiles, some of which flew over Japan, as well as its sixth nuclear test on Sept. 3. Pyongyang, which ultimately...

AUSTRALIA’S new warships will have the capability to shoot down long-range missiles including those from rogue states such as North Korea. The Royal Australian Navy will add nine new anti-submarine frigates with anti-missile capabilities to its fleet, complete with the multi-billion dollar technology, with construction planned to begin in 2020. “Recent events in our region have proven that Australia’s future frigates must be equipped to defend Australia from the threat of medium and long-range missile attacks,” Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told the Pacific 17 maritime and naval showcase, referencing North Korea. “We must have the capability to meet and defeat...

American artist Macklemore sang in support of gay rights at one of Australia's biggest annual sporting events during the country's vote on same-sex marriage. The singer performed a set ahead of kick-off in the National Rugby League (NRL) grand final in Sydney. Opponents had called for the song Same Love to be left out of the show to stop the event becoming "politicised". But Macklemore said it "was one of the greatest honours of my career". Australians are in the middle of a postal vote on whether gay marriage should be introduced. The poll is non-binding for the government, but...

The first group of 1,250 mostly male Middle Eastern refugees is expected to soon arrive in the United States from Australia. The transfer of refugees comes after President Trump failed to shutter an Obama-era deal that could bring tens of thousands of the refugees’ family members to the U.S. in years to come. President Barack Obama signed the Australian-U.S. refugee deal during his last months in office — promising to take 1,250 Middle Eastern refugees off Australia’s hands. The refugees are being held in detention centers on Manus Island and Nauru Island. Despite Trump’s original statement calling the deal “a...

David Dunstan, a farmer in Victoria, about 10 miles outside the Australian town of Albury, found himself confronting a teen armed with a knife and a large club at 3 a.m. on the 14th of September, 2017. He slammed shut the door, and called for his wife to get the key to the gun cupboard.He retrieved an unloaded .22 rifle, and used it to convince the thug that he should get in a car and drive to the police station. The offender is in jail without bail.  He is suspected of invading another house just hours previously.From weeklytimesnow.com.au: A...

MEMBERS of the public threw a bike under a car in a desperate attempt to stop it being driven dangerously through Melbourne city streets this morning. There is a heavy police presence at Melbourne’s Flinders St after the incident at 8am that ended when police tasered the knife-wielding driver. Dramatic footage shows the man in some sort of body suit walking onto the road as he swung a baton. Officers have stopped traffic and trams in all directions as they bring the incident under control. The bomb squad is at the scene inspecting the vehicle amid reports the driver had...

When I came to Australia, I had read of the weapons laws regarding the carry of knives. I had read that knives could only be carried if you had a “good reason” to do so.I knew how much the “good reason” limitation had been abused in the United States to stop people from exercising their Second Amendment rights.States like New Jersey, New York, and California are notorious for the abuse of that limitation. I was apprehensive about carrying a pocket knife in Australia.On arrival, I wrote: As I talked to the manager, I mentioned that I understood it was...