He's probably in a meeting.
Posted on 01/28/2013 8:17:09 AM PST by 11th_VA
As the U.S. government continues to expand surveillance and monitoring systems to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars within the borders of the United States, a recent announcement regarding the country’s southern air defense systems is raising eyebrows.
Our southern border is, in part, protected by the Tethered Aerostat Radar System (TARS), which utilizes moored balloons hovering at about 15,000 feet to identify low flying aircraft and missiles that may penetrate the border and cross into U.S. airspace.
The system is utilized by the U.S. Air Force, North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), and U.S. Customs and Border Protection for a number of missions including detection of drug smuggling and preservation of the air sovereignty of the continental United States.
According to Exelis Systems Corporation, the company that built and jointly maintains TARS with the U.S. Air Force, the government has ordered a complete shutdown of Aerostat flight operations:
The government also indicated its intent that aerostat flight operations will cease on March 15, 2013, and that the remainder of the fiscal year will be used to deflate aerostats, disposition equipment, and prepare sites for permanent closure. We are currently reviewing all the details of the RfP and evaluating the possible impacts on the program and our workforce. We continue to communicate with the government on this matter, and we will have more information in the coming days and weeks.
An Exelis employee close to the TARS project had this to say about the closure of the sites:
“Not only will this closure mean hundreds of people will be out of jobs, but it also means our borders will not be safe, especially along the remote U.S. Mexico Border like in Texas.
These defense radars detect low flying aircraft infiltrating our borders.
Without these defense radars, low flying aircraft will go undetected.
It will be open season for any drug/gun/slave smugglers, terrorists flying in with nukes, low altitude missiles, or even a full scale low elevation invasion/attack against America.”
With China actively and openly deploying Russian-made low altitude strategic bombers, designing EMP weapons capable of disabling the country’s power grid infrastructure, and establishing economic zones within the United States, it’s difficult to imagine the motivation behind the move to further weaken U.S. air defenses on the southern border.
If September 11, 2001 was any indication of our air defense capabilities, and considering that any ground invasion of the United States would originate on our southern border, then wouldn’t we want as many early warning systems as possible to be actively protecting our country in these specific areas?
The U.S. government has chosen to shutdown this outward facing surveillance system, and has instead turned the surveillance inward, on the American people.
You had to post that picture. I thought I could get through the morning without vomiting. Now I have to clean up the mess.
Our country may not be in the best of hands right now but I don’t see trucks full of Americans heading to Mexico.
These defense radars detect low flying aircraft infiltrating our borders.
The cartels know where to spend money in the right places.
So now the cartels can make their deliveries by air.
I thought they were going with a combination of blimps and drones, which provide a lot more flexibility due to mobility. Also safety, since a ballon that breaks loose from a mooring will either go out of control or require an assisted (ranges from automatic deflation, possibly be an onboard explosive device to a shootdown scenario) deflation for an uncontrolled descent and landing.
Is there any indication that capability is being lost without replacement?
He's probably in a meeting.
If it's just the balloons that are going away, that may not be a bad thing. At 15K feet, the horizon as seen from a balloon is about 175miles away. To be effective, I would think chains of overlapping balloons are needed but with just a few widely scattered balloons, bad guys know to steer clear.
This is likely a result of sequestration. If so, I blame Boehner as much as Obama.
BMFL
Is it time YET!?!?
Don’t sweat it. There will still be plenty of spy drones in the air flying on behalf of the USDA to catch family farmers selling raw milk.
Maybe not just yet. But it's looking better everyday this traitor and his ilk are in power.
yeah, we finally got some spending cuts...
It was time four years ago. I don’t know why we’re all sitting on our @sses.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tethered_Aerostat_Radar_System#History
The UPI article does not say who the source was for the shutdown. Is this due to sequestration, or Obama?
“I feel sorry for the good citizens of California they will not have a chance..”
Is this the whole story? Or is there some plan this contractor was not aware of to replace the balloons with something else. Is obama really this treasonous? (I think I know the answer)
Don’t forget to thank the Republicans. They only difference between them and Democrats is not destination, they just drive with one foot on the brake... you still end up in hell.
The North American Union is well underway. Courtesy the R&D Party.
But it’s important to keep groping our wives, daughters and grandmothers at the airport?
Buffoons will replace them.
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