Posted on 06/13/2002 3:15:22 PM PDT by LibertyRocks
Your LIFE at risk? Get real...
That's why it's done by a GOVERNMENT office outside of the MDA. It is NOT contracted out, because it is a function required to be performed by government employees, and that is a statutory requirement.
Did you even bother to go to Biff's site, or are you going to stand there and tell me that with his qualifications, you are going to insist that he is making this up??
Yes, I went to his website. That clown was never an Army Ranger, unless it was Chairborne.
I firmly believe that Biff is a legend in his own mind...and nowhere else.
When you have something relevent to say, like what is Stanley's position on abortion, drugs, prostitution, immigration, border security, military/defense and the criminal justice system, I'll be around. Being a Libertarian, doesn't mean you're a conservative. The Libertarian Party platform promotes an extreme agenda, that most American's don't find in line with their own personal beliefs and values in their life.
Part of the procurement process. The review is also subject to review by among others Army Audit Agency.
How long will it take to deploy the system? Enemies of Missile Defense say... decades. Is that based on their experience in deploying missile defense systems? Perhaps their judgment might be suspect, since they are determined to prevent such a system, regardless of its efficacy? I don't look for logic regarding this issue or practical solutions from a political fringe that has no concern for national security.
There were 5 separate "layers" to the NMD (National Missile Defense) system as originally proposed. Clinton tried to put the kibosh on all of them. When it became politically obvious that a potential ICBM threat from rogue nations and terrorists groups will soon exist, he allowed the continued development of the most difficult to design, build and deploy of the 5... the mid-flight interceptor system. This act was intended to seal the fate of the entire idea of missile defense. And since all other branches of the military were in steady decline during the Clinton years, why should anyone notice this act of slight of hand?
NMD was supposed to fail. It did not. In fact, it seems to work as well or better than originally designed. Now, with the end of the obsolete ABM treaty, actual deployment will begin. Training technician/soldiers is an ongoing process, it will not end with the retirement of the current development team, some years in the future. The number of generations of updating may well be more than ten before a final, working system is deployed. This is the way systems like this are developed and deployed. Had the complexities of NORAD been considered beyond the capabilities of American technology, or the beyond the management skills of the military, we would not have any early warning system at all. Yet, the people who first envisioned NORAD have all retired long ago.
We are witnessing cost overruns, bureaucratic bungling, and if this article if factual, outright fraud, that undermines our national security. If true, I guarantee that enemies of NMD will try and get as much mileage out of this scandal as possible, for their own short term political gain. Nothing of this scale that the Pentagon seems to do is ever without graft, waste, and even this kind of scandal. It is a fact of life. I sure would like to see that change, as it would get this system out of the political football realm, and would actually offset real and potential threats to our country. I seriously want to see an investigation and reform of the development of NMD, if these accusations prove true, rather than the prayed-for political gambit the extreme left would like to see with its demise.
|
15 March 2002
U.S. Conducts Successful Missile Intercept Test Over PacificDemonstrated integrated systems and "hit to kill" technologyThe United States conducted its fourth successful intercept of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in a test over the central Pacific Ocean, the Department of Defense announced in a March 15 news release. A modified ICBM target vehicle was first launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California Approximately 20 minutes later, a prototype interceptor, called an exoatmospheric kill vehicle (EKV), was launched from the Ronald Reagan Missile Site on Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. The successful intercept took place about 10 minutes later at an altitude of more than 140 miles (225 kilometers), according to the news release. In addition to a demonstration of "hit-to-kill" technology, the Defense Department said, the test involved the successful integration of space- and ground-based sensors and radar to detect the launch and track the missile in flight. Sensors aboard the interceptor, or EKV, also successfully selected the target instead of three balloon decoys. Following is the text of the Defense Department statement: U.S. Department of Defense News Release MISSILE INTERCEPT TEST SUCCESSFUL The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) announced today it has successfully completed a test involving a planned intercept of an intercontinental ballistic missile target. The test took place over the central Pacific Ocean. A modified Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) target vehicle was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., at 9:11 p.m. EST, and a prototype interceptor was launched approximately 20 minutes later and 4,800 miles away from the Ronald Reagan Missile Site, Kwajalein Atoll, in the Republic of the Marshall Islands. The intercept took place approximately 10 minutes after the interceptor was launched, at an altitude in excess of 140 miles above the earth and during the midcourse phase of the target warhead's flight. This was the fourth successful intercept for the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) Segment, formerly known as National Missile Defense. The test successfully demonstrated exoatmospheric kill vehicle (EKV) flight performance and "hit to kill" technology to intercept and destroy a long-range ballistic missile target. In addition to the EKV locating, tracking, and intercepting the target resulting in its destruction using only the body-to-body impact, this test also demonstrated the ability of system elements to work together as an integrated system. The test involved the successful integrated operation of space and ground-based sensors and radars, as well as the Battle Management, Command Control and Communications (BMC3) function to detect the launch of the target missile, cue an early warning radar to provide more detailed target location data; and integration of a prototype X-Band radar (based at Kwajalein) to provide precise target data to the EKV, which received the target updates from the In-Flight Interceptor Communications Systems (IFICS) at Kwajalein. The EKV separated from its rocket booster more than 1,400 miles from the target warhead. After separation, it used its on-board infrared and visual sensors, augmented with the X-Band radar data provided by BMC3 via the In-flight Interceptor Communications System, to locate and track the target. Sensors aboard the EKV also successfully selected the target instead of three balloon decoys. Only system-generated data was used for the intercept after the EKV separated from its booster rocket. A C-band transponder aboard the target warhead did not provide any tracking or targeting information to the interceptor after the interceptor was launched. Tonight's test is a major step in our aggressive developmental test program, and is the fourth successful intercept in six attempts. We will continue to pursue this testing regime to achieve a layered approach to missile defense, using different architectures to deter the growing threat of ballistic missiles carrying weapons of mass destruction. Over the next several weeks, government and industry program officials will conduct an extensive analysis of the data received during the flight test to determine whether anomalies or malfunctions occurred during the test, evaluate system performance and determine whether or not all flight test objectives were met. Since the system is in the developmental phase of design and testing, performance of individual elements and the overall system integration was as important as the actual intercept.
|
|
This site is produced and maintained by the U.S. Department of State's Office of International Information Programs (usinfo.state.gov). Links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views contained therein.  |
 IIP Home | Index to This Site | Webmaster | Search This Site | Archives | U.S. Department of State |
That's the same kind of gobeldy gook that I heard for 35 years, while I worked in the defense industry. It's just bureaucratic hogwash - by someone who wants to build his empire.
I repeat my question: Why spend money training someone who will be back in civilian life when (or if) the system is deployed?
The training must also be tested. Those being trained now are test subjects. When there is a real working system deployed, the training will also work.
The same reason we train raw recruits to handle all of the sophisticated equipment we have now, that's the way the military works. How would you do it?
I'll take reporting like this seriously when the media looks into ALL government corruption, not just the bad things they choose to see.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
