Defensiebegrotingen en -problematiek, niet NL

[dudge]

Why France Can't Fight

Years of shortchanging defense are showing up in its Africa campaign.

The French armed forces field some of the world's most sophisticated fighter jets, nuclear submarines, attack helicopters and armored vehicles. The country spent $52 billion last year on defense, which puts it in the world's top league in total military spending. That's more than twice what such robust middle powers as South Korea, Turkey and Israel spend.

Inderdaad een heel interessante vraag, en een absolute waarschuwing voor heel Europa. Frankrijk is op dit moment, waarschijnlijk, de meest capabele krijgsmacht van Europa.

Yet in its commendable efforts to fight terrorists in Mali, Paris is all but begging for logistical and military support from its NATO allies and has come up short on everything from refuelling to surveillance to heavy transport. Independently deploying a brigade-sized force to a country a mere five hours flight-time away is proving a bridge too far. How did that happen?

Die brigade krijgen ze er wel. Alleen tijd was in deze een belangrijke factor. Een waardoor zeetransport te langzaam was, en de Fransen een stevige air assault moesten opzetten.

The question is worth asking because it tells us something about the nature of present-day European militaries—and perhaps the future of the U.S. military, too.

Consider personnel costs. In the U.S., military planners fret that the Pentagon spends $107 billion of its $600 billion budget on salaries, another $53 billion or so on health care, and another $50 billion on retirement costs. In France, the Defense Ministry spends an astounding 50% of its total budget on personnel costs.

Some of that is the result of moving to an all-volunteer force, as France did in 1996, which has made the military smaller but more professional. But the bulk of the problem is that the Defense Ministry spends €7.6 billion ($10.2 billion) on retirees—roughly 20% of its budget, euros that are effectively taken away from war-fighting needs.

Die redenen inderdaad, maar naast dat 20% uitgegeven wordt aan pensioenen (in NL ook meer dan 1 miljard/>15%), gaat er ook nog een deel naar de Gendarmerie (wederom 7,7 miljard, 20%), net als de NL Kmar. In landen als de VS staat dat, meen ik, vaak los van het defensiebudget (secret service, Border control enz). Ongeacht of je de KMAR nu nuttig vindt of niet, of dat nu bij Defensie hoort of niet, een echte warfighting capability leveren ze niet. Is dus al 40% die niet naar de Marine, Lucht- of Landmacht gaan.
 

The result is an increasingly hollow military. On paper France has 230,000 men and women in uniform, but only 30,000 are estimated to be deployable on six months notice.

wij hadden de grootste moeite om in 2008 zo'n 2500-3000 man op uitzending te hebben, van de 70.000(?). verhoudingsgewijs nog een heel stuk slechter (3,5% vs 13%). Ook bij de Britten liggen de verhoudingen waarschijnlijk slecht. Onder meer een probleem door de versplintering in de Europese krijgsmachten denk ik. Een goed argument voor specialisatie. Ook is het interessant om te weten hoeveel burgers de krijgsmachten in dienst hebben. Waar burgers enerzijds vaak goedkoper kunnen zijn dan militairen, en de gemiddelde uitzendbaarheid misschien omhoog kunnen brengen, hebben zij als nadeel dat zij zelf niet uitzendbaar zijn, en dus ten koste gaan van het doorzettingsvermogen.

France does spend money on modern weaponry: Since 2009, one of the few pieces of equipment that saw an upward revision in planned inventory through 2014 is Dassault's twin-engine Rafale fighter jet, of which France already has more than 70, with plans for nearly 160 more.

But militaries need the not-so-sexy stuff, too, and here Paris has been shortchanging its soldiers for years. French infantrymen must now deploy with barely half the number of logistical transport vehicles the military had planned four years ago. French diplomats spent the first week of the Malian intervention haggling with the U.S., Canada and Britain for American-made C-17s to transport soldiers and gear to Mali.

Nieuwe projecten zijn risicovol. Helaas worden deze vaak te laat opgestart, en is er te weinig rekening gehouden met eventuele risico's. Dit als gevolg van politieke beslissingen.

France has no C-17s, though for nearly a decade it has had an order in for 50 A400-M cargo planes. The A400-M (aka the Airbus "Atlas") is a joint project of several European governments, whose inability to pay for it has delayed the program repeatedly. The A400-M can handle only about half the payload of a C-17.

De payload van een A400M was ruim afdoende geweest voor Mali. Bij de eerste berichten dacht ik er zelfs aan, dat een uitlevering van de A400M de Franse afhankelijkheid van externe transporttoestellen aanzienlijk beperkt zou hebben.

France is also still hunting for more air-refueling tankers to back up its small fleet of aging KC-135s, which are the only way its Rafales can carry out attacks throughout northern Mali. The U.S. hasn't agreed to help on that one. Again, Paris has an order in for 14 new Airbus 330s to replace its tankers, but this purchase was postponed in 2010.

Refueling capacity is one of the many areas covered in France's 2010 "Defense and Cooperation Treaty" with the U.K., through which the allies were meant to make up the growing holes in each other's military capabilities should the need arise. But now that the need is there in Africa, British defense officials say they have no tankers to spare. Theirs are either busy in Afghanistan or on standby in case they need to get to the Falklands.

Een afspraak is leuk. Maar dan moet je moet dan wel borgen dat deze ook voor capaciteiten zorgt. Dat gebeurt, maar er is nog veel op te winnen. Daarbij gaat nationaal gebruik voor, de restjes worden gedeeld. Dat is efficiënt, maar in bepaalde gebieden zijn er nu eenmaal weinig restjes. En A2A-Refuelling is daar 1 van. 

Given the Obama Administration's unfortunate unwillingness to provide more than minimal help in Mali, policy makers across Europe must now reconsider their future defense-to-GDP ratios with some urgency. Meantime, France needs help to secure the Sahel from Islamist insurgents. Paris's misguided spending priorities have compromised its ability to win on its own in Mali. But neither France nor its allies can afford to see it lose.

Niet alleen de defense-to-GDP ratio, maar de gehele defensiestrategie!

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

January 28, 2013

Russia poised to achieve nuclear superiority over U.S.

By Toby Westerman

In his second term as Russian president, Vladimir Putin has made the rebuilding of Russian military forces, including its nuclear striking capabilities, a top priority. Advanced missiles, bombers, and submarines are either on the drawing board or coming into operational service, just as the United States is on the verge of drastic cuts in its armed forces.

Of the three legs of Russia's nuclear triad (air, land, sea forces), attack submarines carrying newly designed intercontinental ballistic missiles are receiving special attention. Moscow is seeking first to equal and then overtake the United States in nuclear weaponry, according to a now retired military weapons and terrorism analyst.

"Over the long haul, Russia is on the right track to achieve "parity," and ultimately surpass the U.S." in nuclear capability, particularly if threatened budget cuts slash the military budget of the United States, said Rick Norris, a veteran of the U.S. Army, Defense Intelligence Agency, and a recognized expert in weapons and counterterrorism.

Norris' made these remarks after this writer contacted him about the effectiveness of Russia's newest ballistic missile submarine, the Yuri Dolgorukiy, which has just entered service in the Russian navy.

The Yuri Dolgorukiy, named after an early Russian military hero, is the first of the Borei class of attack submarines to enter into service, and is scheduled to be joined "in the near future" by the Alexander Nevsky and Vladimir Monomakh, according to a recent RIA Novosti report [http://ria.ru/defense_safety/20130110/917607431.html] . In all eight ships of this class are to be completed.

On board the Yuri Dolgorukiy is Russia's most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile, the Bulava ("Mace"), which is described as "low flying," "hypersonic," weapon with multiple warheads.

The "low flying" aspect of the Bulava is especially dangerous. During the Cold War, U.S. military experts believed that the Soviet Union was capable of launching a "low flying" missile attack which could destroy, with very little warning, the national leadership of the United States, according to Norris. Specific measures were developed that would ensure the survival of at least part of the American leadership, including the practice of at least one person in the presidential succession always out of the Washington, D.C. area, Norris said.

The Bulava is meant to be an improvement on earlier Soviet capabilities. Each of the ten warheads has its own guidance system and is capable of changing altitude and course to evade anti-missile defenses. The Borei class submarines will be able to eventually carry as many as 20 Bulava missiles, Norris stated.

Moscow plans to use the Borei class submarines in both the Atlantic and Pacific. Already Moscow has reintroduced regular submarine patrols of the U.S. coast, which "should be cause of some concern," said Norris.

Russia is also working to improve the strike capabilities of other aspects of its nuclear "triad." In addition to modernizing its current bomber fleet, Moscow is developing a next generation long range strategic, possibly stealthy, bomber, referred to as PAK DA. Along with its submarine patrols, Russian bombers are again prowling along U.S. borders.

Another, and somewhat ambitious, revival of Cold War weaponry is the planned return of the missile train. In the Soviet era, certain trains would carry ballistic missile launching facilities along with passenger, mail, and freight cars. The missile trains were difficult to detect except that three locomotives were required to pull the extra load.

Russian scientists and technicians are now working on a nuclear-powered locomotive which remove the necessity of using three engines as well as refueling requirements. A prototype of a gas turbine locomotive, which could also pull a missile train, has already been built and successfully tested.

Moscow is serious in its intension to regain its place as a nuclear power. The political impulse influencing Russia's rearmament may be detected in a Tweet sent out by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin and attracted Norris' attention. Rogozin made the Tweet after the acceptance into the Northern Fleet of the Yuri Dolgorukiy. Its message: "Tremble, bourgeoisie! You're done with."

© Toby Westerman

http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/westerman/130128

[HermanB]

Ach in Europa slapen we gewoon door hoor.

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Why France Can't Fight

Years of shortchanging defense are showing up in its Africa campaign..

The French armed forces field some of the world's most sophisticated fighter jets, nuclear submarines, attack helicopters and armored vehicles. The country spent $52 billion last year on defense, which puts it in the world's top league in total military spending. That's more than twice what such robust middle powers as South Korea, Turkey and Israel spend.

Yet in its commendable efforts to fight terrorists in Mali, Paris is all but begging for logistical and military support from its NATO allies and has come up short on everything from refuelling to surveillance to heavy transport. Independently deploying a brigade-sized force to a country a mere five hours flight-time away is proving a bridge too far. How did that happen?

The question is worth asking because it tells us something about the nature of present-day European militaries—and perhaps the future of the U.S. military, too.

Consider personnel costs. In the U.S., military planners fret that the Pentagon spends $107 billion of its $600 billion budget on salaries, another $53 billion or so on health care, and another $50 billion on retirement costs. In France, the Defense Ministry spends an astounding 50% of its total budget on personnel costs.

Some of that is the result of moving to an all-volunteer force, as France did in 1996, which has made the military smaller but more professional. But the bulk of the problem is that the Defense Ministry spends €7.6 billion ($10.2 billion) on retirees—roughly 20% of its budget, euros that are effectively taken away from war-fighting needs.

The result is an increasingly hollow military. On paper France has 230,000 men and women in uniform, but only 30,000 are estimated to be deployable on six months notice.

France does spend money on modern weaponry: Since 2009, one of the few pieces of equipment that saw an upward revision in planned inventory through 2014 is Dassault's twin-engine Rafale fighter jet, of which France already has more than 70, with plans for nearly 160 more.

But militaries need the not-so-sexy stuff, too, and here Paris has been shortchanging its soldiers for years. French infantrymen must now deploy with barely half the number of logistical transport vehicles the military had planned four years ago. French diplomats spent the first week of the Malian intervention haggling with the U.S., Canada and Britain for American-made C-17s to transport soldiers and gear to Mali.

France has no C-17s, though for nearly a decade it has had an order in for 50 A400-M cargo planes. The A400-M (aka the Airbus "Atlas") is a joint project of several European governments, whose inability to pay for it has delayed the program repeatedly. The A400-M can handle only about half the payload of a C-17.

France is also still hunting for more air-refueling tankers to back up its small fleet of aging KC-135s, which are the only way its Rafales can carry out attacks throughout northern Mali. The U.S. hasn't agreed to help on that one. Again, Paris has an order in for 14 new Airbus 330s to replace its tankers, but this purchase was postponed in 2010.

Refueling capacity is one of the many areas covered in France's 2010 "Defense and Cooperation Treaty" with the U.K., through which the allies were meant to make up the growing holes in each other's military capabilities should the need arise. But now that the need is there in Africa, British defense officials say they have no tankers to spare. Theirs are either busy in Afghanistan or on standby in case they need to get to the Falklands.

Given the Obama Administration's unfortunate unwillingness to provide more than minimal help in Mali, policy makers across Europe must now reconsider their future defense-to-GDP ratios with some urgency. Meantime, France needs help to secure the Sahel from Islamist insurgents. Paris's misguided spending priorities have compromised its ability to win on its own in Mali. But neither France nor its allies can afford to see it lose.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324624404578257672194671036.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

[Lex]

Pentagon schrapt tienduizenden banen

WASHINGTON - Het Amerikaanse ministerie van Defensie gaat fors schrappen in het personeelsbestand om te kunnen bezuinigen. 

Het Pentagon zegt 46.000 tijdelijke werknemers en contractanten de wacht aan, zo meldde het departement vrijdag.

Het ministerie neemt daarmee een voorschot op enorme verwachte bezuinigingen op het defensiebudget. Het Pentagon zal in februari het Amerikaanse congres inlichten over de plannen.

ANP
25 januari 2013 18:24

[IPA NG]

En de Duitse krijgsmacht stelde al zeer weinig voor...

Nog een reden voor ons om te investeren.

[Lex]

Miljardenbezuiniging op Duitse defensie

MUNCHEN - De Duitse regering plant voor 2014 bezuinigingen op de begroting van in totaal 6 miljard euro. Defensie krijgt daarbij de zwaarste klappen. Bijna een derde van het totaalbedrag moet uit de portemonnee van minister Thomas de Mazière komen. Zijn departement zal 32 procent van de bezuinigingen moeten dragen. Verkeer levert 24 procent van de benodigde miljarden in.

Omdat het totaalbedrag vermoedelijk niet door vrijwillige bijdragen van de afzonderlijke ministeries bijeengebracht zal worden, treedt een vooraf vastgestelde verdeelsleutel in werking, aldus de krantSüddeutscheZeitung van vrijdag. Volgens de krant worden daarmee ook Onderzoek en Ontwikkelingssamenwerking het kind van de rekening. Deze departementen moeten respectievelijk 11 en 6 procent van de 6 miljard ophoesten.

Telegraaf,
vr 25 jan 2013, 11:44

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Dan zal Dassault omlaag moeten gaan met de prijzen want de VAE gaan voor de Eurofighter Typhoon.

Oman is voor 12 EF's gegaan, in de VAE zijn de besprekingen nog gaande. Als India defintief tekent (en er is zelfs spraken van 60 kisten boven op de eerder genoemde 126) dan heeft dat Dassault de ruimte om iets aan de prijs te doen.

Daarnaast is Mali voor het die regio (wederom) een aardige "show case" voor de Rafale. Kortom: afwachten.

[Ace1]

Laat ik een s voorzichtige gok doen. Libië koop de occasions van de VAE (Mirage2000/9) en de VAE kopen de Rafale.

Dan zal Dassault omlaag moeten gaan met de prijzen want de VAE gaan voor de Eurofighter Typhoon.

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Doorverkoop naar Libie zou heel goed kunnen deze heeft al Mirages F1 in gebruik of gehad?

Laat ik een s voorzichtige gok doen. Libië koop de occasions van de VAE (Mirage2000/9) en de VAE kopen de Rafale.

[Ace1]

Een mooi toestel die Mirage F1. Maar gezien de situatie waarin de spanjaarden zitten, en de leeftijd van het toestel, lijkt het mij wel een prima beslissing. Ben benieuwd, sloop of doorverkoop?

Doorverkoop naar Libie zou heel goed kunnen deze heeft al Mirages F1 in gebruik of gehad?

[dudge]

Een mooi toestel die Mirage F1. Maar gezien de situatie waarin de spanjaarden zitten, en de leeftijd van het toestel, lijkt het mij wel een prima beslissing. Ben benieuwd, sloop of doorverkoop?

[Ace1]

Spanish Air Force to decommission Mirage F1 fleet in 2013

Whilst the French Air Force is currently using the plane as a reconnaissance and attack platform in the Mali Air War, the Spanish Air Force is about to decommission the Dassault Mirage F1.

The Chief of the Spanish Air Force Staff (JEMA), Air General Francisco Javier García Arnaiz, recently reported that this year they would "eliminate three systems," those that already have substitutes: the C-212 Aviocar and Fokker F-27 in the SAR Service, and the Mirage F1 fighters.

In the latter case, the Eurofighter will replace it completely when it reaches the initial operational capability in the 14th Wing Air Base in Los Llanos (Albacete).



The acquisition of the French fighters by Spain in 1972 was due by the constant interference of the United States regarding the use of Spanish Air Force's U.S. military equipment, especially in the case of the F-86 Sabre and T-33 Shooting Star jets in the conflict of Sidi Ifni (Morocco). With the acquisition of the Mirage F1, the Spanish government marked the end of dependence on diplomatic vetoes.

In 1975 a 1st batch of 15 Mirage F1 C(E) arrived to Los Llanos Air Base in Albacete. Designated C.14, the planes were assigned to 141 Squadron, the first of the newly created 14th Wing.

The F1 C was an all-weather interceptor, equipped with a Thomson-CSF Cyrano IV monopulse radar and a limited secondary ground attack capability. Initially, the aircraft was armed with two internal DEFA 553 30mm cannons and Matra R530 medium-range air-to-air missiles.

The Spanish Air Force's Mirage F1 CE suffered modifications that allowed integration with American AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles.

In the second half of 1976 a 2nd batch of planes arrived and two years later a final 3th batch which included 6 two-seater F1 BE and 24 of the most advanced single-seat F1 EE was delivered.

The F1E had an upgraded equipment with a new computer data, Head-up Display (HUD), SAGEM-Kearfott inertial platform, digital computer updated Cyrano IV radar and a fixed refuelling probe.

With this new batch, Spanish Air Force could create the 142 Squadron. The most advanced F1EE went to  the 46th Wing based in Gando, Canary Islands.

In all, Spain has acquired 91 Mirage F1. 73 units initially purchased (45 F1 CE, 22 F1 EE and 6 F1 BE) plus 5 second hand units purchased from France and 13 second hand units also purchased to Qatar.

Mid-'90s, 51 single-seaters and 4 double-seaters were upgraded to F1 M version. They had a number of improvements including intelligent 26″ HUDs with integrated radar, HOTAS system, modernized Cyrano IVM radar for accurate ground-attack capability in four different modes, Night Vision Goggles compatibility, inertial navigator Sagem ULISS 47 and AIM-9 JULI Sidewinder compatibility among others.



From August 2006, Spain dispatched three Mirage F1 M fighters to Lithuania's First Air Base in Zokniai/Šiauliai International Airport for a 4 months deployment as part of NATO's 10th "Air Police" patrol mission within Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia's territorial airspace, being scrambled twice to intercept undisclosed intruders.

Nicknamed 'La abuela' (Grandmother) by the Spanish pilots, the Mirage F1 has been an active member of the annual NATO Tiger Meet since 1986. From this year, the state-of-the-art Eurofighter Typhoon will take that role within the 142 Squadron.

http://theaviationist.com/2013/01/20/spaf-mirages/?fb_source=pubv1#.UQGVDx0j5BM

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Lekker houden die raketten.

Zeker als Europa door de VS steeds minder belanrijk wordt gevonden, waarbij het mij niet zal verwonderen, als in de aankomende halve eeuw, de VS geeheel uit Eurpa zal vetrekken.

In dit kader is het toch wel geruststellend dat Europa over een autonome afschrikking beschikt zeker zolang er een groeiend aantal landen in de wereld is die nucleaire wapens bezit of nastreeft.

Zolang ze in de wereld zijn: beter mee dan om verlegen.

[IPA NG]

Domme hippies.

Lekker houden die raketten.