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2 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
 aUGUSt/SEPtEMBER 2016

www.armadainternational.com

06
LAND WARFARE
Shoot and
Scoot
Stephen W. Miller takes the
temperature of the self-
propelled artillery domain,
and examines some of the
leading programmes and
technological innovations.

12
LAND WARFARE
Smart logiStiCS
Logistics vehicles and tactical
trucks need protection on today’s
battlefield. Stephen W. Miller
investigates some offerings aimed
at protecting these vehicles.
18
sEA poWER
proteCtiNg the air
from the Sea
Trevor Hollingsbee examines the
latest developments across several
major air defence frigate and
destroyer programmes worldwide.
24
FuTuRE TEcHNoLogIEs
hoW Not to Be SeeN
Nature has known about camouflage
for millennia, armed forces for
slightly less time. Andrew White
explores some of the latest innova-
tions in concealment technology.
28
LAND WARFARE
ChemiCal memory
Chilling yet pertinent analysis from
Andy Oppenheimer regarding the CBRN
threat from non-state actors, and the
available protective equipment.

PLEMENT
DIUM SUP
COMPEN
ATIONAL
ADA INTERN
AN ARM

ARmADA
2016/17
compENDIum
34 40 46
lysis
ogy ana
Technol
defence
source for 12:38 PM

TrusTed
7/29/16

: The

indd 1

TuRINg
Aug/Sept.

AIR poWER pRogRAmmE Focus

new EW

the other eNd of the liNe War iN the ether

CoiN operated
Thomas Newdick examines several
light combat aircraft, explaining
the contributions that they can
make to low-intensity operations.
the geNeratioN game
Russia’s new PAK-FA aircraft
falls under the spotlight with
Thomas Newdick examining
the developmental trials and
tribulations of this new fighter.
Andy Oppenheimer examines ISIS’ use
of the Internet as a recruit-ment and
propaganda tool, and the international
response to its actions.
Thomas Withington presents
Armada’s first airborne electronic
warfare supplement which provides
a detailed overview of the state-of-
the-art of this complex discipline.

armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 3

 INDEX TO ADVERTISERS

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Editorial
Careful What You Wish For

O
n 23 June, the United Kingdom billion towards the end of the decade in 2018/19.
voted to leave the European Meanwhile, the Institute of Fiscal Studies, a
Union (EU). While the security London-based think tank, has warned that the
implications of this decision so-called ‘Brexit’ decision, and the uncertainty
may not be immediately ap- this has now generated in the UK and interna-

AD
parent, there are potential implications none- tional business communities over whether the
theless for this momentous decision. UK will continue to obtain access to the EU’s
The editorial of the previous Armada (June/ single market, could see a reduction in the UK’s
July) extolled the virtues of the EU and stated Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by between 2.1
this publication’s desire for the UK to continue percent to 3.9 percent in the 2018/19 timeframe.
its membership. Nevertheless, British voters A reduction in GDP could mean a reduction
thought otherwise with 51.8 percent wishing to in government spending with less tax revenues
leave the EU, as opposed to the 48.1 who wished to go around. This could have an impact on de-
to remain. The defence implications of the UK’s fence at a time when the UK is having to spend
decision are nuanced. Should the government big on a number of important procurements,
activate Article 50 of the Treaty on European notably the Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning-
Union, the mechanism for departing from the II fighter for the Royal Navy and the Royal Air
club, the primary short-term impact could be Force, the Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime pa-
economic. trol aircraft for the Royal Navy, plus the new
Goldman Sachs and Barclays, two major Type-26 Global Combat Ship and the so-called
finance houses, both predict that the UK will ‘Successor’ class nuclear-powered ballistic mis-
enter recession by late 2016/early 2017. Any sile submarine (SSBN) for the same service. In
economic downturn could have implications total, these procurements add up to a ballpark
for defence spending. A contracting economy figure of $81.1 billion, based on the reported
means less government spending. A report, costs for the quantities of platforms planned
published on 10 July, by the UK parliamentary for purchase.
Joint Committee on National Security, which Such a figure may simply be too much for
scrutinises UK defence and security policy, UK government spending to stomach in light of
noted that current UK defence spending com- any contraction of the economy, and some pro-
mitments had been predicated on a 0.5 percent grammes may have to be substantially reduced,
annual spending increase above the rate of in- if not scrapped completely. No wonder Russian
flation. This was expected to take UK defence President Vladimir Putin welcomed the Brexit ThomAs WiThingTon,
spending from $45.3 billion for 2015/16 to $50.3 result. Editor

armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 5

Land WaRFaRE

US Army
For many years self-propelled artillery,
though more mobile, was employed in
the same manner as towed guns typically
used in batteries of six to eight guns that
moved into pre-surveyed positions.

Shoot and Scoot

Land forces that have shown the ability for their ‘guns’ (field artillery) to keep up with advancing
infantry and cavalry combat forces have always had a decisive advantage. This is because the ground
force as a whole is able to move forward, rather than one part outrunning another.

Stephen W. Miller

U
nlike mechanized artillery,
towed guns need to uncouple
from their prime mover to
fire and have limited off-road
mobility. This means that
they cannot be as responsive to the indirect
fire demands of mechanized combat units
particularly during the offensive, compared
to their mechanized counterparts. It did not
take long for armies to begin fitting artillery
guns onto tracked and half-tracked plat-
forms in an attempt to provide artillery the
ability to keep closer to the fighting units,
once the proliferation of tracked vehicles
occurred en masse during the First World
War. In the Second World War, mechanized
artillery evolved further to provide indirect
fires from vehicle-mounted howitzers as
well as direct fire support by assault guns
such as the Wehrmacht (Nazi Germany’s
armed forces) Sturmgeschütz III tracked
assault gun.
There are clear tactical advantages
to Self-Propelled Artillery (SPA) beyond
its capability to move with a mechanized
force yet there are also drawbacks. As with
all military equipment there is no ‘perfect
solution’ but rather a trade-off between
competing characteristics. The ‘right’ sys-
tem is influenced by the mission, terrain,
anticipated enemy and their capabilities,
and the method of employment of the
guns and the land force as a whole. Still
there have been a number of design and
equipment innovations and technologies
in the last decades that have substantially
multiplied the effectiveness of SPA. These
in turn have influenced the way artillery is
organized, employed and integrated into
the larger combat force.
advancES and InnovatIonS
Artillery’s role is to quickly delivery
accurate and effective indirect fires
against both enemy forward forces and to

6 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016


suppress or destroy opposing artillery’s
ability to deliver similar fires on friendly
units (referred to as counter-battery).
Thus, artillery must be capable of attack-
ing targets on demand but also avoid being
destroyed by enemy attempts to find,
engage and neutralize themselves. The
prerequisites for effective lethal artillery
fires are accurately knowing your position
and that of the target, rapidly computing
the fire control solution, applying it to the
gun, and achieving maximum destructive
effect by delivering with minimum or no
warning multiple rounds directly on target
spaced within seconds. Having completed
the fire mission it can be expected, at least
against an equally technically capable op-
ponent, that the gun position has been de-
tected and may be targeted in return by the
enemy. To preclude being taken under fire
the guns must now move to a new position
and then be ready to respond to new calls
for fire. A common term for this sequence
is ‘shoot and scoot’.
SPA, unlike towed guns (see above),
are most suited to this technique but ac-
complishing all the steps described is still
challenging. However, a number of tech-
nologies have been introduced that give
artillery a new dimension in its employ-
ment and effectiveness. These enhanced
capabilities cover navigation and posi-
tioning; digitized integrated networked
command and control; automatic loading,
automated firing solution computation
and gun laying, and improved ammunition.
navigation and Positioning
The Global Positioning System (GPS)
geolocation satellite network coupled with
The PzH2000
maximizes the use
of automation in all
aspects of the gun
aiming, loading and
firing process to both
reduce the crew size
and to allow the gun
to undertake fire
support missions as an
independent unit.
armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
Land WaRFaRE
RoK Army
The K-9 Thunder is the baseline
design for the Turkish T-155 Fintina.
The K-9 was also evaluated for the
Australian Army Self Propelled gun
programme which was cancelled.
electronics miniaturization allows gun-
ners to determine accurate location down
to a personnel or individual equipment
level. Yet guns, particularly Self-Propelled
Howitzers (SPHs), ideally require even
higher accuracy as well as reliable access
and responsiveness even while moving,
perhaps more than GPS can often offer.
When computing advances improved
and lowered costs for Inertial Navigation
Systems (INS), which use computers and
KMW
7
Land WaRFaRE
US Army
Precision guided artillery projectiles
like Raytheon’s Excalibur have the
ability to strike targets with an accuracy
of ten metres or less. When employed
with a laser designator/rangefinder this
can be increased to a pin-point strike.
motion sensors to determine a vehicle’s
position and speed, it provided a major
advance in positioning information that
can now be installed on every SPH. INS
units like the Safran Defence Electronics
(formerly Sagem) Sigma 30, the Kearfott
LandNav and those produced by ASELSAN
provide better than ten metre/m (32.8 feet/
ft) position and up to one mil direction ac-
curacy in any conditions including on the
move, under trees or other cover. As a Saf-
ran design engineer pointed out to Armada,
“this combination of INS and GPS elimi-
nates any need for outside survey support
and allows each gun to autonomously and
precisely know its location at all times.”
Command and ContRoL
The introduction of digital integrated data
networks address what have been ever-
present problems for artillery; chiefly how
to pass target information from forward-
positioned observers to the gunners, and
how to coordinate the fires of batteries
spread over the battlefield. Systems like
Thales’ ATLAS artillery Command and
Control (C2) system which is used by the
Armée de Terre (French Army) solve this. It
provides onboard terminals for communi-
cations and real-time firing management
including fire-support requests and firing
orders. Raytheon’s Advanced Field Artil-
8 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
lery Tactical Data System (AFATDS) Fire
Support C2 system is employed by the US
Army and US Marine Corps. A Raytheon
spokesperson explained that the AFATDS
enhances artillery by “prioritizing targets
and coordinating firing assets from battery
to higher (echelons) to provide timely, ac-
curate and managed fire support options.”
When these C2 systems are coupled
with forward observer target locators
like Vinghøg’s LP10TL Target Locator and
FOI2000 Forward Observation System,
Safran’s GonioLight or Instro Precision’s
Thor Targeting System it is possible to
achieve true observer to shooter synergy.
With both the guns and observer having
precise locations and exchanging raw tar-
get data directly, the fires can be delivered
with unprecedented speed. The SPH can
be in transit to its next position and yet
receive a ‘call for fire’ from an observer
and begin to compute and prepare a firing
response. Literally in seconds a firing
solution can be determined, guns laid,
rounds loaded and fired. The Kraus Maffei-
Wegmann (KMW) PzH2000, BAE Systems’
FH-77BW L52 Archer Artillery System
and Samsung Techwin’s K-7 Thunder SPH
can have rounds on the way within 30 to
60 seconds of halting. The advantages of
these designs are reflected in their export
success. The K-9 Thunder for example is
the baseline (by license production) for the
Turkish T-155 Firtina (Storm), and its 2015
selection by India as the K-9 Vajra which
The Artillery Gun
Module (DONAR)
developed jointly by
KMW and General
Dynamics Land
Systems, which is a
155mm howitzer, is
a fully automatic,
unmanned and
autonomous
artillery gun
module that can be
placed on tracked or
wheeled platforms.
will be assembled in country by Larsen
and Toubro. In addition, the K-9 chassis
will be produced and is to be integrated
with Polish Huta Stalowa Wola AHS Krab,
the rollout of which occurred in August
2015, with plans to deliver 120 to the Wojska
Lądowe (Polish Army).
LogistiCs
An axiom of combat is that surprise
multiplies combat effect; thus, the initial
attack, before the target can react, always
has the greatest impact. This is even truer
of indirect fires. The ideal mission is where
multiple guns or batteries are coordinated
to all fire so as to impact on a target at the
same time. The substitution of automated
loading systems on SPHs for manual
loading allows a single or ‘short’ battery
of two or three guns to repeatedly achieve
this goal. When coupled with computer-
controlled gun aiming the auto-loader
allows Multiple-Round Simultaneous-
Impact (MRSI) engagements by even a
single gun. The process has the computer
changing the gun elevation for each round
so as to have all rounds then impact at the
same time on the target area. The FH77BW
L52 has a rate-of-fire of three rounds in
15 seconds, the PzH2000 achieves twelve
rounds in fewer than 60 seconds, and the
US Army’s BAE Systems M-109A6 Paladin
can fire three rounds in 16 seconds with a
sustained rate of eight per minute. These
capabilities exceed that which could be
KMW
 TECHNICAL SUPPORT MACHINE MTP-72
PURPOSE
Technical Support Machine MTP72 is designed for the most
labor intensive maintenance and current repairs of tank T-72
in the field.
The structure of the machine includes a trailer with
equipment and racks with niches and special boxes for
transport and storage of spare parts and consumables for the
repair of the tank.

SPECIfICATIONS
Chassis KrAZ-632207
Trailer type
Body type Full metal, welded
Crew 3 (driver - crane operator,
locksmith - mechanic, electrician - welder)
Workshop overall dimensions, mm:
Length 14720
Width 2760
Height 3640
Total weight of a workshop, kg 22750
Maximum speed, km/h 80
Fuel consumption, l/100 km 48
Maximum grade ascending ability, angle degree 25
Fordable depth, m 1,2
Zar-system voltage, V 24, 220, 380

STATIONARY CHARGING STATION SZS-U

PURPOSE
Stationary charging station SZS-U is intended for a charge of acid accumulator batteries,
and also alkaline batteries with the rated voltage of 12 and 24 V, with the capacity from 7
to 200 A·h, what is applied in automobile and armored vehicles (personal armored vehicles
or tanks)
The station represents the stationary boxing of frame type, it is divided into two
compartments.
There is the chargers block in the front compartment, it’s consisting of twelve independent
charging modules.
There are niches for laying of 12 charging cables sets and 1 powering cables set (220 V and
380 V) in the rear compartment.
Charging modules provide a high long-term charging rate with low fluctuations at the
exit, they are interfering to premature wear of accumulator battery’s plates, and also are
capable to determine the rated voltage of the charged battery automatically.

SPECIfICATIONS
Type Stationary, power supply from external network
Output voltage, V 12, 24
Station voltage, V 220, 380
Number of at the same time charged accumula- tor batteries 12
Time necessary for station expansion, no more, min. 5
Outline dimensions, mm
length 1000
width 800
height 1000
Weight, kg: 100

36, Dehtiarivska St., Kyiv, 04119, Ukraine

Phone: +380 (44) 461-94-27 Fax: +380(44) 461-97-59; 489-07-58
E-mail: aira@ukrspecexport.com
Land WaRFaRE
BAE Systems
The FH77BW LA2 combines a
number of innovations including the
use of a truck platform, automatic
magazine loading, computerized fire
control and gun laying.
How it works: CirCular
Error Probability
Traditional artillery target engage-
ment often required firing of a number
of shells to neutralize a target. This is
a function of the inherent inaccuracy
of the rounds and the impact of wind
and other factors while the round is in
flight. Accuracy is measured by what is
called CEP (Circular Error Probability),
essentially the measured diameter of
a circle in which 50 percent of rounds
will impact. The greater the engage-
ment range the less accurate they
will be and the larger the CEP. Firing
more rounds at a specific target then
increases the chances that sufficient
rounds will impact sufficiently close to
the desired target. A standard 155mm
shell has a CEP of 200m to 300m
(656ft to 984ft) at moderate range.
Therefore, to achieve the desired ef-
fects on a target it would be necessary
to fire multiple guns, or to have one
gun firing multiple times, at the same
target. Even with an auto-loader this
lengthens the engagement time and
increases the ammunition expended.
The longer the engagement time the
greater the possibility that the firing
unit will be detected and receive in-
coming counter-battery fires. Likewise
with limited on-board ammunition
supplies, the more rounds fired on a
single target the lower the number
of engagements that are possible on
other targets.
10 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
achieved by a full battery of six to eight
guns only a few years ago.
A consequence of the auto-loader’s
introduction is that it requires configuring
the ammunition storage in some version
of a ‘magazine’ whereby the specific round
and projectile type can be readily accessed.
Approaches have included a ‘clip type’ on
the gun as with the FH77BW L52; a separate
protected ammunition compartment as
in the M-109A6, K-9 and T-155. Christian
Budd, a KMW spokesperson, reflected, “Our
PzH2000 is optimized for autonomous op-
erations. Auto-loading and rapid fire (‘burst
fire’) capabilities are key, as well as the need
to have larger amounts of on-board am-
munition. In fact, the PzH2000 has a basic
on-board load of over 60 projectiles.”
Replenishing ammunition for artillery
has always been a challenge. With SPHs
this is compounded by their ability to
move quickly and off-road. Ammunition
in trucks is inadequate as such vehicles
cannot keep up with the advance and
often have, in the past, no crew protection
against enemy fires. The US Army was
one of the first to address this in 1982 by
introducing the BAE Systems’ M-992A2
FAASV (Field Artillery Ammunition Sup-
ply Vehicle). With the same chassis as the
M-109A6, it has equivalent mobility and
armour and can carry 96 conventional
rounds (the M-109A6 itself has a basic load
of 36). It has a powered ammunition han-
dling system that assists the five-person
crew in transferring rounds to the SPH.
Other armies have followed suit, in fact,
often referring to their combination of gun
and resupply vehicle as a ‘system’ to be em-
ployed together. BAE Systems’ FH77BW L52
refers to a complete system which includes
both the FH77BW L52 SPH itself and its
ammunition resupply and support vehicles.
The K9 Thunder SPH is employed with the
K-10, a fully-automated re-supply vehicle
with which it shares the chassis, power
pack and suspension. It can transfer twelve
rounds-per-minute. These purpose-built
ammunition resupply systems perform a
critical role in assuring that continuous
fire support can be reliably provided on a
highly fluid battlefield. This is particularly
true in combat where it may be essential
for the guns to move often and where high
ammunition expenditure is expected.
automation
The presence of INS/GPS and digital
computers provides almost seamless cal-
culation of the gun firing solution for each
target. Integrating this data into the gun
traverse and elevation servos permits the
gunner to direct their gun to the proper aim
point with the push of a button. The process
can be totally automated with even propel-
lant charges determined, selected and
prepared. This ‘hands-off’ process, coupled
with the automatic loading, is the core to
the Multiple-Round Simultaneous-Impact
(MRSI) capability. Another benefit is the
substantially reduced crew size required.
Early SPHs required five to seven troops
in the gun/vehicle crew. Current systems
have reduced this by 50 to 75 percent. For
example, the FH77BW LA2 can be fired by
as few as three soldiers. They can carry out
an entire fire mission and displace to a new
position without ever touching the gun or
leaving the protection of the armoured cab.
This capability is of special interest to na-
tions with smaller forces and limited num-
bers of soldiers and equipment. This was
one of the motivations for the Armén (Swed-
ish Army) on its FH77BW LA2 selection.
Singurlaug Jonsdottir, a spokesperson for
BAE Systems’ Bofors division which builds
the product, confirmed that the Swedish
Army accepted its first unit in September
2015 with further deliveries of the first 24
unit order occurring in 2016.
impRovEd ammunition
Advances in electronics miniaturization
opened the door for taking the precision
targeting technology being employed in
air-to-ground munitions and applying
it to artillery projectiles. One of the first
was the US M712 Copperhead which used
a laser seeker that homed onto the target
being ‘painted’ by a laser designator. Paul
Daniels, a programme manager at Ray-
theon for PGMs (Precision-Guided Muni-
tions) who used the M712 as an artillery of-
ficer, shared with Armada that “although
it was a great idea the complexity of the
firing process made it difficult to actually
employ … current PGMs, like Raytheon’s
Excalibur, are far simpler, cost less and
are more reliable and accurate.” The
Excalibur, which is fired from a 155mm
gun, had a goal of a CEP (Circular Error

of Probability: see How it Works box) of
better than 20m (65ft). In fact the latest ‘1B’
version achieves five metres’ (16.4ft) even
at 36km (22.3 miles) range. The ‘S’ ver-
sion adds a semi-active laser seeker that
improves the CEP to one metre (nine feet).
Further work has seen the introduction
of GPS guided projectiles which can be
offered in ‘kits’ that are fit to the standard
155mm projectiles. Orbital ATK’s PGK is
a ‘course correction’ projectile provided
as a kit that transforms a standard 155mm
projectile into a PGM. The PGK, Precision
Guidance Kit M1156, allows the gun crew
to change the fuse and adds fins to the
standard M549A1 and M795 155mm projec-
tiles. Its CEP is six metres (19.6ft).
TRanspoRTabiLiTy
A drawback of the SPH has been the dif-
ficulty in transporting it for deployed
operations. The weight and size of many
self-propelled guns limit their strategic
movement to ship or heavy transport
KONGSBERG
KONGSBERG creates and delivers
high technology solutions for people
that operate under very challenging
conditions – on the oceans, in the
deep subsea, in defence, in space.
aircraft. Several companies have devel-
oped solutions that offer ground and air
transport mobility by fitting the gun onto
a tactical truck. The Nexter CAESAR and
Soltom ATMOS 2000 are both 155mm
howitzers mounted in the rear bed of a
truck. The DONAR from KMW goes even
further. It is a modular gun system that
can be mounted on a wide range of either
tracked or wheeled chassis depending on
the user’s preference. These systems rep-
licate the full complement of navigation
and positioning, C2, digital fire control and
fires management networking. A differ-
ence from the heavier SPH is that these
are generally (with exception of DONAR)
manually loaded although with mechani-
cally assisted ammunition handling which
allows the ATMOS to be served by a crew of
only four, while the CAESAR uses six.
Moving FoRWaRd
The attributes provided by SPHs are
crucial to the ability to effectively deliver
armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 11
Land WaRFaRE
indirect fire support to manoeuvring
armoured units. However, increased inci-
dences of insurgency (witness Afghanistan
and Iraq), though relatively conventional
but at a lower scale of sophistication than
high-tempo air-land battle, may well find
the truck-mounted SPH as an adequate
and even preferred option. The more
substantial advances in self-propelled
artillery may well be found in electronics
and computing rather than in mechanics
and hardware. These are likely to further
facilitate the operational concept around
which the KMW PzH2000 is designed. This
is for a gun to operate as a self-contained
firing unit that can operate autonomously
while undertaking multiple fire missions
in rapid succession. The time of battery
fires may be coming to a close with a shift
to single, or pair of guns, working inde-
pendently but managed and directed via
a network. Mobility of data is furthering
the benefits of the mobility of the guns
themselves.
www.kongsberg.com
Land WaRFaRE

Oshkosh
SmaRt The armouring of tactical trucks by the US
Army had been envisioned in small numbers
but became an imperative in Iraq when

LogiSticS
insurgents widely targeted logistics convoys.

Military tactical vehicles have for the most part remained similar to their commercial cousins
since their introduction during the First World War. In most armies they were often exactly like the
commercial versions though painted in green or sand colours with some military ‘options’.

Stephen W Miller

T
his paradigm has changed and
has done so relatively quickly
with many tactical trucks
taking on a new form. Some
of the differences are visually
apparent while others are submerged in
the equipment itself. All these differences
were driven by what many see as a new
reality in the way warfare is occurring now
and in the future. The key changes to tacti-
cal vehicle design encompass three areas:
crew protection, off-road mobility and
availability/reliability.
PRotEction
Tactical trucks, like their commercial
counterparts, have traditionally been ‘soft
skinned’ i.e. unarmoured. They were seen
in land forces doctrine as support vehicles
that generally would operate behind the
forward echelons. In fact, as trucks they
were never ‘safe’ and were often targeted
by the enemy and employed in combat.
The ambush of convoys was an accepted
tactic and particularly common when fac-
ing insurgents as during the US interven-
tion in Vietnam between 1965 and 1975.
Field units routinely added improvised
armour to trucks. Today the ‘hardening’
of trucks has become, for many armies,
standard. This need to provide protection
to the crew and load is a direct response
to the resurgence of the mine and the
appearance of the Improvised Explosive
Device (IED) particularly in the Iraqi
and Afghan theatres since the start of the
century. Fluid operations and the target-
ing by insurgents of logistics and support
units equipped with soft skinned vehicles
coupled with a heightened sensitivity to
military casualties, particularly within
Western powers, found armies adding
purpose-built protection kits for light,
medium, heavy and even line-haul (the
movement of cargo between bases or logis-
tics centres) trucks.
The US military, responding to the
growing targeting of its logistics units
as demonstrated during operations in
Iraq, launched an accelerated programme
for the development and fielding of cab
protection kits that could outfit existing
trucks. For example, the Low Signature
Armoured Cab (LSAC) was developed
by Stewart and Stevenson (now BAE
Systems) for the US Army’s FMTV (Family
of Medium Tactical Vehicles). In addition,
Add-on Armour Crew Protection Kits were
introduced for Oshkosh-produced M-915
Heavy Equipment Transporters. The US
now plans to have the majority of its tacti-
cal trucks equipped with protection, in-
cluding both ballistic and enhanced mine

12 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016

 Land WaRFaRE

blast resistance. Touring any QinetiQ’s Q-Net can be added to any tactical tire pressure control or CTIS

QinetiQ
vehicle to provide protection against hand
US Army motor pool, it is now (Central Tire Inflation Systems)
held rocket propelled anti-amour weapons
difficult to find a soft skinned like the rocket propelled grenade. can enhance the off-road char-
tactical truck. acteristics of military trucks.
Many other countries have CTIS controls allow the driver
followed suit and the industry to inflate, deflate and adjust
has responded, incorporating the tire pressure for different
innovative integrated and remov- load and operating conditions.
able protection in their military CTIS will even allow continued
designs. Mercedes Benz’ Unimog, movement if there is minor tire
Zetros, and Actros vehicles all damage by providing a continu-
offer off-the-shelf armoured ous supply of air.
protection using welded steel The most significant
enhanced with composite panels mobility improvements have
and spall liners. Some armoured been the result of wheeled
configurations are nearly impos- suspension system advances.
sible to distinguish from the ‘soft’ Oshkosh’s TAK-4 was one of the
version. Typically the protection levels 3045 kilograms/kg (6700 pounds/lbs). first of these to be widely applied. Jennifer
guard against small arms impact and assure Another factor is for supporting vehicles to Christiansen, vice president of business de-
crew survival against mine/IED blast. The stay off roads. The idea of this is that doing velopment operations at Oshkosh Defence,
involvement of so many countries in the so makes it harder for opponents to predict explained to Armada that “(the) TAK-4
Afghan theatre has prompted many other traffic patterns and, thus, where to place independent suspension system delivers
armies and vehicle manufacturers to include mines. A second consideration is that 400mm (16 inches/in) of independent wheel
retrofit and production protection to their having the option of moving more freely movement to deliver exceptional mobil-
military vehicle lines. Renault Trucks means tactical trucks can more closely and ity in places where off-road terrain and
Defence, Iveco, Volvo, Rheinmetall-MAN effectively support the forward ground unpaved roads dominate. It also delivers
Military Vehicles, ZIL and others all offer ar- manoeuvre. However, doing so places improved ride quality, allowing troops to
moured logistic trucks. In addition, armour them at risk of being attacked themselves arrive ready for their missions.” A further
companies like Plasan, Ceradyne, QinetiQ which adds to the need for crew protection. advance is the TAK-4i intelligent inde-
and TenCate continue to develop and refine Improving traction on soft and sandy pendent suspension system developed for
protection solutions more suitable for surfaces can allow traverse of even the the company’s JLTV (Joint Light Tactical
trucks. The QinetiQ Blast Pro add-on mine toughest terrains, such as muddy fields or Vehicle) equipping the US Army and Marine
protection, Blast Ride seats, and LAST ap- desert sand dunes, climbing grass-covered Corps. She further explained that “the
pliqué armour each address specific threats embankments and fording rivers. Previ- TAK-4i intelligent suspension system uses
to the vehicle and crew. Plasan has similarly ously seen as the ‘nice to have’ option of high pressure nitrogen gas (HPG) to deliver
teamed with vehicle firms like Oshkosh and
Tatra to design and offer the ECP-59 Armour

Oshkosh
Protection Kits (APK) for the US Marine’s
MTVR (Medium Tactical Vehicle Replace-
ment) vehicle family, HMETT (Heavy
Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck) Wrecker
and other models. The APK, which includes
cabin protection and armour plating of the
cargo bed as well as suspension upgrades
and air-conditioning, is a typical example of
the depth of these efforts.

MobiLity
Enhancing the off-road mobility of
military trucks by taking advantage of
new technologies in suspension systems
The US Marines MTVR (Medium Tactical Vehicle
has also been a recent focus. The impetus
Replacement) from Oshkosh was one of the first
for the adoption of these improvements to use the firm’s TAK-4 advanced suspension
is partly in response to the added weight which was optimized for off-road performance.
of the protection packages; the APK adds

armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 13

Land WaRFaRE
Protection of tactical trucks has
extended to even heavy support
trucks like this Mercedes Actros eight-
wheel drive AHSVS (Armoured Heavy
Support Vehicle System) which is
employed by the Canadian Army.
508mm (20in) of wheel travel, has advanced
shock absorbers and can be raised and
lowered using interior controls. It offers a
70 percent increase in speed.” TAK-4 is used
on the MTVR, M-ATV (Mine-Resistant,
Ambush-Protected All Terrain Vehicle),
the US Army’s Palletized Load System and
the Logistics Vehicle System Replacement
(LVSR), all of which are manufactured by
the company.
The hydro-pneumatic suspension
seems to offer significant benefits and is be-
ing pursued by a number of companies. VSE
in the Netherlands has refined hydro-pneu-
matic suspension, and introduced advanced
electro-hydraulic steering for truck rear
axles. Their spokesperson suggested that
“these systems provide extra cargo capacity,
improve the manoeuvrability and supe-
rior distribution of wheel loads,” adding
that “our systems are on over 50000 trucks.”
Hendrickson Defence has a full line of high
pressure gas-based suspensions including
integrated systems like the Hydro-Pneu-
matic Suspension that provides superior
ride quality, handling, stability, durability
and ride height adjustment specifically
needed for the severe conditions in which
military vehicles must operate. Their prod-
ucts can replace existing mechanical com-
ponents to offer improved ride and stability
while achieving a 50 percent weight and 60
percent reduction in volume.
Meanwhile, Horstman Defence’s
14 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
Mercedes Benz
HydroStrut combines both spring and
damping functions in a lightweight self-
contained design. It incorporates variable
height suspension, rebound end stop
damping and automatic compensation for
spring force environment and tempera-
ture changes. Mark Bowles, engineering
director at the company, said “the key
suspension trade-offs require maximum
wheel travel, lowest mass and high reliabil-
ity in punishing environments. Basically,
it’s all about power density. Using nitrogen
gas at very high working pressures as the
spring allows for a very space-efficient de-
sign, and also delivers a progressive spring
rate to reduce impact shocks.” This not
only contributes to better crew comfort
but also assures load stability and better
handling. In addition to allowing traverse
of more difficult terrain and doing so at
higher speeds these more effective suspen-
sions can positively influence the reliabil-
ity of other vehicle subsystems. The shocks
of a rough ride are transmitted through
the vehicle body to the crew but also to
electronics and other vehicle components.
This contributes to their potential failure.
Reducing the frequency and level of shock
that occur in movement favourably in-
creases their reliability.
Another approach is General Kinetic
Engineering Corporation’s Active Shock
Management (ASM) product. This consists
of electronic controls, a variable orifice
damping valve and patented ride control
software algorithms. That ASM can be
applied to existing shocks and dampers
to convert them to “semi-active” making
them significantly more effective allows
the upgrade of existing systems. LORD
Corporation’s Controllable MR Suspen-
sions use another design and are based on
Magneto-Rheological (MR) technology to
move fluids in the system. These integrat-
ed units continually react to vehicle and
terrain conditions in microseconds adapt-
ing the suspension to the situation. This
provides improved dynamic stability.
MRO
The third area of change in military tacti-
cal vehicles is in improving maintenance
and repair, and increasing reliability and
operational availability. For military
equipment, particularly in combat opera-
tions, ‘availability’ is of primary impor-
tance. Having equipment ready and able
to be used for a mission when needed can
determine mission capability and success.
It drives what the unit can do and the
resources it has at any time to undertake
an assigned task. A combination of new de-
sign approaches, innovative maintenance
and repair procedures and application
of technologies, some previously widely
adopted and proven by commercial truck
fleets, have allowed availability levels ap-
proaching and even exceeding 90 percent
even in rough combat conditions.
For the military the primary consid-
eration when a piece of equipment breaks
down is how quickly it can be repaired
and back in service. Military aviation has
faced this challenge for many years as it
is vital to keep the always limited number
of aircraft ready to fly. To do this military
aviation has adopted a troubleshooting
and corrective action technique that focus-
es on identifying the faulty components
and replacing them on the spot. Combat
vehicles were one of the first ground plat-
forms to adopt this approach. So-called
‘power pack’ designs, as utilised by Kraus-
Maffei Wegmann in their Leopard-2 main
battle tank and Marder infantry fighting
vehicles, integrate the engine, transmis-
sion, drives, fuel pumps, and cooling into a
single compact unit. Every effort is made
to simplify the connections to allow them
Land WaRFaRE
to be quickly ‘unplugged’ and reinstalled.
This has now been adopted in tactical
trucks as well.
The recognition of the need to both
simplify and reduce the time needed to
undertake not just repair but also routine
preventative maintenance is being ad-
opted for tactical vehicles. As an example,
Mercedes Benz’ military truck lines have
all their service and scheduled mainte-
nance points readily accessible simplify-
ing and reducing the time to complete
these checks and procedures. This marks
recognition of the vital importance of
preventive maintenance.
Technology is also providing another
tool with the potential to revolutionize
vehicle maintenance and repair. Called
Vehicle Health Monitoring (VHM) or
Integrated VHM, it takes advantage of the
increased digitalization of vehicle systems
to gather usable data from sensors placed
at various key operational functions. These
collect data on everything from engine
speed, suspension play, mileage, use hours
and more all of which is sent to and stored
by a HMU (Health Monitoring Unit). This
stored data can then be downloaded by
maintenance to gain a near real-time ‘snap-
shot’ of the usage and status of each of the
vehicle subsystems. Using this collected
data it is possible to estimate wear and con-
ditions stressing the various subsystems.
By including a wireless transmitter it is pos-
sible to automatically send and download
this data even from a remote location.
16 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
Iveco
Iveco’s LMV (Light Multipurpose
Vehicle) armour protection uses
replaceable packs within the vehicle’s
external skin. The basic add-on
ballistic protection against small
arms fire can be increased for higher
protection.
The primary objective of IVHM is to
allow the early identification of faults to
allow responsive corrective action through
the use of diagnostics and prognostics
(predictive diagnostics). Added benefits
include improving availability by schedul-
ing servicing based on usage and actual
wear, improving reliability by gaining a
more thorough understanding of the over-
all health of the vehicle and components,
and reducing unnecessary maintenance
time and costs. By monitoring, recording
and analyzing usage data it is possible to
understand the loads and stresses placed
on the vehicle. This can now be coupled
with GPS (Global Positioning System)
location information to offer further
insights into the environment in which
the vehicle has operated. Bringing all this
information together it is possible through
prognosis programmes that draw on ac-
cumulated histories of similar vehicles
and components to often not just identify
a failed part but to predict the possibility
of future failure. Doing so permits repair
and replacement to be accomplished
proactively. This significantly reduces the
possibility of suffering a failure during
a mission. In addition, it permits more
efficient maintenance and repair by allow-
ing the replacement of components during
scheduled service before they fail.
Oshkosh’s Command Zone inte-
grated control and diagnostics system is a
computer-controlled, electronics tech-
nology that diagnoses all major vehicle
networks. The company programme office
explained: “The backbone of Command
Zone is advanced multiplexing technol-
ogy. This allows vehicle components to
work in concert, streamlining diagnostic
and troubleshooting … it allows real-time
access to critical vehicle information via
command and control networks, laptops,
on-board display screens or handheld
personal digital devices locally or remote-
ly.” The system is included in the JLTV and
can be offered in other tactical trucks.
IVHM is also offered by North Ameri-
can Industries as a ‘plug-in’. Their 35PC0C
‘black box’ is an off-the-shelf unit that can
accept data from on-board
sensors to “enable the maintainer to
schedule maintenance based on actual
performance and conditions, rather
than when a component fails.” In fact,
the move toward open architecture
networked vehicle systems allows pre-
emptive diagnostics to extend beyond the
automotive systems to include virtually
any equipment on the vehicle.
Many armies are realising the potential
benefits of embracing IVHM. For tactical
trucks based on commercial models like
those offered by Mercedes, DAF and Mack,
IVHM and on-board vehicle diagnostics
are already standard equipment. Here
military users are able to take advantage of
the extensive adoption of this technology
particularly in the management of large
Driverless vehicles combine various
sensors, GPS, automated steering
and braking controls and a ‘smart’
computing unit to operate the vehicle
either autonomously or remotely.
US DoD
 Land WaRFaRE

truck fleets and heavy/construction equip- memory and integration of functions control, removing the crew entirely. The
ment. The implications toward enhancing like geographic positioning, networking US Army performed technology demon-
the operational availability of tactical plat- and communications are opening new strations of driverless convoys in June
forms, as already realised commercially, are possibilities. One of these within the 2016. Oshkosh Defense has undertaken its
huge and even more critical for the military. realm of possibility is further refine- own development as well called the Terra-
By predicting problems before they occur, ment of diagnostics and prognostics. Max Unmanned Ground Vehicle which
it can be possible to correct them when the The capability to automatically predict has demonstrated not only an individual
system is not on a mission or coordinated to a component failure and report it, thus vehicle, but also convoy operations.
be performed during a break in the action. allowing pre-emptive corrective action, It is not clear when or if driverless
Doing so keeps the vehicle performing its is easily foreseeable. A failing system can tactical vehicles, at least for logistics, will
role when needed and increases confidence be identified and reported to the mainte- become commonplace, but it is certain
in the number of assets that will be at hand nance unit allowing them to have the part that the tactical truck is assuming a new
at any time. This is a critical advantage in in hand to replace it immediately at the form. Though these changes remain most-
planning for and conducting military op- first opportunity. ly hidden from view, the capabilities that
erations where often, particularly with de- Computing power coupled with fully they have introduced to the tactical truck
ployed forces, assets are limited. In addition, adjustable suspensions, often using a are significant. Furthermore, these have
by reducing the possibility that a vehicle nitrogen-filled system, will also allow the facilitated major changes in the manner
might breakdown when operating in hostile ‘ride’ of the vehicle to be refined based on in which these vehicles are employed and
areas or in proximity to combat eliminates the contours of the terrain encountered, supported. The implementation of these
the concern that a recovery and rescue, pos- the load and the vehicle speed. This will changes is still unfolding so it will be
sibly under fire, might be necessary. permit higher cross country mobility interesting to watch how each military
with higher payloads and greater safety will respond and ultimately the benefits
What nExt? and stability. The next step may well be to that will be gained from these new
Advances in computing speed, increased convert tactical vehicles to autonomous technologies.

The artillery
system of the
21st century

Photo credits: ©ECPAD/France/A.Roine

The Caesar® artillery system in Mali

CREATING NEW REFERENCES IN DEFENCE I WWW.NEXTER-GROUP.COM

armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 17
sea power
protecting
the air
from the sea
Advances in the capabilities of surface-to-air missiles are being
matched by developments in maritime air defence sensors. There
is therefore demand for increasingly sophisticated, dedicated
air defence vessels. This article analyses a number of the most
significant recent developments in this field.
Trevor Hollingsbee
18 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
Trevor Hollingsbee
Although its prime role will be
anti-submarine warfare The ‘Type
26’ class’ new Sea Ceptor SAM
system, and its accompanying
Type-997 3D radar, will add
significantly to the Royal Navy’s
air defence capabilities.
A
ustralia is one of several
countries surveyed in this
article which is pouring in-
vestment into its air defence
surface combatants. Current-
ly in build for the Royal Australian Navy
(RAN) is a trio of 6250-tonne, 147-metre/m
(482-feet/ft) warships, designated by the
RAN as Air Warfare Destroyers (AWD).
These vessels will replace the RAN’s ageing
‘Adelaide’ class frigates and are urgently
required to provide area air defence for
RAN task groups, particularly as the fleet’s
highest value surface units, the two new
‘Canberra’ class amphibious assault ships,
are very lightly armed. The AWDs will also
have significant Anti-Submarine Warfare
(ASW), and Anti-Surface Warfare (ASuW)
capabilities. These are technologically
advanced, and potentially, highly capable,

warships, although they are experiencing a
complex, trouble-plagued gestation.
Following the green light for the pro-
gramme in 2007 which uses a design based
on an adaptation of the Armada Española
(Royal Spanish Navy) ‘F-100’class frigates
which are built by Navantia, Canberra opt-
ed for a modular approach to construction.
Construction is being performed by the
AWD Alliance, comprising the Australian
government’s Defence Materiel Organisa-
tion, ASC shipbuilders and Raytheon’s
Australia subsidiary. After numerous
changes of plan, a total of 31 modules per
ship are being constructed by ASC, BAE
Systems and Forgacs in Australia, and
Navantia in Spain and the UK, while mast
structures are being built by MG Engi-
neering of Australia. Design, engineering
and contractual problems have combined
to delay the programme by some three
years. The project nevertheless reached a
major landmark in early May 2016 with the
activation of a number of combat systems
on the first-of-class, HMAS Hobart, which
had been launched about a year previously.
The armament fit of the AWD is com-
prehensive. Its main weapon system is the
Lockheed Martin Mk.41 48-cell vertical
missile launcher, able to fire Raytheon
RIM-161 Standard Missile-2 (SM-2) Block-
IIIB and Raytheon RIM-162 Evolved Sea
Sparrow (ESSM) Surface-to-Air Missiles
(SAMs). The vessel’s Anti-Ship Missile
(AShM) capability is provided by two
quadruple canister launchers for Boeing
RGM-84 Harpoon family AShMs. The
vessel’s gun armament takes the form of
a BAE Systems’127mm weapon backed up
by two Rafael Advanced Defence Systems
Typhoon 25mm automatic cannons. The
‘Hobart’ classes’ ASW fit consists of Euro-
torp MU-90 torpedoes fired from two twin
Babcock Mk.32 Mod.9 launchers. The very
advanced and capable Sikorsky MH-60R
naval support helicopter is embarked for
ASW and ASuW. All of these systems are
tied together using Lockheed Martin’s
Aegis Combat Management System (CMS)
which integrates a range of sensors includ-
ing the Lockheed Martin AN/SPY-1D(V)
S-Band (2.3-2.5/2.7-3.7 Gigahertz/GHz)
radar and Northrop Grumman AN/SPQ-
9B X-band (8.5-10.68GHz) pulse Doppler
horizon search radar. Finally, the ships’
propulsion is provided by twin General
Electric Marine gas turbines and a pair of
Caterpillar diesel engines in a Combined
Diesel or Gas (CODOG) arrangement,
giving a top speed of over 28 knots (52
kilometres-per-hour).
AWD’s director of communications
Danielle De Santis confirmed that the ship
will feature “the most modern equipment,
including the RIM-161 SM-2 Block-3B and
RIM-162 SAMs, and Raytheon’s Phalanx-
Block-1B Close-In Weapons System (CIWS),
and the latest Curtis-Wright ASIST (Air-
craft Ship Integrated Secure and Traverse)
system to facilitate the secure landing,
armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 19
sea power
deck handling, and recovery of (the ship’s)
helicopter.” Ms. De Santis confirmed that
the current scheduled in-service dates for
the three ships of the class are as follows:
HMAS Hobart (June 2017), HMAS Brisbane
(July 2018) and HMAS Sydney (December
2019). The original total cost estimate for
the AWD was $8 billion; Canberra’s 2015
project overview estimated that it was
likely to run $1.2 billion over budget, while
the AWD Alliance was not able to supply
an up-to-date estimate.
royal Navy
Like the RAN, the Royal Navy is replacing
its frigates, chiefly the ‘Duke’ class with
the ‘Type-26’ class frigate, as part of the
Global Combat Ship project initiated in
1998. The go-ahead to start the final design
and pre-manufacturing work on the ‘Type
26’ class was given to its prime contrac-
tor BAE Systems in 2010. The ship will be
optimised for ASW, but will also be well
equipped for both air defence, and direct
support of land operations. Priority roles
for this 8000-tonne,150 metre/m (492 feet/
Ft) warship will be escorting the Royal
Navy’s new ‘Queen Elizabeth’ class aircraft
carriers, and participating in international
security and humanitarian and disaster
relief operations.
France’s new FREDA air
defence frigates, ordered
in place of two cancelled
‘Horizon’ class destroyers for
the Marine Nationale, will
have MBDA’s Aster-15/30 as
DCNS
its primary SAM system.
sea power
This new, large destroyer, the first
examples of which might already be
in build, are intended both to boost
the PLA Navy’s already substantial
inventory of air defence vessels, and to
enhance the status of the force.
The ‘Type-26’ class’ strong air defence
capability is provided by a 48-cell vertical
launcher for the MBDA Sea Ceptor SAM.
The vertical launchers will be large enough
to enable possible allocation of Raytheon
BGM-109C Tomahawk surface-to-surface
cruise missiles. BAE Systems Stingray tor-
pedoes, both ship and helicopter launched,
will enable ASW, with the ship’s gun arma-
ment being a BAE Systems Mk.5 127mm
mounting, backed up by two MSI Defence
Systems automatic DS30M Mk.2 30mm
cannon and two Phalanx CIWS. The ships’
sensor outfit consists of a BAE Systems
Type-997 Artisan naval surveillance radar,
a Kelvin Hughes SharpEye navigation
radar, a Thales’ Type-2087 towed array and
Type-2050 bow sonars. The ‘Type 26’ class
will be able to operate two AgustaWestland/
Leonardo HM.1/2 Merlin or HMA.1 Wildcat
naval support helicopters for ASW/ASuW or
one Boeing HC.2 Chinook heavy-lift heli-
copter. The ships’ propulsion is achieved by
a CODOG system combining two Rolls-
Royce MT30 gas turbines, four MTU diesel
generators and two electric motors.
In December 2015 the British Govern-
ment announced that eight, rather than
the originally planned 13, ‘Type 26’ class
22 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
frigates will be ordered, but that at least
five smaller, cheaper, general purpose
frigates, designated as the ‘Type 31’ class,
will also be constructed, using the funds
freed up. The UK Ministry of Defence
official 2015 estimate for 13 ‘Type 26’ class
vessels was a cost of $16.5 billion. The
in-service date for the first ‘Type 26’ class
ship meanwhile remains uncertain. Con-
cepts now being considered for the ‘Type
31’ class are known to include modified
versions of the BAE Systems ‘Al Khareef’
class corvette (in use with the Royal Navy
of Oman), the ‘River’ class Offshore Pa-
trol Vessel (OPV) in service with the Royal
Navy, and Babcock Defence’s ‘Roisin’ class
OPV in service with the Irish Navy, as
well as BMT’s new ‘Venator’ class frigate
design and a downscaled variant of the
‘Type 26’ class.
France
Across La Manche (the English Channel),
the Marine Nationale (French Navy) are
planning to build two Fregate de Défense
Aériennes (FREDA/Air Defence Frigate)
versions of the ‘Aquitaine’ class multi
mission frigates that the navy currently
operates. Marion Bonnet, a spokesperson
Weibo.com
for DCNS which builds the ‘Aquitaine’
class, and which will also build the FREDA
ships, told Armada that the size of the
FREDA vessels will “be the same as that for
the standard ‘Aquitaine’ class.” Their air
defence armament will consist of a total
capacity for 32 MBDA Aster-15/30 SAMs.
MBDA’s Exocet MM40 AShMs will also be
fitted, and there will be capacity for the
possible retrofit of land attack missiles.
Cost estimates specific to the FREDA
project have not yet been made available,
although the 2015 French government
estimate for the ‘Aquitaine’ class costs was
$755.5 million per unit.
china
Away from Europe, over the past 20
years the People’s Republic of China’s
People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)
has emerged as a leading maritime power.
The PLAN fleet already includes some 90
frigates and destroyers, and details are
emerging of a significant new air defence
destroyer project. According to local
reports, at the end of 2014 the first ‘Type
055’ class destroyer was laid down at the
Changxingdao-Jiangnan Shipyard. These
reports, and others indicating that con-

struction of a second example commenced
at Dalian, northeast China in 2015, remain
unconfirmed, but a training mock-up of
the new warship has been identified on
shore at Wuhan, central China.
A range of reports, including in the of-
ficial Chinese media, indicate that the de-
stroyer will displace around 10000 tonnes,
with a length of 175m (574ft). Its armament
will reportedly consist of a Zhengzhou
Mechanical-Electrical Engineering Re-
search Institute Type H/PJ38 130mm naval
gun and a 713th (Research) Institute H/PJ-
11 CIWS, both mounted forward, and a total
of 128 vertical launch cells, fitted fore and
aft. The cells will be capable of firing China
Precision Machinery Import-Export
Corporation HQ-10 SAMs, China Aero-
space Science and Industry Corporation
YJ-100 AShMs and, probably, as-yet-un-
specified land attack and anti-submarine
missiles. Two medium naval support heli-
copters will be carried. The superstructure
of the ‘Type 055’ class appears to have a
low radar cross section design. Available
imagery also indicates that four S-Band
three-dimensional (altitude, bearing and
velocity) fixed array radar antennae are fit-
ted around the forward superstructure, to-
gether with an integrated mast containing
components for the ship’s radar, electronic
support measures and communications.
A vessel of this size, and capability, will
add to the combat capabilities of the PLAN.
According to Lyle Goldstein, associate
professor of China Maritime Studies at the
US Naval War College: “Like the Aegis CMS
(see above) destroyers that formed the
model for its predecessors, the ‘Type 055’
class’ main mission is certain to be fleet
air defence, including for Beijing’s nascent
carrier battle groups.” Beijing might well
also be trying to match the Russia Navy’s
revived ‘Kirov’ class nuclear-powered
cruisers and the US Navy’s new ‘Zumwalt’
class destroyers.
Japan
The PLAN’s rival the Japan Maritime Self
Defence Force (JMSDF) has operated its
defence destroyers equipped with the Ae-
gis CMS since 1993. The JMSDF’S existing
‘Kongo’ class Aegis CMS-equipped destroy-
ers and the two improved and enlarged
‘Atago’ class variants are based on the US
Navy’s ‘Arleigh Burke’ class destroyers.
These warships are at the core of the order
of battle of an increasingly ambitious and
outward-looking JMSDF, and provide
area air defence for Japanese battle groups
and allied assets, as well as in conjunction
with Republic of Korea Navy and US Navy
warships. The core of the current JMSDF
Aegis-equipped destroyers’ area defence
capabilities is a Lockheed Martin Mk.41
vertical launch system consisting of cells
fitted forward and aft. The cells can fire a
mix of RIM-162 and RIM-66 SAMs. Their
main gun armament is a Leonardo/OTO
Melara 127mm Compact Gun whereas
the ‘Atago’ class have a Japan Steel Works
Mk.45 Mod.4. Last ditch defence against
AShMs is provided by two Phalanx CIWS.
Canisters for up to eight RGM-84 (the
Mitsubishi Type 90 AShM on the ‘Atago’
class) are fitted for ASuW, while fixed anti-
submarine weaponry consists of two triple
torpedo tubes capable of firing Raytheon
Mk.46 torpedoes. The ship’s sensors
include the AN/SPY-1D naval surveillance
radar and OQS-102 bow mounted sonar,
while a SH-60J naval support helicopter
is carried. There are advanced plans in
hand to build two additional, improved
Aegis CMS equipped destroyers, to a
design based on that of the existing vessels.
In September 2015 Japan’s Ministry of
Defence announced that two ’27-DD’ class
destroyers were to be constructed, with
armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 23
sea power
an empty displacement of 12300 tonnes,
compared to the 10000 tonnes of the ‘Atago’
class. Planned features of particular note
include a Northrop Grumman AN/SPQ-9B
surface search radar, and combined gas
turbine/electric and gas turbine propul-
sion. The ships are scheduled to enter
service in 2020-21, and are estimated to cost
$1.5 billion per vessel.
summary
There is a definite tendency for air defence
ships to increase in size. Reasons for this in-
clude the requirement to fit large numbers
of vertical launch SAM canisters, and in-
creasingly large and complex surveillance
and detection systems, in order to cope with
multiple attacks by advanced missiles. Also,
many navies can now only afford limited
numbers of escort vessels, so air defence
ships are, in addition, increasingly being
given comprehensive anti-submarine and
above surface warfare capabilities in an
effort to ensure their survivability in multi-
threat environments. Delineation between
the categories of destroyer and frigate is
therefore blurring; this is a trend which
seems certain to continue.
Construction is due to begin shortly
of the first of two new advanced
destroyers based on existing JMSDF
designs. They will participate in
a regional defence shield against
ballistic missiles, as well as providing
area air defence for the JMSDF fleet.
US Navy
Land WaRFaRE

NATO
HOW nOT
Companies including Saab are now
developing specialist camouflage
for utility in urban environments,

TO BE SEEn
particularly in regards to
protecting soldiers across the
electromagnetic spectrum.

Modern armed forces must adopt a mix of tactics, techniques through advances in signature manage-
and procedures, standard operating procedures and technology ment and advanced camouflage, forces can
in order to successfully execute missions across a varied remain undetected for longer, meaning
they can prevent or delay engagement with
contemporary operating environment.
the enemy and significantly improve their
survivability and operational capability,”
the company continued while describing
Andrew White the development of camouflage for a wide

T
variety of military applications.
raditionally, camouflage was As one undisclosed member of a Saab is currently offering up its Bar-
designed to protect soldiers European military explained to Armada, racuda Advanced Camouflage System to
from being identified by the the so-called ‘holy grail’ for today’s soldier more than 60 armed forces globally, with a
naked eye, with an emphasis encompasses protection against SWIR range of entry level solutions for individ-
on reducing noticeable shapes, and thermal imaging sensors without a ual warfighters through to vehicular and
shine, shadow, silhouette and texture. requirement to wear additional specialist force element protection measures. “When
However, technology progressions have layers of clothing or material. As Saab it comes to signature management, the
seen this narrow spread of the visual elec- explained to Armada, tactical require- technology progresses at such a rate that
tromagnetic spectrum elongated further ments continue to change with ever staying one step ahead of sensor capa-
to include wavelengths undetectable to the expanding needs for the armed forces bilities becomes paramount. By masking
human eye such as Short Wave Infra Red conducting a wide range of missions. different types of signatures, be it heat,
(SWIR) sensors, now widely available on “Modern warfare constantly evolves. On reflected light, reflected Radio Frequency
the commercial market. As these technolo- today’s high-tech battlefield, sensors are (RF), through sophisticated layers of
gies become cheaper and therefore more becoming increasingly more sophisti- material you can avoid detection,” Saab ex-
accessible, armed forces will continue to cated, making it ever more challenging plained while describing how its Barracu-
see their proliferation across non-state for military forces to avoid detection and da series of solutions comprised conducive
actors and insurgent groups as well as identification,” a spokesperson for the foil and insulation technology in order to
equivalent potential adversaries. company explained. “These days however, reduce thermal signatures, as well as outer

24 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016


layers of Three-Dimensional (3D) garnish
material designed to mimic indigenous
natural textures in an area of operation for
“enhanced visual camouflage.”
This latter point remains extremely
relevant for units conducting covert opera-
tions such as surveillance and reconnais-
sance missions where any ‘out-of-place’
camouflage, such as foliage, can be easily
spotted as alien to the particular area and
therefore become suspicious to indig-
enous civilian and military personnel who
might be otherwise very familiar with that
area of ground.
As one NATO (North Atlantic Treaty
Organisation) Special Forces source indi-
cated to Armada, a very detailed approach
is required to successfully execute such op-
erations which could comprise a mission
ranging from sub-surface Observation
Positions (OPs) through to sniper pairs
conducting reconnaissance and strike
operations. Similarly, it was explained how head of marketing and sales at Saab’s Bar-
camouflage technology can be used to mi-
nimise footprints on the ground for larger
force elements, including assault forces
operating from tactical ground vehicles.
Saab claims to monopolise around 90
percent of the international camouflage
market, which was yet further enhanced
with the announcement of a contract in
September 2014 to furnish the British
Army’s General Dynamics Ajax family of
tracked armoured fighting vehicles with
the firm’s camouflage technology. Deliver-
ies of the Ajax family, which encompasses
a total of 589 vehicles, are planned to begin multipurpose covering with optimised
in 2017 and will continue until 2024. Gen-
eral Dynamics’ British division awarded
Saab a contract to supply the Barracuda
Mobile Camouflage System (MCS) which
was exhibited at the Eurosatory defence
exhibition in Paris this June. “Intelligent
camouflage is one area that will be the
game changer for future armed forces and
Saab is constantly performing research
and development in order to introduce
new products and solutions to ensure that
armed forces around the world remain
undetected, no matter what happens,”
Saab officials explained to Armada at
the event. “We are developing new ways
of detecting incoming laser threats by
integrating sensors and new technologies
into our systems. Besides this, it is also
Saab’s Barracuda
camouflage
systems range from
rural ‘ghillie’ suits
for dismounted
troops and special
forces through
to heat signature
items designed to
cloak armoured
fighting vehicles.
important to develop camouflage that has
the potential to adapt to the surrounding
environment,” explained Magnus Gäfvert,
racuda subsidiary.
Saab also continues to pay close at-
tention to the urban environment and
particularly Military Operations in Urban
Terrain (MOUT). As a company official
explained, “the next step is the develop-
ment of camouflage systems for use in
urban terrain … The demand for advanced
signature management during operations
in urban environments is constantly grow-
ing. The new urban warfare configuration
builds on Saab’s well-known Barracuda
MCS technology which is a tailor-made,
colours, designs and properties for all
environments … It enhances survivability,
sustainability and logistics for vehicles
and equipment, while all the time provid-
ing a ‘stealth’ or masking capability in the
visual, near-infrared, thermal infrared
and broadband RF wavelengths. We have
seen an increased emphasis on vehicle
protection during operations in urban
terrain, and this is our response,” it was
explained with reference to Saab’s latest
Urban Warfare MCS which focuses on
allowing troops to operate in built-up and
man-made environments where detection
and engagement distances are very short.
“In these theatres it is vital to have a few ex-
tra seconds of decision space, when threats
are literally ‘just around the corner’. We see
armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 25
Land WaRFaRE
Saab
a great future for these kinds of configura-
tions,” Saab concluded.
This latest product is being marketed
as a multipurpose system providing opti-
mised colours, designs and properties for
all environments including desert and jun-
gle warfare, mountain and cold weather
operations, as well as littoral and riverine
missions. Such a solution allows MOUT
forces to protect base infrastructure, per-
sonnel and vehicles against hostile sensors
and target acquisition technology.
digicam
In the US, the Marine Corps (USMC) con-
tinues to invest heavily in next-generation
camouflage solutions for dismounted
personnel and equipment with a rich
background in this area, having been one
of the first armed services to deploy digital
camouflage (Digicam) patterned material
(please see How It Works: Digicam box for
more information). As service officials
explained to Armada, such technology
fulfils requirements to make uniforms
and equipment as discreet as possible
across the widening electromagnetic
spectrum. To this end, the USMC’s Combat
Development and Integration team, based
in Quantico, Virginia, continues to work
closely with industry partners to develop
the next-generation of technology with
participants including Gore and Associ-
ates, UVR Defence Tech, and Fibrotex
Technology to name just a few.
According to a company spokesper-
Land WaRFaRE
The world’s militaries are
increasingly required to operate
in a vast array of differing terrains,
with camouflage designs required
to mimic such environments.
son at Gore and Associates, SWIR threats
comprise the most serious concern to
Marine Corps units which literally made
in-service uniforms ‘glow’ in the dark.
SWIR tends to detect anything synthetic,
and Marine uniforms incorporate nylon
as part of a cotton blend. “Traditional
camouflage, which relies upon mimicry,
makes you a recognisable mass of grey
at standard engagement ranges,” the
spokesperson explained while referring to
its Optifade technology which was initially
designed to counter animal vision. “This
concealment pattern applies revolu-
tionary new findings in animal vision
science, camouflage science and advanced
computer technology,” it was added. Civil-
ian variants of the technology comprise El- to existing camouflage solutions such
evated II, open country, waterfowl marsh
and waterfowl timber patterns although
the company is also understood to be
working on desert, jungle, temperate and
cold weather options for the military.
UVR Defence Tech meanwhile stipu-
lates that military camouflage options
must cover a range of the electromagnetic
spectrum including ultraviolet light (less
than 400 nanometres/nm) and the vis-
ible spectrum stretching from 400nm to
800nm. “The latest camouflage pattern of
the US Army is the Crye Precision ‘Multi-
cam’ which, when viewed in visible light,
blends well into the foliage and shadows,”
a company spokesperson explained to
Armada. “When viewed in ultraviolet light,
26 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
Saab
the same uniform offers an enemy a clear
target!” Cameras used in evaluation tests
relied upon a COTS (Commercial Off-The-
Shelf) camera with an ultraviolet (UV)
band pass filter, readily available in the
commercial sector. “It is the availability of
such inexpensive, real-time, UV imaging
sensors that has made near-UV camou-
flage a field necessity for both personnel
and strategic military equipment,” the
spokesperson continued.
UVR claims to have developed the only
camouflage system, designated UVRC,
capable of countering near-UV light,
with technology featuring a thin film of
transparent nanoparticles. The system
can be applied as a thin, invisible coating
as uniforms, tents, shelters, camouflage
nets and vehicles. The UVRC-Permanent
(UVRC-P) product for coated systems can
be sprayed, rolled, brushed or printed onto
products with a capability to dry within
“minutes,”, company officials added. The
UVRC-A solution, meanwhile, is designed
to provide UV signature management for
uniforms and other absorbent materials.
Comprising a water-based and non-toxic
solution, the UVRC-A provides troops with
UV camouflage without significantly alter-
ing the object’s appearance in visible or
near-IR wavelengths. “It is available as 7, 22
and 80 percent UV reflective compounds,
ready to be applied in liquid form,” the
company explained. The technology has
already been trialled on the US Army’s Fire
Resistant Army Combat Uniform (FRACU).
Once coated, a uniform can survive ap-
proximately 20 machine washes before its
protective qualities fade out.
Elsewhere, Fibrotex Technology has
been designed to counter the visual effects
of UV light (250nm-380nm), visual light
(380nm-700nm), near-IR (700nm-1200nm),
SWIR (1200-2500nm), Medium Wave In-
frared/MWIR (3nm-5nm), and Long Wave
Infrared/LWIR (8nm-14nm). Personal
camouflage systems comprise tents, net-
ting, helmet covers, ghillie suits (full suits
designed to replicate the surrounding en-
vironment), dual-sided personal suits and
rock suits. As an example, the latter option
comprises a fully-camouflaged solution
protecting against UV light and near-IR
light and available in hood and long cape,
hood and over shirt/trousers, and hood
and over shirt/kilt configurations. Weigh-
ing less than a kilogram (0.5 pounds), the
system is easily carried by a soldier. The
system comes in woodland, urban, desert
and snow versions with optional add-ons
including weapon covers, gloves, gaiters
and backpack covers, and is currently in
service with the Finnish Defence Forces,
company sources explained to Armada.
Fibrofex’s Sniper Camouflage Tent has
been designed to provide multispectral
concealment for sniper pairs, with the
capability to protect operators from UV,
visual, near-IR and thermal IR observa-
tion. Featuring reversible and optional
camouflage patterns on both sides of the
How It Works: Digicam
Pixilated digital camouflage or
‘digicam’ is increasingly de rigeur for
armed forces around the world. Un-
like traditional camouflage, Digicam
employs both micro (small) and macro
(large) patterns with one, of both, of
these patterns employing a pixilated
design. The logic of digicam is to
provide camouflage across a range of
distances rather than employing pat-
terns which only provide concealment
at long or short ranges, thus improving
the protection of the soldier, or object,
being camouflaged.

material, the tent is capable of reducing
the thermal signatures of soldiers inside
and can be set up within three minutes.
Finally, Schoeller Textil is promoting
SSZ Camouflage Technology’s multi-
spectral camouflage technology which
has been designed to reduce detection
levels for soldiers working across the
battlefield. Exhibited at Eurosatory, the
technology has already been tested by the
Swiss Army, industry sources explained
to Armada, which has a requirement for
protection against visual and near-IR
viewing as well as MWIR. In March 2016,
the two companies announced plans to
market Camoshield for the protection of
combat uniforms. This solution can be
painted onto existing uniforms without
impinging on the comfort of the soldier
wearing it.
aiR options
Camouflage technology is not just limited
to ground and maritime environments. In
AIM FOR THE BEST
COLD IPC C LI P O N L A S E R R A N G E F I N D I N G D E V I C E
I L LU M I N AT I O N P O I N T I N G C O M M U N I C AT I O N
Russia, reports continue to emerge regard-
ing the utility of special coatings used to
camouflage aircraft including the Sukhoi
Su-34 tactical bomber. Manufactured by
the United Aircraft Corporation’s Novo-
sibirsk Aircraft Plant, the paint protects
against corrosion as well as camouflaging
the aircraft when viewed against the open
sky or ocean. Options include the ‘Naval
Pattern’ which comprises a hybrid mix of
light blue and turquoise colours providing
the main body of the camouflage with an
additional white cone, while aircraft edges
are coloured in a light grey. Additionally,
UAC offers a single-colour camouflage
option for other fixed-wing aircraft, which
the company claims makes it less visible
to the human eye as well as a disruptive
pattern tailored to specific particular
environments and designed to make parts
of the aircraft unidentifiable to observ-
ers. Looking to the future, UAC is in the
process of evaluating camouflage paint
options capable of protecting the aircraft
I T I S O U R M I S S I O N TO AT TA I N
PERFECTION IN SURVEYING, TARGETING
A N D T R A N S F E R R I N G I N F O R M AT I O N .
armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 27
Land WaRFaRE
from ‘aggressive factors’ including exces-
sive temperatures (sometimes generated by
missile smoke plumes and cannon fire) and
corrosion.
ConCLusion
Today’s conflicts continue to throw up
significant camouflage issues for armed
forces, particularly Special Forces, counter-
ing the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and
Syria in the Syrian and Iraqi theatres which
continues to benefit from mature tech-
nology captured from the Iraqi Army, as
well as equipment procured from its war
chest. More than a decade of NATO opera-
tions in Afghanistan saw Special Forces
learning some hard lessons with regards to
the Taliban insurgent movement countering
coalition electromagnetic spectrum obser-
vation systems, although this threat has
morphed into something even more
deadly in the form of viewing devices
now routinely used by such insurgent
organisations.
COLDIPC.VECTRONIX.CH
LAND WARFARE

US Army
ChEMiCAL
MEMoRy
The first half of 2016 saw a series
of violent acts which were either
directed or inspired by the
Islamic State of Iraq and Syria
(ISIS). From three coordinated
bombings in Brussels in March
to countless person-borne and
vehicle-borne suicide bombings
in Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Libya.

Andy Oppenheimer

T
he Cable News Network televi-
sion channel reported in March
2016 that, since declaring its
‘caliphate’ in June 2014, ISIS has
conducted, or inspired, nearly 75
terrorist attacks in 20 countries other than
Iraq and Syria. Those attacks outside Iraq
and Syria have killed at least 1280 people
and injured more than 1770 others. In Iraq
and Syria alone, the attacks have taken a
much deadlier toll. In April 2016, the United
Nations estimated at least 741 Iraqis, includ-
ing more than 400 civilians, were killed and
1374 wounded in ISIS bomb attacks. On 3
July, 165 people were killed and at least 225
were injured in a vast truck bomb attack
claimed by ISIS in Karrada, Baghdad.
As US-led military operations in Iraq
and Syria continue to drive ISIS out from
its areas of occupation, Chemical Weapons
(CW) are being deployed by the organisation
to defend its areas and to slow down oppos-
ing forces, chiefly the Iraqi Army and Kurd-
ish Peshmerga guerrillas seeking to repulse
the organisation from the areas it occupies.
The militants are deploying widely spread
webs of ‘daisy chain’ Improvised Explosive
Devices (IEDs) which involves several con-
nected IEDs or mines usually buried beneath
a road, with the first device set off by an ap-
proaching vehicle which triggers detonation
by driving over a pressure plate in the device.
The first detonation in turn sets off all the
rest of the buried devices which are con-
nected below the surface, thereby destroying
an entire convoy.
MixED REsuLts
How many ISIS IEDs incorporate chemi-
cals or other CBRN (Chemical, Biological,
US Army Reserve Soldiers with the
388th CBRN company took part in a
joint training exercise at the Stevens
Point Municipal Airport, Wisconsin,
in October 2015 alongside the 409th
Area Support Medical Company and
local civilians and officials.
Radiological, Nuclear) weapons and
materials? There have been several dozen
unverified reports of ISIS using CW in
Iraq, mainly in IEDs and mortars, many
of which are aimed at injuring Kurdish
forces and often specifically target Iraqi
EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) teams.
According to CW expert Colonel Hamish
de Bretton Gordon, who witnessed the
after-effects CW attacks in the Iraqi the-

28 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016


atre, Peshmerga forces fighting ISIS in Iraq
were attacked with mustard gas eight times
during a two-week period in February and
March. These attacks caused more than
200 casualties, according to senior Pesh-
merga generals. While making significant
technological advances in developing new
weapons techniques (the process by which
toxic chemicals are utilised in weapons)
ISIS CW munitions are still basic, tending
towards ground impacts, which dis-
seminate less of the chemical agent than
exploding munitions above their targets.
The use of CWs by ISIS can slow down the
advance of opposing forces, in keeping
with their original, historical purpose of
area denial; but as ISIS has not co-ordi-
nated most of its CW attacks with infantry
assaults, the chlorine and mustard gas
is used mainly to harass the enemy and
the attacks have not produced significant
military advantage for ISIS.
WEApoNs oF tERRoR
The ISIS use of chlorine in IEDs is classed
by many experts as mainly psychological
warfare. Peshmerga chief of staff Colonel
Srud al-Bazanji was reported by press agen-
cies as having told Col. de Bretton Gordon
in April that “Normal weapons are better
at causing death and injury but if you think
chemical weapons are being used you are
more afraid.” The injuries caused by these
weapons are horrific and in areas with
little available medical treatment or CBRN
protection, may be long-lasting.
chEmicAL AccEss
After occupying areas in Syria and Iraq for
their caliphate, ISIS gained access to indus-
trial chemicals such as chlorine, phosphine
and vinyltrichlorosilane, all of which form
toxic gases, which it has used as CWs. In
addition, ISIS began manufacturing its own
mustard gas from chemicals it gained access
to in Iraq during its conquests of territory.
The use of chlorine in their IEDs stems
from its ready availability as this chemical
is banned by the CWC (Chemical Weapons
Convention) only if used as a weapon. ISIS
found an abundance of the gas in during its
conquest of parts of Syria; thus it is chlorine
rather than mustard agent that may be most
likely used in a civilian setting by ISIS cells
operating in Europe.
Over half of the
industrial chemicals
produced worldwide rely
on the manufacture of
chlorine, with some 44
million tonnes produced
globally each year.
WhENcE thE thREAt?
In February the director of US National
Intelligence James Clapper said that ISIS
is a concern to the United States “because
of the indications that they would like to
use chemical weapons against us.” In early
2015 journalist Adam Withnall reported on
the Australian government intelligence
assessments that ISIS had “seized enough
radioactive material from government
facilities (it has captured in Iraq) to sug-
gest it has the capacity to build a large and
devastating ‘dirty’ bomb (radiological dis-
persal device).” This March an ISIS chemi-
cal weapons expert was captured by US
Special Forces in Iraq. As with many such
operatives, Sleiman Daoud al-Afari was
once a specialist in chemical and biologi-
cal weapons for Saddam Hussein. More
Special Forces raids are targeting chemical
weapons experts, and airstrikes are focus-
ing on ISIS laboratories and equipment in
both Iraq and Syria.
As well as spreading further into the
Middle East and North Africa regions, the
Asia-Pacific is in ISIS’ sights. Indonesia,
the world’s most populous Muslim coun-
try, is a prime candidate for its eastward
spread. On 14 January multiple blasts in
the capital Jakarta were followed by the
discovery of a chlorine-laden IED planted
armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 29
LAND WARFARE
Maksym Kozlenko
in a supermarket in the city by jihadists
returning from fighting with ISIS in Syria.
According to the Straits Times of Singapore,
there are at least 700 fighters from Indone-
sia and over 200 from Malaysia fighting in
Iraq and Syria. In late June, United States
Forces Korea (USFK), which commands
all US forces in the Republic of Korea
(RoK), said that it stepped up security at
its military installations after the RoK
National Intelligence Service warned that
ISIS had collected information to target
77 USFK military units across the country.
The data on the locations of the units had
been obtained from its hacking group, the
‘United Cyber Caliphate’. Please see the
author’s The Other End of the Line article
in this issue for more information on ISIS
cyber activities.
couNtiNg thE cost
The main responsibility for CBRN protec-
tion is shifting from militaries to local
governments and the private sector. This
is because non-state CW attacks involve
municipalities and businesses as well as
government. Local police and ‘hazmat’
(Hazardous Materials) teams now have a
new role of securing vulnerable areas and
events from CBRN threats and must work
with public health and non-governmental
LAND WARFARE
agencies to identify and deal with threats;
such agencies often do not have large
military budgets or staffing resources.
The shifting CBRN defence responsibility
and the need to save on acquisition and
operating costs is leading to the increas-
ing adoption of dual-use protection and
detection systems that are easy to use with
minimal training.
Much emphasis in CBRN protection
has been on systems and technology but, if
coupled with a lack of reliable human intel-
ligence on the ground, this may hamper the
ability of law enforcement or intelligence
organisations to pre-empt attacks. This
problem is heightened by the increased risk
and incidence of so-called ‘lone wolf’ at-
tacks, where a single individual may execute
an attack on behalf of a particular politi-
cal movement, exemplified by the mass
shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando,
Florida on 12 June which killed 49 people.
The perpetrator, Omar Mateen who was
killed by police during the attack, was ‘on
the radar’ of the authorities, who may lack
enough evidence to detain such individuals
until the deed has been done. Many such
lone operators, when not resorting to the
bomb and the bullet, may also, or alterna-
tively, have a penchant for trying to make
Improvised Chemical Devices (ICDs) using
poisons such as ricin neurotoxins which
can be concocted from uncontrolled raw
materials. Several such cases have reached
30 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
Environics
The Environics Mobile
ENVI BioSCout unit
is designed to provide
bioaerosol detection for
military operations. The
company is involved
in the provision of a
number of systems for
CBRN protection.
court in the past two years in the United
Kingdom and US.
REspiRAtioN
Fundamental protection from CBRN is
provided by an expanding variety of respi-
ratory protection systems. For example,
for first-responder use full Self-Contained
Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) provides the
highest level of respiratory protection to
the user. SCBA systems are hence becom-
ing modular, giving the responder an adap-
tive system for multiple scenarios. Hybrid
systems such as those made by Scott Safety,
based in the UK, offer a single man-porta-
ble ‘backpack’ of adaptable types of respi-
ratory protection for the first responder
to switch systems during an operation.
Regarding the Scott Patriot 5510 hybrid Air
Purifier Respirator, Powered Air Purifier
Respirator and SCBA modular system, the
power pack supports telemetry which can
provide the responder’s location, position
(moving, static or prone). The operator’s
body temperature, pulse and breathing
rate can all be monitored, as well as battery
life and oxygen cylinder levels.
ADAptAbLE DEtEctioN
Mobile, multi-threat CBRN monitoring
systems for detection are increasingly
used at public events. Environics’ Mobile
CBRN Monitoring Systems are intended
for temporary CBRN detection at dignitary
meetings, sports and cultural events, for
monitoring accidental releases of hazard-
ous CBRN material on site by first re-
sponders, or safeguarding mobile, civilian
or military command and control centres.
Meanwhile, the company’s EnVision is a
rugged, transportable stand-alone CBRN
detection unit. The EnVision HRS is a sys-
tem of unattended mobile chemical and
radiation detection units networked to
control centres via a radio link to provide
CBRN detection across a wide area. Envi-
ronics also offers hand-held portable de-
vices and tools for mass-event protection,
along with light CBRN reconnaissance
vehicles and a specialised vehicle, known
as the RanidSONNI (sic), for radiation
detection and analysis. The military-grade,
mobile Gossamer CBRN surveillance sys-
tem designed for Special Forces for both
military and civilian missions has several
sensor fields: one sensor can field up to ten
sensor nodes which send back information
and analysis of potential threats to a com-
mand and control post.
There are several adaptable, economi-
cal, self-contained, portable devices for
chemical and biological detection on the
market for first-responder use. The Aklus
Shield J-Model system is such an example
that rapidly detects and collects biological
agents, and which can be outfitted with
chemical and radiological sensors. This
makes for a cost effective, single-platform,
CBRN sensing solu-
tion for local police,
hazmat teams, and first
Rigaku
responders and can
save on costs as the
customer does not have
to set up multiple sens-
ing networks to cover
The handheld
Progeny ResQ
produced by
Rigaku Analytical
Devices can
indicate the overall
threat level posed
by the presence of
multiple individual
chemicals.

all CBRN threats. As the architecture is
based on an open interface, customers can
use their own sensors. Initial user training
takes four hours at most and the system
LAND WARFARE
Shield-J include perimeter defence and
US Army
critical infrastructure and building protec-
tion, as well as special event surveillance.
Companies are aiming for equipment
that can detect multiple threats. Rigaku
Analytical Devices, which specialise in
handheld detectors based on Raman spec-
Soldiers and airmen
of the Maryland
troscopy (please see the ‘How It Works’ box
National Guard’s for more information on this process) has
32nd WMD CST produced the Progeny ResQ, which can in-
(Weapons of Mass dicate the overall threat level posed by the
Destruction Civil presence of multiple individual chemicals.
Support Team)
Although the individual chemicals may
train aboard a US
Navy display ship not pose a threat, their combined presence
at the Washington could indicate the preparation of hazard-
Navy Yard during an ous or illicit compounds. The Progeny
exercise. ResQ is designed to save critical time by
reducing the first responder’s reliance on
off-site expert advice for CBRN analysis,
as speed is often of the essence following a
can be set up and ready for use in less than suspected attack.
five minutes, and the company states that
the system has typical operating costs as ChEmiCAL suRvEiLLANCE
low as $1 a day. Ideal applications for the An increasingly necessary CBRN coun-
armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 31
LAND WARFARE
How It Works: Infrared
Spectroscopy
In infrared spectroscopy, IR (in-
frared) radiation is passed through a
sample chemical substance. Some of
the infrared radiation is absorbed by
the sample, and some of it is passed
through, or ‘transmitted’. The resulting
light spectrum represents the mo-
lecular absorption and transmission,
creating a molecular fingerprint of
the sample. Like a fingerprint, no two
unique molecular structures produce
the same infrared spectrum, making
the technique highly useful for
identifying chemicals.
Raman Spectroscopy works by
shining a near IR laser at a chemical
sample, and then by analysing the
scattering of that light as it strikes the
molecules of the sample. There are two
types of scatter: elastic and inelastic.
Elastic scatter comes off the sample
at the same wavelength as the light
coming in, whereas inelastic scatter is
picked up as a series of peaks of co-
lour, where some of the light energy
interacts with the substance’s mol-
ecules. This elastic scatter signature
can then be matched against a library
of known chemicals to identify it.
32 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
US Army
A member of the Illinois National
Guard’s 5th Weapons of Mass
Destruction Civil Support Team
(CST) checks her monitoring
equipment during a CST external
evaluation exercise.
termeasure is protecting buildings, public
spaces, mass transit stations, and buildings
from introduction of Chemical Warfare
Agents (CWAs) through air conditioning
systems. As a joint effort BPSI and MKS
Instruments has launched an ambient air
analyser, the MKS AIRGARD, an ultra-
sensitive gas analyser based on the Fourier
Transform Infrared Spectroscopy process
to detect rapidly CW agents and other toxic
gases (please see the ‘How It Works’ box for
more information on this process).
The AIRGARD analyser has undergone
tests by the US Department of Defence
(DoD) for its sensitivity, specificity,
response time, and immunity to false posi-
tive alarms. This is vital to prevent unwar-
ranted evacuation of buildings, associated
interruptions of business, and emergency
notifications when no threat materials are
present in the building airflow. Accord-
ing to BPSI president Greg Eiler, “The
ultra-low false alarm rates and excellent
real world operational up-time make the
AIRGARD a perfect addition to our line-up
of high performance detection equipment
focused on saving human life.”
TRAiNiNg
In the wake of Mr. Brennan’s assessment
of ISIS’ CW capabilities, the US DoD is em-
phasising training and exercises to enhance
CBRN readiness on the domestic front. This
involves training emergency responders at
the tactical level, who are in the front line of
response to attacks, and commanders and
government leaders at the operational and
strategic levels with CBRN scenario and
exercise development, post-drill reviews,
and mobile training teams.
The US National Guard WMD (Weap-
ons of Mass Destruction) Civil Support
Teams (CSTs) would be in the forefront of
response to any intentional or uninten-
tional release of CBRN materials. Their
training programmes, which are prepared
by leading defence company Battelle, have
to be of the highest quality for the surviv-
ability, safety and sustainment of opera-
tions. Federal exercises to practice and
assess coordinated emergency responses
are frequently conducted, an example
being a series from 2010 through 2014 at
several nuclear power stations across the
United States.
EuRo 2016
Closer to current events, fears of further
ISIS attacks in France at the Euro 2016 soc-
cer competition staged in June prompted
the French security services to stage a
simulated chemical attack at the Stadium
Municipal in Toulouse, in the southwest of
the country. Some 1200 volunteers acting
as fans were treated by paramedics while
armed police stormed the stadium. One
drill simulated a similar scenario to the
bomb and gun attack perpetrated by ISIS
at the La Stade stadium in northern Paris
in November 2015, while another simulated
a sarin nerve gas attack. As there was a vast
police presence needed to deal with several
outbreaks of severe football violence in the
first week of the contest, which attracted
hundreds of thousands of fans from many
countries, this begs the question as to
whether the authorities could have dealt
with a simultaneous attack at, or near, a
stadium while such violence was ongo-
ing? CBRN will always be the wildcard, but
preparation for an attack has to continue
on many fronts, both military and civilian,
despite the cost.
air power
CoiN-
operated
In this article Armada focuses on the exclusively fixed-wing part of
the light combat and Counterinsurgency (COIN) aircraft market,
where the focus is on non-traditional warfare and border patrol as
opposed to classic air combat tasks.
Thomas Newdick
34 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
B
ack in 2006 the US Air Force
(USAF) chief of staff General
Norton Schwartz proposed
that the service acquire 100
Light Armed Attack Aircraft
(LAAR) in order to field a combat wing of
the aircraft to support ongoing US-led
combat operations in Afghanistan. Thus
began a renewed focus on a class of light
combat and COIN aircraft that had last
seen significant development in the
US during the country’s engagement in
Southeast Asia between 1965 and 1975. The
LAAR initiative was then reined in as part

USAF
This A-29 is one of the first four
examples that were delivered to
Afghanistan, arriving at Hamid Karzai
International Airport in January
2016. The Afghan Air Force’s first eight
combat-ready attack pilots undertook
training with the USAF’s 81st Fighter
Squadron at Moody airbase, Georgia.
of former US defence secretary Robert
Gates’ cost-cutting measures. Plans for the
USAF to acquire a light combat platform
of its own were replaced instead by a
proposal to assist ‘partner nations’ (such
as Iraq and Afghanistan) in learning to
operate such aircraft.
In order to help select a platform, the
US Air National Guard (ANG) conducted
a demonstration of the Hawker Beech-
craft AT-6B Texan-II (subsequently re-
designated in the US the Beechcraft AT-6
Wolverine) in an effort separate to LAAR.
Meanwhile, the US Navy’s Irregular War-
fare Office conducted another demonstra-
tion, known as IMMINENT FURY, using
the Embraer A-29/EMB-314 Super Tucano.
Launched in 2009 as a follow-on to the
LAAR programme, the USAF Light Air
Support (LAS) solicitation was originally
put out to potential vendors in October
2010. In December 2011 the USAF awarded a
contract to Sierra Nevada for 20 A-29 Super
Tucano aircraft, but in March 2012 the USAF
cancelled the LAS contract, with secretary
of the air force Michael Donley stating the
reason as being that “air force senior acqui-
sition executive David Van Buren (was) not
satisfied with the quality of the documen-
tation supporting the award decision.” In
May 2012 a new Request For Proposals (RFP)
The Embraer A-29 Super Tucano in
one of its natural habitats; over the
jungles of the Amazon region, in
the hands of the Brazilian Air Force.
Brazil became launch customer for
the Super Tucano in 1995.
FAB
armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 35
air power
was issued. Finally, in February 2013 the
LAS contract, now worth $427 million, was
awarded again to Sierra Nevada.
Market leader
Within the market for turboprop light
attack aircraft the EMB-314 Super Tucano
and AT-6 Wolverine continue to lead the
way. However, the EMB-314 maintains
a clear dominance in terms of foreign
customers, with around 190 examples
delivered to date (including 99 for the
Força Aérea Brasileira (FAB) / Brazilian Air
Force), and orders for 30 more.
Under the USAF’s LAS programme, 20
A-29s are being provided to the Afghan Air
Force. By November 2015 Sierra Nevada
had delivered 13 of the 20 aircraft on order,
all of which are being assembled at a new
plant in Jacksonville, Florida. The type
began combat missions in Afghanistan
earlier this year.
Smaller numbers of the aircraft have
been purchased by Angola, Burkina Faso,
Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Repub-
lic, Ecuador, Lebanon, Mali, Mauritania
and Senegal. As the major operator of the
type, the FAB employs the A-29 within its
SIVAM (System for the Vigilance of the
Amazon) programme, which includes in-
terception of illegal flights and light attack
missions in the Amazon basin. The FAB
also uses the type as an advanced trainer.
In August 1995 Brazil placed an initial
order for 50 single-seat A-29s and 50 two-
seaters, later revised to a total of 99 aircraft.
The first of these officially entered FAB
service in 2004.
Colombia was the first export cus-
tomer for the A-29, receiving 25 examples
from December 2006. These were also the
first A-29s to see combat, going into action
against communist guerrillas in January
2007. In November 2009 the Chilean Air
Force received the first of twelve aircraft,
these being the first to feature a full ‘glass’
cockpit, with three displays instead of
two. The Dominican Republic received
the first of eight aircraft in December 2009.
In January 2010 Ecuador began receiving
aircraft from an initial order of 24 that was
later reduced to 18.
The A-29 has also attracted interest
from private security companies. The
US contractor Blackwater (via its subsid-
 air power
iary EP Aviation), now called Academi,
acquired one example in 2008 for training.
The aircraft which was later sold to Tacti-
cal Air, was armed and received a forward-
looking infrared turret for use in the
IMMINENT FURY programme (see above).
African sales of the A-29 comprise
three examples for Burkina Faso (delivered
in 2011), six sold to Angola in 2012, three to
Mauritania, three aircraft ordered by Sen-
egal in April 2013, three aircraft donated to
Mozambique by the Brazilian government
in March 2014, six sold to Mali in June
2015 and five aircraft sold to Ghana in the
same month. The A-29’s presence in the
Asia-Pacific was launched by Indonesia,
which had received an initial eight aircraft
by 2014; Jakarta is currently negotiating
a second batch of eight aircraft. In the
Middle East, a Lebanese order for six A-29s
was confirmed in November 2015. These
aircraft will be built in the US by Sierra
Nevada at a cost of $172.5 million.
The rivals
Like its Brazilian A-29 counterpart, the
AT-6 Wolverine is based on the airframe
of a turboprop trainer, in this case the
36 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
successful T-6 Texan-II, 900 of which have
been built or are on order. While the Wol-
verine was developed to meet the USAF’s
LAAR requirement (see above), some of
the T-6s have also been delivered in armed
configurations. These include 20 Greek
T-6As capable of carrying external fuel
tanks and unguided weapons, Moroccan
T-6Cs that feature a ‘glass’ cockpit, stores
management system and underwing hard-
points, and the Mexican T-6C+ that also
offers weapons capabilities.
Beechcraft has flown three AT-6 proto-
type/demonstrator aircraft and despite its
loss in the LAS competition, USAF/Air Na-
tional Guard-funded trials have continued,
including test firings of the BAE Systems
Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System
(APKWS) and Raytheon Talon laser-guid-
ed rockets. A potential launch customer
for the AT-6 is Iraq, which already operates
15 unarmed T-6A trainers. The US State
Department has approved a possible deal
for up to 24 aircraft for Iraq.
Beyond the established players in the
field, there are a number of other entrants
in the fixed-wing light combat and COIN
category. In South Africa, Pretoria-based
USAF
A pilot and maintainer
inspect a Dominican
Republic A-29 Super
Tucano prior to a night
flight. Among its roles, the
Dominican Republic uses
its A-29s to detect and track
illegal drug traffic.
aerospace group, Aerosud has developed
the all-new Advanced High-Performance
Reconnaissance Light Aircraft (AHRLAC).
Developed to fulfil the manned airborne
COIN role as well as for use as a surveil-
lance platform, the AHRLAC is promoted
as being ideal for emergency relief and
disaster management situations. Aimed as
a low-cost solution for developing coun-
tries, the aircraft is powered by a Pratt and
Whitney Canada PT6A-66 turboprop.
Speaking to Armada, Aerosud’s new
business development executive Leon
Potgieter outlined the programme’s
achievements to date: “The AHRLAC
has been going along very strong and we
have accumulated 150 total hours on the
aircraft. We have had zero failures and no
breakdown, which is a great testimony to
how the aircraft has been built. We have
deployed the aircraft on various missions
above the normal testing of the aircraft to
test operational capability. We are also in
the process of building a second aircraft.
This aircraft will have more advanced
avionics, retractable landing gear, on-
board oxygen and will have ejection seats
from onset. We are also in the process of
 air power
A pair of Beechcraft AT-6 Wolverines
toting an impressive load of weapons
including laser-guided bombs, rockets and
gun pods. Also visible under the fuselage
of the aircraft is the forward-mounted
FLIR Systems AN/AAQ-22 Star SAFIRE II
surveillance and targeting turret.
partnering up with various suppliers.”
Earlier this year Paramount an-
nounced an agreement with Boeing under
which the two firms will jointly weaponise
and integrate Boeing mission systems and
Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnais-
sance (ISR) payloads for the AHRLAC.
Boeing will actively market the aircraft
alongside Paramount to target interna-
tional customers. As part of the market-
ing drive, the militarised AHRLAC has
received the name Mwari.
Developed on the basis of an agricul-
tural aircraft, the Air Tractor AT-802U was
introduced in 2009 and is marketed primar-
ily for the armed surveillance mission.
Speaking to this publication, Air Tractor’s
vice president of business development
Charles Miller revealed that the United
Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt and Jordan
currently operate a total of 28 AT-802U air-
craft. “In addition we have 14 aircraft that
have been operating in Colombia, which
are armoured but not armed, for the last 15
years. We have a sale for twelve additional
aircraft to a Middle East country and have
on-going discussions in the Middle East,
Asia-Pacific, Africa and South America.
We have recently teamed with L-3 Com-
munications to develop the AT-802L model
which has several upgrades compared to
the U-model.” Mr Miller also explained that
the company would continue to market the
baseline AT-802U and as well as the new AT-
802L, also known as the Longsword.
While Air Tractor has teamed up with
L-3 Communications as systems integra-
tor for the AT-802, the original integrator,
IOMAX, continues to have a stake in the
market. IOMAX was originally contracted
by the UAE to supply 24 AT-802 platforms,
before launching its own Archangel
aircraft. IOMAX uses the Thrush 710P ag-
ricultural aircraft as the basis for its Arch-
angel, which made its public debut in 2015.
The UAE has also acquired the Archangel,
and as deliveries have continued, some of
38 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
Beechcraft
the previous AT-802U aircraft have been ment, including combat trials against the
passed on to allies in the region, including so-called Islamic State of Iraq and Syria
Jordan and Yemen. insurgent organisation. Modifications
included a digital cockpit upgrade and the
Legacy pLatforms ability to fire 69.8mm (2.75 inches) and
In terms of legacy fixed-wing COIN 127mm (five inch) APKWS rockets, and an
platforms, the Fabrica Argentina de off-the-shelf sensor turret under the nose.
Aviones (FAdeA) IA-58 Pucará is one of the
more established, and this twin-engine turboprop team
turboprop entered service in Argentina in Following the lead of Embraer and
1976. A total of 105 aircraft were completed Beechcraft, a number of manufacturers of
and delivered to Argentina, Sri Lanka and turboprop trainers now offer adaptations
Uruguay. Currently, FAdeA is working on a
IA-58 upgrade, which is progressing along
two different paths, as Latin American
aerospace analyst Santiago Rivas ex-
plains. “One upgrade path concerns the
avionics, to install an inertial navigation
system, a Head-Up Display (HUD) and
other systems, which are currently being
tested. The other area concerns new Pratt
and Whitney Canada PT6A-62 engines.”
Argentina hopes to upgrade 20 of its IA-58s
to the IA-58H standard by the end of 2020.
Mr. Rivas confirmed that the new engines
will also be offered to Uruguay, which
maintains a fleet of eight aircraft, of which
only two remain operational. Facing a
shortage of spares for the type, Uruguay
is considering the retirement of the IA-58.
Ground tests of the new powerplant began
in August 2015.
Another Cold War-era COIN aircraft
the Rockwell International/Boeing OV-10
Bronco has returned to prominence in
recent years. Under the Combat Dragon
II initiative, two OV-10G+ aircraft were
modified for a “warfighter rapid-response
programme” on behalf of the US Navy.
Combat Dragon II saw the OV-10G+s tested
for their suitability in a COIN environ-

of their aircraft for light attack and COIN
roles. The Turkish Aerospace Industries
(TAI) Hürkuş-C is the light attack coun-
terpart to the Hürkuş-A primary and
basic trainer and the Hürkuş-B advanced
trainer. Ünsiye Nazlı Demiröz, a TAI
spokesperson, outlined the status of the
programme. “Hürkuş-C is the modified
version of Hürkuş-B that will be capable
of fulfilling operational requirements of
both training and armed reconnaissance
missions and compliant with light air
support aircraft and light attack/armed
reconnaissance aircraft requirements.
Hürkuş-C preliminary design activities are
on-going … Within the scope of the Hürkuş
programmes, fourHürkuş-A aircraft have
been produced. A total of 15 Hürkuş-B
aircraft will be produced for the Turkish
Air Force. Contract negotiations between
TAI and different counties for Hürkuş
aircraft continue. We have target markets
and potential future customers.”
In the Republic of Korea (RoK), Korea
Aerospace Industries (KAI) offers its KA-1
as a light attack derivative of the KT-1
Woong-Bee trainer. The manufacturer
completed 85 examples of the KT-1 basic
trainer for the RoK and had delivered the
KT-1B export version to Indonesia. The
KA-1 was developed primarily as a Forward
Air Control (FAC) aircraft for the Republic
of Korea Air Force. Development began
in 2000, with the addition of a weapons
management system and related cockpit
display, HUD, hands on throttle and stick
controls and underwing hardpoints. In
December 2003 a contract for 20 aircraft
was awarded and deliveries of these
aircraft were undertaken between August
2005 and October 2007.
Serbia’s Utva, meanwhile, has de-
veloped the Kobac (Sparrowhawk) as a
light attack version of its Lasta-95 trainer,
which is in service with Serbia and has
been exported to Iraq (20 examples). Prog-
ress on the Kobac, however, has been slow,
as confirmed by local military analyst Igor
Salinger. “A full-scale mock-up has been
completed, using an old Lasta-2 airframe,
PT6 turboprop engine and wingtip fuel
tanks, and was shown to the public in 2012.
IOMAX
Representing a new development in the
light attack/COIN segment are adapted
versions of established agricultural
aircraft designs. This is an example of the
IOMAX Archangel, based on the Thrush
710P two-seat crop-duster.
armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 39
air power
So far no sales have been reported.” In the
meantime, however, Iraq has begun to
operate its Lasta-95s in a COIN role, equip-
ping these aircraft with unguided rockets,
gun pods, and ‘dumb’ bombs. Mr. Salinger
considers it unlikely that the Kobac project
will be completed unless a customer can
be found in advance to secure the funding
required for development.
The latest entrant in the turboprop
trainer market is the Hindustan Aero-
nautics Limited (HAL) Hindustan Turbo
Trainer (HTT) 40, which completed its
first flight in May 2016. HAL hopes to build
200 HTT-40s, and has announced plans
to export a ‘weaponised’ version. Reports
in the Indian media suggest that HAL has
identified potential customers including
Afghanistan, Burma and certain unnamed
African nations.
The renegade
Unique among the aircraft in this study
is the Textron AirLand Scorpion, a jet-
powered entrant in the light attack/COIN
marketplace. Although it is yet to win any
orders as a trainer or combat aircraft, the
Scorpion has attracted interest from a vari-
ety of potential operators. Billed as a light-
weight reconnaissance and strike aircraft,
the Scorpion was announced in December
2013 and before long was being linked with
possible sales to Nigeria and the UAE.
The innovation behind the Scorpion
extends to its extensive use of off-the-shelf
commercial parts. “We routinely make
software updates to the avionics system
in days, not months,” noted Dale Tutt, the
Scorpion’s chief engineer. Textron AirLand
claim an operating cost of just $3000 per
hour for the Scorpion, and a unit price of
less than $20 million per aircraft.
While a traditional force of fighter
aircraft remains the ultimate goal of
most air forces, aircraft like the Scorpion
demonstrate that significant capability
can be brought to bear at a fraction of the
cost. Furthermore, while certain mis-
sions will continue to be dominated by
high-performance jets, the performance
of lightweight COIN types in recent asym-
metric combat environments demon-
strates that there is a clear niche in which
these dedicated light attack platforms
will invariably excel.
Programme FoCUS

Sukhoi
Sukhoi was selected
to fulfil the Russian
MoD's PAK FA
requirement for a
new tactical fighter,
beating its rival MiG.

the generatIon
game
On 27 April 2016 the latest example of Russia’s fifth-generation fighter, the Sukhoi T-50-6-2,
performed its maiden flight. This test aircraft, described by the design bureau as the first of the
‘second stage’ prototypes, marked an important milestone for the programme.

Thomas Newdick

H
owever, in recent months
the programme has suf-
fered a number of setbacks,
such that the prospects of
its long-term success must
now be in some doubt. Work to create to-
day’s T-50 began in earnest in the late 1990s
under the PAK FA (Future Air Complex
of Tactical Aviation) programme. In April
2002, the government selected Sukhoi’s
T-50 design for the PAK FA requirement
in favour of a rival proposal from Russian
Aircraft Corporation MiG. In July 2003
the Russian Ministry of Defence (MoD)
awarded Sukhoi a contract for research
and development work, including detailed
design, construction and testing of a series
of T-50 prototypes. The preliminary design
of the T-50 received Russian Air Force ap-
proval in December 2004. Manufacture of
the T-50 is being undertaken by the Kom-
somolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Plant, which is
wholly owned by the Sukhoi company. A
first prototype (T-50-1) recorded the type’s
maiden flight on January 29, 2010.
InItIal teSt Fleet
While prototype T-50-1 has been used to
evaluate flight-handling characteris-
tics, the subsequent T-50-2 (first flown
in March 2011) features a strengthened
airframe and has been used for test work
at high g-loads and angles of attack. T-50-1

40 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016

 Programme FoCUS

and T-50-2 both lack mission systems, but

Sukhoi
T-50-2 has been used to test essential air-
craft systems, including the weapons bay
doors and inflight-refuelling probe.
First flown in November 2011, T-50-3
is the first to feature the Tikhomirov
NIIP N036 Byelka radar, albeit lacking the
planned side antennae, which will be used
to widen the radar’s search and tracking
angles.T-50-3 also introduced certain sen-
sors from the UOMZ/Yekaterinburg 101KS Vortices stream from the
Atoll optronics suite. Minor airframe upper surfaces of T-50-4, the
changes are also incorporated in T-50-3, fourth PAK FA prototype.
including modified wingtips, compared This aircraft features a
to previous prototypes. Compared to slightly different array of
optronics sensors, and has
T-50-3, the subsequent T-50-4 (first flown
also been used for weapons-
in December 2012) has a revised optronics carriage trials, including
suite and is likely fitted with the KNIRTI/ external ordnance.
Zhukov L402 Gimalai Electronic War-
fare (EW) self-protection suite. Further
changes to the 101KS Atoll optronics suite
were incorporated in T-50-5 (first flown in especially for a stealth aircraft, shows that February 2014, the T-50-2 was first deployed
October 2013). This aircraft lacks the 101KS- the airframe has real problems.” In effect, to Akhtubinsk in western Russia, while T-50-
U ultraviolet missile approach warning argues Mr. Bronk, the T-50 represents a 3 was delivered to the centre for the first
system, but includes two, instead of one, “very heavily modified (Sukhoi Su-27/30/35 stage of state acceptance trials in December
101KS-O optronics locator turrets, includ- Flanker fighter) airframe,” with all the 2014. “Compared to public announcements,
ing a new 101KS-O/N sensor located below compromises in terms of radar cross-sec- the PAK FA programme has suffered delays,”
the forward fuselage. tion that this brings. notes Russian aerospace observer Piotr
T-50-6 had been planned as the last of Butowski. In fact, this is to be expected, since
the ‘first stage’ flying prototypes, but was SeCond Stage the dates promised by Russian officials since
abandoned after T-50-5 suffered an acci- In 2012 the Russian MoD placed orders the very beginning of the programme have
dent in June 2014. Soon after landing at the for the next batch of test aircraft, for the never appeared realistic. After the first flight
experimental airfield at Zhukovsky, outside ‘second stage’ of the programme. Although in 2010, it was stated that state acceptance
Moscow, smoke was seen emerging from a first such test aircraft was due to fly in tests would commence in 2013, and deliver-
T-50-5’s right engine air intake, followed by autumn 2015, it eventually took to the ies of production T-50s to military units
a localised fire. The aircraft was returned air in late April 2016. The United Aircraft would begin in 2015. “During tests, the T-50
to Komsomolsk in Russia’s far east, and Corporation, of which the Sukhoi com- prototypes suffered structural cracks even
repaired using parts from the unfinished pany is a subsidiary, announced that three flying with the g-load limited to five. For this
T-50-6, after which the aircraft was re- ‘second stage’ flying prototypes were due reason, T-50-1 was under overhaul for over
designated T-50-5R. “Essentially the PAK FA to be completed. The first of these to fly is a year between August 2011 and Septem-
programme hasn’t seen any real progress in the aforementioned T-50-6-2 (see above). ber 2012 after suffering structural damage
the last five years,” contends Justin Bronk, Meanwhile, T-50-6-1 appears to refer to during a display at Moscow’s International
a research fellow specialising in combat air- a ‘second stage’ static test airframe that Aviation and Space Salon (MAKS) exhibition
power and technology at the Royal United is alternatively designated as T-50-7. An- in 2011. Thereafter, various strengthening
Services Institute in London. “If you look at nounced plans, which are almost certainly additions appeared on the airframes. The
its closest competitor, the Lockheed Martin over-optimistic, called for eight pre-series structure of the production aircraft will
F-22A Raptor, the combination of airframe aircraft to follow the prototypes. Report- be considerably improved.” As well as the
and engine didn’t take too long to develop edly designated T-50S, these aircraft were aforementioned mishap suffered by T-50-5,
compared to nearly a decade of systems to be completed between 2016 and 2018. there have been several incidents in which
development and bug fixing for the former.” Thereafter, series production would be aircraft have encountered engine problems.
Mr. Bronk believes that the T-50 launched in 2019. In August 2011, T-50-2 suffered an engine
airframe/engine combination has still The PAK FA has been designed to meet compressor stall, leading to an aborted take-
not been frozen, as evidenced by repeated the requirements of the Russian Air Force off. During a test flight in April 2015 a T-50’s
measures to strengthen the wings. “The (RuAF). A Russian MoD pilot first flew a cockpit canopy cracked.
fact that they still have to patch the wings, T-50 at the flight test centre in April 2013. In Under published plans, the Russian

armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 41

Programme FoCUS
MoD had hoped to declare initial opera-
tional capability and launch full-scale
series production of the T-50 by the end
of December 2016. The Russian National
Armament Programme, which outlines
the procurement priorities for the Russian
military, called for 60 T-50s to be acquired
by 2020. These plans will not be realised,
and the Russian MoD has begun to make
contingency plans in light of delays to
the PAK FA programme, and perhaps
broader concerns over its capabilities. In
March 2015 the Russian deputy minister
of defence Yuri Borisov announced that a
reduced number of T-50s, perhaps as few
as twelve, might be purchased by 2020.
The T-50’s chances are hampered by
the availability of Sukhoi Su-30SM and
Su-35 fighters, the latest iterations of the
Flanker family. These two lower-cost op-
tions, already in operational service with
the RuAF, provide an alternative to the
T-50, at least in the short to medium term.
The IndIan ConneCTIon
In the same way that Indian MoD orders
allowed Sukhoi to develop the multirole
Su-30MKI fighter (now in service with
the Indian Air Force, which was in turn
Successive T-50 prototypes received
slightly different equipment fits and
modifications in terms of structure and
aerodynamics, with the aim of finalising
the design for the ‘second stage’ of
the programme, which aims to field a
production-representative airframe.
42 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
The T-50’s tail ‘sting’ houses elements
of the KNIRTI/Zhukov L402 Gimalai
electronic warfare self-protection
suite. The fairing between the
engine exhausts also accommodates
three 14-round countermeasures
dispensers produced by Vympel.
‘Russianised’ as the Su-30SM for the RuAF),
so India’s willingness to buy the T-50 will
have a significant influence on its future
prospects. In January 2003, Moscow and
New Delhi signed a letter of intent cover-
ing the joint development of what India
describes as the Fifth-Generation Fighter
Aircraft (FGFA). An inter-governmental
agreement followed in October 2007. A
contract covering the preliminary design
of the FGFA was signed in December 2010.
Sukhoi and Hindustan Aeronautics
Limited (HAL) are jointly developing the
fighter on the basis of the T-50. A number
of changes are planned for the Indian Air
Sukhoi
Sukhoi
Force (IAF) version, including the addi-
tion of the Tikhomirov NIIP N079 radar,
in place of the N036 Byelka radar on the
RuAF T-50s, and export versions of coun-
termeasures and weapon management
systems, for example.
Like their Russian counterparts, when
it comes to the FGFA, Indian defence of-
ficials have provided a mix of unrealistic
timescale targets (including launch of
production in India in 2018-19) and threats
of reduced acquisition totals. In early
2015 the Indian chief of air staff Air Chief
Marshal Arup Raha confirmed that the
quantity of fighters that India will acquire
is still undetermined, and will depend on
financial factors.
Angad Singh, a New Delhi-based
defence analyst, suggests that the most
important factor facing the FGFA is the
fact it is a government-to-government
programme, meaning its ultimate fate
rests with a political decision, and not
the IAF. “The IAF has repeatedly sig-
nalled a willingness to sacrifice the FGFA
if it means they can shore up fighter
numbers in the short term. The hugely
expensive MMRCA (Medium Multirole
Combat Aircraft) programme, and now
the government-to-government Dassault
Rafale-F3 fighter acquisition deal have
priority at the (IAF) headquarters, and
multiple pronouncements by multiple
officers have indicated that they are will-
ing to push back or scale down (or both)
the FGFA in favour of a more immediate
fourth-generation buy.”
 including Critical
Information
Infrastructure
Mr. Singh also believes that the IAF is not happy with the cur- Protection
rent or even promised capabilities of the FGFA. “They would never
admit it in public, but the Su- 30MKI fleet is a huge headache from a
reliability perspective, with the engines a particular concern.”
As its power plant, the T-50 currently employs two Saturn/
Rybinsk AL-41F1 thrust-vectoring turbofans. Despite its new
name, as Mr. Singh points out, the AL-41F1 engine is essentially an
upgrade of the AL-31F as used in the Su-27/Su-30 fighters, albeit
with improvements including a larger-diameter fan, new high-
and low-pressure turbines, an upgraded combustion chamber and
a new Full-Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) system, by
which the engine is controlled in an entirely computerised man-
ner. According to Mr. Butowski, AL-41F1 engines will power T-50
fighters “at least until 2020”. After this date, they are expected to
be fitted with the Izdeliye-30 turbofan, a completely new design. 5th-6th October 2016
Mr. Singh continues, “as an operator of multiple Russian
fighter types, the IAF is familiar with Russian technological
Bangkok, Thailand
limitations … There is a lack of confidence that the Izdeliye-30 www.cip-asia.com
engines will be delivered on time and on spec.” Indian confidence
in the T-50 is also eroded by Russian reluctance to share test data
The premier conference for securing
and take part in prototype evaluation. “IAF officers are incredibly ASEANs critical national infrastructure
unhappy that the Russians are not letting them get their hands on Co-Hosted By:
even the T-50 prototypes. An Indian delegation was present when
T-50-5 caught fire, and reportedly the Russians wouldn’t tell them
what had gone wrong and wouldn’t let them near the aircraft once
the fire had been put out. That’s the sort of behaviour that upsets
prospective customers.” Department of
Disaster Prevention
Ministry of Interior & Mitigation
Compounding Indian unease is the RuAF decision to induct
only a small batch of series-production T-50s before committing
to a full-scale production. Aside from India, however, export Register Today and
prospects for the T-50 are somewhat limited. “The classic market Save with the Early Bird
for top-end Russian equipment is the People’s Republic of China
(PRC),” Mr. Bronk notes. The PRC, however, has taken a different Confirmed speakers include:
path to developing its own advanced fighters. “Having stolen so - Peter O’Neill, Chief of Transport Policy and Development
Division, UNESCAP
much data, the PRC is in a better position to develop indigenous - Thomas Wuchte, Head of Transnational Threats Department/
fifth-generation fighters. In terms of countries to willing to Action Against Terrorism Unit, OSCE
buy fighters from Russia, these tend to need to bolster their air - Kamal Thalib, Head of Financial Crime & Security Services,
PT Bank DBS Indonesia
defences quickly, and above all cheaply.” While there have been
- Shamika Sirimanne, Chief of Division, Information and
claims that the T-50’s unit cost will be “comparable to the latest Communications Technology and Disaster Risk Reduction
Flanker series, (the Su-35),” Mr. Bronk considers that this is clearly Division, UNESCAP
unrealistic. Furthermore, with the Su-35 available and in quantity - Dr. Peeranan Towashiraporn, Director, Asian Disaster
Preparedness Center
production, this option represents a very good deal in itself. “For - Kumpol Sontanarat, Director, Information and Communication
$65 million, very little comes close to the Su-35,” he adds. Technology Department , Securities and Exchange
While the PRC develops its own comparable fifth-generation Commission (SEC), Thailand
- Air Chief Marshal Somneuk Swatteuk, Senior Expert, National
fighters, India was hopeful that joining Russia to co-develop the Disaster Warning Center, Thailand
FGFA would provide a head start for its own aerospace indus- - Zahri Yunos, Chief Operating Officer, Cybersecurity Malaysia
try. “So far, there is little clarity on Indian industrial participa- Discover the latest challenges, stratgies and solutions
tion, beyond the fact that HAL is to be the lead integrator for the for protecting ASEANs critical national infrastructure
Indian production effort,” says Mr. Singh. “It’s early to be talking Critical Infrastructure Protection and Resilience Asia will
about industrial participation anyway, since everything seems to bring together leading stakeholders from industry, operators,
have gone sideways. The Russians have done most, if not all the agencies and governments to collaborate on securing Asia.
development work. If India stumps up the $6 billion the Russians Book your delegate place today and save with the Early Bird
were asking for, they will essentially be paying for instructions delegate rate - Early Bird deadline 5th September 2016.
on how to build a fighter whose development is all but complete. I Register online at www.cip-asia.com/onlinereg
think even the Russians have recognised this and revised their ask
Developing resilient infrastructure
for a secure future
Programme FoCUS
For now, the T-50 is powered by a pair
of Saturn/Rybinsk AL-41F (Izdeliye
117) thrust-vectoring turbofans. This
engine is an evolution of the 117S that
has already been proven on the Su-35S
fighter. Around 2020 the all-new Izdeliye
30 engine should be ready for the T-50.
downwards to around $3.7 billion.”
The FGFA programme is also being
run against a backdrop of severe budgetary
constraint within the Indian MoD. Cur-
rent priorities include regeneration of the
Indian Navy’s submarine fleet, and mecha-
nisation and modernisation of the Indian
Army. “The IAF needs to address a critical
fighter shortfall,” Mr. Singh adds. “By virtue
of being of being further down the list in
chronological terms, the FGFA simply isn’t
getting a lot of attention from the IAF, the
MoD and the administration at large.”
Even if the T-50 fails to make headway,
Russia may yet benefit from its experience
in developing a fifth-generation combat
aircraft. Mr. Bronk envisages a situation
in which Russia may export its expertise
gained in the programme to other coun-
tries working to develop advanced fighters.
Outside of India, these currently include
the PRC, the Republic of Korea and Turkey.
Concluding his analysis of the pros-
pects of the FGFA in India, Mr. Singh told
Armada, “I personally don’t rate the FGFA’s
chances of success highly. It’s expensive,
and therefore will give the MoD pause,
while the IAF simply does not want it in
its current or proposed forms. But in the
world of politics and diplomacy, anything
can change. If it comes down to giving
the Russians a gift after ignoring them in
favour of the Americans and Europeans in
so many military purchases over the past
44 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
Sukhoi
“halfway house,” in which compromises are
decade or so, $4 billion might prove to be
very good value after all.”
Currently, it is clear that the FGFA
programme is at a standstill, and much of
the future success of the T-50 hangs on this
factor. “Nothing is certain now that the
programme schedule is not being adhered
to,” says Mr. Singh. “The two countries were
supposed to have signed the Research and
Development (R and D) contract immedi-
ately after the conclusion of the preliminary
design contract. But when the technical
issues and problems with work share
emerged in the R and D stage, the contract
stalled and has been stalled ever since.”
For Mr. Bronk, the T-50 is limited
by the fact that its design represents a
made in terms of a low Radar Cross Section
(RCS) in order to maximise manoeuvrabil-
ity. “With the T-50, Sukhoi is pursuing a
weird hybrid in terms of technology doc-
trine. A lot of sacrifices have been made in
terms of very low observable character-
istics in order to enhance manoeuvrabil-
ity. There has been little interest shown
in terms of situational awareness (the
aircraft’s sensor and communications
package) or all-aspect stealth.” On the
other hand, while analysts often highlight
the T-50’s engine air intakes as a low RCS
weak point, this might not be an issue once
the planned ‘radar blockers’ are installed.
These are air intakes which are designed
in such a fashion as to shield the engines’
spinning fan blades from radar detection.
However, if its low RCS characteristics are
truly compromised, then why should the
RuAF, or indeed potential export custom-
ers, choose the T-50 over the tried, tested
and, cheaper, Su-30 and Su-35?
Two tandem weapons bays
between the engines are intended
to carry up to four medium-range
Vympel K-77M air-to-air missiles
(AAMs), while two short-range
Vympel K-74M2 AAMs can be
carried in underwing fairings.
Sukhoi
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TURING
The OTheR eNd
Of The LINe
During May and June the war against ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq
and Syria) gradually gathered strength in an all-out campaign by
Iraqi and other forces to retake territory occupied by the world’s
most dangerous insurgent group of recent times.
Andy Oppenheimer
H
owever, even if the group is
eventually defeated in the
Middle East and North Af-
rica (it is now operational
in Libya), it still has the
ability to encourage attacks, applying its
usual, relentless modus operandi of suicide
bombings and mass shootings. To this end,
its use of digital communications is vital
to launching and promoting such attroci-
ties. Apart from being the best-financed
extremist organisation to date, ISIS has
adopted constant and unparalleled use
of the Internet to recruit and inspire, to
disseminate its ideology, to raise funds,
and to broadcast propaganda before and
after attacks. Of increasing concern is
ISIS’ ability to launch multiple forms of
cyberattack. Its territorial gains in Iraq and
Syria, the influx of foreign fighters to wage
war in these areas, the volume of online
propaganda it disseminates, and the deadly
attacks in Paris it performed in November
2015, all required concerted policy action by
nations at risk from the organisation. The
perpetrator of the recently-foiled attack
on the Thalys train which runs between
Paris and Brussels on 21 August 2015 was
listening to a YouTube audio file calling for
violent action in the name of Muhammad,
immediately beforehand. Almost every at-
tack or pre-empted plot has been followed
by the almost inevitable reports that the
suspected perpetrator was influenced or
radicalised by ISIS on the Internet.
46 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
GLObaL Reach
Al-Qaeda had already made inroads into
the World Wide Web and other groups
follow its example, but ISIS has exceeded
these efforts, paradoxically employing 21st
century technology to promote its antedi-
luvian ideology and practices of mass kill-
ings, torture, rape, enslavement, economic
jihad and the destruction of antiquities.
As well as the better-known Facebook
and Twitter social media outlets, to reach
new audiences ISIS use Ask.fm, Pinterest,
YouTube, WordPress, Kik, WhatsApp and
Tumblr to spread its message.
ISIS are on a far larger scale and
intensity than any insurgent organisation,
either contemporary or erstwhile. This
gives it a truly global reach. An indicator of
that reach can be seen in the increase of In-
ternet use this century: in 2005 there were
one billion users; by 2010, two billion; by
2014, three billion; and by mid-2016, over 3.5
billion, according to Internet World Stats
Usage and Population Statistics. Today, a
young recruit from Africa can be drawn in
via Twitter by a faceless cyber-operative
somewhere in Syria.
LONe WOLves
Online propaganda has succeeded in radi-
calising individuals who have travelled to
fight with ISIS in Syria and Iraq, and in-
creasingly, to commit ‘lone wolf’ attacks
in the West, exemplified most recently by
the deadliest mass shooting in modern
The US NORTHCOM (Northern
Command) Joint Cyber Control Centre
involved 60 US and German soldiers
and airmen in a ccyber defence exercise
called Operation DEUCE LIGHTNING in
February 2011.
times in the United States when an ISIS-
inspired US-born gunman shot dead 49
people at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando,
Florida, on 11 June. The perpetrator,
Omar Mateen (later killed by police) was
radicalised online. The difference be-
tween recruiting through these channels
and other, more traditional methods of
recruitment (see below) is that while some
of it can be tracked by the authorities, the
recipients, especially those prone to radi-
calisation for a variety of reasons, can be
sucked into it in a way not seen in ‘normal’
insurgent recruitment (which ISIS also
uses) namely face-to-face communica-
tion, persuasion or threats of violence.
Online recruitment is essentially invis-
ible recruitment. Recruitment online fol-
lows three stages: individuals in the pre-
radicalisation phase visit extremist home
pages, watch videos with subtitles in their
 TURING

they are, knock on their doors and behead

US DoD
them, stab them, shoot them in the face or
bomb them.”

ExamplE 2
The Spanish police detained four people
accused of promoting Islamist militancy,
as part of an ongoing operation outside
Madrid in early March. The Spanish Interi-
or Ministry said three of the suspects were
from Morocco and the fourth was Spanish,
arrested under suspicion of promoting
militancy to hundreds of people through
instant messaging and other social media
before directly contacting smaller groups.
They are among 23 arrested in Spain this
year for suspected links to terrorism.

ExamplE 3
Jihadists fighting with ISIS have turned
to social media sites like Facebook to sell
female sex slaves, forcing so-called ‘sexual
jihad’ on thousands of captured women
from Kurdish, Yazidi (a Kurdish minority
which does not follow Islam) and Shiite
territories in the past two years. Militants
can buy and sell the slaves as they wish in
the self-declared ISIS caliphate, with some
women being handed over as prizes of war
or to settle debts. Although ISIS militants
have to pay a small tax, the trade in sex
slaves is a burgeoning part of the insur-
gent’s economy.

own language and read radical articles.

They interact with extremist members,

US Army
then with professional recruiters. Just
three examples provide a sample of how
ISIS uses cyber methods to enhance their
deadly campaign of terror.

ExamplE 1
In May ISIS-linked hackers published
a ‘hit list’ of dozens of home addresses
and photographs of over 70 US military On the military front,
personnel that the group claimed to have the US Army has
been involved in Unmanned Combat begun attacking ISIS
Aerial Vehicle (UCAV) attacks on targets in networks as part of
Syria. The hackers, who have links with the its efforts to degrade
the force, alongside
United Kingdom, and call themselves the the kinetic missions
‘Islamic State Hacking Division’, took the which it is continuing
information from social media sites and in Iraq and Syria.
circulated online the personnel’s names,
home addresses and photographs. They
urged supporters: “Kill them wherever

armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 47

TURING
CybeR CalIphaTe
As well as using the Internet as a recruit-
ment and propaganda tool, ISIS, along
with a host of other criminals worldwide,
are launching cyber attacks. These have
advanced from various uncoordinated
groups without direct association with
the caliphate to the formation of a fully-
fledged operation in early 2016 known as
ISIS’ ‘United Cyber Caliphate’. Of concern
is that well-educated young people will be
attracted to contribute to this cyber divi-
sion, and that their efforts will take down
websites, often through massive Distrib-
uted Denial Of Service (DDOS) attacks
to disrupt infrastructure, and produce
further recruitment, support, and attacks.
Within the ‘United Cyber Caliphate’
the ISIS ‘hacking division’ selects targets
and assesses the value of sensitive data
from past attacks. Second, the ‘cyber
recruitment drive is a programme to find
skilled hackers who are tasked with using
malware (malicious software) and hacking
tools. These young cyber-attackers are
trained on courses found on ‘Dark Web
Forums’. The Dark Web is a broad term
for content on the World Wide Web which
requires dedicated software or authorisa-
tions to access and which thus cannot be
reached by normal search engines. While
many rank-and-file ISIS recruits are
uneducated or have criminal records, this
separate recruitment effort is attracting
well-educated ‘clean skins’ with IT (Infor-
mation Technology) skills. According to
Laith Alkhouri, co-founder at Flashpoint,
a pioneer of Dark Web Intelligence, “not
long back, we rated the cyber threat from
them as mediocre and without the acumen
for sophisticated targeting. But ISIS cyber
attacks have entered a new dimension (by
IBM X-Force Exchange users can tap
into threat information based on the
monitoring of more than 15 billion
security events per day.
48 armadainternational.com - august/september 2016
hacking the) Newsweek Twitter Accounts
and even the Twitter account of CENT-
COM (US Central Command).”
GoveRNmeNT CoUNTeRmeasURes
On the military front, the US Army
has begun attacking ISIS networks,
according to US defence secretary Ashton
Carter “to interrupt (and) disrupt (ISIS’)
command and control, to cause them
to lose confidence in their networks, to
overload their network so that they can’t
function, and do all of these things that
will interrupt their ability to command
and control forces there, control the
population and the economy.” The
challenges to counter a global presence
in cyberspace, however, are enormous,
and have their own limits as to how far
governments can go in removing the
content of insurgent websites and social
media postings. Countries have begun
to remove content and block accounts
associated with political violence. In ChalleNGING ReCRUITmeNT
February 2015, the US government Government deradicalisation programmes
convened a summit on countering violent (such as Prevent and Channel in the UK)
extremism, which discussed extremist involve advising community leaders how
use of social media. By March 2015 the UK to resist the ISIS online message, along
had removed 75000 pieces of content from with the creation of alternative websites.
the Internet but this did not at the time Government agencies post ‘counter’ mes-
reduce the number of radicalised recruits sages on Twitter and other social media,
travelling from the UK to fight extremist yet these efforts are not widely viewed as
jihad overseas. Furthermore as soon as the effective. The programme run on Twitter
accounts are removed, more appear. by the US State Department’s Centre for
The online reach of ISIS must be Strategic Counterterrorism Communica-
taken in the context of it continuing to tions (CSCC) called ‘Think again, turn
wield control in its caliphate areas in Iraq away’ is aimed at potential ISIS recruits,
and Syria, as well as spreading to parts of but, according to Daniel Cohen, coordina-
North Africa and the Asia-Pacific (please tor of the cyber warfare programme at the
see the author’s Chemical Memory article Institute for National Security Studies in
in this issue). Some observers believe that Tel Aviv, Israel, “It’s not reaching the right
recruitment on the Web (and particularly, population. It’s not reaching the potential
on the heavily encrypt- jihadists.” This really is the hard part: The
ed Dark Web) depends prime challenge is to target, identify and
on it maintaining its connect with all those who are absorbing
IBM
military, administra- content from ISIS and other extremist
tive, economic and groups, and becoming radicalised.
social dominance in the
territories it occupies. CIvIlIaN sURveIllaNCe
This means taking Countering Internet-based political
more land, or reoccupy- violence is opening up controversial
ing areas that have been debates about civil liberties, as it is push-
seized by Iraqi and ing the UK, the US and other democracies
Kurdish forces. to bring in more surveillance of overall
Internet use by the public at large. In May,

US Army
Inside the US Army’s
Fort Gordon Cyber
Operations Centre
in Georgia. The force
is one of many of the
US armed services
investing in its cyber
capabilities.
the French National Assembly, the coun-
try’s parliament, adopted legislation that
expanded the government’s surveillance
authorities to counter such threats. The
UK government is pushing the Investi-
gative Powers Bill through parliament,
which will “bring together all of the pow-
ers already available to law enforcement
and the security and intelligence agencies
to obtain communications and data about
communications” and “make provision
for the retention of Internet connection
records for law enforcement to identify
the communications service to which a
device has connected.”
The Bill is controversial partly be-
cause, according to points raised by the
shadow home secretary Andy Burnham
who speaks on domestic security matters
for the opposition in the UK parliament,
“routine gathering of large quantities of
information from ordinary people does
lead to privacy concerns and should be as
targeted as possible … It is for the govern-
ment still to convince the public that these
powers are needed.”
HackeRs vs. HackeRs
In the wake of the ISIS bombings in Brus-
sels on 22 March, the hacktivist group
Anonymous announced (anonymously, of
course) that it would intensify its cyber-
war on ISIS, which it dubbed ‘Op Brussels’.
This involves “hacking their websites,
shutting down their Twitter accounts and
stealing their Bitcoins (an online virtual
currency).” Anonymous first launched
several waves of disruption (‘Operation
ISIS’) at the group’s sites following the
January 2015 attack on the French Charlie
Hebdo satirical newspaper, stating, “From
now on, there is no safe place for you
online.” They claim to have “severely
punished (ISIS) on the (Dark Web), hacked
their electronic portfolio, and stole money
from (its members).” However, it is not
clear how effective the campaign is judging
by the continuing presence of ISIS on the
Web, but it continues apace.
As well as government countermea-
sures, much also depends on how far the
private sector is prepared, or able, to
police cyberspace. In 2010 the UK opened
a Counter-Terrorism Internet Referral
Unit, in cooperation with companies, to
address Internet activities that violate
legal prohibitions against glorifying or
inciting acts of political violence. Presi-
dent Barack Obama has introduced cyber
security reforms that require the private
sector to share information about cyber
threats with the government, to crack
down on the sale of botnets (which can
be used to send ‘spam’ or perform DDOS
attacks), and to prosecute insiders who
exceed their authorised access to online
networks.
The companies catering to the cyber
security market can be broadly classi-
fied into security vendors and defence
companies. The former are companies
engaged in designing, manufacturing,
and delivering information security prod-
ucts, services and solutions to defence
and government organisations. Some
of the most prominent security vendors
in the cyber security market are Cisco
Systems, IBM, the Intel Security Group,
Dell SecureWorks, Symantec Corporation,
and Kaspersky Lab. Defence companies
engaged in developing cyber security and
network security software to prevent cy-
ber attacks on military software systems
include BAE Systems, General Dynam-
ics, Leonardo (formerly Finmeccanica),
Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman,
Raytheon and Thales.
armadainternational.com - august/september 2016 49
TURING
acTIve/PassIve DefeNce
To protect against actual cyber attacks,
products such as firewalls, cryptography
and intrusion detection are produced
in rapid succession to protect organisa-
tional IT assets; this is known as ‘passive
defence’. ‘Active defence’ imposes serious
risk or penalty on the attacker as this
involves identification and exposure, in-
vestigation and prosecution, pre-emptive
or counter-attacks (as per the Anonymous
campaign). The former tends to be the
province of companies, the latter, mainly
for legal reasons, of governments; for ex-
ample in the US, the National Infrastruc-
ture Protection Centre.
At the corporate level, IBM has made
its vast library of security intelligence data
available via the IBM X-Force Exchange,
a new cyber threat intelligence sharing
platform powered by the IBM Cloud that
allows organisations to easily collaborate
on security incidents. This collaborative
platform provides access to global volumes
of actionable IBM and third-party threat
data, including real-time indicators of
live attacks, which can be used to defend
against cyber crimes. X-Force Exchange
users can tap into threat information
based on the monitoring of more than 15
billion security events per day; malware
threat intelligence from a network of 270
million endpoints; threat information
based on over 25 billion web pages and
images; deep intelligence on more than
eight million spam and phishing attacks;
and reputation data on nearly one million
malicious IP (Internet Protocol) addresses.
The pace of development in this area is
so rapid that it will take corporate leaders
in the cyber field, working in tandem with,
or as well as, security services with special
‘cyber divisions’ to attack the growing use
of web-based recruitment and modus ope-
randi. The dependence of billions of people
on cyber systems makes cyber war all the
more complicated, and all the more impera-
tive. The far reach of ISIS via the Internet is
succeeding in radicalising people, especial-
ly lone wolves and self-starter groups who
are inspired by the organisation, all over the
world who are prone to extremism, the next
step being their adoption of violence. While
cyber terrorism may be the silent recruiter,
its deadly results are anything but.
TURING
medIa aleRT

MEDIA ALERT FOR OCTOBER/ NOVEMBER 2016 ISSUE

EDITORIAL TOPICS

■ TURING
We examine the Link-16 tactical data link, and how it may develop in the future.
■ OPERATIONAL FOCUS: THE UNITED NATIONS IN LEBANON
The United Nations peacekeeping operations falls under our spotlight.
■ GLOBAL CORVETTE PROGRAMMES
The appeal of Corvettes is growing in navies across the world, and we examine the market.
■ MARITIME SUPPORT HELICOPTERS
Helicopters are vital to naval operations and we examine the latest developments in this
domain.
■ GEOSPATIAL RECONNAISSANCE
Geospatial reconnaissance and what it can offer to military operations falls under our gaze.
■ REMOTE WEAPONS SYSTEMS
We look at the remote weapons systems currently available and expected technological
innovations.
■ PROGRAMME UPDATE: LITTORAL COMBAT SHIP
The ongoing US Navy Littoral Combat Ship programme falls under our spotlight.
august/september 2016. Issue 04.

ARMADA COVER final august.indd 1 7/28/16 4:04 PM

■ BALLISTIC MISSILE DEFENCE

We focus on efforts around the world to counter the menace of ballistic missile proliferation.

COMPENDIUM SUPPLEMENTS
■ TACTICAL RADIOS
Our ever-popular Tactical Radios supplement returns, discussing the latest innovations in
this fast moving domain.
■ SPECIAL OPERATIONS (LAND, AIR, SEA)
We take the temperature of the Special Forces domain, and look at new product
innovations.
■ SPECIAL: SNIPER RIFLES POSTER
Our exclusive poster depicts the capabilities of the world’s leading sniper rifles.
■ SPECIAL: RADIO OVERVIEW POSTER

MAGAZINE CIRCULATION:
25,278 copies (ABC Audited) worldwide
BONUS DISTRIBUTION
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Advertising Material Due………… 16-Sep

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