Think Tank: Sea, air, land and space updates (16-Aug-2017)

Jack Viola, Eliza Chapman, Harley Comrie and Jacqueline Westermann

Sea state

It looks like the Russian government might have spoofed naval GPS in the Baltic Sea. A report from an American ship says that the GPS placed the ship at an airport 25 nautical miles from its actual position at the Russian port of Novorossiysk. GPS spoofing has been worrying experts for some time, but this is thought to be the first time the technique has been used ‘in the wild’. These technologies are of such concern that some countries, such as South Korea, have been developing alternative navigation systems in case of an attack on GPS.

Navantia of Spain has submitted its response to the request for tender for Australia’s future frigate project. The proposed F-5000 anti-submarine warfare vessel is an evolution of Navantia’s Hobart-class guided missile destroyer, currently used by the Australian navy, and will draw on lessons from Navantia’s F-310 for Norway.

The Chinese navy has conducted a live-fire drill in the Yellow Sea, which separates China from the Korean peninsula. During the exercise, ‘various missiles, dozens of torpedoes and hundreds of shells’ were fired. China’s defence ministry claimed that the drill was a regularly scheduled military exercise, but some pundits believe it was a response to North Korea’s recent missile tests.

News Report: Defector - DPRK Drones Can Hit Seoul With Biochemical Attack in One Hour

A high-level North Korean detector has ominously claimed that the DPRK military has hundreds and hundreds of attack drones capable of carrying biological and chemical agents to attack Seoul within a single hour.

The individual was interviewed by Japanese newspaper Sekai Nippo under the alias Jin-myeong Han. A former diplomat to Vietnam, he defected from the DPRK in 2015. 

While an enormous amount of attention has been paid to North Korean missile tests, which have greatly increased in frequency and visibility in the past few months, Han argues that the threat of drones from Pyongyang could be just as urgent.

According to Han, the DPRK has been developing their drone delivery system since the 1990's. Han, who claims to have once served in the North Korean air force, said that he helped develop radio communication for the attack drones.

"My guess is that [North Korea] has 300 to 400 drones," he said. They are stored underground and frequently moved between sites to avoid detection by foreign reconnaissance satellites.

"I was surprised to see that people from the Korean Workers' Party came and mounted something that appeared to be biological and chemical weapons on the drones," said Han. "They conducted an experiment to spray chemical or biological agents over the mountains and fields nearby. I went to the mountain afterward to check and found all animals dead, although plants survived.

Think Tank: Sea, air, land and space updates (28-Feb-2017)

Zoe Glasson, Sophie Qin, Madeleine Nyst and Patrick Kennedy

Sea State

Cyber attack combat-readiness, intelligence exploitation, drone intelligence, systems streamlining and integrated infrastructure will all be part of the Royal Navy’s forthcoming Information Warrior 17 exercise. Perhaps the coolest aspect of the exercise is that it’ll explore artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, both as a potential threat and as a combat tool. The exercise will test whether AI can be used as a warship’s “mind”, controlling weapons targeting, issuing commands and improving threat response strategies.

The Royal Australian Navy is also war-gaming this week in the inaugural Exercise Ocean Explorer. Taking place off the West Australian coast, the exercise involves more than 17 ships and aircraft including contributions from Spain, New Zealand and Italy. It aims ‘to train ships to work together in a series of complex and dynamic warfare scenarios’, with the international participants also having the opportunity to grapple with the added challenges around language, customs and technology differences.

Finnish defence firm Patria showcased its Nemo Container mortar system at IDEX in Abu Dhabi on 20 February. Essentially, it’s a shipping container integrated with a 120mm Nemo mortar turret that can be fitted to both land and sea platforms. Check out this quick video explaining its versatility.

News Story: Russia's eastern military district considers setting up anti-UAV units

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Russia's eastern military district discussed Thursday setting up new military units focused on anti-UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) defense.

The district's media service said improving defense against UAVs with the establishment of focused military units was among the topics discussed at the military missile conference held Thursday in Amur Oblast.

The meeting also worked on a plan for massive tactical drills involving air defense forces in Buryatia.

Read the full story at Xinhua