News Story: Nine dead in clash between gov't troops, rebels in Philippines

MANILA, July 12 (Xinhua) -- Philippine troops and guerrillas clashed on Wednesday in Compostela Valley province in the southern Philippines, killing eight rebels and a soldier.

In a statement, the Philippine army said the troops clashed with around 40 New People's Army (NPA) rebels around 8:30 a.m. in Laak town. The troops also recovered at least five M-16 assault rifles and an M60 machine gun.

The NPA rebels reportedly fled after the clash leaving behind their dead comrades and firearms.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Report: India Plans Purchasing Weapons to Protect Air Force Bases Across Country

India's Defense Ministry issued a request for information (RFI) from arms manufacturers, aiming to beef up the Garud Commando Force, a special unit of the Indian Air Force (IAF).

New Delhi (Sputnik) — Suppliers will have to respond to the IAF by July 8. The RFIs suggest the IAF will recruit 8,000-10,000 more people for the Garud force to protect 54 IAF base stations. The terror attack on Pathankot air base last year forced India to provide advanced weapons and equipment to the IAF commandos.

The request points to likely acquisition of 50-60 armored vehicles along with military equipment to protect its personnel during operations. The IAF needs a 5-meter-long vehicle with a crew capacity of six for its special forces. Among other specifications, the IAF has demanded a minimum 350-kilometer operating range with a speed of 100 kmph on a level highway. The vehicles will be designed in such a way that the Garud forces would be able to mount and fire a 5.56mm light machine gun.

The IAF will also equip its commandos with 600 7.62mm rifles with sights and accessories and 200 40mm under-barrel grenade launcher compatible with it.

Garud Commando Force will also receive approximate 1,800 sub-machine guns and 2,000 9mm pistols, according to the RFI issued by the Indian Air Force.

This story first appeared on Sputnik & is reposted here with permission.

News Story: US to turn over counterterror equipment to Philippine Marines

By Jaime Laude

MANILA, Philippines - The United States government is handing over military equipment in support of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP)’s counter terror campaign.

The equipment, which will be turned over to the Philippine Marines on Monday, include 300 M4 Carbines, 200 Glock 21 pistols, 25 units combat rubber raiding craft, 100 M203 rail-mounted grenade launchers, 30 outboard motors and four M134D Gatling-style machine guns.

“These counter terrorism equipment will further enhance the capabilities of the Philippine Marine Corps to counter terrorism and address threats posed by various groups,” Capt. Ryan Lacuesta, Marine spokesman, said yesterday.

Battalions of Marines, Army and Air Force troops are currently battling Maute terrorists and their Islamic State cohorts in Marawi City.

The turnover of equipment will be held at the Marine headquarters at Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City, Lacuesta said.

The US support comes as the Philippine government is pivoting toward Russia and China.

Read the full story at PhilStar

News Story: South Korea fires warning shots at flying object from North

SEOUL, May 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korean troops fired warning shots at an "unidentified object" flying across the heavily fortified border from North Korea Tuesday afternoon, the South's military announced.

The military detected the object traversing the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) southward in the Chorwon area in the eastern province of Gangwon at around 4 p.m., according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).

It added the South's military fired warning shots along with dispatching a warning broadcast.

A defense source said the military fired more than 90 K-3 machine gun rounds, adding it may have been a drone.

Read the full story at YonhapNews

News Story: India, Israel forge partnership for small arms production

X95 assault rifle (Image: Wiki Commons)

By: Vivek Raghuvanshi

NEW DELHI — Firearms manufacturer Israel Weapon Industries and India-based private sector firm Punj Lloyd have begun to jointly produce a variety of small arms from the Israeli company's product line, of which some are for use by Indian armed forces.

The new venture, named Punj Lloyd Raksha Systems, or PLR, was formally opened last week, and its expected to tap a solid chunk of India's small arms market estimated at more than $5 billion.

PLR is the first private manufacturer of small arms in India that produces equipment for both use by the Indian defense forces and for export. The joint venture has an equity holding in the ratio of 51:49 percent equity, with the majority stake going to Punj Lloyd. 

"The small arms plant will be manufacturing the [Tavor] carbine, [X95] assault rifle, [Galil] sniper rifle and [Negev] light machine gun ... and [PLR] became fully operational on 4 May 2017 itself," said Ashok Wadhawan, the president of manufacturing at Punj Lloyd. 

"We are targeting the supply of carbine, assault rifle, sniper rifle and light machine gun for armed forces, paramilitary forces and state police. We are also going to be targeting the requirement of sights for the weapon systems, which is vital for the accuracy of the weapons," he added. 

Read the full story at DefenseNews

News Report: India Approves $45Mln Plan to Add Teeth to Elite Forces for Surgical Strikes

The limited availability of resources has diluted the combat capabilities of Indian Special Forces currently operating in different parts of the country. In anticipation of a limited war scenario, India has started modernizing its most elite forces.

New Delhi (Sputnik) — After much dilly-dallying, the Indian government has approved a purchase plan to equip its small unit of commandos specialized in carrying out operations deep within enemy territory. 

The $45 million purchase plan will include over 1,100 automatic assault rifles, 20 light machine guns, rocket launchers and more than a thousand of freefall parachutes. All these weapon systems will be procured under the fast track procedure.

According to sources, the Special Forces will be equipped with the latest version of Carl Gustaf rocket launchers that are much lighter than the current version. The new launchers will have intelligent-sighting system and programmable ammunition. Rocket launchers will be made in the Indian Ordnance factory and delivery may start next year.

India's Special Forces constitutes approximately 18,000 armed personnel including support staff which is almost equal or higher in number to those of special commandos of US, UK and Russia. It is said that India had gone in for rapid expansion of the Special Forces unnecessarily, resulted in massive dilution of combat potential of the forces. A total of 15 battalions have created a scenario where they forced to be operational with limited training, arms and equipment.

This story first appeared on Sputnik & is reposted here with permission.

News Story: Police kill key Taliban commander in E. Afghan province

KABUL, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- A Taliban commander was killed together with five militants after Afghan police launched an ambush in eastern province of Ghazni on Monday, the Interior Ministry said.

"A top Taliban commander named Mullah Firoz Jahadi along with five other armed Taliban were killed in Aab Band district of Ghazni province in an Afghan National Police (ANP) ambush Monday morning," the ministry said in a statement.

The statement noted that nine other armed Taliban were wounded and two rocket launchers, two heavy machine guns and one vehicle were seized by the ANP after the attack.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Report: Indian Commando Across Pakistan Border to Receive Lethal Weapon

Carl Gustaf Recoilless Rifle (Image: Wiki Commons)

Despite the lack of latest arms and equipment, India’s Special Forces have conducted two successful surgical strikes in Pakistan and Myanmar. India now wants to make them more lethal.

New Delhi (Sputnik) — India's Special Forces will be getting more teeth as the Defense Acquisition Council's (DAC) December 23 meeting may approve the purchase of the latest assault rifles and lightweight long range machine guns equipped with night sights. The Defense Acquisition Council (DAC) is India's highest decision making body for defense purchases and is headed by the Minister of Defense. The DAC may also approve the purchase of more M4 automatic rifles from the US.

The new equipment will be earmarked for the Special Forces that carried out `surgical strikes' across the Line of Control (the de facto border between India and Pakistan). According to the proposal, Special Forces will be equipped with sniper rifles and automatic general purpose machine guns along with approximately 1,000 personal automatic rifles. Apart from this, the purchase plan includes two dozen lightweight rocket launchers and 500 pistols. 

According to sources, the Special Forces will be equipped with latest version of Carl Gustaf rocket launchers that are much lighter than the current version. New launchers will have intelligent-sighting system and programmable ammunition. Rocket launchers will be made in the Indian Ordnance factory and delivery may start next year.

This story first appeared on Sputnik & is reposted here with permission.

Think Tank:Sea, air, land and space updates (20-Sep-2016)

Christopher Cowan, Thulasi Wigneswaran, Elisabeth Buchan and Alexander Vipond

Sea State

The US Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program is back in the headlines this week with new footage of the LCS Jackson’s June shock trials. The trials involved detonating a 10,000 pound (4,546 kilogram) explosive device near the vessel to simulate an attack and examine its survivability. The LCS Jackson appears to have fared well in the trials, which is good news for a program in troubled waters recently. A recent review has led to numerous changes to the program, including new crewing schemes, limits to the vessels’ vaunted modularity features, and deployment limitations for the first four LCS ships.

In news closer to home, HMAS Hobart, the Royal Australian Navy’s first Hobart-class air warfare destroyer, began builder’s sea trials last week. The trials are taking place in the Great Australian Bight and are designed to test the vessel’s non-combat features, including its propulsion and navigation systems. The Hobart will undergo further trials early next year to test its combat systems before initial operating capability is declared. However, as a recent ASPI report explains (PDF), the AWDs will become operational with an earlier version of the Aegis combat system than new build USN vessels, making them unable to operate the latest versions of some missiles like the SM-6.

USA: Possible Foreign Military Sale to Afghanistan for individual and crew served weapons

WASHINGTON, Aug 18, 2016 - The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to Afghanistan for individual and crew served weapons, equipment, training, and support. The estimated cost is $60 million. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale on August 17, 2016.

The Government of Afghanistan has requested a possible sale of:

Major Defense Equipment (MDE):

• Four thousand, eight hundred and ninety-one (4,891) M16A4 5.56mm Rifles
• Four hundred and eighty-five (485) M240B 7.62mm Machine Guns
• Eight hundred (800) M2 .50 caliber Machine Guns

News Story: DPRK accuses U.S. of allowing heavy arms into DMZ

Korean DMZ (Image: Wiki Commons)

PYONGYANG, July 14 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Thursday accused the United States and South Korea of deploying heavy arms in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) next to the Military Demarcation Line, saying this would cause an "unpredictable military clash."

The state media KCNA reported that a spokesman for the Panmunjom Mission of the Korean People's Army said that according to a report made public by local South Korean media last week, the United Nations Command has revised the armistice rules to allow U.S. and South Korean troops to carry heavy weapons like machine guns, recoilless rifles and mortars into the DMZ and the revision went into effect on Sept. 5, 2014.

"Such undisguised breach of the armistice agreement has turned the DMZ into a heavily armed zone ... and this is a product of the ceaseless U.S. moves to ignite another Korean War," the spokesman said.

Read the full story at Xinhua

Think Tank: Sea, air and land updates (3-May-2016)

F-22 Raptor's (Image: Wiki Commons)

Dione Hodgson, Ashleigh Sharp and Lachlan Wilson

Sea State

A US Navy flotilla was refused entry by the Chinese government to the port of Hong Kong last week. Pentagon spokesman, Commander Bill Urban, said the US Navy had asked the Chinese to let aircraft carrier John C. Stennis and several other vessels to visit the port this week but had been denied access. This wasn’t without precedent—the PRC similarly denied a US aircraft carrier entry to Hong Kong in August 2014. In response, Randy Forbes, chairman of the House Armed Services Seapower and Projection Forces subcommittee has suggested the US should allow its aircraft carriers to visit Taiwan.

As we’ve discussed in previous weeks, Chinese fishermen are becoming increasingly bold in their attempts to expand the country’s maritime presence in the disputed waters of the South China Sea. Their actions have come under increased scrutiny in the past few months, due to run-ins with maritime authorities in Malaysian, Vietnamese and Indonesian waters. Last week, Reuters took a look at the strategic implications of China’s ‘fishing militia’, and The Washington Post has an in-depth analysis at the role Chinese fishermen are playing on the frontline of the dispute.

Flashback: Former US Navy research vessel Melville, which appeared in the 1976 monster thriller King Kong, has been donated to the Philippine Navy. The 46-year-old ship was turned over last Wednesday during a christening and commissioning ceremony in San Diego, and will arrive in the Philippines in June, where it will be used for hydrographic surveys and marine scientific research.

AUS: HMAS Darwin seizes large weapons cache

Weapons seized by HMAS Darwin from a small-arms smuggler
boarded about 170 nautical miles off the coast of Oman
(© Commonwealth of Australia, Department of Defence)

HMAS Darwin’s boarding team has uncovered and seized a large weapons cache, following a boarding of a fishing vessel during their deployment to the Middle East Region as part of Operation MANITOU.

Operating under Combined Task Force 150, responsible for counter-terrorism operations within the Middle East Region, Darwin intercepted the fishing vessel approximately 170 nautical miles (313 kilometres) off the coast of Oman to conduct a flag verification boarding.

After assessing the vessel to be stateless, 1989 AK-47 assault rifles, 100 rocket propelled grenade launchers, 49 PKM general purpose machine guns, 39 PKM spare barrels and 20 60mm mortar tubes were seized from the vessel that was headed towards the Somalia coast.

The weapons were seized under United Nations sanctions which authorise interdiction on the high seas of illicit weapons destined for Somalia.

News Story: Government Urges Reform of Pakistan Ordnance Factories

By USMAN ANSARI

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s state-owned ordnance producer, Pakistan Ordnance Factories (POF), is being encouraged to become more commercially oriented by the government with the aim of transforming it into a more self-sustainable enterprise.

Federal Finance Minister Ishaq Dar gave this direction to a visiting delegation of POF, headed by its chairman, Lt. Gen. Mohammad Ahsan Mahmood. Dar encouraged the POF delegation to change its business model to a more commercially oriented outlook and consider involving private industry in this endeavor.

Dar stressed his ministry’s support for these efforts, but emphasized POF needed to be turned around to ensure its goals are achievable.

Earlier, the POF delegation had presented Dar with its own proposed three-phased reform and restructuring plan, which Dar asked be made available to the Cabinet Committee on Restructuring along with a complete financial model.

The POF plan aims to make the company self sustainable within the next 10 years.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

NZ: New rifles for NZDF

New Zealand Army soldier with Steyr rifle

Defence Minister Jonathan Coleman says the Government has given approval for the NZDF to seek a replacement for the Steyr rifle.

“It is important NZDF personnel are well equipped and have effective modern rifles suited to today’s operational environment,” says Dr Coleman.

“The Steyr rifle has served the NZDF well for over 20 years and it has seen considerable operational use, but it is now reaching the end of its lifespan. Weapon technology has advanced considerably since the NZDF purchased the Steyr rifle in 1987.

“Modern rifles can be adapted to individual needs, maximising the effectiveness of the weapon. They can be fitted with a range of advanced day and night sights, and other specialised equipment. They can also be adjusted to suit different body sizes, and for the wearing of personal kit.

News Story: New Zealand Details Military Projects, Capability Upgrades

By NICK LEE-FRAMPTON

WELLINGTON — New Zealand on Tuesday released its Defence Capability Plan (DCP), which calls for increasing the defense force’s “proficiency at joint operations and growing its combat, combat support and combat service support capabilities,” said Defence Minister Jonathan Coleman.

The DCP is the second such document since the 2010 Defence White Paper, and is not merely a list of projects, Coleman said.

Work has commenced to quantify the size of the defense force’s airlift requirements as a first step toward providing options for replacement of the Air Force’s C-130H Hercules and Boeing 757 fleets, between 2018 and 2025. This will require a significant investment, the new report said. All but one of the five Hercules have completed the type’s life extension program and the final aircraft is scheduled to be returned to service next year.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

News Story: (Indian) Defence Ministry defers decision on 4 major purchases

NEW DELHI (PTI): The Defence Ministry has deferred decisions on four major deals expected to be worth over Rs 40,000 crore even as it approved another set of proposals worth over Rs 13,000 crore for procuring weapon systems for the armed forces.

At the meeting of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Defence Minister AK Antony, the Ministry on Monday deferred decisions on projects including procurement of 145 Ultra Light Howitzers for the Army, amphibious warship vessels worth over Rs 20,000 crore and multi-role helicopters worth over Rs 6,000 crore for the Navy, Defence Ministry officials said.

The decision on a deal to procure 56 transport aircraft for the IAF has also been deferred as the Ministry felt that there was a need for further deliberations on the issue, they said.

Read the full story at Brahmand

AUS: (LHD) Canberra’s Typhoons ready to fire

<< HMAS Glenelg conducts a Typhoon 25mm anti-aircraft firing serial right astern of HMAS Bundaberg in 2010

By LEUT Emily Kennedy (author), 

ABIS James Whittle (photographer), 

Image courtesy of BAE Systems (photographer)

Another exciting project milestone for NUSHIP Canberra has been achieved with the installation of four Typhoon stabilised weapons systems onboard.

For weapon enthusiasts, this advanced weapons system includes a 25 mm M242 Bushmaster chain gun and a coaxially mounted M240 7.62mm machine gun. For those not so conversant with weapons systems, the Typhoon is a large gun with a rapid rate of fire.

Canberra’s Gunnery Officer, Lieutenant Adam Simeoni, helped to explain the size and scale of the weapon.

“The typhoon is smaller than the main gun you see on a Guided Missile Frigate, but it has a much higher rate of fire. While higher rates of fire are usually associated with small ‘person-operated’ automatic machine guns, the Typhoon has a much larger round,” said Lieutenant Simeoni.

News Story: Guns Up For Australian Army 6x6 G-Wagons

The Australian Army will soon take delivery of the first Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon 6x6 surveillance reconnaissance vehicles (SRV) fitted with a new customised weapons suite.

Under Phase 3A of Project Land 121, around 200 G-Wagon 6x6 SRVs will each receive front and rear weapon mounts developed by Australian weapon mount specialist W&E Platt.

In a AUD$2.5 million contract with Australia’s Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO), the company is currently building the mounts at a rate of about 10 sets per week. The contract also includes a spare parts package and technical documentation.

Read the full story at Army Guide