Drives me nuts that we've had the prototype laser[s] for years - originally demo'd on Ponce something like 10 years ago - successful demos for aerial and surface drones...and haven't seen any real progress on that. And mothballing the railgun prototype...
Shipboard lasers have two problems - burning thru humid air that has already been leased (as in constant bearing, decreasing range), and cooling the laser. The first can be mitigated by having two ships support each other so they each attack passing targets. The second requires a serious chilled water system, ideally one with large tankage.
Good points - although I do think the proof of concept on Ponce should have been a better driver - given it's demonstrated effectiveness on live targets. I know we're talking about limited power capacity even on Flight III DDGs, but that's also a good consideration for our nuclear powered surface vessels - current and future that have fewer of those restrictions, as well as significantly more need for a counter-drone mission. You could stick a few more of those around the flight deck with potentially less manning/ammo issues than the current CIWS/ESSM combo.
Absolutely agree. The way technology works is that you have to be persistent and put effort into development. The one thing that is against laser weapon technology is that it's nothing that's likely to turn a profit for someone.
LED lighting matured in about 5 years going from great for signaling applications (indicator lights and such) to area lighting, to focused light sources. But there were millions, if not billions, of dollars to be made with that.
Not necessarily. Laser weapon technology has potential for the same sorts of applications as high powered laser communication transmission - particularly through space, etc - or eventually, possibly even laser driven propulsion for some vessels.
And fusion power has been "just around the corner" since the '70s. And I think we all remember that the mine warfare and ASW modules for LCS will be ready next year, at the latest.
Missiles and guns motto: "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds"
Lasers motto: "Dude, I'm all good off Hawaii...half the year.....1/2 the day......in a rippling sea......on a big ass ship......against a target painted flat black.....moving in straight line........slowwww."
Fish, privatization is ruining the Navy. Historically, shipyards and weapons stations were owned, managed, and staffed by the USN. Folks could play, test, and experiment. I point to Dahlgren’s gun and China Lakes’ sidewinder as examples of ingenuity unleashed in naval facilities.
Outsourcing what should be naval functions to multinational corporations means that shareholder’s profits, not the defense of a nation, is the primary goal. Folks who point to the claimed fact that building naval weapons in naval facilities cost more than things built corporately miss all the ancillary advantages to have smart guys equipped with the tools to invent and improve the nation’s equipment for self defense without having to make a profit for the shareholders.
A round-trip strike of this total distance, unrefueled, IS quite impressive!
The only way the legacy Hornet - a tanker asset sucking black hole - was any good was if you could put wheels on the carrier and drive it up onto the beach (I always chuckle when I picture that 😂)
As long as Big Navy focuses on one platform that has to do it all, range will suffer. Nothing will ever beat the combat range of a fully loaded A-6 Intruder.
It is already in the public domain that NATO countries are running air refuelling operations for the F-35I missions from various bases and platforms in the region. I suppose that might be for the high-stealth missions rather than the low-stealth missions that could be conceivably done with CFTs and/or hardpoint drop tanks - with a payload reduction even then, that would not give best use of the low sortie rate of the F-35 in a time urgent situation.
Ah, the memories. Texaco was much a part of my early life as my paternal grandfather was the chief accountant at the Tulsa refinery until he retired in the late 60s.
and knowing that a Saudi base is your divert point if you have battle damage.
I know SA is not part of the Abraham accords, but they act like it when Iran acts up. Jordan as well. Apparently the new Syrian boss opened up their airspace to the IDF.
like the waiter in Casablanca: "I already gave the Germans the best table. I knew they would take it anyway"
Iran is the number-one threat to Saudi Arabia. Literally the two poles of the Shia-Sunni conflict. So very much "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" - at least for now.
The Saudis also have a significant problem with their fundamentalist imams....The solution for that seems to me to be the public square and a big freaking knife.
In '67? France had a clutch of missile boats that were supposed to be delivered, but they decided to embargo them....Even though they were paid for and finished.
Israel 'stole' them. France is the least reliable ally any nation can have. Matter of fact, in college I had to write a report on an element (extra credit for chemistry or something)...I chose Francium - the most unreliable element since there's no isotope that lasts very long. The longest living isotope has a half life of 22 minutes, many are milliseconds
CDR Sal, superb analysis that gets to the heart of several valid considerations for current conflict and future unpleasantness.
1) Bending the defender's "cost curve" in modern warfare. Cheap (relatively) SAMs, point defense CRAM type "last ditch effort" projectiles, etc. all depend on targeting...a level of precision is required that made "experts" sneer at "Star Wars" decades ago. Our Military Industrial Complex (MIC)(TM) has been "working" that precision targeting of inbound problem with some level of success at prohibitive cost for decades. A small nation with an existential threat appears to have had better success, at a much more affordable cost (for domestic use, at least). Suspect the "export version" won't be cheap...
2) Lasers: Power output, "blooming" (related to power output) and "dwell time" (also related to power output) and the precise level of targeting required to enable sufficient dwell time to degrade the incoming threat. Like quantum, production at scale vice lab success are always "just around the next decade"...
3) Range without precise targeting is not particularly useful. F35 range combined with precision AND world class targeting data is...priceless. Note the commonality of "targeting" and the information feeding the "kill chain" and use of precision munitions to service the targeting list.
Would note that the MIC might have lost the capability production results target in the "generate profit" by stretching out development timelines. Might. Just might...
Regarding how "experts" sneered at "Star Wars" decades ago...
I was around back then.... The way it was explained to me was that Reagan was not proposing a new program. Although that how his critics labeled it cuz... Reagan. Oh, the Left hated his guts... If something was a Reagan idea, they opposed it tooth & nail. And note that many opponents were more on the side of USSR than USA.
What RR wanted was to consolidate & rationalize a multitude of programs on missile defense; hence the official name, Strategic Defense Initiative. USA (and even allies) already had many missile-tracking/defense programs, some of which had been around since 1950s. Army did this, Navy did that, Air Force was doing such-and-such... It created many rice bowls, in both govt and industry (plus academe). All with much duplication of effort, little coordination, slow progress, bureaucratic inertia. But per RR's thinking, perhaps there was the possibility to tie the elements together and come up with a "thing," or even a few "things" tailored to specific purposes.
Looking back, SDI was a political, managerial & technological stretch in every respect. And the compliant, Lefty media (sorry, I repeat myself) ganged up on the idea w that "Star Wars" label to belittle everything about it. Over time, more than a few "things" actually did get rationalized and focused. USA made serious progress in all manner & elements of tech; much of it not followed-through as Cold War wound down.
And then came the past 35 yrs or so... USA was busy with other matters, spending itself broke while admiring itself in the proverbial mirror. And finally the alarm bells ring again.
Jerry Pournelle wrote some interesting pieces about SDI and other cold war defense issues over the years; I think he was involved somewhat on scientific assessments.
With respect to RR, they haven't hated anyone else as much since: [Trump]. Oh, the Left hated his guts... If something was a [Trump] idea, they opposed it tooth & nail. And note that many opponents were more on the side of [Anyone] than USA.
Good Morning CDR Salamander! How are you feeling after writing a second remarkable report!
Yes, the Mid-Size “Conflict” is exactly what two areas of our Planet Earth are currently engaged.
Correct! Range means “Live to fight another day!”
Most likely correct except for attached “Mines” to floating Missile Assault “Ships”!
I’m smiling! Because… I’m wondering why you are writing about specific Weapons Delivery Systems?
Do you enjoy Gardening?
Do you enjoy watching Sea Turtles in the Caribbean?
CDR Salamander, do you enjoy understanding the “Acoustics” of Dolphins and Whales?
Catch my drift, CDR Salamander, as an accomplished Naval Officer with a Google Address on Market Street, San Francisco, you enjoy anything “Green”?
I understand you learned “Lasers” and Holography up at that wonderful Museum overlooking that fabulous Military Base.
CDR Salamander, have a seat in my Office. Nurse Jane will help you find your way in the “Dark” you’ve woven around you! Stay safe! Eat Mediterranean Salad with grains, nuts, pitted olives and goat cheese. Salad dressing, your choice. God Bless you!
But with a war that has been going on since ... [checks watch} ... Friday, it is amazing to hear and read people saying this proves future war is going to be totally different from now on.
I keep reading that claim about some new weapon or technology over the last many decades. And claims pre-date my living memories. But this time, for sure?
We're kinda' watching the previously predicted war of the future play out today on a bunch of different levels with high tech, low tech, and asymmetric tactics. Pagers, drones, anti-missile tech, etc. We're just getting different lessons from Ukraine and Iran.
Somethings appear to have remained constant, range, depth of systems, logistics, innovative tactics to adapt new technologies, countermeasures, and in Gaza, boots on the ground with urban warfare.
The only area that's still vague in regards to the open press is what took place between India and Pakistan in regards to their air to air skirmish that apparently was a BVR ambush.
The predictions of the future warfare being made today? Some will be correct. Some won't.
The war against Israel has been going on since (checks calendar) 587BCE when the Babylonians (present day Iraq) destroyed Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem.
There have been periods of lesser conflict, but it's been a long, long time..
Time to end it. Some of the mohammedan countries are deciding to be sane and join the Abraham Accords. Most all of the mohammedan countries are supporting Israel, at least covertly. Jordan and Syria are not complaining about overflights (tbf there's not much they can do about it), even the camel-humpers in the house of Saud are saying "why don't you and him go fight?"
And Israel (which is about the size of So Cal, from Long Beach to San Diego) is kicking ass on a country 10x it's size and population. When the actual Iranian people decide they've had enough, they can serve up the mullahs to Israel, and the war will end.
And since the CCP is buying 90% of Iranian oil, perhaps it's time for Shayetet 13 to visit Kharg Island and destroy the power distribution and control centers. Leave the tanks and pipelines alone, no need to dump more crude into the gulf.
".....once you are sick of saying something, that’s the exact moment people are finally starting to listen...."
ah, CDR, if only..... After 40 years of being that lone voice crying out in the wilderness, I'm not exactly sick of speaking out loud about AIRSHIPS. i do tire of it though, and the repeated teaching that "airships", in my world, does not mean blimps or dirigibles, does get old.
Still and all, maybe that all important "range" will bring em to the table at last, ya think?
Of course it's a lot easier to come to that conclusion as the guy that owned all the artillery like stuff on the ship (gun, missiles, fire control radars and small arms). Nice to think that everyone else was just there to get my guys and me to the fight and keep me in it.
What about a time tested strategic siege of Fordow. Cut off exits, electricity, water, ventilation, sanitation. Install a large granite tombstone atop the highest point inscribed “here lies the last nuclear program ever”.
Open it up a hundred tears from now as we open time capsules at world fairs.
Lukas Czinger, CEO of Divergent Technologies in Torrance, California, claims that he and his company can manufacture 40,000 anti-ship cruise missiles by 2027 using their Divergent Adaptive Production System (DAPS™).
Czinger made this claim during an extensive interview on Steve Bannon's Warroom on Thursday June 5th 2025.
Color me skeptical. But if we assume that this man and his company could actually deliver 40,000 anti-ship cruise missiles by the end of 2027, how, tactically and strategically, would we go about delivering all those missiles to their targets before the PLAN figures out how to counter them?
But we have a larger question to face here: Will China take the opportunity presented by the Israel-Iran war to make an early move against Taiwan? In which case the possibility that the US might have 40,000 anti-ship cruise missiles by the end of 2027 would have an influence on their decision process.
Another factor .... China has already gained effective control over South Korea's internal politics by directly and openly assisting the blatant theft of the recent SK presidential election by SK's left-liberal party.
Quickly adding the conquest of Taiwan to their political victory in South Korea would give China the clear upper hand in the western Pacific for decades to come.
And so the temptation to perform an early blockade isolation and subsequent invasion of Taiwan now has to be an exceedingly powerful force in current Chinese strategic thinking.
"hina has already gained effective control over South Korea's internal politics by directly and openly assisting the blatant theft of the recent SK presidential election by SK's left-liberal party."
I've wondered for years why they would need to invade, as it seems inevitable they will be able to subvert the government in Taiwan as effectively as our own if not more.
Great write up Sal. FYI, that our 71M aerostats are doing a great job in the Iron Dome architecture. We have heard that the effectiveness is high as with the last time in April 2024.
We are looking at Laser technology as well. These on aerostats will provide persistent elevated ISR (cost effective BTW) in the 1st and 2nd Island Chain and would be game changes especially providing a extra element in the kill chain.
Not quite......
Drives me nuts that we've had the prototype laser[s] for years - originally demo'd on Ponce something like 10 years ago - successful demos for aerial and surface drones...and haven't seen any real progress on that. And mothballing the railgun prototype...
Shipboard lasers have two problems - burning thru humid air that has already been leased (as in constant bearing, decreasing range), and cooling the laser. The first can be mitigated by having two ships support each other so they each attack passing targets. The second requires a serious chilled water system, ideally one with large tankage.
Good points - although I do think the proof of concept on Ponce should have been a better driver - given it's demonstrated effectiveness on live targets. I know we're talking about limited power capacity even on Flight III DDGs, but that's also a good consideration for our nuclear powered surface vessels - current and future that have fewer of those restrictions, as well as significantly more need for a counter-drone mission. You could stick a few more of those around the flight deck with potentially less manning/ammo issues than the current CIWS/ESSM combo.
Just gonna leave this here https://www.laserwars.net/p/navy-laser-weapons-challenges-atmosphere-fog
Yup.
The railgun prototype didn’t work due to fundamental flaws. It did more damage to itself than it did to the enemy.
Combat lasers have been the technology of the near future for probably 20 years now.
It will likely happen. Sometime. But until then I remain skeptical of any announcement that it is just around the corner. Fool me ten times...
but the cost savings of something that works is worth trying again
Absolutely agree. The way technology works is that you have to be persistent and put effort into development. The one thing that is against laser weapon technology is that it's nothing that's likely to turn a profit for someone.
LED lighting matured in about 5 years going from great for signaling applications (indicator lights and such) to area lighting, to focused light sources. But there were millions, if not billions, of dollars to be made with that.
Not necessarily. Laser weapon technology has potential for the same sorts of applications as high powered laser communication transmission - particularly through space, etc - or eventually, possibly even laser driven propulsion for some vessels.
And fusion power has been "just around the corner" since the '70s. And I think we all remember that the mine warfare and ASW modules for LCS will be ready next year, at the latest.
Missiles and guns motto: "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds"
Lasers motto: "Dude, I'm all good off Hawaii...half the year.....1/2 the day......in a rippling sea......on a big ass ship......against a target painted flat black.....moving in straight line........slowwww."
Fish, privatization is ruining the Navy. Historically, shipyards and weapons stations were owned, managed, and staffed by the USN. Folks could play, test, and experiment. I point to Dahlgren’s gun and China Lakes’ sidewinder as examples of ingenuity unleashed in naval facilities.
Outsourcing what should be naval functions to multinational corporations means that shareholder’s profits, not the defense of a nation, is the primary goal. Folks who point to the claimed fact that building naval weapons in naval facilities cost more than things built corporately miss all the ancillary advantages to have smart guys equipped with the tools to invent and improve the nation’s equipment for self defense without having to make a profit for the shareholders.
Do what I do and blame SCO! https://www.laserwars.net/p/japan-electromagnetic-railgun-us-navy
God bless Israel in their fight against the Muslim horde.
Amen
1/2 the total.
A round-trip strike of this total distance, unrefueled, IS quite impressive!
The only way the legacy Hornet - a tanker asset sucking black hole - was any good was if you could put wheels on the carrier and drive it up onto the beach (I always chuckle when I picture that 😂)
All the more reason to S-t-a-r-t the F/AXX NOW!!
As long as Big Navy focuses on one platform that has to do it all, range will suffer. Nothing will ever beat the combat range of a fully loaded A-6 Intruder.
The B52 has joined the chat
Forget the cat shot - I want to see the BUFF wing fold design.
No, that didn't work out well. The detachable tail was OK though
You forgot about the A-3...
1000+ nm with a 10,000 lb payload...
This vid showcases a practice mission -unrefueled- from south of Italy, to London as the target, and return.
https://youtu.be/QwZranem490?si=HNqmH6hqiOuhvsmK
It's what the post war carriers through the Nimitz class were designed for.
It is already in the public domain that NATO countries are running air refuelling operations for the F-35I missions from various bases and platforms in the region. I suppose that might be for the high-stealth missions rather than the low-stealth missions that could be conceivably done with CFTs and/or hardpoint drop tanks - with a payload reduction even then, that would not give best use of the low sortie rate of the F-35 in a time urgent situation.
Carry all the conformal & droptank fuel you want... But there's nothing like the knowledge that Texaco is orbiting out there somewhere.
Meanwhile, Iran blasted the Haifa refinery and Israel needs jet fuel from wherever it comes.
NKAWTG!
Byron: "Bob in the Air for Texaco Hope," for those who remember the old Texaco slogan.
"Trust the man who wears the big, bright Texaco star."
Ah, the memories. Texaco was much a part of my early life as my paternal grandfather was the chief accountant at the Tulsa refinery until he retired in the late 60s.
Memory Lane: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1zxOTDHIBQ
Hey! I was HIM!
You were my grandfather?
Seems unlikely.
and knowing that a Saudi base is your divert point if you have battle damage.
I know SA is not part of the Abraham accords, but they act like it when Iran acts up. Jordan as well. Apparently the new Syrian boss opened up their airspace to the IDF.
like the waiter in Casablanca: "I already gave the Germans the best table. I knew they would take it anyway"
Iran is the number-one threat to Saudi Arabia. Literally the two poles of the Shia-Sunni conflict. So very much "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" - at least for now.
The Saudis also have a significant problem with their fundamentalist imams....The solution for that seems to me to be the public square and a big freaking knife.
The IAF has some KC-45 MRTTs. The tankers we would have had a decade ago had McCain not fecked it up....I wonder how much Boeing paid him?
But the US Navy needs it's own fleet of big-wing tankers. The US Air Force tankers are tasked out to support US Air Force and allied assets.
Mooch & Sluggo talk tanker stuff, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOPPb-H_zsE
I met Sluggo, back in 03...he was working tankers, I was working SAR
Excellent points Byron.
The common man just has absolutely no appreciation for the massive advantage we have been granted with air refueling superiority. Just in lives saved and the experience they brought back from the fight. https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/3123510/boeing-kc-135r-stratotanker/
Oh apparently the French have had a hissy fit and banned Israel from the Paris airshow, so they're doing live demos instead
https://substack.com/profile/13379579-francis-turner/note/c-126708218
Francis: "Leave the missile. Take the croissant."
apparently the French walled off the Israeli displays and the Israelis put a sign on the wall:
"Our stuff is so good, they don't want you to see it"
Brilliant! The only thing they could have done better is handing out commemorative french flags - all white.
to be fair, France and Israel have a long history of arms sales, from AMX-13s to various Mirage versions, up until 9 months ago
In '67? France had a clutch of missile boats that were supposed to be delivered, but they decided to embargo them....Even though they were paid for and finished.
Israel 'stole' them. France is the least reliable ally any nation can have. Matter of fact, in college I had to write a report on an element (extra credit for chemistry or something)...I chose Francium - the most unreliable element since there's no isotope that lasts very long. The longest living isotope has a half life of 22 minutes, many are milliseconds
Oddly, the link on the deployment of the “Iron Beam” says nothing about the Iron Beam.
I can't wait til the first day Israel's enemies see their fully armed and operational lasers and lightning shield.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjYpmpmqL6ucyHCVrTxWJ8I6e0gZxWmczeqTp0YvolqUkS3VNmDbY_ooZbdHh2l1IHGIrZvmvgzl8HNiQWgyiug3plDn3355alZIQpKdvI8cUxyXGLK3lfMjKBeoytgGvF4q8BNzTGxsY/s1600/Charge+the+Lightning+Field.gif
CDR Sal, superb analysis that gets to the heart of several valid considerations for current conflict and future unpleasantness.
1) Bending the defender's "cost curve" in modern warfare. Cheap (relatively) SAMs, point defense CRAM type "last ditch effort" projectiles, etc. all depend on targeting...a level of precision is required that made "experts" sneer at "Star Wars" decades ago. Our Military Industrial Complex (MIC)(TM) has been "working" that precision targeting of inbound problem with some level of success at prohibitive cost for decades. A small nation with an existential threat appears to have had better success, at a much more affordable cost (for domestic use, at least). Suspect the "export version" won't be cheap...
2) Lasers: Power output, "blooming" (related to power output) and "dwell time" (also related to power output) and the precise level of targeting required to enable sufficient dwell time to degrade the incoming threat. Like quantum, production at scale vice lab success are always "just around the next decade"...
3) Range without precise targeting is not particularly useful. F35 range combined with precision AND world class targeting data is...priceless. Note the commonality of "targeting" and the information feeding the "kill chain" and use of precision munitions to service the targeting list.
Would note that the MIC might have lost the capability production results target in the "generate profit" by stretching out development timelines. Might. Just might...
Regarding how "experts" sneered at "Star Wars" decades ago...
I was around back then.... The way it was explained to me was that Reagan was not proposing a new program. Although that how his critics labeled it cuz... Reagan. Oh, the Left hated his guts... If something was a Reagan idea, they opposed it tooth & nail. And note that many opponents were more on the side of USSR than USA.
What RR wanted was to consolidate & rationalize a multitude of programs on missile defense; hence the official name, Strategic Defense Initiative. USA (and even allies) already had many missile-tracking/defense programs, some of which had been around since 1950s. Army did this, Navy did that, Air Force was doing such-and-such... It created many rice bowls, in both govt and industry (plus academe). All with much duplication of effort, little coordination, slow progress, bureaucratic inertia. But per RR's thinking, perhaps there was the possibility to tie the elements together and come up with a "thing," or even a few "things" tailored to specific purposes.
Looking back, SDI was a political, managerial & technological stretch in every respect. And the compliant, Lefty media (sorry, I repeat myself) ganged up on the idea w that "Star Wars" label to belittle everything about it. Over time, more than a few "things" actually did get rationalized and focused. USA made serious progress in all manner & elements of tech; much of it not followed-through as Cold War wound down.
And then came the past 35 yrs or so... USA was busy with other matters, spending itself broke while admiring itself in the proverbial mirror. And finally the alarm bells ring again.
Jerry Pournelle wrote some interesting pieces about SDI and other cold war defense issues over the years; I think he was involved somewhat on scientific assessments.
With respect to RR, they haven't hated anyone else as much since: [Trump]. Oh, the Left hated his guts... If something was a [Trump] idea, they opposed it tooth & nail. And note that many opponents were more on the side of [Anyone] than USA.
Good Morning CDR Salamander! How are you feeling after writing a second remarkable report!
Yes, the Mid-Size “Conflict” is exactly what two areas of our Planet Earth are currently engaged.
Correct! Range means “Live to fight another day!”
Most likely correct except for attached “Mines” to floating Missile Assault “Ships”!
I’m smiling! Because… I’m wondering why you are writing about specific Weapons Delivery Systems?
Do you enjoy Gardening?
Do you enjoy watching Sea Turtles in the Caribbean?
CDR Salamander, do you enjoy understanding the “Acoustics” of Dolphins and Whales?
Catch my drift, CDR Salamander, as an accomplished Naval Officer with a Google Address on Market Street, San Francisco, you enjoy anything “Green”?
I understand you learned “Lasers” and Holography up at that wonderful Museum overlooking that fabulous Military Base.
CDR Salamander, have a seat in my Office. Nurse Jane will help you find your way in the “Dark” you’ve woven around you! Stay safe! Eat Mediterranean Salad with grains, nuts, pitted olives and goat cheese. Salad dressing, your choice. God Bless you!
Sure, learn from what is going on.
But with a war that has been going on since ... [checks watch} ... Friday, it is amazing to hear and read people saying this proves future war is going to be totally different from now on.
I keep reading that claim about some new weapon or technology over the last many decades. And claims pre-date my living memories. But this time, for sure?
We're kinda' watching the previously predicted war of the future play out today on a bunch of different levels with high tech, low tech, and asymmetric tactics. Pagers, drones, anti-missile tech, etc. We're just getting different lessons from Ukraine and Iran.
Somethings appear to have remained constant, range, depth of systems, logistics, innovative tactics to adapt new technologies, countermeasures, and in Gaza, boots on the ground with urban warfare.
The only area that's still vague in regards to the open press is what took place between India and Pakistan in regards to their air to air skirmish that apparently was a BVR ambush.
The predictions of the future warfare being made today? Some will be correct. Some won't.
The war against Israel has been going on since (checks calendar) 587BCE when the Babylonians (present day Iraq) destroyed Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem.
There have been periods of lesser conflict, but it's been a long, long time..
Time to end it. Some of the mohammedan countries are deciding to be sane and join the Abraham Accords. Most all of the mohammedan countries are supporting Israel, at least covertly. Jordan and Syria are not complaining about overflights (tbf there's not much they can do about it), even the camel-humpers in the house of Saud are saying "why don't you and him go fight?"
And Israel (which is about the size of So Cal, from Long Beach to San Diego) is kicking ass on a country 10x it's size and population. When the actual Iranian people decide they've had enough, they can serve up the mullahs to Israel, and the war will end.
And since the CCP is buying 90% of Iranian oil, perhaps it's time for Shayetet 13 to visit Kharg Island and destroy the power distribution and control centers. Leave the tanks and pipelines alone, no need to dump more crude into the gulf.
".....once you are sick of saying something, that’s the exact moment people are finally starting to listen...."
ah, CDR, if only..... After 40 years of being that lone voice crying out in the wilderness, I'm not exactly sick of speaking out loud about AIRSHIPS. i do tire of it though, and the repeated teaching that "airships", in my world, does not mean blimps or dirigibles, does get old.
Still and all, maybe that all important "range" will bring em to the table at last, ya think?
We're going to need a couple of production lines for Tactical Ballistic Missiles?
Can those 'vettes rearm underway? 😉
The book says they have a 4000nm range. Hopefully they can rearm away from a pier
I would be very surprised if they could.
SFAIK, Israeli navy is essentially a coastal force. Thus no unrep abilities at all.
I was mostly just letting Sal know I read his stuff and actually remember some of his pet rocks.
Not bad for an Army guy.
But, as an artilleryman, black shoe sailors not aboard floating airstrips are, in my predjudiced eye, self-propelled artilleryfolk, like myself.
I'd never thought of it that way. But sure.
Of course it's a lot easier to come to that conclusion as the guy that owned all the artillery like stuff on the ship (gun, missiles, fire control radars and small arms). Nice to think that everyone else was just there to get my guys and me to the fight and keep me in it.
My second DO tour was FCO on an AEGIS CG; I feel ya:)
Ooooh, mo' betta!
I was the FFG7 guy so had about half the fun toys.
But doing a full rate gun shoot always put a smile on my face.
The Big Badger Boat is the ultimate in self propelled artillery.
BOOM! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4rw61JDC3c
Do not vex The Big Badger Boat!
Especially after she got her missiles.
Especially after she got her missiles.
What about a time tested strategic siege of Fordow. Cut off exits, electricity, water, ventilation, sanitation. Install a large granite tombstone atop the highest point inscribed “here lies the last nuclear program ever”.
Open it up a hundred tears from now as we open time capsules at world fairs.
Or an Israeli SO team with demo,
Shaped charge gets you penetration of 4x - 6x the charge diameter in steel. Bet the main doors are not over 8 meters thick.
Shelley said it best:
I met a traveller from an antique land,
Who said—“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. . . . Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;
And on the pedestal, these words appear:
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.”
Lukas Czinger, CEO of Divergent Technologies in Torrance, California, claims that he and his company can manufacture 40,000 anti-ship cruise missiles by 2027 using their Divergent Adaptive Production System (DAPS™).
Czinger made this claim during an extensive interview on Steve Bannon's Warroom on Thursday June 5th 2025.
https://listen.warroom.org/warroom-battleground-ep-783-manufacturing-renaissance-next-generation-of-digital-manufacturing
This is the Divergent Technologies home page: https://www.divergent3d.com/
Color me skeptical. But if we assume that this man and his company could actually deliver 40,000 anti-ship cruise missiles by the end of 2027, how, tactically and strategically, would we go about delivering all those missiles to their targets before the PLAN figures out how to counter them?
But we have a larger question to face here: Will China take the opportunity presented by the Israel-Iran war to make an early move against Taiwan? In which case the possibility that the US might have 40,000 anti-ship cruise missiles by the end of 2027 would have an influence on their decision process.
Another factor .... China has already gained effective control over South Korea's internal politics by directly and openly assisting the blatant theft of the recent SK presidential election by SK's left-liberal party.
Quickly adding the conquest of Taiwan to their political victory in South Korea would give China the clear upper hand in the western Pacific for decades to come.
And so the temptation to perform an early blockade isolation and subsequent invasion of Taiwan now has to be an exceedingly powerful force in current Chinese strategic thinking.
"hina has already gained effective control over South Korea's internal politics by directly and openly assisting the blatant theft of the recent SK presidential election by SK's left-liberal party."
I've wondered for years why they would need to invade, as it seems inevitable they will be able to subvert the government in Taiwan as effectively as our own if not more.
Great write up Sal. FYI, that our 71M aerostats are doing a great job in the Iron Dome architecture. We have heard that the effectiveness is high as with the last time in April 2024.
We are looking at Laser technology as well. These on aerostats will provide persistent elevated ISR (cost effective BTW) in the 1st and 2nd Island Chain and would be game changes especially providing a extra element in the kill chain.
a fine step in the right direction (smile). just gotta get rid of that tether!
Yes...agree. But that's where the power is coming from. Unfortunately, physics.