Iran’s radars can detect UAVs - commander

Iran's national defense system has been equipped with advanced radars capable of detecting UAVs

Iran's national defense system has been equipped with advanced radars capable of detecting unmanned aerial vehicles, a senior military commander said on Saturday.

“No unauthorized unmanned aircraft now dares fly over the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Brigadier General Farzad Esmaili said, according to Press TV.

Iran’s Air Defense Forces are ready to destroy any unmanned aircraft in the country's air space, he said.

Esmaili announced last month air defense specialists had designed a space radar capable detecting and tracking cruise missiles, low-flying aircraft and objects located at a distance of several thousands kilometers.

Source: Ria Novosti

Air Force Drones Infected With Unknown Computer Virus That Won't Go Away

No matter what military computer technicians do, they can’t seem to remove a virus from the computer systems that control military drones.

The virus infecting ground control stations at Creech Air Force Base in Nevada was identified by military’s Host-Based Security System two weeks ago. It is reported the virus is tracking everything the drones do as they fly over areas like Afghanistan.

Drone pilots at ground control station use joysticks to remotely operate drones. (Photo: Wired)

Wired’s Danger Room released an exclusive report:

“We keep wiping it off, and it keeps coming back,” says a source familiar with the network infection, one of three that told Danger Room about the virus. “We think it’s benign. But we just don’t know.”

Military network security specialists aren’t sure whether the virus and its so-called “keylogger” payload were introduced intentionally or by accident; it may be a common piece of malware that just happened to make its way into these sensitive networks. The specialists don’t know exactly how far the virus has spread. But they’re sure that the infection has hit both classified and unclassified machines at Creech. That raises the possibility, at least, that secret data may have been captured by the keylogger, and then transmitted over the public internet to someone outside the military chain of command.

[...]

The Air Force declined to comment directly on the virus. “We generally do not discuss specific vulnerabilities, threats, or responses to our computer networks, since that helps people looking to exploit or attack our systems to refine their approach,” says Lt. Col. Tadd Sholtis, a spokesman for Air Combat Command, which oversees the drones and all other Air Force tactical aircraft. “We invest a lot in protecting and monitoring our systems to counter threats and ensure security, which includes a comprehensive response to viruses, worms, and other malware we discover.”

Even still, the virus has not grounded any of the drones from continuing missions and no incidents have been reported of information being lost or sent to other sources, although experts are unsure how far it has spread. Wired goes on to report that drones have been known for security flaws:Many Reapers and Predators don’t encrypt the video they transmit to American troops on the ground. In the summer of 2009, U.S. forces discovered “days and days and hours and hours” of the drone footage on the laptops of Iraqi insurgents. A $26 piece of software allowed the militants to capture the video.

MQ-1 Predator (Photo: U.S. Air Force)

The virus, sources believe, were spread through removable drives, the use of which has became restricted by the military after the agent.btz worm was introduced into defense computers with this method. So far, technicians have had to completely erase the hard drives of infected systems to remove the virus and painstakingly rebuild them from scratch.

Source: The Blaze

Azeris get Israel UAVs built under license

UAV Searcher MK. II

BAKU, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7 (UPI) -- Azerbaijan is expected to acquire 60 small Israeli-designed unmanned aerial vehicles built under license in the oil-rich former Soviet republic that's moving closer to the Jewish state as the Baku government modernizes its military.

The burgeoning military and intelligence alliance between the countries is causing growing concern in Iran, Azerbaijan's southern neighbor, and in nearby longtime rival Armenia.

Chinook choppers grounded after computer problem

Two of Australia's Chinooks are based in Afghanistan

The Australian Army has grounded its CH-47D Chinook helicopters after finding possible problems with the aircraft's flight control systems.
The Defence Department says the suspension of flying operations is a precaution to ensure safety and is consistent with procedures.

The Chinooks will remain grounded while a technical analysis by Defence and Boeing is carried out.

Senior NATO commander to talk Euro missile shield in Moscow

NATO Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, U.S. Admiral James Stavridis

NATO Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, U.S. Admiral James Stavridis and Russia's Chief of the General Staff Nikolai Makarov will make another attempt to overcome the deadlock in Russia-NATO talks on European missile defense during their meeting in Moscow on Monday.

Makarov and Stavridis are expected to discuss "the current state and prospects of Russia-NATO cooperation in the military sphere," including the creation of the European missile shield, and address "relevant regional and international security issues," the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.

Bulgarian Navy Finally Gets 1st Panther Helicopter in Troubled Eurocopter Deal

(Left) Bulgaria's PM Borisov, Defense Minister Angelov, Read Admiral Manushev are among the guests at the ceremony for receiving the first Eurocopter 'Panther' helicopter (right) by the Bulgarian Navy. Photo by Defense Ministry

The Bulgarian Navy has formally received the first out of a total of three Pantherhelicopters in a highly troubled supply deal that Bulgarian Defense Ministry made with Eurocopter.

The first "Panther" was welcomed at a ceremony at the naval helicopter base "Chayka" near the Black Sea city of Varna by Prime Minister Boyko Borisov,Defense Minister Anyu Angelov, the commander-in-chief of the Bulgarian NavyRear Admiral Plamen Manushev, Varna and Great Preslav's Bishop Kiril, as well as representatives of the French Embassy and the supplier, Eurocopter.

With Russian help, India to join ICBM big league soon

Agni Missile

India is all set to join the select group of nations capable of launching nuclear strikes across continent. With Russia ready to provide the cutting-edge “seeker” technology for India’s Agni-V intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), the country is ready to flaunt its nuclear might in a big way by year end when the ICBM will undergo its maiden launch.

The development of the ICBM had been delayed because no country was ready to provide India the crucial ‘seekers’ technology, which enables the missile to home in on the target with pinpoint precision. The ICBM will be capable of carrying nuclear payload and has a strike range of 10,000 km.

Stingers for Egypt and Turkey, 2011

Avenger, firing

In fall 2011, Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson, AZ received a $26 million firm-fixed-price contract from Egypt and Turkey for 174 Stinger FIM-92H Block 1 missiles, 10 Electronic Component Assemblies, and spare parts. Work will be performed in Tucson, AZ with an estimated completion date of Dec 31/12. One bid was solicited, with one bid received by the US Army Contracting Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL (W31P4Q-09-C-0508).

LockMart's JLTV Meets Mine-Resistant Vehicle Protection Levels at 40 Percent Less Weight

The results verified Lockheed Martin's JLTV can protect soldiers from powerful blasts and still be transported by vertical lift, a new mobility option for the Army and Marines at this protection level. Previous U.S. Army and Marine Corps tests showed JLTV can be transported by CH-47 and CH-53 helicopters.

Recent government blast tests demonstrated that Lockheed Martin's Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) meets protection standards for IED-protected vehicles, while weighing approximately 40 percent less than other all-terrain models deployed in theater.

Lockheed Martin's JLTV succeeded in its blast tests, which used explosions commonly tested against many existing mine-resistant fleet vehicles.

Big New Chinese Order for Russian Fighter Engines

Russia has now sold nearly 1,000 AL-31 engines to China, where they power J-10 and J-11 fighters.

China has placed additional orders for Russian AL-31-series fighter engines. State arms trade agency Rosoboronexport clinched two big contracts earlier this year. One is for more than 150 AL-31Fs as replacements for earlier engines of same type that power the Su-27/Su-30MKK/MK2 fighters, that are designated J-11 in China. Engines under this contract will be assembled by the Ufa-based UMPO factory.