Future Weapon Technology

The Russians desperately needed to mount a response after the 1991 Gulf War, when the Americans stormed through the deserts of Kuwait and Iraq.   The Russian economy’s defense sector was reeling, after the American military’s Abrams M1A1 Main Battle Tanks and Bradley Fighting Vehicles left the battlefield littered with literally hundreds of burnt-out and charred carcasses of once mighty Russian T-72 and T-80 tanks.  As if the Russians weren’t already in bad enough shape after the collapse of the Soviet Union, now the international image of their largest defense export, the T-72 tank, and their newest model, the T-80, as no more than a flaming hulk of metal on the battlefield. Not good PR for the largest weapons exporter in the world.  Something had to be done.  The Russian’s solution: rename the tanks.  By combining elements of the T-72 and T-80 together, the Russians were able to create the T-90, and have successfully duped the market ever since.

Despite the fact that the T-90s design aspects are nothing new, the newest production models do include some major upgrades to the existing designs.  A new gun being one of the biggest improvements, the newest T-90s coming off the lines can be fitted with Explosive Reactive Armor, laser rangefinders, an electromagnetic pulse generator to combat magnetic mines, and laser warning recievers.  There is also a new type of radar jamming system to scramble the guidance of incoming radar-guided anti-tank missiles.  Basically, you get early 70’s mechanics with 90’s electronics.

Don’t get me wrong though, Russia’s output capacity for producing these tanks can skyrocket if they wish it to.  Never forget the inferior US Sherman tanks swarming the superior German Tigers.  Technical sophistacation found with the likes of Western MBTs such as the German Leopard, French Leclerc, British Challenger 2, and the American Abrams M1, are expensive and time-consuming to produce and repair, while the Russians have never shown a sensitivity to losses in great numbers of mass-produced war machinery.

US Air Force Airlift

What does it take to be who we are in the world? To be able to strike deals massively lopsided in our favor? To make demands, threats, and/or promises of peace? Who knows, we could be your best friend, or your worst enemy. What does it take for the US be in this position?

The answer: logistical capability spawned through the thorough application of immense capital both financial and human. A large US Army on the contintinental US can’t really do much across the globe unless it can get there. Of course, we can always use our US Navy sea-based assets to land US Marines on the shorelines. However, any major theater conflict or a landlocked battlefield will need more than just boats. That’s why the US Air Force possesses the largest and most complicated logistical airlift capability in the world.

The biggest: Lockheed Martin C-5 Galaxy

The C-5 Galaxy is one of the largest aircraft in the world. At over 247 ft long, it’s bigger than either of the newest and largest civilian aircraft to ever hit the market, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner or the Airbus A380. Designed to carry oversized loads at intercontinental distances, this mighty aircraft is classified as a strategic airlifter, capable of moving massive assets around the globe. It’s cargo capacity is an astounding 270,000 tons, but with all of this comes heavy maintenance and costs. In fact, this aircraft is reported to require 16 hours of maintenance to evey 1 hour of flight time. Ouch. This aircraft is typically used in special circumstances, where the C-17 Globemaster mentioned below bares the brunt of the strategic airlift demands of the US Military.

Medium-Sized: Boeing C-17 Globemaster III

This beastly aircraft takes the middle ground between size and speed, and can perform roles of either strategic or tactical airlift missions. With up to 190 operational C-17s in the US Airforce inventory, this aircraft is one of the most heavily relied-upon workhorses in the military. It’s payload of 170,000 tons enables it to carry massive amounts of cargo, but due to the large size/weight of most of the US military’s mechanized forces, it can only carry 1 M1A1 Abrams tank (70 tons). These aspects of airlifting (weight/maintenance/costs) are major influencing factors on the Army’s current investments in building a lighter and more mobile fighting force, epitomized by vehicles such as the Stryker. Either way, this aircraft strikes the balance needed between the obscenely massive C-5 Galaxy and the smaller C-130 Hercules featured below.

Tactical Airlift Champ: Lockheed C-130 Hercules

The Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules has almost too many variants and uses to list. Being awarded for the single longest production-run airframe of any other in the world, the C-130 is nearly impossible to avoid participation in either a tactical transport, aerial refueling, or even strike mission role in any conflict over the last 50 years. Likewise, the C-130 is the most widely exported plane, with over 50 nations having purchases some variant since the original C-130 maiden flight in 1954. Popular and widely variants of the transport version C-130 hercules would be the HC-130 variants intended for troop insertions and aerial refueling of helicopters, and also the AC-130 Spectre gunship, intended for close-combat air support and assaults. The newest and most up-to-date production model is the C-130 J Super Hercules.

Apparently, the M4 Carbine or the M16 aren’t good enough for the grunts on the field.  This isn’t really a new revelation either.  Let’s face it, since day 1 of the adoption of the M16 during Vietnam, the M16 hasn’t exactly been everyone’s favorite assualt rifle.  In fact, it has been regarded by some as a killer of US troops, leaving them stuck in firefights without effective stopping power and jammed rounds.  Never fear though young GIs and military buffs, the civilian weapons manufacturing sector is listening.  Barrett Firearm’s answer?  Let’s give them what they want.

Greater range, 50% increased stopping power, ability to fit into the current modular makeup of existing M16 component parts.  Basically, Barrett knows how to get an invention considered by a buyer.  Hearing the voice of the GI, military procurement officers sit around and think, “What can I do about this problem,  and is it going to cost me an arm and a leg?”  These posed questions are answered in the design of the Barrett REC7 assault rifle.  This rifle hasn’t reached operational status yet, but Barrett firearms took into consideration some key aspects of rifle design and selling points with the development of this rifle (conveniently mentioned in the opening sentence of this paragraph).  All key aspects overlooked by other ambitious projects with the aim to replace the M16.  Rifles such as the OICW and the Heckler and Koch XM-8 are examples of attempts to completely redesign the rifle, which also come packaged with enormous costs and long-run expenses for spare parts.

Barrett said, “Hey, I can make a rifle that is built on existing parts already used in the M4 and M16, and deliver the results the military wants.”  Now, we can only wait and see if this bad boy will ultimately be chosen as the next generation rifle for the armed forces, but until then, we can watch Mack talk about the Barrett REC7 assault rifle and demonstrate it’s superb capabilities.  Enjoy.

If I hark back to the days of the Wild Wild West, during the heydays of American machismo otherwise known as Manifest Destiny, I can only think of the ever popular shoot out.  The quick and dead, the fast draws, the lawlessness, and the cowboys.  Don’t be misled about the speed of the draw though, the quickest isn’t always the victor, one must be on target to be left standing alive.  What a timeless lesson we’ve learned.

Today on the battlefield, many people are killed by rifles of various design.  Fortunately, most people are killed by the well-designed weapons employed by the US Military. 

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The omnipresent adjudicator hovering over the skies of Iraq can deliver heinous death at any waking instant.  You are taking a stroll down the street, plotting some terrorist attacks in your imagination, and suddenly, without ever feeling a thing, you are reduced to a full sized human splatter pattern.  The reality is, only you know for sure what you were really wanting, thinking, taking, doing…better shape up for the eyes in the sky.These dealings in death, the fine line between reality and the ability to play god with the lives of lesser men, are made possible by the ubiquitous ATK M230 Chain Gun mounted on the chin section of the AH-64 Apache Gunship.  With a rate of fire of 625 rounds/minute, firing 30 mm depleted uranium or anti-personnel fragmentation rounds, this weapon enables the FLIR vision films of utter anhillation the likes of which were never seen until recently.  People 100 years ago would label a death like the one below an act of God, fire and brimstone punishing the guilty.  Is that true?

You decide.  After all, the USA is a free country.

The Carbon 15 pistol is a firearm similar in design to an ArmaLite AR-15 or the Colt M4 Carbine. The main differences between the Carbon 15 “pistol” and actual M4 is the absence of the shoulder stock and the fully automatic option. You don’t really want or need full auto though, because the Carbon 15 is not designed for suppressive fire, likewise, the red dot sight fitted on the accessory rail optimizes this weapon for close quarter personal defense-ideal for confined spaces.

We got the chance to let off some rounds with one of these bad boys not too

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“We need some options on the table!” Yells a military commander sitting in the Pentagon.

“How about the option to hit them with stealth cruise missiles, sir?” Says a lowly defense analyst in the back.

“What did you say!?” Screams the general.

“Well sir, we can just have our jets launch these JASSM cruise missisles from about 230 miles out sir. No one is put at risk but them, and they cost $300,000 less than Tomohawk missiles. We’ll save some money and take out the targets.”

“Brilliant! Order the strikes. What did you say your name was? How would

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V22 Osprey

Manufacturer: Boeing [NYSE: BA]

Obviously, getting troops to the battlefield as quickly as possible is a paramount concern for military planners. Choppers can carry many troops, but really can’t fly very far or fast. Planes can get troops there quickly, but where can you launch transport planes without a runway? Aircraft carriers are too small, nevermind the deck of an amphibious assault ship. Clearly, a solution is needed for high speed troop transport in a scenario of limited runway space. Necessity is

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The LCAC, short for Landing Craft Air-Cushioned, is the beastly hovercraft used by the United States Marine Corps. This ship is designed to transport supplies, vehicles, and troops to the shore from a Wasp class assault ship or other dock-landing/amphibious cargo ships participating in an amphibious assault. These huge hovercraft can travel at up to 40 knots (46 mph), and have 2 machine gun emplacements and additional weapon mounting stations that can support additional machine guns or 40 mm grenade launchers. There really isn’t a huge demand for armaments on this ship, as it will

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