The Submarine Design That Always "Might" Happen

Could it really be happening, this time for real, or is this another maybe not. As design projects go, I'd fall asleep trying to write the history behind this big "maybe" to take place this week.

A major committee of the Taiwan legislature this week approved a $62 million spending package for submarine design that could lead to a windfall for Electric Boat in Groton.

It also could lead to the precedent-setting situation of a U.S. company's building submarines for a foreign navy.

Rupert Hammond-Chambers, president of the U.S.-Taiwan Business Council, said Friday that "the odds are pretty high" that the money will survive a pending vote of the overall legislature. Taiwan's Legislative Yuan has final say over the country's spending, and it might release more money for submarine work in 2008.

There is always a catch. This one has several, but this is my favorite.

The estimated cost for design: $226 million. Although the $62 million approved this week is far short of that, Simmons said Friday, "You can buy a lot of design work with that. That is not a trivial amount."

Although several U.S. defense contractors could be in a position to bid on parts or all of the contract, Simmons said that Electric Boat is "the best." And he supports the idea of it getting into the business of building these smaller submarines powered by diesel and batteries, which Simmons thinks the U.S. Navy should start ordering for itself.

Rob Simmons is a state business advocate, also known as lobbyist, so of coarse he wants whatever brings Electric Boat in the $$$.

I gave up long ago trying to figure out the relationship between Taiwan and the US under this administration. Anyone who assumes anything, assumes too much in my opinion. Honestly, Bush made the Kitty Hawk incident go away and basically told the Navy to shut its mouth, while at the same time he seems to have no problems selling military equipment to any buyer, see India and Taiwan for examples. I'm thinking the US will take the cash and damn the consequences, but that is because I think Bush plus this Congress represents the biggest whore for the defense lobby our nation has ever had and puts the lobby above the troops every time they have the chance. Hey, you saw the earmarks, it is what it is.

$62 million of $226 million is about a quarter of the total requirement. While this might be good news to some, I see it as a tiny part of a much bigger issue. The election next year in Taiwan is turning into an Us vs Them cage match between those who want independence and those who want China.

That means the results of the election can lead to a number of unexpected consequences, most of which lead to the design of a new conventional submarine for Taiwan being too little too late.

You never know though, some think China will act rationally. I'd say the chances of that are about as good as Taiwan fully funding the design contract over the next few years.

SPS Blas de Lezo (F103) Returns to Action

Earlier this year, the Spanish frigate SPS Blas de Lezo (F103) ran aground during its participation in the Neptune Warrior 07 exercise off Scotland. Last week it was reported she has almost completed repairs.

There is still no report regarding what happened, and the official cost of repairs has also not been released.

She is expected to return to full duty in January.

Originally SPS Blas de Lezo (F103) was planned to take over as flagship of SNMG1 replacing the USS Bainbridge (DDG 96), but clearly that did not happen. The availability of SPS Blas de Lezo (F103) for 2008 will give Spain three deployable F100 frigates in 2008, including SPS Alvaro de Bazan (F101) and Almirante Juan de Borbon (F102).

It Isn't Just the Air Force

This isn't good news. Perhaps we can keep the S-3 around just in case.

Nearly a fourth of the U.S. Navy's fleet of Lockheed Martin Corp P-3C Orion surveillance planes, some used in the U.S.-declared global war on terrorism, are being grounded due to fears of "structural fatigue," the Navy said on Monday.

It said 39 of the 161 planes in the P-3C fleet were affected, with repairs expected to take 18 to 24 months per plane.

"Program officials determined that these aircraft are beyond known structural limits on the lower section of the P-3 wing," the Naval Air Systems Command said in a statement.

There really are not 161 P-3Cs left, there are actually fewer. Several have been converted to the EP-3 variant, but I believe the grounding effects them as well.

I wonder how many Global Hawks will be rushed into service? Just saying...

Attacking the Kids To Weaken Huckabee on Family Values

As I have said before, I live in New York and am originally from Arkansas so I will occasionally touch on some political topics while both Huckabee and Clinton are running for president.

Let me make it clear, I do not support either Clinton or Huckabee for President, but I do think both are worth observing. I'm not one for profound insights on politics, this isn't a blog for that, but given how the media handles politics and manipulates public opinion, Mike Huckabee is about to turn into a case study regarding the power of the media to shape public opinion, and we should observe knowing ahead of time as we observe the events unfold.

I've been waiting for this story to pop up. Social Republicans who think they have found their champion in Huckabee need to get ready, because the media is going to turn up the heat.

As Mike Huckabee gains in the polls, the former Arkansas governor is finding that his record in office is getting more scrutiny. One issue likely to get attention is his handling of a sensitive family matter: allegations that one of his sons was involved in the hanging of a stray dog at a Boy Scout camp in 1998.

It is Newsweek, so the story goes into plenty of detail. Nothing makes the media, and arrogant pompous elites in general, happier than talking about the failures of Christians, particularly those who are boldly proud of their religious beliefs like Mike Huckabee. In the mind of an elitist, a flaw in a Christian is considered an example a hypocrite. John Bailey probably has enough stories to last through the election, so this should get interesting. I'll point out the obvious, all the "John Bailey" types from the Clinton Governor administration are either very rich, very discredited, or very dead.

The media tactic of burning a Christian at the proverbial stake is effective though, ironically it will ultimately prove to be particularly effective in turning off Christian Conservatives, who fall for the same bag of tricks every time expecting to believe all Christians are perfect, divorces never end messy, and abortion is the most important issue facing America. I have no idea why these attacks are so effective in turning off voters, but somehow the hypocrite label works very well against Christian conservative voters.

First the media will go after David Huckabee to lay the groundwork for questionable parenting skills for Mike, attacking his position as a family values candidate, attempting to undermine his moral message, and add some subtle implications of "special favors" and abuse of power by the Governor. It will be followed later with stories about Sarah Huckabee using nicknames like "Drunkabee" and imply more "special favors" and abuse of power by the Governor. In her case, the stories will mostly date back to high school because when she would be picked up for being underage and drinking, she would get a car ride home (or someone would go get her). Just in case you are wondering, yes when the media tells these stories, they all true.

Except the special favors part. I know that from personal experience and because I know people who were there. Yea, the Governor probably got a call and yes no one usually goes to jail in the underage drinking incidents that will be implied, but in Little Rock and surrounding areas that happens a lot..., it happened to me when I was growing up.

It isn't about being special, it is about being a youth, and the cops are worried about crime, not youth being youth. My parents picked me up at the police station at least 3 times when I was in High School, at least twice for alcohol. What made my friends and I special? Nothing, but my friends and I got the same treatment as the rich kids because like them, we stayed out of trouble and our only crime would be drinking alcohol on occasion. It wasn't about race or sex, it was about behavior. Drinking underage is illegal, but if you had a designated driver the LRPD would respect the kids of being responsible. If you weren't causing trouble, they might call your parents, but none of my friends ever got charged a crime for simply having drank alcohol. That doesn't make the LRPD bad, it demonstrates that in the 90s at least, they were tuned into the community.

Observe the irony, the media will bulldoze a few kids who have never had a chance to introduce themselves, will give them reputations that fit a political agenda, and do it for the purpose of attacking the family values of a political candidate. It will probably be effective as a political tactic, but as a father and someone who grew up in the same place and the same atmosphere, who knows many people who grew up the same way (minus the political attention aspect) I think what they will do to the Huckabee kids is disgusting.

The French Will Land Off Norfolk in 2008

There is an interesting rumor going around that was apparently started on the French Blog Secret Defense. Its actually a really good blog, if you enjoy watching Americans get bashed over the head on every subject in French. Most if not all the American bashing comes from the comments though, but on balance the blog itself is pretty good.

As a defense observer, the blog writer can start a rumor and turn it into just about anything, and the latest rumor is no different. SteelJaw Scribe picked it up off one of several forums, and since SJS's speaks English... well sometimes anyway, I'll quote him.

The French Aéronavale will embark for the first time on an American aircraft carrier. Without a second aircraft carrier, while Charles stopped for maintenance for eighteen months, pilots of Rafale and Hawkeye are going to train in July 2008 aboard the USS Roosevelt off Norfolk, in the Atlantic. "We are setting up this operation with the American Navy" said the French Navy Office. A dozen airplanes are to be deployed on Roosevelt: six to eight Rafales of the flotilla 12 F and two Hawkeyes of the flotilla 4F.

Some of the French commentary has turned this into a debate why France could cancel its second carrier. More education, less Defense is the debate I read... whatever. I'm not sure how A equals B, but that's how the spin works in France. The French deployment doesn't appear to be just a rumor though, it appears there is something behind it, and the US-French cooperation in the air may be larger than originally reported.

The speculation on various forums that this is a major French aviation deployment on US Carriers are slightly exaggerated. The simple explanation is the CdG is out of commission for 2008 and France wants to train pilots and keep their crews in good form, so France started looking for ways for their pilots and crews to train at sea. It turns out, the US Navy wasn't even the first choice, Brazil was. According to the Brazil Navy Blog, the French approached Brazil about operating the aircraft from the Sao Paulo for extended training in 2008. This would have been good for Brazil, who could evaluate the E-2s and Rafale's on the Sao Paulo for potential purchase, but as usual, the Sao Paulo is in repairs... again, as usual.

The US Navy then offered the French to operate from the USS Roosevelt (CVN 71) in July during JTFX 08-02, the annual East Coast Joint Task Force exercise. You might remember this is the same exercise the US Marines operated from the HMS Illustrious (R06) in JTFX 07-02 this past July, so this really isn't some new or revolutionary idea... rather an evolutionary step in joint cooperation.

There is one more odd twist to this story though, and maybe someone can shed some light on the discussion. The Secret Defense Blog links over to TTUOnline, a French defense magazine as the source for the report. I can't find the original story, I'm not a subscriber, however it does appear there is a story about Rafale's on the USS Eisenhower (CVN 69), but as the article is for subscribers I can't read it. It could be that while the CdG is out of commission, the French may also exercise with the USS Eisenhower (CVN 69) before the July JTFX when the USS Eisenhower (CVN 69) deploys to the 5th fleet early next year. That would be similar to how the French trained earlier this year with the USS Enterprise (CVN 65) during its deployment. If someone can confirm the details of what the TTU online article Des Rafale sur 'USS "Eisenhower"' says in the comments, it would be much appreciated.

Rafale's have operated from the Enterprise and have performed touch and go's from both the Eisenhower and Stennis in the past. The idea the French would exercise from US Carriers is not something new, in fact it happened earlier this year. After reading the comments of both the Royal Navy and Marines after JTFX 07-02, we like the integration approach between the US Navy and other nations and think it is smart for the US Navy to keep it up. Maybe in the future we will see Australian F-18s flying off US carriers in Pacific. Yep, Maybe.