The United States is seeking protection from “Putin’s weapons”, but so far unsuccessfully
Leaving, finally, the attempts of complacency that the new samples of Russian weapons presented to the general public by Vladimir Putin were only a “bluff” or “an attempt to intimidate”, the West seriously set about looking for ways out of a new, extremely unpleasant situation for him. Of course, we are not talking about revising the geopolitical doctrine, which is based on the desire to turn Russia into its own humble vassal, and thereby remove the danger of armed conflict. Instead, feverishly found ways to counter the terrible "Putin weapon" using purely military methods. What is the result? Let's get a look.
Germany was the first of the European countries - members of NATO, which was seriously concerned about the problem of protection against one of the main types of new Russian weapons - hypersonic missiles. They found enough common sense in themselves to admit that the much-praised Patriot systems, which for many years had been the basis of the North Atlantic Alliance's anti-missile defense system, would help against “hypersound” in much the same way as the notorious poultices for the dead. The Bundeswehr is well aware that a system with completely new capabilities is needed here and are intensively looking for those who can provide it. Naturally, a fierce struggle has already begun around a military order with a potential value of billions. So far, it is leading the tandem that, perhaps, it will be possible to create a European group for the production of guided missile weapons MBDA, which has a branch in Germany and one of the leaders in the global arms market - the American corporation Lockheed Martin.
In close cooperation, they intend to create a system with the working name TLVS, which, according to representatives of a promising project, "will be so good that it will force all NATO countries to abandon the obsolete Patriot." What exactly will be its "trick" is not yet clear, but according to available data, it is quite possible to use hypersonic shells as anti-missiles. In any case, Peter Heilmeier, head of the MBDA sales department in Germany, spoke out in favor of such an idea, saying that his group is already working on a “rocket five times the speed of sound” and intended for “purely defensive purposes,” including specifically for the missile defense system. According to Herr Heilmeier, the MBDA expects to bring the project to the stage of the first tests within the next three years.
Everything would be fine, but such conversations have been going on already since 2015, and the TLVS developers have already twice broken the “deadlines” set by him for presenting a specific commercial proposal - both technical and financial. There are strong suspicions that Lockheed Martin, whose dimensionless appetites were fully manifested during the creation of the same F-35, is trying to "draw" the cost of an "unmatched missile defense system" that will force the Bundestag deputies who are not prone to squandering, who have to approve the estimate, without exception clutching at the heart and head. On the other hand, pedantic Germans will surely demand guarantees of the effectiveness of their own new “shield”, especially taking into account its price. And to give those when it comes to confronting the "Vanguards" or "Daggers", hardly anyone is capable of.
Taking advantage of this, Raytheon Corporation, the developer and manufacturer of the mercilessly stigmatized Patriot, is not appeased. “They say that these Germans are boring nose! In addition to them, our missiles are bought by another dozen and a half countries, and they don’t complain anything ... ”At the same time, however, he is silent about the fact that in combat against missiles the Iraqi Al-Abbas and Al-Hussein are more serious than this complex not applied. And regarding its effectiveness during the “wars in the Gulf” to this day there is heated debate among experts. One way or another, but representatives of Raytheon already promise to introduce to the market a solution "no worse than TLVS, but at the same time half as expensive." It is difficult to say how far these assurances correspond to reality - so far this is all nothing more than projects and plans. Unlike Russian hypersonic missiles.
The United States is trying to demonstrate something like progress in creating its own “hypersound”. The other day there was published a report on the allegedly "first test of a promising separate hypersonic complex from Lockheed Martin called Air Launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW)." And even with the corresponding photos of the rocket mounted on the B-52H strategic bomber. True, the “sensation” subsequently faded somewhat - when it turned out that the pictures presented nothing more than a “mass-size model of a hypersonic aeroballistic missile”. His "tests", according to an official statement from the US Air Force press service, boiled down, in essence, to "collecting data on the effects of shock and vibration on the weapon itself and the external placement of weapons on an airplane." That is, translating into a human language that everyone understands, to clarify the question: “But will this thing fall off to hell if it is attached to a bomber?” About any tests of the engines or the warhead of the rocket was not even a question ...
Nevertheless, the Pentagon says that by 2023 the US Army will be armed with not only hypersonic missiles, but also “super-powerful combat lasers”, electromagnetic guns and other “weapons of the future”. Up to the lightsabers of the Jedi, obviously ... At the same time, the department does not hide the fact that protection against the already quite real Russian hypersonic weapons is not available today. In the very near future, they plan to spend about $ 1.2 billion on "experiments to develop counteraction to its capabilities" in the United States military. Well, experiment ... It is sad that humanity is once again entering the arms race. The only good news is that Russia is far ahead of its opponents in it.
Germany was the first of the European countries - members of NATO, which was seriously concerned about the problem of protection against one of the main types of new Russian weapons - hypersonic missiles. They found enough common sense in themselves to admit that the much-praised Patriot systems, which for many years had been the basis of the North Atlantic Alliance's anti-missile defense system, would help against “hypersound” in much the same way as the notorious poultices for the dead. The Bundeswehr is well aware that a system with completely new capabilities is needed here and are intensively looking for those who can provide it. Naturally, a fierce struggle has already begun around a military order with a potential value of billions. So far, it is leading the tandem that, perhaps, it will be possible to create a European group for the production of guided missile weapons MBDA, which has a branch in Germany and one of the leaders in the global arms market - the American corporation Lockheed Martin.
In close cooperation, they intend to create a system with the working name TLVS, which, according to representatives of a promising project, "will be so good that it will force all NATO countries to abandon the obsolete Patriot." What exactly will be its "trick" is not yet clear, but according to available data, it is quite possible to use hypersonic shells as anti-missiles. In any case, Peter Heilmeier, head of the MBDA sales department in Germany, spoke out in favor of such an idea, saying that his group is already working on a “rocket five times the speed of sound” and intended for “purely defensive purposes,” including specifically for the missile defense system. According to Herr Heilmeier, the MBDA expects to bring the project to the stage of the first tests within the next three years.
Everything would be fine, but such conversations have been going on already since 2015, and the TLVS developers have already twice broken the “deadlines” set by him for presenting a specific commercial proposal - both technical and financial. There are strong suspicions that Lockheed Martin, whose dimensionless appetites were fully manifested during the creation of the same F-35, is trying to "draw" the cost of an "unmatched missile defense system" that will force the Bundestag deputies who are not prone to squandering, who have to approve the estimate, without exception clutching at the heart and head. On the other hand, pedantic Germans will surely demand guarantees of the effectiveness of their own new “shield”, especially taking into account its price. And to give those when it comes to confronting the "Vanguards" or "Daggers", hardly anyone is capable of.
Taking advantage of this, Raytheon Corporation, the developer and manufacturer of the mercilessly stigmatized Patriot, is not appeased. “They say that these Germans are boring nose! In addition to them, our missiles are bought by another dozen and a half countries, and they don’t complain anything ... ”At the same time, however, he is silent about the fact that in combat against missiles the Iraqi Al-Abbas and Al-Hussein are more serious than this complex not applied. And regarding its effectiveness during the “wars in the Gulf” to this day there is heated debate among experts. One way or another, but representatives of Raytheon already promise to introduce to the market a solution "no worse than TLVS, but at the same time half as expensive." It is difficult to say how far these assurances correspond to reality - so far this is all nothing more than projects and plans. Unlike Russian hypersonic missiles.
The United States is trying to demonstrate something like progress in creating its own “hypersound”. The other day there was published a report on the allegedly "first test of a promising separate hypersonic complex from Lockheed Martin called Air Launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW)." And even with the corresponding photos of the rocket mounted on the B-52H strategic bomber. True, the “sensation” subsequently faded somewhat - when it turned out that the pictures presented nothing more than a “mass-size model of a hypersonic aeroballistic missile”. His "tests", according to an official statement from the US Air Force press service, boiled down, in essence, to "collecting data on the effects of shock and vibration on the weapon itself and the external placement of weapons on an airplane." That is, translating into a human language that everyone understands, to clarify the question: “But will this thing fall off to hell if it is attached to a bomber?” About any tests of the engines or the warhead of the rocket was not even a question ...
Nevertheless, the Pentagon says that by 2023 the US Army will be armed with not only hypersonic missiles, but also “super-powerful combat lasers”, electromagnetic guns and other “weapons of the future”. Up to the lightsabers of the Jedi, obviously ... At the same time, the department does not hide the fact that protection against the already quite real Russian hypersonic weapons is not available today. In the very near future, they plan to spend about $ 1.2 billion on "experiments to develop counteraction to its capabilities" in the United States military. Well, experiment ... It is sad that humanity is once again entering the arms race. The only good news is that Russia is far ahead of its opponents in it.
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