fyi......F-35 and F-22 switcheroo, too....something is terriblely wrong here............and who's going to fix it?.....TM7
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.After Demanding Patriot Missiles as Protection from Iran, Israel Sells Secret US Technology to China http://www.veteranstoday.com/2011/12/23/breaking-patriot-missiles-seized-sold-to-china-by-israel/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=breaking-patriot-missiles-seized-sold-to-china-by-israel.
Finnish authorities have confirmed the seizure of
69 Patriot missiles manufactured by Raytheon Corporation today. During a routine search of the MS Thor Liberty, a ship flagged by the Isle of Man, at the Finnish port of Kotka, authorities found 69 Patriot missiles capable of a type capable of intercepting ICBMs, the most modern available and America’s most sensitive military technology.
These units,
the most advanced Patriot system had only been supplied to nation, Israel. The 69 Patiot ICBM interceptors are believed to be a
highly secret consignment demanded by Israel as protection from any retaliatory strike by Iran were war to break out in the region, Instead of deploying them, the missiles were apparently sold to China labeled as “fireworks” accoring to Interior Minister Paivi Rasanen.
Though the missiles themselves were worth only
$4 billion, the technology transfer itself would be worth over $125 billion, and represent a signficant loss of defense capability for the United States. Sources termed it, “An absolute disaster, even if they only received the radar systems alone, much less the missiles.
That this would go unreported though the story was broken in Europe 48 hours ago is astounding. Nobody in Washington has this although even the BBC report contains more than enough information to bring Washington to a halt.
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Breaking: Patriot Missiles Seized, Sold To China by Israel 87Iron Dome Defense Missiles Seized by Finland, Labeled “Fireworks”69 Newest Patriot Missiles Bound For Reds .. “…Thorco Shipping representative, Thomas Mikkelsen said he was unaware any such cargo was on board his vessel”…a statement that categorically “debunks” attempts at denial – Editor) …by Gordon Duff, Senior Editor.Finnish authorities have confirmed the seizure of 69 Patriot missiles manufactured by Raytheon Corporation today. During a routine search of the MS Thor Liberty, a ship flagged by the Isle of Man, at the Finnish port of Kotka, authorities found 69 Patriot missiles of a type capable of intercepting ICBMs, the most modern available and America’s most sensitive military technology.
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Attempts to represent this as a sale of “second hand” PAC 2 missiles, stories filling the blogosphere, fail to address that these are PAC 3 advanced missiles and labeled for shipment to China, not Korea.
Patriot ICBM Interceptor - PAC3
The next stop for this cargo, valued at over $4 billion even without the associated radar, which may well have been shipped via some other method, was Shanghai, China.
Yet the Chinese government has given an official denial of any knowledge of this transaction.
They went even further, they claimed the missiles were heading to South Korea.
However, were China to have given the issue a second’s thought, it would have been advisable to have failed to acknowledge any familiarity with the issue whatsoever.
China walked into a trap, one that uncovered their espionage cooperation agreements that involved, not the receipt of advanced Patriot missile systems but the full plans for the F22 stealth fighter.
Initial stories from 2009 indicating China has received plans for the F35 though espionage with Israel were false.
The F22 is a far more advanced aircraft.>
On April 21, 2009, the Department of Defense announced the theft of 1.5 terabytes of data on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the platform meant give the United States and her allies air superiority for the next 40 years. In a flash, all that was gone, $300 billion dollars of funding down the drain, every system, defense, offense, stealth, everything needed to build one or shoot it down, all gone.
Day one, China was accused but it wasn’t China, it wasn’t Iran, it wasn’t Pakistan. The theft left a clear signature, one identical to the data Wikileaks has been receiving, sources inside the Pentagon repeating the actions of Israeli-Soviet spy, Jonathan Pollard. As vital as the F-35 is to America’s defense, Pollard’s triumph on behalf of Soviet Russia and Israel dwarfs the current espionage coup.
Since the 2009 announcement, there has been nothing but silence.Now we learn the Pentagon story was “cover” and it was the
F22 Raptor, not the F35, an “export plane,” that was compromised:>
F-22A Raptors - America Top Fighter
The Lockheed Martin/Boeing F-22 Raptor is a single-seat,
twin-engine fifth-generation super maneuverable fighter aircraft that uses
stealth technology.
It was designed primarily as an
air superiority fighter, but has additional capabilities that include
ground attack,
electronic warfare, and
signals intelligence roles.
[6]Lockheed Martin Aeronautics is the prime contractor and is responsible for the majority of the airframe, weapon systems and final assembly of the F-22.
Program partner Boeing Defense, Space & Security provides the wings, aft fuselage, avionics integration, and training systems.
The aircraft was variously designated
F-22 and
F/A-22 during the years prior to formally entering USAF service in December 2005 as the
F-22A. Despite a protracted and costly development period, the
United States Air Force considers the F-22 a critical component of US tactical air power, and claims that the aircraft is unmatched by any known or projected fighter.
[7]While Lockheed Martin claims that the Raptor’s combination of stealth, speed, agility, precision and situational awareness, combined with air-to-air and air-to-ground combat capabilities, makes it the best overall fighter in the world today.
[8] Air Chief Marshal
Angus Houston, former Chief of the
Australian Defence Force, said in 2004 that the “F-22 will be the most outstanding fighter plane ever built.”
[9]
Raptor Formation
The high cost of the aircraft, a lack of clear air-to-air combat missions because of delays in the Russian and Chinese fifth-generation fighter programs, a US ban on Raptor exports, and the ongoing development of the planned cheaper and more versatile
F-35 resulted in calls to end F-22 production.
[N 1]In April 2009 the
US Department of Defense proposed to cease placing new orders, subject to Congressional approval, for a final procurement tally of 187 Raptors.
[11] The
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 lacked funding for further F-22 production.
The final F-22 Raptor fighter jet rolled off the assembly line on 13 December 2011 during a ceremony at the Lockheed Martin aircraft plant at Dobbins Air Reserve Base.
[2]
China is testing a 5th generation fighter, 20 years earlier than estimated, the JA 20. It is based on systems from the Raptor and is considered a far superior plane to the F 35.
From a
January, 2011 Guardian story suppressed in the United States:
Chinese F22 Raptor Clone, 20 Years Early>
A photograph of what is reported to be a new Chinese stealth fighter and “carrier-killer” missile has prompted concerns that a tilt in the balance of military power in the western Pacific towards
China may come sooner than expected.
The emergence of the hi-tech weaponry – which would make it more difficult for the US navy and air force to project power close to Taiwan and elsewhere on China’s coastline – comes at a politically sensitive time.
Later this month, President Barack Obama and his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao, will hold a summit in Washington aimed at patching up their differences after a niggling year in bilateral relations.
The photograph, of what appears to be a prototype J-20 jet undergoing runway tests, has been circulating on the internet since last week, fueling speculation that China’s fifth-generation fighter may fly ahead of forecast.
The defence ministry has yet to comment on the image, which seems to have been shot from long-distance near the Chengdu aircraft design institute. The photographer is also unknown, which has added to the mystery about its origins and authenticity as well as the motive of the distributor.
But defence analysts believe this is the first glimpse of the twin-engined, chiseled-nosed plane that mixes Russian engine technology with a fuselage design similar to that of the US air force’s F-22 “stealth” fighter, which can avoid detection by radar.If confirmed, it would be an impressive step forward for the Chinese air force, which until now has largely depended on foreign-made or designed planes. “I’d say these are, indeed, genuine photos of a prototype that will make its maiden flight very soon,” said Peter Felstead, the editor of Jane’s Defence Weekly.
The J20 is likely to be many years from deployment, but the US defence secretary, Robert Gates – who visits Beijing next week – may have to revise an earlier prediction that China will not have a fifth generation aircraft by 2020.
It is not the only challenge to US superiority in the region. China has refurbished a Ukrainian aircraft carrier and wants to build its own by 2020.
The US and Israel had scheduled an air defense exercise this week but no Patriot missiles were to be shipped to Israel as part of their mission, DOD sources indicate.
This week’s exercise was to use Patriot missiles deployed from American ships in the eastern Mediterranean to test Israeli missile defenses. Reports indicate that all missiles for this exercise have been accounted for.
"
Patriots Away "These units, the most advanced Patriot system had only been supplied to one nation, Israel. The 69 Patriot ICBM interceptors are believed to be a highly secret consignment demanded by Israel as protection from any retaliatory strike by Iran were war to break out in the region.
Instead of deploying them, the missiles were apparently sold to China labeled as “fireworks” according to Interior Minister Paivi Rasanen.
Though the missiles themselves were worth only $4 billion, the technology transfer itself would be worth over $125 billion, and represent a significant loss of defense capability for the United States.
Sources termed it, “An absolute disaster, even if they only received the radar systems alone, much less the missiles.
That this would go unreported though the story was broken in Europe 48 hours ago is astounding.
Nobody in Washington has this although even the
BBC report contains more than enough information to bring Washington to a halt.
DOD sources indicate that it would be unusual for these missiles to be moved without radar and launch facilities to have been moved in advance. It was also indicated that the Department of Defense denies shipping any such missiles to Germany or anywhere else in Europe, labeled as “fireworks” or anything else.>
The owner of the ship of record is Thorco Shipping. Their representative, Thomas Mikkelsen said he was unaware any such cargo was on board his vessel.
Patriot Command Control Center
Claims were made that the missiles were destined for South Korea but an examination of documentation indicated that there were no South Korean ports scheduled.
Additionally, the likelihood that the US government would ship its most valuable and secret missile technology through Germany mislabeled as “fireworks” rather than on a C 17 under military security supports the Finnish claim.
Finnish police say they opened all 69 units, are recording serial numbers and have been unable to find any documentation indicating the real ownership of the seized cargo.
And they certainly have found nothing involving the any of the claimed “cover stories” involving Germany or Korea, otherwise, of course, the cargo would never have been seized nor would there have been arrests made.
Detective Superintendent Timo Virtanen of the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation is in charge of the case. He has stated:
“Actually, in our investigation at the moment, we have got the information that we found 69 Patriot missiles on the ship and around 160 tonnes of explosives.”
The explosives are identified as
nitroguandine, a low sensitivity explosive with a very high detonation speed. These explosives have several uses, among them launching shipboard or submarine launched missiles or in the development and testing of nuclear weapons design.
Finnish authorities indicate the explosives were packed in an “informal” and highly dangerous manner.
Finnish authorities indicate that the
Thor Liberty’s captain and chief officer are under arrest on suspicion of arms trafficking. Both are citizens of the Ukraine.
The government of China has denied all knowledge of the incident although the cargo was destined for their ports.
The head of Finnish Customs CID, Petri Louatmaa said this was not the first such incident but by far the most serious he has ever heard of.
Finland has requested “information” from several countries.
The US Department of Defense has assured all involved that these missiles were not being sent to South Korea and that their presence on a civilian ship either being loaded in Germany or in port in Finland was in now way a part of any exercise nor any accepted methodology for the handling of this type of ultra-high technology weaponry.
American sources further indicated confusion at the odd number of missiles:
“There are two missiles per launch container. The containers can’t be easily opened and the missiles can’t be removed for examination without damage to the launch mechanism.
They are delivered for mounting to ships or land based mobile launchers. Thus, the packaging indicated either demonstrates confusion or serious unprofessional tampering.”
Israeli officials have failed to respond to questions about the consignment.
Air Force transport command personnel indicate that high tech transfers to Israel are routinely offloaded at Schipol Airport in the Netherlands where Israel maintains secure facilities.
Editing: Jim W. Dean
Patriot PAC3s Are Shipped in Pairs - Ground to Air Patriots are Shipped With Lauchers
