Interceptor shield

Interceptor Shield Report
Nathan J Hunt
October, 20th 2007

The MDA “Missile Defense Agency” on Friday October the 26th 2007 conducted a successful forth live fire test of the new THAAD “Terminal High Altitude Area Defense” missile defense system.
The target was a SCUD type missile launched from a floating barge off of Hawaii. Following the Threat missile launch The THAADS X-Band radar detected and tracked the missile in flight and locked on. Soon after a THAAD System fired a single missile and the incoming target, at 9:15 p.m. Hawaiian standard time as the target missile reentered the atmosphere where space and the atmosphere meet, the THAAD missile hit dead on and generated a Kinetic explosion destroying the threat missile.

What is interesting is in this test the target missile was launched from a ship barge, and shows with the right assets deployed our growing ability to engage and destroy ballistic missiles that could potentially be smuggled in and fired from cargo ships. It also shows the United States growing ability to engage threats that are reentering the atmosphere in the terminal phase of flight.

Source:Missile Defense Agency

Interceptor Shield Report
Nathan J Hunt
June 24, 2007

On June 22, 2004 The Missile Defense Agency conducted a test of the sea based Aegis system. This test of the sea based system marked the first time an Aegis-BMD Destroyer was used in a missile defense test and also the first time an Aegis-BMD Destroyer intercepted an incoming threat. Up until now tests of the sea based Aegis missile defense system have taken place from CG-47 Ticonderoga class cruisers.

At 4:40 P.M. a medium range ballistic missile was launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility at Barking Sands, Kauai. Hawaii. The Crew of the USS Decatur’s Aegis Destroyer detected and began to track the ballistic missile, the crew was also aided in the tracking of the missile by the ground based THAAD system, four minutes later the crew of the USS Decatur’s fired a single SM-3 “Standard Missile-3” and about two minutes later the SM-3 Slammed into the separating warhead of the incoming threat missile outside the earths atmosphere destroying the warhead.

This test also marked the first time that Spain has taken an active part in a missile defense test, the Spanish frigate, MENDEZ NUNEZ took part in the test performing long range monitoring.

News Source
Missile Defense Agency

Interceptor Shield Report
Nathan J Hunt
June 19, 2007

On June the 18th Lockheed Martin released a press statement that the government of France has selected to acquire the Hellfire II missile system that is produced by its corporation for their fleet of 40 HAD Tiger Eurocopters that France is currently deploying.

Work has begun on modifying a HAD Tiger Helicopter at the European Organization for Joint Armament Cooperation facility in Marignane, France They are working alongside Lockheed Martin in preparing the HAD Tiger for testing with the new Missiles. Work should be completed before winter with ground tests of the missile planned in October of this year and an air test in March of 2008.

The AGM-114 HellFire Missile has proven to be extensively versatile, AGM-114 armed UAV Predator drones are used by the United States in the war on terror, an effective combination that has seen success in both Afghanistan and Iraq.
A fact that leads to the speculation, France could possibly chose to use some of the planned to be acquired AGM-114 missiles to build their own armed UAV fleet.

News Source:
LockHeedMartin

Ofeq-7 Satellite launched
Interceptor Shield Report
Nathan J Hunt
June 12, 2007

Yesterday morning June 11, 2007 Israel launched their brand new Ofeq-7 Spy satellite. The Ofeq-7 is equipped with high resolution imaging ability to take crystal clear close range images. This Satellite joins Ofeq-5 that was launched back in 2002. The Ofeq-7 was launched last morning from a three-stage solid-fuel satellite launch vehicle.

With the increase of small size rocket attacks on Israel and the continuing raising of tensions between Iran. This new Satellite will provide Israel with the ability to task one satellite to monitor Iran that has an arsenal of missiles with ranges that can reach Israel, and the other satellite to monitor areas closer to home. Or task both Satellites to monitor for guerillas setting up rocket emplacements in Lebanon.

In any area of air defense Intel is an important factor, if one knows where an attack will be originating from one can better prepare and cover that area to intercept incoming threats or take them out before they can become one.

For More information
WorldTribune
Haaretz

Interceptor Shield Report
Nathan J Hunt
June 4, 2007

On May 21 at a ceremony at the Navantia shipyard in Ferrol, Spain the Norwegian frigate Roald Amundsen was handed over to Norwegian naval personal. The Roald Amundsen is the latest ship to be completed in Norway’s five-ship program. The Roald Amundsen frigate is setup with the Lockheed Martin’s SPY-1F radar system and can support the MK-41 Vertical Launch system that can take Evolved Sea Sparrow Missiles “ESSM” or Standard Missile 2 “SM-2” with slight modifications.

These Ships once all completed and sea tested may when NATO “North Atlantic Treaty Organisation” moves into the fielding stage of it’s own Missile Defense Shield these ships could be used to form a part of NATO’s sea based program.

Interceptor Shield Report
May 25, 2007
Nathan J Hunt

The Missile Defense Agency today’s test of the ground-based interceptor at Vandenberg Air Force Base today was as the agency stated in their press release a “No Test”

The target IBCM missile that the Ground based interceptor would have engaged failed to reach the required altitude and experienced a technical error causing it to not reach the defense area that the long-range ground based interceptor was defending.

The failure of the target missile is not a fault of the ground based interceptor program and is a risk that is taken in using older missiles from the testing fleet of missiles for testing.

The Missile Defense Agency plans to bring forward another test missile that was planned to be used in a test late next year, and use it in another test later this summer. The MDA will also be conducting an investigation into why the target missile motors failed on the test threat missile.

Read More:
Missile Defense Agency

Interceptor Shield Report
May 23, 2007
Nathan J Hunt

In a security leak this week at a Japanese Naval Academy, information related to the SM-3 missile system that are to deployed on Japanese Aegis ships as part of the increased cooperation between Japan and the United States on missile defense, and information on systems for communications between the US and Japan where found to have been distributed among students.

Authorities are currently conducting an investigation of the leak to determine the extent of the leak and to whom all the information was passed onto.

Interceptor Shield Report
April 27, 2007
Nathan J Hunt

Last morning April 26, 2007 the Missile Defense Agency working along side with the United States Navy conducted a test of the sea based ballistic missile defense Aegis system, the test involved two threats targets. The first threat was a Short-range ballistic missile class missile and the second air threat was an aircraft that simulated a hostile fast attack aircraft. At 11:30 a.m. Hawaii Time (5:31 p.m. EDT) a short-range ballistic missile was launched from the Barking Sands Missile Test Range Facility in Kauai Hawaii. As the missile was launched a test threat aircraft was also launched. The Crew of the Aegis USS Lake Erie was able to successfully detect and track the threats and generate a fire control solution, they then fired a SM-2 “Standard Missile 2” and SM-3 “Standard Missile 3” both the SM-2 and SM-3 successfully engaged their targets.

Last mornings test of the Aegis system demonstrates the versatility of the Aegis system and its ability to simultaneously engage both ballistic missile threats and aircraft based threats.

Sources:
Missile Defense Agency
Guardian

Interceptor Shield Report
Nathan J Hunt
April 12, 2007

India today Thursday April 12, 2007 has conducted a successful test the Agni III Missile ballistic missile, this successful test of Agni III Missile comes following the failed test of the missile last July when the missile failed in flight before reaching the planned landing point for the missile.
The Agni III is nuclear capable missile and is the longest-range ballistic missile that India has developed and puts most major cities in China in range as well as large parts of the Middle East in range.
For years most of India’s development of missiles technology has been focused on developing missiles for possible future conflicts with Pakistan its next-door neighbor and already has a number of missile’s capable of reaching targets in Pakistan.
With China’s growing modern military and expanding forces focusing on modern combat, and the possibility of growing conflicts in the Middle-East the Agni III missile will help insure India remains one of the leading powers in the region.

Sources:
The Sydney Morning Herald
The Jerusalem Post

Interceptor Shield Report
Nathan J Hunt
February 26, 2007

Over the weekend as most of the world rested, the government of Iran conducted a test flight of an experimental space capable rocket, the deputy head of the Iranian Space Research Center “Ali Akbar Golrou” stated that the rocket did not reach orbit level and the rocket was carrying a research package, and the test rocket was built to reach a range of 93 miles but he would not confirm what height the rocket actually reached.

Iran’s test on Sunday of their experimental space rocket demonstrates Iran’s growing knowledge and handling of creating higher and longer range rockets, this knowledge can be used in two different fields. The first being with an indigenously built rocket capable of reaching and delivery payloads to space, Iran will be able to start to launch their own satellites for both communications and imaging. This same ability once perfected can also be used in the creation of a long-range ballistic missile to provide Iran with the ability to reach targets deep into Europe. Iran has for a while now had the ability to reach targets deep into Middle East and reach Israel.

Sources:
Aviationweek
breitbart