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The U.S. military has largely relied on aerial video from drones, aircraft and satellites to locate and target Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria. But new technology could allow the Navy’s fleet of jammer jets to pinpoint battlefield insurgents hiding under cover.

“Three Growlers working together can get you weapons-quality [targeting] tracks really in a meaningfully short period of time, which is a game-changer,” Dan Gillian, the head of Boeing’s Growler program said during a meeting with reporters at the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space conference in Washington.

via New Tech Will Allow Navy To Target with Jamming Pods – Defense One.

That’s a pretty impressive capability they’re planning for the Growler to have. Triangulation is an old technique, but to generate precision targeting quality location is something quite new.

The only real problem here is, there are only 5 Growlers in an air wing. The chances of having three airborne at the same time, and available to work the same target are pretty slim.

Russia lifted its ban on the delivery of an anti-missile system to Iran just weeks after negotiators reached a framework agreement over Iran’s nuclear program, Reuters reported on Monday.

The ban on the delivery of the S-300 system and other weapons has been in place since 2010, when the United Nations announced its own ban on selling arms to Iran.

Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly signed off on lifting the ban on providing S-300 anti-missile rocket systems to Iran.

via Russia lifts ban on delivering missile system to Iran | TheHill.

There are a couple different variants of the S-300 system, some more capable than others. Still, even the most basic variant is an impressive anti-air system that is a more capable long range system than what the US is used to facing.

That d0esn’t mean the air defenses are impenetrable. It means that the costs in both resources required, and possible losses, is high than if a less robust system were in use.

Given that there are virtually no circumstances under which this administration might order air strikes into Iran* it is something of a moot point. The Israelis have no great desire to go there either.

SpaceX CRS-6 Launch on Livestream.

The Army is overhauling mental health services after years of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, aiming to end an era of experimentation in which nearly 200 programs were tried on different bases.

At Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) and elsewhere, the Army has pushed counseling teams out of hospitals to embed with troops. It’s also cutting back the use of private psychiatric hospitals while expanding intensive mental health programs at military facilities like Madigan Army Medical Center.

The reforms come at a time when the Army, despite a dramatic reduction in troops headed to a war zone, still faces serious challenges trying to reach and treat soldiers with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health conditions

via Army takes hands-on approach to military mental health – Army – Stripes.

This strikes me at first blush as a pretty good idea.

Currently, when a soldier is referred for mental health care, they report to the centralized office on post, either at the base hospital or Troop Medical Clinic.

Under the new program at Lewis, each BCT will be supported by a dedicated team, co-located with them. It’s a lot easier, as the article notes, to walk across the parking lot than to have to go clear across post.

Also, having teams in direct support of specific units will likely increase continuity of care. Mental health professionals will also likely be better able to form an opinion on the environments in the units they support.

It should be noted that the MHTs will apparently not be under the command of the supported unit, but remain under their own chain of command.

This isn’t a panacea that will resolve all issues, but does seem like a good approach.

When we talk about mental health in the service, we really should distinguish a couple of different things. First, there is PTSD, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder- that is, the challenges of war have a debilitating effect on many troops, and they need services to help bring them back to a fully functional state.

The other kind of mental health issue is  this- simply serving in the Army can be hugely stressful and disorienting for many people. Remember, many young soldiers are away from family and lifelong friends for the first time, in a new environment, far away from home, and often for the very first time in their lives forced to meet demanding standards of performance, behavior and conduct, all while also simply being treated as an adult for the first time. Most troops handle that with aplomb. Some struggle with adapting to that environment.

At some point, many who cannot adapt are discharged as unsuitable for the military lifestyle. But given the costs associated with recruiting and training an otherwise qualified individual, many times, the costs and time needed to provide counseling and mental health care that can enable them to serve satisfactorily would be cheaper than discharging them and replacing them.

GROTON, Connecticut — A surge of work is rippling through the building yards of General Dynamics Electric Boat (EB) the likes of which has not been seen since the end of the Cold War.

At the manufacturing facility in Quonset Point, Rhode Island, and the assembly and design facilities in Groton and New London, Connecticut, thousands of employees have been added, with more hires to come. Quonset Point is expanding and erecting new buildings and the Groton waterfront is getting a major refurbishment. The ramp ups are expected to continue for at least another decade, into the mid-2020s and beyond.

All this is in reaction to a heightened tempo of submarine attack boat construction, increased conversion and overhaul work, and the beginnings of the program to build the biggest undersea craft the US Navy has ever fielded — a new class of ballistic missile subs known as the Ohio Replacement Program (ORP), designated SSBN(X) by the Navy.

via Bow Wave of Subs Rolling Through Yards.

The split plant production of the Virginia class SSNs was something of a rice bowl operation, ensuring both yards got contracts. It’s not exactly the most efficient method of doing things.

Having said that, EB and NNS are making it work.

In an era where programs such as LCS, the JSF, the Army’s FCS, and the Marines EFV were all over budget and behind schedule, it’s nice to see a major program ticking along so successfully that few people even note its existence.

The LA class submarines were a hugely successful program, and an astonishing 62 boats were built from 1972 to 1996.

The Navy likely won’t receive anything like that number of Virginia class boats over the life of the program, but will continue to maintain a sizeable fleet of attack subs.

The block improvement program is both a blessing and a curse. First, improved capabilities are planned even while deliveries of an already excellent design are being made. That’s a good, rational approach. The downside is that the most efficient method of delivering ships is to freeze a design and then mass produce it. That also has the benefit of providing a homogenous configuration, which is easier to support over a design’s lifetime. In this program, the Navy has decided that the costs associated with block upgrades during production are sufficiently minimal that the improvements are justified going forward. And given that the program has generally stayed on track, it appears that risk calculation was correct.

As an aside, the rumor mill is saying the current Director of Nuclear Reactors is on the inside lane for selection as the next CNO. That might just have something to do with the quiet successes the submarine Navy has been enjoying lately.

Well, there’s something you don’t see every day.

H/T: Funkers 350