|
|
 |
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Democrats will be known for Iraq surrender; Time now for homeland defense
M 6-25 ISRAELI UAV CONTINUES WORK IN IRAQ
WASHINGTON — After more than a decade in service, an Israeli-origin
unmanned aerial vehicle has retained its position as the work horse of the
U.S. Army.
The Israeli-origin Hunter UAV has become the most used unmanned platform
in Iraq. The UAV, in service with the U.S. Army since 1996, recently
surpassed 50,000 flight hours, more than half in combat.
"We're committed to continuing to enhance Hunter's performance and
making future generations of the UAS more capable as technology advances,"
Northrop Grumman vice president Dave Werkheiser said.
Also In This Edition
|
|
The UAV was developed and produced by the state-owned Israel Aerospace
Industries. In 1993, IAI supplied the Hunter MQ-5A UAV to the U.S. Army in
a program marred by technical mishaps and poor management. In the late
1990s, Northrop took over the program.
Over the last five years, Northrop, in cooperation with IAI, has
enhanced the Hunter. Executives said this included the deployment of a
weapons payload that could destroy combat vehicles.
"From the Balkans to Iraq, Hunter is a proven combat multiplier,
providing our nation's warfighters with actionable RSTA, and, in recent
months, with superior precision strike capability using Viper Strike
munitions,'' Werkheiser, general manager at Northrop Grumman's Technical
Services sector, said.
The U.S. Army has been operating both the original RQ-5A as well as the
advanced MQ-5B Hunter. The MQ-5B contains a multi-mission optronic payload
for reconnaissance and surveillance.
Executives said the new Hunter contained a communications relay package
with extended radio range. They said Northrop was developing a differential
GPS automatic takeoff and landing system.
"Hunter is adaptable for numerous missions and provides commanders with
a reliable strike-capable RSTA asset that has superb on-station endurance of
21 flight hours,'' Hunter program director Jim Perry said.
Executives said the MQ-5B relay mode enables one Hunter to be controlled
by another UAV at extended ranges. They said the Hunter was also enhanced by
upgraded flight and mission computers, an auxiliary power distribution unit,
the LN-251 inertial navigation system and GPS units, a downsized data link
system, and an APX-118 IFF transponder.
"The avionics suite improves performance by reducing size, weight, and
power consumption of the equipment used to control the aircraft and manage
its critical subsystems," Northrop Grumman said on June 21.
|
Our government has similarly acceded to the refusal of the Shiite majority in the Iraqi government to share power and oil revenue with the Sunni population. It is regrettably time to leave. It makes no sense to lose any more American soldiers or spill any more American blood. This is particularly true when, according to The New York Times, not long ago the King of Saudi Arabia referred to our occupation as “an illegal foreign occupation.” The Iraqi government has not passed a resolution denouncing the King’s comment and welcoming the presence of our troops. Even more indicative of a lack of Iraqi support for our troops is the Times report dated May 12, 2007 that “A majority of Iraq’s Parliament members have signed a petition for a timetable governing a withdrawal of American troops, several legislators said Friday.”
The war in Iraq is drawing to an end. Remember the poignancy and impact of the death of the last German soldier — played by Lew Ayres in the film “All Quiet On the Western Front” — shortly before the armistice that ended World War I,
Because the Democrats are forcing an end to the struggle in Iraq, we must now prepare to fight terrorism in our homeland for the next thirty or more years. This is a war of civilizations. The Islamic terrorists worldwide want to destroy the U.S. and every other Western nation, along with moderate Muslim nations, e.g., Egypt, Jordan, etc. Our very survival as a nation is involved. Will we have the courage and will to do all that will be necessary to prevail?
What did "victory" mean in the Cold War? Did it mean invading the USSR? Did it mean bombing Moscow? No, it meant hanging tough, preventing the Soviets from expanding their base of power, until the internal contradictions and flaws in their system brought them down. The fight against terror and Islamic radicalism has the same goal... to prevent the radicals from expanding their base, which would happen if they get control of Iraq, and to maintain a tough defense until their medieval culture adapts to the modern world.
During the Cold War the pols in Washington were mostly united in support of this goal. But now the Democrats are not. There is no safety for the weak and foolish. When you seek to end a war without substantially achieving your essential goals by simply ceasing to fight, it is often a form of surrender. And that's the way the Democrat-imposed outcome in Iraq will be understood around the world, especially by our enemies.
|
|
|
|
|
