Month: October 2008

Eated*

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High Desert Federal Credit Union, taken over yesterday.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

High Desert Federal Credit Union Placed Into Conservatorship
High Desert Federal Credit Union is Open and Operating, Member Accounts are Safe and Federally Insured

October 16, 2008, Alexandria, Va. — The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) has assumed control of the operations of High Desert Federal Credit Union headquartered in Apple Valley, California. The Federal Credit Union Act authorizes the NCUA Board to appoint itself conservator when necessary to conserve the assets of a federally insured credit union, protect members’ interests or protect the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund.

Service continues uninterrupted at High Desert Federal Credit Union and members are free to make deposits, access funds, make loan payments and use share drafts. While the credit union was placed into conservatorship because of a declining financial condition, the decision to conserve a credit union enables the institution to continue normal operations with expert management in place.

Member accounts are insured to at least $250,000 while IRA and KEOGH retirement accounts are separately insured up to $250,000 under coverage provided by the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, a federal fund backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. Members with questions about their insurance coverage can contact NCUA’s Consumer Assistance Center at 800-755-1030 Monday through Friday between 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. (EDT).

High Desert Federal Credit Union was originally chartered in 1951 and today serves those who live, work, or worship in San Bernardino County, California. The credit union has $149 million in assets and serves over 13,000 members.

The National Credit Union Administration is the independent federal agency that charters and supervises federal credit unions. NCUA, with the backing of the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, operates the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, insuring the deposits of 89 million account holders in all federal credit unions and the vast majority of state-chartered credit unions. NCUA is funded by credit unions, not tax dollars.

The following links to a document for members being posted on the High Desert Federal Credit Union website concerning the conservatorship, http://www.hdfcu.org.

-NCUA-

*I ripped off this term from Atrios.

Signs of the Apocalypse: ECB Drops Inflation as Priority

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We now have a report that the European Central Bank, the entity that serves in the role held by the Federal Reserve in the Euro Zone, has decided to set aside all inflation concerns for the moment:

The European Central Bank’s main task is to keep inflation down. But over the past month, it has thrown caution to the wind in trying to prevent financial system and integrated economy of Europe from falling apart.

When you consider the fact that the charter of the ECB was only to deal with inflation, because of German experiences with hyperinflation in the 1920s (wheelbarrows of cash for a loaf of bread).

Unlike the Fed, the ECB has no mandate to maintain stable employment….It’s only role is to keep inflation low, and they are freaking out.

An Interesting Take on MRAP’s in Afghanistan

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One of the things in big demand in Iraq were Mine Resistant Ambushed Protected vehicles (MRAP) to deal with road side bombs.

Well it appears that the experience with these vehicles in Afghanistan has been far less positive than in Iraq:

During my recent embed with Marines in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province, the number one gear complaint was the MRAP: it was too wide for most roads, and the top-heavy vehicles were prone to rollover.

Iraq is, after all, a fairly flat country with an excellent road system, and Afghanistan is probably the opposite of this.

Given the high wheel loads and the top heavy nature of these vehicles this is to be expected.

MRAPs are not just a counterinsurgency specific system, they are a “counterinsurgency with good roads specific” system.

Just How Dirty Was Tony Blair?

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Because we already know that Prince Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Al Saudr, known as “Bandar Bush” for his close ties to the Bush Crime Family, is unbelievably dirty. He took around £1 billion in commissions to “facilitate” the military sales in question.

Tony Blair shut down the investigations into bribes around the Al-Yamamah arms sales to the house of Saud in response to threats from that nation, and now the OECD has released a blistering critique of the behavior of the British government at that time for Blair’s shutting down that investigation.

Maybe Bush and Blair can share a cell.

RAND Gets Paid to Support Bloated Defense Budgets

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In looking at the Rand study, I neglected part of the bigger picture, that they are to a large degree paid by the Department of Defense to provide data supporting larger defense budgets.

Thus their study on the F-22 and F-35 showing that China would do them like a drunk sorority sister was part of a policy of pumping up the Chinese threat in order to justify larger budgets:

A new RAND study suggests U.S. air power in the Pacific would be inadequate to thwart a Chinese attack on Taiwan in 2020. The study, entitled “Air Combat Past, Present and Future,” by John Stillion and Scott Perdue, says China’s anti-access arms and strategy could deny the U.S. the “ability to operate efficiently from nearby bases or seas.”

I think that some of the problems, particularly with a defense procurement system that is as dysfunctional as the Bush family, are real, but the intended audience of this is Congressional appropriations committee.

It’s not a call for military reform, it’s a call for more of the same.

It Looks Like the USAF and the JSF in Particular, Are In For Some Heat

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The Rand corporation, which a few weeks ago said that the 4th generation fighters would club the F-35 Lightning II like a baby seal, is now saying that the USAF’s reliance on extremely high tech cutting edge aircraft is unlikely to work in a real war, and are failing now:

The Rand and CSIS reports both deliver sharply critical outlooks for the future of US airpower. The first suggests that the superior technology of next-generation US fighters are no match for superior numbers and geographic advantage. The second, entitled America’s Self-Destroying Airpower, concludes failures of strategy and planning have made the US military-industrial complex its own worst enemy.

The reports go on to describe, “widespread breakdowns across the US military’s acquisition system for developing and fielding modern combat aircraft.”

Speaking from my personal experience working on the Army’s Future Combat System, it ain’t limited to aircraft.

At its core is the problem that systems are too damn expensive.

Neither aircraft offers a meaningful increase in performance in current deployments, just added costs.

US Army Aviation Looking for Helo Game Changer

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It looks like they are checking out both the, “Piasecki/Boeing X-49 SpeedHawk compound helicopter and the Sikorsky X2 coaxial helicopter,” as an interim measure toward higher performance helicopters, and they are looking at things like the Joint Heavy Lift (JHL) , such as the, “Bell Boeing QuadTiltrotor, a Sikorsky heavylift helicopter concept and the Karem/Lockheed optimum speed tiltrotor,” to carry A-400M sized, or at least larger than C-130 sized, loads.

What is really at the core of a lot of this is that since 1947, when the USAF became a separate branch of the service, and took over fixed wing aviation, they have not been well served, so they are looking toward bringing the capabilities back in house through new helicopter technologies.

Interesting Take on Guided 70mm Rocket

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The Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS), which incorporates a laser seeker guidance system.

There is an interesting twist to the guidance package, the APKWS mounts a fixed laser seeker on each wing, as opposed to the traditional gimballed laser seeker in the nose.

It’s certainly mechanically simpler. My guess would be that the deltas between the 4 seekers are used to get a precise aim point with the processor.

It’s called the Distributed Aperture Semi-Active Laser Seeker (DASALS) a good example of using computing power to make a simpler and cheaper device.

Note for the metrically disinclined 70mm= 2.75-inch rocket.

BTW, here is some video pr0n of the system (4m 16s):

Another Project that I Worked On* Has News

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The US Marines have just put in orders for 7 more Expeditionary Fighting Vehicles (EFV).

It’s a very ambitious ambitious amphibious vehicle, when I worked on it it was called the Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicle (AAAV), and it is a very ambitious program, a 35 ton vehicle capable of 40 kts in the water by planing like a speed boat.

In any case, it has hit the trifecta in military contracting, over budget, behind schedule, and having technical shortcomings, and the new protypes are supposed to address.

  • Wiring and corrosion, and water infiltration issues.
  • Insufficient rigidity in the auto-cannon turret leading to feed issues.
  • Instability in water, leading to problems staying on plane.

They are not looking at full rate production starting at 2025.

*Yes, I have worked everywhere. Maybe I can’t hold down a job, but more likely this has been my role as “technical hit man”, where you are parachuted in to take care of a specific need.

Boeing Looking at Compound Helicopter Technology for Apache

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Boeing is looking at licensing Piasecki Aircraft’s compount helicopter technology for an improved Apache.

It strikes me that this might be a very good marriage of technology.

I’m not sure that it will make much difference on the actual battlefield, the mode would still be pop-up and shoot, but I can see a serious increase in range for deployment or by reducing response time from a base to the station.

Little Bird Returns in the Autumn

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Sorry about the hed, I thought it sounded cool, like code words for two spies who meet for the first time.

It’s actually true too, as the AH-6 Little Bird scout light attack/reconnaissance helicopter is experiencing a renaissance as a result of the problems with the Bell ARH-70, which is behind schedule and over budget. Boeing is not explicitly looking to replace the ARH-70 through the cancellation of the contract, though the US Army is considering this.

Right now, they are pitching the AH-6 on the export market, which has viewed Bells problems with some alarm.

[Update]
The Pentagon has declined to certify the ARH-70A Arapaho following a Nunn-McDurdy (budget) breach, so the program is effectively canceled.

Seeing as how Boeing has largely fixed the manufacturing capability issues that dogged their first bid, I expect them to come back and win the bid, but we know what my predictions are worth.


ARH-70A Arapaho


AH-6 Little Bird

I will note that the AH-6 has seen combat service with the Israeli Defense Forces.

Who Am I To Argue With an 82 Year Old Woman Blogger?

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Who titles her blog post, “Sarah Palin is a Bitch… there I said it“:

Look. I am going to say what everyone at CNN, CBS, ABC and NBC is thinking but is afraid to say. Governor Palin is a stupid, conniving bitch. And it’s not because she is a strong woman – I like strong women… worship them… It’s actually the opposite. She is a weak, pathetic woman who thinks big hair, winking, baby talk and self deprecation is somehow becoming of a woman who wants to lead the free world. My god, where is Margaret Thatcher when you need her!

Heh.