Eurofighter or Grypen

The Gryppen has been involved in many PR coups here in Romania including taking a ride with famous tv journalist. However, the Minister of Defence, has recently expressed his opinion in favor of the Eurofighter. He told the Prime Minister and the Press that the TYphoon is the only fighter that can defeat modern Russian fighters such as the su35. He gave a 60 % chance of success against the Su35 which seemed pretty low to me but he also added that the Gryppen stands no chance against modern russian fighters. The f16 seems out of the race for now as well as the rafale so it will probably be a Grypen or Typhoon

i ve watched the one on Afghanistan. Pretty impressive. I have noticed that the pilots don’t give details about the weapons (ag) they are using and it seemed to me that along the Rafale, there were some Super etendard flying.
Also, it is interesting to listen to the french pilots. They look /sound very professionnel but they don’t have this God like attitude common the american pilots
There is one pilot if Dushanbe giving details about his equipment in case of emergency (crash and eject) / We have something to defend ourselves( a handgun), something to allow us to be found (gps) and some equipment for health emergency. Very genuine and without a trace of arrogance

to glitter

Well Romania’s budget for the 48 new air planes is 4.5 billion euros including weapons, training and spare parts. That should be enough for the Rafale, shouldn’t it ? The eurofighter offer includes everything for this price and the latest version (block 3) with improved AG capabilities.
By the way, Romania was operating the Magic 2 missiles and the Durandal so it has some experience with french weapons. My favorite is the Rafale and the Eurofighter for this deal.
As for the F16, no please no…. When I see what happend to the poor poles with their brand new f16…

Rafale in the game in Romania’s procurement

Acccording to this (http://www.gandul.info/actual/avionul-francez-rafale-posibil-inlocuitor-mig-21-lancer.html?3927;860847), the Rafale in officially in the game for the romanian air force procurement tender. Romania needs and will buy 48 new planes – first deliveries expected in 2010- . The initial contenders were the f16 and the jas 39. The Jas 39 seemed to have the lead recently. This year, after a tremendous show by Eurofighter, the f16 option was loosing definitively loosing the race, while the Eurofighter was in the lead. Now the Rafale comes in to the game, and I suppose that by 2010, a more advanced version may be available (can anyone confirm this ?), able to outsmart the Typhoon block 3 on the offer. The article mentions other possible contenders (total of 6, I suppose F 18 f) and also the fact that the f22 is too expensive for Romania (no, really ?)

Romania

Ok my wish list for Romania – which intends to buy 48 new planes in 2007/2008 –
No JAS 39 or modernised F16.

A squadron of Rafale C for air superiority and deep strike 24/30 planes armed with Scalp
Three squadrons of J10 or Mig 35 or Su35 for expeditionnary and fighter bombing duties 72 new planes
three batteries of S300 to cover the Black Sea
50 IAR 99 for training and close air support
12-16 A400 for long range transportation
20-30 Spartan

Soviet EW capbilities in action 1989

Adding to earlier Rokossovsky comments about Soviet involvement in 1989’s regime overthrow of Romania’s communists regime, I would like to stress out the lessons learned from that event
Background
After the Berlin wall fell, Romania was one of the last Eastern European countries with an old style dictator, Ceausescu. He was very upset by the fact that the Soviet would not intervene in East GErmany of in the other Warsaw pact countries to support the communist rule. He personnally called for that intervention and he was exactly the ideal type of dictator Gorbatchev loved to hate. He was an old style autocrat, rejected perestroika and commenting loudly about the threats to socialism posed by Gorbatchev reforms. When he saw he was alone – last dictator standing – he raised his voice and began to ask for compensation from Soviet Union, including, even the return of Bessarabia – then a soviet republic, now Moldova – to Romania. Bessarabia – Moldova – was an old Romanian province, with more than 75 % of the population of Romanian origine and it was annexed by Staline to the USSR. Ceausescu was the first Romanian leader to ask it back from the USSR, in a desperate move to gain legitimacy at home with a nationalist posture. This infuriated Gorbatchev and their last meeting in november 1989 went out badly with the two leaders yelling at each other and Gorbatchev getting an outstanding ovation in the – generally docile – communist romanian Parliament.
The end was near.

Events – Soviet role, fight for power
I don t want to get in details about the Romanian uprising/revolution but to stress out what is known about Soviet involvement/tactics. The initial riot against the communist regime broke out in Western Romania, tanks were sent in and after one hundred deaths in Timisoara, the revolt spread to Bucharest. a popular movement – millions in the street – was met by fierce resistance from a couple of Ceuausescu’s loyal security troops. However, in the same time, a fight for power emerged between the following forces
– Romanian army eager to pose as a defender of the people and of the state and to make everyone forget that it was involved in the initial massacres of civilians
– security services, including the Securitate , split broadly in three categories
a) special forces, loyal to Ceausescu – very few –
b) forces loyal to the new political leaders agreed by Moscow – a substantial number .

c) nationalist, anti Ceuasescu security services.
A good portion of the security services were infiltrated by KGB agents. Romania, although it was a member of Warsaw Pact, was by 1989, pretty much preparing against a Soviet take over – see background -. Since Romanians as a nation hated the Soviet Union for taking over Bessarabia – Moldova and imposing Communism -, there was little loyalty for the Soviet union in the political and technical structures of the state .
The largest part of the the Securitate and the best people were in Directia 1, the anti KGB section , spying and supervising soviet political and military agents in Romania. They coulndt arrest them, cause Romania was officially in the Warsaw pact but they tried to control them as much as possible.
When Ceausescu fell, a fight for power was initiated between these forces. The new political leaders were seeking Soviet intervention and support, some secret services were fighting to preserve the nation from it – , and some – very few still supported Ceausescu for its nationalist posture

Soviet intervention
Soviet intervention in Romania is well documented, for instance in Jacques Levesques, Dean of political sciences faculty in Montreal – UQAM books – to which I also contributed a chapter 🙂 .
This intervention was a model for what could have happen in Western Europe.
Intervention in a hostile country with some local agents in the field and against a defending army. Of course, the soviets never actually send the tanks in Romania over the border even if – hard to believe, but true – the americans, who were busy invading Panama invited them to do so to maintain order. But the initial phases of the intervention are worth mentioning
1. a few hundreds soviet tourists entered the country in the days before Ceuasescu fell. Their presence, their cars – ladas – and their journey was well monitored by the secret services and everything was published after the regime change
2. a strong and massive Electronic warfare was initiated against ROmania in the early days of Ceausescu’s fall. Hundreds of electronic – simulated targets suddenly appeared on the radar screens coming in from the East – Normal – but also from the West and South . this drove the romanian air defence crazy since they army believe they were facing an invasion from Hungary, Yugoslavia and USSR. Tens of real planes played with the nerves of the air defence at the edge of the borders.
HUndreds of SAMs were launched with no effect and a total chaos took over the romanian army. Helicopters and military planes belonging to the Romanian air force were shot down by mistake. Radio transmitters were active all over the country and troops and gendarmerie run to find them in abandonned villas, or inhabited farms etc. All this consumed an immense amount of logistical energy and inevitably led to chaos and friendly fire victims.

The radars showed massive drops of airborned troops nearby bucharest and major confusion occurred with romanian – poorly trained – conscript soldiers shooting at special forces – with different uniform – belonging to different units who were looking for soviet airborne units. Communications between all major cities were broken – probably by russian special forces – disguised as tourists – , radio communication between army troops were jammed and soviet diplomats, tourists and TASS journalists were always to be found near train wreckages, sabotaged water or gas pipes or administrative buildings – many were arrested -.
. More than 1100 people died in these fightings from December 22d to December 26th, in only 4 days, which is pretty much considering that only 200 died to actually overthrow the regime – Ceausescu fled on the 22d december was captured, and shot -.
Soviet divisions, at the eastern border tried to enter the country at the call of the new regime – Moscow’s friends-, to support it and some romanian army generals ordered to fire at them. The soviet troops stopped, but a few days laters, these romanian generals who opposed their intervention died in helicopters downed by hand held SAM . These incidents were never explained, no one knew how it was possible but it appeared that all communication traffic was monitored by soviet systems

At the beginning of January of 1990, a new regime was in place, Ceausescu was dead and Moscow had tested its intervention techniques. Romania would eventually organize elections and gradually slip away from soviet influence, join NATO etc. But these events in december 1989 show some lessons about soviet operations techniques for an intervention in hostile countries. Of course Western europe was not Romania and the romanian airforce and communication technologies were years behind. However, without a real invasion, Romania , an anti russian country with an army and security services preparing for a soviet invasion, was thrown into a chaos by a few hundred special forces and electronic warfare organised by the USSR. I suppose that something similar would have happened in Western Europe with all these pro communist agents , and special forces infiltrated by the USSR. This type of destabilising techniques and secret operations would have certainly supported the momentum of a soviet massive invasion.

Nice girls if you catch them in holidays in SOuthern Europe where they are more relaxed. The Red neighborhood in Amsterdam is quite civilised. Moscow or Bangkok night life are really a thrill but I never felt threatened in Amsterdam. Even the junkies seemed under check.As for the girls they run their operations like a bank office.

the onion

it is from http://www.theonion.com.They are the ones who unveiled the US army exit plan from Iraq : through Iran.