Is government mistaking the masses for asses

 

 Is government mistaking the masses for asses

Sat, 19 Oct 2024 Daily Mirror LK

In the run-up to the presidential election of 21st September this year, the JVP/NPP political combine was at the forefront of highlighting the problems of the poorer sections of our country. It campaigned on a platform of anti-corruption and protecting the poor and disadvantaged. 

It’s been less than a month since the new President Dissanayake was elected to office. Normally regime change in our country has been based on rejection of politics from one party to the second. This year saw a change -people opted for a third party. They voted on policies. 

Immediate past President Wickremesinghe was not elected by the public. To his credit, he steadied the ship of state and negotiated an IMF deal and build up the country’s creditworthiness. But steadying the ship of state came at a cost.  

The cost of living skyrocketed beyond the means of large sections of the community and the sitting president defeated. 

Poverty rates nearly doubled to 23.4 percent in 2024. The official poverty line (OPL)- (the OPL represents an absolute threshold, designed to ensure a person can meet a minimum nutritional intake of 2,030 kcal per day). In January 2024 OPL increased to Rs.17,014, indicating a family of four needed an income of Rs. 100,000 per month. 
According to NHS UK an average man needs 2,500kcal a day, an average woman 2,000kcal a day. Recent statistics show, the general average monthly wage in the formal sector of our country is estimated to be between Rs 45,000 to Rs. 60,000. Yet the cost of having 2 square meals daily is over Rs. 100,000 per month. 

For a large section of our people, poverty and malnutrition is now a persistent challenge and people could not meet it. 

The president’s victory was therefore a call for policy and system change. It brought the young and untested President Dissanayake to power. Dissanayake promised an end to corruption, family bandyism and offer a better deal to the weaker sections of our community.  

The empowering of Dissanayake is a despairing last gasp of a desperate people.

It was this despair, that changed the 3 percent vote presidential aspirant Dissanayake received during the November 2019 presidential election to a massive 42 per cent victory five years later. 

The new president initially made the correct moves. He informed the IMF he would lessen the burdens laid on poorer sections of the population. He trimmed his Cabinet to four members! Cut security and vehicles provided to Members of Parliament. He also promised reduced prices of specific commodities, a Rs. 3,000 increase to pensioners, subsidised agricultural inputs to farmers and fuel subsidies to fishing communities. 

A damned good performance one might be tempted to say. The reality however, is despite the new regime’s promise to alleviate the sufferings of the masses, little seems to have materialised.  

The government seems to be sweeping election pledges ‘under the carpet’. 
Recently prices of particular commodities which were earlier lowered, saw price increase. Apparently none of the president’s advisors had realised the cost of  producing of a single egg was higher than the selling price ordered by government.  
Days later the government announced a price rise of potatoes. Worse, the government has announced an increase in the tax on several food items.  

Mysoor dhal -an important source of vegetable protein- will see an increase in tax of .25 cts per kg. A special commodity tax of Rs. 302/- per kg has been imposed on Maldive fish. Fresh and frozen fish, with the exception of processed fish will be taxed at 10% or Rs. 400- per kg -whichever is higher! 

Come on President, your fish tax is a blow to our suffering masses. A blow to the solar plexus of the fishing community. Soon they may not have a market for their product as even the richer sections of society may not be able to afford the product. 

And, horror of horrors, the political Opposition claims new loans (sale of government bonds) amounting to billions are being spent to cover current expenditure rather than on profitable investment. 

If the political opposition is correct the quantum of debt repayment is increasing. 
With apologies to Charles Dickens, we may soon have to say “...think again AKD’ president of Sri Lanka⍐.

Questions Linger Over Australia’s Role In B-2 Spirit Strikes On Yemen

 

Questions Linger Over Australia’s Role In B-2 Spirit Strikes On Yemen

We now know that Australian air bases were used to support the Yemen strikes, although officials are tight-lipped about which aircraft types used them and how.

Thomas Newdick Oct 18, 2024 The War Zone

The U.S. Air Force used air bases in Australia to support the strikes on Houthi weapons bunkers in Yemen by B-2 stealth bombers earlier this week. At this point, there is some confusion as to whether B-2s were among the aircraft that used Australian bases, but USAF tankers likely supported the bombers, launching refueling operations from Australian soil. You can read our initial coverage and analysis of the B-2 strikes in Yemen here. Regardless, the development reflects the expanding military and strategic alliance between the United States and Australia, which has included upgrades for Australian air bases, specifically to better accommodate U.S. bombers.

The Australian Department of Defense has confirmed that Australian support for the U.S. strikes on Yemen on the night of October 16/17 did include “access and overflight for U.S. aircraft in northern Australia.”

A report from Australia’s national broadcaster ABC stated that “A remote Northern Territory air base has been used as a staging post for this week’s major U.S. airstrike on underground Houthi weapons stores in Yemen.”

This could point to Royal Australian Air Force Base Tindal, a remote installation south of Darwin, which has been receiving upgrades to better accommodate U.S. bomber deployments, as you can read about here. The work is projected to be completed in late 2026. Available low-resolution satellite imagery for the dates in question doesn’t show any B-2s at Tindal — which is not conclusive in itself — but there are other possible operating locations in northern Australia, including some auxiliary installations.

RAAF Tindal seen in May of 2024 with the new apron for supporting U.S. bombers under
construction. (Google Earth)

Subsequently, the same broadcaster reported that the Australian Department of Defense would not confirm or deny whether U.S. aircraft involved in the strikes had taken off from Tindal. The emphasis on taking off may be critical here, as we will discuss later.

The ABC report on the subject was then altered to include a statement from an Australian Department of Defense spokesperson who said that B-2s were not operating out of Tindal, but would not provide further comments, due to operational security.

There has been plenty of speculation that B-2s at least used Tindal to recover to, landing there after the Yemen raid. That remains possible since the later Australian Department of Defense comment was in response to a question as to whether the stealth bombers were operating out of the base (i.e. taking off for the raid) as opposed to landing there afterward.

As for the official U.S. line, this appears to point to a roundtrip from Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, the main operating base for the type, although it may be the case that one or more Australian bases were made available as an alternative landing site, after the mission. If the flight was direct, it would have literally flown around the world.

The periodic presence of U.S. bombers in Australia is by no means new, dating back to the early 1980s, while larger-scale training exercises in the country have involved U.S. bombers since 2005. More recently, the Enhanced Air Cooperation Initiative has been in place, involving deeper efforts to have the RAAF and U.S. military aircraft work closer together, with regular bomber rotations since 2018.

B-2s have been regular visitors to Australia in recent years, with four of the stealth bombers having deployed to RAAF Base Amberley, in Queensland, in 2022, something you can read more about here(n/a).

A U.S. Air Force B-2 stealth bomber takes off from RAAF Base Amberley in Queensland.
Australian Department of Defense CPL Brett Sherriff

The bat-winged bombers were again in Australia earlier this year, when a pair made another visit to Amberley in August, for a Bomber Task Force mission.

It is meanwhile more or less certain that U.S. Air Force aerial refueling tankers did make use of Australian air bases to support the raids. Photos — backed up by some satellite imagery — show KC-135 Stratotankers and KC-46 Pegasus tankers at Cairns Airport in Queensland and more KC-135s at RAAF Amberley, soon after the strikes. Even if B-2s didn’t make use of Australian bases for the raid, it seems that U.S. tankers did, which would explain references to “access and overflight for U.S. aircraft in northern Australia.”

An Australian official further told ABC that the support Australia provided was “consistent with our long-standing alliance commitment and close cooperation, demonstrating the interoperability of our militaries.”

“Australia is committed to supporting the U.S., and key partners, in disrupting Houthi capabilities used to threaten global trade and the lives of mariners in the Red Sea, a vital international waterway,” an Australian Department of Defense spokesperson added.

U.S. Air Force F-22A Raptors assigned to the 27th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron along with 

Royal Australian Air Force F-35A Lightning IIs from No 75 Squadron and a KC-30A Multi Role Tanker Transport aircraft from No 33 Squadron, demonstrate a show of force by conducting an elephant walk at RAAF Base Tindal, Australia, July 31, 2024. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Spencer Tobler Staff Sgt. Spencer Tobler

While the raids may well have degraded the Houthis’ ability to wage their ongoing campaign against shipping in the Red Sea region, as TWZ previously pointed out, they were also tailored to deliver a powerful and highly specific message to Iran, the Houthis’ primary benefactor.

At this point, it’s unclear if that message was underscored by the use of the GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator, better known as the MOP, a weapon ideal for attacking targets including the extremely hardened sites related to Iran’s nuclear program. This looked like a distinct possibility, especially due to the fact that B-2s were used for the strikes. The MOP, weighing in around 30,000 pounds, can only be carried by the B-2. Two can be carried by each of the stealth bombers at a time.

So far, the Air Force has not confirmed what weapons were used, although Air & Space Forces Magazine reports that the B-2s dropped 2,000-pound BLU-109-equipped GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM), citing a “person familiar with the matter.”

Munitions maintainers from around the Pacific assemble BLU-109 munitions at Osan Air Base,
South Korea. U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Stephenie Wade Staff Sergeant Stephenie Wade

The BLU-109 is another precision munition with a penetrating warhead. Each B-2 can carry 16 of these weapons.

It’s also possible that 5,000-pound class bunker-busters might have been used, although the exact status of this weapon in the B-2’s inventory is unclear.

A very early graphic from the MOP program showing the bomb able to penetrate up to 60 feet
under the ground. By 2007, the weapon was reportedly capable of burrowing nearly four times
deeper than this. This also offers a comparison between the 2,000lb BLU-109-equipped guided
bomb and 5,000lb GBU-28. DOD via GlobalSecurity.org

As we reported at the time, whatever type of bunker-buster munitions were used by the B-2s, the raid was a very clear signal to Iran that the United States is uniquely well equipped to target critical facilities “no matter how deeply buried underground, hardened, or fortified,” in the words of a Pentagon statement. While Iran was not mentioned by name, the implication is very clear.

While acknowledging that it provided support to the United States, specifically in its effort to blunt the Houthis’ ability to target Red Sea shipping, Australia also didn’t mention Iran by name.

Darwin lawmaker Luke Gosling told ABC that Australia works “incredibly closely with the U.S. Air Force” in the north.

Gosling added that there are “no deliberate messages being sent from Australia, other than we are in lock-step with our allies in order to uphold a rules-based order upon which Australia’s security and prosperity is so dependent.”

The most obvious example of the deepening relationship between Australia and the United States is the AUKUS initiative — standing for Australia, United Kingdom, United States. This is a wide-ranging effort, with standout items including the supply of nuclear-powered attack submarines to Australia, and increased intelligence sharing.

A RAAF F-35A Lightning II, EA-18G Growler, and F/A-18F Super Hornet fly alongside a U.S.
Air Force B-52H from the 23rd Expeditionary Bomb Squadron based at Guam during Exercise Talisman Sabre 21. Australian Department of Defense SGT Andrew Eddie

At the same time, the United States has been ramping up bomber deployments at Tindal, while also sending bombers to other Australian air bases, as Washington continues to expand its military presence in the region.

The upgrade work at Tindal includes an expanded apron with space for up to six B-52 strategic bombers, squadron operations facilities, and maintenance infrastructure. Once completed, the airbase will be much better able to host bomber detachments, as well as tankers and fighters, with work also addressing fuel and munitions storage and mission planning buildings.

Work at Tindal, as well as AUKUS and other related developments, have been widely seen as a deterrent aimed toward China. While that remains true, it is now clear that the growing U.S. military footprint in Australia is also being leveraged to strike targets in the Middle East.

Significantly, Tindal will add another forward operating location for U.S. bombers, on top of Hawaii, Guam, and Diego Garcia, also in the broader region. Although with appropriate tanker support, there is no reason why bombers can’t also use the base to support operations in the Middle East or elsewhere.

It remains to be seen whether RAAF Base Tindal or any other base was used for the first time by B-2s conducting combat operations, but the fact that Australia was used to support air operations over Yemen, in and of itself, is a significant development, at a time of increasing military cooperation with the United States⍐. 

___________________________________________

More

Inside the Longest Bombing Run Ever

Wednesday, Dec 10, 2014 uso.org

Inside the Longest Bombing Run Ever

 By Dr. Mel Deaile

More than 14 years ago, America suffered the most devastating attack on its homeland. Once the debris and dust settled from the collapse of the twin towers, it became clear America had to respond.

Standing atop a pile of rubble at ground zero 13 days after the attack, President George W. Bush told first responders, “I can hear you, the rest of the world can hear you and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon.”

Addressing Congress and the nation a week later, Bush said, “Whether we bring our enemies to justice or bring justice to our enemies, justice will be done.” While the president was making the case for action in the face of 9/11, at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, the home of the B-2 stealth bomber, crews were already preparing for whatever military action the president ordered.

Whiteman sits about an hour east of Kansas City in the one-stoplight town of Knob Noster, Missouri. Since 1993, it has been the permanent home for America’s entire fleet of B-2 Spirit bombers. Although the initial plans were to create a fleet of 132 bombers, the end of the Cold War reduced that purchase to just 21 aircraft. Although each bomber has a tail number, it also has a moniker. The first 20 B-2s were named after a state in the union. The first B-2 named was the Spirit of Missouri, recognizing the home of America’s most advanced aircraft. The second B-2 was named the Spirit of California for the state where most of the assembly and testing of the aircraft had been performed. The last B-2 entered operation in 2000 and was simply named the Spirit of America.

Dr. Mel Deaile retired from the Air Force in 2014 as a colonel and now teaches at Air University in Alabama. | Photo credit Photo by Michael Ritz

One only has to look at the aircraft to realize its unique design. Not only does it resemble Jack Northrop’s concept of the flying wing, but it houses three computers working in parallel to operate its highly complex fly-by-wire design. While the B-52 and B-1 bombers have crews of five and four people respectively, the B-2’s digital cockpit design and redundant navigation system reduced the crew to just two people. Furthermore, the B-2 was the only aircraft initially capable of delivering the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) when it made its combat debut in 1999 over the skies of Yugoslavia during Operation Allied Force. Two years later, the B-2 would again lead the fight in a different part of the world.

On the morning of 9/11, a majority of the operational B-2 fleet was taking part in a Strategic Command exercise that had aircrews sitting in their jets monitoring radios. Just when the crews expected a transmission terminating the exercise, the opposite happened. Aircrews were ordered to assume a higher state of readiness and remain at their jets. Word spread throughout the fleet that a jet had hit one of the World Trade Center towers. With news of the second plane hitting the other tower, the entire force knew the implication. This was no accident. America was under attack.

For the next two days, B-2 crews would remain with their jets ready to respond. The exercise eventually ended, but the preparations did not. The 509th Bomb Wing identified six crews that would fly the initial B-2 missions, if called upon. For the next three weeks, these crews flew simulators and actual flights practicing their procedures and coordination. During his speech to Congress, Bush said, “The Taliban must act and act immediately. They will hand over the terrorists, or they will share in their fate.” Holding true to his warning, operations over Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, less than a month after 9/11.

I came to the B-2 program in 1998 having previously flown the B-52 bomber for nine years. Upon completing B-2 initial qualification training in 1999, I served as a B-2 wing weapons officer, B-2 instructor pilot, and then assistant director of operations in the 393rd Bomb Squadron.

The other pilot on the mission, Brian “Jethro” Neal, came to the B-2 program having flown a tour in the F-16 Falcon at Hill Air Force Base.

We both came to the base on October 6, 2001, expecting our normal routine. We would review the mission, conduct simulator training, debrief, go home and return the next day. That night was different. As we arrived, the word was the first B-2s were to launch. Brian and I manned the spare aircraft the first night, meaning that if one of the first two aircraft broke, we would have an aircraft ready to go. When the first two aircraft got airborne, we shut down ours and went home.

We arrived at the base the next night and the planners informed us that we were to lead the formation for the second night of attacks in Afghanistan. Following a mission-specific brief and a brief among the formation, we reported to our jet where another crew already had the planes started and ready to go. We strapped in and taxied out to the runway with operators and maintenance folks lining the taxi route to salute the aircraft, knowing that these aircraft would soon be bringing justice to our enemies. Once airborne, I looked at Brian and asked, “What jet do we have anyway?” Looking at the aircraft maintenance logs, he replied, “The Spirit of America.”

A B-2 bomber refuels from a KC-135 Stratotanker during a deployment to Andersen Air Force Base, Guam. | Photo credit Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Val Gempis

About four hours into the mission, we approached the California coast for our first air refueling. For operations security reasons, the decision was made to fly the B-2s across the Pacific Ocean to their ultimate targets in Afghanistan. The sun was just starting to rise on the east coast as we approached the KC-135 refueling aircraft. We topped off our tanks and settled in for the next leg of our mission, which was the four-hour flight to Hawaii for our next air refueling. While the B-2 is a two-person aircraft, operating rules say two people only have to be in the seats during critical phases of flight: takeoff, air refueling, landing and, of course, bombing. Between refuelings, Brian and I took turns trying to get a few hours of rest in the modified “cot” behind the two ejection seats.

The pattern of meeting a much-needed gas station in the air happened at least three more times en route to Afghanistan. Our formation met tankers over Guam, through the Straits of Malacca and in the Indian Ocean, close to Diego Garcia. The voyage across the Pacific Ocean took more than 24 hours. Since the sun was coming up in the east as we started our voyage west, we traveled in daylight throughout our trek across the Pacific. The air refueling over the Indian Ocean was the last before we reached Afghanistan. We turned north and headed up the coast of India to our destination.

By the time we approached the Pakistani coast, two things happened. First, the sunlight that had accompanied us the entire journey slowly went away. In order to fight off the release of melatonin that comes at that moment, the flight doctor had given each crew member an approved “pick me up pill” to make sure everyone was alert going into combat. Second, 70 percent of the targets we stepped out the door with back in Missouri had changed. This meant reprogramming the targets for a majority of the 16 JDAMs that filled the two bomb bays on the B-2. That night, we conducted bombing runs on multiple targets throughout Afghanistan with the primary mission being to secure air superiority for air forces that would conduct subsequent attacks. During some bomb runs, we used the B-2’s onboard synthetic aperture radar to put eyes on target in order to refine target coordinates before releasing our JDAMs. After spending about two hours over enemy territory, we exited the country and headed for the last tanker that would give us the gas for our last leg of the journey. A radio call came over secure communications that the Air Operations Center wanted to know if we would be willing to head back into country since we had four JDAMs remaining. We accepted the mission.

With gas running low, we orbited in the Arabian Sea waiting for a tanker that would give us the fuel necessary for another trip into Afghanistan. While Brian got the fuel, I programmed the mission. With fuel onboard and a mission loaded, we commenced another journey into Afghanistan to strike the identified target. After 90 minutes, we exited Afghanistan a second time to find a waiting tanker to provide the fuel we needed reach Diego Garcia, our final destination.

Four hours later, we were approaching the u-shaped island, ready to touch land for the first time in 44 hours. The B-52 that landed immediately before us had an emergency upon landing forcing us to “go around.” After having been airborne for 44 hours, we enjoyed the 15-minute flight over the island.

We touched down after being 44.3 hours in the air. For Brian and I, the mission was over, but not for the Spirit of America. While we unloaded our gear, maintenance troops put oil into the running engines of the B-2. A fresh crew of two B-2 pilots got on board and within 45 minutes the stealth bomber was airborne for its 30-hour journey back to Missouri. While we flew more than 44 hours on our mission, the Spirit of America and five other B-2s operated for more than 70 hours without stopping. Not one aircraft broke or encountered engine trouble during the first three days. It is a true testament to the incredible engineering and design of the aircraft.

Earlier this year, I retired from the Air Force as a colonel. Brian, now a colonel (select), transitioned to the reserves, where he flies the Air Force’s most advanced aircraft—the F-22 Raptor. More importantly, the Spirit of America continues to serve the country from its home in Knob Noster, Missouri, and will do so long after Brian and me.

Of all the aircraft that could have flown the longest combat mission in aviation history, perhaps it was serendipity or providence that it was the Spirit of America that made that journey. The aircraft that represented the country showed that America will fly any distance, cover any ground and overcome any obstacle to bring justice to its enemies when she is attacked⍐.

_________________

குறிப்பு; Wednesday, Dec 10, 2014 uso.org இந்தக் கட்டுரை 10 ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முந்தியது.ENB