China's military build up.

[SO143]

Originally Posted by _BPS_

You heard wrong then.

The Taihang powering the J-11 is a domestic engine.

how good is that engine?

[Restless]

Originally Posted by potto

reminds me of the Islamist who stood up at a talk I was listening to and started rapping about how the Pyramids (not sure what they have to do with Islam but he seemed to be excited about them) were built when everyone in the "West" was living in caves. Concept taken (a jibe at the use of stone age sometimes used to describe Islam or people who follow Islam) , but what is he going to do? Merge religious studies with science again? Ignore national borders at the airport? Dislocate from the global trading system? Not even Islamic nations states do that.

I'm not sure what you're trying to get at.

Please note that the first global trade route was the Silk Road, which linked the China and the Roman Empire, along with a bunch of other places in between.

I would suggest watching the following TED talk by Niall Ferguson, which succinctly examines economic development and prosperity. It should raise a lot more questions which you will find addressed in the TV series and also the book.
http://www.ted.com/talks/niall_fergu...rosperity.html

And you should already know that it's not much use trying to reason with someone who is religious.

[Restless]

Originally Posted by SO143

how good is that engine?

It's difficult to tell from here. They rejected the prior version about 6? years ago because it took too long to restart after a flameout. Then the current production version appeared about 3? years ago, and the next version looks like it'll be ready next year.

I'm guessing they're at least equivalent to the Russian ones, otherwise the air force would have raised a ruckus and rejected the engines.

[SO143]

Originally Posted by skit_uk

Stealth is old hat, especially when you can drop in on your enemy from space




The weaponization of space is in full swing. The Russians and Chinese have already tested weapons in space and the picture above shows America's contribution.

[SO143]

holycow!

[SO143]

lol

[LondonFox]

Obviously... they ain't there to see The Ashes that's for sure because they be here.

[deepblue01]

Originally Posted by SO143

lol

Well, they can make use of some of our lady services in WA atm. This ensures that even if the mining boom ends, these soldiers will keep the ladies at work.

They do look a lot more manly than the average Australian.

[SO143]

http://slide.mil.news.sina.com.cn/sl...14887.html#p=4

[SO143]

http://slide.mil.news.sina.com.cn/sl...13846.html#p=9

image hosted on flickr

Chinese Navy Landing Ships in Exercise by AC Studio, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

DDG-171 Haikou by Middleburgh, on Flickr

[SO143]

http://slide.mil.news.sina.com.cn/sl...?img=32419#p=9

[SO143]

http://slide.mil.news.sina.com.cn/li...page=151&dpc=1

[Skepta]

http://blog.usni.org/tag/tu-22m3-backfire/

Unconfirmed (and probably unfounded) rumours that Russia would consider selling the Tu-22M to the PLAAF.

My question to those on this forum a lot more knowledgeable than myself is how much of a gamechanger this could be with regard to China's area denial strategy, if the deal were to miraculously go through?

[AdmiralAnthony]

I don't think it has a big bearing on things.
If they're suited and booted with the latest technology, ESM, weapons and countermeasures then no doubt theyl be formidable.
If not Arleigh Burke, Daring and the Taiwan Armed Forces will shoot the damn things out the sky without too much bother.

Interesting choice of airplane, wonder if it'd be a nuclear strike jet?

[WatcherZero]

Russia got burned the last time they sold fighters to China who copied them then started exporting them themselves. Russia has also just abandoned development of a successor to the Backfire recognising that the future lies in unmanned and long range cruise weapons. There is a co-operative deal on civilian airliners production just signed though, Russia has struggled with financing new development and China has struggled catching up the technology of Europe/US so Russia considers its not really got anything to lose if China again starts manufacturing and exporting without permission at least it financed Russias own development efforts allowing them to keep pace with the technology if not the market share.

[desertswo]

Originally Posted by Skepta

http://blog.usni.org/tag/tu-22m3-backfire/

Unconfirmed (and probably unfounded) rumours that Russia would consider selling the Tu-22M to the PLAAF.

My question to those on this forum a lot more knowledgeable than myself is how much of a gamechanger this could be with regard to China's area denial strategy, if the deal were to miraculously go through?

Yawn. Those weren't even scary back when they were supposed to be.

[Skepta]

Originally Posted by desertswo

Yawn. Those weren't even scary back when they were supposed to be.

Is the same true of the Blackjack?

[desertswo]

Originally Posted by Skepta

Is the same true of the Blackjack?

Different mission. Those were for the entertainment of NATO European based air forces. They've got something like 20 of those things still in their inventory, as the Ukraine said, "Thank you Sir, may I have another" and requisitioned the ones on their territory. People I talk to frankly doubt that few if any of them are a "full up round" avionics-wise. You know, there was a tremendous brain drain in Russia after the collapse of the Soviet government. My mentor Sergei Khrushchev is a US citizen now and he was pretty well ensconced in their strategic arms production system, and he's a real bright guy. He'd have made it anywhere, regardless of who his father was. Overall, a lot of really talented people are working elsewhere in the world for top dollar, err pound, yeah, that's the ticket! Anyway, keeping something as advanced as a US B-1, at least as an air frame, up and running is really tough. Trust me; it's tough for the US and UK. How much less so for the Russians?

[Restless]

Originally Posted by desertswo

Different mission. Those were for the entertainment of NATO European based air forces. They've got something like 20 of those things still in their inventory, as the Ukraine said, "Thank you Sir, may I have another" and requisitioned the ones on their territory. People I talk to frankly doubt that few if any of them are a "full up round" avionics-wise. You know, there was a tremendous brain drain in Russia after the collapse of the Soviet government. My mentor Sergei Khrushchev is a US citizen now and he was pretty well ensconced in their strategic arms production system, and he's a real bright guy. He'd have made it anywhere, regardless of who his father was. Overall, a lot of really talented people are working elsewhere in the world for top dollar, err pound, yeah, that's the ticket! Anyway, keeping something as advanced as a US B-1, at least as an air frame, up and running is really tough. Trust me; it's tough for the US and UK. How much less so for the Russians?

Did you ever hear much anything about thousands of Russian engineers and scientists being recruited to work in China, just after the collapse of the USSR?

I saw a brief reference to this elsewhere, but this really was before my time.

[desertswo]

Originally Posted by Restless

Did you ever hear much anything about thousands of Russian engineers and scientists being recruited to work in China, just after the collapse of the USSR?

I saw a brief reference to this elsewhere, but this really was before my time.

China, Taiwan, both Koreas, US, UK, Canada, various Latin American enclaves (particularly if they were at least nominally Jewish), Europe in general, and of course, for those with no scruples whatsoever, or at least different scruples, in places like Syria, Iraq, Iran, etc. Fortunately, the best of them tended to gravitate to countries that were open societies like the US and UK. Others, not so much.