"The threat...comes from cheap, relatively short-range ballistic missiles such as the Russian-designed Scud, brought close to U.S. shores aboard commercial ships that avoid inspection by remaining outside territorial waters."
http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?F=1003372&C=thisweek Posted 08/01/05 19:14 Print-friendly version What if Terror Strikes From the Sea? $1 Billion Plan To Defend U.S. Coastline By CHRISTOPHER P. CAVAS The specter of Scud-like ballistic missiles launched against the U.S. coast from a merchant ship commandeered by terrorists is increasingly worrying Pentagon planners, who admit they have no defenses to defeat such a threat. But a missile system to protect the heavily populated northeast corridor of the United States can be developed and fielded within three years, Lockheed Martin officials said last week. The price: just over $1 billion. The threat, said Dave Kier of the company�s Horizontal Integration organization, comes from cheap, relatively short-range ballistic missiles such as the Russian-designed Scud, brought close to U.S. shores aboard commercial ships that avoid inspection by remaining outside territorial waters. Lockheed has spent more than a year analyzing the problem, Kier said, and is proposing countermeasures using existing detection systems, U.S. Army Patriot Advanced Capability-3 missile batteries and U.S. Navy Aegis ships. The effort, funded entirely so far by Lockheed, is based on the company�s own research. Lockheed has been discussing its Asymmetric Threat Initiative with the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) since 2004, but �we have only in the past few months finalized what our proposed architecture would be,� said Matt Kramer, a spokesman for Lockheed Martin Mission Systems. The system envisioned by Lockheed is based largely on technology already available, Kier said. Keying the system would be a detection network based on a land-based system called Silent Sentry that uses disruptions in the FM radio band to see incoming missiles, and sensors mounted on an airship that would float for weeks high above the clouds, he said. Although MDA has not issued a formal requirement to defeat sea-based short-range ballistic missiles, it is aware of the problem. �That�s one of the things I�m concerned about,� Lt. Gen. Trey Obering, MDA chief, told reporters July 21. �There is a difference of opinion about whether it�s a real threat, but I�m personally concerned. So we are working on it.� Gopal Ratnam contributed to this report. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> <font face=arial size=-1><a href="http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12hlqto8j/M=362329.6886306.7839369.3040540/D=groups/S=1705323667:TM/Y=YAHOO/EXP=1122952716/A=2894321/R=0/SIG=11dvsfulr/*http://youthnoise.com/page.php?page_id=1992 ">Fair play? Video games influencing politics. Click and talk back!</a>.</font> --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
