new $1 billion radar system sits in Hawaii-victim of poor design

[n2doc]

Missile radar idling in Hawaii
Defense experts have concerns about design of X-Band vessel

By Kirsten Scharnberg
Tribune national correspondent
Published August 27, 2006

HONOLULU -- The giant radar, so powerful it can tell which way a baseball is spinning 3,000 miles away and so cutting edge it has been billed as the nation's best chance at comprehensive missile defense, came to the historic port of Pearl Harbor for what was advertised as a quick stopover for minor repairs and a paint job.

That was eight months ago.

Now, even as the weeks pass and the price tag creeps toward $1 billion, the Sea-Based X-Band Radar shows little chance of actually making the voyage to its intended port in Alaska--considered the optimal location for monitoring potential North Korean missile launches--until at least later this fall. Even more, a recent independent assessment obtained by the Tribune lists dozens of concerns from naval and defense experts about the design and administration of the radar vessel, a cornerstone in the Bush administration's oft-criticized push to fast-track the development of a yet-unproven ballistic missile defense system.Among the findings:

- The sensitive radar -- known as the SBX--is mounted atop a vessel that might need to be towed to safety in the event of rugged Alaskan seas, but its one towing bridle likely would be underwater and impossible for a rescue ship to use anytime waves reached more than 8 feet.

- Although the SBX may be hundreds of miles away from support ships, it lacks a quickly deployable rescue boat in the event of a man overboard, does not have a helicopter landing pad certified for landing the most common U.S. Coast Guard and Navy rescue helicopters, and its crews have not been trained "for heavy weather or cold-weather operations."

- And, ironically, the X-Band, considered one of the nation's foremost technologies in defending against foreign missiles, has minimal security itself. Many critics speculate that it is vulnerable to attack by enemy nations or terrorist groups.

<snip>
"That radar is absolutely packed with sensitive electronics, and . . . salt water, wind and waves don't go well with sensitive electronics," said Philip Coyle, who as assistant secretary of defense from 1994 to 2001 was the Clinton administration's chief weapons evaluator. He went on: "The bottom line is that the designers of this system didn't begin to contemplate the realistic conditions under which the X-Band would have to operate. When you look at all the facts, you really have to wonder what the people who designed this thing were thinking."

more: reg required:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0608270359aug27,1,4210359.story

[FogerRox]

1. Where have we heard this story before? Knr

[tocqueville]

2. the designers believed in intelligent design

and Kim must be rolling on the floor reading this...

[sweetheart]

3. Face it, the best defence is a good offense

It is so much cheaper to bribe people gratuitously and throw parties than to wage war.

I would much rather pay for oversized cakes and good musicians than bombers. Really. The net/net return on money
spent is much better, and i've just really had it with the cold war dominant rapist military.

If you must lurk, cold war, do it from beyond the grave.

[Canuckistanian]

4. Somebody screwed up, big time.

I have never heard of ANY kind of military electronics equipment that has not been thoroughly tested for temperature extremes, vibration, humidity, salt water spray or high voltage.

Just another rushed project. Throw away the carefully made plans.

I've heard this tune before.

[RonHack]

5. Fast-track to failure

Wonderful. Either a Senator pushed hard for the design, in his district ("pork-barrel spending"), or the Boosh Administration didn't WANT to know of something called MILSPEC.

It is certain no-one in the military - at least, no-one who knows how these things are supposed to be built, and I don't mean anyone higher-up - was involved in this project. Hell, these problems would've been corrected on the draftboard/CAD screen.

An underwater tow cable hitch? Unable to handle rough seas, and no helicopter pad on-board worth mentioning?

Smells like a pork-and-bean project to me.

[acmejack]

6. Pic

[n2doc]

9. Thanks. I saw this thing leaving Corpus Christi last year

It is HUGE. But it sounds like whomever designed it came from the Wile-E-Coyote school of engineering...

[Porcupine]

7. So a posting on this thing is a suicide mission.

8 feet seas in Alaskan waters are nothing. I've been in 8 ft seas on a clear day. I've seen pictures of Alaska Marine Highway vessels punching through 25 foot waves.

This thing is a big profit box not intended to serve any useful function other than that. It's the worlds biggest missile command game. Where's my 30 ton quarter.

[RonHack]

8. No quarters accepted.....

The machine only takes $1 million in $100s and $50s.



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The arcade experience, re-created.
(just add sound effects)