X-60

A lot of the information surrounding hypersonic missiles is just hype, but I did want to at least note this.

Well, this is interesting

Story here.  If this laser works as advertised, it could really change things in a number of arenas, such as air and missile defense, anti-anti-tank defense etc.  Of course, we need to wait and see.

Iran 1 Airliner 0

Looks like Iran may have shot down the Ukrainian Airlines 737.  The pentagon says an SA-15 Gauntlet was the missile involved.  It is criminally stupid to allow airliners to be flying while your air defenses are on high alert.

 

UPDATE: There now appears to be video evidence to confirm that the airliner was hit by a missile.

SAMs

While I am mostly an aircraft guy, I do have other 72nd scale interests. One of them is missiles and rockets.  Of particular interest to me are SAMs, especially Soviet/Russian/Chinese SAMs.  As such I am very happy to see that Trumpeter has announced for 2020 an SA-4.  This will be a 2020 must purchase.

Sword missiles

It appears that the US has adapted the Hellfire missile to carry sword blades that deploy instead of explosives.  Guided weapons have gotten so accurate that explosives aren’t always needed.  This reminds me of my favorite weapon concept, the “Rods from God”  Frankly the US should deploy this if they can figure how to get a lot of weight into orbit cheaply enough.  It could solve the Iran/North Korea bunker problems (h/t to Jeff “Inch High” Groves for a reminder about the article above)

Book review: German Guided Missiles of World War II

German Guided Missiles of World War II
Fritz-X to Wasserfall and X-4
New Vanguard #276
By Steven J. Zaloga
Osprey Publishing (2019)
ISBN 978-1-4728-3179-8

Review by D.M. Knights

                                                                                                    The German “wonder weapons” of WWII are a particular area of interest for me.  I have built several models of some of these weapons. (V-1, V-2, C-2, Me-163)  I have a fair sized library of books on the subjects.  This latest book is by well-known military writer and historian Steven J. Zaloga.  Mr. Zaloga is most well known for his works regarding armored vehicles.

This book covers German guided bombs (Fritz-X and Hs 293) as well as several anti-aircraft missiles that the Germans developed as the war progressed. Given the slimness of the volume, it is only 48 pages; it doesn’t cover any of the subjects in detail.  Rather, it is a general overview of the subject, touching briefly on a particular weapon, giving a brief development history and, if applicable, its combat use.

It isn’t a bad book.  The photos and illustrations are first rate.  While not intended as a comprehensive study of these weapons, it does an adequate job of covering the weapons systems.  My biggest complaint is in regard to value for the money.  A normal

Osprey volume is 96 pages.  This one is 48 pages.  That makes the book rather pricey for something that takes less than an hour to read, even if you aren’t a speed reader.

If you are new to the subject and looking for a basic primer, this is a good volume, as long as you aren’t bothered by the price.  If you are looking for something more in depth, or are a value shopper, then you’ll want to pass on this one, or wait until you can pick this one up on sale at Amazon or your local hobby shop.

More on the Airfix Vulcan

See here.  Looks like at least one version will have the Blue Steel missile included.

Hypersonics. Not ready for prime time?

Model-blogger Jeff “Inch High” Groves points to this article which has a very sober take on the “hypersonic craze”.  Well worth reading.

I’ll believe it when I see it

The Russians talk a good game when talking about upcoming weapons systems and new technologies.  The latest is this.  But given that their Floating Drydocks are sinking and their only carrier has a hole punched in its flight deck and may never be repaired, I am a little skeptical.

SS-2

I noted previously that this kit had been announced.  Now it is apparently about to be released.  Looks like a a nice model with no obvious flaws.