North Korea's missile threat: Is it credible?

North Korea have detailed plans to attack the waters surrounding Guam in a show of power against the United States of America. They have also vowed to continue their weapons programme, and to defy America's repeated threats.

Ignoring the geopolitical issues surrounding the debate, the question arises, how credible is the Korean threat? There is no doubt that Korea does have missiles capable of reaching the United States in theory, but in practice, the accuracy of Korea's system is in severe doubt, and this along with the defensive capabilities of the US means that any direct damage to the US from North Korea is highly unlikely

Where North Korea do have an edge though is that they have the potential to cause immense damage to South Korea. With Seoul being a highly populated capital close to the border, the artillery of North Korea has potential to cause immense damage. However, once again, the lack of reliability of the North Korean weapons means there is a huge possibility that the damage may not be as great as feared. Yet even a conservative estimate of about 1-2 million losses in Seoul is enough to deter an attack.

With Trump on the warpath, the unthinkable could happen. But even with this, the chances of North Korea being able to launch a full scale assault and causing immense damage is unlikely. Especially if the US attacks first on North Korean positions close to the border.

Pakistan Navy's Chinese Submarines.

Pakistan Navy has recently announced a deal for eight variants of the Type 039 Yuan Class submarines from China, which shall be an addition to the Pakistan Navy Fleet. With some older submarines retiring, this seems a wise acquisition, but is there a slight oversight by the Navy in this deal?

With 4 submarines reported to be arriving in 2022-2023, and 4 more to be constructed in Karachi and handed over by 2028, the deal represents a tactical failure. With the world and technology moving apace, the submarines are in danger of being well out of date by the time all eight are operational. While they do represent an improvement for the Pakistan Navy, they are by no means the only subs needed. In a similar time frame, India is expected to add 15-20 Submarines, which means that the Naval Battle will not be any easier.


The Type 039A is China's first AIP powered submarine, and has the advantage of being one of the quietest submarines of its class, meaning it is significantly harder to detect. One of the greatest advantages for Pakistan is that construction at KSEW (Karachi Shipping and Engineering Works) means that great technical expertise will also be obtained, which will help Pakistan in furthering their own indigenous submarine ambitions.

The time frame though, could be better, and it is that alone which means that the deal turns from a good one, to one that might potentially be good.


Have any further knowledge? Please contribute by commenting below.

Details of new Chinese Sea Skimming Drone revealed

Details are emerging of a new anti-ship system being designed by China that is shaped like a traditional or conventional missile. However, towards the rear end, there is a change, in that it features two thick, long chord but with a short span wing structures, to form a wing like under surface.

 

 

Leaked Prototype

 

The photo, shown above, was shown on a Chinese forum initially, and is in Mandarin. The prototype has been tested on significantly lower weights than its maximum take-off weight, which is reported to be around 3,000 kg, by Jane's. However, it did achieve take off, and was powered by a turbojet engine, and can also be powered by a turbofan one, allowing it to cruise a maximum speed of Mach 0.65, at an altitude of at most 6m. Air is taken from the top, to avoid sea spray.

This latest technology is a sign of further Chinese progress in the field, and is another sign of their growing ambitions, in Asia, and in the World.

Ironclad Gloire

The Gloire(launched: 1859) was the first ever ocean-going ironclad warship. The ship was developed after the Crimean War when the French witnessed the awesome power of exploding shells. The old wooden ships were no match for the exploding shells, so to counter their effect, and to somewhat stabilize the balance of power between French and British navies, the French decided to develop a new warship.

The ship was designed by Dupuy de Lome. According to the design, the iron covered and shielded the wooden hull. It was powered by an internal steam engine, with 3 masts of sail. It was manned by 570 sailors. The Gloire was armed with 36 x 160mm rifled guns initially. Later the Glire was armed with 8 x 240mm Breech Loading(model 1864)guns, and 6 x 193mm Breech Loading guns(model 1866).

Although this ship can be considered to have caused a revolution in warship construction and design, its edge over the British Navy ships lasted for only a year, as in 1860 the British launched their own iron-hulled ironclad vessel HMS Warrior, as compared to wooden hulled Gloire.

Increasing Pakistan Naval Iran Cooperation

 Earlier last month Pakistan and Iran joint naval drills in the Strait of Hormuz. PN ships visited Iran after they were returning from Oman. According to a Pakistan Navy spokesman, this was a normal visit. According to analysts it was an attempt to normalize the relations between the two countries after recent tensions and did not hint at anything else.

From PN's side PNS Hashmat(Agosta-70 submarine) and PNS Quwwat(missile boat) took part. Iranian navy's warships taking part in the exercise were not known.

 And now according to the latest news Iranian Navy vessels are set to visit the Karachi port from 2nd May to 6th May. The ships are Khanjar, Falakhon, Hendijan, Daylam and Submarine Ghadir 953. The task force will be headed by Captain Abbas Ali Jahanbakhsh. It is anticipated that both navies may hold some drills at the end of the visit.

Now it may just be a courtesy call in response to PN's visit, as PN's visit was not given much importance by analysts either. Or we may see increased cooperation and more frequent exercises in the future.

H. L. Hunley(submarine)

  Specs:

Displacement:	7.5 short tons
Length:	40 ft (12.0 m)
Beam:	3.83 ft (1.17 m)
Propulsion:	Hand-cranked propeller
Speed:	4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) (surface)
Complement:	1 officer, 7 enlisted
Armament:	1 spar torpedo

CSS H. L. Hunley was the first submarine ever to sink a warship. It was named after its maker Horace L. Hunley. It was manned by a crew of 8 and was armed by only 1 spar torpedo.

On 17th Feb 1864 its commanding officer Lt. George Dixon spied a Union sloop Housatonic, moored near the  Battery Marshall. The commander seized this chance and took the submarine close to the ship, silently. The crew, then, were able to lodge the spar torpedo on the starboard(right) side of the sloop. The torpedo, when detonated, sank the sloop in just 5 minutes.

H. L. Hunley itself did not survive the confrontation, one can only speculate as to why it sank. The submarine was recovered in 2000 A.D.

Equipment Database

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