More interesting developments about the bin Laden raid

More and more information is coming to light following the mission to kill Osama bin Laden last weekend. I wrote about some areas yesterday. I’ve found four more points of interest today.

1. Most interesting to aviation enthusiasts is that the raid appears to have revealed the existence of a previously-unknown ‘stealthy‘ variant of the Sikorsky MH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. Ares reports:

Well, now we know why all of us had trouble ID’ing the helicopter that crashed, or was brought down, in the Osama raid.

It was a secretly developed stealth helicopter, probably a highly modified version of an H-60 Blackhawk … the helicopter’s tail features stealth-configured shapes on the boom and tip fairings, swept stabilizers and a “dishpan” cover over a non-standard five-or-six-blade tail rotor. It has a silver-loaded infra-red suppression finish similar to that seen on some V-22s.

No wonder the team tried to destroy it. The photos show that they did a thorough job – except for the end of the tailboom, which ended up outside the compound wall. (It almost looks as if the helo’s tail hit the wall on landing.)

Stealth helicopter technology in itself is not new and was applied extensively to the RAH-66 Comanche.

RAH-66 Comanche prototype (image courtesy of Wikipedia)

Priorities are usually different versus fixed-wing aircraft. Reducing noise and making it less conspicuous is the first job (more main and tail blades reduce the classic whop-whop signature). Listen here.

Noise can also be reduced by aerodynamic modifications and flight control changes that make it possible to slow the rotor down, particularly in forward flight below maximum speed. Infra-red reduction measures are crucial … Radar cross-section reduction is also possible – you can’t make a helo as radar-stealthy as a fixed-wing airplane, because of all its moving parts, but on the other hand it is generally operating at low altitude in ground clutter, and is not an easy target. Reducing RCS also makes jamming more effective, whether from the aircraft itself or from a standoff jammer.

The willingness to compromise this technology shows the importance of the mission in the eyes of US commanders — and what we’re seeing here also explains why Pakistani defenses didn’t see the first wave (at least) coming in.

There’s more at the link.

So it looks like many sources’ earlier identification of the helicopter as a variant of the UH-60 family (including myself) weren’t altogether wrong . . . just not completely right. This ‘stealthy’ model must have been developed in great secrecy, as prior to the bin Laden raid its existence had never been reported. Kudos to those who designed and produced it, while keeping it under such tight security wraps. That’s a hell of a way to announce its existence to the world! (Some of the research that was doubtless used to develop the production version is described here. This wasn’t the first of its kind, either: a much earlier US ‘quiet helicopter’ saw action in Vietnam.)

Of course, the problem now will be to keep its technological secrets – those that weren’t destroyed by the assault team’s demolition charges – out of the hands of other powers. Pakistan has a close aeronautical relationship with China: for example, the two nations jointly developed the JF-17 Thunder fighter aircraft, shown below.

I’m sure that Chinese aeronautical engineers will be frothing at the mouth with excitement, metaphorically speaking, at the chance to examine the wreckage of a current-generation US stealth aircraft. Its coatings and other technology can be applied not only to helicopters, but other aircraft types as well, and also to ships and vehicles. I’ve no doubt China will be trying to persuade Pakistan to let its engineers scrutinize the wreckage at least, if not ship the whole thing to China for inspection (and possible copying) at their leisure. Russia has already found out to its cost that China can copy foreign designs; the former’s Sukhoi Su-27 fighter has been ‘cloned’ into the latter’s Shenyang J-11B fighter. Pakistan has also allegedly (and illegally) modified US-supplied missiles and aircraft for its own purposes. Given that history, I wonder if we’ll see a joint Chinese-Pakistani copy of the ‘stealth’ Sikorsky design soon? One hopes that the assault team were able to destroy the aircraft thoroughly enough that its most important secrets won’t have been compromised . . . and/or that the US can exert sufficient pressure on Pakistan to ensure that the wreckage is returned without being examined by unfriendly experts.

(EDITED TO ADD: I found an article at Global Security describing what they refer to as the MH-X Advanced Special Operations Helicopter program. The article [which appears to be several years old, even though it’s just been updated] also links to a 1995 news report of a ‘stealth’ helicopter being tested at the so-called ‘Area 51‘. Both sources are probably relevant to the aircraft revealed during the bin Laden operation.)

Anyway, enough about technology.

2. There are stories coming out of the woodwork that President Obama may not have been as active in the command and control of the strike as we’d been led to believe. In fact, the operation has been described as ‘a coup within the Obama White House’, carried out in spite of the President rather than at his instigation. Of course, we’ll probably never know the whole truth of what went on behind the scenes; but the amount of detail in the rumors now being reported is staggering. If it’s a hoax, it’s a darn well engineered one! Read for yourself, here and (particularly) here, and make up your own mind.

I’m of two minds about the rumors. Let’s be honest. If the operation had failed, there’s no doubt that President Obama would have borne the responsibility for that. As the sign on the desk of one of his predecessors in office, President Harry Truman, so famously read: ‘The Buck Stops Here‘. That being the case, if he would have carried the can for a failed operation, as far as I’m concerned, he’s equally entitled to the credit for a successful one. I hope and trust that he’ll share the limelight, and the recognition, with those who planned, prepared and executed the strike. They deserve it.

3. The Pakistani Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) may have been more involved with bin Laden’s long residence in the compound in Abottabad than was previously thought. According to Gulfnews.com:

The compound in Abbottabad where Osama Bin Laden was killed was once used as a safe house by Pakistan’s premier intelligence agency ISI, Gulf News has learnt.

“This area had been used as ISI’s safe house, but it was not under their use any more because they keep on changing their locations,” a senior intelligence official confided to Gulf News. However, he did not reveal when and for how long it was used by the ISI operatives. Another official cautiously said “it may not be the same house but the same compound or area used by the ISI”.

The official also confirmed that the house was rented out by Afghan nationals and is not owned by the government. The house is located just 800 metres away from the Pakistan Military Academy and some former senior military officials live nearby.

. . .

The compound sits on a large plot of land in an area that was relatively secluded when it was built. It is roughly eight times larger than nearby homes.

The physical security measures of the compound are extraordinary.

It has 12-to-18-foot outer walls, topped with barbed wires. Internal walls sectioned off different portions of the compound to provide extra privacy.

Access to the compound is restricted by two security gates and the residents of the compound burnt their trash, unlike their neighbours, who put the trash out for collection.

There’s more at the link. A high-resolution satellite image of the compound and surrounding area may be found here.

4. It seems the FBI is stepping up precautions against reprisal terror attacks following Osama bin Laden’s death. Unfortunately, this doesn’t bode well for our already-threatened civil liberties and Constitutional rights. The National Journal reports:

The death of Osama bin Laden and the expectation of a trove of intelligence derived from his computers has caused the FBI to ramp up its efforts to prevent a terrorist attack.

The bureau is “back on a post-9/11 war footing”, a senior counterterrorism official said on Tuesday. The official sought anonymity because they are not authorized to speak with the press.

Within hours of President Obama’s announcement Sunday night that the U.S. intelligence community had confirmed the identity of bin Laden’s body, FBI officials briefed field offices via secure videoconference calls.

Agents will push ahead stagnant prosecutions as a means of mitigating the potential for lone-wolf terrorists to strike out of frustration or revenge, the official said. Field offices have been authorized to expand their surveillance and monitoring to include hundreds of subjects. Potential terrorism suspects might be arrested on valid charges not related to terrorism to keep them off the streets, officials said.

“The FBI and its law-enforcement partners are strengthening efforts to gather and analyze intelligence, recognizing the bin Laden death may create the potential for some to react against the U.S. or U.S. interests,” said Paul Bresson, an FBI spokesman. “While there are no specific, bin Laden-related threats at this time, every logical and prudent step is being taken to mitigate any developing threats.”

The FBI expects a deluge of intelligence from not only bin Laden’s computers but other evidence found at his compound in Pakistan. Officials want to be ready to resolve those “exploitation leads”, as they’re called, as quickly as possible.

The moves do not suggest an undue danger. Several counterterrorism and intelligence officials said that no solid intelligence relating to attacks inside the U.S. has been detected by the country’s enormous network of spies, electronic ears, and cameras.

Still, America’s counterterrorism presence is being stepped up.

Again, more at the link. Bold print is my emphasis.

This worries me very much. Since September 11th, 2001, our Constitutional rights have been grievously eroded by legislation such as the Patriot Act and intrusive security measures such as the TSA‘s ridiculous airport security measures (which don’t work and probably won’t prevent future attacks, according to an Israeli expert). Now we’re glibly informed that “potential suspects” (note – not actual, confirmed suspects, but those whom the FBI thinks might be suspects in the future!) may be detained on “valid charges not related to terrorism” as a preventive measure.

What’s the bet that some over-zealous FBI agent might not concoct a spurious charge in his eagerness and enthusiasm to safeguard the nation . . . and thereby trample roughshod over the rights of a potentially innocent person? I fully expect that to happen. The way this report worded the FBI’s approach chills me. What happened to “innocent until proven guilty“? I guess that bedrock principle of our legal system is now just another inconvenience, like our Constitutional rights, to be disregarded at a bureaucrat’s whim . . .

Peter