Any particular reason for this?

Z...

Z...

The Living Force
FOTCM Member
http://www.independent.com.mt/news.asp?newsitemid=45786

Along with the recent controversial enlargement of the Dal Molin airbase in Vicenza in northeast Italy, the Americans will be enlarging the nuclear base they have in Sigonella in southern Sicily from where operations can be mounted to the Middle East and the Horn of Africa.

Italian newspapers have reported new residences being planned for near Lentini, 660,000 cubic metres in all.

In a heavily sarcastic comment, former Italian President Francesco Cossiga said there must be a very serious reason for the enlargement of the US base: that Malta will tear up the treaty in which Italy guarantees Malta’s neutrality, and attempt a mass invasion of Sicily.

Senator Cossiga declared that he has always known of the presence of nuclear warheads in Sigonella. However, he added that he would vote in favour of the Sigonella base enlargement.

The base lies across the territories of the communes of Lentini (Syracuse) and Motta Sant’Atanasia (Catania) and is divided into Naval Air Station 1 and 2. The first includes the administrative and security offices, officers’ lodgings, some services, recreational and sports facilities, school facilities for the children of US personnel, and a commercial centre with shops, restaurants and fast food outlets.

The second lies some 10km away and includes two military zones used by the US and Nato, more residential, commercial and sporting units, an air terminal, two runways each 2,500 metres long, and two parking areas used by the around 80 transport planes, bombers, reconnaissance planes and military helicopters.

There are also munitions warehouses, and radar and interception systems.
 
DonaldJHunt said:
Here comes the bombing of Iran!
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How is this related? We (the good ole US of A) could easily turn Iran into a sheet of glass using the (nukular) cruise missiles from a single carrier group. Bombs dropped from bombers based in Italy don't make any sense because we would have to have overflight rights.

I mean if you are going to nuke Iran, you need to clear it with the countries in the way to get overflight rights or there would be an international uproar... :O
 
rs said:
I mean if you are going to nuke Iran, you need to clear it with the countries in the way to get overflight rights or there would be an international uproar...
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~ahem~ not that your point about the cruise missles doesn't make sense - it does - but we've been flying rendition flights through and in these countries for years - and - do you really think an 'international uproar' would stop these people?

It's not like they play by the rules.
 
well as far as I can remember when NATO birds of pray were ravaging balkans
most of them were deployed from italian and german ground , dont remeber anyone mentioning overflight rights

anyhow this tells me Sauron has something big in the pipe line for this part of the world
 
Do you need airplanes to send land to land missiles ? The range of those missiles should be very long and besides usa has military bases in Iraq, they could easily use them which are much closer to Iran for bunker busters etc. But if Iran retaliates to Iraqi usa bases then ..as turks would say Allah save us !
 
I don't really know much about this, but I think the big intercontinental missiles are for the huge nuclear weapons. The smaller, so-called "tactical" nukes are dropped from planes, I think, or launched from cruise missiles.

Also, I think the bases in Iraq are not secure enough to bring in these types of weapons, but again, I don't really know, just speculating.

Any high-ranking Air Force officers want to help us out, here?
 
It could also be sabre-rattling designed to scare Iran and Europe (and everyone else).

But does anyone know how the "bunker-busting" bombs, conventional or otherwise are supposed to be delivered?

rs said:
DonaldJHunt said:
Here comes the bombing of Iran!
Click to expand...
How is this related? We (the good ole US of A) could easily turn Iran into a sheet of glass using the (nukular) cruise missiles from a single carrier group. Bombs dropped from bombers based in Italy don't make any sense because we would have to have overflight rights.

I mean if you are going to nuke Iran, you need to clear it with the countries in the way to get overflight rights or there would be an international uproar... :O
Click to expand...
 
DonaldJHunt said:
It could also be sabre-rattling designed to scare Iran and Europe (and everyone else).

But does anyone know how the "bunker-busting" bombs, conventional or otherwise are supposed to be delivered?
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(Doing his best - which is pretty lame - Foghorn Leghorn)

Um, guys, the overflight thing was a JOKE. I... I said a JOKE. Boy's as sharp as a bowling ball.

fogsite2.gif


Yes, I hadn't though about the bunker buster angle. This will need a high angle of attack from a high altitude (for maximum ground penetration due to kinetic energy) and either an ICBM or bomber will do, but a cruise missile is specifically designed to be a low altitude missile.

As far as ICBMs being dedicated to "big" bombs, I don't think this is relevant anymore. The ICBMs currently in place are all "MIRVed" which means each missile contains a "whole bunch" of independently targetable "relatively" small warheads. In this case it might not seem "limited" to immediately launch 10 simultaneous warheads against Iran. We will probably wait for a few hours after the initial attack for that...
 
Anart said:
~ahem~ not that your point about the cruise missles doesn't make sense - it does - but we've been flying rendition flights through and in these countries for years - and - do you really think an 'international uproar' would stop these people?.
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That fact has only been getting out in the open within the past couple of months here in Europe, but no uproar. People don't seem to care that much about planes flying with nuclear materials over their heads. They, meaning the gouvernment, kept the Thule base a secret for at least 30 years, eventhough it was violating quite a couple of treatys, and at the time it got out, it was ancient history.
 
Bunker busting bombs and air strip busting bombs (and they are smaller like French "Durandal" ) can be delivered, and usually are because of their weight and size directly from North Carolina, by B2 bombers (yes, over all the world in one flight) or from England by B52, some smaller version can be delivered by smaller platforms like F15 Eagle. There is no need to use nuclear weapons because some of that bombs already have effect like smaller nuclear warhead and you can feel shockwave and a smaller earthquake from distance about 20 km (yes, its from personal experience, and I don’t mentioning this for showing of). Big planes are also needed for aerosol bombs or high pressure bombs, but you can drop them from cargo planes too (depend on it how is the enemy’s air defense), and effect is very interesting, like tactical nuclear warhead but all infrastructure (buildings etc.) can be undamaged.

Air carrier group (one never goes alone, its accompanied by many ships) also have enough power to literally wipe out some medium size country like Italy for example. Then again they might have a need to use nuclear bomb for some other purpose.

Don’t forget that there is a lot of money also in that base enlarging and someone will much profit of that job. On the end bases always serve as a reminder and send strong messages “yes, we are here, you must be afraid now" “yes, we can kill you in a no time. Only if we wish that" “yes, we have here much space to bring you and your family here, and to make concentration camp if we wish that" and final message “Be afraid" .
 
rs said:
Gee whiz guys, somehow I thought the smiley would have been a dead giveaway...
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You mean "yikes smiley" :O ;)
It doesn't look like "yikes" anyway! This is "yikes" smiley :D
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