Russians to fly over Area 51?

MOSCOW:  Russian military inspectors will begin a survey flight this week above the United States under the international Open Skies Treaty, Russia’s Defense Ministry has said.

Russian experts will conduct the survey flight over the US territory in a Tupolev Tu-154 M/LK-1 aircraft during the period from November 25 and December 3, a spokesman said.

The flight will start from the Travis Air Force Base, California. Its maximum range will be 4,250 kilometers (2,600 miles) and includes flights over restricted areas in Nevada, New Mexico, Texas  and California. 

During the flight, Russian and US specialists will operate surveillance equipment on board of the aircraft as set out in the international Open Skies Treaty.

This will be the 36th survey flight this year made by Russian specialists over the territories of the Open Skies Treaty member states. Russia ratified the treaty in May 2001.

The Open Skies Treaty, which entered into force on January 1, 2002, establishes a regime of unarmed aerial observation flights over the territories of its 34 member states to promote openness and the transparency of military forces and activities.

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China unveils WZ-10 THUNDER FIRE attack chopper

China has unveiled a new attack helicopter as it seeks to rival similar aircraft made by the United States and Russia, state media said Wednesday.

A unit of China Aviation Industry Corporation (AVIC) showed off the WZ-10, or "Thunder Fire", for the first time in public at the country's premier airshow in the southern city of Zhuhai, the China Daily newspaper said.

China is displaying a range of military hardware, including a new drone and a model of a next-generation fighter plane at the show, as it builds up its own defence capabilities and seeks customers for its products.

More than 30 foreign military delegations are attending the airshow, the official Xinhua news agency said.

The attack helicopter, designed primarily for anti-tank missions, aims to challenge the AH-64 Apache of the United States and Russia's Mil Mi-28, China Daily quoted Chinese experts as saying.

AVIC also showed off another helicopter at the event -- the WZ-19, or Black Tornado, which is designed for armed reconnaissance and the support of ground troops, the newspaper said.

State television showed the black attack helicopter on a vertical climb during a demonstration.

"The WZ-10 is one of the top three attack helicopters in the world," China Daily quoted chief designer Wu Ximing as saying.

An unnamed Chinese expert was quoted as saying China's attack helicopter is more manoeuvrable at low altitudes than the Apache, but lacks its thrust and firepower.

The AH-64 Apache -- made by Boeing Defense, Space and Security -- is used by the US Army and several other countries.

The Apache is powered by two turboshaft engines and carries laser-guided precision missiles, 70mm rockets and 30mm automatic cannon, according to the website of the Boeing unit.

China's development of the WZ-10 dates back to the 1990s, when military planners observed the use of helicopters by the United States during the first Gulf War with Iraq, the China Daily said.

Chinese President Hu Jintao last week called for China to step up the military's technological abilities, saying its most important task was to be able to "win a local war in an information age".

In late September it put its first aircraft carrier, a refurbished Soviet vessel named the Liaoning, into service -- its first step towards a fleet of carriers expected to be built domestically in coming years.

Hu's call came amid tensions with several Asian neighbours over maritime territorial claims, including Japan, the Philippines and Vietnam, as well as the US "pivot" towards Asia.

China's first Top Gun - J-15 lands on carrier.

LIAONING AIRCRAFT CARRIER, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- China has successfully conducted flight landing on its first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, naval sources said.

A new J-15 fighter jet was used as part of the landing exercise.

After its delivery to the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy on Sept. 25, the aircraft carrier has undergone a series of sailing and technological tests, including the flight of the carrier-borne J-15.

Capabilities of the carrier platform and the J-15 have been tested, meeting all requirements and achieving good compatibility, the PLA Navy said.

Since the carrier entered service, the crew have completed more than 100 training and test programs.

The successful flight landing also marked the debut of the J-15 as China's first generation multi-purpose carrier-borne fighter jet, the PLA Navy said.

Designed by and made in China, the J-15 is able to carry multi-type anti-ship, air-to-air and air-to-ground missiles, as well as precision-guided bombs.

The J-15 has comprehensive capabilities comparable to those of the Russian Su-33 jet and the U.S. F-18, military experts estimated.

Pak hackers deface Israeli websites

ZDNET: Pakistan hackers have defaced multiple pages of high-profile Web sites in a retaliatory move against Israel's recent attack on Gaza.

According to The Next Web news site on Tuesday, the hackers going by the names 1337, H4x0rL1f3, ZombiE_KsA, and Invectus, had hacked sites operated by several major names including Amazon Unbox, BBC, Bing, Citibank, CNN, Coca Cola, Coke, Intel, Mastercard, Microsoft, and Phillips.

All of the attacks seemed to affect the "co.il" and "org.il" domains, but the defaced pages could be viewed by some--and not all--online users, which suggested it could be a DNS attack, the report noted.

click to enlarge 

The hackers did not appear to be related to hacktivist group, Anonymous, which last week attacked more than 650 Israeli sites wiping out databases of at least two sites, defacing many, and leaking e-mail addresses and passwords.

However, on both incidents, hackers shared the same motive of making Israel pay for its attack on the Gaza. An excerpt from defaced pages read (see image above): "I am writing on the behalf of all Pakistani and all Muslims. DAMN you ISREAL. So, what you reap from that war except the destruction and devastation of your life!! You only made a Palestinian generation more stronger, more ruthless and more valor!"

They also mocked a statement from Israeli Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz, who recently said the country's security systems had been effective. He announced on Sunday that 44 million hacking attempts had been made on Israeli government Web sites since last Wednesday and so far, only one was taken down.