A stealth helicopter that produces no more noise than a passing car may soon be in the offing thanks to new technology developed by Eurocopter. The technology involves a redesign to the blades of a helicopter reducing the acoustic profile of the chopper and significantly reducing in-flight vibration to that of 'jet-smooth.' Reducing the vibrations also means a longer life span for much of the helicopter's electronic components.

Although early days in Operation Moshtarak, the plan to drive the Taliban out of it's centers of power in Helmand province is seeing some notable success. After a start which saw little resistance, the Taliban appear to be engaging NATO and Afghan forces with snipers, bombs and sporadic firefights.  But Operation Moshtarak (Arabic for 'joint') achieved a significant win with news that the Taliban Commander Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar has been captured in Pakistan.

In a blow to Israel, the United States and countries getting the jitters over Iran's nuclear plans, Russia said today that there is no reason to stall it's sale of the S-300 anti-aircraft system to Iran. The sale is not forbidden under sanctions placed against Iran because the system is purely defensive in nature and cannot be used for offense.

A laser has taken out a missile off the California coast in a test of the National Defense System. The missile was in full flight when it was tracked by an airbourne laser tracking system that directed an  intense laser beam at it. The beam heated the missile until it simply broke apart.Thirty years after Ronald Reagan first envisaged the system, it seems the US has achieved it's goal of knocking out ballistic missiles with lasers.