Transcript: DOD News Briefing with Geoff Morrell from the Pentagon. US Department of Defense, Jan 26, 2011.
http://www.defense.gov/transcripts/transcript.aspx?transcriptid=4758
The pertinent quote:
"Q: Back to F-35 real quick.
"MR. MORRELL: Okay.
"Q: Could you elaborate on the decision to grant Lockheed permission to speak with Japanese companies on the F-35?
"MR. MORRELL: Well, I mean, when we were in Japan, and you guys are all aware of this, we spoke to our Japanese counterparts about their desire to upgrade their tactical air fleet. We think there are at least three American-made products that they should strongly consider, and we offered to provide them with the kind of technical information they would need to ultimately make a decision as to which aircraft they want to pursue.
"I mean, the F-35 is one of three. The F/A-18 as well as the F-15, I think, were the others, was the other. Anyway, but we'll get -- we can get you that if not. But that's where that stands.
"On a similar -- if I may sort of divert to an unrelated but somewhat related topic, the J-20 stories, frankly, that I've seen over the past couple weeks since we've been back, I think, have been a little -- have been a little over the top. I read these things, and people state sort of definitively that there was 'a successful test of the J-20.' And I think that is another case of us all being a little premature here.
"What we know is that a plane that looks different than any other they produced, that they claim to be their J-20, had a short test flight when we were in Beijing. But we don't know, frankly, much about the capabilities of that plane, which you saw photographs and some video of. We don't know yet what the capabilities are of the engine that propelled that plane. We don't know if it's a fifth-gen engine. We don't know if, indeed, it is as stealthy as they claim it to be.
"It is too early for us to have made those determinations. But I think it's equally early for you all to be making pronouncements about the success of -- or the achievement of fifth-gen capability.
"And, you know, furthermore, these notions that we've been sort of caught by surprise on this are also off base. We've talked about their pursuit of the J-20 for a long time, and that's why we have pursued not just the F-22, which we have in more than enough numbers to deal with any scenario involving China, but also the F-35, to the tune of nearly 2,500 planes is still the program of record.
"So we were well aware of this evolving capability. And what we saw last week has not changed the strategic calculus at all, because we don't yet -- what Gates had always talked about on this issue was that by the time they have operationally significant numbers of this aircraft, we will not just have the 187 F-22s, which will be unmatched, but we will also have an abundance of F-35s, in addition to all the other, you know, F/A-18s and F-16s that are, you know, fourth or 4.5-gen quality.
"So I would just urge everybody to be -- to slow down a little bit on our characterizations of the -- of the J-20 at this point, given what little we know of it.
"Q: Can I ask one thing? It wasn't in the China report this year or last year, so how can you say we've been warning about this for a year? The J-20 was not mentioned in this China report.
"MR. MORRELL: I'd have to go back and look at the report.
"Q: (Inaudible).
"MR. MORRELL: Okay, okay, hold on. I'd have to go back and look at the report.
"Q: (Inaudible).
"MR. MORRELL: Can I finish my thought?
"Q: Yes.
"MR. MORRELL: I'd have to go back and look the report. But I would find it hard to believe -- excuse me, let me finish --
"Q: (Inaudible).
"MR. MORRELL: I'd find it hard to believe that China's pursuit of a fifth-gen aircraft would not have been noted in the report. But we can go back and take a look, and we can provide you with an answer, if you like, from Policy, on why it wasn't in there. Okay? All right.
"Q: Is there evidence that there was stolen U.S. technology in that plane?
"MR. MORRELL: Listen. Not as far as I know, but as I'm telling you, we don't know a whole lot about what's in this plane right now. That's why I'm urging you to be cautious.
"And as for -- you know, listen, here are the Chinese, who have not spoken -- previous to our visit and previous to the public testing of this aircraft, have never, really, as far as I know, publicly even acknowledged the program. Now all of a sudden you're seeing people speak, you know, at length about it, including a report I noticed yesterday from somebody within the Chinese military stating that it's insulting for people to insinuate that they got this by procuring, you know, parts of an old U.S. aircraft that may have gone down in Kosovo, and reverse engineered it to come up with their own stealth capability.
"They say that's not the case. I have no reason to disbelieve them. But I also don't know yet whether there is stealth capability on that aircraft or that there is a new engine on that aircraft. We don't know yet.
"So that's why I'm urging you guys to just be careful and perhaps a little skeptical as you are in your questioning of us and our capabilities. Okay.
My comment:
(a) over the top (adj). The Phrase Finder, undated.
http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/over-the-top.html
(b) There is something about J-20. Specifically, something wrong in the latest wording among US media. I thought--and still think--reporter Jeremy Page was too rosy about China's military strength--and believed what China feeded him, propangada and that kind of stuff. Then I read his report yesterday and was startled by the caption of the first photo. (The truth is, I do not know the custom in the press: whether an editor or a reporter gets to write a caption, though the former decides the title of a news report.)
Jeremy Page, Stealth-Espionage Claims Disputed in China. Jan 26, 2011.
http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/over-the-top.html
(caption of 1st photo: "An undated picture purporting to show the J-20 in flight in Chengdu.")
purport (vt): "to have the often specious appearance of being, intending, or claiming (something implied or inferred) <a book that purports to be an objective analysis>; also : CLAIM <foreign novels which he purports to have translated — Mary McCarthy>"
www.m-w.com
There is no ned to read the rest of this report.
(c) 五角大楼：歼20改变不了美国战略优势. VOA Chinese, Jan 26, 2011.
http://www.voanews.com/chinese/news/20110126-PENTAGON-SPEAKS-UP-ON-J-20-114679429.html
Quote:
"美国国防部发言人莫雷尔(Geoff Morrell)主动就中国的隐形战机歼-20，给出了评论
"他进一步说， ' 一旦和中国发生冲突，我们的F-22战机绰绰有余。'
My coment:
(i) In quotation 1, note 主动.
(ii) The quotation 2, the Chinese translation, is a bit too strong. The English transcript stated "that's why we have pursued not just the F-22, which we have in more than enough numbers to deal with any scenario involving China, but also the F-35, to the tune of nearly 2,500 planes is still the program of record.
It is actually "any scenario involving China."
(d) 五角大楼：美国考虑扩大亚太战略部署. VOA Chinese, Jan 26, 2011.
http://www.voanews.com/chinese/news/20110126-US-PACIFIC-DEPLOYMENT-114686024.html
("莫雷尔表示，美方已经同澳大利亚方面谈及使用当地一些设施的问题，不是说美国要在澳大利亚永久性派驻兵力")
My comment: In the transcript, the English original is as follows. "We -- you know, when you guys were with us in Australia, we talked about, you know, having access -- not permanent deployment of troops in Australia, but having access to certain facilities.
A Chinese wrote, "MD还有钱造2500架F-35吗？" It is in the public domain. There is no need for China to bribe anubody to get the information.
Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_Martin_F-35_Lightning_II
(The United States intends to buy a total of 2,443 aircraft for an estimated US$323 billion, making it the most expensive defense program ever.[10] The United States Air Force (USAF) budget data in 2010, along with other sources, projects the F-35 to have a flyaway cost that ranges between US$89 million and US$200 million over the planned production of F-35s, depending on the variant.[11][12][13][14] Cost estimates have risen to $382 billion for 2,443 aircraft, at an average of $92 million each.[15] )
Reference 10 is
Pentagon's F-35 Fighter Under Fire in Congress. PBS, Apr 21, 2010.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/military/jan-june10/defense_04-21.html
(transcript of a congressional hearing)
【 在 choi 的大作中提到: 】
: My comment:
: (a) over the top (adj). The Phrase Finder, undated.
: http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/over-the-top.html
: (b) There is something about J-20. Specifically, something wrong in the latest wording among US medi
: (以下引言省略...)