Ripped from the headlines

Canadian military developing stealth snowmobile

I kid you not. I'm including a link to the story at the bottom of this posting.

Updated: Sun Aug. 21 2011 11:20:02 AM

The Canadian Press

The Department of National Defence plans to develop a new stealth snowmobile for covert military operations in Canada's Arctic, with $550,000 set aside to build a prototype.

Apparently, this is the Canadian government's idea of "beefing up" military might in the Arctic.

Since coming to power, the Conservatives have gradually increased the Canadian Forces' presence in the resource-rich Arctic. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has made annual trips to the region, where he's appeared in carefully orchestrated photo-ops on ice floes as jets screamed overhead.

A government spokeswoman could not immediately provide information as to why the military would need snowmobiles for clandestine operations. 

I did a little research on this subject and I found that one prototype has already been built and delivered to the Canadian government for trial. Despite the project's top secret status, a leak has posted this single image of the vehicle on the web.

 

 Full Story

 

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The future is here

NASA recently said that it is working on a personal flying suit.

Called “Puffin,” the conceptual and highly experimental project is part one-man stealth plane, part personal jet pack.

Unveiled at a San Francisco meeting of the American Helicopter Society on Jan. 20 by Mark D. Moore, an aerospace engineer at NASA’s Langley Research Center, the Puffin promises — on paper at least — a self-contained design with proper “cockpit” and helicopter-style blades that allow for high-altitude flying up to 30,000 ft.

The Puffin is intended to be 12 feet in length, with a total wingspan of 14.5 ft., and would tip the scales at 300 pounds, empty. It will be powered by a 60 horsepower electric motor for simplicity, reliability and low environmental impact.

The reason for this conceptual device? Covert military missions (”swoop and shoot”) or rescue operations.

Take a look at the video:

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