美国国家公共电台 NPR--Javelin missiles are in short supply and restocking them won't be easy

Javelin¹ missiles are in short supply and restocking them won't be easy

Transcript²

Ukrainian fighters have destroyed Russian fighting vehicles with U.S. supplied Javelins³. But replacing the thousands of missiles could take years, largely because of a crimp in the supply chain.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

One of the best weapons Ukraine has in its war with Russia is Javelin missiles. But supplies are low, and restocking them will not be easy. Frank Morris of our member station KCUR explains why.

FRANK MORRIS, BYLINE⁴: Every conflict has its iconic weapons - tanks in World War II, helicopters in the Vietnam War. And Mark Cancian with the Center for Strategic and International Studies says the war in Ukraine has distinguished⁵ an American-made, shoulder-fired, precision-guided anti-tank missile - the Javelin.

MARK CANCIAN: We've seen pictures of Saint Javelin. We've heard Javelin songs.

MORRIS: That's right. T-shirts, murals, even songs, venerating⁶ a missile.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED SINGER: (Singing) Javelin, Javelin - (singing in non-English language).

MORRIS: This video shows familiar images of Ukrainian soldiers firing Javelins, Russian tanks exploding and burned-out wrecks⁷ smoldering⁸. But Cancian says the U.S. has stopped shipping⁹ the celebrated¹⁰ missile.

CANCIAN: What you've seen is that in recent aid packages, there aren't any Javelins, and I think that's because the stockpile is getting low.

MORRIS: Cancian figures the U.S. has sent up to 7,000 Javelins to Ukraine, about a third of its stockpile.

CANCIAN: The production problem for Javelins is that we've sent a lot of them, and we are producing them at a very high rate. We've been producing them at about 800 a year, more or less.

MORRIS: Javelins are assembled in a plant in Troy, Ala., out of parts and materials sourced from around the country. Production is picking up, but it's going to be expensive, as President Joe Biden conceded when he visited the plant earlier this month.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: And to make sure the United States and our allies can replenish¹¹ our own stocks of weapons to replace what we've sent to Ukraine - as I said from the beginning, this fight is not going to be cheap.

MORRIS: Last week, Biden signed a new $40 billion aid package for Ukraine. The Pentagon has ordered another $309 million worth of replacement¹² Javelins. But Mark Cancian says filling that order is going to be challenging because the assembly plant in Alabama can't speed up until all its suppliers - plants that produce the chemicals, 200 computer chips and other highly specialized¹³ parts required in every Javelin - speed up first.

CANCIAN: Each element of the missile has challenges in its supply chain. The warheads, for example, come from one plant that makes all of the U.S. warheads.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The Iowa Army Ammunition¹⁴ Plant has been making large caliber¹⁵ ammunition for the Defense¹⁶ Department since World War II.

MORRIS: As shown on this video, the Iowa Army Ammunition Plant is vast. The complex sprawls¹⁷ out over nearly 30 square miles, producing tank shells and other ordnance¹⁸, including the explosive part of every single Javelin missile. Notre Dame¹⁹ professor Charles Gholz says it's one of almost two dozen Army-run plants across the country that make and refurbish military hardware.

CHARLES GHOLZ: These, by and large, are very old facilities. Many of them were originally built for World War II and have had limited investment since.

MORRIS: But Gholz, who led a defense supply chain initiative for the Pentagon, says the old, mothballed machinery²⁰ sitting in these plants still works, and he says that excess capacity is there to be used.

GHOLZ: There are going to be hitches²¹ and glitches²² that you have to work on. There's going to be fixing and improvising²³ and replacing. That's what these facilities are for. That's what they do.

MORRIS: What these plants don't have is a bunch of people sitting around, ready to start working. It will take time to hire and to train. Other stages of the Javelin supply chain, they're going to be strained as well.

GHOLZ: There are lots of possible points of friction²⁴. It could be chemical suppliers. It could be casting guys. It could be chipmakers. I don't know which one it'll be. Something will be the slowest to ramp²⁵ up. People will say, that's the friction point. And they will go put resources to fix it.

MORRIS: The government can basically steamroll most of its supply chain problems with money and its authority to requisition scarce parts. So U.S. factories will soon be producing a lot more weapons, including Javelin missiles, the iconic weapon of the war in Ukraine.

For NPR News, I'm Frank Morris.

1 javelin   

n.标枪，投枪

参考例句：

• She achieved a throw of sixty metres in the javelin event.在掷标枪项目中，她掷了60米远。
• The coach taught us how to launch a javelin.教练教我们投标枪。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 javelins   

n.标枪( javelin的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The heavy infantry blocks moved forward, throwing javelins just before the clash. 在正面交火之前，庞大的兵团会整体向前移动并投掷标枪。 来自互联网
• Elite mercenaries, originally from Aragon, armed with javelins and light armour. 加泰罗尼亚标枪兵为精锐雇佣部队，最初来自阿拉贡，装备标枪和轻甲。 来自互联网

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 distinguished   

adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的

参考例句：

• Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
• A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。

6 venerating   

敬重（某人或某事物），崇敬( venerate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Indulgences were normally conditional on venerating a relic, performing some religious practice, or making a gift. 免罪罚通常以崇拜圣物、从事一些宗教活动或施舍钱物为条件。 来自英汉非文学 - 文明史

7 wrecks   

n.沉船( wreck的名词复数 )；（事故中）遭严重毁坏的汽车（或飞机等）；（身体或精神上）受到严重损伤的人；状况非常糟糕的车辆（或建筑物等）v.毁坏[毁灭]某物( wreck的第三人称单数 )；使（船舶）失事，使遇难，使下沉

参考例句：

• The shores are strewn with wrecks. 海岸上满布失事船只的残骸。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• My next care was to get together the wrecks of my fortune. 第二件我所关心的事就是集聚破产后的余财。 来自辞典例句

8 smoldering   

v.用文火焖烧，熏烧，慢燃( smolder的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The mat was smoldering where the burning log had fallen. 燃烧的木棒落下的地方垫子慢慢燃烧起来。 来自辞典例句
• The wood was smoldering in the fireplace. 木柴在壁炉中闷烧。 来自辞典例句

9 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

10 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

11 replenish   

vt.补充；(把…)装满；(再)填满

参考例句：

• I always replenish my food supply before it is depleted.我总是在我的食物吃完之前加以补充。
• We have to import an extra 4 million tons of wheat to replenish our reserves.我们不得不额外进口四百万吨小麦以补充我们的储备。

12 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

13 specialized   

adj.专门的，专业化的

参考例句：

• There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations.联合国有许多专门机构。
• These tools are very specialized.这些是专用工具。

14 ammunition   

n.军火，弹药

参考例句：

• A few of the jeeps had run out of ammunition.几辆吉普车上的弹药已经用光了。
• They have expended all their ammunition.他们把弹药用光。

15 caliber   

n.能力；水准

参考例句：

• They ought to win with players of such high caliber.他们选手的能力这样高,应该获胜。
• We are always trying to improve the caliber of our schools.我们一直在想方设法提高我们学校的水平。

16 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

17 sprawls   

n.（城市）杂乱无序拓展的地区( sprawl的名词复数 )；随意扩展；蔓延物v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的第三人称单数 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着）

参考例句：

• The city sprawls out to the west, north and south. 该市向西、北、南方不规则地扩张[延伸]。 来自互联网
• Explanation: Our magnificent Milky Way Galaxy sprawls across this ambitious all-sky panorama. 说明：我们宏伟的银河系蜿蜒穿过这幅高企图心之全天影像。 来自互联网

18 ordnance   

n.大炮，军械

参考例句：

• She worked in an ordnance factory during the war.战争期间她在一家兵工厂工作。
• Shoes and clothing for the army were scarce,ordnance supplies and drugs were scarcer.军队很缺鞋和衣服，武器供应和药品就更少了。

19 dame   

n.女士

参考例句：

• The dame tell of her experience as a wife and mother.这位年长妇女讲了她作妻子和母亲的经验。
• If you stick around,you'll have to marry that dame.如果再逗留多一会，你就要跟那个夫人结婚。

20 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

21 hitches   

暂时的困难或问题( hitch的名词复数 )； 意外障碍； 急拉； 绳套

参考例句：

• He hitches a lift with a long - distance truck. 他搭上了一辆长途卡车。
• One shoulder hitches upward in a shrug. 她肩膀绷紧，然后耸了耸。

22 glitches   

n.小过失，差错( glitch的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Manufacturing glitches have limited the factory's output. 生产中的故障影响了该厂的产量。 来自辞典例句
• Another kind of period variation,\"Glitches,\" are seen in several pulsars. 在几个脉冲星中还看到了周期的另一种变化，即“自转突快”现象。 来自辞典例句

23 improvising   

即兴创作（improvise的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• I knew he was improvising, an old habit of his. 我知道他是在即兴发挥，这是他的老习惯。
• A few lecturers have been improvising to catch up. 部分讲师被临时抽调以救急。

24 friction   

n.摩擦，摩擦力

参考例句：

• When Joan returned to work,the friction between them increased.琼回来工作后，他们之间的摩擦加剧了。
• Friction acts on moving bodies and brings them to a stop.摩擦力作用于运动着的物体，并使其停止。

25 ramp   

n.暴怒，斜坡，坡道；vi.作恐吓姿势，暴怒，加速；vt.加速

参考例句：

• That driver drove the car up the ramp.那司机将车开上了斜坡。
• The factory don't have that capacity to ramp up.这家工厂没有能力加速生产。