title: European Russia

text: Some theories say that some early Eastern Slavs arrived in modern-day western Russia (also in Ukraine and Belarus) sometime during the middle of the first millennium AD. The Eastern Slavic tribe of the Vyatichis was native to the land around the Oka river. Finno-Ugric, Baltic and Turkic tribes were also present in the area (although large parts of the Turkic and Finno-Ugric people were absorbed by the Slavs, there are great minorities in European Russia today). The western region of Central Russia was inhabited by the Eastern Slavic tribe of the Severians.


title: European Russia

text: One of the first Rus' regions according to the Sofia First Chronicle was Veliky Novgorod in 859. In late 8th and early-to-mid-9th centuries AD the Rus' Khaganate was formed in modern western Russia. The region was a place of operations for Varangians, eastern Scandinavian adventurers, merchants, and pirates. From the late 9th to the mid-13th century a large section of today's European Russia was part of Kievan Rus'. The lands of Rus' Khaganate and Kievan Rus' were important trade routes and connected Scandinavia, Byzantine Empire, Rus' people and Volga Bulgaria with Khazaria and Persia. According to old Scandinavian sources among the 12 biggest cities of Kievan Rus' or Ancient Rus' were Novgorod, Kiev, Polotsk, Smolensk, Murom and Rostov.


title: European Russia

text: Through trade and cultural contact with Byzantine Empire, the Slavic culture of the Rus' adopted gradually the Eastern Orthodox religion. Many sources say that Ryazan, Kolomna, Moscow, Vladimir and Kiev were destroyed by the Mongol Empire. After the Mongol invasion the Muscovite Rus' arose, over all this time, western Russia and the various Rus' regions had strong cultural contacts with the Byzantine Empire, while the Slavic culture was cultivated all the time. The elements of East Slavic paganism and Christianity overlapped each other and sometimes produced even double faith in Muscovite Rus'.


title: Tom McCarthy (director)

text: Thomas Joseph McCarthy (born June 7, 1966) is an American film director, screenwriter, and actor who has appeared in several films, including "Meet the Parents" and "Good Night, and Good Luck", and television series such as "The Wire", "Boston Public", "Law & Order" etc.


title: Tom McCarthy (director)

text: McCarthy has received critical acclaim for his writing/direction work for the independent films "The Station Agent" (2003), "The Visitor" (2007), "Win Win" (2011), and "Spotlight" (2015), the last of which won the Academy Award for Best Picture, won McCarthy the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, and earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Director.


title: Tom McCarthy (director)

text: Additionally, McCarthy co-wrote the film "Up" (2009) with Bob Peterson and Pete Docter, for which they received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay. McCarthy also wrote the film "Million Dollar Arm" (2014) and served as a director and executive producer for the Netflix television series "13 Reasons Why" (2017).


title: Tom McCarthy (director)

text: McCarthy was raised in New Providence, New Jersey, one of five children of Carol and Eugene F. "Gene" McCarthy; Gene worked in the textile industry. McCarthy was raised Catholic, in a family of Irish descent. McCarthy is a graduate of New Providence High School in New Providence, New Jersey and Boston College, Class of 1988, where he was a member of the improv comedy troupe My Mother's Fleabag; and the Yale School of Drama, where he studied under Earle R. Gister.


title: Tom McCarthy (director)

text: McCarthy spent several years doing stand-up comedy and theater in Minneapolis and Chicago before going into television and film. He starred in "Flags of Our Fathers" as James Bradley, and in the final season of "The Wire" as the morally challenged reporter Scott Templeton. He made his Broadway debut in the 2001 revival of "Noises Off!."


title: Tom McCarthy (director)

text: McCarthy's directorial debut, "The Station Agent", which he also wrote, won the Audience Award and the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. The film also won the BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay and the Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay and the Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award. "The Station Agent" also won awards at film festivals ranging from San Sebastian to Stockholm, Mexico City, and Aspen.


title: Tom McCarthy (director)

text: McCarthy's second feature film was "The Visitor", which premiered at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival. For "The Visitor", McCarthy won the 2008 Independent Spirit Award for Best Director. McCarthy appeared in the 2009 dramas "The Lovely Bones" and "2012". In 2010, McCarthy was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for the animated film "Up".


title: Tom McCarthy (director)

text: In 2010, McCarthy directed the unaired pilot for the HBO series "Game of Thrones," but the final cut of the episode was poorly received by showrunners David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. McCarthy was replaced by Tim Van Patten, who directed the final version of the pilot that aired in 2011. The experience discouraged McCarthy from returning to television directing for several years.


title: Tom McCarthy (director)

text: He also co-wrote and directed 2011's "Win Win" based on his experiences as a wrestler at New Providence High School.


title: Tom McCarthy (director)

text: McCarthy's most recent film, the independent drama film "Spotlight", received widespread acclaim following its release in 2015. The film received six Academy Awards nominations, three Golden Globe Awards nominations, two Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations, and eight Critics' Choice Movie Awards nominations.


title: Tom McCarthy (director)

text: McCarthy directed the first two episodes of "13 Reasons Why", from Anonymous Content and Paramount Television. The show is based on the 2007 "The New York Times" bestselling YA book by Jay Asher. In 2019, he signed a first look TV deal with Fox 21 Television Studios (now 20th Television).


title: The Rescue (2021 film)

text: The Rescue is a 2021 documentary film directed and produced by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin. It follows the Tham Luang cave rescue, a 2018 mission that saved a junior association football team from an underwater cave.


title: The Rescue (2021 film)

text: The film had its world premiere at the 48th Telluride Film Festival on September 2, 2021, and was theatrically released in the United States on October 8, 2021.


title: The Rescue (2021 film)

text: In March 2019, it was announced Kevin Macdonald would direct a documentary film revolving around the Tham Luang cave rescue, with National Geographic Documentary Films set to produce. In February 2021, it was announced Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin would replace Macdonald as director, though he would remain as executive producer on the project.


title: The Rescue (2021 film)

text: The filmmakers had difficulty securing rights to the story, with National Geographic able to secure the rights to the divers story, while Netflix had acquired rights to the experiences of the soccer team, preventing them from telling their story in the film.


title: The Rescue (2021 film)

text: The film had its world premiere at the 48th Telluride Film Festival on September 2, 2021. It was also screened at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival on September 12, 2021, where it won the .


title: The Rescue (2021 film)

text: According to review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 96% of 91 critics have given the film a positive review, with an average rating of 8.5/10. Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 86 out of 100 based on 18 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".


title: The Rescue (2021 film)

text: Michael O'Sullivan of "The Washington Post" gave the film 4/4 stars, writing: "As with Chin and Vasarhelyi's previous films, ignore any instinct you may have to pass up this movie because it sounds too hyper-specific: an activity you're not really that interested in, and a story whose ending you've already heard." Simran Hans of "The Observer" gave the film 4/5 stars, describing it as a "hugely involving documentary", and wrote: "Vasarhelyi and Chin recreate the sense of the clock running down as oxygen levels in the cave decrease, while the monsoon outside rages." Kevin Maher of "The Times" also gave the film 4/5 stars, writing: "the film-makers somehow manage to wring nerve-jangling tension from a foregone conclusion". John Lui of "The Straits Times" also gave the film 4/5 stars, writing: "By calmly describing everything that could go wrong while hauling 13 non-divers across 4 km of twisty, submerged passages, the experts evoke a sense of dread that would make a horror film-maker proud." Leslie Felperin of "The Guardian" gave the film 3/5 stars, writing: "Not only is the story compelling, but thanks to how much the event captured the interest of the world's media, there is a lot of archive footage to splice in among the generous wodges of talking-heads narration from the main participants." However, she criticized the music used towards the end of the film as "cheesy" and questioned why the rescued children were not interviewed.


title: The Rescue (2021 film)

text: Roxana Hadadi of "RogerEbert.com" was more critical of the film, giving it 2.5/4 stars. She wrote: "between Vasarhelyi and Chin's inability to speak with the boys or their families, and the documentary's initially languid pacing, "The Rescue" feels like half a story told fairly well, but still, half a story." Cassie Da Costa of "Vanity Fair" wrote that the film "plods along without taking any formal risks", adding: "I couldn't shake the feeling of watching a network TV documentary, designed to feed the audience with detail after detail, but not to generate any significant ideas from the facts and images it contains."


title: Multiplication

text: Multiplication (often denoted by the cross symbol , by the mid-line dot operator , by juxtaposition, or, on computers, by an asterisk ) is one of the four elementary mathematical operations of arithmetic, with the other ones being addition, subtraction, and division. The result of a multiplication operation is called a "product".


title: Multiplication

text: The multiplication of whole numbers may be thought of as repeated addition; that is, the multiplication of two numbers is equivalent to adding as many copies of one of them, the "multiplicand", as the quantity of the other one, the "multiplier". Both numbers can be referred to as "factors".


title: Multiplication

text: For example, 4 multiplied by 3, often written as formula_2 and spoken as "3 times 4", can be calculated by adding 3 copies of 4 together:


title: Multiplication

text: One of the main properties of multiplication is the commutative property, which states in this case that adding 3 copies of 4 gives the same result as adding 4 copies of 3:


title: Multiplication

text: Thus the designation of multiplier and multiplicand does not affect the result of the multiplication.


title: Multiplication

text: Systematic generalizations of this basic definition define the multiplication of integers (including negative numbers), rational numbers (fractions), and real numbers.


title: Multiplication

text: Multiplication can also be visualized as counting objects arranged in a rectangle (for whole numbers) or as finding the area of a rectangle whose sides have some given lengths. The area of a rectangle does not depend on which side is measured first—a consequence of the commutative property.


title: Multiplication

text: The product of two measurements is a new type of measurement. For example, multiplying the lengths of the two sides of a rectangle gives its area. Such a product is the subject of dimensional analysis.


title: Multiplication

text: The inverse operation of multiplication is division. For example, since 4 multiplied by 3 equals 12, 12 divided by 3 equals 4. Indeed, multiplication by 3, followed by division by 3, yields the original number. The division of a number other than 0 by itself equals 1.


title: Multiplication

text: Multiplication is also defined for other types of numbers, such as complex numbers, and for more abstract constructs, like matrices. For some of these more abstract constructs, the order in which the operands are multiplied together matters. A listing of the many different kinds of products used in mathematics is given in Product (mathematics).


title: Multiplication

text: In arithmetic, multiplication is often written using the multiplication sign (either or ) between the terms (that is, in infix notation). For example,


title: Multiplication

text: In computer programming, the asterisk (as in codice_1) is still the most common notation. This is due to the fact that most computers historically were limited to small character sets (such as ASCII and EBCDIC) that lacked a multiplication sign (such as codice_2 or codice_3), while the asterisk appeared on every keyboard. This usage originated in the FORTRAN programming language.


title: Multiplication

text: The numbers to be multiplied are generally called the "factors". The number to be multiplied is the "multiplicand", and the number by which it is multiplied is the "multiplier". Usually, the multiplier is placed first and the multiplicand is placed second; however sometimes the first factor is the multiplicand and the second the multiplier. Also, as the result of multiplication does not depend on the order of the factors, the distinction between "multiplicand" and "multiplier" is useful only at a very elementary level and in some multiplication algorithms, such as the long multiplication. Therefore, in some sources, the term "multiplicand" is regarded as a synonym for "factor". In algebra, a number that is the multiplier of a variable or expression (e.g., the 3 in formula_19) is called a coefficient.


title: Multiplication

text: The result of a multiplication is called a product. When one factor is an integer, the product is a multiple of the other or of the product of the others. Thus formula_20 is a multiple of formula_21, as is formula_22. A product of integers is a multiple of each factor; for example, 15 is the product of 3 and 5 and is both a multiple of 3 and a multiple of 5.


title: Multiplication

text: The product of two numbers or the multiplication between two numbers can be defined for common special cases: integers, natural numbers, fractions, real numbers, complex numbers, and quaternions.


title: Multiplication

text: Integers allow positive and negative numbers. Their product is determined by the product of their positive amounts, combined with the sign derived from the following rule:


title: Multiplication

text: The rigorous definition of the product of two real numbers is a byproduct of the Construction of the real numbers. This construction implies that, for every real number there is a set of rational number such that is the least upper bound of the elements of :


title: Multiplication

text: This definition does not depend of a particular choice of and . That is, if they are changed without changing their least upper bound, then the least upper bound defining formula_29 is not changed.


title: Multiplication

text: Two complex numbers can be multiplied by the distributive law and the fact that formula_32, as follows:


title: Multiplication

text: Geometric meaning of complex multiplication can be understood rewriting complex numbers in polar coordinates:


title: Multiplication

text: The product of two quaternions can be found in the article on quaternions. Note, in this case, that formula_37 and formula_38 are in general different.


title: Multiplication

text: Many common methods for multiplying numbers using pencil and paper require a multiplication table of memorized or consulted products of small numbers (typically any two numbers from 0 to 9). However, one method, the peasant multiplication algorithm, does not. The example below illustrates "long multiplication" (the "standard algorithm", "grade-school multiplication"):


title: Multiplication

text: In some countries such as Germany, the above multiplication is depicted similarly but with the original product kept horizontal and computation starting with the first digit of the multiplier:


title: Multiplication

text: Multiplying numbers to more than a couple of decimal places by hand is tedious and error-prone. Common logarithms were invented to simplify such calculations, since adding logarithms is equivalent to multiplying. The slide rule allowed numbers to be quickly multiplied to about three places of accuracy. Beginning in the early 20th century, mechanical calculators, such as the Marchant, automated multiplication of up to 10-digit numbers. Modern electronic computers and calculators have greatly reduced the need for multiplication by hand.


title: Multiplication

text: Methods of multiplication were documented in the writings of ancient Egyptian, and Chinese civilizations.


title: Multiplication

text: The Ishango bone, dated to about 18,000 to 20,000 BC, may hint at a knowledge of multiplication in the Upper Paleolithic era in Central Africa, but this is speculative.


title: Multiplication

text: The Egyptian method of multiplication of integers and fractions, which is documented in the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus, was by successive additions and doubling. For instance, to find the product of 13 and 21 one had to double 21 three times, obtaining , , . The full product could then be found by adding the appropriate terms found in the doubling sequence:


title: Multiplication

text: The Babylonians used a sexagesimal positional number system, analogous to the modern-day decimal system. Thus, Babylonian multiplication was very similar to modern decimal multiplication. Because of the relative difficulty of remembering different products, Babylonian mathematicians employed multiplication tables. These tables consisted of a list of the first twenty multiples of a certain "principal number" "n": "n", 2"n", ..., 20"n"; followed by the multiples of 10"n": 30"n" 40"n", and 50"n". Then to compute any sexagesimal product, say 53"n", one only needed to add 50"n" and 3"n" computed from the table.


title: Multiplication

text: In the mathematical text "Zhoubi Suanjing", dated prior to 300 BC, and the "Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art", multiplication calculations were written out in words, although the early Chinese mathematicians employed Rod calculus involving place value addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. The Chinese were already using a decimal multiplication table by the end of the Warring States period.


title: Multiplication

text: The modern method of multiplication based on the Hindu–Arabic numeral system was first described by Brahmagupta. Brahmagupta gave rules for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Henry Burchard Fine, then a professor of mathematics at Princeton University, wrote the following:


title: Multiplication

text: These place value decimal arithmetic algorithms were introduced to Arab countries by Al Khwarizmi in the early 9th century and popularized in the Western world by Fibonacci in the 13th century.


title: Multiplication

text: Grid method multiplication, or the box method, is used in primary schools in England and Wales and in some areas of the United States to help teach an understanding of how multiple digit multiplication works. An example of multiplying 34 by 13 would be to lay the numbers out in a grid as follows:


title: Multiplication

text: The classical method of multiplying two -digit numbers requires digit multiplications. Multiplication algorithms have been designed that reduce the computation time considerably when multiplying large numbers. Methods based on the discrete Fourier transform reduce the computational complexity to . In 2016, the factor was replaced by a function that increases much slower, though still not constant. In March 2019, David Harvey and Joris van der Hoeven submitted a paper presenting an integer multiplication algorithm with a complexity of formula_39 The algorithm, also based on the fast Fourier transform, is conjectured to be asymptotically optimal. The algorithm is not practically useful, as it only becomes faster for multiplying extremely large numbers (having more than bits).


title: Multiplication

text: One can only meaningfully add or subtract quantities of the same type, but quantities of different types can be multiplied or divided without problems. For example, four bags with three marbles each can be thought of as:


title: Multiplication

text: When two measurements are multiplied together, the product is of a type depending on the types of measurements. The general theory is given by dimensional analysis. This analysis is routinely applied in physics, but it also has applications in finance and other applied fields.


title: Multiplication

text: The product of a sequence of factors can be written with the product symbol formula_40, which derives from the capital letter Π (pi) in the Greek alphabet (much like the same way the summation symbol formula_41 is derived from the Greek letter Σ (sigma). The meaning of this notation is given by


title: Multiplication

text: In such a notation, the variable represents a varying integer, called the multiplication index, that runs from the lower value indicated in the subscript to the upper value given by the superscript. The product is obtained by multiplying together all factors obtained by substituting the multiplication index for an integer between the lower and the upper values (the bounds included) in the expression that follows the product operator.


title: Multiplication

text: where "m" and "n" are integers or expressions that evaluate to integers. In the case where , the value of the product is the same as that of the single factor "x"; if , the product is an empty product whose value is 1—regardless of the expression for the factors.


title: Multiplication

text: One may also consider products of infinitely many terms; these are called infinite products. Notationally, this consists in replacing "n" above by the Infinity symbol ∞. The product of such an infinite sequence is defined as the limit of the product of the first "n" terms, as "n" grows without bound. That is,


title: Multiplication

text: When multiplication is repeated, the resulting operation is known as "exponentiation". For instance, the product of three factors of two (2×2×2) is "two raised to the third power", and is denoted by 2, a two with a superscript three. In this example, the number two is the "base", and three is the "exponent". In general, the exponent (or superscript) indicates how many times the base appears in the expression, so that the expression


title: Multiplication

text: indicates that "n" copies of the base "a" are to be multiplied together. This notation can be used whenever multiplication is known to be power associative.


title: Multiplication

text: For real and complex numbers, which includes, for example, natural numbers, integers, and fractions, multiplication has certain properties:


title: Multiplication

text: Other mathematical systems that include a multiplication operation may not have all these properties. For example, multiplication is not, in general, commutative for matrices and quaternions.


title: Multiplication

text: In the book "Arithmetices principia, nova methodo exposita", Giuseppe Peano proposed axioms for arithmetic based on his axioms for natural numbers. Peano arithmetic has two axioms for multiplication:


title: Multiplication

text: Here "S"("y") represents the successor of "y"; i.e., the natural number that follows "y". The various properties like associativity can be proved from these and the other axioms of Peano arithmetic, including induction. For instance, "S"(0), denoted by 1, is a multiplicative identity because


title: Multiplication

text: The axioms for integers typically define them as equivalence classes of ordered pairs of natural numbers. The model is based on treating ("x","y") as equivalent to when "x" and "y" are treated as integers. Thus both (0,1) and (1,2) are equivalent to −1. The multiplication axiom for integers defined this way is


title: Multiplication

text: The product of non-negative integers can be defined with set theory using cardinal numbers or the Peano axioms. See below how to extend this to multiplying arbitrary integers, and then arbitrary rational numbers. The product of real numbers is defined in terms of products of rational numbers; see construction of the real numbers.


title: Multiplication

text: There are many sets that, under the operation of multiplication, satisfy the axioms that define group structure. These axioms are closure, associativity, and the inclusion of an identity element and inverses.


title: Multiplication

text: A simple example is the set of non-zero rational numbers. Here we have identity 1, as opposed to groups under addition where the identity is typically 0. Note that with the rationals, we must exclude zero because, under multiplication, it does not have an inverse: there is no rational number that can be multiplied by zero to result in 1. In this example, we have an abelian group, but that is not always the case.


title: Multiplication

text: To see this, consider the set of invertible square matrices of a given dimension over a given field. Here, it is straightforward to verify closure, associativity, and inclusion of identity (the identity matrix) and inverses. However, matrix multiplication is not commutative, which shows that this group is non-abelian.


title: Multiplication

text: Another fact worth noticing is that the integers under multiplication do not form a group—even if we exclude zero. This is easily seen by the nonexistence of an inverse for all elements other than 1 and −1.


title: Multiplication

text: Multiplication in group theory is typically notated either by a dot or by juxtaposition (the omission of an operation symbol between elements). So multiplying element a by element b could be notated as a formula_70 b or ab. When referring to a group via the indication of the set and operation, the dot is used. For example, our first example could be indicated by formula_71.


title: Multiplication

text: Numbers can "count" (3 apples), "order" (the 3rd apple), or "measure" (3.5 feet high); as the history of mathematics has progressed from counting on our fingers to modelling quantum mechanics, multiplication has been generalized to more complicated and abstract types of numbers, and to things that are not numbers (such as matrices) or do not look much like numbers (such as quaternions).


title: Ninja Assassin

text: Ninja Assassin is a 2009 neo-noir martial arts film directed by James McTeigue. The story was written by Matthew Sand, with a screenplay by J. Michael Straczynski. The film stars South Korean pop musician Rain as a disillusioned assassin looking for retribution against his former mentor, played by ninja film legend Sho Kosugi. "Ninja Assassin" explores political corruption, child endangerment and the impact of violence. The Wachowskis, Joel Silver, and Grant Hill produced the film for Legendary Pictures, Dark Castle Entertainment and Silver Pictures. It was distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: "Ninja Assassin" premiered in theaters across the United States on November 25, 2009 and received mixed reviews from critics. Its box office gross was $61,590,252, of which $38,122,883 was from North America. The film's budget was $40–50 million.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: The Ozunu Clan, led by the ruthless Lord Ozunu, trains orphans from around the world to become the ultimate ninja assassins. Raizo is one of the orphans. The Ozunu Clan's training is extremely brutal, especially for Raizo since he is to be the next successor of the clan. The only kindness he ever feels is from a young kunoichi named Kiriko, with whom he eventually develops a romantic bond. As time goes by, Kiriko becomes disenchanted with the Ozunu's routine and decides to abandon it. One rainy night, Kiriko climbs a wall to escape and encourages Raizo to join her, but he chooses to stay. Branded as a traitor, Kiriko is captured and later executed in front of Raizo by their elder ninja brother Takeshi, who impales her through the heart.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: Years later, an adult Raizo is instructed by Lord Ozunu to complete his first assassination. After the mission, Raizo meets the rest of his clan atop a city skyscraper in Berlin. There, Lord Ozunu orders him to execute a kunoichi traitor. Remembering Kiriko's death, Raizo slashes Lord Ozunu's face with his kyoketsu-shoge and fights against his fellow ninjas. Barely surviving, he falls off the rooftop and into a river. After years, Raizo recovers and trains on his own to intervene in, and foil, all of Ozunu's assassination attempts.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: Meanwhile, Europol agent Mika Coretti has been investigating money-linked political murders and finds out that they are possibly connected to the Ozunu. She defies her superior, Ryan Maslow, and retrieves secret agency files to find out more about the investigation. Mika meets Raizo and convinces him to see Maslow for protection, as well as to provide evidence against the Ozunu. However, Raizo is arrested by Maslow and abducted by Europol agents for interrogation.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: Although feeling betrayed, Mika is assured by Maslow that he is still on her side and gives her a tracking device for emergencies. The Ozunu ninjas infiltrate the Europol safe house, where Raizo is being held, in an attempt to kill him and everybody inside. Mika frees Raizo and they both manage to escape, but Raizo suffers near-fatal wounds. Mika then takes him to a motel to hide. Resting in the motel, Mika implants the tracking device into Raizo, as the ninjas remain in pursuit. Unable to fend off the Ozunu, she hides outside the motel until Special Forces arrive to help her.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: By the time they arrive, the ninja have already kidnapped Raizo, bringing him before Lord Ozunu for execution. During the transport back to the Ozunu, Raizo uses his ninja techniques to heal his own wounds. Europol Special Forces and tactical teams led by Maslow storm the secluded Ozunu retreat (nestled in the mountains) using the tracking device on Raizo.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: Turning the night into day by saturating the sky above with powerful flares, the military forces are able to fight the ninjas on their own terms. In the confusion, Mika frees Raizo from his bindings. He proceeds to kill Takeshi and confront Lord Ozunu in a sword duel. Mika interferes to help but gets stabbed by Lord Ozunu. Enraged, Raizo uses a "shadow blending" technique for the first time to distract and kill Lord Ozunu. Mika, seemingly fatally wounded, is in fact saved by a quirk of birth: her heart is actually on the right side of her chest.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: With the Ozunu defeated, Europol leaves. Raizo stays behind in the ruins of the Ozunu retreat. Climbing the same wall Kiriko did in the past, he looks out at the surrounding countryside and breathes with a smile, feeling his freedom for the first time.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: "Ninja Assassin" was directed by James McTeigue, who had previously worked with producers The Wachowskis and Joel Silver on "V for Vendetta" four years prior. The Wachowskis were inspired to make the film by actor Rain's impressive ninja-based fight scenes in their 2008 film "Speed Racer". The initial screenplay was written by Matthew Sand, and was rewritten by J. Michael Straczynski only six weeks prior to filming due to the Wachowskis' initial dissatisfaction. Martial Artist turned actor Sho Kosugi had previously starred in a number of ninja movies playing ninja villains and heroes several times in the 1980s, and had become a cult icon, hence his role as the antagonist Lord Ozunu, named after En no Ozunu, a 7th-century Japanese mystic and one of the developers of ninjutsu. ""If you've ever watched any ninja films from the 1980s, you know that Sho Kosugi is the ninja; he is the man,"" asserts McTeigue.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg provided filmmakers US$1 million in funding, and Germany's Federal Film Fund provided an additional US$9 million to the film's funding.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: Principal photography began in Berlin, Germany at the end of April 2008. Filming took place in Babelsberg Studios and on location throughout Berlin.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: McTeigue cited various influences in filming "Ninja Assassin" such as the films "Panic in the Streets" (1950), "The Getaway" (1972), "Badlands" (1973), "Ninja Scroll" (1993), and the anime "Samurai Champloo" (2004–2005). Actor Collin Chou was originally cast for an undisclosed lead role after Jet Li turned down an offer to appear in it, but Chou later left the role.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: On November 5, 2009, Warner Bros. Entertainment released the video game application based on the film for the iPhone devices.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: The film received mixed reviews from critics, while some praised the revival of the martial arts genre, the movie still failed on originality. On Rotten Tomatoes 26% of 117 critics gave the film positive reviews, with an average rating of 4.40/10. The site's consensus reads "Overly serious and incomprehensibly edited, "Ninja Assassin" fails to live up to the promise of its title."


title: Ninja Assassin

text: At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film received an average score of 34% based on 20 reviews. While critics generally panned the film as a melange of gore scenes without a convincing plot, some critics commended the film's numerous action scenes. Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade "B" on scale of A+ to F.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: Mick LaSalle of the "San Francisco Chronicle" described the film as "a gorefest, a borefest and a snorefest."


title: Ninja Assassin

text: Joe Williams of the "St. Louis Post-Dispatch" opined that "this amateurish action flick is so lacking in personality or punch, it ought to be titled 'V for Video Store Discount Bin.'"


title: Ninja Assassin

text: "Entertainment Weekly"s Chris Nashawaty wrote "...this slick slice of martial-arts mayhem from the producers of "The Matrix" is awash in blood. It spurts and sprays in geysers. And it never lets up. There's a brutal (and admittedly very cool) fight scene every five minutes... But let's be honest, killing is this film's business... and business is good."


title: Ninja Assassin

text: "Ninja Assassin" opened at #6 at the North American box office earning $13,316,158 in its first opening weekend. The film grossed $60,462,347, of which $38,122,883 was from North America. In Japan, this film opened on the March 6, 2010 in only one movie theater in Shinjuku and then also opened on the March 20 in Osaka. "Ninja Assassin" earned 2,214,000 yen (Approximately $25,672 U.S.) during its first opening weekend in Shinjuku.


title: Ninja Assassin

text: On June 9, 2010, Rain was awarded the "Biggest Badass" award on the MTV Movie Awards for his work in "Ninja Assassin".


title: Lalit Modi

text: Lalit Modi (born 29 November 1963) is an Indian businessman and former cricket administrator. He was the founder, first chairman and Commissioner of the Indian Premier League (IPL), and ran the tournament for three years until 2010. He also served as the Chairman of the Champions League during 2008–10. He was the Vice President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) during 2005–10. He has also served as the president of the Rajasthan Cricket Association (2005–09 and 2014–15), and as the vice president of the Punjab Cricket Association.


title: Lalit Modi

text: As a close associate of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Vasundhara Raje, Modi once held considerable political clout in Rajasthan. During Raje's first term as the Chief Minister, he was called "Super Chief Minister" by the opposition and the media. In 2010, Modi alleged that the Indian National Congress minister Shashi Tharoor held indirect free equity in the Kochi Tuskers Kerala IPL franchise, ultimately leading to Tharoor's resignation. The Kochi franchise alleged that Modi was harassing them, because he wanted another group to win the franchise bid. Shortly after IPL 2010 ended, Modi was suspended from BCCI after being accused of misconduct, indiscipline and financial irregularities. BCCI launched an investigation against him, and banned him for life in 2013 after a committee found him guilty of these charges. Modi denied any wrongdoing, and blamed accusations on political rivalries. Shortly before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) launched an investigation against him for alleged financial irregularities, Modi moved to London. Currently he is a fugitive.


title: Lalit Modi

text: As a scion of a leading business family, Modi is the president and managing director of Modi Enterprises and the executive director of Godfrey Phillips India.


title: Lalit Modi

text: Modi was born in Delhi on 29 November 1963, into one of India's leading business families, the elder son of Krishan Kumar Modi and his wife Bina Modi. He has an elder sister, Charu Modi Bhartia, and a younger brother, Samir Modi. His grandfather Gujar Mal Modi had established the Modi Group business conglomerate and the town of Modinagar. His father KK Modi greatly expanded the family business.


title: Lalit Modi

text: Modi joined Bishop Cotton School in Shimla, in 1971. His family later moved him to St Joseph's College, Nainital, because of a kidnapping threat. In 1980, he was expelled from St. Joseph's for truancy, having left school to watch a movie.


title: Lalit Modi

text: Between 1983 and 1986, Modi studied electrical engineering and business administration in the United States. He attended Pace University in New York for two years, and then Duke University in North Carolina for one year. He did not graduate from either of these institutions. In 1985, while a sophomore, Modi and three other students tried to buy half a kilogram of cocaine for $10,000 at a motel. The man posing as a seller threatened them with a shotgun, and robbed them of $10,000. The next day, Modi and his friends beat up a student, whom they suspected of setting them up. As a result, on 1 March 1985, Modi was arrested on charges of conspiracy to traffic cocaine, assault and second-degree kidnapping. The next day, Modi and another student were indicted. Modi pleaded guilty to the crime when the case was heard in the Durham County court, North Carolina and later entered a plea bargain, which resulted in a suspended two-year prison sentence. In lieu of prison time, he was placed under a five-year probation and ordered to do 100 hours' community service. In 1986, Modi sought permission from the court to return to India, citing bad health. The Durham County Court accepted his plea and ordered him to perform 200 hours of community service in India. Modi's return to India was facilitated by some of his father's businessmen friends, including Leonard Lauder. When asked about this matter in 2010, Modi stated "I've got no idea about these allegations, which have been investigated and nothing was found."


title: Lalit Modi

text: In 1986, Modi came back to Delhi, and joined the family business. He served as the President of International Tobacco Company Limited from 1987 to 1991. On 21 August 1989, he was made a Non-Executive & Non-Independent Director at Godfrey Phillips India, one of India's largest tobacco companies, and a joint venture between his family's Modi Enterprises and Philip Morris International. In February 1992, he was made an executive director of Godfrey Phillips India, and retained that position until 1 August 2010.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In Delhi, Modi started courting the nine-years-older Minal Sagrani, who was the daughter of Nigeria-based Sindhi Hindu businessman, Pesu Aswani, and the ex-wife of another Nigeria-based Sindhi businessman, Jack Sagrani. His family initially opposed the marriage, as Minal was a recently divorced mother and nine years older than him. Modi managed to get his grandmother Dayawati Modi on his side, who convinced the family to agree to the marriage. The couple married on 17 October 1991 in Mumbai. The couple settled in Mumbai, as Minal faced a social boycott in Delhi. They initially lived in KK Modi's apartment in Pedder Road area, but later bought Minal's father's house in Juhu as their family grew. They have two children – son Ruchir Modi and daughter Aliya. Lalit Modi also has a step-daughter Karima Sagrani, from Minal's first marriage. On 10 December 2018, Minal died of cancer.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In 1993, Modi established Modi Entertainment Networks (MEN), using money from a family trust. MEN started as a 10-year joint venture with Walt Disney Pictures, to broadcast some of Disney's content in India, including Fashion TV. In 1994, MEN became the pan-India distributor of ESPN on a ten-year contract worth $975 million. His job was to collect money from the cable companies in India in exchange for the broadcasting ESPN. ESPN did not renew its contract with Modi, alleging that he underreported revenues. MEN also lost a contract with Fashion TV, after Modi fell out with its founder Michel Adam Lisowski. Most of Modi's businesses in Mumbai were not profitable, and he lived on a maintenance allowance from his father's company.


title: Lalit Modi

text: Later, Modi became the President and managing director of Modi Enterprises, an industrial conglomerate run by his family.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In the US, Modi had been impressed by the huge revenues of the American sports leagues. In 1995, he pitched his idea for a new 50-over tournament to BCCI. He even registered a name – Indian Cricket League Limited – for the proposed league. However, the BCCI did not take the proposal seriously. Modi then resolved to join the Board. As a step towards this goal, in 1999, he managed to get elected to the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association, a constituent body of BCCI. However, his attempt to gain control of the Association failed, and he was forced to leave the Association by the Chief Minister of the state. In 2004, Modi was elected as the vice-president of the Punjab Cricket Association, under the President Inderjit Singh Bindra. He retained this position in the 2008 elections.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In 2003, Modi's friend Vasundhara Raje was elected as the Chief Minister of Rajasthan. Modi knew Raje through a common school friend Bina Kilachand, and had become one of the Chief Minister's closest associates.


title: Lalit Modi

text: After his failed stint in Himachal Pradesh, Modi decided to gain control of the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA), another constituent body of BCCI. The RCA had been controlled by the Rungta business family for over three decades. It had 32 district associations as its constituent members, plus 66 individual members – all of whom were members or peons of the Rungta household. During the 1980s and 1990s, there were several unsuccessful attempts to eject the Rungta family from the RCA. After Vasundhara Raje became the Chief Minister of Rajasthan, a faction led by Modi started fresh attempts to defeat the Rungtas. Modi registered himself with the RCA under the name "Lalit Kumar", as a member of the Nagore district's cricket association. He didn't use his full name for the fear of being denied entry.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In 2005, Modi used his connections with Raje to get the Rajasthan Sports Act passed. This ordinance took away voting rights from the 66 individual members, leaving only the 32 district associations as voters. As a result, Modi was elected as the President of RCA, defeating the incumbent Kishore Rungta by just 1 vote.


title: Lalit Modi

text: As the RCA President, he spent ₹200 million to renovate Jaipur's Sawai Mansingh Stadium, making it one of the best cricket stadiums in the country. He spent another ₹70 million to build a state-of-the-art cricket academy. He sold the boundary-rope advertising for ₹1.5 million per spot, more than double the previous rate. He also ended the practice of giving away tickets for free and sold corporate box seats for ₹125,000 each.


title: Lalit Modi

text: After becoming the RCA President in 2005, Modi helped the Nationalist Congress Party leader Sharad Pawar defeat Jagmohan Dalmiya in the BCCI Presidential elections. Subsequently, Modi was appointed vice-president of the BCCI.


title: Lalit Modi

text: Lalit Modi was heavily involved in the commercial side of the BCCI. Between 2005 and 2008, BCCI's revenues increased sevenfold, touching the $1 billion mark.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In 2008, Lalit Modi was instrumental in launching the Indian Premier League (IPL), based around Twenty20 cricket. He also engineered the IPL's move to South Africa in 2009, after the dates of the tournament clashed with the Indian general election and the Union Minister of Home Affairs, P. Chidambaram, could not commit to the security of the tournament. The IPL grew into one of the world's biggest sports league, worth over $4 billion. The commercial success of IPL and Modi's control of the league led to him being compared to Don King (boxing promoter) and Bernie Ecclestone (Formula One promoter).


title: Lalit Modi

text: Modi's family and friends also profited from IPL. Suresh Chellaram, his brother-in-law (husband of his sister Kavita), owned a majority share in the Rajasthan Royals franchise. His step-daughter Karima's husband Gaurav Burman was a stakeholder in Global Cricket Venture, which won the digital, mobile and internet rights of the IPL. Gaurav's brother Mohit Burman was a stakeholder in Kings XI Punjab. Jay Mehta, one of the owners of Kolkata Knight Riders, is a childhood friend of Lalit Modi. Rajasthan Royals, Kings XI Punjab and Kolkata Knight Riders were the cheapest franchises and very closely priced, leading to speculation that Modi had passed on insider information to the owners.


title: Lalit Modi

text: As a close associate of the Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, Lalit Modi became a powerful figure in Rajasthan, and came to be known as a "super chief minister". He continued to live in Mumbai, where his network had expanded to include leading industrialists and Bollywood stars. He visited Jaipur frequently, and stayed at the Rambagh Palace, where ministers and civil servants would queue up to meet him and ask for favours.


title: Lalit Modi

text: Modi entered the real estate business with a company called Amer Heritage City Construction Pvt Ltd, where his wife, Minal, served as a director. Modi pressured local officials and secured control of two havelis near the Amer Fort, in contravention of Archaeological Survey of India's rules. He intended to renovate and convert these havelis into a heritage resort. Mahant Shiv Prakash Bhattacharya, the 75-year-old titleholder of the Choor Singh ki Haveli, initiated a court case to thwart Modi's attempt to take over his haveli. During Raje's tenure, the Jaipur Development Authority framed ad-hoc rules to allow re-classification of agricultural land and its use for non-agricultural purposes. This change, which benefited several big builders from Delhi, was allegedly presided over by Lalit Modi.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In 2007, Modi disallowed the IAS officer Mahendra Surana to watch a match at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, because he believed Suarana to be an associate of the Rungta faction of RCA. When Surana and his friend Hemendra Suarana (an army doctor and a former Ranji player) arrived at the Stadium, Modi tore their tickets. He repeated this act with the IPS officer R.P. Srivastava. During a cricket match, he slapped a constable for walking into his box at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, leading to protests by the city's constabulary.


title: Lalit Modi

text: Modi's increasing power in Rajasthan politics became a key issue in the 2008 Rajasthan elections, which Raje lost. Ashok Gehlot of Congress, who succeeded Raje as the Chief Minister, accused Modi of acting as an "extra-constitutional authority" during his campaign. After Raje was voted out of power, Modi's power in Rajasthan reduced considerably. In January 2009, he had spent several hours at a police station after an FIR was registered on the basis of a complaint by a Samajwadi Party activist for forgery. In March 2009, his faction lost the RCA election. The new leadership appointed a committee to probe alleged financial irregularities during his regime.


title: Lalit Modi

text: By 2009, suggestions of a rivalry between Modi and N. Srinivasan surfaced. During 2009–10, Lalit Modi oversaw the bidding process for induction of two new teams in the Indian Premier League. In December 2009, he inserted two new clauses in the invitation to tender (ITT): the bidder should have a net worth of at least US$1 billion and must provide a bank guarantee of US$100 million. Modi stated that these clauses protected BCCI's interests. However, other BCCI board members claimed that he was rigging bids to suit Adani Group and Videocon Group, as the new clauses would rule out most of the other prospective bidders. After the ITT was floated on 22 February 2010, some of the prospective bidders, including Sahara Group and Jagran Group, complained to the BCCI President Shashank Manohar that they were being deliberately kept out of the tendering process. After receiving only two bids, IPL changed the ITT, removing the net worth clause and reducing the guarantee amount to US$10 million.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In March 2010, a consortium of investors led by Rendezvous Sports World (RSW) won a bid for the Kerala-based Kochi Tuskers Kerala franchise. Indian National Congress leader and External Affairs minister Shashi Tharoor was involved in bringing together the various companies in this consortium. At that time, both Modi and Tharoor stated that the minister had no stake in the franchise, and was only facilitating a team for his native state Kerala. On 11 April 2010, when a formal agreement was being signed between BCCI and the Kochi franchise, Modi asked the Kochi representatives about the identities of the sweat equity holders in the franchise. According to Modi, he received "evasive replies", and subsequently, a call from Tharoor instructing him not to probe the identities of Kochi's stakeholders. One of the sweat equity holders was Sunanda Pushkar, a close friend (and later wife) of Shashi Tharoor. Shortly after the agreement was signed, Modi disclosed the names of Kochi's stakeholders via a tweet. Modi alleged that Pushkar's shares were actually a hidden gift to Tharoor. RSW threatened to sue Modi for violating confidentiality agreement, and claimed that Modi was creating problems for Kochi because he wanted other bidders to win. Tharoor denied that he had any financial stake in the Kochi franchise, and stated that his role was limited to offering "encouragement, blessings and expert advise" to the RSW-led group of bidders. Tharoor argued that there was no reason for the investors to bribe him, since he had no influence over the auction. Sunanda Pushkar stated that she would give up her stake in the Kochi franchise. Ultimately, Tharoor had to resign as a minister amid allegations of corruption.


title: Lalit Modi

text: On 16 April 2010, the representatives of the Kochi franchise complained to BCCI that Lalit Modi had threatened them to give up the franchise. A day after the IPL final on 24 April, BCCI suspended Modi on 22 charges, including bypassing the governing council while taking decisions, not following proper processes, bid rigging, awarding contracts to his friends, accepting kickbacks on a broadcast deal, selling franchises to members of his family, betting and money laundering. Soon after his suspension, Modi moved to London, where his wife Minal's family lived. In London, he hired Carter-Ruck to fight BCCI's charges, and sent out defamation notices of his own. He also spent time expanding his family business in Europe. Modi believed that N Srinivasan, who later became the BCCI President, had masterminded his ouster from BCCI. In 2012, Modi alleged that Srinivasan had fixed the auction of Andrew Flintoff in 2009. He also supported Aditya Verma, the secretary of Cricket Association of Bihar, who was fighting a separate legal battle against Srinivasan.


title: Lalit Modi

text: Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate of the Indian government launched investigations in following cases against Modi and other BCCI officials:


title: Lalit Modi

text: Modi defended himself arguing that he was not individually responsible for the decisions: BCCI and its committees took these decisions collectively. He refused to return to India, stating that there was a threat to his life. The Mumbai Police endorsed his claim, stating that underworld gangsters had threatened him after he refused to pay extortion money. Dawood Ibrahim and his associate Chhota Shakeel had sent hitmen to kill Modi and his family, when the Modis were on a vacation in Thailand.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In 2010, Modi claimed on Twitter that New Zealand cricketer Chris Cairns had been involved in match-fixing during 2008. In March 2012, Cairns successfully sued Modi for making false statements and won $950,000 in damages.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In 2013, a BCCI committee found Modi guilty on 8 charges, which resulted in his expulsion from BCCI. The committee was led by the BCCI vice-president and BJP leader Arun Jaitley; its other members included the Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia and Chirayu Amin. The charges against Modi included:


title: Lalit Modi

text: In December 2013, the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) held fresh elections. However, the results were postponed 6 times by the Supreme Court due to court cases filed by Kishore Rungta and the BCCI. On 6 May 2014, Lalit Modi was re-elected as the president of Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA), while residing in London. Immediately after his election, the BCCI banned the RCA and elected an ad hoc body to carry administrative function of RCA. Lalit Modi took the legal route to fight BCCI's declaration.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In March 2014, Modi alleged that the International Cricket Council (ICC) had evidence regarding the existence of spot and match-fixing in the Champions League T20 cricket tournament and that world cricket's governing body was deliberately not making it public.


title: Lalit Modi

text: On 9 March 2015, a group led by Amin Pathan moved a no-confidence motion against Lalit Modi, who was until then, the President of RCA. According to the Rajasthan State Sports Act, a minimum attendance of 23 was required to make a quorum. 23 people attended the meeting, out of whom 17 voted against Modi. Only one vote in Modi's support was counted: five other votes were discarded as disputed. 12 more of Modi's supporters were denied entry into the meeting, on the ground that they were late by 10 minutes. The delay occurred because their vehicles were stopped, and they were beaten with rods by a mob. 5 more votes were discarded as disputed. In the end, Modi was ousted as the President by a controversial 17–1 vote. Pathan denied any role in the attack on Modi's supporters, and suggested that the attack was staged by them as an excuse for their pending defeat.


title: Lalit Modi

text: In March 2010, while Modi was in London, the Congress-led Indian Government revoked his passport. Modi challenged the decision in the Delhi High Court. The High Court restored Modi's passport in August 2014. In June 2015, British Member of Parliament Keith Vaz was reported to the parliamentary standards commissioner for lobbying UK immigration officials on behalf of Lalit Modi. It was revealed that Vaz had mentioned a recommendation from Sushma Swaraj in his correspondence with the immigration officials. Modi's wife Minal was diagnosed with breast cancer during 2008–09, and was being treated in Portugal. In 2014, Sushma Swaraj requested the British authorities provide assistance by law of the land. Based on her recommendation, the British authorities provided Modi travel documents on the pretext of signing the consent for his wife's operation, although the same was not a requirement in Portugal


title: Lalit Modi

text: Modi also revealed that on 25 August 2011, BJP leader Vasundhara Raje (also an opposition leader at that time) signed a document supporting his application to the British authorities. The application, which was never presented to the British authorities, had a secrecy clause that it should not be revealed to the Indian authorities. In her affidavit, Raje had claimed that Modi was a victim of a "political witch hunt" by the Congress. Earlier, in 2013, a Jaipur-based lawyer Poonam Chand Bhandari had filed a public interest litigation in the Delhi high court, claiming that Lalit Modi had transferred millions of rupees to a company owned by Vasundhara Raje and her son Dushyant Singh, using a shell company. Dushyant Singh owns Niyant Heritage Hotels Private Limited (NHHPL), and his mother Vasundhara Raje holds 3,280 shares in the company. In 2008, Lalit Modi's company Anand Heritage Hotels Private Limited (AHHPL) provided an unsecured loan of 38 million to NHHPL. During 2008–09, AHHPL acquired 815 shares in NHHPL, paying 96,000 for each share, although the face value of each share was only 10. NHHPL, which previously had a paid up capital of 1 million, thus received a total of 116.3 million from AHHPL. In June 2015, the Congress accused Vasundhara Raje of corruption, alleging that she had granted favours to Lalit Modi in exchange for the money. BJP argued that Raje had acted as a friend of Modi, and not in her capacity as a political leader.


title: Lalit Modi

text: The controversy resulting from these revelations was termed as "Modigate" by the Indian media. The opposition parties accused the BJP leaders of shielding Lalit Modi, who was wanted in several cases of financial irregularities in India. Modi's lawyer Mehmood Abdi called the controversy a matter of political vendetta, and claimed that he had been hounded by the Congress ever since the Shashi Tharoor-Sunanda Pushkar controversy of 2010.


title: Lalit Modi

text: As a result, Interpol, the international law enforcement agency, issued a light blue notice against Modi to be arrested on Indian soil. However, in June 2015, and despite the Interpol notice, Modi took a picture with ex-Interpol Chief Ronald Noble and uploaded it to his Instagram account while attending the El Clasico match in Barcelona. In the post, he referred to Noble as his “brother”. The incident caused significant media backlash within India as many began to raise questions about the connection between men with criminal reputations like Modi and international law enforcement. Yet Noble, who served as the head of Interpol from 2000 to 2014, denied any knowledge of Modi's criminal activities despite evidence that Modi was on an Interpol watch list for some time.


title: Lalit Modi

text: One month later, a series of emails revealed Modi's further ties with Noble and his brother James. Indian media released a set of emails exchanged between the three men between 21 and 26 January 2014, discussing a property worth $365,000 in the United States. Ronald Noble explained that his brother and Modi entered into a joint business venture around the property, under which Modi would purchase the house, while James Noble would maintain it at his own expense. Modi and James Noble would split the profits equally once the property was sold. Noble stated that there was no conflict of interest, because at the time of this deal he was not an Interpol employee and Modi was of no interest to Interpol. As of 2015, Lalit Modi has not been convicted of any charges as part of the ED investigation.


title: Lalit Modi

text: The Enforcement Directorate of India had requested Interpol to issue a global warrant against Lalit Modi. However, in 2017, the Interpol which had been delaying the issuance, rejected this request.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Bristol Type 156 Beaufighter (often called the Beau) is a British multi-role aircraft developed during the Second World War by the Bristol Aeroplane Company. It was originally conceived as a heavy fighter variant of the Bristol Beaufort torpedo bomber. The Beaufighter proved to be an effective night fighter, which came into service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Battle of Britain, its large size allowing it to carry heavy armament and early airborne interception radar without major performance penalties.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Beaufighter was used in many roles; receiving the nicknames "Rockbeau" for its use as a rocket-armed ground attack aircraft and "Torbeau" as a torpedo bomber against Axis shipping, in which it replaced the Beaufort. In later operations, it served mainly as a maritime strike/ground attack aircraft, RAF Coastal Command having operated the largest number of Beaufighters amongst all other commands at one point. The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) also made extensive use of the type as an anti-shipping aircraft, such as during the Battle of the Bismarck Sea.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Beaufighter saw extensive service during the war with the RAF (59 squadrons), Fleet Air Arm (15 squadrons), RAAF (seven squadrons), Royal Canadian Air Force (four squadrons), United States Army Air Forces (four squadrons), Royal New Zealand Air Force (two squadrons), South African Air Force (two squadrons) and "Polskie Siły Powietrzne" (Free Polish Air Force; one squadron). Variants of the Beaufighter were manufactured in Australia by the Department of Aircraft Production (DAP); such aircraft are sometimes referred to by the name "DAP Beaufighter".


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The concept of the Beaufighter has its origins in 1938. During the Munich Crisis, the Bristol Aeroplane Company recognised that the Royal Air Force (RAF) had an urgent need for a long-range fighter aircraft capable of carrying heavy payloads for maximum destruction. Evaluation of the Beaufort concluded that it had great structural strength and stiffness in the wings, nacelles, undercarriage and tail, so that the aircraft could be readily developed further for greater speed and manoeuvrability akin to a fighter-class aircraft. The Bristol design team, led by Leslie Frise, commenced the development of a cannon-armed fighter derivative as a private venture. The prospective aircraft had to share the same jigs as the Beaufort so that production could easily be switched from one aircraft to the other.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: As a torpedo bomber and aerial reconnaissance aircraft, the Beaufort had a modest performance. To achieve the fighter-like performance desired for the Beaufighter, Bristol suggested that they equip the aircraft with a pair of their new Hercules engines, capable of around 1,500 hp, in place of the 1,000 hp Bristol Taurus engines on the Beaufort. The Hercules was a considerably larger and more powerful engine which required larger propellers. To obtain adequate ground clearance, the engines were mounted centrally on the wing, as opposed to the underslung position on the Beaufort. In October 1938, the project, which received the internal name "Type 156", was outlined. In March 1939, the "Type 156" was given the name "Beaufighter".


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: During early development, Bristol had formalised multiple configurations for the prospective aircraft, including variations such as a proposed three-seat bomber outfitted with a dorsal gun turret with a pair of cannons, the "Type 157" and what Bristol referred to as a "sports model", with a thinner fuselage, the "Type 158". Bristol proceeded to suggest their concept for a fighter development of the Beaufort to the Air Ministry. The timing of the suggestion happened to coincide with delays in the development and production of the Westland Whirlwind cannon-armed twin-engine fighter. While there was some scepticism that the aircraft was too big for a fighter, the proposal was given a warm reception by the Air Staff.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Air Ministry produced draft Specification F.11/37 in response to Bristol's suggestion for an "interim" aircraft, pending the proper introduction of the Whirlwind. On 16 November 1938, Bristol received formal authorisation to commence the detailed design phase of the project and to proceed with the construction of four prototypes. Amongst the design requirements, the aircraft had to be able to accommodate the Rolls-Royce Griffon engine as an alternative to the Hercules and that it have maximum interchangeability between the two engines, which would feature removable installations.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Bristol began building an initial prototype by taking a partly-built Beaufort out of the production line. This conversion served to speed progress; Bristol had promised series production in early 1940 on the basis of an order being placed in February 1939. Designers expected that maximum re-use of Beaufort components would speed the process but the fuselage required more work than expected and had to be redesigned. Perhaps in anticipation of this, the Air Ministry had requested that Bristol investigate the prospects of a "slim fuselage" configuration. Since the "Beaufort cannon fighter" was a conversion of an existing design, development and production was expected to proceed more quickly than with a new one. Within six months the first F.11/37 prototype, "R2052", had been completed. A total of 2,100 drawings were produced during the transition from Beaufort to the prototype Beaufighter, more than twice as many were created during later development, between the prototype Beaufighter and the fully operational production models. Two weeks prior to the prototype's first flight, an initial production contract for 300 aircraft under Specification F.11/37 was issued by the Air Ministry, ordering the type "off the drawing board".


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: On 17 July 1939, "R2052", the first, unarmed, prototype, conducted its maiden flight, a little more than eight months after development had formally started. The rapid pace of development is partly due to the re-use of many elements of the Beaufort design along with frequently identical components. "R2052" was initially operated by Bristol for testing purposes while it was based at Filton Aerodrome. Early modifications to "R2052" included stiffening of the elevator control circuit, increased fin area and lengthening of the main oleo strut of the undercarriage to better accommodate weight increases and hard landings.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: During the pre-delivery trials, the first prototype "R2052", powered by a pair of two-speed supercharged Hercules I-IS engines, had achieved 335 mph (539 km/h) at 16,800 ft (5,120 m) in a clean configuration. The second prototype, "R2053", which was furnished with Hercules I-M engines (similar to Hercules II) and was laden with operational equipment, had attained a slower speed of 309 mph at 15,000 ft. According to aviation author Philip Moyes, the performance of the second prototype was considered disappointing, particularly as the Hercules III engines of the initial production aircraft would likely provide little improvement, especially in light of additional operational equipment being installed; it was recognised that demand for the Hercules engine to power other aircraft such as the Short Stirling bomber posed a potential risk to the production rate of the Beaufighter. These factors had thus sparked considerable interest in the adoption of alternative engines for the type.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Roy Fedden, chief designer of the Bristol engine division, was a keen advocate for the improved Hercules VI for the Beaufighter but it was soon passed over in favour of the rival Griffon engine, as the Hercules VI required extensive development. Due to production of the Griffon being reserved for the Fairey Firefly, the Air Ministry instead opted for the Rolls-Royce Merlin to power the Beaufighter until the manufacturing rate of the Hercules could be raised by a new shadow factory in Accrington. The standard Merlin XX-powered aircraft was later called the "Beaufighter Mark IIF"; the planned slim-fuselage aircraft, alternatively equipped with Hercules IV and Griffon engines, the "Beaufighter Mark III" and "Beaufighter Mark IV" respectively, were ultimately left unbuilt.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: In February 1940, an order was placed for three Beaufighters, converted to use the alternative Merlin engine. The Merlin engine installations and nacelles were designed by Rolls-Royce as a complete "power egg"; the design and approach of the Beaufighter's Merlin installation was later incorporated into the design for the much larger Avro Lancaster bomber. Success with the Merlin-equipped aircraft was expected to lead to production aircraft in 1941. In June 1940, the first Merlin-powered aircraft conducted its first flight. In late 1940, the two Merlin-equipped prototypes (the third having been destroyed in a bombing raid) were delivered. Flight tests found that the Merlins left the aircraft underpowered, with a pronounced tendency to swing to port, making take-offs and landings difficult and resulting in a high accident rate – out of 337 Merlin-powered aircraft, 102 were lost to accidents.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: On 2 April 1940, "R2052" was delivered to the RAF; it was followed by "R2053" two weeks later. On 27 July 1940, the first five production Beaufighters were delivered to the RAF along with another five on 3 August 1940. These production aircraft incorporated aerodynamic improvements, reducing aerodynamic drag from the engine nacelles and tail wheel, the oil coolers were also relocated on the leading edge of the wing. The armament of the Beaufighter had also undergone substantial changes, the initial 60-round capacity spring-loaded drum magazine arrangement being awkward and inconvenient; alternative systems were investigated by Bristol.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Bristol's proposed recoil-operated ammunition feed system was rejected by officials, which led to a new system being devised and tested on the fourth prototype, "R2055". The initial rejection was later reversed, upon the introduction of a new electrically driven feed derived from Châtellerault designs brought to Britain by Free French officers, which was quite similar to Bristol's original proposal. The initial fifty production aircraft were approved for completion with a cannon-only armament. The design of the cannons and the armament configuration was revised on most aircraft. The addition of six .303 Browning machine guns made the Beaufighter the most heavily armed fighter aircraft in the world, capable of delivering a theoretical weight of fire of up to per minute; the practical rate of fire was much lower due to gun overheating and ammunition capacity.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Further armament trials and experimental modifications were performed throughout the Beaufighter's operational life. By mid-1941, twenty Beaufighters were reserved for test purposes, including engine development, stability and manoeuvrability improvements and other purposes. In May 1941, the Beaufighter Mark IIs "R2274" and "R2306", were modified to the "Beaufighter Mark III" standard; removing the six wing guns and two inboard cannons to install a Boulton-Paul-built four-gun turret behind the pilot, to overcome the effect of recoil and nose-down tendency when firing the usual armament but was found to obstruct the emergency egress of the pilot. The fourth prototype, "R2055", had its regular armament replaced by a pair of guns for attacking ground targets, the two guns being a Vickers S gun mounted on the starboard fuselage and a Rolls-Royce BH gun mounted on the port fuselage; these trials led to the Vickers gun being installed on an anti-tank Hawker Hurricane IID.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Large orders for the Beaufighter were placed around the outbreak of the Second World War, including one for 918 aircraft shortly after the arrival of the initial production examples. In mid-1940, during an official visit to Bristol's Filton facility by the Minister of Aircraft Production, Lord Beaverbrook, the minister spoke of the importance of the Beaufighter to the war effort and urged its rapid service entry. While the aircraft's size had once caused scepticism, the Beaufighter became the highest performance aircraft capable of carrying the bulky early airborne interception radars used for night fighter operations, without incurring substantial endurance or armament penalties, and was invaluable as a night fighter.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: For the maximum rate of production, sub-contracting of the major components was used wherever possible and two large shadow factories to perform final assembly work on the Beaufighter were established via the Ministry of Aircraft Production; the first, operated by the Fairey Aviation Company, was at Stockport, Greater Manchester and the second shadow, run by Bristol, was at Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. Output of the Beaufighter rose rapidly upon the commencement of production.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Through 1940–41, the manufacturing rate of the Beaufighter steadily rose. On 7 December 1940, the 100th Filton-built aircraft was dispatched; the 200th Filton-built aircraft followed on 10 May 1941. On 7 March 1941, the first Fairey-built Beaufighter Mark I performed its first test flight; the first Weston-built aircraft reached the same milestone on 20 February 1941. The volume of production involved, along with other factors, had led to a shortage of Hercules engines being expected, jeopardising the aircraft's manufacturing rate. The next variant, the "Beaufighter Mark II", used the Merlin engine instead. On 22 March 1941, the first production Beaufighter Mark II, "R2270", conducted its maiden flight; squadron deliveries commenced in late April 1941.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: By mid-1941, manufacture of the Beaufighter varied to meet the demands of RAF Fighter Command and RAF Coastal Command. Early aircraft were able to be outfitted and perform with either command but later, the roles and equipment diverged, leading to the production of distinct models, distinguished by the suffixes "F" for Fighter Command and "C" for Coastal Command were used. Often, one command opted for modifications and features that the other did not. This occurred with the bellows-type dive brake that became standard for Coastal Command Beaufighters for its usefulness in torpedo-bombing.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Production of the earlier Beaufort in Australia and the great success of British-made Beaufighters by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), contributed to the Australian government deciding in January 1943 to manufacture Beaufighters under the Department of Aircraft Production (DAP) organisation at Fishermans Bend, Melbourne, Victoria from 1944. The DAP Beaufighter was an attack and torpedo bomber known as the "Mark 21". Design changes included Hercules VII or XVIII engines and some minor changes in armament. By September 1945, when British production ended, 5,564 Beaufighters had been built by Bristol and the Fairey Aviation Company at Stockport and RAF Ringway (498); also by the Ministry of Aircraft Production (3336) and Rootes at Blythe Bridge (260). When Australian production ceased in 1946, 364 Mark 21s had been built.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Bristol Beaufighter is a fighter derivative of the Beaufort torpedo-bomber. It is a twin-engine two-seat long range day and night fighter. The aircraft employed an all-metal monocoque construction, comprising three sections with extensive use of 'Z-section' frames and 'L-section' longeron. The wing of the Beaufighter used a mid-wing cantilever all-metal monoplane arrangement, also constructed out of three sections. Structurally, the wing consisted of two spars with single-sheet webs and extruding flanges, completed with a stressed-skin covering, and featured metal-framed ailerons with fabric coverings along with hydraulically-actuated flaps located between the fuselage and the ailerons. Hydraulics were also used to retract the independent units of undercarriage, while the brakes were pneumatically-actuated.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The twin Bristol Taurus engines of the Beaufort, having been deemed insufficiently powerful for a fighter, were replaced by more powerful two-speed supercharger-equipped Bristol Hercules radial engines. These powered three-bladed Rotol constant-speed propellers; both fully feathering metal and wooden blades were used. The extra power had presented vibration issues during development; in the final design, the engines were mounted on longer and more flexible struts, which extended from the front of the wings. This change moved the centre of gravity (CoG) forward, a typically undesirable feature for an aircraft, thus the CoG was moved back to its proper desirable location by shortening the nose, which was possible as the space within the nose had been previously occupied by a bomb aimer, a role that was unnecessary in a fighter aircraft. The majority of the fuselage was positioned aft of the wing and, with the engine cowlings and propellers now further forward than the tip of the nose, gave the Beaufighter a characteristically stubby appearance.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: In general, with the exception of the powerplants used, the differences between the preceding Beaufort and Beaufighter were minor. The wings, control surfaces, retractable landing gear and aft section of the fuselage were identical to those of the Beaufort, while the wing centre section was similar apart from certain fittings. The areas for the rear gunner and bomb-aimer were removed, leaving only the pilot in a fighter-type cockpit. The navigator-radar operator sat to the rear under a small Perspex bubble where the Beaufort's dorsal turret had been. Both crew-members had their own hatch in the floor of the aircraft. The front hatch was behind the pilot's seat. As there was no room to climb around the seat-back, the back collapsed to allow the pilot to climb over and into the seat. In an emergency, the pilot could operate a lever that remotely released the hatch, grasp two steel overhead tubes and lift himself out of his seat, swing his legs over the open hatchway, then let go to drop through. Evacuating the aircraft was easier for the navigator, as the rear hatch was in front of him and without obstruction.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Beaufighter's armament was located in various positions on the lower fuselage and wings. The bomb bay of the Beaufort had been entirely omitted, but a small bomb load could be carried externally. A total of four forward-firing 20 mm Hispano Mark III cannons were mounted in the lower fuselage area. These were initially fed from 60-round drums, requiring the radar operator to change the ammunition drums manually—an arduous and unpopular task, especially at night and while chasing a bomber. They were soon replaced by a belt-feed system. The cannons were supplemented by six .303 in (7.7 mm) Browning machine guns in the wings (four starboard, two port, the asymmetry caused by the port mounting of the landing light). This was one of the heavier, if not the heaviest, fighter armament of its time. When Beaufighters were developed as fighter-torpedo bombers, they used their firepower (often the machine guns were removed) to suppress flak fire and hit enemy ships, especially escorts and small vessels. The recoil of the cannons and machine guns could reduce the speed of the aircraft by around 25 knots.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Beaufighter was commonly operated as a night fighter, such as during the Battle of Britain. Mass production of the type had coincidentally occurred at almost exactly the same time as the first British airborne interception radar sets were becoming available; the two technologies quickly became a natural match in the night fighter role. As the aircraft's accompaniment of four 20 mm cannons were mounted in the lower fuselage, the vacant nose could accommodate the radar antennas needed, and while early airborne interception equipment was too bulky to fit in single-engine fighters of the day, it could be accommodated in the Beaufighter's spacious fuselage. At night the onboard radar let the aircraft detect enemy aircraft. The heavy fighter remained fast enough to catch up to German bombers and, with its heavy armament, deal out considerable damage to them. While early radar sets suffered from restrictions in range and thus initially limited the aircraft's usefulness, improved radars became available in January 1941, promptly making the Beaufighter one of the more effective night fighters of the era.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: By fighter standards, the Beaufighter Mark I was rather heavy and slow, with an all-up weight of 16,000 lb (7,000 kg) and a maximum speed of 335 mph (540 km/h) at 16,800 ft (5,000 m). The Beaufighter was the only heavy fighter aircraft available, as the Westland Whirlwind had been cancelled due to production problems with its Rolls-Royce Peregrine engines. On 12 August 1940, the first production Beaufighter was delivered to RAF Tangmere for trials with the Fighter Interception Unit. On 2 September 1940, 25 Squadron, 29 Squadron, 219 Squadron, and 604 Squadron became the first operational squadrons to receive production aircraft, each squadron received one Beaufighter that day to begin converting from their Blenheim IF aircraft. The re-equipping and conversion training process took several months to complete; on the night of 17/18 September 1940, Beaufighters of 29 Squadron conducted their first operational night patrol, conducting an uneventful sortie, the first operational daylight sortie was performed on the following day. On 25 October 1940, the first confirmed Beaufighter kill, a Dornier Do 17, occurred.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Initial production deliveries of the Beaufighter lacked the radar for night fighter operations; these were installed by No. 32 Maintenance Unit at RAF St Athan during late 1940. On the night of 19/20 November 1940, the first kill by a radar-equipped Beaufighter occurred, of a Junkers Ju 88. More advanced radar units were installed in early 1941, which soon allowed the Beaufighter to become an effective counter to the night raids of the "Luftwaffe". By March 1941, half of the 22 German aircraft claimed by British fighters were by Beaufighters. During a raid on London on the night of 19/20 May 1941, 24 aircraft were shot down by fighters against two by anti-aircraft ground fire.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: In late April 1941, the first two "Beaufighter Mark II" aircraft, "R2277" and "R2278", were delivered to 600 and 604 Squadrons; the former squadron being the first to receive the type in quantity in the following month. The Mark II was also supplied to the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy. A night-fighter "Beaufighter Mark VIF" was supplied to squadrons in March 1942, equipped with AI Mark VIII radar. The Beaufighter showed its merits as a night fighter but went on to perform in other capacities. As the faster de Havilland Mosquito took over as the main night fighter in mid-to-late 1942, the heavier Beaufighter made valuable contributions in other areas such as anti-shipping, ground attack and long-range interdiction, in every major theatre of operations.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: On 12 June 1942, a Beaufighter conducted a raid which Moyes said was "perhaps the most impudent of the war". "T4800", a Beaufighter Mark 1C of No. 236 Squadron, flew from Thorney Island to occupied Paris at an extremely low altitude in daylight to drop a tricolore on the Arc de Triomphe and strafe the Gestapo headquarters in the Place de la Concorde.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Beaufighter soon commenced service overseas, where its ruggedness and reliability quickly made the aircraft popular with crews. However, it was heavy on the controls and not easy to fly, with landing being a particular challenge for inexperienced pilots. Due to wartime shortages, some Beaufighters entered operational service without feathering equipment for their propellers. As some models of the twin-engined Beaufighter could not stay aloft on one engine unless the dead propeller was feathered, this deficiency contributed to several operational losses and the deaths of aircrew.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: In the Mediterranean, the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) 414th, 415th, 416th and 417th night fighter squadrons received a hundred Beaufighters in the summer of 1943, achieving their first victory in July 1943. Through the summer, the squadrons conducted daytime convoy escort and ground-attack operations but primarily flew as night fighters. Although the Northrop P-61 Black Widow fighter began to arrive in December 1944, USAAF Beaufighters continued to fly night operations in Italy and France until late in the war. By the autumn of 1943, the Mosquito was available in enough numbers to replace the Beaufighter as the primary night fighter of the RAF. By the end of the war, some 70 pilots serving with RAF units had become aces while flying Beaufighters. At least one captured Beaufighter was operated by the "Luftwaffe" – a photograph exists of the aircraft in flight, with German markings.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: It was recognised that RAF Coastal Command required a long-range heavy fighter aircraft such as the Beaufighter and in early 1941, Bristol proceeded with the development of the "Beaufighter Mark IC" long-range fighter. Based on the standard Mark I model, the initial batch of 97 Coastal Command Beaufighters were hastily manufactured, making it impossible to incorporate the intended additional wing fuel tanks on the production line and so 50-gallon tanks from the Vickers Wellington were temporarily installed on the floor between the cannon bays. In April/May 1941, this new variant of the Beaufighter entered squadron service in a detachment from 252 Squadron operating from Malta. This inaugural deployment with the squadron proved to be highly successful, leading to the type being retained in that theatre throughout the remainder of the war. In June 1941, the Beaufighter-equipped 272 Squadron based on Malta claimed the destruction of 49 enemy aircraft and the damaging of 42 more. The Beaufighter was reputedly very effective in the Mediterranean against Axis shipping, aircraft and ground targets; Coastal Command was, at one point, the majority user of the Beaufighter, replacing its inventory of obsolete Beaufort and Blenheim aircraft. To meet demand, both the Fairey and Weston production lines were, at times, only producing Coastal Command Beaufighters.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: In 1941, to intensify offensive air operations against Germany and deter the deployment of "Luftwaffe" forces onto the Eastern Front, Coastal Command Beaufighters began offensive operations over France and Belgium, attacking enemy shipping in European waters. In December 1941, Beaufighters participated in Operation Archery, providing suppressing fire while British Commandos landed on the occupied Norwegian island of Vågsøy. In 1942, long range patrols of the Bay of Biscay were routinely conducted by Beaufighters, intercepting aircraft such as the Ju-88 and Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor operating against Allied anti-submarine patrols. Beaufighters also cooperated with the British Eighth Army during action in the Western Desert Campaign, often in the form of ground strafing.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: In mid-1942, Coastal Command began to take delivery of the improved "Beaufighter Mark VIC". By the end of 1942, Mark VICs were being equipped with torpedo-carrying gear for the British 18 in (450 mm) or the US 22.5 in (572 mm) torpedo externally; observers were not happy about carrying the torpedo, as they were unable to use the escape hatch until after the torpedo had been dropped. In April 1943, the first successful torpedo attacks by Beaufighters was performed by 254 Squadron, sinking two merchant ships off Norway.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Hercules Mark XVII, developing 1,735 hp (1,294 kW) at 500 ft (150 m), was installed in the Mark VIC airframe to produce the TF Mark X (torpedo fighter), commonly known as the "Torbeau". The Mark X became the main production mark of the Beaufighter. The strike variant of the Torbeau was called the Mark XIC. Beaufighter TF Xs could make precision attacks on shipping at wave-top height with torpedoes or RP-3 (60 lb) rockets. Early models of the Mark X carried centimetric-wavelength ASV (air-to-surface vessel) radar with "herringbone" antennae on the nose and outer wings, but this was replaced in late 1943 by the centimetric AI Mark VIII radar housed in a "thimble-nose" radome, enabling all-weather and night attacks.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The North Coates Strike Wing of Coastal Command, based at RAF North Coates on the Lincolnshire coast, developed tactics that combined large formations of Beaufighters, using cannons and rockets, to suppress flak, while the Torbeaus attacked at low level with torpedoes. These tactics were put into practice in mid-1943 and in ten months, 29,762 tons (84,226 m) of shipping were sunk. Tactics were further refined when shipping was moved from port during the night. The North Coates Strike Wing operated as the largest anti-shipping force of the Second World War and accounted for over 150,000 tons (424,500 m) of shipping and 117 vessels for a loss of 120 Beaufighters and 241 aircrew killed or missing. This was half the total tonnage sunk by all strike wings between 1942 and 1945.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Beaufighter arrived at squadrons in Asia and the Pacific in mid-1942. A British journalist said that Japanese soldiers called it the "whispering death" for its quiet engines, although this is not supported by Japanese sources. The Beaufighter's Hercules engines used sleeve valves, which lacked the noisy valve gear common to poppet valve engines. This was most apparent in a reduced noise level at the front of the engine.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: In the South-East Asian Theatre, the Beaufighter Mark VIF operated from India as a night fighter and on operations against Japanese lines of communication in Burma and Thailand. Mark X Beaufighters were also flown on long range daylight intruder missions over Burma. The high-speed, low-level attacks were very effective, despite often atrocious weather conditions and makeshift repair and maintenance facilities.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) was a keen operator of the Beaufighter during the Second World War. On 20 April 1942, the RAAF's first "Beaufighter IC" (an Australian designation given to various models of the aircraft, including "Beaufighter VIC", "Beaufighter X", and "Beaufighter XIC"), which had been imported from Britain, was delivered; the last aircraft was delivered on 20 August 1945. Initial RAAF deliveries were directed to No. 30 Squadron in New Guinea and No. 31 Squadron in North-West Australia.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Before DAP Beaufighters arrived at RAAF units in the South West Pacific Theatre, the Beaufighter Mark IC was commonly employed in anti-shipping missions. The most famous of these was the Battle of the Bismarck Sea, during which Beaufighters were used in a fire-suppression role in a mixed force with USAAF Douglas A-20 Boston and North American B-25 Mitchell bombers. Earlier in the battle, eight Beauforts from No. 100 Squadron RAAF at Milne Bay had unsuccessfully attacked the Japanese troop convoy with torpedoes and scored no hits. 13 Beaufighters of No. 30 Squadron flew in at mast height to provide heavy suppressive fire for the waves of attacking bombers. The Japanese convoy, under the impression that they were under torpedo attack from Beauforts, made the tactical error of turning their ships towards the Beaufighters, which allowed the Beaufighters to inflict severe damage on the ships' anti-aircraft guns, bridges and crews during strafing runs with their four 20 mm nose cannons and six wing-mounted .303 in (7.7 mm) machine guns. The Japanese ships were left exposed to mast-height bombing and skip bombing attacks by the US medium bombers. Eight transports and four destroyers were sunk for the loss of five aircraft, including one Beaufighter.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The role of the Beaufighters during the Battle of the Bismarck Sea was recorded by war correspondent and film-maker Damien Parer, who had flown during the engagement standing behind the pilot of one of the No. 30 Squadron aircraft; the engagement led to the Beaufighter becoming one of the more well-known aircraft in Australian service during the conflict. On 2 November 1943, another high-profile event involving the type occurred when a Beaufighter, "A19-54", won the second of two unofficial races against an A-20 Boston bomber.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: From late 1944, RAF Beaufighter units were engaged in the Greek Civil War, finally withdrawing in 1946.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Beaufighters were replaced in some roles by the Bristol Type 164 Brigand, which had been designed using components of the Beaufighter's failed stablemate, the Bristol Buckingham.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: The Beaufighter was also used by the air forces of Portugal, Turkey and the Dominican Republic. It was used briefly by the Israeli Air Force after some ex-RAF examples were clandestinely purchased in 1948.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Many Mark 10 aircraft were converted to the target tug role postwar as the TT.10 and served with several RAF support units until 1960. The last flight of a Beaufighter in RAF service was by TT.10 "RD761" from RAF Seletar on 12 May 1960.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: A number of sunken aircraft are known; in 2005, the wreck of a Beaufighter (probably a Mark IC flown by Sgt Donald Frazie and navigator Sgt Sandery of No. 272 Squadron RAF) was identified about off the north coast of Malta. The aircraft ditched in March 1943, after an engine failure occurred soon after take-off and lies inverted on the sea bed, in of water.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: Another Mediterranean wreck lies in of water near the Greek island of Paros. This is possibly Beaufighter TF.X "LX998" of 603 Squadron, which was shot down after destroying a German Arado Ar 196 during an anti-shipping mission in November 1943. The Australian crew survived and were rescued by a British submarine.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: A Mark VIC Beaufighter, serial A19-130, lies in of water, just off the coast of Fergusson Island in the western Pacific. It was lost in almost identical circumstances to the Malta aircraft – it ditched in August 1943 after an engine failure soon after takeoff. The aircraft sank within seconds, but both crew and their passenger escaped and swam to shore. The wreck was located in 2000.


title: Bristol Beaufighter

text: In May 2020, the wreck of a Beaufighter TF.X, believed to be "JM333" of No. 254 Squadron, was uncovered by shifting sands on Cleethorpes beach near Grimsby. The aircraft was ditched on 21 April 1944 after suffering a double engine failure shortly after takeoff from North Coates. The crew survived uninjured.


title: United States Disciplinary Barracks

text: The United States Disciplinary Barracks (USDB) colloquially known as Leavenworth, is a military correctional facility located on Fort Leavenworth, a United States Army post in Kansas.


title: United States Disciplinary Barracks

text: It is one of three major prisons built on Fort Leavenworth property, the others being the federal civilian United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth, four miles (6 km) to the south, and the military Midwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility, which opened on 5 October 2010.


title: United States Disciplinary Barracks

text: It reports to the United States Army Corrections Command and its commandant usually holds the rank of colonel.


title: United States Disciplinary Barracks

text: The USDB is the U.S. military's only maximum-security facility that houses male service members convicted at court-martial for violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Only enlisted prisoners with sentences over ten years, commissioned officers, and prisoners convicted of offenses related to national security are confined to the USDB. Enlisted prisoners with sentences under ten years are confined in smaller facilities, such as the nearby Midwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility or the Naval Consolidated Brig at Chesapeake, Virginia.


title: United States Disciplinary Barracks

text: Corrections personnel at the facility are Army Corrections Specialists (MOS 31E) trained at the U.S. Army Military Police school located at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, as well as Marine and Air Force corrections personnel.


title: United States Disciplinary Barracks

text: Female prisoners from all branches of the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) are typically incarcerated in the Naval Consolidated Brig, Miramar, instead of the USDB.


title: United States Disciplinary Barracks

text: Originally known as the United States Military Prison, the USDB was established by Act of Congress in 1874. Prisoners were used for the bulk of the construction, which began in 1875 and was completed in 1921. The facility was able to house up to 1,500 prisoners. From 1895 until 1903, prisoners from the USDB were used to construct the nearby United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth.


title: United States Disciplinary Barracks

text: The original USDB followed the Pennsylvania plan modeling on a layout of the Eastern State Penitentiary where cell blocks radiated out from a central structure. Individual cells were relatively isolated. In contrast, the civilian prison, modeled on the Auburn Correctional Facility in New York, reflected a newer concept where prisoners were housed in a large rectangular building where there was a certain amount of communal living. The site covered with walls from high.


title: United States Disciplinary Barracks

text: The original USDB was Fort Leavenworth's biggest and tallest building sited at the corner of McPherson Avenue and Scott Avenue on bluffs above the Missouri River (). The old domed building was nicknamed "Little Top" in contrast to the domed federal prison south which was nicknamed the "Big Top".