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Blockades, 11-month deployments, and building plans…a full plate for a Midrats Free for All. We go LIVE at 5 PM Eastern this Sunday. You can join us at this link. If you are reading this after the show, check the Substack later Sunday night for the podcast upload. Leave a comment Share This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. View the full article

A two-seat variant of Russia’s Su-57 fifth-generation stealth fighter has been photographed conducting ground taxi trials, with Russian military aviation blogger Ilya Tumanov, who operates the widely followed Fighterbomber Telegram channel, confirming the aircraft’s existence on May 16 and describing it as a new two-seat modification of the Felon that completed ground runs as part […]View the full article

Ukrainian drone forces have struck a Russian naval vessel in the Caspian Sea for at least the third time in recent months, publishing footage on May 17 showing a Fire Point FP-1 attack drone successfully locating and hitting a Project 10410 Svetlyak-class patrol boat in the port area of Kaspiisk, Dagestan, more than 1,500 kilometers […]View the full article

South Korean-based Hanwha Aerospace and Estonian robotics company Milrem Robotics signed a teaming agreement at the BSDA 2026 defense exhibition in Bucharest to jointly pursue Romania’s unmanned ground vehicle program, combining Korean wheeled unmanned platform experience with Milrem’s combat-proven tracked UGV technology in a bid to capture one of Eastern Europe’s most strategically significant ground […]View the full article

A British uncrewed aircraft developer has completed ground trials of its CAPSTONE unmanned system with air-to-surface missile simulators, its chief executive announced, while simultaneously operating as a teaming partner with BAE Systems on the British Army’s Project NYX loyal wingman competition. Justin Tooth, Chief Executive Officer of Certo Aerospace, disclosed the missile integration testing in […]View the full article

A U.S. drone company has secured its first international defense contract, winning an order from the Royal Australian Navy to supply Transwing vertical takeoff and landing unmanned aircraft systems for maritime distributed logistics operations, with deliveries of the initial P4 variant scheduled for spring 2026. PteroDynamics Inc., a California-based developer of autonomous VTOL aircraft, announced […]View the full article

A U.S. defense startup is bringing a next-generation counter-drone system to SOF Week 2026 in Tampa that takes a fundamentally different approach to the close-in drone threat: instead of aiming at incoming targets, it keeps multiple barrels constantly rotating through a full hemisphere, eliminating the aiming delay that makes conventional single-barrel systems vulnerable to fast-moving […]View the full article

The U.S. Army is searching for missiles that cost less than $1 million each, issuing a formal request for information on May 15, 2026, that lays out one of the most explicit cost-driven weapons procurement challenges the service has publicly articulated. The Army’s Capability Program Executive for Defensive Fires, operating through the Rapid Capabilities and […]View the full article

The Syrian cargo aircraft that flight-tracking data and Russian media suggest carried Bashar al-Assad and regime officials out of Damascus on the night his government collapsed has returned to Syria, landing at Damascus International Airport on May 14, 2026, after sitting idle at Russia’s Hmeimim Air Base for more than a year and a half. […]View the full article

Ukraine launched one of its largest drone strikes on Moscow in the war’s history overnight into May 17, sending more than 130 unmanned aerial vehicles into the Russian capital and surrounding region, triggering fires at an electronics manufacturing facility and a major oil refinery, forcing all four of Moscow’s major airports to suspend flight operations, […]View the full article

Lockheed Martin has secured a $61 million U.S. Army contract to develop and demonstrate two of the most consequential near-term upgrades to the Patriot air defense system: a containerized missile launcher and a hemispherical guidance device that eliminates one of Patriot’s most significant tactical limitations, the inability to engage threats approaching from outside a fixed […]View the full article

General Dynamics Land Systems has secured a $229.6 million contract to produce 50 Stryker Double V-Hull (DVH) A1 armored vehicles for the U.S. Army, continuing a production line that has delivered one of the service’s most combat-proven wheeled infantry platforms through more than two decades of operational use across multiple theaters. Army Contracting Command at […]View the full article

The U.S. Army has awarded Northrop Grumman a $325.5 million contract to develop a high-altitude long-endurance drone specifically designed to collect test data from high-speed weapons systems, filling a capability gap that has slowed the Pentagon’s ability to evaluate hypersonic and other advanced high-speed programs at the pace that competition with China and Russia demands. […]View the full article

Lockheed Martin has secured a $991 million contract to produce electronic warfare upgrade kits for 432 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters across three U.S. military services and a substantial international customer base, in one of the largest single F-35 modernization awards in the program’s history. The Naval Air Systems Command at Patuxent River, Maryland, issued the […]View the full article

Ondas Holdings has unveiled a new robotic ground system called Iron-Wave, a modular unmanned platform designed to integrate multiple robotic units under centralized control and extend military and security operations into contested environments with a reduced operator footprint, the company announced on its official social media account. Ondas Holdings is an American technology holding company […]View the full article

HII, one of only two nuclear-capable shipyards in the United States and the sole builder of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, has delivered two autonomous surface vessels to the U.S. Marine Corps under a Defense Innovation Unit contract, completing sea testing that validated the ROMULUS-25’s advanced autonomous capabilities in an operational maritime environment, the company announced May […]View the full article

American and Nigerian forces have killed Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, described by President Donald Trump as the second-in-command of ISIS globally, in a joint operation conducted overnight, the president announced via his personal social media account and confirmed through the official White House channel. Trump announced the operation in a post from his social account, stating that […]View the full article

A British aerospace startup that had positioned itself as a potential future replacement for the Royal Air Force’s Red Arrows display team has collapsed into administration, citing sustained cashflow pressure caused by repeated delays to the UK Defence Investment Plan and geopolitical factors affecting its funding sources. Aeralis Limited, the developer of a modular light […]View the full article

B.E. Meyers & Co. is heading to SOF Week 2026 in Tampa, Florida, with a new high-power laser targeting and illumination system in tow. The Redmond, Washington-based defense technology manufacturer will unveil the VSLAP-V1 at Booth 1153 when the special operations community’s premier annual gathering opens May 18, positioning the device as the next generation […]View the full article

Poland has taken operational control of its own radar satellite reconnaissance constellation less than twelve months after signing the contract to build it, a delivery timeline that ICEYE, the Finnish-American company that built the system, describes as the fastest deployment of an operational satellite program in the world. The handover of the POLSARIS system, which […]View the full article

A man’s man, a man of God, and someone who really knew, “What would Jesus do?“ ... Kapaun defied orders to evacuate, knowing it meant he would most certainly be captured. He pleaded with an injured Chinese officer to call out to his fellow Chinese to stop shooting, an act that spared the lives of wounded Americans. As Kapaun was being led away, he came across another wounded American in a ditch and an enemy soldier standing over Sgt. Herbert Miller, ready to shoot. Kapaun pushed the enemy aside and helped Miller as they were taken captive. They arrived days later, by foot, at the village in Pyoktong, where a POW camp eventually was established. “This is the valor we honor today -- an American soldier who didn’t fire a gun, but who wielded the mightiest weapon of all, a love for his brothers so pure that he was willing to die so that they might live,” Obama said. At the camp, Kapaun cleaned others’ wounds, convinced them to share scarce food, offered them his own clothes and provided spiritual aid and comfort. On Easter in 1951, he defied his communist captors by conducting Mass with a makeshift crucifix. He died on May 23, 1951, at age 35, after six months in captivity. As we see with those like Father (Captain) Emil Kapaun, USA, who has been awarded the Medal of Honor, it gives one pause to consider one’s own character—and challenges us to meet a higher benchmark in our simple, soft, and easy daily lives. Citation: The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, March 3, 1863, has awarded in the name of Congress the Medal of Honor to Chaplain (Captain) Emil J. Kapaun, United States Army. For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty: Chaplain Emil J. Kapaun distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 3d Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division during combat operations against an armed enemy at Unsan, Korea, from November 1-2, 1950. On November 1, as Chinese Communist Forces viciously attacked friendly elements, Chaplain Kapaun calmly walked through withering enemy fire in order to provide comfort and medical aid to his comrades and rescue friendly wounded from no-man’s land. Though the Americans successfully repelled the assault, they found themselves surrounded by the enemy. Facing annihilation, the able-bodied men were ordered to evacuate. However, Chaplain Kapaun, fully aware of his certain capture, elected to stay behind with the wounded. After the enemy succeeded in breaking through the defense in the early morning hours of November 2, Chaplain Kapaun continually made rounds, as hand-to-hand combat ensued. As Chinese Communist Forces approached the American position, Chaplain Kapaun noticed an injured Chinese officer amongst the wounded and convinced him to negotiate the safe surrender of the American Forces. Shortly after his capture, Chaplain Kapaun, with complete disregard for his personal safety and unwavering resolve, bravely pushed aside an enemy soldier preparing to execute Sergeant First Class Herbert A. Miller. Not only did Chaplain Kapaun’s gallantry save the life of Sergeant Miller, but also his unparalleled courage and leadership inspired all those present, including those who might have otherwise fled in panic, to remain and fight the enemy until captured. Chaplain Kapaun’s extraordinary heroism and selflessness, above and beyond the call of duty, are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, the 3d Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, the 1st Cavalry Division, and the United States Army. The New York Times has more detail on Chaplain Kapaun. Read it all, but here is the executive summary: ... in May 1951, guards sent him into isolation, without food or water, to die. As Mr. Obama recounted, based on testimony from Father Kapaun’s comrades, the priest looked at the guards and said, “Forgive them, for they know not what they do.” His remains were never recovered. At war’s end, the surviving P.O.W.’s walked out of the camp with a four-foot wooden crucifix they had made in his honor. Fullbore. First posted in APR2013.Leave a comment Share This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. View the full article

Peru has ordered a fifth C-27J Spartan tactical airlifter, and the contract carries significance well beyond Lima. The purchase pushes the total number of C-27Js sold worldwide to 100, a milestone that Leonardo, the Italian aerospace and defense company that produces the aircraft, marked publicly on May 14, confirming the order through an official program […]View the full article

BAE Systems has publicly revealed its Multi-Domain Artillery Cannon System for the first time, offering the defense world its first look at a platform the defense giant is developing to give the U.S. Army a new way to shoot down drones, cruise missiles, and other aerial threats using artillery-style firepower. The images released by BAE […]View the full article

Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense has officially codified and cleared for service the Pliushch, a ground-based unmanned reconnaissance and relay platform developed by Ukrainian defense technology company Robotic Complexes, the firm announced Thursday. The certification opens the door to formal procurement by Ukrainian armed forces units and marks another milestone in Kyiv’s effort to field domestically […]View the full article

Valinor’s Harbor platform has joined Anduril Industries’ $99.6 million Next-Generation Command and Control contract with the U.S. Army’s 4th Infantry Division, bringing battlefield casualty tracking and medical supply chain data into the same operational picture that commanders use to coordinate fires, sensors, and maneuver forces. The integration puts HarborOS directly into Lattice, the AI-powered command […]View the full article