Raw Intel

Schiebel Group showcased its CAMCOPTER S-100 unmanned aerial system during NATO’s REPMUS 2025 exercise, underscoring the platform’s versatility, operational maturity, and seamless integration with evolving naval combat systems. The large-scale event, hosted by the Portuguese Navy, brought together allied forces and defense industry partners to evaluate the role of robotic and uncrewed systems in multi-domain […] The post NATO trials feature upgraded CAMCOPTER drone first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

ImageSat International (ISI), an Israeli provider of space-based intelligence services, has been awarded a $9.1 million contract to supply satellite imagery and tasking services from its EROS-C constellation to a defense customer in Asia. The company announced the agreement on November 10, 2025, describing it as part of a long-term relationship focused on intelligence support […]View the full article

Ukrainian assault troops have used an armed unmanned vehicle to intercept and disable a Russian armored vehicle during an attempted nighttime attack, according to a statement released by the 5th Kyiv Assault Brigade on December 10. The unit published thermal camera footage showing the Droid robotic combat system engaging an enemy MT-LB with mounted infantry […]View the full article

Israel placed its security apparatus on high alert on January 10 after senior officials assessed the possibility of direct U.S. intervention in Iran as nationwide anti-government protests there enter their most volatile stage in years, according to Israeli sources who spoke to Reuters. Three Israeli officials with knowledge of internal security consultations said the alert […]View the full article

L3Harris said on Feb. 9, 2026, that it has demonstrated the integration of its Red Wolf launched effects vehicle on the AT-802U Sky Warden aircraft. As noted by L3Harris, the integration highlights modularity across both systems and supports rapid reconfiguration for evolving mission needs. The company presented the capability as part of ongoing work to […]View the full article

The Drug Enforcement Administration plans to acquire Skydio R10 indoor drones for operational use, according to a special procurement notice published by the U.S. government. The agency intends to purchase the systems through a sole-source contract with Atlantic Diving Supply, a Virginia-based defense equipment supplier. The planned purchase reflects a growing need among law enforcement […]View the full article

Soldiers from the Tennessee National Guard’s 278th Cavalry Regiment became the first licensed operators of the Infantry Squad Vehicle within their state last week, completing a new equipment training course hosted by the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell from March 31 through April 2. The training marks a concrete step in the 278th’s conversion […]View the full article

Navies are expensive. This is true, however, the logic stands that the most expensive navy to have is one that can be defeated by the other navy that was better built, supported, and led. To avoid that, you spend a lot of money on the ships, the Sailors in them, the people ashore who maintain them, the naval infrastructure that supports them, and the leaders that will take them into battle. In times of peace, the opportunity cost of that kind of navy gets a lot of attention. Heck, the naval treaties of a century ago were less about world peace than they were as a mutual agreement between politicians to spend less money on ships and instead have more money to keep their b…

X-Bow Systems has delivered its 600th rocket-assisted takeoff motor to AEVEX Aerospace under a $12.2 million contract to supply thousands of RATO kits and solid rocket motors for the Disruptor strike drone, giving the U.S. Army’s newest long-range unmanned system the ability to launch from unprepared surfaces and confined spaces without a fixed catapult or […]View the full article

Last night I bumped into something I wrote in my second month of blogging in August 2004 about a contemporary article by Eliot Cohen in WaPo titled, The Thin Red Line, Getting Thinner. It was about Tony Blair’s expected cuts announced that year. What happens to the military in Great Britain matters not just to them, but to the U.S.A. and the entire Western security system. What Cohen said almost 22 years ago rings even more true today. …the real significance of this erosion of British strength, and the stake the United States has in stopping it. First, Britain is the only considerable state that can send substantial forces in the field to operate alongside ours. Others -…

U.S. Central Command finished its third round of airstrikes against Iran in a single week on July 11, hitting roughly 140 military targets after Iranian forces attacked another commercial vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that carries a fifth of the world’s oil out of the Persian Gulf every day. The strikes, […]View the full article

A mysterious Chinese warship that has spent years testing stealth technology just showed up with something new bolted to its deck, and naval watchers cannot agree on whether it is designed to disorient people or fry electronics. Open-source images circulating on social media this week show China’s unnamed experimental corvette, a stealthy test vessel that […]View the full article

Russia spent a record 44% of its federal budget on the military in the first half of 2026, according to calculations published by Janis Kluge, a research fellow at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, based on data from Russia’s Finance Ministry. Direct military spending totaled 10.7 trillion rubles, about $125 billion at […]View the full article

So, what exactly have you done in your military career worth talking about? Let's take a moment to remember a great American Army officer, Major Larry Alan Thorne ... but let's not quite go there yet. First we need to check in with Lauri Allan Törni. NB: I'm going to outright steal from wikipedia, but they won't mind; ...Törni entered military service in 1938, joining the 4th Independent Jäger Infantry Battalion stationed at Kiviniemi; when the Winter War began in November 1939, his enlistment was extended and his unit confronted invading Soviet troops at Rautu. During the battles at Lake Ladoga, Törni took part in the destruction of the encircled Soviet divi…

Do you see the connection? Ref. A.: Ref. B.: How should this impact policy? http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?d=yIl2AUoC8zA http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?d=qj6IDK7rITs http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=fjhqizXZb-E:5FSOOn6K-9M:gIN9vFwOqvQ http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=fjhqizXZb-E:5FSOOn6K-9M:-BTjWOF_DHI http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=fjhqizXZb-E:5FSOOn6K-9M:V_sGLiPBpWU http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=fjhqizXZb-E:5FSOOn6K-9M:F7zBnMyn0Lo http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/FAFV/~4/fjhqizXZb-EView the full article

USS Helena (CL-50). Nothing "Light" about the Helena. Tough, hard fighter she was - with a lot to fire with. Armament : 5 - Triple 6"/47 main battery 4 - Dual 5"/38 DP secondary 8 - .50 caliber AA 4 - Curtiss SOC-2 Seagulls (Aircraft) on 2 Aft catapults. Yes kiddies - that is 15 6" guns and 8 5" guns. The Japanese (who if nothing else in WWII had no problem honoring a good fighter) said she had "6-inch machine guns." Read all about her here - but let's look at her final battle, the Battle of Kula Gulf. Background On 5 July, Task Group 36.1, commanded by Rear Admiral Walden L. Ainsworth, and consisting of light cruisers USS Helena, USS Honolulu, and USS St. Louis, plu…

While the world's eyes are focused on Russia and Ukraine - and probably will for the foreseeable future - the People's Republic of China is not standing still. How can China use this moment to her advantage? What possible lessons can China take away from the Ukraine conflict so far, and perhaps more importantly, how should it impact how we and our allies look at China? Returning to Midrats to discuss these and related questions this Sunday from 5-6pm Eastern will be our guest Dean Cheng. Dean is the Senior Research Fellow for Chinese political and security affairs at the Asia Studies Center of The Heritage Foundation. He specializes in Chinese military and foreign polic…

They found the Samuel B. Roberts (DE 413). More than 22,600 feet below the surface of the Pacific Ocean lies a WWII US Navy destroyer that has been named the world’s deepest shipwreck. The USS Destroyer Escort Samuel B. Roberts (DE-413), known as the Sammy B, was located on Wednesday in the Philippine Sea. The vessel went down during the Battle Off Samar in the Philippine Sea in October 1944 after it was hit by Japanese fire. 89 Sailors were lost when she sank. This counts as the world's deepest war grave. Unlike a lot of shallow wrecks in this part of the world - the salvagers won't be able to get to her. Over the years we've used her story for FbF ... so this is a go…

This Saturday will be the 12th anniversary of one of the worst American foreign policy decisions of this century. I rank it third after the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the 2021 negotiated surrender to the Taliban in Afghanistan. While time has mostly held to account those responsible for the 2003 Iraq invasion and perhaps things are too fresh and political for a true accountability for the Afghanistan disgrace, there is no excuse for the complete lack of accountability for what was done to Libya in 2011. All three disgraces, as it is with most military operations by the USA in the last 60 years, does not owe its disgrace to the military being tasked to execute an operation,…

US Army Received Latest AH-64E| UAE Sent Military Vehicles To Chad | Poland Purchases SPIKE Missiles Americas The US Army’s Fort Cavazos Flight Simulation Division has received its latest AH-64E Guardian multirole combat helicopter simulator, enabling simultaneous training for the service’s aviators. The division at Yoakum-Defrenn Army Heliport in Texas offers realistic flight training with […]View the full article