Raw Intel

The United States Army Maneuver Center of Excellence (MCoE) at Fort Benning launched the first pilot of the Robotic Autonomous Systems Leader Tactics Course (RASLT) on Feb. 10 as part of Army-wide Transforming in Contact initiatives. The three-week course is designed to prepare Army leaders for future conflicts in which autonomous and robotic systems will […]View the full article

Two newly built Type 055 large destroyers, identified as hull 109 Dongguan and hull 110 Anqing, made their first official appearance during naval training operations, increasing the People’s Liberation Army Navy’s fleet of the 10,000-ton-class warships from eight to ten. The vessels were shown conducting joint training at sea alongside other naval ships in footage […]View the full article

A U.S. Marine who trained alongside Republic of Korea Marines on the new K808 White Tiger wheeled armored personnel carrier during Korean Marine Exchange Program 26.1 at Suseong-Ri, South Korea, in March 2026, offered a firsthand comparison of the South Korean vehicle against the American-made Stryker and Light Armored Vehicle platforms he had trained on […]View the full article

BAE Systems has started delivering a GPS receiver that the U.S. military has needed for years — a field-installable, M-Code capable replacement for the Defense Advanced GPS Receiver that slots directly into existing mounts without touching a cable, a wire, or a line of vehicle software. The company announced on April 28, 2026, that its […]View the full article

Russia fired a nuclear-capable ballistic missile at the Kyiv region for the first time on the night of May 23-24, 2026, striking an industrial zone near Bila Tserkva, a city of 200,000 people sitting just 80 kilometers south of the Ukrainian capital. The launch was confirmed by Yurii Ihnat, head of communications for the Ukrainian […]View the full article

SummarySal discusses recent geopolitical developments including Iran’s negotiations, US military operations, UK military decline, Ukraine’s resilience, and global strategic shifts. This episode offers insights into current international security dynamics and future implications. Chapters00:00 Introduction and Context of the Iranian Conflict 02:55 Goals an… Read more View the full article

Ukrainian forces have carried out what the military describes as the world’s first known combat mission combining a naval drone with an armed ground robot, using an unmanned surface vessel to ferry a machine-gun-equipped robotic vehicle across the Black Sea and land it directly on Russian-occupied shoreline, United24 Media reported July 13, citing Ukraine’s 123rd […]View the full article

A California aerospace firm building giant swarms of unmanned aircraft has landed a deal with the Air Force to prove it can manufacture those aircraft faster and cheaper than anyone else in the industry. Swarm Aero, a defense technology company that develops large uncrewed aerial vehicles designed to operate in coordinated fleets, announced more than […]View the full article

The U.S. Navy has added $38.2 million to a BAE Systems contract to overhaul two Mk 45 Mod 4 naval guns, the main deck gun mounted on the Navy’s destroyers and cruisers. Naval Sea Systems Command issued the cost-plus-incentive-fee modification to an existing contract, funded through fiscal 2024 shipbuilding money that will remain available beyond […]View the full article

You go to war with the weapons your government gives you, not the weapons you wish you had. The key as a leader is how you employ what you have against the enemy. I give you the Imperial Austrian triple-decker wooden battleship, Kaiser. Yes the AUSTRIAN Navy, again. Why her for Fullbore? Well, the year was 1866 and this wooden warship held her own in the first major naval battle in Europe between ships of iron and steam and the Italian Navy at the Battle of Lissa during the Third Italian War of Independence. Sure, she was outdated and Fleet Admiral Wilhelm Freiherr von Tegetthoff was only 39, but the battle was a glorious effort for a navy that had only a little more th…

The U.S. Army has awarded Longbow LLC a $419.6 million contract to supply fire control radar systems and post-production support for the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, keeping work on the Apache’s distinctive mast-mounted radar going into the next decade. The contract, announced on Oct. 22, 2026, covers the AH-64D and AH-64E versions of the helicopter […]View the full article

From the June 2011 issue of FORCE magazine, an Indian National Security and Defense magazine, comes this remarkable article. Pakistan’s efforts to have a sea-based minimum credible nuclear deterrent vis-a-vis India took a significant step forward last month when the state-owned, Wuhan-based China State Shipbuilding Industrial Corp (CSIC) ferried the first Qing-class conventional attack submarine (SSK) to Shanghai to begin a year-long series of sea trials, which is likely to include the test-firing of three CJ-10K submarine-launched, 1,500km-range land attack cruise missiles (LACM) capable of being armed with unitary tactical nuclear warheads. Called the Qing-class …

USNS Sacagawea (click to view full) Warships get a lot of attention, but without resupply, an impressive-looking fleet becomes a hollow force. The US Navy’s supply and support fleet has been aging, and needed new vessels. T-AKE is part of that effort, and the ships have also found themselves performing “naval diplomacy” roles. The entire T-AKE dry cargo/ ammunition ship program could have a total value of as much as $6.2 billion, and a size of 14 ships, as the US looks to modernize its supply fleet. How do T-AKE ships fit into US naval operations? What ships do they replace? What’s the tie-in to US civilian industrial capacity? How were environmental standards built in…

Americas Northrop Grumman Systems won a $75.5 million contract for the Global Hawk RQ-4 UAV. The contractor will provide multi-country aircrew and maintenance training consisting of program management support, courseware modification and development, pilot training, sensor operator training, and airframe and ground maintenance training to support the US government and Air Force Security Assistance Training international partners’ mission objectives. Foreign Military Sales (FMS) funds will be obligated at the time of task order award. The RQ-4 Global Hawk is a high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft system with an integrated sensor suite that provides intelligence,…

Right now throughout Afghanistan and the different ways out of that nation, Americans, Brits, and others are doing all they can to fill in the gaping scar of dishonor that is our defeat-of-choice and retreat from Afghanistan. There are individuals, ad-hoc groups of like minded veterans, family members, and others who are doing all they can to help Americans, family members, and those who trusted and fought with us from almost certain death. From American school kids, to helicopter pilots - people are trusted in our government to not leave them behind are trapped. There are good people on the other end who are doing extraordinary things to make up for the disgraceful offic…

I found two things curious about the response to this news over the weekend; China is looking to create its first permanent military presence on the Atlantic Ocean, on the coast of the small African nation Equatorial Guinea, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal based on classified U.S. intelligence. Though officials did not describe China's plans in detail, they said China's presence on Africa's Atlantic coast would enhance the possible threat to the U.S., as it would give Chinese warships a place to rearm and refit opposite the East Coast, the Journal reported. Gen. Stephen Townsend, who serves as commander of U.S. Africa Command, told the Senate in April …

Americas Sikorsky Aircraft won a $2.3 billion deal for procurement of 120 H-60M Black Hawk helicopters and related support for fiscal years 2022-2026, including options for an additional 135 aircraft. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. With more than 2,100 H-60 variants in the US Army’s inventory, the Black Hawk remains the workhorse and backbone of US Army aviation. As the US Army continues to develop its Futura Vertical Lift (FVL) programs – in which the company competes with its Raider X and SB-1 Defiant – they will continue to operate the H-60M for decades to come and alongside its future replacements. According to the US Department of Defense pub…

Americas Boeing won a $12.8 million order, which provides for the rework, repair, and overhaul of 16 Harpoon capsules and six all-up round encapsulated Harpoon missiles for the Navy. Work will be performed in St. Charles, Missouri; and Burnley, Lancashire, England, and is expected to be completed in September 2024. The Florida-based 125th Fighter Wing […]View the full article

Americas Raytheon and Lockheed have received $267-million in contracts for a full-rate production of the Javelin Lightweight Command Launch Units (LWCLU) for the US Army and foreign military sales programs with Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia. The LWCLU is part of the man-portable Javelin anti-tank weapon system used to survey and scan targets on sight. The US Army has selected five companies to demonstrate their existing self-propelled howitzers, which could potentially fill the gap left by the discontinued Extended-Range Cannon Artillery (ERCA) program. BAE Systems, Hanwha Defense, Rheinmetall, Elbit Systems, and General Dynamics have received contracts totaling $4 milli…

Americas The US has selected a design for the futuristic “Golden Dome” missile defense system, says President Donald Trump, adding that it will be operational by the end of his time in office. Just days after returning to the White House in January, Trump unveiled his intentions for the system, aimed at countering “next-generation” aerial threats to the US, including ballistic and cruise missiles. An initial sum of $25billion has been earmarked in a new budget bill – although the government has estimated it could end up costing 20 times that over decades. The Rock Island Arsenal Joint Manufacturing and Technology Center (RIA-JMTC) plans to ramp up production of 3D-printed…