Raw Intel

General Dynamics European Land Systems has successfully demonstrated an acoustic drone detection system on the ASCOD infantry fighting vehicle. This is a passive, vehicle-integrated sensor that locates FPV attack drones in real time without emitting any signal that an enemy could detect. The system, called CASTLE, was developed in cooperation with Microflown AVISA and demonstrated […]View the full article

Elbit Systems crossed a milestone it has never reached before, reporting a record order backlog exceeding $30 billion for the first time in the Israeli defense company’s history, as first-quarter 2026 revenues hit $2.19 billion and the company announced a separate $1.4 billion European modernization contract on the same day. The results, published May 26 […]View the full article

Ukraine’s most demanding combat laboratory just produced two more weapons that a Greek defense company wants to sell to the rest of the world. Paramount Industries Innovation Systems Greece and Ukrainian defense technology firm MAC HUB announced an expansion of their strategic partnership at the Eurosatory defense exhibition in Paris, extending a relationship that previously […]View the full article

Ukraine’s General Staff said Ukrainian forces struck the Russian naval base at Novorossiysk overnight on August 12, 2026, damaging four Russian warships in what it described as a joint operation by Ukraine’s Defense Forces. The General Staff identified the damaged vessels as the frigates Admiral Makarov and Admiral Essen, both Project 11356 ships, the Project […]View the full article

Life comes at you fast; you better be ready for it. We are coming up on three years from the final wakeup call after October 7th, 2023, that conventionally armed ballistic missiles are the premier threat to critical capabilities ashore and at sea. In the U.S. at least, though production was minimal and inventories allowed to be too small, we at least had the technology to meet the threat from Medium, Intermediate, and Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles. At sea, which will be our focus today, we just made it across the finish line in time with the RIM-161 SM-3, which built off the success of the iterative development of the SM-2 for decades. This work has paid off via th…

British company SatVu has launched HotSat-3, a satellite that maps heat on the ground from orbit, giving it a second working spacecraft and the ability to photograph any spot on Earth in thermal infrared once every 24 hours, day or night. The satellite lifted off on Oct. 1 aboard SpaceX’s Transporter-18 rideshare mission from Vandenberg […]View the full article

Denmark will buy Anthem ground-launched cruise missiles from U.S. defense company Covenant Industries, giving the Danish military its first land-based option for striking targets deep inside enemy territory, the Danish Ministry of Defense announced on Oct. 22, 2026. The ministry said the purchase is meant to strengthen Denmark’s national and collective deterrence, describing the new […]View the full article

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RcvUrMT2jmg/Vbr0UnCZ3GI/AAAAAAAAKFw/D6h-Gx0SfkQ/s320/horace-greasley-confronting-heinrich-himmler-like-a-boss.jpg I look at what some men did so young, and I look at pity at what little I have done, and am perplexed about all the complaining from others. That photograph on the right? That is Horace Greasley looking down at Himler. As Peter outlines, He admitted to not know who the man was, only that he was a high ranking Nazi. He is shirtless because he was showing Himmler how skinny he was and was requesting more rations for the prisoner. Because that is what you do when you are carrying on a secret love affair with a Jewish girl that could …

The last year, as most of the nation was focused on a highly contentious election and a global pandemic, the US Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard put on a the table multitude of documentation in to the conversation outlining our best minds' official view of where the Naval Services need to go; Tri-Service Maritime Strategy, CNO NAVPLAN, National Security Strategy, National Defense Strategy, Expeditionary Advance Base Operations, and more from recent years. How can one try to weave them together? Back for another run at CDRSalamander, regular guest Bryan McGrath offers the below for your consideration. Over to you Bryan! The Navy had a sudden burst of intellectua…

Late. Everything is late. Just a little more time. All that was needed was a little more time. A few more bits of kits. A few better leaders up the chain, but mostly, just more time. The war drums could be heard, but people waited too long to accept what the sound was. Once it was accepted, all the right things were done, just not soon enough. Just a little more time. Just a bit. Then it came. A message. A pause. Then reports. Then you realize, time no longer matters. You have what you have. You will fight for your island with what you and your Sailors and Marines have. Nothing more. Promises and hopes are for fools in war. You do what you can with what you have and let …

B-52H, B-1B & B-2A (click to view full) The good news? 2006 saw a convergence of opinion within the USAF that a new long-range strike platform was needed. This is understandable given the B-52H Stratofortress fleet’s age (40-50 years), the B-1B Lancer’s internal power and electronics issues, both of these platforms’ low survivability against advanced air defense systems, and the B-2A Spirit stealth bomber’s very small numbers (21, of which 7-12 are generally operational). The unmanned J-UCAS program, meanwhile was seen as having inadequate range and payload (Boeing X-45C: 1,400 mile radius with 8 GBU-39 Small Diameter Bombs). The USAF decided that J-UCAS wasn’t a so…

Americas Kihomac won a $12.5 million deal for A?10 aircraft nacelle doors. This was a competitive acquisition with three responses received. This is a five?year contract with no option periods. The performance completion date is August 31, 2028. Using military service is Air Force. Boeing won a $7 million delivery order for the the procurement […]View the full article

Americas Lockheed Martin’s F-35A Joint Strike Fighter aircraft has received authorization to carry nuclear bombs. Russ Goemaere, a spokesman for the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO), recently told Breaking Defense that the much-awaited certification was actually awarded several months ago but only announced now. The milestone will allow some F-35As to carry two B61-12 nuclear gravity […]View the full article

Gabon unveiled newly acquired Chinese armored vehicles during its Independence Day military parade on August 17, underscoring Beijing’s growing defense presence in Africa. The display featured the eight-wheeled VN-1 infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) and the WMA-301, a 105mm wheeled assault gun widely exported across the continent. The VN-1 IFV, manufactured by China North Industries Corporation […] The post Gabon receives Chinese-made VN-1 fighting vehicles first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Sweden has signed a contract to purchase the Polish-made Piorun man-portable air defense system (MANPADS), expanding its inventory of short-range air defense capabilities. The deal was announced by the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) in a statement on September 9. According to FMV, the agreement was finalized in July and is valued at approximately 3 […] The post Sweden buys Polish-made Piorun air defense systems first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Ground Force (PLAGF) has conducted a large-scale maintenance drill featuring dozens of Type 15 light tanks, captured in recent imagery from the 54th Heavy Combined Arms Brigade, operating under the Tibet Military Region. The footages—originally shared by defense observer Jesus Roman and other open-source analysts—show rows of Type 15 light […] The post China holds mass tank readiness drill in Tibet first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Japan’s Joint Staff confirmed that three Chinese Navy vessels transited eastward through the Osumi Strait into the Pacific Ocean on November 11, continuing Beijing’s regular naval movements near Japanese waters. According to an official release from the Joint Staff of Japan’s Ministry of Defense, the Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) identified a Renhai-class missile destroyer (hull […]View the full article

The Pentagon is rapidly expanding U.S. military capabilities tied to Operation Southern Spear, a mission that began as a counter-narcotics effort but is increasingly focused on pressure against Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. Images that surfaced online this week show Combat Search and Rescue and other U.S. military aircraft arriving in Puerto Rico, signaling a sharp […]View the full article

As you may have noticed, I’ve been hesitant to write anything about the latest unrest in Iran for a whole host of reasons/excuses, but part of it is simply not wanting to get too far ahead of my skis desiring something that would truly be a world-changing event. It would be a change that would alter the landscape so dramatically that I’ve become so used to, that it is hard to view the “what’s next?”. I was barely a teenager when the world and our nation were subjected to another monumental error by the Carter Administration and the West (mostly the French) — the betrayal of the Shah and the people of Iran. Of course, the Iranian people had agency here. As was the habit …

Everyone who has been to sea has this nightmare. A U.S. warship and a Navy supply vessel collided during refueling Wednesday afternoon, the U.S. Southern Command told Reuters in an emailed statement on Thursday. The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Truxtun and the Supply-class fast combat support ship USNS Supply collided during a replenishment at sea, said the statement from the Southern Command, whose areas of responsibility include Central and South America and the Caribbean. It did not specify the location of the collision. The video is…something to behold. I have heard that the USS Gettysburg was on the other side when this took place, but was not dam…