Raw Intel

The Javelin Joint Venture completed a simulation demonstration in Norway using a Kongsberg Medium-Caliber Turret fitted with a prototype dual launcher assembly for the Javelin anti-tank missile. The companies described it as the first phase of an ongoing effort to integrate Javelin more closely with vehicle-mounted turret systems. The Javelin Joint Venture is a partnership […]View the full article

Most of the news one has heard about the Russo-Ukrainian War since the USA and Israel started their campaign against Iran in early spring has been about the expanded “Battle of the Cities” as Russia continues to pound population centers and Ukraine focuses on strategic strikes against Russian hydrocarbon industries, logistics, and commerce raiding at sea. Both Russia and Ukraine are land powers, and that is where the important moves will take place. Mick Ryan, as one would expect, has a great overview of what has been happening this summer. Vivaldi: The Summer-Autumn Counteroffensive. The week’s big story was the official disclosure of an ongoing Corps-level Ukrainian cou…

Assistant Secretary of War for Critical Technologies Michael Dodd said the Department of War needs to move directed energy weapons out of testing and into the field, arguing in a Sept. 22 post on X that high-energy laser programs have proven the technology works and now need ruggedized, deployable systems for air and missile defense. […]View the full article

The U.S. Army’s XVIII Airborne Corps evaluated a dual-mode flying buggy called the SkyRunner during Scarlet Dragon 26-3, an experimentation exercise held at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, on Sept. 16. Soldiers tested the vehicle’s ability to shift between driving and flying in austere conditions at Holland Drop Zone. The SkyRunner pairs an off-road buggy chassis […]View the full article

The U.S. Army’s XVIII Airborne Corps evaluated a drone mothership built by Modalic during Scarlet Dragon 26-3, an experimentation exercise held at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in mid-September. The aircraft, called the Autonomous Swarm Mothership, launched smaller drones in flight as soldiers tested whether the network could track the parent aircraft, separate its daughter drones, […]View the full article

The U.S. Navy demonstrated a new system for planning and controlling autonomous combat aircraft during Gray Flag 2026, a large-force test event held at Point Mugu Sea Range in California this month. The Navy calls the system Collaborative Autonomy Mission Planning, or CAMP. The demonstration used a General Atomics MQ-20 Avenger acting as a surrogate […]View the full article

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers awarded K & K Industries a $13.6 million contract to build a weapons release system storage facility at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, part of the base’s preparation to host the B-21 Raider stealth bomber. The Windsor, Missouri-based company’s firm-fixed-price award brings the project’s total value to $14,993,485. Three […]View the full article

GM Defense won a $697.7 million modification to its Infantry Squad Vehicle contract with the U.S. Army, funding engineering changes to the vehicle’s five-seat cargo variant, the Department of War announced Sept. 21. The modification, designated P00053, brings the total value of the underlying contract to $915.6 million. The Warren, Michigan-based company was the only […]View the full article

South African defense company Paramount unveiled a new reusable drone called V-Raven at the Africa Aerospace and Defence exhibition in South Africa on Sept. 19, replacing an earlier catapult-launched design with an aircraft that takes off and lands vertically without a runway. V-Raven grew out of Paramount’s earlier N-Raven program, a swarming drone the company […]View the full article

Last week was, if anything, “Space Week.” There were two very intentional statements from senior U.S. military leaders, one civilian and one uniformed, that put markers down. It is much more important than the coverage it received would suggest. First, the Secretary of the Air Force, Air Force Secretary Troy Meink offered no details about the nature or makeup of the weapons but described them as “on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the joint force against hostile adversary action.” He made the surprise admission during his keynote address Monday at the annual Air, Space and Cyber Conference at National Harbor, Md. A Space Force spokesperson said the weap…

The U.S. Marine Corps has released a photo of Marines with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit driving a Light Marine Air Defense Integrated System, known as LMADIS, a mobile counter-drone system, in the Middle East on Sept. 2-6. The caption says only that the photo was taken in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, […]View the full article

U.S. Army soldiers launched micro-High-Altitude Balloons at the Yausubetsu Training Area on Hokkaido, Japan, on Sept. 18, including one that carried an APOLLO-R drone. Observers from Japan, the United Kingdom and Australia watched the demonstration during Exercise Orient Shield 26, according to the title of the U.S. Army’s video. Balloons are often seen as relics […]View the full article

U.S. Air Force officers studying at the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) are testing whether small drones can scout a damaged airfield before engineers walk onto it. The research targets a job that still depends mostly on people. After an attack, U.S. Air Force civil engineers have to reopen runways while dealing with unexploded […]View the full article

NORAD has sent U.S. Air Force F-16 fighters from Alaska to the Atlantic side of Canada, and plans to take aircraft and personnel on into Greenland, in an Arctic operation running Sept. 13-26. The Alaskan NORAD Region moved the F-16s from Eielson Air Force Base to Goose Bay, in Canada’s Newfoundland and Labrador province, for […]View the full article

Turkish defense specialists inspected aircraft maintenance facilities at Royal Air Force Coningsby in England on Sept. 15-17 as work continues on Türkiye’s purchase of Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets from the United Kingdom. The Turkish Ministry of National Defense announced the visit in a post on X. The delegation included personnel from the ministry, the Turkish […]View the full article

The U.S. Air Force inactivated four A-10 units at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, on Sept. 18, in a ceremony it described as the official end of the A-10 legacy at the base. The units were the 355th Operations Group, 357th Fighter Squadron, 357th Fighter Generation Squadron and 355th Training Squadron. Col. Jose Cabrera, commander […]View the full article

The U.S. Air Force retired EC-130H Compass Call tail 1590 at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, on Sept. 18, after more than four decades of Compass Call electronic warfare operations. The propeller-driven aircraft made its final flight on Sept. 2 and taxied in for the last time during a retirement ceremony. The EA-37B now takes […]View the full article

After a two-week availability period, the Midrats Podcast is back! SummaryIn this episode, we explore current geopolitical tensions, military readiness, and strategic challenges facing the US and its allies, emphasizing the importance of preparedness and international cooperation. You can listen at this link or via the Spotify widget below. Show LinksRussian restrictions on Estonia’s borders Curfew on Russia’s Border with Estonia, Holger Roonemaa on Substack Great Circle ballistic arcs over Greenland Six Days of War: June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle East, by Michael B. Oren Operation Red Sea Regatta Shipfinder Hormuz Tracker Hormuz Strait Monitor Strait of Ti…

Combat medics from Ukraine’s 1st Separate Medical Battalion traveled to Sweden last week to share their experience evacuating wounded soldiers under drone threat, meeting with medical personnel from the Swedish Armed Forces’ Life Guards regiment, according to a Life Guards post and a LinkedIn account from the Ukrainian company that built the ground robot involved […]View the full article

Five companies posted the top scores in the close-quarters battle category of Gauntlet II, the latest round of testing under the U.S. Department of War’s $1 billion Drone Dominance Program, according to results the program released and companies confirmed this week. Neros topped that category with a score of 88.1, followed by ORQA US LLC […]View the full article