Raw Intel

Israeli-based Aero-Sentinel has confirmed the delivery of a new batch of its G3 reconnaissance drones to an undisclosed operational customer, signaling continued demand for specialized unmanned systems designed for discreet and complex missions. According to a statement shared by Aero-Sentinel’s Chief Marketing and Technology Officer, Ofir Avram, the company is closing the year with additional […]View the full article

The United States Department of War announced 340 additional awards under the Missile Defense Agency’s Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense (SHIELD) contract on January 15, expanding a massive procurement program that now totals more than 2,400 awards since early December. The latest awards support a contract vehicle with a ceiling of $151 billion. According […]View the full article

Need a moment to recover from Valentine’s Day? Of course you do! This Sunday from 5-6pm Eastern, the Midrats Podcast goes LIVE with our ever popular Free-for-All format. We have our topics, but you can join in during the show chat and offer up your own If you read this after the show, just refresh the Substack page Sunday night to find the uploaded podcast You can join the show at this link. 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

Airbus is preparing flight tests of an unmanned collaborative combat aircraft system based on the Kratos XQ-58A Valkyrie as part of a program aimed at providing the German Air Force with an operational Uncrewed Collaborative Combat Aircraft (UCCA) capability by 2029. The work is taking place at Airbus facilities in Manching, near Munich, where engineers […]View the full article

China is reportedly developing a new stealth cruise missile sized to fit inside the internal weapons bays of its J-20 and J-35 stealth fighters, according to technical design documents released in Weibo. The missile’s design specifications set its length at under 4 meters and diameter under 0.85 meters — dimensions that are almost certainly driven […]View the full article

Germany ordered more than 2,000 military transport trucks from Rheinmetall in a contract worth approximately $1.18 billion, the largest single logistics vehicle call-off under a framework agreement the Bundeswehr signed in 2024 to procure up to 6,500 vehicles from Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles. Deliveries will begin in the first half of 2026, with the vast […]View the full article

King Fahd Air Base in Taif, Saudi Arabia, has marked a significant milestone in the Royal Saudi Air Force’s drive toward defense self-sufficiency, completing the first scheduled heavy maintenance overhaul of an RSAF Eurofighter Typhoon following the aircraft’s accumulation of 2,500 flight hours. The operation was conducted entirely on Saudi soil over a period of […]View the full article

The U.S. State Department approved a possible arms sale to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia worth an estimated $1.96 billion, covering up to 10,000 air-to-air guidance sections and up to 10,000 air-to-ground guidance sections for the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System, known as APKWS II, according to a congressional notification the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs […]View the full article

Andreas Rupprecht, a researcher who tracks Chinese military aviation, published a photograph he says shows what is likely the first clear image of a J-10CE fighter jet belonging to the Uzbekistan Air Force. “Likely the first clear(er) image of an Uzbekistan Air Force J-10CE,” Rupprecht wrote. Uzbekistan has reportedly agreed to purchase 24 J-10CE fighters […]View the full article

An Eitan wheeled armored personnel carrier fitted with Hetz Dorban, an Israeli-developed hard-kill active protection system, was photographed during a recent training exercise, according to images published on the Israel Defense Forces’ website in August 2026. The system is marketed internationally under its commercial name, Iron Fist, by Elbit Systems. Hetz Dorban uses radar and […]View the full article

Israeli armored vehicle maker Plasan and off-road equipment specialist ASFIR 4X4 have unveiled Stormer, a light tactical vehicle for special operations forces built on a Jeep Gladiator pickup and designed to carry up to 12 people and more than 1,000 kg (2,200 pounds) of payload. The companies will show Stormer at the Association of the […]View the full article

The U.S. Navy destroyer USS Pinckney (DDG 91) has entered General Dynamics NASSCO’s shipyard in San Diego for a second depot modernization period that will make it the first warship to receive the Raytheon AN/SPY-6(V)4 radar, the Navy’s Portfolio Acquisition Executive for Maritime said. The availability will also make Pinckney the first ship fitted with […]View the full article

MiG-21 ‘Lancer’ (click to view full) The MiG-21 is reaching the end of its service life, but it can still be effective for a little while. India’s refurbished MiG-21 ‘Bisons’ combined Russian, Indian and Israeli technology to excellent effect in the COPE India 2004 and 2005 exercises with the USAF, and there’s even a Russian-Israeli MiG-21 2000 variant that exists for general sale. Israeli companies have made something of a specialty of refurbishing both Western and Soviet fighters with modern radars, avionics, and Israeli weapons like the Python air-air missile, giving the systems new life. An all-Israeli effort was undertaken for Romania, in order to create Romania’s …

One year and a week ago - 05 Feb 2020 - I wrote the below and posted it at USNIBlog as it became clear to me that we may have a pandemic on the way. It stands up well. As I read it again, it wasn't as much of about the coming pandemic, but in a way - a love letter to my Navy. It also is a story Fullbore worthy. I'm going to repost it in full as I wrote it at the time. Of course our Navy has a distinct culture. Unless you were born in to it – in which case you get a head start on everyone else – you walk in to it as a young man or woman to be shaped by it. The Navy’s culture slowly changes over time, shaped by its national culture and and trends, but there is…

Since I left active duty I really have not had all that much time to yell at DTS. I mostly just laugh at it from a distance as it was no longer my problem ... at least not directly. DTS has been horrible from day one. I know it. You know it. Worse, those who promoted and enforced it know as well. But, they didn't really care enough to do anything about it ... until it was a teenager. I am just old enough to remember how an efficient system worked. LT Salamander went to Admin and told a PN3/YNSN or whoever had the billet, “I need to travel to Norfolk with OPS for this conference (hands hard copy of message and travel request form). We need to leave next Monday AM. The c…

Americas J.I. Gascia Construction won a $7.6 million task order under a multiple award construction contract for a design-build KC-46A mission planning center at Travis Air Force Base, California.The work to be performed will provide a facility to support KC-46A mission planning. The contract contains four options, which requires the contractor to repair sewer line, construct the window infill, perform hazardous material remediation, and construct physical security upgrades at the mechanical yard. The KC-46A is a wide-body, multi-mission aircraft capable of transporting fuel, cargo, passengers, and patients. Work will take place in California. Expected completion will be …

Americas Boeing won a $71.8 million contract modification, which adds scope to provide segregable effort support, unknown obsolescence, Class I change assessments and obsolescence monitoring in support of the P-8A Multi-mission Maritime aircraft Lot 12 production line. Work will take place in Washington, California and Colorado. Estimated completion will be by April 2025. Raytheon won a $40.4 million contract modification. This modification exercises an option to integrate, produce, qualify, test and field 29 Lot Two low-rate production Maritime Strike Tomahawk seeker suites and all subsystems required to provide midcourse and terminal guidance to a modernized Tactical T…

Hydras & Hellfires (click to view full) The versatile Hydra 70mm rocket family is primed for a new lease on life, thanks to widespread programs aimed at converting these ubiquitous rockets into cheap laser-guided precision weapons. Conversion benefits include cost, use on both helicopters and fighters, more precision weapons per platform, low collateral damage, and the activation of large weapon stockpiles that couldn’t be used under strict rules of engagement. Firms all over the world have grasped this opportunity, which explains why strong competition has emerged from all points of the compass. America’s “Advanced Precision-Kill Weapon System (APKWS)” is one of t…

Americas General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) announced that it successfully conducted flight maneuvers with its MQ-20 Avenger drone using artificial intelligence aided by Low Earth Orbit satellite communication. The company demonstrated its “live, virtual, constructive collaborative combat aircraft ecosystem over a Low Earth Orbit satellite communication (LEO SATCOM) provider’s IP-based Mission Beyond Line of Sight (BLOS) datalink” […]View the full article

Americas Columbia Helicopters won a $54 million deal for maintenance and overhaul of the CH-47 Chinook rotor head. The Chinook CH-47 is a multi-mission helicopter manufactured by American aerospace and defense firm Boeing for the US Army and international defense forces. It’s used for the transportation of troops, artillery, supplies, and equipment to the battlefield. […]View the full article