Raw Intel

A satellite photograph taken Sunday appears to confirm what Ukraine’s president claimed just two days earlier: a Russian strategic bomber sitting at Engels air base did not survive a recent drone strike. The open-source monitoring community AviVector published commercial satellite imagery from Planet Labs PBC, dated July 19, showing what the group identified as a […]View the full article

Australia and Japan have completed the first successful field trials of a jointly developed high-energy laser system, called Boobook, at test sites in South Australia, Australia’s Department of Defence announced Tuesday. The trials took place at the Cultana Training Area and the Defence Science and Technology Group’s Edinburgh facility. Boobook is the first co-development project […]View the full article

P-3 Orion, armed – note Sidewinder (click to view full) The P-3 Orion remains the USA’s main maritime patrol aircraft, and is also finding use in overland surveillance roles despite the fleet’s age. Earlier DID articles have noted the extra effort required to preserve the USA’s P-3C Orion maritime surveillance & patrol aircraft, along with radar and weapons upgrades to improve the fleet. Lockheed has even opened a new production line, to deal with planes whose wings that are so aged and worn that they need a full replacement. The SMIP (Sustainment, Modification, and Installation Program) is intensive depot-level inspection and repair process that includes P-3 airf…

As we first pointed out here last August, Mozambique needs to be in your scan. Though we may be pulling back from engaging with global Islamic extremism, it is not pulling back from the world. Especially on the African front of the bleeding edge of Dar al-Islam, they are pressing wherever opportunities reveal themselves. The problem in Mozambique is reaching the point that the regional power, South Africa, may get involved. South Africa will press for urgent military action by regional body SADC to quell an Islamist insurgency in Mozambique threatening to destabilize neighbouring countries, the foreign minister said on Friday. It will make this call at a summi…

Americas Boeing won a $17.3 million contract modification for the US and United Kingdom to provide Strategic Weapon System Trident II (D5) Inertial Navigation equipment technical engineering support services. The Trident II D5 fleet ballistic missile (FBM) is a three-stage, solid-propellant, inertial-guided ballistic missile. In September 2021 the US Navy test-fired two unarmed Trident II missiles off the coast of Cape Canaveral, dubbing the launches a successful test of the operational readiness of the weapons system. Work will take place in California, Ohio, Washington, New York, Virginia, Georgia, Florida and Scotland. Estimated completion date is September 30, 2022. …

Americas Boeing won a $30.3 million delivery order for the repair of 93 EA horizontal stabilizers used on the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler aircraft. The period of performance for this delivery order begins January 2022 and will be completed by September 2023 with no option periods. Work will take place in Florida and Missouri. The period of performance for this delivery order begins January 2022 and will be completed by September 2023 with no option periods. The US Air Force is working on placing USB ports on the B-52 bomber, Bossier Now reports. This will allow the crew to charge their electronic tabs on long-distance flights without having to resort to ba…

It is behind the WSJ paywall, but the first blurb tells you really what you need to know; President Biden says he’ll boost defense spending next year because the world is more dangerous. But the budget details don’t match his rhetoric, and Exhibit A is the bleak outlook for the Navy. The bill for decades of complacency and neglect is coming due at a dangerous moment, as China ramps up its fleet. The almost malicious intent behind the intentional shrinking of our inheritance of being the worlds' premier Navy by inattention of the Executive and Legislative Branches of government is only matched by the distracted maladministration inside the lifetimes by a series of sub-opti…

Americas Rockwell Collins won a $16.3 million contract modification, which adds scope to provide for the adoption and application of updated security classification requirements, as well as to provide a preliminary design analysis and solution trade studies for an updated Very Low Frequency receiver solution in support of the developmental design and obsolescence mitigation engineering efforts for the airborne VLF system modernization in order to meet program capability requirements. The modernization effort is required to provide a compatible and producible VLF system to be integrated into a C-130 aircraft. Work will take place in Texas and Iowa. Estimated completion dat…

Americas Northrop Grumman won an $99.4 million modification from the US Air Force for Active Electronically Scanned Array radars of Air Force F-16 aircraft. This modification is for the exercise of options to include 42 production radars, one initial spare kit, and two readiness spare kits. This modification does not involve Foreign Military Sales. Work will take place in Maryland. Expected completion will be on July 31, 2025. The US Army has completed a test run of the newly-developed missile communication technology, remote interceptor guidance (RIG)-360, from aerospace firm Lockheed Martin. The integrated flight test assessed the data link capabilities of Lockheed’s p…

Americas Lockheed Martin won a $21.9 million modification to exercise an option for industrial post-delivery availability support for the Freedom-variant Littoral Combat Ship USS Beloit (LCS 29). Work will be performed in Marinette, Wisconsin, and is expected to be completed by March 2025. In a landmark achievement for the F-35 Lightning II program, the final […]View the full article

Americas General Atomics’ EagleEye multi-mode radar is being upgraded with the addition of an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) antenna and associated software. The drop-in antenna will more than double the radar’s range of 80 kilometers. “The increased range and optimized multi-mode performance of the radar are perfectly tailored to provide deep sensing capability in […]View the full article

Americas The US Army is pressing ahead with modernising its fleet of CH-47F Chinook helicopters, with recent contract awards to Boeing for the production of new Block II Chinooks. This latest order underscores the Army’s commitment to upgrading its heavy-lift capabilities for future multi-domain operations. This month, the US Army placed an order for three more CH-47F Block II Chinooks from Boeing, a deal valued at $135 million. This order, designated as Lot 3, follows a previous contract awarded last year for long-lead parts acquisition. These contracts are part of a broader strategy to upgrade up to 465 Chinooks to the advanced Block II configuration. QinetiQ US has bee…

The Royal Thai Air Force carried out air strikes against two Cambodian military targets on Thursday, after a surprise assault earlier in the day. According to Royal Thai Army deputy spokesperson Col. Ritcha Suksuwanon, six F-16 fighter jets were launched from Ubon Ratchathani province and struck ground targets inside Cambodia. “We have used air power […] The post Thai F-16 jets hit Cambodian targets after border attack first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

BAE Systems has announced the delivery of its 1,000th infrared seeker for the U.S. Army’s Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) program. The delivery was made to Lockheed Martin, the prime contractor for THAAD, for integration onto the interceptor missile. The seeker provides advanced sensing and guidance that allows the missile to detect, track, and […] The post BAE Systems delivers 1,000th THAAD seeker first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

A senior Russian official has issued a new round of nuclear-tinged threats against the United States, Ukraine, and NATO allies, warning that Moscow retains weapons capable of overcoming any defensive preparations. Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, a close ally of Vladimir Putin and former president, wrote on the Russian state-owned social platform […] The post Kremlin threatens U.S. and Zelensky with strikes first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Russia has begun fielding a previously unseen type of drone over Ukraine, featuring an unusual ring-wing design likely aimed at improving aerial endurance and strike capabilities, according to a Ukrainian military electronic warfare specialist. Serhiy Beskrestnov, also known by his callsign “Serhiy Flesh,” said in a public statement that Russian forces have started using drones […] The post Mysterious Russian drone spotted in combat zone first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

The 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) completed its Realistic Urban Training (RUT) exercise across Arizona and Southern California from November 3 to 13, 2025, marking its first major full-scale deployment as a composited Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF). According to the U.S. Marine Corps, the exercise involved approximately 1,200 Marines from the MEU’s ground, aviation, […]View the full article

Germany’s national parliament has approved a procurement order for Dutch defense manufacturer Defenture to deliver 49 mobile battlefield platforms to the Bundeswehr’s Special Forces Command, known as Kommando Spezialkräfte, or KSK. The vehicles are scheduled to enter service starting in 2027, according to information released on December 18, 2025. The order covers two variants developed […]View the full article

Poland has tested the KUNA configurable autonomous multi-role platform in winter terrain, confirming its ability to operate in snow, ice, and sub-zero conditions where standard wheeled vehicles lose mobility, according to information released by the Wojskowy Instytut Techniki Pancernej i Samochodowej (WITPiS). The winter evaluation focused on mobility, autonomy, and logistics support in conditions that […]View the full article

German defense conglomerate Rheinmetall conducted a live-fire demonstration of its 120mm Ragnarok mortar system and a new Mortar Mission Module during a multinational event in Norway, the company said, showcasing the system under Arctic conditions. The demonstration comes as European militaries seek mobile, rapidly deployable indirect fire systems that can operate in harsh environments while […]View the full article