Raw Intel

Ukrainian military intelligence has taken delivery of a U.S.-made UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, purchased through a nationwide crowdfunding campaign organized in the Czech Republic. The handover marks the culmination of a year-long effort led by the volunteer initiative Dárek pro Putina (“A Gift for Putin”), which raised more than 72.6 million Czech crowns—about $3.2 million—from […] The post Czech volunteers buy Black Hawk for Ukraine first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) has passed a major milestone in its 33-year history, surpassing nine million cumulative flight hours across its unmanned aircraft fleet. The achievement coincides with ongoing flight operations of the company’s newest combat drone, the YFQ-42A Collaborative Combat Aircraft, which is being tested for the U.S. Air Force. GA-ASI has […] The post GA-ASI surpasses 9 million flight hours across drone fleet first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Right before I first posted this six years ago, after I once again lamented that we no longer have a ship with the name USS Shangri-La, Bill Schultz reminded me that there is a simply awesome video available of a unique and under-appreciated time in naval aviation; the early 1960s. What an incredible time of change and advancement ... and a time yet warped by the war that would dominate the rest of the decade. So, let’s take a moment to give tribute to those Sailors of the early-60s ... in glorious technicolor, on the USS Shangri-La (CV 38), circa 1962, somewhere in the Mediterranean Sea. Crusaders, Skyrays, Skyhawks, Skyraiders, Marines doing PT on deck ... just glorious…

A Hokkaido-based company has presented a stratospheric aerostat system with emerging defense uses at the annual “Technology Symposium 2025,” hosted by Japan’s Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA) in Tokyo on November 11–12. In this context, aerostat refers to a high-altitude platform kept aloft by lighter-than-air gas, capable of long-duration observation, communications support, or scientific […]View the full article

UAE-based EDGE and Spain’s EM&E Group have signed a technology transfer contract that will allow the FEROX 6×6 armored vehicle to be manufactured in Spain. According to a statement dated December 19, 2025, the agreement is structured between EM&E Group and EDGE entity NIMR, a producer of wheeled military vehicles. Under the contract, EM&E Group […]View the full article

The United States State Department has approved a possible $2.316 billion Foreign Military Sale to Singapore for P-8A maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft, MK 54 lightweight torpedoes, and associated systems, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said as it formally notified Congress of the decision. According to the certification delivered to lawmakers, the Government of Singapore […]View the full article

Swarm Aero announced the opening of its Advanced Manufacturing Center on Feb. 17, 2026, at Drake Field in Fayetteville, Arkansas, marking the launch of an 80,000-square-foot facility designed to produce large uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) swarms, the company said during a ribbon-cutting event attended by Congressman Steve Womack. According to the company, the Arkansas facility […]View the full article

The Japan Air Self-Defense Force confirmed it supported the first flight of a new stand-off electronic warfare aircraft, known as the EC-2, developed in cooperation with the Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency. The development comes as Japan moves to strengthen its ability to operate in the electromagnetic domain and support air operations without entering contested […]View the full article

DFA Systems, an Albuquerque, New Mexico-based startup, said Monday it will bring its Precision Flying Grenade to ISOF Range 2026, a live-fire defense event set for April 14–15 at the Nevada Test and Training Range. The showcase gives the company a chance to put its flagship system in front of a wide audience that includes […]View the full article

DARPA flew a hybrid-electric unmanned experimental aircraft at Edwards Air Force Base in April 2026, marking the first flight milestone for a propulsion architecture the agency believes could fundamentally change how military aircraft are designed and what they can do. The aircraft, designated XRQ-73, was developed through DARPA’s Series Hybrid Electric Propulsion AiRcraft Demonstration program, […]View the full article

A Finnish defense communications company has secured a place on the United Kingdom’s largest tactical communications procurement framework, gaining access to a purchasing vehicle valued at approximately $10.5 billion that will govern how British armed forces buy military radio and communications systems for the next eight years. KNL, a defense communications subsidiary of Telenor Group, […]View the full article

A tank crew today fights with the same armor and the same engine it had a decade ago, but the software running its sensors, its displays and its threat-detection logic can be rewritten in a single update cycle. That gap, between a hardware lifespan measured in decades and a threat environment that shifts in months, […]View the full article

The Office of Naval Research has awarded Agrippa Industries a contract worth nearly $19 million to develop a low-cost, attritable logistics vessel for military operations, according to the Department of War’s daily contract announcements. The firm-fixed-price contract falls under the Scalable Commercial Attritable Logistics Adapted to Expeditionary Systems effort. Agrippa, based in Palo Alto, California, […]View the full article

The U.S. State Department has approved a possible sale of 48 F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, a $24.3 billion deal that would make the kingdom just the second country in the Middle East, after Israel, cleared to fly the stealth aircraft. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress of the potential sale on Sept. […]View the full article

The U.S. Army has taken delivery of its first new locomotives in more than a decade, part of an effort to replace a rail fleet in which more than a third of the active engines are older than their 65-year expected service life. The Army’s Tank-automotive and Armaments Command, known as TACOM, said its rail […]View the full article

NATO commanders spent 10 days in October rehearsing how they would fight a war against an enemy army of one million soldiers, running the alliance’s Avenger Triad 26 computer-assisted exercise from a command center in Wiesbaden, Germany, where about 150 officers from several countries tracked a simulated attack on alliance territory around the clock on […]View the full article

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2394/2283121435_9a6ede08e9_o.jpg25 FEB 1852. Discipline. Honor. Sacrifice - and steadfast leadership. Do you really know what they mean? How do you know you, as well as the men and women under your command, can do what is needed - and do it with cold firmness? Are you ready for the Birkenhead Drill?To take your chance in the thick of a rush, with firing all about, Is nothing so bad when you’ve cover to ’and, an’ leave an’ likin’ to shout; But to stand an’ be still to the Birken’ead drill is a damn tough bullet to chew, An’ they done it, the Jollies—’Er Majesty’s Jollies—soldier an’ sailor too! Their work was done when it ’adn’t be…

Americas Lockheed Martin won an $80 million contract modification to exercise options for littoral combat ship class design services and integrated data and product model environment support. According to the Defense Department, The US Navy plans to build a fleet of 33 literal combat ocean going warships that are also capable of operating in shallow coastal waters. Work will take place in New Jersey, Washington DC and Wisconsin. Estimated completion will be by October 2022. The US Military Sealift Command announced it has tested the new BQM-177A Sub-Sonic Aerial Target (SSAT) in the Western Pacific. Testing took place from September 9-10 using USNS Alan Shepard (T-AKE 3)…

Think of thing in the Navy that, well, just don't make it to the recruiting advertisements. Deploying over the holiday season. Finding out your "liberty port" is Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Throw in the post COVID-19 experience, and, well ... so sorry Shipmates. USS Milwaukee (LCS 5), a Freedom variant littoral combat ship, remains in port as some Sailors test positive for COVID-19. The crew is 100% immunized and all COVID-19 positive Sailors are isolated on board and away from other crew members. A portion of those infected have exhibited mild symptoms. The vaccine continues to demonstrate effectiveness against serious illness. I've spent a bit of time in GTMO. Besides swi…

For over 11-years, once a year or so today’s guest has joined us on Midrats to discuss the latest military and national security developments with Russia. With the war waging in Ukraine and in the processing to transitioning to a new phase, there couldn’t be a better time to hear from Dr. Dmitry Gorenburg who will be with us for the full hour Sunday from 5-6 PM Eastern in a wide ranging discussion about the buildup to war, and the important takeaways so far. Dmitry is an expert on security issues in the former Soviet Union, Russian military reform, Russian foreign policy, and ethnic politics and identity. His recent research topics include decision-making processes in the…