Raw Intel

No need to force yourself to head outside in this horrible weather—unless you are in the Free State of Florida where the high is expected to hit 80F or so. Let not your heart be troubled—we’ve got you covered. Catch up on all your maritime and national security concerns this Sunday afternoon from 5-6pm Eastern with a LIVE Midrats Podcast. From Davos to the Friday Defense Strategy dump to whatever comes over the transom, we’ve got you covered. You can join LIVE at this link. If you are reading this after the show, no problem. Just refresh the Substack later Sunday night for the podcast upload. This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, con…

German defense company Diehl Defence unveiled the relaunch of its highly mobile counter-unmanned aerial vehicle system at the Enforce Tac exhibition in Nürnberg, introducing the platform under a new name, GARMR, replacing the previously known Kinetic Defence Vehicle (KDV). According to Diehl Defence, GARMR represents a redesigned and expanded version of the earlier KDV system, […]View the full article

Overland AI said it will take part in AUSA Global Force next week in Huntsville, where it plans to present ULTRA, its fully autonomous tactical vehicle, as part of the Army’s push to test new technology with troops in the field. The company tied ULTRA directly to the Army’s Transformation in Contact effort, which is […]View the full article

Teledyne FLIR Defense has secured a contract worth more than $35 million to deliver its TacFLIR 280-HDEP surveillance systems to WB Group, Poland’s largest private defense company, for integration onto reconnaissance armored vehicles. The company announced the award on Thursday, marking the third contract this year in which Teledyne FLIR Defense has been selected to […]View the full article

Huntington Ingalls Industries has secured nearly $37 million to keep its Lionfish underwater drone rolling off the production line, with the U.S. Navy exercising a contract option that locks in delivery through May 2027. The Naval Sea Systems Command in Washington awarded the $36,9 million modification to HII’s Unmanned Systems division on the existing contract […]View the full article

Six Russian military aircraft operating in Baltic airspace in a single day triggered a joint NATO scramble involving French and Swedish fighter jets, the latest reminder that the skies above one of Europe’s most sensitive stretches of territory remain an active theater of aerial friction between the alliance and Moscow. NATO Air Command confirmed that […]View the full article

Echodyne, a radar manufacturer based in Kirkland, Washington, announced Thursday it has built a plugin that lets its MESA radar systems plug directly into ATAK, the Android Team Awareness Kit software that has become the default shared map and situational awareness tool across much of the U.S. military and a growing list of public safety […]View the full article

Russian officials say a volunteer air defense unit in Kursk Region shot down a Ukrainian FP-5 Flamingo cruise missile using machine-gun fire during an overnight attack this weekend, an unusual claim for a weapon Russia has typically engaged with surface-to-air missile systems. Kursk Region Governor Aleksandr Khinshtein said the intercept happened overnight Saturday into Sunday, […]View the full article

TOW family (click to view full) Despite modernization that has led to advanced anti-armor weapons like the Javelin and Hellfire fire and forget guided missiles, the wire-guided, operator-controlled BGM-71 TOW missile family remains a mainstay thanks to modernization, specialization, improved sighting systems, and pre-existing compatibility with a wide range of ground vehicles. TOW remains the US Army and Marine Corps’ primary heavy anti-tank/ precision assault weapon deployed on more than 4,000 TOW launch platforms including HMMWV jeeps, the Army’s M1134 Stryker ATGM variant and M2/M3 Bradley IFVs; the Marines’ LAV-AT wheeled APC and SuperCobra attack helicopters; and n…

Americas Honeywell International won a contract worth $476.1 million for the procurement of CH-47 aircraft T55 engines, CH-47 aircraft T55 engine electronic control units, and CH-47 aircraft T55 engine installation kits. The Honeywell T55 is a Family of military turboshaft engines. The most prominent aircraft application is the Boeing CH-47 Chinook and MH-47 helicopters. The new CH-47F uses more powerful Honeywell T55-GA-714A engines that improve fuel efficiency and enhance lift performance. The higher powerful Honeywell T55-GA-714A engines are fitted with full authority digital engine control (FADEC) and have a thrust of 3,529kW (4,733shp). The operating range was increa…

It all has to do with the Salamander Deterrence Space. Details and extended commentary over at USNBlog. Come on by. http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?d=yIl2AUoC8zA http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?d=qj6IDK7rITs http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=kCkNoAgSzMA:IX7y7tX9BZI:gIN9vFwOqvQ http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=kCkNoAgSzMA:IX7y7tX9BZI:-BTjWOF_DHI http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=kCkNoAgSzMA:IX7y7tX9BZI:V_sGLiPBpWU http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=kCkNoAgSzMA:IX7y7tX9BZI:F7zBnMyn0Lo http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/FAFV/~4/kCkNoAgSzMAView the full article

The BONHOMME RICHARD fire report has the Surface Force in the news again, and one of our favorite ex-SWOs Bryan McGrath gave a speech to the Surface Navy Association's Washington DC chapter earlier today. He had a few things to get off his chest, and the things he said are worth a broader audience. Bryan has been kind enough to send along the text of his remarks for publication here - well worth your time. Bryan, over to you! Speech to the DC Chapter of the Surface Navy Association 21 October 2021“Three Rants”As Prepared for Delivery Thank you for the introduction, Captain Bryans. It was an honor to be asked to be here, and I am grateful for the opportunity. I hope t…

Your commander matters. The best commanders know when to take the advice of their staff and when to brush it off. The worst commanders are those who lack the knowledge or personality to know when to do one of the other. As told by Douglas Sterling; “Great Army of the Sea” On May 16, the English royal council met and pushed back the deadline for gathering the ships until June 12, which would mean a sailing date around the 20th. When Edward met with his council again on June 4, it was clear that earlier delays had not been resolved. The only way to even attempt to keep up with the timetable previously set, which was being relied upon by the allies, was to send at least …

P-8A Poseidon (click to view full) Maritime surveillance and patrol is becoming more and more important, but the USA’s P-3 Orion turboprop fleet is falling apart. The P-7 Long Range Air ASW (Anti-Submarine Warfare) Capable Aircraft program to create an improved P-3 began in 1988, but cost overruns, slow progress, and interest in opening the […]View the full article

Americas Northrop Grumman won a $32.6 million modification, which exercises option years two and three for continued fabrication and installation support to retrofit the Delta System Software Configuration 4.0 (DSSC4) capabilities, to include Tactical Targeting Network Technology and the Beyond Line of Sight for the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft. Work will be performed in Melbourne, […]View the full article

Americas Lockheed Martin won a $280.4 million for combat systems engineering efforts of the planned modernization and new combat system capabilities selection for international partner Canadian Royal Navy ships operating AEGIS. Work will be performed in Moorestown, New Jersey and is expected to be completed by January 2028. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC is the contracting activity. Mustang Advanced Engineering won an $11.3 million contract for a test stand capable of testing both left-hand and right-hand V-22 PropRotor Gearbox Input Quill assemblies for the V-22 aircraft. This includes all mechanical, electrical, software, and control systems, as well as ancil…

Turkish defense company Uludoğan has completed development of a new nano-class unmanned aerial system, the NanoAlp, designed to deliver close-range reconnaissance in contested environments. With an overall length of just 25 centimeters, the helicopter-type micro drone is scheduled to enter serial production in the third quarter of 2025, the company confirmed. According to Uludoğan, the […] The post Turkish firm develops micro recon drone first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

The Dutch Ministry of Defense announced that Royal Netherlands Air Force F-35s landed in Poland today to begin a three-month deployment securing NATO airspace over Eastern Europe. Starting Sunday, the Dutch jets will operate alongside Norwegian F-35s, carrying out round-the-clock patrols under NATO command. The aircraft departed this morning from Volkel Air Base in the […] The post Dutch F-35s arrive in Poland for NATO air policing mission first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Saab Inc. has been awarded a $46 million contract to deliver its Giraffe 1X radar systems to the U.S. Army. According to a Pentagon announcement, the contract was awarded to Saab Inc., based in East Syracuse, New York, for the procurement and delivery of Giraffe 1X radars. Bids were solicited online, with one received. Work […] The post U.S. Army buys lightweight surveillance radars from Saab first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

A U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft from Commander, Task Force 72 (CTF 72) has joined an Indian Navy P-8I aircraft for a bilateral detachment and training near Diego Garcia and the broader Indian Ocean region from October 22 to 28, 2025. According to the U.S. Navy, the deployment featured joint operations […] The post U.S., India fly joint patrols near Diego Garcia first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article