Raw Intel

Lockheed Martin has begun final assembly of the first F-35A Lightning II fighter jet destined for the German Air Force at its Fort Worth, Texas production facility. The airframe has entered final assembly with its major structural components joined and positioned for installation of critical systems. The F-35A program is intended to provide the Luftwaffe […]View the full article

Bell Textron Inc. said Friday it has set up a subsidiary in Ukraine and is preparing to open a dedicated office, laying the groundwork for a long-term partnership with the country’s defense industry. The new unit, Bell Textron Ukraine, will act as the company’s base for work inside the country. While a final office location […]View the full article

Raytheon has secured a contract from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to supply SeaRAM ship self-defense systems for Australia’s Sea3000 General Purpose Frigate program, the company announced. Under the contract, Raytheon will supply SeaRAM launchers, Blast Test Vehicles, and technical services to support installation and testing for the first three ships in the Sea3000 program, which are […]View the full article

The United States has not produced its own TNT since the 1980s, relying entirely on overseas allies to supply the explosive that fills its artillery shells, bombs, and grenades. That four-decade gap in domestic production is now being closed, and according to a June 4 contract notice, the Army awarded Repkon USA a $77.9 million […]View the full article

The U.S. Army awarded BAE Systems Land and Armaments a $35 million contract modification on June 30, 2026, for additional production of the general-purpose variant of the Cold Weather All-Terrain Vehicle, the tracked, amphibious troop carrier built to operate where wheeled vehicles simply cannot follow. The Army Contracting Command at Detroit Arsenal, Michigan, made the […]View the full article

A Romanian F-16 fighter jet shot down a Russian-linked drone over the Black Sea on Sunday morning, marking the third such intercept in just three days, and Romania’s president says the country has had enough. President Nicusor Dan confirmed that Romanian Air Force pilots downed the drone at 10:13 a.m. local time roughly 12 kilometers […]View the full article

Cambridge Pixel will show its software for uncrewed and autonomous surface vessels at SMM 2026, a maritime trade fair running September 1-4 in Hamburg, Germany. The UK-based company will set up at Hall B1, Stand 321, where it plans to demonstrate radar, camera and sensor processing modules used for tracking, data fusion, display, control, recording […]View the full article

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

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has opened a new national defense museum packed with the country’s missiles, rocket launchers and drones, and among the exhibits is a previously unseen 4×4 armored vehicle that closely resembles the Canadian-made Roshel Senator used by Ukraine. State news agency KCNA reported on Oct. 13 that Kim attended the […]View the full article

Americas According to the US Air Force, a B-1B Lancer bomber conducted a demonstration testing its ability to externally carry potential hypersonic weapons. The “external captive carry” test was conducted last week by the 412th Test Wing’s 419th Flight Test Squadron at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., the Air Force said on Tuesday. The plane carried an inert Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile outside its fuselage. An earlier test demonstrated the capability of carrying large weapons within the plane. The tests indicate that the B-1B can deliver and launch large hypersonic weapons, which by definition fly at over five times the speed of sound. The United States, China an…

Americas The US Air Force has decided to add an active duty component to the 168th Air Refueling Squadron at Eielson Air Force Base. The move will add four additional KC-135s and up to 220 additional active duty personnel. This will make the squadron a total force unit as it increases the total KC-135 aircraft to 12. The personnel will be reassigned from within the Air Force. F-35A, AF-1, has successfully carried out the in-flight release of the Joint Strike Missile (JSM) over at Edwards Air Force Base last month. Forsvarsmateriell, the Norwegian Defense Material Agency, was responsible for conducting successful test drops of the JSM missile from the F-35A in the desert …

India’s new surface-to-air missile, the Akash, successfully struck an airborne target towed from a remote control aircraft in late November. The weapon is designed to hit aircraft up to 25 km away with a 55 kg warhead. Reuters: India Test-Fires Akash Missile Update July 12/21: IAF Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) signed a contract worth $67 million to provide Akash missiles to the Indian Air Force (IAF). A formal contract was signed by the Indian Ministry of Defense and BDL on July 8. Akash is a medium-range mobile surface-to-air missile (SAM) system developed by the Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and produced by BDL. February 15/2017: India’s Defence…

Americas Dyncorp International won a $30.3 million modification, which exercises an option to extend services to provide continued organizational level aircraft maintenance and logistics support for aircrew systems and subsystems, search and rescue equipment, and support equipment for the P-3 Orion, C-130 Hercules, F/A-18 Hornet, E/A-18 Growler, AV-8B Harrier II, H-60 Seahawk, and E-2D Hawkeye aircraft in support of the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD) Naval Test Wing Pacific. Work will take place in California, Hawaii, Florida, New Mexico and Maryland. Estimated completion will be in April 2023. A recent US Army Futures Command live-flight demonstratio…

Can two men who on one day are doing their best to kill each other also hold each other not just with respect, but to become friends? Most American students of WWII know the name Luftwaffe General-Lieutenant Adolph Galland. Though most Brits know him - for Americans, Royal Air Force Group Captain Douglas Bader may not sound all that familiar. What a remarkable story about the unexpected friendship between two remarkable men. Though you should really watch the whole thing, he was brought on to "This is Your Life" and at the 27-min mark, they brought in his friend Adolph ... which is remarkable when you consider who was brought in before him ... all getting along grandly n…

KC-390 refuels AMXs (click to view full) Global competition in the 20-ton air transport segment continues to intensify, with Brazil’s launch of its KC-390 program. Embraer figures reportedly place the global C-130 replacement market at around 700 aircraft. In response, it will develop a jet-powered rival to compete with Lockheed Martin’s C-130J, the larger Airbus […]View the full article

Americas Australia has sent its first team to Pearl Harbor to train in sustainment for the government’s upcoming AUKUS submarines. The AUKUS program is a trilateral cooperation between Australia, the UK, and the US to protect allies and interests across the Pacific with a dedicated underwater fleet. For the maintenance training, Canberra sourced around 30 skilled workers from Western and South Australia affiliated with local shipbuilder ASC Pty Ltd. This group includes electricians, mechanical fitters, safety engineers, and battery crew specialists, most of which have “decades of combined experience” with the Royal Australian Navy’s existing Collins-class submarines. Oshk…

Americas The US government has given Lockheed Martin a big job worth up to $2.81 billion to improve the THAAD missile defense system. This work will continue for 10 years, from February 2025 to January 2035. The company will upgrade THAAD’s hardware and software, test these improvements, and start putting them into use.Most of this work will happen in Sunnyvale, California, and Dallas, Texas. THAAD is a powerful weapon that can stop different types of incoming missiles. It works by hitting these missiles directly, destroying them before they can reach their targets. This system is important for protecting areas from missile attack. The US Air Force has given BioFlyte, a c…

Taiwan’s top defense research institute, the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST), has signed a memorandum of understanding with U.S.-based Anduril Industries, marking a rare and direct collaboration with one of the Pentagon’s most aggressive AI defense startups. According to a source familiar with the matter, the agreement covers cooperation in areas including […] The post Taiwan expands AI defense cooperation with Anduril first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

China has displayed a new long-range hypersonic cruise missile for the first time, unveiling the Changjian-1000, or CJ-1000, during a major military parade in Beijing. The weapon represents a new class of precision-strike capability for the People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force, designed to penetrate advanced air defense systems. The CJ-1000 is a successor to the […] The post China unveils new hypersonic cruise missile first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Germany has officially taken delivery of its first P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft from Boeing, marking a new phase in the modernization of the German Navy’s long-range surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities. The handover ceremony took place in Seattle, Washington, and is seen as a milestone in strengthening Germany’s maritime defense posture and NATO’s collective deterrence […] The post Germany receives first P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article