Raw Intel

Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) is planning a major organizational restructuring, with two new large-scale formations expected to be established in fiscal year 2026. According to media reports, the plans include elevating the existing 15th Brigade on Okinawa to a division and consolidating the JGSDF’s elite special operations units into a dedicated brigade. The restructuring […] The post Japan to reorganize army structure with new large-scale formations first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

It has been a bit more than four years ago that navalists were in their second month of excitement about the prospects for a larger Navy with the incoming Trump Administration. As most did not expect him to win in 2016, few of us paid any more than passing attention that he picked up on work already done under Obama’s SECNAV Mabus to mark “350-355” as the number needed given the realities of the evolving global security situation – specifically China’s not so peaceful rise. Not fully appreciated at the time, partisanship and incomplete information led many to not give credit to the Obama team for their work prior to the election. Likewise, in a few years the larger f…

Americas Northrop Grumman Systems won a $185.7 million deal for the A-10 Aircraft Structural Integrity Program (ASIP) Legacy VII. This contract provides for sustaining engineering services of A-10 aircraft. The A-10 Thunderbolt is also known as the Warthog, the ‘flying gun’ and the Tankbuster. The aircraft was used extensively during Operation Desert Storm, in support of Nato operations in response to the Kosovo crisis, in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Work will take place in Clearfield, Utah. Expected completion date is December 13, 2030. Boeing won a $79.6 million deal for F-15 Eagle Passive Active Warning and Survivability S…

There are some DivThu that simply write themselves … and there are some Thursdays that I simply don’t know what to post because there is so much … often from the same place. This DivThu let’s turn our attention to USNA. Some of you may think I’m going to get involved with the 1/C MIDN who got a bit over his skis on twitter, but RedState covered it in great detail. Read it all here - but focus on the comments and actions of uniformed leadership and the interplay of football. It speaks loudly how much USNA has brought inside its lifelines all the worst aspects of civilian universities from the warping effects of alumni sports fetishes to fear of the Woke Red Guards. I’m…

Americas Northrop Grumman has revealed its concept for the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) LongShot program to develop an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) capable of employing multiple air-to-air weapons. The company released a conceptual rendering of its proposed design on 10 February, two days after it was awarded a contract alongside General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) and Lockheed Martin for the first phase of its LongShot program. “The LongShot program enables us to combine our digital engineering skillset with our extensive knowledge in advanced technology weapons, autonomous systems, and strike platforms to increase weapon range and …

Take a moment to think about all the news concerning the fragility of our maritime supply chain nodes. One good byproduct of this crisis is that the critical importance of merchant ships and maritime infrastructure to our national economy has come under the spotlight. For those who have spent their professional lives feeling like some Cassandra screaming in to a void of national disinterest – the opportunity to educate people while you have their attention is a once in a generation moment. In the US, in addition to the US Merchant Marine Academy, we have some states that have their own state merchant marine academies. It would be logical that the last year would have ins…

Our Navy has a problem, or a series of problems, and everyone knows it. It is a problem of long standing that manifests itself in a variety of ways. Our inability to design warships, or properly maintain the ones we have, is one example. Our shrinking carrier airwings - in aircraft numbers and range - is another. Not unrelated to the issues on the pointy end is the groaning weight of staff bloat and a top-heavy leadership structure. Our self-selected elite - in uniform and out - have failed us. The system and structure that motivates, rewards, and encourages them share the blame, but mostly this is a people problem. As such, the cure will have to come from people. Cong…

Americas The US Air Force has secured funding to buy the first of six new E-11A Battlefield Airborne Communication Node aircraft. The press release from the 66th Air Base Group Public Affairs says the BACN Program Office is expected to award the contract by end of March, and the aircraft to be delivered by the end of June. The five-year indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity agreement also includes funds for research, development, testing and evaluation, and integration of existing and future payloads. The contract also provides support for infrastructure contained in or connected to the BACN system and associated ground stations, controls, and ancillary or support equi…

Simply a superb almost 8-minutes from The Guardian of all places. Take some time to listen to the people who are living - and fighting - in eastern Ukraine. I find the part of the interview with Senior Lieutenant Misha Novitskyi starting at the 05:56 point especially to the point. Ukraine wants to be part of the 21st Century. Russia wants to drag her back to the 20th. 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=EfTO_YjToTQ:Tvoh-lNX8Xs:gIN9vFwOqvQ http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=EfTO_YjToTQ:Tvoh-lNX8Xs:-BTjWOF_DHI http://feeds.feedbur…

After a summer where more and more people’s eyes have been opened to the divisive, sectarian, and even racist nature of Critical Race Theory and have risen in opposition to it and similar race-essentialist world view in to our schools, the next logical step is how people feel about it becoming an essential part of taxpayer supported public education. As we’ve discussed it in detail here, we know there is a problem in the US Navy where the Chief of Naval Operations has enthusiastically supported the works of one of the most high-profile advocates of the most cancerous forms of Critical Race Theory, Ibram X. Kendi. With that top cover, it was only a matter of time until its…

For this decade, the US Navy has to be ready to match any military challenge by the People’s Republic of China with the fleet we roughly have now. Any clear-eyed look at budgets, priorities, or plans makes that clear. If so, how do we best keep an aggressive China at risk with the forces we realistically have? What can we do to best deter war, and if that fails, transition to war best positioned to win? Today we turn over the conversation to Bryan Clark and Bryan McGrath. Gentlemen, over to you.Naval leaders, civilian and military, face difficult choices when confronting the threat posed by China. The fleet must be kept in readiness for combat, it must be modernized an…

Americas A new active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar from Raytheon that will be installed on the B-52H bomber might allow the US Air Force to reduce the number of people operating the bomber from five to four. Maj. Gen. Andrew Gebara, director of strategic plans, programs, and requirements for Air Force Global Strike Command, said the decision in not “imminent.” Replacing the AN/APQ-166 radar will also lead to a new radome. And the new one might forgo the AN/ASQ-151 Electro-Optical Viewing System (EVS), which consisted of a low light level television (LLLTV) and a forward looking infrared (FLIR) system mounted in blisters under the nose. Its capability is curre…

The war is only 10 months old and two months after the defeat at the Battle of Savo Island. The night action of 10-11 OCT, sometimes know as the Second Battle of Savo Island - but usually as The Battle of Cape Esperance, is an excellent example of the critical importance of training, flexibility, initiative, and aggression - combined with a measure of luck. Luck is always essential, as even the most simple plans become complicated once the battle begins. First background. DIVISION 6 of the Imperial Japanese Navy was pretty pleased with itself following its engagement with the Americans off Savo the night of August 8-9, and perhaps with reason. The Japanese felt that they …

Americas L3Harris Technologies won a $45.8 million deal for development to integrate the AN/PRC-160 high frequency manpack radio in the MH-47 and MH-60 aircraft. The Boeing MH-47G is a special operations variant of the CH-47 Chinook multi-role, heavy-lift helicopter. It is in service with the US Army Special Operations Aviation Command (USASOC). The MH-60R Seahawk missions are Anti-Submarine Warfare, Anti-Surface Warfare, Surveillance, Communications Relay, Combat Search and Rescue, Naval Gunfire Support and logistics support. The MH-60S Seahawk missions are Anti-Surface Warfare, combat support, humanitarian disaster relief, Combat Search and Rescue, aero medical evacuati…

Americas Mnemonics Inc. won a $10 million contract to procure as-needed engineering support services in support of the Radio Frequency Blanking Unit (RFBU) and Electronic Attack Unit (EAU) components of the Advanced Electronic Attack (AEA) system of the EA-18G Growler aircraft. The services under this contract are engineering support services, logistics management information and fleet support team efforts for the RFBU and EAU variants and derivative systems. Technical instructions will be issued in accordance with the statement of work for this contract to support the Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane EA-18G EAU Organic Depot. Mnemonics, Inc. supplies electronic product…

There are many fine traditions in the naval service, especially in the Anglosphere. One of the best was summarized by Admiral Nelson, RN. When in doubt, attack. That bias for action in the face of a threat is an admirable trait, especially when contrasted with a more common human reaction – to freeze. As we have evolved as a species, other reactions developed past these Upper-Paleolithic instincts of Homo Sapiens. Indeed, in the modern evolution of Homo Bureaucraticus, scapegoating and blame-shifting, have sadly become more common through natural selection. In Ottomanesque bureaucracies, game recognizes game, and such responses are rewarded and passed along generation af…

Americas The US Air Force published a new B-21 Raider artist rendering graphic with an accompanying fact sheet on July 6. The rendering is based on the actual aircraft, and an artist’s interpretation of the B-21 design, with Edwards Air Force Base, California in the background. The aircraft will undergo testing there. The US Defense Department canceled a $10 billion cloud computing contract that’s been the subject of ongoing legal battles, saying it “no longer meets” requirements. A Pentagon representative told reporters that instead, the department will be soliciting new proposals from cloud service providers. Middle East & Africa Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapi…

Exciting news, well at least to me, of the growing presence of Japan in the security environment in the Western Pacific. It looks like one area she might be selling aircraft and related services will be in Vietnam of all places. I barely contain my joy over at USNIBlog. Come on by for the details! View the full article

Americas General Atomics won a $305.2 million deal for MQ-9 Reaper contractor logistics support. The deal provides for program management, contractor filed service representative support, depot repair, depot maintenance, sustaining engineering support, supply and logistics support, configuration management, tech data maintenance, software maintenance and inventory control point/warehouse support for the MQ-9. The Reaper is designed primarily to disable or destroy time-sensitive targets and has a secondary function as an intelligence-gathering platform. The service branch will obligate $65.4M at the time of award from its fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance funds. Work w…

Americas A new F-35A was delivered to Edwards Air Force Base on August 1 for assignment with the 461st Flight Test Squadron (FLTS). It is the first of six F-35As that the squadron and the F-35 Lightning II Integrated Test Force will use to test the Technical Refresh 3 and Block 4 configurations. For all three variants of the F-35, the 461 FLTS is the lead developmental flight test unit for sensors, weapons, and software. BAE Systems Land & Armaments won an $88 million contract for Amphibious Combat Vehicles (ACV). The total cumulative face value of the contract is $1,910,796,347. This contract modification procures labor and material for the Amphibious Combat Vehicle…