Raw Intel

Americas The Long Range Stand Off Weapon (LRSO) has entered the engineering and manufacturing development (EMD) phase with the award of $2 billion to Raytheon Missiles and Defense. The LRSO is a new air-launched cruise missile to replace the AGM-86. The missile will have a nuclear-armed capability and Raytheon will have to complete the development work by February 2027. Lockheed Martin won a $28.2 million contract modification, which exercises an option to procure mission computers (MC) and flight management computers (FMC) retrofit kits to upgrade the MH-60R/S aircraft. The quantities are as follows: 205 Generation 3i/5i MCs to upgrade from Generation III/V/VI, to inclu…

As we covered here last month before the debacle at the gates of Kyiv knocked the Russians off their stride, the supply lines from NATO territory into the southwest of Ukraine and on to Odessa are incredibly delicate. Then northern route is an iffy 2-lane surface road that goes through Moldova and too close to the Transdniester. If you need anything heavy from the Danube ports to Odessa, you will need to go over the Zatoka bridge. When the Russian Navy shelled the coast there, I was frankly surprised the road and more importantly the rail line across the bridge at Zatoka was left intact, but they were. Things then got quite on that front, but not anymore. 📷More photos …

The Russo-Ukrainian War of the last six months is reminding everyone - I hope - that war in a large measure does not change. Yes, some new technologies and ideas comes in that no one appreciates the value of until proven on the field of battle, some established technologies and ideas no longer work, and that process of integrating battlefield lessons often determines who gets better results over time. At the end of the day, it is taking ground, keeping ground, and positioning yourself for more. Thinking of that reminded me of a FbF from 4.5yrs ago that I thought I would bring back this week. One of the enduring characteristics of WWI was the amount of blood that was shed …

Americas Fleet Readiness Center Southwest (FRCSW), a naval aviation repair and maintenance facility based at the NAS North Island, is embarking on a significant transition in naval aviation maintenance as the Navy gradually phases out its legacy F/A-18A-D series. This shift marks the inclusion of the F-16 fighter as a major program for FRCSW’s Depot […]View the full article

Americas Sikorsky Aircraft won a $64 million order, which provides for updated logistics analysis and products required to support configuration changes on the CH-53K as well as provides for development and delivery of new intermediate and depot component repair capability for the Navy and Marine Corps. Work is expected to be completed in January 2030. Fiscal 2024 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $64,881,720 will be obligated at the time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. SkyAlyne and KF Aerospace have procured three De Havilland Dash…

The U.S. Navy, in collaboration with aerospace firm Skydweller Aero, has completed a continuous 73-hour unmanned flight using solar power alone. The test, conducted out of Stennis, Mississippi, represents a major step forward in applying solar-powered aircraft for maritime intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) operations. The demonstration was led by the Naval Air Warfare Center […] The post U.S. Navy tests long-endurance solar drone first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

The U.S. Army has moved a step closer to fielding its next-generation main battle tank, the Abrams M1E3, by issuing a comprehensive market survey to American industry. The request, released by the Program Executive Office for Ground Combat Systems (PEO GCS) through the federal System for Award Management portal, seeks detailed information on industrial capacity […] The post U.S. Army prepares for next-gen tank production first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Israel’s Elbit Systems Ltd. announced it has been awarded a contract worth approximately $120 million to supply its Hermes 900 unmanned aerial system (UAS) to an international customer for long-range maritime surveillance operations. The company described the deal as part of growing global demand for advanced unmanned capabilities as nations seek to strengthen their intelligence, […] The post Elbit sells Hermes 900 drone to mystery customer first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Iranian-designed Shahed drones now pose a more persistent and unpredictable threat than ballistic missiles, forcing the Armed Forces to use a wide range of countermeasures under increasingly difficult operational conditions. “Shaheds have now become more dangerous in some cases than ballistic missiles,” Zelenskyy said during a press briefing, according to […]View the full article

North Korea has unveiled what it describes as the first corps of a domestically produced nuclear-powered submarine. The announcement was made by Korean Central News Agency, which reported that the submarine was presented during a visit by leader Kim Jong Un to the Pongdae Shipyard. The vessel is described as an 8,700-ton nuclear-powered strategic guided […]View the full article

The United States Air Force has moved at least 42 heavy transport aircraft into the Middle East between January 18 and January 26, 2026, according to open-source flight tracking data and analyst reports monitoring U.S. military air movements. Data compiled from publicly available flight trackers shows that 41 C-17A Globemaster III aircraft and one C-5M […]View the full article

New illustrations depicting DARPA’s X-68A LongShot unmanned combat aircraft have been published by aerospace illustrator Colie Wertz on Instagram, providing updated visual material tied to the agency’s ongoing LongShot program aimed at developing an air-launched missile-armed drone designed to operate ahead of crewed aircraft formations. The appearance of new imagery draws renewed attention to a […]View the full article

After a series of great guests, the Midrats Podcast returns this week with the ever popular, “Free-for-All” format! It’s just Mark and me for the full hour as we discuss the latest developments from the Iranian conflict and elsewhere. As always, if you can join us live, hop in the live chat and suggest your own topics, or direct questions to us. 5-6 PM Eastern this Sunday. You can join via this link. If you’re reading this after the show, check the Substack later for the updated podcast links. See you in a few! Leave a comment Share This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. View the full art…

Looking back at some of the things I wrote about 15 years ago, and this caught my eye. The first decade of GWOT, everyone was reminded of the heart of a Corpsman. Almost decade into a war that a decade later would end in national disgrace, we had men raising their hand and saying, “Send me.” Time to revisit. E3 and below. Non-PO. Seaman/Airman/Fireman. Huh. Ponder. Unqual. “Hasn’t paid his dues.” etc. Well, there’s a then-Seaman in the upper-right hand corner. Where did he come from? When he decided to join the U.S. Navy, (Raffetto) was living at home and working in construction, and he craved a more structured lifestyle. His brother had been a Marine and Raffetto w…

Rostec has dispatched a new batch of T-90M, T-80BVM, and T-72B3M tanks to Russian forces, the state defense conglomerate announced on Sunday. The shipment, described by Rostec as incorporating lessons learned from combat experience and direct feedback from frontline troops, represents the latest in a continuous production flow that Uralvagonzavod has maintained throughout the war […]View the full article

Japanese warships and aircraft conducted simulated attacks against China’s aircraft carrier Liaoning during its 40-day deployment to the South China Sea and Western Pacific that concluded on June 22, 2026, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, which described the actions as “outrageously audacious”. The claim, first reported by CCTV commentator Teng Jianqun and cited by […]View the full article

HDT Robotics, doing business as BLADE, announced Wednesday it has been selected as one of five industry partners for the U.S. Army’s Project Sustainment initiative, a program run through the National Advanced Mobility Consortium that focuses on automating how supplies reach troops in combat zones where the enemy is actively trying to disrupt that resupply […]View the full article

Sen. Richard Blumenthal toured a Ukrainian drone production line in Kyiv and said the country is manufacturing “thousands” of attack drones every day, offering a rare on-the-record look from a sitting U.S. lawmaker at the scale of Ukraine’s wartime drone industry. Blumenthal named the company as SkyFall, a Ukrainian defense technology firm, in a post […]View the full article

The U.S. Air Force will hold a two-day industry day October 20-21 at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base to brief companies on a new mission computer upgrade for its F-16 fighter fleet, according to a notice posted September 18 by the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center. The event covers the Next-Generation Mission Computer program, an […]View the full article

Norway’s Kongsberg will build a factory in northern Poland to manufacture and maintain counter-drone systems for the Polish SAN program, investing more than 200 million zlotys (about €45 million, or $51 million) in a plant that will create over 100 permanent jobs once it reaches full capacity, the company announced on Oct. 13 at the […]View the full article