Raw Intel

(h/t HA) Holy crap. This might be funnier than those MMA guys giving wedgies. The most realistic depiction of life during wartime you may ever see short of enlisting yourself. View the full article

Over the July 4th weekend, we slipped out of the American fortress in Bagram. The way we left tells you all you need to know about Afghanistan – the conflict we lost in December 2009 when the Taliban were given the last indication they needed that we were not going to press the issue on our time and change Afghanistan our way, but we would let them win on their time and return Afghanistan their way. It is all as clear now as it was when I wrote about our culmination at Obama’s West Point speech linked above. Regulars here know the story; the rest can follow the link above. Good ideas are timeless, so I want to return to a topic that predates CDRSalamander and this is a …

Americas Northrop Grumman won a $50.9 million contract modification, which provides for repair services for 36 critical common items for the RQ-4 Global Hawk and MQ-4C Triton. It will support reparable National Stock Numbers (NSNs) encompassing the air vehicle, multiple sensor packages, Mission Control Element, and Launch and Recovery Element. In addition, this effort includes support engineering services covered under the Engineering Delegation Authority for NSNs transferred to and under the 407th Supply Chain Management Squadron. According to Northrop Grumman, the MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft system (UAS) provides real-time intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissanc…

Americas The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) will soon start testing unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) on par with human-piloted vehicles being built under the Robotic Autonomy in Complex Environments with Resiliency (RACER) program. The DARPA RACER program will develop and demonstrate autonomy technologies that enable unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) to maneuver in unstructured off-road terrain at the limit of the vehicle’s mechanical systems and at, or beyond, human-driven speeds and efficiencies. The US Space Development Agency is planning to deploy 144 transport layer satellites and 28 tracking satellites in low-Earth orbit (LEO) by 2024 to detect mane…

Americas Huntington Ingalls Industries won a $20.2 million contract modification to exercise options for the accomplishment of the planning yard services for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) in-service ships. Work will take place in Virginia, Mississippi, California and Jacksonville. Expected completion will be by April 2023. The first Trial Kit Installation (TKI) onto a C-130H for the Avionics Modernization Program (AMP) Increment 2 program has been completed. 124 C-130Hs and 10 LC-130Hs will undergo this upgrade under a $690 million project. The next step is low rate initial production after the aircraft successfully completes testing. Middle East & Africa Uganda is…

KC-135: Old as the hills… (click to view full) DID’s FOCUS articles cover major weapons acquisition programs – and no program is more important to the USAF than its aerial tanker fleet renewal. In January 2007, the big question was whether there would be a competition for the USA’s KC-X proposal, covering 175 production aircraft […]View the full article

Fears of a potential Russian military campaign against NATO’s eastern flank by 2027 have gained renewed attention across Europe. But Lithuanian-based security expert Darius Antanaitis — a well-known and influential voice on Baltic defense matters — believes the threat is more likely to materialize around 2030, and only under certain geopolitical conditions. In comments to […] The post Expert: Baltic war would open multiple fronts for Russia first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Robotican, a leading Israeli developer of autonomous robotic and drone technologies, announced September 2 the introduction of a new armed configuration for its ROOSTER hybrid drone system, adding a precision-guided warhead designed for urban and indoor operations. The company said the upgraded ROOSTER is capable of carrying a payload of up to 300 grams, allowing […] The post Robotican develops armed hybrid drone for urban missions first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Global Military Products will participate in the U.S. Army’s upcoming Transformation in Contact (TiC) 2.0 event with its Scorpion Light 81mm mobile mortar system, part of an ongoing effort to modernize indirect fire capabilities under the Soldier Enhancement Program (SEP). The trials, conducted under a contract with the Product Manager for Artillery Mortars and Precision […] The post U.S. Army to test new Scorpion light mortar system first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine is actively negotiating with France over a possible acquisition of Dassault Rafale fighter jets. Speaking with reporters, Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine is pursuing parallel talks with three nations—Sweden, France, and the United States—regarding the future of its tactical aviation fleet. “I am conducting three parallel conversations regarding aircraft—with the Swedes, […]View the full article

The United States Army confirmed in an official release that it deployed “wooden tanks” during the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center (JPMRC) Rotation 26-01 at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, on Nov. 6, 2025. The service referred to these systems as an “opposing force tank simulation set,” describing them as an effective and economical tool to support […]View the full article

China has carried out a flight of a third prototype of its heavy next-generation fighter-bomber known as the J-36, signaling steady progress in a program of future Chinese combat jets. Photos showing the aircraft in flight alongside a J-10C fighter were published on December 25. The images depict an airframe that differs in visible details […]View the full article

United States Army paratroopers from the 11th Airborne Division conducted a mass tactical airborne operation in Hokkaido, Japan, in late January 2026 as part of North Wind 26, a bilateral winter training exercise with the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, U.S. Army Japan confirmed. The operation took place at Hokudai-en in northern Hokkaido and involved soldiers […]View the full article

Northrop Grumman has officially named its YFQ-48A prototype Talon Blue, formally identifying the autonomous fighter drone developed under its company-funded Project Talon portfolio as part of ongoing work with the United States Air Force on future collaborative combat aircraft. The designation of Talon Blue as the YFQ-48A reflects the aircraft’s role within the Air Force’s […]View the full article

The Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said Russian forces carried out 619 assault operations between March 17 and March 20, 2026, but failed to break Ukrainian defenses and suffered heavy losses during the offensive. Syrskyi said Ukrainian command anticipated the escalation and reinforced frontline units in advance, allowing forces to absorb […]View the full article

The Israel Defense Forces has used its new Ro’em self-propelled howitzer in combat for the first time, firing the system during artillery strikes in southern Lebanon. Units from the 282nd Artillery Brigade brought the wheeled system, also known as the SIGMA 155, into action to support ground operations near the border. The howitzers were used […]View the full article

The U.S. Army has fielded Mobile Fire Teams in Lithuania, adapting a concept developed and battle-tested by Ukrainian forces fighting drone swarms since 2022 and deploying it along NATO’s eastern flank as part of the Eastern Flank Deterrence Initiative. Soldiers from the 5th Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 52nd ADA Brigade conducted zeroing operations […]View the full article

Russia’s state defense conglomerate Rostec has unveiled what it claims is the lightest body armor in its class, presenting the Obereg 2.0 vest to the defense ministers of Moscow’s closest military allies at a showcase outside the Russian capital. Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov led a delegation of defense ministers from the Collective Security Treaty […]View the full article

Northrop Grumman secured a $312 million contract from the U.S. Navy on June 24, 2026, to produce additional Surface Electronic Warfare Improvement Program Block 3 systems in two configurations called Hemisphere and Quadrant, expanding a production line that is now arming destroyers, aircraft carriers, and amphibious assault ships with the most capable electronic jamming technology […]View the full article

A North Carolina Air National Guard unit, part of the U.S. military’s part-time reserve force, wants to give its people the ability to quietly fly themselves into places a helicopter would get shot down trying to reach, and the shopping list it just published reads less like a defense contract and more like gear for […]View the full article