Raw Intel

Back in the November 2007 issue of The Atlantic, Robert D. Kaplan published an essay that still comes to mind on a regular basis a decade and a half after its publication; America's Elegant Decline. I first mentioned it ten months after its publication while I was in Afghanistan, and then only briefly. At 15, I think it is time to see how it holds up. 15 years is a long time - but it also passes quickly. 15 years from now would be January of 2038. You know all that talk about "2040" in the last year, well you're one POM cycle away ... and while some things we think about the future to come will be roughly correct, some will be quite off. That is normal and should be expe…

EA-18G at Pax The USA’s electronic attack fighters are a unique, overworked, and nearly obsolete capability. With the retirement of the US Air Force’s long-range EF-111 Raven “Spark ‘Vark,” the aging 4-seat EA-6B Prowlers became the USA’s only remaining fighter for radar jamming, communications jamming and information operations like signals interception [1]. Despite their age […]View the full article

The U.S. Air Force has launched the next phase of its Super Squadron Test by relocating the first wave of F-16 Fighting Falcons from Kunsan Air Base to Osan AB in South Korea. Starting July 28, the 36th Fighter Squadron at Osan began receiving F-16 aircraft as part of the broader initiative to evaluate whether […] The post U.S. Air Force tests super squadron model first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

The U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has opened a new effort to develop a class of low-cost interceptors designed to counter massed missile attacks, with the goal of producing modular weapons priced at less than $750,000 each. On August 27, the agency issued a solicitation under its Nimble Options for Buying Layered Effects (NOBLE) program, […] The post Pentagon seeks low-cost missile interceptors first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

The U.S. military has selected Zone 5 Technologies as one of two companies to participate in its Counter NEXT program, an initiative launched by the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) to rapidly field new systems capable of shooting down or disabling hostile drones — a growing threat in conflicts from Eastern Europe to the Red Sea. […] The post Zone 5 interceptor selected by Pentagon for counter-drone program first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

South Korea has begun full-scale production of domestically developed 76mm armor-piercing high-explosive (APHE) shells designed to penetrate and destroy enemy warships from within, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA). The Defense Acquisition Program Administration held a kick-off meeting on October 28 at the Pungsan Technology Research Institute in Daejeon to mark the start […]View the full article

So, here we go. Point of order: in the last 24 hours there has been a lot of reaction to the headline, but not more than that. This is only a couple of minutes, so listen to the whole thing. Stop. Some of you did not listen to the whole thing. Scroll up and hit play. I’ll wait for you here. . . . OK, I look forward to the plan to grow the fleet after nuking the program that was supposed to help grow the fleet. Excuse my cynicism, but I’ve played Charlie Brown to OPNAV/NAVSEA’s Lucy and the football way too many times to expect it to magically work this time. Perhaps it will, but we are just about out of time. As we wait for the magic beans brief, we need to review how we…

The Israeli Air Force said it intercepted two unmanned aerial vehicles that crossed into Israeli airspace from the east, according to a statement released on December 25. In a statement, the Israeli Air Force said that the Air Force’s Air Control Center identified the two drones a short time before they crossed from eastern territory […]View the full article

As we discussed in the opening of last Sunday’s Midrats Podcast, I really have no idea why we keep publishing significant national security related documents on Fridays…but it is what it is. As it has been four days, there has already been more than a few opinion pieces written about it and to be blunt, a lot of it is a bunch of hot garbage. Even though I think everyone should agree with me, and one day you will, I would ask—after reading the rest of this post—that you read the National Defense Strategy yourself. It isn’t that long, and if you’ve already read the National Security Strategy we reviewed in the fall, nothing will be shocking. Let’s start with one of my fa…

Airbus Helicopters has unveiled two next-generation rotorcraft concepts developed to meet NATO’s Next Generation Rotorcraft Capabilities (NGRC) study requirements, the company announced as part of its ongoing work under a NATO-backed concept program. The proposal, presented in cooperation with RTX businesses Collins Aerospace and Raytheon, as well as missile manufacturer MBDA, outlines both a high-performance […]View the full article

A United States Marine Corps Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) assigned to the 3rd Littoral Anti-Air Battalion conducted a live-fire engagement at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California, in March 2026. The exercise was carried out by units from the 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, as part of ongoing operational […]View the full article

The U.S. Air Force has issued a draft solicitation for the B-52J Commercial Engine Replacement Program (CERP) Production Modification Kits and Interim Contractor Support, opening the door to industry competition for one of the most consequential bomber modernization efforts in recent memory. Published on April 16, 2026, through the federal contracting website, the presolicitation marks […]View the full article

Ukrainian defense company Inguar Defence has unveiled a new six-wheeled armored recovery vehicle built on a domestically developed triaxle 6×6 chassis, filling a critical battlefield gap that has forced Ukrainian units to leave damaged equipment exposed or rely on inadequate recovery solutions since the full-scale invasion began. Artem Yushchuk, CEO of Inguar Defence, announced the […]View the full article

The U.S. Army has standardized a new smartphone-based fire control application for all mortar units, replacing two decades-old software systems with a single app that runs on an Android phone and took the 82nd Airborne Division almost no time to learn. The Mortars App achieved full release and clearance to become the standard fire control […]View the full article

At 3 a.m. in a contested forward operating base, a patrol thirty kilometres out is taking casualties. They need blood, plasma, and ammunition, not in hours, but in minutes. The aircraft that answers that call launches from a patch of dirt, climbs vertically on four jet turbine engines, pitches forward, and is gone. It returns […]View the full article

Romania shot down a second drone in its own airspace within 24 hours on Saturday morning, a milestone that would have been unthinkable for a NATO member just weeks ago and now marks the second time in two days that Romanian pilots have opened fire inside their own country’s skies. President Nicușor Dan announced the […]View the full article

Splash Industries has introduced a new mission module for its Typhoon uncrewed surface vessel that lets operators launch one-way aerial drones from the boat, the company said Monday. The module, called the Airstrike Pack, allows operators to deploy the aerial assets with the press of a button through Splash’s own command and control software, Splash […]View the full article

Most of the news one has heard about the Russo-Ukrainian War since the USA and Israel started their campaign against Iran in early spring has been about the expanded “Battle of the Cities” as Russia continues to pound population centers and Ukraine focuses on strategic strikes against Russian hydrocarbon industries, logistics, and commerce raiding at sea. Both Russia and Ukraine are land powers, and that is where the important moves will take place. Mick Ryan, as one would expect, has a great overview of what has been happening this summer. Vivaldi: The Summer-Autumn Counteroffensive. The week’s big story was the official disclosure of an ongoing Corps-level Ukrainian cou…

Leonardo DRS has won a $63 million U.S. Army production order for its Family of Weapon Sights–Individual, a clip-on thermal sight that sends its image wirelessly to a soldier’s night vision goggles so a target can be found and aimed at without raising the rifle to the eye. DRS announced the order on Oct. 13, […]View the full article

This reeks of a poorly thought out PR stunt. Navy officials in the Pentagon and Fleet Forces Command are studying the possibility that the Navy’s first littoral combat ship, Freedom, could make a short deployment earlier than planned, on the orders of Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead, the Navy confirmed Friday. Roughead ordered the studies after Freedom finished the second half of its acceptance trials May 22, Navy spokesman Lt. Clay Doss said. “The CNO is interested in employing the unique capabilities of this new class of warship as soon as practical, taking into consideration the milestones associated with a first-of-class warship,†Doss…