Raw Intel

A beloved retired coach passed last month; ...Greenup County resident Ernie West, has died. ... West was a football coach at Wurtland (KY) for some time From the, "you never know what that old man has seen" school .... Attention to citation: Pfc. West distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy. He voluntarily accompanied a contingent to locate and destroy a reported enemy outpost. Nearing the objective, the patrol was ambushed and suffered numerous casualties. Observing his wounded leader lying in an exposed position, Pfc. West ordered the troops to withdraw, then braved intense fire to reach …

For the last decade and a half or so of DivThu we've often discussed the "Diversity Industry" and tried to describe to those who have yet to encounter it, just how large of an industry it is. Instead of working towards a society that looks past the useless characteristics of race, creed, sex, color or national origin - they work towards division, promote segregation and unequal treatment ... on your dime. Sadly, the commissariat has only gotten larger as they have refined their business model of insertion and growth through threats, etho-masochism, well-meaning useful idiocy, leveraging institutional cowardice, and naked careerism to expand their empire. Few can or will s…

Americas Boeing won a $366 million contract modification, which increases the ceiling to extend the service life for up to 32 F/A-18 Super Hornet aircraft. Boeing delivered the first Super Hornet to the US Navy in February 2020 under the Service Life Modification (SLM) Block III conversion programme. The initial Super Hornets delivered under SLM extended the aircraft’s service life from 6,000 to 7,500 flight hours. Work under the modification will take place in Texas and Missouri. Estimated completion is in May 2024. The US Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has awarded a research contract to Stratolaunch for rapid-turnaround hypersonic flight testing. The company will use its…

Warfare History Network has a great article outlining allied merchant marine sacrifice in WWII to support the Soviet Red Army. The whole thing is worth a read, but let me just pull the story of convoy PQ-17; In late June 1942, the 37-ship convoy PQ-17, the largest and most valuable convoy to date, formed at Hvalfjord, Iceland, and began to make its run to Murmansk and Archangel. Crammed into the holds of the cargomen were tanks, trucks, aircraft, boxes of ammunition, and other vital supplies destined for the hard-pressed Red Army. The Germans were determined that PQ-17 would not pass and instituted Operation Rösselsprung that would add surface ships—the Tirpitz, Scheer, …

It all has to do with the Salamander Deterrence Space. Details and extended commentary over at USNBlog. Come on by. 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=kCkNoAgSzMA:IX7y7tX9BZI:gIN9vFwOqvQ http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=kCkNoAgSzMA:IX7y7tX9BZI:-BTjWOF_DHI http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=kCkNoAgSzMA:IX7y7tX9BZI:V_sGLiPBpWU http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/blogspot/FAFV?i=kCkNoAgSzMA:IX7y7tX9BZI:F7zBnMyn0Lo http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/FAFV/~4/kCkNoAgSzMAView the full article

What path best enhances American security and prosperity, along with her allies, when it comes to the Russo-Ukrainian War? Are American's interests best promoted by more support of Ukraine's ongoing fight for her independence, or by backing away to let things take their natural course? Isolationists, realists, and idealists are all trying to make their case as to where to go next as the war moves in to its second year. What are their arguments, and for those who say they promote a "Realist" policy - how do they define Realism? Out guest for the full hour this Sunday from 5 to 6pm Eastern to discuss this and related issues she raised in her latest article in National Revie…

Americas Boeing won a $189.3 million contract modification for F-15 Eagle Passive Active Warning and Survivability System (EPAWSS) low-rate initial production (LRIP). This contract modification adds government furnished property repair as well as acquisition of Group A and B kits, support equipment, mod line standup, technical orders and interim contractor support efforts for the LRIP of the EPAWSS systems which will be installed on existing F-15 aircraft. The Eagle Passive Active Warning Survivability System provides the US Air Force F-15 fleet with advanced electronic warfare technology to maximize mission effectiveness and survivability. Work will take place in Texas. …

With the growing tensions on the Russian-Ukrainian border (and Belorussian while we are at it) when Midrats regular Dr. Dmitry Gorenburg writes something, you need to pay attention. He recently co-authored an article with Michael Kofman at the Washington Post titled, "Here’s what we know about Russia’s military buildup near Ukraine." What is the nature of Russia’s military buildup? And how long can Russia keep its forces in these forward positions? Our research on Russia’s military capabilities offers some clues. This is a solid snapshot and quick read of what the Ukrainians are facing. Russian forces near Ukraine total at most 60 battalion tactical groups (BTGs), alon…

Americas Lockheed Martin won a $48.7 million contract modification to exercise an option for AEGIS Combat System Engineering Agent efforts for the design, development, integration, test and delivery of Advanced Capability Build 20. The Aegis Combat System is the Navy’s most modern surface combat system. It was designed as a complete system: the missile launching element, the computer programs, the radar and the displays are fully integrated to work together. This makes the Aegis system the first fully integrated combat system built to defend against advanced air and surface threats. The Aegis combat system uses powerful computers and radar to track and guide weapons to de…

Americas Boeing won an $89.6 million deal, which provides systems and software engineering and sustainment support services, to include analysis, design, implementation, integration, testing, prototyping, prototype installation, and maintenance for development and test laboratory capabilities in support of modernizations and improvements to software and associated hardware capabilities for the P-8A aircraft. Seventy-eight percent of work will be conducted in Seattle, Washington, while 12 percent of it will be performed in St. Louis, Missouri. The remaining 10 percent will be held in Huntington Beach, California. The Naval Air Systems Command in Patuxent River, Maryland, a…

Americas A former US Marine Corps (USMC) V-22 test pilot has urged the US Army to select the Defiant-X as its next helicopter instead of the V-280. Scott Trail says based on the Army’s mission objectives, the compound helicopter is the better choice and cheaper solution. Lockheed Martin won a $663.7 million contract modification for Hellfire II missile production. The Hellfire II air-to-ground missile system (AGMS) provides heavy anti-armor capability for attack helicopters. It is a 100lb class air-to-ground precision weapon delivering multi-target capability and precision strike lethality. The Hellfire II missile is in service with the armed forces of the US and 16 othe…

Americas Raytheon won a $50 million deal for right-sized hardware and software integration of the Small Diameter Bomb II onto the F-35B and C platforms. Work will be performed in Tucson, Arizona, and is expected to be completed by October 31, 2024. No funds are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force […]View the full article

US Army Received Latest AH-64E| UAE Sent Military Vehicles To Chad | Poland Purchases SPIKE Missiles Americas The US Army’s Fort Cavazos Flight Simulation Division has received its latest AH-64E Guardian multirole combat helicopter simulator, enabling simultaneous training for the service’s aviators. The division at Yoakum-Defrenn Army Heliport in Texas offers realistic flight training with […]View the full article

We don't do politics here ... but we do touch on how politics can impact national security issues ... so here we go! Why has national security almost been a non-issue this election? What to expect if Trump gets a second term. What and who will come to the front if Biden is elected. What will drive the challenge regardless of who gets elected? Come join us for the full hour this Sunday from 5-6pm Eastern as we discuss this and more with an open chat room and open phones if you want to join in. It will be an open topic, open phones free for all ... so if you think our topics are bogus, bring your own! If you use iTunes, you can add Midrats to your …

This week's Midrats is going to be the ever-popular everything goes melee format. You never know where in the natsec world the conversation will take us, but from Snake Island to the San Diego waterfront, from DC to the Baltic Sea - if there's a maritime issue worth considering, we'll try to pack it in for the hour this Sunday from 5-6pm Eastern. As with the normal melee format, we have open topic, open chat, and open phones - so if there is an issue you'd like covered, now's your time. Join us live if you can, but it not, you can get the show later by subscribing to the podcast. If you use iTunes, you can add Midrats to your podcast list simply by clicking the iTunes bu…

We’ve been doing the Long Game series on China here since 2004. The “why” then is the same as the “why” now; the Chinese Communist Party has a plan, has the economy to feed this plan, and is building a military to execute this plan. It was clear well before 2004. Any student of history could see it. I was firmly in, and remain, of the school that it is only a matter of “when” and not “if” the Chinese will decide to challenge the United States on the battlefield again. They did once after WWII and fought us to a tie. They are preparing to do it again, somewhere. The key, if you desire peace, is to not give them a window – to provide them no easy opportunity to challenge …

Americas Raytheon won a $14.9 million contract modification, which increases the scope and provides updates to the CV-22 mission planning system to support the suite of integrated radio frequency countermeasures. Additionally, this modification provides capability defect package problem reports in support of the V-22 software support activity. The V-22 Osprey is a joint-service, medium-lift, multimission tilt-rotor aircraft developed by Boeing and Bell Helicopters. The US Air Force and US Navy variants are equipped with a Raytheon AN/APQ-186 terrain-following, multimode radar. Work will take place in Indiana and estimated completion will be in September 2022. The aircraf…

China is interested in a lot more than just the first or second island chain. In the vast reaches of the Pacific Ocean, the islands of Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia are critical to the sea lines of communication for the economic powerhouses on both sides. From the Age of Discovery to today, their importance rises to the top of any power who wished to influence the area. To look at this area of returning importance with us for the full hour from 5-6pm Eastern this Sunday will be Alexander B. Gray. The starting point for our conversation will be the issues he raised in two recent articles; How the US Can Protect the Sovereignty of the Smallest Pacific Island i…

Americas Naval Air Force Atlantic tested a long-range aerial drone last weekend, the Navy announced. The long-range cargo transport, dubbed Blue Water UAS, is designed to operate with Naval Forces that typically operate in heavy winds over open water and require aircraft to land on vessels that are moving rapidly at sea. The proof-of-concept test was conducted last Sunday by transporting lightweight logistical equipment from the mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center at Naval Station Norfolk on board USS Gerald R. Ford while the carrier was in-port. Boeing announced that its T-7A Red Hawk advanced trainer has entered production at its plant in St. Louis. Chuck Dabundo,…

Why must we continue to remind everyone who will listen of the failures of the Age of Transformationalism™? Simple; we cannot afford another generation of programs lost to arrogance, ignorance, and toxic command climates that leave bad ideas and ahistorical program assumptions go unchallenged. Futurism, offset promises, overmatch assumptions, risk devaluation, divest-to-invest – these are all attractive ideas that brief well. They seem to promise to solve so many hard problems. They offer more for less. They seem to allow an easy path; a way to avoid hard work and compromise … and to accrue to their advocates accolades as the “it guy/gal” who has all the vision and provid…