Raw Intel

The Navy's tale of woe in trying to force the acquisition system to actually produce something besides process is almost too painful to recall, especially on the surface side of the house. We have the walking wounded of LCS, the squib DDG-1000, the gilded promise Ford CVN, and the never-was-has-been CG(X). We have hope that we can't screw up the existing Franco-Italian FREMM in the upcoming modified to American requirements Constellation Class FFG, but we shall see if our optimism is well placed. As we all wait with bated breath and gritted teeth on what may be with DDG(X), we should look around to see if there is a benchmark recently that did work. On the surface side o…

Americas General Electric Aviation won a $683.7 deal for the production and delivery of 169 T408-GE-400 (T408) turboshaft engines, to include 65 full rate production Lot 8 (54: Navy, 11: government of Israel); 51 full rate production Lot 7 (39: Navy, 12: government of Israel); and 53 low rate initial production Lot 6 (36: Navy, […]View the full article

Americas The US military is looking for new ways to navigate without using GPS. A company called Xona might have a good solution. Xona just got $4.6 million from the Air Force to show how their navigation system could help the military. Xona’s system, called PULSAR, uses small satellites that orbit close to Earth. It can help with navigation when GPS doesn’t work or when someone is trying to block GPS signals. Saab has secured a contract to equip the Colombian Navy’s new frigate with advanced systems. The deal includes Saab’s 9LV Combat Management System, 9LV Fire Control System, and cutting-edge sensors and radars like the Ceros 200 radar and Sea Giraffe 4A radars. The f…

The Australian Army is moving closer to fielding its new AH-64E Apache attack helicopters, with the first four units currently in final assembly at Boeing’s production facility in Mesa, Arizona. The helicopters are part of a broader acquisition program that will see 29 Apaches delivered to Australia, replacing the Army’s aging fleet of Eurocopter Tiger […] The post Australia prepares to receive first Apache gunships first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Ukraine’s air defense forces are facing mounting challenges as Russia modifies its ballistic missiles to evade Western-made Patriot systems, a senior Ukrainian Air Force official said on Sunday. Yurii Ihnat, chief of communications for Ukraine’s Air Force Command, confirmed during a national television broadcast that intercepting Russian ballistic missiles has become more difficult. The change, […] The post Ukraine: Russian ballistic missiles now harder for Patriot to hit first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

The Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) has conducted new trials with an unmanned surface vessel (USV) in Hårsfjärden, south of Stockholm, as part of a three-year research and technology program commissioned by the Swedish Armed Forces. According to FMV, the tests focused on the vessel’s software, range, maneuvering, and emergency stop systems. “We have purchased […]View the full article

China and Egypt have agreed to cooperate on the local production of armed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), signaling a new stage in bilateral defense ties. The deal was formalized through a memorandum of understanding signed today between Egypt’s Arab Organization for Industrialization (AOI) and China’s NORINCO, officially known as the China North Industries Corporation. According […]View the full article

Last week was the story of the HMS JERVIS BAY and her crew during the Battle of Convoy HX84. When we finished last week, HMS JERVIS BAY was out of the fight and the convoy was scattered - but she did her job. By the time they realized that the Jervis Bay had been terribly alone, an hour had been lost. The convoy had been given time enough to break up and begin to flee. ...and so the pocket battleship ADMIRAL SCHEER, unopposed now, closed in. However, there was a Canadian ship, the SS BEAVERFORD, armed with one 4 inch & one 3 inch gun who turned towards the SHEER and her six 11 inch, eight 5.9 inch guns and eight 21 inch torpedo tubes. What was the BEAVERFORD? Beave…

Show LinksThe Congress, the Golden Fleet, and the Shipbuilding Industrial Base in 2026 You can listen at this link, subscribe to the podcast, or via the Spotify widget below. SummaryIn this episode of Midrats, Sal and Mark engage with Eric Labs, a senior analyst at the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), to discuss the complexities of shipbuilding costs, the role of the CBO in providing independent estimates, and the challenges faced by the U.S. Navy in maintaining and expanding its fleet. Eric shares insights on the differences between CBO and Navy cost estimates, the impact of maintenance on overall ship costs, and the importance of a skilled labor force in shipbuilding.…

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said early Saturday it detected the launch of Iranian ballistic missiles toward Israel, signaling the first wave of retaliation following coordinated United States and Israeli strikes on Iranian targets. Military officials confirmed missile launches were identified by Israeli early warning systems as air defenses were placed on heightened alert nationwide. […]View the full article

AeroVironment said on April 20 it has secured a $14.6 million production contract from the U.S. Army for its VAPOR Compact Long Endurance unmanned aircraft system, an all-electric vertical takeoff and landing platform built for small-unit operations. The award falls under the Army’s Company-Level Directed Requirement Small Uncrewed Aircraft System program, Tranche 2, and is […]View the full article

The U.S. Army’s 11th Airborne Division at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska is training soldiers to detect, evade, and counter small drones using commercial off-the-shelf aircraft loaded with tennis balls to simulate explosive drops. Donovan Fredericksen, a training developer and integrator with U.S. Army Pacific’s G3 Home Station Training Team supporting the 11th Airborne Division, […]View the full article

A German company that makes the transmission inside the Leopard 2 main battle tank has started production of its 4,000th unit, marking a milestone that speaks directly to how central one piece of engineering has been to Western armored capability for more than four decades. RENK Group AG, headquartered in Augsburg, Germany, announced on June […]View the full article

A Taiwanese military unit that once had nine administrative vehicles at its disposal now has just one it can actually drive, according to a claim a lawmaker raised directly to the island’s defense minister this week, Taiwan’s FTV News reported. Kuomintang legislator Ma Wen-chun pressed Defense Minister Wellington Koo during a Legislative Yuan questioning session […]View the full article

A California drone maker best known for supplying Ukraine’s secretive kamikaze drone fleet has landed another $88.1 million in orders to deliver long-range precision strike systems. AEVEX Corp., a Solana Beach, California-based defense technology company, announced on July 28, 2026, that it secured new production orders totaling $88.1 million to deliver long-range precision strike capabilities […]View the full article

The U.S. Army will send its M1E3 Abrams prototype to the 1st Cavalry Division for testing, the division confirmed in a social media post responding to an Army announcement about the next-generation tank. The 1st Cavalry Division said it will receive both M1E3 prototypes and XM30 prototypes, testing the vehicles and providing feedback that will […]View the full article

Romania has received its first K9 self-propelled howitzers, K10 ammunition resupply vehicles and K12 vehicles from South Korea’s Hanwha Aerospace under its tracked self-propelled howitzer program. Romania signed a contract worth nearly $1 billion with Hanwha on July 9, 2024, for 54 K9 howitzers and 36 K10 resupply vehicles, along with ammunition and tracked and […]View the full article

Saab has presented the first GlobalEye airborne early warning and control aircraft built for the Swedish Air Force, a business jet-based radar plane that will replace the two older surveillance aircraft Sweden gave to Ukraine. The company unveiled the aircraft on Oct. 15. The jet will now go through a phase of testing and verification […]View the full article

Oh goodness. I really don't want to make it a habit of Fisking Flag Officers, but if you are going to put your by-line out there, well, welcome to the scrum of the marketplace of ideas. VADM Copeman, again, "With all due respect ... but ..." - you brought up the subject. Out of nothing but love ... we must engage on ... the Little Crappy Ship. BEHOLD The alternative universe of the Potomac Flotilla! Sigh. Here we go, paragraph by paragraph. By Vice Admiral Tom Copeman I'll afford you the same benefit of the doubt as I do all VADM, I really don't think you penned it all, someone on your staff got it started and you got a chop on it. Well, I don't know, maybe you did. …

When trying to get a grasp on the best way to secure the nation's security and interests, why should Americans look to the sea? Do American's assume or take for granted what three-quarters of a century of American dominance of the high seas gifted them? Is this assumption in danger? Where do we stand and what steps need to be taken to secure what every American living assumes is their birthright? To discuss this and related issues this Sunday from 5-6pm Eastern will be one of our favorite guests, Dr. Jerry Hendrix, CAPT USN (Ret.), and author of the upcoming book, To Provide and Maintain a Navy; Why Naval Primacy is America's First, Best Strategy. Since retirement, …