Raw Intel

The United States Army has awarded Overland AI a $2 million contract following the xTechOverwatch competition to deliver autonomous ground vehicles to troopers of the 1st Cavalry Division, the company confirmed in a public statement posted three days ago. The award follows a series of soldier-run operational missions conducted under xTechOverwatch, a competitive Army program […]View the full article

U.S. Forces Korea conducted military training flights over waters west of the Korean Peninsula on Feb. 18, prompting Chinese aircraft to scramble and leading to a brief aerial standoff near China’s air defense identification zone, according to defense sources and official statements released following the incident. The episode has drawn attention because it exposed coordination […]View the full article

The United States Army Europe and Africa command awarded Dan Rice, president of American University Kyiv, the Civilian Award for Humanitarian Service during a ceremony in Wiesbaden, Germany, recognizing his actions in Ukraine between March 2022 and March 2023. According to a statement shared by American University Kyiv, Rice received the award from General Christopher […]View the full article

Kirkland-based Echodyne announced Monday at the Counter UAS Technology Europe 2026 conference in London that its EchoShield radar has been selected as the primary radar system within Trust Automation’s Small-Unmanned Air Defense System, known as SUADS — a counter-drone platform being delivered to the U.S. Air Force under a $490 million indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract awarded […]View the full article

Ukrainian defense company Fire Point has joined an anti-ballistic missile coalition and unveiled a pan-European ballistic missile defense project called Freya, presenting a system architecture built around a domestically developed interceptor missile and designed to integrate with NATO-standard protocols and existing Western and Ukrainian air defense infrastructure. “Despite attempts to interfere and many distracting factors, […]View the full article

A Russian drone struck a building at Ukraine’s centralized spent nuclear fuel storage facility in the early hours of Sunday, June 7, 2026, in an attack that Ukrainian nuclear operator Energoatom says caused structural damage but left radiation levels within normal limits. The strike hit the container reception building at the Centralized Spent Nuclear Fuel […]View the full article

Russia has begun using a new autonomous version of its Molniya strike drone in Ukraine, a cheap fixed-wing attack UAV now being adapted to hit targets without the control antenna that made earlier models vulnerable to electronic warfare. The new variant was identified after a Russian Molniya struck a Ukrainian facility and was found without […]View the full article

The U.S. Marine Corps has closed the book on one of its most consequential and controversial aircraft programs in decades, taking delivery of the final MV-22B Osprey after nearly two decades of production, the V-22 Joint Program Office reported July 28, 2026, in a story by Neil Lobeda. The milestone, marked in Amarillo, Texas, where […]View the full article

ESOX Group has completed development of its X2 unmanned ground vehicle and opened the platform to client pilot programs, the company announced this week. The X2 uses four in-wheel electric motors, called Theron motors, delivering a combined 1,000 newton-meters of torque directly to the wheels. ESOX said the design eliminates the gearbox and driveshaft found […]View the full article

Americas L3 Technologies won a contract modification, which exercises an option to procure 12 AN/SRQ-4 kits and associated components for the MH-60 Common Data Link system. Sikorsky Aircraft developed the MH-60R Seahawk multi-mission naval helicopter, also called ‘Romeo’, in order to replace the US Navy’s legacy SH-60B and SH-60F helicopter fleet. The MH-60 R integrates advanced mission systems and sensors developed by Lockheed Martin Mission Systems and Training (MST). The helicopter is integrated with a data link for data transmission, an ARC210 Gen 5 multi-function radio for flexible and secure communication, and chaff and flare decoys dispenser. It also features an in…

They've found her; USS Johnson (DD-557); A team of ocean explorers has found the wreck of World War II Fletcher-class destroyer USS Johnston (DD-557) which played a critical role at the Battle off Samar, Navy History and Heritage Command said on Thursday. Victor Vescovo, explorer and retired Navy officer, in the manned submersible Limiting Factor located Johnston‘s bow further down a cliff face at 21,180 feet. He said he is committed to respecting the final resting place for many of its crew, but will provide the Navy with all sonar data, imagery and field notes from his expedition. Caladan Oceana's Battle of Samar Expedition has a superb website I highly encourage…

Americas Kampi Components won a maximum $9.7 million deal for hose assemblies supporting the Army AH-64 D & E Longbow helicopter. The AH-64 Apache is a twin-engined army attack helicopter. The AH-64D Longbow is fitted with the Longbow millimetre wave fire control radar and the Longbow Hellfire missile. Work will take place in Pennsylvania. Estimated completion date is November 9, 2024. Lockheed Martin and Keysight Technologies announced a collaboration to advance 5G in support of mission-critical communications for aerospace and defense applications. The companies are actively collaborating on a 5G.MIL testbed that Lockheed Martin teams will use to advance 5G capabi…

Americas General Dynamics Land won a $29 million deal for Abrams Systems technical support. The M1 Abrams is a third generation main battle tank. Work will take place in Sterling Heights, Michigan, with an estimated completion date of June 30, 2023. The first C-130H with eight-bladed propellors assigned to the 133rd Airlift Wing has returned home after modifications. The aircraft arrived home on May 11 at Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport. Another seven C-130Hs are undergoing the modifications with a completion date by the end of September 2023. After which the cargo planes will get new T56 3.5 turboprop engines. Middle East & Africa SpearUAV, an Israeli co…

Americas Stellant Systems won a $36.9 million contract for the F-16 Traveling Wave Tube repair services. Work will be performed in Torrance, California, and is expected to be completed by January 30, 2029. The Air Sustainment Center Supply Chain Management Division, Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the contracting activity. The US Army has nominated a new leader for Futures Command. Lt. Gen. James Rainey, nine months after its first commander Gen. Mike Murray retired, the service’s undersecretary said September 7 at the Defense News Conference. The Army command, which oversees the requirements process for modernization had been without a confirmed four-star leader for more …

Today is a great day; A hero pilot who shot down at least four Russian Migs in a classified dogfight at the height of the Cold War which saw his jet shot 263 times is to receive the Navy Cross. Retired Navy Captain Royce Williams was sworn to secrecy for more than 50 years over fears that his battle against seven Soviet fighters could spark war with Russia. Now the 97-year-old is free to tell his tale and is due to receive the Navy's second highest award for combat valor on Friday at the San Diego Air & Space Museum. Captain Williams first graced the pages of CDR Salamander almost 11-yrs ago. In honor of his well deserved Navy Cross, let's bring it back. No one will…

Happy ‘trails… (click to view full) The C-17 has had more money-driven last hurrahs than The Who. Even so, FY 2010 featured the USAF’s last planned orders of C-17 Globemaster III short field, heavy-lift transport jets. The Pentagon had been trying to end the program for years, but 3 factors led Congress to keep adding […]View the full article

Americas Raytheon won a $14 million deal for the Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) development lab management and maintenance program. This contract provides for the development branch of the Air Intercept Missile-120 AMRAAM that will manage the design, development, integration, and testing of hardware and software improvements to the AMRAAM. Work will be performed at Tucson, Arizona, and is expected to be completed by February 28, 2026. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, is the contracting activity. Lockheed Martin won a $70 million modification, which?adds scope to provide a redesign of the synchronous dynamic ran…

Americas According to Breaking Defense, Pentagon leaders are planning to change how they buy and use technology. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth might make the Software Acquisition Pathway (SWP) the main way to develop software. The SWP is a faster method created in 2020 to speed up software development by using ideas from private companies. It helps the Department of Defense (DoD) get custom software quickly, aiming to deploy new features in hours or days instead of months. RTX has introduced its first aircraft radar warning receiver (RWR) with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) capabilities. This technology uses the Cognitive Algorithm Deployment Syst…

Pentagon’s No.1 weapons supplier Lockheed Martin and Germany’s defense giant Rheinmetall have successfully conducted the first live fire test of the Global Mobile Artillery Rocket System (GMARS), advancing a next-generation rocket launcher program designed for NATO interoperability and long-range strike capability. The test, held at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, confirmed the system’s […] The post U.S.-German team tests GMARS rocket launcher first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

In a first-of-its-kind operation, the U.S. Air Force and Marine Corps successfully sling loaded an F-35B Lightning II airframe using a CH-53K heavy lift helicopter. The mission, carried out on August 27, involved transporting the non-flyable F-35B—known as BF-1—over 500 miles from Naval Air Station Patuxent River to Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina. […] The post U.S. Air Force, Marines team up for F-35B recovery test first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article