Raw Intel

On Sept 30/08, “The USA’s National Cybersecurity Initiative” focused on the belated but growing reaction to recent uses of cyber-attacks as an adjunct to warfare, and by the growing rate of attempted intrusions into American systems from countries like China. “Secure Semiconductors: Sensible, or Sisiphyean?” discussed the growing realization within the US military that massive […]View the full article

Electro Optic Systems (EOS), the Australia-based defense technology firm, has announced its first international order for a 100-kilowatt-class high-power laser weapon system. According to a company release issued Tuesday, a European NATO member state has placed a €71.4 million (approximately $82 million) order for the system, which will be produced at EOS’s Singapore facility and […] The post Mystery NATO customer buys Australian-made laser weapon first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

The United States will provide Ukraine with 65 Mobile Strike Force Vehicles (MSFV) under a new round of military assistance funded through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), according to a report from Ukrainian defense outlet Militarnyi. The vehicles will be manufactured by Textron Systems Corporation, which will also supply spare parts to support ongoing […] The post U.S. to send 65 MSFV armored vehicles to Ukraine first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

The U.S. Air Force has acquired the wreckage of a downed UH-1 Iroquois helicopter and transported the iconic airframe to Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, where it will serve as a hands-on teaching platform for accident investigation and flight safety courses. The helicopter, nicknamed “Huey,” crashed during a training mission at the Wyoming Air National […] The post U.S. Air Force buys crashed UH-1 helicopter first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

China’s state-owned defense conglomerate Norinco has developed a new low-cost suicide drone that mirrors the Iranian Shahed-136 in appearance and purpose, signaling Beijing’s drive to make mass-produced loitering munitions available for future conflicts. The Feilong-300D, revealed earlier at the Zhuhai Air Show, drew fresh international attention following reports that its unit price could be as […]View the full article

BAE Systems Land & Armaments LP has secured a $184.4 million contract modification from the U.S. Marine Corps for the production of 30 Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) variants equipped with medium caliber cannons. The award is part of a larger contract that could reach $3.86 billion if all options are exercised. The Department of War […]View the full article

The United States carried out strikes on multiple Venezuelan military and infrastructure targets on Friday, including air bases and port facilities in and around Caracas, according to local reports. Confirmed targets included Isla Margarita near La Guaira, Generalissimo Francisco de Miranda Air Base in Caracas, the port at La Guaira, El Libertador Air Base, Fort […]View the full article

Lockheed Martin has delivered the first Sentinel A4 radar from Low-Rate Initial Production 2 to the U.S. Army and completed the first phase of Initial Operational Test and Evaluation, the company said. As noted by Lockheed Martin, the delivery represents the first of 19 Sentinel A4 systems planned under the LRIP 2 phase. The company […]View the full article

A long-range Iranian Shahed-type one-way attack unmanned aerial vehicle struck a radar system at the United States-operated Naval Support Activity Bahrain, according to video footage circulating online showing the moment of impact at the facility. Video footage reviewed by regional observers shows a low-flying unmanned aerial vehicle approaching the base area before striking what appears […]View the full article

Polish defense technology company FlyFocus has developed the KURIER unmanned helicopter, a 600-kilogram-class logistics platform. The heavy drone system is designed to deliver cargo autonomously to units operating beyond conventional resupply reach. According to the company, KURIER is capable of carrying more than 200 kilograms of cargo and is intended primarily to support special forces […]View the full article

It has taken a week since we first discussed the 34 ships on the way. Now, thanks to our friend Charlie B., we have additional details…with an extra special addition on weapons. Let’s see what Santa has in store for us…besides a really cute fireboat avatar. It is nice, four years after we asked the question, to finally have an answer about fireboats.. Is there anything really shocking here? No, not really, but I would draw your attention to the fact that it seems that we are diverting funds from aircraft carriers to battleships…despite the fact that events over the last year, especially but not exclusively, have proven once again we are woefully short of aircraft carriers…

General Dynamics Land Systems has secured a $229.6 million contract to produce 50 Stryker Double V-Hull (DVH) A1 armored vehicles for the U.S. Army, continuing a production line that has delivered one of the service’s most combat-proven wheeled infantry platforms through more than two decades of operational use across multiple theaters. Army Contracting Command at […]View the full article

An Israeli drone manufacturer whose production facility was struck by an Iranian ballistic missile just two months ago has announced that its G3 reconnaissance drone platform completed operational readiness and training activities with unnamed security organizations over the past two weeks, with photographs showing the aircraft carrying blurred external payloads that were obscured, apparently for […]View the full article

Britain’s Ministry of Defence is still sitting on 42 SEPECAT Jaguar attack jets nearly two decades after the Royal Air Force retired the type, and nine more have already been shipped off to India to keep that country’s aging combat fleet flying, the UK Defence Journal reported. The figures came from a written parliamentary answer […]View the full article

Turkish Aerospace Industries, known by its Turkish acronym TUSAŞ, released new footage showing the KAAN P1 fighter jet prototype successfully conducting powered taxi tests, confirming the aircraft has moved into ground testing ahead of its first flight. KAAN is Türkiye’s fifth-generation stealth fighter program, a homegrown effort launched after the United States removed Türkiye from […]View the full article

Tata Advanced Systems Limited and the Javelin Joint Venture, a partnership between Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, signed a memorandum of understanding to co-produce the Javelin All Up Round missile in India, the companies announced Sunday. Under the agreement, Tata Advanced Systems and the joint venture, known as JJV, will explore setting up a final assembly […]View the full article

The U.S. Navy’s new submarine-launched nuclear warhead, the W93, has moved into full-scale development, the first U.S. nuclear warhead and reentry body program started in nearly 40 years. The Navy’s Strategic Systems Programs office said the W93 and its Mk7 reentry body, the cone-shaped shell that carries the warhead back through the atmosphere to its […]View the full article

There are certain people who, due to the quality of their work, the content of their character, and their downright excellence and dedication to their chosen field, influence generations of people. In a way, they become a benchmark, a reference point, an ideal. In naval history, for the last few generations of naval officers, one name has risen to the top of everyone’s list, Dr. Craig L. Symonds. Dr. Symonds passed away earlier this week. Craig L. Symonds, beloved scholar, writer, professor, husband, father, and grandfather, passed away at home on Tuesday, October 13th from complications due to cancer. He was 79. Craig was born and raised in Anaheim CA on December 31st, 1…

My father would be having a cow. I can hear him now, "Stand up straight d@mnit. He's no better than you are." First a Saudi, then a Hawaiian, now a Dane. Bad national habit. View the full article

Hat tip Lee. View the full article