Raw Intel

Austrian defense manufacturer Schiebel has introduced two new unmanned air systems — the CAMCOPTER S-101 and S-301 — purpose-built for armed operations. The announcement highlights the company’s push into the tactical strike drone market with dedicated aerial assault platforms designed for modern battlefield demands. In a statement, Schiebel said the new vertical take-off and landing […] The post Schiebel rolls out strike-capable VTOL drones first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

At the People’s Liberation Army Air Force’s “Anti-Uncontested Front-2025” maker competition in Xi’an, Chinese developers publicly displayed a new family of interceptor drones intended to counter hostile reconnaissance and strike unmanned aerial systems, event coverage shows. The unmanned interceptors were presented as a lower-cost, more flexible alternative to traditional air-defence systems and appear aimed at […] The post China copies Ukrainian drone interceptors first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

There is absolutely nothing wrong with admitting you were wrong and foolish. It’s OK. You can be fooled by people who take advantage of your good nature. Fair-play and high-trust societies can, if they are not wary, be taken advantage of by bad-faith actors. The key is that when your vision becomes clear about what has happened, you take appropriate action. You learn your lesson, and you carry on in a more productive manner. This did not happen by accident, nor was it inspired by capitalist desire alone, though that was the mechanism. Behold the fruit this tree bears. Via Angus Grigg, Alex McDonald, and Will Nicholas at the Australian Broadcasting Corp. Chinese companies …

This is a very serious exchange, even discounting for the expected dramatic heavy breathing from the People’s Republic of China Ministry of Foreign Affairs. China’s Permanent Mission to the UN @Chinamission2un sent a second letter to the UN Secretary-General @antonioguterres to reiterate China’s position on Japanese PM Takaichi’s erroneous remarks on Taiwan. The letter once again expresses China’s strong opposition to the Japanese side’s wrongful moves, such as implying use of force against China, disrespect for UN Charter and international legal instruments and pushing military buildup—all of which signal the Japanese side’s desire to challenge the postwar internationa…

The Colombian Army has deployed troops to the Paraguachon border crossing with Venezuela, reinforcing a permanent military presence in the municipality of Maicao in the department of La Guajira, according to an official statement released Sunday. In a post published by the First Division of the National Army, the military said troops from the Medium […]View the full article

As I said on Monday, I can argue both sides of the battleship debate. I think it is time to flesh that out a bit. If you didn’t read Monday’s post linked above, follow the link and catch up. I’ll reference a few items there that I don’t think I need to repeat here. Additionally, this post is really a follow-up to the earlier one, or at least that is my intention at the start. At the moment, I’m going to do my best to put my emotions and biases I outlined Monday to the side for a bit, and look at it with as cold of an eye as I can. If you are really on team battleship, there are some critical vulnerabilities from the start that you need to accept. The Trump Class: this is …

Qatar’s Ministry of Defense said on March 2, 2026, that Qatari air defenses shot down two Iranian Su-24 Fencer swing-wing attack jets and intercepted multiple ballistic missiles and drones targeting the country, according to an official statement released in Doha. The ministry stated that Qatar Emiri Air Force and naval air defense units successfully neutralized […]View the full article

Northrop Grumman on March 31 showcased the autonomous mission capabilities of its Lumberjack Group 3 uncrewed aircraft system during the United States Army 101st Airborne Division’s Operation Lethal Eagle exercise. According to NG, the Lumberjack drone demonstrated full autonomous mission control through the U.S. Army’s Maven Smart System, allowing Army personnel to test how the […]View the full article

The U.S. Department of State approved a $200 million Foreign Military Sale to the Dutch government covering 530 AGM-114R2 Hellfire missiles — a significant jump from the 386 missiles cleared in a $150 million deal just two years ago. Lockheed Martin Corporation in Orlando, Florida, is the principal contractor. The package also includes technical assistance […]View the full article

The U.S. Army is searching for missiles that cost less than $1 million each, issuing a formal request for information on May 15, 2026, that lays out one of the most explicit cost-driven weapons procurement challenges the service has publicly articulated. The Army’s Capability Program Executive for Defensive Fires, operating through the Rapid Capabilities and […]View the full article

OK, let’s let them tell their story first, then I’ll dive in. From The American Legion website: The Global War on Terrorism Memorial Foundation on June 10 unveiled the long-awaited design that will pay tribute to servicemembers and families involved in GWOT. The design incorporates a living place of reflection, a concept shaped by 20,000 Americans and a 23-member Design Advisory Council of Gold Star family members, veterans and servicemembers. It is organized around a single architectural gesture: “the embrace,” a vegetated arch of reclaimed steel rising from the earth and returning to the ground. “This design was shaped by history and held sacred from the beginning — for…

Ukraine’s Army Aviation command plans to retire its Soviet-designed helicopter fleet in favor of American-made UH-60 Black Hawks, Brigadier General Pavlo Bardakov, commander of Army Aviation under Ukraine’s Ground Forces Command, told LIGA.net in an interview published last week. Bardakov said the shift away from Ukraine’s existing Mi-8 and Mi-24 helicopters has become unavoidable, because […]View the full article

The U.S. Army has told drone makers it wants a battlefield scout small enough to fold into a backpack-sized case, tough enough to carry a lethal weapon, and versatile enough to deliver two pints of blood to a wounded soldier. The U.S. Army Contracting Command at Redstone Arsenal issued a Call for Solutions on August […]View the full article

General Dynamics Land Systems released the first publicly available photo of its Wolf XM30 prototype in transit this week, showing the vehicle wrapped entirely in a black tarp and strapped to a flatbed trailer. The image follows the company’s confirmation that it delivered the prototype to the U.S. Army at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, on […]View the full article

I'm just gonna come out and say that this argument hasn't aged well: Employing a squadron of stealth fifth-generation F-22s along with other select capabilities would help reduce the need to expend significantly more resources while reducing operational risk. Coercive diplomacy backed by naval presence, decisive air power, and accurate weapons in the region would allow the U.S. and others to negate Libyan air defenses and air forces. The world-class capability inherent in the F-22 also bears a psychological-intimidation factor that sends a clear message that no Libyan aircraft will fly without consequences. Simply talking about a no-fly zone should highlight th…

There is something going on more than the usual spring maneuvers in Russian occupied Ukraine. The below from Der Spiegel is in Crimea ... so not an easy jump further in to mainland Ukrainian territory ... but ... still. Moscow has been relocating military units near the Ukraine for weeks. Trains with tanks, howitzers and transporters are also rolling into the Crimea, annexed by Russia . A huge new army camp has arisen in the east of the Black Sea Peninsula, as satellite images available to SPIEGEL show. About 30 kilometers from the town of Marfivka near the coast, the Russian military has gradually built a makeshift base, as this animation shows. If the area was …

In September of last year, the national security story was the announcement of AUKUS - trilateral security pact between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Though the Russo-Ukrainian War quickly took it from headlines, it is still moving forward - and in ways you may not expect. These three Anglosphere nations have a long cultural, diplomatic, economic, and military history together - so many of the building blocks are already there to make something impressive. Using his recent article in the Australian Strategic Policy Institute as a starting off point, our guest for the full hour returning to Midrats this Sunday from 5-6pm Eastern will be Dr. Alessio …

Americas The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has sought proposals for a counter-anti-access(A2)/area denial (AD) drone swarm command and control (C2) system. The Pentagon agency wants the Autonomous Multi-domain Adaptive Swarms-of-Swarms (AMASS) to steer thousands of disparate drones, enabling US and coalition forces to penetrate adversaries’ theater-level A2/AD bubble. The system is intended to […]View the full article

Americas The US has tested an upgraded satellite communications (SATCOM) capability on an MQ-9 Reaper aerial drone during a multilateral exercise at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska. Led by the Air National Guard-Air Force Reserve Test Center (AATC), the demonstration is part of an effort to deploy the drone on future intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance […]View the full article

Americas Boeing won a $264 million deal, which provides inspections, modifications, and repairs to the F/A-18 E/F and EA-18G aircrafts to include inner wing panel repairs in support of remanufacturing efforts to restore the inner wing panel service life projections to the new design specifications. Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. The Canadian Department of Defense started construction of a Quick Reaction Alert facility at the Bagotville base in Quebec. The site will house Ottawa’s future F-35A combat aircraft fleet and support North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) operations in partnership with the US military. …