Raw Intel

The Washington Army National Guard’s 81st Stryker Brigade Combat Team will be restructured into a Mobile Brigade as part of the U.S. Army’s broader transformation effort, officials confirmed. The shift reflects a major doctrinal update aimed at increasing speed, agility, and operational flexibility across the force. In a statement, Brig. Gen. Paul Sellars, commanding general […] The post Light vehicles to replace Strykers in Washington National Guard first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

The Chilean Army has expanded its fleet of South Korean-made Kia Light Tactical Vehicles (KLTVs) with the delivery of a new variant designed for communications operations. The latest transfer adds to Chile’s growing inventory of KLTVs, which have been in service with both the Army and Marine Corps since 2022. According to Chilean Army officials, […] The post Chilean army receives Korean-built KLTV vehicles first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

New satellite imagery reviewed on November 2 shows a notable concentration of U.S. military aircraft at Naval Air Station Roosevelt Roads in Ceiba, Puerto Rico, suggesting an elevated operational posture in the southern Caribbean. The imagery and analysis were shared by defense observer MT Anderson, who stated that the airfield “remains the primary staging point […]View the full article

The United States State Department has approved a possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to the Government of Lebanon for Medium Tactical Vehicles and associated support, with an estimated cost of $90.5 million. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) formally notified Congress of the proposed sale on December 5, 2025. According to DSCA, the Government of […]View the full article

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called for Turkish re-entry into the U.S.-led F-35 fighter jet program, saying the move would strengthen NATO security and help repair ties with Washington, according to written comments provided to Bloomberg. Erdogan said he raised the issue directly with Donald Trump during a White House meeting in September, describing Turkey’s […]View the full article

UAE-based TAG Dynamics has developed the VELOX Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV), a new light tactical platform designed to support small-unit mobility and mission flexibility, the company said in a statement. The VELOX ISV is positioned as a purpose-built infantry squad vehicle focused on rapid movement, modular payload integration, and field reliability. According to TAG Dynamics, […]View the full article

It is D+3, and there is one part of Operation Epic Fury that keeps popping up to top-of-mind for me, the Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System (LUCAS). First of all, like I said Sunday, BZ to the staff weenie(s) who came up with that acronym for the best blatant copy-job by the U.S. military since the Springfield 1903 looked at Mauser and said, “Nice gun you have there.” Let’s go back to this announcement from around Christmas time that I’m a little pouty did not come into my scan at the time. Centcom launched Task Force Scorpion Strike four months after Secretary of War Pete Hegseth directed acceleration of the acquisition and fielding of affordable drone technology. …

The United States Navy, acting through Naval Air Systems Command, has awarded Collins Elbit Vision Systems LLC (CEVS) a $585 million contract for the production and delivery of Lot 18 and Lot 19 F-35 helmet-mounted display hardware, covering U.S. services, international program partners, and Foreign Military Sales customers. The contract, announced on 31 March, covers […]View the full article

Peru selected the F-16 Block 70 fighter jet built by Lockheed Martin, signing a technical agreement on April 20, 2026 — but the procurement that Washington called a success triggered an immediate political crisis in Lima that is still unfolding. In 2024, the country launched a formal competitive bidding process. Lockheed Martin responded with a […]View the full article

The U.S. State Department approved a potential $236 million sale of AGM-184 Joint Strike Missiles to the Belgian government on May 18, clearing the path for Brussels to arm its growing fleet of F-35A fighter jets with a weapon specifically designed to strike ships and hardened targets from well outside the range of enemy air […]View the full article

The Pentagon is seeking to buy dozens of autonomous cargo boats to resupply U.S. Army units scattered across the Pacific islands in any future conflict with China, Naval News reported, citing a Defense Innovation Unit solicitation that calls for sea drones capable of delivering shipping containers through some of the most contested waters on earth […]View the full article

Ukraine just secured a German promise to bankroll production of one of its most closely guarded new weapons, a jet-powered strike drone capable of hitting targets deep inside Russian territory, in a deal signed on the sidelines of the NATO Summit in Ankara, Türkiye. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha announced the agreement on X, confirming […]View the full article

Yuma Proving Ground, the U.S. Army’s massive desert test range in southwestern Arizona, successfully supported a full-scale, live-fire hypersonic warhead test using a cannon-based test system, establishing what officials describe as a critical new testing capability for modern national security programs, according to a report published in The Outpost, Yuma Proving Ground’s official publication, on […]View the full article

Russia’s state defense conglomerate Rostec says it will unveil a new, previously undisclosed weapon on its Su-57E export fighter at an airshow in Egypt next week, the company said in a statement. The Su-57E, an export version of Russia’s fifth-generation Su-57 fighter, is scheduled to fly at the El Alamein International Airshow 2026, running September […]View the full article

Americas Boeing won a $198 million contract modification, which provides for the integration of a ground control station that provides command and control capability in support of the MQ-25 air vehicle for the Navy. The Boeing MQ-25 Stingray is an aerial refueling drone. In early December Boeing has flown its MQ-25A test asset (T1) with an aerial refuelling store under its wing for the first time. Earlier this year the US Navy exercised an option to acquire three additional MQ-25 air vehicles, bringing the total aircraft Boeing is initially producing to seven. The Navy intends to procure more than 70 aircraft, which will assume the tanking role currently performed by F/A-…

Are you ready for this fight in your Navy? As we have covered here in previous Thursdays, the CNO is an enthusiastic supporter of one of the primary advocates of the divisive "anti-racism" socio-political philosophy - Ibram X. Kendi. The CNO created conditions where the Diversity Maoists will take the his support as top cover to take their divisive and sectarian secular religion in to your workspace. What is "anti-racism?" I highly recommend that everyone read the letter by Paul Rossi, at least at the time he wrote the letter, a teacher at Grace Church High School in Manhattan. “Antiracist” training sounds righteous, but it is the opposite of truth in advertising.…

For this decade, the US Navy has to be ready to match any military challenge by the People’s Republic of China with the fleet we roughly have now. Any clear-eyed look at budgets, priorities, or plans makes that clear. If so, how do we best keep an aggressive China at risk with the forces we realistically have? What can we do to best deter war, and if that fails, transition to war best positioned to win? Today we turn over the conversation to Bryan Clark and Bryan McGrath. Gentlemen, over to you.Naval leaders, civilian and military, face difficult choices when confronting the threat posed by China. The fleet must be kept in readiness for combat, it must be modernized an…

The historical reckoning of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) that members of the Front Porch knew was coming since we started ringing the bell in 2004 is finally being written. New scholarship continues to come forward with a fresh look in investigating the causes of and lessons from the LCS program. There are firm lessons not just on how to run or not run a program, but also how perverse incentives hard wired in to our politics, acquisitions programs, and … yes … culture enabled abuse and wholesale institutional failure. Over at War on the Rocks, Emma Salisbury is doing exactly that. For those new to the LCS story – and there are many – Emma’s article is a great startin…

Americas Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems won a $12.6 million order, which provides non-recurring engineering for the development of preliminary software design, software coding, maturation, test, and integration for Link 16 Advanced Capabilities with the Multifunctional Information Distribution System Joint Tactical Radio System into the MH-60R/S aircraft for the Navy and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers. The MH-60R Seahawk is a multi-mission helicopter manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft. It is considered to be the world’s most advanced maritime helicopter. Work will take place in New York. Completion date is in February 2024. The United States Marine Cor…

Americas South-east Welding & Manufacturing won a $1.2 billion deal for complex repair, maintenance and modernization requirements of non-nuclear Navy Surface Combatant (CG, DDG, and AMPHIB) class ships homeported in or visiting San Diego, California, homeport. These efforts consist of Chief of Naval Operations-scheduled docking and non-docking; continuous maintenance; and emergent maintenance availabilities of Surface Combatant class ships to be performed in the San Diego, California, port. Delivery orders will be competitively awarded under these contracts, which are to be performed in San Diego, California. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the cont…