Raw Intel

BAE Systems has announced the delivery of its 1,000th infrared seeker for the U.S. Army’s Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) program. The delivery was made to Lockheed Martin, the prime contractor for THAAD, for integration onto the interceptor missile. The seeker provides advanced sensing and guidance that allows the missile to detect, track, and […] The post BAE Systems delivers 1,000th THAAD seeker first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Americas Raytheon won a $94.1 million modification for fiscal 2023 Guided Missile Assemblies, shipping containers, and spare parts in support of the fiscal 2021-2023 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile Block 2 full rate production requirements. Work will be performed in Tucson, Arizona; Raufoss, Norway; Edinburgh, Australia; San Jose, California; Mississauga, Canada; Ottobrunn, Germany; Cambridge, Canada; Nashua, […]View the full article

Americas Boeing won a $14.2 million order against a previously issued basic ordering agreement. This order provides manufacturing, assembly and delivery of various peculiar support equipment in support of the F/A-18E/F program. Work will be performed in St. Louis, Missouri, and is expected to be completed in December 2026. Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems […]View the full article

About the only institution I hold is more contempt than the UN in so far as its inability to do anything well related to its core mission is probably the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Over at the National Interest, Ramon Marks just about gives me an aneurism. How does one start here? I don't have much whitespace in my calendar today, so let me just pull this jewel out. The West is going to have to figure out how to resolve the Russo-Ukrainian War while simultaneously bringing lasting stability to Ukraine and Europe without pushing a paranoid Russia further into China’s arms. A Congress of Vienna-type approach could be an option under the mu…

Americas Amentum has won an $818-million contract to manage the modernization and sustainment of US Navy F-16 Viper adversary fighter jets at Naval Air Station Fallon, Nevada. The Viper is the aggressor version of the Fighting Falcon fourth-generation multi-role combat aircraft. It plays the enemy role or “red team” to train naval airmen in simulated […]View the full article

Yes, in America - for some reason I simply do not agree with - we took what was for the rest of the West, Remembrance Day, and turned it in to Veterans Day. Yes, we have Memorial Day - which in the larger scheme of things is our "Remembrance Day" - but especially after living for years in Europe, I came to see the 11th of November as something else than what I grew up with. WWI was such a stupid and unnecessary war. The two empires that dragged the rest of the West and its auxiliaries in to this meatgrinder, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Russian Empire, were destroyed by the end of the war. Their culture, empires, and dynasties disintegrated and disaggregated. The G…

Civil wars are nasty and unpredictable things. The longer they go, the more the thin veneer of civilization starts to strip away for even the most advanced nations and their people. Less advanced nations devolve to Madmaxistan rather quickly. All governmental efforts, money, and attention goes towards weapons, food, and fuel. Industries, infrastructure, and parts of civil society that do not support that get left as if frozen in aspic. If you don't live in a nation suffering that civil war, it is easy not to pay attention to that which does not effect you. There is one aspect of the Yemen civil war that no one should ignore - and it is at sea. This isn't a disaster that a…

Americas General Dynamics won a $21.6 million modification for additional hours of Abrams system technical support. Work will be performed in Sterling Heights, Michigan, with an estimated completion date of September 22, 2023. M1A1/2 Abrams main battle tank is manufactured by General Dynamics Land Systems. The first M1 tank was produced in 1978, the M1A1 in 1985 and the M1A2 in 1986. The Navy awarded Insitu a $191.8 million modification, which procures 13 RQ-21A Blackjack air vehicles, 25 ScanEagle air vehicles, 48 RQ-21A and ScanEagle payloads and turrets, support equipment, spares and sustainment spares and tools in support of RQ-21A Blackjack and ScanEagle unmanned ai…

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 The US Army has exercised a $76.1-million option to provide extended support for its Shadow tactical aerial drones. Under the agreement, Shadow developer Textron Systems will continue to supply maintenance, logistics, and field services for the fleet through 2023. The effort is being coordinated with the Shadow systems’ ongoing transition to the Block III configuration, […]View the full article

The United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has launched a new program aimed at accelerating the production of heat-resistant structures used in hypersonic weapons. The initiative, called Carbon Crunch, focuses on developing faster manufacturing methods for carbon-carbon aeroshells that protect hypersonic vehicles during flight. The effort is intended to address a major production challenge […]View the full article

Americas Leidos has awarded CAE a deal to supply a Full Flight Simulator (FFS) for the US Army’s High Accuracy Detection and Exploitation System (HADES) program. HADES seeks to enhance the service’s aerial intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (A-ISR) capabilities by replacing existing ISR aircraft fleets that have been operational since the Cold War. CAE will […]View the full article

Russia has delivered the first two Su‑57E Felon fifth-generation fighter jets to an undisclosed foreign customer, marking the first known export of the advanced stealth aircraft, according to statements made by Russian defense officials at the Dubai Airshow 2025. Vadim Badekha, CEO of the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), confirmed the handover and stated that the […]View the full article

P-8A Poseidon (click to view full) Maritime surveillance and patrol is becoming more and more important, but the USA’s P-3 Orion turboprop fleet is falling apart. The P-7 Long Range Air ASW (Anti-Submarine Warfare) Capable Aircraft program to create an improved P-3 began in 1988, but cost overruns, slow progress, and interest in opening the […]View the full article

Northrop Grumman is advancing U.S. homeland defense with its new “Golden Dome for America,” built around the AN/TPS-80 Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) — a mobile, ground-based sensor designed to detect, track, and respond to evolving threats with speed and precision. “Threats to our homeland are growing faster, more complex and more unpredictable,” said Roshan […] The post Northrop Grumman highlights features of ‘Golden Dome’ radar network first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

I wouldn't call this a "secret base" or that much of a surprise. China is secretly building a naval facility in Cambodia for the exclusive use of its military, with both countries denying that is the case and taking extraordinary measures to conceal the operation, Western officials said. The military presence will be on the northern portion of Cambodia’s Ream Naval Base on the Gulf of Thailand, which is slated to be the site of a groundbreaking ceremony this week, according to the officials, who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter’s sensitivity. The establishment of a Chinese naval base in Cambodia — only its second such overseas outp…

Americas Reason Building Group won a $10.3 million deal for constructing the interim building for the F-35. This contract provides for the purchase and construction of a temporary facility to house the F-35 Partner Support Complex Exchange Reprogramming Laboratory Office to support F-35 mission data development and verification for Japan, South Korea, Israel, Belgium, and […]View the full article

So, how was your war? A little more than 15-years ago after 93-years on our little planet, one of the greatest US Navy tactical leaders passed away. He and his crew had an incredible record during WWII that I would encourage you to review in full here ... but after the Navy decided that they were running out of Navy Crosses to reward the man then all of 31-yrs old, he earned the Medal of Honor for events in his 11th Patrol. Attention to citation: “For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as commanding officer of USS BARB during her Eleventh War Patrol” along the east coast of China from 19 December 1945, to 15 Fe…

Americas Lockheed Martin on a $172 million modification, which definitizes the order and adds scope to provide special test/tooling equipment for increasing Block 4 manufacturing capacity, as well as procures material modification kits in support of removing life limits, correcting deficiencies, and retrofitting aircraft to incorporate Next Gen Distributed Aperture System hardware and associated Power […]View the full article

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has unveiled an upgraded generation of its unmanned maritime strike platforms known as “Sea Baby,” which have already played a role in high-profile operations in the Black Sea. The drones were shown publicly for the first time in footage released by the SBU, which emphasized their combat-tested effectiveness and […] The post Ukraine unveils new Sea Baby naval drones first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article