Raw Intel

I know it is just a little bit more than a week after my last post on the outstanding performance of the under-appreciated Expeditionary Mobile Base (ESB)—by the way, can we get this class of ships a proper classification? We have other options. However, they are doing the heavy lifting again in the post-Maduro takedown. Here we have U.S. forces capturing the tanker VERONICA III in the Indian Ocean. The tanker is linked to the illegal transportation of crude oil from Iran, Russia, and Venezuela. She could run, but could not hide from the yet-to-be named U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke destroyer. And as Sal Mercogliano let us know over the weekend, in the background of the pictur…

Swarm Aero announced the opening of its Advanced Manufacturing Center on Feb. 17, 2026, at Drake Field in Fayetteville, Arkansas, marking the launch of an 80,000-square-foot facility designed to produce large uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) swarms, the company said during a ribbon-cutting event attended by Congressman Steve Womack. According to the company, the Arkansas facility […]View the full article

BAE Systems announced successful trials of its Autonomous Tactical Light Armour System (ATLAS) uncrewed ground vehicle, confirming testing of a combat-capable autonomous platform designed to support main battle tank and combat reconnaissance operations. The trials evaluated the ATLAS Collaborative Combat Variant (CCV), a fully functional prototype demonstrator first introduced at the Land Forces exhibition in […]View the full article

Previously undisclosed details have emerged about Japan’s purchase of unmanned maritime systems from U.S.-based Liquid Robotics, confirming that the platforms acquired under a $25 million Foreign Military Sales program are Wave Glider SV6 unmanned surface vehicles, according to newly released U.S. Air Force procurement documents. The information comes from a Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) Justification […]View the full article

Airmen from the 102nd Security Forces Squadron conducted use-of-force training using a virtual reality system at Otis Air National Guard Base, Massachusetts, on Feb. 8, 2026, employing immersive simulations designed to replicate real-world security and law enforcement scenarios, according to an official unit release. The training used the Street Smarts Virtual Reality system, which places […]View the full article

The United States Army has awarded Lockheed Martin a $33.8 million contract to provide ground and flight test support for the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor (LTAMDS) integrated with the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) system, according to a contract announcement released Feb. 18, 2026. The contract was issued by Army Contracting Command at […]View the full article

The United States Air Force has awarded Boeing a $13 million contract to upgrade infrared countermeasure systems on C-17 Globemaster III transport aircraft operated by Canada and Australia under a Foreign Military Sales program, according to a contract announcement released Feb. 18, 2026. The award covers upgrades converting existing Block 10 defensive systems to the […]View the full article

Divergent Technologies and Mach Industries announced on Feb. 17, 2026, in Los Angeles that they have jointly launched Venom, an autonomous strike aircraft prototype developed and brought to flight readiness in 71 days, demonstrating rapid hardware development enabled by digital manufacturing and modular system design. According to a joint announcement from the companies, the Venom […]View the full article

Leonardo DRS announced on Feb. 17, 2026, that it has been awarded multiple contracts under the Missile Defense Agency’s Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense (SHIELD) program, an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity agreement with a ceiling value of $151 billion aimed at accelerating delivery of air and missile defense capabilities for U.S. forces. According to a company press […]View the full article

The United States Air Force has awarded Liquid Robotics Inc., based in Herndon, Virginia, a $25 million contract to supply 20 unmanned surface vehicles under a Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program supporting Japan, according to a contract announcement released by the U.S. Department of War. The award covers work related to control software, mission payloads, […]View the full article

The United States Army has awarded Rolls-Royce Solutions America Inc. a $73.5 million contract to procure Merkava tank power pack kits and related engineering services under a Foreign Military Sales (FMS) agreement supporting Israel, according to a Feb. 17, 2026 contract announcement released by the U.S. Department of War. The contract covers the delivery of […]View the full article

This opening graphic from the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) report by Alexander Kolyandr from last week, Death Without Glory: Russia’s Message to the Frontline Soldier, tells a story. The numbers are staggering. A CSIS report in January estimated Russia has lost up to 325,000 men dead and close to 900,000 wounded, the greatest losses recorded by any major power in any war since World War II. For a country already suffering an acute demographic decline and which has seen perhaps a million emigrate since the war began, this cannot be sustainable, at least in the medium-term. The first thing that came to mind was the low numbers in the VERY ethnic Russian areas,…

China’s AVIC Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group has officially presented a new vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) unmanned aerial vehicle known as the Yunying (Cloud Shadow in Chinese), a tail-sitter drone featuring a ducted-fan design closely resembling the V-BAT system developed by U.S. company Shield AI. The Yunying-25V UAV was officially showcased during the 2026 CCTV […]View the full article

Elbit Systems announced on February 18, 2026, that it has secured contracts valued at approximately $277 million from an international customer for the supply of 30 mm turrets and associated munitions, marking a new export order for the company’s land combat systems portfolio. According to a company statement, the contracts will be executed over a […]View the full article

Sweden ranked third worldwide in military assistance to Ukraine in 2025, both in total contributions and as a share of national GDP, according to data cited by the Swedish Embassy in Ukraine based on a report from the Kiel Institute for the World Economy. The embassy said Sweden’s support reflects a clear political commitment despite […]View the full article

Bulgaria has received the first batch of Stryker armored vehicles, with five combat vehicles arriving at the port of Burgas on Feb. 14, 2026, marking the start of deliveries under the country’s military modernization program, the Bulgarian Ministry of Defense announced. The shipment represents the initial phase of a broader procurement effort conducted through international […]View the full article

The United States Air Force has announced a revised acquisition plan for the LGM-35A Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program, confirming that a major restructuring effort will be completed by the end of 2026, with initial operational capability targeted for the early 2030s. The update was released by the Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs […]View the full article

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Pentagon’s research and technology arm, has designated its air-launched missile-carrying uncrewed aircraft developed under the LongShot program as the X-68A, moving the system toward flight testing expected by the end of 2026, the agency confirmed in an official update. According to DARPA, the milestone follows completion of multiple […]View the full article

Raytheon has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory to establish a domestic production capability for thin film lithium niobate (TFLN) wafers, a material used in high-speed communications and advanced sensing systems critical to defense technology, the company announced. The effort aims to create a secure U.S.-based supply chain for TFLN, […]View the full article

Russia has warned of potential military action in the Baltic Sea, with senior Kremlin official Nikolai Patrushev stating that the Russian Navy could be used to break what Moscow describes as a possible maritime blockade, according to reporting by Militarnyi. Patrushev, an assistant to the Russian president and a central figure in Russia’s security establishment, […]View the full article