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DARPA’s New Urban Warfare Program Takes Flight

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In a recent test, DARPA’s experimental Offensive Swarm-Enabled Tactics (OFFSET) program, teams practiced complex urban warfare missions while the autonomous air and ground robots of the OFFSET program maintained situational awareness of the surrounding area. As more conflicts have been fought in cities and densely populated areas like Mosul, Aleppo, Mogadishu, Gaza, Basra, and Sadr City, hard lessons have been learned by the U.S. military about urban warfare. DARPA hopes its OFFSET program will give military units the upper hand with real time overall situational awareness. During the … [Read more...]

F-35 Performance Falling Short of Warfighter Requirements

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Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II is expected to fall short of former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis’ year-end 80% mission-capable rate. Lee Hudson of Aerospace & Defense Report tells readers that the main contributor to the delay is supply shortages for the F-35’s, most notably the transparency canopy. And it’s only going to get worse as worldwide fleet growth is expected to more than double by 2023. Lee Hudson goes on to write (abridged): The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is not expected to meet the Pentagon’s goal of an 80% mission-capable rate by the end of the fiscal year due to … [Read more...]

S-97 Raider Shows off its Maneuverability in Flight Test

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Test pilots pushed Sikorsky’s S-97 Raider to the limits as it performed moves no ordinary helicopter could. The S-97 Raider flew sideways, nose-down, backwards, and even in stealth mode. The flight test proves that a software problem blamed for a setback in 2017 has been fixed. Eric Adams of Vertical details how the S-97 handled like a sports car (abridged): During a 20-minute test flight of the prototype S-97 Raider at Sikorsky’s West Palm Beach, Florida, facility — conducted in front of four journalists in the first such public demonstration — the unconventional coaxial-rotor aircraft … [Read more...]

Remote Controlled Terror

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Houthi rebel drone attacks are on the rise, and they’re getting more sophisticated. United Nations investigators have said the rebels, with their newest UAV-X planes, can travel 150mph and just over 900 miles. They are also using remote-controlled boats to target ships off the coast of Yemen. According to the U.N., these unmanned threats put much of the Gulf, including Saudi and Emirates capitals, and one of the busiest shipping routes, the strait of Bab-el-Mandeb within range. Dion Nissenbaum and Warren Strobel of The WSJ write (abridged). Yemen’s Houthi rebels have launched armed drone … [Read more...]

Driving into Gun Hell without Your Survival Pistol of Choice

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In speaking with a client recently, he revealed to me his go-to survival pistol, which I’ll tell you about it in a minute. But first, he told me the story about driving from his home state of Arizona, where he owns over 200 pistols, to what he referred to as “gun hell.” He was none too pleased about being without his sidearm. “Welcome to Massachusetts.” He was bringing some things to his daughter who lives in Massachusetts, and knowing it’s a felony to have a handgun in your car—unless you’re driving directly through and into another state (interstate) or have a MA CCL—he felt exposed on … [Read more...]

CHAMP: The Microwave Bomb that can Win a Battle With No Casualties

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What can be done when enemies embed their critical infrastructure in civilian areas to use the bystanders as human shields? The U.S. Air Force has a plan, the CHAMP. The CHAMP is a microwave weapon that knocks out electronic warfare systems while doing no damage to nearby buildings or people. Now, reports the Daily Mail, the Air Force has deployed 20 of the missiles. They write: Known as the Counter-Electronics High Power Microwave Advanced Missile Project (CHAMP), the missiles were built by Boeing's Phantom Works for the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory The microwave weapons can … [Read more...]

Russia’s Next Generation Stealth Bomber May Never Take Flight

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Michael Kofman, a Russian military affairs specialist at the Center for Naval Analyses, said that Russia’s next generation PAK-DA stealth bomber program is more or less still in the research and development phase. The National Interest adds that the Kazan Aviation Plant (KAZ) in charge of building the prototype has a shortage of highly skilled specialists, and may not be up for the task. Russia is gearing up for the eventual start of production for the PAK-DA stealth bomber even though the aircraft will not be ready for many years to come. One of the many challenges for the Russians to … [Read more...]

One of America’s Most Famous Rifles

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After the failure of the standard issue Model 1896 Krag Rifle during the Spanish American war, the United States Army was looking for an improved firearm for its troops. The rifle they developed would go on to become one of the best ever built, and would be used for decades in the trenches and foxholes anywhere Americans were fighting. That rifle was the Model 1903 Springfield, and at The National Interest, the Warfare History Network tells its story: The shortcomings of the Krag-Jorgensen became apparent during the Spanish-American War of 1898. Its cumbersome locking system, coupled with a … [Read more...]

A Deadly Combo: The F-35 and F-15X

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The U.S. Airforce surprised the aviation community recently when it said it was evaluating the purchase of Boeing’s F-15X fighter jet. The Airforce could be looking for ways to make up for the F-35’s shortcomings and the limited number of F-22s in its inventory. Purchasing jets from the proven Boeing F-15 program could help the military bypass the costly development and testing phases that would accompany any new design. One problem the F-15x could address is the ability of the F-35 to only carry a limited number of internal AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAMs). The … [Read more...]

The Army’s New Submachine Gun Has Been Chosen

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After a long wait, the Army has chosen its new submachine gun. The B&T APC9K won the Army's contract for a new protection duty firearm. Andy Wolf reports here: The U.S. Army has selected a new submachine gun for special security missions- and the winner of the procurement contest may surprise you. The Brügger & Thomet APC9K has been hailed the winner of the Sub Compact Weapon program, beating out well-seasoned military & police competitors such as the American Sig MPX and the Czech-made CZ Scorpion Evo. Made primarily of polymer and sporting translucent magazines, the APC9K … [Read more...]