The War Zone. Your daily source for military, defense, and geopolitics coverage.
F-35A
Israel’s F-35s Are Getting External Fuel Tanks
Fresh off extensive combat operations against Iran, Israel is boosting the F-35I Adir’s endurance with external fuel tanks that will also reduce dependence on tanker aircraft.
Latest News
CENTCOM Commander Dismisses Reports That Iran Retains Most Of Its Missile And Drone Arsenal (Updated)
Admiral Brad Cooper said that “the numbers that I’ve seen in open source are not accurate” as reports mount that most of Iran’s arsenal is intact.
Nuclear-Powered Trump Class Battleships Will Reverse One Of The Navy’s “Largest Mistakes”: Navy Boss
The Chief of Naval Operations says giving up on nuclear-powered surface combatants was one of the worst decisions his service has ever made.
MQ-9 Reaper Replacement Requirements Stress A Drone Cheap Enough To Risk Losing
The Air Force’s MQ-9 Reaper successor will trade survivability for lower cost, broader missions, and mass production.
10,000 Low-Cost Cruise Missiles In Three Years Procurement Plan Laid Out By Pentagon (Updated)
The U.S. military now also plans on buying 12,000 ‘cheap’ hypersonic missiles as part of a larger push to bolster munitions inventories.
UAE Building Massive ‘Cope Cages’ To Protect Energy Facilities From Iranian Drone Attacks
The move comes after the UAE has been hit by thousands of Iranian missiles and drones that have heavily damaged parts of its oil and gas infrastructure.
7,800 Interceptors In Space At Core Of $1.2 Trillion Golden Dome Cost Estimate
This massive undertaking in low Earth orbit would still only be able to engage 10 ICBMs simultaneously, according to the CBO.
Coast Guard Creates Its Own Special Operations Command
The Coast Guard is putting all of its specialized forces under a single headquarters as demand for their services is at an all-time high.
Super-Adaptable Mayhem 10 Swarming Drone Evolved From The Switchblade
AeroVironment’s Mayhem 10 is highly-modular and can seek and destroy enemy radars, jam comms, reconnoiter, strike armor and more.
First Look At What A Night Stalker MV-75 Cheyenne Will Look Like
A new rendering shows an MV-75 with special operations-specific features like a radar, other sensors, and in-flight refueling capability.
Marine Amphibious Combat Vehicles To Get Missile-Swatting Active Protection Systems
Active Protection Systems will give Marine ACVs a critical new layer of defense against anti-armor threats that could also help down incoming drones.
Confidence In CH-53K King Stallion Grows Ahead Of First Operational Deployment
Going to sea with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit is a prelude to the CH-53K hitting full-rate production, planned for FY 2029.
China is America’s Military Equal Now And In Any Future Fight, Marine General Warns
Faced with the rapidly growing China threat, the U.S. has to start hardening its bases now, said Marine Lt. Gen. Stephen Sklenka.
Israel Building Factory To Pump Out Its Own FPV Drones
The IDF is racing to catch up to Hezbollah’s increasing use of these weapons, which has taken a grim toll on its forces in Lebanon.
Pentagon’s Mindset On E-7 Radar Aircraft It Tried To Axe Has Completely Changed: Hegseth
E-7s to replace the Air Force’s dwindling and aging fleet of E-3s are even more sorely needed now after one of the latter was lost to an Iranian attack.
Drone-Hunting M28 Skytruck In The Works For Poland
With the Ukrainian An-28 reportedly highly effective in the role, Poland is converting its similar M28 for the counter-drone mission.
IRGC Navy Claims Vast Expansion In Its Definition Of Strait Of Hormuz (Updated)
It remains unclear how the IRGC will enforce its tenfold increase in what it considers the Strait.
Trump Class Battleships Will Be Nuclear Powered (Updated)
Equipping the Trump class with nuclear propulsion presents benefits, but also massive challenges, and Navy officials had been pushing back against the idea.
Possibility Of Operation To Retrieve Iran’s Enriched Uranium Appears To Rise As Negotiations Sputter (Updated)
Both Trump and Netanyahu made comments in the last 24 hours that point to a possible high-risk operation to snatch Iran’s nuclear material.
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New Version Of Bomber-Launched ARRW Hypersonic Missile Is A Ship Killer
The USAF is moving to start work on a new ARRW variant able to hit moving targets with an eye toward future fights in the Pacific.
U.S. Air Force Special Operations Aircraft Accused Of Austrian Airspace Incursion
Austria says it scrambled Eurofighters two days in a row to intercept U.S. military aircraft, likely U-28As operated by Air Force Special Operations Command.
Anti-Drone “Cope Cage” Appears On Russian Patrol Boat
Ukrainian drone attacks on naval targets are driving the development of new defenses, but overhead screens alone have dwindling efficacy.
C-5 Galaxies Now Slated To Keep Flying Until 2050 As Readiness Plummets To 37 Percent
Nothing in the USAF’s inventory can do what a C-5 can, but even after costly upgrades, they remain extremely temperamental.
Where Are The Carriers As Of May 11, 2026: 20 Warships Enforce Iran Blockade
Meanwhile, USS Nimitz has made a stop in Rio as part of its circumnavigation of South America and repositioning cruise to Norfolk.
F/A-18 Super Hornet Drops Bombs Down Smokestacks Of Iranian Tankers Running Blockade (Updated)
The attack comes as the UAE claims it was struck again by Iran and hours after the U.S. and Iran exchanged blows.
Bunker Talk: Let’s Talk About All The Things We Did And Didn’t Cover This Week
Concrete is the new black.
The Newly Released Government UFO Archives Will Leave You Shrugging
The latest release of records follows years of muddled messaging and controversial claims on a topic with real national security implications.
U.S. Just Struck Iranian Targets Around The Strait Of Hormuz (Updated)
U.S. Central Command says it carried out the strikes in retaliation to Iranian attacks on its forces.
USAF Is Going To Explore What Will Finally Replace The B-52
The USAF plans to keep its B-52s until they are nearly a century old, but they cannot fly forever, and costs are already skyrocketing on key upgrades.
My God… The F-14 Tomcat May Actually Fly Again Over The United States (Updated)
Long regarded as a flight of fancy, the “Maverick Act” could put an F-14 back into operation in the U.S. for the first time in 20 years.
Camouflaged F-15E Painted To Mark F-111’s Libya Raid Blasts Through Mach Loop On First Flight
Hauling eight inert GBU-12 laser-guided bombs, the F-15E painted for the anniversary of Operation El Dorado Canyon made a low-level flight through Wales.
F/A-18 Super Hornet Blasts Blockade-Running Iranian Ship’s Rudder With 20mm Cannon (Updated)
The Super Hornet strafing the ship is the latest instance where the Navy used direct fire to disable Iranian ships trying to run the blockade.
B-1B “Apocalypse II” Out Of The Boneyard And Back In Service
After nearly two years of work, the Bone once known as Rage has completed its journey out of the desert and back to active service.
Missiles Clobber Target Ship In Highly Strategic Luzon Strait
The ex-Philippine Navy warship was sent to the bottom during high-profile Luzon Strait drills and amid rising Indo-Pacific tensions.
New Iranian Attacks On UAE As Ceasefire Holds By A Thread (Updated)
Joint Chiefs Chairman says Iran attacked U.S. forces 10 times during the ceasefire.
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