A clearer view of how the AIM-174B air-launched version of the SM-6 fits into the US Navy's larger arsenal is emerging. Air

AIM-174 Missile Brings Navy’s Future Counter-China Air Combat Strategy Into Focus

The air-launched SM-6 will disrupt China’s carrier-killing kill chain and pierce open its anti-access bubble.

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Russia claims Ukraine plotted to steal one of its Tu-22M Backfire bombers.

Ukraine Situation Report: Plot To Steal A Tu-22M3 Backfire Thwarted Russia Claims

Tu-22M Backfire bombers, which have played a key role in Russian missile attacks on Ukrainian cities, have been the target of a previous Ukrainian plot.

The Ukrainian Air Force has, apparently for the first time, published a video showing in detail its U.S.-made HAWK surface-to-air missile system. As we have discussed in the past, the missile provides a useful boost to Ukraine’s middle-tier air and missile defense capacity and, according to the Ukrainian Air Force, has scored some notable ‘kills.’

First Inside Look At Ukraine’s HAWK Air Defense Systems

Ukraine claims it has had particular success using the vintage American system to down Russian one-way attack drones.

The Air Force's Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program has nearly doubled in cost to close to $141 billion, but will press ahead.

Problem Plagued Sentinel ICBM Program Will Press Ahead Despite Nearly Doubling In Cost

The Sentinel ICBM program's projected price tag has grown more than 80 percent to almost $141 billion and is now years behind schedule.

Ukraine’s unorthodox efforts to develop ways of defeating Russian drones have taken an apparent new turn, with the appearance of a light airplane carrying a sharpshooter to intercept uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs). At this stage, few details about the concept are available, but it’s notable that the aircraft in question — the Ukrainian-made Aeroprakt A-22 ultralight — is a type that we have seen in the past adapted as one-way attack drone, something you can read more about here.

Ultralight Drone Hunting Planes Now In Use In Ukraine

Small, easy to fly, and relatively cheap, the A-22 ultralight is the latest addition to Ukraine’s anti-drone force.

The Department of Energy has recieved two new AW139 helicopters specially configured for nuclear detection missions.

AW139 Nuclear Detection Helicopters Join Department Of Energy Fleet, Replace Bell 412s

The AW139s will create detailed maps of radiation levels from the air which would be critical in a response to a nuclear attack or accident.

A C-130J Super Hercules rests on the flightline under a fireworks display, July 3, 2018, at Yokota Air Base, Japan.

Bunker Talk: 4th Of July Edition!

Enjoy the fireworks!

The Pentagon has made a new announcement about the first forward-deployments of Air Force F-35As and F-15EXs to Japan, as well as changes to the Marine Corps' F-35B force in that country.

USAF F-35As To Be Based In Japan Replacing Wild Weasel F-16s

The USAF is also moving ahead with plans to forward-deploy F-15EXs to Japan as the Marines make changes to their F-35 units in the country.

Ukraine will receive more than $2 billion in additional air defense interceptors for its Patriot and NASAMS systems.

Ukraine Situation Report: $2.2B In New Air Defense Interceptors Coming From U.S.

The new aid package includes an unspecified number of munitions for Patriot, NASAMS and HAWK air defense systems.

The Navy's Training Air Wing 2 (TAW-2) has hit one million flight hours with the T-45 jet trainer as plans to replace that are have been delayed.

Navy Delays Jet Trainer Replacement As T-45 Wing Hits One Million Flight Hours

A debate about whether the T-45's successor will have to land and take off from aircraft carriers is slowing down the replacement process.

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MQ-9 with new electronic warfare pod

New Electronic Warfare Pod Turns Marine MQ-9 Reaper Into “A Black Hole”

The new electronic warfare and intelligence collection pod enables MQ-9 Reapers to be "mostly undetectable," according to the Marine Corps Commandant.

Israeli AH-64 helicopter gunship pilots have provided an extensive account of their operations during the surprise attack on the country by Hamas militants last October 7. Their accounts — provided to the Israeli media — give a rare insight into the Israeli Air Force’s immediate response to the first invasion of Israeli territory since 1948.

Israeli AH-64 Apache Commanders Describe Brutal Reality Of October 7 Missions

Taken entirely by surprise, Israeli AH-64 crews raced to respond to the attack by Hamas but with mixed results.

Billionaire Jared Isaacman Is going to fly a Tornado F2A.

Tornado F2 Set To Become Most Advanced Flying Fighter In A Private Individual’s Hands

Jared Isaacman’s remarkable private air force just got its most advanced tactical jet yet, with the addition of a Tornado F2A interceptor.

A U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle from Royal Air Force Lakenheath's 494th Fighter Squadron returns to formation after receiving fuel from a KC-135 Stratotanker from the Fairchild Air Force Base's 92nd Aerial Refueling Squadron, over the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, May 2, 2024. The U.S. Air Force is globally postured to protect and defend freedom of coalition allies and regional partners within the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility to maintain peace and stability across the region.

Flying The F-15E Strike Eagle In Air-To-Air Combat, From Dogfighting To Drone Hunting

F-15E pilot describes how, despite its air-to-ground roots, the Strike Eagle developed into a powerful air-to-air fighter.

Piggyback bomber at a Nazi airfield In WWII.

Recalling The Nazis’ Bizarre Piggyback Bombers 80 Years After They Went To War

In the last months of the war, Germany flew missions using manned fighters attached to unmanned explosive-packed bombers.

The US Air Force's Air Mobility Command has outlined a critical need to give its fleets new counter-drone defenses they can use wherever they go.

Built-In Counter-Drone Defenses Sought For Air Force Transports, Tankers

The USAF's Air Mobility Command says adding new drone defenses to its aircraft is critical for future combat and routine operations.

An officer of the Swiss Civil defence of the canton of Geneva closes the door of a private concrete nuclear fallout shelter located underneath a residential building in the city of Meyrin near Geneva on March 25, 2022. - Russia's invasion of Ukraine has awakened long-slumbering anxiety interest in Switzerland in concrete nuclear fallout shelters built across the country during the Cold War, with spots available for every single resident. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP) (Photo by FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images)

Bunker Talk: Let’s Talk About All The Things We Did And Didn’t Cover This Week

Care to share?

M270 MLRS

Ukraine May Have Lost An M270 MLRS For The First Time

The M270s have been a bane to Russian war efforts and were reportedly involved in a recent deadly ballistic missile strike on Crimea.

The US Army's elite 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment has been testing Arctic and desert camouflage options on top of a now well-known multi-tone blue scheme.

160th SOAR Night Stalkers Testing Arctic, Desert Vinyl Camo Wraps As Global Missions Evolve

In addition to a blue scheme, the 160th SOAR has been looking at other new camouflage options to support missions old and new.

A video has emerged showing a Ukrainian MiG-29 toss-bombing a munition, a critical tactic that helps limit the exposure of the launching platform to enemy defenses.

Watch A Ukrainian MiG-29 Toss A Bomb Across The Front Lines

Toss bombing offers a key way to conduct precise strikes behind the front lines while also increasing chances of survival.

Pacific Defender 24 will see European AirPower head to the Pacific.

European Air Power Teams Up For Pacific Mega Deployment

Covering some 36,000 miles, Pacific Skies 24 will see German, French, and Spanish aircraft hopscotch all over the Asia-Pacific theater.

North Korea may send troops to Ukraine

Ukraine Situation Report: North Korea May Send Forces To Occupied Territories

Even sending hordes of laborers, let alone troops, to Ukraine would mark a new phase in North Korea's mutual aid relationship with Russia.

Leonardo's AW609 tiltrotor has completed a series of shipboard trials aboard the Italian carrier ITS Cavour, a major milestone in the aircraft's development.

AW609 Tiltrotor Has Flown From Italy’s Aircraft Carrier Cavour

Successful ship trials look to have put the AW609 closer to entering military service after more than 20 years in development.

smoke billows following an Israeli air strike that targeted a house in the southern Lebanese village of Khiam near the Lebanese-Israeli border on June 21, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned on June 21, that fighting between Israel and Hezbollah must not turn Lebanon into "another Gaza." (Photo by Rabih DAHER / AFP) (Photo by RABIH DAHER/AFP via Getty Images)

War Drums Grow Louder Along The Israel-Lebanon Border

America's top uniformed officer says the U.S. military may not be able to support Israel like in the past if an all-out war with Hezbollah were to erupt.

80-passenger Soviet Mil Mi-6P helicopter

The Story Of The Soviet Union’s Monster Mi-6 Helicopter Airliner

The airline variant of the Mi-6 could seat up to 80 passengers and was intended to usher-in a new era of Soviet rotary-wing commercial air travel.

A USAF F-15EX Eagle II armed with 12 AIM-120 AMRAAMs.

F-15EX Testers Are Now Preparing The Eagle II For Rapidly Adapting To New Missions

Long-range kill chains, outsized weapons, and drone teaming are all possibilities, with tablet interfaces keeping new software from accessing the jet's computer.

Must Read Features

The Ohio class nuclear ballistic missile submarine USS Tennessee, the Ticonderoga class cruiser USS Normandy, an E-6B Mercury 'doomsday plane,' and a P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft recently took part in an unusual show of force in the Norwegian Sea.

U.S. Ballistic Missile Submarine, ‘Doomsday Plane’ Take Part In Rare Show Of Force Off Norway

Ukraine Used Prized ATACMS Missiles To Strike Unique Cold War-Era Space Communications Station

Shadowy XRQ-73 Hybrid-Electric Stealthy Flying Wing Drone Emerges

Army’s New PRsM Ballistic Missile Hits Moving Ship For The First Time In Pacific Test

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The War Zone — also known by the shorthand TWZ — has become an essential resource for the defense industry, the national security community, and the interested public at large since it was launched in 2016.

 

From its early beginnings to the present day, TWZ’s purpose remains the same.

 

The site stands at the nexus of military technology, strategy, and foreign policy. As a full-spectrum defense news and analysis website, TWZ covers the air, sea, land, space, and cyber domains of warfare, with an infusion of geopolitical context and technological analysis to offer readers deeper, yet easy-to-consume, insights than what they will find anywhere else….

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