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TWZ. Where the cutting-edge of military technology, tactics, strategy, and geopolitics collide.

The U.S. Navy's supercarrier USS Abraham Lincoln is now in Thailand after 286 days at sea, looking very much worse for wear. USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72)

USS Abraham Lincoln Looks Like It’s Been Through Hell After 286 Days At Sea

We got our first good look at the Lincoln as it pulled into port in Thailand for its only liberty call of its entire cruise and after sustaining high-tempo combat ops for months.

Latest News

Ukrainian Air Force

Missile Shortage Has Now Hit Ukrainian F-16 Force

The shortage is so acute that the air force frantically tracks incoming missile shipments and waits to see whether they arrive before Russia’s next aerial barrage.

Persian Gulf

Iranian Oil Tankers In The Cross Hairs Of New U.S. Campaign

At least two Iranian oil tankers were struck by the U.S. as part of Trump’s new tanker-for-a-tanker policy.

Site Expansions Underpin Lockheed Martin’s Munitions Production Ramp

Branded Content: Bigger sites, advanced manufacturing techniques, and boosting the workforce are key industry commitments to increased munitions production.

Germany

Israeli LORA Ballistic Missiles Fired From German Frigate

LORA could give Germany’s navy a way to strike highly defended and hardened targets hundreds of miles inland.

China

Chinese Cargo Ships Clandestinely Gather Signals Intelligence: Report

It should not come as too much of a surprise that China is using its massive commercial fleet to spy around the globe as they go about their business.

Germany

Germany Formally Accuses Russia Of Attempted Drone Strike On Ukrainian An-124 Cargo Jet

The news comes as Germany’s power grid is also targeted, with separate incidents pointing to a widening threat in Germany and beyond.

U.S. Army

Army Widens Stinger Surface-To-Air Missile Replacement Search

Lockheed and Raytheon are developing competing Stinger replacements now, but the Army wants to put additional designs to the test next year.

F/A-18E/F

Blackbeard Low-Cost Hypersonic Missile Testing On The F/A-18 Super Hornet Has Begun

The Navy is aiming to have at least a limited operational arsenal of Blackbeard hypersonic missiles within the next two years.

Air-To-Air

Tiny Air-To-Air Missile In Development For Stealthy U.S. Navy Combat Aircraft

The big AIM-424 long-range air-to-air missile has grabbed headlines, but the Navy is also pursuing a new weapon for the exact opposite use case.

Japan Air Self Defense Force

Japan’s ASM-3 Kai Supersonic Cruise Missile May Have An Air-To-Air Capability

Japan calls the ASM-3 Kai an “air-to-surface/anti-air” weapon, potentially pointing to a new counter to large high-value airborne targets.

HH-60

USAF Stands Up Unit To Fly HH-60W Helicopters In Doomsday Evacuation Role In Nation’s Capital

Jolly Green II rescue helicopters offer a capability boost for VIP airlift and continuity of government roles, but there are questions about the plan.

Iran

U.S. Expanding B-52 Bomber Capacity At Moron Air Base In Spain

The investment comes after Spain would not allow the U.S. to use Moron for long-range bomber missions against Iran.

Carrier Tracker

Where Are The Aircraft Carriers?: USS Abraham Lincoln Escorted To Thailand As The Middle East Heats Up

The Navy pulled a cruiser from the George Washington Carrier Strike Group to escort USS Abraham Lincoln into the South China Sea under unclear circumstances.

U.S. Navy

Navy Sounds Like It Now Wants The Air Combat Drone It Notoriously Passed Over A Decade Ago

A carrier drone with a heavy weapons capacity, long reach, and the ability to operate in heavily contested airspace is just what the junked X-47B was designed to offer.

Iran

Iranian Launchers Struck By U.S. Held Exotic And Highly Concerning Rocket-Delivered Sea Mines

Seeding mine fields at standoff distances via rockets puts the critical southern route through the strait, now a global lifeline, at great risk.

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3M22 Zircon

Russia’s Zircon May Not Be A Hypersonic Cruise Missile After All

Ukraine’s intelligence report maps Zircon’s production chain and claims to identify U.S.-origin electronics inside the missile.

Japan

Japan’s First Dedicated Missile Defense Warship Is A Monster

Japan’s first ASEV missile defense ship just had its huge radar mast installed, providing a new sense of scale for these cruiser-sized warships.

Russia

Russia Changing Missile And Drone Attack Strategy On Ukrainian Capital

Ukraine Situation Report: The new strategy prioritizes frequency over amplitude, wearing down the populace and exhausting air defenders.

Bunker Talk

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

We should have brought more puzzles.

China

Massive Expansion At China’s ‘Area 51’

The buildout of the remote flight-test base has accelerated sharply, and large new hangars suggest a specific type of aircraft may be arriving in the near future.

Indo-Pacific

Indonesia’s First Aircraft Carrier Is On Its Way From Italy

Indonesia is about to join Southeast Asia’s small but unusual aircraft-carrier club.

Gripen

Saab’s Gripen F Two-Seater Takes To The Air For The First Time

The two-seat advanced Gripen offers additional flexibility and could be especially relevant for future operations alongside drones.

Air-To-Air

What Europe Needs Next In Beyond-Visual-Range Air-To-Air Missiles

Meteor set the benchmark for Europe’s beyond-visual-range air combat, but the game is changing fast.

Russia

Claims Swirl Around CIA Director’s Reason For Secret Moscow Visit, Nearly All Of Them Are Terrifying

John Ratcliffe’s surprise trip to Moscow may have marked a darker phase in the NATO-Russia standoff.

M2/3 Bradley

Bradley Fighting Vehicle Lugging Load Of Swarming Ground Drones Is A Sign Of What’s To Come

Bradleys deploying swarms of uncrewed ground vehicles would give the US Army a horde of new options for scouting and attacking.

Air

J-10 Deal With Bangladesh Takes Shape As China’s Fighter Export Push Grows

Bangladesh could be in line to order the export version of the J-10, while mounting evidence points to another potential customer.

J-20

The Mystery Of J-20 Fighter-Like Shapes Spotted In China Has Been Solved

The peculiar fighter shapes started appearing on ramps in China years ago, but now we finally know at least one of their uses.

Russia

Ukraine Situation Report: Russia To Seize Commercial Infrastructure Left Unprotected From Drones

Russia says companies need to buy their own air defenses to protect critical facilities, and those that haven’t will be commandeered.

F-15

Poland’s Name Appears in U.S. F-15EX Deal, Warsaw Denies Procurement Plans

Warsaw says it doesn’t have F-15EX procurement plans for now, but an AH-64 Apache precedent makes the development intriguing.

Unmanned Surface Vessels (USVs)

Ukraine’s Newest USV Is A Super Sized Mothership Packed With Anti-Drone Interceptors

Designed for days-long open ocean operations, the Magura MV11 can act as a floating counter-drone battery.

C-17

USAF C-17 Makes Extremely Rare Visit To Moscow (Updated)

The C-17 flew to the Russian capital from a base just outside Washington, D.C., with a stop in Riga, Latvia.

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Must Read Features

Air Force One

Air Force One Has This Unique Navigator’s Cockpit Station That’s Unlike Any Other 747

F-22

F-22 Now Has AIM-9X But Still No Helmet Mounted Display To Use With It

India

Historic Indian Carrier Set To Be Scrapped After 58 Years Of Service With Two Navies

U.S. Air Force

This Is What It Took To Defend A B-17 Bomber

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TWZ — previously known as The War Zone — 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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