The War Zone. Your daily source for military, defense, and geopolitics coverage.

F-47

Here Is What Trump’s Gargantuan $1.5T Defense Budget Has In It

The U.S. military is pushing to make huge investments in many programs in Fiscal Year 2027, but also some notable cuts.

Latest News

A U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer prepares to taxi prior to takeoff in support of Operation Epic Fury, March 6, 2026.
Persian Gulf

Questions Loom Over Iran Ceasefire

Both sides are claiming a triumphant victory, but the peace that’s in place now is very delicate and will have to survive tumultuous negotiations.

BAE has test fired APKWS rockets from an RAF Typhoon for the first time.
Laser Guided Rockets

Eurofighter Typhoon Test Fires Laser-Guided Counter-Drone Rockets

The trial couldn’t come soon enough as Typhoons battle Iranian drones in the Persian Gulf.

B-2 Spirit about to head out on mission over Iran.
Persian Gulf

Trump Agrees To Ceasefire With Iran

Trump is stepping back from his threat to end Iran as a civilization predicated on the Strait of Hormuz being quickly opened.

RQ-180 features seen in new videos shot in Greece.
RQ-180

New Views Of Massive RQ-180 Stealth Drone Flying Over Greece

The secretive drone continues to be spotted flying during the day, offering new insights into its features.

A-10 is fitted with a refueling probe in its receptacle door for testing.
A-10

A-10 Warthog Being Tested With Aerial Refueling Probe (Updated)

Beyond a win for the A-10, putting refueling probes on USAF tactical jets could be a boon of the service’s Agile Combat Employment strategy.

President Donald Trump and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine provided new details about the risky missions to rescue the crew of an F-15E Strike Eagle shot down over Iran.
Iran

Everything We Now Know About The Operation To Rescue The F-15E WSO (Updated)

We have gotten many new details about how the high-risk extraction effort deep in Iranian territory went down.

MV-75 will be entering service much fast than originally planned.
FLRAA

MV-75 Tiltrotor Already Part Of Army Officer Training, General Says

With the Army putting its MV-75 tiltrotor on a blazingly fast track, troops are already getting experience on the aircraft before the first one is even delivered.

U.S. Army MH-60 Black Hawks assigned to the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment approach Marine Corps Outlying Field Atlantic during a forward arming and refueling point exercise, MCOLF Atlantic, May 6, 2025. U.S. Army Soldiers and aircraft from the 160th SOAR utilized MCAS Cherry Point’s training area to conduct a FARP. This training is essential for enhancing the unit’s operational readiness and ensuring efficient support for rapid deployment, as Cherry Point provides the facilities and resources to simulate real world scenarios.
MH-60/AH-60

This Is What The Night Stalkers’ MH-60M Direct Action Penetrator Brought To The Venezuelan Op

The hard-hitting attack version of the special operations MH-60 was clearly among the critical assets used in Operation Absolute Resolve.

U.S. M1A2 Abrams assigned to 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Task Force Iron, maneuver to get on line with the Apache helicopters assigned to 1st Battalion, 501st Aviation Regiment, Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Armored Division, Task Force Iron, during Iron Defender-25 at Orzysz Training Area in Orzysz, Poland, Sept. 17, 2025. The Apache helicopters provided cover fire while the Abrams advanced. The purpose of large scale training events like Iron Defender-25 is to prove the Polish Armed Forces and their NATO allies’ ability to deter and effectively defend the territory of Poland. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Pfc. Andre Gremillion Jr.)
AH-64

U.S. Army AH-64E Apache’s Counter-Drone Capability Rapidly Matures

Apaches scored 13 drone kills out of 14 engagements during Operation Flyswatter, reflecting the AH-64’s evolving counter-UAS capabilities.

A secretive late Cold War-era drone program known as Quartz, intended to persistently monitor mobile nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles deep within the Soviet Union, offers a window into exactly why the RQ-180 could be in high demand in the Middle East now.
Iran

RQ-180’s Likely Role Over Iran Foreshadowed By Secret Cold War Stealth Drone Program

Large sums of money were spent trying to build a spy drone just like the RQ-180 for a very specific mission decades beforehand.

FARP in Iran set up by special tactics squadron airman during WSO rescue.
Iran

How A Dusty Strip Deep In Iran Can Be Turned Into A U.S. Special Operations Base In Hours

An ex-USAF Special Tactics Squadron member tells how the impromptu airfield in Iran would have been rapidly established and defended.

B-52 epic fury mission.
Persian Gulf

Iran Rejects Ceasefire Deal (Updated)

As Trump’s deadline for making Iran into a “living hell” fast approaches, a chasm remains between the two foes on a way to even temporarily pause the war.

Where are the carriers graphic.
Carriers

Carrier Tracker As Of April 3, 2026

Third American carrier strike group deployed this week in support of Operation Epic Fury

Operation Aspides, the European naval task force charged with protecting Red Sea shipping, is eyeing a potential Houthi resumption of hostilities in the waterway.
Red Sea

Amid Fears Houthis Could Close Bab el-Mandeb Strait, Red Sea Task Force Ready For Attacks

Concerns grow that the Iranian-backed rebels could close the waterway, drastically exacerbating the global oil crisis and opening a new front.

Tomahawks running low in war with Iran.
Iran

U.S. Is Burning Through Tomahawk Cruise Missile Stockpile At An Alarming Rate: Report

The four-week conflict with Iran has so far consumed more than a whopping 850 Tomahawk missiles, officials have stated.

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Little birds of the 160th SOAR were destroyed in Iran after the successful rescue of a F-15E WSO

Night Stalker AH-6 Little Bird Helicopters Destroyed At Forward Landing Site In Iran

At least one burned-out AH/MH-6 Little Bird can be seen in photos of the austere airfield that served as a hub for the rescue of the F-15E WSO.

The WSO of an F-15E Strike Eagle shot down over Iran has been rescued, according to reports.

F-15E Weapon Systems Officer Shot Down Over Iran Has Been Rescued (Updated)

The airman was rescued by U.S. special operations forces reportedly after a fierce firefight that was the culmination of a massive high-risk search operation.

Iran claims it shot down a fighter over Iran showing wreckage on an F-15E.

F-15E Down In Iran, Rescue Operation Ongoing (Updated)

The F-15E went down under unknown circumstances and U.S. combat search and rescue assets have been seen deep in Iran.

Col. William C. Hannan, Jr., U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Transatlantic Division commander, examines innovative design feature updates on the U.S. Army Central’s Bunker Retrofit project, designed to increase protection for service members throughout the U.S. Central Command’s area of operations, prior to the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Phase II Live-fire Experiment at Fort Polk, La., Mar. 10.

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

Just two more weeks… Hopefully?

A former who commando who fought in Iraq offers candid insights into the Iranian-backed militia attacks there since Epic Fury.

Iran Is Losing Its Grip On Iraqi Militias

A former tier one operator in Iraq offers candid insights into the spike in attacks against U.S. interests by Iranian-backed militias.

A photographer on a flight over Greenville, Texas, captured an especially good look at one of the U.S. Air Force's RC-135V/W Rivet Joint aircraft with its usual paint scheme completely stripped off.

RC-135 Rivet Joint Surveillance Jet Caught ‘In The Nude’ In Texas

It’s not common to see America’s workhorse electronic intelligence collection jet stripped of its gray-and-white paint scheme.

The U.S. Air Force's highly secretive NT-43A radar cross-section measurement platform is supporting the launch of NASA's Artemis II space mission, and this reflects the start of an entirely new stage in the career of the notoriously shy aircraft.

Secretive 737 Radar Jet ‘RAT55’ Has Begun “The Next Phase Of Its Career”

Making a peculiar appearance supporting NASA’s Artemis II launch is just the beginning of what comes next for RAT55, the world’s most secretive 737.

A-4 landing

Ian Ellis-Jones Has Touched Down At TWZ

A letter from the editor as TWZ’s team and mission expands.

A U.S. Air Force F-35 Lightning II assigned to the 6th Weapons Squadron takes flight during Red Flag-Nellis 26-1 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, Feb. 3, 2026. Red Flag increases interoperability between partner nations and across the Joint Forces as Airman and Guardians train together in high-end, realistic scenarios. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Lauren Clevenger)

F-35 Crashes In The Nevada Test And Training Range Complex (Updated)

The aircraft went down in the range complex north of Las Vegas earlier today, with the pilot safely ejecting.

Rapidly fielding more hardened shelters to better protect U.S. forces at bases in the Middle East is a top priority, according to Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.

Bunkers For U.S. Bases In Middle East Now A Top Priority For Pentagon

A rush to harden bases in the Middle East should finally be a much needed wake-up call to glaring gaps globally.

A retired Air Force tanker pilot and wing commander offers insights into what it will take to fight China

Former KC-135 Wing Commander On What It Will Take To Fuel A Fight Against China

Retired Air Force Col. Troy Pananon offers candid insights into the strain a fight with China would put on the tanker fleet.

A KC-135T Stratotanker from the 171st Aerial Refueling Squadron of the 127th Wing at Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Michigan, readies to refuel an A-10C from the 107th Fighter Squadron, also from Selfridge, on an aerial refueling sortie June 27, 2023. In addition to routine aerial refueling training in all conditions, aircraft from the 127th Wing commemorated the 100-year anniversary of the first aerial refueling conducted on June 27, 1923.

Dozens Of A-10 Warthogs Appear Poised To Join Epic Fury

The deployment of additional Warthogs comes amid increasing signs a ground operation on Iranian soil could come soon.

Ukraine is experimenting with private sector air defense.

Ukraine Using Private Air Defense Teams To Protect Industry Against Russian Drones

By mobilizing the private sector, Ukraine hopes to reduce the air defense burden on its troops while increasing coverage.

A-10 on a strafing run.

A-10 Warthogs Are Doing Bizarrely Long Strafing Runs In Iraq

A-10s making nine-second-long gun runs is absolutely not normal.

The Israeli Air Force has released a picture of F-16I Sufa fighters taking part in strikes on Iran, and the jets appear to be carrying cluster munitions.

Israeli F-16s Appear To Be Carrying Cluster Munitions

The cluster munitions likely have a very particular purpose aimed at neutering Iran’s ability to launch long-range ballistic missiles.

E-3 sentry seen destroyed after Iranian attack in Saudi Arabia.

Images Show E-3 Sentry Totally Destroyed From Iranian Strike (Updated)

A loss of an E-3 is a major blow for the dwindling fleet of increasingly rickety airframes and points to other capability and defensive gaps.

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Watch This Crazy Cockpit Video Of A Cessna Landing In A Hole In The Jungle

Watch This Crazy Cockpit Video Of A Cessna Landing In A Hole In The Jungle

The Mysterious Cold War Case Of Unidentified Aircraft Descending On Loring Air Force Base

This Was The Largest Conventional Explosion America Ever Set Off

We Talk To The Scientist Whose Revolutionary Power Beaming Experiment Is Flying On The X-37B

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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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