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U.S. military aircraft employed GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bombs (SDB) and laser-guided 70mm Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System II (APKWS II) rockets as part of the operation to strike Iranian nuclear facilities earlier this year.
F-22

Pentagon Moves To Replace Weapons It Used In Operation Midnight Hammer

Beyond the B-2s and their Massive Ordnance Penetrator bunker busters, we are still learning more about Operation Midnight Hammer.

The Chinese aviation industry has been developing an expanding array of flying-wing uncrewed aircraft, including as uncrewed combat air vehicles (UCAV) and high-altitude intelligence-gathering platforms, often in cooperation with state-run research institutions.
Unmanned

New Chinese Flying Wing Drone Design Emerges

The uncrewed aircraft, which carries the logo of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was spotted ahead of an airshow in northeastern China.

Peru has received approval to buy 12 F-16C/D Block 70 jets, which would make it the fourth South American operator of the Lockheed Martin fighter. If the acquisition goes ahead, it will also confirm the Peruvian Air Force’s move away from Russian-made combat aircraft, which currently make up a significant proportion of its fleet. These aircraft are now increasingly hard to support and, in general, Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has had a serious impact on its arms exports.
F-16

F-16 Cleared To Be Peru’s Next Fighter

Washington has approved a potential F-16 to Peru, a country struggling with an aging fleet of Russian- and European-made fighters.

U.S. President Donald Trump claims third drug boat attack in a message to Maduro.
South America

Trump Says Another Drug Running Boat Has Been Destroyed

Hostilities continue to escalate in the Caribbean as the Trump administration names a new target on its list of drug trafficking countries.

A U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor has achieved what is, according to missile manufacturer Raytheon, the longest known AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) shot. Exactly how far away the fighter was from its target when it fired the radar-guided is unclear, but the milestone points both to the continued development of the AMRAAM’s capabilities as well as the growing focus, across the U.S. military, on extended-range air-to-air missiles to keep pace with developments in China and Russia.
F-22

F-22 Raptor Scores “Longest Known” AIM-120 AMRAAM Shot

Manufacturer Raytheon continues to get longer reach out of its AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile, while its AIM-260 successor waits in the wings.

13 September 2025, Puerto Rico, Ceiba: US Marines park a Lockheed Martin F-35B fighter aircraft at Roosevelt Roads Naval Station. The transfer of US fighter aircraft to the outlying area is linked to the increasing tensions between the United States and Venezuela. Photo: Kendall Torres Cortés/dpa (Photo by Kendall Torres Cortés/picture alliance via Getty Images)
U.S. Navy

Historic Shuttered Navy Base Back In Action For Caribbean Counter-Drug Mission

In 2004, the Navy disposed of the former Naval Station Roosevelt Roads in Puerto Rico, but current events have seen it awaken once again.

Image of a Royal Air Force Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, seen here flying over RAF Lossiemouth. In a training flight conducted over the Moray Firth a Poseidon (P-8A) aircraft operated by 120 Sqn, based at RAF Lossiemouth, dropped a recoverable exercise variant of the Mark 54 Lightweight Torpedo, simulating an attack on a submarine. At just under 3m long and 32cm in diameter, the Mk 54 torpedo is small and light enough that five can be carried in the Poseidon's internal weapons bay. the high-explosive warheads on the live torpedoes pack a devastating punch sufficient to destroy enemy submarines that the Poseidon crew can locate and track using state-of-the-art equipment. The successful release of a torpedo is the latest milestone in the rapid development of the Poseidon in RAF service. Five Poseidon MRA1s are based at RAF Lossiemouth with a further four set to be delivered by the end of this year. The station, which is situated in close proximity to one of the aircraft's most frequent area of operations, is benefiting from a multi-million pound investment programme bringing significant economic benefits to the Highlands & Islands and Morayshire communities. The Poseidon is fitted with advanced, state-of-the-art, Anti-Submarine Warfare and Anti-Surface Warfare sensors which will provide global protection to UK, NATO and our Allies' submarines and warships in an increasingly dangerous world.
P-8

British P-8 Poseidon Flies Unusual Overland Mission Along Polish Border

As NATO fighters flew their first Eastern Sentry missions, a British P-8 monitored Russia-Belarus military drills along the Polish border.

The last MC-12W Liberty turboprop surveillance aircraft under U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command's (AFSOC) umbrella have been retired.
Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC)

Last Special Operations MC-12W Surveillance Planes Retired

The MC-12Ws were retired to make way for OA-1K light attack planes, but some worry this risks creating an aerial intelligence-gathering gap.

The U.S. Army’s Typhon ground-based missile system has, for the first time, been deployed in Japan, in what’s being seen as a clear message to China. The system, which can fire Tomahawk cruise missiles and SM-6 multi-purpose missile, is a growing feature of U.S. military activities in the Indo-Pacific region, with a first live-fire exercise having taken place in Australia in July, as you can read about here.
U.S. Army

Army Deploys Typhon Missile System To Japan For The First Time

Typhon brings the means to rapidly deploy Tomahawk cruise missiles and SM-6 missiles, giving the ability to put targets at risk up to 1,000 miles away.

F-35B Puerto Rico
F-35B

F-35s Arrive In Puerto Rico For Counter-Drug Operation

The aircraft join an armada of eight ships and 4,500 Marines deployed to fight cartels and deliver a message to Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro.

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

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

We should have bought more DVDs!

Royal Danish Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcons fly off the wing of a U.S. Air Force B-52H Stratofortress, assigned to the 20th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, during a Bomber Task Force Europe 25-1 mission over the U.S. European Command area of responsibility, Nov. 15, 2024. Multinational exercises enhance interoperability with NATO forces, strengthening the collective ability to respond to global threats.
Polish Air Force

Fighters, Frigate To Help Defend Poland From Drones Under New NATO Operation

Operation Eastern Sentry will see Rafales, Eurofighters, more F-16s, and an air defense frigate help protect Poland from future Russian drone incursions.

We now have our first look at the U.S. Air Force's two flying B-21 Raider stealth bombers together at Edwards Air Force Base.
B-21

Two B-21 Raider Stealth Bombers Photographed Together For The First Time

The Air Force now has a pair of flying B-21s at Edwards Air Force Base helping pave the way for America's future bomber force.

The Department of Defense needs to mass produce its own shahed-136 clone.
Unmanned

U.S. Needs To Be Building Tens Of Thousands Of Shahed-136 Clones Right Now

The U.S. military's lack of urgency when it comes to building long-range one-way attack munitions at huge scale has been absurd and dangerous.

An Italian Air Force F-2000 Eurofighter Typhoon flies a routine presence patrol mission over the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, Feb. 6, 2025. Close collaboration with partner nations improves interoperability, ensuring rapid crisis response and sustained operations to protect vital mutual interests in the AOR.
Typhoon

Drone-Killing APKWS Laser-Guided Rockets Eyed For Eurofighter Typhoon

The air-to-air optimized variant of the APKWS rocket is being assessed as an option for the Eurofighter Typhoon as concerns over the drone threat in Europe grow.

Poland is closing airspace and said the Russian drone incursion was a test.
Unmanned

Poland Says Russia’s Mass Drone Incursion Was “A Test”

While Russia continues to deny it deliberately sent drones into Poland, NATO is racing to bolster its defenses against future such events.

Second B-21 Raider Stealth Bomber Has Flown (Updated)
Air

Second B-21 Raider Stealth Bomber Has Flown (Updated)

Air Force officials had previously said their goal was to have two B-21s flying around the end of this year.

The last of the venerable Sukhoi Su-22 Fitter swing-wing strike aircraft in Europe have been officially withdrawn from service. At one time, the Su-22 was a backbone of Warsaw Pact offensive airpower on the continent, with the final examples having been flown by the Polish Air Force, which had flown these impressive jets since the first example was delivered more than 40 years ago.
Polish Air Force

Poland’s Su-22 Fitter Swing-Wing Strike Jets Pass Into History

After four decades of service, the last Soviet-era Polish Su-22 Fitter swing-wing strike aircraft have finally been withdrawn.

Japan's Acquisition Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA) has released new pictures from testing of a prototype electromagnetic railgun aboard the testbed warship JS Asuka earlier this year.
Naval Gun Systems

Japanese Warship Fires Railgun At Target Vessel For The First Time

Japan says the test is the first of its kind ever as it continues to pursue naval railguns years after the U.S. Navy halted work on its own program.

We now have our first full look at a modified 2,000-pound-class GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munition, or JDAM, optimized for use as an anti-ship munition as part of the U.S. Air Force's Quicksink program.
U.S. Air Force

USAF’s Quicksink Ship-Killing Smart Bomb Seen In Detail Like Never Before

The USAF has offered new views of the Quicksink anti-ship bomb after a B-2 stealth bomber deployed the weapon off Norway in a test.