Modern Day Marine 2026

Modern Day Marine 2026

A U.S. Marine Corps XQ-58A Valkyrie, highly autonomous, low-cost tactical unmanned air vehicle, conducts its second test flight with two U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II aircraft assigned to 33rd Fighter Wing, 96th Test Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., Feb. 23, 2023. The XQ-58A Valkyrie test flight and the data collected inform future requirements for the Marine Corps in a rapidly evolving security environment, while successfully fueling joint innovation and experimentation opportunities. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. John McRell)

F-35s Quarterbacking Drones Seen As Gateway To USMC’s 6th Gen Fighter

Collaborative Combat Aircraft will “bridge” the Marines to a family of new capabilities that could include a new stealth fighter based on F/A-XX.

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Apr 20, 2026 4:27 PM EDT

The U.S. Marine Corps has quietly axed the roll-on/roll-off Harvest Hawk armament kit for its KC-130J Hercules tanker/transport aircraft.

KC-130J’s Hellfire Missile-Firing Harvest Hawk Kits Retired By Marines

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Feb 23, 2026

U.S. Marine Corps legacy F/A-18C/D Hornets are in line to add air-to-air optimized versions of the 70mm Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System II (APKWS II) rocket to their arsenal.

USMC’s Old F/A-18 Hornets To Get Drone Swatting Laser Guided Rockets

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Feb 13, 2026

YFQ-42 selected for test program with the USMC.

YFQ-42 Fighter Drone To Test USMC’s Autonomy ‘Brain’ Alongside Crewed Jets

By Tyler Rogoway

Updated on Feb 11, 2026

The U.S. Marine Corps says it is planning to award a sole-source contract for a new AGM-114 Hellfire missile-armed mobile counter-drone system to defense contractor V2X.

Counter-Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (C-UAS)

Company Behind Drone-Killing Hellfire Missile-Armed Buggy Set To Get Marine Corps Contract

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Feb 3, 2026

Continued Coverage

Kratos has confirmed to TWZ that the landing gear-equipped version of its XQ-58 Valkyrie drone being developed for the U.S. Marines will still be able to make rocket-assisted takeoffs from static launchers.

Marine XQ-58 Valkyries Will Launch Via Rockets Or Runways

Rocket-launched USMC XQ-58s will still need to touch down on runways after their missions, presenting opportunities and a few tradeoffs.

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Jan 9, 2026