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Royal Navy warships tracked a suspected Russian spy ship as it sailed through waters close to the UK. Yantar, believed to be used by the Russian Navy for intelligence gathering, was shadowed by HMS Somerset and HMS Tyne. Somerset covertly launched her Merlin helicopter, which used its powerful sensors to locate the Russian ship as it made its way north towards the English Channel. The Type 23 frigate closed in on Yantar’s location and intercepted it in the entrance to the Channel – south of the traffic separation scheme at Ushant, near France. The Plymouth-based warship took over monitoring duties from NATO allies after they shadowed Yantar in waters close to France. Somerset used her cutting-edge radars and sensors to report on every move during the operation, as she maintained a close distance to Yantar through the Channel and the Strait of Dover. Patrol ship Tyne was also monitoring the Yantar – last in waters around the UK in November when its activities were monitored by several Royal Navy units. Russia

Royal Navy Nuclear Submarine Surfaced Next To Russian Spy Ship To Send A Clear Message

The Russian spy ship Yantar, accused of mapping underwater infrastructure, was back in U.K. waters this week.

Latest Articles

North Korea rocket launcher truck MLRS in Russia

Artillery Rocket Launcher Disguised As Civilian Truck May Have Just Appeared In Russia

A multiple launch rocket system concealed inside a civilian truck appears to be the latest example of North Korean weaponry arriving in Russia.

F-35 AI-Enabled Drone Controller Capability Successfully Demonstrated

F-35 AI-Enabled Drone Controller Capability Successfully Demonstrated

The F-35, along with the F-22, are gaining new capabilities to help pilots control Collaborative Combat Aircraft and other drones.

Type 054B Luohe

Chinese Navy Commissions First Type 054B Frigate

The Type 054B frigate is larger and more capable than its predecessor, and could eventually become the backbone of China's growing combat fleet.

South Korea's domestically developed Marine Attack Helicopter (MAH) completed its first flight test in December 2024, the country's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) announced on January 15, 2025.

This Is South Korea’s New Heavily Armed Marine Attack Helicopter

The latest expression of the Korean Utility Helicopter family is a maritime attack platform bristling with armament.

F-35Bs on san clémente island for austere operations training during Steel Knight exercise.

We Went With Marine F-35Bs As They Fought A Mock War From A Pacific Island

F-35Bs and C-17As fighting their way to, from, and out of the island is the best glimpse yet at what Pacific combat may look like for Marine Joint Strike Fighters.

More North Korean Artillery Troops Heading To Russia: Ukraine Intel Chief

More North Korean Artillery Troops Heading To Russia: Ukraine Intel Chief

The North Korean reinforcements will include gun and rocket artillery units and their hardware, as well as short-range ballistic missile capabilities.

F-22 Raptor To Get Distributed Infrared Search And Track System

F-22 Raptor To Get Distributed Infrared Search And Track System

The F-22 seemed slated to get a podded IRST system, but now a built-in one appears like it will be replacing or augmenting it.

NATO’s Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) has confirmed to TWZ that four Dutch F-35A stealth fighters are now also participating in Baltic Sentry, a mission intended, among other things, to ensure the security of critical undersea infrastructure in the region. The jets were already in the region as part of the alliance’s Baltic Air Policing mission.

F-35s Now Helping Prevent Baltic Seafloor Cable Sabotage

The Dutch stealth fighters, stationed in Estonia, are among the latest additions to the Baltic Sentry mission.

Cheap Cruise Missile Paired With Affordable Seeker From Ship-Killing Smart Bomb Eyed By USAF

Cheap Cruise Missile Paired With Affordable Seeker From Ship-Killing Smart Bomb Eyed By USAF

The Quicksink seeker could turn the Extended Range Attack Munition into a new low-cost anti-ship weapon that could be bought quickly in large numbers.

More Latest News

Drone scare New Jersey

FBI’s New Jersey Drone Scare Investigation Has No Suspects

As the New Jersey drone scare fades from the news cycle, President Trump says he is going to release info on it to the public.

In the coming weeks, drone boats will be plying the waters of the Baltic Sea helping to detect and deter undersea cable sabotage as part of Baltic Sentry.

Drone Boats Being Rushed To Help Prevent Baltic Seafloor Cable Sabotage

At least 20 drone boats will take part in NATO's new Baltic Sentry effort spurred by suspected sabotage of undersea cables.

The ex-USS John F. Kennedy left Philadelphia today for a journey to a Texas scrapyard

The Famed Ex-USS John F. Kennedy Casts Off On Its Final Voyage (Updated)

The Kitty Hawk class carrier was sold for one cent to scrappers after attempts at making it a museum ship failed.

PACIFIC OCEAN (Jan. 23, 2024) The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG 111) fires an SM-2 missile during a live-fire exercise. Spruance, assigned to the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, is currently underway in the U.S. 3rd Fleet area of operations conducting advanced tactical training that increases warfighting capability and tactical proficiency across all domains. (U.S. Navy photo by Ensign John Rosenberg)

Navy Warships Have To Leave Red Sea Fight For Weeks To Reload Their Missiles

Such a reality, and its implications for a war with China, are driving the development of the Transferrable Reload At-sea Method used to reload missiles underway.

The Ukrainian Air Force is investigating whether key personnel were sent to the front lines, a move that could drastically affect its combat capability.

Investigation Launched Into Transfer Of Ukrainian MiG-29 Maintainers, Air Defenders To Front Lines

The Ukrainian Air Force acknowledged that sending these troops to the front could drastically affect its combat capabilities.

Newly released pictures offer the first real look at the four new large launch tubes for firing Intermediate-Range Conventional Prompt Strike (IRCPS) hypersonic missiles now installed on the U.S. Navy's stealth destroyer USS Zumwalt.

First Look At Stealth Destroyer’s Hypersonic Missile Launchers

USS Zumwalt will pack a dozen long-range hypersonic missiles, but one of its Advanced Gun Systems still remains after the refit.

Navy MH-60 drone kill in the Red Sea.

Navy MH-60 Seahawk Helicopter Has Shot Down Its First Drone

A Navy MH-60 Romeo Seahawk helicopter deployed to the Red Sea has shot down a Houthi drone, the vice chief of Naval Operations revealed Tuesday.

Iran has developed a reputation for launching some unconventional naval vessels, some of them downright bizarre — at least when compared with their equivalents elsewhere in the world. Its latest offering, the Zagros, is very much in keeping with this trend: a surveillance ship based on a corvette hull, an unorthodox approach for a type of vessel that’s normally converted from a commercial hull.

Iran Unveils New Spy Ship Based On Corvette Hull

While most intelligence-gathering ships are based on commercial designs or specifications, Iran’s new spy ship uses a Mowj class corvette hull.

General Atomics has offered a look at a new air-to-surface missile it is developing.

New Air-Launched Cruise Missile Teased By General Atomics

General Atomics entering the air-to-surface missile market space makes sense, especially given a surge of interest in lower-cost designs.

A conceptual design of the U.S. Navy's future DDG(X) warship.

DDG(X) Next-Generation Destroyer’s Capabilities And Costs Are Solidifying

The Navy’s head of surface warfare says DDG(X) is a "clean-sheet imperative" that will prioritize electricity production, endurance and advanced weapons.

Rendering of a Medium Landing Ship.

Navy Now Seeking Commercial Ship Design To Propel Its Long-Delayed Medium Landing Ship Program Forward

The Navy halted the Medium Landing Ship effort last month after high cost estimates and is now seeking commercial vessel designs to move Marines in a Pacific fight.

Members of Hamas's armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, arrive in a vehicle at a street in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on January 15, 2025, amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. Thousands of Gazans celebrated on January 15 as news spread that a ceasefire and hostage release deal had been reached between Israel and Hamas, aimed at ending more than 15 months of war in the Palestinian territory.

Gaza Ceasefire Agreed To, Final Israeli Approval Pending (Updated)

After more than 15 months of fighting, a Gaza ceasefire deal that includes the release of Israeli hostages is expected to be implemented within days.

Norwegian F-35s are in Poznań, Poland, as part of Norway's contribution to NATO's integrated air and missile defense.

Norwegian F-35s Scrambled In Poland During Russian Missile Strikes On Ukraine

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion, multiple missiles and drones have entered Polish airspace, which is now also defended by Norwegian assets.

Analysis of china's new stealth tailless fighter aircraft

What China’s Next Generation Stealth Jet Reveal Really Means

Deep analysis on China's new advanced tailless 'fighter' aircraft, what we know and what we don't, and their broader implications.

An image has appeared showing a Chinese commercial roll-on/roll-off (RO/RO) ferry linked to a temporary pier via a barge with jack-up supports. This follows the emergence of satellite imagery showing multiple similar, but different jack-up barges in various stages of construction at a shipyard in southeastern China.

Chinese Barge Usable For Potential Taiwan Beach Landings Seen In Action In New Image

Barges with jack-up legs could be key connectors for Chinese ships, including commercial ferries, and the shore.

How many weapons US Navy ships launched in the Red Sea.

Navy Just Revealed Tally Of Surface-To-Air Missiles Fired In Ongoing Red Sea Fight

Navy surface combatants have fired off hundreds of missiles and five-inch shells to repel Houthi drone and missile attacks.

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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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