The War Zone. Your daily source for military, defense, and geopolitics coverage.
India
The Air-To-Air Missiles That Equip India And Pakistan’s Fighters
Between them, India and Pakistan can bring to bear a hugely diverse array of air-to-air ordnance offering impressive capabilities, especially at long range.
Army’s Future Tiltrotor Gets Heavier So It Can Rapidly Convert Into Special Ops Variant
Turning UH-60s into Night Stalker MH-60s is a complicated process, and the hope is to avoid that with the Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft.
We Talk About The U.S. Army’s New Black Widow Short-Range Recon Drone With Red Cat
As the U.S. military works to catch-up to major unmanned warfare trends on the battlefield, companies like Red Cat are stepping in.
Harpoon Anti-Ship Missile-Armed AC-130J Gunships Could Be On The Horizon
Harpoons would give AC-130Js a dedicated tool for engaging enemy ships and fit well with plans to boost their capabilities with new radars.
Latest News
B-52s Join B-2s On Diego Garcia,10 Bombers Now At Indian Ocean Island
This is the most bombers seen at Diego Garcia for many years, but it’s very likely that at least some of the B-2s will rotate back home soon.
Israeli-Made Harop Attack Drones Launched By India By The Dozens, Pakistan Claims
Evidence points to the potential use of long-range loitering munitions by India to attack air defenses in Pakistan.
OA-1K Skyraider II Walk-Around Tour With Its Test Pilot
We get an up-close look at L3Harris’ Sky Warden, which is based on the AT-802 Air Tractor and is branded Skyraider II by the Air Force.
Stealthy Special Operations Speedboats Are Getting Kamikaze Drone Launchers
The Navy’s future Combatant Craft Medium Mk 2s will gain the ability to launch long-range strikes on their own.
China’s PL-15 Air-To-Air Missile Appears To Have Been Used In Combat For The First Time
The apparent use of China’s PL-15 by Pakistan in the recent eruption of hostilities with India comes as Rafale shoot-down claims swirl.
Super Hornet Crashes Landing On USS Truman, Its Second F/A-18 Loss In A Week
USS Harry S. Truman has been striking the Houthis, with the other F/A-18 rolling off the deck during an attack on the ship by the rebels last week.
India Strikes, Pakistan Responds, Claims Of Aircraft Losses Mount (Updated)
Indian attacks on targets inside Pakistani-controlled territory prompted an immediate reaction, and there are fears of further escalation.
AC-130 Gunship-Launched Black Arrow Small Cruise Missile Has A 400-Mile Range
Leidos is looking at also making the Black Arrow available for ground and sea-based launch platforms, from HIMARS to warships.
Red Dragon Highly-Autonomous One-Way Attack Drone Unveiled
AeroVironment’s Red Dragon, which is said to already be combat proven, can find its own targets and doesn’t need GPS for precision navigation.
Kratos Close To “A Couple” Final Versions Of XQ-58 Valkyrie For The Marines
As the USMC moves along with XQ-58 testing, Kratos has its sights on the second increment of the USAF’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft tender.
Seaglider Aims To Deliver Small Groups Of Marines Low Over The Waves
Eyeing a future fight in the Pacific, the USMC is seeking craft that can swiftly and efficiently move small loads of troops and materiel to austere locales.
Marine AH-1Z Attack Helicopter’s Mystery Missiles Identified
The modular Red Wolf launched effects weapon could give Marine AH-1Zs a key new standoff strike tool and open the door to other capabilities.
PhantomStrike Low-Cost Lightweight AESA Radar Flies For First Time
The air-cooled AESA is a major contender to equip fighter-like loyal wingman drones, along with other air, land and sea platforms.
Ship Sinks Just Before Being Pummeled With Weapons In Pacific Exercise
Built in World War II, the decommissioned Philippine Navy corvette sank just hours before it was due to be sacrificed in a U.S.-Filipino sinking exercise.
More Latest News
Bunker Talk: Let’s Talk About All The Things We Did And Didn’t Cover This Week
We are running out of light bulbs.
Is An ‘Interim’ Air Force One Replacement Even Feasible?
Reports state that Trump is looking to convert a Qatari royal flight 747 into a less exquisite Air Force One as Boeing’s delays on the VC-25Bs stack up.
F-16s Pulled From U.S. Boneyard Are Being Delivered To Ukraine For Spare Parts
The U.S. had not committed to giving Ukraine its F-16s, but images of the type being flown out of Arizona on a Ukrainian An-124 began circulating last week.
F-15EX To Replace Michigan Air National Guard A-10s
The surprise announcement made by President Trump prompts questions about a larger F-15EX buy and expanded basing plans.
Liberty Lifter Ekranoplan Demonstrator Aims To Lift C-130-Sized Payloads
DARPA is eyeing a first flight for the Liberty Lifter X-plane in 2028-2029, which could lead to a much heavier-lifting production aircraft.
F-15 Eagles Win Big In Supersized Defense Spending Bill
Lawmakers want to accelerate F-15EX production and prevent F-15E Strike Eagle retirements as part of a massive $150B increase in defense spending.
USS Harry Truman Was Evading Houthi Attack When F/A-18 Super Hornet Rolled Off Its Deck
The F/A-18E’s loss is the latest in a string of incidents to befall the Truman, including a collision and friendly fire shootdown, as combat ops grind on.
Bringing Back Medium Range Ballistic Missiles Fast Tracked Under Proposed $150B Defense Boost
Congress wants to speed up work on the Army’s first MRBMs since the Cold War, which will offer new ways to strike land targets and ships.
Tempest Future Fighter Aims For “Really Extreme Range,” Twice F-35 Payload
We’re getting a clearer picture of what the Global Combat Air Program ‘fighter’ will be capable of, including acting as a flying computer server.
Bunker Talk: Let’s Talk About All The Things We Did And Didn’t Cover This Week
Yikes! I think we need to change the air filter in here guys…
F-35C Naval Joint Strike Fighters Have Been Shooting Down Houthi Drones
F-35Cs are also striking targets in Yemen, with their stealth being of unique importance as the Houthi air defense threat comes into the spotlight.
StormBreaker Advanced Glide Bomb Lands In Yemen Largely Intact
The cutting-edge StormBreaker was only recently confirmed as being used in combat and could be of major intelligence value to an adversary.
Air Force’s Next Batch Of Collaborative Combat Drones Could Be Less ‘Exquisite,’ Cheaper
The Air Force also confirms it is looking at teaming CCAs with platforms other than fighters, including the B-21 stealth bomber and E-7 radar plane.
India-Pakistan Tensions On Verge Of Erupting After Deadly Terror Attack
The two nuclear-armed nations last fought in 2019, with tit-for-tat airstrikes following another terror attack in Kashmir.
F-47 6th Generation Fighter Future Force Size Questions Emerge
How many F-47s the Air Force thinks it needs is an open question amid a changing vision of what achieving air superiority will entail.
New Views Of China’s Next Generation Fighters
We are seeing increasingly detailed imagery of Beijing’s two new stealth fighter designs as other potential curious fighter-like objects have emerged out of China.
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….
