HMMWV Builder AM General Debuts Combat-Ready Autonomous Vehicle
At Modern Day Marine 2024, AM General showcased its next‑generation unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) alongside the MIMIC‑V High Performance Truck. The UGV, built with partners Textron Systems, Carnegie Robotics and Moog, features a 250‑hp turbocharged 6.5‑liter engine and a modular remote weapon station for logistics, reconnaissance and counter‑UAS missions. The same engine is slated for future HMMWV upgrades, creating a common power‑train across AM General’s portfolio. The demonstrator is already in testing ahead of an Army request for proposals expected in 2026.
General Dynamics Shows ARV-30 at Modern Day Marine
General Dynamics highlighted its latest land and mission systems at Modern Day Marine in Washington, D.C., from April 28‑30. The centerpiece was the ARV‑30 8×8 reconnaissance vehicle equipped with a 30 mm cannon and integrated sensor‑fusion architecture. The company also demonstrated...
Textron Debuts RIPSAW M1 Combat Robot at Marine Expo
Textron Systems and its Howe & Howe subsidiary unveiled the RIPSAW M1 unmanned ground vehicle at Modern Day Marine on April 28, 2026. The wheeled, all‑electric platform weighs 4,300 lb, can haul up to 2,000 lb of payload, and reaches 53 mph with a...
Patriot3 Shows Maritime SOF Systems at Modern Day Marine
Patriot3, a Virginia‑based small business, displayed its full maritime and ground‑operations portfolio at the Modern Day Marine expo in Washington, D.C., from April 28‑30. The showcase featured the Hammerhead submersible motor vehicle, the Hercules extra‑large unmanned underwater vehicle, the ARON wing‑in‑ground...
American Rheinmetall Shows Next-Gen Squad Systems at Modern Day Marine
American Rheinmetall showcased its Mission Master Silent Partner Hotel (MMSP‑H) autonomous amphibious UGV and Marom Dolphin’s Wild Goose drone at the Modern Day Marine expo. The MMSP‑H can haul 2,200 lb on land and 880 lb afloat, holds NAVAIR certification and is...
U.S. Pours $163M Into Key Pacific Range Used for Missile Defense Tests
The U.S. Department of Defense awarded two contracts totaling more than $163 million to modernize and sustain the Reagan Test Site on Kwajalein Atoll. Range Generation Next received a $14 million modification to its existing $546.6 million contract, extending work through September 2030. Radiance...
Cardboard Drones Are Now Part of Japan’s Military Arsenal
Japan’s Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi met with Air Kamui, a startup that builds cardboard drones, after the Maritime Self‑Defense Force adopted the low‑cost platforms as aerial targets. The meeting underscores Tokyo’s ambition to become the world’s leading user of drones and...
Finnish-Made Sisu GTP Armored Vehicles Spotted in Ukraine
Finnish‑made Sisu GTP 4×4 armored vehicles have been observed in Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces, despite no public announcement from Helsinki. Analysts suggest the vehicles may have arrived via Sweden, which has ordered over 300 units and could be acting as...
Spain Unveils Plan to Replace F-5 Jets with SAETA II Trainer
Spain announced its Integrated Combat Training System‑C (ITS‑C) on April 28, selecting 30 HÜRJET‑derived SAETA II trainer jets to replace the aging F‑5 fleet. Airbus will act as prime contractor while Turkish Aerospace supplies the base airframe, with deliveries beginning in 2028...
Israel’s Elbit Systems Opens Drone Factory in Romania
Elbit Systems inaugurated its seventh production facility in Chitila, Romania, on April 27, 2026, dedicated to the Watchkeeper XR tactical drone. The new plant integrates manufacturing, testing, and maintenance, and the platform flew over Romanian skies the same day. The site...
US Startup’s Football-Sized Drone Draws NATO Interest
California‑based XDOWN showcased its Small Tactical Unmanned Drone (STUD) at a NATO facility in Romania, drawing interest from more than 500 senior military representatives. The hand‑launch, football‑sized system weighs 5.2 lb, reaches 165 knots, and can carry a 1.7 lb payload for ISR,...
ThinKom’s Truck-Mounted Microwave Gun Fries Drones at U.S. Army Test
ThinKom Solutions demonstrated a truck‑mounted high‑power microwave (HPM) system at the U.S. Army’s Cross Domain Fires experiment, pairing its proprietary VICTS phased‑array antenna with Echodyne’s EchoShield radar to neutralize drones. The mobile platform, built on a standard pickup, showcases the...
Russian Military Helicopter Shot Down in Mali
On April 25 a Russian African Corps Mi‑8AMTSh helicopter was shot down near Wabaria in Mali’s Gao region, confirming the loss of a key Russian asset. The crash coincided with the largest coordinated offensive in years by the Azawad Liberation Front...
U.S. Special Operations Launches Push for Next-Gen Maritime Weapons
U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) released the ANCHOR Initiative, a sources‑sought notice on April 24, 2026, inviting industry partners to develop next‑generation maritime capabilities. The solicitation outlines six technology focus areas—unmanned systems, C5ISR, scalable effects, human performance, and human‑machine teaming—targeting rapid prototyping...
Abrams Tank Support Tab Crosses $1B After Latest Army Award
General Dynamics Land Systems received a $13.5 million contract modification on April 24, 2026, pushing its Abrams tank technical‑support contract past the $1 billion mark. The cumulative value of contract W56HZV‑22‑C‑0012 now stands at $1,026,849,722, with work slated to finish by February 27, 2027. The award,...
U.S. Marines Buy British NightFighter Mini Counter-Drone Jammers
The U.S. Marine Corps awarded a $9.5 million urgent contract to British firm SteelRock Technologies for its NightFighter Mini counter‑drone jammer. The 2‑kg device can be weapon‑mounted or carried as a side‑arm and jams four radio‑frequency bands within visual line of...
U.S. Navy Pays Castelion $105M to Test Blackbeard Hypersonic Weapon
On April 24, 2026, the U.S. Navy awarded small‑business defense firm Castelion Corp. a $104.9 million contract modification to advance its Blackbeard hypersonic weapon toward early operational capability. The firm‑fixed‑price SBIR Phase III effort will fund live‑fire testing in the Indo‑Pacific area...
Poland Tests Drone Detection and Jamming Systems for Shield East
Poland’s Ministry of National Defence is conducting operational trials of seven acoustic drone‑detection systems and eight electronic‑warfare solutions at the Ustka proving ground under the Shield East (Tarcza Wschód) programme. Since early 2025 the innovation department has received more than 715...
Estonian Startup Frankenburg Tests Mark I Missile for Air-to-Air Launch
Estonian startup Frankenburg Technologies released footage of ground‑test firings of its Mark I missile in an air‑to‑air configuration, targeting rail separation, safe release, and stable flight transition. The Mark I is built as a platform‑agnostic, domain‑agnostic weapon intended for land, sea and...
Korean Tank Maker Hits Record Sales as Defense Jumps 22%
Hyundai Rotem posted a record first‑quarter 2026 revenue of about $983 million, a 23.9% year‑over‑year increase, driven largely by a 22.2% jump in defense sales to $542 million. The defense segment generated a 27.2% operating margin and accounted for 97.6% of total...
Rolls-Royce MT30 Selected to Power Australia’s New Frigate Fleet
Rolls‑Royce has won the contract to supply its MT30 marine gas turbine for up to 11 new Australian general‑purpose frigates based on Japan’s upgraded Mogami‑class design. The first vessel, built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Japan, is slated for delivery...
Babcock Offers Toyota-Based Truck to Succeed British Army Land Rover
British defence contractor Babcock International is positioning its Toyota‑based General Logistics Vehicle (GLV) as the successor to the Army’s 70‑year‑old Land Rover fleet. The company hosted a supplier engagement day in Dorset, bringing together about 30 UK SMEs to outline...
Ukraine’s Top Drone Commander Calls Out Warhead Quality Problems
Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces commander Robert Brovdi publicly accused domestic warhead makers of systemic quality failures after a strike on a Russian command post in Kadiivka required six FP‑2 drones with 100‑kg warheads instead of the two he says should have...
Senators Push 200 New F-15EX Fighter Jets in Bipartisan Bill
Senators Budd and Shaheen introduced a bipartisan three‑bill package that includes the Airpower Acceleration Act, authorizing the purchase of 200 additional F‑15EX fighters and setting a statutory minimum fighter fleet of 1,369 aircraft by 2030 and 1,558 by 2035. The...
Pentagon Wants Miniature Deep-Ocean Drones
DARPA’s Tactical Technology Office launched the Deep Thoughts program, a 24‑month solicitation for autonomous underwater vehicles that can reach full‑ocean depth. The hardware‑centric effort requires functional prototypes, not studies, with abstracts due May 21, 2026 and an estimated start in November...
Lockheed Martin Awarded $50M to Keep LCS Warships Combat-Ready
Lockheed Martin received a $49.9 million contract modification to sustain the combat‑management systems of the U.S. Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) fleet through April 2027. The effort is centered in Moorestown, New Jersey, where 87 percent of the work will be performed, with the...
Pentagon Orders Three New F-35 Test Jets
The Pentagon awarded Lockheed Martin a $177.5 million contract modification to build three new F‑35 flight‑science aircraft—one each of the A, B and C variants. The work, spread across seven sites in the United States, United Kingdom and Denmark, is slated for...
Destinus Tests New Version of Its Long-Range Cruise Missile System
Destinus successfully flight‑tested Ruta Block 2, confirming in‑flight wing deployment, an inline booster, and a sealed container launch architecture. Block 2 redesign folds wings and moves the booster inline, allowing the missile to be stored and launched from standard containers. The new...
USS George H.W. Bush Aircraft Carrier in Indian Ocean, CENTCOM Confirms
U.S. Central Command confirmed that the nuclear‑powered aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush entered the Indian Ocean on April 23, 2026, after open‑source analysts had already pinpointed its location a day earlier via a CMV‑22B Osprey flight. The carrier, a...
U.S. Marine Corps Just Tested a Self-Driving Artillery Platform
Overland AI integrated its OverDrive autonomy stack and SPARK sensor kit onto the Marine Corps ROGUE Fires platform, completing a multi‑hour, fully autonomous demonstration in April 2026. The unmanned ground vehicle navigated mixed, GPS‑denied terrain without human input and performed manned‑unmanned...
An-28 Armed with Interceptor Drones Goes Hunting for Russian Shaheds
Ukraine has converted a Soviet‑era Antonov An‑28 turboprop into an airborne drone‑interceptor platform, mounting P1‑Sun and Merops AS‑3 Surveyor interceptor drones on wing pylons alongside an M134 Minigun. Pilot Tymur Fatkullin released video showing the aircraft launching the drones and confirming successful engagements...
U.S. Army Procures Condor Drones for Evaluation
The U.S. Army has purchased ten Valinor Condor drones for flight testing during the Arcane Thunder 26 exercise, giving Multi‑Domain Task Force‑Europe pilots hands‑on experience. The Condor is a backpack‑portable Group 1 UAV with a 40 km (25‑mile) range, 161 km/h (100 mph) top speed,...
Lithuania Joins U.S. and Poland in Buying Merops Interceptor Drones
Lithuania’s Ministry of National Defense announced the acquisition of the Merops AS-3 Surveyor counter-drone system from U.S. firm Perennial Autonomy, including 48 interceptor drones—24 with thermal seekers and 24 with radio‑frequency seekers. The purchase, approved through a fast‑track procurement process,...
U.S. Army Tests HIMARS Strike Tactics for Pacific War
The U.S. Army’s 1st Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery Regiment completed a rapid HIMARS infiltration—codenamed HIRAIN—from Yakima, Washington, to Dugway, Utah, as part of Operation Courage Lethality 26. The exercise validated the Edge Node beyond‑line‑of‑sight command framework and certified the unit for HIRAIN...
Defense-Wide Budget Reveals $4.2B Request to Build U.S. Military’s Own AI Infrastructure
The FY2027 Defense‑wide budget includes a $4.2 billion request for a new Sovereign Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure program, funded entirely through mandatory reconciliation appropriations. This marks the first appearance of the line item, with no prior funding in FY2025 or FY2026. The...
U.S. Army Requests Nearly $1 Billion to Defeat Small Drones
The U.S. Army’s FY 2027 budget request earmarks $994 million for Counter Small Unmanned Aerial System (C‑SUAS) capabilities, a 67% increase over FY 2026 and nearly double the FY 2025 level. The request, combined with $329 million in interceptor munitions, pushes total counter‑drone spending past...
U.S. Army Requests $5.5 Billion for Ammunition
The U.S. Army has asked Congress for $5.47 billion in FY2027 to fund ammunition, the largest single‑year request in recent memory. Roughly $2.97 billion will purchase rounds ranging from 5.56 mm cartridges to 155 mm artillery shells, while $2.33 billion is earmarked for modernizing the...
U.S. Navy Is Buying More Ship-Killer Missiles than Ever Before
The U.S. Navy has asked for $907 million in FY2027 to buy 177 Long‑Range Anti‑Ship Missiles (LRASM), adding to a recent $1 billion purchase of 200 missiles in FY2026. The high‑volume procurement reflects a strategic shift toward autonomous, low‑observable ship‑killers capable of...
U.S. Navy Requests $3 Billion for 785 Tomahawk Missiles
The U.S. Navy has asked Congress for roughly $3 billion to buy 785 Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles in FY 2027, a surge of more than 1,200% over the 58 missiles funded in FY 2026. Since the start of Operation Epic Fury in February 2026, the...
Sion Power Introduces Licerion Echo Battery for Long-Endurance ISR Drones
Sion Power unveiled two lithium‑metal battery cells—Licerion Strike and Licerion Echo—each delivering energy density above 500 Wh/kg, a benchmark that surpasses current lithium‑ion offerings. The rechargeable Echo is aimed at long‑endurance ISR drones, while the primary‑only Strike targets high‑intensity loitering munitions....
Turkish Firm to Build Large Ammunition Plant in Estonia
Turkish defence contractor ARCA Savunma will build a $352 million ammunition plant in Estonia’s Põhja‑Kiviõli defence‑industry zone, with production targeted for 2028. The integrated facility, dubbed “ARCA Baltic,” will manufacture 155 mm M107 artillery shells, various mortar rounds and 122 mm rockets. Estonia will receive...
Boeing Secures $12 Million Contract to Upgrade P-8A Poseidon
Boeing has secured an $11.95 million contract modification to install an Increment 3 retrofit kit on a U.S. Navy P‑8A Poseidon. The upgrade, focused on anti‑submarine warfare sensors and mission‑computing, will be performed mainly in Jacksonville, Florida, with work slated for completion...
U.S. Navy Awards Raytheon $213 Million Zumwalt Combat System Upgrade
The U.S. Navy has awarded Raytheon Missiles & Defense a $213.4 million contract modification to upgrade the combat system on its three Zumwalt‑class destroyers. The work, covering installation, integration, testing and modernization, will be performed at six U.S. sites and is...
Zeus Next-Gen Missile Passes Another Live Test
Aeon, an Austin‑based defense startup, announced another successful live test of its Zeus next‑gen mini‑missile, underscoring a rapid build‑test‑iterate development cadence. The missile is fully vertically integrated, with in‑house propellant, motors, fuzes and flight computers, and can be launched from...
U.S. Army Buys VAPOR CLE Drones Under $14.6M Contract
AeroVironment secured a $14.6 million contract from the U.S. Army to deliver its VAPOR CLE (Compact Long Endurance) unmanned aircraft system under the Company‑Level Directed Requirement (CoLvl DR) Small Uncrewed Aircraft System Tranche 2 program. The award supports the Army’s Medium Range Reconnaissance initiative,...
Swedish Air Force Intercepts Russian Tu-22M3 Bombers over Baltic Sea
Swedish Air Force jets intercepted two Russian Tu‑22M3 strategic bombers, escorted by Su‑30 fighters, over the Baltic Sea on April 20, 2026. The encounter occurred in international airspace and was handled under Sweden’s Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) system, with real‑time coordination from...
Leonardo DRS Integrates Counter-Drone M-MEP Kit on Naval Drone
Leonardo DRS has fitted its Maritime Mission Equipment Package (M‑MEP) onto Sea Machines’ STORMRUNNER autonomous unmanned surface vessel, delivering a ready‑to‑use counter‑drone system for naval fleets. The kit bundles maritime radar, electro‑optical/infrared sensors and AI‑driven SAGEcore software to detect, track...
US Army Tests TEWS-I System on GM-Built Squad Vehicle
The U.S. Army field‑tested the Tactical Electronic Warfare System‑Infantry (TEWS‑I) mounted on a GM‑built Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV) during the 101st Airborne Division’s Joint Readiness Training Center rotation from April 7‑17, 2026. The integration creates a mobile “middleweight” electronic‑warfare capability that sits...
French Army Tests Drone-Armed Autonomous Combat Cells
France’s 27th Mountain Infantry Brigade is testing autonomous, drone‑armed combat cells during the ORION 26 exercise. The trial reorganizes platoons into small multi‑arm micro‑units equipped with drones, light vehicles, resilient communications, and delegated decision‑making authority. It also emphasizes light mobility and...
Chinese New DF-27 Hypersonic Missile Launchers Spotted in Urban Area
Social‑media footage captured a convoy of suspected DF‑27 hypersonic missile launchers navigating a Chinese city street, confirming the system is not merely a prototype. The Pentagon’s 2025 China report verified the DF‑27’s 5,000‑8,000 km range and an anti‑ship ballistic‑missile variant, marking...