President Donald Trump moved to deploy the National Guard in another city Saturday by authorizing 300 troops to protect federal officers and assets in Chicago, where the government said Border Patrol agents shot and injured a woman while firing at someone who tried to run them over.
President Donald Trump hailed the U.S. Navy during an event commemorating the Navy’s 250th anniversary on Oct. 5 at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia, saying America's enemies “tremble at the sight of a Navy ship” and promising the military members a pay raise.
At Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, a test bed for a new kind of air force, Major Trent McMullen is a fighter pilot learning to fly alongside the XQ-58, a drone piloted by artificial intelligence. Think of this as “Top Gun AI.” ... Maneuvering alongside an AI-piloted drone, he said, takes a bit of getting used to: “As humans, we fly very smooth, but it can roll and fly a little bit snappier than maybe a human pilot would,” McMullen acknowledged. “It could be a little bit rougher a ride, but there's no human on board.”
Ukraine is poised to receive an influx of low-cost, long-range, air-launched cruise missiles from the U.S. as the embattled country looks to counter Russia’s invasion by hitting high-value targets behind enemy lines. Deliveries of the Extended-Range Attack Munition (ERAM) do not only open a new pipeline of long-range weapons expected to be delivered to Ukrainian and U.S. forces in large numbers. They also represent a novel paradigm for speed in air-launched weapons acquisition, development, and mass production for the Pentagon.
A renewed emphasis on fielding next-gen air refueler by the mid-2030s has left Boeing’s KC-46 Pegasus as the only tanker that can readily meet the Air Force’s tanker needs, though supply chain and data rights issues could be a factor long-term, the service said in a new document.
In this episode, the Mitchell Institute team explores the top defense issues this month in Washington, D.C. and beyond. What does a government closure mean for defense and where do the defense bills stand in Congress? What are the challenges and opportunities facing a new CSAF? We also explore the USSF’s new Force Design, plus what it will take to better track threats in space, Space Development Agency’s Tranche 1 satellites on orbit, and recent space-based laser communication advancements. Lastly, what’s up with the Department of War’s increased focus on homeland defense?
Recent images of what appears to be China’s J-50 stealth fighter have revealed what experts told Breaking Defense are new details about the plane’s design, and hints towards its likely eventual mission. The first clear photos of the aircraft, which has been variously referred to by a temporary designation of J-50, J-XD, or J-XDS in the absence of any official acknowledgement by China’s government, were first published online on social media in late September.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced a new strike on an alleged drug-carrying vessel in the Caribbean on Oct. 3, killing four people. ... The strike was carried out in international waters off the coast of Venezuela, according to Hegseth.
As part of its effort to incrementally deploy modernized command-and-control systems, the Air Force is planning to conduct more deliberate and targeted experimentation with new C2 kits in the coming months.
While Danish intelligence does not see an immediate threat of a kinetic war, it claims Russia’s growing belligerence has included repeatedly threatening its warships and helicopters in Danish waters. These details are part of a new Danish intelligence threat assessment released Oct. 3 that concludes Russia is in a state of increasingly intense “hybrid war” with NATO. That is just below the threshold of armed conflict and comes at a time of mounting tensions between Moscow and the alliance.
Hegseth’s focus on beards, push-ups, and “fat generals” is part of his longstanding contention that relaxed fitness and grooming standards have eroded combat effectiveness and discipline within the ranks. His remarks come as the Pentagon has increasingly focused on fielding a skilled force that can operate the cutting-edge technology the U.S. will need to counter China, Russia and other adversaries.
Psychological operations are primarily known for their ads, leaflets, and posters; campaigns designed to demoralize the enemy or persuade local populations to stay away from combat areas. But sometimes, those troops go full “spook” and complete crazy missions—like when they became vampires and ghosts to scare America’s enemies.
