US special operations leaders frustrated by inability to modify their own equipment
U.S. special operations leaders expressed frustration Tuesday about manufacturers’ proprietary agreements that block them from making quick upgrades to military equipment. The problem is especially acute for unmanned systems, they said, as technology is evolving far faster than the ability of U.S. Special Operations Command...
Ukraine’s battlefield integration surpasses US military’s, Army secretary says
Ukraine has linked its military drones, sensors and weapons systems into a unified battlefield network, an integration Army Secretary Dan Driscoll told lawmakers Tuesday the U.S. military has yet to achieve. During a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, Driscoll lauded Kyiv’s “Delta” command and control...
In an age of drones, Army Rangers will now stab through a new bayonet course
In the age of drones and artificial intelligence, the Army is reinvigorating how it teaches troops to kill at arm’s length. Soldiers in Georgia hoping to earn the Army’s coveted Ranger tab will now start the monthslong school by stabbing their way through Fort Benning’s...
Trump’s Golden Dome missile shield estimated to cost $1.2 trillion
A national missile defense system, or Golden Dome, proposed by the Trump administration would cost $1.2 trillion to build and maintain over the next 20 years, the Congressional Budget Office estimated in a cost-projection analysis released Tuesday. Acquisition costs would total just over $1 trillion,...
Defense contractors have donated millions to members of Congress, new report finds
The defense sector has donated nearly $5 million to members of Congress via political action committees and individual donations so far this year, according to a new report by NOTUS. The defense industry donations — comprising both traditional firms like Lockheed Martin, RTX (formerly Raytheon)...
Coast Guard bans kratom, similar drugs immediately
The U.S. Coast Guard announced Tuesday that it is prohibiting the use of kratom, an herbal stimulant, and related products effective immediately. In a general order announcement May 12, Deputy Commandant for Personnel Readiness Rear Adm. Charles Fosse said Coast Guard members may not ingest,...
Jack Wolf Feelbetter Jack is the Cure for the Common EDC
Jack Wolf Knives has a new locking model lined up for release later this month, the Feelbetter Jack. This one modernizes a lesser-seen pattern, the doctor’s knife, for everyday carry. The doctor’s knife pattern is one for the cutlery cognoscenti, with not nearly as much...
Army plans summer deployments to southern border
The U.S. Army is planning to rotate troops deployed to the U.S.-Mexico border this summer, with the 1st Armored Division assuming command of the Joint Task Force – Southern Border mission. The Pentagon announced the deployments Tuesday. The 1st Mobile Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, will...
Arcade games satirizing Iran war appear at DC War Memorial
A waterway sign that reads “Open. Closed. Open.” A helicopter bearing the name “Kid Rock Force One.” Oil barrels that collectively spell out “LUBE.” Such are the art features wrapping three recently installed arcade games — also available to play online — at the District...
Pentagon seeks additional funding as cost of Iran war tops $29 billion
The United States has spent an estimated $29 billion in the war against Iran, the Pentagon said Tuesday, as senior defense officials appeared on Capitol Hill for back-to-back budget hearings. Jules Hurst III, the Defense Department’s acting comptroller, said the increase from $25 billion just...
