Air-Power | NatSec Ledger

Old radar types never die; they just phased array!

Aerospace, Defense & NatSec related content.

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[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

PSA: OSINT is geolocating a tank from satellite imagery or scrubbing hundreds of public documents for relevant facts. SLOPINT (Scraped, Lifted, Other-people's Posts as INTelligence) involves scrolling some 400 follower account on social media, bookmarking or screenshotting their post, and filing it as your own reporting or throwing their content into a monetized youtube video. Two very different jobs.

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

@MingRondin82300 @jkim12345675 There is no official declaration. Which is why I used the > symbol

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

When it comes to high speed strike weapons, most discussion in the US focuses on exquisite hypersonic systems such as LRHW or ARRW. In practice, the DOD's HSSW portfolio is much broader, spanning everything from supersonic ballistic and air-breathing missiles to long-range boost-glide weapons. As the DOD pushes for more low-cost mass, expect this portfolio to keep expanding.

[Rebeccah Heinrichs @RLHeinrichs]

American companies don’t want that dirty Russian diesel.

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

@Kevin_Gg94 Yup..so five years from now these units have the same magazine capacity as the Avenger. But rapid prototyping..😁

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

Has the two SVUL configured SGT Stout shown up in Europe or other operational units elsewhere? I've only really seen it in army promotional materials and PR events.

[General Dynamics Land Systems @GD_LandSystems]

Happy Veterans Day! 🇺🇸

We're celebrating across the U.S. today, thanking our colleagues and customers for their brave and selfless service to the nation.

As a special treat, we have a SGT Stout short-range air defense vehicle on display at @Daytona International Speedway for today's Proud To Honor event, hosted by @FordRacing. All six branches of the U.S. military will be competing in the race, and the vehicle wrap on the Army racecars is inspired by the mighty Abrams main battle tank.

Good luck to all drivers. And to all Veterans, enjoy your day!

#VeteransDay #ProudToHonor

[Ben Tzion Macales @BenTzionMacales]

על בסיס נתונים שהביא @hey_itsmyturn , יצרתי מפה וגרף המציגים את כלל אירועי שיגור הטילים הבליסטיים שדווחו ברחבי איראן מ-11 באוקטובר ועד היום.
הרוב המוחלט של השיגורים בוצע במסגרת תרגילים של הפיקודים והאגדים השונים, ולא במסגרת פעילות מבצעית.

התרגילים נועדו לשפר את דיוק הטילים, לתרגל את הצוותים ואת מערכי הקשר והתיאום הפיקודי, לבחון את המוכנות המבצעית, בדיקה מדגמית של המלאי, ניסוי כלים חדשים ולהפגין יכולות.

שימו לב לריבוי השיגורים מאזורי אצפהאן ויזד. הבסיסים באזורים אלו מאחסנים טילים ארוכי טווח המסוגלים להגיע לישראל.

על בסיס הדיווחים בנושא והחישובים שנערכו בעקבות שני המבצעים האחרונים, ניתן להעריך כי בידי איראן יש כיום כ-1,500 טילים בליסטיים המסוגלים להגיע לישראל.

שיגור של לפחות 60 טילים אמנם אינו משנה מהותית את היקף המלאי, אך בהיעדר מערך ייצור פעיל, מדובר בטילים שלא ניתן יהיה להשלים את מקומם בזמן הקרוב.

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

These things aren't 'fully funded' now which is why the administration needed $300+ Billion in additional funding for FY'27 via reconciliation. If these big name programs were so important, they would have been fully funded in the budget for FY'27 and then the FYDP. Reality is that reconciliation and Iran war shorfalls adds a roughly $450 Bn hole to the overall spending levels for FY'27..Let's say the lame duck Congress provides 50-100 B for supplemental funding (if we are lucky) you are still looking at a 300+ Billion dollar hole that cannot be patched up in two years.

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

The $350B defense reconciliation ask was dead on arrival. It lacked enough GOP support, and the lame-duck session is running out of time. Neither OMB nor the SecDef had hte chops to rally support for it. The best case now is a $50B to $100B supplemental on top of the $1.1T base budget, which still leaves FY27 about $300B short of the $1.5T target. Even $1.2T would be a record high, given what's likely coming. Key Democrats want total defense spending held at or below 3% of GDP which squeeze $200+ B per year out of the administration's FY'28 and 29 plans.

[Andrew Desiderio @AndrewDesiderio]

NEWS: Senate Republicans approved a “sense of the conference” resolution at the end of their marathon closed-door sessions today about “maximizing” their remaining days in power.

It includes a line on doing “everything humanly possible” to pass a reconciliation bill in the lame duck ...

“It is the sense of the GOP Conference that we will maximize the 54 days we have with congressional majorities, to confirm every judicial nominee and every executive nominee that the conference approves of, to pass our core Republican priorities, and to do everything humanly possible to pass a reconciliation bill before Jan. 3.”

[Luke McGee @lukemcgee]

I think what this clip really reveals is how little influence the US actually has as a peacebroker. You can only play world policeman if you are willing to actually do the policing bit.

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

Its easy to point to Golden Dome, Golden fleet, battleships etc as candidates to trim to get to that 3% +/- level. The math is not that simple. FYDP plans floated by the admin would not have covered those efforts fully without FY27 reconciliation funding
https://t.co/qbJA5p0FCv

[Todd Harrison @ToddHarrisonDC]

At $1.1T, all three of us delayed or cut major programs, including the F-47 and the Truman carrier overhaul. John and Elaine cut Army brigades and hundreds of Air Force aircraft, while I avoided major force structure cuts by cutting the defense-wide accounts even deeper.

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

I see no path for the USAF to meet its now stated to Congress requirement for expanded tactical fighter force without buying new build F-16's. I don't even see them reaching to half the levels of additional fighters they've stated they need without this. Even if we set that report aside, and assume the USAF does not grow at all, the geriatric force of decades old F-16's will be a readiness nightmare in the 2030s at a time the DAF would need high availability assets on account of a shrinking tactical fighter force. The more you shrink the further you utilize what you have left which drives retirements further. Its an endless cycle. Which is why we should look at modernizing our force before enabling Ukraine getting hands on new aircraft from US production lines.

[Navy Lookout @NavyLookout]

.@GenGJenkinsRM speaking at ISPC 2026 with one-third scale mock up of Talon CCA

https://t.co/1YJresx2mS

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

The CCA effort has nothing to do with Kratos Valkyrie. The CCA increment 1 design requirements shape the cost. Valkyrie was not designed to those requirements. The programs it was designed to had requirements that did not make their way into the CCA acquisition program. Which is why its stuck where it is with Kratos focusing on designs that can actually meet what the service wants. Anduril beat Kratos because Anduril's design better met those needs. Even though Anduril also based its solution on a prior USAF effort (ACP Gen 2) more requirements from that made their way into CCA Inc1 than did those from ACP gen 1.

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

Kratos has been aiming at the low end of that $6M to $8M range for a while now. Worth recalling that the original LCAAT/LCASD goal was under $3M (at scale), so it's not hard to see why Valkyrie is probably stuck as a low-cost, low-volume product which limits economies of scale.

The basic design is boxed in by that original low single-digit-million cost target. Adding things like landing gear or more volume for mission systems won't make Valkyrie more competitive with the Increment 1 CCAs, which is why Kratos keeps going after other designs for future USAF CCA work.

[TWZ @thewarzonewire]

MQ-58 Valkyrie Drones Now Cost $6M-$8M Each

Kratos still sees Valkyrie's relative affordability as key to staying ahead of a growing field of competing Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drone designs.
https://t.co/vaTUFskhLt

[Lockheed Martin News @LMNews]

.@LockheedMartin marked the delivery of its 100,000th GMLRS® rocket, reaffirming the system’s role as the @USArmy’s go-to precision fires rocket. Production has accelerated to nearly 14,000 rockets annually — a rate achieved ahead of schedule. Click below:

[Faytuks Network @FaytuksNetwork]

Iran's security chief Rezaei says the Strait of Hormuz will not be reopened unless the US meets Iran's seven conditions

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

@johnfolland1069 Its not a TBM. You don't need a whole lot to defeat a group 3 drone.

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

White Spike undergoing testing/demonstrations. (🎥Zone 5 Technologies)

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

Having achieved success with its Palladin UAS and the Rusty Dagger launched effect / Cruise Missile, Zone 5 technologies is now rapidly maturing its White Spike UAS interceptor and Launched Effect. Capable of being air or ground launched, #WhiteSpike was purpose built to engage Group 3 and 4 drones and as an offensive effect.

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

@GeorgeWHerbert @clyons They should really consider fully covered and enclosed ramps and runways to overcome that guy with binoculars outs Tyndall problem

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

The US Air Force wants counter-drone netting on aircraft sunshade structures at Tyndall AFB to keep small (Group 1) drones out of the interior to protect aircraft and personnel. The netting would go on all four sides of six structures, each about 630 ft long, 65 ft wide and 30 ft tall.

[Jing Yang @jingyanghk]

SCOOP: We find out how long Alice Huang has known Jensen Huang, and identified her real company, Shanghai Century Litong, which enabled at least $7.5B Nvidia chips sales to China since 2023, bigger than previously reported. via @theinformation $NVDA

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

More⤵️
https://t.co/9dfK6xzhZS

[Air-Power | NatSec Ledger @NatSecLedger]

Approx Kratos drone cost points (at low quantities):

Air Wolf: $500K or less
MAKO: $2MM or less
Valkyrie: $6.5MM or less

New System: $10 MM (Missionized) ; Ghost Works continues to work on the new system, and we are scheduling a capstone event for it later this year or next.