pic from Aviation Week on the USN's notional replacement for the Standard Missile family. As far as I know the only circular VLS system the USN has is the VPMs.....
The SMs already have antiship capability, but a sub-launched anti-air variant opens up much more interesting questions. For targeting will it talk to the new space-based distributed AWACS thing currently in development that I forget the name of, or are they going to mad dog it out of the tube?
A Quick Look at DRDO's Arudhra Radar:
The Arudhra is an indigenous S-band 4D AESA air surveillance radar developed by DRDO. It is reported to detect targets beyond 300 km (up to 400 km), track 200+ targets simultaneously, and detect low-RCS (~0.2 m²) targets at around 160 km.
The same new variant of the Haj Qassem was used once again, equipped with a new adapter installed between the warhead and the missile's solid-fuel booster, along with a redesigned single-cone warhead.
The Haj Qassem uses a steel-alloy motor casing, whereas the Fattah and Kheibar Shekan use carbon-composite motor casings.
I've seen a lot of people jump to the conclusion that Iran has run out of solid-fuel boosters, but I think that's a premature assumption.
Steel-alloy boosters like those used on the Haj Qassem are significantly cheaper and easier to manufacture than composite ones. Also, the boosters seen recently appear to be unpainted, which could indicate they came straight from production, supporting the argument that manufacturing has continued rather than stopped.
🇮🇷 A significant leap in IRGC intelligence capability, pointing to the pattern of strikes on hangars at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan:
July 2: New aircraft maintenance hangars built.
July 9: Iran destroys them.
July 17 and 19: Iran strikes 2 more aircraft hangars.
July 30 (this morning): Maintenance hangars rebuilt, an aircraft moved in, by afternoon, IRGC hits them with a precision missile strike.
The pattern points to sharply increased satellite reconnaissance activity, as the window between US construction being detected and missile strikes hitting it keeps shrinking fast.
Found this old infographic from modernizations offered by the Kyiv Armored Plant, 2010's.
What's interesting is that this is bascially just the Soviet T-55AMV modernization, with a more powerful engine.
The IRGC Navy published footage showing a convoy of US-escorted tankers burning in the Strait of Hormuz, after being hit by Iranian drones and anti-ship missiles.
They were trying to cross the strait through the Omani route.
I just found a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier (USS Abraham Lincoln or USS George H.W. Bush) on Sentinel-2 satellite imagery, 30/07/2026.
It is currently sailing southward into the Arabian Sea, escorted by a single destroyer.
Coordinates: 22.307628, 60.549109
Italy Quietly Deployed Eurofighters, SAMP/T And Counter-Drone Systems To Defend Gulf Allies
Eurofighters, an E-550A CAEW, radars and counter-drone systems are officially confirmed, while reports indicate that SAMP/T and Skynex batteries are also part of a force of at least 700 personnel.
Story: https://t.co/3hoAeRSpLl
It appears firepoint plans to replace AI-25TL with indigenous turbofan engine, will it affect its flight profile?
It's not surprise immature startups can invent their own mini turbojets for drones now, but developing fighter jet class turbofan might be a completely different challenge and there should be some compromise I think.
Tonight I typed just one sentence into Google Earth and put refugees near the Mexican border. Then I planted a nuclear plant in Iran. What on earth is Google doing? Check my latest post here: https://t.co/N0h6CVECqS