The First Waves of Amphibious Assault Will Be Unmanned; Pentagon Inks Patriot, THAAD Component Deal with L3Harris

INNOVATION

Segers Aero, Standard Aero, Turbopower win $343m T56 support contract

The firm fixed-price service contract covers the repair and overhaul of non-commercial T56 engine parts used in C-130 aircraft.

OKI to equip Australian navy frigates with passive sonar

Towed passive sonar detects submarines and underwater targets by receiving acoustic signals from sensors deployed behind ships.

AI

NIST unveils new AI evaluation platform

The National Institute of Standards and Technology launched a new program on Monday granting researchers access to an isolated testbed environment to safely evaluate artificial intelligence models against various commands.

TECHNOLOGY

Taiwan’s Tech Hurdles Threaten Military Capability and Potential Coalition Defense

Taiwan produces the world’s most advanced semiconductors, yet the island’s own military is only in the opening stages of adopting artificial intelligence systems. This mismatch bears directly on Taiwan’s ability to deter Chinese aggression.

Second Test B-52 Being Modified with New Radar After June Crash

A second B-52H Stratofortress is now being modified with a upgraded radar for testing after the first test bomber crashed in June, and work is expected to be completed by the end of the year, officials said July 27.

The development comes as the service is still trying to figure out how to keep the loss of the initial test B-52 at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., from setting the Radar Modernization Program back.

Pentagon Inks Patriot and THAAD Component Deal with L3Harris

The Pentagon’s framework agreements with Lockheed to triple and quadruple Patriot and THAAD production (respectively) made a big splash, but it looks like the department heard that those numbers would be pretty hard to hit if production of their key components didn’t get some love, too.

DRONES

Althimis Demos Platform That Finds Weak Spots in Drone Defenses

Live trials showed how Guardian maps defensive gaps, helping operators strengthen counter-drone tactics before deployment.

US Coast Guard Seeks Technologies to Defeat Underwater Drones

The US Coast Guard Research and Development Center has issued a Request for Information seeking commercially available technologies to detect, track, and defeat uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs).

The effort aims to improve the security of ports, waterways, and other critical maritime infrastructure.

Florida State University Research Foundation signs license agreement with NorthStrive Defense Tech for multi-domain drone payload technology

The technology enables an unmanned aerial drone to transport a cable-suspended payload through water while maintaining flight above the surface, leveraging buoyancy-assisted transport to potentially improve payload efficiency compared to traditional air-only drone systems.

Unmanned systems are increasingly being developed to operate across maritime, aerial and payload-delivery missions. The United States, United Kingdom and Australia are advancing underwater drone technologies through the AUKUS defense partnership, and the U.S. Navy is pursuing the development of unmanned surface vessels capable of carrying large payloads over long distances in support of manned warships. These developments underscore a broader defense market shift toward unmanned platforms that can operate with flexibility in a variety of missions and environments.

CHINA

Beijing’s Next Play for the South China Sea

MARITIME

Kraken cracks open its US operations with new CEO Justin Litko

Kraken has a new CEO overseeing its US operation. Justin Litko has joined the defence firm, which produces autonomous surface and subsurface vessels. The UK-based, newly crowned unicorn, has been operating in the States since 2023 under Kraken Technology US Inc., and the appointment underscores how Kraken and ramping up its presence and activity in the country.

The First Waves of Amphibious Assault Will Be Unmanned

In the Pacific War, the U.S. Navy’s underwater demolition teams prepared the way for U.S. and allied amphibious landings on enemy-held islands. Through beach reconnaissance, obstacle breaching, mine clearance, and other missions, these teams paved paths for the first waves of amphibious assaults conducted by naval task forces and subsequent landings by marines and soldiers throughout the island hopping campaign.

ARMY

11th Airborne Division team named US Army Pacific's Best Squad

The team representing the 11th Airborne Division has claimed the title of U.S. Army Pacific’s Best Squad after an intense five-day competition at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, held July 20-24.

The 2026 USARPAC Best Squad Competition, a physically and mentally demanding event designed to identify the Army’s most cohesive, disciplined and lethal small-unit team.

MARINES

Marine commandos aim to automate armories with computer vision, other tech

MARSOC is teaming up with the SOFWERX innovation hub and industry on the new “automated armory” initiative.

STRATEGY

The Decisive Theater: North Korea and the Problem of Simultaneous War

Western analysts fixate on North Korea’s missiles. The real danger is speed — a mass artillery-and-missile salvo in the war’s first hours, backed by 1.2 million troops and tactical nuclear weapons. And if Europe, the Middle East, and Taiwan ignite at the same moment, Korea stops being a sideshow and becomes the tipping point.