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Summary and Key Points: In the early 1930s, the U.S. Navy built USS Akron and USS Macon—massive rigid airships designed to function as flying aircraft carriers.

-Each carried up to five Curtiss F9C Sparrowhawk “parasite fighters” inside an internal hangar and launched/recovered them in flight using a retractable trapeze.

A U.S. Sailor prepares an F/A-18F Super Hornet aircraft for launch from the flight deck of the world’s largest aircraft carrier, Ford-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), while underway in the Caribbean Sea, Nov. 25, 2025. U.S.

Summary and Key Points: This analysis evaluates the asymmetric threat posed by Iran’s Ghadir-class midget submarines as the USS Gerald R. Ford and USS Abraham Lincoln strike groups converge.

-Derived from North Korean Yono-class technology—responsible for the 2010 sinking of the ROKS Cheonan—these 120-ton diesel-electric vessels are optimized for the shallow, 50-meter depths of the Persian Gulf.

Kilo-Class Submarine. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Kilo-Class Submarine. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Following the initiation of a large scale U.S. and Israeli air assault against Iran on February, the United States was confirmed to be launching strikes on a missile base in Khosrowshah, as well as on targets in the mountains of Sahand, Urmia, Bandar Abbas, and Qom, which are thought to host ballistic missile related facilities. The Iranian ballistic missile deterrent has for decades been a primary factor constraining U.S. and broader Western Bloc options for launching attacks against the country, with missile strikes having been launched against U.S.

The post RUNNING NEWS: War Begins In Middle East As US, Israeli Forces Attack Iran appeared first on Armed Forces Press.

Following Israel and the United States’ initiation of a coordinated large-scale military assault against Iran on February 28, multiple countries have joined the war effort, which has been launched with the explicit goal of removing the Iranian government from power. The United States has used military bases in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait and possibly Israel to support its air campaign against Iranian targets, with bases in all these targets having come under attack.

Footage taken atAl Udeid Air Base in Qatar has shown three interceptor missiles launched by MIM-104 Patriot long range air defence systems fail to shoot down incoming Iranian ballistic missiles. Iran launched strikes on February 28, after Israel and the United States initiated a coordinated large-scale military assault against the country. While Patriot units usually launch two missiles against each incoming target to ensure a high probability of kill, a third launch may have been intended to compensate for the lower than optimal reliability of the system.

Reports from multiple sources indicate that Iranian ballistic missile strikes successfully targeted and destroyed air defence radars in Bahrain and Qatar, following the launch of U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iranian targets earlier in the day on February 28. Bahrain is the permanent base of the U.S. Navy Fifth Fleet, while Qatar in the 2010s emerged as the primary hub for U.S. Armed Forces’ operations in the Middle East. The largest military facility in the Qatar, Al Udeid Air Base, had previously been singled out for a limited Iranian strike on June 23, 2025, in response to a limited U.S.

American and Israeli warplanes bombed Tehran Saturday morning, the start of what President Donald Trump called a “massive and ongoing operation” against Iran.
Explosions were reported throughout the Iranian capital of Tehran, as well as cities including Isfahan and Tabriz, among others, and both Israeli and American officials confirmed the launch of airstrikes against Iran’s military infrastructure. The extent of the attack is unclear, as is the number of casualties in Iran.

The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Defence has confirmed that the country was hit by “Iranian ballistic missiles,” causing damage and at least one death, although a number of the missiles were intercepted. The ministry called the attack “a dangerous escalation and a cowardly act,” and stated that the country “reserves its full right to respond to this escalation.” Iranian ballistic missiles strikes were launched against Al Dhafra Air Base, which hosts forward deployed U.S.

Footage from the Iranian capital Tehran has confirmed the scrambling of MiG-29A fighter aircraft guarding the city, after Israel and the United States initiated a coordinated large-scale military assault against the country targeting key leadership and military facilities. Unconfirmed reports indicate that attacks on Iran launched so far have centred around the use of U.S. Navy BGM-109 Tomahawk land attack cruise missiles, and various Israeli air-launched cruise and ballistic missiles such as the Delilah.