The most produced American military aircraft of World War II was not a small fighter, a trainer, or a simple utility airplane — it was a complex four-engine heavy bomber called the B-24 Liberator. Over the course of five years, American industry produced a staggering 18,482 of these bombers, and they served in every theater of the war.The B-24 was a workhorse with strategic impact, but it would not have had its utility — or possibly even existed — were it not for its wing.Of course, all airplanes need a wing to fly.

The Azerbaijan Air Force has been officially confirmed to have brought Chinese JF-17 Block 3 fighters into service, with the Ministry of Defence having released footage showing two of the aircraft conducting training flights. The aircraft were reportedly operating from Nasosnaya Air Base near Sumqayit, where satellite imagery indicates significant recent upgrades, including the construction of 16 new aircraft shelters. Additional JF-17s were reportedly visible in the footage.

Numerous recent pirate attacks, especially the hijacking of three merchant vessels off the Horn of Africa, are a stark reminder that the conditions for resurgence can return quickly.It took years of sustained, coordinated effort by multinational naval coalitions, the shipping industry, and international organizations to get rid of pirates in the Western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden. Since 2016, many observers have viewed Somali piracy as yesterday’s problem. Shipping companies increasingly treated the threat as manageable, and Western navies no longer prioritized it.

A Russian Aerospace Forces Su-35 air superiority fighter was reported on July 7 to have been shot down in the vicinity of Russia’s Kursk region during an operation that Ukrainian sources claim involved a MIM-104 Patriot long range air defence system deployed close to the border. After Ukrainian officials announced the crash of the fighter, from which the pilot survived, multiple open-source analysts and media outlets reported that a Patriot system was responsible.

The Republic of China Army has commenced its 2026 Shen Gong live-fire exercises, with a the primary focus being the first large scale operational live-fire testing of the FIM-92 Stinger man-portable surface-to-air missile systems from multiple launch platforms. The U.S.-supplied Stinger has become one of the Republic of China (ROC) Army’s principal short-range air defence weapons, providing frontline units with a highly mobile and easily concealable asset capable of defending against low-flying aircraft and cruise missiles.

The U.S. Navy is preparing to fully withdraw its sole class of cruiser, the Ticonderoga class, from service, which will mark the end of an era as the service fields only more lightly armed combat ships. Built from 1980–1994, 20 of the 27 cruisers have already been retired, with the remaining seven scheduled to be withdrawn from service by 2030. The ships are notable for their integration 122 Mk 41 vertical-launch cells, the same as those integrated in smaller numbers on Arleigh Burke class destroyers, split between forward and aft arrays.

The Japanese Ministry of Defence’s Joint Staff has reported ten cases of Chinese naval activities and one update on China-Russia joint aircraft activity during a 7-day period from June 25 to July 1, as operations by Chinese warships in international straits around Japan have intensified. Multiple batches of Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy warships recently transited international straits around Japan before entering the Western Pacific, with five separate updates on these transits published on June 29 alone.

U.S. President Donald Trump has indicated that his administration is prepared to lift economic sanctions on Turkey and consider allowing the country to acquire F-35 fifth generation fighters, potentially reversing one of the most significant defence policy decisions made during his first administration. The announcement, made during a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the NATO summit in Ankara, signals a major shift in U.S.-Turkish defence relations.

The Swiss Defence Ministry is reported to be considering procuring the South Korean L-SAM long-range air defence system has an alternative to the U.S. MIM-104 Patriot system, amid growing concerns over delivery delays and rising procurement costs affecting the latter. Switzerland is facing significant issues with its existing Patriot acquisition program, including delays that could extend up to seven years and cost increases of at least 50 percent over the original contract value.

Doctors from The Wellness Company announced recently that they had completed a first of its kind study regarding the use of pre-prescribed medications in medical emergency kits.
The results are nothing short of stunning.
According to Dr. Peter McCullough, Chief Scientific Officer for The Wellness Company,
“Respondents reported high engagement, frequent use for common acute illness, rapid symptom resolution, infrequent and mild side effects, and preparedness benefits extending even to never-users.

“You’re going to be confronting a morale fa

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC, aka Sepah or Pasdaran) is at it again. Not quite three weeks after the official signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran that was intended to get the ball rolling on ending the war between the two nations (not to mention Iran’s war with Israel), the IRGC has once again launched attacks against commercial shipping attempting to transit the vital Strait of Hormuz, once again casting doubts upon the peace negotiations’ long-term prospects for bearing fruit.

The military services remain challenged to deliver key hypersonic weapons to warfighters by their previously projected timelines, according to a new report from the U.S. government’s watchdog organization.
Published on Friday by the Government Accountability Office, the review highlights that three of the Pentagon’s ongoing hypersonic weapons programs are at risk of being delayed or delivering systems that have not been fully demonstrated.

The United States announced the revocation of its authorization for Iranian oil sales on Tuesday, July 7, following a series of Iranian attacks on commercial tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.

The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said that it was revoking Iran-related General License X, the June 21 authorization that allowed the “production, delivery, and sale” of Iranian crude oil, petrochemical products, and petroleum products. The authorization has been replaced with General License X1 for a wind-down period, which is expected to run until July 17.

Navy officials have identified Cmdr. Gabriel Edwards, commanding officer of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 5, as the sailor who went missing after an MH-60S Seahawk helicopter from the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush crashed last week into the Arabian Sea.
Edwards was one of four crewmembers on board the helicopter. The other three sailors survived and were recovered.
“The thoughts and prayers of every member of the Carrier Strike Group 10 team are with the Edwards family.” Rear Adm. Todd Cimicata, commander, Carrier Strike Group 10, said in a statement.

Putin’s Next Crisis: The war in Ukraine has taken a toll on Russia. The country has suffered nearly a million and a half casualties. Attacks on its gas and oil infrastructure have caused widespread gas shortages in 56 of Russia’s 83 regions. The economy is teetering on the edge, and the news keeps getting worse.

Half a million Russian citizens went bankrupt in 2025, up 33 percent from the year before, as Russian President Vladimir Putin risks an “explosive” banking crisis, an intelligence report from an unnamed European country has warned.

The ‘Viking Row’ continues to take

Delivering timely military data to warfighters in the air, at sea or on the battlefield has almost always meant bridging insurmountable technical chasms. That’s starting to change as defense leaders shift their perspective on what it means to operate “at the edge.”
“The edge no longer just means that literal front line of the battlefield. It really is where airmen and guardians are operating and conducting their day-to-day business operations.

Ukraine’s long-range missile and drone strikes continue, with one of the most devastating long-range attacks of the war occurring overnight into Tuesday, July 7. The strikes targeted Moscow and at least 15 other Russian regions with more than 400 drones.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed to intensify strikes deep inside Russia following the attacks, while Russian authorities said that their air defenses had intercepted hundreds of drones.

In the last 24 hours, Ukraine launched one of its largest drone attacks against Moscow, with more than 430 drones taking part in the operation.

This comes after Zelensky vowed to retaliate against the most recent Russian drone/missile attack against Kyiv.

Tu-160M Bomber Air Force. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

According to initial reports, most, if not all, of the drones were intercepted by air defense systems, and no damage/impacts were recorded.

This video describes the military situation in

Ukraine’s planned 40-day, long-range strike campaign against Russia has weeks left, but we may already have an idea of where this is headed.

The campaign goes above and beyond just destroying military targets in Russia; it is a deliberate attempt to damage the economic system that keeps Putin’s war running. And it’s working so far.

Putin Is Speaking Image from the Russian Federation Government End of 2024

The strategy proved to be effective yet again this week when Ukrainian drones struck the Omsk oil refinery in Siberia – the largest Russian refinery.

Giving the boot to cancer 👟
🏉 UKAF rugby

Why does the US military use million-dollar int

An irreplaceable losS
BFBS Forces News Reporter

Despite crude oil levels remaining low, oil prices, which have reached pre-conflict levels, may have given President Trump some much-needed leverage over Iran.

The Iranians had closed off the strategic waterway, the Strait of Hormuz, threatening any tankers or container ships that entered the Strait with missiles, drones, or attacks by small speedboats.

141208-N-WD464-386 ARABIAN GULF (Dec. 8, 2014) The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) prepares for flight operations in the Arabian Gulf. Carl Vinson is deployed in the U.S.

The Navy’s program acquisition executive for strategic systems programs is launching a Next Generation Undersea Security Initiative focused on unmanned systems, autonomy and other high-tech capabilities that could enhance and protect the sea service’s assets.
The SSP office is responsible for developing and sustaining sea-based nuclear forces and other advanced weapon systems.

Ukraine has found a way to strangle Russia until it cries for mercy.

The biggest Ukrainian drone attack in two years happened overnight on July 6 against civilian targets in Moscow.

A U.S. M1A1 Abrams tank needed for training the Armed Forces of Ukraine awaits offloading at Grafenwoehr, Germany, May 14, 2023. The M1A1 training is expected to last several weeks and will include live fire, crew qualification, maneuver, and maintainer training. Armed Forces of Ukraine training is conducted by 7th Army Training Command at Grafenwoehr and Hohenfels training areas in Germany on behalf of U.S.

Before the U.S.-Israeli military strikes began, Iran’s Islamic Republic was arguably weaker than it had been in decades. The government’s violent crackdown on nationwide protests in January left thousands dead and exposed deep-running public anger over corruption and decades of political repression. Inflation was crippling, too, and sanctions were still squeezing the economy. While the regime focused on building a missile arsenal that would deter foreign powers from intervening, a revolution was brewing on the streets.

And it was amidst that chaos that U.S.

The Army rolled out new body composition standards Tuesday with requirements that mostly match existing Pentagon directives that a soldier’s waist measurement can be only slightly wider than half of their height.
The new standards, officials said in a release, take effect immediately and require soldiers to maintain a waist-to-height ratio less than 0.55. Soldiers will not be separated for failing to meet the standards during an initial 180-day assessment as officials review the results of the new rules.

On Monday, Iran fired at least two missiles targeting civilian commercial shipping vessels that were transiting the Strait of Hormuz. The attack occurred after the IRGC warned that vessels not transiting the Iranian-approved route would be shot at. The event once again highlights the fragile state of the current ceasefire, which could be called off or canceled at any moment by a diplomatic misstep.

Currently, negotiations between Iran and the U.S.

GlobalData assesses the growth in the RWS and turret systems market, which registered a cumulative value of $155.7bn over ten years.

Taiwan is rapidly adapting its defence posture through targeted investments in digital infrastructure.

Iran Attacks Three Ships in the Strait of Hormuz: There is a pathway to peace in the Middle East going on, but someone forgot to tell Iran.

The country ordered an attack on commercial shipping overnight on July 6, and at least two drones or missiles were fired at the vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. Three ships sustained extensive damage.

Thankfully, this strike caused no casualties. The incidents occurred about eight nautical miles east of Limah in Oman. Flames bellowed from the Qatari-flagged ship Al Rekayyat.

“Mayday mayday mayday. This is vessel Al Rekayyat, LNG vessel Al Rekayyat.

Ukraine Targets Moscow With More Than 430 Drones: Ukraine launched one of its largest-ever drone attacks on Moscow, launching more than 430 drones, with Russian authorities claiming to have intercepted over 400 of them targeting the capital and surrounding regions overnight.

Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin stated that 36 drones were destroyed on their immediate approach to the city, as the massive barrage disrupted commercial flights and caused widespread alarm.

The commissary at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, had an unexpected customer over the July 4th weekend when a bear dropped by and began browsing the store’s produce section.
Video of the bear’s visit, captured in a roughly 30-second clip posted to social media, shows the bruin checking out the commissary shelves, munching on a piece of fruit, and then wandering off.
An Air Force official at JBEAR — sorry, JBER — confirmed that the young black bear seen in the video entered the main exchange shopping mall around 9 a.m. on July 5.

We meet the secretive Ukrainian unit rewriting

Posted Zero Hedge
A U.S. Air Force engineer charged with allegedly destroying a series of AI-powered license plate surveillance cameras has become an unlikely cause célèbre among privacy advocates, drawing thousands of dollars in donations to help fund his legal defense, according to Yahoo News.
Jeffrey Sovern, a 41-year-old Air Force engineer and mechanic from Virginia, is accused of cutting down multiple Flock Safety license plate reader cameras. He now faces 13 counts of destruction of property, along with six counts each of petit larceny and possession of burglary tools.

This video describes the military situation in

The Jeep® brand is one that is nearly synonymous with military history, dating back to June 1940 and the outbreak of World War II when the U.S. Army solicited bids from automakers for a light reconnaissance vehicle tailored to Army specifications.
By Armistice Day 1940, Willys-Overland delivered its prototype “Quad” vehicle and the “jeep” would go on to be the trusted brand for soldiers throughout the European theater. One jeep was even awarded the Purple Heart.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) fired at least two missiles at commercial ships near the Strait of Hormuz on Monday night, causing damage to ships during a week of funeral ceremonies being held for the country’s late Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

What Just Happened Near Oman
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency said that it received a report at 2119 UTC of an incident that occurred eight nautical miles east of Limah, Oman.

Iran’s Drones That Russia Is Using. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Iran F-14 Tomcat Fighter.

An enormous barrage of Ukrainian strike drones rocked the Russian capital city during the night, a bombardment made up of nearly 450 drones that Russian authorities said was the largest raid on Moscow since 2024.

Consequently, all four of Moscow’s major international airports restricted flights in response to the attacks but have since reopened.

Tu-160M Bombers from Russia. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

You can spot it from across any airport, slung over one shoulder, listing the person carrying it about fifteen degrees off vertical. The military duffel is not elegant. It is a fabric tube with a strap, a cylinder of canvas or nylon that holds everything a service member owns and surrenders none of it without a fight.
Also Read: Flintlock to firepower: The grunt’s 250-year quest for a weapon that actually works
Whatever you need is at the bottom. It is always at the bottom. That is how the fundamental physics of the thing—a law as old as the bag itself—works.

The Thales–Leonardo Consortium will upply Nato with six deployable headquarters for the Allied Special Operations Forces Command (SOFCOM).

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) fired missiles at two commercial tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz for using the Omani side of the Strait on Tuesday.

The vessels struck included a Qatari-owned LNG tanker and a Saudi-flagged crude oil tanker.

Donald Trump Pointing in Speech. Image Credit: White House.

President Donald Trump attends an event celebrating the 2025 NCAA Division 1 Men’s Basketball Champion Florida Gators, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in the East Room of the White House.

A Polish defense official said the U.S. military will resume rotating troops into Poland in the “coming weeks,” two months after the Pentagon abruptly canceled an Army deployment of nearly 4,000 soldiers to the country. U.S. officials did not directly address on Monday whether a large-scale rotation was in the works, but noted that some number of U.S. troops have remained in Poland throughout the summer.
“The rotation of U.S. troops, which was suspended several weeks ago, is resuming and will continue, and in the coming weeks, the rotation of U.S.

ELITE.

With growing power in the air, Ukrainian forces have launched an astounding number of drone and missile strikes against Russia, landing hits where it would hurt the Russian war machine the most, in the long term: on oil and gas infrastructure throughout the country. It is part of what Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called his country’s “long-range sanctions regime” and part of a broader effort to hit the Kremlin’s coffers.

Axon Vision has announced the integration of its EDGE ClearSky AI-powered computer vision system with radar technology from Retia and the TSG command and control (C2) system in the Czech Republic.

Ukraine struck one of Russia’s main oil facilities in what is shaping up to be another blow against Russia’s ability to refine and transport its major source of state revenue.

Posting to X, formerly Twitter, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the strikes. “Last night, our Ukrainian long-range sanctions against Russia over this war reached targets near St. Petersburg,” the president wrote.