FORT MEADE, Md. — U.S. Cyber Command is in the midst of a holistic top-to-bottom review to reshape its organization and forces and ensure it’s best postured to deal with threats in a highly dynamic environment.
Officials are dubbing the review Cybercom 2.0.
“As we’re trying to look at the future of U.S. Cyber Command, I want to have a bold move forward,” Gen. Paul Nakasone, commander of Cybercom and director of the NSA, told reporters during a media roundtable at Fort Meade. Nakasone is set to retire Friday following a change-of-command ceremony where he will pass the torch to Lt.

With the first episodes of Masters Of The Air having received considerable praise for their air combat sequences especially, the story of the U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF) in World War II is very much back in the public consciousness. In its initial review of the series, The War Zone noted its attention to detail, especially in the terrifying scenes of B-17s flying into flak or being attacked by Luftwaffe fighters.
The combination of simulated concussive blasts, shrapnel, and machine gun rounds very effectively summon up the chaos of the daytime bomber offensive.

As the U.S. Navy continues to wend its way toward acquiring its first batch of Constellation class frigates, a major question remains: is 32 vertical launch system cells enough for these ships?
Debates about the Constellation‘s vertical launch capacity reflects broader concerns, including how these cells might be reloaded at sea in a major conflict, across the Navy as a whole.

Overview
In a significant geopolitical shift, the United States recorded a staggering $238 billion in weapons sales to foreign governments in 2023, marking a substantial 16% increase from the previous year. This surge, fueled by rising global instability and European nations fortifying their defenses against Russian forces, has far-reaching implications for both diplomatic relations and the defense industry.

A gun truck acquired for two cans of chewing tobacco by paratroopers in Kabul has arrived at Fort Liberty and will eventually be an exhibit in the base’s museum. Army photo.
More than two years after paratroopers with the 82nd Airborne Division acquired a Toyota Land Cruiser with a mounted anti-aircraft gun during the chaotic days of the Afghanistan evacuation, the vehicle is finally at Fort Liberty, North Carolina. It will be displayed at the Division’s on-base museum.
Army Maj. Gen.

Sharothi Pikar — a longtime defense procurement and cybersecurity leader — is exiting her post as the Pentagon’s first-ever deputy chief digital and AI officer for acquisitions to take on new responsibilities within the Office of the Secretary of Defense.
In response to questions from DefenseScoop on Wednesday, a CDAO spokesperson confirmed for the first time publicly that Pikar “has been hand-selected by the Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Hon.

Introduction
In the ever-evolving landscape of modern warfare, the United States Army is set to introduce a game-changing addition to its arsenal—the M10 Booker Combat Vehicle. This cutting-edge, light tank is poised to redefine strategic military operations, offering a unique blend of firepower, agility, and logistical efficiency.
Unleashing the M10 Booker
M10 Booker
The Scenario
Picture this: the 82nd Airborne Division receives orders for a Joint Forcible Entry mission into enemy territory.

A lot happens every day. Alliances shift, leaders change, and conflicts erupt. With In Brief, we’ll help you make sense of it all. Each week, experts will dig deep on a single issue happening in the world to help you better understand it. *** Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Defense released its first-ever National Defense Industrial Strategy, a 59-page document aimed at “ensuring that the U.S. defense industrial base meets the demands of a challenging national security landscape well into the future.

The Department of Defense will be taking promising joint warfighting capabilities Down Under this year and next year for key assessments that could lead to accelerated fielding, according to the Pentagon’s chief technology officer.
The Rapid Defense Experimentation Reserve (RDER), and the Technology Readiness Experimentation (T-REX) efforts that feed into it, will be heading to Australia, Heidi Shyu told reporters Wednesday on the sidelines of the Potomac Officers Club’s annual Defense R&D Summit.

France and Sweden begin a new strategic partnership based on the advancement of anti-tank and air defence capabilities between MBDA and Saab.

Rheinmetall expanding its Hungary based ammunition plant to introduce production lines for 155mm shells and 120mm ammunition.

The Hungarian Government proposes selling its outdated and idle military equipment and war materials to Serbia.

As disclosed by Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence, Russian industry company IPL Consulting has been hit by a cyberattack.

The US Marine Corps ACV is designed to deploy off the back of a ship and swim in open waters as well as operate in littoral environments. (US Marine Corps)
Amphibious combat vehicles (ACVs) and other tactical vehicles find themselves with an uncertain future until after the US Marine Corps (USMC) finishes its Infantry Battalion Experimentation (IBX), service officials said in January.

Belgium is procuring a further 3,500 Mikron night-vision goggles as part of the Night Vision Capability programme. (Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation)
The Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAR)is procuring on behalf of Belgium an additional 3,500 Mikron night-vision goggles (NVGs) from the Theon Sensors and Hensoldt consortium following an amendment to the Night Vision Capability (NVC) contract.

SkyShield, displayed at IDEX 2023, is an omnidirectional C-UAS that can detect and neutralise multiple unmanned aerial threats. (Janes/Olivia Savage)
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has signed a contract with Edge company SIGN4L for the provision of counter-unmanned aircraft systems (C-UASs).
Announced by Edge on 30 January, the contract includes the provision of the vehicle-based SkyShield and the NavControl-G jammer.
SIGN4L had not responded to Janes at the time of publication regarding the number of units being supplied and the delivery timeframes.

Having previously reported that its Tiger attack helicopters would be retired in 2038, the Bundeswehr has now said this will happen in 2032. (German Army)
Germany is to retire its Airbus Helicopters Tiger attack fleet in 2032, six years earlier than the 2038 date previously reported.
The Bundeswehr confirmed the retirement date for the Tiger combat helicopter (Kampfhubschrauber: KH) in its Annual Armaments Report published on 31 January. In May 2023 Reuters cited a Bundeswehr spokesperson as saying this would happen in 2038.
“The Tiger KH will be taken out of operational use in 2032.

The Mid-Range Capability (MRC) uses Tomahawk and SM-6 missiles fired from currently used, upgraded US Army artillery and missile systems.

Iver Huitfeldt
sets sail from Korsør on 29 January. The frigate is Denmark’s contribution to strengthening maritime security in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
(Rune Dyrholm/The Armed Forces)
The Royal Danish Navy (RDN) has despatched its air-defence frigate Iver Huitfeldt (F 361) to the Red Sea where it will participate in the US-led multinational task force Operation ‘Prosperity Guardian’.
Iver Huitfeldt set sail from Korsør bound for the Mediterranean on 29 January, the Danish Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed the same day.

This story is developing…
Sources have informed The Georgia Record that a GA State Senator and staff were assaulted by U.S. military members in Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta last evening, for uncovering and filming a migrant trafficking operation through the airport that seems to have been going on for some time.
The U.S. enlisted members were leading 30 military-aged males through the airport facility. They were assaulted when trying to ask questions, wrestled phone/ camera back. 
There is video of the incident.
America is being invaded and portions of the U.

Hold onto your pith helmets, folks, we’re journeying into the heart of the Zulu Kingdom at the brink of the Anglo-Zulu War. This isn’t the opening of another swashbuckling adventure film, but it probably should be. Instead, it’s late 1878 and relations between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom are as tense as a drum skin. A seemingly minor border dispute lit the fire. But the truth is, the kindling had been set long before. In fact, the British Ultimatum of December 1878 set a course for war.

Megan Eckstein, Defense News
WASHINGTON ­— A bipartisan group of lawmakers is calling for a national investment in the maritime industry, asking the White House to coordinate between…

Forbes
The threat of a Chinese amphibious assault against Taiwan is the central driver of U.S. defense strategy.

LaGrone & Lariosa, USNI News
The U.S.

Personnel from the Royal Australian Navy test an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) in Western Australia in 2021. Australia will collaborate with Japan to develop communication technologies that can enhance the interoperability of UUVs used by both countries. (Commonwealth of Australia)
Japan and Australia plan to initially focus on enhancing underwater communication technologies under a recently signed bilateral agreement to co-develop robotics and autonomous systems (RAS) for undersea warfare.

The Kataib Hezbollah forces in Iraq announced a “temporary suspension of all military activities” against the US after the raid that killed three US soldiers in Jordan.

“We suspend all military and security operations against the occupying forces to save face for the Iraqi government,” Abu Hussein al-Hamidawi, secretary general of the Kataib Hezbollah militia, announced on January 30. “We will continue to protect the people of Gaza through other means.”
This armed group often uses the phrase “occupying force” to refer to US units stationed in Iraq and surrounding areas.

Russian infantry penetrated the city of Avdeevka via underground pipes but was discovered and explored by Ukrainian defense forces with UAVs.

Russian media said that Russian forces recently tried to penetrate south of Avdeevka, the stronghold of Ukrainian forces in Donetsk province, by going through underground pipes under the city. Some social media accounts say Russia may have gotten up to 150 soldiers inside Avdeevka using this method.

The UK Ministry of Defence has provided funds for a research partnership called DMEx among industry and academia on ADMs.

AIDC’s T-5 Brave Eagle Advanced Jet Trainer (AJT) and light combat aircraft is being produced and delivered with enhanced digital avionics and materials technologies. (AIDC)
Taiwan’s Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC) has delivered 27 out of 66 T-5A Brave Eagle Advanced Jet Trainers (AJTs) ordered by the Republic of China Air Force (RoCAF).
An AIDC spokesperson told Janes on 30 January that these delivery numbers are current as of December 2023. Janes understands that AIDC had achieved its annual delivery target of 17 T-5As to the RoCAF in 2023.

North Korea’s Hwasal-2 cruise missile. (Janes)
North Korea has carried out a test-firing of its Hwasal-2 cruise missile.
The test was carried out by a Korean People’s Army (KPA) unit and the weapon was fired into the Yellow Sea (West Sea) on 30 January, according to a statement published by Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) the next day.

Washington is about to transfer to Ukraine GLSDB guided rockets with a range of about 150 km and can be fired from HIMARS rocket artillery, according to US officials.

Politico newspaper on January 30 quoted two unnamed US officials and two well-informed sources as saying that the Pentagon has successfully tested a Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB) and will soon transfer to Ukraine a long-range rocket model.

During my November 2023 visit to the front lines in eastern Ukraine, a commander from the 120th Territorial Defense Battalion described the country’s military as “swimming” between an outdated, secretive, and backward Soviet-era force and a modern NATO one. “Without transparency,” the commander lamented, “we cannot expect trust.” Emphasizing the crucial role of transparency in building trust, the commander underlined the consequences of withholding the truth from foreign journalists, equating it to betraying the country’s partners.

Every time a Chinese fighter jet crosses the Taiwan Strait’s median line flying faster than the speed of sound, Taiwanese officials have mere minutes to respond. Over the course of 2023, more than 1,700 Chinese aircraft breached Taiwan’s air defense identification zone, 703 of which crossed the median line. These included fighter jets, bombers, drones, and spy balloons, not to mention the ships and aircraft carriers that have sailed around Taiwan’s waters. Each intrusion and incursion requires a difficult decision.

The British Army is understood to be interested in procuring a new SHORAD system to replace British Army Stormer SP-HVMs (seen here on exercise with the 3rd (UK) Division on Salisbury Plain in 2015) sent to Ukraine. Given that the Stormer SP-HVM is scheduled to be retired in 2026, this new system could serve as an interim capability until the procurement of GBAD systems based on the Land Mobility Programme’s Medium Protected Vehicle.

The Ground Based Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB), promised to Ukraine last February, could arrive on the battlefield as soon as Wednesday, Politico reported on Tuesday.
The U.S. Army oversaw the testing of the new precision-guided weapon before providing its stamp of approval to send it to Ukraine, an industry source told the publication.

SCOOP: The Pentagon has successfully tested a new long-range precision bomb for Ukraine that is expected to arrive on the battlefield as soon as tomorrow, according to a U.S. official & 3 other people with knowledge of the talks.

The three phases of Ranger School will take candidates through the woods and mountains of Georgia, and ends in the swamps of Florida. Army Ranger School. US Army Photo/Patrick Albright.
The U.S. Army Ranger Course, commonly referred to as Ranger School, is the U.S. Army’s premier leadership course. Graduating from the two-month course is something most combat leaders strive for, and is unlike any other school in the military, transforming soldiers into the best leaders on the battlefield while enduring extreme field conditions.

The origin and technical characteristics of China’s J-20 Mighty Dragon stealth fighter, putting accusations of technological theft into context.
Parallels between the Chinese J-20 and the American F-35: A critical analysis
J-20
China’s J-20 Mighty Dragon, China’s stealth fighter, has sparked debate around its design and technology. There are consistent allegations suggesting that some of its technology comes from cyber theft targeting other countries’ defense programs, in particular  Lockheed Martin’s F-35 program.

An Iranian drug lord backed by the Iranian government tried to hire two Hells Angels motorcyle club members to kill two Maryland residents, US officials alledge in a newly unsealed indictment. Photos from DOJ, Facebook.
An Iranian agent tried to hire two Hells Angels motorcycle club members to assassinate two Maryland residents, federal officials alleged Monday.
The Iranian agent is in Iran, officials said, while the two Hells Angels are already in prison in Canada for unrelated crimes. The criminal indictment and a simultaneous set of sanctions announced by the U.S.

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), has revealed that it has developed, built, and in-flight released a brand new and hitherto unknown small uncrewed aerial system (SUAS) as the Advanced Air-Launched Effects (A2LE). Shown in new images released by the manufacturer, the new A2LE is seen being deployed from the internal weapons bay of a company-owned MQ-20 Avenger drone.
The A2LE demonstration took place on November 28, 2023, over the Dugway Proving Ground, Utah, under a manufacturing, structural test, and flight demonstration effort.

As the Biden administration ramps up plans to respond to a deadly attack on U.S. forces in Jordan on Sunday, an Iranian-backed militia group responsible for numerous strikes on U.S. troops in the Middle East says it is putting a pause on those actions.
Khataib Hezbollah (KH) announced “the suspension of military and security operations against the occupation forces – in order to prevent embarrassment to the Iraqi government,” the group said on Telegram Tuesday. “We will continue to defend our people in Gaza in other ways.

The Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Unit issued a new solicitation to industry for autonomous maritime drones that can operate in packs to monitor and intercept adversary ships.
DIU is on the hunt for low-cost platforms that could go into production next year. The aim is to build 10 or more systems per month, which would be an annual production rate of 120 or more robo-boats.

It was probably right after the first battle between armed humans that other humans began thinking of ways to not die in the next battle. Ever since, armies have come up with some pretty inventive ways of protecting themselves from the enemy’s weapons. Some were better than others. Bronze, iron and steel all provided a good degree of protection, but for every armor innovation, someone out there would try to use something like magic. Even in the modern era. 
But as they say, any significantly advanced technological innovation is indistinguishable from magic.

As Putin throws his forces relentlessly into the meat-grinder of Avdiivka, Mike and Ryan sort through the state of Russia’s offensive there, Moscow’s efforts to bleed Ukrainian air defense, and Kyiv’s success on the Black Sea. They also discuss how Ukraine can defend and rebuild in 2024 so that it can go on the offensive again next year. Ryan and Mike also return to Europe’s ongoing failure to muster the political will and resources needed to do its part. And listeners will be treated to a rant from Ryan on the turmoil over President Zelenksy’s reported decision to fire Gen.

A second amendment has been signed to a night vision goggle contract for up to 3,500 new pairs with a consortium of Hendsoldt and Theon.

The US Army will benefit from increased procurement of M109A7 Paladin self-propelled howitzers and M992A3 ammunition carriers.

The War Zone recently spoke with the commander of Nellis Air Force Base’s 57th Wing, Brig. Gen. Richard Goodman about the latest developments at the famed installation. He explained how Nellis’s role as the nexus for evolving cutting-edge capabilities and tactics development, training, and the latest warfighting rehearsals, is expanding. This includes a brand new large-scale exercise, dubbed Bamboo Eagle, which is keenly focused on preparing to fight a major war in the Pacific.
The U.S.

The Dutch Government has allocated €87m to fund artillery shells, €25m for equipment, and €10m for cyber defences in Ukraine.

British intelligence said Russia produces about 100 main battle tanks every month, enough to compensate for the number of losses on the Ukrainian battlefield.

An intelligence report from the British Ministry of Defense on January 29 said that Russian forces in Ukraine have lost a maximum of 365 main battle tanks since October 2023, meaning more than 100 per month. However, Russia’s current monthly tank output appears to be enough to compensate for losses on the battlefield.

The Syrian Ministry of Defense said Israel fired missiles at many targets on the outskirts of the capital, Damascus, killing and injuring several civilians.

The missile was launched from the direction of the Golan Heights area controlled by Israel at 13:00 Damascus time, the Syrian Ministry of Defense said on January 29. The agency initially said the attack killed “several Iranian advisers” but later retracted the information.

Turkey could be poised to return to the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program in what would be a remarkable turnaround after the country was ejected from the multinational effort back in 2019 after it acquired S-400 air defense systems from Russia. Once again, the S-400 is the critical factor in what happens next, with the United States seemingly stipulating that Turkey gives up these systems before it can get its hands on any F-35s.