Ukrainian forces have either destroyed or damaged all three of the bridges over the Seym River in western Russia, according to Russian sources, as Kyiv’s incursion into western Russia entered its third week Aug. 21. ... Even as Ukraine hails its success on Russian territory, the Russian push in eastern Ukraine is poised to claim another key center, the city of Pokrovsk.
President Biden approved in March a highly classified nuclear strategic plan for the United States that, for the first time, reorients America’s deterrent strategy to focus on China’s rapid expansion in its nuclear arsenal. The shift comes as the Pentagon believes China’s stockpiles will rival the size and diversity of the United States’ and Russia’s over the next decade.
There could be a long wait for Iranian retaliation against Israel, Iran's Revolutionary Guards spokesperson Alimohammad Naini said on Aug. 20. The Middle East has been bracing for Iran's avowed retaliation over the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied that it was behind the killing.
The FBI and U.S. intelligence agencies have confirmed Iran was responsible for recent attempted hacks into the Trump and Biden-Harris presidential campaigns, the agencies said in a joint statement Aug. 19.
The Defense Department and the State Department aren’t doing a good job of communicating about some of the key arms transfers for Ukraine, according to a GAO report out Aug. 20.
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin told Airmen in a newly released memo that officials are focusing on updating family and mental health resources for Airmen as they continue to highlight the urgent preparation needed for a potential future conflict in the Pacific.
The Air Force is looking to procure a new unmanned system for Task Force 99, putting a premium on endurance and range. The unit—which was stood up in October 2022 at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, to use uncrewed platforms to conduct intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance activities and perform technology experiments—has multiple lines of effort including increasing air domain awareness, locating hard-to-detect mobile targets, and creating dilemmas for adversaries, according to officials.
Istari Digital, a startup led by former Air Force acquisition chief Will Roper, is partnering with Lockheed Martin Skunk Works to demonstrate the ability to digitally certify an aircraft before it’s built, a process that could make it easier to develop and test military aircraft in the future.
The Pentagon’s Rapid Defense Experimentation Reserve has successfully transitioned at least seven technology projects to the services so far, from high-altitude balloons to underwater communications, including five that were not previously linked to the high-speed acquisition effort.
The NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) has formally activated a three-year framework agreement with Danish radio frequency drone detection company MyDefence that provides alliance members with the opportunity to acquire the firm’s Wingman drone detection solution.
The Missile Defense Agency is preparing for a first test later this year of an initial capability designed to protect the strategic Pacific Island of Guam from air and missile threats, according to Air Force Lt. Gen. Heath Collins, the agency’s director.
With new technologies comes new ways that bad actors can get a hold of your software. It doesn’t get more cutting edge than military space technology, so that means the security practices in place need to be top notch and updated just as frequently. To find out how it’s going about that, Lt. Col. Laila Barasha, material leader at the Evolved Strategic SATCOM (ESS) ground segment with the U.S. Space Force, joined the Federal Drive with Tom Temin.
SpaceX is preparing to launch its next private mission by the end of the month, featuring the first attempt to have the astronauts step out into space. ... Extravehicular activities, or EVAs, have been a regular part of NASA’s astronaut missions for years, such as when the agency needs maintenance done outside the International Space Station. But no private venture has attempted an EVA before.
