Daily Report

Oct. 3, 2024

Pentagon Wants to Fastrack Buy of Cheap One-Way Drones

The Pentagon's Defense Innovation Unit is looking for cheap commercial drones to perform a variety of battlefield missions for multiple services, according to a recent solicitation. The DIU wants small business and "nontraditional" contractor involvement in the project, which has a short response time.

Radar Sweep

IDF Acknowledges Some Iranian Missiles Hit Air Bases, Says No Major Damage Caused

The Times of Israel

The Israeli military on Oct. 2 acknowledged that some of its air bases were hit in Iran’s massive ballistic missile attack on the country a night earlier, but stressed that no harm was caused to the functioning of the Israeli Air Force. The missile impacts damaged office buildings and other maintenance areas in the bases, according to the military.

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Trump Downplays US Troop Injuries in 2020 Iranian Attack as Headaches

The Washington Post

Former president Donald Trump downplayed the traumatic brain injuries suffered by American soldiers in an Iranian missile strike on an air base in Iraq in 2020, describing them as “a headache,” in response to a question at a campaign event in Milwaukee on Oct. 1.

No More Late Night Off-Base Drinking for US Troops in Japan

Air Force Times

U.S. Forces Japan banned troops from visiting off-base drinking establishments and publicly consuming alcohol from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. every day after a string of alleged sexual assaults by service members there earlier this year.

Israeli Response to Iran’s Attack to Set Course of Widening War

The Wall Street Journal

As Israel weighs how to respond to Tehran’s latest missile barrage, it could take a page from its previous playbook when, after days of deliberation, its military targeted a single Iranian military site. Few expect Israel’s response to be as narrow this time, posing a fresh test as the Biden administration seeks to avoid a new spiral of escalation.

Is the US Military Learning Enough from Ukraine?

Defense One

The services appear to treat the grinding yet tech-forward war with NATO’s top potential adversary as just one topic among many. Few analysts are tasked to study the war full-time, according to a Defense One review of service staffing.

One More Thing

B-52 Emerges in Striking Retro Orange Paint Scheme

The War Zone

A B-52H Stratofortress with the tail number 61-0028 as it was leaving Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma bound for Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana. But this was not your ordinary “BUFF.” Instead of the typical gray paint scheme, the jet, nicknamed “Wolfpack,” sported DayGlo orange highlights on its forward fuselage, towards its wingtips, on its engine nacelles, and its vertical stabilizer.