Breaking Defense

Pentagon

‘Strong and clear, but quiet’: Pentagon policy head faces Senate questions over NDS

By Ashley Roque

Air Warfare, Land Warfare

Key questions, and an expert take, after US strikes Iran

This week on The Break Out, CNAS's Stacie Pettyjohn breaks down the ongoing US strikes on Iran.

By Breaking Defense Video

Naval Warfare

Iran mission takes toll on US munition stockpile, lawmakers weigh supplemental defense funding

Defense experts told Breaking Defense the use of hundreds of offensive and defensive munitions now could create a distressing vulnerability for the US in the future.

By Diana Stancy

Air Warfare

How tanking, airlift could be strained by Iran ops

"Aerial refueling capacity has historically been a major constraint on the tempo of operations, and it’s likely the case today," Tim Walton, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, told Breaking Defense.

By Michael Marrow

Latest News

Networks & Digital Warfare

‘Simple plans, violently executed’: One Army unit’s old-school counter to high-tech chaos

When drones can watch your every move and jammers scramble your communications, you need to keep your battle plans and your org chart simple, say officers from the Army’s National Training Center.

By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.

Congress

How Congress is reacting to the Iran conflict

Breaking Defense's Aaron Mehta is joined by Stacie Pettyjohn of the Center for a New American Security to discuss Sen. Tim Kaine's push for a war powers vote and how it might play out.

By Breaking Defense Video

In this episode:

CNAS's Stacie Pettyjohn breaks down the ongoing US strikes on Iran.

Networks & Digital Warfare

How US cyber operators could take on Iran in cyberspace as Epic Fury plays out

A former senior cyber commander noted that one of the biggest differences between one-off strikes like Operation Midnight Hammer last June and the current operation is that supporting elements will be working 24/7, focused on targets offensively, defensively, information operations and intelligence.

By Mark Pomerleau

Space

Austria military’s first satellite will hunt for GPS, Galileo interference

The European Space Agency also is kicking in funds for the BEACONSAT, being developed by Austrian startup GATE Space.

By Theresa Hitchens

Global

Macron calls to increase French nuclear arsenal, team with Germany and others on ‘deterrent’

"We cannot be satisfied with our current trajectory and I owe the nation the absolute assurance that our nuclear deterrence remains credible," French President Emmanuel Macron said.

By Christina Mackenzie

Pentagon

L3Harris appoints new CFO as firm prepares to spin off missile business

Former Peraton CFO Kenneth Sharp will become the L3Harris's top finance executive later this month.

By Valerie Insinna

Global

Caine: US objective is to keep Iran from projecting power outside own borders

“We're not going to go into the exercise of what we will or will not do,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters.

By Ashley Roque

Land Warfare

Army invites private industry to co-invest in installations, modernization plans

“We’re not just seeking funding,” said David Fitzgerald, who is performing the duties of the deputy undersecretary of the Army. “We’re seeking creative, out-of-the-box financial and business models that break the mold."

By Carley Welch

Global

UK awards Leonardo $1.3B AW149 New Medium Helicopter contract

The new AW149 fleet is desperately needed to plug a rotary capability gap left by retirement of the Puma HC2 fleet in March 2025.

By Tim Martin

Global

Iran conflict expands in Lebanon, Beirut demands Hezbollah ‘hand over its weapons’

Retired Lebanese armed forces general Maroun Hitti said that Hezbollah’s missiles has “instantly transformed Lebanon from fragile bystander to active battlefield,” describing the situations as “harsh and asymmetric.”

By Agnes Helou

Pentagon

Kaine to force Senate vote on Iran war, which Trump warns could last ‘weeks’

Kaine said even an unsuccessful vote could put pressure on the White House to change its behavior or yield more information about the attacks to the public.

By Valerie Insinna and Ashley Roque

Networks & Digital Warfare

Here’s how cyber could have been used to target Iran in Operation Epic Fury

Cyber operations were almost certainly used against Iran in the early hours of Operation Epic Fury. Here's how it may have played out.

By Mark Pomerleau

Global

‘Nightmare scenario’ for GCC countries, region as Iran unloads drones and missiles

“If Iranian attacks continue throughout this week, I would expect the Gulf Arab states to eventually participate in counter-attacks on Iran," one defense expert told Breaking Defense.

By Agnes Helou

Air Warfare

Israel says it struck more than 500 targets in Iran with 200 warplanes

The US and Israel together launched a surprise, "massive" attack on sites throughout Iran beginning early Saturday.

By Seth J. Frantzman

Featured:

‘Strong and clear, but quiet’: Pentagon policy head faces Senate questions over NDS

Key questions, and an expert take, after US strikes Iran

Iran mission takes toll on US munition stockpile, lawmakers weigh supplemental defense funding

How tanking, airlift could be strained by Iran ops

Latest News

‘Simple plans, violently executed’: One Army unit’s old-school counter to high-tech chaos

How Congress is reacting to the Iran conflict

How US cyber operators could take on Iran in cyberspace as Epic Fury plays out

Austria military’s first satellite will hunt for GPS, Galileo interference

Macron calls to increase French nuclear arsenal, team with Germany and others on ‘deterrent’

Artificial Intelligence & Autonomy: A New Era in Defense

AI giant Anthropic says it ‘cannot in good conscience’ agree to Pentagon demands

Pentagon CTO says it’s ‘not democratic’ for Anthropic to limit military use of Claude AI

Kodiak AI lands Marine Corps deal to add driverless tech to ROGUE Fires platform

ChatGPT will be available to 3 million military users on GenAI.mil

AI ‘fundamentally changing’ adversary behavior, leading to force generation reforms: Official

DoD expects AI-powered database of patents ready for industry by year’s end

To overcome Golden Dome ‘affordability’ hurdle, DoD needs acquisition reform, AI: Official

Pentagon picks 25 vendors to show off one-way attack drones in the Gauntlet competition

Picogrid wins $9M Air Force contract for counter-drone software written by AI

Pentagon CTO picks six defense tech vets to lead Critical Technology Areas

L3Harris appoints new CFO as firm prepares to spin off missile business

Caine: US objective is to keep Iran from projecting power outside own borders

Army invites private industry to co-invest in installations, modernization plans

UK awards Leonardo $1.3B AW149 New Medium Helicopter contract

Iran conflict expands in Lebanon, Beirut demands Hezbollah ‘hand over its weapons’

In Focus: Speed at the Tactical Edge

‘Simple plans, violently executed’: One Army unit’s old-school counter to high-tech chaos

‘California jammin’: Wargames show Army’s electronic weakness — and a human fix

Marines aim to be CJACD2 ‘fast follower’ with Dynamis Series of C2 experiments

Kaine to force Senate vote on Iran war, which Trump warns could last ‘weeks’

Here’s how cyber could have been used to target Iran in Operation Epic Fury

‘Nightmare scenario’ for GCC countries, region as Iran unloads drones and missiles

Israel says it struck more than 500 targets in Iran with 200 warplanes