Author name: Common Defense

Russia Sends Medieval Prince’s Sword Hand Bones to Ukraine Front in Morale Stunt
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Russia Sends Medieval Prince’s Sword Hand Bones to Ukraine Front in Morale Stunt

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Russia has sent bone fragments from the sword hand of a medieval warrior prince to the front in Ukraine, turning ancient remains into a modern morale operation.

The Russian Orthodox Church says the relic will spiritually strengthen troops fighting in a grinding war now entering its fifth year.

The remains belong to Grand Prince Dmitry Donskoy, who died in 1389 and became a revered figure among Russian nationalists.

He is celebrated for defeating the Mongol Golden Horde at the Battle of Kulikovo in 1380.

Donskoy’s sarcophagus was uncovered this summer during restoration work at Moscow’s Cathedral of the Archangel inside the Kremlin.

Experts described the remains as remarkably well preserved despite their age.

Russian President Vladimir Putin personally inspected the discovery in August and praised its historical significance.

He called the remains “an absolutely unique and marvellous discovery” that reinforced the foundations of Russian history.

The Russian Orthodox Church, a consistent supporter of Putin’s campaign in Ukraine, dispatched a fragment of Donskoy’s right hand to Donetsk.

Donetsk is one of four Ukrainian regions Putin declared incorporated into Russia in 2022, although Kyiv rejected the annexation as an illegal land grab.

The Moscow Patriarchate referred to Donskoy as “the holy commander” and said part of his remains had been sent to stand invisibly beside Russian forces.

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The message is not subtle, with church leaders openly presenting the medieval prince as a heavenly battlefield companion.

“A fragment of the Grand Prince’s right hand, the very same right hand with which he wielded his sword on Kulikovo Field, has been sent to the front to strengthen the soldiers’ spirits,” the Patriarchate said in a statement. The relic is secured in a small ornate casket beneath reinforced glass.

Church officials said the casket will be displayed to Russian combat units positioned along the front, which stretches more than 1,000 kilometers.

The effort amounts to a traveling religious morale campaign built around the remains of a warrior who died more than six centuries ago.

Donskoy was declared a saint by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1988. His name was also given to a Soviet tank column financed by the church during World War Two, providing Russian officials with another convenient link between religion, military history and state power.

The carefully staged tour comes shortly before a Russian parliamentary election later this month.

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It also arrives as Moscow’s military and religious leadership seeks fresh ways to sustain patriotism during an exhausting conflict that has resisted diplomatic settlement.

Russian forces are still attempting to seize complete control of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine.

Meanwhile, talks intended to end the war have produced no breakthrough, leaving both sides locked in costly combat while Moscow rolls out its latest spiritual public relations production.

Donskoy’s relics were carried through Moscow’s streets during a massive Orthodox procession over the weekend.

On Tuesday, the casket appeared at a World War Two memorial in Donetsk during a ceremony attended by senior Kremlin and military figures.

Sergei Kiriyenko, Putin’s first deputy Kremlin chief of staff, joined commanders and the Russian installed regional leader in kissing the relic and making the sign of the cross.

A priest read a prayer as the carefully choreographed display unfolded before cameras.

“Both our military personnel and the people who live in Donbas need strengthening from above, need God’s help and the blessing of our saints,” said Metropolitan Vladimir of Donetsk and Mariupol, a senior cleric appointed by Moscow. Donbas includes Donetsk and neighboring Luhansk, an area Russia now controls almost entirely.

U.S. and Russia Reopen Military Ties as Ukraine Talks Resume
Russian honor guards march in formation during the opening ceremony of the 65th anniversary of the Victory in Europe Day parade, St. Petersburg, Russia, May 10, 2010. The Russian minister of defense invited Vice Adm. Harry B. Harris Jr., commander of U.S. 6th Fleet, and USS Kauffman to participate in the celebration. Visits such as these serve to strengthen the relationship between the U.S. and Russian navies.

Russian commanders elsewhere have portrayed the remains as proof that God supports Moscow’s forces. The Russian War Ministry released footage Wednesday showing troops in the Sverdlovsk region attending a church service with icons and Orthodox flags, while a commander said the relics would support Russian victory.

Critics accuse church leaders of bending religious protocol to satisfy the Kremlin.

They also question why Donskoy’s remains, whose general location had been known for decades, were recovered and publicly venerated only now, 38 years after the church declared him a saint.

“By the fifth year of war, the Church leadership in Moscow began to wonder what else it could do to show its support for what Russia terms its ‘special military operation’,” Orthodox priest and historian Alexander Zanemonets wrote for the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center. Russia has designated the center’s director a “foreign agent.”

“It had already sent priests to the front lines, instituted mandatory prayers for Russian victory in every church, and flown icons over cities.

A state embroiled in war will try to compel all institutions, including religious ones, to participate in it.” For Moscow, apparently, even the bones of a medieval prince can be drafted for duty.

Military Issues Drone Survival Handbook for Spotting, Fighting, and Hiding From Unmanned Threats
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Military Issues Drone Survival Handbook for Spotting, Fighting, and Hiding From Unmanned Threats

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American troops now have a new handbook explaining how to detect drones, respond to them, and avoid becoming easy targets themselves.

It even warns that reflections from eyeglasses, glowing cigarettes, electronic devices, and discarded meal packaging can expose a position from above.

The Pentagon’s Joint Interagency Task Force 401 published the 2026 Counter Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems Quick Reference Guide on Tuesday.

The manual covers drone tactics, battlefield procedures, available countermeasures, and systems already in the American inventory, including lasers, jammers, and interceptors.

Task Force 401 was created in 2025 to coordinate drone defenses and tactics across the military services.

That mission has become increasingly urgent as cheap unmanned aircraft reshape battlefields, threaten American installations, and give hostile forces an inexpensive way to hunt personnel.

The handbook makes clear that “it is not a substitute for doctrine or detailed technical guidance.”

Instead, officials describe it as “a practical tool to help leaders and operators better understand the C-UAS landscape, identify solutions appropriate to their missions, and apply lessons learned.”

Lt. Col. Adam Scher, a spokesperson for the task force, said this is the first unclassified version made available.

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A classified edition was issued last year, and officials plan to revise the public guide as threats evolve and fresh information arrives from the services and other government partners.

The manual divides drone defense into four basic stages. Troops must detect the unmanned aircraft, track it and determine whether it is hostile or friendly, defeat it through kinetic or nonkinetic means, and report the incident through the chain of command.

Not every counter drone tactic requires an expensive laser or some contractor built gadget with a price tag large enough to make taxpayers wince.

The guide includes photographs and straightforward instructions showing ground forces how to scan for drones, estimate their movement, and react with equipment already available.

One method is called the “football field technique.” By visualizing distance in increments of a 100 yard football field, troops can estimate how far they may need to lead a moving drone when attempting to shoot it down.

Pentagon Readies High Energy Laser Test to Take Down Drones
A resupply drone takes off during a test flight at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center near Hohenfels, Germany, Feb. 18, 2026. (Sgt. Glenn Brennan/U.S. Army National Guard)

The handbook also teaches service members to use their hands as simple measuring tools while watching the horizon.

That technique can help observers divide the sky into sectors and monitor areas where either low flying or higher altitude drones may appear.

Shooting down a drone is only part of surviving beneath an increasingly crowded battlefield sky. The guide places heavy emphasis on “camouflage discipline,” reminding troops that modern sensors can spot small mistakes that would once have seemed harmless.

Cell phones, smart watches, fitness trackers, lit cigarettes, and reflective glasses can all reveal activity or location. Even abandoned trash and debris can become dangerous because it “creates visual contrast,” giving drone operators an obvious clue that personnel have occupied an area.

Radio emissions are another serious concern because wearable devices have already created operational security problems for American forces in the Middle East.

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Marine Corps Cpl. Calvin Burke, an intelligence specialist assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, activates a small unmanned aerial system to survey the defensive line for opposing forces during a simulated assault and seizure at Glen Airfield, Queensland, Australia, July 2025. The War Department has undertaken the drone dominance initiative to put more drones into the hands of warfighters.

Troops who carry civilian electronics into combat may unknowingly broadcast patterns, movement, or location data to an enemy waiting overhead.

In January, the task force also released its “Guide for Physical Protection of Critical Infrastructure.”

That document outlined protective measures for military bases, expanded the authority of installation commanders to respond to drones, and offered instructions for hardening areas considered especially vulnerable.

American drone defenses have received greater scrutiny since the deadly 2024 attack on Tower 22 in Jordan and during more recent operations involving Iran.

The new guide recommends “compartmentalization,” meaning heavily populated spaces such as dining facilities and barracks should be divided into smaller areas using “ballistic resistant walls.”

Although the handbook is unclassified, its “lessons learned” section directs authorized personnel to additional Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and NATO resources that require official access. That allows troops to begin with a practical public reference while preserving more sensitive tactics and technical information behind controlled systems.

Pentagon Launches First ‘Top Drone’ School to Sharpen Drone Operator Skills
As the Pentagon looks to field more drones to military units, it’s also working to build up the organizational and training infrastructure needed to support that push. (Staff Sgt. Dylan Bailey/U.S. Army)

Scher said the guide “reflects lessons” gathered from battlefields in Europe and the Middle East.

It also incorporates experience from federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies preparing counter drone protection for the FIFA 2026 World Cup, America 250 events, and military operations along the southern border.

The central message is blunt: drones have made carelessness deadlier and concealment more complicated.

Whether the giveaway is a radio signal, a shining lens, a pile of meal trash, or troops clustered inside an unprotected building, the enemy only needs one opening, and this handbook aims to give American forces fewer of them.

Air Force Sharpens Quantum Navigation for Combat After GPS Goes Dark
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Air Force Sharpens Quantum Navigation for Combat After GPS Goes Dark

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Modern GPS makes crossing continents almost as straightforward as following a navigation application on a daily commute.

That convenience is precisely why American military planners expect the satellite network to become a prime target during the opening stages of any major conflict.

The United States cannot assume those signals will remain available when missiles are flying and electronic warfare units are hunting for weaknesses.

As a result, the Air Force is advancing a quantum navigation system designed to keep aircraft on course even when GPS is jammed, spoofed, or destroyed.

A Pentagon test flight over Alaska marked a significant step toward that goal.

The demonstration was supervised by the Defense Innovation Unit, the Pentagon office tasked with moving promising commercial technology into operational military service.

The test crew flew a specially modified Embraer 170 from Seattle, Washington, to southern Alaska and back.

During the four hour flight over the Pacific Ocean, the aircraft navigated using quantum sensors and a detailed magnetic map of the Earth.

Although the Embraer 170 was a modified civilian aircraft, the technology is already headed toward a more demanding military test.

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U.S. Marines prepare to board an MV-22B Osprey at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California, Sept. 17, 2025. (Cpl. Avery Wayland/U.S. Marine Corps)

The Air Force plans to install and evaluate the navigation system aboard a C 17 later this year, according to the Pentagon.

The system is called Magnetic Anomaly Aided Navigation, commonly shortened to MagNav, and was developed by Honeywell.

Instead of relying on signals transmitted from orbit, MagNav reads magnetic signatures created by geological formations buried within the planet’s crust.

The Earth is not composed of one perfectly uniform layer of rock. Its crust contains immense and varied deposits of granite, iron ore, coal, petroleum, and other materials, with each producing a distinct magnetic signature that sensitive instruments can detect from the air.

To the MagNav system, those signatures function much like visible terrain features do for a pilot looking through a cockpit window.

Forests, deserts, mountains, and rivers provide visual reference points, while underground mineral formations create an invisible but dependable magnetic landscape.

Those formations offer a major military advantage because an enemy cannot move, jam, or spoof them with electronic warfare equipment.

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A crew chief marshals a C-17A Globemaster III aircraft into a parking spot at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, on March 2, 2025. (John Rossi/U.S. Air Force)

They also remain available through darkness and poor weather, giving aircraft crews a navigation reference when satellite signals and visual landmarks are unavailable.

The August demonstration required MagNav to guide the aircraft across open ocean, where conventional terrain references were absent.

That made the route a meaningful test of whether magnetic navigation could deliver useful accuracy during realistic long distance operations.

“After four hours and 23 minutes of flying over the ocean without GPS, the MagNav system improved position accuracy by 89% compared to traditional backup navigation methods,” the Pentagon said in a news release on the flight.

That improvement could prove critical when aircraft must reach targets, airfields, or refueling points without broadcasting their position or trusting compromised satellites.

The concept sounds simple because it essentially involves navigating with a map of rocks beneath the Earth.

The engineering challenge, however, is exceptionally difficult because the planet’s dominant magnetic field can overwhelm the faint geological signals MagNav must identify.

Air Force F-22 Raptor, E-3 Sentry, C-17 Globemaster III, C-130J Hercules and C-12F Huron aircraft participate in a close formation taxi known as an “elephant walk” at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, May 5, 2020.

Magnetic north accounts for more than 99% of the magnetic information detected around an aircraft.

The navigation equipment must filter out that powerful background field while also separating magnetic interference generated by the aircraft, its electronics, and its onboard systems.

Researchers accomplish that demanding task with quantum sensors capable of measuring how magnetic fields affect subatomic particles.

Those measurements allow the system to isolate subtle geological signatures and compare them with a stored magnetic map to determine the aircraft’s location.

This approach gives American aircrews another layer of resilience in a battlespace where adversaries will undoubtedly attack communications, satellites, and navigation networks.

Depending entirely on GPS would be convenient right up until the enemy switches off the convenience, which is why serious war planning requires reliable alternatives.

Testing MagNav aboard a C 17 will show whether the technology can perform inside a large operational military aircraft with its own complex magnetic interference.

If successful, quantum navigation could help American aircraft continue delivering troops, equipment, and combat power after the GPS screen goes dark.

Navy Must Start Killing Manned Programs, Top War Official Warns
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Navy Must Start Killing Manned Programs, Top War Official Warns

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The Navy is talking about an unmanned future, but its budget remains anchored to the manned fleet of yesterday.

Matthew Shortal, a senior leader at the Silicon Valley based Defense Innovation Unit, told a congressional panel Wednesday that the service must make far tougher choices.

Shortal, the unit’s principal deputy director and chief commercial officer, testified before the National Commission on the Future of the Navy.

His message was blunt: rhetoric about autonomous vessels means little when the money keeps flowing toward traditional platforms.

“I’ve seen reports that it’s 96% manned, 4% unmanned,” Shortal said. “My personal view is that it’s not even close, and we need to move quicker.”

According to Shortal, Navy and Marine Corps leaders readily agree that unmanned ships and systems will matter in future combat.

That agreement apparently becomes considerably less enthusiastic once officials must move money and cancel comfortable legacy programs.

“But when it comes time for budget, moving things, it just doesn’t happen, and we need to move out quickly,” he said. Shortal added that the ratio is not moving toward 10 percent despite several billion dollars being requested for unmanned capabilities.

“It’s not enough. We need to start killing manned programs,” Shortal said, delivering the kind of budget reality check Washington rarely enjoys hearing.

The hearing was the commission’s third public session and took place at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California.

Congress established the eight member commission in 2022, and its public hearing series began in March.

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The commission expects to release initial findings in early 2027, including “concrete choices for force design, industrial base reform, and the policies that enable a Navy and Marine Corps team capable of sustained operations and rapid surge when required.”

That timeline leaves little room for bureaucratic drifting while American rivals rapidly expand their own maritime forces.

Shortal argued that both the Ukraine conflict and Operation Epic Fury, the United States’ war on Iran, have transformed battlefield assumptions.
Those conflicts, he said, have established unmanned vessels as “the way into the future.”

He pointed to the deployment of a Saronic built Corsair unmanned surface vessel into the Strait of Hormuz.

The craft conducted a rescue at sea for two Army AH 64 Apache pilots after their helicopter went down in the strait in June.

“Then, not long after, three explosive laden Corsair autonomous surface vessels conducted one way attacks against maritime infrastructure at the Bandar Abbas naval base,” Shortal said. Bandar Abbas is Iran’s largest naval facility and sits beside the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz.

The Defense Innovation Unit had previously financed early prototype work and acquisition pathways for Saronic unmanned surface vessels.

That effort helped produce a $392 million production contract for Corsair vessels last December.

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A Seahawk medium displacement unmanned surface vessel steams through the Pacific Ocean during the U.S. Pacific Fleet’s Integrated Battle Problem 23.1. (MCS2 Lake Fultz/U.S. Navy)

“At DIU, we don’t spend years gazing at the problem,” Shortal said. “In the face of generational technological change on the battlefield, resource allocation towards new entrants and new capabilities like unmanned autonomous vehicles in all domains is a critical directive in the face of a new war.”

Shortal did not identify which specific manned ships or capabilities should face cuts.

That omission leaves the Navy with the hardest question still unanswered, because every major program has a constituency, a contractor and a long line of officials explaining why somebody else should take the hit.

Operation Epic Fury has also exposed the limits of a manned fleet stretched across competing theaters.

The Navy has only so many aircraft carriers, escorts and support vessels available to sustain operations in the Middle East while deterring China in the Pacific.

The carrier George Washington was redirected to the region to relieve the Abraham Lincoln after an exceptionally long deployment. That move created a temporary carrier gap in the Pacific as China continued threatening American allies, a strategic shell game no serious fleet plan can tolerate forever.

The Navy’s May shipbuilding plan requests money for five unmanned vessels and 34 manned vessels in fiscal 2027. Across five years, it seeks 63 unmanned platforms and 122 manned ships, producing a projected fleet of 299 manned battle force ships and 83 unmanned vessels by fiscal 2031.

It was the first Navy shipbuilding plan to include unmanned vessels in official future fleet projections.

“This inclusion is driven by the level of maturity in unmanned vessels,” the plan stated, adding that they are now expected to satisfy operational requirements approved by the Chief of Naval Operations.

That is progress, but Shortal’s testimony makes clear that adding a few unmanned vessels around the edges will not produce the fleet required for modern war.

If the Navy wants mass, reach and survivability, sacred cow programs may finally have to meet the budget knife.

Iranian Strike on Jordan Base Damages Multiple American Military Aircraft, Official Reveals
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Iranian Strike on Jordan Base Damages Multiple American Military Aircraft, Official Reveals

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Iranian strikes damaged several American military aircraft at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan this week, according to a U.S. official who spoke with Reuters.

The attack added another costly chapter to a conflict already taking a serious toll on American personnel, aircraft, and missile inventories.

The official, who requested anonymity, said one A-10 Thunderbolt II suffered severe damage during the attack.

The aircraft, widely known as the Warthog, was reportedly left missing a wing after the Iranian barrage struck the base Tuesday.

Roughly eight F-15 fighter aircraft also sustained light damage, the official said.

Those aircraft were repaired or cleared quickly enough to return to service, preventing the strike from causing a broader immediate disruption to American air operations.

Even so, damage to nine aircraft on a major regional base is no small matter.

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The Qatari air force will begin training F-15 Strike Eagle pilots at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho. Photo by Staff Sgt. Zachary Willis

Iran demonstrated that American installations and expensive combat platforms remain vulnerable despite the vast sums Washington has poured into military readiness and regional air defenses.

The latest losses come on top of substantial material damage suffered since the Iran war began in February.

More than two dozen drones have been destroyed, fighter aircraft have been hit by Iranian attacks, and additional aircraft have been lost in accidents.

A May report from the Congressional Research Service found that 42 U.S. military aircraft had already been lost or damaged during the conflict.

That figure predates the latest attack in Jordan, meaning the overall count has almost certainly climbed.

The human cost has also continued to mount. Since fighting began in February, 18 American service members have been killed and more than 800 have been injured, according to the figures presented in the report.

Iran launched the Jordan strike after U.S. forces said they destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers. American officials described those operations as a response to aggressive actions by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The United States said the Iranian force had targeted a U.S. Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice during the previous two days.

That sequence of attacks and counterattacks illustrates how quickly the confrontation has expanded across the region.

Defending Muwaffaq Salti Air Base required American forces to fire roughly 30 Patriot interceptors, according to the U.S. official.

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U.S. soldiers conduct a Patriot missile live-fire exercise at MacGregor Range near Fort Bliss, Texas, Aug. 23, 2025. (Sgt. JaDarius Duncan/U.S. Army)

While the system helped counter the incoming missiles, using that many interceptors in a single engagement raises uncomfortable questions about how long current stockpiles can support sustained combat.

Exact inventory figures remain classified, as they should.

However, an estimate from the Center for Strategic and International Studies suggested that about 65 percent of America’s Patriot interceptors were expended between February and July.

The organization estimated that fewer than 850 interceptors remained available, compared with approximately 2,330 before the war began.

If accurate, those numbers point to a steep depletion rate that cannot be brushed aside with the usual Pentagon talking points and polished briefing room slides.

Patriot interceptors are sophisticated, costly, and not produced overnight.

Every large Iranian salvo forces American commanders to weigh the immediate need to protect troops and aircraft against the strategic requirement to preserve enough missiles for future attacks.

The damage in Jordan therefore represents more than one battered Warthog and several lightly struck F-15s.

It highlights the grinding arithmetic of modern warfare, where relatively frequent missile attacks can drain expensive defensive weapons while keeping airfields, ships, and personnel under constant pressure.

American forces returned the damaged F-15s to duty, showing the resilience of maintenance crews operating under wartime conditions.

Still, the missing wing on an A 10 and the expenditure of roughly 30 Patriot interceptors are hard evidence that Iran’s attack imposed a real price.

With 18 service members dead, more than 800 injured, and dozens of aircraft lost or damaged, the conflict is testing both American endurance and the depth of military stockpiles.

The troops are doing their jobs, but Washington must ensure they have enough aircraft, interceptors, and operational support to keep doing them without paying an ever higher cost.

Pentagon Turns to AI to Hunt Space and Missile Threats
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Pentagon Turns to AI to Hunt Space and Missile Threats

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Missile warfare gives commanders little room for hesitation.

Human operators must sort through uncertain sensor feeds, identify fast moving objects, and decide within seconds whether an incoming contact represents a genuine threat.

The Pentagon is now looking to artificial intelligence to cut through that battlefield confusion.

The goal is not to replace military judgment, but to give operators a faster and clearer picture before enemy missiles, drones, or space systems can strike.

The Defense Innovation Unit is seeking “AI-based software tools to turn fragmented sensor data into a continuously updated understanding of space and missile threats fast enough to drive operational decisions.” Proposals for the effort are due Sept. 24.

The solicitation bluntly describes the weaknesses of current technology, stating, “Existing tools struggle to distinguish closely spaced objects, track emerging threats, and keep threat models current.”

Those shortcomings become especially dangerous when multiple objects are moving at extreme speeds through a crowded battlespace.

The project is called the “Space Threat Intelligence Synthesis Engine,” and it would capitalize on artificial intelligence’s ability to examine enormous volumes of information rapidly.

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That processing power could help commanders detect patterns that human analysts might miss under wartime pressure.

According to the solicitation, the software will combine “massive streams of multi-source data, including live video, satellite imagery, radar and sensor feeds, geospatial data, and classified intelligence reports.”

Bringing those sources together could reduce the confusion caused when separate systems provide incomplete or conflicting pictures.

The government says, “By automating advanced cross-data correlation, the architecture aims to uncover hidden patterns, complex operational relationships, and predictive threat behaviors far beyond the capabilities of human analysis alone.”

In plain English, the Pentagon wants a system that can find the needle before the enemy launches the rest of the haystack.

The platform should ultimately “generate actionable, confidence-scored alerts supporting analyst-in-the-loop, human-on-the-loop, or automated workflows.”

Confidence ratings would help operators determine which warnings deserve immediate attention and which contacts may require further review.

Humans will remain part of the process, but the artificial intelligence will also communicate directly with other machines.

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Two members in Space Force uniforms look at information on a computer screen.
Space Force Spc. Roberto Santiago-Irizarry, left, and 2nd Lt. Yoon Jung Lee monitor Space Domain Awareness information on the 18 SDS operations floor at Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif., Oct. 4, 2024.

That capability is increasingly important as modern command networks connect sensors, launchers, aircraft, satellites, ships, and ground units across vast operating areas.

The system must provide “intuitive, human-readable visualizations for frontline operators and low-latency, machine-to-machine APIs to drive automated command-and-control (C2) workflows.”

The Pentagon therefore wants information that troops can understand quickly, while also supporting automated responses when every second matters.

The Defense Innovation Unit is targeting an open source architecture that can deliver results no more than five seconds after data arrives.

Its preferred objective is even more demanding, with a delay of no more than two seconds between receiving information and displaying the analysis.

Required throughput is expected to reach between 20 and 30 megabytes per minute during normal operations.

The system must also handle bursts of as much as five gigabytes, a major demand when video, radar, satellite imagery, and classified reporting are pouring into the same network.

Contractors will need to prove that their products offer “significant speed and accuracy improvements in event detection, characterization, and attribution compared to existing baseline systems.”

Fancy demonstrations and Silicon Valley buzzwords will not be enough if the software cannot identify a missile correctly when lives and limited interceptors are on the line.

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Guardians track data at the Combined Space Operations Center at Vandenberg Space Force Base. Space Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Luke Kitterman

Conflicts involving Ukraine and Iran have shown how quickly skies can become saturated with drones, missiles, and other airborne threats.

Overworked operators must decide which targets are dangerous, which assets are protected, and where scarce interceptors such as those used by Patriot systems should be committed.

Those interceptor shortages make accurate threat identification essential because firing an expensive missile at the wrong object wastes ammunition that may be needed minutes later.

Artificial intelligence could help commanders prioritize threats without surrendering the human judgment needed for lethal decisions.

Major contractors are already moving into this field. Northrop Grumman announced in July that it was working with artificial intelligence company Camgian on integrated air and missile defense, while BAE and Scale AI have launched their own partnership focused on AI enhanced missile defense.

The Pentagon’s new synthesis engine reflects a wider shift toward combining human experience with machine speed.

If industry can deliver the promised accuracy and response times, American operators could gain precious seconds against missile salvos, drone swarms, and emerging space threats.

Iran Exploited Claude to Hunt US Navy Forces in the Middle East, Anthropic Says
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Iran Exploited Claude to Hunt US Navy Forces in the Middle East, Anthropic Says

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Iranian operatives used the publicly available Claude artificial intelligence platform to collect targeting information on American service members and US Navy forces operating across the Middle East, according to a new report from Anthropic.

The disclosure offers another warning that hostile regimes are turning commercial AI tools into digital reconnaissance assistants.

Anthropic said Thursday that the activity occurred between December 2025 and August 2026.

During that period, the Iranian threat actor allegedly relied on Claude to analyze public information and recommend methods for locating American naval assets throughout the region.

“The threat actor used Claude to compile targeting handbooks…to identify and track naval positions based on open-source information,” the report said.

That work reportedly transformed scattered public records into organized material that could be used to monitor ships, aircraft and individual service members.

The operatives gathered names and other information about US military personnel from publicly released military photographs.

While such images may appear routine, hostile intelligence collectors can combine faces, names, unit details and locations to build a far more revealing operational picture.

Claude was also used to examine ship and aircraft transponder data, which broadcasts identifying codes and location information.

That data can help civilian operators avoid collisions, but in the hands of an Iranian threat actor, it can also become a convenient method for following American movements.

The account additionally sought commercial satellite imagery query scripts designed to locate precise geographic visuals.

Those scripts could make it easier to search vast imagery databases for ports, airfields, ships and other military activity without requiring the resources of a traditional state intelligence operation.

Anthropic said the Iranian actor assembled information about public websites that track US Navy movements.

Individually, those sources may seem harmless, but combined through an AI platform, they can provide hostile forces with a faster and more organized targeting process.

Iran Exploited Claude to Hunt US Navy Forces in the Middle East, Anthropic Says

The threat actor did not stop at locating American forces. According to the report, it also used Claude to research weaknesses in US Navy shipboard systems that could potentially be exploited, raising concerns about cyber intrusion, electronic warfare and physical attacks.

Anthropic said it banned the account after discovering the activity.

The company also said it established additional safeguards intended to block similar misuse and shared relevant information with government agencies responsible for addressing the threat.

The report described other troubling cases involving Claude, including a group of Yemeni operatives that allegedly used the platform to develop targeting software for guided missiles.

That episode demonstrates how commercial AI can reduce technical barriers for terrorist groups and regional proxies seeking more accurate weapons.

Internal concerns surrounding the company have also intensified. Jacob Coxon, a researcher associated with Anthropic and OpenAI, resigned Tuesday and questioned the conduct of both companies in a lengthy post on X.

“Neither company is acting responsibly,” said Coxon. “They are racing straight to self-improving superintelligence and gambling with our lives.”

The US military previously used Anthropic technology but ended its relationship with the company after Anthropic refused to accept War Department terms governing military access to Claude.

Anthropic argued that those conditions could permit the platform to be used for mass surveillance or fully autonomous weapons.

That clash highlights a growing national security dilemma because American forces need advanced AI capabilities, but private technology companies increasingly want to dictate how elected leaders and military commanders may use them.

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A sailor stands watch on the USS Truxtun, a destroyer participating in the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. Navy photo.

Meanwhile, adversaries such as Iran appear perfectly willing to exploit the same tools without pausing for Silicon Valley ethics seminars.

The Iranian activity shows that publicly available information can become dangerous when artificial intelligence rapidly collects, sorts and converts it into usable targeting guidance.

Protecting American sailors and service members will require tighter operational security, stronger counterintelligence and serious scrutiny of how AI companies police hostile foreign accounts.

For the Navy, this is not an abstract technology debate taking place inside a corporate conference room.

It is a direct force protection problem involving real ships, real crews and an Iranian regime that has repeatedly used proxies, missiles and surveillance to threaten American personnel in the Middle East.

Saudi Crown Prince Seeks Trump’s Military Help as Houthi Threat Tightens Red Sea Grip
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Saudi Crown Prince Seeks Trump’s Military Help as Houthi Threat Tightens Red Sea Grip

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Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman appealed to President Donald Trump for American assistance against Yemen’s Iran aligned Houthi movement as the militant group increased pressure on shipping through the Red Sea, according to two sources familiar with the discussions.

Trump and the Saudi leader held at least two telephone conversations Thursday, the sources said.

The reported talks came as Riyadh faced a growing threat to a maritime corridor that has become increasingly important to Saudi oil exports.

Washington ultimately informed Saudi Arabia that direct American military action was not on the table for now, according to the sources.

However, the United States was prepared to support Saudi operations through intelligence sharing and targeting assistance.

That approach allows Trump to protect critical American interests without rushing United States forces into another regional fight.

It also places the immediate responsibility on capable regional partners instead of treating the American military as the world’s emergency response squad.

The White House did not directly answer a Reuters question about the reported calls.

A senior administration official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the United States remained in continuous communication with Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s internationally recognized government.

“The United States is focused on protecting our core national security interests, such as ensuring freedom of navigation in the Red Sea, while empowering our regional partners to take the lead in managing and resolving regional security challenges,” the official said.

Saudi Arabia’s government media office did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the conversations.

Axios first reported that the crown prince had sought assistance from Trump.

Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of United States Central Command, traveled to Saudi Arabia on Thursday for discussions, according to two sources.

His visit highlighted the seriousness of the threat even as Washington stopped short of committing forces to direct combat.

The strategic concern centers on the Bab el Mandeb Strait, the narrow waterway connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden. Houthi control of that passage could give Iran another powerful lever over global commerce and energy supplies.

Tehran already holds influence near the Strait of Hormuz, which has effectively closed during the broader conflict.

Before the disruption, roughly one fifth of the world’s oil moved through Hormuz, making the waterway one of the most important energy routes on the planet.

Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, has therefore relied more heavily on the Red Sea route.

If the Houthis can restrict traffic through Bab el Mandeb, Iran could squeeze a second major transit corridor and send global oil prices sharply higher.

The United States war with Iran has entered its seventh month without an immediate end in sight.

The conflict has driven up global oil prices and the cost of gasoline in the United States, creating additional political pressure ahead of the November midterm elections.

The latest escalation can be traced to early July, when the Houthis claimed their forces confronted Saudi “warplanes” that were allegedly attempting to stop an Iranian civilian aircraft from landing at Sanaa International Airport.

At that time, Saudi officials told Washington that their forces could handle the Houthis without direct American intervention.

Riyadh also emphasized that the wider war should not expand and urged United States officials to increase economic pressure on Iran.

The request reported this week suggests Saudi calculations may now be shifting as the Houthi threat grows more dangerous.

Intelligence and targeting support from the United States could improve Saudi effectiveness while keeping American personnel away from the front line.

The United States and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, prompting Tehran to launch strikes against Israel and Gulf countries hosting American bases.

American and Israeli strikes on Iran, along with Israeli operations in Lebanon, have since killed thousands and displaced millions.

For Trump, the decision balances military caution with the need to defend freedom of navigation and prevent Iran from dominating another strategic chokepoint.

The message is straightforward: America will defend its interests, but regional powers must carry their share of the security burden.

Pentagon Daycare Survivor Runs 2,977 Miles, One for Every Life Lost
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Pentagon Daycare Survivor Runs 2,977 Miles, One for Every Life Lost

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For millions of Americans, the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, have faded into history, and many younger citizens were not yet born.

For Air Force Capt. Hanna Born, however, the 2,977 people murdered that day are lives to be remembered individually, one mile and one name at a time.

Born, an instructor pilot assigned to the 23rd Flying Training Squadron at Fort Rucker, Alabama, has launched Run to Remember, a social media journey in which she runs a mile for every person lost.

Her connection to the attack is deeply personal and helped inspire her decision to serve in uniform.

Just before her third birthday, Born and her four month old sister were inside the Pentagon Child Development Center when American Airlines Flight 77 slammed into the building.

She remembers the day through brief flashes, including “overwhelming confusion” as smoke, noise and fear consumed the scene.

“As soon as we stepped foot outside, starting to see and hear and smell everything that was so different, just confusion through and through,” she said. “And then I remember my dad coming to pick us up, and like finally just having some sense of comfort.”

A few days later, Born returned to the Pentagon with her father and sister, giving the family an opportunity to process what had happened and witness the response.

Her father also learned how daycare workers evacuated the children into an area that “felt like a sanctuary.”

Born and her sister were among roughly 140 children who escaped the daycare safely, thanks to what she calls the “unsung heroes” of September 11.

Workers and unidentified volunteers moved children away from danger while babies were placed into cribs and carried about half a mile toward the Potomac River.

The rescuers arranged the cribs in a circle and established a protective perimeter until parents could arrive.

Their identities remain unknown, but their actions reflected the kind of courage that appears when ordinary Americans confront an unimaginable crisis.

No child inside the Pentagon daycare was killed.

“We just know that when the moment called for it, they had the presence of mind to realize that there were people there that needed help,” Born said. “Instead of just getting themselves to safety, they came back for us.”

“I think that’s just credit to the character and the ingenuity of the people that worked at the Pentagon that day, both in uniform and out of uniform, to be able to come up with a plan when the moment called for it,” she continued.

“I mean, none of them woke up that morning expecting to need to do anything like that, but it was just innate inside of them that that’s how they responded in that situation.”

As the 25th anniversary approached, Born began reflecting on the national promise to never forget and whether America was still keeping it.

She remembered arriving at high school on one September 11 anniversary and seeing the American flag still flying at full staff rather than lowered to honor the nearly 3,000 dead.

“I missed the first couple classes that day, just trying to track down a janitor and talk with the principal and have that amended so that they would lower the flag in respect, and they did,” she said.

“I think that year was kind of the first spot where I thought, are we still continuing this promise that we made to never forget?”

As more anniversaries seemed to pass with less public recognition, Born searched for a way to make remembrance part of her daily life.

Run to Remember became that mission, combining physical endurance with the far heavier emotional responsibility of learning about each victim.

Born has completed more than 1,000 miles since beginning the project last year.

Although she initially hoped to finish all 2,977 miles before the 25th anniversary, she decided that honoring each person properly mattered more than racing through the distance for a deadline.

“We might hear stories about specific people that have been more publicized over the past 25 years, but this is a mile for every person, a mile for every name,” she said. “It’s a name you may not have heard a story about yet.”

The Run to Remember account has attracted nearly 42,000 followers, proving that plenty of Americans still understand the duty of remembrance even if some institutions need an occasional nudge.

Supporters can participate by contacting Born and running a mile in honor of an assigned victim.

“Send me a message. I’ll send you a name to run for,” Born said.

“This doesn’t have to be my project. This is everybody’s effort, so that we can continue to honor them.”

Born’s mission is not merely about mileage, athletic performance or social media numbers.

It is about restoring names and stories to a death toll, honoring those who ran toward danger and keeping faith with the solemn promise America made after September 11: never forget.

Trump Leaves Washington Aboard Qatar Gifted Air Force One After Emergency Slide Mishap
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Trump Leaves Washington Aboard Qatar Gifted Air Force One After Emergency Slide Mishap

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President Donald Trump departed Washington for Texas on Wednesday aboard the Boeing 747 gifted by Qatar, but only after an emergency evacuation slide was accidentally deployed and removed.

The unexpected mishap briefly delayed the presidential flight.

Military personnel accidentally activated the slide shortly before Trump was scheduled to board, according to a person briefed on the incident who spoke with Reuters.

The slide was later seen being carried away from the aircraft.

Trump was traveling to Dallas for the first ever Republican midterm convention.

Despite the delay and the inevitable questions from the traveling press, the president boarded the jumbo jet and continued with his schedule.

One journalist asked Trump whether he was certain the aircraft remained safe to fly following the accidental deployment.

Trump answered directly: “Yeah, I am, or I wouldn’t be on it.”

The response was classic Trump, short on Washington hand wringing and long on common sense.

President Trump to Fly On Qatari-Donated Air Force One for the First Time
President Donald J. Trump tours the new Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews (The White House)

If the aircraft had presented an unacceptable danger, the commander in chief obviously would not have stepped aboard.

The Boeing 747 8 is normally equipped with 12 inflatable emergency evacuation slides. Those systems are designed to help passengers descend safely from the massive aircraft, which places its doors roughly 30 feet above the ground.

An accidental slide deployment can create a visible spectacle, particularly when it happens around the presidential aircraft.

Still, the available information indicated that personnel removed the deployed equipment and cleared the plane for departure after the brief interruption.

The Air Force did not immediately answer a request for comment about the episode.

As a result, officials had not publicly explained exactly how the slide was triggered, what inspections followed, or whether disciplinary or procedural action might result.

Trump began traveling aboard the jumbo jet on July 1 after accepting the aircraft as a gift from Qatar last year.

Its entry into presidential service followed an accelerated renovation effort intended to prepare the large Boeing aircraft for Trump’s use.

The Qatari aircraft has attracted substantial attention because of its origin, cost, security requirements, and unusually rapid conversion for presidential travel.

Even so, the administration moved ahead with the project as officials worked to expand reliable transportation options for the president.

Presidential aircraft require layers of specialized communications, security equipment, defensive technology, and operational support.

Those requirements mean even a gifted commercial aircraft cannot simply receive a fresh coat of paint and immediately begin carrying the commander in chief.

President Trump to Fly On Qatari-Donated Air Force One for the First Time
President Donald J. Trump tours the new Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews (The White House)

Trump said last week that the 747 is expected to leave service temporarily in October for additional security upgrades.

He said that work would take approximately 60 days, although the specific nature of the planned improvements was not disclosed.

The timing of those upgrades places renewed attention on the aircraft’s readiness and the procedures surrounding presidential flight operations.

However, nothing disclosed about Wednesday’s slide incident established that it was connected to the planned security work.

Emergency slides are built to deploy rapidly because seconds can matter during an evacuation.

That same design means an accidental activation can produce an immediate disruption, require specialized handling, and force crews to verify that the remaining safety systems are ready.

For Trump, the incident became another brief complication in a packed travel schedule rather than a reason to cancel the trip.

The aircraft was cleared, the president boarded, and Air Force One departed Washington for Dallas.

The image of crews hauling away an inflated evacuation slide naturally generated headlines, but the president appeared unfazed.

While the press looked for drama on the tarmac, Trump gave his answer, boarded the plane, and got back to business.


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