The War Zone – The U.S. Navy’s Arleigh Burke class destroyer USS Preble used its High-Energy Laser with Integrated Optical Dazzler and Surveillance (HELIOS) system to down four drones in a demonstration last year, Lockheed Martin has shared.
U.S. Army Quietly Stands Up Rotational Force in the Philippines
USNI News – The U.S. Army has stood up a rotational force in the Philippines, according to recently released defense media. Army Rotational Force-Philippines, a previously unknown formation, was revealed for the first time Thursday following a meeting last month between the ground service and Marine Rotational Force-Southeast Asia in Manila.
Electronic warfare and the battle to expose illicit maritime activity
Navy Lookout – In this article, Lee Pilgrim considers the seizure of the sanctioned tanker MV Marinera (formerly MV Bella 1) in the context of signals intelligence and electronic warfare in maritime security. The case illustrates how modern naval operations increasingly rely on control of the electromagnetic spectrum to counter vessels operating in legal and operational grey zones.
HMCS Charlottetown departs on Operation HORIZON and NEON
Ready Aye Ready – Today, His Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Charlottetown set sail from its home port of Halifax, Nova Scotia, for a six-month deployment to the Indo-Pacific region in support of Operations HORIZON and NEON. Operation HORIZON is Canada’s comprehensive military approach to promote peace and stability in support of an international system based on international law in the Indo-Pacific region. Operation NEON is Canada’s contribution to a coordinated multinational effort to support the implementation of United Nations Security Council sanctions imposed against North Korea. Both operations demonstrate an enduring defence commitment to the Indo-Pacific region and enhance Canada’s role as a trusted international partner.
Chinese fishing boats have been making some unusual moves lately in the East China Sea, satellite images and shipping data show
Business Insider – Thousands of Chinese fishing boats sailed into coordinated lines in the East China Sea twice in recent weeks. The vessels could be seen in both shipping data and satellite imagery. The anomalous behavior, experts said, is more likely aligned with activities related to China’s Maritime Militia.
Old Ships, Modern Menace: How to Tackle the World’s Shadow Fleets
RUSI – Shadow fleets sit at the centre of maritime hybrid warfare, economic security and environmental risk. Despite this growing recognition, the West lacks the coherence to confront it.
High-Stakes Competition: South Korea and Germany Vie for Canada’s Multi-Billion Dollar Submarine Contract
Ready Aye Ready – In the frigid depths of international defence procurement, a fierce rivalry has emerged between South Korea and Germany as they compete to supply Canada with a new fleet of submarines. The Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP) aims to replace the Royal Canadian Navy’s aging Victoria-class submarines, acquired in the 1990s, with up to 12 advanced diesel-electric vessels capable of long-range patrols in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Arctic oceans. This multi-decade initiative, valued at up to 60 trillion South Korean won (approximately $44 billion USD), includes not just the initial procurement—estimated at $20-24 billion—but also 30 years of maintenance, repair, and operations. As of January 2026, with proposals due in March and a decision expected by May or June, both nations are pulling out all the stops, blending cutting-edge technology with promises of economic windfalls for Canada.
New variant of Type 054A frigate in service with PLA Navy, features larger gun, extended flight deck
Global Times – A new variant of the Type 054A guided missile frigate has entered service with the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy, characterized by a main gun of a larger caliber and an extended flight deck to host a new-type anti-submarine helicopter, official Chinese media reported on Monday.
Latest situation regarding F126 and MEKO Frigate Projects in Germany
Naval News – The current threat situation necessitates a rapid increase in anti-submarine warfare capabilities for the German Navy. However, the procurement of the intended F126 frigates is delayed, so work is simultaneously underway on a Plan B in the form of the potential acquisition of MEKO frigates. According to information obtained by Hartpunkt, only “partial successes” were achieved in both projects in the Bundestag.
Project Selborne – modernising Royal Navy training
Navy Lookout – Almost 5 years since Project Selborne began, it has delivered a significant shift in how the RN prepares its people for service at sea and ashore. Beginning in April 2021, this 12-year contract with an industry and academic consortium aims to transform traditional naval training into a modern, flexible and technology-enabled system that better equips sailors and marines for the operational challenges of the 2020s and beyond.
His Majesty’s Canadian Ship Yellowknife commences Operation CARIBBE
Ready Aye Ready – His Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Yellowknife has commenced a seven-week deployment on Operation CARIBBE in the Caribbean Sea. Operation CARIBBE, which began in 2006, is Canada’s contribution to United States (U.S.)-led multinational efforts to counter narcotics trafficking in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean, and to enhance the security of the broader region. HMCS Yellowknife will work to lawfully disrupt the movement of illicit trafficking vessels through boarding and maritime interdiction operations working with partner nation surface assets and maritime patrol aircraft.
The ‘Houthi Model’ of Asymmetric Naval Warfare: Implications for UK Littoral Response and Carrier Strike Group Doctrine
Wavell Room – The Red Sea crisis has settled into an uncomfortable new normal. While the initial shock caused by the use of anti-ship ballistic missiles (ASBM) has faded, the strategic implications of the Houthi campaign remain dangerously under-analysed in the context of future British Naval Doctrine. For the Royal Navy, the conflict would appear to cast a shadow over amphibious operations in littoral waters, where both the Carrier Strike Group (CSG) and the Littoral Response Groups (LRGs) are expected to conduct their operations. The Houthi campaign has inadvertently provided an example of a scalable, repeatable model of sea denial that fundamentally challenges the operating and financial rationale of Western naval power projection.
The Houthi Model involves the integration of sensors and shooters at the state level with the expendability and mass of non-state actor operations. This model poses a significant challenge for the Royal Navy, which relies on low-density, high-value assets.
Taiwan’s Indigenous Defense Submarine Hai Kun (SS-711) Conducts First Submerged Trial
Naval News – Taiwan’s first Indigenous Defence Submarine (IDS), Hai Kun (SS-711), also known as Narwhal, successfully completed its first submerged sea trials on January 29, 2026.
Navy’s new hedge strategy calls for ‘tailored’ unmanned forces to augment carriers
Breaking Defense – While the carrier strike group will remain the backbone of naval power projection, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle says its time to look for alternative options, especially unmanned systems, for more specialized regional scenarios — part of a Tuesday preview of what he called his forthcoming “hedge strategy” for the Navy.
General Dynamics Unveils AD(X) VLS-Reloading Destroyer Tender
Naval News – General Dynamics NASSCO is looking to U.S. Navy for interest in new VLS reloading destroyer tenders, known as AD(X), as part of a combined buy of common hulls with the future AS(X) submarine tender.
Last New F/A-18 Aft Fuselages Built As Super Hornet Production End Approaches
The War Zone – Boeing expects to close out production of new Super Hornets in 2027 and has already stopped building EA-18G Growlers.
Destroyer, Electronic Surveillance Jet Joins U.S. Forces Massing In Middle East
The War Zone – Amid the ongoing military buildup, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that no one knows who would lead Iran next should the Khamenei regime fall.
One Size Doesn’t Fit All: Building US Navy Hedges Against Rising Threats
SeaPower – Rather than continuing to field a shrinking force of exquisite ships and aircraft, the Navy should field a larger force of crewed and uncrewed platforms that gain an edge over opponents through their payloads and ability to combine in a diverse array of changing effects chains across domains. By shifting complexity from inside individual ships and aircraft to the kill chains between them, this fleet could gain decision-making advantages over adversaries and generate capacity or capability when and where it is needed.
Atlantic Bastion: The Future of Submarine Warfare
FPRI – Atlantic Bastion represents the Royal Navy’s future plan for anti-submarine capabilities, defending the North Atlantic against the threat from the Russian submarine fleet. First formally revealed in the United Kingdom’s recent Strategic Defence Review, the program brings in emerging technologies to achieve persistent situational awareness in what is an extremely complex maritime domain. While the Russian threat in the North Atlantic is persistent and tackling it requires innovative thinking, a successful Atlantic Bastion will require the solution of a range of technological challenges and the answering of questions that have not yet been resolved in the brief plans that have emerged.
Navy Won’t Decommission More Littoral Combat Ships, Officials Say
USNI News – The surface force will net a total of seven Littoral Combat Ships after the Navy shelved plans to decommission the hulls ahead of their expected service lives, USNI News has learned.
French Carrier Strike Group Set Sails for High Intensity Exercise ORION 26
Naval News – The French Navy (Marine Nationale) Carrier Strike Group (CSG) set sail on 27 January to take part in the exercise ORION 26. ORION 26 is a joint and combined high intensity warfare exercise set to take place in the Atlantic.
Indian Navy set to get Black Shark Torpedoes: Italy’s lethal submarine killer explained
Z News – The Indian Navy, which has around a dozen submarines, is all set to get a new weapon in its arsenal to kill enemy submarines and warships. The Indian Navy is in the process of acquiring 48 Black Shark Advanced (BSA) heavyweight torpedoes for a Rs 1900 cr deal with Italy’s defence firm WASS. According to reports, these torpedoes will be integrated across all 6 Kalvari-class submarines & later with other submarine systems.
(Thanks to Alain)
We’ve probably just seen the USAF’s secret electromagnetic attacker
The Strategist – Bill Sweetman writes that another element in the US Air Force’s plans for long-range operations, essential for Asia-Pacific deterrence, may have emerged from under cover of secrecy.
Poland launches largest naval modernization since Cold War
Polskie Radio – Poland is undertaking its most ambitious naval upgrade since the Cold War, investing billions to modernize a long-neglected fleet in response to growing security concerns in the Baltic Sea, Financial Times reported Thursday.
(Thanks to Alain)
European coastal states warn Russian shadow fleet over Baltic and North Sea safety
Navy Lookout – European coastal states, including the UK, have issued a coordinated warning to the international maritime community over unsafe and deceptive practices linked to Russian maritime activity in the Baltic and North Seas. The statement signals a firmer enforcement posture, making clear that AIS manipulation and sanction-evasion by vessels associated with Russia will face closer scrutiny and reduced tolerance.
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