Author: thaobh.leo@gmail.com

DNV and Fr. Fassmer GmbH & Co. KG have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to jointly develop and classify autonomous and remotely operated vessels for naval and government customers. The signing took place at the SMM trade fair in Hamburg. Fassmer press release The partnership supports Fassmer’s growing portfolio of unmanned systems. DNV will apply its assurance guidelines and Autonomous and Remotely Operated Ships (AROS) class notations to Fassmer’s unmanned vessel programs. Together, the partners will review operating concepts for autonomous vessels, test new supporting technologies, and build a roadmap toward certification. A key goal is an Approval in…

A retired Canadian Armed Forces officer first warned on his personal blog that Washington could exploit indebted Americans to staff an invasion of Iran. Ten days later, he recommended the same mechanism in The Jerusalem Post as an efficient way to produce the troops a ground war would require. AJ Jaff proposed canceling recruits’ student loans, credit card debt, auto loans and other personal debts after 24 or 36 months of military service. Jaff presented the idea to his Substack readers on Aug. 20 as a warning about impending government exploitation. He said an unpopular war would leave Washington searching…

The U.S. Air Force’s fighter fleet is nearly 50 aircraft short of the number required by Congress, according to a recent Congressional Research Service report that outlines questions lawmakers face as the service plans its future fighter force.The fighter fleet inventory currently falls short of the statutory requirement of 1,145 fighters, with 1,098 aircraft currently in the fleet. The service also operates an aging and “heavily used” fleet, with aircraft averaging 27.4 years old, according to the report. The authors highlighted that the fighter inventory may continue to decline until 2030 before it begins to grow again. Although Congress has…

CEA Technologies is building four of these HPAR-64SG air defence radars as part of the Joint Air Battle Management System. (ADF)Australia announced on 9 September that it was investing A$2.4 billion (US$1.7 billion) into Tranche 2B of Project Air 6500, also known as the Joint Air Battle Management System. JABMS is designed to fuse data and capabilities into a single battlespace overview to aid commanders in their decision-making.This investment will be spread over a six-year period, with Lockheed Martin Australia responsible for the bulk of the work. For its role, the company was awarded an A$1.32 billion contract for Tranche…

Ian Machado Garry has weighed in on how he plans to earn another title shot and which top UFC welterweight contender he wants to face.Garry most recently lost to welterweight titleholder and P4P king Islam Makhachev by unanimous decision at UFC 330. PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – AUGUST 15: Ian Machado Garry of Ireland punches Islam Makhachev of Russia in a welterweight title bout during UFC 330 at Xfinity Mobile Arena on August 15, 2026, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images) Now, “The Future” hopes to earn a second title shot soon and believes beating No. 3-ranked 170-pound contender Michael…

The Navy is seeking contracts for firms to produce Combat Collaborative Aircraft (CCA). That is according to a written request for information published Aug. 31 on the federal government’s procurement website, with the service informing potential contractors that it wants two prototypes of CCAs that would be able to achieve shore-base, aircraft carrier qualifications within the next three years. CCA are autonomous, uncrewed fighter drones powered by artificial intelligence. The Navy operates them alongside crewed jets like the F-35C, serving as flying sensor nodes, weapon launchers, decoys, or electronic warfare jammers. The service added that it wanted the CCA to…

What do they say? Everyone who enters a Kyokushin dojo for the first time is surprised by the number of times they hear the word “Osu”. You say Osu when: you enter the dojo; you bow at the beginning of the class; you greet the sensei, the seniors, the students; you perform the basic techniques; your teacher gives you a command or an explanation and you answer “Osu” to say that you have understood; you receive a good blow in combat in the dojo (not in competition) and you say “Osu” to inform your partner that it was a good…

The operating environment for moving freight has changed so fundamentally that the best practices built for a stable, consolidated carrier environment are no longer adequate to manage shipping in today’s market, according to a report conducted by Incisiv on behalf of shipping intelligence company Reveel.Shipping has become one of the fastest-moving cost centers in any given business, because carrier rates change more frequently, surcharge structures continue to expand, and delivery expectations keep rising. Today, according to the report, “State of Enterprise Shipping 2026,” 56% of enterprise shippers manage three or more parcel carriers, and 22% manage six or more. Incisiv says this…

The Italian Navy FREMM frigate ITS Virginio Fasan, pictured in the Mediterranean Sea in 2021, is one of two FREMMs Italy is selling to Greece. (French Navy)Italy and Greece have signed an agreement to transfer two Italian Navy (ITN) FREMM frigates to the Hellenic Navy (HN).This final agreement – signed at a meeting in Rome, by each country’s defence armaments directorates – follows a preliminary accord drawn up in September 2025. Also present at the signing ceremony were the two countries’ defence ministers and chiefs of navy.The agreement covers the first two ships in the ITN’s Bergamini class – lead…

When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Western countries responded with aggressive economic restrictions, freezing Russia’s official foreign exchange reserves, placing export controls on critical technology, and sanctioning scores of its political, military and business leaders. Yet more than four years later, the war is still going on, and Western sanctions have inflicted only limited pain on the Russian economy. Russia continues to trade oil and other commodities, recently receiving a massive windfall as the closing of the Strait of Hormuz caused global oil prices to soar. These profits are raising the government’s tax revenue at a critical time, helping it…