With new announcements like this:https://www.twz.com/sea/10000-low-cost-cruise-missiles-in-three-years-procurement-plan-laid-out-by-pentagon and the prior ERAM program, I have a question, how should I think about how these newer munitions differ from traditional ones?

@giledpallaeon.bsky.social it looks like the admin’s escort process is not going to involve close escorts. A while back you mentioned that you might not need a close escort. Thoughts on the admins actions?

Stupidity of the whole situation aside, the blockade is working. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/06/w...

I am confused. Why would efforts to help transit the straight be opposed by regional partners ?

@bafriedman.bsky.social how do you feel the blockade is going? Seems like it’s been leaky, but is still doing its job, putting pressure on Irans economy.

@whatismoo.bsky.social someone on the other website mentioned you might have an answer to a question about Soviet doctrine in the 1970s/80s - any chance I could DM you?

Random question. For the development of the ICBM, famously the USAF did not award contacts to "prime contractors". They acted as the prime contractor themselves through the WDD. They were responding to their perception of poor performance of prior missile programs with prime contractors.

A lot of problems would need to be sorted out for this to work, but I agree with the idea of beginning preparations for civilian firms to manufacture defense items. It will be needed, and it is exactly what we did prior to WWII.

@giledpallaeon.bsky.social - what are the laws surrounding SSN production? Would it be possible (assuming someone had the $), to finance a new entrant to compete with Electric Boat / Newport News?

TIL that the Seawolf class sub passive noise emission was practically indistinguishable from background noise, a fact I find mind boggling.

BTW, we just doubled pancreatic cancer survival. www.statnews.com/2026/04/13/r...

Are we sure the admin doesn’t read @bafriedman.bsky.social’s socials?

And now I know why the Harpoon had such a short range.

Unfortunately, the U.S. has two bad choices now: 1. Accept a humiliating strategic defeat with nearly no modern precedent for a major power, but lick its wounds, save its munitions, and prepare for the more important fight with the PLA

So much for that

Alright time for my weekly Naval questions. Wayne Hughes in "Fleet Tactics", "If submarines were able to protect sea lanes from attack, including air attack, then they would be serious candidates to succeed the aircraft carrier as the capital ship of the missile era....

Air Force Rescue’s motto: “These things we do, that others may live.” CSAR is mission beyond reproach.

@giledpallaeon.bsky.social A question for you. In the late 1970s, when we were building Tomahawk, there was an anti-ship version, which used the Harpoon seeker in the Tomahawk airframe (source: secwww.jhuapl.edu/techdigest/C...) But it never really ever got used, and all post-1980 U.S. ship kills

AAAAAAAHHHHH

Two observations about U.S. industrial policy efforts. 1. CHIPS PO, the most successful modern U.S. effort to do IP, was very different than successful Korean, Japanese, Chinese IP efforts in that it was not focused on indigenization. Indigenization and self-sufficiency....

In the lead up to WWII, the Ordnance Department of the US Army had detailed surveys of manufacturing facilities that helped them figure out which ones would be suitable for different war production needs.

Is there a good resource for how we did air base defense (shelters, dispersion, etc.) in the 1980s in preparation for Soviet conflict? @mikeblack114.bsky.social?

While the Chinese EV makers are excellent, we need to be realistic, the insanely low price tags are being driven by a combination of low real wages, currency devaluation and overall deflation in China (which is bad!!). If you picked up Chery and let them build here, they would not be $8500.

Cannot wait for this. First edition, 1986.

@bafriedman.bsky.social 🤣

Have RLG IMUs gotten good enough to avoid the need for GPS fixes? GPS very easily jammable, even with better codes.

The resolution improvement of SAR resolution is WILD.

I mean, we have to open the straight. Shouldn’t have gone to war, but letting Iran control the Straight would be a staggering strategic loss. Take your time, do a blockade first. Bring the right assets to the theatre to do convoy escort.

Seems overly pessimistic. We can and should control the straight if we commit the forces to do so. We shouldn’t have even done this war but now we must reassert freedom of navigation.

Live look of INDOPACOM

Uhhhhh. Who is launching these?

Soliciting opinions on this take. I thought intercept rates were high (if at the expense of interceptor usage).

Can the US establish enough control of the straight to restore shipping volumes? How would it do so?

Anyone have thoughts on this book: www.amazon.com/American-Bri...

I do not think this is the U.S.'s Suez?

Lmfao

A rant. Every single military book uses tactical, operational, strategic differently and inconsistently depending on context and it drives me mad.

Alright time to read this @mikeblack114.bsky.social

The story of Joe Rochefort is so sad. Perhaps the single-most important member of the U.S. Navy in the first-half of 1942, without whom Midway just does not happen, smeared by his rivals for being right. I am happy he has been vindicated by history, but sad his career suffered for being right.

TIL that the Korean War Wonsan landings were delayed d/t mines. Never-ending problem.

Hey CENTCOM you’ve been planning for this for decades, you wanna dust off that OPLAN for Hormuz now buddy? CENTCOM:

@mikeblack114.bsky.social Is the consensus that we did allow THAAD radars to be destroyed lol.

Rare L from Pape?

I don’t see why SM-2/3/6 production can’t be spread to multiple firms, rather than all being concentrated in Raytheon. Theres no way Raytheon hasn’t earned a reasonable return on its investments in developing the models (and should continue to do so for new R&D).

Dan Caine failed to save us

Re: www.wsj.com/politics/nat... and the article being discussed here before, what are our thoughts on the Houthi air defense network described: "network to track American warplanes with observers, optics and infrared sensors whose intricacy U.S. officials didn’t entirely understand"

When did Caine become the voice of reason? x.com/joshkraushaa...

thank u shadow secdef caine

Dumb historical question for USAF folks here. In the 1950s, classic SAC days, what was the air-to-air combat plan? For continental air defense, we were planning to use really fast interceptors, hence F-102, 106, and the AF was even planning for Mach 3 interceptor XF-108.