Overt Defense

The acting Secretary of the Navy said Thursday that the pilot of a Blue Angels F/A-18 Super Hornet that performed an extremely low pass during the July 15 “Breakfast with the Blues” event on Pensacola Beach would not be subject to any disciplinary actions, after Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth publicly backed the pilot. “Flight debrief complete,” said acting Secretary Hung Cao in a post on his official X account accompanied by a video of the incident. “No reprimands. No firings.

Earlier today, Ukrainian lawmakers voted to approve the appointment of a new cabinet selected by President Volodmyr Zelenskyy, with the notable absence of nominations for a new foreign minister or a new defense minister. Reports of the sacking of defense minister Mykhailo Fedorov led to mass protests outside Kyiv’s parliament condemning the decision. Zelenskyy’s subsequent decision to appoint a member of the Security Service (SBU) has not quelled criticism.

The European Union and Ukraine signed a new defense industrial partnership on Wednesday, during a visit by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to Kyiv on Ukrainian Statehood Day. “Ukraine has, in many ways, gone from being a buyer to a net security provider for Europe”, said von der Leyen during a speech with Ukrainian President Volodmyr Zelensky in attendance.

Senate Democrats blocked a motion to advance the fiscal 2027 National Defense Authorization Act on Tuesday, using the vote to protest President Donald Trump’s handling of his war with Iran. The vote to bring the bill that outlines lawmakers’ defense spending priorities to the Senate floor fell short of the 60 votes needed, with a 50-46 vote split along party lines. Senators John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Jim Justice (R-W.Va.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) were absent for the vote.

The United States military restarted its blockade of Iranian ports on Tuesday, following President Donald Trump’s abrupt abandonment of plans for the U.S. to impose tolls on merchant shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. “U.S. forces resumed the naval blockade against vessels transiting to and from Iranian ports and coastal areas today at 4 p.m. ET.,” said United States Central Command in a post on its official social media pages.

US Central Command completed its third wave of strikes in the newest bout of conflict with Iran following the end of the Memorandum of Understanding. The strikes took place across Iran and focused on further targeting Iran’s offensive capabilities such as missile launching and storage facilities, as well as coastal defense systems and strategically critical ports, as it has in the previous wave of strikes in the past two weeks.

The Indian Navy commissioned INS Mahendragiri (F38) at Visakhapatnam on 11 July, at Visakhapatnam. The keel was laid at MDL on 28 June 2022 and was launched on 1 September 2023. After launch and outfitting, the frigate underwent sea trials and was delivered to the Navy on 30 April 2026. Its addition to the Eastern Fleet greatly enhances India’s blue-water operational reach and fleet air-defense capabilities. INS Mahendragiri is the seventh and final ship of India’s new Nilgiri-class frigates.

In July 2026, NSPA awarded a contract to Raytheon to supply Poland with Patriot GEM-T surface-to-air missiles. The $988 million deal will bolster Poland’s Wisła air-and-missile defense network. Under this multinational framework, the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) handles contracting and logistics so allies share costs and faster delivery. Deliveries of “several hundred” GEM-T interceptors are expected to begin in 2026 and continue through 2031.

U.S. aerospace firm Raytheon has announced plans to double their production of the Stinger shoulder-mounted surface to air missile, with the increased production to come from larger European involvement in manufacturing the missile.

Lockheed Martin has announced that the U.S. Department of War awarded it a contract to develop a containerized 500 kW laser weapon system. The high-energy directed-energy system is designed to destroy cruise missiles and drone swarms. It will be the most powerful transportable laser ever built at 500 kW and will enable speed-of-light engagement. The contract seeks to leverage Lockheed’s years of laser development.