DefenseNews

Australia forges ahead with 155mm ammo production

June 16, 2026
CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand — Amid efforts to ramp up ammunition production in Australia, the government announced a A$72 million – around US$51 million – contract to set up an M795 155mm artillery projectile production line there. The deal with Rheinmetall Nioa Munitions (RNM) was announced on June 8. It will see the joint venture forging 155mm shells for the Australian Army and others at its…
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DefenseNews

Only 1 in 4 F-35s is fully mission capable, GAO finds

June 15, 2026
The F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter’s readiness rates continued to decline through fiscal 2025, with the fleet’s full mission capable rate falling to 25%, according to a new Government Accountability Office report released Thursday. The mission capable rate, which…
DefenseNews

Ukraine’s defense AI chief predicts ‘new paradigm’ of warfare

June 15, 2026
KYIV — Warfare in Ukraine and beyond faces a paradigm shift in the coming years as artificial intelligence systems integrate into unified networks that speed up decisions on the battlefield, a senior Ukrainian official said. Ukraine, in the fifth year of fighting a full-scale Russian invasion, is already using AI for a plethora of battlefield functions, from flying drones at targets to helping…
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DefenseNews

US Army astronaut tapped for NASA’s Artemis III mission

June 12, 2026
The U.S. Army is launching into space — once again — by way of Col. Frank Rubio, who will be part of the 2027 Artemis III mission, NASA announced Tuesday. The astronaut will be part of a four-man crew that will tackle a host of difficult tests within Earth’s orbit in…
DefenseNews

Trump vows to seize Iran’s Kharg Island

June 12, 2026
President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to seize Kharg Island — the linchpin of Iran’s oil industry — as he escalated pressure on Tehran amid a fraying ceasefire. In a post on Truth Social, the president wrote the United States would be hitting Iran “VERY HARD TONIGHT,” adding that “at some point in the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Island, and other oil…
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DefenseNews

German air show opens under shadow of Iran war, fighter project collapse

June 11, 2026
BERLIN — Germany’s ILA air show opened on Wednesday under the twin shadows of the Iran war and the collapse this week of a flagship Franco-German fighter jet project, clouding what is meant to be one of Europe’s premier aerospace showcases. The Berlin event, which dates back to 1909, puts a large slice of Europe’s defense industry on display as companies pitch new technology to governments…
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