The proliferation of fibre optic drones in Ukraine gives a great glimpse of what we need to be ready for in large scale combat operations. ⬇️
No doubt you’ve heard of first person view (FPV) drones – small, cheap and fast drones controlled remotely by a pilot flying from real time vision. These were everywhere –
If the US and allies are to compete in the Indo Pacific, the quantity and quality of the combined naval fleets will matter. ⬇️
RAND has an interesting read calling for the US to partner with the leading democratic shipbuilders in Japan and South Korea to scale the force in being. The article mentions
While the focus has been on first person view drones, long-range low-cost drones like the Shahed continue to cause widespread destruction. ⬇️
Using lessons learned in combat, Russia has evolved Iran’s Shahed into a domestically manufactured Geran-2. Russia has scaled manufacturing of the Geran-2 and is waging what Center for Strategic and
In WWII the Arsenal of Democracy built thousands of Liberty ships. Australia’s shipyards played our part – but here the priority was to repair. ⬇️
Those of you who have read Arthur Herman’s masterclass ‘Freedom’s Forge’ may recall the legend of Henry Kaiser who managed to disrupt the entire shipbuilding industry during WWII. Herman’s latest
Yesterday’s weapons will not win tomorrow’s wars. Are we learning the lessons of contemporary conflict? ⬇️
Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) has just released a new report and infographic article on ‘Conflict in Focus: Lessons from Russia-Ukraine’. There are lessons identified across each warfighting
The US Army has been given orders to Transform to ensure it is ready to defeat any adversary on a ever changing battlefield. ⬇️
DefenseScoop is reporting on the Trump administration ordering substantial changes to the US Army to ensure the service is better placed for the worsening geopolitical circumstances across numerous theatres: “Defense
How dependent are we on our competitors to supply our consumables of combat? ⬇️
Forbes has must read article on the reliance of US drone manufacturers on Chinese supplied parts. It is an open secret that Western nations have deep dependencies on Chinese suppliers
With Australia’s first HIMARS launchers being delivered last month it is timely to consider how long our stocks of missiles would last… ⬇️
Foreign Affairs Magazine has an insightful but challenging article ‘The Empty Arsenal of Democracy’ that really brings home the challenge of the downsized military industrial base of the West: “The
How should Australia respond to the new world disorder? ⬇️
Recently former Prime Minister Malcom Turnbull convened a ‘Sovereignty and Security‘ forum, bringing together around a hundred National Security and Defence experts including Beaten Zone Venture Partners advisor Mick Ryan,
For too long Australia and the West assumed that our qualitative edge would overcome any quantitative advantage of our opponents. ⬇️
As Ukraine has shown, large scale war is not won by qualitative advantage. Russia has been able to meet and beat the West’s weapons through relentless innovation and adaption. Likewise