Category Archives: modern military conflict

RIMPAC 26 SINKEX: Final Cruise of USS Peleliu and USS Mobile Bay

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To cap RIMPAC 26, two large SINKEXs took place, targeting the long decommissioned Tarawa-class amphibious assault ship ex-USS Peleliu (LHA-5) and the more recently laid up Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser ex-USS Mobile Bay (CG 53).

The event took place in deep water (+6,000 feet) north of Hawaii to keep the broken wrecks safe from unwelcome eyes.

Of course, Big Navy did what Big Navy is well-known for, deep-sixing ships De Soto style that some on Capitol Hill would like to see returned to service. Peleliu, the last of her class, had been laid up since 2015 but drew interest as a short-term replacement for Bon Homme Richard for a few years until a new ‘phib could be completed. Likewise, cruiser fans hate to see every Tico get a hard goodbye, especially if they still “look” so good.

I mean, look at Mobile Bay when she was decommissioned just under three years ago:

SAN DIEGO (Aug.10, 2023) – The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53) sits pier side during a decommissioning ceremony. The Mobile Bay was decommissioned after more than 36 years of distinguished service. Commissioned Feb. 21, 1987, Mobile Bay served in the U.S. Atlantic, Seventh, and U.S. Pacific Fleet and supported Operation Desert Storm. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Stevin C. Atkins)

If they are at the bottom of the Pacific, the NDAA can’t authorize millions to reactivate elderly vessels– so that the money can be spent on shiny new ones.

Mobile Bay SINKEX from Royal Canadian Navy submarine HMCS Cornerbrook. Corner Brook fired a warshot Mk 48 Mod 7AT heavyweight torpedo into Mobile Bay during the event. It was the first time a Canadian sub took part in RIMPAC since HMCS Victoria in 2014.

Mobile Bay SINKEX from Royal Canadian Navy submarine HMCS Cornerbrook.

Plus, obtaining valid weapons testing evaluations on a big deck LHA– from a class that the Navy’s current LHAs and LHDs are based upon– is worthwhile.

Peleliu had already been towed out to sea from her retirement home in the West Loch earlier this year to simulate battle damage in various spaces and then towed back to Ford Island as part of an extensive Repair Technology Exercise (REPTX) which brought together various technologies for inspection, repair, and/or prevention of damage.

Shore-based rocket batteries (M142 HIMARS of the Kentucky National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 623rd Field Artillery, and Type 12 anti-ship missiles from the Japanese Army’s 8th Surface-to-Surface Missile Regiment) got their real-world tasking and showed the continued promise of mobile sea control from the shore.

In the end, Peleliu was finished off by Harpoon missiles launched by the Spanish frigate Álvaro de Bazan (F 101) and the Japanese destroyer JS Kongo (DDG 173), emulating the use of air-launched Harpoons by an RNZAF P-8 Poseidon to sink the ex-USS Juneau last month in Valiant Spear.

Perhaps the Navy is eager to assuage allies that their 1970s-designed anti-ship missiles can still, you know, anti-ship.

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Kongo-class guided missile destroyer JS Kongo (DDG 173) fires a Harpoon missile at the hulk of decommissioned Tarawa-class amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu (LHA 5) during a combined sinking exercise in the Pacific Ocean as part of Exercise Rim of the Pacific 2026, July 17, 2026. (Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force photo)

Although, to be fair, HMAS Sydney did get a chance to test out one of the RAN’s new Naval Strike Missiles.

HMAS Sydney (V) conducts a Naval Strike Missile (NSM) firing during RIMPAC Sea phase off the coast of Hawaii, United States.  

Getting Spiked

Of note, among those who got in licks were a flight of AH-64D Longbow Apaches from the Fort Lewis-based 16th Combat Aviation Brigade of the 7th Infantry (Hourglass) Division, which carried Israeli-made Spike NLOS missiles. The 75-pound fire-and-forget missile has a 20+ mile range and a 28-pound warhead while only costing about $250K. In effect, a sort of super Hellfire.

U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to the 16th Combat Aviation Brigade, 7th Infantry Division (Multi-Domain Command – Pacific) load a Spike missile on the an AH-64 Apache in preparation for their role in a sink exercise, where each aircraft fires a Spike missile at a decommissioned warship for the purpose of at-sea live-fire training during exercise Rim of the Pacific off the coast of Hawaii, on July 11, 2026. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Christian Morton)

Said Army Apaches flew from USS Essex (LHD-2) alongside Marine Cobras (Vipers) and Hueys (Venoms).

Note the Spike aboard

Two U.S. Army AH-64 Apaches from the 16th Combat Aviation Brigade, 7th Infantry Division (Multi-Domain Command – Pacific) participate in a sink exercise, where each aircraft fires a Spike missile at a decommissioned Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53), for the purpose of at-sea live-fire training during Exercise Rim of the Pacific off the coast of Hawaii, on July 11, 2026. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Christian Morton)

A U.S. Army AH-64 Apache from the 16th Combat Aviation Brigade, 7th Infantry Division, Multi-Domain Command – Pacific, fires a Spike Non-Line of Sight missile at the USS Mobile Bay for a Sink Exercise during Rim of the Pacific in Hawaii, July 11, 2026.  

The Spikes were joined by Penguins fired from an RNZN SH-2G SeaSprite (they do exist!) from the Anzac-class frigate HMNZS Te Mana (F 111), a Marte from an Italian SH-101 flying from the frigate Giovanni Delle Bande Nere (P 434), and Hellfires from a pair of RAN MH-60Rs flying from both Sydney and cross-decked from USS Wayne G. Meyer (DDG 108).

RNZN SH-2G SeaSprite Penguin RIMPAC SINKEX

Italian Navy SH-101 launching a Marte anti-ship missile during Exercise RIMPAC, flown from Giovanni Delle Bande Nere

Flight 607 personnel load Hellfire missiles into MH-60R Seahawk “DUNDEE” on the flight deck of HMAS Sydney (V) during RIMPAC sea phase off the coast of Hawaii, United States. 

So long, Tarawas

In the end, let’s pour out one for the Tarawas, which were first ordered 1 May 1969, amid the worst part of the Vietnam War. Peleliu’s sinking closes the book on the class, spanning a 57-year run.

Artist’s conception of a very preliminary design of the LHA, released by DoD, 15 February 1967. USN 1120262

They held the line in the Cold War and multiple evolutions of the Sandbox, combining big Harrier and Super Stallion capable air decks with large LCAC and LCU capable well decks and room for 1,700 embarked Marines. Nothing else came close before the class.

Of the five members, USS Belleau Wood (LHA 3) was the first disposed of, sunk in 2006, followed by Saipan (LHA 2), which was scrapped in 2009, Nassau (scrapped in 2021), and Tarawa herself, which was sent to the bottom in RIMPAC 24.

141022-N-NZ935-083 PHILIPPINE SEA (Oct. 22, 2014) The amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu (LHA 5) is underway as part of the Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group and is conducting joint forces exercises in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility. (U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Joshua Hammond/Released)

Maybe the Mk 110 isn’t *that* Bad

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Check out this recent test by the Swedish Navy of the BAE Bofors 57mm Mk3 naval gun system (the Mk 110 in the U.S. Navy), engaging aerial and surface drone targets during live-fire counter-drone exercises aboard the Göteborg-class corvette HMSwS Sundsvall (K24), based at Berga naval base and part of the 4th Naval Warfare Flotilla.

The mount is using Bofors’ 6-mode programmable 3P (Pre-fragmented, Programmable, Proximity- fused) ammunition, of which both the Swedish and Finnish fleets agreed to purchase $171 million worth of shells.

Of interest, the USN currently fields at least 50 of these mounts with more on the way, used on both classes of LCS, the new FFG, the planned FF, and the most modern blue water USCG cutters. Word came from all the counter-drone stuff off the Bab

The USN uses the mount with the Bofors 6-mode 3P (type classified as the 57mm Mk 295 Mod 0) and spent $28 million in 2019-20 for 1,000 of the “golden bullet” L3 High Explosive-4 Bolt Guided (HE-4G) Cartridge (type classified as the Mk 332), which does all sorts of gee-whiz stuff.

Plus, the Navy just dropped another $21 million to Nammo for more HE-PD rounds for the Mk 110 as well.

Contract awarded 25 June 2026:

Nammo Perry Inc., Perry, Florida, is awarded a $21,500,000 modification to a previously awarded, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract (N0017423D0005) to increase the ceiling for 57-mm high explosive- point detonating cartridges, used in the MK110 Gun Weapon System. Work will be performed in Perry, Florida, and is expected to be completed by September 2028. No funding will be obligated at the time of award. The Navy Surface Warfare Center Indian Head Division, Indian Head, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

Coast Guard shifts PATFORSWA to Westpac, ends 24 Year Persian Gulf Mission

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With the Navy being patrol-craft-poor during OIF in the summer of 2002, Big Blue asked its poor uncle, the USCG, to temporarily shift a few 110-foot Island-class patrol boats to CENTCOM control in Bahrain.

Soon after, four East Coast-based Islands, USCGC  Adak, Aquidneck, Baranof, and Wrangell, were carried via heavy lift vessel to the Persian Gulf and eventually became Patrol Forces Southwest Asia (PATFORSWA) while four others, USCGC Bainbridge Island, Grand Isle, Knight Island, and Pea Island, were shifted to the Mediterranean as PATFORMED.

While the Med mission evaporated by 2004 due to Turkey not wanting to help support OIF and was stood down, those four cutters sent TDY to PATFORSWA never saw the U.S. again and were decommissioned there decades later, the force augmented to a full six-pack with the addition of Island-class sisters, USCGC Maui and Monomoy.

Persian Gulf (April 27, 2005) – Coast Guardsmen aboard U.S Coast Guard Cutter Monomoy (WPB 1326) wave good-bye to the guided missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG 74) after the first underway fuel replenishment (UNREP) between a U.S. Navy cruiser and a U.S. Coast Guard Cutter. Antietam completed fuel replenishment with the Monomoy in about two hours and saved the 110-foot patrol boat a four-hour trip to the nearest refueling station. Antietam and Monomoy are conducting maritime security operations (MSO) in the Persian Gulf as part of Commander, Task Force Five Eight CTF-58). U.S. Navy photo by Journalist Seaman Joseph Ebalo (RELEASED)

The force was recently refreshed with six brand-new 154-foot Sentinel-class cutters: USCGC Charles Moulthrope, Robert Goldman, Glen Harris, Emlen Tunnell, John Scheuerman, and Clarence Sutphin Jr arriving, and the old Islands disposed of in-theatre.

220822-A-KS490-1182 STRAIT OF HORMUZ (Aug. 22, 2022) From the left, U.S. Coast Guard fast response cutters USCGC Glen Harris (WPC 1144), USCGC John Scheuerman (WPC 1146), USCGC Emlen Tunnell (WPC 1145) and USCGC Clarence Sutphin Jr. (WPC 1147) transit the Strait of Hormuz, Aug. 22. The cutters are forward-deployed to U.S. 5th Fleet to help ensure maritime security and stability across the Middle East. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Noah Martin)

Now, with the NWU-camo wearing 300-member force (six cutters, an extra crew, and 150 shoreside personnel) pulled out of the Gulf ever since February, as the 154s aren’t really built to operate against non-stop drone attacks, it seems the Navy finally threw in the towel on PATFORSWA’s mission and is shifting them to where they can win more hearts and minds, the Western Pacific.

From USCG PAO:

The United States Coast Guard transitioned its Expeditionary Cutter Squadron (ECS), historically called Patrol Forces Southwest Asia (PATFORSWA), to operate in the Western Pacific conducting maritime security operations and cooperative maritime activities with allies and partner nations in the region, in response to national security requirements.

The Expeditionary Cutter Squadron will be capable of performing missions as part of the U.S. Joint Force. The squadron is currently operating in the U.S. Pacific Command area of operations to protect the homeland and maritime approaches, including Guam and the Pacific Islands.

For more than 20 years, the Coast Guard has provided forward-deployed capabilities to support U.S. Central Command and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command from Bahrain. The unit has successfully executed maritime security, maritime interdiction, and maritime domain awareness missions throughout the Middle East.

“Coast Guard forces have always adapted to meet urgent national needs,” said Adm. Kevin Lunday, Commandant of the Coast Guard. “The Expeditionary Cutter Squadron enhances the Coast Guard’s ability to deploy our forces in support of Combatant Commanders and national security objectives. Our expeditionary cutter forces provide Combatant Commands with uniquely capable maritime assets, leveraging the Coast Guard’s military and law enforcement authorities to advance U.S. national security objectives in the Western Pacific and Western Hemisphere.”

Expeditionary Cutter Squadron forces will integrate with U.S. Combatant Commands to conduct exercises and maritime cooperative activities that enhance interoperability, strengthen strategic partnerships, and advance shared security objectives throughout the region.  The transition of the Expeditionary Cutter Squadron reflects the Coast Guard’s intent to provide agile, capable, and responsive maritime forces. These forces will rapidly support national security objectives across a range of operational theaters while leveraging the Service’s unique authorities.

This explains open-source images of the entire PATFORSWA force seen shipping past Singapore in March.

WarshipCam -Official, March 29 at 4:49 PM. All six Bahrain-based USCG Sentinel-class cutters eastbound in the Singapore Straits – USCGC Charles Moulthrope (WPC-1141), USCGC Robert Goldman (WPC-1142), USCGC Glen Harris (WPC-1144), USCGC Emlen Tunnell (WPC-1145), USCGC John Scheuerman (WPC-1146) & USCGC Clarence Sutphin Jr. (WPC-1147) – March 2026 SRC: X-@StraitsSights

As well as Tunnnell and Moulthrope popping up in the Philippines a couple of weeks ago exercising with the locals in the South China Sea and during Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) in Thailand last week.

Philippine Coast Guard Teresa Magbanua-class multi-role response vessel BRP Melchora Aquino (MMRV 9702) and U.S. Coast Guard Sentinel-class Fast Response Cutter USCGC Charles Moulthrope (WPC 1141) sail in formation during part of the Maritime Cooperative Activity (MCA) in the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone, June 27, 2026. The U.S. Navy routinely operates with the Armed Forces of the Philippines and partners and allies through MCAs to continually develop, exercise, and enhance multi-domain tactical interoperability to uphold peace and security in the region. (Courtesy photo by U.S. Coast Guard)

The squadron is forward-deployed west of Guam, as noted by Janes:

“The cutters are approved to operate from Singapore and Subic Bay in the Philippines through September [2026], with command and logistics handled out of Singapore and vessels rotating through Subic Bay,” the spokesperson said. “These operations reflect a long-standing commitment to a free and open Pacific and support a region where all nations, large and small, can operate freely, safely, and lawfully at sea.”

Are they going to remain there or fall back to Guam?

Of note, the service already has three 154s currently based in Guam, replacing two aging Island-class WPBs. They have been conducting some seriously long-legged (like 5,380nm) patrols as of late.

So does this mean there will be nine 154s in Guam?

Likely not, but you could see these new-to-the-WestPac boats soon spread out across allied Operation Blue Pacific nation partners that have little-to-no maritime forces, such as the Cook Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu– most of which have very real problems with incroachng Chinese influence, smuggling and illegal fising.

Winning hearts and minds in the WestPac littoral via white hulls with racing stripes.

Flying Boat Blast from the Past (coming to an atoll near you?)

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Some 85 years ago, official period caption: “An air infantry mortar squadron loads a Navy Consolidated PBY-5 Catalina patrol bombing plane, 18 March 1941.”

Via the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, 80-G-2156

Now, fast forward to this week, and news comes that a Hong Kong company intends to operate the turboprop-powered Catalina IIs with Pan American World Airways’ “Winged Globe” logo.

From Flight Global:

Catalina Aircraft Trust, the Florida holder of the original Catalina amphibious flying boat’s type certificate, has taken another step toward bringing a modernised turboprop-powered variant of the aircraft to market.

The company has secured a letter of intent from Hong Kong-based Pan American Airways System covering purchases of up to 46 of the planned NGAA “Next Generation Amphibious Aircraft” Catalina II.

Catalina Aircraft is now evaluating engines, avionics and other systems needed to develop the aircraft, which founder and president Lawrence Reece notes will be the only Western-certificated transport-category flying boat.

He envisions demand for up to 600 Catalina IIs of several configurations.

More here.

Of course, with Hong Kong officially part of Red China, whether they want to be or not, the prospect that these 46 shiny new flying boats could be used to shuttle around small detachments of PLAN naval infantry around the Nine-Dash Line is real.

Looks like the LSM concept may just happen after all…

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The Damen LST 100 design, which was picked last December to be the Navy LSM– coming to a shipyard near you

TOTE Services in Jacksonville yesterday picked up a $2.6 billion contract from Naval Sea Systems Command’s PAE Maritime to serve as Vessel Construction Manager (VCM) for the McClung-class Medium Landing Ship (LSM) program, with the first hull to be delivered by 2029.

You know, the mini-LSTs that the Navy is building for the Marines to shuttle NMESIS missile batteries and light armor around the Western Pacific in a sea-denial-from-the-shore kind of philosophy, setting up what are now termed as a “Marine Corps fires expeditionary advanced base.”

A Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System launcher, a command and control vehicle, and a Joint Light Tactical Vehicle are transported by a U.S. Navy Landing Craft Air Cushion from Pacific Missile Range Facility Barking Sands, Hawaii, out to U.S.S. San Diego, Aug. 16, 2021. The movement demonstrated the mobility of a Marine Corps fires expeditionary advanced base, a core concept in the Marine Corps’ Force Design 2030 efforts. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Luke Cohen, released)

The contract will cover management of constructing the first eight LSMs, with a program of record for up to (hold your breath) 35 of the baby phibs built to the Damen LST 100 double-ended Ro/Ro design.

This thing:

Via Damen:

The LST100 is 100.68 metres (330 feet) long with a beam of 16 metres (52 feet) and a draught of 3.58 metres (12 feet). It is suited to a diverse range of operations. With its ability to transport personnel, vehicles, equipment and cargo, the vessel can be used in patrol, landing, survey and reconnaissance operations, as well as for the delivery of humanitarian aid & disaster relief.

In its standard design, it features bunks for 282 personnel. Cargo can be transported on the RoRo deck (500m2), vehicle deck (400m2) and on the helicopter deck. The vessel is able to sail at speeds of up to 14 knots, with an endurance of 3,890 nautical miles. At an endurance speed of 10 knots, it can reach up to 7,530 nautical miles.

The LST100 features extensive flexibility. Its modular design enables straightforward adaptation and upgrade without compromising the benefits of standardization. For example, with the addition of a standard, 20-metre modular block, the vessel can be enlarged to the LST120 design during construction.

Besides the intended purpose and general use as a ‘phib, the LSMs have an obvious use in Over The Horizon – Special Forces (OTH-SF) operations, stand-off Mine Counter Measures (MCM) operations support, and as a general helicopter/UAV “lilipad.”

Now, to be clear, TOTE is not actually going to build the LSMs, simply award and manage shipbuilder contracts- you know, something NAVSEA should be capable of doing, but in program after program has proven absolutely incapable of doing so. Looking at you, FFG and LCS programs.

The Damen LST 100 McClung-class landing ship (LSM)

Anyway, the award announcement, for the record:

TOTE Services LLC, Jacksonville, Florida, is awarded a $2,206,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for vessel construction management services to award and manage shipbuilder subcontracts for the new construction of up to eight Medium Landing Ships. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $2,605,075,850. Work will be performed in Marinette, Wisconsin (65%); Houma, Louisiana (16%); Jacksonville, Florida (9%); and other locations (10%), and is expected to be completed by June 2030. If all options are exercised, work will continue through September 2031. Fiscal 2025 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $1,933,941,000 (88%); and fiscal 2026 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funds in the amount of $272,059,000 (12%), will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract is awarded with funding from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (Public Law 119-21) and directly supports the national effort to revitalize and rebuild American shipbuilding. This contract was competitively procured via the System for Award Management website (sam.gov), with one offer received. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-26-C-2421).

Azov Tsushima

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The Battle of the Sea of Azov 2026 by Ivan Aivazovsky

According to the ISW, Ukrainian forces have struck no less than 90 Russian commercial shipping vessels (mostly coastal tankers but also a smattering of tugs, cargo ships, ferries, and floating dredgers) in the shallow Sea of Azov at the top of the Black Sea during the week between July 6th to 13th as part of their intensified campaign to isolate occupied Crimea.

Ninety.

As detailed by Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces (USF) Commander Major Robert “Magyar” Brovdi, the forces involved included the 9th Kairos Battalion of “Magyar’s Birds” of the 414th Separate Unmanned Strike Aviation System Brigade, along with elements of the 412th “Nemesis,” 413th “RAID,” and 427th “Rarog” USAS Brigades.

The release from USF included a 4-minute-long sizzle reel (below), with the Ukrainians seen specifically targeting the wheelhouses of the Russian vessels, going for mobility/mission kills, rather than aiming to sink the ships outright. That makes a UAV with a small 10-pound warhead super effective. This speaks to preserving the important ecological diversity of the region and its local fisheries, which include significant sturgeon (caviar) farming operations.

Some 35 vessels were hit in the first 96 hours of the offensive alone.

Update from Sal, make that 136 strikes through the 15th:

 

It is brutal and systematic, with seemingly zero air defense provided.

Meanwhile, Russia’s efforts to field AAA in any sort are probably exemplified by this recent clip of a new soldier with a mobile air defense team being introduced to a ground-mounted Yak B .51 caliber 4-barreled rotary machine gun (normally mounted on the Mi-24 Hind gunship). It is a gas-operated gun that fires at 4,000 rounds per minute and normally has a 10-ton gunship to absorb the recoil…

SOCOM’s Black Arrow in the Quiver

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From yesterday’s DOD/DOW contract announcements, emphasis mine:

Leidos Inc., Reston, Virginia, is being awarded a $27,202,497 fixed-price incentive (firm-target) contract modification (H9240826CE001P0001), for the procurement of All Up Rounds for the AGM-190A Small Cruise Missile program, in support of U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM). Fiscal 2025 procurement funds in the amount of $548,665; and fiscal 2026 procurement funds in the amount of $23,653,832, will be obligated at time of award. The total award amount is $24,202,497. The work will be performed in Huntsville, Alabama, and is expected to be completed by Feb. 26, 2029. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. USSOCOM, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, is the contracting activity.

Meet the AGM-190A Small Cruise Missile

In the interest of “quantity has a quality all its own,” the AGM-190 Black Arrow SCM is almost as basic as it gets.

It weighs right at or under 200 pounds.

The above means the warhead is probably around 50 pounds, but you have to add all the kinetic energy behind it as a bonus factor. That’s more than enough to flatten a medium-sized building, sink or at least disable a patrol boat, obliterate a small bunker, destroy a SAM or radar installation in the open, get a ground kill on any size aircraft not in a hardened shelter, end any armored vehicle, et al.

It has a published 400nm range when air-launched at altitude (which means it probably goes further) using Pratt & Whitney’s proven 150-pound-thrust TJ150-7 one-stage turbojet, which is used in several target decoys (the MALD) and UAVs. 

It can be used as either pylon ordnance dropped from things such as an MQ-9 Reaper UAV, used in a roll-on/roll-off palletized Dragon Cart-style system from the back of a C/KC/AC/MC-130, and so on. It can reportedly also be launched from HIMARS, though with a shorter range.

While the actual cost-per-unit is not advertised, it is believed the Black Arrow runs somewhere in the $150-$300K (still pennies on the dollar compared to a $3M TLAM or $1M JASSM), a figure that can be whittled down through large buys.

It is known the Pentagon wants somewhere around 10,000 of these little gems, with 3,000 to start, but if you even try to apply those quantities to the $27 million award, you are looking at more like $2,500-$9,000 a pop, which is too insane to be true especally when you see P&W selling commercial TJ-150 powerpacks for $79,999 apiece, so this week’s buy is probably for a lot fewer missiles. Like for maybe the first block of 100 or 200.

AFSOC debuted the Black Arrow as Havoc Spear quietly last month during SOF Week, describing it as “a low-cost, mission adaptable, modular-design cruise missile that can be rapidly produced.”

Could prove very interesting.

A model AGM-190A small cruise missile stands on display inside Air Force Special Operations Command headquarters at Hurlburt Field, Florida, May 14, 2026.(U.S. Air Force photo by Capt. Brandon DeBlanc)

Tico updates

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Lots of news, some sad, about America’s final cruiser class.

The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Erie (CG 70) returned to her homeport at San Diego on 27 June, following 11-months of sustained operations at sea in the U.S. 4th Fleet area of operations.

Yup, 11 months in SOUTHCOM. That’s a lot of low-intensity ops.

NAVAL BASE SAN DIEGO (June 27, 2026) – The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Erie (CG 70) returns to its homeport of Naval Base San Diego following 11 months of sustained operations at sea in the U.S. 4th Fleet area of operations June 27, 2026.  

Erie, with embarked USCG LEDET 107, successfully interdicted a stateless, sanctioned dark fleet motor tanker, M/T Sophia, in addition to serving as “Integrated Air and Missile Defense Commander and the U.S. Air Force Southern Command’s (AFSOUTH) Regional Air Defense Commander (RADC)” during which she directed other assets to the interdiction of 2,900 pounds of narcotics.

In other news, USS Robert Smalls (CG-62), formerly USS Chancellorsville, has been active as the AAW commander for the Japan-based forward-deployed George Washington Strike Group during Ex Valiant Strike 26.

Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Robert Smalls (CG 62) sails with the USS George Washington Carrier Strike Group as part of Valiant Shield 2026 while underway in the Philippine Sea, June 21, 2026. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Nicolas Quezada)

USS Cape St. George (CG-71), which last year shifted her homeport from Everett, Washington to San Diego, recently got underway and got to stretch out her now-vintage MK 45 5″/54s. While there were over 160 such mounts delivered from 1972-92, once they were removed from the Tarawas, and then the Kidds/Sprucans and most of the Ticos were decommissioned, now less than 50 remain in the fleet with St. George and her sisters and the first 30 Burkes— 28 Flight I and II ships (hull numbers DDG-51 through DDG-78), as well as the first two Flight IIA ships (DDG-79 and DDG-80)

Now for the bad stuff.

The Pearl Harbor-based USS Shiloh (CG-67) is looking great.

USS Shiloh – CG-67 Pearl Harbor June 2026 by LT Farrar

She is getting ready for her going-away party.

Commissioned on 18 July 1992, she is set to be decommissioned in less than 100 days, wrapping up a 34-year career.

And in terrible news, the recently (August 2023) decommissioned USS Mobile Bay (CG 53) will be sunk as a target during RIMPAC 2026.

She served over 36 years and will only be the second of her class expended in a SINKEX, following ex-Valley Forge (CG 50), which was sent to the bottom in 2006.

SAN DIEGO (Aug.10, 2023) – The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53) sits pier-side during a decommissioning ceremony. The Mobile Bay was decommissioned after more than 36 years of distinguished service. Commissioned Feb. 21, 1987, Mobile Bay served in the U.S. Atlantic, Seventh, and U.S. Pacific Fleet and supported Operation Desert Storm. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Stevin C. Atkins)

With Shiloh and Mobile Bay gone, the Navy will only have six active Ticos left of the 27-ship class (Princeton, Smalls, Gettysburg, Chosin, Lake Erie, and Cape St. George) and 15 laid up (Bunker Hill, Antietam, Leyte Gulf, San Jacinto, Lake Champlain, Philippine Sea, Normandy, Monterey, Cowpens, Hue City, Anzio, Vicksburg, Vella Gulf, Port Royal, and, of course, Shiloh) with all of the latter only sent there since 2022.

The current plan is to decommission the last three CGs in 2029, so you can expect more cruiser SINKEXs in the coming years.

Pour one out for The Jolly J

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Exercise Valiant Shield 2026 (VS26) concluded on 1 July, stretching across the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Japan, and at sea around the Mariana Islands Range Complex.

It was an impressive assemblage of vessels, built around the GW and Kaga carrier groups with support from other Pacific allies.

Think of it as a warm-up for RIMPAC, which is just warming up.

U.S. Navy aircraft, attached to Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5, and U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning IIs fly over U.S. Navy George Washington Carrier Strike Group as it sails in formation with Japan Maritime Self- Defense Force as part of Valiant Shield 2026 while underway in the Philippine Sea, June 21, 2026. U.S. Navy participants include Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73), Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Robert Smalls (CG 62), Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Shoup (DDG 86) and USS Benfold (DDG 65), and Virginia-class fast-attack submarine USS Minnesota (SSN 783). Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force participants include JS Kaga (DDH 184), JS Fuyuzuki (DD 118), and JS Jingei (SS 515). (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Tyler Crowley)

The big culmination of VS26 was a SINKEX of a large combatant some 200nm from Guam, in this case the retired Austin-class ‘phib ex-USS Juneau (LPD-10), which had a storied career over nearly 40 years from Vietnam to Desert Storm and has been on red lead row since 2008.

The old girl took one hell of a beating. One that the Navy, probably in some advertising to China, isn’t afraid to share. 

First up was a Guam-deployed B-2 Spirit bomber hitting her with a 2,700-pound LRASM in an ode to Billy Mitchell. While the effect isn’t seen in real time, its half-ton warhead left the 17,000-ton LPD listing and with a flooded well deck.

A U.S. Air Force B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber, assigned to the 509th Bomb Wing, deploys an AGM-158C Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) to support a live-fire sinking exercise as part of Valiant Shield 2026 over the Philippine Sea, June 27, 2026. This maritime strike in the Pacific showcased the Joint Force’s capacity for simultaneous global operations while underscoring U.S. commitment to regional security and cooperation. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech Sgt. Thomas Barley)

Juneau then caught two Australian-owned AGM-84 Harpoons from an RNZAF P-8A Poseidon of No. 5 Squadron, with the Kiwis assisted by an RAAF Poseidon and two from the U.S. Navy.

This is the first time an RNZAF Poseidon has taken part in Valiant Shield, which started in 2006 and is in its 11th iteration this year, and the first time they have used anti-ship ordnance, which were loaded at Anderson AFB in Guam.

She also suffered from ordnance delivered by Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force SH-60 maritime helicopter and Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-2 multirole fighter aircraft.

Then came the coup de grace delivered by an unnamed Japanese submarine (likely JS Jingei, SS 515). A bit of a tragic twist of fate when you consider the loss of a previous USS Juneau (CL-52), which was lost to a Japanese submarine in 1942 and carried almost all of her crew, including the five Sullivan brothers, to the bottom.

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force submarine fires a torpedo at the decommissioned USS Juneau in support of a live-fire sinking exercise (SINKEX) as part of Valiant Shield 2026 while underway in the Philippine Sea, June 27, 2026. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Anthony Vilardi)

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force submarine fires a torpedo at the decommissioned USS Juneau in support of a live-fire sinking exercise (SINKEX) as part of Valiant Shield 2026 while underway in the Philippine Sea, June 27, 2026. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Anthony Vilardi)

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force submarine fires a torpedo at the decommissioned USS Juneau in support of a live-fire sinking exercise (SINKEX) as part of Valiant Shield 2026 while underway in the Philippine Sea, June 27, 2026. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Anthony Vilardi)

The Jolly J now lies with the fishes. A hard-earned rest.

Ukraine Goes Dirty Dozen with a Twist

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Ukraine’s ground war with Russia is a charnel house that requires something like 30,000 new/returning recruits every month to keep the trenches semi-full. It is a war that has always been a numbers game.

An innovative method that the troop-poor country is turning to is the old enlisting prisoners bit, be it from among civilian or military inmate populations.

You know, the whole Dirty Dozen thing.

It is something that is actually pretty common in Soviet military history, with the Shtrafbat Penal Units of the Great Patriotic War being infamous. During that conflict, no less than 65 independent criminal battalions and 1,028 penal companies were established; however, pardons generally only came after being too wounded to fight any more, with the bonus of being sent to a regular infantry unit on the front once/if you healed, so there is that. Of the more than 427,000 who served in Soviet punishment units during the war, very few were still standing in 1946, and even those lucky bastards usually got a post-war ticket to the gulag for their service.

However, the difference with Ukraine is that they are actively recruiting in women’s prisons.

It makes sense on a modern battlefield when you need things like drone makers and operators and lots of EW/SIGINT folks.

A decent report on the matter from DW:

 

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