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Category Archives: modern military conflict

Comte deGrasse runs again!

Posted on March 2, 2026 by laststandonzombieisland Leave a comment

The future SNA De Grasse (S638), the fourth of six planned 5,200-ton Suffren-class (Barracuda type) SSN built for the French Navy, launched last May 2025 and began her first (Alpha) sea trials last week, with delivery to the Marine nationale expected later this year.

NAval Group Cherbourg

Le Mardi 24 Février 2026 à Cherbourg-en-Cotentin. Prises de vues au drone de la sortie du SNA De Grasse. Le Mardi 24 Février 2026 à Cherbourg-en-Cotentin. Le sous-marin nucléaire d’attaque nouvelle génération (SNA NG) de type Suffren De Grasse sort de sa période de construction chez le constructeur industriel Naval Groupe pour commencer avant sa mise en service une période d’essais techniques en mer.

Le Mardi 24 Février 2026 à Cherbourg-en-Cotentin. Le sous-marin nucléaire d’attaque nouvelle génération (SNA NG) de type Barracuda De Grasse sort de sa période de construction chez le constructeur industriel Naval Groupe pour commencer avant sa mise en service une période d’essais techniques en mer.

This is all very appropriate for the 250th anniversary of the events of 1776 here in the states as she carries the name of Lt. Gen (of Navy) François Joseph Paul, Comte de Grasse, Marquis of Grasse-Tilly, KM — best known for his crucial victory over the Royal Navy at the Battle of the Chesapeake in 1781 which sealed Cornwallis’s fate at Yorktown which in turn helped secure U.S. independence.

The French formerly celebrated De Grasse with an improved La Galissonnière class AAA cruiser in service from 1956 to 1973 and a Tourville-class frigate that served from 1975 through 2013.

Over here, we have also saluted the good Admiral de Grasse with a Great War-era patrol boat (ID-1217), a WWII Crater-class cargo ship (AP-164/AK-223), and the beautiful Pascagoula-built Sprucan USS Comte de Grasse (DD-974), which was active from 1978 to 1998.

The French and U.S. tin cans of the same name cruised together off Yorktown in 1981, on the Bicentennial of the Battle of the Chesapeake.

A starboard beam view of the destroyer USS COMTE DE GRASSE (DD-974) and the French destroyer De GRASSE (D-612) underway near Cape Henry on their way to Norfolk. The ships participated in the joint U.S./French bicentennial celebration at Yorktown, Va. Photo 330-CFD-DN-SC-82-02122 in the National Archives

Nice to see the name return to the sea.

Perhaps the French will send the new De Grasse over here this year, or perhaps in 2031, the 250th of Chesapeake/Yorktown.

Uno Reverso

Posted on March 2, 2026 by laststandonzombieisland One comment

Not going to get into it in too much detail, as I am sure you guys are getting a firehose of this information right now on Epic Fury, or as I like to call it — Praying Mantis II — but I did see this interesting and important footnote to military history.

Saturday’s attack was the Pentagon’s first use of one-way (i.e., “kamikaze”) drones in combat, with CENTCOM’s Task Force Scorpion Strike admittedly using SpektreWorks FLM-136 Low-cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System one-way attack UAVs as part of a sweeping 4,000 items-of-ordnance blitz.

Of some hilarity, the $35K (or less) LUCAS is an unlicensed reverse-engineered knock-off of the Iranian HESA Shahed 136, which has given the Navy so much heartburn in the Bab el Mandeb in the past couple of years and has been extensively captured in Ukraine.

And that is a bit of delicious irony.

(Nov. 23, 2025) Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System (LUCAS) drones are positioned on the tarmac at a base in the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) operating area, Nov. 23. The LUCAS platforms are part of a one-way attack drone squadron CENTCOM recently deployed to the Middle East to strengthen regional security and deterrence. (Courtesy Photo)

One of the first publicized launches of the 10-foot LUCAS was via RATO from USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) while operating in the Arabian Gulf last December. She is one of three Independence-class ships, including USS Canberra (LCS 30) and USS Tulsa (LCS 16), that are currently forward-deployed to Bahrain with new MCM mission modules, replacing the legacy Avenger-class ships that have served in Task Force 55 for over 30 years

A Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System (LUCAS) successfully launches from the flight deck of the Independence-class littoral combat ship USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) while operating in the Arabian Gulf, Dec. 16. Task Force 59 operated the LUCAS drone, which is part of Task Force Scorpion Strike, a one-way attack drone squadron recently deployed to the Middle East. (Cpl. Kayla Mc Guire)

So it may be doubly interesting to see just from where those LUCAS UAVs were launched.

Oh, JPMRC 26-02, you look frozen

Posted on February 27, 2026 by laststandonzombieisland Leave a comment

You have to admit, since reforming as the 11th Airborne, the Army Alaska has really upped its game when it comes to getting the word out about what it does and how they train to fight and win in the frozen region just north of Hoth.

Check out these images and videos of U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Air Assault), 11th Airborne Division engaging a simulated opposing force during Joint Pacific Multi-National Readiness Center 26-02 on the Yukon Training Area, Alaska, Feb. 22, 2026.

“The 11th Airborne Division is setting the standard for Arctic readiness, demonstrating the skills and capabilities needed to succeed in this challenging environment.”

Photos by Spc Brandon Vasquez, video by Sgt. Christopher Nicely, 982nd (Airborne) Combat Camera Company.

Gaming the Suwalki Gap

Posted on February 24, 2026 by laststandonzombieisland 2 comments

Last December, WELT collaborated with the German Wargaming Center of the Helmut-Schmidt-University of the German Armed Forces to conduct an all-day war game centered on an October 2026 Russian move into the Baltics without the bedrock promise of immediate U.S. military support.

Under the guise of a humanitarian emergency in isolated Kaliningrad (still occupied former German East Prussia), the 65-mile Suwałki Gap between the Lithuanian borders becomes a fortified Russian superhighway in an operation that could be interpreted as somewhat short of all-out Article 5-invoking war.

The outcome, gamed by a group of German high-ranking former defense bigwigs, is interesting, albeit a bit slanted.

More here.

Looks terrible. Where do I sign up?

Posted on February 23, 2026 by laststandonzombieisland One comment

As part of long-running (since 2007) Op Nanook-Nunalivut, a joint exercise in the Canadian Arctic, the Yellowknife-based 1st Canadian Ranger Patrol Group (1 CRPG/GPRC) has begun its snowmobile-borne High Arctic sovereignty patrol.

Supported by Joint Task Force North and the Royal Canadian Air Force, the patrol will cover some 2,800 miles over the next several weeks, literally showing the flag, as well as visiting and engaging with 17 remote communities across the North who like to know that “someone” is out there in all that snow and ice.

1 CRPG/GPRC Op Nanook ’26

I have to admit, I almost want to move to the Yukon just to volunteer for the Rangers and ride along on one of these!

On a side note, the Army National Guard/Alaska State Defense Force needs to stand up such patrols in the more remote regions of Alaska, reversing decades of closing historic small community NG armories.

RCAF unit getting Ranger rifles

Of note, the RCAF’s No. 440 “Vampire” Transport Squadron, JTFN’s primary air unit, is co-located at Yellowknife and operates four CC-138 Twin Otters, enabling them to “conduct year-round, all-weather missions including on-skis/tundra tires” throughout the Arctic.

The unit recently upgraded their predator defense rifles aboard each plane to the same Colt C-19 (Tikka T3 CTR) .308s that the Rangers use. The standard service round for the C-19 is the C180 cartridge, which uses a Nosler Accubond 180-grain Trophy bullet over a pretty stout load, in the interest of having to stop polar bears.

Or random Russian commandos, just saying.

Ford Getting Broken in (or Maybe Just Broken)

Posted on February 20, 2026 by laststandonzombieisland One comment

A U.S. Sailor signals the launch of an F/A-18E Super Hornet aircraft, assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron 37, from the flight deck of the world’s largest aircraft carrier, Ford-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), while underway in the Caribbean Sea, Feb. 2, 2026. (U.S. Navy Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Gladjimi Balisage)

The country’s 20th and newest supercarrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), has been deployed since 24 June of last year– recently passing the 240-day mark while underway.

She had originally been scheduled to return to her homeport in January, but that has been extended, first for operations off Venezuela under 4th Fleet, and now headed for 6th Fleet, then later 5th Fleet, where she is expected to arrive to reinforce the task force off Iran in the coming days.

This puts her on track to surpass the current post-Cold War deployment record of 294 days held by USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72)— one that was set due to the coof.

USNI News has been keeping track of the 10 longest carrier deployments since 1964, and puts Lincoln’s longest cruise in 6th place, leaving Ford primed to beat Vietnam-era Yankee Station records held by Oriskany/Bon Homme Richard (both with 298), Swanky Franky (300), Saratoga (308), Coral Sea (329), and Midway (332).

Meanwhile, Ford, which spent a decade in construction, is reportedly being plagued by cranky toilets and persistent rumors that her inagural EMALS catapults are still teething.

I hope the lobsters and steak hold out.

Danes Receive First of 26,000 Colt C8 Rifles, Order another 26,000

Posted on February 20, 2026 by laststandonzombieisland Leave a comment

The Danish military has literally doubled down on an order of new 5.56 NATO chambered Colt Modular Rail Rifles in an effort to rebuild its army.

The Danish Ministry of Defense Materiel and Procurement Board (Forsvarsministeriets Materiel- og Indkøbsstyrelse, FMI) last week made a two-point announcement.

First, it had received the first shipments of new Colt Canada C8 MRR Carbines, type qualified as the Gevaer M/25 in Danish service. These guns, ordered last August, were to be in two variants separated by colorways, with half being all-black and the other half being a sort of coyote brown/dark FDE, with the full order delivered by the end of 2026. The Elcan Specter is the day/night optic of record.

Colt C8 MRRs arriving in Denmark — *The first of 26,000 ordered Colt C8s arrived in Denmark this month. (Photos: Danish FMI)*

Colt C8 MRR — They use free-floating, cold-hammer-forged chrome-lined barrels in lengths of 11.6, 14.5, 15.7, or 18.6 inches. The C8 MRR is also offered in .300 BLK and 7.62 NATO, although the Danes are just using the 5.56 variants. (Photo: Colt Canada).

Udleveringen af omkring 50.000 nye M/25 C8 MRR geværer til Forsvaret og Hjemmeværnet er gået i gang. Hærhjemmeværnets SSR-soldater er de første der får leveret GV M/25 fra Colt Canada med SpecterDR-sigter fra ELCAN.

The second part is that they want to double the order.

“As part of this contract, there was an option to purchase an additional number of rifles, and this option has now been used by the IMF,” said the agency in a statement. “This means that through 2026 and 2027 in total, over 50,000 new rifles will be delivered to the Armed Forces (Forsvaret) and Home Guards (Hjemmeaernet).”

The new guns will replace the old M/95 and M/96 series carbines, which are Canadian-made Diemaco C8 and C7s, which are effectively clones of the Colt M4 and M16A2, respectively, and were delivered in the late 1990s. The country also fields the M/10, which is more equivalent to the M4A1, and was also made by Colt Canada. All three series of rifles were used by Danish forces in Afghanistan, a country to which they deployed a total of 18,000 troops from 2002 to 2021.

Denmark, a NATO ally, is not only trying to beef up its military forces in Europe with the ongoing tensions with Russia, but is also expanding its defensive capabilities in Greenland. This year, the country stationed the first combat units on the somewhat disputed Arctic island – detachments of the Jutland Dragoons and the newly formed Jaeger Corps Arctic Specialists (Jaegerkorpset Arktiske-Specialister) – at Nuuk and Kangerlussuaq, as part of the ongoing Operation Arctic Endurance.

Previously, only a small surveillance unit armed with bolt-action M1917 .30-06 rifles and 10mm Glock pistols was stationed in Greenland full-time.

Perhaps the new guns will be ordered in a white and green colorway.

The new guns getting some use this week at Flyvestation Karup:

Snow and paracord, by the Northern Lights

Posted on February 17, 2026 by laststandonzombieisland Leave a comment

Breathtaking.

U.S. Army paratroopers assigned to the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 11th Airborne “Arctic Angels” Division, executed a low-light tactical airborne insertion as the opposing force during Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center 26-02 on Husky Drop Zone at Yukon Training Area, Alaska, Feb. 11, 2026.

These paratroopers descended into the frozen terrain to replicate a thinking, adaptive threat, forcing rotational training units to fight for every movement across Alaska’s unforgiving battlefield while reinforcing the division’s focus on Arctic lethality and expeditionary readiness.

Photo by Spc. Brandon Vasquez

The Lapland Air Force

Posted on February 17, 2026 by laststandonzombieisland Leave a comment

Check out these very frosty images from the Finnish Air Force’s Lapin lennosto, or the Lapland Air Control, based at Someroharju, Rovaniemi, located just inches shy of the Arctic Circle along the 66th N. Parallel. Formed in 1974, the command hosts the F-18Cs of the 11th Fighter Squadron (HÄVLLV 11), deployed full-time 365, in all weather.

Anne Torvinen / Ilmavoimat, Lapin lennosto

Of note, Rovaniemi is significantly further north than Alaska’s Elmendorf Air Force Base, which is on the 61st N. Parallel, and Finnish F-18s, when fulfilling NATO air policing missions at Keflavik in Iceland, have to fly south to do so, as even that windswept paradise is on the 63rd Parallel.

They are pretty serious in Lapland. Note the six AMRAAM loadout. Anne Torvinen / Ilmavoimat, Lapin lennosto

Anne Torvinen / Ilmavoimat, Lapin lennosto

Tailhooks are retained and used, as the Finns incorporate them into an arrested short landing profile when operating on highways. Anne Torvinen / Ilmavoimat, Lapin lennosto

As noted by the Finns in the post that accompanied these photos, “Snow, ice, temperatures as low as -35°C – no problem! For us, here at the Arctic Circle, cold-weather training is… just ordinary training.”

Look to the Sky: The Drones of SHOT Show

Posted on February 16, 2026 by laststandonzombieisland Leave a comment

With unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, a hot topic both in consumer use and on the battlefield, it should come as no surprise that they were increasingly on hand at the recent SHOT Show.

Both Colt and SIG had (well) armed drones overhead while other companies offered kinetic counter-drone options.

Colt

The Colt-CZ Group is the current owner of the Mk47 Striker, a belt-fed 40mm Automatic Grenade Launcher, or AGL, which had been developed by General Dynamics-Armament and Technical Products back in the early 2000s. They made sure to bring it to SHOT Show in a couple of formats.

Colt not only had the Mk47 displayed on a ground mount but also held aloft, mounted to a Survice Engineering TR150e quad copter.
MK 47 on Survice Engineering TR150e quad copter

Now that’s something you don’t expect to see at Colt…

Of note, according to Naval Air Systems Command, the battery-powered TR 150 has been used by the Marines in a logistics role for the past couple of years, able to carry a cargo payload up to 120 pounds to a combat radius of 5.5 miles at a cruise speed of 50 knots autonomously.

As the 40x53mm High Velocity grenade used by the Mk47 weighs about a pound, that would allow a TR 150 to carry the launcher and probably about 40-50 rounds when you add the weight of the mount, belt, and ammo box to the equation. Now, when you think that you could run a whole squadron of these drones from a hut in the jungle with a generator and a satellite link, you get the idea.

SIG

New Hampshire-based SIG has been in the drone space for a bit, having acquired an experienced remote weapons company in 2023 and showing off a small Lumenier UAV carrying a P365 pistol in the past. SIG came to SHOT this year with a host of new guns, but also had an IAI Fire Storm 250 quadcopter suspended over their booth.

What makes the FS 250 so groovy is the fact that it is designed to carry a belly-mounted SIG M250 light machine gun with about 200 rounds or so of 6.8×51 or 7.62 NATO.

IAI FS 250 — SIG tells us they have been testing the FS 250 concept, which takes an APUS-60 UAV and marries it to a remote-control SIG LMG for the past year or so, and it works. ce caption here

B&T Hard Kill

We always make sure to check out B&T at SHOT because they are awesome, and one of the more interesting things we came across at their booth was the Hard Kill system, developed in tandem with Blue Aether as a U.S. Air Force project.

The small-form Hard Kill is designed to use AI to actively track drones and shoot them down, akin to a sort of mini-Phalanx CIWS or Centurion C-RAM. When I say “mini,” think of the size of a suitcase roller bag.

Freedom Munitions (Anti) Drone Round

Drone Round, just as it sounds, is ammo for swatting down drones. Shotguns are typically most effective on drones, but that requires carrying a shotgun (Benelli even sells specific counter-UAS models) wherever you may encounter hostile drones. Shotguns tend to kick, have limited capacities, and don’t reach as far as an AR or other battle rifle, so Freedom Munitions came up with a solution.

Drone Round works with any rifle and suppressor without modification. Tests show no extra wear compared to standard rounds. The ammunition gives about a 30-inch spread at 100 meters and comes in K and L variants for different ranges.

You can bet that drones and how they fit into the firearms industry and the right to keep and bear arms are something that is only going to gain more traction. Think of it like how folks talked about suppressors in 2010.

Open Source Defense covered that subject a couple of months ago in the blog post “Drones are the frontier of the Second Amendment.”

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laststandonzombieisland

Weapons, Wars, Preparation and Security from a recovering gun nut turned bad writer

Category Archives: modern military conflict

Comte deGrasse runs again!

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Uno Reverso

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Oh, JPMRC 26-02, you look frozen

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Gaming the Suwalki Gap

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