Global Conflict Reporting

Tag: Defense

  • US Air Force releases report on F-35 crash that took place in Alaska in January.

    By. Scott Jackson

    08/26/2025

    At 12:29PM on January 28th, 2025 a United States Air Force F-35A crashed at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska. Video released of the incident shows that while on a training flight, the pilot, flying with the 354th Fighter Wing, lost control of his jet and was forced to eject while the jet crashes into the ground moments later.

    Video of the incident. F-35 tail number 19-5535

    The report going over the investigation into this crash came out today and fully explained the cascade of events that caused the crash. The culprit was water that had contaminated the hydraulic fluid for the nose landing gear. This water caused freezing in the hydraulic system and caused the nose gear to not retract properly and left it cantered 17 degrees to the left.The pilot initially on a call with Lockheed Martin engineers and together over the course of an hour efforts were made to fix the nose gear by doing touch and go landings. After the second touch and go landing the struts on both left and right landing gear had ice form around them causing them not to extend after the takeoff. Because of this, the aircraft’s “weight on wheels” sensors showed the aircraft as being on the ground and the plane automatically flipped to on the ground flight controls, while the plane was airborne. The pilot lost control at this point and made the decision to eject as the jet became uncontrollable . The jet crashed to the grounds of Eielson Air Force immediately after the ejection.

    The pilot was treated at the time for minor, non life threatening injuries.

    The crash cost the taxpayers $196,500,000.

    Like to full Air Force report:

    https://www.pacaf.af.mil/Portals/6/documents/3_AIB%20Report.pdf?ver=z-QJglR9Qm7slupMlo6zeA%3d%3d

  • First look at the Ukrainian produced ‘Flamingo’ cruise missile.

    By. Scott Jackson

    08/25/2025

    On August 17th, Ukraine’s Yefrem Lukatsky a well known AP photojournalist released images showing the production of Ukraines previously unannounced, ground- launched, long ranged cruise missile, the FP-5 ‘Flamingo’. This Ukrainian produced cruise missile could become a strong contender for Ukraine’s most effective long range weapon systems.

    The Flamingo is designed and built by Ukrainian defense company Fire Point. According to, the missile has a six meter wingspan and a takeoff weight of 13,000 lbs on takeoff. The payload capacity is 1,150 lbs. Its publicly started range is 1865 miles.

    A look at the tail of the missile showing the engine on top of the weapon, much like designs from the 50s-60s

    “We came up with it pretty fast. It took less than nine months to develop it from an idea to its first successful tests on the battlefield. I will not tell you about its exact speed, but I can say it’s faster than all the other missiles we currently have,” said Iryna Terekh the company’s CEO while adding adding: “It is completely Ukrainian-made.

    The missile is already casing a stir in Russia, the state run agency TASS put out an article last week downplaying the threat posed by this missile. The article also tried to undercut the Ukrainian achievement by saying the missile was from a British design, which the Ukrainian company Fire Point denies. However the impact of the missile is already being felt on the battlefield.

    “We watched Russian reaction to our first missions and I can tell you the more successful the mission was, the more Russians tried to choke all publicity around it,”Terekh said.

    The missile is already in production making several units a day. The company claims they can make that 200 a day by the end of the year.

    With the number Ukraine’s Fire point company is planning to make along with the range this weapons could vastly shift the course of this war, putting a good percentage of Russia industries, both defense and civilian into range of Ukraines new missiles.

  • Chinese warship and Coast Guard vessel collide while attempting to blockade Scarborough Shoal.

    Chinese coast guard Jiangdao-class cutter (CCG 3104) after colliding with PLAN warship.

    By. Scott Jackson

    08/11/2025

    Earlier today Chinese maritime Forces collided with each other while attempting to stop a Filipino vessel from distributing aid and supplies to fishermen in the disputed Scarborough Shoal area. BRP Teresa Magbanua (MRRV-9701) and BRP Suluan (MRRV-4406) escorted fishing carrier MV Pamamalakaya and 35 local fishing vessels in support of Manila’s Kadiwa Operation, a Philippine government-led initiative designed to support and empower fishing communities in the country’s western exclusive economic zone.

    The video above is taken from the stern of the BRP Suluan.

    A Chinese coast guard Jiangdao-class cutter (CCG 3104) one of several former People’s Liberation Army Navy 056-class corvettes, deployed water cannons on the Philippine vessel (BRP Sultan) and while giving chase to them a guided missile destroyer from the PLA Navy, the Guilin, a Type 52D Guided Missile Destroyer, crossed into the path of the Chinese Coast Guard ship causing them to strike the port side of the destroyer. This caused large damage to the front of the coast guard ship and to the port side bow of the destroyer. The Philippine Coast guard said that this accident rendered the cutter unseaworthy. You can see in the video what appears to be at least one sailor on the cutter attempting to put a fender on the front of the cutter to absorb the impact. After the accident the Philippine ships offered support and assistance. No information on if anybody was injured or killed however I have to imagine the sailors at the front of the Chinese cutter would be lucky to still be standing afterword. 

    A shot almost directly after the two ships collided.

    During the confrontation, Filipino coast guard vessel Teresa Magbanua remained on station to escort the Kadiwa supply mission, which then resupplied Philippine fishing vessels with fuel and provisions off Scarborough Shoal.

    “The Philippine Coast Guard reaffirms its dedication to safeguarding all maritime operations in the area and wishes for the swift recovery and proper treatment of any affected CCG personnel,”  Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela said. 

    This attempt to blockade the Philippine ships is a blatant violation of the Philippines territorial sovereignty. The U.S. naval institute spoke to Ray Powell, director of the SeaLight Project at Stanford University’s Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation. He had this to say, commenting on the situation.

     “China is now intercepting Philippine vessels well beyond any legitimate territorial sea claim, and using gray zone tactics such as swarming, blocking and water cannons to directly violate the Philippines’ freedom of navigation on the high seas,”

    One striking observation pointed out in all of this is the presence of a People Liberation Army Navy vessel. Most of the past dust ups have been between coast guard vessels or even Chinese militia sent in as thugs. Seeing the military directly involved here could signal a hardening of Beijing’s stance on the matter.

    This is just the latest incident in a long running series of violence and disputes over the Scarborough Shoal. The shoal is a maritime feature within Manila’s exclusive economic zone that Beijing claims under its ten-dash line assertion. Chinese forces effectively seized the shoal in 2012 but the area has remained a flashpoint. 

  • Airmen arrested in the shooting death of another airmen in July. Uncommanded weapons discharge originally blamed.

    By. Scott Jackson

    08/09/2025

    On July 20th, Airman Brayden Lovan, 21, stationed at F.E Warren airbase in Wyoming was killed. His tragic death has led to an investigation into the Sig Sauer M18, the Department of Defense recent procurement for its forces which replaced the aging and well worn Beretta M9’s among others used by the Marine Corps. Now, another airmen is being charged with involuntary manslaughter, making a false statement, and obstruction of Justice.

    While no official report was released on the death of Lovan, the cause was unofficially attributed and reported as being caused by the un-commanded firing of his sidearm while in its holster and being tossed onto a table, which is believed to be the statement that the other airmen (unnamed for now) told to investigators.

    “An individual has now been arrested on suspicion of making a false official statement, obstruction of justice, and involuntary manslaughter,”

    -Spokesman with the Air Force.

    The Air Force called the gunshot an “isolated incident that does not pose a threat to the base or community.”

    In the aftermath of airmen Lovan death the M18 sidearms were pulled from service by the Air Force Global Strike Command until further notice. Since then a force wide review of the weapon has been ordered. The DoD has purchased around 125,000 of the M-18 in 2020.

    “Out of an abundance of caution and to ensure the safety and security of our personnel, the pause will remain in place pending the completion of comprehensive investigations by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations and the AFGSC Safety office,” Air Force Global Strike Command said in a press release in July. “During this period, Security Forces Airmen will be equipped with the M4 rifle, ensuring no lapse in AFGSC’s security posture.”

    Image of the Sig Sauer P320 M18.

    Sig Sauer also put out a statement, offering assistance in any investigation. Normally a weapons manufacturer wouldn’t involve itself a military investigation voluntarily but Sig has recently been combating allegations that their P320 handgun, as well as the military M18 version, having un-commanded discharges. The jury is still out on that allegation, but the allegations alone have hurt the company leading to lawsuits and a spat of online debate.

    “SIG SAUER has ALWAYS and will continue to put the safety and security of the U.S. Military, the law enforcement community, our consumers, and the public first,”

    Sig Sauer said in a statement.

    Airmen Brayden Tyriq Lovan

    Airmen Brayden Tyriq Lovan, 21, from Greenville, Ky joined the service in November 2023. His obituary described him as a “remote targeting engagement system operator,”a job running the bases security towers with the 90th Security Forces Squadron.

    The Francis. E Warren airbase in Cheyenne, Wyoming is the oldest continuously used airbase in U.S. military service, and is the home of the 90th missile wing, tasked with maintaining and operating the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles.

    More on this story as it develops.

  • United States soldier charged for attempting to trade US military secrets for Russian Citizenship.

    SPC Taylor Adam Lee accused of trying to sell secrets Russia.

    By. Scott Jackson

    08/07/2025

    On Wednesday August 6th, the FBI reported the arrest of Spc. Taylor Adam Lee, an American soldier who is accused of allegedly trying to steal and share classified information with Russia. 

    Taylor Adam Lee is a 22 year old, active member of the US Army, most recently stationed at Fort Bliss In Texas as a tanker with the 1st Armored Division. According to prosecutors and the military he was arrested on Wednesday and charged under the Espionage Act with attempted transmission of national defense information to a foreign adversary. Additionally, he was charged under the Arms Export Control Act. The government has requested that Lee be held without bond.

    According to the US Justice Department, Lee “transmitted export-controlled technical information on the M1A2 Abrams Tank online and offered assistance to the Russian Federation.”  He was attempting to trade the information he possessed on the Abrams to get citizenship in the Russian Federation. It’s unclear how it was revealed to investigators that Lee was looking to trade US secrets on its tanks to Russia.

    The M1A2 Abrams Main Battle Tank.

    Writing earlier this year Lee said online that “the USA is not happy with me for trying to expose their weaknesses,” and, “At this point I’d even volunteer to assist the Russian federation when I’m there in any way.” (CBS News)

    During a meeting in July Spc. Lee met with somebody who he believed was a representative of the Russian federations intelligence services. At this meeting he handed over an SD card with technical data and other information regarding the Abrams Main Battle Tank. A discussion took place where Lee offered to give a physical piece of tech from the tank to the Russian “agent”. 

    After the meeting Lee messaged the agent “Mission accomplished.”
    He was later arrested by the FBI’s El Paso field office.

    Lee at the time held a Top-Secret security clearance. This would have given him access to sensitive information on many of the US military’s systems.

    GCR has reached out to the US Army and will update if a response is received. 

    The adversaries of the US regularly attempt to get active duty military members to share secrets, the widespread use of the internet has increased the risk of this happening greatly. In 2024 US officials warned that there was a large uptick in foreign spies targeting American’s through social media.

    Update

    As of this morning, I received back a response from the army as well as a statement from the first armored division. No new information but it helped me fill some things in

  • Images show the aftermath of the Iranian retaliation strike on U.S. Al Udeid airbase.

    By. Scott Jackson

    07/15/2025

    Recently released images show the damage after an Iranian attack on the U.S. Al Udeid airbase. The June 23rd ballistic missile attack was mostly intercepted, video of which can be seen here.

    Qatari residents watch as US air defenses take out incoming Iranian ballistic missiles.

    Al Udeid is a large military complex and is currently the forward operating base for US Central Command and the USAF Central Command and several air squadrons as well as one from the Royal Air Force. Al Udeid has been an important US instillations since after Desert Storm when a Defense Cooperation Agreement was signed and the base was built in 1996. The U.S. kept the base somewhat secret until the early 2000’s when it was used to launch missions into Afghanistan. Since then the base has remained an important strategical command post for US forces in the Middle East.

    The Iranian attack on June 22nd was being carried out for several reasons but mainly as retaliation for the U.S.’s strike on Iran’s nuclear sites several days earlier. On a deeper level the retaliation was planned because Iran needed to appear to remain strong in front of their allies and the rest of the world. Not striking back, for them, was not an option.

    Hours before the attack the US was made aware of the planned attack by the Qatari government who were told by Iranian officials. This gave the US enough warning that no lives were lost.

    Above shows a before image of the exact area that received damage. What you’re looking at is a satellite antenna for the Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS) network. It is not a radar as some have reported.

    Here is what it looks like on the inside.

    Inside the radar dome at Al-Udeid.

    Several days after the attacks this is what the same spot looked like.

    The back circle is the remains of the radar dome and dish.

    Looking closer with photos from the ground …

    We knew several days ago that the site had received damage but having pictures from the ground is always a bonus.

    Fixing the damage will be a high priority for the forces at the base. It’s a fairly new system made by L3Harris so it’s likely expensive. I’m the interim it’s possible a smaller version of the same model can be brought in to take care of their immediate communication needs.

  • Houthi’s attack in Red Sea leads to a sunk cargo ship.

    By.Scott Jackson

    07/06/2025

    Several hours ago the M/S ‘Magic Seas‘ a Greek-flagged and Liberian registered cargo carrier traveling through the Red Sea was attacked by multiple Houthie boats who exchanged small arms fire at the ship in an attempt to hijack the vessel. The ships security team returned fire. During the course of the firefight the vessel was struck with an unknown (at the time) projectile which started a fire. The ships crew ultimately had to abandon their ship as its condition became dire.

    Magic Seas set ablaze after an attack carried out by Houthi fighters.

    This is the first attack from the Houthi rebels of Yemen since December of last year. They took credit shortly after the attack occurred,claiming it was in support of Palestinians in the ongoing war between Hamas and Israel.

    When the attack occurred the ship was about nautical miles southwest of the Yemeni port of Hodiedah. The report from the UKMTO says that at 1125 UTC the ahip came under attack from 8 skiffs carrying multiple fighters apiece that opened up with small arms fire and RPG’s, and also attacked with unscrewed drone boats.

    Magic Seas.
    The first update from the UK Maritime Trade Operations informing of the attacks.
    An update from several hours later confirming that the ship was taking on water and the crew was abandoning ship.

    In their statement, published on the Al Ansar Telegram channel, the Houthis claimed that the ship for the profile for ships that should be targeted. They also stated that four navel drones took part in the attack on the Magic Seas. They indicated that two of the drones collided with the port side of the ship which caused the fire.

    Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea started in November 2023, In support of Hamas and their war against Israel in Gaza. Since then dozens of vessels have been attacked, most with Iranian supplied ballistic missiles fired from Yemen. Shipping company’s from most of the worlds nations have all had to weigh the options of a faster trip through the Red Sea and the danger of a Houthi missile attack, or a safer but much longer and more costly trip around the Horn of Africa. In total the Houthis managed to sink two ships- the M/S Tutor and M/S Rubymar and damaged many more. Four mariners have been killed total with many more being held hostage. 

    (By my memory over 30 ships were attack,possibly more.)

    In 2024 the Biden administration started up near daily airstrikes against the Houthis targeting missiles and drone production sites, their launching infrastructure and military infrastructure, radar, and air defense. The changing of the US administration seen a change to the policy against the Houthis with a monthlong campaign of airstrikes being carried out in March.