Americas
The recent opening of the US Army’s Theater Readiness Monitoring Facility (TRMF) at the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant (MCAAP) has shed light on the extensive efforts to inspect HAWK missiles for the support of Ukraine’s war efforts. A key revelation from the opening is the sheer scale of HAWK missile inspections being undertaken. As of 2025, MCAAP has inspected a total of 2,751 HAWK missiles. Furthermore, the facility has received 825 missiles and other equipment donations from six countries. These missiles and equipment are likely to be transferred to Ukraine.
The US Coast Guard received its 18th HC-130J Combat King II airplane from Lockheed Martin. This is part of a plan to improve their long-range patrol planes. The plane will spend a year in Georgia getting special equipment to make it better at watching the sea and carrying heavy things. It will get a system called Minotaur, which helps gather and send information using radar and other tools. This will make the plane much better at its job.
Middle East & Africa
The Royal Navy has used its S-100 Peregrine rotary-wing unmanned aerial system for the first time in the Middle East. It was deployed from aboard the HMS Lancaster (F229) Duke-class frigate, which is stationed in the region for a long-term maritime security mission. Throughout its sorties, the aircraft scouted day and night through areas between the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Oman, where the vessel’s current tasks are being facilitated. This intersection, dubbed the “Hash Highway,” is a known route used by international smugglers and drug runners.
Europe
Finland has chosen Aker Arctic to provide the ARC ILMS ice load monitoring system for the Finnish Navy’s Pohjanmaa-class multi-role corvettes. The system measures ships’ structural loads while navigating ice-covered waters and provides real-time feedback to operators. Aker Arctic has already contributed to other initiatives to support the Pohjanmaa project, including supplying ice-strengthened controllable pitch propellers, pitch control mechanisms, propeller shafts, and shaft seals.
Asia-Pacific
Taiwan dispatched forces on Wednesday in response to China’s “live-fire” drills off the self-ruled island, Taipei’s defense ministry said, condemning the exercises as dangerous. China deployed 32 aircraft around Taiwan as part of a joint combat drill and announced “live-fire exercises” in an area about 40 nautical miles (74 kilometers) off the island’s south, the ministry said in a statement. Taiwan’s military responded by sending sea, air, and land forces to “monitor, alert, and respond appropriately,” the statement said.
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