Defense Archives

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

Nazi Germany Built the World’s First Jet Fighter. It Was 120 MPH Faster Than Anything the Allies Had. It Arrived Too Late to Matter. We Photographed the Real Thing.

As part of our work at 19FortyFive, we regularly visit military facilities and museums to document aircraft that helped shape modern warfare. In July...

Jack BuckbyApril 13, 2026

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

An F-14 Tomcat ‘Disintegrated’ at Mach 1. Another Crashed Into a Carrier at Night. The Third Killed the Navy’s First Female Fighter Pilot.

Having dominated the unfriendly skies for the Navy from 1974 to 2006, the variable-sweep “swing wing” plane was meant to protect US carriers and...

Brandon WeichertApril 13, 2026

U.S. Marine Pfc. Emily Zamudio with Alpha Company, Infantry Training Battalion, School of Infantry (SOI) West, prepares for a shooting drill at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Sept. 1, 2021. Zamudio graduated recruit training from the first female platoon to become Marines at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, May 2021. She then progressed to SOI West where she completed the Infantry Marine Course and earned the military occupational specialty of 0311, infantry Marine. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Tessa D. Watts)

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

Join the Military at 18. Retire at 38. Collect a Pension for Life. Sounds Perfect: Here’s What Nobody Tells You

Joining the military at age 18, serving for 20 years, and retiring at 38 is often pitched as a commonsense pathway to financial stability...

Harrison KassApril 13, 2026

A 2nd Bomb Wing B-52H Stratofortress taxis under a spray of water after returning from a mission July 12, 2014, at Barksdale Air Force Base, La. This marked the last flight for one crew member on the aircraft, Lt. Col. Ronald Polomoscanik, the 343rd Bomb Squadron director of operations, who is retiring after 23 years of service. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Greg Steele/Released)

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

The B-52 Bombers’ Next Upgrade Move Could Decide Everything

Rolls-Royce announced in February that it had successfully completed altitude and operability testing for its F130 engine, indicating that the effort to modernize the...

Jack BuckbyApril 13, 2026

Trillions - 19FortyFive

Life Quote of the Day By Albert Einstein: ‘No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.’

“No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.” – Quote of the day by Albert Einstein. Albert Einstein...

Stephen SilverApril 13, 2026

AT SEA (Jan. 16, 2024) The Nimitz class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70), back, and the Kongo-class helicopter destroyer JS Kongo (DDG-173) from the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force sail together during a trilateral exercise, Jan. 16. The exercise allowed maritime forces from Japan, Republic of Korea, and U.S. to train together to enhance coordination on maritime domain awareness and other shared security interests. Vinson, flagship of Carrier Strike Group ONE, is deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Charles J. Scudella III)

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

A 100,000-Ton Aircraft Carrier Drag-Raced a Cruiser in the Middle of the Ocean. It Was Only Using 3 of 4 Engines. It Almost Won

A nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, despite weighing over 100,000 tons, uses its massive nuclear reactors to move at speeds over 30 knots or almost 35...

Steve BalestrieriApril 13, 2026

NORFOLK, Va. (Dec. 23, 2008) – The Los-Angeles class attack submarine USS Boise (SSN 764) returns to Norfolk following her regularly scheduled deployment. While deployed, Boise participated in five anti-submarine warfare exercises with several European Allies and performed two missions that supported Commander, U.S. Sixth Fleet objectives and national security interests of the United States. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Todd A. Schaffer / Released)

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

‘It Can’t Dive’: The U.S. Navy Wasted 11 Years and $800 Million on a Nuclear Submarine They Never Fixed

The Trump administration just walked away from a major submarine repair because the economics (and the painful reality) no longer made sense. This move...

Brandon WeichertApril 13, 2026

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson (DDG 114) and the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Princeton (CG 59) steam in formation during dual carrier operations with the Nimitz and Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Groups (CSG). Dual carrier operations unify the tactical power of two individual CSG, providing fleet commanders with an unmatched, unified credible combat force capable of operating indefinitely. The CSGs are on a scheduled deployments to the Indo-Pacific.

The Embassy

Iran Doesn’t Want Peace. It Wants a Pause. There’s a Dangerous Difference.

There is an old rule in medicine that applies with uncomfortable precision to war: never stop taking antibiotics halfway through the course. Do, and...

Alan H. KesselApril 13, 2026

An F-35 Lightning II assigned to the 62nd Fighter Squadron, Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., sits in a hangar ahead of operations for the F-35 Lightning II TDY, Oct. 28, 2021, at Joint Base San Antonio-Kelly Field, Texas. The 62nd FS will be training with F-16s from the 149th Fighter Wing and the 301st Fighter Wing, along with T-38s from the 301st Fighter Wing. The multi-role capabilities of the F-35 allows them to perform missions which traditionally required numerous specialized aircraft. The complimentary air superiority capabilities of the F-35 will augment our air superiority fleet and ensure we continue to "own the skies" over future battlefields. (U.S. Air Force photo by Brian G. Rhodes)

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

Canada Is Afraid the U.S. Could Shut Off Its F-35 Fighter Jets With a Kill Switch. Sweden Just Offered a Way Out

A fresh front has just opened in Canada’s cumbersome fighter jet debate. CBC News reported on Monday that Saab has made a lucrative offer...

Georgia GilholyApril 13, 2026

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

F-14 Pilot Reveals When Air Traffic Controllers Asked Him to Buzz the Tower So They Could See for Themselves a U.S. Navy Tomcat

We all remember the iconic scene in the first “Top Gun” film. Maverick, played by Tom Cruise, tells his Radar Intercept Officer (RIO), “Sorry,...

Steve BalestrieriApril 13, 2026

19FortyFive

All posts tagged "Defense"

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

Nazi Germany Built the World’s First Jet Fighter. It Was 120 MPH Faster Than Anything the Allies Had. It Arrived Too Late to Matter. We Photographed the Real Thing.

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

An F-14 Tomcat ‘Disintegrated’ at Mach 1. Another Crashed Into a Carrier at Night. The Third Killed the Navy’s First Female Fighter Pilot.

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

Join the Military at 18. Retire at 38. Collect a Pension for Life. Sounds Perfect: Here’s What Nobody Tells You

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

The B-52 Bombers’ Next Upgrade Move Could Decide Everything

Trillions - 19FortyFive

Life Quote of the Day By Albert Einstein: ‘No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.’

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

A 100,000-Ton Aircraft Carrier Drag-Raced a Cruiser in the Middle of the Ocean. It Was Only Using 3 of 4 Engines. It Almost Won

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

‘It Can’t Dive’: The U.S. Navy Wasted 11 Years and $800 Million on a Nuclear Submarine They Never Fixed

The Embassy

Iran Doesn’t Want Peace. It Wants a Pause. There’s a Dangerous Difference.

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

Canada Is Afraid the U.S. Could Shut Off Its F-35 Fighter Jets With a Kill Switch. Sweden Just Offered a Way Out

Smart Bombs: Military, Defense and National Security

F-14 Pilot Reveals When Air Traffic Controllers Asked Him to Buzz the Tower So They Could See for Themselves a U.S. Navy Tomcat

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