Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More The SR-71 Blackbird’s Pratt & Whitney J58 Engines Suffered an ‘Unstart’ at 83,000 Feet — and the Aircraft Began Falling Sideways In 1984, an SR-71 Blackbird flying at 83,000 feet over the Soviet Kola Peninsula lost both Pratt & Whitney J58 engines simultaneously — and... Kris OsbornMay 8, 2026
The Treaty ‘The Market Hasn’t Seen the Full Impact’: The Iran War Could Create a Historic Oil Crisis Three U.S. destroyers came under Iranian missile, drone, and small-craft attack Thursday in the Strait of Hormuz — day 69 of a war the... Reuben JohnsonMay 8, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More At Mach 3, the XB-70 Valkyrie “Lost Pieces Bigger Than the YF-12” — One Test Pilot’s Bar Comeback That Became Aviation Legend In the mid-1960s, Lockheed’s Mach 3 YF-12 and North American Aviation’s Mach 3 XB-70 Valkyrie were both flying test missions out of Edwards Air... Brent M. EastwoodMay 8, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More In 1963, a B-58 Hustler Flew From Tokyo to London in 8 Hours and 35 Minutes — Averaging 938 MPH the Whole Way Convair built 116 B-58 Hustlers — the first U.S. operational supersonic bomber, capable of Mach 2 on four General Electric J79 afterburning turbojets. The... Christian OrrMay 8, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More The U.S. Air Force Was Going to Retire the B-1B Lancer — Then Operation Epic Fury Proved the Cold War-Era Bomber Still Has No Equal The U.S. Air Force was preparing to retire the B-1B Lancer when Operation Epic Fury began on February 28 — and the Cold War-era... Isaac SeitzMay 8, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More The CIA Built 13 A-12 Oxcarts to Spy on Russia — Then Lost 5 of Them in Accidents Before the Program Was Killed in 1968 In April 1962, Lockheed Skunk Works flew an A-12 Oxcart spy plane that required an entirely new American titanium industry just to manufacture and... Jack BuckbyMay 8, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More At Mach 3.1 and 70,000 Feet, the XB-70 Valkyrie Bomber Could Outrun Every Russian Interceptor — but the U.S. Cancelled It In the late 1950s, the U.S. spent $800 million building a Mach 3.1 strategic bomber that could cruise above 70,000 feet and outrun every... Jack BuckbyMay 8, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More Chinese Computer Simulations Just Showed a Single J-20 Has Less Than a 10% Chance of Beating an F-22 Raptor in Combat China’s own computer simulations show that a single J-20 Mighty Dragon has less than a 10% chance of defeating an F-22 Raptor in combat.... Steve BalestrieriMay 8, 2026
Dollars and Sense Lockheed Martin Just Won an $11.4 Million Contract to Upgrade Israel’s F-35I Adir — Funded by Israel In March, an Israeli F-35I Adir shot down an Iranian Yak-130 over Tehran — the first time an F-35 stealth fighter ever destroyed another... Stephen SilverMay 7, 2026