Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More It Was Small Enough to Earn the Nickname ‘Tinker Toy’ — Yet the A-4 Skyhawk Set a World Speed Record and Became Vietnam’s Workhorse Summary and Key Points: It was so small they nicknamed it the “Tinker Toy.” But the A-4 Skyhawk (see our original photos below) would... Brent M. EastwoodJune 3, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More One of the Smallest Nuclear Submarines Ever Built Beat a U.S. Navy Aircraft Carrier’s Defenses — and ‘Sank’ the Roosevelt Summary and Key Points: On paper, it shouldn’t have stood a chance. France’s Rubis-class is among the smallest nuclear attack submarines ever built —... Isaac SeitzJune 3, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More The F-14 Tomcat from Top Gun Could Have Had an Even Deadlier Successor — and the U.S. Navy Said No Summary and Key Points: Top Gun: Maverick reminded the world why the F-14 Tomcat is the most beloved fighter the Navy ever flew. What... Christian OrrJune 3, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More There’s a Reason the World’s Most Powerful Navy Struggles in the Strait of Hormuz — and It’s the Water Itself The most powerful navy in history should be able to pry open the world’s most important shipping lane. In practice, it’s far harder than... Caleb LarsonJune 3, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More Iran Built a Cheap Wall of Missiles and Drones Around the Strait of Hormuz — and It’s Keeping the U.S. Navy Out Summary and Key Points: In 1987, when Iran tried to close the Strait of Hormuz, the U.S. Navy steamed in and broke the blockade.... Brandon WeichertJune 2, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More Aircraft Carrier USS John C. Stennis Has Been out of Action for 5 Years in an Overhaul That Was Supposed to Take 4 — and the Navy Can’t Spare It Summary and Key Points: The USS John C. Stennis entered its mid-life Refueling and Complex Overhaul in May 2021, and is expected back with... Isaac SeitzJune 2, 2026
Dollars and Sense If Iran Makes Good on Its Threat to Close the Strait of Hormuz, Gas Could Hit $7 a Gallon in America Summary and Key Points: Iran just threatened to ‘completely’ close the Strait of Hormuz — the narrow waterway that carries a fifth of the... Jack BuckbyJune 2, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More China’s Hypersonic Aircraft Carrier-Killer Flies at Mach 10 and Changes Course Mid-Flight — and the U.S. Navy Is Scrambling to Stop It When China rolled the DF-17 through Beijing, it was unveiling a weapon built for one purpose: to sink American carriers before they get close.... Harry J. KazianisJune 2, 2026
Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More The U.S. Navy Built the Constellation Frigate to Avoid Its Last Shipbuilding Disaster — Then Cancelled All but 2 of 20 after Wasting Billions As the French fabulist and poet Jean de la Fontaine once wrote, “a person often meets his destiny on the road he took to... Isaac SeitzJune 1, 2026