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US Navy warships are burning through one of the top ballistic missile interceptors at an "alarming rate," the admiral overseeing naval operations told lawmakers on Tuesday.

During a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii said US forces had expended large amounts of munitions to defend Israel from Iranian strikes during the latest round of conflict in the Middle East and asked whether the Navy had all the Standard Missile-3 interceptors that it needed to be ready for other global threats.  Adm. James Kilby, the acting chief of naval operations, said that the service did have a sufficient supply of interceptors but that "we are, to your point, using them at an alarming rate."  "As you know, those are missiles procured by the Missile Defense Agency and then delivered to the Navy for our use," he added. "And we are using them quite effectively in the defense of Israel."

The SM-3 is a missile interceptor that uses a kinetic kill vehicle to destroy short- to intermediate-range missiles during the midcourse phase of flight. It's part of the Navy's highly advanced Aegis Combat System, equipped on Arleigh Burke-class destroyers and Ticonderoga-class cruisers. Unlike the Navy's other missile interceptors, the SM-3 can engage targets in space. The SM-3 missile comes in multiple variants, which can cost as much as $10 million on the low end and almost $30 million on the high end, according to the MDA. The weapon is made by the US defense contractor RTX and, for the newest variant, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

The Navy first used the SM-3 interceptor in combat to defend Israel from Iran's unprecedented missile and drone attack in April 2024. American warships then fired the interceptors again several months later, in October, when Tehran launched more than 180 ballistic missiles at Israel.  A US official told Business Insider last week that Navy warships in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea had launched missile interceptors to defend Israel from Iranian attacks amid the latest round of fighting between the two enemies. The official, however, didn't specify what type of interceptors.  It's unclear how many SM-3s might have been launched as part of these efforts, and it's also unclear whether there were any confirmed interceptions of Iran's missiles in the latest engagements. The Pentagon didn't immediately respond to BI's request for additional information.

Navy leadership has previously said it needs a lot more SM-3s to counter higher-level threats in the Pacific, such as China and its large arsenal of ballistic missiles. Analysts, however, have raised concerns that the sea service is rapidly expending these interceptors in Middle East conflicts without sufficient plans to replace them.  The fiscal year 2025 defense budget request cut procurement of SM-3 Block IB interceptors from about 150 to zero over the next five years and called for production of only a dozen of the newer SM-3 Block IIA variants every year for the same period.  The defense appropriation bill reversed some of those plans, providing additional funding for more SM-3 production. In May, the Pentagon awarded a substantial contract to RTX for dozens of SM-3 IBs. And there's also been further support directed at boosting production of newer SM-3 variants. The outlook for the coming fiscal year isn't totally clear, but the emphasis on missile defense could reflect a favorable environment for increasing SM-3 interceptor stockpiles.

19 hours ago, Mlodj said:

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Is Israel going to pay for those missiles? Perhaps we can get a rare earth deal with them? Oh wait, they have none.

On 6/25/2025 at 5:03 PM, Mlodj said:

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I've often said that we're going to find out the hard way once SE Asia kicks off that we have nowhere near the stockpiles we need. The fact that we had to ramp up so much to support Ukraine is telling.

It doesn't help that tech-bros have so much influence right now wrt "lets just use unarmored vehicles and drones" that it makes me want to pull my hair out. My hope is that they see what traditional air power is doing over Iran right now and also realize that in positional warfare in wide open terrain between two countries who have an ordinance shortage drones are a crutch and not a revolution.

Uh so those crater marks in Iran were all from the vents blowing out.

They dropped all 6 MOPPs down the same hole.

If I was China I’d be sweating.

On 6/26/2025 at 5:06 PM, Bill said:

I've often said that we're going to find out the hard way once SE Asia kicks off that we have nowhere near the stockpiles we need. The fact that we had to ramp up so much to support Ukraine is telling.

It doesn't help that tech-bros have so much influence right now wrt "lets just use unarmored vehicles and drones" that it makes me want to pull my hair out. My hope is that they see what traditional air power is doing over Iran right now and also realize that in positional warfare in wide open terrain between two countries who have an ordinance shortage drones are a crutch and not a revolution.

There is a lot of money for arms replenishment in the big beautiful bill. I had the joy of reading it to look for certain appropriations yesterday.

2 hours ago, BBE said:

There is a lot of money for arms replenishment in the big beautiful bill. I had the joy of reading it to look for certain appropriations yesterday.

Yeah, but it still won’t be enough.

We need to get super committed to the F/A-XX and we aren’t.

25 minutes ago, Bill said:

Yeah, but it still won’t be enough.

We need to get super committed to the F/A-XX and we aren’t.

There was substantial funding for that, the 47, and b-21 in the bill. Also a significant chunk of change to keep the 22 flying.

4 hours ago, Mlodj said:

Eh, I guess I'm a bit of a misnomer, but I don't have the hard on for drones that most are having these days.

In Ukraine, drones existed in the first place because both sides lacked arty and mortar shells. They're able to flourish because of the wide open, flat terrain (think huge fields that would rival those in Nebraska), and temperate weather. If you're fighting in SE Asia, drones are gonna be worthless because of the terrain, the vegetation, and the weather. Even accounting for a near perfect use case scenario for drones in Ukraine, they're only getting a success rate of less than 10%. IMO, 60/120mm mortars and 155mm shells are so much more valuable than drones. The issues that Ukraine and Russia are having with having their arty pieces be targeted is because neither side is able to project enough force to push the FLOT to disrupt the other side. Drones are good for a JTAC to have to be able to call in and adjust fire, or for leaders to be able to do reconnaissance. That said, reconnaissance is still better done in person. The Mk. 1 eyeball can see way more about things than a drone can. Honestly, anymore I see drone usage as a crutch rather than an ability. Sure, putting a bunch in a truck and destroying enemy strategic air assets are great, but its a moot point when you have the air and naval force projection capabilities that we do.

tl;dr: I think drones are overrated. They're a crutch being used due to a lack of better available assets, and even being used in an optimal setting they're producing sub-optimal results.

Sidebar: I worry that too many people are falling into the Vampire Fallacy and thinking that The War of Tomorrow^TM is going to be all tech, when realistically we're going to be chewing through infantry that we don't have. It's enough of a concern to lose sleep over.

On a more mundane note

An Air Force command is temporarily barring the use of issued Sig Sauer sidearms amid an investigation into the death of an airman at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming over the weekend. The active-duty Security Forces airman, assigned to the base's 90th Security Forces Squadron, "died on base while on duty" in the early morning hours Sunday, a news release from the base said. While the identity of the service member has not yet been made public, nor has the circumstances of their death, Air Force Global Strike Command, or AFGSC, issued an immediate order pausing the use of 9mm Sig Sauer M18 handguns as a result of the incident. "Air Force Global Strike Command has paused use of the M18 Modular Handgun System, effective July 21, 2025, until further notice," Charles Hoffman, an AFGSC spokesperson, told Military.com. "This decision was made following a tragic incident at F.E. Warren AFB, WY, on July 20, 2025, which resulted in the death of a Security Forces airman."

The Sig Sauer M18 is part of the firearm manufacturer's P320 series, which has faced legal scrutiny after reported allegations of unintentional discharges among civilians, law enforcement and within the military. Air Force Global Strike Command is now doing a full inspection of the handguns. "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," Hoffman added. A July 21 memo issued by Gen. Thomas Bussiere, head of Air Force Global Strike Command, that leaked online, and was confirmed as authentic and accurate by AFGSC, called for the M4 carbine rifle to be used as a replacement in the wake of the investigation.

New Hampshire Public Radio obtained nine incident reports of unintended discharges of Sig Sauer M17s and M18s -- two military variants of the handgun -- according to an in-depth investigation published last year. An August 2024 FBI report requested by the Michigan State Police, and recently made public, examined an incident in which an officer's M18 "fired. uncommanded" while it was holstered. It detailed that, while the weapon in question "did not independently provide evidence of an uncommanded discharge, it does indicate that it may be possible" under certain conditions.

Sig Sauer, in a scathing news release in March responding to the ongoing lawsuits and media reports regarding the discharges, fought back against the allegations. "The P320 CANNOT, under any circumstances, discharge without a trigger pull -- that is a fact," the news release detailed. "The allegations against the P320 are nothing more than individuals seeking to profit or avoid personal responsibility."

Sig Sauer did not respond to a Military.com email seeking comment by publication time.  "While the investigations are underway, AFGSC is collaborating with the Air Force Security Forces Center and Headquarters Air Force Security Forces to conduct a thorough review of the M18 and develop appropriate corrective measures," Hoffman said. "Furthermore, Security Forces combat arms airmen at all AFGSC bases will conduct 100% inspections of the M18 handguns to identify any immediate safety concerns."

On 7/21/2025 at 11:36 PM, Bill said:

Eh, I guess I'm a bit of a misnomer, but I don't have the hard on for drones that most are having these days.

In Ukraine, drones existed in the first place because both sides lacked arty and mortar shells. They're able to flourish because of the wide open, flat terrain (think huge fields that would rival those in Nebraska), and temperate weather. If you're fighting in SE Asia, drones are gonna be worthless because of the terrain, the vegetation, and the weather. Even accounting for a near perfect use case scenario for drones in Ukraine, they're only getting a success rate of less than 10%. IMO, 60/120mm mortars and 155mm shells are so much more valuable than drones. The issues that Ukraine and Russia are having with having their arty pieces be targeted is because neither side is able to project enough force to push the FLOT to disrupt the other side. Drones are good for a JTAC to have to be able to call in and adjust fire, or for leaders to be able to do reconnaissance. That said, reconnaissance is still better done in person. The Mk. 1 eyeball can see way more about things than a drone can. Honestly, anymore I see drone usage as a crutch rather than an ability. Sure, putting a bunch in a truck and destroying enemy strategic air assets are great, but its a moot point when you have the air and naval force projection capabilities that we do.

tl;dr: I think drones are overrated. They're a crutch being used due to a lack of better available assets, and even being used in an optimal setting they're producing sub-optimal results.

Sidebar: I worry that too many people are falling into the Vampire Fallacy and thinking that The War of Tomorrow^TM is going to be all tech, when realistically we're going to be chewing through infantry that we don't have. It's enough of a concern to lose sleep over.

Agreed, their better use is still in ISR directing more conventional attacks. You can't discount the psychological effect though.

17 minutes ago, Mlodj said:

Agreed, their better use is still in ISR directing more conventional attacks. You can't discount the psychological effect though.

What’s worse than the sound is even when you can hear them, you can’t see them.

I was training a unit and the commander was screwing around on the deck with a small drone drone. He put it a couple of hundred meters up to where you couldn’t hear it, but he was zoomed in on me and still had enough clarity for me to be identifiable.

It’s scary ish when they’re flying low. Miniaturized Stuka sound.

F-15E drone hunting in CENTCOM. LINK. 1 x JDAM, 1 x AIM-120C, 4 x AIM-9X, and 4 x APKWS rocket pods.

Cappy is a good subscribe. He was with Task & Purpose until they got bought by private equity so he and his team went off on their own thing.

On 7/26/2025 at 9:14 AM, Mlodj said:

F-15E drone hunting in CENTCOM. LINK. 1 x JDAM, 1 x AIM-120C, 4 x AIM-9X, and 4 x APKWS rocket pods.

For as worthless as the A-10 is in a modern battlefield environment, did we miss the boat on using it as an anti-drone platform?

Without knowing off the top of my head the difference in payload capacity between an F-15 platform and an A-10 platform when it comes to APKWS pods, the A-10 does have a much longer loiter time and flies slow enough to match with a lot of the drones being used. Not that the F-15 isn't more than capable for this mission set, I'm just wondering if we're not using a ferrari for something a lawn mower could do, and it would free up more F-15 airframes for more worthy missions.

18 hours ago, Bill said:

For as worthless as the A-10 is in a modern battlefield environment, did we miss the boat on using it as an anti-drone platform?

Two main issues with that. The first is that it's limited to day VFR ops for drone hunting due to the lack of radar. I wouldn't want to be flying at night or in the weather with my noggin buried in an MFD looking at a FLIR picture. That's how two F-117 pilots died. The second would be speed. Drone packages are typically spread out in range and/or azimuth, which means having to run some of them down, which is not the A-10's forte.

Ryan McBeth with quality analysis as always.

1 hour ago, Mlodj said:

Two main issues with that. The first is that it's limited to day VFR ops for drone hunting due to the lack of radar. I wouldn't want to be flying at night or in the weather with my noggin buried in an MFD looking at a FLIR picture. That's how two F-117 pilots died. The second would be speed. Drone packages are typically spread out in range and/or azimuth, which means having to run some of them down, which is not the A-10's forte.

Good point. I guess I'm just worried about massive amounts of hours going on aircraft like during OEF/OIF when we don't have as many aircraft as we need. It's like the idea to kick cruise missiles out the back of cargo planes, when pretty much every wargame against a near-peer threat shows that we're going to be needing logistics out the wazoo and won't have a cargo aircraft to spare for that.

I think we dragged our feet too much in figuring out how to do anti-drone from the ground. The Army's current solution is to put guns on stuff, but their use requires the gunner to operate the gun with an open hatch. Makes you scratch your head.

12 minutes ago, Bill said:

Ryan McBeth with quality analysis as always.

Yes, but Bud Light?

15 minutes ago, Mlodj said:

Yes, but Bud Light?

Prob the cheapest drink you can get at an airport, my guess.

23 hours ago, Bill said:

Cappy is a good subscribe. He was with Task & Purpose until they got bought by private equity so he and his team went off on their own thing.

Cappy is great. If you have pepperbox, he has combat footage reaction videos that are entertaining. Usually has a guest on too