In this episode, Mike sits down with Dan Jablonsky, CEO ofUrsa Major, to discuss solid rocket motors and how Ursa Major is doing it differently.Once dominated by just two suppliers, America’s SRM propulsion base has been stretched thin—leaving gaps exposed by today’s conflicts. Dan explains how Ursa Major is tackling that challenge withmodular production, 3D printing, Highly Loaded Grain propellants, and advanced manufacturing using what they’ve learned from their liquid motor product lines.We also talk about the big picture: hypersonics, cruisemissiles, and upcoming programs with RTX (Raytheon), the U.S. Navy (SM-2, SM-3, SM-6), the Army, and Stratolaunch.If you want to understand why missile production is one of the biggest defense challenges of our time—and how new entrants like Ursa Major are building solutions—this episode is for you. Links• Sign up for the newsletter! • Support us on Patreon!• Ursa Major website• Ursa Major LinkedIn• Ursa Major Instagram • Ursa Major X ---- Follow us on... • LinkedIn• Instagram• X• Facebook• Website ---- 00:0000:42 intro01:04 Ursa Major02:22 company name03:48 getting into the SRM business05:29 SRM industrial base07:15 doing SRMs differently09:14 SRM 10112:07 Highly Loaded Grain13:08 increasing missile range15:34 rapid development16:44 scale with safety22:25 rapidly adapting SRMs to the threat23:03 3D printing everything?24:59 hypersonic motors27:20 missiles in space27:47 affordable mass29:14 outro
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The Future of Air Warfare: Offensive Electronic Attack (Sponsored)
Electronic warfare is a crucial element of armed conflict involving controlling and protecting the electromagnetic spectrum, which is vital for communication, navigation, and target identification. EW also permits the disruption and denial of adversaries' use of the spectrum, hindering their ability to operate effectively.Benjamin “Chuck” Angus, Director of Business Development in Naval Power at Raytheon, a business of RTX, joins us this week to discuss Raytheon's involvement in EW, specifically offensive electronic attack, with its NextGeneration Jammer—an advanced electronic attack system that denies, disrupts, and degrades enemy technology, including communication tools and air-defense systems.
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E48 – Golden Dome, DIU, and the Innovation Reckoning
In this episode, Mike and Jake catch up on defense techhappenings. Links• Sign up for the newsletter! • Support us on Patreon!• Website ---- Follow us on... • LinkedIn• Instagram• X• Facebook---- 00:36 intro03:31 defense tech investing17:25 Anduril & Golden Dome18:13 Golden Dome25:51 frequency auctioning28:12 Ukraine forcing a US reckoning34:27 DIU criticism42:24 the 4th offset?46:39 Sun Tzu terrain47:45 the torpedo50:05 Ukraine drones and Israeli pagers
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The Future of Air Warfare: Modeling & Simulation (Sponsored)
Tomorrow’s fight will be fast, complex, and contested. Victory won’t come from a single platform, weapon, or payload—it will depend on how well everything works together. That’s where modeling and simulation (M&S) matters.This week, Raytheon (an RTX company) joins us to discuss how they are leading the way with Rapid Campaign Analysis and Demonstration Environment (RCADE), a campaign-level M&S capability built to help decision-makers think beyond individual systems and enables them to see the entire operational ecosystem.
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E47 – Cumming's Hellhound
Don’t miss our newsletter!That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense!In this episode, Mike sits down with Sheila Cummings,founder, president, and CEO of Cummings Aerospace. Cummings Aero started in 2009 supporting the Huntsville,Alabama missile market, but recently decided to launch their own product—the Hellhound.The Hellhound S3 is a man-portable, 3D-printe,d jet-powered kamikaze drone...and we have the FIRST-PUBLIC views of the actual drone—audio and video!BREAKING NEWS: Sheila also announced a new variant—theHellhound S4. It’s tube-launched, bigger, better, and even faster than the S3! If you're into military drones, cutting-edge tech, and thestart-up culture of finding ways to help the warfighter—this episode is for you. Links• Sign up for the newsletter! • Support us on Patreon!• Mike Benitez on LinkedIn• Cummings Aerospace• Sheila’s op-ed----Follow us on... • LinkedIn• Instagram• X• Facebook• Website ---- 00:00 start01:18 intro01:56 origin story05:03 high speed background06:34 Hellhound origin story10:54 introducing the Hellhound11:27 3D-printed12:31 finding an engine13:34 See the Hellhound21:20 naming the Hellhound22:39 family of drones24:38 supersonic variant29:22 China & Industrialization32:32 Industrial Mobilization Board35:47 outro
Military technology, trends, and national security...presented with unique insights, salt, and wit from combat aviator veterans and industry experts.
Fence in for interviews and anecdotes about the ins, outs, and happenings at the intersection of technology, industry, strategy, and policy of aerospace and national defense.
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