AlaDefense.com

Horseshoe Bend National Military Park reopens tour road, trails, after tornado

December 18, 2025

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Uncategorized

By Troy Turner [email protected] DAVISTON — Horseshoe Bend National Military Park has reopened its main tour road and portions of its eastern trail system after months-long closures caused last spring by a devastating EF-3 tornado. National Park Service officials at the park, which is located north of Dadeville off state Highway 49 in northern Tallapoosa…
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Navy’s USNS Comfort hospital ship slated for return to Mobile

December 17, 2025

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Uncategorized

By Troy Turner [email protected] The U.S. Navy has awarded Alabama Shipyard LLC, Mobile, a $16.7 million contract for a 102-calendar day shipyard availability to provide mid-term servicing of Military Sealift Command’s hospital ship USNS Comfort. The Comfort is no stranger to Mobile, as it has become a common sight in recent years when time for…
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Waterman Transport nets new contract for cargo transport across the Pacific

December 16, 2025

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CONTRACTS, NAVY

By Troy Turner [email protected] The U.S. Navy has awarded Waterman Transport Inc., based in Mobile, an almost $9.5 million contract for the chartered use of a roll-on/roll-off vessel to transport military cargo. Roll-on/roll-off ships allow wheeled and tracked vehicles such as trucks or tanks to drive on and off the ship at cargo docks. The…
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U.S. Space Command arrives in Alabama, along with secretary of war, congressional delegation… and a bold mission

December 12, 2025

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Uncategorized

By Troy Turner [email protected] HUNTSVILLE – It was quite the week for this north Alabama city region. And then some. The biggest surprise came Tuesday with the announcement Eli Lilly and Company is going to invest $6 billion here in building a state-of-the-art complex to develop new medicines. The massive project will create 3,000 construction…
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Austal USA hosts ceremony for future Coast Guard cutter Pickering

December 8, 2025

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COAST GUARD

Admiral Kevin Lunday, acting commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, speaks during Monday’s ceremony. (Austal USA) MOBILE – Austal USA hosted a keel-laying ceremony today for the first U.S. Coast Guard Heritage-class Offshore Patrol Cutter to be built at the company’s Mobile ship manufacturing facility. Pickering, designated as ship WMSM 919, is being built under…
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SPECIAL REPORT: Alabama climbs into Top 10 for U.S. defense state-by-state spending, attracting $17 billion

December 6, 2025

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Uncategorized

By Troy Turner [email protected] Alabama’s military and defense industry contributions to the nation’s security in Fiscal Year 2024 hit new heights in attracting defense spending, reaching an intake of nearly $17 billion and moving Alabama to ninth among the 50 states and District of Columbia in the most recent state-by-state review. The analysis was conducted…
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Lockheed Martin continues its growth in Alabama with new hypersonics lab in Huntsville

December 3, 2025

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AIR FORCE, ARMY, SPACE FORCE

By Troy Turner [email protected] Lockheed Martin announced today that it has opened a Hypersonics System Integration Lab at its Huntsville campus, representing a $17.1 million investment in its growing Alabama defense industry portfolio. “As global threats evolve at unprecedented speed, the defense community is turning its focus to technologies that can outpace and outmaneuver potential adversaries. Hypersonic weapons,…
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Army aviation soldiers begin training with Stalker UAS at Fort Rucker

December 1, 2025

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ARMY

Army Sgt. Joshua Capers attaches a payload to the VXE30 Stalker during training with an uncrewed aircraft system at Fort Rucker, Ala., Nov. 18, 2025. Photos and story by Leslie Herlick Army Aviation Center of Excellence Army aviation soldiers began training with the VXE30 Stalker uncrewed aircraft system at Fort Rucker, Alabama, Nov. 18, in…
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What is the Army’s ‘Janus Program,’ and why does it matter so much to Alabama?

November 25, 2025

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ARMY

By Troy Turner [email protected] Alabama’s entire delegation joined forces in a bipartisan letter sent today to Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll with a pitch for Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville to host the Army’s next-generation nuclear power Janus Program. Redstone Arsenal’s growing demand for electrical power will continue to increase at a significant pace while…
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Alabama’s 117th Intelligence Squadron provides world-class intel operations

November 24, 2025

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AIR FORCE, MARINES

U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Kevin Lando, a cyber system operator with the 117th Intelligence Squadron, 117th Air Refueling Wing, checks connections and power sources inside a server room, Nov. 12, 2025, at Sumpter Smith Joint National Guard Base, Birmingham. A former Marine all-source intelligence analyst, Lando enlisted with the Birmingham unit after spending several…
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Birmingham’s new $46 million Army Reserve Center will be built by Alabama-based BL Harbert

November 20, 2025

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ARMY, CONTRACTS

Photo: One of the many impressive American embassy projects developed by BL Harbert International. By Troy Turner [email protected] The U.S. Army has awarded mega-contractor BL Harbert International LLC a nearly $46 million contract for the construction of an Army Reserve Center and associated facilities in the company’s hometown of Birmingham. The project has an estimated…
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Golden Dome’s layer strategy, Part II: The Recruiters… i.e. BuildGiants Alabama

November 19, 2025

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NAVY

ANALYSIS/SPECIAL REPORT Editor’s note: This is the second of a continuing series that analyzes not just the weaponry layers in the Golden Dome defense concept, but the layers of people behind them. This story takes a look at the recruiters, those who have the role of finding or creating a workforce capable of building and…
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