STRIKE-HOLD - the international military and tactical blog

D3O gets Royal recognition

D3O, the British smart materials specialist, has been honoured by Her Majesty the Queen at a Buckingham Palace reception. The company attended the celebration for winners of Queen’s Awards, because of delivering six years of strong performance in international trade. D3O was named as a winner of a Queen’s Award...

Another Way To Fight: Unconventional Warfare from Rome to Iran

(Hat tip to Jack Murphy for bringing this very good article to my attention.) ” Foreign Intrigue is pleased to provide an article from Guest Contributor Dave Coughran that was previously posted at the Harvard Kennedy School Review. The article examines unconventional warfare. Dave is a 2014 Master in Public Policy candidate...

SOD Gear: Spectre Sniper System

SOD Gear of Italy is renowned for making extremely high-quality clothing and gear for special operations forces. Now they also have released their Sniper System – comprising a boonie, parka, and “salopette” (ski-style trousers with built-in bib and suspenders. The main fabric used for the suit is 50/50 NyCo, with...

Mercenary King – Bob Denard

David Axe of the “War Is Boring” blog has written an excellent article about the career of legendary French mercenary “Bob Denard”, and the rise of the modern Contractor industry. Check it out:   One Man Private Army

Operation Husky: the invasion of Sicily *update*

Just past midnight on the morning of June 10th, 71 years ago, an Airborne force comprised mainly of the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division led the largest parachute assault by American forces to-date, into Sicily, as part of Operation Husky. 45 mph winds blew troop carriers off course and...

KITANICA Backcountry Pants

KITANICA’s casual / outdoor / work-wear oriented “Backcountry Pants” are now available in Black – as well as Ranger Green, Khaki and Stone. And judging by some photos on KITANICA’s Facebook page, they might also soon be available in PenCott-BadLands and Kryptek Typhon as well….   kitanica.net/backcountry  

Direct Action GHOST® Backpack arriving in stores now

The latest news from Direct Action (Helikon Tex’s ‘real deal’ line) is that their GHOST® Backpacks will be hitting stores by the end of this week. The GHOST® (MSRP – 139 EUROs) is Direct Action’s take on a mid-size patrol pack (28 + 3.5 Litre), and features their patented Combat Vent System...

Prometheus Design Werx — live on Facebook

You’ve heard the rumors, seen the teasers, wondered if it was more than just a dream…. Well…. its for real, the legend is back! Patrick Ma and his crew launched the official Facebook page for Prometheus Design Werx today.  The website is still just a holding page, but the Facebook page...

Small Arms Spotlight: STEYR HS .50 M1

The STEYR HS .50 opened a new era of long range shooting; the cold hammer forged barrel provides excellent accuracy at an effective range up to 1500m and the rifle can be disassembled and reassembled in seconds. The STEYR HS .50 M1 is the evolution of the HS .50. The...

Small Arms Spotlight: AUG A3 SF

The STEYR AUG A3 modular weapon system is a result of the continued development of the world renowned STEYR AUG rifle series. The STEYR AUG A3 design is also based on modular system components, which can be configured from one variant to another quickly and easily without tools, at unit...