The war of the present day is quick and difficult to predict, and it does not show any mercy—that arena where the victors are the ones to have been able to transform, hit the mark precisely, and show their power. Among the weapons that have been properly adapted to remain effective through a number of different combat scenarios is the Carl-Gustaf recoilless rifle. Its last model, which is the M4, still has the hard concept from history but adds the new and the best technology to make it one of the easiest to handle and the most versatile anti-tank and various job tools of the current time.

From Post-War Experiment to International Mainstay

The history of Carl-Gustaf started in 1948, when Swedish engineers set out to make something better than the German Panzerschreck or American bazooka. Their solution was an 84mm recoilless rifle that would destroy tanks and defended positions.

The M1 and M2 iterations saw constant improvements, but jumping up to the M3 with carbon fiber and aluminum made it lighter and more agile. The M4, however, has transformed the weapon into something much more than its original intent.

Light, Quick, and Made to Fight with the Soldier

At less than 7 kilograms and less than a meter in length, the M4 is built for soldiers in the field. Saab’s employment of titanium and carbon fiber makes it portable and deployable without impeding soldiers, a crucial edge within cramped urban streets as well as wide open spaces. Comfort and ergonomics are paramount, with amenities such as an adjustable shoulder rest, a forward grip, and even a shot counter integrated into the weapon. All this demonstrates an appreciation for the frontline infantry requirements.

Smarter Shooting Through Technology

The M4 doesn’t simply depend on raw power—it adds brains to the battle. It can be fitted with anything from basic telescoping sights to sophisticated fire control systems like the FCD 558. With Saab’s Firebolt protocol, the gun and its ammunition “communicate” with one another, exchanging information like type and temperature to make instantaneous ballistic corrections. This technology makes first-shot hit probability and mental workload on the shooter much greater, and it’s essential when seconds count.

Ammunition for All Situations

Part of why the Carl-Gustaf has remained so enduring is that it has an unprecedented diversity of ammunition. The 84mm family consists of shells for tank-destroying, wall-breaching, personnel-neutralizing, smoke screen-making, battlefield illumination, and even airburst munitions to engage targets with. The newest HE 448 warhead substitutes steel balls with tungsten pellets for increased armor penetration, and the HEAT 655 CS functions in close environments, and the HEAT 751 tandem warhead can counter reactive armor. Saab and Raytheon have even experimentally fired a laser-guided round that can strike moving targets at distances of up to 2 kilometers.

Proven in Combat

The M4’s legendary status isn’t in brochures—it’s won on the battlefield. In Ukraine, it has allegedly destroyed Russian T-90M tanks and gained the nickname “Slayer of Russian tanks” among defenders. The British Army has reactivated it to fill in for munitions delivered to Ukraine as ammunition, singing the praises of its versatility and punch. The U.S. military has also taken it up as the M3A1 (M4) Multi-purpose Anti-Armor Anti-personnel Weapon System, deployed by the Army and Marines.

Training for Tomorrow’s Wars

To keep crews on their toes, Saab designed an advanced simulator that replicates everything from recoil to ballistic behavior, allowing troops to train without breaking the bank on live rounds. Real-time accuracy feedback, damage assessment, and reaction time inform both marksmanship and tactical decision-making.

A Truly Global Weapon

Today, over 40 countries employ the Carl-Gustaf, ranging from Australia and the UK to Japan, Poland, and the Baltic states. Saab is even establishing local manufacturing there to satisfy increasing demand and assist local production. The M4 is also backward-compatible with earlier ammunition, so militaries can simply add it to their lineup without throwing away current stockpiles.

Looking Ahead

Saab’s product development roadmap extends past 2030, with designs for lighter weapons, smarter targeting sights, and newer ammunition to counter future threats—whether drones, armored cars, or urban fortresses. The Carl-Gustaf M4 testifies to the fact that with the right modernization, a weapon can remain not only relevant but dominant, even on the most volatile battlefields.

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The F-35 Lightning II has ever been touted as the rockstar of new fighter aircraft—stealthy, loaded with next-generation tech, and designed to rule the skies. Yet, beneath the airshow spectacle and pricey promo videos, the F-35’s life has not been smooth sailing. It’s one of revolutionary breakthroughs, expensive delays, and a worldwide rush to win fifth-generation airpower.

Let’s begin with what makes it unique. The F-35 isn’t merely a handsome plane—it’s packed full of features that are revolutionizing combat. One of the major upgrades was the rollout of Interim Full Motion Video (IFMV) on the F-35B. Thanks to efforts by the Kill Chain Integration Branch at Hanscom Air Force Base, the Marines can now stream live video streams with location information directly to ground troops.

That translates to quicker coordination, smarter targeting, and improved protection for friendly forces. Lt. Col. Mike DiMaria described it as a “game-changer,” and he isn’t far off. The actual innovation is how it was constructed on an Open Mission Systems (OMS) foundation—essentially a plug-and-play system that facilitates easier and more affordable ways to include new capabilities.

DiMaria noted that OMS is officially a Department of Defense standard now, and the F-35’s IFMV deployment testifies that it can be used. Capt. Ronald Windham summarized it succinctly: “The team has built it. The OMS framework exists, and it’s operational.”. The new capability in the next wave is unlimited.

Flying the jet is a different experience altogether. Pilots transitioning from the F-16 to the F-35 say it’s like entering a different dimension. For those used to dealing with the Marine Corps, it wasn’t a matter of learning new tactics but also fitting into a completely different aviation culture. The F-35B’s ability to land vertically, powered by a huge lift fan, allows the plane to land on smaller amphibious ships, with commanders having the flexibility to place cutting-edge airpower anywhere it is required.

Maj. Graeme Ross described holding a 40,000-pound fighter in hovering position over a ship deck as “a very weird feeling,” but the technology makes it unexpectedly smooth. What truly takes pilots aback is the situational awareness of the cockpit. Rather than frantically searching for data, they see everything in great detail while remaining almost completely out of sight to the adversary. Capt. Spencer Weide described how, on his first Red Flag flight, he was cool and composed, thanks to the information superiority of the jet.

The Marine exchange program wasn’t just a matter of flying differently—it also provided valuable lessons in naval operations and logistics for Air Force pilots, getting them prepared for closer integration down the road. 

Naturally, the F-35’s story has not been drama-free. Its modernization program costs a whopping $16.5 billion to upgrade everything from sensors to weapons systems. But development has been hampered by delays in software and doubts about the new engine and cooling needs. And the cost of maintaining these aircraft continues to rise. In 2018, lifetime sustainment was estimated at $1.1 trillion.

Five years later, that rose to $1.58 trillion, in part because the fleet is now expected to continue flying into the late 2080s. While the services reduced flying hours to save cash, costs continue to escalate. The Pentagon shaved billions from cost estimates by making things work better, but repair backlogs and sluggish component replacement still idle too many jets. The program embodies a bet: invest more now with the hope of saving later, while keeping the jets ready to fly when they’re called upon.

The rest of the world hasn’t been oblivious, though. For years, the F-35 served as the ultimate status symbol for nations seeking to enhance their military presence. But membership always came with strings attached. Saudi Arabia, for instance, once keen to join the club, has begun looking elsewhere for alternatives such as Turkey’s KAAN fighter aircraft. Constructed by Turkish Aerospace Industries and BAE Systems, the KAAN took to the skies for the first time in early 2024 and has already attracted Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan, and Pakistan.

One reason is political. U.S. weapons sales are strictly controlled, frequently delayed, and sometimes even blocked altogether to keep Israel ahead. For Saudi Arabia, a fighter such as the KAAN presents an end run around the limitations, with the added benefit of local manufacture and quicker delivery. In contrast with other ventures such as the sixth-generation GCAP program, Turkey’s fighter is in a more advanced stage and more accessible, making it a strong candidate for those fed up with waiting in line for the F-35.

So where does that leave the F-35? It’s still the standard for now, the plane that embodies fifth-generation airpower. But the cost, development setbacks, and export issues are giving rise to challenges.

Nations desire cutting-edge capability, but cheaper, faster, and without strings. The international fighter market is becoming a contest not only of hardware, but of influence and autonomy. The F-35 saga is not coming to an end any time soon, but the skies are becoming increasingly congested, and the competition for air supremacy is only just starting.

Zumwalt-class destroyers were, from the very beginning, rather mysterious objects for the U.S. Navy. Dreamed as almost invisible, versatile surface vessels using the very last technology, they had the potential to change the whole naval warfare game. But, on the contrary, they are known to be those monstrous ships that racked up unbelievably high bills and whose number shrank dramatically, as well as to a great extent, the 155mm Advanced Gun System is their only weapon that ended up not being used. The high-tech ammo was so expensive that these giants were left with no visible primary weapons—or, at least for some time, no visible task.

Now, however, the Zumwalts are getting a dramatic second act. The Navy has decided to turn them into the first U.S. surface ships capable of launching hypersonic missiles, a move that could finally make these destroyers strategically relevant. This isn’t just a surface-level upgrade; it’s a fundamental rethink of how the Navy approaches power projection, deterrence, and surface combat in the modern era.

The modifications are extensive. The previously dominant Advanced Gun Systems at the bow of each ship are being replaced to accommodate four huge launch tubes. Each tube, Navy program manager Capt. Clint Lawler stated, is 87 inches in diameter and can triple-pack Advanced Payload Module canisters, each of which carries three Intermediate-Range Conventional Prompt Strike (IRCPS) hypersonic missiles.

That translates to a Zumwalt-class destroyer being able to carry up to 12 hypersonic weapons. It takes massive structural modifications, such as extracting deeply embedded gun mounts, bolstering bulkheads, and embedding new fire control and combat systems to handle hypersonic strike missions.

The missiles themselves are an advance in technology. They were developed collaboratively with the U.S. Army; the CPS missile of the Navy has a common boost-glide vehicle with the LRHW of the Army, Dark Eagle.

The weapons are boosted into flight by rocket propellants to a speed of more than Mach 5 before the separation of the glide vehicle, which flies toward its target through high unpredictability. The marriage of hyper speed and agility makes hypersonic missiles very hard to detect or intercept, perfect for attacking high-value, time-sensitive targets deep within hostile territory.

It makes sense strategically. Hypersonics reduce time-to-target and provide survivability at long range against sophisticated defenses. In an era where competitors such as Russia are building their hypersonic arsenals and heavily investing in anti-access/area-denial (A2/AD) systems, being capable of delivering swift, hard-to-halt attacks from stealthy platforms is a huge plus. The Zumwalt’s low radar profile and sophisticated communications capabilities make it particularly good at entering hotly contested zones and delivering devastating strikes before adversaries can respond.

Challenges, however, remain. The Navy’s aggressive schedule for fielding hypersonic missiles on the Zumwalt has already been running behind in testing and integration. “The Navy has yet to identify test conditions and associated test resources that will be evaluated across the three CPS phases to adequately assess lethality and operational effectiveness in the threat-contested environment,” officials observe.

With only three vessels in the class, all equipped with special hardware and software, these ships will be expensive and challenging to maintain and upgrade. Standardization of radar and combat systems is currently discussed as a means to ease maintenance and integration.

In spite of these challenges, the Navy is pressing ahead. USS Zumwalt has already back to the water following a 14-month refit, with its new hypersonic launchers installed. USS Lyndon B. Johnson is coming on stream with hypersonic capability from day one, while USS Michael Monsoor will get its upgrades in a future modernization program. Budget reports suggest an unambiguous commitment to fielding hypersonic weapons on all three ships within the next decade.

Once hailed as a cautionary tale of ambition run amok, the Zumwalt-class destroyers could yet discover their mission. By adopting revolutionary strike technology and redefining the surface combatant role in future naval warfare, the Navy is wagering that these massive stealth ships will take their rightful place as a key component of 21st-century maritime power.