future

Coronation Street boss Kate Brooks has teased summer and beyond in Weatherfield in the fallout to Theo Silverton’s murder, with two new characters and the identity of Theo’s killer

There’s plenty of drama coming up on Coronation Street in the fallout to murder week.

We finally know the victim, as Theo Silverton was killed off on Friday night. But who killed him and how did he die? All of that is to come.

That’s not all, as there are big scenes ahead for two other characters. Debbie Webster has a busy few months, while teenager Sam Blakeman’s mental health continues to spiral.

Then there’s the arrival of two new characters, both of which have links to current Weatherfield residents. Speaking to The Mirror and other press, Kate Brooks teased what was on the cards.

READ MORE: Coronation Street spoilers: Victim ‘revealed’ and missed evidence ‘outs killer’READ MORE: Emmerdale spoilers: Todd’s revenge on Jacob, Bear exit ‘sealed’ and Joe’s downfall

Whodunnit teasers

Kate revealed: “Obviously, there’s lots of people who are in the frame for Theo’s death – George, Todd, Summer, Carl. He’s created a lot of enemies. Gary’s another one who’s kind of in the mix, who’s really been betrayed by him.

“It’s Todd rebuilding his life – this is a guy who’s been subjected to the most horrific abuse, who is traumatised, who was grieving. And it’s how he kind of tried to rebuild his life while still kind of struggling to comprehend the fact that this man’s been murdered by potentially somebody he knows or maybe even him.

“It’s an interesting mix of ‘whodunnit’ thriller story, but also about Todd’s family and friends, George, Christina, Summer, Sarah, all rallying around Todd to make sure that he’s okay, to try and build them and repeat them back together. What he’s been through at the hands of Theo has been such an ordeal for him, and to get that love and to get that trust in people again, it was very important to show that with Todd.”

Megan and Will fallout

“The stuff with Megan and Will, there’s a bit of a journey to go on with that story. So obviously she’s been exposed, but Will at this point, he believed it was love.

“He believed it was all genuine. Scales fall from his eyes and Tim’s going to be so instrumental in kind of making them realise what’s gone on and how unacceptable and how wrong it was.

“It’s about the family falling apart, but then kind of building themselves back up again as they try desperately to kind of repair the damage that Megan’s done. Obviously, there are soap Gods, and as in soap God’s law, there’ll be some kind of retribution for Megan.

“She cannot get off of this scot-free. We will go down the proper channels. Whether it goes on to plan or not, I cannot say, but it goes down quite a very big path.” Will will be quite badly affected by what he’s been through with Megan. It does go a bit dark as well.

Sam’s mental health and Daniel spirals

“Getting him across the Megan story and having him be another victim of her manipulation felt like a really interesting way of telling the story. But as a result of that, his mental health has been really, really damaged by everything that’s happened – by the manipulation, by the fact that he wasn’t believed, by the fear that he felt every time he was with Megan.

“We’re going to tell a big mental health story with Sam, and he’s going to really, really struggle over the course of spring and early summer. It’s about his family realising, hopefully before it’s too late, that he’s in desperate need of help – and he’s really vulnerable. It’s showcasing that, Megan’s actions have not just directly impacted Will and the Driscolls, Sam’s also collateral damage.

“Similarly, with Daniel as well, he met somebody who’s on the same page as a teacher, apparently respectable, and he’s been completely duped by it, and it completely makes him unravel. Rob Mallard who plays Daniel is such a phenomenal actor and we’ll see him slowly start to lose it, because of wondering who to trust.

“He’s been bitten so badly by this relationship, and by the fact that he was the one who defended her as well, he feels like he’s let Will down. He feels like he’s let Bertie down. We’re really going to chart the impact she’s had on him and his life and his attitude to relationships going forward.

David and Shona’s future after Jodie drama

“Jodie is desperately trying to get what she feels is rightfully hers. She’s still definitely kind of on that trajectory, but David and Shona are a really strong, united couple. They adore each other. They love each other. They’ve been through a lot.

“We’ve obviously got Harper still in hospital. Ultimately, Harper will come home and the stresses of family life will start to really take its toll. Whether Jodie is able to exploit those weaknesses within that relationship, whether she’s able to kind of tempt David over to the dark side, or because she wants to punish Shona for leaving her, she’s certainly going to try and come between them.

“But as I say, David and Shona are pretty solid couple. It’s whether they can unite and see Jodie for who she is and what she is in time. Similarly, Jodie’s story will dovetail off into Daniel’s story as well.

“An unlikely little friendship will be formed, which I don’t think many people see coming, but it’s a really different insight into what makes them both tick. For the first time, Daniel’s able to be truthful about how he feels. And similarly, Jodie’s able to be quite truthful with Daniel, because he’s in a quite a dark place. There’s some interesting dynamics between them.

Debbie’s future

“We’ll see her symptoms start to take hold slightly more, but she’s still very much the Debbie we know and love throughout the spring and summer. Her friendships with the women who she holds so dear are still very much at the front and centre of the show.

“Her relationship with Ronnie is still really, really strong, but it’s the relationship with Carl that needs the most repair and I think the thing with Carl is he is such a complex individual. He’s incredibly selfish and self-serving. Debbie, as his mother, can see that.

“It’s how those two people can come together and forge a relationship that’s not based on Carl trying to get money. It needs to kind of go back to basics and becomes about the sincerity of their relationship. And it takes a while to get there.

“And it does all come to a head, kind of a big head with the fellas in Debbie’s life. It’s about trying to give Debbie that bit of happiness before she goes too far down the line.

“Christina, Glenda, Sally, Debbie, Bernie, those five women are just phenomenal actors, and the warmth and the comedy that they all emanate, is just contagious. It won’t just be Debbie at the front and centre.”

Two new characters as Cassie exits

“Tyrone’s dad makes an appearance in the show. Needless to say, he comes with quite a bit of drama, and it’s going to cause quite a lot of friction within that family, obviously with Cassie’s history.

“As you know, Cassie’s leaving us, and so it will contribute to her exit, which is going to be massive and quite explosive. It’ll be full of all the twists and turns that you can come to expect from an exit.

“He comes into the world of Fiz and Tyrone. Tyrone’s in the mindset of, I’m in my 40s, I’ve survived this long without a dad. The dad is very keen to connect with Tyrone. It’s not long before the dad makes eyes at one of the residents, and maybe a bit of a relationship starts there.

“It’s very domesticated. It really shines a spotlight on Fiz and Tyrone as a couple and that dynamic as a family. Cassie is, needless to say, not happy that this guy has turned back up.

“We also have Idris. He’s Alya’s cousin. He is very, very charming, like the charm oozes out of every pore of this guy. He’s a savvy kind of business guy, he’s got a bit of a ruthless streak, he’s not ready to get his hands dirty slightly, but he can charm the birds from the trees.

“He’s a new love interest for Leanne. The attraction is instantaneous. It kind of gives Leanne a new lease of life somewhat. She’s been harbouring a deep-rooted resentment them towards Toyah and Nick, because that’s the life she had.

“And this guy comes along, he’s got it all, he makes her laugh. He’s funny, he’s a handsome chap, and he ruffles a lot of feathers, but he’s not without an edge. He’s not soft, and he’s certainly no pushover. He butts heads with some of our more alpha kind of characters quite early on. We’re really excited about Idris. He brilliant.”

When will find out who the killer is?

“It’s later in the summer. We reveal to the audience who it is during late June, July. There’s lots of people you definitely think it could be. It’s a massive story, there’s so many different twists, and there’s so many different offshoots to the story as well.

“You think you’re watching one thing, and then it diverts into a completely new kind of story territory. It’ll definitely keep people guessing.”

Other characters set for big storylines

“There’s a massive storyline coming up for Bernie further down the line, and which will involve Kit and her family dynamic. That’s too far ahead, but certainly late spring, early summer.

“There’s a massive story for Sally and Tim that comes to the to the fore, and it’s a story that tests them as people, test them as a couple, but tests them as foster parents as well. It’s a bit of a curveball, and it comes from slightly left field, but absolutely upends their lives.

“It’s how they navigate that situation going forward. Sally and Tim are so beloved, and I just adore them. And it’s seeing them in a slightly different position than what we’ve seen them in before.

“That story will also dovetail further down the line with a Christina story. Christina and George are a really great, strong couple in the show. It’s those friendships alive. There’s a connection there as well.”

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The general in charge of keeping the United States Marine Corps sustained in a fight dismisses the notion that China poses a near-peer threat to the U.S. It’s far more serious and will make the currently paused conflict with Iran pale by comparison should the two superpowers come to blows, said Lt. Gen. Stephen Sklenka, the USMC Deputy Commandant for Installations and Logistics. 

“There is no threat that looms larger than the People’s Republic of China,” Sklenka said during the 2026 Modern Day Marine Expo in Washington, D.C.. “Don’t listen to this garbage about them being a near peer. They’re a peer because they rival us in nearly every single measure of national influence.”

As the “lead strategist” and former Deputy Commander of U.S. IndoPacom, Sklenka said he “got to be pretty familiar with how General Secretary Xi was thinking and what his intentions are.”

The Chinese leader’s “vision is to upend the international structure [and] supplant us as the global leaders. And in many ways, it’s been Xi’s thinking, his vision, that has helped my own thinking about the demands of modern warfare, particularly when waged in the Pacific and particularly waged against a peer adversary, something that’s new to all of us.”

Epic Fury offers some sobering lessons, Sklenka noted. While the U.S. is able to pour forces into theater via uncontested skies and largely uncontested seas, Iran was still able to inflict a great deal of pain on America and its allies during the fighting. It still is economically through an ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz. A fight with China would be far worse, Sklenka cautioned.

“We’re about two months into combat operations with Epic Fury. We’ve got service members who have tragically been wounded and killed by Iran. They’ve launched hundreds of drones and ballistic missiles at our bases and our allies throughout the region – Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan – reinforcing the point that the bases that we have, they’re no longer administrative garrison sanctuaries. We really need to start looking at our bases as war fighting formations, just as critical of a war fighting formation as our divisions, wings and [Marine Expeditionary Units] MEUs.”

We’ll talk more about that later in this story.

You can see damage to U.S. bases in the Middle East in the following satellite images.

Iran has “illustrated how a mid-tier power can hold a significantly superior force at risk” Sklenka suggested. “As a learning organization, we ask ourselves, ‘how do we carry every lesson from this fight forward, and how do we ensure that we’re equally prepared to dominate the conflict with China?’”

“Think about the complexities and complications that we’re [facing] with Iran, and then ask yourself, ‘how are we going to respond and act when we’re going up against a nation that’s number two in national GDP?’” he added. “The fact is that Iran doesn’t have anywhere near China’s economic might. They don’t have their industrial base. They certainly don’t have their military modernization trajectory.”

“Over the last 10 to 15 years, the Chinese manufacturing base has been out-producing us” Sklenka posited. “Xi is on a wartime footing. There’s no doubt about that. It’s underpinned by an industrial base that’s out producing the world in ships and steel, precious minerals and satellites, munitions.”

China’s “shipbuilding capacity is reported to be 230 times the capacity that the United States has,” the general continued. “They more than doubled their nuclear powered submarine construction, their arsenal of ballistic and cruise missiles is undergoing a rapid expansion.”

First made-in-China aircraft carrier, the Shandong, enters service

“Their nuclear stockpile is the fastest growing in the world. They’re pursuing innovative, intelligentized warfare tactics,” Sklenka pointed out. “They’re using artificial intelligence, drone swarms, exploring the cognitive and innovative domains to achieve their dominance. They’re building a military design to dominate the Pacific, and I believe ultimately beyond the Pacific.”

China’s intent, Sklenka added, “is clear. They want to regain that self-identified moniker of the Middle Kingdom, and they want to resume what they believe is their rightful place in the world. They’re not interested in sharing that position with us or with anybody else. General Secretary Xi’s view is that it’s their time, and this is the context. I bring that all up for our transformation.”

“None of us in uniform today have ever had to operate in a world where a legitimate peer simultaneously contests us in every single domain,” said Sklenka. “We are talking terrestrially and non-terrestrially, kinetically and non-kinetically. We’re going to have to fight to get to that fight, and we’re going to have to embrace these challenges and not operate under the auspices of how we did in the 80s and 90s. History is proven, and our current operations are confirmed, that the society that can project and sustain power and sustain their forces most effectively, ultimately, they prevail.”

Looking to the future, Sklenka echoed warnings that TWZ has made for years about the vulnerability of U.S. military installations, both home and abroad. No increases in magazine depth, additional weapons systems or advancements with AI and other new technologies will ultimately matter “if you can’t get off the installation in the first place,” he stated. “The ability to mobilize and deploy is underpinned by the readiness of our installations. It’s a concept that we’re just now really starting to wrestle with.”

“Our bases, posts and stations…are the front lines of decisive terrain. And I’m not just talking about those in the first island chain. This isn’t just [Marine Corps Installations Pacific] MCIPAC. Our CONUS installations are subject to non-kinetic attacks. Non kinetic-attacks, they’re going to be just as debilitating and just as strategically consequential as any kinetic attack that’s going to be out there. And they’re going to carry an air of non-attrition that’s designed to both confuse decision makers and sow chaos during the most critical phases of the fight, the beginning, the first shots of that next war.”

That first salvo, Sklenka said, is most likely not going to be delivered by a missile or bomber.

“They’re likely not going to be fired in the South China Sea or in the Taiwan Strait,” he explained. “They’re going to be a cyber attack against a power grid on our base, a disinformation campaign targeting military families or a drone swarm coming off one of our installations.”

The localized drone attack concern is exactly what TWZ has long predicted and became a reality last year in Russia and Iran. Last June, Ukraine launched Operation Spider Web, an audacious near-field attack on Russian air bases, destroying a large number of strategic bombers with remotely operated drones set up in trucks placed near those installations.

Spider Web was followed about two weeks later by an operation Israel carried out, using drones pre-positioned inside Iran to attack the Islamic Republic’s air defenses.

You can see video of one attack during Operation Spider Web below.

The United States Marine Corps on Tuesday gave us our first glimpse of its evolving plan for its ground forces to succeed in the battlefield of the future. Dubbed Ground Combat Element 2040 (GCE 2040), it calls for ensuring that Marines are not just equipped with the latest technology, but that they know how to use it, all while maintaining readiness as they integrate these new systems into their formations. While all the final details remain in flux, we are getting a general idea of some of the elements the plan will include.

A working concept of the plan was presented for the first time today during a panel at the Modern Day Marine Expo held in Washington, D.C. It builds on the vision of former Marine Commandant Gen. David Berger’s Marine Force Design 2030 initiative, according to one of the current Corps leaders working to implement GCE 2040.

“This is really an opportunity for us to describe the future of the ground combat element in the United States Marine Corps,” explained Maj. Gen. Jason Morris, the Corps’ Director of Operations, Compliance, Policies and Operations. We want to “make sure that we have a clear vision of the capabilities required to field the most lethal, survivable ground combat element in the world, and make sure that we’ve got a pathway over the next three fiscal year defense programs that we are keeping our eye on the horizon, staying adaptable and incorporating new technologies into our Marine divisions and those subordinate elements that are a part of it.”

In addition, the Marines are “also continuing to refine the force design vision, to make sure that we are ready to go for any crisis, contingency or conflict in the future,” Morris added.

To better explain the GCE 2040 concept, Morris played a video laying out some of what it entails.  The video, which has not been yet been shared online, and a document that will be published in coming weeks, focuses on how the Marine Corps approaches human-centric warfare of the future.

“GCE 2040 is about equipping the Marine, not the machine,” the video stated. “While looking ahead to integrate robotic and autonomous systems into our formations and operationalizing AI at the tactical edge through concepts like Project Dynamis [an integrated battle management system being developed by the Marines], the Marine Corps will enable combat formations to sense, make sense and act with greater speed and precision than any adversary.”

Under GCE 2040, Marines will “integrate advanced sensors and intelligence networks to find and fix the enemy across all domains” while “conducting expeditionary maneuver in contested spaces and sustaining a resilient force through all phases of the operation,” the video stated. In addition, Marines will employ “joint forceful fires and achieve the effects of mass while mitigating vulnerabilities striking adversary targets from land, air and sea,” and establish “persistent, survivable [command and control] networks that enable decision making at machine speed from the strategic level down to the squad.”

The objective “is to generate the tempo of decision and action that allows us to shape, seize and hold key maritime terrain, deter aggression and prevail decisively in any future conflict,” the video explained.

This broadly fits with the U.S. military’s push to create ever larger and faster kill webs, in order to break the enemy’s decision cycle.  

When we asked for more details, the Marines told us that the plan includes addressing the need for ground-based air defense down to the squad level. 

“The proliferation of inexpensive one-way attack drones is the most significant tactical threat we face,” the Marines told us. “While systems like the Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) and Medium-Range Intercept Capability [MRIC] are critical for a layered defense at echelon we must continue to thicken the protective layer that cover Marines at all echelons.”

You can read more about the Marines’ emerging doctrine for devolving air defense down to the individual Marine in our story here.

In a broader context, including air defense and offensive capabilities, the Marines told us “We must increase investment in multi-domain lethality and targeting systems that enable the right weapon to engage the right target at the right time to maximize the efficient use of lethal means against the enemy… The modern battlefield demands that we develop and field dispersed, AI-enabled targeting systems to create a network of sensors across the entire GCE.” 

The plan also involves evolving how Marines view technology. Autonomous systems and AI are a central focus of the new plan. The Marines state that these are not just tools, but are members of the team and the Marines are being trained to consciously accept risk with hardware rather than troops. 

Both AI and large quantities of autonomous systems will be critical to enabling future kill webs as discussed above. The USMC also says interoperability, both with other U.S. military branches and allies will be more critical than ever to achieving its aims going forward.

“The fact is that the Marine Corps is focused on the human being, individual, sailor, how we recruit and develop them, and how we build them into lethal combat teams,” proffered Maj Gen. Farrell J Sullivan, Commanding General of the Second Marine Division. “That has always been the case, and that will always be the case in the Marine Corps going forward, but modernization matters, and although we’re doing well, we have a long way to go, and as long as I’m in command of Second Marine Division, I will not be satisfied with where we are”

The GCE 2040 concept, he added, draws on lessons learned from modern combat that has evolved over the past decade into one where unmanned systems – like large drones such as Shahed-136s and smaller, first-person view (FPV) types – have become a major threat in Ukraine, the Middle East and many other places around the world.

The following image shows a U.S. Air Force E-3 Sentry AWACS destroyed in a combined Iranian missile and drone barrage during the now-paused war.

The following video shows an Iranian-backed militia using FPV drones to strike a Black Hawk helicopter and a critical air defense radar at an American base in Iraq.

The new plan envisions future combat particularly in the Pacific, where Marines would likely have to fight inside the Chinese weapons engagement zone and across wide swaths of ocean. In such a battle, they would face standoff weapons and non-kinetic effects like advanced electronic warfare far more damaging and disrupting than what U.S. forces have faced in the fight against Iran. A Pacific conflict would also strain logistics as like never before.

“When you envision the type of fight we’re preparing for, where we face a peer or near peer adversary in a high-end fight, where all domains are contested, and in some the adversary will have an advantage, that’s not the battlefield we have fought on, at least not since I’ve been in the Marine Corps,” Sullivan stated. “And we see, if you look back over the last 10 or so years, how that manifests itself in places like Ukraine. Again, I don’t want to have a bias towards that conflict and say that all the future will look exactly like that, because it won’t, but we would be criminal not to be paying attention to that.”

Clearly the USMC is painting in very broad strokes at this time as there is still a lot more work to do to hammer out the details of GCE 2040.  The Marines say they will provide more details in the next few weeks and we continue to cover this issue as they become available.

Contact the author: howard@thewarzone.com

The future of I’m A Celebrity All Stars has been revealed by a TV insider, following the chaotic live final that delighted viewers last week.

I’m A Celeb All Stars will reportedly not return to our screens until 2029, despite the final being a huge success with massive viewing figures.

The South Africa-based show was pre-filmed in 2025, with the explosive final taking place live in London last Friday night. The final episode saw Adam Thomas win the show while arguing with Jimmy Bullard and David Haye.

The mayhem initially broke out when David interrupted Adam’s interview before the winner was announced. It rumbled on further when Jimmy Bullard interrupted to have his say over what he called “intimidating” actions by Adam in camp.

The row was so severe between the campmates that Sinitta and Gemma Collins stormed off, and Ant clashed with David and Jimmy.

It has been reported that around 2.8million people tuned in for the explosive finale, but despite the huge interest, show makers won’t be bringing back the all-stars version for a few years.

“The aim was never for it to be made or be on air in 2027, even though there may be an appetite for that right now. The aim was to deliver something as a special show that was on from time to time, not an annual revisit like the main I’m A Celebrity show,” an insider told The Sun.

This was the second all-stars version of the series, with the first season airing in May 2023 after being recorded in the autumn of 2022.

The series 6 runner-up, Myleene Klass, was crowned winner of the series after beating series 16 campmate Jordan Banjo in the final survival trial. It was three years between the first and second seasons of the show, so fans might be waiting a little while for the next season if ITV continues to follow suit.

Voting figures for the show were revealed earlier today, showing that Adam won by a landslide. The Emmerdale actor came first in the vote for the final four, with 51 per cent. He was followed by Sir Mo Farah, who won 32 per cent, while Harry Redknapp and Craig Charles each got 9 per cent.

I’m A Celebrity is expected to return later this year with the usual format. Adam’s win came off the back of a series of dramatic moments for the actor on the show. Things first took a dramatic turn when David Haye was accused of bullying Adam after he ruled himself out of a trial. He called the actor weak and later doubled down, claiming that the Waterloo Road star was using his arthritis to get out of doing Bushtucker Trials and challenges.

Adam was also at the centre of a row with Jimmy Bullard. He was left angry when Jimmy quit the show mid-trial, which could have tanked Adam’s time on I’m A Celeb, as they were doing the trial in pairs.

Adam swore at Jimmy. Though he later apologised, Jimmy was insistent that Adam was “aggressive” and “intimidating”, and blasted ITV for not showing the full clip. ITV have said what they showed was a “fair and accurate” representation of what happened.

The Mirror has approached ITV for comment.

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THE beloved “Hogwarts Express” steam train could be heading for the buffers thanks to a bitter health and safety row.

The iconic service, made famous by the Harry Potter film series, is under threat after rules forced a major overhaul.

The iconic train, known as The Jacobite steam train, runs through Scotland’s stunning countryside between Fort William and Mallaig, crossing the famous Glenfinnan Viaduct.

But now the popular locomotive – which is enjoyed by around 70,000 passengers a year – is at a crossroads due to a long-running dispute over safety regulations and the resulting financial strain.  

Old-style carriages used in the films have effectively been banned because their doors don’t have central locking.

Operator West Coast Railways says being forced to swap them out has caused huge problems.

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Newer coaches are unpopular with tourists and far more expensive to run. They even require a diesel engine at the back just to power air conditioning.

The train, which should have started running this month, has yet to begin its 2026 season.

Bosses are now begging regulators at the Office of Rail and Road to allow the return of the original carriages.

James Shuttleworth of West Coast told The Telegraph: “I don’t know what we would do. We were losing money working like that and you don’t go into business to lose money.”

Local businesses are already feeling the pain, with trade slumping as visitors stay away.

Fears are now growing that unless a solution is found soon, the world-famous Hogwarts Express could run out of track for good.

Secretary of the Navy John Phelan says his service is looking to wrap up a review of its aircraft carrier plans within the next month or so. The Navy has been taking a deep look at the design and capabilities, and associated costs, of the Ford class as compared to the older Nimitz class. The question has been raised about whether this might point to a major shift in the service’s carrier acquisition strategy on the horizon, including the potential cancellation of planned orders for more Ford class ships and even a transition to a new design.

Phelan talked about the carrier review yesterday at a roundtable on the sidelines of the Navy League’s Sea Air Space 2026 exposition. When asked, Phelan said that there was nothing in particular about the Ford class that prompted the Navy to take a new comprehensive look at the program and that the service is looking for ways to cut costs and be more efficient across the board.

A key question the review has been focused on is “are we getting the appropriate bang for our buck, i.e., how superior is the Ford [class] to the older Nimitz class, etc,” the Navy’s top civilian leader said. “To be honest, we’re reviewing every program, so it’s – carriers [are] just one of them.”

That being said, President Donald Trump has been a vocal critic of the Ford class, and its electromagnetic catapults (also known as the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System, or EMALS) and weapons elevators in particular, which have faced serious reliability and maintenance issues. Last October, he pledged to sign an executive order that would compel the Navy to go back to using steam-powered catapults and hydraulic elevators on new aircraft carriers, which has yet to materialize. Two months later, in announcing plans for the Trump class “battleship,” the President also said that “we have the Ford class. We’re going to be upping that to a different class of aircraft carrier,” but did not elaborate.

Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS)

Watch the Advanced Weapons Elevators on the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford

Phelan’s comments yesterday about the ongoing review were prompted, in part, by a question about whether the Navy has actually been looking at acquiring a new class of aircraft carrier. There is no indication that this is the case currently. The service has explored alternatives to the Ford class, including smaller designs, on several occasions in the past decade or so.

“What I would say on the carriers is, we are looking at [CVN-]82 and [CVN-]83 to review the costs, the designs, the systems, to make sure that they make sense and they have all the systems and requirements that we want going forward,” Phelan explained. “I think it’s a prudent and practical thing for us to do, given the costs of them, as a percentage of the budget, and how we are thinking about the force design and our needs going forward.”

CVN-82 and CVN-83 are the hull numbers assigned to a pair of future Ford class aircraft carriers currently set to be named the USS William J. Clinton and the USS George W. Bush. Construction has not begun on either of those ships, and the Navy has not even awarded contracts yet to order them. The service is asking for advance funds to support the future procurement of CVN-82 in its newly released budget request for the 2027 Fiscal Year. The budget documents also still show plans to seek funding for CVN-83 in the coming years.

The USS Gerald R. Ford is the only member of its class currently in service. It is now in the midst of a marathon deployment that has lasted some 10 months already, the longest for any carrier since the Vietnam War. In its time at sea so far, the ship and its air wing took part in the mission to capture Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, and more recently supported operations against Iran. Ford suffered a fire in March, underscoring concerns about strains on the ship and its crew, as you can read more about here.

There are three more Ford class carriers in various stages of being built. The second ship in the class, the future USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79), left port for the first time for initial sea trials in January and is set to be formally delivered to the Navy next year.

John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) Successfully Completes Builder’s Sea Trials

Kennedy and all subsequent ships in the class are already set to have notable differences from Ford, including AN/SPY-6(V)3 radars in place of the design’s original Dual Band Radar (DBR). The immensely troublesome DBR is just one of a laundry list of issues that Ford has had to contend with over the years. The Navy has been trying to leverage lessons learned from those experiences to streamline work going forward.

However, Kennedy, as well as the next two ships in the class after that, the future USS Enterprise (CVN-80) and USS Doris Miller (CVN-81), have all continued to suffer further delays. As of last year, the estimated total procurement costs for Kennedy, Enterprise, and Doris Miller were nearly $13.2 billion, almost $14.25 billion, and just over $15.2 billion, respectively, according to the Congressional Research Service.

This, in turn, has created complications for Navy plans to begin retiring Nimitz class carriers. In May, the service announced it was extending the USS Nimitz‘s service life into 2027, in line with the latest delivery schedule for Kennedy.

“So the President knows we’re reviewing it [the carrier plans], and want [sic] us to put in a review,” Phelan said. “And I think, like any businessman, he’s – okay, make sure you look at all these programs, understand the capabilities and what they’re doing.”

The Secretary of the Navy was asked what metrics the service might be looking at in order to assess the comparative capabilities of the Ford class and the preceding Nimitz class. Phelan was given, as an example, statements the Navy has made in the past about the new EMALS catapults offering improved sortie generation rates and reducing wear and tear on aircraft during launches.

“I think you’ll see the sortie rate come out and it will be eye-watering,” Navy Rear Adm. Ben Reynolds said just yesterday at the Pentagon during the rollout of the service’s proposed budget for the 2027 Fiscal Year, according to USNI News. “The capability is just absolutely incredible.”

Reynolds is currently serving as Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Budget and Director of the Fiscal Management Division within the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations.

USS Ford Launches, Recovers Fighters With Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS)

“So these are all things you’ve heard. These are all the same things I’ve heard,” Phelan said at the roundtable at Sea Air Space. “I go to the Ronald Reagan School of trust, but verify. That’s what I’m doing.”

“Trust me, we measure and monitor a lot of things in the Navy, including that – the airframes and how that works. So I think it’s a function of just understanding it, for example, is the sortie rate generation that much greater? And then what are the cost implications of this electric catapult, and did it really generate the savings?” Phelan continued. “You know, the Navy would like to say we’ve saved $5 billion in terms of savings in number [sic] of men and maintenance. I just need to check that back up, and that’s what I mean by that.”

“I think, like anything, it’s both understanding the cost-benefit analysis of it, because we really want to make sure we’ve got a good handle on the costs,” the Navy Secretary added. “I think one of the things we have to do a better job of in the Navy is kind of what I call total cost of ownership. So what does it really cost to sustain and maintain these things? I think we do a reasonable job at that, to be honest. But the infrastructure needs on these are also costs you have to understand going in.”

As Phelan noted, the Navy has been conducting reviews of major programs across the service. The Navy Secretary has also shown a willingness to curtail high-profile, but seriously underperforming efforts despite high sunk costs. Last November, the service axed the Constellation class frigate program, long touted as a major priority, but which had become mired in delays and at risk of ballooning costs. Earlier this month, the Navy finally abandoned plans to return the Los Angeles class attack submarine USS Boise to active service, closing out a more than 10-year-long saga that had already cost it $800 million.

Yesterday, Phelan was also asked whether the Ford class could be curtailed as a result of the ongoing review. The possibility of truncating the program has been raised in the past.

“It’s too early to say, but we will have carriers. So, carriers are an important component to [sic] the force, and we will need that,” the Navy Secretary said. “I think it’s more, how do we figure out – like, again, this comes back to every program we’re looking at. What can we do to cut costs? What can we do to make this more efficient? What can we do to make the design more simple [sic]? What are the areas where we think we can save or not save?”

Even just cancelling future orders for Ford class ships would have major downstream impacts, including on the shipbuilding industrial base and its many suppliers. At the same time, the Navy’s shipbuilding priorities also now include the Trump class “battleships,” the first of which may cost $17 billion, according to the latest official estimates. If that price point holds, these large surface combatants will be more expensive than a Ford class aircraft carrier.

“These are very important decisions to be made, and you’re locking into very big contracts and very big platforms that are going to be around for a long time. And so I just think we’re trying to make prudent decisions across everything,” he added. “I think what I found a little bit is, I have a lot of people who know how to do finance. I don’t have a lot of people who necessarily understand finance, understand incentives and deal structures, and that’s something we just need to fix.”

How the Navy’s plans for the Ford class, and aircraft carriers in general, may evolve going forward will likely become clearer after the current review is completed.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com

Xavier Becerra needed to land a knockout punch, even more so than the five other candidates for California governor he was facing at Wednesday night’s debate.

Instead, he fired off some slaps.

He needed to roar about his many accomplishments in his 35-year career in Sacramento and Washington, to distinguish himself from the relative political neophytes around him.

Instead, Becerra recited his resume with the vigor of someone rattling off his LinkedIn page.

He needed to uplift Californians with a vision of hope, when many feel the state is going in the wrong direction.

Instead, he offered the oratory equivalent of a pat on the shoulder.

No candidate had more at stake that night than Becerra, who went from an afterthought to a contender after Eric Swalwell dropped out and resigned his congressional seat over sexual assault allegations.

Five weeks ago, Becerra and other candidates of color were protesting their exclusion from a USC debate because they were all polling so low. Now, the 68-year-old has a chance to become California’s first Latino governor.

This possibility seems to have uncorked California’s silent majority — the rancho libertarians turned off by hard-right politics but also the wokoso politics they feel have left them behind. The people who yearn for an unglamorous, competent leader after eight years of all-about-me Gavin Newsom and a decade of Donald Trump.

Becerra’s campaign, once as rudderless as a leaf in a river in a race so chaotic for Democrats that many feared two Republicans would win on June 2 and face each other in the general election, suddenly latched onto a palpable wave.

At the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books last weekend, I saw people sporting Becerra campaign buttons who had just come from a rally that was expected to draw a few hundred but instead had over 2,000 RSVPs. On social media, friends who had never especially cared for state politics suddenly declared they were for Becerra and fought off their more lefty pals who think he’s a Latino Ned Flanders not up for this fraught moment.

Unglamorous and competent are Becerra’s middle names, and they were on display at the debate — for better and mostly worse. This was his chance to show both his new followers and undecided voters that they could trust him as California’s next governor.

But where he needed to be limber like a prizefighter, the former California attorney general was as tightly wound as a Rolex.

While the other candidates pressed their palms against the podiums, ready to pounce on every question, Becerra clasped his hands like an altar boy. When he did gesture, his movements never went further than the span of his shoulders.

As the others grinned and grimaced at their rivals’ responses, Becerra was as stone-faced as Buster Keaton. He stumbled more than he should have — how could someone in his position mistake Iraq for Iran when criticizing Trump’s Middle East quagmire? — and rarely seemed at ease, as if the weight of the moment and the good luck of his surge had suddenly hit him at the worst possible time.

Candidates in California’s gubernatorial race, from left, Matt Mahan, Xavier Becerra, Chad Bianco, and Steve Hilton look on during a debate Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in San Francisco.

(Jason Henry / Associated Press)

Becerra’s supporters say a level-headed leader is what California needs. But voters almost never go for what they need — they pick what they want. And California wants someone who’s loud, or at least louder than Becerra. There’s a reason why strident partisans like Republicans Chad Bianco and Steve Hilton and progressives Tom Steyer and Katie Porter have consistently placed high in the polls, while moderates like Becerra, his frenemy Antonio Villaraigosa and San Jose mayor Matt Mahan have lagged.

The weird thing is that Becerra does know how to brawl. Wallflowers don’t go from a working class Mexican immigrant family to Stanford Law School. Wimps don’t survive the ruthlessness of Eastside politics as an outsider to become a congressmember at just 34. Cowards don’t file over 100 lawsuits against the Trump administration as California’s top prosecutor or tackle the coronavirus pandemic as President Biden’s health secretary.

I’ve only encountered the Sacramento native a few times but always came away impressed. In small crowds, he makes people laugh and tear up. He’s quick with ripostes, righteous in off-the-cuff remarks and has a do-gooder aura that never comes off as sanctimonious.

We saw hints of that Becerra at the debate. To Hilton, he quipped, “You can be a talking head and not worry about the consequences of what you do” after the former Fox News host babbled on about how one-party ruled had failed California.

After Porter accused him of not offering hard numbers for his economic plans, Becerra responded that he has balanced federal budgets larger than California’s. “It’s easy to say you haven’t done this; it’s easier to prove that you actually have,” he concluded.

But after Becerra described the evils of racial profiling by law enforcement and Bianco, the sheriff of Riverside County, ranted that California politicians need to stop thinking so much about race, it was Porter who responded with a verbal haymaker as Becerra silently looked on.

You don’t fight as a choirboy in a battle royale. Becerra wasn’t bad at the debate but he also wasn’t great — and that won’t win this race.

Voters want someone who’ll do the job, yes — especially if it comes with no drama. They also want to elect someone they think is a human, not a joyless bureaucrat. So how did Becerra respond to the debate’s last question about what was the last series you’ve streamed?

Becerra flashed his biggest smile of the night. It was such a softball query that even a kindergartener could have slammed it à la Shohei Ohtani.

“I wish I could tell you I had time to watch streaming shows,” he replied.

Dude. We’re all overworked, but everyone I know unwinds by watching mindless drivel (my current obsession is “Vanderpump Villa”). We all need to relax, even for a moment. As my dad says when he sees me filing one columna after another and urges me to take a break, “El trabajo nunca se acaba pero uno sí se acaba.”

Work never ends, but people do.

Xavier, you know you’re on the wrong side of California when the only other candidate with a similar answer was Bianco, who said he doesn’t watch television at all.

Being careful has served you well, but this is the greatest opportunity of your life. You don’t have to suddenly become a flamethrower, but some sparks would help. It’s six weeks until the primary, so time to throw down — channel your inner cholo and go get what should be yours.

General Atomics is calling attention to a new mission for its Mojave short takeoff and landing (STOL) drone: hunting uncrewed aerial threats with laser-guided Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System II (APKWS II) rockets. The company put a heavy focus on this planned capability in a larger vision for Mojave that rolled out today.

Mojave is also envisioned as launching its own kamikaze drones, escorting friendly helicopters, spotting targets for artillery, and even transporting small cargoes. With its short and rough field capabilities, the drone could also push these capabilities far forward, including to island outposts during a future conflict in the Pacific. This was all showcased in a new computer-generated video, seen below. General Atomics’ Aeronautical Systems, Inc. division (GA-ASI) showed the video first today at the Army Aviation Association of America’s (AAAA) 2026 Warfighting Summit, at which TWZ is in attendance.

Mojave STOL: Real. Rugged. Ready Today.

General Atomics is also now officially referring to the drone at the center of the video as Mojave STOL. The company has previously used the name Gray Eagle STOL to differentiate planned production models from the already flying Mojave demonstrator, which first broke cover in 2021. Mojave is derived from the MQ-1C Gray Eagle, which itself leveraged the preceding MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper designs.

“General Atomics is all-in on providing the best STOL solution for the Army and U.S. allies worldwide,” General Atomics spokesperson C. Mark Brinkley told TWZ. “Everything you see is a capability we can do right now, things already demonstrated on a real, flying aircraft.”

The new video, set “somewhere in the Western Pacific,” focuses first on the rocket-armed drone hunter mission. A Mojave STOL is depicted using an EagleEye multi-mode radar, as well as its infrared sensor in the turret under its nose, to spot and track a pair of kamikaze drones clearly modeled on the Iranian-designed Shahed-136 pattern. EagleEye is another General Atomics product, which was first unveiled in 2022 and has a demonstrated air-to-air target acquisition capability. It also has surface search, synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imaging, and ground moving target indicator (GMTI) modes.

The drone is then shown alerting a forward U.S. outpost to these approaching uncrewed aerial threats via satellite. Using a ruggedized laptop, an operator on the ground then orders the kamikaze drones to be destroyed. A Mojave carrying two 19-shot 70mm rocket pods, one under each wing, then swoops in and shoots them down. Afterward, it is also depicted being rearmed at a very rough-looking, unimproved jungle airstrip.

“We’ve shown APKWS [BAE Systems’ 70mm Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System II laser-guided rocket] mounted to Mojave in a static display at some of the recent U.S. Army shows where Mojave STOL was present,” General Atomics’ Brinkley told us. “Integrating new weapons is a multi-part process. Fit tests, weight considerations, captive carry for airworthiness, software, [and] actual live-fire.”

“For Mojave STOL and other GA-ASI aircraft, we’re inside that process now with APKWS,” he added. “It’s flying and firing soon, [in] weeks not months.”

“APKWS has already been demonstrated on other aircraft against airborne targets, so we know the weapon itself works for this mission,” he also noted. “GA-ASI has successfully destroyed other airborne targets using various weapons, including AIM-9X and Hellfire, so we know we can track, target, and hit flying objects of various sizes and speeds.”

APKWS II has had a meteoric rise in popularity in the air-to-air role since the U.S. Air Force F-16 fighters first began using the rockets this way in combat against Houthi drones in 2024, which TWZ was first to report. APKWS II was originally designed as an air-to-surface weapon and then also adapted to the surface-to-air role against drones. The total number of U.S. military and foreign aircraft cleared to use a variant of the rocket specifically optimized for air-to-air use continues to grow. Other companies that make similar laser-guided rockets are also now adapting them for employment in the anti-air role.

As an anti-air weapon against slower-flying and less dynamic targets, APKWS II offers immense benefits over traditional air-to-air missiles when it comes to cost-per-engagement and magazine depth, as you can read more about here. Just carrying two 19-shot pods, Mojave has an impressive 38 engagement opportunities. The drone has six underwing pylons and could carry additional pods, as well as other stores.

After the drone-hunting vignette, General Atomics’ new Mojave video moves on to show one of the drones leading a group of AH-64 Apache and UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters into apparent hostile territory. The drone fires an AeroVironment Switchblade 600 loitering munition to destroy an enemy mobile surface-to-air missile system to help clear the way. GA-ASI, in cooperation with AeroVironment, has previously demonstrated the ability of Switchblade 600 to be air-launched from the MQ-9 Reaper.

The video also shows Mojave being used to find and fix enemy forces, which are then engaged by friendly 155mm howitzers, as well as to carry cargo in underwing pods to forward locations. GA-ASI has previously showcased the potential value of Mojave in the latter role as part of a larger construct to provide logistics support during future expeditionary and distributed operations, even in actively contested environments.

The new video caps off with a Mojave firing on unseen targets with a pair of underwing Minigun pods. This is another capability General Atomics has previously demonstrated in real life. The drone can also carry other stores, including AGM-114 Hellfires and AGM-179 Joint Air-to-Ground Missiles (JAGM), on the pylons under its wings.

General Atomics is pitching the overall vision presented here for Mojave heavily to the U.S. Army, though it has also been engaged with other potential customers. Testing in cooperation with authorities in the United Kingdom and South Korea has demonstrated how the drone’s short-field capabilities could also translate to naval operations from aircraft carriers and big deck amphibious assault ships. Last year, GA-ASI announced a partnership with Hanwha Aerospace in South Korea to produce what was still then being called Gray Eagle STOL in that country.

Mojave Aircraft Carrier Takeoff and Landing

“Mojave STOL provides the versatility that the U.S. Army and others need for the future, with the endurance and persistence they’ve come to rely on, underpinned by experience gleaned from almost 10 million total flight hours,” General Atomics’ Brinkley told us. “That’s why Hanwha jumped in as our partner on this, bringing international investment to further buy down risk.”

“The U.S. Army wants to be successful right out of the gate. No stumbling, no fumbling,” he added. “They’re already integrating tactical drones into the force and experimenting with how that will change the nature of American warfare. They’re bringing a new tiltrotor online. It’s a period of massive change for Army aviation.”

The tiltrotor in question is the MV-75A, now officially nicknamed the Cheyenne II, which Bell derived from its V-280 Valor design. You can read more about the Army’s current plans for this aircraft here.

The Army is now in the early stages of formulating plans to acquire uncrewed companions for the MV-75A and its existing fleets of crewed helicopters. However, the focus so far has been on vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) capable designs rather than a fixed-wing type like Mojave, as TWZ has explored previously. In general, greater independence from traditional runways has been a major area of focus across the U.S. military in recent years when it comes to planning for future aviation operations, especially in the context of a high-end fight in the Pacific against China.

“Our engineers are obsessed with developing the next-generation of uncrewed aircraft. More than a decade ago, they dug deep into VTOL and runway independence,” General Atomics’ Brinkley explained. “What they discovered was payload and endurance tradeoffs with VTOL create a lot of challenges when applied to real combat operations. It’s a tough hand to play.”

“Mojave STOL is flying right now. We have five million square feet of existing manufacturing, ready to go,” he added. “We can help the Army integrate a real, rugged, ready today Mojave STOL into the force with far less risk to success.”

Questions have also been raised in the past about the survivability and general utility of drones like Mojave, as well as predecessors like the MQ-1C and MQ-9, in future high-end operations. The latest conflict with Iran has underscored the vulnerability of the Reaper, in particular. Air-launched drones and stand-off munitions, as well as new self-protection capabilities, can help keep these drones further away from enemy defenses. TWZ has also previously highlighted how a drone like Mojave could be used to provide more localized force protection, including against uncrewed aerial threats, at forward outposts and rear areas in the context of a larger conflict.

It’s also worth noting here that while Mojave would not be as quick to respond to incoming drone threats as a tactical jet, it would be able to loiter in a particular area for a longer period of time. It could also provide strike and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) support while on station. Being able to fly from unimproved forward airstrips would also allow it to operate organically with the forces it is assigned to support.

When it comes to the Army, it remains to be seen how that service’s visions for its future drone fleets and crewed-uncrewed teaming evolve. As mentioned, the Mojave STOL’s capabilities, including its ability to act as a rocket-armed drone hunter, could be attractive to other potential operators, who might fly the drones from bases on land or ships at sea.

In the meantime, General Atomics continues to expand on the Mojave concept, which now includes the planned integration of APKWS II laser-guided rockets.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com

PHOENIX — Golden State coach Steve Kerr is contemplating his future, the four-time NBA champion coach suggesting after the Warriors’ season ended Friday night that there is a chance he might not be back with the club next season.

“It might still go on. It may not,” Kerr said after the Warriors lost in Phoenix and were eliminated from the play-in tournament.

He shared an embrace with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, the team’s two constants from the Warriors’ title runs with Kerr, near the team’s bench in the game’s final moments and appeared to mouth the words “thank you.”

Kerr wouldn’t reveal what he said in that moment.

“None of your business,” he said, smiling.

Green and Curry both made clear that they want him back. Kerr’s future has been the subject of speculation for some time, fueled in part by him coaching this year on the final season of his existing contract. The Warriors missed the playoffs this season for the fourth time in the last seven years.

“I want Coach to be happy. I want him to be excited about the job. I want him to believe you know he’s the right guy for the job,” Curry said. “I want him to have an opportunity to again enjoy what he does. So, whatever that means for him, you know, everybody’s plan is their own. And I’m not going to try to tell anybody what to do. He knows how I feel about him. That shouldn’t even need to be said.”

Added Green, when asked if he could even fathom the Warriors without Kerr on the sideline: “I just don’t deal with change well. I don’t love it. So, I don’t want to think about that. I hope that’s not the case, but we’ll see what happens.”

The 60-year-old Kerr just finished his 12th season with the Warriors. He’s 604-353 in that span, led Golden State to the NBA Finals in each of his first five seasons — and once since then as well — plus guided the U.S. to Olympic gold at the Paris Games in 2024.

His playoff record of 104-48 is nearly unmatched; among coaches with at least 100 playoff games in their career, his .684 playoff winning percentage is second only — and barely — to Phil Jackson, who went 229-104 (.688).

Kerr said he’ll meet with Warriors owner Joe Lacob and general manager Mike Dunleavy to chart a path for what’s next. He suggested that might come in a week or two.

“We’ll talk about what’s next for the Warriors, what the plan is this offseason,” Kerr said. “And we will come to a collaborative decision on what’s next. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I still love coaching. But I get it. These jobs all have an expiration date. There’s a run that happens, and when the run ends, sometimes it’s time for new blood and new ideas and all that.

“And, if that’s the case, then I will be just nothing but grateful for the most amazing opportunity any person could have to coach this franchise, in front of our fans in the Bay and to coach Steph Curry, to coach Dray and the whole group.”

Kerr wouldn’t say what some of the factors are that might sway his decision, calling those private.

“If it’s right, it’s right,” Kerr said. “And if it’s not, it’s not.”

There will be talks with Curry as well; the greatest three-point shooter in NBA history, who just finished his 17th season — all with Golden State — said he plans to play for “multiple” seasons after this and would be interested in an extension.

“It’ll be a busy summer for the Warriors,” Curry said, smiling.

The Warriors were 37-45 this season, dealing with injuries the entire way. They rallied Wednesday from a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Los Angeles Clippers and move into Friday’s play-in finale, only to fall short against the Suns.

And now, the Warriors wait to see what’s next.

“This was as tough a season as you can have, with the injuries, with all kinds of adversity,” Kerr said. “And they battled, and they battled the entire season. They kept going the other night just to, you know, continue the season, to show that kind of fight. And then tonight, we just didn’t have it. But the competitive desire was there. And I’m proud of the group for finishing the season the right way by continuing to fight and trying to win every game.”

Kerr — who won five championships as a player, to go along with his four rings as a coach — has spoken often of his good fortunes within the game. He played for Lute Olson at Arizona, played with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen in Chicago, played with David Robinson and Tim Duncan in San Antonio and played for Jackson and Gregg Popovich as a pro.

And coaching Curry — the greatest face of a franchise he’s ever seen, he said — is another honor, Kerr has insisted.

“The only thing I’ve learned is that I’m the luckiest guy in the NBA’s history,” Kerr said.

With orders for the twin-rotor helicopter still rolling in, Boeing has provided details on its future plans for the venerable H-47 Chinook, including adding launched effects and creating a path toward a crewed version of the aircraft. The latter would offer an unprecedented vertical-lift capability, and one that could be of great interest to the U.S. Army and other operators.

At the Army Aviation Association of America’s Army Aviation Warfighting Summit in Nashville, Tennessee, today, Boeing released a computer-generated promotional video showing launched effects being delivered from the rear ramp of a Chinook.

Launched effects, previously referred to as air-launched effects (ALEs), describe a category of various uncrewed systems that you can read more about here. The new launched effects terminology reflects the fact that they might be launched from land or maritime platforms, as well as crewed and uncrewed aircraft. Launched effects drones include types that operate as scouts, electronic attackers, decoys, and suicide drones. They are typically highly autonomous, operating independently or in more complex networked swarms.

When it comes to the Chinook, Boeing confirms that launched effects are yet to be tested from the helicopter, but the company is working toward that goal.

Kathleen Jolivette, the vice president and general manager for Boeing’s Vertical Lift division, said today that the company is investing its own funds in the initiative and is currently looking at how rapidly it might be able to move into the demonstration phase, based on expected U.S. Army and international interest.

It’s worth noting, meanwhile, that Boeing and the Army are already pushing ahead on launched effects demonstrations from the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, including recently announced trials with Anduril’s ALTIUS-700 Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) launched from an AH-64E. The Army says that this program progressed from a requirement to a live demonstration in less than six months.

With its capacious hold, the Chinook would be able to accommodate huge numbers of launched effects, allowing multiple missions to be fulfilled over an extended period, especially when compared with other helicopters that typically launch these drones from externally mounted tubes.

The Chinook would also be much better able to handle larger launched effects. In the past, the Army has issued descriptions of ‘large’ drones in this category. These are envisaged as having a combat range of up to 350 kilometers (217 miles) and a total flight time of 30 minutes. However, there has also been an aspiration to increase those performance specifications to up to 650 kilometers (404 miles) and an hour of total time in the air. These would weigh up to 225 pounds each, compared to around 25 pounds for an ALTIUS-600, for example.

There is a possibility that Chinooks, specifically special operations MH-47Gs, are already using some kind of launched effects. As we discussed at the time, there is strong evidence that the U.S. military may have used kamikaze drones during the operation to capture Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro earlier this year. Whatever the case, launched effects are increasingly key to the survival of rotary-wing aviation going forward.

As well as launched effects, Boeing is pushing ahead with work on what it calls an optimally crewed Chinook, reflecting U.S. Army terminology. As far as we understand it, the terms optimally crewed and optionally crewed appear to be interchangeable, although the former could also include reduced-crew flying with the help of an AI copilot. Boeing also pushed us toward an Army press release for the H-60Mx Black Hawk helicopter, described as an optimally piloted vehicle and extensively modified to fly with or without a pilot at the controls.

Heather McBryan, the vice president and H-47 program manager at Boeing, said the company is now “working very closely” with the Army in terms of what additional capability it wants to add to future Block II production lots.

According to McBryan, the Army “publicly stated their desire for what they’re calling an optimally crewed aircraft, where they can, in some instances, reduce the workload for pilots, but in other instances, eliminate it completely, and we’ve made a lot of great progress in those efforts.”

McBryan says that this work is also responding to demand from international customers.

As part of this effort, after years of development and post-production modifications, Boeing recently added its Active Parallel Actuator Subsystem (APAS) to the Chinook production line. A hardware and software system, McBryan describes APAS as working “like lane-assist in your vehicle.”

Tested on the special-missions MH-47G for some years now, APAS reduces pilot workload, but also provides additional situational awareness and enables safer maneuvering, especially at the edges of the aircraft’s envelope. For now, APAS is mainly for the MH-47G and for the United Kingdom’s new Chinooks, but McBryan confirms that Boeing is looking at how to bring additional elements of autonomy into the CH-47F as well.

In February, for example, a CH-47F successively completed its first fully automated approach and landing test flight, something that Boeing calls “approach to x.”

This used the company’s upgraded Digital Automatic Flight Control System (DAFCS), the software ensuring the Chinook touched down all four wheels on a runway without any pilot intervention. While DAFCS is currently deployed on the CH-47F fleet, the upgraded version further reduces pilot workload and brings autonomy to tactical approaches, boosting flexibility and operational capability.

Right now, every Chinook coming off the production line has the basic DAFCS, while APAS essentially provides an enhancement, building on the same flight control system with a combination of hardware and software.

As Chris Speights, the chief engineer for Boeing Vertical Lift, explains, with APAS, “the parallel actuation system actually amplifies, provides a higher-bandwidth control mechanism for it that the software can then take advantage of. So we get more precise control and augmentation with APAS when you add it on top.”

Boeing CH-47F Block II Chinook Helicopter: Next-Level Heavy Lift

Speights added that Boeing is also looking at the future beyond APAS.

“APAS is the foundation, then there would be other capabilities, whether it’s algorithmic or whether it’s sensors or the integration of those that would give further autonomous capability in the future,” he said.

Potentially, this could lead to entirely autonomous Chinook flights, from takeoff to landing, for an optimally uncrewed or even a fully uncrewed Chinook.

Speights described the work on the upgraded DAFCS and APAS as “foundational,” should the company pursue an optimally crewed Chinook.

“That puts us on the path for the flight automation, not necessarily full autonomy, but flight automation, which starts today with pilot workload reduction, and approach to x,” Speights said. “But it enables further capabilities in the future, as the customer desires, based on their concept of how the aircraft would be used.”

It is worth noting that Sikorsky has been working on both optionally crewed and uncrewed versions of its H-60 Black Hawk series. Late last year, the company unveiled its U-Hawk demonstrator, a fully uncrewed version of the Black Hawk helicopter, intended to carry cargo and deliver launched effects. The U-Hawk leverages the company’s past work on a Pilot Optional Vehicle (OPV) version of the Black Hawk, which has been flying for years.

Introducing the S-70UAS™ U-Hawk™

For now, however, Jolivette said that Boeing is “gonna wait and see what happens” with the Army’s uncrewed/optimally crewed vision. “I think there’s more to come on that,” she added.

As well as APAS, Boeing is looking at how it can bring a digital backbone to the CH-47F. A digital backbone essentially provides a shared network of data and tools that connects both production design and sustainment. The result is that everyone who is working on the aircraft gets the same data points and the same information at the same time. In practice, this would mean adding multiple redundant networks and distributed interface units to ensure precise monitoring. With reliably collected data, the Chinook should be easier to upgrade, safer to operate, and quicker to fix.

The Chinook remains very much in demand, meanwhile.

The latest budget request includes funding for additional MH-47G aircraft. In terms of CH-47F Block II, Boeing is ramping up production to meet the Army’s rapid-fielding ambitions. Six Block IIs were delivered last year, and Boeing received a contract award for nine more in September 2025, with another six orders since then, for a total of 24 under contract. McBryan confirmed that, as of today, three aircraft are in production, with two of those in final assembly.

“We expect to deliver one of those aircraft towards the end of this year,” McBryan said. The total U.S. Army Block II requirement is still to be determined.

In terms of international orders, the first deliveries for new orders from Egypt, South Korea, and the United Kingdom are expected this year. Production of the first German CH-47F is also underway, with expected delivery in 2027.

Although it was first flown back in 1961, the Chinook appears to have a bright future ahead of it. With Boeing now focused on new capabilities, we may very well see Chinooks delivering launched effects and operating in uncrewed versions before too long.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

BBC Sort Your Life Out fans were left heartbroken this week when one beloved show came to an end for another series.

Sort Your Life Out’s latest series came to an end this week but now one of the stars has issued a show update.

BBC fans have been watching Stacey Solomon and her team of experts helping families across the country declutter their homes since 2021.

Putting all of their belongings into a warehouse, Stacey and organising expert Dilly Carter then assist the families in deciding whether they want to keep, sell or donate each item that was once in their home.

Over the years, there’s been tears, laughter and heartwarming stories as each family has a touching tale on why they need the team’s help.

This week (April 14), fans tuned in for the sixth episode of the BBC show with the Mann-Monro family.

However, the instalment marked the last episode in the series, with Dilly Carter issuing an update on Sort Your Life Out’s future. Taking to Instagram, she shared a photo of the team together, writing: “AND THAT’S A WRAP. Series 6 of @sortyourlifeout is over and out.

“A hugely emotional last episode going out with a bang. This series has been unbelievable and we are so grateful to every family who has taken part and opened up their homes to us and let us in.

“This show relies on YOU. And we are so beyond grateful we get to help transform such amazing families’ lives forever.”

She then went on to praise the team on the show behind the scenes who work ‘tirelessly’ to ensure everything runs smoothly.

Wrapping up her caption, Dilly confirmed Sort Your Life Out will be back once again in the future. She continued: “But for now, it’s time to start getting ready for the next series. Will we be coming to your road? Keep an eye out.

“Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts, and to my gang, my TV family, I love you all and can’t wait to see you in 2 weeks.”

It wasn’t long before people commented on the post, with many praising the series so far. One person said: “Great show, can’t wait for the next series.”

Another added: “Miss you all until next time.” Someone else commented: “So sad it’s finished, best telly ever xxx”

One fan wrote: “Love the programme and love the team!! Please come back soon.” As another shared: “What an amazing series, absolutely loved it – emotional but so uplifting.”

Sort Your Life Out is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.

Amid a glittering sports celebration, a team from Los Angeles dominated the WNBA draft.

But it wasn’t Los Angeles’ WNBA team.

The Sparks couldn’t hold a candle to UCLA.

At a Monday event during which six Bruins were drafted among the first 18 picks — a WNBA record — the Sparks didn’t have their first pick until No. 20 in the second round.

Two years earlier, they had traded away their first-round pick for the rights to draft the exciting Rickea Jackson.

Whom they recently traded to Chicago for somebody named Ariel Atkins.

You can see where we’re going with this…

One of the WNBA’s founding franchises, the failure-ridden Sparks enter the league’s 30th season attempting to break a five-year playoff drought with an understandable yet unremarkable game plan.

They’re going old. They don’t have a choice. Five years of lottery missteps have produced exactly one current Sparks player, Cameron Brink, a social media star who’s been an injured basketball bust.

While the national champion Bruins spent Monday dancing across the league from Toronto to Chicago, the Sparks didn’t get a chance to acquire any of them, and wound up with three late picks who will raise no eyebrows and play few minutes.

So, yeah, old.

When the Sparks open the season by hosting defending champion Las Vegas May 10, their fans are going to say, “Oh yeah!” followed by a resounding chorus of, “Oh no!”

Oh yeah, they’re bringing back longtime Sparks star Nneka Ogwumike, a bruising inside force for 14 seasons. She played well for Seattle last year, but, oh no, she’ll be 36 during the season, and one wonders when the physicality will take its toll.

Oh yeah, they’re bringing back Erica Wheeler, who played strong minutes here several years ago. But, oh no, she played for three teams in the last four years and will be 35 during the season.

Oh yeah, they’re bringing in Atkins, who once won a WNBA championship with the Washington Mystics. But, oh no, that was seven years ago, and she’s bounced around with six international teams and two WNBA teams since.

Those three veterans will be joining a team with two returning starters — Kelsey Plum and Dearica Hamby — but little else.

The league’s celebrated new CBA made all these players rich, but did little for the Sparks, who were unable to make a dent in the league-wide free agent market and were out of decent draft picks and so must survive for one more season before getting a shot at JuJu Watkins.

So they should tank? No! Not yet! I’ve got season tickets! But you’ve got to wonder. And if this aging band gets off to a slow start, you’ve got to wonder if they’re wondering.

“I’m super excited about the roster we have,” said coach Lynne Roberts on a Zoom call Monday night. “We brought in some tremendous leadership.”

But they also lost some tremendous youth by giving up on Jackson, who averaged nearly 15 points last season and provided much-needed energy to another deadly dull squad. While the Sparks made nice with her publicly, one can read between the lines on the following Zoom quote from general manager Raegan Pebley.

”Loved having her here … she’ll be successful wherever she goes,” said Pebley of Jackson. “But we’re focused on winning a championship and finding that fit and balance and getting all those pieces locked in with each other.”

Here’s guessing Jackson, an independent spirit, was never quite locked in. And now she’s locked out of a new culture that will be solid and steady… but will they be any good?

“You have to have that balance of youth and experience and I think our roster has nailed that,” said Pebley.

Who knows? Will Brink stop trying to be an influencer long enough to be an inside presence? Will Rae Burrell take another step in her fifth season? Can the new veterans stay healthy enough to inspire the kids, who could include draft picks Ta’Niya Latson, Chance Gray and Amelia Hassett? Can Roberts, a relative WNBA newcomer who lost more than half of her games in her debut last season, actually coach?

They’ve already had one win with the ongoing construction of an $150-million El Segundo practice facility, which should open next year and serve to attract the type of stars that a Los Angeles team deserves.

They have another steady win with a Crypto.com Arena fan-friendly game experience that ranks among the best in this city’s sports landscape.

Now they just need wins on the scoreboard, lots of them, enough to restore faith in what was once one of this city’s shining basketball operations.

The odds aren’t good — going old usually means going home early — but what else can they do? No Bruins are walking through that door. For at least one more year, the Sparks have to marinate in their past mistakes and hope that their veterans can somehow lay a foundation for their future..

“This isn’t a slow roll,” said Roberts. “We want to do it.”

The rest of the league, which has greatly benefited from five years of Sparks’ bad basketball decisions, will be waiting.

Their passionate fans, who have loyally kept showing up for the last five years to watch the lousy basketball those decisions have wrought, will be wanting.

And JuJu will be watching.

Taylor Sheridan’s The Madison quickly proved to be a record-breaker just days after its debut.

The Madison has made itself at home on Paramount+ with the streamer now announcing its fate.

Famed for hits such as Yellowstone, Mayor of Kingstown and Landman, creator Taylor Sheridan dropped his latest Western drama The Madison last month on Saturday, March 14.

Starring Hollywood legends Michelle Pfeiffer and Kurt Russell, The Madison sees the Clyburn family experience a devastating tragedy which leads them to relocate to Montana in an attempt to heal from the events.

Even though it’s just been a matter of weeks since its premiere, Paramount+ has confirmed that The Madison has now been renewed for a third season, much to fans’ delight.

But given the drama’s quick rise to popularity, news of an early series renewal doesn’t come as too much of a surprise.

The Madison received a staggering eight million global views for its premiere episode in its first 10 days on Paramount+.

It’s officially been named as “Sheridan’s most-watched debut ever” with almost one billion minutes viewed during its first full week after release.

There was no doubt that it was going to return for a second series with filming for Seasons 1 and 2 completed back-to-back However, a Season 2 start date hasn’t yet been announced and until this is known, a potential release date pattern cannot be established for the upcoming third series.

When The Madison makes a comeback for Season 2, Matthew Fox won’t be returning as Preston Clyburn’s (played by Kurt Russell) brother Paul. They both died in the plane crash and while they have both featured in the flashbacks, only Russell will be returning for the second outing.

But going forward, this won’t be the case for series three with Russell already confirming his future absence from the show.

He told TV Insider: “This is a contained experience for me in the show, and I’m very happy about that. It’s been an incredible experience.”

The Madison is available to watch on Paramount+.

What Atletico manager Simeone sold him was a football project that had the striker at the centre of it. Alvarez wanted to feel wanted.

“He told me I could give the club something huge,” he recalls. “That I’d have the space and the opportunity to be my best version.”

The Argentines already at the club helped too – De Paul, Griezmann’s warmth, the Spanish language, a culture that felt closer to home than Paris or Manchester ever could.

In August 2024, Atletico Madrid confirmed the deal – 95m euros (£81.5m), a club record received by City, and a six-year contract. The club announced it with a Spiderman video and Alvarez loved it.

Ask him about the price tag and he almost looks confused by the question.

“It’s more something that gets talked about in the media,” he said. “In the dressing room I’m just one of the group. I like being treated that way.”

His father worked in a cereal factory in Calchin. His mother was a schoolteacher. He grew up knowing that you have to earn respect, or reputation. He is still the same person. It shows on the pitch too – the World Cup winner who sprints back to win the ball, who presses from the front. Simeone rarely singles out individuals, but with Alvarez, he makes exceptions.

Across two seasons in red and white, he has made 102 appearances and scored 47 goals, numbers that tell only part of the story.

His time at Atletico has not been without frustration. In La Liga this season, the numbers have been modest – eight goals in 29 appearances, and just one in 2026.

His strike against Oviedo at the end of February ended a run of 14 league games without a goal, his previous one coming against Sevilla on 1 November. But the Champions League has been a different story, bringing nine goals in 12 appearances this season.

NEW YORK — For decades, presidents avoided even the appearance of profiting from their office.

Harry Truman refused to lend his name to any business, even in retirement. Richard Nixon so feared a brother might profit off their ties, he had his phone tapped. And George W. Bush dumped his individual stock holdings before taking office.

President Trump is taking a different approach.

The family real estate business is undergoing the fastest overseas expansion since its founding a century ago, each deal potentially shaping everything including tariffs and military aid.

Led by Eric Trump and his brother, Donald Jr., the family business has expanded into cryptocurrencies with ventures that brought in billions of dollars but raised questions about whether some big investors received favorable treatment in return.

The brothers have also joined or invested in a number of companies that aim to do business with the government their father runs. Last month, they struck a deal giving them stakes worth millions in an armed drone maker seeking contracts with the Pentagon and with gulf states under attack by Iran and dependent on the U.S. military led by their father.

The White House and the Trump Organization deny there are any ethical problems. Asked about the issue at a recent crypto conference, Donald Jr. said, “Frankly, it’s gotten old.”

The problem of conflicts of interest goes back a decade to when Trump first ran for office, but some government ethics experts and historians argue it’s more pressing than ever as conflicts pile up in his second term that they consider unprecedented, blatant and dangerous to democracy.

“I don’t think there’s any line right now between policy decisions and political calculations and the interest of the Trump family,” said Julian Zelizer, a presidential historian at Princeton University.

Deal-making spree abroad

In Trump’s first term, the Trump Organization did zero deals in foreign countries. In a little over a year into his second term it did eight, all ostensibly complying with the Trump Organization’s self-imposed rule not to do business directly with foreign governments.

But governments in authoritarian and one-party states rarely take a hands-off approach — especially when the business belongs to a sitting president.

In Qatar, a Trump golf club and villa project is being developed in part by a company owned by the Qatari government. In Vietnam, where The New York Times reported the government pushed farmers off their land to make way for a Trump resort, the country’s deputy prime minister signed off on the deal at a ceremony. And in Saudi Arabia, a planned “Trump Plaza” resort on the Red Sea is being built by a Saudi real estate developer close to the ruling family.

Whether the deals played any role in changing U.S. policies in ways these countries sought is nearly impossible to know, but the countries did get what they wanted — access to advanced U.S. technology for Qatar, tariff relief for Vietnam and fighter jets for Saudi Arabia.

And the Trump Organization got something too: tens of millions in fees.

Asked about those projects, the Trump Organization said it has done no deals with governments so far, noting that the Saudi company was private, and has said it is “collaborating” with the Qatari business and had not struck a “partnership” with it that would have broken its self-imposed rules.

The UAE, crypto and Binance

Another deal raising conflicts of interest questions first came to light in a Wall Street Journal article in January — a year after it was struck.

Days before the inauguration, the Trump family sold nearly half of its World Liberty Financial crypto business to a UAE government-linked company run by a member of the UAE royal family for $500 million.

A second UAE entity, a government fund, invested in the offshore cryptocurrency exchange Binance using $2 billion worth of a digital currency called a stablecoin issued by World Liberty. That allowed the Trump company that received the dollars to put it in safe investments such as bonds or money market funds and keep the tens of millions of dollars in interest for itself.

Shortly after, the Trump administration reversed a Biden-era restriction and granted the UAE access to advanced U.S. chips. Binance’s founder, Changpeng Zhao, later got a pardon from Trump, despite having pleaded guilty to failing to stop criminals from using his platform to move money connected to child sex abuse, drug trafficking and terrorism.

A lawyer for Zhao denied any connection between Binance’s business with the Trump family and the pardon.

“Any claim of a quid pro quo by Binance or CZ, or preferential financial treatment by Binance, is a clear misstatement of the public record,” said Teresa Goody Guillen in a email to the AP, referring to Zhao by his initials.

Asked about the pardon, the White House said federal authorities had unfairly punished Zhao in what it called “The Biden Administration’s war on crypto.”

World Liberty dismissed the notion of a conflict, saying the UAE deal had no connection to the president’s chips policy.

Crypto billions

World Liberty has also provided a separate income stream to a new Trump limited liability corporation through sales of “governance tokens” that give owners certain voting rights in its business, though not equity stakes, raising $2 billion last year. That translates into hundreds of millions of dollars for the Trumps through their World Liberty ownership stake and a separate side deal allowing them a cut of these sales.

One big token investor was Justin Sun, a cryptocurrency billionaire who as a foreign citizen would be banned under U.S. law from making political donations to U.S. politicians. Between Trump’s election and inauguration, Sun spent $75 million on the tokens.

In February last year, a federal lawsuit charging Sun with duping investors was paused before being settled last month for a $10-million fine.

Then there are the souvenir-type “meme” coins stamped with Trump’s face that went on sale days before he took the oath of office last year.

Over the next four months, the coins generated $320 million, mostly going to Trump-related entities, according to blockchain tracker Chainalysis. That is more than double the money collected in four years running his Washington hotel in Trump’s first term.

Unlike the lobbyists or campaign donors trying to influence Trump, the coin buyers can buy anonymously. One who chose to make his purchase public was Sun, who spent $200 million on the coins and got access to Trump at a gala party he held for the biggest buyers.

Another family cryptocurrency business, American Bitcoin, went public in September, giving Donald Jr. and Eric about $1 billion in paper wealth at that time. Months earlier, their father announced a new national bitcoin reserve, sending the price for the cryptocurrency soaring to a record.

The Trump businesses aren’t completely immune to crypto’s notorious volatility. The value of bitcoin and other digital tokens has since plunged and rattled investors. Both American Bitcoin stock and the value of Trump’s souvenir meme coins have collapsed 90% from their highs.

Last month, Trump announced he would hold another dinner with new top holders of his meme coins, giving the coin a boost before it fell back again.

“Whatever constraints there were in the first term appear to have completely disappeared,” says Columbia University historian Timothy Naftali. “Do you want future presidents to be open to the highest bidder?”

Trump thinks people don’t care

Asked to comment for this story, the White House said Trump acts in an “ethically-sound manner” and that any suggestion to the contrary is either “ill-informed or malicious.” It reiterated that his assets are in a trust managed by his children and stated he has “no involvement” in family business deals.

“There are no conflicts of interest,” said spokesperson Anna Kelly.

In a separate statement, the Trump Organization said it is “fully compliant with all applicable ethics and conflicts of interest laws” and added, “The implication that politics has enriched the Trump family is unfounded.”

Trump in January told the New York Times that when it comes to potential conflicts of interest, “I found out that nobody cared, and I’m allowed to,” alluding to an exemption the president gets from the federal statute banning federal officials from holding financial interests in businesses impacted by public policy they help shape.

It’s not clear he’s wrong about American attitudes, though they appear to be changing even among Republicans. In a Pew Research Center poll in January, 42% of those voters said they were confident that Trump acts ethically in office, down from 55% at the start of his second term a year ago.

Change of fortune

Forbes estimates Trump’s net worth is now $6.3 billion, soaring 60% from before he returned to office, a striking development given how much the Trump Organization struggled before.

The Trump International Hotel in D.C. never turned a profit before being sold. Two Trump hotel chains catering to middle-class travelers in his first term shut down for lack of demand. Condominium buildings stripped the Trump name off their facades after discovering that instead of attracting buyers, it was repelling them.

No new U.S. condominiums are putting the Trump name above their entrances in his second term, but his name is prized in Washington, where people have business before the federal government.

Donald Jr., Trump’s oldest son, opened a private club in the Georgetown section of Washington that is charging initiation fees as high as $500,000 for founding members.

One of the few clubs with comparable fees, the Yellowstone Club in Montana, offers access to multiple resorts, 50 ski trails and more than a dozen restaurants across a members-only area the size of Manhattan.

Donald Jr.’s club is in the basement of a building but offers something else — proximity to power.

The club’s name is “Executive Branch.”

Bibles, guitars and sneakers

Other presidents and their families have done things in pursuit of profit that stained that high office.

Hunter Biden got paid as a director of a Ukrainian gas company while his father was vice president. The Clinton Foundation got foreign donations, though after Bill Clinton had left office. And Jimmy Carter’s brother Billy cashed in on the family name by selling beer.

In Trump’s case, the president himself is hawking goods, including $59.99 “God Bless the USA” Bibles, $399 sneakers stamped “Never Surrender” and electric guitars priced up to $11,500 — shipping not included — for a model autographed by the president.

New year, new profits

In the first months of Trump’s second year back in the White House, the momentum hasn’t let up.

In January, the Trump Organization announced its third deal involving Saudi Arabia in less than a year, this time a “collaboration” with a company more directly tied to the government because it is owned by the country’s sovereign wealth fund chaired by its crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman. Asked by the AP whether the project outside Riyadh for Trump mansions, a hotel and golf course violated the company’s pledge not to strike deals with foreign governments, the Trump Organization said it doesn’t “conduct business with any government entity” but didn’t address the project specifically.

Meanwhile, as the two oldest brothers’ new drone company seeks Pentagon contracts, other government contractors in which one or both have gotten ownership stakes this past year are taking in tens of millions of dollars of new taxpayer money. That includes a rocket motor maker, an AI chip supplier and a data analytics company, according to government contracting records.

Asked about potential conflicts after the drone deal was announced, Eric said, “I am incredibly proud to invest in companies I believe in.” A spokesman for Donald Jr. said he doesn’t “interface” with the government on companies in his portfolio, adding that “the idea that he should cease living his life and making a living to provide for his five kids just because his dad is president, is quite frankly, a laughable and ridiculous standard.”

A new investment firm that the brothers joined as advisors last year has raised $345 million in an initial public offering to buy stakes in U.S. companies designed to help their father revive America’s manufacturing base. After the AP asked Trump’s chief business lawyer about language in a regulatory filing stating the firm would target companies seeking federal grants, tax credits and government contracts, he filed a new document with that language removed.

Zelizer, the Princeton historian, says he expects future presidents will show more restraint in enriching themselves, but worries about the message Trump is sending.

“He has shown politically there is no price to be paid to making money,” he said. “You know you can go there.”

Condon writes for the Associated Press.

Howe cannot afford to think that far ahead, given the games to come.

A late push for Europe would put a different complexion on a bruising domestic campaign.

But Newcastle must go on a run to do so, which they have failed to do all season.

When Anthony Elanga openly asked whether the dressing room could show they were fighting for the head coach “again, again and again”, in a previous interview with BBC Sport, the forward was alluding to his side’s inconsistency.

“We want to keep on fighting for him because he’s helped us so much,” he said.

“I’d even go as far to say he is one of the best managers I’ve worked for. I’m really grateful to have him as a manager and I try to take everything he says to me on board because I know it’s for my benefit.

“I know he will help me so much. All the players feel the same.”

Yet you never quite know what you are going to get from Howe’s team this term.

Just as Newcastle can beat Manchester United with 10 men and record a rare win at Chelsea, this leaky side can also capitulate and concede seven goals in the Nou Camp or throw away a half-time lead against Sunderland.

All in the same month.

Is there a degree of mitigation for the ups and downs of a campaign where Newcastle reached the last 16 of the Champions League and a third EFL Cup semi-final in four years, but also suffered 13 Premier League defeats?

Even as far back as the autumn, there was a belief internally there would be choppy waters to navigate following a turbulent summer.

Newcastle missed out on a host of top-choice targets, buckled and eventually sold star striker Alexander Isak to Liverpool on deadline day and tackled a crucial window without a chief executive and sporting director in place.

Also, whereas the so-called ‘big six’ are used to fighting on multiple fronts, with deeper squads, this has been relatively uncharted territory for Newcastle, who have played more games (51) than any other side in Europe’s top five leagues this season.

Such has been the relentless nature of the schedule, there has been a feeling within the camp that they “can’t breathe” at times.

But the squad will soon be lifted by the return of talisman Guimaraes, who is understood to have been “working hard every single day” after being sidelined with a hamstring issue, as well as midfielder Lewis Miley and defender Fabian Schar.

Howe will also have clear weeks to prepare for the final seven matches of the season – and a rare extended period to intensively work with record signing Nick Woltemade following the German forward’s curious recent stint in midfield.

The head coach and his staff will need no reminding they need to make that time count in what feels like a defining few months on Tyneside.

Eamonn Holmes’ future on live TV has been revealed after he concerned fans by ‘falling asleep’ on air, before later admitting that he was working on his microphone pack

Eamonn Holmes’ future on TV has been revealed after he sparked concern by ‘falling asleep’ on air. The TV star was presenting his GB News breakfast show when he appeared to ‘fall asleep’.

He later insisted he had been examining faulty equipment. He said: “I was just looking down at my mic pack to see why it was not working, as we don’t have floor managers or camera operators. Apparently I was sleeping? Whatever!”

However, since that time, he has been off air, and is believed to be taking extended leave. Fans had become concerned on Twitter, wondering when he’d be back on the show given all that’s going on.

“There have been lots of whispers about Eamonn being off. It’s unlike him. He lives and breathes presenting on television,” a source told The Sun. However, he is expected back on air soon.

A GB News spokesman confirmed that Eamonn is due back on Monday, April 13. During his one man show, Eamonn opened up about how life has changed since he began using a wheelchair after a string of health setbacks.

“Experiencing the world differently as a wheelchair user, Eamonn wants to see better access for disabled people. He said: “If you are in a wheelchair you are either at the front of the cinema or the back,” he said.

“Why can’t you be in the middle? The thing that makes me laugh is rooms that are classed as accessible in hotels. They are not at all. Everything is wrong, the bathrooms and the showers. I would love to advise hotel people as they are no use to anybody.”

He also used his show to criticise TV standards, and said that TV budgets were affecting programme output. He explained: “It is a great pity. If you can’t justify the audience then it’s over. ITV will be the next one down the tubes. It will be sold to an American company and they will make it a streaming company.”

Eamonn has been in a wheelchair after suffering with chronic pain since 2021. He suffered a dislocated pelvis, which caused him to have three slipped discs. He fell down the stairs and broke his shoulder whilst recovering and underwent further operations in 2023.

“I’m sick. I’m in a wheelchair. That’s been horrendous to deal with for two years. Certainly I don’t think TV wants to know you when, I mean there’s nothing you and I are talking and no one can there’s anything wrong but I can’t get up,” he said.

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Strictly Come Dancing star Carlos Gu opened up about his time on the show and whether he plans to return, following the recent exits of several of his co-stars

Carlos Gu has opened up about his future on Strictly Come Dancing amid a shake-up to the line-up. Since joining the show in 2022, the professional dancer has performed with three celebrity partners; Molly Rainford, Angela Scanlon and Karen Carney, who he lifted the Glitterball trophy with last year.

Reflecting on his transition from the competitive dance industry to television, he claimed it was “a completely different world” to what he’s been used to for the last 20 years.

Before Strictly, Carlos competed professional with Susan Sun, winning multiple competitions as a well-known duo.

Discussing the industry, the 33-year-old described it as “very challenging and hard”, but also “unstable” as he shed light on the realities of being a dancer.

“It doesn’t matter how hard you work or how good you are, you are the one always being judged and being chosen, your results are always unstable. You never know, today might be good but tomorrow might not,” he explained.

“We worked so hard for 20 years and we made our way there and everybody knows us, we come out, everyone knows Carlos and Susan.”

Reflecting on himself joining Strictly and not being given a celebrity partner in his first year, he added: “Then joining Strictly and not being given a partner made me realise I’m going back again to being chosen, because to have a partner or to not have a partner is out of my control, it doesn’t base on how good I am or how hard I am working, it’s not, it’s purely out of your control.

“I never worked in the TV world, it’s a completely different world,” he added.

Asked by Kate Thornton on her White Wine Question Time podcast about his future on the show, Carlos admitted he was yet to know if he will be returning.

Addressing the news of some of his co-stars leaving the show, he said: “I know we’ve heard, we’ve all seen the news but nothing confirmed by the BBC yet, so we’re waiting. I think they’re going to make the final announcement for all the cast.

“But like I said, being in a position not knowing if you’re going to stay or not is scary. We work so hard in our lives, but those things are out of your hands.”

So far, Luba Mushtuk, Karen Hauer, Michelle Tsiakkas, Nadiya Bychkova have been given the boot from the show. Karen was the longest-standing female professional, who was a part of the show for 14 years.

In a statement announcing her exit, she told fans it was “the right time to close this chapter and take on new projects in other areas I’m passionate about”.

This comes after Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman stepped away from their hosting duties after 11 years together on the main show.

Seven Scots will be playing – five of whom were at the Winter Olympics in Cortina and another couple who were at the recent World Championship – while 2022 Olympic gold medallist Eve Muirhead will take on a general manager role.

Mouat skips Northern Shield and is joined by Olympic mixed doubles partner Jen Dodds and Robin Brydone.

Muirhead joins Hammy McMillan in the other European franchise, Alpine Curling Club. “I think we’ve five Olympic medals between us from this recent Games, which is pretty incredible,” Muirhead, who was Team GB’s chef de mission, said.

Grant Hardie is with American outfit Frontier Curling Club and Ross Whyte joins Canadian team Maple United.

Perhaps most interestingly, Bobby Lammie is part of Asian franchise Typhoon Curling Club and will team up with girlfriend Seol Ye-eun.

“That could be an interesting dynamic,” he tells BBC Sport Scotland. “I’m looking forward to it, but hopefully we don’t fall out.”

“The main challenge for us, in the Asian franchise, is going to be the language barrier because there’s Chinese players, Japanese, Korean, as well as New Zealand, and Sweden. But that’s part of the fun.”

Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua warms up before a playoff game against the Carolina Panthers in January.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

Last week, a woman filed a civil lawsuit against Nacua, alleging that on New Year’s Eve he made an antisemitic statement during a group dinner and later bit her shoulder. Nacua’s attorney told The Times before the lawsuit was filed that Nacua “denies these allegations in the strongest possible terms,” and that Nacua would “pursue all available legal remedies in response to these false and damaging statements.”

During a livestream in December, Nacua criticized NFL officials and made a gesture regarded as antisemitic. Nacua apologized, and the Rams and the NFL issued statements condemning antisemitism and discrimination. But after the Rams’ loss to the Seattle Seahawks, Nacua criticized officials in a social media post from the locker room. The NFL fined him $25,000.

“The play on the field is amazing, and then with what the play has dictated and determined there is a responsibility in terms of representing all things not exclusive to just that,” McVay said Monday when asked about Nacua. “He knows that, those are expectations and we are hopeful that … this will be an opportunity for him to learn and grow, and we are hopeful that he’s a Ram for a really long time.

“But he understands what the responsibility is, not exclusive to just the production on the field.”

Snead described Nacua as a “young man, becoming,” who is “continuing to evolve” as a person and player.

“You need to be on your Ps and Qs in both categories,” Snead said, “both variables, right, to earn that type of contract.”

Tony Pastoors, the Rams’ chief operating officer, said “everything gets weighed” in the process.

“It isn’t just, ‘OK, turn it on on Sundays and make decisions from there,’” Pastoors said. “We have to take in every data point we can.”

Kerr’s status at Chelsea was unquestionable before she suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury while at her peak in January 2024.

It took her more than 18 months to recover and she is still returning to full fitness as Chelsea struggle to meet expectations this season.

Off the pitch, Kerr has endured difficulties too. She was found not guilty of causing racially aggravated harassment against a Metropolitan Police officer in 2025 – the result of a court case which played out in the public eye and caused controversy.

That led to calls in her home country to strip her of the Australia captaincy, while she stepped out of the limelight in England.

It has also been a period of change for Kerr as she got married to former West Ham midfielder Kristie Mewis and they have a son, who was born in May.

In her absence, Chelsea went unbeaten domestically and won the treble in manager Sonia Bompastor’s debut campaign, but it has not gone to plan this year.

Injuries – particularly in attacking positions – players departing the club and performances not being up to scratch mean Chelsea are set to miss out on the Women’s Super League title and are out of the Women’s Champions League.

Kerr has struggled to regain her place in the starting XI despite this, playing just 444 minutes in the WSL this season.

She has made 15 appearances in the league, but only started two games, while she netted three goals in three starts in Europe.

Bompastor has fewer options up front, with USA striker Catarina Macario joining San Diego Wave, and Aggie Beever-Jones and Mayra Ramirez out injured.

So has Kerr been overlooked?

“She’s featured in almost every league game this season but it’s only two that she has started. The number nine position has been difficult for Chelsea,” said former Scotland captain Rachel Corsie on BBC Radio 5 Live.

“Lauren James has played there to allow them to get Alyssa Thompson and Johanna Rytting Kaneryd in the team, who have been in good form. There’s lots of different factors.

“But they haven’t got an out-and-out number nine. Chelsea need a number nine. To let go of Sam Kerr, without having a replacement there, would be a big step.”

NASHVILLE, N.C. — Ricky Brinkley has lived in rural North Carolina nearly all of his 65 years, and he likes it “out in the county,” past the street lights and bustle of the small towns that carpet the landscape.

But the former truck driver can feel left out when elections roll around in this battleground state.

“People don’t come out like they should and ask you how you feel about things,” Brinkley said while he manned the counter at his daughter’s beauty supply store down the street from the Nashville courthouse. “You want somebody to vote, but you don’t want to do nothing to get the vote. No, it don’t work that way.”

Brinkley is among the rural Black residents who Democrats have often failed to mobilize as they try to dent Republican advantages here. It’s an urgent demographic puzzle for the party, which is normally strong with Black voters but tends to fall short in rural areas.

Success could help former Gov. Roy Cooper win a hotly contested U.S. Senate race this year and tilt the balance of power in Washington. It could also reshape presidential elections, providing Democrats with a wider path to the White House.

“People want to look at the word ‘rural’ in North Carolina and equate it to the word ‘white,’” said state party chair Anderson Clayton, a 28-year-old who won her job three years ago promising to expand the party beyond cities. “In my vision of a Democratic Party, when you talk about reaching out to rural voters, you are talking about rural Black voters.”

The Rev. James Gailliard, a former state lawmaker who leads a large Black congregation in Rocky Mount, put it even more bluntly.

“You don’t win this state in Durham,” Gailliard said. “You win it in the east.”

It’s about more than Cooper’s Senate bid

North Carolina is known for the university-heavy Research Triangle that includes Durham, Raleigh and Chapel Hill, along with Charlotte’s banking hub. But it also includes large swaths of small towns and rural areas where Democrats have lost ground in recent decades.

That’s not just because of white voters realigning with Republicans. It’s also because Black voters who lean Democratic don’t vote as often as their urban counterparts. Those rural Black voters are concentrated east of the triangle, extending along winding state highways through small towns, flatlands and farmland toward the Atlantic coastline.

Cooper, 68, won two terms as governor and four terms as state attorney general. However, Republicans control the state courts and the legislature, and they’ve redrawn the congressional map to expand their advantage in the U.S. House. Donald Trump carried the state for Republicans all three times he ran for the White House.

A native of rural Nash County, Cooper already in recent months held roundtable sessions with Black farmers, business owners and civic leaders in eastern North Carolina, along with students from North Carolina A&T University, a historically Black school that draws students from across the state. His campaign promises a statewide organizing effort before November.

Gailliard wants a more intentional effort

But Gailliard wants more.

The founding pastor at Word Tabernacle Church, Gailliard was among the Black state lawmakers who lost seats after Republican-led redistricting. He said regaining ground will require neighborhood-level organizing and investment from national Democrats, something he struggled to get from Kamala Harris’ 2024 presidential campaign.

“I couldn’t get any traction,” Gailliard recalled. “I begged them to bring her to Rocky Mount. I said, ‘Listen, Rocky Mount is the gateway to the East. If we crack Rocky Mount, we’ve cracked the East.’ Could not convince them to come. Two weeks later, guess who’s in Rocky Mount? Donald Trump.”

The Harris campaign sent former President Bill Clinton to the area instead.

Gailliard said Cooper needs people like him to get elected.

“Roy is a great friend, and I’m gonna run my butt off to help him in every way, but I’m not banking on his coattails,” Gailliard said. “I’m going to do the opposite. I’m going to grow coattails for him.”

The state party tries to fill gaps

Clayton, the state party chair, said the national party and its donors haven’t prioritized North Carolina early enough in recent cycles.

She said she’s relied mostly on local money to finance 25 full-time staffers, more than three times what the state party had heading into the 2022 midterms.

Bertie County Democratic chairwoman Camille Taylor, whose hometown of Powellsville has fewer than 200 residents, said she’s felt the shift.

She speaks regularly with a field organizer in nearby Greenville, the city closest to the northeastern counties with large proportions of Black residents. But she said it’s especially difficult to persuade rural voters to care about voting beyond the presidency, even though she tells them “these are the races and the people that you’re going to interact with more.”

Democrats have recruited candidates in all 170 legislative districts — two are Democratic-aligned independents — and every U.S. House district. State Supreme Court Justice Anita Earls, a noted civil rights attorney and Black woman, is running statewide for reelection.

Gailliard said he’s identified a few hundred nonprofits, neighborhood associations and other groups that can do issue-orientated work in his district as the election approaches. He wants to match each of them to specific precincts, routing money for them to reach voters and persuade them to vote.

He wants volunteers to get training from Democratic and left-leaning organizations rather than have the outsiders themselves knocking on rural Black voters’ doors.

“We can’t have 21-year-old recent college graduates from Utah knocking doors at $22 an hour in the hood,” Gailliard said. “That just does not work. They’re not a trusted messenger.”

Marginal voting changes add up

About 2 in 10 North Carolina voters in the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections were Black, according to AP VoteCast, as well as in the 2022 Senate election.

Roughly 4 in 10 Black voters in North Carolina’s last presidential election said they live in small towns or rural communities, similar to the share who said they live in the suburbs. Only about one-quarter reported living in urban areas.

Small shifts in persuasion matter, particularly when races are close. In 2008, Barack Obama became the last Democratic presidential candidate to win North Carolina, by a margin of just 14,000 votes out of 4.3 million votes cast.

Voter turnout between the 2020 and 2024 elections declined more in North Carolina counties that have larger Black populations.

Counties where Black voters make up about 30% to 40% of the electorate saw the biggest drop, with turnout falling by more than 3 percentage points. Counties with smaller Black populations saw more modest declines of about 1 percentage point. Overall, turnout remains higher in counties with fewer Black voters.

An old Cooper schoolmate just wants to be asked

Gailliard said Democrats cannot underestimate how much it means for someone to simply get asked for their vote.

“Black and rural voters are not transactional,” he said. “They are relational.”

Back in Nashville at the beauty supply store, Brinkley agreed.

“You get to be a big wheel, and you can forget where you came from,” Brinkley said. “I ain’t gonna say Roy forgot. He’s a hometown guy, so to speak, but I don’t expect to see him out here walking.”

Brinkley made it clear that if he votes, it would be for Cooper and other Democrats — but only if he votes.

“I could. I could. I may vote,” he said. “There’s just so much going on.”

Barrow and Sweedler write for the Associated Press. Sweedler reported from Washington. AP journalist Linley Sanders in Washington contributed to this report.