Task & Purpose. News, culture, and analysis by and for the military community.

Task & Purpose Video

Each week on Tuesdays and Fridays our team will bring you analysis of military tech, tactics, and doctrine delivered from a rank-and-file perspective.

Visit The Channel

More from Task & Purpose

Parris Island

Marine drill instructor sentenced over boot camp hazing death arrested after early release

Joseph Felix was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but was released early and recently arrested in South Carolina for cruelty to children.

Image: COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Chief Master Sgt. Seth Hogan, command senior enlisted leader Space Forces Northern unfurls the SPACEFOR-NORTH guidon during the SPACEFOR-NORTH activation ceremony at Peterson Space Force Base, Colo., Jan 30, 2026. U.S. Space Forces Northern, serves as the Space Force service component to U.S. Northern Command. (U.S. Space Force photo by John Ayre)

Space Force stands up new command for the Northern Hemisphere

The new Space Force command focuses on terrestrial and orbital defenses over the United States proper, as well as Canada and Greenland.

Image: U.S. Air Force loadmasters with the 75th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron load cargo onto a C-130J Super Hercules at Manda Bay, Kenya, May 2, 2025. As U.S. Air Forces Africa’s sole airlift unit, the 75th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron provides C-130 tactical airlift support to multiple users in East Africa, including aeromedical evacuation, logistical movements, alert aircrews, and aircraft for crisis response and humanitarian operations. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Kevin Ray J. Salvador)

US starts $70 million upgrade to Kenyan airfield used in Somalia operations

The $70 million overhaul includes expanding the runway at Manda Bay. The base is used as part of counterterrorism operations against al-Shabab and ISIS-Somalia.

Image: Airmen from the 155th Air Refueling Wing listen to leadership in preparation for an upcoming Combat Readiness Inspection during his commander’s call at Nebraska Air National Guard Airbase, Lincoln, Nebraska, January 11, 2026. The CRI will test 155th Wing’s rapid deployment capabilities and crisis response while operating in a degraded environment. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Airman Jeremiah Johnson)

Air Force to bring back ‘no-notice’ combat readiness inspections

The Air Force recently reversed course to require only one annual scheduled review, but plans to include unscheduled ones as well.

A U.S. Army paratrooper assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade learns to operate the Dronebuster Block 4 at Caserma Ederle, Italy, Dec. 2, 2025. The Dronebuster Block 4 is a hand-held counter-unmanned aerial system designed to detect, disrupt and defeat commercial off-the-shelf drone threats, strengthening the brigade’s ability to counter emerging aerial risks. The 173rd Airborne Brigade is the U.S. Army’s Contingency Response Force in Europe, providing rapidly deployable forces to U.S. European, African and Central Command areas of responsibility. Forward-stationed across Italy and Germany, the brigade routinely trains with NATO allies and partners to enhance interoperability and readiness. (U.S. Army photo by Capt. Jennifer French)

Pentagon gives base commanders more control on countering drones

Military installation commanders now have more leeway to determine threats from unauthorized drones nearby and deal with them.

The US Department of Veterans Affairs building is seen in Washington, DC, on July 22, 2019.

Alleged ringleader arrested for plot to sell drugs to veterans on a VA campus

Maryland State Police and the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Office of Inspector General have been investigating a drug ring for months.

The Air Force is in the middle of replacing its aging rescue helicopter fleet. But the number it plans to buy has been cut.

The big problem facing Air Force combat search and rescue

At the heart of the Air Force’s combat search and rescue corps is its aging fleet of rescue helicopters. But as the Air Force phases in new HH-60Ws, the size of the force is set to shrink.

Lance Cpl Mariano Barbosa, honor graduate, Hotel Company, leads his platoon out to the forming area aboard Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, Ja.n 10. This will be the first time that the new Marines will have seen their familes since beginning Marine Corps basic training.

Marines suspend use of all-weather coat that ‘bleeds’ orange

Sometimes called the “Inspector Gadget” jacket for its dated styling, the Marines’ all-weather coats were found to leak an orange liquid.

Hawaii Air National Guard Airmen conduct maintenance on a KC-135 Stratotanker at dawn prior to an aerial refueling mission at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, Dec. 1, 2025. The 203rd Air Refueling Squadron provides critical aerial refueling capabilities in support of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command operations and global mobility missions worldwide. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Master Sgt. Mysti Bicoy

Air Force plans to include simulated airfields in basic training

“The simulated airstrips provide an immediate, realistic mission context that allows trainees to understand the ‘why’ behind their training.”

Combined Jungle Operations Training Course

Army unit created for Afghanistan will now run jungle school in Panama

An Army unit created to train Afghan forces will operate the Combined Jungle Operations Training Course in Panama. Graduates of that course will now receive the Army’s jungle tab.

U.S. Air force Airman 1st Class Robert Mulholland, 36th Communication Squadron multi capable Airmen team (MCAT) technician, helps stock the shelves in the commissary at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Nov. 18, 2023. The Defense Commissary Agency worked alongside over 100 Airmen and Sailors to help employees restock shelves. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Allon Lapaix)

Military commissaries are planning ahead for possible government shutdown

Officials are looking at alternative funds to keep base stores open if a government shutdown hits this weekend.

Chinese PLA Navy ships, including the Hainan, sail together in excercises.

Inside China’s plans for ‘national total war,’ according to the Pentagon

The Pentagon says China’s strategy of “national total war” aims to mobilize the country’s civilian industry, tech, logistics, and cyber power to aid the nation’s military.

Vallen Grayson

This Marine shed nearly 90 pounds so he could enlist

“I told myself, ‘I know I can be better. I know I’m supposed to be better,’ and ‘Just get it done. Don’t stop until you get it done.’”

Family and friends attend a posthumous commission ceremony at Ke’ehi Lagoon Memorial State Park, Honolulu, Hi., Jan. 26, 2026. The ceremony was held to posthumously commission University of Hawaii ROTC cadets who died in combat during WWII. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Peter Bannister)

Labeled ‘aliens’ in World War II, 7 Japanese-American soldiers posthumously commissioned

The seven soldiers were kicked out of an ROTC program as World War II began. Last week, they were commissioned as Army officers eight decades later.

260112-N-RE760-1070 CUDJOE KEY, Fla. (January 12, 2026) - A Marine Corps veteran watches as Venture Out community members sing God Bless America during the annual flag-raising ceremony at Venture Out on Cudjoe Key, Florida, January 12, 2026. The event is held annually to honor local veterans and military personnel. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Adam Mojica)

A hacker posted a Marine vet’s health info online and bragged about it

The man posted stolen health records to an Instagram account that was named “@ihackedthegovernment.” He just pleaded guilty in federal court.

Leavenworth escape attempt

Inmate’s sentence extended after attempted escape from Fort Leavenworth military prison

Zachary Harader and a fellow inmate tried to break out of the Midwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, on April 29, 2025.

More Stories

Sponsored Content

Front view of mother and father with son and daughter standing.

Hit reset and get your budget in order this New Year

Serving those who served our nation

A Shared Mission: Humana and USAA Join Forces to Support Veterans’ Health As They Age

Listening to military families: A new approach to TRICARE 

SEE MORE

Task & Purpose was founded in 2014 to cover the military and veteran community from a rank-and-file perspective, and continues to do so with accurate reporting and great storytelling to this day. Our journalists have reported on the front lines of the Standing Rock protests in North Dakota and the war in Afghanistan. We’ve uncovered American veterans being abused in Kuwaiti prisons, deported veterans being forced to work for Mexican cartels, and drawn national attention to a longstanding legal rule barring service members from suing the government — even in the face of gross negligence.

Read Our Story

Our Staff