Read the latest articles from Task & Purpose (Page 24)

doctor visit

Listening to military families: A new approach to TRICARE 

Creating a TRICARE experience that’s timely, reliable, and truly supportive for families.

NAVAL STATION ROTA, Spain (July 10, 2025) Col. Ryan Herman, incoming commander of 521st Air Mobility Operations Group, provides remarks during a change of command ceremony onboard Naval Station (NAVSTA) Rota, Spain, July 10, 2025. The 521 AMOG conducts en route operational support and aircraft maintenance, air mobility command and control, and aerial port operations, integrated with the Joint deployment and distribution enterprise and in concert with our allies and partners, to deploy and sustain the joint force in Africa, Asia, and Europe in support of national objectives. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jett Morgan)
Air Force

Air Force relieves air mobility group commander in Spain after just four months

Col. Ryan Herman, who took over the 521st Air Mobility Operations Group in July, was removed following a “loss of confidence.”

Nearly all commissaries on military bases in the U.S. could close in early December if the government shutdown continues.
United States

Military officials tell troops 168 commissaries could close next month

Officials insist commissaries will be open through Thanksgiving, but 168 U.S. stores could close soon after. Overseas stores would remain open for another month.

"Atropia," a film that centers around a fictional country the Army created in 2012, is set to release on Dec. 12.
Entertainment

Atropia: The Army’s biggest inside joke has its own movie

“Atropia,” a movie set for a limited release in theaters on Dec. 12, follows a cast of role-players as they help train soldiers in the Army’s longest fake war.

Staff Sgt. Kristopher Garbea, with the unmanned aerial system Platoon, 1st Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, prepares a reconnaissance drone for flight during Saber Junction 25 (SJ25) at the Joint Multinational Readiness Training Center at Hohenfels, Germany Sept. 9, 2025. Soldiers within the unit developed Purpose Built Attritable System drones to use against simulated enemy forces at SJ25. This exercise ensures that the 2nd Cavalry Regiment and allied forces are prepared to act decisively in response to emerging threats, crises, or opportunities. (U.S. Army photo by Capt. Shenicquia Fulton)
Army

The Army is going to buy a million drones 

The massive order comes as the service tries to play catch-up on integrating and fielding drones in combat operations.

The Grinch poses with a Tyndall F-35A Lightning II during Operation Jolly Jingle, a children’s holiday event hosted at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, Dec. 14, 2024. The event featured activities for the children such as face painting, a bounce house and photo opportunities with the Grinch and Santa Claus. (U.S. Air Force photo by Jennifer Jensen)
Air Force

Air Force families at Florida base told to take down Christmas decorations in privatized housing

It is way too early for Christmas decorations — at least that’s what residents at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida were told.

The FDA recalled a drug prescribed by VA doctors to veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder nightmares.
News

Drug used to treat PTSD nightmares recalled for cancer risk

The Food and Drug Administration said some batches of Prazosin, which VA doctors often prescribe to treat PTSD nightmares, had high levels of cancer-causing agents.

Chief Master Sgt. David Wolfe, Pacific Air Forces Command chief, speaks to an Airman Leadership School class during a site visit at Yokota Air Base, Japan, June 5, 2023. Site visits are opportunities for senior leadership to assess the health of wing level units, meet with local peer leaders, and to spend time mentoring Airmen. Airman Leadership School is the initial level of Professional Military Education enlisted Airmen experience. It’s designed as an entry level leadership course to prepare Senior Airmen for positions of greater responsibility by strengthening leadership, followership, and personnel management while also gaining more understanding of the military profession. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Ryan Lackey)
Air Force

Air Force’s new top enlisted leader had long career in security forces

Chief Master Sgt. David R. Wolfe, the Air Force’s 21st senior enlisted leader, has a long career in security forces units.

The Marine Corps is offering cash bonuses for recruits wanting to join cyber, electronic jobs.
Marine Corps

Marines offer tech-savvy recruits $15,000 to enlist

The Marine Corps announced a series of cash bonuses for new recruits, the largest of which aim to fill high-demand jobs like electronics and cyber.

Food Bank
Army

The Army listed German food banks for soldiers seeking shutdown help

The Army removed the list after German media reported that U.S. troops were using the local food banks, a U.S. official said. It's unclear if any U.S. troops actually did.

USS Gerald R. Ford sailing through the Strait of Gibraltar.
Carriers

Why the US sent its most advanced aircraft carrier to the Caribbean and what it can do

As the USS Gerald R. Ford sails toward the Caribbean, here’s a closer look at how the Navy’s carrier strike groups project power.

A Soldier enjoys a meal at a dining facility during the 20th Annual Randy Oler Memorial Operation Toy Drop, Dec. 1, 2017. Operation Toy Drop is the world’s largest combined airborne operation with eight partner nation paratroopers participating and allows Soldiers the opportunity to train on their military occupational specialty, maintain their airborne readiness, and give back to the local community. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Alicia Pennisi)
Army

Army closes only dining facility on Kansas base due to government shutdown

Officials announced that the dining hall on Fort Leavenworth is closed because of the government shutdown.

NAVAL STATION GREAT LAKES (November 3, 2025) — Fireman William Thompson, right, a native of Seale, Ala., and student at Surface Warfare Engineering Schools Command (SWESC) Great Lakes, receives a command challenge coin from Commanding Officer Cmdr. Quentin Cooper, Nov. 3, for his role in rescuing a man from a flame-engulfed vehicle. Oct. 25. Thompson dove into action by breaking open a car's window after noticing it had caught fire and filled with smoke on the upper level of a mall's parking garage in Schaumberg, Ill. SWESC is responsible for providing technical training to every surface Navy engineer, quartermaster, boatswain and deck seaman; preparing each Sailor to perform on U.S. Navy ships operating around the globe. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Brian T. Glunt)
Navy

Navy sailor rescues driver from burning car but mother’s vehicle lost to flames

Both sailor William Thompson and his mother were unscathed when he rushed to save a driver from a burning car, breaking a window to free the occupant.

Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon
Marine Corps

New ‘Tun Tavern’ to open in Philadelphia 250 years after Marine Corps was born

'Rah.

A National Guard soldier, walks down the hallway at a hospital in April 2020.
Army

Fort Hood Army doctor accused of inappropriately filming female patients

As the Army conducts a criminal investigation, two law firms are representing patients of the accused doctor as they prepare to file civil lawsuits.

Retired Sgt. Maj. of the Army Tony Grinston, currently the CEO of Army Emergency Relief, talks to troops in South Korea.
Benefits & Pay

Army charity offers grants to soldiers missing SNAP payments

Tony Grinston, the 16th Sergeant Major of the Army, said that the Army Emergency Relief will cover food assistance for soldiers in need.

Air Force Mustaches
Air Force

Air Force rolls out new rules on mustaches and sideburns

The Air Force has issued new — and very specific — guidance on the length of airmen’s mustaches and sideburns.

Harris County landscaper Jose Chavarria evens out loose dirt after the planting of a tree to honor Houston native Pfc. Vanessa Guillen, at Veterans Memorial Park on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020, in Houston. (Photo by Godofredo A. Vasquez/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
Army

If a soldier goes missing, the Army must now notify family within 8 hours

Army leaders must also inform local police much sooner when a soldier is declared "absent-unknown."

Art donated by Navy Federal Credit Union. Photo by Cade Martin.

Celebrating the lives and legacies of Veterans

This Veterans Day, we’re celebrating a few remarkable individuals whose legacies continue to inspire, decades and generations later.

Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Eric Smith and Sgt. Maj. of the Marine Corps stand in full dress uniform next to the Marine Corps War Memorial as it rains.
Culture

Top Marines stand in a rain storm to wish the Corps a happy birthday

Easily the most Marine thing they could have done.