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U.S. Army Capt. Meckenzie MacIlvennie, commander of the 5th Quartermaster Theater Aerial Delivery Company, 16th Special Troops Battalion, 16th Sustainment Brigade, watches as paratroopers exit an aircraft over the historic drop zone at Ginkelse Heide in Ede, Netherlands, during the 81st commemoration of Operation Market Garden, Sept. 20, 2025. The airborne operation is part of Exercise Falcon Leap, a multinational training event honoring the legacy of allied paratroopers. (U.S. Army photo by 1st Lt. Nahjier Williams)
News

What troops and military families need to know about the government shutdown

Here is information on pay, services, and family impacts for active duty troops and veterans during the shutdown. U.S. troops will be paid on Oct.1, while Oct. 15 paycheck could be affected.

QUANTICO, VIRGINIA - SEPTEMBER 30: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to senior military leaders at Marine Corps Base Quantico on September 30, 2025 in Quantico, Virginia. In an unprecedented gathering, almost 800 generals, admirals and their senior enlisted leaders have been ordered into one location from around the world on short notice. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Military Branches

Trump suggests ‘dangerous’ American cities should be military ‘training grounds’

Amid ongoing deployments by troops to U.S. cities, President Donald Trump told military brass on Tuesday that cities should be “training grounds” for a "war from within."

250522-N-FT324-8920. ROTA, SPAIN (May 22, 2025). Sailors from Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command stand in formation during the summer whites uniform inspection demonstrating pride and professionalism in their appearance and readiness. (U.S. Navy Photo by Mr. Everett Lopez/ Released by Lt. Cmdr. Alicia Sacks)
News

Hegseth wants AI used in inspector general investigations

Hegseth wants inspectors general and other workplace investigators to use AI to "expedite" investigations, particularly those that look into generals and admirals.

Air Force Recruiting
Air Force

Air Force has the highest number of potential recruits on record

The Air Force has about 19,000 people in its delayed entry program, which allows potential recruits to wait up to four months before shipping to boot camp.

Soldiers assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 75th Field Artillery Brigade, participated in the "Sweat More, Bleed Less" physical fitness event in Fort Sill, Oklahoma, June 11, 2025. The event had Soldiers conducting hundreds of pullups, pushups, squats, and deadlifts, as well as running a mile all in their issued body armor. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Christian Carrillo)
News

Hegseth announces troops in combat jobs have to meet highest male physical standards

Other changes include mandating that service members exercise during the duty day, requiring all troops to take a PT test twice a year.

Soldiers assigned to the 1st Multi-Domain Task Force, stand in formation waiting to start a run in celebration of the task forces' fifth anniversary at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., Sept. 22, 2025. (U.S. Army photo by Maj. Ian Sandall)
Army

Soldiers under misconduct investigation won’t see careers stall under new Army policy

Soldiers under misconduct and certain law enforcement investigations will be able to be promoted, attend schools and move bases with a waiver that gets rid of ‘flags’ on their records.

SAGEWIN STRAIT (Sept. 5, 2024) – The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Dewey (DDG 105) transits the Sagewin Strait, Sept. 5, 2024. Dewey is forward-deployed and assigned to Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15, the Navy’s largest DESRON and the U.S. 7th Fleet’s principal surface force. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Greg Johnson)
Navy

The Navy commissioned $400K worth of safety videos. Then it tried to make them disappear.

“We will let you know when and if we would like the videos publicly available again,” the Navy wrote in an email.

An MQ-9 Reaper taxis on the runway after landing in support of Freedom Flag 24-1 at Kunsan Air Base, Republic of Korea, Oct. 23, 2024. Freedom Flag 24-1 is an advanced, large-scale tactical exercise between the U.S. and allied partners dedicated to the protection of regional peace and stability through the adaptation of novel and collaborative training methods, ensuring readiness against a wide range of threats. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Maria Umanzor Guzman)
Air Force

Air Force revives WWII-era squadron in South Korea as modern drone force

The new unit, under the name of a World War II squadron, will focus on reconnaissance and surveillance.

Close-up on a man gambling online using a mobile app on his cell phone while drinking beer at the pub
News

The military needs to better tackle gambling issues among troops, watchdog says

A Government Accountability Office report said that the Defense Department should assign clear staff roles to address troop gambling issues.

Michigan Shooting
Marine Corps

Service records released on two Marine veterans involved in weekend violence

Nigel Edge was an infantry assaultman and reconnaissance Marine. Thomas Jacob Sanford was a vehicle mechanic. Both left the Marines over 15 years ago.

Spc. Jack Clark, 1st Battalion, 186th Infantry Regiment, Oregon Army National Guard, practices moving through a wall opening while Staff Sgt. Arturo Veloz supervises during urban operations training at Camp McGregor, New Mexico, Dec. 15, 2024. The training is part of the unit's preparation for their upcoming deployment to the Multinational Force and Observers mission in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. W. Chris Clyne, Oregon National Guard Public Affairs)
Army

Pentagon federalizes 200 Oregon National Guardsmen and orders them to Portland

The announcement of the 60-day mission comes after Trump ordered the military to fight “domestic terrorists” in the city.

Guardian Angel team members from the 129th Rescue Wing, California Air National Guard, prepare to jump from an HC-130J Combat King II during a long-range maritime rescue mission approximately 885 nautical miles off the California coast. The team parachuted with medical equipment to reach the Panamanian-flagged cargo vessel Grand Vega and stabilize a Filipino mariner suffering stroke-like symptoms. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Prouse)
National Guard

Air Guard pararescue team leaps onto a freighter at sea to rescue patient

Search and rescue teams from the 129th Rescue Wing pulled off a long-distance, two-day mission to medevac a mariner suffering stroke symptoms.

George Hardy, in a red sweater wearing a hat that says "Tuskegee," stands in front of his plane from World War II.
World War II

One of the last original Tuskegee Airmen dies at 100

Lt. Col. George Hardy flew 21 combat missions in World War II, then went on to fight in the Korean and Vietnam wars.

A North American Aerospace Defense Command F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter aircraft escorts a Russian Su-35 Flanker and Tu-95 Bear bomber through the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone over the Bering Sea on Sept. 24, 2025.
Russia

NORAD scrambles jets to intercept Russian planes near Alaska

Several planes went up to track four Russian aircraft on Wednesday, the first incursion into the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone since multiple incidents in August.

WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 8: Members of the National Guard stand outside Union Station on September 8, 2025 in Washington, DC. Congress is not expected to extend the Trump administration's federal control of the DC Metropolitan Police Department which is set to expire September 10th. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
United States

Trump says he’s sending troops into Portland

The president also said he was authorizing “Full Force, if necessary” against antifascists. 

Soldiers from A Company and B Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, conduct inspections on an M2A3 Bradley Fighting Vehicles at the Coleman Army Prepositioned Stocks-2 worksite in Mannheim, Germany, Sept. 5, 2025. The Fort Hood, Texas, Cavalry Soldiers were issued almost three dozen Bradleys from Army Field Support Battalion-Germany at Coleman for their upcoming rotational mission to Poland.
Army

Most of the Army and Marine Corps’ vehicles are not ready for combat, watchdog finds

The amount of maintenance done on ground vehicles over the last decade has steadily declined, the Government Accountability Office found.

U.S. Marines with Combat Logistics Battalion 13, 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), pin chevrons on Cpl. Amaury Ferrer, wrecker operator, while at sea aboard the Whidbey Island-class amphibious dock landing ship USS Rushmore (LSD 47), May 1, 2018. The Essex Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) and 13th MEU integrated to conduct the second major exercise of their pre-deployment training. ARG, MEU Exercise (ARGMEUEX) provides essential and realistic ship-to-shore training, designed to enhance the integration of the Navy-Marine Corps team. ARGMEUEX provides an opportunity to integrate unique individual and unit skills and develop the Essex ARG and 13th MEU’s collective proficiency in challenging and unfamiliar environments. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Danny Gonzalez)
Marine Corps

Marine infantry battalion backtracks on mustache ban

Terminal lances rejoice, your 'staches are safe … for now.

“Wildboy” and “Jizzle” are in trouble with federal prosecutors after allegedly scamming military members in a bank scheme.
Navy

Feds bust scammers known as ‘Wildboy,’ ‘Low Ball’ and others for targeting military members

Prosecutors accused 10 people of scamming 500 members of the Navy Federal Credit Union out of nearly $2 million.

The MV Ocean Trader, a merchant ship outfitted for U.S. special operations, including addition of a helicopter hanger and extensive communication equipment over its bridge, in Fremantle, Australia in 2022.
News

The elusive ship built to carry US special operators is in the Caribbean

The MV Ocean Trader, a floating barracks, helicopter base and command center for special ops forces, is currently operating in the Caribbean.

Soldiers with the 34th Infantry Division receive instruction on the M250 automatic rifle during a New Equipment Training fielding at Camp Ripley, Minn. September 14, 2025. The M250, part of the Army’s Next Generation Squad Weapon program, replaces the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Timothy Hamlin)
Army

National Guard units are getting the new M250 machine gun

A Minnesota guard unit is among the first to begin using the M250, the Army’s replacement for the Cold War-era M249 light machine gun.