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Honolulu, Hawaii. (November 30, 2023): When people think of Hawaii, images of swaying palm trees and pristine beaches come to mind. For the Soldiers with the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, it is a jungle with steep mountains and stifling heat. In this photo by Specialist Brendon Donahue, 25th Division Soldiers celebrate a combat victory over their rival Blue forces at the newly opened Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center (JPMRC). The Army’s newest combat training facility is in the mountainous center of the island of Oahu with over 17,000 acres of really tough terrain.
The 25th Infantry Division was established in 1908 to provide defense of the island’s main port, Pearl Harbor. Nicknamed the Tropic Lightning Division in 1941, the 25th fought in some of the bloodiest battles in World War II. The division today is a highly mobile light infantry unit supported by a range of aviation units guarding the Asia-Pacific region. The new center operates in three training rotations, one in Hawaii, another in the freezing terrain of Alaska, and another at satellite locations in friendly countries.
Credit for keeping these rotations running smoothly goes to the 196th Infantry Brigade, the training support brigade for the 25th Infantry Division and the 11th Airborne Division. During this cycle, as many as 6,000 participants underwent realistic training in an environment that they would likely encounter in the steamy jungles of the Pacific. The current cycle includes Soldiers from New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Indonesia, and Thailand who developed closer cooperation with their American allies.
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Syndalen, Finland. (November 17, 2023): While “Kamikaze” drones and Predator unmanned aircraft have dominated the headlines, another type of autonomous system is being developed by the Navy that is literally beneath the waves. In conjunction with commercial scientists, this aggressive program will develop and build unmanned underwater vehicles to perform a wide range of shallow water missions. In this photo by Corporal Mary Kohlmann, Corporals Gabriel Hawks and William Morris with Combat Logistics Battalion 6, Combat Logistics Regiment 2, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, prepare to retrieve the “AMY”, an unmanned surface vehicle during a series of tests to experiment with its capabilities. The AMY is a lightweight (145 pounds) autonomously operated platform that can handle missions ranging from delivering lifesaving supplies to scanning for mines and much more.
Working with Arizona-based Hydronalix Corporation, the Marine Corps is experimenting with equipping these underwater drones with various x-band radars, side scan sonars, and even a high-speed bandwidth connection via satellite for communications and control. Powered by twin electric jet drives, the AMY can reach a top speed of 18 miles per hour, even in rough surf conditions, while searching for mines or obtaining measurements such as depth and water temperature.
The goal is to use the AMY to send vital supplies ashore especially when helicopters cannot. A Marine could load a lifesaving cargo of plasma and morphine, for example, then select a destination on shore and dispatch the AMY directly to that location. The system requires no central ground station and the AMY can be programed to return to be recovered, reloaded, and sent off again.
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Oiapoque, Brazil, (November 15, 2023): Welcome to the Amazon! In this photo by Specialist Joseph Liggio , U.S. Army PFC Bailey Driskel, a combat engineer assigned to Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), applies camouflage face paint during the final movement of Exercise Southern Vanguard 24. Exercise Southern Vanguard 24 is an annual exercise sponsored by the U.S. Southern Command, responsible for Central and South America, to improve coordination between allied forces. The event allows a select few U.S. Army Soldiers a chance to train with some of best warfighters in the world in the most challenging environments. Brazil is an enormous country, with a land mass only slightly smaller than the continental U.S., with a landscape ranging from the Amazon, the world’s largest jungle, to dry grasslands, rugged hills, and miles of seashore.
Brazil's armed forces are the second largest in the Americas, after the United States, and the largest in Latin America. They currently have 334,500 active-duty troops including 15,000 special troops of the Brazilian Army Readiness Forces who are ready for combat 365 days per year. This division is composed of paratroopers along with armored cavalry brigades that have conventional combat capability.
The 1,300 or so Americans joined their 1,000 Brazilian Army comrades of the 52nd Battalion, 23rd Infantry Brigade in conducting air assault operations, urban maneuver, weapons familiarization, and a brutal jungle familiarization course. The joint forces conducted an air assault followed by practice infiltrating hostile territory to combat irregular forces.
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Red Sea. (November 23, 2023): According to the U.S. Central Command, the USS Thomas Hudner and crew shot down multiple attack drones launched from by Iranian-backed Houthi Rebels from Yemen while on patrol this week.
It appears they have picked the wrong fight this time.
In this photo by MC2 Jordan Klineizquierdo, Lieutenant Jr. Grade Caitlyn Thomas, left, and Lieutenant Jr. Grade Michaela Mosley along with Lieutenant Jr. Grade Branson Bitzer stand watch on the bridge aboard the USS Thomas Hudner on patrol in the Red Sea.
On October 8th, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin directed the Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier group, including the Hudner, Carney, and Roosevelt destroyers into the Mediterranean, a day after the Hamas attacks on Israel. Since then, the Hudner has shot down two sets of drones fired at Israel from Houthi controlled territory in Yemen. The ship and crew sustained no damage or injury, according to the U.S. Central Command. The Houthis have declared their support for Iranian ally Hamas and have also seized a ship purportedly owned by Israeli interests and is holding its crew hostage.
Commissioned in 1 2018, the USS Thomas Hudner is more than a match for whatever the Iranians and their Houthi friends have in mind. With a crew complement of 380 officers and enlisted, the Hudner bristles with the world’s most sophisticated and deadly weaponry. An Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, the ship can fire Tomahawk cruise missiles and the Phalanx and MK series of large caliber anti-aircraft guns and surface to air missiles. The ship has a heliport for its two MH-60R Seahawk helicopters used to conduct armed boardings at sea.
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Washington, D.C. (November 24, 2023): In this photo by Staff Sergeant Warren Smith, Jack Lowe shows off his Eagle Globe and Anchor signifying his becoming an “Honorary Marine”, an honor he earned for his remarkable resilience. The award recognizes his ongoing fight with Ewing Sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer, and his extraordinary courage and determination. Mr. Lowe has a long familial history of military service and always dreamed of serving in the Marine Corps.The Honorary Marine program officially began in 1992 under 30th Commandant of the Marine Corps, General Carl E. Mundy, and only seventy-five individuals have been bestowed the honor in the program’s history. The title “Honorary Marine” creates a special bond between the American people and the Marine Corps by recognizing individuals in the civilian community who have made extraordinary contributions to our nation’s defense.
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Philippine Sea. (November 16, 2023): For centuries, food has been the obsession of Sailors at sea and a major factor affecting morale. In this photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Jonathan Estrada Eguizabal, Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Imani Cothran-Hickman, from Grayson, Georgia, receives a sample of a culinary dish prepared for the final round of a cooking competition on the aft mess decks aboard the U.S. Navy's only forward-deployed aircraft carrier, USS Ronald Reagan.
“How’s the chow?” is a serious question for Sailors and Admirals alike who spend an average of six to eight months a year at sea. The typical U.S. vessel has three messes (or galleys), one for the officers (called the wardroom), another for the senior non-commissioned officers, and a third for lower enlisted personnel.
These dining facilities churn out an astounding 17,000 meals a day to some 5,500 people, around the clock, seven days a week. The one hundred plus cooks and servers, or culinary specialists, ensure the crew’s nutritional needs are met while operating in a high-pressure environment around the clock.
Read more: Culinary Specialists Know The Navy Sails On Its Stomach