- Details
- Hits: 517
Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti. (September 13, 2023): It is a heartbreaking reality. Suicide rates among active-duty military members are at an all-time high since 911 and have been increasing over the past five years at an alarming pace. In fact, some branches of the Armed Forces are experiencing the highest rate of suicides since before World War II. In this photo by Air Traffic Controller 2nd Class Nicholas Renard, servicemembers participate in Camp Lemonnier's Suicide Prevention Awareness Month activity, a 22 Push-Up Challenge to highlight the problem and to stop this senseless loss of precious life.
According to the Department of Defense, 519 servicemembers died by suicide in 2021 with young, enlisted male servicemembers at greatest risk. The Annual Report shows that the suicide rates for Active Component Service members have gradually increased since 2011 and that 202 dependents also died by suicide during this same period. The Army experienced the highest increase in suicides, losing forty-nine servicemembers in the first three months of 2023, compared to 37 a year ago.
Why are our servicemembers suffering such high suicide rates compared to civilians?
- Details
- Hits: 3237
Norfolk, Virginia. (Sept. 15, 2023): Is there an old folk’s home for retiring Navy ships? Well… sort of. In this photo by CC2 Matthew Nass, Sailors render honors as the national anthem is played during the decommissioning ceremony of the guided-missile cruiser USS San Jacinto after more than 35 years of service.
The life cycle of a US Navy ship begins when its keel is laid down for construction. After construction is completed, the ship is launched on a shakedown cruise to evaluate crew performance at sea. Finally, when a vessel is deemed ready, the ship is commissioned into service, becoming an official part of the United States Armed Forces.
The USS San Jacinto was laid down on 24 July 1985, by Ingalls Shipbuilding, in Pascagoula, Mississippi and was launched in November 1986. Two years later, the ship was commissioned by then vice-president George H. W. Bush in Houston, Texas.
When its services are no longer needed, what happens, exactly, at that point?
Retiring or “decommissioning” Navy ships is a lengthy process that involves multiple phases before a vessel is put in mothballs. Before being officially decommissioned, the ship enters a “cool down” period at a naval facility where crews will remove usable parts. Next, weapons and ammunition are removed from a decommissioned ship and transferred to a different vessel as needed. The same happens with the crew which is reassigned to other ships in order of a crewmember’s duty. A gunner, for instance, would not remain on a ship after the guns have been removed.
When a ship is struck from the Naval Vessel Register, the name (but not her hull designation) is freed up for use on a future ship. Names are often reused as ships are commissioned and decommissioned before their final retirement. The battleship Missouri, for instance, was in service on and off from 1944 to 1992 until its final retirement.
- Details
- Hits: 961
Yokosuka, Japan. (Sept. 14, 2023): In this photo by Seaman Kyree Rogers, Senior Chief Aviation Ordnance specialist Cody Shaw, from Kingstree, South Carolina, proctors as Sailors take the Navy-wide Advancement Exam (NWAE), a key step to eventual promotion. These sailors are assigned to the Ronald Reagan, the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 5 operating in the Indo-Pacific region.
For enlisted Sailors, advancement in the ranks is in part determined by how high they score on the NWAE. Given twice a year, the NWAE consists of 175 total questions concerning a Sailor’s occupational rating and is used as an unbiased measure to rank qualified candidates for advancement.
There are two windows throughout the year to take the NWAE; Spring and Fall for E4 to E6 candidates, and January/February for Chief candidates.
- Details
- Hits: 941
Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan. (September 7, 2023): In this photo by Corporal Kyle Chan, Marines with Marine Air Support Squadron 2, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, fire their M1014 shotguns during a live fire exercise to increase their proficiency in area security.
It is likely these Marines toted their first shotgun as youngsters, playing the big game hunter, bagging their first quail. This national affection for the dependable twelve gauge is confirmed in a report by the Federal Institute for Justice that estimates forty-nine million Americans have shotguns in their homes. This familiarity naturally led to their use by America’s military and the weapon continues to play a critical role in combat to this day.
Today’s high-tech shotguns trace their roots to the Blunderbuss or “thunder gun” invented by the Dutch in the 16th century which became a staple of U.S. military in Colonial times. Legendary gunsmith John Browning invented the first lever action, pump action, and auto-loading shotguns in the late 1800s and his designs are still in use today. The American military began fielding shotguns on the battlefield during the final stretch of World War I. American Expeditionary Forces used these “trench guns”, while limited in range, because they could dramatically increase the probability of a hit. In fact, these “scatter guns” fired double odd buckshot that caused such grievous wounds, the German government issued a formal protest.
The development of the repeating pump-action shotguns in the 1890s led to their use by the US Marines in the Philippines and by General "Black Jack" Pershing in his pursuit of the Mexican revolutionary outlaw Pancho Villa in 1923. The original shotguns have been developed into a breaching tool that gives troops a lightweight and effective way to open doors, gates, and any other obstruction in assault style warfare practiced today.
- Details
- Hits: 650
Creech Air Force Base, Nevada. (September 17, 2023): In this photo by Airman 1st Class Victoria Nuzzi, an MQ-9 Reaper, piloted by the 556th Test and Evaluation Squadron (TES), fires an Air-to-Ground Hellfire missile over the Nevada Test and Training Range. The 556th TES performs all software and physical testing to improve the combat capabilities of Reaper, the Air Force’s prime hunter-killer unmanned aerial system (UAS).
The 556th TES was the Air Force's first operational test squadron for unmanned aircraft. Today it provides around the clock support to UAS operations worldwide, including meeting warfighters' urgent requests. The MQ-9 is the first hunter-killer UAS designed for long-endurance, medium-altitude surveillance and for direct strikes on targets using a variety of munitions. The Reaper can loiter for up to 30 hours above a target as its remote pilots collect intelligence or launch air-to-ground missiles, like the 114 Hellfire pictured above. The aircraft is flown by aircrew in ground control stations thousands of miles away.
These new remotely piloted aircraft skippers are an integral and growing part of our nation’s air defense. As America’s reliance on UAS tools like the Reaper increases, so does the need for qualified pilots to fly them.
- Details
- Hits: 728
Mohamed Naguib Military Base, Egypt. (Sept. 7, 2023): In this photo by Captain Mark Andries, U.S. Marines from 4th Combat Engineer Battalion, 4th Marine Division detonate an explosive to blast open a door while practicing breaching techniques with Egyptian troops during exercise Bright Star 23. This multilateral exercise, hosted by the U.S. Central Command, offered a chance to work with Arab Republic of Egypt combat engineers on the essential tools of urban warfare.
Going door-to-door after the enemy and needing help getting through a door?
Call the 4th Combat Engineer Battalion, a reserve unit based in Baltimore, Maryland that is part of the Marine Forces Reserve. In the close quarters fighting in Iraq, these Marines and their “breaching” skills were in much demand.
Marine Combat Engineers “breach” doors or walls using five different methods; mechanical breaching, ballistic breaching, hydraulic breaching, explosive breaching, or thermal breaching. Marines use a combination of explosives, thermal devices, and mechanical breaching equipment to penetrate virtually any structure. In urban combat situations, combat engineers often lead the way by clearing obstacles, defusing explosives, or accompanying infantry units clearing buildings door-to-door.
Naturally, this is some of the most dangerous work in the Marine Corps.
Marine Combat engineers can trace their roots to the armies of Greece in 1884 B.C. These ancient engineers constructed the famous Trojan Horse that was used to infiltrate the city of Troy and end the war. In the Civil War, combat engineers helped build fortifications and designed earthworks to protect military units from aerial bombardment. They also famously dug tunnels under enemy encampments and detonated massive explosions that often decided the outcome of the battle. During World War II, engineers first developed their bridge building ability by crossing hundreds of hotly contested waterways like the Rhine River in Germany. The engineers were also critical to clearing mines and obstacles on the beaches on D-Day.