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Marine Corps Base, Hawaii. (April 13, 2023): In this photo by Corporal Clayton Baker, Marines carry simulated casualties to safety in a combat evacuation drill during the Corporals Course, a program to teach non-commissioned officers the skills needed to become small unit leaders.
Created in 2009, the Corporals Course focuses on the backbone of the Marine Corps, the non-commissioned officer (NCO). Veteran instructors share their firsthand accounts of leading Marines which helps students relate to their own life experiences. This two-week program teaches basic infantry tactics, communications, land navigation, and military drill and ceremony. The goal is to build a platform for young students to explore the world of the NCO and to learn how to successfully train and lead Marines in combat.
The skills attained at the Corporals Course return to the workplace which improves the core leadership of the entire unit. Eventually, passing the Corporals Course will be a requirement for promotion.
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Long Beach, California. (April 10, 2023): In this photo by Chief Boatswain’s Mate Nelson Doromal Jr., Sailors assigned to Maritime Expeditionary Security Squadron 11 and Navy Cargo Handling Battalion 14 conduct a lift on/lift off operation aboard SS Cape Inscription, a commercial vessel that is part of the U.S. Naval Reserve fleet.
The Adaptive Force Exercise, held in Port of Long Beach, is part of a series of continuous training events for Navy Expeditionary Combat Forces. The series evaluates the Navy’s ability to deliver “expeditionary logistics,” the unique field of planning, staging, and delivering a diverse mix of cargo to combat situations around the world. This critical mission belongs to the Navy Expeditionary Logistics Support Group (NAVELSG) made up of more than 3,300 personnel assigned to three regiments and seven battalions located throughout the United States.
Headquartered in Williamsburg, Virginia, NAVELSG delivers worldwide expeditionary logistics using active and reserve personnel to do port and air cargo handling missions, distribute fuels, and manage freight terminal and warehouse operations. They also handle dangerous materials and even provide postal services. The NAVELSG team also responds to humanitarian crises and serves as America’s ambassador by creating allies through extending relief efforts to other nations.
Essential to any successful logistics effort is security of people and cargo, a responsibility that falls to Maritime Expeditionary Security Squadron 11. Their primary mission is force protection for deployed troops and physical security of harbors and waterways. The squadron specializes in counterterrorism, harbor and maritime infrastructure defense, and high value target protection. Specialized units deploy worldwide to detect, deter, and defend U.S. units around the globe. Recent assignments include Panama, Korea, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Afghanistan, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt.
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Fort Bragg, April 2023 —
Thank you to The Bragg ‘N Barn Thrift Shop for your support!
Yesterday the Bragg ‘N Barn Thrift Shop celebrated its Welfare Grants recipients with a little ceremony, the first since our inception in 1957!
At the ceremony, we rewarded several community organizations that focus on giving back to our active duty members, retirees and veterans and our military families.
We appreciate all the generous donations, because without your contributions none of this would be possible.
Furthermore, we’d like to thank the Fayetteville Observer for coming out and supporting our event. Also, a huge THANK YOU to the wonderful staff at Superior Bakery for their generous donations.
As always the men and women serving as Board of Directors, its employees and the staff at USAG.
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Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia. (April 11, 2023): In this photo by James Frank, Marine Corps Corporal Xavier Abreu, an ammunition technician with The Basic School, does front squats while participating in the first Training and Education Command Fittest Instructor Competition held here. The Basic School is where all newly commissioned officers go to become “Leaders of Marines”, a sacred oath taken by those of “exemplary character and integrity who are mentally and physically tough.”
The Basic School at Quantico trains over 1,700 officers each year in a 28-week course during which candidates receive classroom and field training on weapons, tactics, and leadership. This extremely demanding course is divided into three phases: leadership, academics, and military skills. Officer candidates must pass a 15-mile hike, an endurance course including land navigation, and qualify in rifle and pistol marksmanship.
In the classroom, future officers attend lectures on tactical decision making, practice strategies in sand table exercises, and participate in small group discussions of historic battle scenarios. In the field, the future leaders are stressed to the maximum as they negotiate obstacles, manage platoon size actions, and engage in realistic live fire training.
It truly does take a special person to dedicate one’s life to leading Marines.
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Philippine Sea. (April 10, 2023): For centuries, Sailors struggled to navigate their vessels safety across great oceans relying only on the stars to guide their way. In this photo by MC2 David Negron, Quartermaster 2nd Class Leslie Juarez, from Laredo, Texas, looks through a stadimeter on the bridge aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Decatur. A stadimeter is an optical device used to estimate range and distance of an object of known height by measuring the angle between the top and bottom of the object.
Like the Sextant that measures the distance of celestial bodies, the Stadimeter uses mirrors to determine the angle between two objects to measure distances. Using the Stadimeter, Quartermaster 2 Juarez can identify a distant ship, adjust the stadimeter for its mast-head height, and then determine the distance of the object from the ship.
The hand-held Stadimeter was invented in 1890 by U.S. Navy Officer Bradley Allen Fiske who developed the device for gunnery purposes, but also found it proved useful for fleet sailing, especially keeping warships at the proper distance from one another in convoys. It is one of several types of optical rangefinders that do not require a large instrument and so are ideal for hand-held use or they can even be installed in a submarine's periscope.
Of course, today’s mariners are blessed with Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) to navigate all the world's lakes, seas, and oceans. The GNSS is a constellation of satellites that send signals from space that transmit positioning and timing data to receivers on earth. The receivers then use this data to determine their location, accurately to within 9 feet, anywhere in the world.
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Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.(April 4, 2023):In this photo by Senior Airman Callie Norton, Master Sgt. David Schnabel, 8th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron first sergeant, is welcomed home from a deployment by a loved one at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. The deployment was the 62nd Airlift Wing’s first under the new Airforce “Force Generation Model” in support of U.S. Central Command, U.S. European Command, and U.S. Africa Command operations. The Force Generation Model is a new policy to make servicemember deployments more predictable and scenes like the reunion above, while touching, happen less often.
Airforce personnel and their equipment are fatigued after decades of war around the world and Airmen need a more stable deployment schedule to allow time for family life. In the past, the Airforce deployed forces to military commanders around the globe continuously which has become unsustainable due to its impact on crew training and readiness. The new program allows Airmen to get ready for deployment year-round rather than scramble to complete training and preparation at the last minute.
The Airforce has created a cyclical process that rotates Airmen through four phases, “Reset, Prepare, Ready, and Available To Commit. In the Ready phase, multiple units gather for training events and hold competitions, such as flag events, weapons school, or other large-scale exercises that keep units at a razor’s edge. This is followed by the Prepare phase that spreads out training across 18 months before they can be assigned overseas. Next comes the Ready phase, the final preparation step before a unit is declared “Available to Commit” anywhere in the world.