It had been one week since roughly 60,000 service members rushed ashore the sulfurous outcropping that was Iwo Jima.Despite the island being barely 10 square miles in area, “assault troops,” writes the Naval History and Heritage Command, “were to be subjected to a step-by-step battle of attrition, slowly progressing from one well-defended killing zone to the next.”American air superiority by this late state of the war left the Japanese ground forces virtually unprotected, forcing them into the earth. On Iwo, a system of mutually supported network of caves, tunnels, concrete pillboxes and fortified strongpoints and artillery positions allowed for the…

Watch full video on YouTube

Watch full video on YouTube

Watch full video on YouTube

Watch full video on YouTube

MILAN – NATO artillery units linked up their guns across European training grounds, testing their abilities to strike targets and repel a deluge of drones and missiles in an exercise scenario reminiscent of combat in Ukraine.The multi-national drill was part of the U.S.-led exercise Dynamic Front, organized from Jan. 26 to Feb. 13, across five countries and nine training areas. The event, which involved 23 nations, focused on validating artillery interoperability — how quickly participants could plug different systems together and share the targeting data needed to coordinate long-range strikes across borders.Allied crews were thrown into the fire by simulating…

Watch full video on YouTube

Watch full video on YouTube

Watch full video on YouTube

Watch full video on YouTube

Watch full video on YouTube

Watch full video on YouTube

Watch full video on YouTube

SAN DIEGO — The chief officer of the Navy sat down with reporters last week for a media roundtable to explain how his recently released warfighting instructions apply to the service’s rank and file and impact the implementation of autonomous systems. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle expounded at WEST Conference in San Diego, California, on several aspects of his Feb. 9 directive, dubbed “Fighting Instructions,” which call on the service and its commanders to deploy smaller military assets to areas instead of larger aircraft carriers in order to provide more flexibility and speed to respond to conflicts, among…

During my junior year at West Point in 2017, I attended a ceremony honoring the namesake of the school’s newest barracks: Gen. Benjamin O. Davis Jr. This was the first building at West Point named after an African American, and I glowed with pride knowing that the academy was finally celebrating a person who looked like me.It was a meaningful, but ultimately insufficient, gesture: Less than 100 meters from Benjamin O. Davis barracks was one named for Robert E. Lee, one of almost two dozen Confederate monuments on West Point’s campus at the time.Walking to class every day, I passed…

A red, white and blue color scheme championed by President Donald Trump will become the new look for Air Force One, the U.S. military said Thursday.The Air Force said a “red, white, gold and dark blue paint scheme” will be used for the updated jet that is slated to serve as Air Force One as well as other, smaller jets that routinely fly other top government officials.The military released a rendering of the new look that matches an airplane model that has been seen in the Oval Office for meetings with foreign leaders.The Air Force said a “red, white, gold…

Editor’s note: This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here. The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.The latest rounds of nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran are going well enough for now, according to the steady drip of public statements from the main parties involved.“I think they want to make a deal,” said U.S. President Donald Trump on the eve of the latest round of discussions held in Geneva on Feb. 17, 2026. Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, noted progress over…

The U.S. Air Force’s troubled Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program faces significant risks from software delays and an extended reliance on the aging Minuteman III system. However, a January 2024 Nunn-McCurdy breach has opened a window to address longstanding issues and potentially improve outcomes, according to a Government Accountability Office snapshot released Feb. 18. The report highlights the challenges in replacing the 50-year-old Minuteman III, a cornerstone of the land-based leg of the U.S. nuclear triad, with the more advanced Sentinel system. The program, led by Northrop Grumman, is described as the Air Force’s most complex infrastructure endeavor ever, involving…

Sign up for the Quick Strike Newsletter The hottest fishing news, tips, and tactics After catching one of the biggest bass ever seen in California, kayak angler Damian Thao isn’t sure if it will be properly certified as a lake record. The nearly 19-pound largemouth is big enough to qualify as a record, but a strange state law that Thao inadvertently broke while transporting and weighing the fish could get in the way of that achievement.  In a post he shared to Facebook Tuesday, Thao owned up to his error. He said he wanted “to be transparent with the monster…

This article was originally published by Kevin Hughes at Natural News under the title: Trump Administration Escalates War on Drugs With Lethal Maritime Strikes, Signals Imminent Land Operations The Trump administration has intensified lethal naval operations near Venezuela, conducting at least nine strikes since September against suspected drug-trafficking vessels, resulting in 37 fatalities. President Donald Trump announced plans for expanded “hard” land-based strikes against cartels, following naval interdictions that reportedly reduced drug flows by 33%. Mexican cartels like MS-13 have been designated as foreign terrorist organizations to justify military action. Critics, including Colombian President Gustavo Petro and U.S. lawmakers, challenge…

Amid a review commissioned by Navy Secretary John Phelan, the Navy will be cutting back the number of mandatory uniforms issued to sailors, the service’s director of Military Personnel Plans and Policy said.In an exclusive interview with Military Times, Rear Adm. Jennifer Couture said the Navy would finally make a long-anticipated cutback to one PT uniform by next year and soon announce other seabag reductions as well.“By 2027, it will be one PT uniform,” Couture said. “That makes sense. And it is also higher-quality. It is more in line with, if you were to go to a running store out…

Sign up for the Outdoor Life Newsletter Get the hottest outdoor news—plus a free month of onX Hunt Elite. I’m addicted to bowhunting turkeys. I admit I have a problem and don’t want any help. I spend more than 60 days each year bowhunting turkeys in at least four states. I’ve completed the Grand Slam twice with archery tackle and have run carbon through more than 100 wild turkeys. I’ve learned a lot during my bowhunting turkey tenure. From blind placement to decoy arrangement to calling, I stay flexible and adjust my techniques to the different phases of the turkey…

Veterans Affairs medical examiners are now required to consider the effects of medication on a veteran’s health condition when assigning a disability rating under a new regulation published Tuesday by the department. Effective immediately, examiners will determine a veteran’s level of disability including the effects of medication or treatment — the “actual level of functional impairment under the ordinary conditions of daily life” — according to an interim final rule in the Federal Register. Examiners are not allowed to estimate a veteran’s disability level if they were off their medications, and if a medication or treatment lowers the level of…

Sign up for the On The Gun Newsletter The latest for gun hunters and competitive shooters. Turkey loads filled with tungsten super shot pellets have become popular in recent years despite the high prices they demand. But this spring, we might hit the threshold of what turkey hunters are willing to pay for TSS; loads have doubled in price since last year.   And right now, that means paying as much as $22 per shell.  That’s from niche ammo makers like Boss Shotshells and Apex Ammunition. A box of five 12-gauge BOSS Tom TSS will run you $110 (up from $56…