counterinsurgency

Afghanistan’s premier Special Operations Aviation unit is slotted to receive an unspecified number of CH-47 Chinooks from the U.S. Established in 2005, the Special Mission Wing (SMW) is the cream of the crop of the AAF. With less than 1,000 pilots and ground personnel in its ranks, the unit was initially designed to support counter-narcotics […]

Ranger snipers from 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, practice marksmanship on a range in Afghanistan prior to a night combat operation against insurgents.

With a resurgent Russia and China threatening U.S. and Western interests around the world, the military must adapt accordingly to address the threat. Part of this process is the reformation of the U.S. Army to a more modern and efficient fighting force. For close to two decades, the Army has operated based on the concept […]

Retired General Stanley McChrystal, a former head of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) and commander of all forces in Afghanistan, recently co-wrote a book on leadership, exploring what makes an effective leader. The book, “Leaders: Myth and Reality,” explores a wide range of leaders across centuries of human history. The authors’ selection of leaders […]

After many years of waiting, the Army has finally published its official history of the Iraq War. The authors of the two-volume history are retired Colonels Joe Rayburn and Frank Sobchak. Their comprehensive study, which amounts to around 1,300 pages, begins with the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and concludes with the withdrawal of troops […]

In the 1960s, Che Guevara was an iconic figure, especially among those who thought that the young revolutionary was hip, chic and achieved almost rock star status. He was young, handsome and very well educated. In fact, Che is now probably more popular in the country responsible for his death, Bolivia, by people who have […]

London, Great Britain—The Islamic State (ISIS) is going through its final days, according to Major General Felix Gedney, the Deputy Commander of the allied coalition. Great Britain has been part of the Operation Inherent Resolve, the U.S.-led international coalition, since 2014. Operation Shader, the UK component, initially began as a humanitarian aid operation. Quickly, however, […]

Editor’s note: This article was originally published by SOFREP.com on June 13, 2016. A week prior to the article’s publication, the author reached out to Travis Homiak directly via DoD email to ask for comment on information in this article only to be redirected to the Marine Corps Public Affairs Office. A follow-up request was made […]

In 1964, the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam – Studies and Observations Group (MACV-SOG) was formed to carry out unconventional operations. The strategic reconnaissance and clandestine missions were designed to secretly carry the fight to the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in order to dissuade them from supporting the Viet Cong insurgency in South Vietnam. The nature […]

Flying over Panjwai in early March was an apocalyptic image. No signs of vegetation or life, just barren fields for miles, consisting of deep farm rows, bordered by thick mud walls, with grape huts jutting out unnaturally from the landscape every few hundred meters. When I landed at VSP (Village Stability Platform) Belambai, the ODA […]

“Wait…you were his platoon leader?” I’ve received this particular question probably about a hundred times over the last five years, and roughly 95% of the time, it’s followed by a particular look of recognition, doubt, and horror, all combined into one washing over the asker’s face. As I recall the details of the story, and […]

Modern warfare, as waged by the US, seems to be mostly about timelines.  In some respects this is necessary, especially in a combined-arms environment.  When you’ve got a lot of moving parts to the operation, to include ground, air, artillery, multiple units moving in the AO at the same time, having time hacks built into […]