Fat Albert Returns to Duty for the US Navy Blue Angels Flight Team!

The US Navy Blue Angels flight demonstration team is welcoming back to service the famous “Fat Albert” C-130 Hercules as the logistics and transport aircraft for the unit. Fat Albert has always been a huge fan favorite at Blue Angels airshows featuring a Jet Assisted Takeoff (JATO). Watch Fat Albert perform a Jet Assisted Takeoff […]

Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) | A Marine’s reflection

During my enlistment in the Marine Corps I was assigned to the 2nd bn, 8th Marines (WPNS Co.). Eventually my unit was attached to the 24th MEU(SOC), as a TRAP Team. TRAP stands for Tactical Recovery of Aircraft Personnel. The TRAP team was a QRF  (quick reaction force) in the event one of our pilots went down behind […]

Movie Review: ‘Megan Leavey’ is a solid love story about a Marine and her dog

When I was contacted about watching and reviewing an early screening of “Megan Leavey,” the upcoming dramatic biopic starring Kate Mara that tells the story of a Marine K9 handler and her experiences with a German Shepard named “Rex,” I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect.  There hasn’t been a particular shortage of contemporary war […]

Watch: Do suppressors decrease lethality or muzzle velocity?

Ever had a question or spirited debate with another gunslinger about technical aspects of weapons systems? The Marine Corps Facebook page has started a new feature in the spirit of Myth Busters: Gunner Fact or Fiction. In this installment, Gunner Wade debunks the myth that suppressors decrease lethality or muzzle velocity on the M-4. Courtesy […]

Remembering the Marine Raiders of WWII

During the early years of World War II, the United States Marine Corps Raider battalions became the first American elite units committed to battle the Axis. Though originally conceived as a counterpart to the British commandos, the Raiders proved to be much more, and like their English brethren, laid the groundwork for the future while […]

The simple solution for direct blowback: Blitzkrieg Hydraulic Buffer

Blitzkrieg Components has partnered with KynShot to develop a game-changing new 9mm AR-15 hydraulic buffer. Taming the violent direct blowback forces in the 9mm system, it turns your 9mm AR carbine into the smooth-running, soft-recoiling, fast-shooting precision tool it always wanted to be. Most impressive: It comes with a limited warranty: 10 years or one million rounds. […]

Huge live-fire/virtual training exercises underway in Alaska

Military exercises conducted within the United States offer our troops with the opportunity to get the hang of their training and equipment, but create limitations in terms of scope.  A ground-based exercise must be conducted within the grounds of the military installation, and accompanying air operations must adhere to regulations pertaining to flying through civilian […]

Picture of the Day: South Korean Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon Taking Off

Image of a South Korean Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon taking off from Kunsan Air Base in South Korea participating in Exercise Max Thunder 17. “Exercise Max Thunder serves as an invaluable opportunity for U.S. and ROKAF forces to train together shoulder-to-shoulder and sharpen tactical skills vital to the defense and security of the Korean Peninsula,” said Lt. […]

Watch: To Catch a Drone! Don’t Try This at Home!

The Boeing made RQ-21A Blackjack drone was developed for the US Navy as a forward reconnaissance vehicle for the Marine Corps. Watch as the Marine Corps launch and recover a RQ-21A Blackjack from the flight deck of the amphibious transport dock USS San Diego. The RQ-21A Blackjack is an intelligence surveillance reconnaissance unmanned aircraft capable of […]

Marine Recon: Fighting invisible injuries after coming home

The men of 1st Platoon, Bravo Company, 3rd Marine Recon Battalion first escaped death in the form of a U-shaped ambush by Taliban forces late in the afternoon on June 6, 2011. Then, they escaped death again, this time from a 500-pound GBU-54 laser-guided bomb dropped 34 meters from their position about an hour after they requested supporting […]

New Marine Corps helicopter to cost more than an F-35? Really?

The Marine Corps has a new helicopter in the works to replace the CH-53E Super Stallion. Ok, great! The Marines need a new heavy lift chopper but here is what you may not know. The new CH-53K King Stallion, manufactured by Sikorsky/Lockheed is reportedly going to run about 22 percent above initial projections. Here is the big reveal…that will […]