Yokota Air Base, Japan -- Waking up at 1:30 in the morning I couldn’t fall back to sleep in anticipation of my upcoming experience of a lifetime.Tired, but filled with excitement, I boarded the aircraft alongside my fellow Airmen to spend the day on the historic island of Iwo To, Japan, where the...

WASHINGTON -- Defense Secretary Jim Mattis met on the sidelines with key leaders from the Asia-Indo-Pacific region to discuss security issues while attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ Defense Ministers’ Meeting-Plus in Clark, the Philippines, chief Pentagon spokesperson Dana W...

OSAN AIR BASE, South Korea -- Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford arrived here to participate in the U.S.-South Korean Military Committee Meeting tomorrow.Just getting off the airplane put the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff about 50 miles south of one of the most bizarre borders in the world -- the...

MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan -- Have you ever wondered a no-fail way to make your boss happy? It's easy -- get your aircraft in the air, quicker, and save money while doing it.Two Airmen from the 35th Maintenance Squadron did just that by innovating a process to overcome old paint and unreliable...

POHAKULOA TRAINING AREA, Hawaii -- U.S. Marines with Combined Anti-Armor Team 1, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines, maneuvered through the mobile assault course during Exercise Bougainville II at the Pohakuloa Training Area, on the island of Hawaii, Oct. 23, 2017.It is rare for a Marine unit to get the...

JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- Army Air Corps Staff Sgt. Leslie Edwards braced himself against the roaring might of an F-22 Raptor as nearly 70,000 pounds of thrust threatened to rip his signature red-and-black Tuskegee Airmen cap from atop his head – a dramatic change from the propeller...

PACIFIC OCEAN -- The Sasebo-based amphibious dock landing ship USS Ashland (LSD 48) rendered assistance to two distressed mariners, Oct. 25, whose sailboat had strayed well off its original course.The mariners, Jennifer Appel and Tasha Fuiaba, both from Honolulu, and their two dogs had set sail from...

ARABIAN GULF -- The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) with embarked Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 11 and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 11, and Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 9 arrived in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations (AOO) Oct. 25, after concluding operations in U.S. 5th Fleet.While in 7th Fleet, the...

OSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea -- One of the largest joint Combat Search and Rescue exercises in the Pacific region, Exercise Pacific Thunder 18-1, kicked into full swing on Oct. 23, at Osan Air Base, Republic of Korea (ROK).This year Pacific Thunder is the largest it has ever been with more than...

EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska -- Prepare, deploy, and enable Airmen; that is the mission of the 354th Fighter Wing. To ensure preparedness for any contingency operations that may arise, Eielson routinely conducts various exercises to prepare its Airmen.Beginning on Oct. 19, the 354th FW commenced...