Marines assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 364 (VMM-364), take-off from an MV-22B Osprey on USS Lewis B Puller in the Red Sea, April 29, 2023. U.S. Air Force Photo Two Navy SEALs went missing in the Arabian Sea during a ship boarding operation that intercepted Iranian weapons headed for Houthi forces in Yemen, U.S. Central Command announced on Tuesday. On Jan. 11, a SEAL team operating from the expeditionary sea base USS Lewis B. Puller (ESB-3) boarded a dhow off the coast of Somalia and discovered weapons parts, reads the statement. “Seized items include propulsion, guidance, and wa ..read more

(top row left to right) Chief Warrant Officer Three Stephen Dwyer, 38, of Clarksville, Tenn., Chief Warrant Officer Two Shane Barnes, 34, of Sacramento, Calif., Staff Sgt Tanner W. Grone, 25, of Gorham, N.H. (bottom row left to right) Sgt Cade Wolfe, 24, of Mankato, Minn., Sgt Andrew P. Southard, 27, of Junction, Ariz. The Army has identified five soldiers who were killed in a helicopter crash in the Eastern Mediterranean on Friday, according to a Monday announcement from U.S. Army Special Operations Command. The five soldiers were assigned to the “Night Stalkers” of the 160th Special Operat ..read more

Navy SEAL candidates walk into the Pacific Ocean for surf immersion during the ‘Hell Week’ crucible of Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training on Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, Calif., on on July 11, 2023. US Navy Photo Naval Special Warfare Command will begin forcewide, random urinalysis testing for performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) starting Nov. 1, officials announced today. The Navy is implementing the new policy under the expanded authority recently granted by the service and the Department of Defense for the command to conduct unit urinalysis sweeps of trainees and random ur ..read more

The following is the Aug. 16, 2023, Congressional Research Service report, U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF): Background and Issues for Congress. From the report Special Operations Forces (SOF) play a significant role in U.S. military operations. In 1986, Congress, concerned about the status of SOF within overall U.S. defense planning, passed legislation (P.L. 99-661) to strengthen special operations’ position within the defense community and to improve interoperability among the branches of U.S. SOF. These actions included the establishment of USSOCOM as a new unified command. As of 2023 ..read more

USS Bataan (LHD-5) and Harpers Ferry-class dock landing ship USS Carter Hall (LSD-50) form a strait transit formation behind the San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship USS Mesa Verde (LPD 19) during Composite Training Unit Exercise (C2X), Atlantic Ocean, May 21, 2023. US Marine Corps Photo The U.S. is sending two amphibious warships and thousands of Marines to the Middle East to bolster regional security after Iranian forces threatened commerce in and out of the Persian Gulf, the Pentagon announced Thursday. Amphibious warship USS Bataan (LHD-5) and USS Carter Hall (LSD-50) and ele ..read more

USS Carter Hall (LSD-50) pulls away from the pier as they set to depart Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek/Fort Story for a scheduled deployment, July 10, 2023. US Navy Photo Marines with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit embarked aboard the three-ship Bataan Amphibious Ready Group Monday, according to U.S. 2nd Fleet. USS Bataan (LHD-5) and USS Mesa Verde (LPD-19) departed from Naval Station Norfolk, Va., while USS Carter Hall (LSD-50) left from Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fortstory, Va. The almost 4,000 sailors and Marines departing from Virginia and North Carolina will b ..read more

Five sailors, including a Navy special warfare operator, were injured early Friday morning when their boat struck a jetty during a training event, according to the Navy. The five sailors – four combat support personnel and one Navy SEAL, were taken to a local hospital for treatment and, as of late Friday afternoon, three had been released, said Lt. Cmdr. Chelsea Irish, a Naval Special Warfare Command spokesman in Coronado, Calif. The two other sailors remained hospitalized and were in stable condition, Irish said. A total of 10 personnel, assigned to a West Coast-based naval special warfare un ..read more

Navy SEAL candidates participate in Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training in 2018. US Navy Photo Navy lawyers are reviewing an investigation to determine potential punishments for sailors who may bear responsibility for the death of a SEAL candidate in 2022, USNI News has learned. In his endorsement of the command investigation into the death of 24-year-old Seaman Kyle Mullen, Naval Education Command commander Rear Adm. Peter Garvin recommended that sailors spread around 10 different functions involved in the training and treatment of Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training can ..read more

The following are the Department of the Navy Fiscal Year 2024 budget summary materials released this week. From the report America is a maritime nation. American naval primacy is essential to meeting the challenges we face today. The seas are the lifeblood of our economy, our national security, and our way of life. With 90 percent of global commerce traveling by sea, the Department of the Navy safeguards the world’s economy from hostile nations and organizations that threaten international waters. Our everyday lives also depend on access to the internet, which rides upon the security of unders ..read more

U.S. Navy SEALs survey a rooftop during consulate evacuation training during Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI) course 1-23 at Deuce Village, near Yuma, Arizona, Oct. 12, 2022. US Marine Corps Photo Some senior enlisted members in the special warfare community have a chance to earn a retention bonus of up to $100,000, the Navy announced in a new memo. NAVADMIN 004/23, released Jan. 10, details a new retention bonus program that targets naval special warfare senior enlisted sailors that have a SEAL special warfare operation (026X) or special warfare combatant craft board operator (052X) cla ..read more