More than a hundred Filipino-Americans and other well-wishers welcomed the Philippine Navy's newest ship, BRP Gregorio del Pilar (PF-15), as it arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH), July 27 for a brief port visit.

Every Marine is a rifleman. Those words are drilled into every Marine’s head starting the day they go to basic training, and throughout the rest of their Marine Corps career.

To ensure that status remains true, more than 260 Marines and Sailors with Company G, Battalion Landing Team 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, and Combat Logistics Battalion 31, both with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, participated in a live fire training exercise, July 27.

While the U.S. Army eliminated bayonet drills from basic training last year, the U.S. Marine Corps has not. The Marines kept it not so much for developing weapons skills, but for mentally conditioning Marines for combat. The bayonet drills are part of larger program emphasizing one-on-one combat. The Army does this, to a lesser extent, and now without bayonet training.

The Doolittle Tokyo Raiders are in the final stages of planning their reunion commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Raid. The reunion will be held at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, April 17-20, 2012.

The reunion will include autograph sessions, a memorial service at the museum, as well as a public lunch and banquet.

All five of the living Doolittle Tokyo Raiders are able to travel and plan to be on-hand for the reunion events.

Steady position. Aiming. Breath control. Trigger squeeze.

Perfecting, or failing to master, these four fundamentals of Army rifle marksmanship make or break a Soldier’s success at the range.

For Soldiers whose weapons are at the center of everything they do on the battlefield, failure at the range is not an option. These Soldiers must train to transcend the fundamentals of marksmanship so they can execute their craft on a higher plateau of excellence.

The F-35C Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) completed its first steam catapult launch July 27 marking another milestone toward initial ship trials in 2013.

A TC-13 Mod 2 test steam catapult was used to launch F-35C test aircraft CF-3 into the sky. Steam catapults are currently used on board U.S. Navy aircraft carriers to launch various aircraft.

Video of the launch can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkNZfu3EdvA.

Airmen from the 14th Security Forces Squadron here will take the Ruck March to Remember across the Mississippi River July 26 during their portion of the 2,181-mile trek.

The Columbus Airmen began their 146-mile march July 24, taking part in the nationwide security forces event commemorating the 10th anniversary of 9/11.

Beginning July 12, Air Force security forces members from 23 units have volunteered their own time to march from the Air Force Security Forces Center in San Antonio, Texas, past Shanksville, Penn., the site of the Flight 93 crash, to arrive Sept. 11 at Ground Zero.

Marines and sailors of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade command element have mobilized to establish a command center in the mountains of Bridgeport, Calif., to practice for a crisis response.

The Camp Pendleton-based unit is functioning as the higher headquarters for elements of 4th Marine Division, Air Wing and Logistics Group training at several locations throughout the western United States during Javelin Thrust 2011, the largest Marine Corps Reserve exercise of the year.

As part of the first Pacific Angel operation in Mongolia, U.S. Air Force and Mongolian army military engineers work side-by-side with local contractors to repair and renovate a clinic for Mongolian Armed Forces veterans and retirees in Tsenkermandal village from July 17 to 23.