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As Americans remember and mourn our fallen heroes this Memorial Day weekend, NASCAR nation will honor and recognize them alongside hundreds of current service members at one of the sport's biggest races of the year. The "600 Miles of Remembrance" is much more than just a race. Since 2018, all of the Defense Department's service branches have joined with NASCAR to honor the U.S. military during the Coca-Cola 600 race at Charlotte Motor...
It might be the well-stocked kitchens, the shelves of movies or the wheelchair-accessible showers that have drawn hundreds of thousands of military members, veterans and their families to Fisher Houses over the past three decades. But a better guess is it's the comfort and care they receive while there — and the fact that it's free — that really drives guests to want to stay there.   Fisher Houses can be found on...
The Overseas Cost-of-Living Allowance (OCOLA) is an allowance that ensures our Service members who are assigned to a permanent duty station outside the contiguous U.S. (OCONUS) (i.e., foreign countries, U.S. territories, Alaska, and Hawaii) maintain the same level of purchasing power as Service members stationed in CONUS locations —  not less purchasing power, but not more either.   The OCOLA rate pays a differential to...
MCAS MIRAMAR, Calif. -- Third Marine Aircraft Wing reactivated Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 311, an F-35C Lightning II squadron, at Marine Corps Air Station  Miramar, California, April 14, 2023. VMFA-311 is the U.S. Marine Corps’ second F-35C squadron. The F-35C is a land and/or carrier-based platform boasting long-range flight and high weapons payload capabilities. Formerly VMA-311, the Tomcats have made their mark...
From Lt. Cmdr. Joe Keiley, Commander, Task Force 71 Public Affairs BENGALURU, India - Members of the “Royal Maces” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 27 and “Diamondbacks” of (VFA) 102 joined hundreds of civilian and military exhibitors for the Aero India 2023 aerospace exhibition held at Yelahanka Air Force Station in Bengaluru, India, Feb. 13-17. Aero India 2023 offers a venue to build stronger...
By Capt. Mikel Arcovitch, Joint Force Headquarters - Vermont National Guard Public Affairs COLCHESTER, Vt. – Twenty Vermont Army National Guard Soldiers will compete in the 2023 Edelweiss Raid mountain warfare race in Austria March 1-2. The team will represent the U.S. Army in the race, which features some of the best military units worldwide. The Edelweiss Raid is a grueling event that challenges Soldiers mentally...
The outcome of Russian President Vladimir Putin's unprovoked war in Ukraine is profoundly important to Ukraine, Europe and all nations of the world, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III said at the end of the NATO defense ministers' meeting in Brussels today. Austin also chaired a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, which brought more than 50 nations to the table to support Ukraine. He discussed the situation confronting the...
BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. -- A team of Air Force Global Strike Command Airmen launched an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile equipped with a test reentry vehicle at 11:01 p.m. Pacific Time Feb. 9 from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California.   This test launch is part of routine and periodic activities intended to demonstrate that the United States’ nuclear deterrent is safe, secure, reliable and...
OKINAWA, JAPAN -- On the subtropical shores of an unnamed beach, just north of Camp Schwab, Okinawa, Japan, Master Sgt. Zachariah Spitzer beachcombed, as he often does in his spare time, for whatever curiosities the teal-blue Pacific waters might wash ashore. Items typically found on Okinawan beaches include a variety of seashells, sea glass, hunks of coral, and, occasionally, artifacts from World War Two. As Spitzer continued his morning...
A Defense Department official today stressed to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that China remains the pacing challenge for the U.S. government. This is embedded in the National Defense Strategy, and DOD officials are constantly working to ensure the strategic competition with China does not veer into conflict, Ely Ratner, the assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs, said. China is actively seeking...
ARMY Walsh Construction Company II LLC, Chicago, Illinois (W9127S-23-D-6034); DPR-RQ Construction, Carlsbad, California (W9127S-23-D-6022); StructSure Projects, Kansas City, Missouri (W9127S-23-D-6024); Gilbane Federal, Concord, California (W9127S-23-D-6020); and JE Dunn Construction, Kansas City, Missouri (W9127S-23-D-6030), will compete for each order of the $900,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for integrated design-build initial...
NASA and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced Tuesday a collaboration to demonstrate a nuclear thermal rocket engine in space, an enabling capability for NASA crewed missions to Mars. NASA and DARPA will partner on the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations, or DRACO, program. The  non-reimbursable agreement designed to benefit both agencies, outlines roles, responsibilities, and processes aimed...