April 25, 2012

Afghanistan visit leaves Dempsey encouraged

BRUSSELS (April 25, 2012) — The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff wrapped up a two-day visit to Afghanistan April 24 and said he’s encouraged by what he saw and heard there.

April 24, 2012

Soldiers, civilians participate in 7th Annual Pat Tillman Run in Afghanistan

KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan (April 23, 2012) — In honor of Pat Tillman's legacy, more than 250 service members and civilians participated in the 7th Annual Pat Tillman Run, held for the first time at Forward Operating Base Salerno, Afghanistan, since Tillman's death in 2004.

April 24, 2012

Happy to be in the infantry

COMBAT OUTPOST KOLK, Afghanistan (April 24, 2012) — Pfc. Austin Schwab woke up cold. He’d spent the majority of the previous day marching through the thick marshes of southern Afghanistan. Later that night, when the platoon in which he serves took over a compound, Schwab spent the majority of the night sleeping on the ground, his rifle next to his side. The early-rising Afghanistan sun woke him. The soldier quickly threw on his protective gear and equipment, and in a matter of seconds, climbed on a ladder toward the compound’s roof to provide security over-watch. He is just 20.

April 23, 2012

New simulator pushes Afghan pilots' capabilities

KABUL, Afghanistan (April 20, 2012) — Afghan pilots now have a state-of-the-art MI-17 simulator here to hone their aviation skills in a safe environment.

April 23, 2012

Dempsey Visits Jordan to Reaffirm Partnership

AMMAN, Jordan (April 21, 2012) — The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff arrived here today to visit his Jordanian counterpart and to meet with officials at the U.S. Embassy.

April 20, 2012

‘Dealer 54’ honored on USMC flight line

CAMP BASTION, Afghanistan (April 20, 2012) — Marines and sailors with Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 369, the “Gunfighters,” gathered at their squadron aboard Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, April 17, 2012, to rededicate their flight line in memory of one of their own.

April 19, 2012

Clinton, Panetta: NATO partners committed to Afghanistan

BRUSSELS, (April 18, 2012) — Meetings today provided a clear sense of NATO’s ongoing commitment to the security mission in Afghanistan up to and beyond 2014, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta said at NATO headquarters here today.

April 19, 2012

Combat Logistics Battalion 1 finishes tour in Afghanistan, transfers authority

CAMP DWYER, Afghanistan (April 19, 2012) — Marines and sailors with Combat Logistics Battalion 1, 1st Marine Logistics Group (Forward) stood in formation eagerly awaiting the official end of their tour in Afghanistan, April 17.

April 19, 2012

Successful elections evidence of governance, growth in Garmsir

GARMSIR DISTRICT, Afghanistan (April 19, 2012) — The Hazar Joft Bazaar was unusually quiet for a weekday morning. Rows of shop doors remained locked. Commercial chatter was minimal. Both workers and patrons seemed to be nonexistent.

April 18, 2012

Afghanistan ambassador invites U.S. Soldier to embassy

WASHINGTON (April 17, 2012) — An American Soldier's simple actions in Afghanistan last year gained the attention of that nation's ambassador to the United States, who spoke April 13 with the Soldier one-on-one at the embassy in Washington, D.C.