The Loadout Room
Professional Gear Reviews
I was stationed in Key West, Florida, at the U.S. Army Special Forces Combat Diver Academy as a SCUBA instructor. I had intentionally sought out that assignment to avoid a mandatory levy into the Special Warfare Center (SWC)—duty that all Green Berets inevitably faced in their careers at some point. Rather than get stuck in […]
U.S. Army paratroopers assigned to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, rehearse firing a Carl Gustaf recoilless rifle during the blank iteration of a combined arms live fire excercise in support of Swift Response 19 in Novo Selo Training Area, Bulgaria, June 24, 2019. Swift Response 19 is a U.S. Army Europe multinational […]
A U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) rescue swimmer hangs of the side of an MH-65 Dolphin off the coast of Tybee Island Coast Guard Station, Georgia, June 21. 2019. The rescue swimmer aided pilots from Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina, during a search-and-recovery exercise with the USCG. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman […]
An excerpt from the new book, “Murphy’s Law: My Journey from Ranger and Green Beret to Investigative Journalist“ Another story developed when a fixer we had hired to help translate informed us that there was a big battle going down early the next morning near Kirkuk. No way were we going to pass that up. […]
A U.S. Sailor leads a hose team during a general quarters drill aboard the guided-missile destroyer USS Dewey (DDG 105), July 14, 2018, in the pacific Ocean. Dewey is underway participating in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise. Twenty-five nations, 46 ships, five submarines, about 200 aircraft, and 25,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC […]
In our Selection preparation, we always stress the importance of Rucking and the value that all of the services put on it in the Special Operations community. The services will all stress the 45-pound minimum in training and one of the frequent questions we get is why train with 45-pounds when in reality the amount […]
On June 12, Marines from across the Marine Corps’ special operations units gathered in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, to participate in the 2019 Marine Raider Competition. Six teams, each comprised of six spec ops Marines, competed for the glory of being awarded the title of best Marine Raider. The six teams hailed from the 1st […]
South Florida Urban Search and Rescue, Florida Task Force 2, out of Miami, Fla., conduct reconnaissance missions in Bucksport, South Carolina, Sept. 25, 2018, by GPS marking neighborhoods to identify areas and properties that are flooded, as a result of rising waters in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence. These reconnaissance missions are critical for first […]
Across the ages, every great society has celebrated and revered a great warrior tradition and passed on the stories of these heroes in folklore. We can look back to the Spartans, Roman legions, Vikings, knights, Samurai, or Aztecs, and each time we will find that a strong warrior class coincided with a strong nation. The […]
Participants of the Swedish Basic Winter Warfare Course rest in front of a fire during the course’s culminating event in Arvidsjaur, Sweden, Jan. 23, 2018. Marines from the Black Sea Rotational Force and the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, along with troops from 9 other countries, participated in the Swedish Basic Winter Warfare Course. U.S. […]
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