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HMNZS Wellington Change of Command Ceremony on the 5th June 2014. LT CDR Phil Rowe handed over command of HMNZS Wellington to LT CDR Graham MacLean at a ceremony held on Devonport Naval Base. Chief Navy Rear Admiral Jack Steer hands presents LT CDR MacLean with his Command Directive.
CORAL SEA (July 20, 2013) - Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (31st MEU) land on the beach aboard Landing Craft Utility (LCU) 1646 during a beach assault in support of Talisman Saber 2013. Talisman Saber is a biennial exercise that enhances multilateral collaboration between U.S. and Australian forces for future combined operations, humanitarian assistance, and natural disaster response. (U.S. Navy photo by MC2 Andrew B. Church)
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Me, on the Captain's Chair, located at the Bridge. The Captain was not using his chair at the time. At the USS Lexington (CV-16).
The USS Lexington (CV-16) is one of 24 Essex-class aircraft carriers built during World War II for the United States Navy. Launched and commissioned in 1943, she was designated as an aviator training carrier in 1962, first as CVT-16 and later as AVT-16. She was retired in 1991 and brought to Corpus Christi, Texas, to serve as a floating museum. Her surviving sister ships USS Yorktown (CV-10), USS Intrepid (CV-11) and USS Hornet (CV-12) carry lower pennant numbers, but USS Lexington was laid down and commissioned earlier, making her the oldest remaining fleet carrier in the world. I visited this ship on April 20, 2021.
OSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea (July 25, 2013) - 1st Lt. Jordan Criss speaks with members of the 9th Battalion, 51st Infantry Division, Republic of Korea army (ROKA). The ROKA’s special forces unit was on hand to have their first face-to-face meeting with Osan’s defenders. Criss is the air base defense and intelligence officer in charge assigned to the 51st Security Forces Squadron. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Siuta B. Ika)
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KUNSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea (Aug. 7, 2013) - Medical staff from both the 8th Fighter Wing and the 38th Fighter Group coordinate plans to transport the injured during exercise Beverly Midnight 13-3. The mass casualty exercise demonstrated the Wolf Pack’s ability to coordinate with the Republic of Korea air force as well as respond to an enemy attack. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jessica Haas)
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PEARL HARBOR (Dec. 6, 2015) - Service members carry ceremonial wreaths to be presented to the entombed crew of the USS Utah during the USS Utah Memorial sunset tribute at Ford Island, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. Several events will take place leading up to the 74th anniversary of Pearl Harbor Day to pay tribute to the nation's military while enlightening Americans about veterans and service. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Gabrielle Joyner/Released) 151206-N-WC566-033
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SOUTH CHINA SEA (April 10, 2019) - Sailors attached to U.S. 7th Fleet Flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) clear the ship's flight deck of delivered supplies during a vertical replenishment. Blue Ridge is the oldest operational ship in the Navy and, as 7th Fleet command ship, actively works to foster relationships with allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific Region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Patrick Semales) 190410-N-YG414-133
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Originally built on farmland but swallowed up by housing. Located in the Belgian town of Diksmuide. This is a huge bunker but mostly hidden, a look an an ariel photograph will reveal its size.
Col. Eric Paulson stands with his wife near a Boeing RC-135 before the 55th Operations Group change of command ceremony at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb., July 31, 2020. Paulson leaves the 55th OG for Air Combat Command, where he will be the Information Warfare Division chief. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jessica Montano)
Command Sgt. Maj. Mical L. Seaton takes rSgt. Maj. Jerome M. Shelton takes responsibility as the command sergeant major of the Danville-based 429th Brigade Support Battalion, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team from Command Sgt. Maj. James C. Bolton, Jr., Nov. 1, 2019, at Fort Pickett, Virginia. Lt. Col. Edwin R. Bochtler, commander of the 429th, presided over the ceremony that included an exchange of the noncommissioned officer sword that represented the change of responsibility of the battalion’s senior noncommissioned officer from Bolton to Shelton. (U.S. National Guard photo by Cotton Puryear)
U.S. Army West Point cadets train alongside British Army Royal Military Academy Sandhurst cadets during Exercise Dynamic Victory at the 7th Army Joint Multinational Training Command’s Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, July 11, 2016. The exercise is the final field exercise for Sandhurst cadets before they become commissioned officers in the British army. (U.S. Army photo by Visual Information Specialist Gertrud Zach)
BLUE BEACH, Malaysia (Oct. 2, 2019) - U.S. Navy Sailors with 3rd Marine Logistics Group and III Marine Expeditionary Force, along with U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Josiah Clavon from III Marine Expeditionary Force, demonstrate a casualty evacuation drill to the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) during Tiger Strike 2019. Tiger Strike 19 focuses on strengthening joint military interoperability and on increasing readiness by practicing for humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, amphibious and jungle warfare operations, all while fostering cultural exchanges between the MAF and the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps team. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Christine Phelps) 191002-M-BP396-083
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EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska (June 22, 2017) - U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Terrence Greene, the fifth Air Force command chief, and Warrant Officer Katsumi Yamazaki, the senior enlisted advisor of the Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF), look through JASDF KC-767 goggles at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska. The JASDF KC-767 boom operators control the boom from a seat behind the cockpit. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Isaac Johnson) 170622-F-YK359-1290
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YONGSAN GARRISON, SEOUL, South Korea - In a change of command ceremony co-hosted by the U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, and the Republic of
Korea Minister of Defense Kim Kwan-Jin, leadership of United Nations Command, ROK - US Combined Forces Command and U.S. Forces Korea changed hands Oct. 2 during a ceremony
at Knight Field. Gen. Curtis M. Scaparrotti assumed command of the UNC, CFC and USFK, replacing Gen. James D. Thurman, who has served as commander since
July 2011. U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey, and Adm. Samuel Locklear III, commander, U.S. Pacific Command, assisted in
the ceremony. (U.S. Army photos by Staff Sgt. Keith Anderson, U.S. Forces Korea PAO)
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YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan (April 22, 2018) - Airmen from the 374th Medical Support Squadron carry a gurney in demonstration of the En Route Patient Staging System for the members of the USO Spring Tour at Yokota Air Base. This tour will be the third USO tour for Jon Stewart, 10th for Craig Morgan, 12th for Robert Irvine and first trip of Paige VanZant, Max Holloway and Richard Hamilton. (U.S. Air Force Photo by Airman 1st Class Matthew Gilmore) 180422-F-GA541-0079
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APRA HARBOR, Guam (June 21, 2017) - Sailors assigned to Commander, Task Force 75, Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group 1, and Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit (EODMU) 5 dive on the American Tanker, a sunken concrete barge used to transport fuel during WWII, in Guam's Apra Harbor. EODMU 5 conducts mine countermeasures, improvised explosive device operations, renders safe explosive hazards, and disarms underwater explosives such as mines. (U.S. Navy Combat Camera photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Alfred A. Coffield) 170621-N-ON977-0044
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U.S. Army 1st Lt. Andrew Martin, a paratrooper assigned to Anvil Company, 1st Squadron (Airborne), 91st Cavalry Regiment, 173rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), assaults an enemy position during a platoon level maneuver exercise at the 7th Army Joint Multinational Training Command's Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, Feb. 06, 2014.
(U.S. Army photo by Visual Information Specialist Markus Rauchenberger/released)
Command Sgt. Maj. Jason Spaulding bids a distinguished farewell as he officially retires from his remarkable service in the Wyoming Army National Guard. The momentous occasion took place on April 27, 2023, at the Joint Forces Readiness Center in the vibrant city of Cheyenne, Wyo. An outpouring of love and support was evident as countless family members, cherished friends, and esteemed fellow service members gathered to honor his exceptional career. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. Kristina Kranz)
U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Thomas Dye, joint terminal air controller, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force - Crisis Response - Central Command, uses a signal mirror during a rotary-wing Close Air Support training event aimed at refining the detachment's ability to plan, coordinate and conduct CAS in the U.S. Central Command area of operations, Oct. 15, 2014. The Marines and sailors of SPMAGTF-CR-CC serve as an expeditionary, crisis-response force capable of supporting the evolving requirements of U.S. Marine Corps Forces Central Command and U.S. Central Command. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Skyler E. Treverrow/Released)
U.S. Navy 2nd Class Bret Pembleton greets his son upon returning after a six-month deployment aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, San Diego, March 19, 2011. The crew is part of the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, which was deployed to the U.S. 5th and 7th Fleet areas of responsibility. Pembleton is an air crewman assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 12. U.S. Navy photo by Seaman Benjamin Crossley
PACIFIC OCEAN (Feb. 5, 2018) - Sailors assigned to the Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship USS Rushmore (LSD 47) conduct small boat operations as part of the annual exercise Iron Fist 2018. Iron Fist is an annual, bilateral amphibious training exercise designed to improve the U.S. Marine Corps and the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force's ability to plan, communicate and conduct combined amphibious operations at the platoon, company and battalion levels. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Reymundo A. Villegas III) 180205-N-GR847-017
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PADANG, Indonesia (April 12, 2016) - Service members from the Indonesia Marine Corps perform a silent routine during the opening ceremony for the Multilateral Naval Exercise Komodo (MNEK) 2016. MNEK 2016 is a biennial exercise involving 35 countries focused on maritime peacekeeping operations and increasing interoperability between regional navies. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Madailein Abbott/Released) 160412-N-WJ640-053
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Workers recently constructed a high-tech radome that will be used to repair and test Marine Corps radars at Tobyhanna Army Depot. The 77–foot radome is part of multi-million dollar construction and renovation projects around the depot to prepare for the arrival of AN/TPS-59 radar antenna workload. Tobyhanna is scheduled to become the depot source of repair for the AN/TPS-59 in September. Other test facilities include a 330-foot communications tower. Overhaul capability will reside in 60,000 square feet of newly renovated space within the industrial complex. (U.S. Army photo by Steve Grzezdzinski)
CHONBURI, Thailand (Aug. 26, 2013) - Military members coordinate a response to an earthquake scenario during Pacific Endeavor 2013. Pacific Endeavor is held annually and is a multinational, multiservice workshop sponsored by U.S. Pacific Command that addresses humanitarian assistance and disaster response by testing and documenting communication between military forces in the Asia-Pacific region. There are 22 countries participating in this year's workshop. (Photo by TSgt Michael Jackson)
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Another from my "Desktop Background" series.
I've almost got 5000 miles on the new car now. I still smile when I turn the key. This car has made driving fun again. I've got lots of plans for tuning and moding it. My end goal is 10:1 power to weight with lots of low end torque.
I'm pretty much sold on forced induction engines. There are just so many tuning options for them out there. I'll have to see how the reliability is on these guys though.
WATERS SOUTH OF JAPAN (May 17, 2017) - Chief Gunner's Mate Laura Needham fires a .50 caliber machine gun during live-fire training aboard the forward-deployed Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS McCampbell (DDG 85). McCampbell is on patrol in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations in support of security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jeremy Graham/Released) 170517-N-HI376-087
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YONGSAN GARRISON, South Korea (July 29, 2013) - Soldiers welcome Korean War veterans to Yongsan Garrison, a day prior to the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Korean War Armistice. (Photo by Pfc. Jewel Park, Eighth Army Public Affairs)
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YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan (Jan. 16, 2020) - U.S. Air Force Col. Todd A. Wydra, 374th Maintenance Group commander, speaks with Japan Air Self-Defense Force Airmen, assigned to the 2nd Tactical Airlift Group, during an 374th MXG tour, Jan. 16, 2020, at Yokota Air Base, Japan. The tour is an opportunity for Airmen to ask questions to gain a better understanding of U.S. Air Force maintenance processes and practices. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Juan Torres) 200116-F-KG439-1008
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Le commandant du 5e Groupe-brigade mécanisé du Canada, le colonel Dany Fortin, et son sergent-major, l’adjudant-chef David Tofts, ouvrent les Jeux d’hiver du 5 GBMC par une mise au jeu au hockey sur glace.
Photo : caporal Marc-André Lévesque, soutien d’affaires publiques 5 GBMC
LTG H Steven Blum, the chief of the National Guard Bureau; Maj. Gen. Larry Shellito, the adjutant general of the Minnesota National Guard, and Command Sgt. Maj. Edward Mills, Minnesota state command sergeant major, discuss support to Guardmembers and their families in St. Paul, Minn., on June 16, 2008, before traveling to the Capitol Building to sign the Minnesota Military Family and Community Covenant. They joined Secretary of the Army Pete Geren, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and other military and civilian leaders for the ceremony, which marked the National Guard's first official family covenant. The covenant lays out specific actions that military and civilian leaders can take to support servicemembers and their families. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Jim Greenhill) (Released)
BUSAN, Republic of Korea, (October 23, 2015) - Han, Min-koo, the minister of defense for the Republic of Korea (ROK) observes the Republic of Korea Navy's Fleet Review aboard the Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin-class destroyer ROK Ship Choe Yeong (DDH 981). The fleet review celebrated the 70th anniversary of the ROK Navy and served as a symbol of the enduring U.S. and ROK alliance. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Abraham Essenmacher/Released) 151023-N-AD732-022
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WHENUAPAI, New Zealand (Nov. 15, 2016) - Lt. j.g. Shane Lewis, with the Golden Swordsmen of Patrol Squadron (VP) 47, examines a chart of New Zealand with an airman from the Royal New Zealand Air Force. The VP-47 crew and their U.S. Navy P-3C Orion aircraft are assisting in life-saving efforts after the Nov. 13 earthquakes on the South Island of New Zealand. (U.S. Navy photo by Lt. j.g Kyle Burdick/Released) 161115-N-N0897-002
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Kunsan Air Base, Republic of Korea (Oct. 22, 2016) - U.S. Air Force combat controllers assigned to the 1st Special Operations Squadron, 320th Special Tactics Squadron and Republic of Korea (ROK) 255th Special Operations Squadron, pull security and establish a line of communication at Kunsan Air Base. Members from the 320th STS and 1st SOS worked with the ROK 255th SOS to enhance U.S. and ROK Air Force Special Operations Forces' capabilities. They conducted infiltration methods, jump clearing team operations, airfield establishment, aircraft control and close air support familiarization. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Colville McFee/Released) 161022-F-IF848-0359
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SUBBANG, Malaysia (Nov. 5, 2015) - Secretary of Defense Ash Carter renders honors as a Malaysian military carry team transfers the remains of a recovered American World War II era aircrew to an American carry team during a repatriation ceremony. (Photo by Senior Master Sgt. Adrian Cadiz/Released) 151105-D-DT527-139
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OKINAWA, Japan (Mar. 27, 2017) - AAV-P7/A1 assault amphibious vehicles with Echo Co., Battalion Landing Team, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), maneuver down a road while participating in mechanized raid at Marine Corps Base Butler, Okinawa. As the Marine Corps' only continuously forward-deployed unit, the 31st MEU air-ground-logistics team provides a flexible force, ready to perform a wide range of military operations, from limited combat to humanitarian assistance operations, throughout the Indo-Asia Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Darien J. Bjorndal/Released) 170327-M-MF313-026
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CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait — Soldiers from the 1st Theater Sustainment Command and the 143d Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) participated in various social and spiritual activities to celebrate the holiday season.
On Christmas Eve hundreds of service members, Department of Defense civilians and contractors gathered at a hangar decked out for the holidays. Put together by 1st TSC and 143d ESC Soldiers along with the helping hands of Morale, Welfare and Recreation employees, the event included a buffet dinner, a visit from St. Nicholas and a secret Santa gift exchange in front of a Christmas tree. Several Soldiers and civilians demonstrated their singing or dancing skills on stage during a “Camp Arifjan’s Got Talent” show judged by members of the 143d ESC’s junior enlisted ranks.
Though the celebration generated much laughter and applause from the lively crowd, some Soldiers opted to spend Christmas Eve at a more solemn venue.
Chaplains and chaplain assistants deployed to Camp Arifjan hosted a Christmas Eve vigil at the post chapel that evening. The nondenominational Christian service wove scripture readings and traditional Christmas carols before the congregation brought the service to its climax as it illuminated the chapel with hundreds of lit candles.
The celebration continued the next day with a 5k run and a Christmas feast served by the 1st TSC and 143d ESC’s senior leadership at Camp Arifjan’s Dining Facilities. The 143d ESC also hosted a barbecue lunch as well as various sporting activities such as volleyball and cornhole.
Photos by 1st Lt. Nicole Rossman, Staff Sgt. Ian Shay and Sgt. John L. Carkeet IV, 143d ESC
YOKOSUKA, Japan (Dec. 26, 2015) - Sailors conduct training during a simulated toxic gas casualty aboard the U.S. Navy's only forward-deployed aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76). Ronald Reagan provides a combat-ready force that protects and defends the collective maritime interests of its allies and partners in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Nathan Burke/Released) 151226-N-OI810-047
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PACIFIC OCEAN (September 05, 2016) - Marines with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit shoot at targets during a live fire exercise on the flight deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6). Bonhomme Richard, flagship of the Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group, is operating in the 7th Fleet area of operations in support of security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class David Holmes/Released) 160905-N-JS726-166
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I took this photo of the Bomber Command Memorial in London's Green Park on a cold winter’s late afternoon in 2016.
This memorial was a long time in the making. In the dark days of 1940 British prime minister Winston Churchill described bombers as "the means of victory", but the comfort of victory in 1945 allowed the country to acquire a conscience and Churchill never even mentioned Bomber Command in his speech at the end of the war. The controversy over the tactics employed by RAF Bomber Command meant that an official memorial to the aircrews was delayed for so many years.
The Bomber Command Memorial was designed by architect Liam O'Connor and was built using Portland stone. Within the memorial are the bronze sculpture by Philip Jackson of a Bomber Command aircrew, seven figures 9 feet tall representing the aircrew of a Bomber Command heavy bomber at the moment when they get off the aircraft and they've dumped all their heavy kit onto the ground. The space is open to the sky with an opening designed to allow light to fall directly onto sculptures of the aircrew, although it was quite dark when I took my photo. The rendering of the sky is a powerful symbol for the memorial.
The roof incorporates sections of aluminium recovered from a Handley Page Halifax III removed from a swamp in 1997. The plane was shot down over Belgium on the night of 12 May 1944, all eight crew being killed. Three members of the crew were still at their stations when the aircraft was excavated. They were buried in Belgium with full military honours alongside the five other members of the crew.
The Bomber Command Memorial commemorates the 55,573 who died while serving in the Bomber Command during the Second World War.
So far as I know the government declined to help funding for the memorial. An appeal was made for £5.6 million to build the memorial, and funding came from donations made by the public, as well as substantial amounts from Lord Ashcroft and businessmen John Caudwell and Richard Desmond. Robin Gibb, the singer, became a key figure behind the appeal, working alongside Jim Dooley to raise funds and have the memorial built. With a lack of forthcoming funds to pay for the projected £700,000 cost of the ceremony, a number of veterans put forward their own money as security for the event, making them liable for the costs if donations did not cover the total. The Ministry of Defence drew criticism for not providing any money, in particular the Defence Secretary, Philip Hammond, who attended the ceremony. In October 2012 it was reported that some of the trustees of the charity set up to fund the construction and opening of the Bomber Command Memorial would be liable for a shortfall of £500,000.
The memorial was dedicated and unveiled on 28 June 2012 by Queen Elizabeth. The ceremony was attended by 6,000 veterans and family members of those killed, and the Avro Lancaster of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight dropped red poppy petals over Green Park.