Sleepy far-flung towns in the Philippines will host US forces returning to counter China threats
After withdrawing from two huge U.S. military bases in the Philippines at the end of the Cold War in the early 1990s, American forces are returning and building a new presence in nine sites on Philippine bases under a 2014 defense pact to counter China's increasingly assertive actions.
Pentagon review calls for reforms to reverse spike in sexual misconduct at military academies
A new report says the U.S. military academies must improve their leadership, stop toxic practices such as hazing, and shift behavior training into the classrooms in order to address an alarming spike in sexual assaults and misconduct.
Navy probe prompted by suicides condemns conditions at shipyard: 'We let our people down'
A Navy investigation triggered by a series of suicides is recommending widespread improvements in housing, food, parking and internet for sailors, as well as changes to mental health and other personnel programs.
Driver fleeing hit-and-run crash dies after trying to ram gate at Naval Air Station in Jacksonville
A driver who attempted to crash through the Birmingham Gate at Naval Air Station Jacksonville died after gate sentries deployed the protective barrier that stopped the vehicle from entering the base, Navy officials said.
Navy expands boot camp to sharpen focus on character issues
The Navy is adding two weeks to boot camp in a major overhaul aimed at improving recruits' war fighting and emergency skills while also focusing on suicide prevention and character issues such as sexual assault, hazing and extremism in the ranks.
Across services, troops face discipline for refusing vaccine
U.S. officials say all of the military services have now begun disciplinary actions and discharges for troops who have refused to get the mandated coronavirus vaccine, with as many as 20,000 unvaccinated forces at risk of being removed from service.
Police arrest Clermont attempted homicide suspect after searching for her for nearly 3 weeks
Law enforcement officers with the Clermont Police Department, lake County Sheriffโs Office and the Polk County Sheriffโs Office arrested a woman wanted for attempted homicide after searching for her for nearly three weeks.
Coworkers: Man charged in Capitol riot had a Hitler mustache
FILE - In this Jan. 6, 2021 file photo rioters supporting President Donald Trump storm the Capitol in Washington. An Army reservist charged with taking part in the attack on the U.S. Capitol was known as a Nazi sympathizer who wore a Hitler mustache, coworkers told federal investigators. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)WASHINGTON โ An Army reservist charged with taking part in the attack on the U.S. Capitol was known as a Nazi sympathizer who wore a Hitler mustache, coworkers told federal investigators. The filing included photos from Hale-Cusanelliโs cellphone of him with a Hitler mustache, along with pro-Nazi cartoons. Jonathan Zucker, Hale-Cusanelliโs attorney, wrote in a filing that there was no evidence his client belongs to any white supremacist organizations.
Mexico's last island penal colony may now host cruise ships
Visitors will be able to tour the remote island jail, but not stay overnight. AdโVisitors will have their first contact with the former island prison which for 100 years sheltered numerous criminals,โ Torruco said. When Panama closed its Isla Coiba penal colony in 2004, Isla Marias became the last one remaining in the Americas. But in the end, the Islas Marias wound up costing Mexico far more per prisoner than did mainland jails. Chile closed its Santa Maria prison island in the late 1980s, Costa Ricaโs Isla San Lucas penal colony closed in 1991 and Brazilโs Isla Grande in 1994.
โI wouldnโt be here today if it werenโt for these heroes:โ Monument honors crew members who died in Oviedo plane crash
Jim Jones remembers still remembers that day almost 60 years later. He was a junior at the Oviedo School, which served students in first through 12th grade. Jones remembers being in English class and looking out the window to see a sight he will never forget. The Oviedo Preservation Project said the plane left the Sanford Naval Air Station and malfunctioned. The Oviedo Preservation Project is dedicating the marker on Saturday at 4 p.m. at the Lawton House located at 200 W. Broadway Street, Oviedo.
Hearing booms? Navy dropping inert bombs this week in Ocala National Forest
Donโt be alarmed if you hear loud booms this week, the Navy is just dropping bombs. This week, the Naval Air Station in Jacksonville is conducting inert bomb training at Pinecastle Range Complex in the Ocala National Forest. The range complex is about 2 miles west of the Camp Ocala campgrounds and near several hiking trails. AdItโs common for F-18 jet fighters and other Navy aircraft to drop bombs in the middle of the range. Anyone who has a noise complaint is asked to call the Fleet Area Control and Surveillance Facility in Jacksonville at 800-874-5059.
3 sailors have COVID on US ship that saw outbreak last year
FILE - In this July 9, 2020 file photo the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier makes its way into San Diego Bay as seen from San Diego. Three sailors aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt have tested positive for COVID-19, the Navy said Monday, Feb. 15, 2021, less than a year after a massive outbreak on the ship sidelined it in Guam for nearly two months. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)WASHINGTON โ Three sailors aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt have tested positive for COVID-19, the Navy said Monday, less than a year after a massive outbreak on the ship sidelined it in Guam for nearly two months. The outbreak on the ship last year was the largest the military has seen so far, with more than 1,000 sailors testing positive. Other ships that have been underway or at their home ports over the past year have had smaller numbers of sailors test positive, but none have had such a major outbreak.
Agriculture secretary nominee Vilsack endorses biofuels push
FILE - In this Dec. 11, 2020, file photo former Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, who the Biden administration chose to reprise that role, speaks during an event at The Queen theater in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)WASHINGTON โ Tom Vilsack, President Joe Biden's nominee for secretary of agriculture, pledged Tuesday to focus on climate change initiatives and work to address racial inequities in agricultural assistance programs. Vilsack, who testified before the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, would bring much on-the-job experience to the position. In addition to serving two terms as the governor of Iowa, he spent eight years as President Barack Obama's Agriculture Secretary. But if you donโt have a grocery store, what then?โAdVilsack seems to enjoy bipartisan support and faced no serious criticism from Republicans on the committee.
Navy pauses plan to move Wisconsin badger to Virginia museum
Naval Academy wants the state of Wisconsin to return the statue. The statue, crafted from melted-down cannons seized from Cuba during the Spanish-American War, was affixed to the first USS Wisconsin prior to World War I. The academy museum contacted state officials last March seeking the statue's return so it could be loaned to the nonprofit Nauticus Museum in Norfolk, Virginia, where the second USS Wisconsin is berthed as an exhibit. Academy museum director Claude Berube last week consulted with U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher, a Wisconsin Republican and former Marine. AdThe academy museum previously extended the state loan until mid-September due to COVID-induced closures in Norfolk.