Humans have long been fascinated with the paranormal, the unusual, and the unexplained. These fascinations have helped turn us into the superstitious creatures we are today, and the superstitions we create aren’t limited to the lives of little old ...
The People Sniffer: A Strange Device Born During the Vietnam War
The Vietnam War, during which 58,000 Americans lost their lives, presented certain difficulties such as a humid climate and dense forest that made finding enemy troops problematic. In a desperate attempt to find ways to detect enemy forces, several ...
How the Flak Jacket Evolved From Burdensome Aircrew Protection to Modular Infantry Equipment
Wartime inventions span everything from the vehicles to weapons systems to camouflage — some of the most well known are the Huey helicopter and the jeep. While those fighting vehicles proved highly useful during battle, another invention that was ...
The Former US Marine Corps Scout/Sniper Who Never Quit Looking for a Fight
Many people go their whole lives never knowing what they want to be when they grow up or what they want to do. Justin Governale, however, always knew he would be a fighter, even if he didn’t necessarily know what it would take for him to get ...
How Omar ‘Crispy’ Avila Helps Children, Soldiers in a Way Few Can
Omar “Crispy” Avila has had a lot to overcome in his life, including surviving an explosive blast while serving overseas that threw his Humvee 6 feet in the air, killed his friends, left him with burns covering 75% of his body, and took one of his ...
How the US Air Force Was Born
Sept. 18, 1947, marks the day our youngest military branch flew the Army coop and became its own independent branch of the United States military. Now, hundreds of thousands of men and women pride themselves on being a part of the US Air Force and ...
How the World Class Athlete Program is Helping Soldiers Reach Olympic, Paralympic Goals
From a young age, Sgt. 1st Class Michael Lukow knew he wanted to be a soldier. He began his career as an infantryman and eventually deployed to Iraq in 2008. His life took a turn, however, when he chanced upon an improvised explosive device (IED) and ...
50 Years Ago Today, Nixon Made the Controversial Decision to Invade Cambodia
In his televised speech on April 30, 1970, President Richard Nixon shocked Americans with his sudden decision to invade the North Vietnamese in Cambodia, a neutral country during the Vietnam War. Due to this neutrality, Cambodia had weakened and the ...
Death from Above: The Vietnam War-Era Huey
From 1955 to 1975, the Vietnam War wreaked havoc on North Vietnam and South Vietnam in a struggle to unify the nation. North Vietnam sought to force its southern counterpart into communism, while the south struggled to retain a Western view on ...
‘It Did Everything’ — How the Jeep Made Military History in World War II
If you have ever lived on a military post, chances are you’ve seen that big, bright, shiny Jeep Wrangler. You were either envious and headed to the nearest dealership right away, or you muttered that oh-so loved contemptuous phrase, ...