Military Combat

When enemies vanish into thin air, even the best can’t see what’s coming. Lieutenant Jason "Steel" Armstrong and his elite Marine unit thought their last mission tested them to their limits. Now, they’re back in action, tasked with a high-stakes operation in the unforgiving mountains of Afghanistan. Their target: a shadowy insurgent network that’s harnessed groundbreaking cloaking technology to evade detection and stockpile weapons for global destruction. Dubbed "Operation Mirage," the mission is anything but straightforward. Ambushes, hostile terrain, and a relentless enemy force ...

There's nothing glorious about war—despite what movies and books often show. Military veteran and author Jason Lambright shares its ugly side in the sci-fi novel The Captain's Cauldron. Captain Paul Thompson can't just shake off the rigors of war after his combat on Juneau 3, and his injuries are severe enough that his military career may be over. But the trauma runs even deeper—impacting not only him, but also those he loves. Paul finds his way back thanks to his family and treatment at a veterans hospital. He marries his high school sweetheart, and life is good. But the happiness is ...

Volumes 1 and 2 of Combat Veterans’ Stories of Small Wars and Nation Building present 20 autobiographical stories of men and women that were in fire fights, raids, and other dangerous situations that exposed them to enemy ordnance. Their stories give readers an understanding of warfare, as the US military has experienced it since the Vietnam War.

After the Citadel and Officer Candidate School, Andrew Z. Adkins Jr. was sent to the 80th Infantry Division, then training in the California-Arizona desert. There, he was assigned as an 81mm mortar section leader in Company H, 2nd Battalion, 317th Infantry Regiment. Lieutenant Adkins and his fellow soldiers took part in light hedgerow fighting that served to shake the division down and familiarize the troops and their officers with combat.

After surviving the brutal alien war on Pike Prime, Alex Taylor and his elite Spaceborne squad face a new mission on the desolate world of Lepus 328rb. Assigned to assist the Human Federation Exploration Corps, Alex and his team must uncover the mystery behind a long-dead alien civilization while protecting the scientists from an unknown threat. Alex will be forced to confront the scars of his past while forging unbreakable bonds with new allies, both human and alien. With powerful new foes emerging from the shadows and the fate of entire worlds hanging in the balance, Taylor and his battle...

For over a century, the United States of America has been the mightiest nation the world has ever seen This is due, in large part, to its citizen servants who risk life and limb for the preservation of the American way of life. Among these citizen soldiers, there exists an elite few who have dedicated their lives to the art of the rifle. Today, they bare the hard earned title “Sniper,” and while it is regarded as a relatively modern method of warfare, it turns out that they have been there since the birth cry of America. Discover the hidden history of America's elite snipers beyond the ...

Some warriors are drawn to the thrill of combat and find it the defining moment of their lives. Others fall victim to fear, exhaustion, impaired reasoning, and despair. This was certainly true for twentieth-century American ground troops. Whether embracing or being demoralized by war, these men risked their lives for causes larger than themselves with no promise of safe return.

The Marine Corps Martial Arts Program (MCMAP)—Full-Size Edition: From Beginner to Black Belt is a comprehensive guide to the United States Marine Corps' dynamic combat system, integrating martial arts techniques with the principles of the Marine Corps ethos. This manual covers a wide range of skills, including striking, grappling, chokes, throws, weapon manipulation, ground fighting, and defensive tactics against armed and unarmed attackers. Designed to develop the "warrior ethos," it emphasizes mental and character discipline alongside physical techniques.

Combat Talons in Vietnam is a personal account of the first use of C-130s in the Vietnam War. One night, John Gargus, a mission planner, oversaw an operation in which the aircraft - carrying 11 crew members - failed to return from a nighttime mission. For 30 years, a search for the missing aircraft remained in progress. When wartime mission records were declassified, Gargus embarked on a long journey of inquiry, research, and puzzle-solving to reconstruct the events of that mission and the fate of its crew.

In this book, you will find my story as a kid from Iowa who joined the military and rose to the senior most enlisted position in the entire US Armed Forces, the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (SEAC) through an almost 38-year career. I discuss key issues of living this warrior life including leadership, combat, PTSD, resilience in the face of adversity, and the importance of family.

U.S. Army Captain Kimberly N. Hampton was living her dream: flying armed helicopters in combat and commanding D Troop, 1st Squadron, 17th Cavalry, the armed reconnaissance aviation squadron of the 82nd Airborne Division. On January 2, 2004, Captain Hampton was flying an OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopter above Fallujah, Iraq, in support of a raid on an illicit weapons marketplace, searching for an illusive sniper on the rooftops of the city. A little past noon her helicopter was wracked by an explosion....

In a future where humanity has spread to the stars, young Alex Taylor is about to begin his compulsory term of military service in the Human Federation Defense Force. As a new recruit in the elite Spaceborne Division, Alex will be responsible for protecting the Hunter system and the Human Federation from alien threats. But nothing can prepare Alex for the realities of interstellar war. Alex and his fellow Spaceborne troops are deployed to the alien world of Pike Prime. Battling a ruthless enemy on foreign soil, Alex must fight not only for his own survival, but for the fate of the Human ...

One soldier. Armed. Dangerous. And Lost. It was the biggest raid in the history of Dynamic Operations. Cryne had trained his entire career for this. One second, he was en route to the enemy’s capital via an experimental transport system; the next, he was alone in an empty forest. Something was off. Way off. In need of answers and a way home, Cryne will have to rely on years of training and combat skills to get himself back to where he belongs. If that’s even possible….

Sometimes the hardest battle is the one after the war. As one of the soldiers on the front line of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Lieutenant Scotti was taught that weakness is what gets you killed: No hesitation, focus your energies on your objective, and complete the mission. Upon returning from war, Scotti approached his new life the same way. He ignored the creeping depression and numbness he called "The Blue Cascade" and charged ahead toward his goal to get an MBA, secure a high-paying finance job, and retire young and rich.

In October 2018, defense secretary Gavin Williamson announced that all roles in the military would now be open to women. Although this marks a historic shift, officially allowing British women into combat roles, the presence of women on the front lines dates back to antiquity. Beginning with the founding myth of the Amazons, Julie Wheelwright explores the history of women in arms. She traces our fascination with these figures, many of whom successfully disguised themselves as men, using primary sources and their own words to bring their experiences vividly to light.

In 1993, U.S. women earned the right to fly in combat, but the full story of how it happened is largely unknown. The Fly Girls Revolt chronicles the actions of a band of women who overcame decades of discrimination and prevailed against bureaucrats, chauvinists, anti-feminists, and even other military women. Drawing on extensive research, interviews with women who served in the 1970s and 1980s, and her personal experiences in the Air Force, Eileen Bjorkman weaves together a tale of the women who fought for the right to enter combat and be treated as equal partners in the U.S. military.

I commanded American soldiers in Vietnam in 1968. I experienced the magnificence of the human spirit as my men triumphed over incredible adversity. This is a story that must be told. My men showed me that Americans are special, with a special destiny. Their bravery and courage was inspiring. I was transformed by our experience. By the way, I was the first captain in the US Army to ever receive the Legion of Merit. General Douglas MacArthur once said, "Only in combat can men experience the ultimate love and camaderie of the human experience. Only in combat can mankind rise to the highest ...

The Army's need: An automatic pistol with the stopping power of the .45 caliber Colt single action Army revolver. Colt and John Browning collaborated to meet the Army's need. The result was the greatest combat pistol ever designed. This book examines why the Army insisted on .45 caliber, the innovation required to meet that requirement, and how the model of 1911 beat the competition in reliability, function, and feel.

An American Combat Bird Dog Pilot is a compelling look at the life and times of a member of the Silent Generation. Mike Leonard’s story chronicles not only his breathtaking combat adventures, but the unforeseen perils that nearly sidetracked him during his time as an international sales executive. This spellbinding narrative paints a vivid portrait of a man, as the Chinese proverb clearly states, "living in interesting times".

The fascinating, improbable true story of Maxwell Knight - the great MI5 spymaster and inspiration for the James Bond character M. Maxwell Knight was perhaps the greatest spymaster in history. He did more than anyone in his era to combat the rising threat of fascism in Britain during World War II, in spite of his own history inside this movement. He was also truly eccentric - a thrice-married jazz aficionado who kept a menagerie of exotic pets - and almost totally unqualified for espionage. Yet he had a gift for turning practically anyone into a fearless secret agent.