Author: Jack Bogart

JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va. (AFNS) — On a battlefield where information is the ultimate weapon, Air Combat Command’s Operations Analysis Squadron delivers combat-ready clarity, transforming complex data into the decision advantage that saves lives and wins fights. The mission at ACC OAS is to execute operational analysis by transforming data into decision advantage for ACC commanders and warfighters within combat airpower, cyberwarfare and intelligence formations. “Our job is to turn raw data into a decision advantage,” said Maj. Phillip Jenkins, ACC OAS director of operations. “We deliver solutions that provide commanders with a crystal-clear, evidence-based picture of readiness. Ultimately, this…

High Intensity Search and Scene Light Shines Over a Mile Away EAGLEVILLE, PA, April 24, 2026 – Streamlight®, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance flashlights, launched the LiteBox® 1Million®, the ultimate long-range search light. Engineered for demanding professional uses, the LiteBox 1Million delivers 1 million candela with a beam distance of over one mile. This rugged, rechargeable, next-generation scene light is both lighter and more compact than its predecessor, the HID LiteBox®. It has been updated to modern technology standards and is compatible with existing LiteBox accessories.The new light was introduced at FDIC International, April 23-25 in Indianapolis, IN. The…

President Donald Trump signed H.J. Res. 140 into law Monday, officially ending the 20-year federal mining withdrawal on 225,504 acres of Superior National Forest land near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The White House confirmed the signing on April 27. The resolution disapproves Public Land Order 7917, the 2023 Bureau of Land Management order that withdrew National Forest System lands in Cook, Lake, and Saint Louis counties from mineral and geothermal leasing for 20 years. That means the Biden-era land protection is now overturned. It also means the fight over mining near one of the country’s most visited wilderness…

The best hiking shoes are light, efficient, protective, and keep your feet cool on trails. You’ll give up a bit of ankle support with a shoe versus a boot, but many find the increased comfort and performance are worth the trade-off. This guide combines the perspectives of prolific thru-hiker Chris Carter, consummate woodsman Nick LeFort, and trail runner, hiker, and hunter Sean McCoy. Between them, they’ve spent thousands of miles testing hiking shoes from the eastern forest of Appalachia to granite peaks in California. For this guide, the team has tested 30 pairs of hiking shoes over the past 6…

GA-ASI Congratulates VMU-3 for Being Named USMC UAV Squadron of the Year SAN DIEGO – 27 April 2026 – General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), supplier of the MQ-9A Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) for the U.S. Marines Corps (USMC), congratulates VMU-3 for being named the USMC’s UAV Squadron of the Year by the Marine Corps Aviation Association (MCAA). The 2026 “John I. Hudson Award” recognizes VMU-3’s operational effectiveness in using the MQ-9A platform within the Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF) and the MAGTF Unmanned Expeditionary (MUX) program. USMC’s UAV Squadron VMU-3, located at Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii,…

After months of waiting, the T-bar was spinning at Crested Butte Mountain Resort. It had been an unseasonably dry December and January. Finally, the snow was stacked up enough to open the infamous High Lift, a surface lift serving double-black extreme terrain. After riding groomed runs and park laps all season, I was yearning to get off-piste and back into my favorite cliff bands. At the top of the lift, I strapped into a 160 W Jones Howler, with Jones Mercury FASE bindings, the perfect board in my quiver for big mountain freestyle riding. I strapped in and rode the…

Photo credit: iStock user GregorBister.There are things that criminals know that you don’t, but here are some lessons that will help really keep you safe.I recently attended the Crime and Criminals seminar presented by John Hearne of Two Pillars Training, an annual update he delivers through Citizen Safety Academy. It reinforced something most armed citizens intuitively sense but rarely see laid out this clearly: Much of what we believe about crime in America is either incomplete, misleading or simply wrong.Hearne holds a master’s degree in criminal justice with a concentration in research methods, a public safety career stretching back to…

A new model from Civivi is noteworthy for any aspiring butterfly knife maestros out there. The Dracolisk is a balisong model that the company is rolling out exclusively in edgeless, practice-friendly versions. Balisongs, maybe more than any other sub-genre in the knife market, are a world unto themselves. Not only are there enthusiasts who like to carry butterfly knives everyday, but there are many interested solely in flipping and related tricks it is possible to do with the format’s unique two-handle construction. But regardless of where a particular bali-head falls on that spectrum, there is always the looming necessity of…

Mistral Inc., with its Autonomous Systems partner, FUSE (formerly Flying Production), a subsidiary of Elbit Systems C4I & Cyber, to deliver a backpack-portable, rapidly deployable VTOL platform designed for multi-mission company-level operations BETHESDA, Md., April 27, 2026 — Mistral Inc.has been awarded a $20,039,666 firm-fixed-price contract by the U.S. Army for the procurement of the Thor System and payloads for the Small Uncrewed Aircraft Systems Product Office. The award was issued by Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, with an estimated completion date of March 17, 2027. Under the award (W58RGZ-26-G-0026), Mistral will deliver THOR UAS systems and various mission…

I’ve spent too many mornings frustrated with a soaking wet blind bag after wading across the marsh. This morning was different. As I slid the Divebomb Waterproof Zip Backpack off my shoulders and unzipped it, I was happy to see (and feel) my shells and camera gear were dry. While waterproof blind bags have been around for a while, I’ve never been a fan of the traditional roll-top dry bags. They waste a lot of space and never feel comfortable while on my back. After several months of using the Divebomb Waterproof Zip Backpack in the dove field and duck blind, I…