Oftentimes, when we hear the word "hero" our minds may drift back in time to previous land and air battles. Thoughts of the great World Wars, Korean War, and Vietnam produced many great heroes from which we draw strength, courage, and warrior...
The NCOs of Easy Company, 2-506th Parachute Infantry Regiment played a critical role in the successes that the company achieved during World War II. From the formation of the company, the NCO corps was the one constant and stable factor in the...
The buzzword going around our Army today is transformation. As soldiers throughout the world accept and implement the vision of our nation's leaders, the Army is poised to meet the challenges of the 21st century. A similar condition existed just...
Over the past 227 years, the noncommissioned officers rank insignia has evolved from a hodgepodge of emblems, such as feathers, sashes, epaulets, stripes, and other displays to the current stripes and arcs of today. The history of chevrons can...
African-Americans had been an integral part of the United States Navy since the days of John Paul Jones. When the United States entered World War II, the Navy restricted African-American recruits to the steward's branch. Despite the restriction, on...
Military Intelligence, especially in the United States Army, often receives a great deal of kidding from the other branches. Who has not heard of the tired old joke about how military intelligence is an oxymoron; a contradiction in terms? When you...
On 7 December 1941, Japanese Forces conducted simultaneous attacks in several key areas of the Pacific Theater. These areas included Pearl Harbor, the Philippines, Wake Island, Guam, Hong Kong, and the Malay Peninsula. These attacks were designed...
Originally the U.S. Army thought there was no need to formally educate NCOs. However, lessons learned in Europe, the increased complexity of the battlefield, and increased technology made it apparent that U.S. Army NCOs needed to be educated. This...
The purpose of this research is to give a brief history about American Military Non-Commissioned Officers who served as members at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers. The Old Guard is an Honor Unit with great Distinction. The espirit de corps,...
The history of the United States Army, the Signal Corps, Army Air Corps and United States Air Force is full of many interesting facts. One is the little known fact that there have been enlisted pilots serving in our ranks from the beginning of...
On December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and President Franklin D. Roosevelt remarked that that day would be remembered in infamy. This attack not only threw the United States of America headlong into a devastating war with the...
The Contributions of Master Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez to the NCO Corps
Throughout military history the contributions of officers have been highlighted in various forums, often times over-shadowing the major contributions of noncommissioned...
From the beginning of the first explorers to the "New World", North America, the Native American has met them both with spears and open arms. As vast as the North American continent is, so are the Native Americans, with many Nations and tribes...
NCOs have not always been known as a professional corps. Unlike officers, NCOs did not have a formal education system. They were not given clear guidance on a career path or what education they needed. In the early stages on the job training is...
A man with a camera was walking along side of the road in Window Rock, Arizona, in 1973. Carl Gorman stopped and asked him if he needed a ride. The man with the camera said he wanted to learn more about the Navajo people. Until he found Gorman, he...
Few four-letter words in the English language can evoke the ice water down the spine electric shock of the word "lost". This phenomenon increases geometrically with compounding factors such as solitude, distance from friendly territory, weather and...
The Chief Enlisted Soldier in the Army is the primer enlisted position and with comes the awesome responsibility of caring, mentoring and enhancing the quality of life for all of the Army's enlisted soldiers, a task not be taken lightly. When you...
The story of MSG Roy P. Benevidez presents him like a typical war hero. He was very poor, did not like school, and grew up in a rough south Texas neighborhood. Roy left home at a young age in order to make a better life for himself. Because of his...
Although the position of the Sergeants Major of the Army (SMA) is as common as today's squad leader, there may be a few facts that are not well known. Many soldiers know that the sergeant major was originally a part of the old Continental Army of...
The origins and history of the Army Medical Department's (AMEDD) Medical NCO Corps provides insight for today's Noncommissioned Officer. The history of the AMEDD Hospital Steward is as diverse and complicated as any other NCO in the United States...