News
Pentagon codifies fitness standards across branches
The Pentagon has codified sweeping changes to military fitness requirements, some of which Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered last fall. The new regulations, published Aug. 31, spell out testing timelines, standards for troops in combat arms specialties, guidelines for pregnancy and postpartum fitness and establish tracking mechanisms for testing results across the services. The policy incorpo...[Read More]
Pentagon confirms identity of soldier killed in Kuwait
The Pentagon confirmed Wednesday the identity of the sixth soldier killed by Iran in a March 1 drone strike that hit Port Shuaiba, Kuwait. The soldier was officially identified as Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert Marzan, 54, of Spotsylvania, Virginia. The Pentagon announced March 4 that Marzan was “believed to be” the sixth casualty, but a medical examiner had to confirm his identity. Marzan’s remai...[Read More]
Pentagon cuts back F-35 upgrades to slow schedule slips: Auditors
The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program is scaling back its ambitions for a slate of upgrades called Block 4, the Government Accountability Office said Wednesday, as the aircraft struggles with production delays, cost overruns and supply chain snarls. The downgrading of plans for F-35 upgrades, revealed in GAO’s report “F-35 Program: Actions Needed to Address Late Deliveries and Improve Future Devel...[Read More]
Pentagon cuts back F-35 upgrades to slow schedule slips: Auditors
The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program is scaling back its ambitions for a slate of upgrades called Block 4, the Government Accountability Office said Wednesday, as the aircraft struggles with production delays, cost overruns and supply chain snarls. The downgrading of plans for F-35 upgrades, revealed in GAO’s report “F-35 Program: Actions Needed to Address Late Deliveries and Improve Future Devel...[Read More]
Pentagon demands human performance data from services in fitness overhaul
The Pentagon has quietly set in motion a yearlong strategy to unify the military services’ approach to boosting human performance and reaching “Total Force Fitness,” emphasizing a data-driven approach to achieving the desired results. Two Pentagon memos released in May and obtained by Military Times offer a roadmap for “Warfighter Performance Optimization,” culminating next year in the rollout of ...[Read More]
Pentagon directs cyber, intelligence agencies to counter foreign election threats
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Pentagon’s cyber and intelligence agencies to prioritize the 2026 midterm elections, directing them to “mobilize every authorized asset, capability, and partnership under your command” to defend election infrastructure from foreign influence. The order was directed toward U.S. Cyber Command and the Defense Intelligence Enterprise in a Sept. 22 memorandum,...[Read More]
Pentagon escalates probe into Sen. Mark Kelly over lawful orders video
The Defense Department said this week it is accelerating its investigation into Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., a retired Navy pilot, for allegedly violating military law after he took part in a video with five other Democratic members of Congress urging service members to refuse illegal orders. The six released the video on social media on Nov. 18, amid ongoing U.S. military strikes against alleged dru...[Read More]
Pentagon escalates probe into Sen. Mark Kelly over lawful orders video
The Defense Department said this week it is accelerating its investigation into Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., a retired Navy pilot, for allegedly violating military law after he took part in a video with five other Democratic members of Congress urging service members to refuse illegal orders. The six released the video on social media on Nov. 18, amid ongoing U.S. military strikes against alleged dru...[Read More]
Pentagon expands firearm access for off-duty military members on base
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday signed a directive allowing service members to request permission to carry privately owned firearms on military installations while off duty, the Pentagon said in a statement. “The War Department’s uniformed service members are trained at the highest and unwavering standards. These warfighters — entrusted with the safety of our nation — are no less entitl...[Read More]
Pentagon expands hormone screening guidance to include female service members
The Defense Health Agency has explicitly established a hormone-screening pathway for female service members, directing providers to screen women annually for hormonal dysregulation and establishing clinical pathways for problems ranging from menstrual irregularities and fatigue to perimenopause and menopause. The Sept. 2 guidance, signed by DHA Director Vice Adm. Darin Via, establishes clinical pa...[Read More]
Pentagon failed to assess impact of cuts to civilian workforce, watchdog finds
A new Government Accountability Office (GAO) probe has found that the Pentagon failed to evaluate the effects of recent civilian personnel reductions, leaving a substantial gap in understanding for key areas such as “readiness, workload, and lethality.” Roughly 78,000 civilian positions were eliminated in 2025 — about 10% of a workforce that originally exceeded 793,000. At the time, Defense Secret...[Read More]
Pentagon fails financial audit for 8th year in a row
The Pentagon failed its financial audit for the eighth consecutive year, the Defense Department said Friday, highlighting the ongoing systemic challenge the nation’s largest federal agency faces in fully accounting for its assets. The department has received a failing grade on every audit since Congress mandated annual reviews beginning in 2018, and is the only one of the government’s 24 major age...[Read More]