Throughout 2011 we posted weekly slide shows of favorite military photos we’d come across in putting together our various publications and the DMN website. They are photos that sometimes depict important events, sometimes illustrate the everyday service of men and women in the armed forces, and sometimes just struck us as being great compositions or arresting images.This is a selection of our picks for the “best of the best.”
The Year’s Best Military Photos
A Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) approaches the multi-purpose amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) during Unit Level Training Assessment Sustainment (ULTRA-S) certifications. Iwo Jima was en route to Ft. Lauderdale to participate in Fleet Week Port Everglades 2011. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Zane Ecklund
U.S. Army 1st Lt. John Dundee, foreground, a platoon leader from Waterloo, Iowa, with Company A, 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry Regiment, leads a group of his soldiers up a hill June 15, 2011, outside the town of Dumlum, Laghman Province, Northeastern Afghanistan, outside Combat Outpost Najil. Photo by U.S. Army Staff. Sgt Ryan C. Matson, Task Force Red Bulls Public Affairs Office
A wall of water is thrown up by an 11-meter RHIB from Special Boat Team 20 during a tactical maneuver in a training exercise with service members from Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Panama and Peru at the Stennis Space Center as part of PANAMAX 2011. PANAMAX focuses on the defense of the Panama Canal, with participants from 17 countries, and involving more than 4,500 personnel throughout the U.S. Southern Command. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Elisandro T. Diaz
Chief Warrant Officer Five Tom Travis exits from a UH-60 Black Hawk over St. Mere Eglise drop zone at Fort Bragg, N.C. on July 13, 2011. Travis was jumping with the U.S. Army Civil Affairs Operations Command (Airborne) who were hosting the U.K.’s 4th Parachute Regiment in a joint training mission. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Felix R. Fimbres
A sailor aboard the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN 65) observing from the forecastle is dwarfed by the ship’s anchor as Enterprise returns to Mayport for a port visit. The Enterprise Carrier Strike Group was returning to homeport at Naval Station Norfolk after a deployment to the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet areas of responsibility. U.S. Navy photo by MC2 Gary Granger Jr.
A Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s AV-8B Harrier jump jet returns to USS Kearsarge for fuel and ammunition resupply while conducting air strikes in support of Joint Task Force Odyssey Dawn, March 20, 2011. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Michael S. Lockett
A Navy rigid hull inflatable boat launched from USS New Orleans carries maritime raid force members of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit to a vessel the force’s assault element later boarded during counter-piracy and counter-terrorism training miles from Southern California’s San Clemente Island, Aug. 14, 2011. The unit began its first sea-based exercise since becoming a complete Marine Air/Ground Task Force in May. DoD photo by Lance Cpl. Justin R. Stein
Mechanics from the Afghan national army air corps perform six-month maintenance on an MI-35E "Hind" helicopter in a hangar at the Kabul Air Base. DoD photo by MC1(AW) David M. Votroubek
Third Platoon, Bravo Battery of the Automatic Battalion, 2nd Battalion, 8th Field Artillery Regiment at FOB Pasab, Zharay District, Zabul province, Afghanistan, light up the night by firing illumination from their M777A2, 155 mm howitzer at suspected enemy movements July 20, 2011. DoD photo by Sgt. Christopher McCann
Airmen assigned to the 83rd Expeditionary Rescue Squadron fly an HH-60 Pave Hawk Feb. 9, 2011, over Afghanistan. U.S. Air Force photo by Capt. Erick Saks
A U.S. soldier with 10th Special Forces Group and Pronto, his military working dog, jump off the ramp of a CH-47 Chinook helicopter from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment during water training over the Gulf of Mexico March 1, 2011, as part of exercise Emerald Warrior 2011. Emerald Warrior is an annual two-week joint/combined tactical exercise sponsored by U.S. Special Operations Command designed to leverage lessons learned from Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom in order to provide trained and ready forces to combatant commanders. DoD photo by Tech. Sgt. Manuel J. Martinez, U.S. Air Force
C-130J Super Hercules aircraft from the 37th Airlift Squadron, Ramstein Air Base, Germany, fly in a 10-ship formation over southern Germany, Oct. 5, 2011, during Europe's first Full-Spectrum Training Environment rotation. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Stephen J. Otero
A military freefall parachutist course student conducts a high-altitude, low-opening airborne operation at the Military Freefall School at Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz. A parachutist course instructor stays close by to ensure the student's safety throughout the free fall and critique his performance back on the ground. Courtesy photo via USASOC
The 3-year-old daughter of Petty Officer 2nd Class Jerome Cinco, a hospital corpsman with Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, holds her father close before his departure from Marine Corps Base Hawaii on a seven-month deployment to Afghanistan, April 25, 2011. Over the course of the week, approximately 550 Marines and sailors from 1/12 left Hawaii to replace 1st Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment, in Afghanistan’s Helmand province in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. DoD photo by Cpl. Reece E. Lodder
U.S. Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft land on the flight line at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., April 9, 2011. Instructor pilots and students were conducting flight operations in support of Weapons and Tactics Instructor’s Course 2-11, hosted by Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron (MAWTS) 1. DoD photo by Cpl. Richard A. Tetreau, U.S. Marine Corps
U.S. Army Pfc. Ben Bradley (left), a Bulldog Troop, Red Platoon scout (7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment), ducks away from small-arms fire as fellow scout Sgt. Jeff Sheppard loads his M203 to launch a grenade at the enemy’s position during a combat engagement in northern Bala Murghab Valley, Baghdis Province, Afghanistan April 4, 2011. Bradley, Sheppard, U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Kevin Wallace, U.S. Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Ryan Lee and his military working dog ‘Valdo’ were all wounded by a rocket propelled grenade blast in the engagement. All suffered minor wounds and Valdo was critical, but survived the attack. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Kevin Wallace
An Afghan Air Force Mi-17 transport helicopter descends for a landing during a combat resupply mission in Barge Matal in the northern Kunar Valley March 10, 2011. The AAF worked in cooperation with the Ministry of the Interior and coalition forces to complete the mission, using ten aircraft to deliver over 9,000 kilograms of weapons, ammunition and food to Afghan National Police (ANP) stationed in the remote post that is seen as vital by Afghan officials due to its proximity to Pakistan and history of insurgent activity. Following the supply drop-off, forces loaded over 80 ANP bound for their respective homes following a three to six month deployment to the region. ISAF photo
Kathryn Lamphere, a fourth class cadet at the Coast Guard Academy, braces herself against the side of the Coast Guard Cutter Eagle as a large wave crashes against the ship, May 9, 2011. The storm moved up the Gulf Stream into the path of Eagle, colliding with another low-pressure system the ship had found itself in after setting sail. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Thomas Burckell
U.S. Army Pfc. Shawn Williams of the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division based in Fort Wainwright, Alaska, gives the thumbs-up to members of his unit as he is evacuated after being injured by a roadside bomb, Friday, June 17, 2011, in the Kandahar Province of Afghanistan. ISAF photo by U.S. Navy Lt. j.g. Haraz N. Ghanbari
Sailors assigned to Riverine Squadron (RIVRON) 3 and Marines from the Royal Netherlands Marine Corps perform a right echelon maneuver in riverine assault boats during a three-week cross-training exercise at Camp Lejeune to exchange tactics and refine skills. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Paul D. Williams
Lt. Ryan Ramsden, assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 5, performs a head-first, or Australian, rappel off a tower while training with members of the Australian Northern Territory Tactical Response Group during exercise Talisman Sabre 2011. Talisman Sabre is a bilateral exercise intended to train Australian and U.S. Forces in planning and conducting combined task force operations. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Jennifer A. Villalovos
Marines in amphibious assault vehicles with Combat Assault Battalion, Ground Combat Element, 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade Forward, III Marine Expeditionary Force, train with smoke grenades in Thailand Feb. 11, 2011, during Exercise Cobra Gold 2011. Cobra Gold 2011 is a yearly multinational, joint training exercise designed to improve partner nation interoperability. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Pfc. Mark W. Stroud
The U.S. Navy flight demonstration squadron, the Blue Angels, performs the Loop Break Cross maneuver at the Guardians of Freedom Air Show on the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The Blue Angels performed in Lincoln as part of the 2011 show season and in celebration of the Centennial of Naval Aviation. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Jen Blake
Two Chinooks and four Black Hawks, along with two Apache gunships to provide air support, all from the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade, support soldiers assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team for an air assault on an objective as part of their Full Spectrum Training Environment being held at Hohenfels Germany. U.S. Army Europe Public Affairs photo by Richard Bumgardner
U.S. soldiers with 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division return fire during a firefight with Taliban forces in Barawala Kalay Valley in Kunar province, Afghanistan, March 31, 2011. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Cameron Boyd
CH-46 "Phrogs" warm up on deck as U.S. Marines assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), Maritime Raid Force prepare for an exercise aboard the flight deck of the amphibious transport dock ship USS New Orleans (LPD 18) during a training exercise in the Pacific Ocean Oct. 9, 2011. New Orleans and the 11th MEU were conducting predeployment training with the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group. U.S Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Dominique Pineiro
Soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division ride in a C-130 Hercules during an air transport mission in support of Operation New Dawn in March 2011. A C-130 crew from the 746th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron transported the soldiers out of Iraq on the first leg of their return trip home after completing their deployment. U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Adrian Cadiz
Naval Air Crewman 2nd Class Bret Pembleton, assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 12, greets his son after a six-month deployment aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72). HSC-12 is part of the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, which was deployed to the U.S. 5th and 7th Fleet areas of responsibility. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Benjamin Crossley
U.S. Army 1st Lt. John Dundee, foreground, a platoon leader from Waterloo, Iowa, with Company A, 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry Regiment, leads a group of his soldiers up a hill June 15, 2011, outside the town of Dumlum, Laghman Province, Northeastern Afghanistan, outside Combat Outpost Najil. Photo by U.S. Army Staff. Sgt Ryan C. Matson, Task Force Red Bulls Public Affairs Office
A wall of water is thrown up by an 11-meter RHIB from Special Boat Team 20 during a tactical maneuver in a training exercise with service members from Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Panama and Peru at the Stennis Space Center as part of PANAMAX 2011. PANAMAX focuses on the defense of the Panama Canal, with participants from 17 countries, and involving more than 4,500 personnel throughout the U.S. Southern Command. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Elisandro T. Diaz
Chief Warrant Officer Five Tom Travis exits from a UH-60 Black Hawk over St. Mere Eglise drop zone at Fort Bragg, N.C. on July 13, 2011. Travis was jumping with the U.S. Army Civil Affairs Operations Command (Airborne) who were hosting the U.K.’s 4th Parachute Regiment in a joint training mission. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Felix R. Fimbres
A sailor aboard the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN 65) observing from the forecastle is dwarfed by the ship’s anchor as Enterprise returns to Mayport for a port visit. The Enterprise Carrier Strike Group was returning to homeport at Naval Station Norfolk after a deployment to the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet areas of responsibility. U.S. Navy photo by MC2 Gary Granger Jr.
A Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s AV-8B Harrier jump jet returns to USS Kearsarge for fuel and ammunition resupply while conducting air strikes in support of Joint Task Force Odyssey Dawn, March 20, 2011. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Michael S. Lockett
A Navy rigid hull inflatable boat launched from USS New Orleans carries maritime raid force members of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit to a vessel the force’s assault element later boarded during counter-piracy and counter-terrorism training miles from Southern California’s San Clemente Island, Aug. 14, 2011. The unit began its first sea-based exercise since becoming a complete Marine Air/Ground Task Force in May. DoD photo by Lance Cpl. Justin R. Stein
Mechanics from the Afghan national army air corps perform six-month maintenance on an MI-35E "Hind" helicopter in a hangar at the Kabul Air Base. DoD photo by MC1(AW) David M. Votroubek
Third Platoon, Bravo Battery of the Automatic Battalion, 2nd Battalion, 8th Field Artillery Regiment at FOB Pasab, Zharay District, Zabul province, Afghanistan, light up the night by firing illumination from their M777A2, 155 mm howitzer at suspected enemy movements July 20, 2011. DoD photo by Sgt. Christopher McCann
Airmen assigned to the 83rd Expeditionary Rescue Squadron fly an HH-60 Pave Hawk Feb. 9, 2011, over Afghanistan. U.S. Air Force photo by Capt. Erick Saks
A U.S. soldier with 10th Special Forces Group and Pronto, his military working dog, jump off the ramp of a CH-47 Chinook helicopter from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment during water training over the Gulf of Mexico March 1, 2011, as part of exercise Emerald Warrior 2011. Emerald Warrior is an annual two-week joint/combined tactical exercise sponsored by U.S. Special Operations Command designed to leverage lessons learned from Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom in order to provide trained and ready forces to combatant commanders. DoD photo by Tech. Sgt. Manuel J. Martinez, U.S. Air Force
C-130J Super Hercules aircraft from the 37th Airlift Squadron, Ramstein Air Base, Germany, fly in a 10-ship formation over southern Germany, Oct. 5, 2011, during Europe's first Full-Spectrum Training Environment rotation. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Stephen J. Otero
A military freefall parachutist course student conducts a high-altitude, low-opening airborne operation at the Military Freefall School at Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz. A parachutist course instructor stays close by to ensure the student's safety throughout the free fall and critique his performance back on the ground. Courtesy photo via USASOC
The 3-year-old daughter of Petty Officer 2nd Class Jerome Cinco, a hospital corpsman with Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, holds her father close before his departure from Marine Corps Base Hawaii on a seven-month deployment to Afghanistan, April 25, 2011. Over the course of the week, approximately 550 Marines and sailors from 1/12 left Hawaii to replace 1st Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment, in Afghanistan’s Helmand province in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. DoD photo by Cpl. Reece E. Lodder
U.S. Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft land on the flight line at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., April 9, 2011. Instructor pilots and students were conducting flight operations in support of Weapons and Tactics Instructor’s Course 2-11, hosted by Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron (MAWTS) 1. DoD photo by Cpl. Richard A. Tetreau, U.S. Marine Corps
U.S. Army Pfc. Ben Bradley (left), a Bulldog Troop, Red Platoon scout (7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment), ducks away from small-arms fire as fellow scout Sgt. Jeff Sheppard loads his M203 to launch a grenade at the enemy’s position during a combat engagement in northern Bala Murghab Valley, Baghdis Province, Afghanistan April 4, 2011. Bradley, Sheppard, U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Kevin Wallace, U.S. Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Ryan Lee and his military working dog ‘Valdo’ were all wounded by a rocket propelled grenade blast in the engagement. All suffered minor wounds and Valdo was critical, but survived the attack. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Kevin Wallace
An Afghan Air Force Mi-17 transport helicopter descends for a landing during a combat resupply mission in Barge Matal in the northern Kunar Valley March 10, 2011. The AAF worked in cooperation with the Ministry of the Interior and coalition forces to complete the mission, using ten aircraft to deliver over 9,000 kilograms of weapons, ammunition and food to Afghan National Police (ANP) stationed in the remote post that is seen as vital by Afghan officials due to its proximity to Pakistan and history of insurgent activity. Following the supply drop-off, forces loaded over 80 ANP bound for their respective homes following a three to six month deployment to the region. ISAF photo
Kathryn Lamphere, a fourth class cadet at the Coast Guard Academy, braces herself against the side of the Coast Guard Cutter Eagle as a large wave crashes against the ship, May 9, 2011. The storm moved up the Gulf Stream into the path of Eagle, colliding with another low-pressure system the ship had found itself in after setting sail. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Thomas Burckell
U.S. Army Pfc. Shawn Williams of the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division based in Fort Wainwright, Alaska, gives the thumbs-up to members of his unit as he is evacuated after being injured by a roadside bomb, Friday, June 17, 2011, in the Kandahar Province of Afghanistan. ISAF photo by U.S. Navy Lt. j.g. Haraz N. Ghanbari
Sailors assigned to Riverine Squadron (RIVRON) 3 and Marines from the Royal Netherlands Marine Corps perform a right echelon maneuver in riverine assault boats during a three-week cross-training exercise at Camp Lejeune to exchange tactics and refine skills. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Paul D. Williams
Lt. Ryan Ramsden, assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 5, performs a head-first, or Australian, rappel off a tower while training with members of the Australian Northern Territory Tactical Response Group during exercise Talisman Sabre 2011. Talisman Sabre is a bilateral exercise intended to train Australian and U.S. Forces in planning and conducting combined task force operations. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Jennifer A. Villalovos
Marines in amphibious assault vehicles with Combat Assault Battalion, Ground Combat Element, 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade Forward, III Marine Expeditionary Force, train with smoke grenades in Thailand Feb. 11, 2011, during Exercise Cobra Gold 2011. Cobra Gold 2011 is a yearly multinational, joint training exercise designed to improve partner nation interoperability. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Pfc. Mark W. Stroud
The U.S. Navy flight demonstration squadron, the Blue Angels, performs the Loop Break Cross maneuver at the Guardians of Freedom Air Show on the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The Blue Angels performed in Lincoln as part of the 2011 show season and in celebration of the Centennial of Naval Aviation. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Jen Blake
Two Chinooks and four Black Hawks, along with two Apache gunships to provide air support, all from the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade, support soldiers assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team for an air assault on an objective as part of their Full Spectrum Training Environment being held at Hohenfels Germany. U.S. Army Europe Public Affairs photo by Richard Bumgardner
U.S. soldiers with 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division return fire during a firefight with Taliban forces in Barawala Kalay Valley in Kunar province, Afghanistan, March 31, 2011. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Cameron Boyd
CH-46 "Phrogs" warm up on deck as U.S. Marines assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), Maritime Raid Force prepare for an exercise aboard the flight deck of the amphibious transport dock ship USS New Orleans (LPD 18) during a training exercise in the Pacific Ocean Oct. 9, 2011. New Orleans and the 11th MEU were conducting predeployment training with the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group. U.S Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Dominique Pineiro
Soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division ride in a C-130 Hercules during an air transport mission in support of Operation New Dawn in March 2011. A C-130 crew from the 746th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron transported the soldiers out of Iraq on the first leg of their return trip home after completing their deployment. U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Adrian Cadiz
Naval Air Crewman 2nd Class Bret Pembleton, assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 12, greets his son after a six-month deployment aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72). HSC-12 is part of the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, which was deployed to the U.S. 5th and 7th Fleet areas of responsibility. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Benjamin Crossley
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