An Army laboratory has figured out how to make ready-to-eat pizza that lasts for three years, and perhaps most surprisingly, it actually tastes good.

"It's a fully assembled and baked piece of pizza in one package," said Lauren Oleksyk, a food technologist at the US Army's Natick Soldier Research, Development, and Engineering Center, a lab that helps create the military's meals-ready-to-eat (MRE) rations.

Sometime in 2017, soldiers will be opening up MRE #37 and tearing into the pizza pouch, scarfing down a slice of pie that Oleksyk says tastes like "day after pizza" or the kind you'd find in a school cafeteria. While it won't taste nearly as good as a New York slice, it will likely be decent enough to lift morale in a combat zone.

"We've actually had feedback from the warfighter for years," Oleksysk said. "Pizza just seems appealing to all."

The Natick lab has been working on developing a pizza meal for about five years, among other interesting developments, like testing the possibility of 3D-printing food.

Making a pizza that can sit on a shelf for three years at 80 degrees was particularly challenging for Army researchers, since ingredients like pizza dough and sauce needs water for taste — which also introduces the possibility of mold. They used something called Hurdle technology to stop bacteria from forming.

With Hurdle technology, researchers create a series of "barriers" that stop bacteria from forming on the pizza over the years. This include such things as controlling sauce acidity, water, oxygen in the package, and proper layering of ingredients — though it still uses regular pizza components and dough.

"The only difference is in the sauce," Oleksyk said. "We control the pH so it's a little more acidic."

Still, researchers say they "received high marks" from soldiers in testing. In order to make sure it would last, Oleksyk said it went through a number of internal tests where they analyzed color, texture, and gathered baseline data.

Then they did an accelerated storage test by putting the pizza in a chamber at 100 degrees for six months, which Oleksyk says simulates 3 years at 80 degrees. It it's still edible after that, it's a winner.

While the pizza can be eaten straight out of the package like the cold pizza of your college years, soldiers can also warm them up if they have time. All MREs come with heaters that activate when mixed with water, so perhaps that year-old pizza can taste like it just came out of the oven in Afghanistan.

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NOW WATCH: An AT&T spokesperson and former refugee is now helping Syrian refugees in Greece

Sure, most people end up in one nice, consolidated grave. But these five generals were not “most people”:

1. Gen. “Mad” Anthony Wayne’s skeleton and flesh were buried 400 miles apart.

When Isaac Wayne arrived at the Army blockhouse in Erie, Pennsylvania, he expected to exhume his father’s bones and take them the 400 miles back to his hometown of Radnor, Pennsylvania for re-burial. His father was Gen. “Mad” Anthony Wayne, a Revolutionary War and Northwest Indian War hero.

When the remains were exhumed, the body was found to be in good condition despite 12 years having passed since Gen. Wayne’s death in 1796. Isaac’s cart was too small to move a complete body though, and so Isaac had the body dismembered and the flesh boiled off of it. Then, he took the bones the 400 miles back to Radnor. The boiled flesh and the tools used in the “operation” were reburied in Erie.

2. Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell was buried 640 miles from his leg.

A Confederate leader in the Civil War, Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell was seriously injured at the Second Battle of Manassas. His leg was amputated and buried in a local garden. Ewell returned to combat after a one-year convalescence and was taken prisoner near the end of the war.

He returned to private life before dying of pneumonia in 1872. He was buried in Nashville, Tennessee, 640 miles from his leg.

3. Maj. Gen. Daniel E. Sickles’ leg is in the Smithsonian.

SEE ALSO: '107 feet of fire-breathing titanium': A US Air Force major describes flying the fastest plane in history

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NOW WATCH: See 240 years of US Army uniforms in 2 minutes

The U.S. Army’s $30 billion replacement for its Humvee fleet is getting back on track after a federal court tossed out a request to stop work on the effort until a lawsuit over the program is resolved.

Wisconsin-based Oshkosh Defense can start working on the production of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) after the U.S. Court of Federal Claims denied a request by Lockheed Martin, which lost out on the massive contract last year, to halt the effort.

“This decision is another indication that the U.S. Army conducted a thorough, methodical procurement process, and we are confident that the original JLTV contract award to Oshkosh will be upheld,” Oshkosh CEO Wilson R. Jones said Friday in a statement.

The path forward for the JLTV isn’t completely clear, though. After filing a protest in September over the contract selection with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) – a common move after losing out on such a multibillion-dollar effort – Lockheed took the unusual step in December of filing a lawsuit, prompting GAO to reject the earlier complaint; that larger lawsuit is still going on. But for now Oshkosh can get to work on the Humvee replacement.

The JLTV could use the good news, since the program took a slight hit in the Defense Department’s fiscal 2017 budget request.

The Army wants to buy more than 49,000 of the vehicle and the Marine Corps has committed to buying 5,500. Both of the service’s ground fleets are in need of a major overhauls after more than a decade of operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The two services plan to spend $735 million to purchase 2,020 JLTVs next year, according to the plans unveiled earlier this week. While that is certainly a large number, the Marine Corps request – $113 million for 192 JLTVs – is smaller than the 269 vehicles it had originally planned.

Service officials have said the 29 percent decrease was aimed at freeing up funds for other programs, including the Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV). Fiscal 2017 budget documents show the Marine Corps is asking for $158 million for the service's next-generation amphibious vehicle, with BAE Systems and Science Applications International currently competing for the contract.

However, work on the ACV has stopped because General Dynamics Land Systems is protesting the service’s decision to award the two competitors contracts to build prototype vehicles.

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NOW WATCH: An 8-year-old was terrified after Trump's comments about Muslims — and a US Army member stepped up to help

SEE ALSO: Watch America's mighty M1 Abrams tank fire deadly rounds from its cannon

1. Artillery belches smoke and fire every time it shoots a round.

2. When crews emplace the weapons, they anchor them to the ground and set up aiming aids to ensure rounds go exactly where they should.

3. While the gun crews are emplacing the cannons, other artillerymen move the rounds to the firing point and prepare them for action.

A U.S. soldier wounded in an explosion will be the first person in the United States to receive a penis transplant, doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital said, which could open the way for about 60 other servicemen with genital injuries to have this surgery.

Surgeons hope a donated organ from a recently deceased man will provide full function including urination, sensation and sex. The surgery requires joining nerves and blood vessels under a microscope.

Doctors and advocates who work with wounded soldiers note that the loss of the penis is one of the most emotionally traumatic injuries because it affects a sense of identity and manhood, especially for men hoping to become fathers.

"When you meet these guys and you realize what they've given for the country, it makes a lot of sense," Dr. Richard Redett, a plastic surgeon at Johns Hopkins Hospital who will help perform the operation, told Reuters.

The recipient, who was not identified, lost most of his penis and had substantial groin injuries in a bomb explosion while deployed overseas. Media reports have said he was wounded in Afghanistan.

The surgery could occur in the coming weeks. Doctors are looking for a donor who is a good match in terms of age and skin color. The donor's family will need to give permission for the penis to be removed.

There have been two penis transplants in the world. The first in China in 2006 was unsuccessful. The second in South Africa in 2014 was a success.

Thor Wold, who served as a Marine medic in the Iraq war and now works as an advocate for veterans, said that after suffering genital injuries servicemen immediately wanted to know if they would still have sexual function.

"They would ask, 'Is everything OK down there, doc? My wife's at home and we're trying to have a baby when I get back,'" Wold told Reuters.

Redett said a veteran suffering from a blast injury could need to have not just his penis replaced but also the scrotum, part of the abdominal wall, groin tissue and part of the inner thigh.

"We've sorted out how to take that block of tissue from a donor and give it to a recipient," he said.

The penis transplant does not involve the testes, where sperm are produced, so if a man with a transplanted penis does father a child, the baby would be his genetic offspring, not the donor's.

While for now only wounded veterans are being considered for penis transplants, the surgery could eventually be performed on men with birth defects and transgender men and women.

(Reporting by Linda So, writing by Ian Simpson in Washington; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

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While hiding in a fortified two-level 3,000-square-foot underground bunker, one of history's most brutal tyrants promised the world that his empire would last 1,000 years.

Hitler's Third Reich lasted 12, officially ending on April 30, 1945, when the Führer committed suicide in his bunker with his new wife after learning that Allied forces had surrounded Berlin.

Before retreating to the Führerbunker, Hitler and top Nazi officials enjoyed lavish compounds in Berchtesgaden, a resort village in the Bavarian Alps.

These are the best surviving photographs of Allied troops reveling in the spoils of war at Hitler's private residence.

SEE ALSO: Hitler's secret Nazi war machines of World War II

Easy Company after taking the Eagle's Nest, Hitler's former residence.

A paratrooper of the 101st Airborne Division enjoys the view and a cognac while lounging on the terrace of Hitler's retreat at Berchtesgaden after the end of the war in 1945.

Maj. Dick Winters, Lewis Nixon, Harry Welsh, and two other battalion staff members, celebrate VE-Day in Berchtesgaden, Germany.

US paratroopers are some of the most daring members of the US military.

After completing US Army Airborne School, or Jump School, these volunteers are certified to conduct some of the most dangerous missions in the military. 

We have compiled some of our favorite images of US Army paratroopers below. 

SEE ALSO: Surreal photos of Marine night operations that look straight out of a video game

SEE ALSO: See if you can spot the armed camouflaged Marine watching you

Paratroopers with 1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division (Advise and Assist), exit a C-130 aircraft on February 12 at Al Asad Airbase, Iraq, as part of the largest airborne-training exercise conducted by US forces in Iraq since the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Paratroopers with the 82nd Airborne Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team and Afghan National Army soldiers with 6th Kandak, 203rd Corps, travel aboard a CH-47 Chinook heavy-lift helicopter during an air-assault mission May 4, 2012, Ghazni Province, Afghanistan.

Paratroopers jump from a C-17 Globemaster III over Malamute Drop Zone, Tuesday, June 4, 2013.

Retired Army Ranger Jack Murphy reveals what the vetting process is like for a top secret security clearance status.

Produced by Eames Yates

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As the varieties and utilities of drones quickly multiply, the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has quickly mounted throughout the US Armed Forces. 

From reconnaissance roles within the US Army to attack roles within the US Air Force, and with squadrons within both the Navy and the Marines, the proliferation of drones has touched every element of the US Armed Forces. 

The following graphic, from CI Geography, shows just how widespread the use of drones is within the US. You can see a larger version of the poster here: 

Currently, the US Air Force has the highest number of drone squadrons. The Air Force uses drones in reconnaissance, special operations, attack, and electronic squadrons. 

 The Navy, conversely, only fields the MQ-8B Fire Scout in two squadrons. The MQ-8B is a helicopter drone that is primarily used for reconnaissance, situational awareness, and to provide fire control. 

Altogether, according to the graphic, the US Armed Forces has 50 units that make use of UAVs in some capacity. 

SEE ALSO: These 3 charts show just how enormous the US Air Force really is

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NOW WATCH: The US Navy's last line of defense is this ultimate gun

The Army is preparing for the first official flights of two high-tech, next-generation aircraft now being designed with a wide range of abilities to include flying faster, flying farther without needing to refuel, operating in high-hot conditions and having an ability to both reach high speeds and hover like a helicopter.

The new aircraft are part of an Army-led effort, called Joint Multi-Role Technology Demonstrator, aimed at paving the way toward ultimately engineering a new fleet of aircraft for all the services to take flight by 2030.

Construction of two different high-tech, future oriented demonstrator helicopters is already underway in anticipation of ground testing later this year and initial flight testing next year, Dan Bailey, JMR TD program director, told Scout Warrior in an interview.

“Things are moving along very well. We are on schedule with exactly what our industry partners have planned,” he said.

While some of the eventual requirements for the new aircraft have yet to be defined, there are some notional characteristics currently being sought after by the program. They include an ability to travel at airplane-like speeds greater than 230 knots, achieve a combat radius of 434 kilometers, use a stronger engine and operate in what’s called “high-hot” conditions of 6,000-feet and 95-degrees Fahrenheit.

“We had set 230 as the speed requirement because we wanted to push the technology.  We wanted people to bring new ideas and new configurations to the table,” Bailey said in an interview with Scout Warrior several months ago.

A faster, more manueverable helicopter that can fly farther on one tank of fuel would enable forces in combat to more effectively engage in longer combat operations such as destroying enemy targets or transporting small groups of mobile, lethal ground fighters.

The new helicopter will also be designed to use next-generation sensors to find enemies on the move and employ next-generation weapons to attack them, Army officials describe. 

The JMR TD technology effort will inform a planned program of record called Future Vertical Lift, or FVL, which will design, build and test a series of next-generation aircraft for the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps.

“FVL is a high priority. We have identified capability gaps. We need technologies and designs that are different than what the current fleet has. It will carry more equipment, perform in high-hot conditions, be more maneuverable within the area of operations and execute missions at longer ranges,” Rich Kretzschmar, project manager for the FVL effort, told Scout Warrior in an interview several months ago.

The first flights of the demonstrator aircraft, slated for 2017, will include developmental helicopter/aircraft from two industry teams – Bell Helicopter and a Sikorsky-Boeing team.

TWO HELICOPTER DESIGNS

The Bell offering, called the V-280 Valor, seeks to advance tilt-rotor technology, wherein a winged-aircraft with two rotor blades over each wing seeks to achieve airplane speeds and retain an ability to hover and maneuver like a helicopter.

Bell’s V-280 recently finished what’s called a system-level design review where Army and Bell developers refine and prepare the design of the air vehicle.

“They have an air vehicle concept demonstrator that they call the third-generation tilt-rotor. Their fuselage was completed and it is being delivered to Bell for the build-up of the aircraft,” Bailey said.

Along with Boeing, Bell makes the V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft which is currently praised by military members for its excellent operational performance in recent years. The Osprey has two rotating rotor blades which align vertically when the aircraft is in helicopter mode and then move to a horizontal position when the aircraft enters airplane mode and reaches speeds greater than 280 knots.

The V-280 Valor also has two propellers which rotate from horizontal airplane mode to a vertical position, which allows for helicopter mode.  Bell officials have said their new aircraft will be able to reach speeds of 280 knots. Bell and Army officials explain that their V-280 Valor substantially advances tilt-rotor technology.

“What Bell has done is taking its historical V-22 aircraft, and all the demonstrators before that, and applies them to this next-generation tilt-rotor. It is a straight wing versus a V-22 which is not straight. This reduces complexity,” Bailey explained. “They are also building additional flapping into the rotor system and individual controls that should allow for increased low-speed maneuverability.”

The Sikorsky-Boeing demonstrator, called the SB>1 Defiant, uses a coaxial rotor system configuration. This is a design structure, referred to as a compound configuration, which relies upon two counter-rotating rotor blades on top of the aircraft and a thrusting mechanism in the rear.

“To make a rotorcraft go fast you have to off-load the rotor lift onto something else or else you run into problems when you try to reduce the speed of that rotor. Typically, you do that with a wing but Sikorsky-Boeing came up with a lift-offset design,” Bailey added.

The pusher-prop on the back of the aircraft is a small propeller behind the counter-rotating rotor heads. It is what can give the aircraft airplane-like speeds.  It operates with what’s called positive and negative pitch, allowing the aircraft to lean up or down and move both forwards and backwards, Boeing officials have said.

MISSION EQUIPMENT

The JMR TD program and the follow-on FVL effort will also integrate a wide range of next-generation sensors, weapons and avionics, Army officials explained. 

Some of these technologies will include a “fly-by-wire” technology allowing for a measure of autonomy or automation so that the helicopter can fly along a particular course by itself in the event that a pilot is injured or incapacitated. This is the kind of technology which could, in the future, allow for unmanned helicopter operations.

Along these lines, the Army is looking for technical solutions or mission equipment which increases a pilot's cognitive decision-making capability by effectively managing the flow of information from an array of sensors into the cockpit, Army program managers have explained.

Army JMR TD development documents describe autonomous capability in terms of the need to develop a Human Machine Interface, HMI, wherein advanced cockpit software and computing technologies are able to autonomously perform a greater range of functions such as on-board navigation, sensing and threat detection, thus lessening the burden placed upon pilots and crew, Army experts have explained. 

In particular, cognitive decision-aiding technologies explored for 4th-generation JMR cockpit will develop algorithms able to track, prioritize organize and deliver incoming on- and off-board sensory information by optimizing visual, 3-D audio and tactile informational cues.

The idea is to manage the volume of information flowing into the aircraft and explore how to best deliver this information without creating sensory overload. Some of this information may be displayed in the cockpit and some of it may be built into a helmet display, Army officials said.

Manned-Unmanned teaming, also discussed by Army developers, constitutes a significant portion of this capability; the state of the art with this capability allows helicopter pilots to not only view video feeds from nearby UAS from the cockpit of the aircraft, but it also gives them an ability to control the UAS flight path and sensor payloads as well. Future iterations of this technology may seek to implement successively greater levels of autonomy, potentially involving scenarios wherein an unmanned helicopter is able to perform these functions working in tandem with nearby UAS.

COUNTERMEASURE SYSTEMS

Integration is key to the Army's Mission Systems strategy, as the overall approach is aimed at fielding an integrated suite of sensors and countermeasure technologies designed to work in tandem to identify and in some cases deter a wide range of potential incoming threats, from small arms fire to RPGs, shoulder-fired missiles and other types of attacks.

One such example of these technologies is called Common Infrared Countermeasure, or CIRCM, a light-weight, high-tech laser-jammer engineered to divert incoming missiles by throwing them off course. CIRCM is a lighter-weight, improved version of the Advanced Threat Infrared Countermeasures, known as ATIRCM, system currently deployed on aircraft.

CIRCM, which will be fielded by 2018, represents the state of the art in countermeasure technology, officials said. Future iterations of this kind of capability envisioned for 2030 may or may not be similar to CIRCM, Army developers have said. Future survivability solutions will be designed to push the envelope toward the next-generation of technology, he explained. 

The mission equipment for the new aircraft will be tailored to the new emerging designs, service developers said.

Additional countermeasure solutions proposed by industry could include various types of laser technology and Directed Energy applications as well as missile-launch and ground-fire detection systems, Army officials said.

SENSOR TECHNOLOGIES

The new helicopter program is also working with its industry partners to develop a new technology which might improve upon the state-of-the-art Modernized Target Acquisition Designation Sight/Pilot Night Vision Sensor, or MTADS, systems currently deployed on helicopters; MTADS sensing and targeting technology provide helicopters thermal imaging infrared cameras as well stabilized electro-optical sensors, laser rangefinders and laser target designators.

The current, upgraded MTADS currently deployed on aircraft throughout the Army were engineered to accommodate the size, weight and power dimensions of today's aircraft, dimensions which will likely change with the arrival of a new Air Vehicle built for the new JMR demonstrator aircraft.

WEAPONS SYSTEMS

JMR Weapons Systems Integration is a critical part of this effort. The JMR aircraft will be engineered to integrate weapons and sensor systems to autonomously detect, designate and track targets, perform targeting operations during high-speed maneuvers, conduct off-axis engagements, track multiple targets simultaneously and optimize fire-control performance such that ballistic weapons can accommodate environmental effects such as wind and temperature, Army documents on the aircraft have stated.

AUTOMATIC AVOIDANCE

Air-to-Air "tracking" capability is another solution sought by the Army, comprised of advanced software and sensors able to inform pilots of obstacles such as a UAS or nearby aircraft; this technology will likely include Identify Friend or Foe, or IFF, transponders which cue pilots regarding nearby aircraft, Army officials have said.

Technical solutions able to provide another important obstacle avoidance "sensing" capability called Controlled Flight Into Terrain, or CFIT, are also being explored; in this instance, sensors, advanced mapping technology and digital flight controls would be engineered to protect an aircraft from nearby terrain such as trees, mountains, telephone wires and other low-visibility items by providing pilots with sufficient warning of an upcoming obstacle and, in some instances, offering them course-correcting flight options. 

Using sensors and other technologies to help pilots navigate through "brown-outs" or other conditions involving what's called a "Degraded Visual Environment" is a key area of emphasis as well.

The Army is looking at a range of solutions such as radar, electro-optical equipment, lasers, sensors, software, avionics and communications equipment to see what the right architecture is and how we would integrate all these things together.

PROGRESS THUS FAR

In addition to conducting the first official Army-industry flight of the two demonstrators, the program will conduct what’s called a Material Development Decision, which will begin to pave the way for the FVL acquisition program. This effort will conduct a thorough examination of all the available technologies and their performance through what is called an “analysis of alternatives.”

The MDD is slated for October of this year.

A key advantage of a joint FVL program is that it will engender further inter-operability between the services and, for example, allow an Army helicopter to easily be serviced with maintenance at a Marine Corps Forward Operating Base, Bailey explained.

Bell and Sikorsky-Boeing teams are both done with their subsystem critical design review and the components are in fabrication and safety flight testing, Bailey explained.

“Bell has a completed fuselage that is undergoing the nuances of getting landing gear attached to it and holes for wiring. They are complete with their wing build and they are just starting to make it to the engine itself,” Bailey said. 

 Later in April, Bell will begin to mount the wing to the fuselage.

“It really is starting to look like major components to the aircraft. By May it will likely look like a complete aircraft but it will not have all the subsystems,” he added.

The Sikorsky-Boeing – fuselage is almost complete as well, Bailey said.

“The transmission, main rotor and hubs have been forged and cast – they are in the process of preparing for final assembly,” he explained.

Both companies we have completed the final design and risk review, which is the government review of their process to say the Army understands the final design and the risks going forward.

“The demonstrators help to inform the feasibility both from the technical and affordability aspects of a future program of record,” Bailey said.

SEE ALSO: Beautiful pictures of the first-ever bombs dropped by an F-35 combat unit

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NOW WATCH: IAN BREMMER: Ukraine's government will fall apart 'by the end of this year'

Even as the Army’s senior leaders, active and retired, are agonizing yet again over the question of what kind of Army the American people want, the nation is beginning to get the Army it needs.

What the United States needs is an Army of sufficient capacity and capability that can deter a resurgent Russian military, counter advanced threats in the hands of nations and non-state actors in the Middle East and support the Joint Force in countering expansionist efforts by China.

There will be time for the Army to develop a grand strategy for the world we are facing, one that includes advanced vehicles, helicopters and weapons.

The challenge for the Army is to maintain a credible force structure while rapidly and relatively cheaply deploying systems to counter the emerging threat.

Operations in Crimea and the Ukraine show that the Russian army is back. It is demonstrating improved capabilities in tactical mobility, operational communications and even logistics.

Ukrainian forces were confronted by an array of new Russian systems and tactics. These included extensive use of cyber weapons and electronic warfare against command and control, massed artillery and mortar barrages directed by targeting drones, airmobile operations involving new generations of helicopters, advanced armored fighting vehicles, highly lethal and mobile air defense systems and even improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

Unlike past transformations of the Army such as the Pentomic division or the “Big Five,” this one is not being driven by headquarters and the massive acquisition commands. Instead, it is being driven by urgent operational needs flowing out of the combatant commands.

The Army is applying the lessons learned from more than a decade of dealing with thousands of urgent operational needs. It is seeking to get new capabilities that provide some level of improved performance over existing systems – the so-called 80-percent solution – at low cost while working on something better in the future.

For example, assessing the new Russian threat, the US Army Europe asked for a way of enhancing the lethality of its Stryker Brigade. The first answer was a new 30mm cannon. Rather than a massive new start program that might take a decade to reach fruition, the Army plans to have the new cannons deployed by 2018.

Now the Army is considering expanding this capability to a larger portion of the overall Stryker fleet. The Army also is looking at equipping the Stryker with an existing anti-tank missile, the Javelin.

The Army recognizes that it needs to counter the growing threat from advanced anti-tank guided missiles. These are deployed not only by the Russians but virtually all other potential US adversaries. As I have written elsewhere, the Army has plans to test a number of existing US and international systems that provide active protection for vehicles. At least one of these, the Trophy system, has actually been proven in combat with the Israeli Defense Forces in its 2014 conflict with Gaza.

A high priority for the Army, as identified in its 2017 unfunded priorities list, is to improve its ability to counter Russian artillery and rocket barrages. Not only does the Army need to acquire additional counter-fire radars, it needs to couple these with a relatively low-cost active defense against rockets, artillery, mortars and drones.

One obvious near-term option is to acquire the Israeli Iron Dome system which has a proven capability to deal with massed salvoes of rockets, artillery and mortars. Iron Dome can also address the Army’s gap in short-range air defense, particularly with respect to drones.

The Army has applied the lessons of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to its new strategy for acquiring tactical radios. For years the Army struggled with its massive, complex and very expensive JTRS program while commercial technology advanced and tens of thousands of existing radios were acquired to meet the urgent operational need. Now the Army intends to acquire tactical radios from multiple vendors in lots, leaving the way open for new technologies and lower cost solutions to emerge that can be rapidly fielded.

One area where the Army desperately needs to field near-term capabilities is offensive and defensive electronic warfare (EW). The Army’s current offensive EW program will not be fully operational until 2027, and then only if everything goes well.

At present, the Army is devoting some attention and resources, but certainly not enough of either, to adapting capabilities developed for the counter IED fights in Iraq and Afghanistan.

There is one overriding issue for the Army and the nation. The Army can no longer use force structure to pay its readiness and modernization bills. It is time to accept the reality that the Army needs to be both bigger and more capable. Some money can be saved by focusing on acquiring non-developmental capabilities, including products of the global defense industry. But in the end, the Army needs a larger budget.

SEE ALSO: http://www.businessinsider.com/north-korea-fires-more-missiles-after-un-sanctions-2016-3

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NOW WATCH: Russia's military is more advanced than people thought

While hiding in a fortified two-level 3,000-square-foot underground bunker, one of history's most brutal tyrants promised the world that his empire would last 1,000 years.

Hitler's Third Reich lasted 12 years, officially ending on April 30, 1945, when the Führer committed suicide in his bunker with his new wife after learning that Allied forces had surrounded Berlin.

Before retreating to the Führerbunker, Hitler and top Nazi officials enjoyed lavish compounds in Berchtesgaden, a resort village in the Bavarian Alps.

These are the best surviving photographs of Allied troops reveling in the spoils of war at Hitler's private residence and at Eagle's Nest.

SEE ALSO: Hitler's secret Nazi war machines of World War II

Easy Company after taking the Eagle's Nest, Hitler's former residence.

A paratrooper of the 101st Airborne Division enjoys the view and a cognac while lounging on the terrace of Hitler's retreat at Berchtesgaden after the end of the war in 1945.

Maj. Dick Winters, Lewis Nixon, Harry Welsh, and two other battalion staff members, celebrate VE-Day in Berchtesgaden, Germany.

As part of its new Soldier Protection System, the US Army plans to field eye protection that adjusts to daytime and night conditions so soldiers won't have to constantly change eyewear on operations.

Senior Army equipment officials on Wednesday discussed the new body armor system with lawmakers at a hearing before the House Armed Services Tactical Air & Land Forces Subcommittee on the ground force modernization budget request for fiscal 2017.

Army Lt. Gen. John Murray, Army deputy chief of staff, G-8, told lawmakers that soldiers have typically had to carry two pairs of protective eyewear over the last 15 years -- one for day and one for night.

"It doesn't sound like much, but that is a huge deal to not have to physically transition eye protection," Murray said. "The actual lenses do it for you."

The Soldier Protection System, or SPS, is a full ensemble that goes beyond torso protection and provides the soldier with improved protection for vital areas such as the head and face.

Rep. Niki Tsongas, a Democrat from Massachusetts, asked about the recent decision to accelerate the program and the incorporation of sensors designed to monitor a soldier's vital signs.

The Army's 2017 budget request shows a significant increase in research and development of the effort, from about $5 million to $16 million, she said.

"The additional funding helps to get us there sooner," said Army Lt. Gen. Michael Williamson, military deputy to the assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics, and technology. "Although we were looking at these systems simultaneously, the way the funding allocated wasn't until 2019 that we could get to the integrated sensor suite."

The integrated sensors portion of the SPS is "a really important component because what that will allow you do is not only measure things like heart rate but it will also give you feedback on things like hydration," he said.

Eye protection is another key part of the SPS, Williamson said.

"One of the more impressive things they are doing is building transitional eyewear that allows a soldier to move from a dark environment into the light and back and forth without the disorientation that occurs because of that change in environment," he said, adding that the new eyewear also increases the blast fragmentation protection by about 10 percent.

The new Modular Scalable Vest portion of the SPS features a more streamlined design compared to the current Improved Outer Tactical Vest.

The most noticeable feature of the SPS is the new Ballistic Combat Shirt, or BCS, which has been updated with soft armor on the neck, shoulders, high chest and high back to protect against 9mm rounds and shrapnel. The lower part of the shirt is still a breathable, fire-resistant material.

It also features the Integrated Head Protection System, which gives the soldier the ability to attach extra armor to the top of the helmet to provide additional protection against snipers shooting down on soldiers riding in an open turret, as well as the armored facemask to protect against gunfire and shrapnel.

The SPS is also part of the Army's effort to lighten the soldiers load, Williamson said.
"The goal for the entire system is 10 to 15 percent less weight than the soldier carries today," he said.

Marine Brig. Gen. Joe Shrader, commander of Marine Corps Systems Command told lawmakers that the Marine Corps often works with the Army on individual protection equipment programs, such as the new "Enhanced Combat Helmet that we have developed with the Army and now are final stages if fielding the first 77,000 of those."

SEE ALSO: The Pentagon is trying to court hackers from Silicon Valley

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NOW WATCH: The coolest phrases only people in the military use

The 1930s and 1940s were a time of upheaval for the US and the world at large.

Reeling from the start of the Great Depression in 1929, the world soon faced a greater disaster with the start of World War II, which lasted from 1939 to 1945. Although the US did not enter into the war officially until after Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the global war still affected the country.

The following photos, from the US Library of Congress, give us a rare glimpse of life in the US during World War II in color. They show some of the amazing changes that the war helped usher into the US, such as women in the workforce and the widespread adoption of aerial and mechanized warfare.

SEE ALSO: These amazing colorized photographs bring World War I to life

Mrs. Virginia Davis, a riveter in the assembly and repairs department of the naval air base, supervises Chas. Potter, a National Youth Administration trainee from Michigan, at Corpus Christi, Texas. After eight weeks of training, he will go into the civil service.

Answering the nation's need for woman-power, Davis made arrangements for the care of her two children during the day and joined her husband at work at the naval air base in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Jesse Rhodes Waller, AOM, third class, tries out a 30-caliber machine gun he has just installed in a US Navy plane at the base in Corpus Christi, Texas.

The reasons why individuals join the US military are as diverse and unique as each person serving. 

But, whatever the reasons for why someone joined the military, service members can bond with each other over both the negatives and positives of serving in the armed forces.

In a recent Reddit thread, military members responded to the question, "What is your favorite part of being in the military?" 

Predictably, the answers varied greatly, from the steadiness of pay in the military to the sense of belonging to something greater than the individual. We've collected our favorite answers below. 

For Reddit user terrez, the greatest part of being in the military was the opportunities to see and experience things he would never have had the opportunity to otherwise: 

Got to live in Japan, a place I never thought I would see I person. So that's pretty neat. Occasionally an f16 will be doing loopdy loops and stuff over the flight line (idk why) and it's like a quick little air show.

This point of view, the fact that the military is an eye-opening experience, was echoed by LordWartooth: 

I would honestly have to say, both sarcastically and seriously, that my favorite part of being in the military has to be the eye opening experience about life in general. When you see senior field grade officers who can barely read, or senior enlisted whose uniforms could be painted on, considering how tight they are, and you know that they have found success in life, then I should know that consistently aiming to be better than that will take me where I want to be in life, in the military or outside of it.

Reddit user Esdarke quickly agreed with LordWartooth's point: 

Absolutely this. If nothing else, the military will teach you about yourself.

I for one have resolved to be less of a d--- to people. Because now I've seen what happens when everyone acts like a YouTube comments section and nobody needs that in their life.

And for some, serving in the military was made worth it simply for the camaraderie and diversity that it fostered in the ranks. StonehengeMan writes of his favorite part of being in the military: 

The people in the military.

All kinds of backgrounds - but we all work together as one (mostly). The sense of camaraderie and purpose.

Sorry if that comes across as a little earnest but it's the people you work with that get you through the really bad days and who let you enjoy the good days even more :)

This sense of family that the military fosters was a common theme for the Reddit users. User Asymmetric_Warfare noted that the military imbues service members with a support system, adventure, and experiences that someone fresh out of high school might never otherwise experience: 

For me first and foremost it has been mentoring my joe's and watching my junior enlisted soldiers grow and mature and become NCO's themselves.

Being able to call my deployment buddies up at any time any place anywhere with any issue and they will be there for me and vice a versa.

Making friendships with the people you deploy with that are stronger then your own familial bonds to your siblings and family back home.

Going to war, realizing a lot of sh-- back home is just that, white noise, definitely puts life into perspective after.

Being stationed in germany at 18 years old, Donor Kabab's, them crazy foam parties in Nuremburg. All those lovely German single ladies...I miss you Fräulein's.

And of course, for some, the best part of joining the military are the practical and concrete benefits that the organization imparts. As zaishade writes: 

Not worrying about my finances: I don't have to worry about being laid off tomorrow, or not making enough to cover rent and groceries. As much as I like fantasizing about my separation date, whenever I go visit civilian friends and family I'm reminded of how much the common man still has to struggle.

Reddit user jeebus_t_christ echoes the practical benefits of joining the military by writing simply: "Free college." 

And ultimately, as Reddit user ChumBucket1 notes flippantly, "Blowing shit up and shooting machine guns never got old." 

SEE ALSO: 24 heartwarming photos of America's commander-in-chief with the military

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NOW WATCH: This is the Marine Corps' monstrous new assault vehicle

In a strong political signal to China and the nations throughout the South China Sea, the US Army has announced that it plans to stockpile supplies throughout the region.

The supplies, Breaking Defense reports, would be placed in such Pacific and Southeast Asian countries as Vietnam, Cambodia, and other unnamed nations — although the Philippines is a likely option.

The basing of such permanent supplies would form a basis for potential temporary rotational-troop deployments throughout the region.

Such deployments would send a sharp signal to China that its continued militarization of the South China Sea will be met with increasing pushback by the US and neighboring nations.

But the current US plans are for the basing of light equipment that are not immediately scalable for war time. Instead, the equipment will instead be tailored for use in humanitarian mission sets.

"Throughout the Pacific Rim, these will be humanitarian assistance/disaster relief-type equipment and material, so that when you have typhoons and other types of natural disaster US Army Pacific Command can respond more quickly," Gen. Dennis Via, the Army Materiel Command chief, said at the Association of the US Army's winter conference. "We are looking, for example, at in Cambodia placing a combat support hospital."

Even so, the placement of such supplies throughout the region — particularly in a country such as Vietnam — would send a strong signal of US interest and dedication to the South China Sea.

The US decision to place supplies in the region comes as Beijing continues its push to dominate the South China Sea. China has so far dredged islands, established runways, and installed radars throughout the region, over the protests of its neighbors.

These developments have led to a report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) claiming that the South China Sea will be nothing but a "Chinese lake" by 2030. And in mid-February, Beijing took a further step of militarizing the region by placing advanced surface-to-air missiles on a disputed island to solidify its claims.

This militarization of the region, and the potential consequences, has led the former CIA chief, Gen. Michael Hayden, to claim that mishandling the rise of China "will be catastrophic."

SEE ALSO: Former CIA chief: Mishandling the rise of China 'will be catastrophic'

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NOW WATCH: The US Navy's last line of defense is this ultimate gun

A recent video from the YouTube channel Vickers Tactical shows Green Berets firing heavy weaponry in super slow motion. 

The Green Berets, otherwise known as the US Army Special Forces, are a special operations force assigned with reconnaissance, counterterror, and unconventional-warfare missions. The video was filmed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, the home of US Army airborne forces and Special Forces, as well as US Army Forces Command and US Army Reserve Command. 

We have highlighted some of the most hypnotic segments of the video through a series of GIFs below. They show what heavy projectiles look like in flight and give an idea of just how much firepower these weapons can pack.

The Javelin missile launcher is a "fire-and-forget" system in which the missile can lock on to its target for improved accuracy. The weapon is routinely used against armored targets, such as tanks.

The RPG-7 is an antitank weapon originally created by the Russians.

The force of the launch from an M3 Carl Gustav 84mm recoilless rifle creates a huge plume of dust rising from the ground.

The M3 is used for engaging bunkers and vehicles.

Green Berets also train on MK32s, a handheld grenade launcher that can fire all six of its rounds in three seconds.

For engaging enemies behind cover, Green Berets make use of the MK47 40mm grenade launcher, which features a ballistic computer and a laser rangefinder. 

 Now here's everything at full speed.

You can watch the entire Vickers Tactical video below. 

SEE ALSO: Incredible photos from the military exercise that is North Korea's worst nightmare

SEE ALSO: The craziest small arms maneuvers by South Korean SWAT, in 9 GIFs

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Not everything in the military is all action. And not all action in the military is actually as it is portrayed in Hollywood at all. 

Responding to a recent Reddit question, "what things do movies get hilariously wrong about the military," hundreds of military service members from a number of countries chimed in on how their military experience was nothing at all like what is displayed on the silver screen. 

The answers range from the technical, such as how uniforms are often incredibly wrong, to the critical, such as how an artillery strike extremely close to a soldier's position will likely result in death or injury. We've collected some of the most eye-opening answers about what the military is actually like. 

Reddit member endlessbloodorgy shared: "Not enough cussing. Not even close." 

And Newguy6962579 chimed in that what bothered him most was:

When no one knows their job and the lead folks are always micromanaging. You don't have to tell marines to shoot at the bad guys.

Also, "That's an order!"

Pyronaut44 noted that the ages in the movies never seem true to life:

Ages always seem well off, movies and TV shows seem to have Private soldiers averaging in their 30's whereas reality is more 19/20 years old. A realistic depiction of your typical infantry platoon would have audiences wondering why all these kids are running about playing soldiers.

Commenter rick7475 noted:

What I hate the most is how easy it is to kill or take out trained soldiers or mercenaries who were probably veterans. Some spy or hero sneaks on base, a few kicks and hits, and the guards with automatic weapons are down for the count. Also, one shot takes out a soldier when the hero gets wounded a dozen times and still has strength to defuse the fakest looking bomb ever or save the cute honey trapped in a high security cell.

When its a military picture or TV show, they always focus on the officers as heroes, never the squad members or NCO's that most officers give credit for getting the job done.

Or even the tactics, and I'm looking at you "Saving Private Ryan", sending man after man to take out a pill box and only after a dozen are dead deciding on using a sniper.

For user bleachmike51, his complaints were much more technical:

Popped collar on ACU's, no patches, soldiers running into combat with patrol caps and berets.... list goes on. Try watching the military in the flash and not cringing.

Reddit member tcain5188 noted that for many in the military, the jobs are not at all close to combat: "not enough people at desks pretending to work."

And Tyrantt_47 echoed that unlike in the movies, few people in the military are in peak physical shape:  "hardly anyone I knew in the military was ripped"

Commentor p00d73 shared a hard truth about combat in the military:

Artillery impacts. When the heroes get shelled, they just seem to brush off the dirt from the massive explosion 5m next to them and continue fighting. In movies an artillery barrage always seems like a minor annoyance instead of a slaughterfest.

User tacsquid wrote:

Everyone is always an officer and uses military radio jargon in real life conversations. People don't even say that s--- over the radio ffs. Also in movies EVERYTHING is bullet proof when in real life very few things are. Everything is always super clean and neat. Girls have nice hair and makeup. No one has salty crust on their uniform from not being able to wash clothes. Officers also always give out orders and s--- like everyone else is a robot. on a patrol a good officer shouldn't be doing s--- except talking on the radio to the TOC for CAS. Everyone should already know what to do and the NCOs can handle the rest.

edit

also suppressors!

And in reply to tacsquid, SavageHenry0311 shared his own personal experience:

Speaking of suppressors -

Nobody seems to understand how f------ LOUD s--- is.

I was in a gunfight in a stairwell once, and my left ear is still ringing 10 years later.

In the movies, they do a few mag dumps in an elevator/car/parking garage....and then whisper back and forth 3 minutes later.

What?

SEE ALSO: Service members share their favorite parts of life in the military

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NOW WATCH: A Navy SEAL explains why he’ll never go skydiving as a civilian again

Retired Army Ranger Jack Murphy offers his opinion on how his regiment is different from the Navy SEALs. 

Produced by Eames Yates

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Mountain vistas, Arctic panoramas, and rolling steppe are some of the locations that members of the US military can claim as their "offices." As members of the sister-service branches continue to work around the world, troops have seen places that the majority of Americans may never experience. What's more, troops can easily claim that their offices are among the most exotic in the world. Below we've picked some of our favorite US military photos showing the amazing views service members have from their rotating offices.

SEE ALSO: Incredible photos from the military exercise that is North Korea's worst nightmare

A sailor guides an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to the "Dragon Whales" of Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 28 during a night vertical replenishment aboard the guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea (CG 58).

Lance Cpl. Chance Seckinger with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, rides in a Combat Rubber Raiding Craft during launch and recovery drills from the well deck of the USS Green Bay, at sea, on July 9, 2015.

Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Handling) 3rd Class Andres Ulloa Fernandez signals an Army UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter while conducting deck-landing qualifications on the flight deck of the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Essex.