American Badass: The U.S. Army Ranger Medic (Advanced Tactical Paramedic)

Posted By Blackfive

Why is this medic smiling?

Because he is a Ranger in the 75th Ranger Regiment and this is his profession. As a 68W, he is Ranger Qualified, Airborne Qualified, and Pathfinder Qualified. Along with his basic Army medical training, he has been to the Combat Trauma Management Course and the Special Operations Combat Medical Course (Additional Skill Identifier W1).

This U.S. Army Ranger is a U.S. Special Operations Command certified Advanced Tactical Paramedic. He prepares for his fifth combat deployment with 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, during live fire training at Yakima Training Center, Wash., March 27, 2013. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Mikki Sprenkle)

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Photo: The Missing Man

Posted By Blackfive
The guided-missile destroyer USS Michael Murphy passes by the Missing Man Memorial on Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Pearl Harbor, March 29, 2013. The destroyer is named after Lt. Michael P. Murphy, the first person to be posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for actions in Afghanistan, and the first member of the U.S. Navy to receive the award since the Vietnam War. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Diana Quinlan

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Phtoto: Waiting for Daddy

Posted By Blackfive
Two little girls dance with anticipation as they wait for a welcoming home ceremony to begin on Fort Steward, Ga., March, 7, 2013. Fifty soldiers, assigned to the 3rd Infantry Division's 1st Battalion, 9th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, returned home after being deployed for more than six months in Afghanistan. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Richard Wrigley

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Photo: Ten Years Later...One of B5's Favorite Photos

Posted By Blackfive

US Army soldiers take rest during patrol in Baghdad suburb, Monday Nov. 17, 2003. U.S. forces have reacted to the increasing attacks in which dozens of Americans and their allies have died by mounting a massive show of force in central and northern Iraq. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban).

The AP editors and the photog didn't realize the gesture from the paratrooper until it went viral.

God Bless the Airborne!

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Photo: Medevac Pre-Flight

Posted By Blackfive U.S. Army Pfc. Laci Lognion, right, inventories her medical equipment while U.S. Army Capt. Ivonne Cartagena, center, adjusts medical items during a pre-flight exercise on Jalalabad Airfield in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province, March 13, 2013. Lognion, a flight paramedic, and Cartagena, a critical care nurse, are assigned to the 101st Airborne Division's Company C, 2nd Battalion, 149th General Support Aviation Brigade, 1st Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class John D. Brown

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Photo: Japan Drop Zone Night View

Posted By Blackfive

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Nickolas Alarcon observes a drop zone from the rear
of a C-130 Hercules aircraft after deploying a light payload above Yokota Air
Base, Japan, Feb. 21, 2013. Alarcon, a loadmaster, is assigned to the 36th
Airlift Squadron. The C-130 aircrews demonstrated their airlift capabilities
during a readiness week. U.S. Air Force photo by Osakabe Yasuo

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Photo: Airborne Access

Posted By Blackfive

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Andrew Williamson lands after a static line airdrop during Joint Operational Access Exercise 13-02 on Camp Mackall, N.C., Feb. 24, 2013. The exercise is designed to enhance service cohesiveness between Army and Air Force personnel, allowing both services an opportunity to properly execute heavy equipment and troop movement. Williamson is a squad leader assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, Charlie Company, 1st Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Kyle Russell

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Photo: U.S. Army and U.S. A.I.D.

Posted By Blackfive
U.S. Army 1st Lt. Robert Wolfe, right, escorts Jim Otwell, left, a U.S. Agency for International Development field program officer, to the Directorate of Education in Farah City, Afghanistan, Feb. 26, 2013. Wolfe, a platoon leader, is assigned to Provincial Reconstruction Team Farah. The team met with the provincial education director and visited Aboonaser-Farahi High School, Farah City's oldest high school. U.S. Navy photo by Lt. j.g. Matthew Stroup

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Photo: Optics on an Old Russian Outpost

Posted By Blackfive The optic lens on a U.S. soldier's weapon shows view of an old Russian observation point from the Marawara District Center in Kunar province, Afghanistan, Feb. 7, 2013. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Jon Heinrich.

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Photo: Hornet Approach

Posted By Blackfive

Navy sailors watch as an F/A-18C Hornet approaches the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson in the Pacific Ocean, Feb. 13, 2013. The Vinson is underway conducting precision approach landing system and flight deck certifications. The hornet is part of the Strike Fighter Squadron 113. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class George M. Bell

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