Gidget Fuentes

About Gidget Fuentes

Gidget Fuentes is a freelance writer based in San Diego, Calif. She has spent more than 20 years reporting extensively on the Marine Corps and the Navy, including West Coast commands and Pacific regional issues.

Recent Posts By the Author


AUKUS Plan: Aussie Sailors to Serve on American Subs, RAN to Buy U.S. Virginia Attack Boats

AUKUS Plan: Aussie Sailors to Serve on American Subs, RAN to Buy U.S. Virginia Attack Boats

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President Joe Biden greets British Prime Minister Rishi Surnak and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese the AUKUS bilateral meeting in San Diego, Calif, March 13, 2023. DoD Photo

This post has been updated with additional information from the announcement ceremony.

SAN DIEGO – The leaders of Australia and the United Kingdom joined President Joe Biden at the Navy’s submarine base in San Diego, Calif., Monday to mark a historic trilateral agreement aimed at bolstering security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region. Read More →

Adm. Linda Fagan Calls for Continued Coast Guard Investment to Meet Homeland, Global Demands

Adm. Linda Fagan Calls for Continued Coast Guard Investment to Meet Homeland, Global Demands

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Admiral Linda L. Fagan, Commandant of the Coast Guard, speaks to guests during the 2023 State of the Coast Guard Address in Washington, D.C., Mar. 7, 2023. The State of the Coast Guard Address speaks to the vision for the service. (U. S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Brandon Giles)

With demands for its presence overseas and home and its missions on the rise, the Coast Guard continues to transform itself to meet missions at home and overseas and adapt to recruit and manage a high-tech workforce, the service’s top officer said this week. Read More →

Pilot Course Aims to Build Marines’ Skills as Communicators for the Future Fight

Pilot Course Aims to Build Marines’ Skills as Communicators for the Future Fight

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Marines with 9th Communication Battalion, I Marine Expeditionary Force Information Group, trouble shoot a network connection during a certification exercise at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California, Feb. 27, 2023. US Marine Corps Photo

SAN DIEGO – Expeditionary communicators will be critical to the command and control of small Marine Corps units dispersed across far-flung islands in contested terrain, service officials say. Read More →

Marine Corps Needs Infrastructure Investment, Improved Technology to Ensure Readiness

Marine Corps Needs Infrastructure Investment, Improved Technology to Ensure Readiness

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U.S. Marines prepare their Rifle Combat Optics before they enter Hathcock Range on Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Jan. 30, 2023. U.S. Marine Corps Photo

SAN DIEGO – A military installation’s sewer lines and electrical grids are critical to a unit’s combat readiness, meaning bases and stations must prepare to grapple with outages, breaks, attacks and other threats to critical infrastructure, a Marine Corps installation commander said last week. Read More →

Coast Guard Moving Cutter to Pacific as Regional Missions Expand

Coast Guard Moving Cutter to Pacific as Regional Missions Expand

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The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Bear, a 270 foot, medium endurance cutter, arrives in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to deliver supplies, Oct. 9, 2017. The supplies included donations collected by Customs and Border Patrol members. (U.S. Coast Guard photo)

The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Bear, a 270 foot, medium endurance cutter, arrives in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to deliver supplies, Oct. 9, 2017. US Coast Guard Photo

SAN DIEGO – Driven by greater demand for its partnerships and presence in the Indo-Pacific region, the U.S. Coast Guard is growing its operational presence in the vast region that’s unsettled by continuing incursions from China’s naval militia and fishing fleet, the Pacific Area commander told an audience today. Read More →

Marines Testing Battlefield Networks for Future Conflicts

Marines Testing Battlefield Networks for Future Conflicts

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Marine Sgt. Usbaldo Miranda, Jr., systems configuration coordinator, Marine Air Control Squadron 1, Marine Air Control Group 38, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (MAW), monitors his computer inside an expeditionary command and control (C2) node during a training exercise at Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii, Feb. 7, 2023. US Marine Corps Photo

SAN DIEGO – The success of small Marine Corps units dispersed across far-flung islands in contested terrain will need a better integrated joint operating picture. Read More →

Navy Refines Littoral Combat Ship Shore Training

Navy Refines Littoral Combat Ship Shore Training

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Sailors stand a simulated watch on the bridge of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) Integrated Tactical Trainer (ITT)-2B at the Littoral Training Facility on Naval Base San Diego, March 5, 2020. US Navy Photo

NAVAL BASE SAN DIEGO, Calif. – The eyes of a half-dozen crew of Littoral Combat Ship USS Jackson (LCS-6) were staring at computer displays, tracking contacts and consulting manuals in the warship’s dimmed pilot house as the bridge watch team guided the ship through foggy waters. Read More →