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, and most recently was a senior writer and the San Diego bureau chief for Marine Corps Times and Navy Times.

Recent Posts By the Author


CNO Visits Aircraft Carrier Nimitz as CSG Nears End of Nearly 11 Months Away From Home

CNO Visits Aircraft Carrier Nimitz as CSG Nears End of Nearly 11 Months Away From Home

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Lt. Cmdr. Nick Stoner, assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group (EODGRU) 1, discusses unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) capabilities with Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Mike Gilday at Naval Base Point Loma, Feb. 23, 2020. Gilday visited Sailors from the EODGRU-1 enterprise to see how Navy EOD is evolving operational concepts and investing in capabilities to build a more agile and resilient fleet. US Navy photo.

When the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN-68) pulls into its homeport at Bremerton, Wash., in the coming days, the ship and crew will mark the end of a deployment cycle away from home stretching some 341 days – not quite a record-setter, but still one for the history books. Read More →

Latest Surface Navy Sleep Policy Aims for Better-Rested, More Alert, Healthier Crews

Latest Surface Navy Sleep Policy Aims for Better-Rested, More Alert, Healthier Crews

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Cmdr. Jeffrey Servello, executive officer aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Paul Ignatius (DDG-117), conducts a berthing inspection on Sept. 5, 2020. US Navy Photo

The Navy’s surface fleet has a new set of orders that updates a sleep policy to give sailors on watch rotations a bit more sleep and create a culture supporting a more ready, rested and focused seagoing force. Read More →

Navy COVID-19 Teams Assisting Navajo Nation as Army North Expands Support Mission

Navy COVID-19 Teams Assisting Navajo Nation as Army North Expands Support Mission

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U.S. Public Health Service Lt. Cmdr. Jennifer Manning, right, deputy incident commander, Northern Navajo Medical Center, speaks with U.S. Navy medical providers during their hospital orientation at the Northern Navajo Medical Center, Shiprock, N.M., on Dec. 18, 2020. US Army Photo

As states across the U.S. braced for a winter resurgence in COVID-19 cases, some Navy medical personnel got mid-December deployment orders to an unusual destination: Navajo Nation. Read More →

First Female Nuclear Carrier CO Will Command USS Abraham Lincoln

First Female Nuclear Carrier CO Will Command USS Abraham Lincoln

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Capt. Amy N. Bauernschmidt, then commanding officer of USS San Diego (LPD-22), met with Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Russel Smith during MCPON’s visit to the ship in 2019. US Navy Photo

Capt. Amy Bauernschmidt, a veteran pilot, will take the helm of the Nimitz-class USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), becoming the first woman to command an aircraft carrier, the Navy announced Wednesday. Read More →

Marine Infantry Training Shifts From 'Automaton' to Thinkers, as School Adds Chess to the Curriculum

Marine Infantry Training Shifts From ‘Automaton’ to Thinkers, as School Adds Chess to the Curriculum

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Infantry Training Battalion instructors play chess in their instructor ready room at School of Infantry-West at Camp Pendleton, Calif. US Marine Corps photo.

The Marine Corps is about to revolutionize infantry training, more than doubling the length of initial training for enlisted infantry Marines and weighing consolidation of its core grunt specialties into a single, all-around infantry warfighter. Read More →

Marines Demonstrate Ability to Include Carrier-Based F-35Cs in Expeditionary Base Plans

Marines Demonstrate Ability to Include Carrier-Based F-35Cs in Expeditionary Base Plans

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U.S. Marines with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 314 and Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 352, Marine Aircraft Group 11, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, conduct a new expeditionary landing demonstration with M-31 arresting gear Interim Flight Clearance (IFC), on Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif., on Dec. 3, 2020. US Marine Corps Photo

SAN DIEGO, Calif., – The Marine Corps’ first carrier-capable F-35C Lightning II squadron demonstrated, for the first time, the capability to quickly rearm and refuel at expeditionary land bases, a mission key for future island-hopping operations that top leaders envision the U.S. military will face. Read More →

First Marine Corps Carrier-Capable F-35C Squadron Now Ready to Deploy

First Marine Corps Carrier-Capable F-35C Squadron Now Ready to Deploy

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U.S. Marines with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 314, Marine Aircraft Group 11, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, gain the capability of conducting a hot-load of ordnance on an F-35C Lightning II, while being validated at south combat aircraft loading area, during the Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI) course 1-21, at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., on Oct. 6, 2020. US Marine Corps Photo

The Marine Corps’ first carrier-capable squadron of F-35C Lightning II jets reached initial operational capability on Tuesday, a key certification ahead of its first deployment on an aircraft carrier, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing officials announced. Read More →

This Sailor is Working on New Rating: Chess Master

This Sailor is Working on New Rating: Chess Master

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IT2 Andrew Peraino after winning the 2020 Armed Forces Chess Championship. Andrew Peraino Photo

When Information Systems Technician 2nd Class Andrew Peraino was a Navy recruit, tucked away in his eyeglasses case was a set of paper pieces he had fashioned into a miniature chess board set. Read More →