In Every Clime and Place

By: Kyle Watts
Posted on February 15, 2026

Below: 2ndLt Maximillian Steinbach, a platoon commander with Echo Co, 2nd Bn, 4th Marines, 1stMarDiv, prepares to start a night hike as part of Mountain Training Exercise 4-25 at Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center Bridgeport, Calif., on Aug. 8, 2025. MTX is a month-long exercise designed to prepare units to survive and operate effectively in austere, mountainous terrain, further developing mental, spiritual and physical endurance and resiliency. (Sgt Migel A. Reynosa, USMC)

1stLt John Fischbach, a platoon commander with Blackfoot Co, 1st Bn, 5th Marines, 1stMarDiv, talks on a radio during a simulated raid as part of Exercise Steel Knight 25 at MCB Camp Pendleton, Calif., on Dec. 12, 2025. Steel Knight is an annual exercise that strengthens the Navy-Marine Corps team’s ability to respond forward, integrate across domains and sustain Marine Air-Ground Task Force readiness. (Sgt Kyle Chan, USMC)

LCpl Bradon Kennedy, front, a rifleman with Kilo Co, BLT 3/5, 11th MEU, fires an M3E1 Carl Gustaf MAAWS during a live-fire range as part of MEU Exercise 26.1 at MCB Camp Pendleton, Calif., on Oct. 28, 2025. During MEUEX, BLT 3/5 conducted company-level training, live-fire ranges and battle drills while employing various weapon systems to maintain mission readiness. *(Sgt Trent A. Henry, USMC)*

Sgt Gerald Nolan, left, and Sgt Tristan Diaz, both light armored vehicle crewmen with 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 2ndMarDiv, load ammunition during a missile range at MCB Camp Lejeune, N.C., on Dec. 11, 2025. *(LCpl Brian Bolin Jr., USMC)*

A light armored vehicle 25 with Bravo Co, Ground Combat Element, 22nd MEU, fires at targets during a live-fire exercise aboard the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD-3) in the Atlantic Ocean, on June 28, 2022. (Sgt Armando Elizalde, USMC)

**Marines with Maritime Reconnaissance Platoon, 1st Reconnaissance Bn, 1stMarDiv, drive a rigid inflatable boat during Exercise Steel Knight 25 at San Clemente Island, Calif., on Dec. 9, 2025**. *(LCpl Alan Gomez, USMC)*

A Marine with Force Reconnaissance Platoon, Maritime Raid Force, 31st MEU, fires an M27 infantry automatic rifle during a live-fire deck shoot aboard the forward-deployed amphibious assault carrier USS Tripoli (LHA-7) on Dec. 13, 2025, while conducting routine operations in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations.

LCpl Dylan Butler, left, a machine-gunner, and LCpl Garrison Leavitt, a team leader, both with 3rd Bn, 7th Marines, 1stMarDiv, fire an M2 .50-caliber heavy machine gun during a fire support coordination exercise at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif., on Dec. 12, 2025. The exercise was conducted to evaluate integration at the platoon and fire support coordination center level with live-fire execution. (Sgt Ezekieljay Correa, USMC)

LCpl Aaron Duran, left, and LCpl Juan Hilario, machine-gunners with 1st Bn, 6th Marines, fire on simulated adversary forces with an M240B machine gun while conducting platoon attacks in an urban environment during Korea Viper 26.1 in South Korea, on Dec. 17, 2025. *(Cpl John Simpson, USMC)*

**Machine gunners with Lima Co, BLT 3/6, 22nd MEU(SOC), conduct an M240B machine gun live-fire range on Camp Santiago, Puerto Rico, on Dec. 8, 2025.** *(Sgt Maurion Moore, USMC)*

Cpl Conner Theodore, a mortarman with 2nd Bn, 4th Marines, 1stMarDiv, carries an M224 60 mm lightweight mortar (above left) during a service-level training exercise at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif. Theodore took notes (above right) during the Dec. 9 training, which prepared Marines for future conflicts by conducting offensive and defensive live-fire and maneuver training scenarios within an austere training environment. (LCpl Zackery Dear, USMC)

Sgt Zachary Savage, an antitank missile gunner with 2nd Bn, 23rd Marines, forward deployed with 4th Marine Regiment, 3dMarDiv, as part of the Unit Deployment Program, fires a Javelin shoulder-fired antitank missile during the Korean Marine Exercise Program 25.2 in Pocheon, South Korea, on July 29, 2025. *(LCpl Van Hoang, USMC)*

SSgt Jacob Bustamante, an infantry unit leader with 2nd Bn, 4th Marines, 1stMarDiv, coordinates suppressive fire during a night live-fire range during Service Level Training Exercise 0-25 at Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, Calif., on Dec. 17, 2025. *(Cpl Christian Cutter, USMC)*

Featured Photo (Top): LCpl Enrique Hernandez, a grenadier assigned to “Alpha” Co, BLT 1/5, 15th MEU, helps clear a building during a combined urban attack as part of Archipelagic Coastal Defense Continuum at San Vicente, Palawan, Philippines, May 22, 2024. Photo by LCpl Peyton Kahle, USMC.

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