2025 in focus: The best of Stars and Stripes in photos

A young boy smiles as he holds a weapon and a soldier watches.

Brayden Forsythe, 10, of Haymarket, Va., checks out a Carl Gustaf recoilless rifle used by Army Rangers during military service’s 250th birthday festival on June 14, 2025, on the National Mall in Washington. (Corey Dickstein/Stars and Stripes)

High wire military exercises. A 250th birthday party. Remembrances for fallen service members, including one who became president. From slices of life to the year’s biggest moments, Stars and Stripes journalists documented events involving the military community — and we invite you to see some of the best of their work.

January

A bright light and trail of smoke from a projectile fired in a snowy forested area.

A High Mobility Artillery Rocket System launcher belonging to the U.S. Army-led Task Force Voit fires a test rocket Jan. 27, 2025, at a training area near Tapa, Estonia. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

A flowery casket with American flags and an honor guard in the background.

The casket of former President Jimmy Carter lies in state on Jan. 8, 2025, in the Capitol Rotunda in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

Defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth greets senators on Jan. 14, 2025, before his confirmation hearing in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

Close-up view of Doug Collins holding up a set of dogtags on a chain.

VA Secretary Doug Collins holds up his dogtags on Jan. 21, 2025, during his Senate confirmation hearing. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

A young boy with curly blonde hair holds his arms outstretched while wearing a kimono.

The son of Tech. Sgt. David Stubblefield, of the 374th Logistics Readiness Squadron, poses in a colorful kimono on Japan Culture Day at Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo, Jan. 24, 2025. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)

February

Apaches hover over the Rodriguez Live Fire Complex in South Korea.

U.S. Army AH-64 Apaches hover over the Rodriguez Live Fire Complex in Pocheon, South Korea, Feb. 10, 2025. (David Choi/Stars and Stripes)

Six service members on a field in front of the Japanese and U.S. flags.

U.S. Marines and Japanese soldiers display their flags during the Iron Fist opening ceremony at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Feb. 19, 2025. (Brian McElhiney/Stars and Stripes)

Val Silva-Horan, a family friend of Andrew Eaves, who died in the crash, wipes a tear from her eye on Feb. 19, 2025, during a vigil to honor three Army crew members who were killed when their helicopter collided in midair with a commercial jet over the Potomac River in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

Two soldiers launch a bright yellow FIM-92D Stinger missile.

Soldiers launch an FIM-92D Stinger missile toward a dummy drone target during a Cobra Gold drill in Lopburi, Thailand, Feb. 28, 2025. (Alex Wilson/Stars and Stripes)

A Black Hawk kicks up debris as it lands.

A UH-60 Black Hawk lands ahead of a Cobra Gold live-fire drill in Lopburi, Thailand, Feb. 27, 2025. (Alex Wilson/Stars and Stripes)

March

Priscilla Presley next to a statue of Elvis Presley.

Priscilla Presley gazes at a bronze statue of her former husband, Elvis Presley, in Bad Nauheim, Germany, March 20, 2025. Priscilla met Elvis in the spa town in 1959, when she was 14. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

A veteran holds a piece of paper next to his head while speaking into a microphone.

Commander-in-Chief Alfred J. “Al” Lipphardt, Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S., holds up an U.S. armed services enlistment contract on March 4, 2025, during a Joint House and Senate Veterans Affairs committee hearing in Washington. Lipphardt stated that veteran care is in the contract and must be honored. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

Two crouching soldiers illuminated by a red light.

A red light illuminates U.S. soldiers after they disembarked from a helicopter for a nighttime reconnaissance exercise near Camp Reedo, Estonia, March 14, 2025. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

Soldiers in a dark, snowy forest with sun peeking through the trees.

U.S. soldiers assigned to the 5th Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment wait under a full moon for the arrival of fellow squadron members by helicopter at a landing site near Camp Reedo, Estonia, March 14, 2025. The soldiers were involved in a reconnaissance exercise. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

A closeup of the U.S. flag in the foreground takes up most of the image, while farther away the smaller figure of a woman in a window looks on.

A woman in Baumholder, Germany, looks down at a U.S. flag flown during a parade in the town on March 18, 2025, to mark 80 years since American troops arrived during World War II. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

Two F-18 fighter jets fly over the USS Gerald R. Ford as the aircraft carrier and its strike group train March 21, 2025. (Caitlyn Burchett/Stars and Stripes)

April

A soldier climbs a rope, next to a giant sign that says Ranger.

Army 1st Lt. Griffin Hokanson of the 75th Ranger Regiment climbs a rope during the Best Ranger Competition at Fort Benning, Ga., on April 11, 2025. Hokanson and his partner, 1st Lt. Kevin Moore, won the grueling three-day challenge that tests Ranger skills, earning a victory for the Ranger Regiment for a fourth straight year. (Corey Dickstein/Stars and Stripes)

Pfc. Norman Romero, left, and Spc. Ezequiel Martinez prepare Patriot missiles to be shipped near Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport on Feb. 2, 2025. The U.S. Army announced April 7, 2025, that it is pulling forces out of Jasionka, which has been instrumental in getting Western arms into Ukraine. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

Three airmen wearing service dress uniforms watch a plane fly overhead.

A C-21A from the 76th Airlift Squadron flies over Ramstein Air Base, Germany, April 10, 2025, to honor the victims of a 1996 plane crash in Croatia. The ill-fated flight was operated by the same squadron. (Zade Vadnais/Stars and Stripes)

A furry alpaca enjoys a mouthful of fresh grass.

A walk through the German countryside alongside a furry alpaca is just one of the adventures on offer in the Kaiserslautern Military Community this weekend. (Zade Vadnais/Stars and Stripes)

The 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment fields the Marine Air Defense Integrated System, or MADIS, at Naval Station Leovigildo Gantioqui, Philippines, April 25, 2025. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)

A crane moves material at the site of a future Marine Corps airfield at Camp Schwab, Okinawa, April 16, 2025. (Brian McElhiney/Stars and Stripes)

May

Three soldiers in a forest, two sitting and one lying down.

U.S. Army 2nd Cavalry Regiment soldiers taking part in the V Corps Best Squad Competition tackle the obstacle course at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, on May 13, 2025. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

Soldiers, seen from the shoulders up, salute in front of the a memorial that says “To those who died for their country”

Soldiers with the Army’s 7th Engineer Brigade salute in front of the memorial at the Somme American Cemetery in Bony, France, May 25, 2025. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

The figures of two Marines on a beach, one of whom is firing a missile.

Marines assigned to Marine Air Control Group 28 fire a Stinger missile with a Man-Portable Air Defense System in Andoya, Norway, on May 7, 2025, as part of Formidable Shield 2025. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

Two veterans in wheelchairs look at wreaths.

WWII veterans Dixon Hemphill, center, and Navajo Code Talker Thomas Begay lay wreaths on May 8, 2025 in Washington at the World War II Memorial. Friends of the National World War II Memorial and the National Park Service commemorated the 80th anniversary of the Allied forces victory in the Atlantic and the end of World War II in Europe with a special V-E Day event hosted at the National World War II Memorial. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

A runner crosses the finish line with the American flag in hand.

Army veteran Jordan Buck crosses the finish line with the American flag during Team Red, White and Blue’s first Old Glory Ultra Relay in Washington, May 18, 2025. Twelve runners took off from the USS Midway Museum in San Diego on May 2, 2025 and ran 3,000 miles across the country to inspire and motivate veterans nationwide to retain healthy lives post-service. (Kaylyn Barnhart Batista/Stars and Stripes)

An Old Guard soldier prepares to place a flag in front of a headstone.

Members of the Army’s 3rd Infantry Regiment, also known as The Old Guard, honor America’s fallen heroes by placing American flags at gravesites for service members on May 22, 2025, at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va. The tradition, known as “Flags In,” has taken place annually since 1948. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

June

Military aircraft fly in formation over a cemetery.

Four U.S. Air Force C-130s fly in formation over the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, June 6, 2025, during the ceremony marking the 81st anniversary of the Normandy invasion in World War II. (Michael Abrams/Stars and Stripes)

Veterans Harry Miller, left, and Dave Yoho salute the colors during a public ceremony on June 6, 2025, at the World War II Memorial in Washington to mark the 81 years since 160,000 Allied troops landed along a 50-mile stretch of heavily-fortified French coastline to fight Nazi Germany on the beaches of Normandy, France. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

A Japan Ground Self-Defense Force soldier parachutes to the ground in front of a crowd of spectators at the Higashi-Fuji Maneuver Area near Mount Fuji, June 8, 2025. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)

Robotic dogs march on June 14, 2025, during the Army’s 250th anniversary parade and celebration in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

Soldiers in a tank wave to the crowd on June 14, 2025, during the Army’s 250th anniversary parade and celebration in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

A soldier holding onto a grip on a rope, with the U.S. Capitol building visible in the background.

A soldier climbs to the top of a rope while competing in an Army fitness test held on the National Mall in Washington on June 14, 2025 during the service’s 250th birthday festival. (Corey Dickstein/Stars and Stripes)

Brayden Forsythe, 10 of Haymarket, Va., checks out a Carl Gustaf recoilless rifle used by Army Rangers during military service’s 250th birthday festival on June 14, 2025 on the National Mall in Washington. (Corey Dickstein/Stars and Stripes)

Katsuya Toji donated these statues to Aburyama Kannon Temple in Fukuoka, Japan, to honor the American airmen executed by his father during World War II. (Janiqua Robinson/Stars and Stripes)

July

A cadet camoflauges in the grass with a weapon.

A cadet from Britain's Royal Military Academy Sandhurst helps form a security perimeter ahead of a live-fire drill at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, on July 9, 2025, during exercise Dynamic Victory. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

A U.S. service member in a camouflage uniform and tan boots climbs a thick rope during an outdoor obstacle course, surrounded by green trees under a bright sky.

Marine Sgt. Ace Peralta climbs a rope during the obstacle course portion of the Garrison Games at Combined Arms Training Center Camp Fuji, Japan, July 10, 2025. (Jeremy Stillwagner/Stars and Stripes)

Missile contrails streak across a blue sky.

High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems from the U.S., Australia and Singapore are fired at Shoalwater Bay Training Area in Queensland, Australia, July 14, 2025. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)

U.S. Marines arrive at Cloncurry Airport during the Talisman Sabre exercise in Queensland, Australia, July 20, 2025. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)

August

An airman is seen inside an aircraft in the sky.

An airman with the 127th Wing based at Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Mich., flies an A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft above the Steel Gate air-to-ground range, part of Camp Grayling, Mich., on Aug. 6, 2025, during the biannual Northern Strike military exercise. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

A row of Marines in camouflage combat gear aim rifles while lying on their stomachs atop a dune of rocks and sand, as another row of Marines in camouflage combat gear kneels on a beach behind the with the ocean shoreline in the background.

U.S. Marines from 2nd Battalion, 23rd Marine Regiment establish security around a beachhead during the Korean Marine Exercise Program in Pohang, South Korea, on Aug. 6, 2025. (David Choi/Stars and Stripes)

A man pushing a baby stroller walks on a sidewalk past a military vehicle with troops in camouflage uniforms standing in front, with the U.S. Capitol building in the background.

National Guard troops deployed on Aug. 14, 2025, at the National Mall in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

A soldier is seen between tree branches.

Pfc. Jaiden Ramos of the 2nd Theater Signal Brigade patrols the woods during a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear materials event at the U.S. Army Europe and Africa Best Squad Competition at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, on Aug. 25, 2025. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

Coast Guard veteran Michael Maman harvests peppers at Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food and Agriculture in Arlington, Va., on Aug. 4, 2025. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

The USS New Orleans anchors near White Beach Naval Facility, Okinawa, Aug. 21, 2025, hours after a fire was extinguished aboard the ship. (Ryan M. Breeden/Stars and Stripes)

September

A soldier carries a drone out of a smoke cloud.

Army Staff Sgt. Kristopher Gorbea, a drone squad leader with the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, carries a drone out of a smoke cloud during exercise Saber Junction on Sept. 9, 2025, at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels, Germany. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

Sailors aboard the mine countermeasure ship USS Gladiator line the rails at Mina Salman pier in Manama, Bahrain, Sept. 25, 2025, ahead of a decommissioning ceremony for USS Devastator, the last wooden-hulled mine countermeasures ships in U.S. 5th Fleet. Gladiator was taken out of service earlier this month. (Shannon Renfroe/Stars and Stripes)

Veterans in wheelchairs are escorted in front of a memorial.

WWII veterans are escorted on Sept. 2, 2025 in Washington at the National World War II Memorial to commemorate the 80th anniversary of V-J Day. The veterans later laid wreaths at the memorial. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

Firefighters in full gear including helmets, oxygen tanks and protective clothing climbing stairs while carrying an American flag. The firefighters are wearing tan and yellow reflective uniforms and are participating in a memorial stair climb event.

Firefighter climb the steps of Fritz Walter Stadium, in Kaiserslautern, Germany, Sept. 11, 2025, in honor of the first responders who died during the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. (Lara Korte/Stars and Stripes)

Casey Showalter gives Deen, a four-year old labrador, a bath on Sept. 12, 2025, in Fort Meade, Md. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

People watch a ship pull away from port.

Sailors man the rails of the guided-missile destroyer USS Benfold as it pulls away from Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, Sept. 29, 2025. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)

Army Staff Sgt. Kristopher Gorbea, a drone squad leader with 2nd Cavalry Regiment, holds a soldier-made kamakaze drone awaiting lift off at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Germany during exercise Saber Junction on Sept. 9, 2025. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

October

President Donald Trump departs Marine One aboard the aircraft carrier USS Geoge Washington at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, Oct. 28, 2025. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)

Okinawa-based Marines launch a HIMARS rocket at Combined Arms Training Center Camp Fuji, Japan, Oct. 27, 2025. HIMARS stands for High Mobility Artillery Rocket System. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)

Barrett holds the banner at the finish area. The sign above her head says mission accomplished.

Tessa Barrett celebrates victory in the women’s division of the 50th annual Marine Corps Marathon on Oct. 26, 2025, in Arlington, Va. Her winning time was 2:34:11. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

Two U.S. Army paratroopers in combat uniforms and helmets observe from the ground as multiple paratroopers descend under olive-green parachutes across a cloudy sky, with mountains visible in the background and a grassy drop zone in the foreground.

Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, watch their comrades parachute onto the Juliet Drop Zone near Vajont, Italy, during training on Oct. 8, 2025. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)

Members of the United States Army Band, “Pershing’s Own,” perform during the opening ceremony of the AUSA convention on Oct. 13, 2025, in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

Spc. Basil Holland of the 502nd Infantry Regiment prepares to fly a C100 drone fashioned with a 3D-printed grenade dropper called the Widowmaker at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels, Germany, on Oct. 9, 2025. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

November

A simulated drone swarm flies above the Putlos Training Area in northern Germany on Nov. 21, 2025, during the exercise Project Flytrap 4.5. The training was combined with an industry competition intended to get emerging technology into the hands of soldiers more quickly. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

Parkersburg (W.Va.) High School’s Big Red Band marches in the National Veterans Day Parade on Nov. 9, 2025, in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)

A tattered American flag sits on a pillar at a monument to the 371st Infantry Regiment.

A frayed American flag is exposed to the elements Nov. 5, 2025, at a neglected monument to the all-Black U.S. Army 371st Infantry Regiment near Ardeuil-et-Montfauxelles, France. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

Two people lie prone on the ground while aiming rifles at a range.

Two snipers from the Netherlands fire at moving targets during the Best Sniper Competition at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany on Nov. 19, 2025. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

A boy does a butterfly stroke in the pool.

Sigonella’s Andrew Linares, 13, swims in the boys 13-19 200-meter butterfly on Nov. 30, 2025, at the European Forces Swim League’s Long Distance Championships in Lignano Sabbiadoro, Italy. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)

December

Army Spc. Andrew Santana, a cavalry scout with 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, flies a Skydio X10 drone before an event on the final day of U.S. Army Europe and Africa's first-ever Best Drone Warfighter Competition in Grafenwoehr, Germany, on Dec. 10, 2025. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

A KC-130J with Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 152 takes off from Ie Shima Auxiliary Airfield on Ie Shima, Okinawa, Dec. 15, 2025. (Ryan M. Breeden/Stars and Stripes)

A black and white photo of military academy students in uniform.

Spectators at the Army-Navy football game on Dec. 13, 2025, in Baltimore. (Gianna Gronowski/Stars and Stripes)

Army and Navy players clash during a football game.

Army and Navy players clash during an NCAA college football game on Dec. 13, 2025, in Baltimore. (Gianna Gronowski/Stars and Stripes)

Read more: Horvath to Heidenreich on 4th-and-goal leads No. 22 Navy to a 17-16 win over Army

Aerial view of a military armored vehicle producing smoke surrounded by dense tropical forest and dry grass, with soldiers visible in the clearing.

Drones operated by Marines drop explosives on training target during an attack drone competition on Camp Schwab, Okinawa, Dec. 11, 2025. (Ryan M. Breeden/Stars and Stripes)

A lady holds a sign that says “Welcome Home, Daddy.”

Oliver Fringer, in a naval officer’s cap, waits with his mother, Laura Fringer, for the disembarkation of Lt. Kyle Fringer from the USS Nimitz (CVN 68) as it arrives at Bremerton on Naval Base Kitsap, Dec. 16, 2025. (Gary Warner/Stars and Stripes)

The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) arrives at Bremerton on Naval Base Kitsap, Dec. 16, 2025 after 270-day deployment to Asia and the Middle East. (Gary Warner/Stars and Stripes)

Honor guards salute after laying a wreath at the Pearl Harbor National Memorial in Hawaii, Dec. 7, 2025, as part of ceremony commemorating the 84th anniversary of Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. (Wyatt Olson/Stars and Stripes)

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2025 in focus: The best of Stars and Stripes in photos

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