Gina Harkins

Gina Harkins previously covered the Marine Corps, Navy and Coast Guard for Military.com. She has covered troops and their families for nearly a decade, reporting from the U.S., Central and South America, and at sea. Before joining Military.com, Gina was a longtime reporter and managing editor for the independent Marine Corps Times. Her story on two recruits trapped at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island in South Carolina was runner up for the 2013 Military Reporters and Editors award for domestic military coverage. She holds a master’s degree from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism and studied political science and international relations in her undergrad at Northeastern Illinois University.

Latest Articles

Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher and team members on deployment.

Trump to Restore SEAL Gallagher's Rank, Dismiss Soldiers' War Crimes Charges: Report

President Donald Trump will intervene in the cases against three troops who were accused of war crimes, Fox News reported.

U.S. Marine Corps Gen. David Berger aboard USS Makin Island

Range of Punishments 'On the Table' for Marine Leaders After Fatal AAV Accident

Berger said when he read the findings of the first probe, "it was pretty clear to me we needed to do a follow-on...

Sailors man the rails on the flight deck of the USS Ronald Reagan.

Fully Vaccinated Sailors Can Make Some Port Calls, Ditch Masks and Cut Quarantines

Anyone who has declined the vaccine or hasn't built up antibodies through an infection will still be required to sequester...

Royal navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth.

'Nicest Ship I Have Been On': Marine Colonel Sounds Off on British Aircraft Carrier

A Marine F-35B Joint Strike Fighter detachment is officially underway on a British aircraft carrier for the first time ever.

Marines pose for a photograph in front of the last tank assigned to 1st Tank Battalion.

'You Always Demonstrate True Grit:' Marines' Famous 1st Tank Battalion Folds as Mission Ends

The deactivation ceremony symbolized a bittersweet end to the mission for 1st Marine Division.

artist rendering of the guided-missile frigate FFG(X)

The Navy Will Pay $554M for Another Next-Gen Frigate, Called USS Congress

The Wisconsin-based Fincantieri Marinette Marine was awarded a contract to build the future guided-missile frigate Congress.

Forty-two ships and submarines in formation during RIMPAC Exercise 2014.

Biggest Navy Exercise in a Generation Will Include 25,000 Personnel Across 17 Time Zones

Aircraft carriers, submarines, planes, unmanned vessels, and about 25,000 personnel will participate in Large Scale Exercise...

U.S. Marine Maj. Christopher Warnagiris.

Active-Duty Marine Major Arrested After Allegedly Pushing Police Officer in Capitol Riot

Maj. Christopher Warnagiris was arrested after federal agents said he broke into the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 riot.

Army Fort Jackson Trainee Arrested After Allegedly Hijacking a School Bus Full of Children

Law enforcement officials say he'll now face multiple kidnapping charges.

Marines Sank a Moving Ship When They Fired a Navy Missile from a Drone Truck

The Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System can launch naval strike missiles from the back of a modified JLTV to...

ultrasound of a Marine participant with the COVID-19 Health Action Response for Marines study

Hundreds of Marines Get Heart Exams in Study About COVID's Effects on Young People

More than 460 Marines so far have volunteered to participate in the second portion of the CHARM study.

25th annual Rolling Thunder motorcycle rally.

Vets Group Celebrates New DC Motorcycle Ride Location After Pentagon Rejection

The new organizers for a massive motorcycle ride through the nation's capital say it will now start at RFK Stadium.

Army Enhanced Night Vision Goggle-binoculars

Marine Rifle Squads Will Test the Army's New High-Powered Night Vision Goggle-Binoculars

Marine rifle squads will evaluate the Army's Enhanced Night Vision Goggle-Binocular, which soldiers have been using since...

An F-35B Lightning II aircraft conducts nighttime aerial refueling training operation.

Marines Will Make Reports on Fatal Accidents Available in New 'Mishap Library'

The library will provide easily accessible vignettes for leaders to review "what wrong looks like."

A Marine loads a .50-caliber machine gun.

More Marines Will Test Lighter Polymer-Cased Ammunition as Experiments Expand to Fleet

Marines will get to see for themselves how lighter rounds hold up in the field.

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Most Popular Military News

U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Charlie H. Clawson

Senior Enlisted Marine Reduced to Sergeant for Wearing Unauthorized Awards, Including Purple Heart

Per a plea agreement, then-Sgt. Maj. Charlie Clawson was reduced in rank after a Sept. 13 court-martial found him in...

U.S. Navy SEAL candidates (BUD/S) training.

Pentagon Watchdog Questions Navy SEAL Training Program's Use of Sleep Deprivation

The DoD inspector general report released Thursday found that the Navy "lacks a policy on the intentional use of sleep...

President Donald Trump watches the 121st Army-Navy Football Game

Republicans Spent Years Slamming 'Woke' Military Policies. The Election Could Give Them the Chance to Act.

As the presidential and congressional campaigns enter their final stretch before Nov. 5, GOP vows to undo wokeness are...

Airmen apply a dressing to a “casualty” during the Ready Eagle II exercise

Tricare Enrollment Freeze Coming, But Officials Say Contract Transfer Will Avoid Headaches of 2017 Change

The limitations are needed, Tricare officials said, to ensure a smooth transition for patients changing health care companies...

National Guard during protests in Lafayette Park in Washington, D.C.

Far-Right Suggests Military Just Authorized Lethal Force Against Americans Ahead of the Election. It Didn’t.

As Trump warns about an "enemy from within," a Defense Department directive set off a firestorm on alt-tech social media. But...

Damaged buildings at Iran's Parchin military base

Satellite Images Show Damage from Israeli Attack at 2 Secretive Iranian Military Bases

Some of the buildings damaged sat in Iran's Parchin military base, where the International Atomic Energy Agency suspects Iran...

Latest Military Videos

US Defense Chief Austin Says There’s Evidence North Korea Has Sent Troops to Russia

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday there is evidence that North Korea has sent troops to Russia. (Oct...

South Korea’s Spy Chief Says North Korea Has Sent Another 1,500 Troops to Russia

About 3,000 North Korean troops have been sent to Russia and they are now receiving training on drones and...

Chinese Leader on Ukraine, Reform of International Governance and Finance

China's President Xi Jinping on Wednesday emphasized the need to avoid an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine as...

Harris Says Trump Wants a Military That Would Be Loyal to Him Above All, Not to the American People

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris' comments Wednesday come after Trump’s former chief of staff John Kelly said Trump wanted...

Investigations and Features

Army Capt. Jeremy Kuykendall and his wife Kate, cradle their daughter

Unsupervised: Military Child Care Centers Slow to Report Abuse with Little Oversight

A Military.com investigation into military day care centers revealed that service branch rules generally prioritize...

A patch in the home of retired missileer Paul Hunke

They Stood Sentry over America's Nuclear Missile Arsenal. Many Worry It Gave Them Cancer.

For years, it was an open secret among missileers that the Cold War-era missile alert facilities and launch control centers...

Army News

British Normandy campaign veteran George Chandler of the Royal Navy speaks to the media

UK D-Day Veteran George Chandler, Who Escorted American Troops to Normandy Beaches, Dies at 99

D-Day veteran George Chandler, who sought to counter sometimes glamorous depictions of the landings by recalling the horrors...

Bundeswehr captain, brushes a horse in a paddock at the Silberburg Ranch

Traumatized Soldiers Find Solace Grooming Horses in the Black Forest

In a remote corner of Germany's Black Forest, the echoes of war linger in the minds of Bundeswehr soldiers, grappling with...

Navy News

Afghan refugees demand their U.S. visa to be processed

Navy Reserve Officer Sentenced to Prison over Afghan Visa Scheme

Cmdr. Jeromy Pittmann was sentenced to 30 months in prison for accepting "bribe payments from Afghan nationals in exchange...

Retired Vietnam POW Cmdr. Everett Alvarez Jr. looks at a bust of himself

Congress Eyes Top Honor for Navy Pilot Who Was Second-Longest Ever US Military POW

Lawmakers are working to award the Congressional Gold Medal to retired Cmdr. Everett Alvarez Jr., who spent eight and a half...

Air Force News

Aragon DFAC on Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado

Peterson Space Force Base Dining Hall Closed Indefinitely After 'Significant Safety Incident'

Guardians and airmen stationed at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado have been without an on-base dining hall facility for...

Ground water remediation system being used to remediate PFAs

Air Force Reverses Course, Strikes Deal with EPA to Clean Up PFAS-Tainted Water in Arizona

The Air Force has reached an agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency to address contaminated drinking water in...

Space Force News

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches the Starlink 7-16 mission from Vandenberg

Newsom Sides with Musk in Dispute Over SpaceX Rocket Launches

The SpaceX dispute centers around the Coastal Commission’s rejection of the company’s plan to increase the number of rockets...

Chief of Space Operations, Gen. Chance Saltzman

General in Charge of the US Space Force Inducted into Kentucky Aviation Hall of Fame

Gen. Chance Saltzman, the second person to hold the chief of space operations title, said in an interview the Space Force has...

Marine Corps News

Ttransmission lines from the Navajo Generating Station in Arizona

Marine Veteran Connected to Neo-Nazi Power Grid Attack Plot Sentenced to 7 Years in Prison

Jordan Duncan, 29, and formerly assigned to Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, was the final member of a five-man group sentenced...

Butler Martin, 101, of Inkster and a World War II Montford Point Marine veteran

Butler Martin, 101, Was One of the Nation's First Black Marines

Butler Martin may have made his mark as a barrier-breaking World War II Marine who trained under challenging conditions in...

Coast Guard News

Coast Guard Sector San Diego MH-60T Jayhawk helicopter

Coast Guard Leaders in Sector San Diego Sidelined Amid Claims of Toxic Work Environment

The service is looking into allegations of unfair treatment and the Coast Guardsmen's ability to fulfill their leadership...

The sun rises over Sapelo Island, Georgia.

At Least 7 Dead After Ferry Dock Gangway Collapses on Georgia's Sapelo Island

The U.S. Coast Guard is assisting in the search and rescue operations.