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

Why the USS Cole's Commander Pushed to Keep His Crew Together After Deadly Bombing

On Oct. 12, 2000, two suicide bombers in a small boat laden with explosives targeted the guided-missile destroyer Cole.

Marines Send More Embassy Guards to Haiti as Riots Turn Deadly

A squad-sized Marine detachment arrived in Haiti to bolster security at the U.S. embassy there as protests turned violent.

Amazon, SpaceX Leaders Will Headline Major Air Force Conference

Two business executives leading space travel and technology advancements will speak at the Air Force Association conference.

Ronald Shurer, Medal of Honor Recipient Who Died of Cancer at 41, to Be Laid to Rest at Arlington

Shurer died in May at the age of 41 after a years-long lung cancer battle.

Troops and Military Families Call for Change After El Paso, Dayton Shootings

"My family shouldn't be the ones who feel like they are in a combat zone."

Commissaries Limit Toilet Paper, Other Sales as Shoppers Hoard Supplies

Limitations will change from store to store, but directors are authorized to place restrictions on certain products.

The Military Doesn't Bar Troops from Being Members of Hate Groups. That Could Change

"Active participation" in groups that advocate supremacist, extremist or criminal gang ideologies is prohibited.

Trump Says Fired Navy Captain 'Wanted to Be Ernest Hemingway' in Warning Letter

Trump declined to offer his thoughts on whether Crozier should be reinstated as commanding officer of the USS Roosevelt.

Sgt. 1st Class Reymund Transfiguracion, with 3rd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), died Sunday following wounds sustained during an Aug. 7 patrol in Afghanistan's Helmand province. (Army photo)

Army Special Forces Soldier Dies After IED Blast in Afghanistan

A Washington-based Special Forces soldier has died from wounds caused by an improvised explosive device.

A CH-53E Super Stallion with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron (HMH) 465, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, flies back to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar during the Marine Air-Ground Task Force demonstration at the 2018 MCAS Miramar Air Show on MCAS Miramar, Calif., Sept. 29, 2018. (U.S. Marine Corps photo/Julian Elliott-Drouin)

Four Marines Safe After Super Stallion Helicopter Catches Fire Mid-Flight

Four Marines were able to get out of a heavy lift helicopter safely after it made an emergency landing just miles from their...

Navy Esports Team to Resume Streaming on Twitch After Trolling Caused Weeklong Hiatus

The Navy is standing by its decision to block some users on its livestreaming channel.

U.S. Marines play a game of Memoir 44’ on Camp Schwab, Okinawa.

The Marines Are Pumping Millions into a High-Tech Wargaming Center. Here's Why

A new Marine Corps Wargaming and Analysis Center is expected to be up and running in Quantico, Virginia, by 2024.

A Navy esports team player holds a game controller.

Navy Kicks Sailor Off Esports Team After Racist Usernames Appear in Game Stream

A sailor has been kicked off Goats and Glory, the Navy's official esports team that streams on the video platform Twitch.

The fast-attack submarine Hampton surfaces through the ice in the Arctic. U.S. 2nd Fleet, which declared initial operational capability on Wednesday, now oversees all military missions and training on the East Coast and in the North Atlantic, where the Russians and Chinese have been active. (Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Tyler Thompson/Navy)

Navy's 2nd Fleet, Brought Back to Counter Russia, Is Now Officially Operational

The Navy's 2nd Fleet has reached initial operational capacity, its commander announced Wednesday.

Thomas Webster at a barricade line at on the west front of the U.S. Capitol

Marines, Infantry Most Highly Represented Among Veterans Arrested After Capitol Riot

More than 40% of the 32 veterans arrested after the Capitol riot are affiliated with the Marines.

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Most Popular Military News

The 2019 edition of the Manual for Courts-Martial United States at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma

4 Soldiers Charged in Alleged Sexual Assault in Barracks at Washington State Base

Four soldiers have been charged in an alleged sexual assault that took place in the barracks at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in...

U.S. Marines fast rope off a CH-53E Super Stallion onto the USS New Orleans

Fire Extinguished After 12-Hour Fight on USS New Orleans Off Okinawa

Two sailors received minor injuries in the response, U.S. 7th Fleet officials said.

A Look at Those Trump Has Targeted in Tactic of Revoking Security Clearances

The Trump administration's announcement this week that it would rescind the security clearances of 37 current and former...

Soldiers practice military skills on a training ground near Kharkiv, Ukraine

Major Russian Attack on Western Ukraine Hits an American Factory During US-Led Push for Peace

The aerial assault on a part of Ukraine that has largely avoided such focused attacks was one of Russia's biggest this year...

14 with Ties to Washington Deported to ‘Third Countries’ and Guantánamo Bay

As the Trump administration lines up ever more countries to accept deported immigrants, a report to be released Thursday...

The Harpers Ferry-class amphibious dock landing ship USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) departs Naval Base San Diego and sails through the harbor.

Jury Convicts Chinese-Born US Navy Sailor of Espionage, Spying for China

The jury convicted Jinchao "Patrick" Wei, 25, on six counts of conspiracy, espionage and charges related to unlawfully...

Latest Military Videos

FBI Searches Home of Ex-Trump National Security Adviser John Bolton

A person familiar with the matter says the FBI is searching the Maryland home of John Bolton, who served...

Smoke Rises over Gaza as Israel Prepares for Large-Scale Offensive on Gaza City

Plumes of smoke were seen rising over the Gaza Strip on Friday, as Israel prepared for a large scale...

Trump Visits National Guard troops in DC, Vows City Will Be 'Maxed out in Terms of Beauty'

President Donald Trump visited with law enforcement personnel and National Guard troops deployed in Washington as part of his...

Gaza City Is in Famine, Says Leading Authority on Food Crises

The world's leading authority on food crises said Friday the Gaza Strip's largest city is gripped by famine, and...

Investigations and Features

In One of the Marines' Most Iconic Jobs, a Stunning Pattern of Suicide

Marine Corps drill instructors are a national symbol of discipline. But for some, their imposing persona belies a dark...

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...

Army News

President Trump speaks with National Guard soldiers in Washington D.C.

Guardsmen Patrolling DC Will Soon Be Armed, Pentagon Says

Guardsmen have mostly been patrolling tourist areas not known for high crime rates, such as the National Mall and a transit...

(Sgt. 1st Class Austin Berner/U.S. Army Reserve photo)

Why Is the Army Chopping Away at Its Chopper Fleet?

The cuts are part of a larger reorganization as the Army prepares for the changing landscape of warfare with one of the...

Navy News

A sailor stand at attention aboard the USS Fort Lauderdale

Amphibious Warships Join US Destroyers Nearing Venezuela amid Crackdown on Cartels

Two officials familiar with the deployment, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the Reuters that three Navy warships —...

Fire Extinguished After 12-Hour Fight on USS New Orleans Off Okinawa

Two sailors received minor injuries in the response, U.S. 7th Fleet officials said.

Air Force News

Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force David Flosi

Air Force Top Enlisted Leader Says Service Oath Isn't Made to 'Any Individual' Amid General's Retirement

Flosi's message to the force seemingly sought to calm the rank and file as the Pentagon goes through yet another major...

Denver Broncos defensive tackle Jordan Jackson

Air Force Product Jordan Jackson ‘Working His Tail Off’ to Hold Broncos Roster Spot

A few standout years at Air Force have given way to a few years on NFL roster bubbles. Sometimes outside. Sometimes inside.

Space Force News

New U.S. Space Force dress uniform at Buckley Space Force Base, Colo.

Space Force Finally Has its Own Rulebook on Dress, Appearance Guidelines for Guardians

Since being established as the smallest service branch in 2019, the Space Force has used the same guidance given to the Air...

Gavel and American flag with scales of justice.

Former Space Force Sergeant Fatally Shot Teen in 'Vigilante Violence,' Colorado Officials Say

Orest Schur received a 54-year prison sentence after a jury in June found him guilty of second-degree murder and attempted...

Marine Corps News

Marine Veteran Charged with Threatening to Shoot Schoolchildren Now Out of Jail

Once held on $1 million bond for livestreaming threats to shoot elementary school children, a military veteran is now out of...

US Naval Academy Gets First Marine Superintendent

Lt. Gen. Michael Borgschulte graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1991.

Coast Guard News

Damage can be seen on the bow of a Liberian 751-foot commercial cargo vessel named W-Sapphire that had an explosion onboard near the Francis Scott Key Bridge.

Coast Guard to Salvage 30-Ton Hatch from Ship Explosion in Baltimore

The hatch was located earlier this week after the Army Corps of Engineers deployed a sonar-equipped survey vessel at the...

A boat from Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound is shown in Elliott Bay, Seattle.

Family Questions Coast Guard Response to Fatal Sinking

The U.S. and Canadian coast guards responded to a sinking boat last week just off Point Roberts, a U.S.-controlled tip of a...