Travis Tritten

Travis Tritten is the deputy managing editor for Military.com. He has more than 20 years of experience reporting on the military, government and politics in the U.S. and abroad. He was a recipient -- along with a team of Military.com reporters -- of the 2023 Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation award for distinguished reporting on national defense.

Since 2014, Tritten has reported from Washington, D.C., spending most of his time at the Pentagon and Capitol Hill. Previously, he was a senior defense reporter for Bloomberg Government; a defense and national security reporter at the Washington Examiner; and a reporter with Stars and Stripes, including seven years as a Japan correspondent.

Email: Travis.Tritten@Military.com

Latest Articles

What the Pentagon Has, Hasn't and Could Do to Stop Veterans and Troops from Joining Extremist Groups

The military and its transition programs have largely failed to provide what experts say is necessary to steer troops and...

The Threat from Extremist Groups Is Growing. Service Members and Vets Are Getting Sucked into the Violence.

The U.S. intelligence community deemed racially or ethnically motivated violent extremism -- with adherents such as white...

Trading on Patriotism: How Extremist Groups Target and Radicalize Veterans

The issue of extremist groups has gained attention after the riot on Jan. 6 aimed at preventing the peaceful transfer of the...

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III speaks to Fayetteville State University ROTC students.

Austin Recounts Childhood Struggles with Racism in University Address Focused on Military Inclusion

Austin's visit comes at a time when the services are struggling to meet recruiting goals.

Aircrew Aviation Electrician's Mate Striker Brandon Caserta, 21, died by suicide on June 25, 2018. An investigation found that leadership at Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 28 in Norfolk, Virginia, "contributed" to his decision to take his own life. (Photo courtesy of the Caserta family

Pentagon Approving New Rules for Mental Health Access More Than a Year After Passage of Law Requiring Changes

The Pentagon is moving forward with a series of changes to mental health care access required by a 2021 law that was passed...

Members of the National Guard stand near a vehicle along the U.S.-Mexico border in Mission, Texas.

Pentagon Sends 1,500 Active-Duty Troops to Border as Pandemic Immigration Restrictions End

The Pentagon is sending 1,500 active-duty troops to the southwest border as federal immigration agencies and local...

2 Air Guard Leaders in Accused Pentagon Leaker's Massachusetts Unit Suspended

The 102nd Intelligence Support Squadron's operational commander and federal orders administrative commander have been...

Pentagon spokesman U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder

Nearly Two Dozen Troops Suffered Brain Injuries in Iran-backed Syria Strikes, Pentagon Now Says

The Pentagon now says 23 troops were diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries from attacks by Iran-backed militants in Syria...

The criminal complaint against Jack Teixeira.

Federal Charges Against Air National Guardsman Allege He Spent Months Leaking Highly Sensitive Intelligence

Jack Douglas Teixeira was accused of unauthorized retention, removal and transmission of national defense information and...

Members of law enforcement assemble on a road in Dighton, Mass.

Guardsman Arrested in Pentagon Leak Case that Shook the US and Allies

Jack Douglas Teixeira was arrested by armed agents as part of the Justice Department probe into the unauthorized removal...

How Is Your Relationship? Defense Department Asks Military Couples to Weigh In

A randomized survey, which includes some difficult questions about abuse, was sent out to 300,000 troops and 100,000 military...

Coalition Forces showcase a Bradley Fighting Vehicle in Syria.

At Least 6 Troops Diagnosed with Brain Injuries After Deadly Iran-Backed Strikes in Syria

The diagnoses were made as part of ongoing medical assessments of American personnel at the two locations in northeast Syria...

Two Russian Su-27 aircraft intercept a U.S. Air Force drone over the Black Sea.

New Video Shows Russian Fighter Jet Buzzing US Drone Over Black Sea

Russian jets can be seen directly approaching and apparently dumping fuel twice on the U.S. drone as it flew over...

An MQ-9 Reaper turns out of a parking ramp.

Russian Jet Bumps Air Force Drone over Black Sea, Causing Unmanned Aircraft to Crash

Two Russian fighter jets caused an Air Force MQ-9 drone to crash in international waters during their attempt to intercept...

Aerial shot of the Pentagon in Washington, DC.

Big Pay Raises, Universal Pre-K: Biden's Pentagon Unveils Annual Budget Plans

For service members, the big spending plans for fiscal 2024 could mean the largest pay hike for troops in more than 20 years.

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Most Popular Military News

President-elect Donald Trump speaks with Elon Musk

Musk, Ramaswamy Proposal to Slash Spending Could Include VA Medical Services

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy confirmed that they plan to target "unauthorized" federal spending, a category that includes...

A U.S. Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter assigned to Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak delivers parts to the oil exploration support vessel Aiviq

Coast Guard Set to Receive New Icebreaker by Year's End, Bolstering US Presence in Arctic

The need for ships with icebreaking capabilities is growing as China and Russia increase their presence in the Arctic...

Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln

Marine Corps F-35C Was Used in Combat for First Time to Strike Houthis, Military Confirms

Traveling at speeds of 1,200 mph, the F-35C can carry Joint Direct Attack Munitions, or JDAMs, air-to-air missiles and other...

Diversity Day march on Buckley Air Force Base, Colo.

Military Diversity Is Not the Problem

"The main reason for concern about the U.S. military and its performance has to do with the variety of U.S. commitments and...

Privately owned vehicles wait to enter through the Dale Mabry gate at MacDill Air Force Base.

MacDill Airman Gets 5 Years Of Probation in 'Undead Apes' Blockchain Fraud

U.S. District Judge William Jung sentenced Devin Rhoden to five years’ probation, a reflection of Rhoden’s substantial...

Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill., smiles as he speaks to supporters during an election night rally at the Elks Lodge in Murphysboro, Ill.

House Approves Wide-Ranging Veterans Bill After Bipartisan Compromise Reached

A wide-ranging veterans policy bill that would bolster home caregiver programs and support for homeless veterans, among other...

Latest Military Videos

US to Give Antipersonnel Mines to Ukraine to Help Slow the Russian Advance

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin says the Biden administration will allow Ukraine to use American-supplied antipersonnel land mines to...

NATO Troops Take Part in Artillery Drills in Finland for First Time Since It Joined Military Alliance

Several thousand NATO troops took part in large-scale artillery drills in Finland for the first time since the country...

Austin Explains Decision to Supply Ukraine With Landmines

Outgoing U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin explained a decision to supply Ukraine with anti-personnel landmines during a briefing...

Ukrainian Students Light Candles to Remember 659 Children Killed in Conflict With Russia

Ukrainian students on Wednesday paused to remember the children killed in the conflict with Russia by lighting 659 candles...

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

A soldier fires a SIG Sauer M17 striker-fired pistol during a weapons qualification at Drawsko Pomorskie, Poland.

Army Offers $15,000 Reward for Info on Missing Guns and Other Gear at Fort Moore

Army investigators are still searching for 31 M17 pistols that disappeared from Fort Moore, Georgia, earlier this year, but...

Police Report Sheds New Light on Pentagon Nominee Hegseth's Sexual Encounter that Led to Assault Allegation

Pete Hegseth, who is tapped to lead the military and the nation's largest federal bureaucracy, has vehemently denied the...

Navy News

Malaysian fugitive Francis Leonard Glenn, known as Fat Leonard

'Fat Leonard' to Appeal Sentence, While Retired Navy Captain Will Seek a Reduced Charge

The prison term imposed by U.S. District Judge Janis Sammartino at the Nov. 5 sentencing hearing was more than three years...

Cher's more formal look in her 1989 music video, "If I Could Turn Back Time," filmed aboard the battleship USS Missouri. (Criteron Studios)

How Cher's 'Turn Back Time' Music Video Made Even the Navy Blush

A video featuring Cher singing to a rowdy group of American sailors would have been no trouble for anyone involved -- if it...

Air Force News

A CV-22B Osprey from the 352nd Special Operations Wing conducts a flyover at a Veterans Day ceremony at Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial, Cambridge, England.

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Military officials have refused to say whether they're still working with a company responsible for making the gear that...

Air Force's Special Operations Crop Duster Plane Will Be Flown for Training at Oklahoma Base

An Air National Guard base in Oklahoma will host the first formal training unit for the service's armed recon crop duster...

Space Force News

Chief Master Sgt. Roger Towberman, right, Space Force and Command senior enlisted leader, with Secretary of the Air Force Barbara Barrett, present President Donald Trump with the official flag of the United States Space Force in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C.

Fear of Losing US Space Command Unites Colorado’s Congressional Delegation

An intense persuasion campaign is heating up across more than 1,200 miles, from Colorado Springs to Alabama, as both states'...

A Falcon 9 rocket carrying Starlink 4-36 payload launches

Pentagon Silent on Elon Musk and Starlink Risks as Military Use Expands

In the past year, U.S. news outlets have reported that Musk, who oversees the satellite internet provider, has developed a...

Marine Corps News

Traffic drives past the entrance sign of Marine Corps Base Quantico in Quantico, Va.

Federal Judge Dismisses High-Profile Cases of 2 Jordanian Men Accused of Breaching Quantico Gate

U.S. attorneys for the Eastern District of Virginia filed a motion Oct. 3 to dismiss the misdemeanor charges against Hasan...

U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Andrew Lam fires an MK 22 bolt-action sniper rifle during a battlesight zero range at Mount Bundey Training Area, NT, Australia, May 1, 2024.

New Marine Sniper Rifle Reaches Full Operational Capability Ahead of Schedule

The Marine Corps' Mk22 Advanced Sniper Rifle will eventually replace the M40A6 and Mk13 Mod 7 in the service's arsenal.

Coast Guard News

Coast Guard Rear Adm. Sean Regan, commander, District Fourteen, salutes during a ceremony at Kalani High School in Honolulu, Hawaii, Nov. 21, 2024. The Coast Guard established its first Hawaii-based JROTC unit, also the 14th Coast Guard JROTC in the U.S.

Coast Guard Establishes First Hawaii-Based JROTC Program

Kalani High School officially activated its newly formed Coast Guard Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps program, the first...