The Fire Pit

by Mitchell “Taco” Bell So you shot down a spy balloon, huh? Here, hold my beer… Somewhere back in 2002, I was flying from LGA to Toronto Canada on the daily shuttle in the F-100 Fokker Barbie Jet. It was a typical cold rainy and miserable winter time day in …

by Heath Hansen Editor’s note: Soldier of Fortune correspondent Heath Hansen recently came across an artist who creates visceral, dark, and mesmerizing military themed works that he says “do a fantastic job capturing the deepest emotions of the GWOT veteran.” Hansen contacted the artist, Invader Girl, and sends the following …

by Nikolay Shevchenko During the Cold War, disinformation was a deadly weapon that helped advance the USSR’s interests. Here are three areas where the KGB fueled conspiracy theories about the United States. 1. AIDS was a Pentagon invention On March 30, 1987, millions of Americans heard shocking news on national …

by Chris Crowther Editor’s note: For the first time since its founding, Soldier of Fortune presents fiction. The following is an excerpt from a novel set in World War I: PURSUIT, by British author Chris Crowther. He notes about writing the book: “I drew on my own 42 years in …

by Martin Kufus Editor’s note: Author Martin Kufus has published Plow the Dirt but Watch the Sky, a memoir of his many adventures. Herewith some excerpts from the chapter where some unusual requests come his way while he is an editor at Soldier of Fortune. The phone call had come …

by Brendan O ‘Byrne, The War Horse A small line of people formed in front of the stage; some of them offered a handshake or a thank you, a few wanted to tell me a story about their own experience, and others asked a question or two. An older woman …

by Heath Hansen I looked up into the big, blue sky. Far in the distance, I spotted a C-130 Hercules headed towards the open grass field I waited in. For a few moments, I watched as the plane continued in my direction. Suddenly, from the tail-end of the aircraft, paratroopers …

by Susan Katz Keating Soldier of Fortune Film rating: Five out of five berets. Veterans often remind their struggling fellows: “You’re not alone.” That’s the message British Army veteran Harry Turner wants others to pull from the new film Wildcat, that chronicles how he worked through his own post-traumatic struggles …

by Susan Katz Keating This is one of those times when running Soldier of Fortune gets interesting. Make that, really interesting. Folks frequently emerge from the shadows to fill me in on mysteries from years gone by, offering to show me old files, or point me in the “right” direction …

It started as an indie film, and turned into an international hit that spawned the popular Rambo series. First Blood was released on October 22, 1982, and grossed more than $125 million at the box office. Here’s a look at the first trailer that kicked off the film that turned …