Military

Camp Pendleton has released the names of the four Marines killed Wednesday morning on base.

The San Diego-based USS Cowpens arrived in the Philippines today to begin "Operation Damayan" - a humanitarian mission that will provide aid to the typhoon-ravaged nation.

Chaak was a military working dog who spent 11 years in the Marine Corps. Sgt. Daniel Cornier was Chaak's handler, and adopted the Belgian Malinois when the dog was retired at Camp Pendleton. On Veterans Day, Chaak passed away after a brief illness.

The Navy on Wednesday ordered personnel on the San Diego-based hospital ship USNS Mercy to prepare for possible deployment in the next few days to typhoon-stricken areas of the Philippines.

As part of the ongoing effort to move away from a one size fits all security approach and provide more of the traveling public the ability to participate in expedited screening, today the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the Department of Defense (DoD) announced a partnership to expand TSA Precheck expedited screening benefits to all U.S. Armed Forces service members, including those serving in the U.S. Coast Guard, Reserves and National Guard.

A small group from Camp Pendleton's 1st Battalion, 5th Regiment became the first Marines to use a robotic mule called the LS3, when they traveled last week to Massachusetts to field test the machine.

Shoppers at military commissaries will soon have to hand over their ID cards to be scanned during checkout. Defense Commissary Agency officials say the scans will allow them to obtain more information about their customers.

The latest numbers from the Department of Defense show suicides in the military are down 22 percent this year. The reason why has many Pentagon officials perplexed.

The USS Cowpens - homeport Naval Base San Diego - will head to the Philippines immediately to provide humanitarian assistance to the hundreds of thousands of Typhoon Haiyan victims. The Cowpens is on patrol with the George Washington Carrier Strike Group, and is currently in Hong Kong for a port visit.

Are you a veteran looking for unconditional love? In honor of Veterans Day, the San Diego Humane Society and SPCA, and the San Diego County Department of Animal Services, are offering 50 percent off adoption fees to those who have served in our Armed Forces.