Mail Call

Learn how grenade launchers work; how a .30 caliber machine gun compares to a .50 cal; watch Ermey behind the wheel of a Flyer 21; and discover the origin of the word shrapnel.

Ermey compares Civil War rifles; learns about the first missile fired from a sub deck; compares Navy deep-sea suits, examines the Bowie knife; and explains the how hedgechoppers were used on D-Day.

Ermey explores the Armored Vehicle Launched Bridge and the Fulton Recovery System, examines the ancient Greek Trireme and learns how to fire battleship guns.

Find out the history of medieval trebuchets and the Browning Automatic Rifle; how many troops are in a platoon, a company, and a division; how smart bombs work; and parachutes used by paratroopers.

Ermey rides a Light Armored Vehicle and finds out why landing craft don't sink, what the WWI term "Doughboy" means, how to make medieval chain mail, and the origins of the military salute.

What is a WWII "Deuce and a Half" and a “Vietnam Gun Truck?” How do missile silos work? Did Scottish soldiers really wear kilts in battle, and who did the Germans call the "Girls from Hell" in WWI?

What were the wickedest medieval weapons? What is a WWI Lewis gun? How were carrier pigeons used, how do ejection seats and TOW anti-aircraft missiles works and did people use gliders in combat?

Why isn't all artillery self-propelled? How do matchlock muskets and depth charges work? How does the Navy select pilots for the Blue Angels and what type of weapons did pirates use?

Ermey demonstrates an AT-4 anti-tank rocket, finds out how commanders stay in touch at a Tactical Operations Center, learns the origin of the 21-gun salute and meets Air Force Pararescuemen.

How does an AAV stay afloat? How did medieval battering rams work? What are urban warfare tactics? And what's the story behind all those pictures of girls and other stuff drawn on WWII airplanes?

Go aboard the Coast Guard's Motor Lifeboat; find out how many ships are in a carrier battle group; why the Sherman tank was a deathtrap and how WWII V-mail kept letters flowing from the front to home.

If unmanned aircraft are so good, why do we need pilots? Travel with R. Lee Ermey to Edwards AFB for a look at the latest in experimental planes. See how Scottish kids, afraid of the Bogey Man, gave rise to the pilot term for unidentified aircraft. Watch the first combat helicopter, the U.S. YR-4B, flown in WWII by Lt. Carter Harman in Burma. See how forward observers direct artillery fire, and join Ermey as he demonstrates the Fairbairn-Sykes commando knife on his favorite target--a watermelon!