- Happy Armed Forces Day! It's celebrated on the third Saturday in May.
- Established in 1949 by President Harry S. Truman, Armed Forces Day celebrates and gives thanks to the military for their service.
- In honor of the holiday, we rounded up 43 of the best pictures taken by military photographers.
- Visit INSIDER's homepage for more stories.
On any given day, plenty of military photographers are capturing the grit and glory of American troops in the field — and in war zones — around the world.
From leaping out of airplanes to detonating obstacles, even their training can be dangerous.
To celebrate Armed Forces Day, here are 43 captivating images of US troops in action, taken by military photographers.
A US Navy Blue Angels flyover at the end of an Independence Day celebration in front of the Lincoln Memorial, July 4, 2019, in Washington, D.C.
Cadets in face masks pose for a picture after their graduation ceremony at the US Air Force Academy, at Air Force Academy, Colorado.
New US Army recruits who have been in quarantine for 2 weeks meet their drill sergeants.
An F/A-18F Super Hornet assigned conducts flight operations.
President Donald Trump awards US Army Staff Sgt. David Bellavia the Medal of Honor at the White House in Washington, June 25, 2019.
US Marines detonate obstacle-breaching Bangalore torpedoes during an exercise at Twentynine Palms, California.
A US Marine drinks cobra blood during a jungle survival exercise with the Thai Navy.
US Air Force basic training recruits arrive and practice social distancing at the Pfingston Reception Center at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas.
US Navy sailors assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) depart the ship to move to off-ship berthing in Guam.
New recruits receive a briefing at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, California.
Senior Airman Daniel Lasal performs a post-flight inspection on an F-16 Fighting Falcon on Nov. 15, 2016, at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan.
US Army Soldiers, assigned to 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, conduct mortar training in Arta, Djibouti, on Jan. 5, 2017.
Ray Chavez, 104, the oldest living Pearl Harbor survivor, rings the Freedom Bell during the Freedom Bell Opening Ceremony and Bell Ringing at the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on April 8, 2016.
Petty Officer 3rd Class Alexis Rey conducts pre-flight checks on an EA-18G Growler on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower on Dec. 11, 2016.
A US Army soldier provides security using his M240B machine gun during a unit reconnaissance patrol in Hohenfels, Germany on Jan. 21, 2016.
11th Marine Expeditionary Unit Commanding Officer Col. Clay C. Tipton speaks to his Marines on the flight deck of the USS Somerset on Dec. 3, 2016.
Comedian Jon Stewart poses for a photo with the Air Force team during the 2016 Department of Defense Warrior Games in West Point, N.Y., on June 15, 2016.
Senior Airman Daniel San Miguel, an aerospace propulsion journeyman, oversees an F110-GE-129 engine being tested during its afterburner phase on Feb. 4, 2016.
Aircrew aboard a C-130 Hercules assigned to the 36th Airlift Squadron circle a Micronesian Island on Dec. 5, 2016.
The US Air Force Honor Guard Drill Team performs a rifle demonstration in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 22, 2016.
An F-35 Lightning II flies around the airspace of Davis-Monthan Air Force Base on March 5, 2016.
Marines with the Maritime Raid Force, 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, conduct military free-fall training over Marine Corps Training Area Bellows, Oahu, Hawaii on Oct. 18, 2016.
Cpl. Zachery Personett, an infantryman with 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, gives a thumbs up to a Royal Army of Oman soldier after he cleared a weapons malfunction during a combat marksmanship range as part of Exercise Sea Soldier on Feb. 19, 2017.
A Crew Chief assigned to Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 167 observes the landing zone from a UH-1Y Huey during a training operation at Marine Corps Auxiliary Landing Field Bogue, North Carolina, on March 9, 2017.
Sgt. Johnathan Stamets looks through his M8541A optic attached to the M-110 Semi-Automatic Sniper System rifle aboard the USS Somerset Ombudsman on Jan. 12, 2017.
U.S. Army and French Soldiers bed down during a field training exercise in Arta, Djibouti, on March 16, 2016.
Marines with 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment and 2nd Combat Engineer Battalion take cover while conducting urban demolition breach training in Yuma, Arizona, on March 30, 2017.
Tech. Sgt. Benjamin Jonas jumps out of a C-130 Hercules while flying over Yokota Air Base, Japan, on March 2, 2016.
US Army Lt. Col. (Ret.) Charles Kettles is awarded the Medal of Honor at the White House on July 18, 2016, for actions during a battle near South Vietnam in 1967.
Marines, assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, depart the well deck of the amphibious transport dock ship USS Green Bay in a combat rubber raiding craft on Aug. 29, 2016.
Seaman Kennedy Prescott performs a deadlift during a power lifting competition aboard the amphibious dock landing ship USS Whidbey Island on Sept. 18, 2016.
Senior Airman Tariq Russell, a 21st Security Forces Squadron military working dog handler, shakes the paw of his partner, Paul, at Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., on June 14, 2016.
US Army Soldiers, assigned to 101st Airborne Brigade, fire a Javelin Anti-Tank Missile system during a large-scale platoon live-fire exercise at Fort Campbell, Ky., on July 29, 2016.
A member of the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing security forces stands on a flightline near a guard tower at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia on Nov. 14, 2016. Behind the Airman a rare supermoon rises in the sky.
Master Sgt. Israel Del Toro throws a shotput during the 2016 Invictus Games in Orlando, Fla., on May 10, 2016. He earned a gold medal in the men’s shot put in his disability category.
Special Tactics Training Squadron students swim the length of the pool with their hands and feet bound during a pre-scuba class at Hurlburt Field, Fla., on June 29, 2016.
The U.S. Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon performs during the Battle Color Ceremony at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona, on March 2, 2017.
Electrician's Mate Fireman Desiree Mason and Damage Controlman Fireman Edgar Rotundo practice pipe-patching drills during a Damage Control Training Team exercise on the flight deck of Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Barry in the waters south of Japan on March 5, 2017.
Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 8 and the Norwegian Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal team participate in a cold-weather endurance ruck march in Ramsund, Norway.
The amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island transits the Arabian Sea on March 3, 2017.
Construction Mechanic Constructionman Matt Adams traverses a mud-filled pit while participating in the endurance course at the Jungle Warfare Training Center in Okinawa, Japan on Feb. 17, 2017.
The Patriots Jet Team performs aerial acrobatics as pyrotechnics provided by the Tora Bomb Squad of the Commemorative Air Force explode, forming a "Wall Of Fire" during an air show on March 18, 2017.
Editor's note: Daniel Brown wrote an earlier version of this post.