Best pics of the week: Dec. 23, 2018 Army Lt. Col. Steven Templeton fires an M2 Browning .50 Cal machine gun at Novo Selo Training Range, Bulgaria, Dec. 14, 2018. (Spc. Deomontez Duncan/Army) Santa Claus paid a special visit to McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base to visit with airmen and their families Dec. 2, 2018. A sleigh and reindeer were not available, so Santa, Mrs. Claus and their elves arrived via a KC-135 Stratotanker to the hanga,r where children were able to take photos and deliver their wish lists in person. (Tech. Sgt. Jonathan Young/Air National Guard) A propeller is installed on the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility in Bremerton, Wash., Oct. 16, 2018. Nimitz is in a 15-month docking planned incremental availability to upgrade and renovate a variety of systems. The ship is scheduled to return to sea in May 2019 to perform sea trials in preparation for future operations. (Brian Kilpatrick/Navy) Army AH-64 Apache helicopter flies in formation during a Division Run during Tropic Lightning Week on Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, Dec. 17, 2018. (1st Lt. Ryan DeBooy/Army) Soldiers with the East Africa Response Force (EARF), prepare for night vision training at Grand Bara, Djibouti, Dec. 14, 2018. The purpose of the EARF is to rapidly provide tailorable packages of forces to protect American interests on the African continent should any threats arise. (Staff Sgt. Amy Picard/Air Force) Marines with the Amphibious Assault Vehicle Platoon, 1st Battalion 2nd Marine Regiment, 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, stage prior to embarking on the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3), on Onslow Beach, Camp Lejeune, N.C., Dec. 19, 2018. (Lance Cpl. Damion Hatch Jr./Marine Corps) Lt. j.g. Michael Robinson looks through binoculars aboard the guided-missile destroyer USS Chung-Hoon (DDG 93) in the Gulf of Aden, Dec. 15, 2018. (MC2 Logan C. Kellums/Navy) Army Pvt. Hayden Johnson, center, fires a Javelin shoulder-fired anti-tank missile during a combined arms live fire exercise as part of Desert Observer II the Udairi Range Complex near Camp Buehring, Kuwait, Dec. 12, 2018. (Spc. Jovi Prevot/Army National Guard) USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) and the amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD 2) sail in formation on Dec. 14, 2018, in the Arabian Sea. (MC3 Connor D. Loessin/Navy) Army medics assigned to the South Carolina Army National Guard conduct a final field training exercise during the 68W Sustainment Course at McCrady Training Center, Eastover, S.C., Dec. 13, 2018. (2nd Lt. Jorge Intriago/Army National Guard)