thedrifter
12-02-05, 05:55 AM
Deployment looms for members of 24th MEU
December 02,2005
BY Chris Mazzolini
Freedom ENC
CAMP LEJEUNE - The Marines and sailors of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit face the prospect of going anywhere when they deploy - no corner of the globe, no snow-capped peak, sprawling city or dust-blown desert is off limits.
But ask the troops, and there's only one place they want to go.
"I want to deploy back to Iraq," said Cpl. Mike O'Brien, 26, with 1st Battalion, 8th Marines. "I'm ready to go back."
The MEU marked the beginning of its predeployment training with a formation ceremony Wednesday at W.P.T. Hill Field at Camp Lejeune. The entire unit - about 2,200 troops from Lejeune, Cherry Point and New River - came together for the first time.
And while the unit's commanding officer, Col. Ron Johnson, told the Marines and sailors that they should expect the unexpected, he did say that Iraq looms large in everyone's mind.
"We have unfinished business over there, and we expect that's where we'll be needed most," he said. "Our place we were last year was Iraq, but we'll have to prepare for any contingency possible."
The unit's last deployment, which ended in February, took the headquarters group and Marine Service Support Group-24 to Iraq's infamous "Triangle of Death" for seven months. The MEU's new landing team fought in the much-publicized battle of Fallujah in November 2004, and Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron-365 deployed to western Iraq for seven months last year.
Between now and early summer - when it's expected to replace the 22nd MEU - the MEU will conduct a number of large training exercises to fine-tune its coordination and prepare for a number of potential scenarios. They'll execute naval drills aboard the USS Iwo Jima, Nashville and Whidbey Island, the assault ships that will be carrying the MEU. An urban warfare exercise at Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia will be another training highlight.
"That is the biggest challenge we have today," Johnson said of urban warfare. "In an urban area, small roadways, alleyways that are hard to move about in, with the possibility of ambush, that's a challenge.
"We found when we are over there, it doesn't matter what your job is: Every Marine and sailor is a rifleman. You could be driving a convoy one minute and in a fire fight the next."
And if Iraq is indeed one of the unit's destinations, many of the personnel would be going back for a second or third time. But that's not as important as putting together a strong team during training, Johnson said.
"The combat experience isn't as important as the cohesion of the men knowing each other," he said. "That's really what makes them sing."
But the necessity to adapt quickly to any situation is paramount, Johnson said. That was illustrated in September, when the MEU deployed south to the Gulf Coast region to help those ravaged by Hurricane Katrina.
"New Orleans was a pretty good training tool," said O'Brien. "A lot of the junior guys and new leaders got an opportunity to figure it out and practice, in a way."
O'Brien said his reasons for wanting to return to Iraq are simple.
"We still got guys over there, and that's good enough for me," he said. "There are a lot of bad people that need to be taken care of."
Ellie
December 02,2005
BY Chris Mazzolini
Freedom ENC
CAMP LEJEUNE - The Marines and sailors of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit face the prospect of going anywhere when they deploy - no corner of the globe, no snow-capped peak, sprawling city or dust-blown desert is off limits.
But ask the troops, and there's only one place they want to go.
"I want to deploy back to Iraq," said Cpl. Mike O'Brien, 26, with 1st Battalion, 8th Marines. "I'm ready to go back."
The MEU marked the beginning of its predeployment training with a formation ceremony Wednesday at W.P.T. Hill Field at Camp Lejeune. The entire unit - about 2,200 troops from Lejeune, Cherry Point and New River - came together for the first time.
And while the unit's commanding officer, Col. Ron Johnson, told the Marines and sailors that they should expect the unexpected, he did say that Iraq looms large in everyone's mind.
"We have unfinished business over there, and we expect that's where we'll be needed most," he said. "Our place we were last year was Iraq, but we'll have to prepare for any contingency possible."
The unit's last deployment, which ended in February, took the headquarters group and Marine Service Support Group-24 to Iraq's infamous "Triangle of Death" for seven months. The MEU's new landing team fought in the much-publicized battle of Fallujah in November 2004, and Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron-365 deployed to western Iraq for seven months last year.
Between now and early summer - when it's expected to replace the 22nd MEU - the MEU will conduct a number of large training exercises to fine-tune its coordination and prepare for a number of potential scenarios. They'll execute naval drills aboard the USS Iwo Jima, Nashville and Whidbey Island, the assault ships that will be carrying the MEU. An urban warfare exercise at Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia will be another training highlight.
"That is the biggest challenge we have today," Johnson said of urban warfare. "In an urban area, small roadways, alleyways that are hard to move about in, with the possibility of ambush, that's a challenge.
"We found when we are over there, it doesn't matter what your job is: Every Marine and sailor is a rifleman. You could be driving a convoy one minute and in a fire fight the next."
And if Iraq is indeed one of the unit's destinations, many of the personnel would be going back for a second or third time. But that's not as important as putting together a strong team during training, Johnson said.
"The combat experience isn't as important as the cohesion of the men knowing each other," he said. "That's really what makes them sing."
But the necessity to adapt quickly to any situation is paramount, Johnson said. That was illustrated in September, when the MEU deployed south to the Gulf Coast region to help those ravaged by Hurricane Katrina.
"New Orleans was a pretty good training tool," said O'Brien. "A lot of the junior guys and new leaders got an opportunity to figure it out and practice, in a way."
O'Brien said his reasons for wanting to return to Iraq are simple.
"We still got guys over there, and that's good enough for me," he said. "There are a lot of bad people that need to be taken care of."
Ellie