thedrifter
01-17-06, 12:28 PM
January 23, 2006 <br />
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Marine News Briefs <br />
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NCO receives Bronze Star <br />
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Cpl. Joseph Avila, a 21-year-old machine gunner with Scout Sniper Platoon, Weapons Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, received...
thedrifter
01-17-06, 12:29 PM
January 23, 2006 <br />
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News Breaks <br />
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Lance corporal found dead at Lejeune <br />
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A leatherneck assigned to the 2nd Marine Division’s headquarters battalion was discovered dead in his Camp Lejeune, N.C.,...
thedrifter
01-17-06, 12:30 PM
January 23, 2006
Around the Corps
Compiled from military and other public sources.
Iraq
Troops uncover weapons cache
Iraqi army soldiers and U.S. Marines discovered hundreds of mortars, artillery rounds, rockets and other warheads during a three-day sweep near Hit, Iraq, Marine officials said in a Jan. 11 press release.
Leathernecks with 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit and Iraqi soldiers with 1st Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 7th Iraqi Army Division, unearthed nearly 500 rockets, artillery and mortar rounds, and about 100 tank rounds, the release said.
They also found assault rifles, ammunition and two roadside bombs, along with supplies most likely intended for creating more bombs.
First Lt. Antonio Agnone, the combat engineer platoon leader for Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines, said the leathernecks even found weapons hidden in a local cemetery.
Agnone said coalition forces found caches in grave spots marked with both head and foot markers.
‘Red Bull’ searches ‘Triad’ for weapons
Leathernecks with 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines, and Iraqi army soldiers kicked off the new year with a two-week weapons search dubbed Operation Red Bull, a Jan. 9 Corps news release said.
The Iraqi soldiers and Marines from the “Triad” area of Haditha, Haqlaniyah and Barwana searched more than 20 kilometers of the Euphrates River shoreline, the release said.
According to Capt. Jeffrey Dinsmore, a target collections officer for the unit, the battalion’s implementation of vehicle checkpoints and heavy patrols since its arrival made the enemy resort to a backup plan.
“If we have the roads blocked and the cities under constant watch, the insurgents will adapt and use other ways to perform their operations,” Dinsmore said. “We knew the river would be the place where insurgents were transporting and hiding their equipment.”
North Carolina
New River makes room for Ospreys
The Marine Corps is making room for inbound MV-22 Ospreys, a Jan. 10 Corps news release said.
Leathernecks with Marine Aircraft Group 29 and the future Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 263 conducted an exercise at their squadron hangar Jan. 5 to discover how much space the Ospreys would take up, the release said.
Marine Corps Air Station New River, N.C., will become home to the new squadron this spring, the release said.
24th MEU begins deployment training
Leathernecks and sailors with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit started pre-deployment training Jan. 5, a Corps news release said.
According to the release, the MEU’s elements scattered across 400 miles to test long-range communication skills.
The command element moved from Camp Lejeune, N.C., to Norfolk, Va., to board the amphibious assault ship Iwo Jima for the unit’s first at-sea drill.
The MEU’s ground-combat and logistics elements traveled to Fort A.P. Hill, Va., for three weeks of field maneuvers.
At Lejeune, leathernecks set up Joint Force Task Enabler, a mobile communications suite, while other elements prepared for a week in Wilmington, N.C., for reconnaissance and surveillance training.
According to the MEU commander, Col. Ron Johnson, the exercise is a “freebie,” because it offers an early opportunity for his Marines to develop relationships with their Navy counterparts for later training.
The 24th MEU is scheduled to deploy in the spring with the Iwo Jima Expeditionary Strike Group, the release said.
California
Regional command stands down
Marine Corps Air Bases Western Area deactivated Jan. 9 after almost 50 years of existence, a Corps news release said.
According to the release, the deactivation ceremony took place at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif. Brig. Gen. Carl Jensen, commander of MCABWA, cased the regional colors for the last time.
The same ceremony included a change of command, in which Jensen relinquished command of Miramar to Col. Paul Christian, who was the air station’s chief of staff.
The secretary of the Navy established and activated the command on Oct. 4, 1957, the release said.