thedrifter
01-30-07, 12:53 PM
Marines ‘take it to the streets' of Shugart-Gordon
By T.C. BRADFORD
Published: Tuesday, January 30, 2007 9:17 AM CST
Special to the Leader
FORT POLK - The U.S. Marine Corps was born Nov. 10, 1775, when the second Continental Congress passed a resolution raising two battalions to serve as landing forces with the U.S. Navy.
Marines fought through the Revolutionary War but when the Treaty of Paris ended the war in 1783, the Navy's ships were sold and the Continental Navy and Marines were disbanded.
The corps was re-established on 11 July, 1798, and has been in service to the country ever since. U.S. Marines contributed to the defense of the nation in battles including the War of 1812, the defeat of the British in the Battle of New Orleans, the Philippine Insurrection in 1899, the Boxer Rebellion in China in 1900 and numerous others.
In 1918, the Marines earned the title “Devil Dogs” for their service in Belleau Wood during World War I. A group of those “Devil Dogs” have been training at the Joint Readiness Training Center for rotation 07-03 which ended this week.
Kilo Battery, 3rd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, is an artillery platoon based at Camp Pendelton, Calif. Marine Staff Sgt. Joseph Clayton, Kilo 3-12 platoon leader, said JRTC has quite a reputation.
And, in today's joint operations climate, excellence in training is of paramount importance.
“We heard that the Joint Readiness Training Center had some good training opportunities. We wanted to put on the MILES (multiple integrated laser engagement system) gear and go through some of the best convoy training available.”
The Marines have their own training exercise similar to training received at JRTC. Mojave Viper is a 30-day exercise held at 29 Palms, Calif., which incorporates combined-arms training at the company level, fire and maneuvers at the platoon level and culminates with large-scale maneuvers including direct, indirect and aviation fires involving all elements of the exercise force.
Marine Cpl. Chadwick Thresher said it's good training but not geared for their mission. “Every Marine is a rifleman first and foremost, but our main mission is convoy escort and security. That will be our mission in Iraq, whether it be long haul convoys or escorting explosive ordnance disposal personnel,” he said.
“From my point of view, Mojave Viper was more of an infantryman's environment. It's definitely great infantry training. The convoy training is not at this level where an opposing force studies enemy tactics and engages us as the enemy would. From that position this is some great training.”
Marine Sgt. Juan Robles is a veteran of multiple deployments to Iraq. He talked about the realism of the training at JRTC. “It's pretty realistic. They throw a lot of stuff at us but we are here for such a short time that we need to get as much training in as possible,” he said. “A lot of these guys have never done this before so the more stuff that's thrown at us, the more prepared they will be when they get to Iraq.” Clayton said the unit hasn't been together that long. He said he is loving the training here because the unit is getting to know each other and bonding.
Marine Cpl. Tim Brook said bonding was one of the most important things they accomplished here. “We've got a lot of new guys in the unit and more guys are coming,” he said.
“We need to know everybody's strengths and weaknesses. It's good to train and live with each other before we go over there so we can learn what (our new Marines) can handle and when they're going to break under pressure. That way we can make them go beyond that and still be able to function past their breaking point.”
Thresher concurred. “One of the things JRTC is good at is stress. They can throw so many things at a unit that it stresses them out and causes friction,” he said. “We've refined our standard operating procedures out here to allow us to act more cohesively as a single unit. If we don't have a unity of effort when we deploy, it could cause a lot of needless suffering.”
Thresher said that even though there is always a rivalry between the services, they are all one team in the end. “The end mission is the same no matter what uniform we are wearing,” he said. “These guys have information and experience and they have a framework the Marine Corps doesn't have. That will give us a different type of training and more experience to deploy with.”
Thresher said he thinks the convoy training they received here will serve the unit well and that other Marine units would benefit from training at JRTC.
Brig. Gen. Daniel Bolger, commander, JRTC and Fort Polk, said the two branches stand together against a common enemy. “Now, since Sept. 11, 2001, Marines and Soldiers stand together ... to destroy al Qaeda and its
extremist ilk. In Afghanistan and Iraq, you will find Marines and Soldiers working in tandem at every level,”he said.
“The task organization isn't important. What's important is that the mission gets done. This practicality has been reinforced on a thousand battlefields and in a hundred thousand firefights. We have much to share and learn from each other.”
Robles said the Marines will take the lessons learned and apply them well. “We're getting a lot out of it and we're going to continue doing what we do best. We will continue to train so we can apply these lessons to combat.”
Thresher said it was worth the time spent here. “We have figured out what works and what needs to be changed. We will see if the changes in procedure worked and, if they did, we'll cement them into place. If not, we will tweak
them again,”he said. “It's better to do it here than to do it on the fly over there.”
Ellie
By T.C. BRADFORD
Published: Tuesday, January 30, 2007 9:17 AM CST
Special to the Leader
FORT POLK - The U.S. Marine Corps was born Nov. 10, 1775, when the second Continental Congress passed a resolution raising two battalions to serve as landing forces with the U.S. Navy.
Marines fought through the Revolutionary War but when the Treaty of Paris ended the war in 1783, the Navy's ships were sold and the Continental Navy and Marines were disbanded.
The corps was re-established on 11 July, 1798, and has been in service to the country ever since. U.S. Marines contributed to the defense of the nation in battles including the War of 1812, the defeat of the British in the Battle of New Orleans, the Philippine Insurrection in 1899, the Boxer Rebellion in China in 1900 and numerous others.
In 1918, the Marines earned the title “Devil Dogs” for their service in Belleau Wood during World War I. A group of those “Devil Dogs” have been training at the Joint Readiness Training Center for rotation 07-03 which ended this week.
Kilo Battery, 3rd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, is an artillery platoon based at Camp Pendelton, Calif. Marine Staff Sgt. Joseph Clayton, Kilo 3-12 platoon leader, said JRTC has quite a reputation.
And, in today's joint operations climate, excellence in training is of paramount importance.
“We heard that the Joint Readiness Training Center had some good training opportunities. We wanted to put on the MILES (multiple integrated laser engagement system) gear and go through some of the best convoy training available.”
The Marines have their own training exercise similar to training received at JRTC. Mojave Viper is a 30-day exercise held at 29 Palms, Calif., which incorporates combined-arms training at the company level, fire and maneuvers at the platoon level and culminates with large-scale maneuvers including direct, indirect and aviation fires involving all elements of the exercise force.
Marine Cpl. Chadwick Thresher said it's good training but not geared for their mission. “Every Marine is a rifleman first and foremost, but our main mission is convoy escort and security. That will be our mission in Iraq, whether it be long haul convoys or escorting explosive ordnance disposal personnel,” he said.
“From my point of view, Mojave Viper was more of an infantryman's environment. It's definitely great infantry training. The convoy training is not at this level where an opposing force studies enemy tactics and engages us as the enemy would. From that position this is some great training.”
Marine Sgt. Juan Robles is a veteran of multiple deployments to Iraq. He talked about the realism of the training at JRTC. “It's pretty realistic. They throw a lot of stuff at us but we are here for such a short time that we need to get as much training in as possible,” he said. “A lot of these guys have never done this before so the more stuff that's thrown at us, the more prepared they will be when they get to Iraq.” Clayton said the unit hasn't been together that long. He said he is loving the training here because the unit is getting to know each other and bonding.
Marine Cpl. Tim Brook said bonding was one of the most important things they accomplished here. “We've got a lot of new guys in the unit and more guys are coming,” he said.
“We need to know everybody's strengths and weaknesses. It's good to train and live with each other before we go over there so we can learn what (our new Marines) can handle and when they're going to break under pressure. That way we can make them go beyond that and still be able to function past their breaking point.”
Thresher concurred. “One of the things JRTC is good at is stress. They can throw so many things at a unit that it stresses them out and causes friction,” he said. “We've refined our standard operating procedures out here to allow us to act more cohesively as a single unit. If we don't have a unity of effort when we deploy, it could cause a lot of needless suffering.”
Thresher said that even though there is always a rivalry between the services, they are all one team in the end. “The end mission is the same no matter what uniform we are wearing,” he said. “These guys have information and experience and they have a framework the Marine Corps doesn't have. That will give us a different type of training and more experience to deploy with.”
Thresher said he thinks the convoy training they received here will serve the unit well and that other Marine units would benefit from training at JRTC.
Brig. Gen. Daniel Bolger, commander, JRTC and Fort Polk, said the two branches stand together against a common enemy. “Now, since Sept. 11, 2001, Marines and Soldiers stand together ... to destroy al Qaeda and its
extremist ilk. In Afghanistan and Iraq, you will find Marines and Soldiers working in tandem at every level,”he said.
“The task organization isn't important. What's important is that the mission gets done. This practicality has been reinforced on a thousand battlefields and in a hundred thousand firefights. We have much to share and learn from each other.”
Robles said the Marines will take the lessons learned and apply them well. “We're getting a lot out of it and we're going to continue doing what we do best. We will continue to train so we can apply these lessons to combat.”
Thresher said it was worth the time spent here. “We have figured out what works and what needs to be changed. We will see if the changes in procedure worked and, if they did, we'll cement them into place. If not, we will tweak
them again,”he said. “It's better to do it here than to do it on the fly over there.”
Ellie