Poolie Son wants Recon

[NoRemorse]

Good afternoon, ma'am. Your son has to qualify as an expert on the rifle range and request that he be allowed to try out for the highest level of swim qual during Boot.

If he's not a strong swimmer then he'll have more trouble going through higher levels in the pool; my advice would be to get him an instructor now and get him in the pool at least 3 times a week. It's great PT and great practice.

Whatever swimming coach you go with, make sure their top priority is to make your son is comfortable and relaxed in the pool. Being comfortable and relaxed in the pool translates into more effective training when it comes to actually practicing your swimming technique.

If he's tense in the water and unsure he'll have trouble floating and may get panicky if things don't go his way. The initial swim qual is easy enough; the gear he'll be wearing will provide buoyancy. Higher levels differ the amount of gear and the activities you need to perform on and under the water.

[jcarter73]

Ma'am, He needs to qualify Expert with the rifle at Boot Camp for Recon, He must also make CWS2 Swim Qual at Boot Camp. A swim coach wouldn't help all that much unless he has access to our combat gear... swimming in a pool in shorts is a little different than swimming with Kevlar Helmet, Flack Jacket, Pack, Rifle, Boots and Utes... as you can imagine. Not a bad idea to get comfortable in the pool though before hand... the key to success in the pool at Boot Camp and once he gets to the Fleet is to Relax... stress is the killer in the pool... tense up and it's all but over.

The CWSS (Combat Water Safety Swimmers) in the water with him won't let him drown, so pay attention to the instruction given before hand, then go for it.

[LHMHMOM]

Thank you so much. His recruiter rescheduled their meeting for Saturday so he hasn't made a final decision yet. If this is what he chooses then it's what I want for him so I want to make sure he is as prepared as he can be.

[jcarter73]

Ma'am just make sure he gets the 03xx UZ option for his contract... if he wants Recon it's the only way to ensure a seat at the Basic Recon Course after he finishes SOI.

[LHMHMOM]

Yes, I already told him about the UZ option. He will meet with the head recruiter on Satuday and then we are having a car wash to raise money for the parents group and for the poolies PT so I will be able to talk to the recruiter also. It's not what I would choose for him but if that's what he want's, I want to make sure it's what he gets!!

[marinemom]

Yes, I already told him about the UZ option. He will meet with the head recruiter on Satuday and then we are having a car wash to raise money for the parents group and for the poolies PT so I will be able to talk to the recruiter also. It's not what I would choose for him but if that's what he want's, I want to make sure it's what he gets!!

Ah yes, car washes and bake sales - remember them well (and stay away from your son if he has a hose).

You have gotten great information from the Corporal and other Marines. Now, speaking to you as a Marine mother, it is absolutely important that you get your questions answered by your son's recruiter, BUT do not attempt to push the recruiter towards your son's choice. He will be placed where he is of the best benefit to the Corps, no matter what you may want for him.

Infantry is the gateway to the area that he wants - but he must succeed there before he makes any MOS change. So, be certain that he is patient, work hard and always does his best at whatever assignment he gets.

Remember, once he walks across the Parade Deck, he is no longer yours solely. We share our sons with the best - the United States Marines.

[DocGreek]

LHMH....you want your son to be a RECON MARINE??? WELL...I'll be careful, here...are you aware of what a Marine's Primary Duty is? Do you have any knowledge of what the responsibilites of a RECON MARINE are? Have you been to a V.A. Hospital lately, and spoken with any active duty Marines? I apologize....I'm doing my BEST to hold back my personal opinion, about your family situation, and POSSIBLE innocence. My very best to you and your son...may GOD watch over him.....DOC

[Rocky C]

Marine Recon Mission In Iraq


Cpl. Jason L. Campbell pulled his Kevlar helmet off his head and struggled to get free of his body armor. Its tangle of ammunition pouches, ceramic plates, radios and grenades.

It’s not an uncommon load for an infantryman here in Iraq. But Campbell’s not an ordinary infantryman. He’s a Reconnaissance Marine and he’s performing a mission that just 10 years ago would have unthinkable in Iraq.

“I thought it would be more ‘snooping and pooping,’” said 21-year-old Campbell, from Twinsburg, Ohio. “I thought we’d be doing more traditional reconnaissance.”

The thing is, in Iraq, nothing is traditional. It’s a 4th Generation War – a guerilla war – where there are no front lines for Recon Marines to slip by. Terrain and the counterinsurgency mission don’t call for deep reconnaissance.

Marine reconnaissance is changing. Helmets and flak jacket were unheard of before Operation Iraqi Freedom. Duty in Marine Recon meant boonie covers, bulging rucksacks and long range foot patrols into the enemy’s back yard just a few years ago.

No longer. Recon Marines are wrapped in the same armor as every other Marine, mounted in humvees and firing heavy M-2 .50 caliber machine guns. The heart and soul of reconnaissance work has fundamentally shifted.

For good or ill, Marine Recon will never be the same.

Campbell, assigned to B Company, 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion, Regimental Combat Team 5, admitted this isn’t the sort of work he trained for when he completed Amphibious Reconnaissance School. In fact, he’s never performed a traditional reconnaissance mission in Iraq.

“The only time I did a traditional recon mission was at ARS,” or while deployed with a Marine Expeditionary Unit, he explained. “Not in combat. I’ve never gone out to do just reconnaissance.”

Still, there’s no shortage of work for Marines with specialized reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering skills. Just because Recon Marines aren’t lying in a hide, counting enemy troops doesn’t mean they’re out of a mission. In fact, they ran smack dab into the middle of what seems to be the definition counterinsurgency operations. Marines gather their own intelligence, coordinate and create targets and prosecute their own missions, with hard hits on specific targets.

“It used to be in reconnaissance, if you fired a shot, you failed your mission,” said Gunnery Sgt. Kenneth A. Westgate, a 35-year-old platoon sergeant for 3rd Platoon, B Company, from East Wareham, Mass. “Now, we’re expected to make contact. It’s not that we’ve lost a mission. We’ve gained more mission.

“We’re collecting, analyzing and prosecuting almost all at the platoon level,” Westgate said. “The mission we’re tasked with now is different.”

Some of what Recon Marines are doing in Iraq, Westgate said used to be traditionally left to Combined Anti-Armor Teams. They perform mounted vehicle patrols with heavy guns and grenade launchers. Westgate – who has 15 years as a Marine – said his early years in Recon never called for humvees.

“I was the guy 10 kilometers in trying to find a route for the humvees,” he said. “When I first started it was boonie covers and heavy rucks. Now it’s humvees and heavy machine guns. For the older guys, we’ve seen the change. But we’ve got a whole generation of Recon who thinks reconnaissance is humvees and flak jackets.”

Westgate isn’t saying that the Corps abandoned traditional reconnaissance, rather the mission has to adapt to stay relevant to the war Marines are fighting.

“The pace of warfare has changed,” Westagate said.

The nature of this war – the 4th Generation where insurgents do not openly confront Marines in classic force-on-force warfare – means the Corps is relying on the skills of Marines just like those in 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion.

“It’s still the same principles,” said Cpl. Brandon M. Stair, a 25-year-old from Utica, Ohio, assigned to B Company. “We’re still working in our teams, but moving more toward platoon operations. We’re still thinking out of the box. This is still a guerilla war.”

Snipers in Recon units are still making precise shots against insurgents, but gathering intelligence and packaging that information is happening at an arm’s distance instead of hundreds of meters through binoculars. Marines patrol villages – micro urban areas – talking with villagers, finding out what they know. Recon Marines are part beat cop, keeping the peace. They’re part investigator, putting together the puzzle and part SWAT, kicking down the door to snatch the bad guys.

That’s required Recon Marines to learn new skill sets. To be humvee-mobile, Marines need to learn humvee maintenance. Heavy guns once foreign to Recon teams are a now standard package. It makes them more lethal and more mobile, but requires more flexibility and ingenuity.

“We now have our own built-in fire support,” Westgate explained. “We have much more supply with us on the humvees instead of what we used to carry in our rucks. We can move longer distances quicker. The disadvantage is there is a greater logistics train and we’re sometimes restricted by terrain.”

Marines don’t feel they’re at a disadvantage as the taskings are forcing change either. They take the skills they have and apply them differently.

“For me, it’s seamless,” Campbell said. “This sort of mission is what I expected to do anyway. It could be a great advantage for us because we are a small unit and have the flexibility. We can still do reconnaissance and can act on it ourselves.”

The shift in the definition of reconnaissance from what was considered traditional to observing, gathering, processing and prosecuting their own missions has morphed Recon Marines into a unit that’s more independent, faster and deadlier.

“What we’ve done is put another tool in our toolbox,” Westgate said. “But we’ve also put another mission in our pack.”

[LHMHMOM]

No, DocGreek, recon is not what I would choose for my son. I would much prefer that he stick with his first choice of aircraft mechanics. But I think he has made up his mind that Recon is what he wants. If that is what he wants I have to accept it. It's in my nature to do whatever I can to help my children to excel at whatever it is they are doing. That is why I want to get him with a swim coach. But after reading your post, maybe I should just back off and see what happens?

My husband and I are very naive about the military. The only experience we have is this last year helping him prepare for boot camp and talking to the recruiters. I am very nervous about his decision to join but I am also very proud. We will be seeing the recruiters Saturday so I'll talk to them about what I should do but I would really appreciate any advice that y'all have to give.

[LHMHMOM]

Thanks marinemom. I feel like he already belongs to the Marines and not to me anymore. But it's not a bad feeling, it really feels pretty good right now. Let's see if I feel the same way six weeks from now when he leaves for boot camp!!!

[Zulu 36]

No, DocGreek, recon is not what I would choose for my son. I would much prefer that he stick with his first choice of aircraft mechanics. But I think he has made up his mind that Recon is what he wants. If that is what he wants I have to accept it. It's in my nature to do whatever I can to help my children to excel at whatever it is they are doing. That is why I want to get him with a swim coach. But after reading your post, maybe I should just back off and see what happens?

My husband and I are very naive about the military. The only experience we have is this last year helping him prepare for boot camp and talking to the recruiters. I am very nervous about his decision to join but I am also very proud. We will be seeing the recruiters Saturday so I'll talk to them about what I should do but I would really appreciate any advice that y'all have to give.

I think your son needs to get on this site for himself. However, he will find that many Marines here are not very receptive to poolees who "wanna be recon." The first step is to become a Marine and for many that is difficult enough. Our former recon guys are the most cynical as they have been there and done that.

If he goes aviation, he can't count on his command being excited for him when it comes to writing recommendations for recon. It costs a lot to train an aviation mechanic, not to mention the on-the-job training costs once he hits a fleet squadron. They just won't be very happy. They may forward the request, but it won't be enthusiastically.

Going recon from infantry is different. The command attitude is much more supportive and encouraging, although they still don't like to lose a good Marine, even to recon. However, probably 95% of recon types come from the infantry so the institutional culture is there.

If your son isn't a very strong swimmer and able to pass the PFT 1st class now, he should probably defer his recon aspirations until he can work up to the indoc after boot camp. But he should go infantry, not aviation, if he is serious about recon.

Regarding your naivete regarding the military, remember this: The Marine Corps exists to kill the enemies of the United States and destroy their things. In the process, Marines get hurt and sometimes die. That is the reality of the military. It is good if you understand and are OK with this, but it is more important for your son to be OK with it first.

Somebody has to do it and Marines have self-selected themselves as willing and able.

[JWDevilDog]

I am not recon, nor am I infanty, ma'am. But I can help out a bit too.

If he goes in on a UZ contract, as the Corporal said, he will have a seat in BRC after boot camp. If this is the case, he will need to have a Second Class Swim Qualification as well as a Rifle Expert while in boot camp.

If he goes to the Fleet as an infantry Marine, but not on the UZ contract, then he will still need Swim Qual 2, and Rifle Expert, but he can get those while in the Fleet, if time and training permits. In other words, he wouldn't have to get them while in boot camp.

So, in the end, it depends on his contract. UZ vs. regular 03xx contract.

Hope this helps, ma'am. Please give your son my best and wish him luck! Take care.

[LHMHMOM]

Thank you all for the responses. I have a lot of good information. I think I'll wait to do anything until I talk to the recruiters on Saturday. We have become very comfortable with all of the recruiters in this area because we spend time with them so I can talk to any or all of them. I really appreciate all of the responses from all of you Marines.

A Marine that I do business with told me about this site and I've been reading it on and off since my son signed almost a year ago. I feel like I get a lot more "real" information from all of you than anywhere else. Thank you all for your service and for the straight talk on this site. And thanks to those of you who said you would pray for my son. We will all need it in the months to come.

[toddlerbud]

Okay, I'm 12. My mother said she'll enlist me when i'm 17.. well.. i think thats what to do. I was wondering would i be able to sign up for anything that would help me and train me threw the years? Help, anyone?

[NoRemorse]

Okay, I'm 12. My mother said she'll enlist me when i'm 17.. well.. i think thats what to do. I was wondering would i be able to sign up for anything that would help me and train me threw the years? Help, anyone?

You need to profile up, read the stickies and follow the rules. Posting in this part of the forum, which is reserved for Marine parents, is highly inappropriate.

That and you should currently worry about going to school, doing well and being physically active, as well as not mentally impairing your parents (which kids are apt to do).