31st MEU Hones Naval Integration Operations
by U.S. Marine Corps Capt. George McArthur May 2,
2020
The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit aboard ships of the America
Expeditionary Strike Group completed a series of sequential
operations rehearsing naval expeditionary and Marine Air-Ground Task
Force maneuver from Guam to Okinawa, Japan, March 21-28, 2020.
 March 21, 2020) - Marines with Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), climb a cargo net during a tactical debarkation rehearsal from amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6). The exercise served as a proof of concept for the Blue-Green team to demonstrate proficiency in a proven, reliable method of amphibious debarkation. The ability to rapidly debark from an amphibious assault ship to surface connectors provides the 31st MEU a reliable way to move forces ashore in support of amphibious operations. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Joshua Brittenham)
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The
Marine Corps’ 31st MEU and Navy’s Amphibious Squadron 11 coordinated
the series of expeditionary rehearsals to demonstrate naval
integration, flexibility, and readiness in sustainment operations
and projection of combat power between island chains for the first
time ever with a modern MEU, according to Col. Robert Brodie, 31st
MEU commanding officer.
“This capstone exercise focused on
full mission profiles from the air, land and sea - rehearsing and
demonstrating lethal power projection both in blue water and
littoral operations,” said Brodie. “The Marines and Sailors of our
joint team came together to solve a comprehensive series of
simulated problem sets and successfully completed a wide variety of
combat-focused tactical missions.”
The training integrated
capabilities across warfighting functions on completion of
Expeditionary Strike Force training with the Theodore Roosevelt
Strike Group, culminating with a series of missions.
An
expeditionary cargo-net debarkation proof of concept was followed by
fighter aircraft and attack helicopter strike missions, amphibious
insert of High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) with
follow-on shot simulation, mechanized raid and long-range vertical
assault, forward arming and refueling points (FARP) establishment,
defense of the amphibious task force drill, and split operations as
forward command and control positioned ashore .
 March 23, 2020
- An AH-1Z Viper helicopter with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 265 (Reinforced), 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), fires an AIM-9M sidewinder missile at a maritime target during a live fire exercise. During the exercise, the attack helicopters took off from San Antonio-class dock landing ship USS Green Bay (LPD 20) in order to protect the amphibious task force from a simulated maritime threat. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Colton K. Garrett)
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Marines with
Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, completed the
debarkation net rehearsal from the amphibious assault ship USS
America (LHA 6) in Apra Harbor, Naval Base Guam, harkening back to a
historic method of personnel movement with focus on safety,
according to Master Sgt. Daniel Scull with Weapons Company, BLT 1/5,
safety officer-in-charge for the event.
“This capability
greatly enhances the 31st MEU’s ability to conduct increasingly
dynamic tactical actions and operations across the Pacific,” said
Scull. “Under the cover of darkness, specially-equipped Marine
elements can debark onto a landing craft and insert uncontested onto
small islands in the Pacific”.
On departure from Guam and in
the Philippine Sea, F-35B Lightning II fighter aircraft and AH-1Z
Viper helicopters with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 265
(Reinforced) conducted a series of live-fire and strike mission
profiles with AIM-9M missiles, GAU-22 25 mm cannons, and GBU-49
maritime strike bombs. The guided bombs hit a target simulating a
maritime objective for the first time ever with an operational MEU
in the Indo-Pacific region, according to F-35B detachment
officer-in-charge Maj. Casey Jenkins.
“The GBU-49 adds a
weapon to our arsenal that allows us to target fast-moving vessels
on both the water and land,” said Jenkins. “The capabilities of this
weapon have many practical applications and are a welcome addition
to the F-35B’s weapons loadout.”
While on approach to
Okinawa March 27, San Antonio class amphibious transport dock USS
Green Bay (LPD 20) offloaded Alpha Company, BLT 1/5 aboard Assault
Amphibious Vehicles (AAVs) rehearsing a mechanized insert at Camp
Schwab, while Landing Craft Air Cushion hovercraft unloaded a HIMARS
system and the Combined Anti-Armor Team with Light Armored
Reconnaissance Vehicles and new Joint Light Tactical Vehicles. The
HIMARS emplaced at Camp Hansen and simulated missile shots with
notional fire missions incorporating target data passed from an
overhead F-35B, demonstrating the capability for long-range
precision fire support during mobile operations, according to 31st
MEU fires officer Maj. Brock Lennon.
“This exercise allowed
us to demonstrate how we would use HIMARS in support of MEU maneuver
elements. Being able to strike with long-range precision fires gives
the MEU commander another lethal capability at his disposal when
looking to respond to crisis in the region,” Lennon explained.
With conditions set, BLT 1/5’s Combined Anti-Armor Team and
Mechanized Company, along with AH-1Z helicopters, rehearsed
simultaneous FARPs in separate locations in the Okinawa Central
Training Area supported by Combat Logistics Battalion 31, the
logistics combat element for the 31st MEU. This marked the first
time that a mechanized FARP was completed between AAVs and aircraft
during 31st MEU training, according to CLB-31’s motor transport
platoon commander, 1st Lt. Larry Gonzales.
 March 27, 2020
- Marines with Combat Logistics Battalion 31, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), attach fuel lines to assault amphibious vehicles during a forward arming and refueling point (FARP) exercise. The exercise served as a proof of concept for using AAVs to transport refueling equipment from San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock USS Green Bay (LPD 20) in order to independently support a FARP when conducting split operations. (U.S. Marine Corps courtesy asset by 1st Lt. Larry Gonzales)
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“This
demonstrates our ability as a MAGTF to push our capabilities and
equipment like AAVs beyond traditional methods of employment,
allowing us to extend our air and ground combat power ashore,”
Gonzales explained.
While operations continued ashore, the
overall scenario during transit between the island chains included
simulated maritime threats met with a defense of the amphibious task
force live-fire drill. During the drill, Marines fired at an
inflatable “Killer Tomato” target with heavy and medium machine
guns, sniper rifles, and other infantry small arms to rehearse
defending the ship from enemy surface threats.
For the
concluding event, Bravo Company conducted a vertical assault raid
from America to a live-fire range in the Central Training Area to
rehearse fire and maneuver while the 31st MEU inserted a Forward
Command Element to rehearse forward command and control prepared for
follow-on tasking, according to 31st MEU operations officer Lt. Col.
Michael Mroszczak.
“Forward command and control facilitates
decentralized decision making and rapid engagement of adversaries
that attempt to close with our naval force,” said Mroszczak. “Any
opportunity to put our command and control to the test results in
improved processes and lessons learned.”
This recent exercise
tested the MEU’s ability to conduct operations across all domains,
ensuring total preparedness while posing dilemmas to potential
adversaries through unmatched capabilities and creative blend of
operations, according to Brodie.
"In uncertain times,
Americans can have certainty that the 31st MEU is ready and
globally-deployable to meet crisis head on," said Brodie. “I am
proud of our Navy-Marine Corps, Blue-Green team, for rising to the
challenges of these operations. This rehearsal demonstrated the 31st
MEU’s agility, decisiveness, combat power, and physical strength,
showcasing Marine Corps readiness to maintain security and stability
throughout the Indo-Pacific region and around the world.”
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