unified in mind-set—a mind-set ever evolving but always revolving about one component: Marine infantry. And those Marine infantry today can deploy by sea—on large ships, thunderous hovercraft, inside brusquely armed amphibious assault vehicles, or strapped to high-speed landing craft; by air—from ship-based helicopters, around the world on Marine Corps C-130J Hercules, even by parachute; and overland—in rumbling convoys of “7-Ton” troop carriers, speeding across a desert in a line of Humvees, tucked inside amphibious armored personnel carriers, light armored vehicles, or M1A1 Abrams tanks. With so many ways to move about the planet, the modern Marine Corps can simultaneously sustain numerous small- and medium-size campaigns while continuing to support large-theater efforts—throughout the entire globe.
Masters of light infantry maneuver warfare at all scales, the Marine Corps has at its disposal a full spectrum of weapons systems—60 mm and 81 mm mortars, vehicle-mounted TOW missiles, handheld SMAW and AT4 rocket launchers, 155mm howitzers, and M1A1 Abrams tanks, to name a few. Marine infantry must learn to fire and maintain with utmost precision such weapons as the tried-and-true “Ma Deuce” M2 .50-caliber machine gun, the MK19 40 mm automatic grenade launcher, the man-portable and devastating M240 light machine gun, and the M249 SAW (squad automatic weapon), which, chambered in 5.56 mm, is lightweight but lethal in the hands of a Marine.
In the skies above grunts on the move, USMC aviation ranks second to none in laying waste to enemies in close proximity to Marine infantry—a mission known as close air support. Utilizing both helicopter (rotary wing) assets that today include the AH-1W Super Cobra and the UH-1N Iroquois “Huey” and tactical air or TACAIR platforms—fixed-wing F/A-18 Hornets, both the single-seat and two-place versions, and the legendary AV-8B Harrier, one of the world’s most unique and versatile aircraft, capable of vertical/short takeoffs and landings, Marine aviators have time and again annihilated enemy positions in support of their on-the-ground brethren with gun runs, bombing strikes, guided missiles, and screaming volleys of rockets. Marine aviation of another sort, the troop transport and cargo, or assault support “lift birds,” always plays a vital role in any campaign, inserting and extracting troops, resupplying grunts with food, water, fuel, ammunition, and packages from home during extended-duration operations, and “sling loading” large weapon systems like the 155 mm howitzer from ships at sea deep into a developing or ongoing fight.
Of the myriad weapon systems in the modern U.S. Marine Corps arsenal, one stands out above all others: the M16 service rifle. The M16, which grunts have used since the Vietnam War, while extremely versatile and capable, holds its distinction not for its rate of fire, or for its durability, or for its accuracy. The M16 service rifle maintains its salient position not for what it is or what it can do, but because of who holds it, the most important component of the Marine Corps, the storied enlisted infantry Marine.
A U.S. Marine is “born and raised”— made —at one of two Marine Corps recruit depots, MCRD San Diego, California or MCRD Parris Island, South Carolina. Recruits arrive at night by bus, the prospective Marines having said their good-byes to their families and friends in towns and cities throughout the country just hours earlier. Modern recruits sign on to serve their country not out of desperation or lack of opportunity, as some movies and news media outlets portray, but out of the desire to fulfill a commitment to their country—ever-charged by the attacks of September 11, 2001, and the ongoing threats posed to America by terrorists throughout the world—as well to experience not just a challenge but a life defined by the rewards of overcoming what others might consider insurmountable obstacles, time and again.
Masters of light infantry maneuver warfare at all scales, the Marine Corps has at its disposal a full spectrum of weapons systems—60 mm and 81 mm mortars, vehicle-mounted TOW missiles, handheld SMAW and AT4 rocket launchers, 155mm howitzers, and M1A1 Abrams tanks, to name a few. Marine infantry must learn to fire and maintain with utmost precision such weapons as the tried-and-true “Ma Deuce” M2 .50-caliber machine gun, the MK19 40 mm automatic grenade launcher, the man-portable and devastating M240 light machine gun, and the M249 SAW (squad automatic weapon), which, chambered in 5.56 mm, is lightweight but lethal in the hands of a Marine.
In the skies above grunts on the move, USMC aviation ranks second to none in laying waste to enemies in close proximity to Marine infantry—a mission known as close air support. Utilizing both helicopter (rotary wing) assets that today include the AH-1W Super Cobra and the UH-1N Iroquois “Huey” and tactical air or TACAIR platforms—fixed-wing F/A-18 Hornets, both the single-seat and two-place versions, and the legendary AV-8B Harrier, one of the world’s most unique and versatile aircraft, capable of vertical/short takeoffs and landings, Marine aviators have time and again annihilated enemy positions in support of their on-the-ground brethren with gun runs, bombing strikes, guided missiles, and screaming volleys of rockets. Marine aviation of another sort, the troop transport and cargo, or assault support “lift birds,” always plays a vital role in any campaign, inserting and extracting troops, resupplying grunts with food, water, fuel, ammunition, and packages from home during extended-duration operations, and “sling loading” large weapon systems like the 155 mm howitzer from ships at sea deep into a developing or ongoing fight.
Of the myriad weapon systems in the modern U.S. Marine Corps arsenal, one stands out above all others: the M16 service rifle. The M16, which grunts have used since the Vietnam War, while extremely versatile and capable, holds its distinction not for its rate of fire, or for its durability, or for its accuracy. The M16 service rifle maintains its salient position not for what it is or what it can do, but because of who holds it, the most important component of the Marine Corps, the storied enlisted infantry Marine.
A U.S. Marine is “born and raised”— made —at one of two Marine Corps recruit depots, MCRD San Diego, California or MCRD Parris Island, South Carolina. Recruits arrive at night by bus, the prospective Marines having said their good-byes to their families and friends in towns and cities throughout the country just hours earlier. Modern recruits sign on to serve their country not out of desperation or lack of opportunity, as some movies and news media outlets portray, but out of the desire to fulfill a commitment to their country—ever-charged by the attacks of September 11, 2001, and the ongoing threats posed to America by terrorists throughout the world—as well to experience not just a challenge but a life defined by the rewards of overcoming what others might consider insurmountable obstacles, time and again.
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