The Director’s CornerTriad of Fire

I discussed the current Marine Corps’ artillery weapon systems with Colonel Doug Thomas, Commanding Officer, 10th Marines, prior to his July Change of Command. Thomas began by explaining that, beginning in early 1990s, the Marine Corps only used the M198 155mm light-weight howitzer for fire support. “Marine Commandant, General Jim Jones, in the late 1990s informed the Corps’ artillery leadership that one fire-support weapon will not meet the future needs of combat commanders. That leadership conceived a three-legged approach to best support future amphibious and helo combat oper-ations in a variety of terrains. They called the concept the Fire Support Triad.” The Fire Support Triad utilizes three weapon systems. At short ranges, the Expedition-ary Fire Support System (EFSS) will be used. This rifled 120 mm mortar is a modern version of the 4.2” and is cur-rently being fielded. For the mid-ranges, the Corps’ artillery employs its relatively new M777, 155 mm howitzer, referred to as the “M Triple Seven.” It has a maxi-mum range of 30, 000 meters. The Corps is also procuring the High Mobility Artil-lery Rocket System (HI MARS) which is capable of engaging targets at 70,000+ meters.

EFSS was conceived, developed and procured to provide direct fire support to the air-lifted assault element of the Ship to Objective Maneuver force. EFSS, as a system, includes the 120 mm rifled mortar, its relatively-costly prime mover

that looks like the old M151 jeep, an ammunition truck, and ammo trailer.

According to Thomas, “Prior to a deployment, the Battalion Landing Team (BLT) com-mander will meet with the MEU commander and they will decide on the mix of EFSSs and M777s that they will take afloat. Their deci-sion will be driven by anticipated operations and shipboard space”. The Corps will field four battery sets of EFSS to both 10th Marines and 11th Marines. 12th Marines will receive one battery set to support the 31st MEU.

Jumping quickly to the other end of the artillery spectrum, Col Thomas reported that the HI MARS will have the same range as the Army’s Multiple Launched Rocket System (MLRS)—the same weapon the Marines used in 1991 during Operation Desert Storm. The dif-ference is that, instead of 12 rockets, the HIMARS will only have six and a smaller prime mover. The Marine Corps will only field two HI MARS battalions. One will be 5th Battalion, 11 Marines in Pendleton

Expeditionary Fire Support System (EFSS)

High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HI MARS)

and the other will be 2d Battalion, 14th Marines.

M777 155mm HowitzerColonel Chuck Van Horne and I

visited Fox Battery, 2d Battalion, 12th Marines, on a muggy morning to observe field operations with the M777. Major Josh Randall our host on the way the gun position explained that, “When the Corps stood up 1/9, 2/9, and 3/9 as part of its expansion to the manning level of 202,000 Marines (or “202k” as they call it), more arty units were needed to correct the arty-infantry ratio deficiency. Conse-quently, Fox battery was reactivated on March 6, 2009 at Lejeune.”

Col Chuck Van Horne discusses the M777 with 1stLt Joshua Pringle

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Once in the field we dunned helmets and body armor—a most natural thing for a couple of old Marines. The temperature held in the upper 80s that morning. Under a helmet and flack jacket, I soon felt sweat dropping from my chin. I imme-diately thought about our men in Iraq, where the weather gets to 130 degrees as it does in the summer. It’s even worse in Afghanistan.

All Marine Corps artillery battalions have replaced the M198 with the M-777s. However, in the case of F/2/12, the bat-tery had only been activated for less than two months. So the weapon was some-what new for many of the men. Captain Steve Fayed, commanding officer of Fox Battery, said he has a mix of experienced leaders and inexperienced ones. “We started at a crawl, we are now walking

and by the time we’ll get to Mojave Viper in August at 29 Palms, we’ll be running.” This was Fox’s third field operation since being activated and the second one where they were shooting live rounds.

The difference between the M198 and the M777 is that the M777 is a state-of-the-art, highly automated weapon. Like comput-ers, the guns have to be

handled with care. They shoot the same rounds as the M198 and have the same range. The M198 was a sturdy weapon and artillery men (0811s) handled it as they needed to. The M777 and its prime mover are tied into a Global Positioning System (GPS). Not unlike most comput-ers, these weapons have electronic cables and hoses that must be handled gently. “Newer guys understand this and handle it better than the 0811s who had worked with M198s,” Capt Fayed said.

Fayed explained that when the trucks leave for the field, they first get aligned with the GPS satellite at the motor pool’s GPS survey control point. After this the gun can be set up with in minutes at any location. The GPS connection eliminates the lengthy, manpower-intense process of getting the guns surveyed and align-

M777

ing the battery’s guns with aiming stakes. However, once at a good firing posi-tion, the gun crew will use the “Glass and Irons” or aiming-stake system as a back up should the link to the satellite be broken. Also when the Fire Direction Center (FDC) receives a fire mission from an observer, they now know where each gun is and how it is positioned. They simply send the elevation and azimuth to the gun team and within seconds the crew is ready to shoot.

Non Standard Missions in The Long War

Colonel Thomas began by explaining that 10th Marines regimental headquar-ters has yet to deploy as an organization to Iraq in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) or to Afghanistan in Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). He was quick to point out that each battalion headquarters had deployed at least twice to OIF or OEF and each battery has deployed at least four times.

“In Iraq, during 2003 and 2004 up through the battle of Fallujah, 10th Marines battalions conducted traditional fire-support missions. Since then our bat-talions have been used as security forces to train the Iraqi army; as provisional security forces to protect the provisional headquarters; as military-police task forces that included convoy security and running a regional detention facility; and finally as participants in civil-military operations.” Colonel Thomas explained that the deploying battalions would normally be given a six-months notice to train for a new mission. Did they like being employed in non-traditional mis-sions? Thomas told me, “Not really at first. They were a bit disappointed. Once they began executing their mission they’d get rejuvenated.”

I talked to four Marines who had been to Iraq from April to October 2008. Lance Corporal Ryan Drinkwine was part of a provisional security force that guarded a government center in Al Anbar Province. “The governor lived there. We guarded the front gate and the side gate. We had no action in the seven months we were there.” Lance Corporal Mike Gooler told me that his unit provided convoy secu-rity during his tour. Every other day they would provide security for third country nationals, mostly for KBR contractors. They would go from Fallujah to Ramadi or Bagdad or “TQ” continued...LCpl Drinkwine points to the computer cables used by the M777

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Triad of Fire continued...

(Taqaddum Air Base). “On our last convoy, we spotted two IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devises) and reported them to the EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) team.” Corporal Richard West was on Task Force Military Police. He guarded detainees. He confided that he was most disap-pointed about the non-traditional missions for the junior enlisted men who would not begin their careers as artillerymen. Corpo-ral Bryan Gracia was part of a provisional rifle platoon as he has been in 2005. “What a dif-ference! We had no action last year. The time before, we had constant action. Then our 16-man team received six purple hearts. One Marine earned a Bronze Star”

Colonel Thomas boasted about his men, “Their ability to adapt to the non-traditional missions and is a testimony to the resilience of today’s Marines.”

Restoring Core CompetenciesColonel Thomas relinquished com-

mand to Colonel Phil Boggs on 17 July. I caught up with the new CO after he returned from 29 Palms having observed 3/10’s preparation for a fall deployment to Afghanistan. Boggs’ main thrust as the

new arty boss in the Division is returning the Regiment to its “core competencies.” “We have significant gaps in artillery proficiency on the part of both officers and enlisted.” Prior to conducting non-standard missions, such as civil affairs, military police and infantry, artillerymen had a natural career progression that gave them the necessary experience and skills to operate cannon units proficiently. For example, you would work from a basic cannoneer, to a gunner, to a howitzer sec-tion chief, then a guns platoon sergeant and finally end up as the battery gunny. Artillery officers possessed a similar track that had them progressing from a Forward Observer, to Guns Platoon Commander,

to a Fire Direction Officer, then Battery XO and finally a Bat-tery CO. This experience was necessary in order to become a Battalion OpsO and XO before assuming command as the Bat-talion CO. For the past three years, many artillery Marines have skipped one, perhaps two, of these steps. Some of the Battery COs attained that billet never having served as a Fire Direction Officer or Executive Officer. “Take me, for example. I commanded 1/11, an artillery battalion on the west coast. We

deployed to Iraq for 10 months in 2007-2008 as an infantry battalion providing security around Taqaddum Air Base.” CMC wants Marine Corps artillery per-sonnel to return to their core competen-cies. Between the four artillery regimental commanders, the detachment commander at Fort Sill and HQMC we are determined to return artillery proficiency back to the Regiments and the Marine Corps as a whole to cover all contingencies.”

Integrate Fires with Maneuver Forces

“Not only have individual and unit skills within the artillery atrophied, but we need to get back integrating artil-lery fires with the maneuver forces and other supporting arms. In the past four or five years the combined arms exercises (CAXs) have been focused on counter-insurgency operations versus large scale combat operations. I am optimistic that with the dwell time increasing, we will have sufficient time do conduct these exercises and regain what has been lost.”

Support in Afghanistan “Marine artillerymen are deploying to

Afghanistan in their primary mission to support maneuver forces with all weather, day/night, 24/7 fire support at the battal-ion level. This means we need to rapidly regain our proficiency from cannoneer to Battalion Commander, through demand-ing training that not only improves our ability to fire howitzers in a timely and accurate manner, but integrate the fires with maneuver forces in a challenging environment like Afghanistan.”

SgtMaj Willie Perry presenting the command colors to Col Thomas, who will pass them to Col Boggs.

Artillery Lends Dignity To What Would Otherwise Be A Vulgar Brawl

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