Personnel (TRAP) force. In the pre-dawn darkness of June 8th, 1995, with less than a two-hour notice, forty-three Marines boarded two helicopters and launched into the Adriatic dawn. Joined by Cobra helicopter gunships and Harrier jump jets, they flew east over the missile-infested mountain to recover a tired, but relieved, Captain Scott O'Grady from the grasp of the pursuing Serbs.
Within twenty-four hours the rescued pilot was en route back to his home station at Aviono, and ultimately to the White House. Back aboard ship, the Marines cleaned their weapons and maintained their helicopters and equipment. They then rested as the ships sailed quietly over the horizon toward another readiness training exercise, all part of their scheduled 180-day tour of duty afloat. In both of these sagas, the individual of the hour was the United States Marine. For over 220 years, Marines have served at the end of America's operational reach — on freedom's far frontiers. These Marines are the backbone of the ARG/MEU (SOC) team, our regional commanders' force of choice for both forward presence and crisis response. When American interests are threatened abroad, Marines are on scene answering the call.
Marines and MEU (SOC)s are
Marines have been doing this with rare consistency and success for more than 220 years. Since their inception in November 1775, when our Founding Fathers'…resolved, that two Battalions of Marines be raised… [and]…that particular care be taken that no person be appointed or enlisted into said Battalions, but such as are good seamen or so acquainted with maritime affairs as are able to serve to advantage by sea,' Marines have continually demonstrated their readiness and utility. On their inaugural amphibious raid in the Caribbean in March 1776, Marines captured British cannon and powder to support the Continental Army. Since then they have been our nation's premier naval expeditionary warfighters, ever capable of executing a wide range of crucial missions 'from the sea.' On numerous occasions the Navy/Marine team has responded quickly and successfully to Presidential, Congressional, or military orders with such wide latitudes as 'attack, take, and destroy as you may find,' 'perform duties as may be directed,' or 'render appropriate assistance.' A 220-year legacy of readiness, teamwork, and courage is the result. Generations of Marines have repeatedly proven the veracity of both the Marine Corps motto of 'Semper Fidelis' ('Always Faithful') and the reputation earned at Iwo Jima, where 'uncommon valor was a common virtue.'
Beginning with the 'Banana Wars' in Haiti, Santo Domingo, and Nicaragua in the 1920s and 1930s, the Marine Corps bred a new generation of lean, battle-hardened fighters who were as proficient at amphibious landings and long-range jungle patrols as they were at urban warfare and quelling civil disturbances. Their stock-in-trade was readiness, versatility, and a deadly earnestness in fulfilling any assigned mission. These Marines got there fast, and with surprise, and came from the sea. They traveled light, fought hard, and lasted long. This reputation was not lost on either actual or potential adversaries. From these 'interwar' experiences came the doctrine and training that would propel the Marine Corps for over forty years. The 1933
As World War II dawned and our Corps grew by over fivefold, the legacy of ready and versatile soldiers of the sea was emblazoned on yet another age of American youth. Lieutenant Colonel Merritt 'Red Mike' Edson's 1st Raider Battalion conducted its August 7th, 1942, landing on Tulagi with Marines steeped in this training and tradition. So too did the 1st Parachute Battalion that same day on Gavutu. Lieutenant Colonel Evans Carlson's 2nd Raider Battalion raided Makin Island a day later with Marines forged in the same fire. Each of these new units harnessed the raw energy of 'basic Marine,' and emboldened them with special and focused training, unit cohesion, and clarity of purpose. These units were special only because they consisted of special warriors: Marines capable of and willing to achieve extraordinary tasks because they had unquestioning confidence in themselves, their leaders, and their training.
These hard-earned lessons of the mid-20th century sustained Marine Corps training through Vietnam and well into the 1970s. With a prolonged investment in jungle and counter-guerrilla warfare as well as mountain and arctic warfare, the Marine Corps gradually refined a growing body of special operations capabilities. This included helicopter-borne reinforcement operations like 'Sparrow Hawk' and 'Bald Eagle,' amphibious and riverine raids, snipers and discriminate shooters, and non-combatant evacuation operations (NEO) and TRAPs. What may have been missing in doctrinal cohesion was more than made up for with battle-tested tactical proficiency and well- honed operational procedures. Regardless of whether conducting long-range deep reconnaissance patrols or direct action missions like sniping, Marines had a well-earned reputation as fighters with courage, savvy, and skill.
After Vietnam, the U.S. military refocused on the Cold War, and the Marine Corps returned to its historic role as the nation's amphibious force-in-readiness. In the Pacific, Marines evacuated Saigon and Phnom Penh, boarded the
The six designated MAU (SOC)s, three on each coast, were trained, evaluated, and certified to perform eighteen critical and discrete missions. Several were amphibious in nature, such as the Marine Corps' time-tested amphibious raid. Others were contingency-response missions like evacuations and rescues. Several more were combat-related maritime special-operations missions. These included security operations, reinforcement operations, specialized demolitions operations, and military operations in urban terrain. Others included 'stability' missions such as civic-action operations that provided dental, medical, and/or engineering support and mobile training teams that taught basic weapons, maneuver, and maintenance skills. Intelligence, counterintelligence, and tactical-deception operations completed another mission subset.
An integral part of the MAU (SOC) concept was the simultaneous development of the Maritime Special Purpose Force (MSPF). This internally sourced and task-organized, highly trained rapid-response force could participate in all of the above missions: specifically TRAP, demolitions, and operations. However, its essential role was conducting in-extremis hostage rescues. The MSPF, like its parent MAU, was never intended to be a special force. Instead, it was designed to provide Marines with special training and mission-essential equipment, keeping them ready and able to conduct the nation's bidding in circumstances requiring rapid response and quick thinking.
Since the formalization of the SOC program over a decade ago, and with a name change from amphibious (MAU) to expeditionary (MEU) to better reflect its adaptive nature and fast response focus, the ARG/MEU (SOC) continues to carve a unique and vital niche in America's defense establishment. The stark fact is that any MEU (SOC) can execute any one of its eighteen missions within six hours of an alert. They are trained and prefer to execute all their missions at night, or in limited visibility from over the horizon with tightly controlled communications. These operating characteristics put the MEU (SOC) at the cutting edge of night-flying and night- shooting technology. With the now-proven rapid-response-planning sequence, and years of exhaustive development of standing operating procedures and execution checklists, the MEU (SOC) program remains at the cutting edge of Marine combat training and preparation.
For almost forty-one years it was my honor and privilege to be a United States Marine. For much of that period, I was closely involved with the execution and refinement of the MEU (SOC) skills and initiatives just outlined. Through it all, some of my proudest moments were reserved for those many gallant warriors who selflessly answered their nation's frequent and clarion call to 'send in the Marines.' The history of the MEU (SOC) program has been written in their sweat and blood. It is a history that once again offers proof that special men with special training, forged in the fires of discipline and sacrifice, and operating as a team, can routinely achieve uncommon success when accomplishing even the most challenging missions.
