• Tanker Support—In addition to the tanker support already mentioned, there are other tanker assets that can make the life of the MEU (SOC) ACE easier. The AV-8Bs with their refueling probes can make use of almost any Air Force, Navy, or NATO tanker aircraft available. This becomes especially easy if the aircraft is one of the big KC-10A Extenders, which can refuel aircraft with either boom or probe refueling systems. There also are Air Force HC-130 Hercules tanker aircraft that are assigned to search and rescue, as well as special operations units, and these can refuel either the Harriers or the CH-53E Super Stallions.
• Airborne Early Warning (AEW) Support—If there was any lesson that came out of the 1982 Falklands War, it was the overriding need for surface ships to have proper AEW coverage. Lack of a decent AEW platform for cuing of their limited force of Sea Harrier FRS.1 fighters probably cost the British several of the ships that they lost to Argentine air attack. Unfortunately, the Marine Corps has no such capability to augment their ACE aboard the Wasp (LHD-1), so they must make use of any AEW capability they can get. If they are near a CVBG, they can make use of AEW- information-data-linked E-2C Hawkeyes. In addition, data links on the ships of the ARG, as well as those on the new AV-8B Plus Harrier IIs, are compatible with a number of other such systems, including the force of E-3 Sentry AEW aircraft operated by the Air Force, NATO, and some of our other allies.
• Composite Wings—One of the important capabilities of the MEU (SOC) ACE is the ability to work jointly with air units of other services, or even other countries. As a result, don't be surprised if you don't someday see the use of Air Force composite wings like the 366th at Mountain Home AFB, Idaho, or the 23rd Wing at Pope AFB, North Carolina, with one of the MEU (SOC)s to support landing operations or provide cover for the ARG.
As you can see, it's easy for other units to team with or 'plug into' the 26th MEU (SOC). Thanks to a robust series of command and control links aboard the ARG, the MEU (SOC) can provide connectivity for anything from an Air Force AEW aircraft to an airborne unit. Meanwhile, the staff of the Marine Corps Combat Development Command at Quantico, Virginia, is working hard to find new units and ways for the MEU (SOC) to play in the ever- growing world of joint operations.
• Reconnaissance Support—If there is anything that Colonel Battaglini wants more of on-cruise, it is high-quality, up-to-the-minute imagery of their AOR. If the imagery is satellite-based, it will come from the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), with their fleet or orbital imaging satellites, and the Defense Airborne Reconnaissance Office (DARO), which manages UAVs and other airborne imaging programs. Both agencies are working hard to supply more imagery to an ever-expanding user base. In particular, plans are progressing to create a super-agency called the National Imaging Agency (NIMA), which will stand up on October 1st, 1996. NIMA will combine the services of NRO, DARO, the Central Imaging Office (CIO), the National Photographic Center (NPIC), and the Defense Mapping Agency (DMA), all under a single roof. In this way, the users of their products can more rapidly and efficiently obtain the wealth of assets they provide — everything from maps to real-time photography — when they need it.
The products themselves are growing in both variety and quality. As always, the NRO's satellite systems are producing a large volume of high-quality imagery, though efforts are under way to look at smaller, less expensive collection systems in the late 1990s.
Meanwhile DARO is making giant strides towards their vision of an integrated airborne reconnaissance architecture that does its job within today's limited budgets. The Pioneer UAV will continue in service for a few years. Because the Hunter UAV system that was designed to replace it has been terminated over high life-cycle costs, DARO has decided to move onto what is called the 'Maneuver UAV,' which is designed to provide Army and Marine unit commanders with a capability to obtain real-time video and other imagery.
In addition, the Predator program described in
In addition to the Predator and Pioneer programs, excellent progress is being made on longer endurance systems, like the Lockheed-Martin 'Skunk Works'-produced Dark Star system. And even longer-range systems are being developed, as well as the data links, common control stations, and other equipment that will be needed to make the various UAV systems available to the widest possible base of users. DARO is also working on more traditional manned reconnaissance systems, including the introduction in 1997 of the new RF-18D Hornet equipped with the new Advanced Tactical Reconnaissance System (ATARS), and a new F-16-mounted recon pod system being introduced by the Virginia Air National Guard. The expectations are that by the year 2001, DARO's plans for completely remaking the airborne reconnaissance architecture of the U.S. military will be close to completion.
• Intelligence Support — In addition to the support provided by the various photographic and mapping agencies within the intelligence community, the 26th MEU (SOC) makes use of intelligence from several other agencies and organizations:
• National Security Agency (NSA)— The NSA, which controls electronic and signals intelligence, is a significant supporting agency for an amphibious unit like the 26th MEU (SOC). Through the Ships Signals Exploitation Space (SSES), the ARG and MEU (SOC) commanders can tap into a variety of different signals and electronic intelligence sources, among these: RC-135 Rivet Joint, ES-3 Shadow, and EP-3 Orion electronic intelligence aircraft and ferret satellites. Ground- and ship-based sensors (like the Classic Outboard ESM system) can also tap into all variety of different electronic signals, from SAM and air traffic radars to cellular phones and television signals.
• U.S. Space Command (USSPACECOM)—Based at Falcon AFB, Colorado, USSPACECOM provides space-based systems to support combat operations for all the military services. In addition to providing GPS navigation signals, communications support, weather reporting, and ballistic missile-warning, there are a whole range of new capabilities that will emerge in the next few years. These include integrated designation/communications/navigation /transponder systems, which will 'net' individual Marines together on the digital battlefield of the 21 st century.
• U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ)—Strange as it may sound, the U.S. DOJ and its assorted agencies are excellent sources of information for a variety of missions that might involve a MEU (SOC). The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the U.S. Marshals Service, and other agencies offer useful information on everything from terrorist organizations to smuggling techniques. As a result, you frequently see DOJ and other government agencies (the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, etc.) supporting unconventional operations by the Marines, as well as USSOCOM.
• Cable News Network (CNN)—Okay, let's all tell the truth here. Right now, CNN is the finest real-time intelligence-gathering service in the world. If you walk into the office of anyone who is really on the inside, you will inevitably find the television tuned to CNN. In the twenty years since Ted Turner launched his twenty-four-hour news network, CNN has brought most decision makers their first news of vital events as they are breaking. This kind of topical and timely coverage is the reason why intelligence staffs aboard ships are fighting so hard to obtain the stabilized satellite dishes needed to receive CNN. In this way, they can get the same real-time information as any other cable television subscriber!
CONOPS: The MEU (SOC) Way
Now let's look at how a MEU (SOC)/ARG operates. Returning to the rescue of our downed Air Force Captain, the dauntless Scott O'Grady, just how did that come together, and why did it work? To understand this is to understand how the MEU (SOC)/PHIBRON team works.
For Colonel Berndt and the personnel of the 24th, the rescue process started almost as soon as the young man was shot down in northwest Bosnia-Herzegovina. At the time, the 24th MEU (SOC) was embarked aboard PHIBRON 8—the
