MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- Marines from Company K, 3rd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment refined their firing and maneuvering skills at Camp Pendleton, Calif. May 27 in preparation for their upcoming deployment to Afghanistan later this year.
“I want the Marines to have the confidence to work at the fire team and squad levels,” said Maj. Alexander Snowden, the commanding officer for Company K. “Once they read off each other’s body movements and understand how fire and maneuvering works, this will be a much stronger unit.”
During the practice time, four Marines would line up and disperse over 100 meters in the prairie grasslands of Range 409 with no rounds in their weapons. Two Marines would dash behind cover, immediately drop to the prone position and imitate firing suppressive rounds as they maneuvered towards the enemy.
Confident that the Marines were smothering the enemy with rounds, the fire team leader yelled to the other Marines to advance on line with each other. Shouting was not enough as Marines had to look at each other to see hand and arm signals as the fire team leader coordinated them towards their objective.
“I’m trying to place my guys in the best position as possible and maintain dispersion while staying on line and having everyone cover their sector of fire,” said Cpl. Edward M. Krol, a fire team leader with Company K, explaining the difficulties of coordinating the movements of riflemen on the battlefield.
At the command of the fire team leader, Marines took turns rushing closer towards the mock enemy while the other team members covered him with suppressing fire. The fire team leader directed the advancing team until the enemy was ‘destroyed’.
After honing their fire team skills, the Marines then took the training up a notch and began to work on their squad skills.
The squad training began with the fire teams dispersing, on line, over 250 meters to assault enemies as their squad leader directed their movement from behind.
“Ultimately, we are trying to take 13 minds and build it into one so that we all know what we’re doing at any given time,” said Sgt. Daniel Schneider, a squad leader with Company K. “If we get contact in country, we all need to know what we’re doing, and if we can’t build as a team, then we’ll never get to that point.”
Building as a team meant the fire teams would have to synchronize their advance while focusing on their sectors of fire. Additionally, it meant they would have to develop the confidence to shoot with the Marines next to them and work as a squad, said Snowden.
After their practice, they ate lunch and geared up to practice again, this time with live rounds.
“They’ll be doing this in their sleep,” Snowden joked, referencing the number of times the Marines are going to practice.
Schneider said the benefits the Marines would receive from the training depended upon the level of work they put into it.
“Once we get out here, it’s on the individual Marine to make this as real as they possibly can,” said the Painesville, Ohio native, referring to the absence of danger without enemy fire. “It’s on their effort and their own mindset to get what they need out of it.”