MWSS-171 Marines practice putting buck shot downrange

Photo By Sgt. Benjamin Pryer | Cpl. Kenneth Hornung, Marine Wing Support Squadron 171 combat engineer, takes aim and fires during shotgun qualification, which took place in the Indoor-Small-Arms Range, June 6, 2013. Participants performed stationary, moving while firing and turning drills during the training.  

IWAKUNI, YAMAGUCHI, JAPAN

06.05.2013

Story by Lance Cpl. Benjamin Pryer 

Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni

IWAKUNI, Japan - Marine Wing Support Squadron 171 combat engineers and other servicemembers associated with the combat engineers platoon qualified on the M870 shotgun during a training course at the Indoor-Small-Arms Range June 5, 2013.

“This is a familiarization fire and a shotgun course for the combat engineers. It gets them qualified on the basic marksmanship that is required of them for the shotgun,” said 1st Lt. James Woolley, MWSS- 171 combat engineers platoon commander. “We’re doing this in preparation for ITX (Infantry Training Exercise).”

MWSS-171 Marines travel to Twentynine Palms for ITX, which is a six-week exercise that tests the squadron’s ability to support a Marine aircraft group.

“This is an annual training requirement," Said Woolley. "Unfortunately though, we’re not always able to lock on this kind of training in Iwakuni. A lot of times, we do it as part of other exercises.”

As Marines, being proficient with weaponry is something to be expected of more than just combat engineers.

“First and foremost, every Marine is a rifleman,” said Woolley. “We’re a warfighting organization and we’re here to win battles. Any Marine, despite MOS, may find themselves on the battlefield.”
While the training was primarily for combat engineers, several other Marines with MWSS-171, along with a corpsman, participated in the training.

“I’m attached to a (combat engineers) platoon and there’s always a chance I can get deployed with them and end up in a combat situation, so I need to be prepared for that,” said Pfc. Ryan Gamino, MWSS-171 engineer assistant. “If I don’t know how to use this weapon, then I might endanger the Marines next to me, I might freeze or not know what to do. I’m glad I got the opportunity to do this.”

• Date Taken: 06.05.2013
• Date Posted: 06.14.2013 03:23
• Story ID: 108657
• Location: IWAKUNI, YAMAGUCHI, JP