Photo By Sgt. Marco Mancha | Marines with 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Division retrieve Marines who...... read more read more
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CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. - Marines and sailors with 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion sit anxiously inside an airborne Lockheed Martin KC-130 airplane. Suddenly, they are instructed to rise and inspect each other’s parachutes and protective equipment. A signal is given, and they leap from the aircraft, falling through the air until their parachutes deploy, and they slowly descend into the water below.
Second Recon Bn. practiced various jumping operations May 8 and 9, with a culminating training event taking place May 10, aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune.
The Marines and sailors were split into two groups. One group traveled by bus to Marine Corps Air Station New River to board the KC-130, where they were then broken down into five parachuting groups. The other group waited off the coast of Onslow Beach in boats to retrieve the jumping Marines.
“The entire week was focused on amphibious insertion techniques,” said Gunnery Sgt. Jason Elson, the battalion’s parachute safety officer. “On (May 10), we basically put everything together into one operation.”
A Zodiac inflatable boat was loaded into the plane, along with approximately two dozen Marines. When they reached about 1,500 feet of elevation, the plane tilted up and the boat slid out into the water. The first group of jumpers executed static-line jumps to quickly reach the boat and attach the motor.
The next three groups performed static-line jumps as well, and then were collected by the safety boats below. The KC-130 then flew to 10,000 feet, and the last group of Marines executed a free-fall jump into the water.
“The goal of the training is to prepare the platoons for a (Marine Expeditionary Force) deployment, and to familiarize them with amphibious operations when intentionally jumping in the water,” said Elson. “It also serves as refresher training for unintentional water landings.”
Elson spoke highly of the group’s execution during the training.
“We were able to safely drop 75 parachutists with no malfunctions,” he said. “That will help build confidence for the deploying units if they need to execute a water insertion.”
The support-intensive training couldn’t happen without everyone involved doing their job correctly.
“Safety is paramount,” said Elson. “With all the things that could go wrong, everyone needs to be on top of their game in order to make the training go as smoothly as possible. We were able to achieve that during this training.”
| Date Taken: | 05.15.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 05.15.2013 10:37 |
| Story ID: | 106939 |
| Location: | CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 214 |
| Downloads: | 3 |
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