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CLARK AIR BASE, Philippines – Marines and Sailors from the 3d Marine Expeditionary Brigade command element, the Marine Corps' "middle-weight" war-fighting unit, exercise command and control over all U.S. service members in the Philippines during Amphibious Landing Exercise 14.
PHIBLEX 14 is a bilateral training exercise focused on improving the interoperability and readiness of Philippine and U.S. forces. These activities ensure both forces are capable of integrating effectively to conduct operations ranging from humanitarian assistance/disaster relief to regional contingency missions.
“Exercises such as PHIBLEX 14 give us an opportunity to test and refine tactics, procedures, and best practices so that during real world operations we are better prepared to work together with our Armed Forces of the Philippines counterparts,” Col. John Peck, the 3d MEB chief of staff.
During PHIBLEX the 3d MEB provided command and control for all field training and Humanitarian Civic Assistance projects. In addition, members of the 3d MEB CE will conduct a bilateral Staff Exercise with their Philippine counterparts to learn from one another and exchange useful information that will allow both forces to more effectively conduct any designated regional mission.
“We have successfully worked with our Armed Forces of the Philippines partners in the past, during both exercise and real world operations,” said Master Gunnery Sgt. John Elliott, the 3d MEB operations chief. “I am looking forward to seeing some familiar faces and continuing our partnership and friendship during PHIBLEX 14.”
Declared initially operationally capable in October 2012, the MEB will soon become fully operationally capable. This means that the MEB will have the necessary personnel, equipment and training to execute the full spectrum of potential assigned missions as designated by III MEF or Pacific Command.
“Fully operationally capable means we are ready to respond at any time, with the right personnel, equipment and training to accomplish the mission,” said Lt. Col. Rod Legowski. “The MEB has to respond quickly and effectively when ordered, and we are trained and ready for any crisis, whether it is a MEB, MEF or JTF mission.”
During the past year 3d MEB has grown significantly during their reactivation period from both a manpower and training perspective.
Planning and executing a variety of regional exercises, including most recently Balikatan 13 and Talisman Saber 13, is another way that the MEB CE remains ready to execute their mission as III Marine Expeditionary Force’s Alert Contingency Marine-Air Ground Task Force command element.
When not deployed, 3d MEB conducts individual, collective and unit training in order to enhance their readiness, through courses provided by the MAGTF Integrated Systems Training Course, the USAID Joint Humanitarian Operations Course and PACOM’s Humanitarian Assistance Response Training.
This ensures that in the event of a natural disaster, crisis or contingency, the 3d MEB is prepared to respond through a variety of scalable deployment packages. Quick deployment options ensure that early command and control is established in a tailored manner to accurately address the needs of the designated mission.
In addition to exercises and training, 3d MEB has conducted real world humanitarian assistance/disaster relief missions. Most recently during Typhoon Pablo in Dec. 2012, Marines and Sailors from the 3d MEB, acting as the III MEF forward, directed more than 750,000 pounds of relief supplies into the Philippines over an eight day period.
| Date Taken: | 10.10.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 10.10.2013 09:40 |
| Story ID: | 114996 |
| Location: | CLARK FIELD (ANGELES), PH |
| Web Views: | 70 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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