ANGLICO Awakens Range 10

Photo By Sgt. Isaac Ibarra | Marines gather after firing the M2 .50-caliber machine gun Dec. 17 at Range 10 on Camp Schwab. Marines with 5th Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company trained in firing the M2 .50-caliber Browning machine gun and the M203 40 mm grenade launcher as part of a convoy operations field exercise. The Marines are with 5th ANGLICO, III Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group, III MEF. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Isaac Ibarra/Released)  

CAMP SCHWAB, OKINAWA, JAPAN

12.18.2014

Story by Lance Cpl. Isaac Ibarra                

III Marine Expeditionary Force   

CAMP SCHWAB, OKINAWA, Japan — It’s an early December morning as Marines step out of their tents, the silence compliments the frigid winds. They were up before the sun, using their flashlights to gather their ammunition for the day. By dawn, the range was awakened by the alarming gunfire of M2 .50-caliber Browning machine guns.

Marines with 5th Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company cycled through the M203 40 mm grenade launcher and the mounted M2 .50-caliber Browning machine gun Dec.17 at Range 10 on Camp Schwab.

“Our mission is to gain familiarity with our heavy and medium machine guns, as well as indirect fire weapons,” said Capt. Alexander M. Mellman, a forward air officer for 5th ANGLICO, III Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group, III MEF.

Infantry Marines with 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, currently assigned to 4th Marine Regiment under the unit deployment program, assisted 5th ANGLICO Marines during the training by reviewing the handling procedures of the weapons.
The Marines were in the field for three days, and trained for convoy operations with Humvees.

“We have been doing some convoy operations to get the junior Marines more proficient behind the wheel, and get them to understand how it would work if they were in a combat situation,” said Sgt. Dustin Hayes, a forward observer with 5th ANGLICO, from Naperville, Illinois.

This training will mentally prepare them in case they need to use their skills in the future, according to Mellman, from Guilford, Connecticut.

“It’s important for the Marines to learn these weapon systems because these are the weapons they can feasibly take into combat,” said Mellman.

The M2 .50-caliber Browning machine gun was fired from the gunner seat of the Humvee, and the M203 40 mm grenade launcher was shot with practice rounds in the standing, kneeling, and the prone positions.

“A lot of the new Marines got a lot of good experience,” said Cpl. Devaughnte J. Harrington, a radio operator with 5th ANGLICO, from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. “It’s a rush shooting our biggest weapon system; we definitely knocked the dust off of the .50-caliber.”

The training events the Marines take part in now are a small piece of the puzzle to the overall picture, according to Mellman.

“The training 5th ANGLICO does benefits the Marine Corps in the Pacific Command’s mission by providing support, especially us being a liaison element,” said Mellman. “We will often go to other countries, such as South Korea, and work with them to increases the Marine Corps relationship with our allies.”

• Date Taken: 12.18.2014
• Date Posted: 12.22.2014 23:21
• Story ID: 150974
• Location: CAMP SCHWAB, OKINAWA, JP
• Hometown: BATON ROUGE, LA, US
• Hometown: GUILFORD, CT, US
• Hometown: NAPERVILLE, IL, US