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    Swift, Silent, Deadly; 2nd Recon infiltrates the enemy

    Swift, Silent, Deadly; 2nd Recon infiltrates the enemy

    Photo By Lance Cpl. Preston McDonald | A Marine with Alpha Company, 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion, scouts out possible threats...... read more read more

    FORT STORY, VA, UNITED STATES

    06.19.2015

    Story by Lance Cpl. Preston McDonald 

    II Marine Expeditionary Force   

    FORT STORY, Va. - Under the concealment of darkness, six shadowy figures move swift and silently. They have been studying points of interest for the past 36 hours. As silently as they moved in, they slip back into the night to continue their mission.

    Marines with Alpha Company, 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion, conducted a four-day reconnaissance and surveillance operation at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story, Virginia, June 16-19, 2015.

    Throughout the operation, the Marines executed basic reconnaissance techniques such as patrolling across danger areas, land navigation and using terrain for concealment.

    Twenty-eight Marines with the company started the operation by executing soft-duct insertion operations 18 miles off the coast of Virginia via two CH-53E Super Stallion helicopters and four Zodiac inflatable boats.
    “Once out of the bird, the Marines had 20 nautical miles to navigate before they got to shore,” said Capt. Thomas Wallin, Alpha Company’s commander.

    In four teams, the Marines set up camp at different sites. For three days the Marines studied and gathered intelligence of opposition forces, role-players designated to act as the enemy, all while staying undetected. The teams, sometimes only 20 meters away from the enemy, watched silently as rotations of opposition forces guarded high-profile locations.

    Wallin says that the Marines were tasked with studying the patterns of enemies and relaying valuable information back to higher command.

    With the advancement of technology, aerial vehicles can be utilized for reconnaissance missions, however, the human asset can be more valuable.

    “The one thing that we can report back that a technology asset can’t is the human factor,” said MSgt. Robert Gupton, the operations chief with the company. “We can see the expression on the enemies’ faces. How we read their emotions is something that newer advancements in technology can’t see. Having that sort of reconnaissance with boots on the ground is a factor that has to be around.”

    In the event that technology is unavailable, the Marines must be able to act on instinct and use basic recon skills to complete the mission.

    “Every time I see a team about to step out on patrol, they all pull out their global positioning systems,” Gupton said. “You don’t see them pulling out their maps and protractors and plotting their route the old-school way. The fundamentals are the most important part.”

    After three days of gathering intel, the Marines were required to navigate through thick brush to a pre-designated extraction point to board three CH-53’s and head back to Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina, and ultimately Camp Lejeune, N.C.

    “We have to be able to support commanders from everywhere,” said Wallin. “We give them a second set of eyes so they can make a more educated decision.”

    “2nd Recon is swift, silent, and deadly,” said Gupton.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 06.19.2015
    Date Posted: 06.26.2015 13:20
    Story ID: 168297
    Location: FORT STORY, VA, US

    Web Views: 175
    Downloads: 4

    PUBLIC DOMAIN