3rd Reconnaissance Battalion places in 2018 MARSOC Raider Games

Photo By Cpl. Carl King | 3rd Marine Division Commanding General Maj. Gen. Craig Q. Timberlake presents an appreciation coin to U.S. Marines and Sailors attached to 3rd Marine Division April 13, 2018, on Camp Schwab in Okinawa, Japan. The service members competed in the 2018 Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command Raider Games March 18-27. The four man team finished 2nd place out of nine other teams that competed. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Carl King)  

OKINAWA, JAPAN

04.13.2018

Story by Cpl. Carl King 

3rd Marine Division     

For the first time ever, Marines with 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion, 3rd Marine Division competed in the Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command Raider Games on Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, March 18-27, 2018.

With little time to gather a team, knowledge of the event and time to prepare, 3rd Recon Marines seized an opportunity to succeed and set out for the games.

“The [Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command] commanding general sent out an invitation to all recon units and we were lucky enough to have the invitation passed down to us,” said Sgt. Pedro Estrada, the training noncommissioned officer for 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion.

With a desire to win, the command screened Marines from across the entire battalion to select the the most compatible teammates to compete.

During the event, nine teams went head-to-head through the 10-mile course- all while wearing 45-pound assault packs. Marines battled through several evolutions to include marksmanship, casualty care and aquatic rescue. .

Overall, 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion took second place, following in trace of MARSOC instructors from the Marine Raider Training Company Assessment and Selection team.

“I’m happy how we performed,” said Estrada, a Miami, Florida, native. “The teamwork and camaraderie that was displayed really shows how strong our brotherhood is.”

This competition highlighted the tactical proficiency, readiness and lethality of the okinawa-based reconnaissance battalion— upholding the saying: Swift, Silent, Deadly.

3rd Reconnaissance Battalion is the only forward-deployed reconnaissance battalion, tasked with conducting ground and amphibious reconnaissance, surveillance and other operations as directed in support of 3rd Marine Division and III Marine Expeditionary Force in Okinawa, Japan.

• Date Taken: 04.13.2018
• Date Posted: 04.13.2018 05:14
• Story ID: 272933
• Location: OKINAWA, JP