Marine warfare school adapts to changing combat environment
July 22, 2008
Marine Corps News by Cpl. Aaron Rooks
MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (July 22, 2008) The art
of warfare is always changing in the ways they are planned
for, fought, and won. Looking back through centuries of
battles fought from the American Revolutionary War to the
current Global War on Terrorism, planning, tactics and
execution have continuously evolved into what they are today.
Compare the current battles being fought on the sands of Iraq
and through the hills of Afghanistan, to the past conflicts
that were World War I and II. None of these battles were ever
the same, as conflicts consisted of organized militaries
fighting organized militaries. The idea of combat engagement
was simple: if you saw someone wearing an enemy uniform, shoot
them.
Things are vastly different now because military forces face
combatants who are far from organized and uniform. Today’s
insurgents don’t believe in the set tactics and procedures
that were used so many years ago, or that of any organized
military in the world.
Even though combat is always changing, so is the training used
to prepare for it, as evident by the 2nd Marine Logistics
Group's Battle Skills Training School. The school has existed
since the 1980s when combat was still oriented to the
organized military, but nearly 30 years later, the school
continues to adapt to new tactics of warfare.
"The War on Terrorism can't be fought the way we fought in
Vietnam and World War II," said Staff Sgt. Charles Calfee, a
primary instructor at BSTS. "What we deal with now is far more
difficult. You can't tell who the enemy is unless they have a
weapon and are shooting at you."
Calfee, who is an infantryman by trade, said that in past
wars, military lines would push forward, see the enemy and
attack. He said fighting insurgents in today's battles is much
different.
"Marines will interact with a number of locals, talk to them
face to face, and even shake a hand or two," Calfee said.
"Later that evening or the next day though, that may be the
same person who is trying to kill them for any number of
reasons."
Calfee said current battles in Iraq and Afghanistan show that
Marines must continue to adapt to changing combat
environments, which is why BSTS is undergoing change. He said
the only thing that remains the same at BSTS is its name.
There is a completely different training package at BSTS now,
Calfee said. The tactics are different, the fundamental skills
have changed, and even the details of the basics are
different.
In the past, BSTS has focused its training regimen to the
basic combat skills like operating weapon systems and
patrolling urban areas as prescribed in the combined
pre-deployment training package provided by the 2nd Marine
Division. But he said the school will soon offer even more for
Marines and sailors.
The school is adding a convoy leadership course, a scheduled
Marine Corps Martial Arts Program training package and a
noncommissioned officer leadership course, Calfee said. These
training packages give Marines a different touch of leadership
that adds to what they already have.
Staff Sgt. Robert Smith, the chief instructor at the school,
said changes like these must be made to training programs in
order for Marines to continue to be successful on the
battlefield. He said what goes on in a combat zone determines
how Marines train at home.
"You have to keep up with what's going on in a deployed area,
as what's happening there can change everything," Smith said.
"Rules of engagement, operating procedures, they are
ever-evolving. Because of this, what we teach today may change
tomorrow."
Many of the school's instructors feel the Convoy Leadership
Course has the most to offer to Marines in the logistics
group, as convoys are the primary mode of supply
transportation. Sgt. Joshua Faidley, an instructor at the
school, said the course focuses on the planning stages of a
convoy operation that happen before the trucks ever leave the
wire.
He added that the course places the students, who are
sergeants and above, as convoy commanders. By doing this, the
students are placed in a position where their decisions have
an effect on the entire group. He noted that if a convoy
operation has poor planning, everyone's life is put in danger
as well as the supplies in tow.
"Convoys are the number one means of travel," Faidley said.
"If Marines don't have a set plan before they leave friendly
lines and something goes wrong, everyone's in trouble."
Calfee said the MCMAP training and NCO leadership course
compound on the values set forth in the Convoy Leadership
Course. He said these courses focus on the combat mindset,
which is the concept of knowing how to deal with situations
that pop up while in combat situations.
"Combat is all about fight or flight," Calfee believes. "We
fight or we turn and run, these are the options. We as Marines
have to train ourselves to ignore that response, as so often
we have to run toward the machine gun fire instead of running
away from it."
Calfee said the MCMAP training course will offer belt
instructor courses for all belts green and up, as well as
5-day belt advancement course for belts up to green. He said
that the school will be able to conduct belt advancement
courses higher than green upon request.
As for the NCO Leadership Course, he said it's not the usual
Corporals' Leadership Course. He said this course, unlike the
Corporals' Course, will focus almost entirely on combat
leadership.
"The (NCO Leadership Course) covers proper knowledge that will
place NCOs in the right orientation for combat and going
overseas," Calfee said.
These new courses only add to the value of the MLG's combat
school, Calfee said. He explained the school's importance best
by saying that infantry Marines aren't the ones who are
running convoy operations, it's the logistics Marines. It's
the lance corporal from supply who will be on the 50-caliber
Browning machine gun protecting the convoy and its Marines.
Calfee said BSTS will continue to adapt to new training
requirements as warfare continues to change. The entire BSTS
staff has a minimum of 3 years in an infantry unit, and with
that experience, they will continue to prepare logistics
Marines for combat. |
