Special Operations.Com

USMC Force Recon

Articles

Cpl. Richard Therriault, a radio operator with 4th Force Reconnaissance Company, communicates with the Reconnaissance Operations Center using his PRC 119 portable field radio.

Force Recon: The Eyes and Ears of MAGTF-24

10/22/99 - As the few and the proud attack the beach here during the Amphibious Orientation Training exercise, July 17 - 31, the elite from Fourth Force Reconnaissance are leading the way.

A Marine Reserve unit, 4th Force Reconnaissance is divided into two detachments, located in Honolulu and Reno, Nevada. Less than 200 Marines make up the unit.

Force Recon's mission during the AOT exercise is to observe the beach for enemy presence, then report back to command and control of the landing force pertinent information, such as the type of beach and the size of waves.

"We're the eyes and ears for deep reconnaissance," said Staff Sgt. Sean Schoonmaker, 4th Force Recon, a high school math and science teacher from Berkeley, Calif. "Our mission in any circumstance is to observe some objective at a certain location, sometimes requiring call for fire."

By the time the assault begins, Force Recon will have already completed their mission. The bulk of the amphibious assault will be Marines of the 24th Marine Regiment, Kansas City, Mo., from the USS Tarawa (LHA-1), USS Mount Vernon (LSD-39) and USS Pearl Harbor (LSD-52) at Camp Pendleton, Calif., July 28.

Although 4th Force Recon is highly trained in water operations, the AOT is an opportunity to give them added preparation when called to active duty. If activated, the unit would be attached to 1st Force Recon, their active-duty counterpart stationed at Camp Pendleton, Calif.

AOT prepares Marine Reserve units for potential deployment at any time, if necessary, to augment and reinforce the active-duty Marine Corps component. A recent example of this occurred during Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm in Southwest Asia.

"We don't get the chance to train with active-duty Marines a lot," Schoonmaker said. "If we do get activated, we'll be combat replacements, so we must train in the same environment and know the same tactics. It's important we train like they do. Training here at AOT, we can do that."

Cpl. Aaron Jolley from Salt Lake City said, "It's a good chance to do more training away from what we're used to. We don't always get a chance to do boat work."

Back