Articles

FORCE RECON CONDUCTS CLOSE QUARTERS BATTLE TRAINING
By Sgt. M.C. Miller

MARINE CORPS BASE, CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. (April 3, 2000) -- An explosion rocks the house. Wood chips and splinters spray the building. Recon Marines burst through the door and search the house until the objective is secure.

Third Platoon, 1st Force Reconnaissance Company learned how to take down houses and other buildings during the Close Quarters Battle Course recently conducted at Camp Pendleton's Military Operations in Urban Terrain facility. They tested these skills during Training in an Urban Environment in Phoenix March 14-24, and during other direct action missions off the coast of California, March 25-30.

The CQB course was the last training package the platoon received before joining the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit. Force Reconnaissance can conduct DA missions, such as the three they conducted in Phoenix, Mesa and Goodyear, Ariz. Force Recon can also act as a hostage rescue force and a search and seizure force for buildings, ships and other structures as part of the MEU's Maritime Special Purpose Force.

The CQB course prepared them for these missions, and it was also their first chance to conduct a live fire exercise in an urban environment during the predeployment training. The training began with two weeks of firing on a 50-yard combat shooting range. Their close quarters marksmanship was tested on this range with special CQB weaponry.

This was a very important step in the training evolution, as Marines trained side-by-side in the buildings, shooting live rounds. Even though most of the Marines in the platoon have been through this specialized training before, they still had to brush up on their skills.

"You always have to be thinking," said Sgt. Jeff Schultz, a force reconnaissance Marine. "You have to make crucial, on the spot decisions. If you make a mistake, you can't cover it up most of the time. Shooting the wrong person can't be reversed."

After two weeks of live-fire training, the Marines went through two more weeks of clearing buildings. They also had to requalify on the range daily before being allowed to continue clearing techniques. "If they don't shoot well enough in the mornings they aren't allowed to shoot in the house in the afternoon," said GySgt. Geoff Wilson, a 36-year-old reconnaissance Marine from Gulfport, Miss.

The Marines trained in two different buildings during the four-week course. They moved between a one-story house and a two-level building. Each one gave them a different perspective on clearing buildings.

Each time the platoon went into the house, they were faced with a different configuration inside. The moveable walls and cardboard "bad guy" targets scattered throughout the house allowed them to be faced with almost any situation imaginable.

"Before you go through the door, you don't know if it's just a closet or a big room," said SSgt. Mark Baglietto, Special Operations Training Group instructor. "All you see is the door and all you know is there is something on the other side of the door, but you don't know what. You have to be ready for anything."

Teamwork is also an important ingredient in CQB. They had to be able to work together.

"Someone either wants the shooting skills or they don't," Wilson said. "That is up to the individual person to perfect. Teamwork has to be worked on by the whole unit. The better our teamwork is, the more effective we are. We know where everyone is and what they are doing without necessarily looking at them.

"When we don't work as a team it makes our job more hazardous," he added. "We have to be aware of our teammates."

These teamwork skills also carry over into the next level of training when they will join the rest of the Maritime Special Purpose Force - which includes an infantry security team, scout-sniper platoon and a demolition team to continue training for their deployment.