TheUnited States Marine Corps is organized within theDepartment of the Navy, which is led by theSecretary of the Navy (SECNAV). The most senior Marine commissioned officer is theCommandant of the Marine Corps, responsible for organizing, recruiting, training, and equipping the Marine Corps so that it is ready for operation under the command of theunified combatant commanders. The Marine Corps is organized into four principal subdivisions:Headquarters Marine Corps, the Operating Forces, the Supporting Establishment, and theMarine Forces Reserve.
The Operating Forces are further subdivided into three categories: Marine forces assigned toUnified Combatant Commands,Marine Corps Security Forces guarding naval installations, andMarine Security Guard detachments at American embassies. Under the "Forces for Unified Commands" memo, Marine forces are assigned to each of the regional unified combatant commands at the discretion of the Secretary of Defense and with the approval of the President. Since 1991, the Marine Corps has maintained component headquarters at each of the regional unified combatant commands.[1]
Marine Corps Forces are further divided intoMarine Forces Command (consisting ofII Marine Expeditionary Force) andMarine Forces Pacific (I Marine Expeditionary Force andIII Marine Expeditionary Force). The commander of the former also serves as commanding general forFleet Marine Force, Atlantic,Marine Corps Forces, Europe,Marine Corps Forces, South, Marine Corps Forces, Strategic, andMarine Corps Installations East; while the latter serves as commander ofFleet Marine Force, Pacific,Marine Forces Central Command, andMarine Corps Installations West.
The Supporting Establishment includesCombat Development Command,Recruit Depots,Marine Corps Logistics Command,Marine Bases & Air Stations,Marine Corps Recruiting Command, and theUnited States Marine Band.
Since the U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Army both believe that their combat capabilities overlap each other, they have both historically viewed the other branch as encroaching on their capabilities and have competed for money, missions, and fame. The Marines grew to a field strength of six divisions during World War II, including the5th Marine Division and the6th Marine Division. Both were disbanded after the war.
Most significantly, in the aftermath ofWorld War II, Army efforts to restructure the American defense establishment involved the dissolution of the Marine Corps and the folding of its capabilities into the other services. Leading this movement were such prominent Army officers as GeneralDwight Eisenhower, who later became thePresident of the United States, andArmy Chief of StaffGeorge C. Marshall.[2]
Both theChief of Naval Operations (CNO) andCommandant of the Marine Corps (CMC), heads of their respective services, report directly to theSecretary of the Navy (SECNAV). As a result, the Navy and Marine Corps have a close relationship, more so than with other branches of theUnited States Armed Forces. Recent whitepapers and promotional literature have commonly used the phrase "Navy-Marine Corps Team".[3][4] This relationship stems from the Navy providing transport, logistical, medical, and religious service as well as combat support to put Marine units into the fight where they are needed. Conversely, Marines are responsible for conducting land operations to support naval campaigns, including the seizure of naval and air bases. All Marine Aviation programs except for specific command and control and air defense programs are funded by the Navy. Marine Corps officers are assigned to theOffice of Chief of Naval Operations (OPNAV) Air Warfare Branch (N98) to representMarine Aviation interests and serve as"action officers" (viz., staff members).[5] By Congressional mandate, the OPNAV Director, Expeditionary Warfare Branch (N95) is filled by a Marine general.
The Marine Corps cooperates with the Navy on many institutional support services. The corps receives a significant portion of its officers from theUnited States Naval Academy andNavy Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC), which are partially staffed by Marines. Marine Corps drill instructors contribute to training naval officers inOfficer Candidate School.Marine aviators are trained in theNaval Aviation training pipeline, and utilize naval-weapons and test-pilot schools. Currently, Navyaircraft carriers deploy with a MarineHornet squadron alongside Navy squadrons. The Navy'sBlue Angels flight team includes at least one Marine pilot and is supported by a MarineC-130 Hercules aircraft and crew.
Since the Marines do not trainchaplains ormedical personnel, officers and enlisted sailors from the Navy fill these roles. Some of these sailors, particularlyHospital Corpsmen, generally wear Marine uniforms emblazoned with the Marine insignia but US Navy name tags in order to be distinct to compatriots but indistinguishable to enemies. The Marines also operate a network security team in conjunction with the Navy. Marines and sailors share the vast majority of branch-specific awards, with Marines earning theNavy Cross, the highest honor awarded short of theMedal of Honor (which Marines also are awarded, in the Navy version of the Medal of Honor), and other like medals; while an example of the few Marine-only awards is theGood Conduct Medal.
Today, the basic framework for deployable Marine units is theMarine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF), a flexible structure that can vary in size. A MAGTF is composed of four elements: thecommand element (CE), theground combat element (GCE), theaviation combat element (ACE) and thelogistics combat element (LCE).[6] A MAGTF can operate independently or as part of a larger coalition. It is a temporary organization formed for a specific mission and dissolved after completion of that mission.
The MAGTF structure reflects a strong tradition in the Corps towards self-sufficiency and a commitment tocombined arms, both essential assets to an expeditionary force often called upon to act independently in discrete, time-sensitive situations. The history of the Marine Corps as well has led to a wariness towards relying too much on its sister services, and towards joint operations in general[citation needed].
A MAGTF varies in size from the smallest, aMarine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), based around a reinforced infantrybattalion and a compositesquadron, up to the largest, aMarine Expeditionary Force (MEF), which ties together aDivision, anAir Wing, and aLogistics Group under a MEF Headquarters Group.
The three Marine Expeditionary Forces are:
Each of the seven MEUs are assigned to their respective Navy fleet as components of theFleet Marine Force: three to theAtlantic Fleet (based at Camp Lejeune), and four to thePacific Fleet (three based at Camp Pendleton and one in Okinawa). Each is commanded by acolonel with a combat arms background thus,infantry oraviator. The MEU components consist of a command element, ground combat element, aviation combat element, and a logistics combat element each commanded by alieutenant colonel. MEU rotations are staggered so that while one MEU is on deployment, another is training to deploy, and one is standing down to refit and exchange units. Each MEU is trained during its workup evolution to perform special operations tasks and is then designated as an MEU(SOC) (Special Operations Capable). Each MEU can tailor its equipment to the expected tasking.
MEU Components:
Typically, a MEU falls under the operational control of but no longer deploys as part of anExpeditionary Strike Group (which replaced theAmphibious Ready Group), composed of Navy amphibious ("L-class") ships (aLHD orLHA to serve as theflagship of the Amphibious Squadron,LSD(s), andLPD(s) that embark the MEU), escort ships (such as theArleigh Burke-classdestroyer,Ticonderoga-classcruiser, and aLos Angeles-classsubmarine), and the requisite landing vehicles to transport the MEU ashore, such as theLCAC,LCU surface craft,Amphibious Assault Vehicle (though the MEU can utilize its helicopter lift assets embarked aboard the LHD or LHA). The theater component commander can use the Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) in its entirety or detach units as needed, though the MEU usually remains aboard the ships of the ESG to use those as their principal base of operations. This ability to remain at sea and "over the horizon" until called is a unique capability of the ESG/MEU.
The basic organization of Marine Corps infantry units follows the "rule of threes", which places three subordinates under a commander, not counting support elements.[7] The organization and weapons are from the Marine CorpsTable of Organization and Equipment (TOE) standard. Note that these are principles, but according to manpower and mission needs units can deviate from the TOE (e.g. with four subordinate units instead of three, or a commander who is a rank above or below the rank specified). Supporting units will have their own organization and equipment, but generally also follow the "rule of threes".
The unit designationbrigade is only used in the Marine Corps in the form of aMarine Expeditionary Brigade (MEB), an intermediate sizedMarine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF). The MEB is usually commanded by a brigadier general as CG, who is assisted by a colonel as thechief of staff (CoS) of the MEB's general staff and who is "dual-hatted" as the MEB's second-in-command. The MEB consists of three regimental equivalent combat elements (ground, air, and logistics) and a battalion-sized headquarters element. The ground combat element (GCE) consists of aRegimental Combat Team (RCT), which is a heavily reinforced infantry regiment (including field artillery, infantry reconnaissance, amphibious assault vehicle, tank, light armored reconnaissance, and combat engineer units), itself roughly equivalent to a US Army InfantryBrigade Combat Team. The air, or aviation, combat element (ACE) consists of a composite Marine Aircraft Group containing several helicopter, tilt rotor, tactical fixed wing, and UAV squadrons and/or detachments, as well as aviation ground support, command and control, and air defense units. The MAG is roughly equivalent in terms of numbers of aircraft and personnel to a US Army Combat Aviation Brigade. The logistics combat element (LCE) consists of a combat logistics regiment (CLR) consisting of combat logistics battalions (CLB), and specialized logistical companies and detachments to support the MAGTF. The headquarters, or command, element (CE) consists of specialized companies and detachments that perform various command, control, communications, surveillance, reconnaissance, intelligence, law enforcement, and liaison functions.
Two unique unit designations to the Marine Corps areMarine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) andMarine Expeditionary Force (MEF) MAGTFs. The MEU is the smallest MAGTF and consists of approximately 2,200 personnel. Commanded by a colonel with a lieutenant colonel as XO, it consists of a battalion landing team (BLT), a reinforced infantry battalion, as its GCE and a Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM), reinforced with detachments of helicopters, tactical fixed wing, and UAV aircraft, as well as aviation ground support, command and control, and air defense detachments, as its ACE. The MEU's LCE consists of a CLB, and its CE is a company-sized version of the MEB's battalion-sized headquarters group. The MEF is the Marine Corps's equivalent tactical command level to an army corps. The MEF has alieutenant general as CG with a major general as deputy CG. The MEF consists of aMarine Division as its GCE, aMarine Aircraft Wing as its ACE, aMarine Logistics Group as its LCE, and a regiment-sizedMEF Headquarters Group (MEF HQG) as its CE.
Battalions, and larger units commanded by afield grade officer, have an executive officer as the second-in-command and anexecutive staff consisting of:Manpower / Administration & Personnel (S-1),Intelligence (S-2),Operations, Plans & Training (S-3),Logistics (S-4),Civil Affairs (wartime only) (S-5), andCommunications (S-6) sections. Units commanded by ageneral officer have a chief of staff and a general staff in which the staff sections are designated as G-1, G-2, etc. Battalions and larger units replace the company (and battery) first sergeant with a sergeant major, as the senior enlisted advisor to the unit commander.
The four Marine divisions are:
InWorld War II, two more Marine Divisions were formed: the5th and6th, which fought in thePacific War. These divisions were disbanded after the end of the war. The 5th Marine Division was reactivated for service in Vietnam but was disbanded again in the early 1970s.
The mission of Marine Corps aviation is to provide the MAGTF commander with an aviation combat element (ACE) capable of conducting air operations in support of the seizure and defense of advanced naval bases, and conducting such land operations as may be directed by the Joint Force commander.
The ACE supports the MAGTF by providing the six functions of Marine aviation:assault support,anti-air warfare,offensive air support,electronic warfare,control of aircraft and missiles, andaerial reconnaissance.
Aviation units are organized into:
The four Marine aircraft wings are:
Beyond logistics (i.e., motor transport, supply, and maintenance), the LCE provides engineer support (i.e., heavy equipment, bulk fuel and water, utilities, bridging, explosive ordnance disposal, and reinforcement to combat engineer units), medical and dental personnel, and other specialized units (e.g., aerial delivery and landing support).
The four Marine logistics groups are:
Although the notion of a Marine special warfare contribution to theU.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) was considered as early as the founding of USSOCOM in the 1980s, it was resisted by the Marine Corps. Then CommandantPaul X. Kelley expressed the popular belief that Marines should support Marines, and that the Corps should not fund a special warfare capability that would not support Marine operations.[10]
However, resistance from within the Marine Corps dissipated when Marine leaders watched the Corps' "crown jewels"—the15th and26th MEU (Special Operations Capable) {MEU(SOC)s}—sit on the sidelines during the early stages ofOperation Enduring Freedom while other special warfare units led the way.[11] After a three-year development period, the Marine Corps agreed in 2006 to supply a 2,700-strong unit,Marine Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC), which would answer directly to USSOCOM.[12]
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The Marine Special Operations Command is the Marine Corps'sspecial operations component that reports toUnited States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM). Currently, MARSOC trains, organizes, equips and, when directed by the Commander, USSOCOM, deploys task organized, scalable, and responsive U.S. Marine Corps special operations forces worldwide in support of combatant commanders and other agencies.
The MSOAG, formerly the FMTU, has been operating since 2005, before MARSOC formally existed. MARSOC was formally activated during a February 24 ceremony at Camp Lejeune, N.C., where MARSOC is now headquartered. Fox Company, 2nd Marine Special Operations Battalion, was the first of the Marine Special Operations Battalions' companies to activate in the Spring of 2006. Drawing its manpower from the core of 2nd Force Reconnaissance Co., Fox Company's creation came at the expense of 2nd Force Reconnaissance Co., which stood down upon the transfer of its platoons to both MARSOC's 2nd Marine Special Operations Battalion, and a new company (Delta) of 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion.
The three Marine Special Operations Battalions (MSOBs) are:
MARSOC also contains a Marine Special Operations Support Group (SOSG) that trains, equips, structures, and provides specially qualified Marine forces, including operational logistics, intelligence, multipurpose canines, Firepower Control Teams and communications support in order to sustain worldwide special operations missions as directed by Commander, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command (COMMARFORSOC).
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