3rd Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion
| 3d Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion | |
|---|---|
|
3d LAAD insignia | |
| Active | 8 March 1982 - present |
| Country | United States |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Branch | United States Marine Corps |
| Role | Air defense |
| Part of |
Marine Air Control Group 38 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing |
| Garrison/HQ | Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton |
| Nickname(s) | 3d LAAD |
| Motto(s) | “Feel the Sting” |
| Engagements |
Operation Desert Storm Operation Iraqi Freedom * 2003 invasion of Iraq Operation Enduring Freedom |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | LtCol Michael C McCarthy |
The 3d Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion (3d LAAD) is an air defense unit of the United States Marine Corps. It is part of Marine Air Control Group 38 (MACG-38) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (3rd MAW) and is currently based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California.
Mission
Provide close-in, low altitude, surface-to-air weapons fires in defense of Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF) assets by defending forward combat areas, maneuver forces, vital areas, installations and/or units engaged in special/independent operations & to provide a task organized, ground security force in defense of MAGTF air sites when not engaged in air defense operations.
History
The Birth of Marine Corps Air Defense
The United States Marine Corps has a long history of seizing and defending advance bases. Prior to World War I, base defense was the Marine Corps’ primary mission. During World War I, the Advance Base Force was created to seize and defend enemy territory consisting primarily of bases. In 1933, the Advance Base Force transformed into the Fleet Marine Force (FMF) under Commandant Major General Ben Fuller. By 1939, the looming threat of Japanese aggression in the Pacific solidified the need for advance base defense in the region. Commandant Major General Thomas Holcomb formed four Defense Battalions to defend advance naval bases from ground and air attack. The core of the original battalions was formed from two infantry battalions, 1st and 2nd Battalion, 15th Marine Regiment. Subsequent Defense Battalions were formed with air defense personnel and artillerymen; infantrymen were attached as required. The first Defense Battalions included nearly 900 Marines divided into three anti-aircraft batteries, three seacoast batteries, and ground and anti-aircraft machine gun batteries. Follow-on evolutions included more sophisticated artillery, anti-aircraft guns, and search radars. These Defense Battalions provided the first combined arms teams and proved to be a very effective fighting force.
By December 1941, the Marine Corps’ six Defense Battalions consisted of 5,000 Marines and constituted 20 percent of the total FMF. These six battalions were given sole responsibility for defending the islands of Wake, Johnston, and Midway, and represented the Allies’ first line of defense against the Japanese onslaught in the Pacific. Defense Battalions were among the first to embrace the “detachment concept” and task organize as required for the mission on each island. On Midway Island, First Lieutenant George H. Cannon of the 6th Defense Battalion earned the war’s first Medal of Honor on December 7, 1941. Severe Japanese shelling wounded Cannon and he refused to evacuate his post until other wounded Marines were evacuated first. He later died from his wounds.
Despite their extraordinary development, the first Defense Battalions suffered from insufficient manpower and equipment to properly execute counterattacks. In the spring of 1941, Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox approved the creation of separate infantry battalions to serve with the Defense Battalions in response to growing concern that Defense Battalions could not repel a major hostile amphibious landing. However, the attack on Pearl Harbor and the United States’ subsequent entry into the war created more demand for infantry units elsewhere and the Defense Battalions only occasionally received infantry support. Consequently, every Marine in a Defense Battalion also trained to fight as an infantryman. This training, while hugely beneficial to Defense Battalion Marines, failed to account for the fact that they could not defend against ground and air threats simultaneously. The Battle for Wake Island demonstrates the consequences of this egregious deficiency, as the lack of a counterattack force is largely responsible for the defeat of American Marines in this engagement. The detachment on Wake had only 400 men, lacked radar and sound ranging equipment, and possessed no reserve element to execute a counterattack. Additionally, the detachment had only 30 percent (18 of 60) of its allotted .50 caliber machine guns. Despite its shortcomings, the detachment on Wake fought bravely and managed to fend off the Japanese for 15 days, sinking one warship and killing hundreds of Japanese as they came ashore before finally surrendering on 23 Dec 1941. A dedicated infantry unit in support of the Defense Battalion on Wake Island may have changed the outcome of the battle.
As the war progressed, the Marine Corps executed more offensive missions and shifted focus from solely defending bases to seizing and defending enemy islands. The transition to a more offensive employment method forced the Defense Battalions to adapt, leading to tremendous growth in strength, weaponry, and capabilities. During subsequent assaults, Defense Battalions landed with initial assault waves of the amphibious force and protected key terrain such as beachheads, harbors, and airfields, thereby freeing infantry units to push inland and conduct more offensive operations. At Guadalcanal on 7 Aug 1942, the 3d Defense Battalion landed among the first waves of the 1st Marine Division to defend the beachhead. After Henderson Airfield was secured, the Defense Battalion assumed perimeter security and repulsed several enemy counterattacks. At Rendova and Guam, the Defense Battalions supported the infantry by providing fire support during the assault and patrolling for remaining Japanese pockets of resistance. By the end of 1943, the Defense Battalions reached a maximum strength 26,685 Marines across 19 Battalions. As the threat to advanced naval bases decreased later in the war, Defense Battalions disbanded or reformed as anti-aircraft battalions. These units represent the institutional foundation for today’s modern air defense battalions.
The Air Defense Triad Emerges
Toward the end of World War II, German and Allied scientists incorporated jet engine technology into combat aircraft. The Germans began design work on jet engines prior to World War II and succeeded in 1944 with the creation of the Messerschmitt ME-262 Schwalbe “Swallow,” the world’s first jet-powered fighter aircraft. With the conclusion of the Second World War and the Soviet Union’s development of the MiG-9 jet fighter, the need for a correspondingly capable surface-to-air weapon to counter this new threat became clear.
HAWK Development
The close of World War II and subsequent manpower reductions left the island-hopping Defense Battalions without a legitimate peacetime role. Although Defense Battalions were among the first units to be deactivated, they resurfaced under different names when the Marine Corps began examining Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM) systems. Deactivated in December 1944, 3d Defense Battalion was reactivated as 1st Provisional Marine Guided Missile Battalion on 11 October 1951 at China Lake, CA. Four years later, on 7 February 1955, the 1st Provisional Marine Guided Missile Battalion was re-designated the 1st Terrier Surface-To-Air Missile Battalion after its newly adopted primary weapon system, the Convair RIM-2 Terrier. On 1 June 1956 the designation was changed to the 1st Medium Anti-Aircraft Missile Battalion. The Marine Corps soon learned that the Terrier was not going to meet its expectations and began pursuing another missile system, the Homing All the Way Killer (HAWK).
HAWK development began in 1952 when the United States Army initiated the search for a medium range, semi-active radar homing SAM. Northrop Gruuman received the development contract for the launcher, radars, and fire control systems in July 1954. Raytheon would be responsible for missile construction. The first test launch of the missile, then designated the XSAM-A-18, occurred in June 1956. By July 1957, development was completed and the missile’s designation changed from XM3 to XM3E1.
The U.S. Army fielded the first HAWK missiles in 1959 with the Marine Corps following suit a year later. A new weapon system meant re-designation for the Terrier Battalion, so 1st MAAM Battalion became the 3rd Light Antiaircraft Missile (LAAM) Battalion. In 1962, the USMC deployed elements of 3rd LAAM Battalion to South Florida and Guantanamo Bay Cuba, during the Cuban missile crisis. After the crisis passed, the 3rd LAAM Battalion moved permanently from Twentynine Palms to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point North Carolina.
The Need for Redeye
By the mid-1950s, medium and high-altitude anti-aircraft missiles were becoming so effective that an increasing proportion of attack aircraft could be expected to enter the battle space at low altitudes. The ever-increasing speed and maneuverability of low-flying jet aircraft decreased warning time and increased the need for effective low-altitude air defense weapons. The existing fire control methods were inadequate to meet the challenges that advanced high-performance aircraft presented. Drawing upon its years of experience as a Navy missile development contractor, Convair began feasibility studies of a very lightweight, man-portable, low altitude missile system in 1951. Designed to be carried and shoulder-launched by individual field personnel using a bazooka-type launcher, the original missile, designated Redeye, was advertised with a Probability of Kill (PK) of 35 to 40 percent and a maximum effective range of about two nautical miles. The Redeye encountered significant problems as its development progressed. Convair exceeded the program’s budget and failed to meet the Marine Corps’ performance expectations. It was, however, the best option available. It was produced from 1968-1969, even as Convair engineers reevaluated their design specifications and developed a faster, more agile, more accurate Redeye II in 1970. On 17 February 1971, during a special Man-portable Air Defense System (MANPADS) in-process review held at the U.S. Army Missile Command (MICOM), the Redeye II weapon was evaluated in competition with six other missiles. The review resulted in a recommendation for production of the Redeye II with its Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) and Night Vision Device (NVD). On 10 March 1972, the Redeye II was re-designated as Stinger.
Stinger
To date, the U.S. military has fielded four variants of the Stinger missile system: the basic Stinger, Stinger-POST, Stinger-RMP, and the Stinger-RMP Block I. In addition, the Army planned to field the Stinger-RMP Block II, but cancelled the program in 2000 due fiscal constraints. The Stinger-Passive Optical Seeker Technique (POST) variant replaced the original reticule-scan analog seeker of the Redeye with a dual IR and ultraviolet (UV) detector. The new seeker enhanced the missile's target detection capabilities, allowing it to discriminate between a target, countermeasures, and background clutter. Development of Stinger-POST began in 1971, with production running from 1981 to 1987. By 1987, when production of both the basic Stinger and Stinger-POST ended, more than 15,000 basic Stingers and almost 600 Stinger POST missiles had been produced.
The Stinger-Reprogrammable Micro Processor (RMP) variant added additional microprocessor power and was highly resistant to countermeasures. External software reprogrammability allowed upgrades without costly retrofit as air threats evolved. Upgrades to the Stinger-RMP missile corrected known operational deficiencies, which were discovered during testing in the late 1980s. The Secretary of Defense directed the Army to correct the deficiencies and then operationally test the fixes. Despite these deficiencies, the Army approximated that Mujahedeen forces in Afghanistan achieved a success rate of 79 percent against Soviet aircraft with the Stinger-POST from 1986 through 1988. Unfortunately, the Stinger-RMP missile test program was suspended during Operation Desert Storm, and the missile was rushed into the field in preparation for the Gulf War. After the war, the Army proposed a two-phased upgrade program, Stinger-RMP Block I and Stinger-RMP Block II.
The Stinger-RMP Block I program corrected deficiencies in the Stinger-RMP missile to improve precision and performance. Software and hardware changes incorporated a new Roll Frequency Sensor/Seeker, a smaller battery, and an improved computer processor and memory. A ring laser gyro eliminated the need to super elevate prior to firing while other changes improved the accuracy and counter-countermeasure capabilities of the missile. Block I upgrades are expected to support the Army's Air and Missile Defense strategy until 2021.
Ground Based Air Defense in Vietnam
The Vietnam War was a Cold War military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from November 1955 to April 1975. In 1954, colonial France surrendered to the Viet Minh rebels ending the First Indochina War, creating the nations of North and South Vietnam along the 17th parallel. The Vietnam War began shortly thereafter and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by such communist allies as China and the Soviet Union, and South Vietnam, supported by the United States and other anti-communist nations. North Vietnam initiated and maintained an insurgent campaign in the South under the National Liberation Front (NLF), otherwise known as the Viet Cong (VC), and provided NLF members with medicine, weapons, and training. Simultaneously, the North Vietnamese Army engaged in a more conventional war, at times committing large units to battle. The United States entered the war to prevent a communist takeover of South Vietnam as part of their wider strategy of containment. The U.S. was involved in Vietnam as early as 1950, when military advisors were sent to assist the French in the First Indochina War. The U.S. continued its advisory assistance to South Vietnam during the 1950s, with U.S. troop levels tripling in 1961 and tripling again a year later. U.S. combat units were deployed to Vietnam beginning in 1965 after the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, which authorized the President to deploy U.S. conventional forces and spurred the military buildup in the region.
On the early morning of 7 February 1965, VC forces attacked the U.S. compound at Pleiku in the Central Highlands. President Lyndon B. Johnson ordered retaliatory air strikes against North Vietnam. In a speech addressing the nation later that day, President Johnson declared that he would deploy a HAWK missile battalion to South Vietnam in support of air operations into North Vietnam south of the 20th parallel.
Lieutenant Colonel Bertram E. Cook, Jr., Commanding Officer of 1st LAAM Battalion, received his marching orders that same evening. The battalion had arrived in Okinawa in December 1964, having departed 29 Palms/Port Hueneme, CA on Nov 17, 1964 aboard LPD2 USS Vancouver, accompanied by an AKA cargo ship; and had been slated to deploy to Vietnam in late 1964. About Dec 1 it was announced on the ship's speaker system by the Captain that 1st LAAM would go South. We steamed for 2 days and were told we had to turn around because of the monsoons. It rained for the next week or 2. The deployment was canceled due to the high cost of facility construction to support the battalion, but the battalion remained ready. Captain Leon E. Obenhaus, the A Battery Commanding Officer, was alerted to prepare his men for an airlift to an unknown destination.
Battery A was airlifted to Da Nang, Vietnam, and became fully operational on 9 February. Over the next week, the Air Force continually airlifted 1st LAAM Battalion Marines and equipment from Kadena Airfield, Okinawa, to Da Nang. The battalion was increased on 18 February with the arrival of B Battery, and began establishing defensive positions around Da Nang Air Base. A Battery was on Monkey Mountain, B Battery on Hill 327 and C Battery arrived in June from Okinawa. As the Marine presence grew in Vietnam, 2nd LAAM Battalion also joined the fight. 2nd LAAM Battalion was tasked with providing air defense for the Chu Lai Air Base.
On 8 March 1965, the United States Marine Corps became the first of the Armed Services to deploy large ground combat units to South Vietnam. 1st LAAM Battalion had already been deployed for four weeks by the time Marine ground combat troops arrived. More than 38,000 Marines made up the III Marine Amphibious Force (III MAF) by the end of 1965 under the command of Major General Lewis W. Walt. Before the war ended, the Marine Corps deployed approximately 391,000 Marines to Vietnam. The LAAM Battalions sent to Vietnam continued the tradition of excellence set by the Defense Battalions two decades earlier and wrote the next chapter of the Marine air defender’s success on the battlefield.
The Evolution of Marine Corps Air Defense
During the 1960s, the Marine Corps began transitioning air defense battalions from ground combat units to Marine aviation units. The Marine Corps integrated them into the developing Marine Air Command and Control Systems (MACCS), which was tasked with the aviation command and control mission under Marine Air Control Groups. The purpose of moving ground-based air defense units under Marine aviation was to integrate the entire air defense effort under the aircraft wing. Effectively integrating fighters with surface-to-air missiles under the MACCS would ensure appropriate coordination of the overall air defense effort. During the Vietnam War, Redeye missile platoons were formed and fell under the Marine Division. In 1969, the Redeye platoons moved from the Division to the Aircraft Wing, consolidating all antiaircraft missiles under the Wing’s control. With the HAWK system improving dramatically during this period, the move of the Redeye Platoons to the Wing gave the Marine Corps a reliable triad of redundant antiaircraft weapons in fighters, HAWK and Redeye missiles. This air defense triad remained the foundation of USMC ground-based air defense for approximately 30 years until the last HAWK battalion, 1st LAAM Battalion, was deactivated on 11 July 1997.
The Formation of 3d Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion & Early Operations
3d Forward Area Air Defense (FAAD) Battery (-) was activated as an independent command in the Marine Air Control Group on 8 March 1982 following 3d FAAD Platoon’s detachment from Marine Air Support Squadron 3 and deactivation the previous day. Under Maj Ralph F. Marchewka’s command, 3d FAAD Btry (-) started with 78 Marines and an H&S Platoon. It grew to five firing platoons before 3d Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion was activated under LtCol R. C. Dodt Jr. on 22 Jan 1987.
From 1986 to August 1990, the battalion supported several Weapons Tactics and Instructor (WTI) flight phases in Yuma, AZ, Combined Armed Exercises in Twentynine Palms, CA, and Red Flag exercises in Nellis, NV. During this time, the battalion also supported the 11th, 13th, and 15th Marine Expeditionary Units (MEUs) with a single LAAD section. The battalion continues to support these exercises and MEU deployments to this day.
3d LAAD Bn experienced its first real-world test when a detachment deployed aboard the USS Okinawa on 8 Oct 1987 as part of Contingency Marine Air Ground Task Force (CMAGTF) 1-88. In response to Iranian aggression during the Tanker Wars, and under the command of then-Captain Chad W. Hocking (who would later become 3d LAAD’s eighth Battalion Commander), Marines from B Battery provided critical air defense from Iranian aircraft and guaranteed the safety of countless merchant vessels transiting between the Straits of Hormuz and Kuwait.
With Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait on 2 Aug 1990, the battalion was tasked to support Operation DESERT SHIELD. On 14 Aug 1990, advance elements of the battalion arrived with a contingent from 7th Marines. The remainder of the battalion reached the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on 17 and 20 Aug in support of 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade with augmentation from the 4th LAAD Reserve Marines from Pasadena, CA commanded by Captain Michael Todd as the Battery Commander. At the time of embarkation, only 45 Stinger Teams and necessary support personnel were authorized to make the trip. Once on deck, A Battery (-) defended the vital assets of Jubayl Airport, Jubayl Port Complex, King Abdul Aziz Naval Base, and Shiek Isa Airfield, Bahrain against air threats. B Battery (-) was in direct support of 7th Marine Regiment. Stinger teams were shuffled as necessary to ensure mission success until the war commenced on 17 Jan 1991. Although no enemy air threat was present, 3d LAAD Bn set a precedent for its utility on the battlefield. On 29 June 1991, the unit returned to Camp Pendleton after successfully accomplishing its assigned mission.
During the 1990s, LAAD Battalions began acquiring several new weapon systems to augment dismounted Marines carrying the Stinger missile on their shoulders. 3d LAAD Bn fielded the Light Armored Vehicle-Air Defense Variant (LAV-AD) and the Avenger Weapons System taking into consideration concept of employment, personnel requirements, training, logistic support, and facilities requirements.
The acquisition of the LAV-AD was not without opposition. Major General Lynch, Commanding General Marine Corps Combat Development Command, opposed the acquisition due to other Marine Corps needs and the low priority of the LAV-AD. Brigadier General West, a Marine Corps congressional liaison, favored the acquisition based on strong congressional interest and the Marine Corps’ “Hill reputation” of buying only that for which it requests funding. Ultimately, the decision was made to purchase the LAV-AD due to table of organization structure availability, the current threat to the MAGTF, and the probable loss of HAWK.
The Avenger Weapon System was introduced to the battalion in January 1995. The Avenger provided Marine Corps air defenders with new capabilities in a lightweight, day/night, limited adverse weather fire unit for countering the threat of low altitude, high-speed fixed-wing or rotary wing aircraft. The firing unit incorporated two Standard Vehicle-Mounted Launcher (SVML) missile pods, a .50 caliber machine gun, Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR), Laser Range Finder (LRF), and IFF capability. The fully rotating, gyro-stabilized turret was mounted on the M1097 heavy High-Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV). The fire unit could engage a target with missiles or the machine gun either with a gunner in the turret or from a remote location using the Remote Control Unit (RCU). On-board communication equipment provided for VHF radio and intercom operations.
In 2005, I MEF designated 3d LAAD Bn as the Fleet Sponsor for the Complementary Low Altitude Weapon System (CLAWS). Designated members of the Battalion participated in operational training with the CLAWS employing it in support of WTI 1-06. After WTI, CLAWS traveled to White Sands, New Mexico to conduct a live-fire exercise. The CLAWS team fired eight Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAMs) and successfully engaged seven targets. The CLAWS team continued preparation for the fielding of the system during 2006. On 3 May 2006, Marine Corps Systems Command elected to discontinue the program on the basis of insufficient funding and lack of necessity.
Pre-9/11 Operations
Throughout the 1990s, LAAD Marines remained ready for any situation through constant training. 3d LAAD Bn consistently supported WTI Courses, Combined Arms Exercises (CAX), Red Flag Exercises, and numerous other air defense exercises throughout the continental United States. In September 1994, A Battery conducted anti-narcotic operations in Gallup, New Mexico with local law enforcement agencies and Joint Task Force 6 aboard the Zuni Indian Reservation. The Marines established observation posts and were tasked with determining possible air corridors for narcotics planes to drop drugs at designated drop zones. On 10 Oct 1994, the Battalion planned to immediately deploy to Saudi Arabia after receiving a Southwest Asia Contingency Alert in response to the Iraqi military buildup along the Kuwaiti border. Operation VIGILANT WARRIOR quickly contained Iraq’s aggressive posturing and 3d LAAD Bn stood down.
Air Defense in the Post Cold War Era
The Cold War ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union in December 1991. The days of a bi-polar world ended abruptly, almost unexpectedly. Washington military planners decided that the need for a robust, integrated air defense capability no longer existed. HAWK funding decreased until the last LAAM Battalion was deactivated in 1997. Due to maintenance costs, the Avenger and LAV-AD programs were discontinued. 4th LAAD Bn was deactivated in 2005. 1st Stinger Battery, a Cold War mainstay on the island of Okinawa, was deactivated in 2007. Throughout the first decade of the new millennium, 3d LAAD Bn consistently achieved mission accomplishment amidst a demanding operational tempo. During this same period, the focus of military action has been on counterinsurgency warfare in Afghanistan and Iraq. However the battalion has continued to support the 11th, 13th, and 15th Marine Expeditionary Units and the Unit Deployment Program to this day.
Global War on Terror
On September 11, 2001 3d LAAD Bn Marines were again called to action. The LAAD Detachment assigned to the 15th MEU defended a critical Forward Arming and Refueling Point (FARP) in Pakistan.
In January 2003, the Battalion’s training again focused on preparations for war in Iraq. By the end of January, the Offload Preparation Party and Arrival and Assembly Operations Element departed Camp Pendleton bound for Kuwait. A Battery’s 1st Platoon departed for Kuwait on 27 January. On 5 February, the Battalion’s equipment was embarked aboard the USNS Soderman. Four days later, the remainder of the battalion departed March Air Force Base for Kuwait. By 13 February, the battalion consolidated at Ali Al Salem Air Base, Kuwait and dedicated its time to training and preparing for crossing the border into Iraq. On 24 Feb, the battalion departed Ali Al Salem for Camp Work Horse located in Tactical Assembly Area Coyote.
Prior to 21 March 2003, when Operation IRAQI FREEDOM began, the Defended Asset List experienced a variety of changes and forced 3d LAAD Bn Marines to plan dynamically. When the ground invasion began early on the morning of 21 March, 3d LAAD Bn Marines provided air defense for Marine Wing Support Squadron 271 (MWSS-271), MWSS-371, MWSS-372, MWSS-373, and served as a gap filler for a battalion from the Army’s 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade. The mission was to defend logistics convoys loaded with aviation fuel and ordnance that would be staged at FARPS along I MEF’s path into Northern Iraq. These FARPs enabled helicopters to provide the Ground Combat Element with more timely close air support. As Saddam’s Fadayeen put up a fight in places like An Nasiriyah, Qalat Sikar, and Al Kut, fuel and ordnance assumed critical importance and Marines from the battalion often found themselves in the midst of the fighting.
The battalion returned to Iraq in support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM two more times in February 2004 and August 2006 to provide air base ground defense for Al Asad Air Base. 3d LAAD Bn was called on again in September 2007 to provide air base ground defense for Camp Lemonier, Djibouti, in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM. Most recently, 3d LAAD Bn provided ground security for Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan, from February to September 2010 in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM.
3d LAAD Bn began training to provide Air Base Ground Defense for the Bastion/Leatherneck/Shorebak (BLS) Complex in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province in the summer of 2009. The battalion was certified by instructors from Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron 1 and the School of Infantry – West to conduct Military Entry Point (MEP), Tactical Recovery of Aircraft and Personnel (TRAP), mounted and dismounted patrol, IED sweep, and autonomous counterinsurgency (COIN) operations in January 2010. The battalion deployed in support of OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM 10.1 as part of I MEF Headquarters Group the following month. After conducting a battle hand-over with 5th Bn 10th Marines, 3d LAAD Bn immediately took ownership of its area of operations. Again displaying its utility and versatility on the battlefield, A Battery operated Camp Leatherneck’s MEP, provided a TRAP force, conducted combat patrols, and trained Afghan forces. B Battery's mission focused on small unit decentralized COIN operations. Operating out of a small patrol base located 10 km south of the BLS Complex, B Battery patrolled through the settlements of Habib Abad, Now Abad, and Boldak. The squad-level patrols conducted key leader engagements, counter-IED patrolling, and human terrain mapping in an effort to counter the insurgent threat to the BLS Complex. Due to the efforts of Marines and Sailors of 3d LAAD Bn, the BLS Complex did not experience any attacks by insurgent forces while the Battalion was deployed in support of OEF 10.1.
Post GWOT
With Operations winding down in Iraq and Afghanistan, 3d LAAD continued to focus on both Ground Based Air Defense while participating in numerous WTIs and Integrated Training Exercises (ITX-formerly known as EMV) as well as I MEF exercises such as Steel Knight and Desert Scimitar. In the spring of 2013 the battalion deployed the first iteration of the LAAD Unit Deployment Program Detachment to MCAS Futenma, Okinawa, Japan. Focus on the Air Base Ground Defense mission continued with Unit Level Training at the Battalion level. In the spring of 2014 Bravo Battery (REIN) deployed to Jordan for Exercise Eager Lion. This was followed by Bravo Battery(REIN)'s eventual deployment ISO Special Purpose MAGTF Crisis Response-CENTCOM (SP-MAGTF-CR-CENT) in the fall of 2014.
Unit awards
A unit citation or commendation is an award bestowed upon an organization for the action cited. Members of the unit who participated in said actions are allowed to wear on their uniforms the awarded unit citation. 3d LAAD Bn has been presented with the following awards:
| Ribbon | Unit Award |
 | Presidential Unit Citation |
 | Navy Unit Commendation with two Bronze Stars |
 | Meritorious Unit Commendation with three Bronze Stars |
 | National Defense Service Medal with one Bronze Star |
 | Southwest Asia Service Medal with three Bronze Stars |
 | Afghanistan Campaign Medal with one Bronze Star |
 | Iraq Campaign Medal with four Bronze Stars |
 | Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal |
 | Global War on Terrorism Service Medal |
See also
References
External links
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