What is an Expeditionary Brigade in the Marines?
Marine expeditionary brigade. A Marine expeditionary brigade (MEB) is a formation of the United States Marine Corps, a Marine air-ground task force of approximately 14,500 Marines and sailors constructed around a reinforced infantry regiment, a composite Marine aircraft group, a combat logistics regiment and a MEB command group.
How many Marines are in the MEB?
Before the re-establishment of the MEB, the Marines had two kinds of expeditionary forces: the Marine Expeditionary Unit with about 2,000 Marines, and the Marine Expeditionary Force with 50,000 or more troops. The versatility of the MEB is emblematic of the unique scalability of the Marine Air-Ground Task Forces.
What is a Marine Expeditionary Force MEB?
The MEB, commanded by a general officer (usually a brigadier general), is task-organized to meet the requirements of a specific situation. It can function as part of a joint task force, as the lead echelon of the Marine expeditionary force (MEF), or alone.
What is a Marine Amphibious Brigade?
The Marine Expeditionary Brigade was formerly referred to as Marine Amphibious Brigade (MAB). As an expeditionary force, it is capable of rapid deployment and employment via amphibious shipping, strategic airlift, marrying with Maritime Prepositioned Force (MPF) assets, or any combination thereof.
How large is a Marine Expeditionary Unit?
about 2,200 MarinesThe Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) is the smallest of the MAGTFs and is comprised of about 2,200 Marines and Sailors. The MEU's major elements are the Command Element (CE), the Ground Combat Element (GCE), the Aviation Combat Element (ACE), and the Logistics Combat Element (LCE).
How many ships are in a Marine Expeditionary Brigade?
three amphibious shipsAn ESG is typically composed of three amphibious ships that embark the necessary troops and equipment and are escorted by a guided missile cruiser (CG) and guided missile destroyers (DDG) and submarine (SSN) support.
How big is a Marine troop?
MEU. In addition to the above, there are also MEUs (Marine Expeditionary Unit). With a strength of about 2,200 personnel, the MEU is normally built around a reinforced battalion, a composite aircraft squadron, and by a MEU Service Support group.
How long can a Marine Expeditionary Brigade self sustain?
The MEB is scalable, capable of full spectrum operations, and self-sustaining for 30 days.
How big is a brigade?
3,000 to 5,000 soldiersBRIGADE. A brigade consists of a few battalions and anywhere from 3,000 to 5,000 soldiers. A colonel is generally in command. For historical reasons, armor and Ranger units of brigade size are called regiments, and the equivalent Special Forces units are called groups.
How fast can a MEU deploy?
AT A MOMENT'S NOTICE Embarked aboard amphibious assault ships, each MEU maintains a constant state of readiness, enabling Marine commanders to plan and launch a wide array of missions within six hours.
How big is a platoon?
Squad. A small military unit consisting of ten to eleven soldiers, normally led by a staff sergeant. Platoon. A platoon is four squads: generally three rifle squads and one weapons squad, normally armed with machine guns and anti-tank weapons.
How big is a battalion of Marines?
500 to 1,200 MarinesUnited States Marine Corps The battalion headquarters is supported by a headquarters and service company (battery). A battalion usually contains two to five organic companies (batteries in the artillery), with a total of 500 to 1,200 Marines in the battalion.
How many battalions are in a brigade?
Brigade or Regiment Brigades are made up of 2,000-5,000 soldiers, normally split among three to five battalions.
How many ships are in a MEU?
The MEU, Commanded by a Marine Colonel, is comprised of approximately 2,200 Marines and Sailors embarked aboard three or four amphibious ships.
How many Marines are in a MEF?
With more than 62,000 Marines and sailors, II MEF is representative of the largest and most powerful Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF).
What is the largest MAGTF?
Marine Expeditionary ForceThe largest MAGTF is a Marine Expeditionary Force of about 60,000 Marines and sailors. The MEF is the Marine Corps' principle organization, which exists in peacetime and wartime and deploys as necessary to support U.S. forward presence and crisis response capabilities.
When did the Marine Expeditionary Brigades come back?
MEBs were brought back in 1999 as a force structure that would be able to respond to trouble spots quickly and with increased firepower. In early 2000, the Marines reestablished three Marine Expeditionary Brigades by embedding their staffs within the Marine Expeditionary Force headquarters.
How many Marines were in the Marine Expeditionary Force?
Before the re-establishment of the MEB, the Marines had two kinds of expeditionary forces: the Marine Expeditionary Unit with about 2,000 Marines, and the Marine Expeditionary Force with 50,000 or more troops. The versatility of the MEB is emblematic of the unique scalability of the Marine Air-Ground Task Forces.
What was the MAGTF in the 1960s?
By the early 1960s the MAGTF concept had crystallized and the MEU, MEB, MEF triad had emerged. The Dominican Intervention of 1965 saw the initial employment of the 6th Marine Expeditionary Unit and a buildup to the 4th Marine Expeditionary Brigade.
What is a MEB?
The Marine Expeditionary Brigade (MEB) is a MAGTF built around a reinforced infantry regiment, an aircraft group, and a Brigade Service Support Group (BSSG). It is normally commanded by a Brigadier General. The Marine Expeditionary Brigade was formerly referred to as Marine Amphibious Brigade (MAB). As an expeditionary force, it is capable of rapid ...
What is the 1st MEB?
The 1st MEB participated in operation NATIVE FURY, a humanitarian assistance mission in Kenya; 2d MEB has been integrated into contingency plans for Europe and Latin America; and, 3d MEB has conducted a maritime prepositioning shipping offload in Australia.
What is the versatility of the MEB?
The versatility of the MEB is emblematic of the unique scalability of the Marine Air-Ground Task Forces. In size and capability, these brigades are midway between Marine Expeditionary Units and Marine Expeditionary Forces.
What is the Marine Corps' aphorism?
The aphorism is that "The Marine Corps deploys by brigades, but fights by divisions.". The MEB concept has been around since the 1950s. With service in the Korean War, the Dominican Republic, Vietnam, and Desert Shield/Desert Storm, the robust and scalable command and control capability and combat effectiveness of the MEB is unquestioned.
What is a Marine Expeditionary Unit?
Marine expeditionary units ( MEU, pronounced as one syllable " M'you " IPA: / mjuː /) are the smallest air-ground task forces (MAGTF) in the United States Fleet Marine Force. Each MEU is an expeditionary quick reaction force, deployed and ready for immediate response to any crisis, whether it be natural disaster ...
Where are MEUs deployed?
Recently, MEUs have been deployed within an expeditionary strike group (ESG) in the Mediterranean, the Western Pacific, and periodically, the Atlantic and Indian Oceans.
What is an ACE squadron?
The aviation combat element ( ACE) is a USMC composite squadron (reinforced) composed of a medium tiltrotor squadron augmente d with detachments of heavy, light, and attack helicopters, one detachment of amphibious flight-deck- capable jets, and a Marine air control group detachment with tactical air command, air traffic control, direct air support, and anti-aircraft assets, as well as wing headquarters, wing communications, and wing support squadron personnel. Total strength is approximately 600 troops.
What is LCE in combat?
The logistics combat element ( LCE) (formerly combat service support element or CSSE) is based on the MEU combat logistics battalion (CLB) (formerly MEU service support group or MSSG ). It contains all the logistics specialists and equipment necessary for the MEU to support and sustain itself for up to 15 days in an austere expeditionary environment. It includes service support (postal and disbursing), medical, dental, intermediate maintenance, intermediate supply (consumables and secondary reparable), transportation (distribution and landing support), explosive ordnance disposal, utilities production and distribution, bulk fuels, internal communications, and various other technical experts. It consists of approximately 300 members, including navy sailors.
Overview
Marine expeditionary units are the smallest air-ground task forces (MAGTF) in the United States Fleet Marine Force. Each MEU is an expeditionary quick reaction force, deployed and ready for immediate response to any crisis, whether it be natural disaster or combat missions. Marine amphibious unit (MAU) was the name used until the late 1980s.
Attributes
The MEU is unique in that its air and ground combat elements are combined with a logistics combat element under one commander; other services do not unite the command of air and ground forces until much higher command levels.
The MEU's ground combat element also combines artillery, light armor and tanks at a much lower level than was common in the Army until the development of t…
Elements
The ground combat element (GCE) is based on the battalion landing team (BLT), an infantry battalion reinforced with an artillery battery, amphibious assault vehicle platoon, combat engineer platoon, light armored reconnaissance company, reconnaissance platoon, and other units as the mission and circumstances require. The total strength is approximately 1,100 members, including navy sai…
The MEU cycle
MEUs maintain their subordinate elements in fifteen month cycles: nine months stateside (with six set aside for training), and a six-month deployment aboard ship. These cycles ensure that at least two of the seven MEUs are deployed forward at any given time.
Interim or buildup period: Upon completion of a deployment, the MEU remains …
See also
• Marine expeditionary unit (special operations capable)
• Organization of the United States Marine Corps
• Regimental combat team
External links
• Media related to Marine Expeditionary Units at Wikimedia Commons