The Timeless Realities of Human Conflict: I MEF Focuses on "A Single Integrated Battlespace"

By MICHAEL W. HAGEE

Lt. Gen. Michael W. Hagee is commanding general, I Marine Expeditionary Force.

The following article provides an overview of Expeditionary Maneuver Warfare (EMW) and explains how we at I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF) organize, train, and equip to ensure we can execute today while evolving to fulfill the potential that EMW offers our nation.

What makes the EMW concept of the future different? The answer, we believe, is: (1) our understanding and application of the ideas inherent in maneuver warfare; (2) our expeditionary nature; (3) our organization and training; and (4) our methods of deployment and employment.

Expeditionary Maneuver Warfare is the Marine Corps' capstone concept for the early 21st century. Built on the twin pillars of our philosophy of maneuver warfare and our expeditionary heritage, EMW prepares the Marine Corps, as a "total force," to meet the challenges and opportunities of a rapidly changing world. The EMW concept describes the enduring characteristics and the evolving capabilities upon which the Marine Corps will rely to promote peace and stability and to mitigate or resolve crises as part of a joint force. It focuses our core competencies, evolving capabilities, and innovative concepts to ensure that the Marine Corps provides the joint force commander (JFC) with forces optimized for forward presence, engagement, crisis response, antiterrorism, and warfighting.

To understand the Marine Corps' philosophy of warfighting requires an appreciation of the nature of war itself--its moral and physical characteristics and demands. Our fundamental interpretation of the nature of war affects our philosophy of warfighting and how I MEF applies that philosophy in day-to-day operations.

Nature of War

The phenomenon known as war might be defined as a violent struggle--characterized by chaos, friction, and uncertainty--between two hostile, independent, irreconcilable wills. What has changed in recent years is the gradual shift in reliance from the quantitative characteristics of warfare--mass and volume--to a realization that qualitative factors such as speed, stealth, precision, and sustainability have become increasingly important for combat success. In EMW, the Marine Corps recognizes this evolution. We draw upon the maneuver heritage of the Corps and our realistic view of warfare to ensure we can deal with the ever-increasing rate of change inevitable in the 21st century.

Future joint-warfare concepts indicate that discrete air, land, and naval campaigns are things of the past. Most if not all future fights will take place in a single integrated battlespace. Fortunately, this draws on one of the Corps' traditional strengths. As an air-ground team that comes from the sea, we have been applying the concept for years.

Maneuver warfare acknowledges the timeless realities of human conflict and does not attempt to redefine war on more humane or less risky terms. It stresses proactive thought and action, elevating the operational art beyond the crude simplicity of attrition. It calls for combining high-tempo operations with a bias for action to achieve advantage--physical, temporal, or conditional--relative to an adversary. The aim is to shatter an adversary's cohesion and/or succeed in other operations by rapid action to mitigate damage or resolve a crisis on favorable terms. Maneuver warfare encourages decentralized decision-making, enabling Marines to exploit the chaotic nature of combat by compressing the decision cycle and engaging enemy forces from positions of advantage.

As in the past, the key to cogent execution of maneuver warfare in a rapidly changing, complex, and uncertain environment is the "Commander's Intent," which recognizes there are two parts to any mission--the task to be accomplished (what and sometimes when) and the purpose (the why). By clearly articulating his intent, the commander provides flexibility for subordinate commanders to react to a changing tactical situation. Subordinate commanders, knowing the senior commander's intent, can modify their plans to seize ad hoc opportunities knowing their actions are in accordance with the senior commander's objective.

Maneuver warfare gives commanders the flexibility needed to operate within the uncertainty, fog, and friction inherent in any struggle between thinking, adaptive enemies.

The Expeditionary Culture

For Marines, the term "expeditionary" connotes more than the mere ability to deploy overseas when needed. Expeditionary is an ethos, a pervasive mindset that influences all aspects of organizing, training, and equipping by acknowledging the necessity to adapt to the conditions mandated by the battlespace. Expeditionary operations typically are conducted in austere environments--from sea, land, or forward bases--and will likely require Marines and other naval forces to operate without reliance on outside or host-nation support. As a tangible representation of U.S. national interests, forward-deployed and forward-based Marines are a key element of America's expeditionary forces. From the day recruits join the Corps they understand that they are going to deploy, and that they must be mentally and physically ready. This constant state of readiness to deploy on a moment's notice underscores all that we do in I MEF.

Marine Corps bases and stations provide direct and indirect support to Marine Air Ground Task Forces (MAGTFs) and other forward-deployed forces, and are the means by which Marine forces are formed, trained, and maintained. Upon receipt of orders to deploy, our operating forces focus solely on deployment and employment. They know that base and station personnel will provide the critical infrastructure and support essential to rapid movement to Air Ports of Debarkation (APODs) and Sea Ports of Debarkation (SPODs). These bases and stations not only are platforms from which Marines project expeditionary power but also support the quality of life of Marines and their families.

Organization and Training

The Corps organizes its operating forces into the aforementioned Marine Air Ground Task Forces. Each MAGTF, regardless of size, consists of a command element, a ground combat element, an aviation combat element, and a combat services support element. In addition, each is supported by what we consider the fifth element of the MAGTF--the bases and stations that support the MEF.

The Marine Corps' three Marine Expeditionary Forces, permanently organized as the largest of the MAGTFs, are the Corps' principal warfighting organizations. I MEF, like the other two MEFs, is composed of a MEF Headquarters Group, a Marine Division, a Marine Aircraft Wing, and a Force Service Support Group (FSSG). We task-organize the 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigades (MEBs) and our three Marine Expeditionary Units (MEUs) from these major subordinate commands.

I MEF trains and plans for the commitment of a task-organized force of over 90,000 Marines and Sailors. The MEF command element is prepared to integrate with a joint task force (JTF) or functional component, and can serve as the nucleus of a JTF headquarters. We conduct command-post and training exercises involving multiple divisions, an aviation combat element of two or more aircraft wings, and a service support group tailored to support the force.

1st MEB is optimally scaled and task-organized to respond to a full range of crises. It consists of a command element (tailored to plug into a JTF), a regiment as the ground combat element, a Marine Aircraft Group as the aviation combat element, and a brigade service support group as the combat service support element--approximately 17,000 Marines and Sailors total. Strategically deployed via a variety of modes (amphibious shipping and strategic airlift and sealift) and poised for self-sustaining power projection, 1st MEB provides a robust sea-based forcible-entry capability. It uses organic combined-arms and complementary capabilities from the other services--such as netted sensors, sea-based fires, and advanced mine countermeasures--to locate, counter, or penetrate vulnerable seams in an adversary's access-denial systems. The MEB constitutes a multidimensional, sea-based or land-based, operational "capability in readiness" that can create its own opportunities or exploit those resulting from the activities of other components of the joint force. The MEB is ideally suited for the type of contingencies so prevalent in today's environment.

The MEU SOC (special-operations capable), working in close partnership with the Navy, will continue to be the on-scene/on-call enabler for follow-on Marine or other joint forces. Each MEU is built around a Battalion Landing Team as the ground component, a composite air squadron (including Harrier jets) as the aviation element, a combat service support element, and a command element. The MEU (SOC) operates forward-deployed from the sea, and is unconstrained by regional infrastructure requirements or restrictions imposed by other nations. Because of its forward presence, situational awareness, rapid-response planning capability, and organic sustainment, the MEU (SOC) will continue to be the JFC's immediately employable combined-arms "force of choice."

I MEF also provides special-purpose MAGTFs to support any mission the unified commander in chief (CINC) assigns--tailoring those forces to provide the right mix of personnel and equipment to accomplish the mission.

I MEF has experience across the entire range of military operations: fighting as a 90,000-man MEF in Desert Shield/Desert Storm; conducting disaster relief "from the sea" in Bangladesh; conducting security operations in Somalia; providing assistance to civil authorities in Los Angeles; and evacuating noncombatants from Eritrea. In short, I MEF has repeatedly demonstrated the ability to task-organize for the specific crisis, successfully execute the mission, and rapidly redeploy home--ready to go again.

Training

To ensure we are ready to operate across the full range of military operations, I MEF runs an aggressive training program for the MEUs, MEBs, and MEFs. The training and certification for our forward-deployed MEUs-ARGs (amphibious ready groups) are particularly rigorous. This demanding training enables us to designate our forward-deployed MEUs as "Special Operations Capable." During a six-month workup period, I MEF and the Navy's Third Fleet train, test, and certify the ARG-MEU Team's ability to meet 24 specific missions and conduct amphibious operations in general.

In the same way that we train and certify MEUs, I MEF now trains and certifies the 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade. We conduct a series of annual exercises to ensure 1st MEB is ready to deploy as a Maritime Prepositioned Force (MPF) or aboard amphibious ships. This annual cycle of carefully selected events ensures that 1st MEB is ready to deploy--and to fight immediately upon arrival.

At the MEF level, we use a combination of home-station training and participation in CINC exercises to ensure the MEF command element is ready to fight in a Major Theater War (MTW) at the "Corps-level." An aggressive annual training plan prepares the command element, then exercises it in the PACOM (U.S. Pacific Command) and CENTCOM (U.S. Central Command) areas of responsibility.

Of particular importance is the integration and participation of Marine Reserves in all exercises. I MEF cannot go to war without the Reserves.

Overseas Deployments

MEFs provide CINCs with forces that can rapidly deploy via a variety of means to quickly provide large, capable forces in-theater. Using a combination of maritime prepositioned equipment, fly-in forces, amphibious forces, and sealift, we can rapidly build a task-organized MEF with one or more combat divisions and an air wing consisting of fighter, attack, and rotary-wing aircraft.

Our rapid deployment of logistically sustainable forces is supported not only by the FSSG but also by the Maritime Prepositioning Force (MPF), which links prepositioned equipment with fly-in forces. Each of the three MPF squadrons carries the heavy equipment, ammunition, fuel, and supplies needed to equip and support a 17,000-man MEB for 30 days. Due to the geographic distribution of our MPS squadrons, most of the world's littorals are within 10 days' steaming time of at least one of the squadrons.

Because we regularly practice the offloading and issuing of the MPF equipment, we can have a full brigade equipped and ready within 8 to 10 days of the squadron's arrival at the port of debarkation. The MEB command element is robust and ready to plug into the joint communications architecture. The ground combat element is a reinforced regiment with a full battalion of M1A1 tanks, two battalions of mechanized infantry in AAV7s (amphibious assault vehicles), one foot-mobile infantry battalion, an artillery battalion with five batteries of 155mm howitzers, an engineering company, and components of a light armored reconnaissance battalion.

The MEB also has a Marine Air Group that provides exceptional strike capability in the form of three F-18 Hornet squadrons, one AV-8 Harrier squadron, and one light attack helicopter squadron. The MAG has significant assault support capability in a medium-lift squadron and a heavy-lift squadron, and has other support aircraft in the form of KC-130s and EA-6Bs.

Current and Future Missions

Today, we use MAGTFs to conduct forward-presence, engagement, crisis-response, antiterrorism, and warfighting missions. I MEF's day-to-day forward presence is provided by the MEUs embarked on Navy amphibious ships. These relatively small (2,400 Marines) but highly capable combined-arms MAGTFs give the nation a highly responsive forward-deployed force. They are self-sustaining, self-contained, unconstrained by regional infrastructure requirements, and free to use any international waters without negotiation.

Engagement missions are carried out not only by the forward-deployed MEUs but also by special-purpose (SP) MAGTFs and elements of the MEB and MEF that participate in host-nation exercises such as Ulchi Focus Lens, Internal Look, Bright Star, Natural Fire, and others. Depending on the situation, crisis-response and warfighting missions can be conducted by any of our MAGTFs.

The forward-deployed MEUs provide an immediate highly capable response force. For a larger crisis, we can rapidly commit either the MEB or the MEF. We are prepared to respond with forces as small as a SPMAGTF of a few hundred Marines or a much larger wartime Marine Expeditionary Force of over 90,000 Marines and Sailors.

Innovation has long been a hallmark of the Marine Corps. From developing the concept of amphibious warfare between World Wars I and II, to the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade's pioneering use of helicopters during combat in Korea, to the use of maritime prepositioning in Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Marines have a demonstrated heritage of innovation. Marines also have aggressively developed and employed new technologies that contribute to success in combat. EMW provides a philosophical basis to continue the Corps' transformation. The key to our approach is an understanding that, while the underlying nature of war will not change, how it is fought will continually evolve. Through aggressive and flexible training we empower our Marines with new technologies in order to combat the evolving threat.

In the short term, three major acquisitions will greatly enhance our operational reach--the MV-22 Osprey, the Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicle, and the LCAC (landing craft, air cushion) service-life extension program. In the future, we look to the joint strike fighter to continue the fixed-wing support that is essential to the single-battlespace concept. The Marine Corps has been working to develop the doctrine, tactics, techniques, and procedures needed to most usefully employ the exceptional capabilities these systems provide.

A Vision for Tomorrow

As the Navy/Marine operational team on the West Coast, I MEF and the Third Fleet are working closely with the Marine Corps Warfighting Lab, the Navy's Maritime Battle Lab, and various advanced concept technology demonstrations in a continuing series of experiments to improve our common operational picture. In addition to conducting formal experiments, Third Fleet and I MEF are working to improve our tactics, techniques, and procedures to most effectively use the improved command suites on today's amphibious ships.

I MEF also is exploring methods of interoperability and connectivity that will allow improved linkage to national assets. Commanders and key staff members will always need to be forward-deployed to get a "feel" for the fight; however, many elements of the staff should be able to work effectively from remote locations--thereby reducing both the logistical footprint and the force-protection assets needed to sustain a large command element. In partnership with our Navy teammates, we are experimenting and testing to see what works best.

In short, expeditionary maneuver warfare focuses our warfighting concepts toward realizing the Marine Corps "Strategy 21" vision of future Marine forces with enhanced expeditionary power-projection capabilities. It links Marine Corps concepts and visions for integration with emerging joint concepts, and continues the Marine Corps history of innovation.

In I MEF, we continue the tradition of innovation and provide training that encourages decision-making at the lowest level. We are confident this combination of innovation and training provides us with the individual and organizational flexibility to ensure that I MEF forces remain ready, relevant, and fully capable of supporting future missions across the full range of military operations. *