An Eclectic Overview
of Selected Marine Corps Programs
By KURT OWERMOHLE and
SCOTT C. TRUVER
Lt. Col. Kurt Owermohle, USMC (Ret.), is manager of Expeditionary Warfare
Programs at the Center for Security Strategies and Operations of the
Anteon Corporation. Dr. Scott C. Truver is Anteon's vice president for
National Security Studies, and the center's director. The following article
is based in large part on the Marine Corps' 2001 edition of Concepts & Issues,
an unclassified publication.
In the wake of the horrific terrorist attacks against America on 11
September, most attention has been focused on innovative means for countering
the "asymmetric" threats to U.S. homeland security and the security of
U.S. forces--and of America's friends and allies throughout the world.
What has transpired over the last several weeks makes it clear that the
U.S. Marine Corps--the nation's, and world's, premier "911" combat force--will
continue to be one of the principal tools used in any U.S. or coalition
campaign in the long-term response not only to the threat posed by worldwide
terrorism but also to any conventional-warfare threats that might develop
in the increasingly dangerous world of the 21st century. What follows
is a selection of just a few key programs--Marine Corps, Navy, and joint--that
will enhance the Corps' already formidable capability to conduct expeditionary
maneuver warfare from the sea, and across the full spectrum of the future
battlespace, in support of national strategies and policies.
MV-22 Osprey
Much in the news throughout 2001, the MV-22 Osprey, the world's first
production tiltrotor aircraft, is intended to replace the aging CH-46E
and CH-53D helicopters as the Marine Corps' principal medium-lift aircraft.
The MV-22 will join the Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicle (AAAV) and
Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) as the aviation element of the amphibious
assault "triad" essential to implementing the Corps' "operational maneuver
from the sea" (OMFTS) concept and executing expeditionary maneuver warfare
(EMW) operations in general. It remains the Marine Corps' number-one
aviation acquisition priority. Built by Bell Helicopter Textron of Fort
Worth, and Boeing Defense and Space Group of Philadelphia, the MV-22
will be capable of conducting a full range of missions, including but
not limited to land and amphibious assault, raids, medium cargo lift,
the tactical recovery of aircraft and personnel, fleet logistic support,
and special warfare.
The MV-22's design incorporates advanced composite materials technology,
fly-by-wire flight controls, digital cockpits, and advanced airfoil features.
Built to carry 24 combat-equipped troops, or 10,000 pounds of cargo (internally
or externally), it can attain speeds greater than 260 knots and altitudes
close to 25,000 feet. Its 2,100-nautical mile range (with a single aerial
refueling) gives it a strategic self-deployment capability. The MV-22's
prop-rotor system and two engine/transmission nacelles, one mounted on
each wing tip, allow it to operate as a helicopter during takeoffs and
landings. Once airborne, the nacelles rotate forward 90 degrees, converting
the Osprey into a high-speed, high-altitude, fuel-efficient turbo-prop
aircraft.
The MV-22 has completed Operational Evaluation, and late last year was
rated both operationally effective and suitable for both land and shipboard
operations. The Navy anticipated a full-rate-production decision for
the MV-22 program in December 2000, but the Marine Corps recommended
a delay of the decision after an Osprey accident on 11 December (the
second of two fatal mishaps), and the aircraft was grounded. A full-rate-production
decision is still pending, therefore. The Marine Corps plans to procure
360 Ospreys. The Defense Department's fiscal year 2001 budget included
approximately $963 million for Osprey procurement and $227 million for
additional research and development (R&D) on the aircraft. The FY
2002 DOD procurement request provides approximately $1.0 billion in procurement
funding, and $547 million for R&D.
Advanced Amphibious
Assault Vehicle (AAAV)
The Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicle is an armored, tracked, amphibious
combat vehicle designed to carry a reinforced rifle squad of 17 combat-equipped
Marines and a crew of three. The AAAV is the Marine Corps' highest-priority
ground program and was designed from the ground up for the Corps' signature
mission--projecting power from the sea. The AAAV, the MV-22 Osprey, and
the LCAC are the three legs of the amphibious assault triad that will
provide true expeditionary maneuver warfare capability for the nation's
naval expeditionary forces of the future. The AAAV will allow Navy ships
and Marine Corps landing forces sufficient sea space for maneuver, surprise,
and force protection. It will significantly upgrade the armored, protected,
land and water mobility of landing forces, and will provide direct fire
support to Marine infantry during combat operations, including those
being carried out in an NBC (nuclear, biological, chemical) warfare environment.
Built by General Dynamics Amphibious Systems of Woodbridge, Va., the
AAAV will replace the current AAV7A1 family of amphibious assault vehicles--which
were fielded in the early 1970s--with a fully modern system designed
to meet the mission needs of the Marine Corps during the 20072030
time frame. The AAAV's unique combat capabilities include the following:
(1) more than three times the water speed of the current AAV; (2) nearly
twice the armor protection of AAVs that are not protected by applique
armor; (3) the ability to defeat the light armored vehicles likely to
be available to future adversaries; (4) cross-country mobility greater
than or at least equal to that of the M1A1 tank; (5) effective command
and control with subordinate, adjacent, and higher units; and (6) an
NBC collective-protection system for the AAAV crew and embarked personnel.
In November 2000, the AAAV entered the Systems Development and Demonstration
(Engineering & Manufacturing Development) phase. In September 2001,
the Office of the Direct Reporting Program Manager, Advanced Amphibious
Assault (DRPM AAA), announced an extension of the program schedule for
developmental and operational testing of the SDD prototype vehicles,
which will now run from fiscal years 2002 through 2005. The lengthening
of the SDD phase of the program will help ensure a more reliable and
mature design going into Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP). The LRIP
decision is now scheduled for the first quarter of FY 2005, with IOC
(initial operational capability) moving to the fourth quarter of FY 2007.
The Marine Corps plans to field 1,013 AAAVs in the 2007 to 2017 time
frame. AAAV R&D appropriations in FY 2001 totaled $143.2 million;
the FY 2002 request is for $263.0 million.
Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC)
The LCAC is a high-speed fully amphibious craft capable of speeds in
excess of 40 knots. It carries a 60-ton payload (75 tons in overload)
and has a nominal range of 200 nautical miles. An air-cushion vehicle
built by Textron Marine and Land Systems of New Orleans, the LCAC has
expanded the landing options for amphibious forces to include approximately
70 percent of the world's beaches. The LCAC represents the third element
of the amphibious assault triad of high-speed platforms needed to execute
expeditionary maneuver warfare. It is used to transport equipment and
supplies, as well as personnel, directly to an assigned Craft Landing
Zone forward of the beach. The LCAC is capable of performing multiple
missions, including the employment of shallow-water mine countermeasures.
The LCAC has been the Navy-Marine Corps Team's expeditionary workhorse
since reaching initial operational capability in 1986; the first LCAC
will reach the end of its Expected Service Life (ESL) in 2004. Textron
Marine delivered the last LCAC, Number 91, last year. The current LCAC "fleet" includes
74 in operational status and 10 in a reduced operational status/non-operational
status. These 10 are being kept in a rotational pool awaiting the start
of a Service Life Extension Program (SLEP). The SLEP, which will be conducted
in two phases, will extend the LCAC's ESL to 30 years. Phase I will consist
of a command, control, communications, computers, and navigation (C4N)
upgrade considered critical to the operational capability of the craft.
The C4N suite is a PC-based, Windows NT, open-architecture system that,
among other things, will provide the precision navigation needed to support
OTH (over the horizon) and lane-breaching operations. Phase II will include
installation of the C4N upgrade suite, buoyancy box replacement, and
the next-generation skirt system. An enhanced engine program, not part
of the SLEP at this time, will be evaluated on LCAC 91. The FY 2001 budget
included $19 million for the LCAC SLEP program; the FY 2002 budget request
adds another $41 million.
STOVL Joint Strike Fighter (JSF)
The competition between the Boeing Aircraft Company, now headquartered
in Chicago, and Lockheed Martin of Fort Worth, for the STOVL (short-takeoff/vertical-landing)
version of the JSF has been both long and intense. The JSF STOVL will
be a single-engine, stealthy, supersonic strike-fighter aircraft capable
of short takeoffs and vertical landings. It will combine the basing flexibility
of the AV-8B Harrier II with the multirole capabilities, speed, and maneuverability
of the F/A-18 Hornet to meet both the air-to-ground and air-to-air requirements
of the Marine Corps. The aircraft is intended to have very low radar
and infrared signatures, and will have capabilities superior to those
of the several aircraft it will replace (AV-8B, F/A-18A/C/D) in the areas
of survivability, lethality, and supportability. The JSF provides a multimission
offensive air support capability and offensive as well as defensive AAW
(anti-air warfare) capabilities. It also gives the Marine Air Ground
Task Force a platform capable of both tactical air control and tactical
reconnaissance, and of suppressing enemy air defenses. The aircraft requirements
focus on readiness, expeditionary capability, combined-arms operations,
and the conduct of OMFTS.
The JSF--a joint program of the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps--is
now in the Concept Demonstration Phase. Each of the STOVL variants--Lockheed
Martin's X-35B and Boeing's X-32B--demonstrated the capability last summer
of doing what no aircraft has ever done before: make a short takeoff,
followed by a level supersonic dash, and concluding with a vertical landing--all
in the same flight. The DOD contract announcement on the winner of the
JSF competition was expected by the end of October, and there were no
indications as of mid-October that the schedule might change as a result
of the 11 September terrorist attacks or the release of the new DOD Quadrennial
Defense Review. The Marine Corps still anticipates first aircraft delivery
in FY 2008 and IOC of its first JSF squadron in FY 2010. Total procurement
for the Marine Corps is planned to be 609 aircraft. The FY 2001 Navy
budget included approximately $341 million for R&D. The FY 2002 Navy
budget requests $767.2 million for the EMD phase of the program.
Lightweight
155mm Howitzer (LW-155)
The Marine Corps is the lead service in a joint program with the Army
to develop the lightweight 155mm howitzer. Vickers Shipbuilding & Engineering
Ltd. of the United Kingdom is the prime contractor. The Marine Corps
and Army plan to manufacture up to 70 percent of their LW-155s in the
United States; the contractor is yet to be determined. The LW-155 towed
artillery system is designed to meet or exceed all capabilities of the
Corps' current M198 155mm howitzer, despite a significant reduction in
weight (from 16,000 pounds to 9,000). The lower weight of the LW-155
ensures much faster emplacement and displacement and permits tactical
lift of the system by the CH-53D helicopter and the MV-22 Osprey. Operation
of the LW-155 howitzer requires fewer personnel than are needed for the
M198, freeing artillery Marines to augment local security and facilitating
dispersed battery operations. The new howitzer is expected to significantly
improve the Marine Corps' EMW capabilities. Enhancements such as automatic
breech opening, automatic primer feed, and improved crew ergonomics,
stability, and safety make it a major improvement over the M198. The
155 is compatible with all U.S. and NATO standard and developmental 155mm
munitions and propelling charges; its maximum rate of fire is five rounds
per minute. Its maximum range, using unassisted projectiles, is 24 kilometers
(15 miles); with assisted projectiles, the range is 30 kilometers (18
miles). The LW-155 can traverse 400 mils left and right of center. Its
lightweight design also allows for quick and easy shifts to fire missions
outside of the primary traverse limits.
A preplanned product improvement program is already under development
to digitize the weapon. The Towed Artillery Digitization (TAD) upgrade
will add an aiming and pointing system, on-board GPS (Global Positioning
System) and on-board fire-control computational capabilities, and radio
communications. The fire-control computer will integrate data from a
muzzle velocity system, as well as stored data from previous missions
and shell/fuse combinations. TAD promises to greatly improve accuracy
and fire-mission response time. Firing batteries will be able to do their
own survey, emplace rapidly, lay accurately, and provide coordinated
massed fires from dispersed firing locations.
The LW-155 production decision is scheduled for the fourth quarter of
FY 2002; IOC in the Corps is expected in FY 2004, with full operational
capability scheduled for 2008. The Marine Corps plans to procure up to
413 LW-155s to meet the needs of its operational artillery units, maintain
prepositioned stocks, and fill war-reserve stocks. The Army plans to
procure 267 of the howitzers. The Marine Corps FY 2001 budget included
$11.0 million for procurement of long-lead items, and $13.3 million for
research and development. The FY 2002 budget request includes $18.2 million
for R&D.
Medium Tactical Vehicle
Replacement (MTVR)
The Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement provides the Marine Corps a
fleet of medium trucks with greater mobility, lift, and reliability than
afforded by the current aging fleet of M939/M809 five-ton trucks. The
MTVR carries an increased payload--7.1 tons cross-country; 15 tons on
hard-surface roads--and can simultaneously tow an 11-ton load. The vehicle,
already under construction at the Oshkosh Truck Corporation in Oshkosh,
Wis., was designed for a 70 percent off-road and 30 percent on-road mission
profile--the inverse of the profile for the Corps' current five-ton truck.
The MTVR is capable of sustained speeds of 30 mph cross-country. Its
commercial components include a 425-horsepower electronically controlled
Caterpillar engine; an Allison seven-speed, continuous power, automatic
transmission; six-wheel independent suspension; anti-lock brakes; engine
retarder; automatic traction control; and central tire-inflation system.
The rugged MTVR will be able to move with the operating forces it supports,
both on the battlefield and to the battlefield. The standard cargo variant
of the MTVR can be internally lifted by KC-130 Hercules transport aircraft
and externally lifted by CH-53E helicopters.
The Navy authorized procurement of the MTVR in April 2001. Oshkosh Truck
officially presented the first 75 MTVRs to the Maritime Prepositioning
Force (MPF) at the Marine Corps' Blount Island Command (BIC), Jacksonville,
Fla., on 26 July. More than 1,100 MTVRs will be deployed aboard the 14
MPF ships as they go through their normal maintenance cycles at BIC.
The MTVR is currently being fielded to II Marine Expeditionary Force;
later lots will be fielded to I MEF, III MEF, and the Marine Corps Reserve.
Cargo variants are expected to be fielded through FY 2004. Wrecker and
dump truck variants will be fielded next, through FY 2005. Marine Corps
plans call for procurement of 1,952 MTVRs with FY 2001 funds, and 1,753
MTVRs with FY 2002 funds. The Marine Corps budgeted $322 million for
MTVR procurement in FY 2001, and $312 million in FY 2002.
Small Unit Riverine Craft (SURC)
The Small Unit Riverine Craft will provide Marine forces with a small
rigid-hull craft designed to provide tactical waterborne lift for conventional
military operations in a riverine environment. The SURC, escorted by
the Riverine Assault Craft, will allow the Marine Corps to conduct operations
in areas dominated by river networks, and assist in denying the enemy's
use of those areas. A replacement for the Rigid Raiding Craft, the SURC
will be able to carry up to 18 combat-loaded Marines, plus a crew of
two, and remain afloat as a survival platform even when filled with water.
The craft will be powered by a hull-propulsion system, and will have
a draft of 24 inches (whether stationary or in operation, but less when
combat-loaded); it will be able to maintain an average speed of 30 to
35 knots and will be capable of beaching bow-first on unobstructed shorelines
with mud, sand, silt, and gravel surfaces at one-quarter cruising speed.
The SURC will be fitted with one or more gun mounts to integrate both
medium and heavy machineguns. It will be capable of external tactical
lift by a CH-53D heavy-lift helicopter, and will be C-130 transportable
on its organic trailer. The SURC will give the Marine Corps greater tactical
mobility and serve as a weapons platform for the Ground Combat Element
of a MAGTF during sustained operations in a water-dominated environment.
It will be able to link with the Global Positioning System and with currently
fielded and future Combat Net radio systems. The SURC also will be interoperable
with current and future universal weapons mounts and pintle adapters
for tactical vehicles.
The Marine Corps expects to procure the SURC, which has been under development
since January 2001, as an adaptation of a commercial product available
from the private sector in an open competition. During FY 2002, the Marine
Corps SURC team will conduct developmental testing. Operational testing
and a production contract are expected in FY 2003. The Corps' FY 2001
budget included $1.7 million for R&D; $2.9 million is requested for
the program in FY 2002.
Modular Weapon System (MWS)
Every Marine is a rifleman, and the M16A2 is the assigned weapon of
most Marines. The Modular Weapon System is a modification to the M16A2
service rifle and the M4 carbine. Manufactured by Colt's Manufacturing
Company of Hartford, Conn., the system consists of an upper receiver
modified by building a military-standard 1913 rail into the design in
place of the integral carry handle/sight to permit the quick mounting
of various day, night, and thermal sights. Additionally, hand guards
with rails are attached to the barrel assembly to mount various accessories,
such as a modified M203 launching system, flashlights, and infrared laser
pointers. The MWS will give Marines a significantly improved ability
to mount the various accessories being developed for the M16A2 rifle
series, ensuring Marine riflemen the continued edge they will need in
combat operations. It will improve the overall accuracy, target-detection,
target-engagement, and night-or-day capabilities, as well as the maintainability,
of the Corp's M16 family of rifles. A congressional add-on provided $1
million for MWS procurement during FY 1999. Funding for the remainder
of the Corps' long-term MWS acquisition objective will stretch from FY
2002 through FY 2004. The FY 2002 budget requested $7.5 million for MWS
procurement. *
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