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Petty Officer 3rd Class Damien Farinha, left, a hospital corpsman with Marine All-Weather Fighter Attack Squadron 242, performs the counter to a bear hug during an integrated Marine Corps Martial Arts Program course as part Exercise Southern Frontier 2014 aboard Royal Australian Air Force Base Tindal, Australia, June 18. Farinha is one of approximately 40 service members taking part in the course during SF14.

Photo by Lance Cpl. Luis A. Ramirez

Marines host MCMAP course during Exercise Southern Frontier 2014

18 Jun 2014 | Lance Cpl. Luis A. Ramirez Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan

Marines and sailors gathered on the rugby field aboard Royal Australian Air Force Base Tindal, Australia, to take part in an integrated Marine Corps Martial Arts Program course during Exercise Southern Frontier 2014, June 18.

Southern Frontier is an annual bilateral training exercise between the RAAF and the United States Marine Corps with a primary focus on offensive air support and enhancing military interoperability.

The focus of MCMAP is the personal development of each Marine in a team framework using a standardized, trainable, and sustainable close-combat fighting system. As a weapon-based system, all techniques are integrated with equipment, physical challenges, and tactics found on a modern battlefield.  

As part of the MCMAP course, instructors sent out an open invitation to all service members wanting to take part in the course.

“We are running what we call a rainbow course,” said Cpl. Davon Thomas, an aviation electrician with Marine All-Weather Fighter Attack Squadron 242, and a MCMAP instructor. “Regardless of rank, service or belt level, if an individual wants to take part in the class, all they have to do is show up and put in the effort to earn their next belt.”

The course consists of approximately 40 Marines and sailors.

For those like Lt. j.g. Grant Sutphin, a chaplain attached with VMFA(AW)-242, who is taking the course to earn his tan belt, this is their first taste of Marine Corps martial arts.

“This is a very different experience from what I’m used to,” said Sutphin. “Being told to strike someone on command is rather challenging for me, but now that I’m in the class, I know it’s not all fighting. The instructors take time to teach the Marines and sailors about ethics and morals during the course.”

Others, like Petty Officer 3rd Class Damien Farinha, a hospital corpsman with VMFA(AW)-242 who is attempting to earn his brown belt, are more seasoned with the techniques presented in MCMAP.

“I’ve always looked for ways to improve myself,” said Farinha. “Taking part in a MCMAP course is one of the best ways I can push myself.”

Farinha said he looks forward to the class as each instructor has their own unique fighting background, and as such, each one brings something new to the course.

“We are not just training the body, we are training the mind as well,” said Cpl. Donald Calhoun, the embarkation logistics officer with VMFA(AW)-242 and a MCMAP instructor. “Anybody can learn to fight and be a brute, but it takes someone with honor, courage and commitment to be a warrior and that’s what we are doing here; teaching Marines how to be warriors.”

As the course continues, both Thomas and Calhoun said their students can expect the same level of intensity from them as they are willing to put into the course, adding that as long as they put in effort, the instructors will ensure they are trained properly.