MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japn -- “This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life.”
The rifleman’s creed is entrenched into every Marine’s mind at boot camp, but the meaning of it doesn’t stop there.
To keep that mentality, Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 12 aviation supply, consumer management division completed weapons familiarization training at the Indoor Small-Arms Range here Aug. 6.
The purpose of the training was to improve marksmanship with the M16-A4 rifle and Beretta 9mm pistol, as well as boost morale and build unit cohesion.
“What we did was more of a camaraderie thing,” said Gunnery Sgt. Marcus Bell, aviation supply, consumer management division staff noncommissioned officer-in-charge. “We have two Marines leaving, and every once in awhile we get together and let the Marines do something as a group. They work hard, play hard, and we just want to do fun things with our Marines.”
One of the outbound Marines holds a secondary military occupational specialty as a combat marksmanship coach, which is why the shop decided to have their outing at the ISAR as opposed to the typical barbeque or fun physical training activity.
“If we can keep the Marines motivated, they’re going to want to show up on time. They’re going to want to be at work, and we want to create that friendly environment so the Marines will have fun in the work place,” said Bell.
The training, although mainly for the purpose of camaraderie, brought the shop back to the fundamentals of being Marines.
It showed them there’s more to the Marine Corps than aviation.
With the M16-A4, the Marines practiced hammered- and controlled-pairs and failure-to-stop drills with forward movement.
The target engagements varied from five to 25 yards.
With the Beretta 9mm pistol, they practiced engaging stationary targets from varying distances. “(This training) shows them the whole Marine Corps concept,” said Sgt. Oscar Fuentes, aviation supply specialist and range safety officer for the training. “It’s not just working behind the desk, not just in the warehouse or just looking at papers everyday. It’s also about marksmanship.”
Fuentes said there are two sides of the Marine Corps, aviation and ground.
The aviation side isn’t always exposed to weapons, so the Marines will benefit a lot from the training.
The training got the Marines out of their daily rut. It gave them the opportunity to improve their marksmanship skills and relationships with other Marines in their shop.
The junior Marines know each other and hang out, so shop events like this give the SNCOs the opportunity to get involved, said Bell.
Bell encourages other shops and units to get out there and do more with their Marines, too.