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Marines

Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan

News Stories

Archive: 2005

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Rare air-combat training success for Iwakuni squadron

Imagine being upside down in the cockpit of a roaring jet flying 500 miles per hour. While in this acute state, you are shooting at a massive tow banner at a couple thousand feet away. The speeds involved, margin for error and split-second timing make target practice a very intense experience every single time. That’s what training was like for

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SRT, JGSDF save the day in hostage rescue scenario

Just like in the Hollywood action dramas, a helicopter swoops down from the cold winter clouds and hovers over a building filled with villains and hostages. With Rambo like abilities, a team of specially trained warriors fast rope out of the helicopter onto the rooftop. They breach the roof with explosives and jump into the unknown. Within minutes

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Marines integrate Non-Lethal Weapons into Exercise Active Shield

Picture this, a group of starving protestors litter the front gate of a U.S. base. They riot not because they want to hurt anyone, but because they simply need food and are willing to do whatever it takes to get some. As the situation escalates the use of non-lethal weapons is the only choice to tame the crowd. Station Marines and the Japan Ground

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EOD brings blast during Exercise Active Shield

KABOOM! A loud explosion resonates throughout the park as tire fragments and debris fly through the air. An Explosive Ordnance Disposal Marine walks up to the once beautiful park, now stained with blasted litter, and makes sure the explosive site is rendered safe. As part of Exercise Active Shield, Station Marines participated in a vehicle-borne

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Terrorist scenario floods SRT with new training experience

Service members and Japan Ground Self Defense Forces wait with utter anticipation, as the cold air infests their lungs during a ship boarding exercise conducted at the new deep water port, Dec. 14, as part of Exercise Active Shield. The scenario involved a suspicious vessel entering the Station harbor and ignoring commands from first-responder

As part of the Active Shield Exercise, table top exercises have been conducted Monday and Tuesday as part of the scenario for this exercise. The situation has developed to a point where the Japanese government has authorized the dispatching of the Japanese Ground Self Defense Forces to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni. - As part of the Active Shield Exercise, table top exercises have been conducted Monday and Tuesday as part of the scenario for this exercise. The situation has developed to a point where the Japanese government has authorized the dispatching of the Japanese Ground Self Defense Forces to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni.

Active Shield VI helps U.S., Japan maintain united front

Japanese Ground Self Defense Force, 46th Infantry Regiment from Camp Kaitaichi is preparing for Exercise Active Shield VI, scheduled for Dec. 12-16. The joint training exercise involves JGSDF and U.S. service members from first response units, who will act together in simulated contingencies. Active Shield VI was designed as part of the Japanese

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Residents warm hearts, minds of local orphans

Marines, sailors and family members from Marine Wing Support Squadron 171 took time out of their schedules to visit Yahata orphanage in Hiroshima, Oct. 22 and bring some joy to the children there. "The squadron has a long-lasting relationship with Mrs. Motoko Murakami, the orphanage director, and the Yahata orphanage dating back many years," said

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Residents get spun up on NEO

Think it can't happen here? Well it happened when a Tsunami hit the northern part of Sumatra. It happened in Somalia after rebel forces entered and took the city of Mogadishu and it even happened more recently in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina left nearly 400,000 homeless. The fact is disasters can happen; whether caused by Mother Nature or

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Containing the riot: Japanese grunts receive non lethal weapons training

Protesters yell and chant, while a riot control platoon comes rolling in like Thor, the Norse god of thunder. The protesters began to charge, but the platoon members hold their ground and use non lethal weapons to disperse the crowd.To be ready for such situations, members of the 46th Infantry Regiment of the Japanese Ground Self Defense Force

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Keep your child safe; ID kits meant to curb disappearances

With the number of missing children increasing in the world today, there is no such thing as being too careful. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's National Crime Information Center, the number of missing persons reported to law enforcement has increased from 154,341 in 1982 to 876,213 in 2000, an increase of 468 percent. Juvenile's