2nd Battalion 3rd Marines

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2nd Battalion 3rd Marines
2/3's Insignia
Active	May 1, 1942 - December 31, 1945 July 20, 1951 - present
Country	United States
Branch	USMC
Type	Light infantry
Role	Locate, close with and destroy the enemy with fire and maneuver
Part of	3rd Marine Regiment 3rd Marine Division
Garrison/HQ	Marine Corps Base Hawaii
Nickname	"Nightfighters"
Motto	"Fortuna Fortes Juvat" "Fortune Favors the Brave"
Battles/wars	World War II * Battle of Bougainville * Battle of Guam Vietnam War Operation Desert Storm Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Iraqi Freedom

2nd Battalion 3rd Marines (2/3) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Marine Corps Base Hawaii consisting of approximately 1000 Marines and Sailors. The battalion falls under the 3rd Marine Regiment and the 3rd Marine Division.

1 History
2 Awards
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] History

[edit] World War II

The 3rd Training Battalion, Division Special Troops, 1st Marine Division was activated on May 1, 1942 at New River, North Carolina. On June 17 of that same year they were redesignated the ‘’’2nd Training Battalion, 3rd Marines’’’ and in September were deployed to Tutuila, American Samoa and reassigned to the 2nd Marine Brigade. They remained there until they moved to Auckland, New Zealand in May of 1943. In June of that year they were reassigned to the 3rd Marine Division and were again moved to Guadalcanal in July.

2/3 participated in the following World War II campaigns:

Battle of Bougainville
Battle of the Northern Solomons
Battle of Guam
Battle of Iwo Jima

[edit] Vietnam War

Marines from 2/3 in Vietnam during the Battle of Khe Sahn

The battalion made a night helicopter assault in the Elephant Valley south of Da Nang on 12 August 1965 shortly after Marine ground troops arrived in country.

[edit] The Gulf War and the 1990s

In September 1990, 2nd Battalion, 3d Marines deployed to Saudi Arabia and participated in Operation Desert Storm and the Liberation of Kuwait. The battalion was deployed to Southwest Asia from September 1990 to April 1991 at which time 2/3 returned to Kaneohe Bay.