User:Palm dogg/3rd Battalion 3rd Marines

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3rd Battalion 3rd Marines
3/3's Insignia
Active	June 1, 1942
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	"America's Battalion"
Motto	"Fortuna Fortes Juvat" "Fortune Favors the Brave"
Battles/wars	Battle of Bougainville Battle of Guam Battle of Iwo Jima Operation Starlite Desert Storm Battle of Khafji Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Iraqi Freedom
Commanders
Current commander	LtCol Nathan Nastase
Notable commanders	Charles Krulak

3rd Battalion 3rd Marines (3/3) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Marine Corps Base Hawaii consisting of approximately 1000 Marines and Sailors. Also known as "America's Battalion", they fall under the 3rd Marine Regiment and the 3rd Marine Division.

[edit] "America's Battalion"

According to the Marine Corps' History and Museum Division, the name "America's Battalion" stems from the mid-Eighties when General (then Lt. Colonel) Charles Krulak was the commanding officer of 3/3. It comes from the nickname "America's Team", which was used by the Dallas Cowboys.

[Krulak] noted that while commanding the battalion, he did in fact dub 3/3 as "America's Battalion." He modified the phrase which was given to the Dallas Cowboys as "America's Team." Although not a Cowboy's fan, he liked the terminology. General Krulak said that a previous S-3 (Operations Officer) had sent him a letter when General Krulak was Commanding Officer of 3d Battalion 3d Marines. The S-3 Officer was on deployment in the Mediterranean, and had written nothing on the envelope but the following: "Commanding Officer, America's Battalion". General Krulak said that even in the absence of a stamp and a proper address he still received the letter, and, in his opinion, if the U.S. Postal Service recognized 3/3 as "America's Battalion," then they certainly must be. So from then on he considered it "official."^[1]

[edit] History

[edit] World War II

3rd Battalion's initial sector of operations on Guam, the area between Chonito Cliff (Foreground) and Adelup Point (Background). The battalion landing area was just off the left side of the photograph.

3rd Battalion 3rd Marines was activated on June 1, 1942 at New River, North Carolina as the 5th Training Battalion, Division Special Troops, 1st Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force. On June 16, 1942, they were redesignated as the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines, Fleet Marine Force. In August to September 1942, 3/3 deployed to Tutuila, American Samoa and was reassigned to the 2nd Marine Brigade. In 1943, they were reassigned to the Fleet Marine Force. In May 1943, they redeployed to Auckland, New Zealand and in June, were reassigned to the 3rd Marine Division. In July to August 1943, they redeployed to Guadalcanal to begin training in preparation for the invasion of Bougainville.

On November 1, 1943, 3rd Battalion landed at Cape Torokina with the rest of 3rd Marines, just east of the Koromokina River. While resistance was extremely light, the rough surf and dense jungle (which in many places extended all the way to the water) resulted in numerous landing craft being lost or damaged beyond repair.^[2] For the next three weeks, 3/3 slowly advanced down the Numa Numa Trail until it was ordered to dig in near Piva Forks on November 17. From November 18 to November 24, it took part in the destruction of the Japanese 23rd Infantry Regiment at the Battle of Piva Forks. Two days later 3/3 was moved over to a relatively quite sector on the 3rd Division's flank where it remained for the remainder of the operation.^[2] In December the 3rd Marine Division was relieved by the Americal Division and 3/3 left Bougainville for Guadalcanal on Christmas Day, 1943.^[3] From January to May 1944, 3/3 conducted numerous training exercises on Guadalcanal in preparation for the invasion of Kavieng in April (which was cancelled) and the Marianas in June. While 3rd Marines was designated as the floating reserve for the initial invasions of Saipan and Tinian, it was deployed the following month to the invasion of Guam.

Marines from 3rd Battalion securing the town of Agana on Guam on July 31, 1944.

On July 21, around 0830, 3rd Battalion hit the beaches on the extreme left of the entire 3rd Marine Division. Their mission was to take Chonito Cliff and Adelup Point, which marked the left flank of the division.^[4] Supported by half-tracks and armor from the 3rd Tank Battalion, 3rd Battalion was the only unit in 3rd Marines to accomplish its objectives by the end of D-Day.^[3] During the first night, 3rd Battalion won its first Medal of Honor when Private First Class Luther Skaggs, Jr., a mortarman with Company K, was critically wounded in the leg by a Japanese grenade. After applying a tourniquet, Skaggs continued to fight for another eight hours before moving unassisted to the rear.^[4] After securing Adelup Point, 3rd Battalion provided flank securing for 1/3 and 2/3 during the Battle for Bundschu Ridge, the counterattack on the 25th which broke the back of Japanese resistance, and the assault on Fonte Plateau. During these actions, the battalion commander, Lieutenant Colonel Houser was wounded and the Executive Officer, Major Royal R. Bastian, Jr., took command.^[4] On July 31, 3/3 proceeded east on the Mt. Tenjo road towards the island capital of Agana, which it liberated the same day after token resistance. For the remaining ten days of the campaing, 3rd Battalion marched northeast up the coast, encountering occasional enemy resistance, until the island was declared secure on August 10.

PFC Luther Skaggs, Jr., Company K, receiving his Medal of Honor from President Truman.

Following the invasion of Guam, 3/3 spent two months conducting mopping up operations on the island until November, when it received orders to prepare for action at Iwo Jima. From November until February 1945, 3/3 took part in a training regimen so serious that a fellow battalion later reported at least 20% of its members were incapacitated due to foot and heat injuries.^[3] During the Battle of Iwo Jima, 3/3, as part of 3rd Marines, was kept as the Expeditionary Troops reserve. However, despite numerous requests from other Marine officers, the 3rd Marines spent its time at Iwo Jima sitting offshore on its transport ships. On March 5, General Holland Smith, the Marine commander on Iwo Jima, ordered the 3rd Marines to sail back to Guam.^[5] Back on Guam, 3rd Battalion began training for a landing on Miyako Jima, an island just south of Okinawa.^[3] Those orders were eventually cancelled, but 3/3 still saw minor combat in 1945, participating in two operations on Guam designed to capture Japanese soldiers still holding out in the hills. These sweeps took place in April and December 1945.^[3] 3/3 also began preparing for Operation Olympic, where as part of V Amphibious Corps, it would have landed at Kushikino, Kagoshima on Kyushu. After the dropping of the atomic bombs in August 1945, and Japan's surrender, 3/3 was detached from the 3rd Marine Division in November 1945 and deactivated the following month on December 20, 1945.^[6]

[edit] 1951-1965

The 3/3 was reactivated in August 1951.

[edit] Vietnam War

Mike Company, 1966.

A Medevac while operating along the DMZ, 1968.

3/3's command group at Vandegrift Combat Base, 1969.

In January 1965 the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines at Camp Pendleton, California deployed for a tour on Okinawa, where they were redesignated the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines. At the time the Marines of 3/3 expected a typical 13-month deployment followed by a quick return to the states. However 3/3 found itself caught up in the initial deployment of Marine units to Vietnam, and landed on May 12 along the coast south of Danang at an airfield called Chu Lai.

3/3's first major operation in Vietnam was Operation Starlite, which was also the first major American action in the war. Starlite was an attempt by three Marine battalions -- 3/3, 2/4 and 3/7 -- to destroy the 1st VC Regiment operating in the Chu Lai area. The fighting began on August 18 and lasted three days. It ended with a Viet Cong retreat, after suffering 600 casualties, verses 52 American dead. 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines suffered 15 dead during the operation, including India Company's commanding officer, Captain Bruce Webb.^[7] Webb was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for his actions during Starlite while Corporal Robert E. O'Malley, also in India Company, won the Medal of Honor.

3/3 did not see major action again until the fall of 1966 when it moved north to the DMZ, but continued to conduct regular combat operations against enemy insurgents. Among the casualties suffered during this period was the battalion commander, Lt. Col Joe Muir. In October 1966, Third Battalion was deployed to combat the threat from the North Vietnamese army in the Quang Tri province. While deployed in Quang Tri, 3/3 fought in such places as the Rockpile, Cam Lo, A-3, Gio Linh, Khe Sanh, and Con Thien. In early 1969, Third Battalion was sent south for several months to participate in Operation Taylor Common, west of Danang. While 3/3 returned to the DMZ for the summer of 1969, its days in Vietnam were coming to an end. The battalion began to depart on October 1 and had returned to the states by the end of 1969.^[8]

• No Shining Armor: The Marines at War in Vietnam: An Oral History

[edit] 1969-1990

[edit] Desert Shield/Desert Storm

According to Major Craig Huddleston, who was Executive Officer of 3/3 during the early Nineties, 3rd Battalion was finishing up a deployment at Kadena Air Force Base on Okinawa when on August 2, at 2am, the commanding officer of the 9th Marines notified the battalion to be prepared to immediately redeploy to Saudi Arabia as a response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.^[9] No sooner had 3/3 returned to Hawaii, then it was shipped out again on August 25, as part of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade, to Al Jubayl in Saudi Arabia.^[10] As one of the first Marine battalions in country, 3/3 found itself facing the brunt of the Iraqi Army deployed along the Saudi border throughout the months of August and September. In October, 3/3 and 2/3 were designated "Task Force Taro" and moved to the extreme right flank of the Marine sector, bordering the Saudi Arabian King Abdul Aziz Brigade. Because of their close proximity, Taro was ordered by Major General James M. Myatt (Commanding General, 1st Marine Division) to begin cross-training with the Saudi forces. This cross-training continued through January, when 3/3 was moved forward to defend Al Mish'ab along the Saudi coast and became the northernmost Marine combat force in Saudi Arabia. Operation Desert Storm began on January 17, 1991, but for the first two weeks 3/3 only conducted sporadic engagements with its Iraqi counterparts across the border.^[11] That all changed on January 29, when several Iraqi units unexpectedly crossed the border and seized the Saudi town of Khafji, less than 15 kilometers north of 3/3's position. While Saudi and Qatari units ultimately retook the town, 3/3 played a vital role blocking any further Iraqi advance southward. In addition, several heavy machine guns and Forward air controllers from the battalion were shifted over to the Saudis and took place in the assault.^[12]

From February 19-21, 3/3 moved from Al Mish'ab to the forward assembly areas that it would be using to launch its attack into Kuwait. It was also during this period that 3/3 was given its assignment for the ground offensive. Lacking heavy armor or motorized transport, the battalion (along with 2/3) would infiltrate Iraqi positions along the Saudi border and provide flank security for the rest of the 1st Division to make its assault into Kuwait. As TF Taro's commander, Brigadier General John H. Admire, recalled in his history The 3d Marines in Desert Storm:

"We were encouraged by MajGen Myatt's confidence in assigning us such a critical task with minimum notice and accepted our supporting attack role with the understanding that we would have no armor, no assault amphibious vehicles, no major mechanical or explosive breaching assets. We would simply infiltrate at night on foot, with bayonets and rifles as our principal weapons."^[13]

On February 22-23, 3/3 crossed the border into Kuwait, infiltrating past Iraqi minefields, tank traps, and other obstacles. Throughout the ground war, 3/3 advanced steadily northwards, arriving outside the Kuwait International Airport around February 27.^[14] Several months later, America’s Battalion, "was able to return home with the enviable record of none killed and none wounded by enemy action in Desert Storm.”^[15]

• Washington Post: Saudi Town Reclaimed
• Otto Kreisher. Persian Gulf War: Marines' Minefield Assault. TheHistoryNet. The Quarterly Journal of Military History. Summer 2002.

[edit] 1991-2004

Marines from 3/3 training in Camp Fuji, Japan, 1996

[edit] Global War on Terror

Patrolling in Methar Lam, Afghanistan in 2005.

In late 2004, 3rd Battalion was given its marching orders for war.^[16] On October 31, the first Marines left Kaneohe Bay, HI for an eight month deployment to eastern Afghanistan. The rest of the battalion arrived throughout November. While serving in Afghanistan, 3/3 conducted Operation Spurs in February 2005, where they were inserted into the Korangal Valley and conducted both counterinsurgency and humanitarian operations. In March 3/3 launched a similar sweep called Operation Mavericks. The battalion returned on June 21, 2005.^[17]

In March 2006, 3rd Battalion 3rd Marines deployed to western Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. They relieved in place the 3rd Battalion 1st Marines in the Haditha area and were based out of the Haditha dam. In October of that same year, the battalion were relieved in place by their sister battalion, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines.

[edit] Unit Images

RIMPAC 2004

Patrolling in Afghanistan, 2005

Patrolling the streets of Barwanah, 2006

Taking cover in Haditha, 2006

[edit] Unit Awards

Streamer	Award	Year(s)	Additional Info
	Presidential Unit Citation with one Bronze Star	1944, 1965-1967	Battle of Guam, Vietnam War
	Navy Unit Commendation with three Bronze Stars	1943, 1965, 1968-1969, 1990-1991	Battle of Bougainville, Vietnam War, Desert Storm
	Navy Unit Commendation with two Bronze Stars	1967-1968, 1968, 1983	Vietnam War, Lebanon
	Marine Corps Expeditionary Medal
	Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with four Bronze Stars	1943, 1944, 1945	Battle of Bougainville, Northern Solomons, Battle of Guam, Battle of Iwo Jima
	World War II Victory Medal	1942-1945
	National Defense Service Medal with three Bronze Stars
	Korean Service Medal
	Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
	Vietnam Service Medal with two Silver Stars
	Southwest Asia Service Medal with two Bronze Stars
	Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with Palm Streamer
	Afghanistan Campaign Medal	2004, 2005
	Iraq Campaign Medal	2006	Haditha, Al Anbar Province

[edit] Notable 3/3 Marines

Among the many decorations for valor and bravery awarded to Marines from 3/3, four Medals of Honor and over twenty Navy Crosses have been awarded. During World War II, 3rd Battalion won four Navy Crosses at the Battle of Piva Forks, and another three at the Aden-Aselup Beachead in Guam. One of those awards went to Battalion Commander Ralph Houser, who was seriously wounded while personally leading an assault near Chonito Cliff. Two of the awards at Piva Forks went to Company Commanders, one of them pothumously. Guam was also where PFC Luther Skaggs won his Medal of Honor.

In 1965, Corporal Robert O'Malley of 3rd Battalion became the first Marine in the Vietnam War be awarded the Medal of Honor.

[edit] World War II

Highest Award	Name	Rank	Billet	Dates	Remarks
	Beck, James	Private	Company K	1943	Navy Cross, Piva Forks, Bougainville, Solomon Islands, November 22, 1943.[18]
	Houser, Ralph	LtCol	Battalion Commander	194?-1945	Navy Cross. Asan-Adelup beachhead, Guam, Marianas Islands, 21-23 July 1944.[18]
	Logan, John, Jr.	CPL	Squad Leader	1943	Navy Cross, Piva Forks, Bougainville, Solomon Islands, November 24, 1943.[18]
	Miller, Vernon	1stLT	Platoon Commander, Company K	1944	Navy Cross. Asan-Adelup beachhead, Guam, Marianas Islands, 21-23 July 1944.[18]
	Skaggs, Luther, Jr.	PFC	Mortar Section, Company K	1943-1946	Medal of Honor. Asan-Adelup beachhead, Guam, Marianas Islands, 21-22 July 1944.
	Torian, Paul	Capt	Commanding Officer, Company K	1943	Navy Cross, Piva Forks, Bougainville, Solomon Islands, November 24, 1943.[18]
	Turnbull, Robert	Capt	Commanding Officer, Company L	1943	Navy Cross, Piva Forks, Bougainville, Solomon Islands, November 24, 1943.[18]

[edit] Vietnam

Highest Award	Name	Rank	Billet	Dates	Remarks
	Coker, Ronald	PFC	Rifleman, Company M	1968-1969	Medal of Honor, Quang Tri Province, Republic of Vietnam, 24 March 1969.
	Dalton, Robert	CPL	Squad Leader, Company K	1969	Navy Cross, Quang Tri Province, Republic of Vietnam, 25 May 1969.[19]
	Day, Edward	LCPL	Rifleman, Company L	1968	Navy Cross, Quang Tri Province, Republic of Vietnam, 26 August 1968.[19]
	Dickson, Grover Lee	CPL	Squad Leader, Company K, 2nd PLT	1968	Navy Cross, Republic of Vietnam, 11 November 1966.[19]
	Dye, Dale		Squad Leader	1965	Actor and founder of Warriors, Inc.. Credits include Platoon and Saving Private Ryan.[20]
	Kelly, James Raymond, III	CPL	Grenadier, Company I	1967	Navy Cross, Near An Hoa, Republic of Vietnam, 24 March 1967.[19]
	McWhorter, James	LCPL	Squad Leader, Company L, 3d PLT	1969	Navy Cross. Republic of Vietnam, 22 August 1969.[19]
	Meier, Terrance	SSGT	Platoon Sergeant, Company M, 2nd PLT	1967	Navy Cross. Near Ca Lu, Republic of Vietnam, 21 July 1967.[19]
	Moe, Robert	SSGT	Platoon Commander, Company L, 3rd PLT	1965	Navy Cross. Quang Tin Province, Republic of Vietnam, 9 December 1965.[19]
	Muir, Joseph	LtCol	Battalion Commander	1965	Navy Cross. Operation Starlite, Republic of Vietnam, 18 to 24 August 1965.[19]
	Mulloy, James	SGT	H&S Company	1965	Navy Cross. Operation Starlite, Republic of Vietnam, 18 August 1965.[19]
	North, Oliver	2ndLt	Platoon Commander, Company K	1968-1969	Key figure in the Iran-Contra Scandal and commentator on FOX News.[21]
	O'Malley, Robert	Sgt[22]	Squad Leader, Company I	1965-?	Medal of Honor, Operation Starlite, South Vietnam, 18 August 1965.
	Pichon, Louis	GYSGT	Company Gunnery Sergeant, Company I	1967	Navy Cross. Cam Lo, Quang Tri Province, Republic of Vietnam, 24 March 1967.[19]
	Prom, William	LCpl	Machine Gun Section, Company I	1968-1969	Medal of Honor. Near An Hoa, Republic of Vietnam. 9 February 1969.
	Quick, Robert Lee	PFC	Rifleman, Company K	1968	Navy Cross. Gio Linh, Republic of Vietnam, 7 February 1968.[19]
	Ripley, John	Capt	Commanding Officer, Company L	1967	Navy Cross at the Bridge at Dong Ha during the 1972 Easter Offensive.
	Rosenberger, Roger	PFC	Rifleman, Company M	1969	Navy Cross. Near Dong Ha, Quang Tri Province, Republic of Vietnam, 17 June 1969.[19]
	Schley, Robert	CPL	Machine Gun Team Leader, Company M	1967	Navy Cross. Near Khe Sanh, Quang Tri Province, Republic of Vietnam, 30 April 1967.[19]
	Webb, Bruce	Capt	Commanding Officer, Company I	1965	Navy Cross. Operation Starlite, Republic of Vietnam, 18 August 1965.[19]
	Yarber, Vernon	LCPL	Squad Leader, Company L	1968	Navy Cross. Quang Tri Province, Republic of Vietnam, 26 August 1968.[19]

[edit] Modern Times

Highest Award	Name	Rank	Billet	Dates	Remarks
	Krulak, Charles	LtCol	Battalion Commander	1983-1985	31st Commandant of the Marine Corps.

[edit] List of Battalion Commanders

[edit] Service History

[edit] Footnotes

[edit] Bibliography

This article incorporates text in the public domain from the United States Marine Corps.

• Huddleston, Craig S (1991-01-01). "Commentary on DESERT SHIELD". Marine Corps Gazette: 32. Retrieved on 2006-11-23. 
• 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines from GlobalSecurity.Org.
• 3rd Marine Regiment
• 3rd Marine Division

[edit] External Links

• 3/3s Official Website
• Mike Company. 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines: A history of Mike Company during the Vietnam War.
• 3rd Marines in Vietnam