Marine Air-Ground Task Force
Marine Air-Ground Task Force is a term used by the United States Marine Corps to describe the principal organization for all missions across the range of military operations. MAGTFs are a balanced air-ground, combined arms task organization of Marine Corps forces under a single commander that is structured to accomplish a specific mission. The MAGTF was formalized by the publishing of Marine Corps Order 3120.3 in December 1963 "The Marine Corps in the National Defense, MCDP 1-0". It stated:
Since World War II in many crises the United States Marine Corps has deployed projection forces, with the ability to move ashore with sufficient sustainability for prolonged operations. MAGTFs have long provided the United States with a broad spectrum of response options when U.S. and allied interests have been threatened and in non-combat situations which require critical response. Selective, timely and credible commitment of air-ground units has, on many occasions, helped bring stability to a region and sent signals worldwide that the United States is willing to defend its interests, and is able to do so with a powerful force on short notice.
Composition
The four core elements of a Marine air–ground task force are:- The command element, a headquarters unit organized into a MAGTF headquarters group, that exercises command and control over the other elements of the MAGTF. The HQ group consists of communications, intelligence, surveillance, and law enforcement detachments, companies, and battalions, and reconnaissance, and liaison platoons, detachments, and companies.
- The ground combat element, composed primarily of infantry units. These organizations contain a headquarters unit that provides command and control as well as scout/sniper, aviation liaison/forward air controller, NBC defense, communications, service, and Navy combat medical and chaplain's corps personnel. The GCE also contains combat support units, including artillery, armor, combat engineer, and reconnaissance units. At the division level, the GCE also contains limited organic combat service support, including a truck company, a military police/law enforcement company, and the division band.
- The aviation combat element, which contributes the air power to the MAGTF includes all aircraft and aviation support units. The units are organized into detachments, squadrons, groups, and wings, except for low altitude air defense units, which are organized into platoons, detachments, batteries, and battalions. These units include pilots, flight officers, enlisted aircrewmen, aviation logistics and Navy aviation medical and chaplain's corps personnel, as well as ground-based air defense units, and those units necessary for command and control, aviation command and control, communications, and aviation ground support.
- The logistics combat element, organized into battalions, regiments, and groups, has its own headquarters element for command and control of its subordinate units and contains the majority of the combat service support units for the MAGTF, including: heavy motor transport, ground supply, heavy engineer support, ground equipment maintenance, and advanced medical and dental units, along with certain specialized groups such as air delivery, EOD, and landing support teams.
The four core elements describe types of forces needed and not actual military units or commands. The basic structure of the MAGTF never varies, though the number, size, and type of Marine Corps units composing each of its four elements will always be mission dependent. The flexibility of the organizational structure allows for one or more subordinate MAGTFs to be assigned.
Types
Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF)
A Marine Expeditionary Force, commanded by a lieutenant general, is composed of a MEF headquarters group, a Marine division, a Marine aircraft wing, and a Marine logistics group.For comparison purposes, in relation to other U.S. ground and air combat forces, the MEF HQG may be considered as roughly analogous to a notional U.S. Army corps headquarters that also contains a combined battlefield surveillance brigade /maneuver enhancement brigade. This comparison is based on the fact that the MEF HQG contains several of the key components of the BSB and Army MEB resident in its organic communications, intelligence, law enforcement, and radio battalions and attached force reconnaissance company.
The MARDIV, containing two or three infantry regiments, an artillery regiment, and several separate armored vehicle battalions and other combat support battalions is approximately equivalent to a notional U.S. Army light infantry division organized with three infantry brigade combat teams, division artillery, a division sustainment brigade, a headquarters and headquarters battalion, and reinforced with an armored brigade combat team.
The MAW, with its aircraft groups and air control groups, is comparable to a notional U.S. Air Force numbered air force consisting of a mix of several USAF wings and USA combat aviation brigades. Lastly, the MLG and its organic logistics regiments are the USMC organizational and functional equivalents of a USA Sustainment Command and its constituent sustainment brigades.
The MEF, which varies in size, is capable of conducting missions across the full range of military operations and to support and sustain itself for up to 60 days in an austere expeditionary environment. For example, the I Marine Expeditionary Force is composed of the I MEF Headquarters Group, the 1st Marine Division, the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and the 1st Marine Logistics Group, all based on the West Coast. Two notable deployments of an entire MEF were when I Marine Expeditionary Force deployed in support of Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. I MEF ultimately consisted of the 1st and 2nd Marine Divisions as well as considerable Marine air and support units. I MEF also deployed to Somalia in December 1992 for the humanitarian relief effort there as well as deploying to Kuwait beginning in 2002 and taking part in the 2003 Invasion of Iraq.
The three Marine Expeditionary Forces are:
- I Marine Expeditionary Force located at Camp Pendleton, California
- II Marine Expeditionary Force located at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
- III Marine Expeditionary Force located at Camp Courtney, Okinawa, Japan
Marine Expeditionary Brigade (MEB)
- 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade
- 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade
- 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade
- 4th Marine Expeditionary Brigade
- 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade
- 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade
Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU)
There are usually three MEUs assigned to each of the U.S. Navy Atlantic and Pacific Fleets, with another MEU based on Okinawa. While one MEU is on deployment, one MEU is training to deploy and one is standing down, resting its marines, and refitting. Each MEU is rated as capable of performing special operations, though USMC's definition of this is not consistent with that of SOCOM. They are not considered special operations unit by the Department of Defense.