Military innovations in equipment and training

[Harold Mayo]

Is it just me or does the Marine Corps seem to be the frontrunner in innovative stuff these days? I've seen a lot of stuff recently about innovations by the Corps:

Digital camouflage
Marine Corps martial arts
Benelli M4 shotgun (tested mainly by the Corps, I think...all the articles that I've read on it have quotes by Marines, anyway)
MEU-SOC pistol
Extensive motorcycle usage by recon elements
Testing of a lot of scopes
Testing of newer sniper rifle designs

I've even heard (though I haven't confirmed this) that they have increased various requirements in an attempt to lose the image of the Marine as a "jarhead".


I just haven't seen much on advances in other branches. Am I not seeing the advances? Are they not being reported? Or is the Marine Corps on the leading edge of the innovation?

 

[Jeff White]

Harold,
The different services are all responsible for different things. Then there is the fact that there is little really new under the sun. The Army was using motorcycles for reconnisance during the early 80s with the advent of the light divisions. The Rangers were experimenting with them before that.

All of the services have played with different handguns for their special operators over the years. The unit that the Army officially denies exists even though it's first commander published a book after retirement has used custom 1911s since they came into existance. The quantities of pistols for these units is so small that aquiring them is not such a big deal. Pat Rogers would know for sure, but I don't think there is any program to replace the M9 with the MEU-SOC pistol throughout the fleet.

The Army was the driving force behind most of the optics you see in use. The M68 CCO, the M145 Machine Gun Optic, the AN/PAQ-4 and AN/PEQ-2 laser aimers were both Army projects.

The services share ideas now much better then they used to. It would really be hard to say who is the most innovative.

Jeff

 

[Harold Mayo]

Yes, I know the motorcycles have been in use a long time...hell, they were used in WWI for messengers and in WWII as part of the blitzkrieg strategy. I guess I've just been watching too much "Mail Call" and various History Channel shows. Seems that the technology aspects of what is being done by the USMC are emphasized and you don't see much of anyone else.

The handgun stuff is a little different, though. The USMC seems to be looking at arming a bit larger number of people than any super-secret unit might be. Of course, the MEU-SOC stuff has been highly emphasized lately.

I know a couple of guys from Crane and they play with new and different stuff all the time. I haven't been in contact with them since I left Indiana but they always seemed to be experimenting with something or other.

Ah, well...probably got R. Lee Ermey on the mind...