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US Marine Corps Tanks of World War II
by Steven Zaloga Richard ChasemoreThe US Marine Corps formed six tank battalions in World War II which saw combat in some of the most varied and extreme conditions of the Pacific theater. The Marine tank battalions fought on small coral atolls such as Tarawa, in the fetid jungles of the south west Pacific including Guadalcanal, in the lush central Pacific islands of the Marianas such as Saipan and Guam, and on the volcanic deserts of the Bonin islands such as Iwo Jima. The tank equipment of the Marine Corps was essentially the same as that used by the US Army: the M3 and M5A1 light tanks, and the M4 Sherman medium tanks. But the conditions and the opponent forced the Marine Corps to adapt both in terms of technical and tactical innovations. The numerous island landings forced the development of novel landing equipment, especially deep wading equipment to get the tanks safely ashore. Japanese defensive tactics in 1943-44 put a premium on American use of flamethrowers and the development of a variety of flamethrower tanks on the M3 light tank chassis. Deadly Japanese close-infantry tactics forced the development of novel methods of tank protection including the use of wooden armor to defeat the use of magnetic anti-tank devices. This book will examine the Marine use of tanks in World War II and the tactics and technology that made their experiences so unique in the annals of tank warfare.
US Marine Corps Uniforms and Equipment in World War II: 'they Are Marines' - Uniforms And Equipment In The Second World War Ii
by Jim MoranThe United States Marine Corps was one of the phenomena of the Second World War. Greatly expanded from its prewar order of battle of scattered defense battalions, overseas garrisons and ship detachments, it became a multi-division force bearing the brunt of the hardest fighting across the whole vast expanse of the Pacific theater of operations. In August 1942 Marines were among the first to strike back at the Japanese in the jungles of Guadalcanal; Marine Raider battalions were formed to carry the fight to the enemy; and from the Central Solomon's landings of mid–1943 it was the Marines who spearheaded the 'island hopping' amphibious campaign which brought them to Okinawa, on Japan's doorstep, by VJ-Day. This epic story has been well documented in most respects except one: the uniforms, insignia and personal equipment of the Marines who fought their way across the Pacific. Authoritative, illustrated reference works of this important aspect of World War II's physical history have been notoriously lacking. In this book, longtime collector and researcher Jim Moran fills the gap, with a systematic, detailed guide illustrated with more than 300 photographs, including some 200 close-ups of surviving items in private collections on both sides of the Atlantic. The author covers service and field uniforms at the outbreak of war; the development of the Marine's dungaree's; the introduction and development of the camouflage uniforms which became the Marine's trademark in the popular imagination; the 782 gear webbing equipment; the various packs and other load-carrying items; the uniforms, insignia and equipment special to the elite Marine Raiders and Paramarines; the uniforms and accouterments of the US Marine Corps Women's Reserve; and a range of issue and personal small kit items which collectors may encounter. His research is supported by some 100 wartime photographs showing the identified item in use. Assisted and encouraged by the US Marine Corps Historical Center at Quantico, Virginia, Jim Moran has produced an essential reference for the collector, modeler, illustrator and uniform historian.
US Marine Infantry Combat Uniforms and Equipment 2000-12
by Kenneth Ewald J. EwardThe US Marine Corps has been a key part of the US presence in a host of combat zones in the first years of the 21st century, from Iraq to Afghanistan. With a front-line strength of over 200,000 active-duty personnel, the USMC is significantly larger than the entire armed forces of some countries. It fulfils a vital component of the United States' military capability, uniquely being able to deploy a combined-arms task force to almost anywhere across the globe in a matter of days. The infantry role is at the heart of USMC thinking; all Marines are trained as riflemen, and other components of the USMC, such as Marine aviation, have always been tasked first and foremost with supporting the infantry on the ground.While sharing some weapons systems with the US Army, US Navy, and US Air Force, the Marine Corps has developed its own distinctive approach to matters of dress, personal equipment and armament. Since the year 2000 the "profile" of the Western combat infantryman has changed greatly. The most important trends are a new generation of camouflage clothing, body armor, personal electronics, and night-vision equipment, which have transformed the appearance and capability of the individual rifleman. Another trend is the increased presence of women on the battlefield, which has design implications. The men and women of the USMC have been at the forefront of these developments, utilizing innovative items of dress and equipment during their extensive service in a range of challenging environments across the world.Featuring specially commissioned full-color artwork and detailed photographs, this book explores the USMC's key contribution to the development of the combat infantry soldier's clothing and personal equipment in the 21st century.
US Marine Rifleman 1939-45
by Gordon Rottman Howard GerrardOsprey's study of United States Marine Corps riflemen during World War II (1939-1945). It is sometimes a basic assumption that a US Marine Corps rifleman was essentially trained, uniformed, equipped, and armed much the same as a US Army rifleman during World War II. While there were of course similarities, the Marines conducted their own unique training programs, wore mostly different uniforms and equipment, and possessed some unique weapons, although they also used many of the same weapons as the Army. The Marine Corps was not part of the Navy, but a component of the Navy Department alongside the Navy. While the Marines specialized in amphibious warfare, the Army actually conducted more amphibious assaults in the Pacific than the Marines. The typical Marine was extremely proud of his service and acutely aware that there were only six Marine divisions but 89 Army divisions. The Marine Corps began World War II with less than 66,000 officers and men; more than that would be wounded before it ended. The Corps grew to almost 487,000. It provided only 5 percent of the US armed forces, but suffered 10 percent of overall American casualties.The Marines were able to build on their proud traditions and history to transform a small branch of service into a premier combined arms amphibious assault force. Regardless of its expansion by 750 percent, the Corps was able to maintain its sense of tradition, instill that into thousands of new Marines, and create an elite arm of service. Here, Gordon L Rottman, follows the Marine rifleman through his draft and training, and then participation in operations such as Roi-Namur in the Marshall Islands, Saipan and Tinian in the Mariana Islands, and Iwo Jima.The opening sentences of the Marine Creed, composed shortly after the attack on Pearl HarborThis is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me my rifle is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless.
US Marine Rifleman in Vietnam 1965-73
by Ramiro Bujeiro Charles MelsonThis volume provides an in-depth look at the experience of the ordinary US marine 'grunt' in Vietnam. Organisation of the corps, weaponry, equipment, uniforms, training and medical arrangements are all discussed. However, where this book differs from other similar works is not only in the detail that it goes into but also in the unifying theme of examining all these differing aspects of marine life from the point of view of a soldier serving in the conflict. The author, Charles Melson, actually served in the Vietnam War (1955-1975), and it is this personal experience that allows him to provide such a unique angle on the subject.
US Marine vs Japanese Infantryman: Guadalcanal 1942-43
by Gordon Rottman Johnny ShumateThe bitter six-month struggle for control of Guadalcanal in the South Pacific during World War II matched the US Marine Corps against the Imperial Japanese Army in a campaign that would test both sides to the limit. In this book the realities of prolonged warfare in an unforgiving environment are documented in photographs, specially commissioned artwork, official reports, and first-hand accounts, offering a glimpse of infantry combat in World War II's Pacific Theater.The toughness of American Marines was sorely tested by Japanese troops willing to lay down their lives in Banzai charges and desperate last stands across the Pacific in World War II. This book offers key insights into the tactics, leadership, combat performance, and subsequent reputations of six representative USMC and IJA infantry battalions pitched into three pivotal actions that determined the course of the campaign for Guadalcanal at the height of World War II.Mountainous and covered in tropical jungle, Guadalcanal is the largest of the Solomon Islands. During World War II its location - dominating vital lines of communication and supply between the United States, Australia, and New Zealand - made it a key strategic objective for both sides in the escalating struggle for the South Pacific region. Between August 7, 1942 and February 9, 1943 it was the setting for a series of bitter battles between the advancing Japanese forces and those of a resurgent United States and its allies, in the Allies' first major offensive against the Japanese.Spearheading the Allied effort to take and hold Guadalcanal, the US Marine Corps played a key role in the back-and-forth land battles for this vital island, while their adversaries, the garrison troops of the Imperial Japanese Army, strove to counter the Allies' offensive moves. From the initial US landings that took the Japanese by surprise to the savage battles of Tenaru, Edson's Ridge, Henderson Field, and Mount Austen, the campaign tested the infantrymen of both sides to the limit, with tropical diseases, supply problems, hostile terrain, and poor weather all adding to the horrors of close-quarter combat.
US Marine vs NVA Soldier: Vietnam 1967-68
by Johnny Shumate David HigginsIn 1967-68, the United States Marine Corps (USMC) was on the front line of the defense of South Vietnam's Quang Tri province, which was at the very heart of the Vietnam conflict. Facing them were the soldiers of the North Vietnamese Army (NVA), men whose organization and equipment made them a very different opponent from the famous, irregular Viet Cong forces. From the "Hill Battles" in April 1967 to the struggle for the city of Huế (January-March 1968) this bloody campaign forced the two sides into a grueling trial of strength. The USMC held a general technological and logistical advantage - including close air support and airborne transport, technology, and supplies - but could not always utilize these resources effectively in mountainous, jungle, or urban environments better known by their Vietnamese opponents. In this arresting account of small-unit combat, David R. Higgins steps into the tropical terrain of Vietnam to assess the performance and experience of six USMC and NVA units in three savage battles that stretched both sides to the limit.
US Marines Alphabet Book
by Jerry Pallotta Sammie GarnettTake a look at fascinating facts about the US Marines--one for each letter of the alphabet! There's a lot to learn about this important branch of our armed forces.With information from both history and the modern era, each letter covers something related to the Marines. From fire teams to jets, and from Parris Island to uniforms, this book is a wealth of information that highlights the courage and commitment it takes to serve in the US Marines.
US Mechanized Infantryman in the First Gulf War
by Adam Hook Gordon RottmanOsprey's examination of the US Mechanized Infantrymen of the First Gulf War (1990-1991), In many ways the end of the Vietnam War left the US army a spent force. Plagued by low morale, drug and race issues, and terrible public relations, the army faced an uphill climb in the effort to rebuild itself. The story of this reconstruction is mirrored in the rise of the Mechanized Infantryman. Deciding that the key to future conflict lay in highly trained and mobile warriors that could be delivered quickly to battle, the army adopted the mechanized infantryman as its frontline troops. This new, all-volunteer force was given the best training and equipment that money could buy. Most notably, they were to be deployed onto the battlefield from the new M2 Bradley Armored Fighting Vehicle.This new breed of American warriors got their first test in the First Gulf War. Fighting in the deserts of Kuwait and Iraq, these soldiers proved that the US Army was once again a force with which to be reckoned. This book tells the complete story of the rise of the US mechanized infantryman, focusing on his recruitment, training, lifestyle and combat experiences in Iraq.From the Trade Paperback edition.
The US Military: A Basic Introduction (Cass Military Studies)
by Judith Hicks StiehmThis book provides a basic guide to the US military and will raise questions for further discussion by students and other curious readers. The US Military provides an accessible starting-point for those with a limited knowledge of this institution. Covering a wide range of subject matter, and ending with an extensive list of suggested resources to aid individual study and research, the text is divided into the following chapters: The A, B, Cs Strategy and Doctrine The Military in Action Weapons and Capabilities The Budget This book will be of great interest to students of the US military, US politics, defense studies, and war and conflict studies, and will also be of relevance to journalists, NGO staff and diplomats.
The US Military in Hawai'i
by Brian IrelandAn examination of how the US military in Hawaii is depicted by museum curators, memorial builders, film makers, and newspaper reporters. These mediums convey information, and engage their audiences, in ways that, together, form a powerful advocacy for the benefits of militarism in the islands.
US Military Innovation since the Cold War: Creation Without Destruction (Strategy and History)
by Harvey Sapolsky Benjamin Friedman Brendan GreenThis book explains how the US military reacted to the 'Revolution in Military Affairs' (RMA), and failed to innovate its organization or doctrine to match the technological breakthroughs it brought about. Many called for the transformation of the US military in the years after the end of the Cold War, seeking the changes in organization and doctrine that would complete the RMA innovation and a commitment to counter-insurgency, peace keeping and nation building missions. This volume describes the origins, uses, and limits of the RMA technologies, examines how each of the five US armed services (categorising the Special Operations as a separate service) made their adjustments both to the technologies and the use of force, and how the role of the civilian officials and the defense industry altered in this process of change and avoidance of change. The book examines the internal politics of the services as well as civil/military relations to identify the external pressures on the services for significant change in their doctrine and weapons. Many have noted the failure of the services to innovate in what can be called the 'Second Inter-war Period' (the years after the Cold War). This book offers explanations for this failure and arguments about the possible range and desirability of military innovation in the post-Cold war era. This book will be of great interest to students of strategic studies, US defence politics, military studies, and US politics. Harvey M. Sapolsky is Professor of Public Policy and Organization in the Department of Political Science at MIT and former Director of the Security Studies Program. Benjamin H. Friedman is a Research Fellow in Defense and Homeland Security Studies at the Cato Institute and a Ph.D. Candidate in Political Science at MIT. Brendan Green is a Ph.D. Candidate in Political Science at MIT and an affiliate of the Security Studies Program.
The US Military Profession into the 21st Century: War, Peace and Politics (Cass Military Studies)
by Sam Sarkesian Robert ConnorThis brand new edition of The US Military Profession into the Twenty-First Century re-examines the challenges faced by the military profession in the aftermath of the international terrorist attack on the United States on September 11, 2001. While many of the issues facing the military profession examined in the first edition remain, the 'new war' and international terrorism have compounded the challenges. The US military must respond to the changed domestic and strategic landscapes without diminishing its primary function—a function that now many see that goes beyond success on the battlefield. Not only has this complicated the problem of reconciling the military professional ethos and raison d’etre with civilian control in a democracy, it challenges traditional military professionalism. This book also studies the notion of a US military stretched thin and relying more heavily on the US Federal Reserves and National Guard. These developments make the US military profession increasingly linked to public attitudes and political perspectives. In sum, the challenge faced by the US military profession can be termed a dual dilemma. It must respond effectively to the twenty-first century strategic landscape while undergoing the revolution in military affairs and transformation. At the same time, the military profession must insure that it remains compatible with civilian cultures and the US political-social system without eroding its primary function. This is an invaluable book for all students with an interest in the US Military, and of strategic studies and military history in general.
US Military Strategy and the Cold War Endgame
by Stephen J. CimbalaAt the end of the Cold War security concerns are more about regional and civil conflicts than nuclear or Eurasian global wars. Stephen Cimbala argues that deterrence characteristics of the pre-Cold War period will in the 21st century again become normative.
US National Defense for the Twenty-first Century: Grand Exit Strategy
by Edward A. OlsenThis provocative critique of Washington's current security policies, draws on the arguments made by an array of non-interventionist and conservative-nationalist scholars. It provides a blueprint for a more restrained and unilateral US role in global affairs.
US National Security: Policymakers, Processes, and Politics
by John Allen Williams Stephen J. Cimbala Sam C. SarkesianThe main focus of US national security policy has shifted dramatically since the years of the Obama administration, moving away from nation building and counterinsurgency efforts and toward preparing for traditional state-on-state conflict with powerful peers. The sixth edition of US National Security reflects that change. It also addresses such current issues as the impact of an increasingly partisan political process, sharp divisions in public opinion, the ongoing challenges of homeland security, and developments in cyberspace and other possible domains of future warfare. <P><P>Retaining the successful structure and approach of the previous editions, the book clearly introduces and explores the full range of actors, processes, and politics involved in maintaining US national security.
US National Security Concerns in Latin America and the Caribbean
by Gary Prevost Harry E. Vanden Carlos Oliva Campos Luis Fernando AyerbeThe concepts of 'ungoverned spaces' and 'failed states' where the limited presence of the state is seen as a challenge to global security have generated a rich intellectual debate in recent years. In this edited volume, scholars from Latin America and the United States will analyze how US foreign policy making circles have applied the concepts to the creation of new US security initiatives in the Latin American region during the post September 11, 2001 era. The extension of concepts to Latin America has been significant because it has meant that during the past thirteen years US policy in the Hemisphere has shifted away from the primarily economic emphasis of the 1990s, the era of the Free Trade Area of the Americas project, back to a security focus reminiscent of the Cold War era. The last decade has witnessed a significant increase in US military presence in the region highlighted by the re-launching of the Caribbean-based Fourth Fleet, the militarization of drug fighting efforts in Mexico, and the establishment of several new military bases in Colombia, the staunchest US ally in the region.
US National Security, Intelligence and Democracy: From the Church Committee to the War on Terror (Studies In Intelligence Ser.)
by Russell MillerThis volume examines the investigation by the 1975 Senate Select Committee ( Church Committee ) into US intelligence abuses during the Cold War, and considers its lessons for the currentwar on terror. This report remains the most thorough public record of America‘s intelligence services, and many of the legal boundaries operating on US intelligence.
US National Security Reform: Reassessing the National Security Act of 1947 (Routledge Global Security Studies)
by Heidi B. Demarest Erica D. BorghardThis collection of essays considers the evolution of American institutions and processes for forming and implementing US national security policy, and offers diverse policy prescriptions for reform to confront an evolving and uncertain security environment. Twelve renowned scholars and practitioners of US national security policy take up the question of whether the national security institutions we have are the ones we need to confront an uncertain future. Topics include a characterization of future threats to national security, organizational structure and leadership of national security bureaucracies, the role of the US Congress in national security policy making and oversight, and the importance of strategic planning within the national security enterprise. The book concludes with concrete recommendations for policy makers, most of which can be accomplished under the existing and enduring National Security Act. This book will be of much interest to students of US national security, US foreign policy, Cold War studies, public policy and Internationl Relations in general.
The US, NATO and Military Burden-Sharing (Contemporary Security Studies)
by Stephen J. Cimbala Peter ForsterThis study establishes that the political, economic and military-technological changes that transform the international system also alter the way in which a state views its and others' responsibilities and burdens for responding to international crises. It assesses the distribution of the costs of raising and supporting arms of service, the risks of deploying them overseas and using them in combat or peace operations, and the extent to which members have a responsibility for maintaining international order in the context of three instances of multinational military intervention: the Multinational Force deployment in Lebanon in 1982-83; the first Persian Gulf War in 1990-91; and the UN and NATO intervention in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
US Naval Aviation, 1898–1945: The Pioneering Years to the Second World War (Images of War)
by Leo MarriottThis pictorial history tells the story of US naval aviation from its early beginnings in the 1920s to its dominance in the Pacific theater of WWII.The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor sank or crippled almost all of the battleships in the US Navy’s Pacific Fleet. But the fleet’s aircraft carriers survived—and soon demonstrated the power of US naval aviation. Thanks to pioneering technology and far-sighted pre-war policy, the US Navy had the necessary ships, aircraft, and crews to turn the tide of the Pacific war.With more than 200 rare photographs, Leo Marriott traces the growth of US naval aviation from the flimsy seaplanes of the first years of the twentieth century to the mighty armadas that challenged those of the Japanese and, after the carrier battles at Coral Sea and Midway, led the advance across the Pacific. Marriott puts special focus on the navy’s first aircraft carriers of the 1920s, the tremendous progress made in the decades between the wars in tactics and strategy, and the innovative design of ships and aircraft themselves.
US Naval Aviator
by Robert Hargis John WhiteThe US naval aviator of World War II played a pivotal part in the winning of the war. From the warm waters of the Pacific to the icy conditions of the Bering Sea (including the battle of Midway), the Naval aviator was on hand to fight the enemy in any and all conditions. Between 1940 and 1942 the training of the naval aviator lasted eleven months, divided into five separate and distinct phases. From phase one, known as the Elimination or "E" base for short, through to final assignment to a carrier based squadron, the training was demanding and unrelenting.This title examines the life and experiences of the US Naval Aviator in all three types of carrier squadron - fighters (VF), dive-bombers (VB) and the torpedo squadrons (VT). From recruitment to battle, the detail of what it was like to fly and fight for the US Navy is brought vividly to life.
US Naval Strategy and National Security: The Evolution of American Maritime Power (Cass Series: Naval Policy and History)
by Sebastian BrunsThis book examines US naval strategy and the role of American seapower over three decades, from the late 20th century to the early 21st century. This study uses the concept of seapower as a framework to explain the military and political application of sea power and naval force for the United States of America. It addresses the context in which strategy, and in particular US naval strategy and naval power, evolves and how US naval strategy was developed and framed in the international and national security contexts. It explains what drove and what constrained US naval strategy and examines selected instances where American sea power was directed in support of US defense and security policy ends – and whether that could be tied to what a given strategy proposed. The work utilizes naval capstone documents in the framework of broader maritime conceptual and geopolitical thinking, and discusses whether these documents had lasting influences in the strategic mind-set, the force structure, and other areas of American sea power. Overall, this work provides a deeper understanding of the crafting of US naval strategy since the final decade of the Cold War, its contextual and structural framework setting, and its application. To that end, the work bridges the gap between the thinking of American naval officers and planners on the one hand and academic analyses of Navy strategy on the other hand. It also presents the trends in the use of naval force for foreign policy objectives and into strategy-making in the American policy context. This book will be of much interest to students of naval power, maritime strategy, US national security and international relations in general.
US Navy A-1 Skyraider Units of the Vietnam War
by Rick Burgess Jim Laurier Zip RausaOsprey's examination of the A-1 Skyraider Units' participation in the Vietnam War (1955-1975). Designed and built as a carrier-based attack aircraft in 1944, the A-1 reached frontline units too late to see combat in World War II (1939-1945). With the advent of jets in the late 1940s, the Skyraider was seen as a dated throwback to the golden age of piston-engined naval aviation. Despite its days seemingly numbered, the A-1 proved to be a huge success in the Korean War. Remaining in production through to 1957, some 3,180 Skyraiders had been built by the time the last one left the Douglas plant. Nicknamed the ''flying dump truck'', the A-1 remained a key component in naval air wings into the 1960s, allowing the aircraft to play its part in the escalating conflict in Vietnam. Both A-1 attack and EA-1F airborne early warning aircraft saw action in Southeast Asia from 1960 through to 1969, when the last examples were finally retired from carrier decks. The A-1s in particular bombed targets in both North and South Vietnam, despite the aircraft being highly vulnerable to enemy flak and fighters. Co-written by a two-tour Vietnam War combat veteran in the A-1, this is the first book that focuses exclusively on the aircraft's service in Vietnam, providing a must-have volume for Vietnam aviation enthusiasts.
US Navy A-7 Corsair II Units of the Vietnam War
by Peter MerskyOsprey's examination of A-7 Corsair II Units of the Vietnam War (1955-1975). Arriving on station with the USS Ranger (CVA-61) in early December 1967, the first Corsair II squadron became operational immediatedly and sustained its first combat loss three weeks later. This book tells how the A-7 soon proved its worth supporting ground operations in South Vietnam. As it continued to serve in the ground support role, the navy swiftly introduced the A-7E which soon ran into difficulties with supply lines - perhaps on account of what many perceived to have been a rushed introduction to service. Once these teething problems were resolved, the A-7E became the primary air-to-ground aircraft of the fleet.