Marines practice amphibious war, storm US beaches

ABOARD THE USS WASP — A small group of Marines trudged onto the beach sands in pitch-black night with an armada of U.S. Navy warships sailing just off the shore. Their mission: root out insurgents that threatened to attack another American force to the south.

The careful operation under cover of darkness wasn't an assault in the Middle East or Asia. It was a training exercise on the coast of Virginia and North Carolina, designed to return thousands of Marines to their amphibious roots and train for a more modern version of the well-known beach assaults conducted during World War II.

Military officials say the operation being conducted in Virginia and North Carolina is the largest amphibious training exercise they've attempted in at least a decade. Marines have been fighting wars in landlocked countries like Iraq and Afghanistan for years, and many have never even set foot on a Navy ship. That's of particular concern as the military shifts its strategic focus toward the coastal regions of the Middle East, such as Iran, and the Pacific, where North Korea and China are drawing increasing attention from the U.S.

"Sooner or later, the nation is going to require a sizeable force to go somewhere where folks don't want us to go. So, no, the image is not Iwo Jima, Tarawa and so forth, but nevertheless, when we go to shore someplace where we're not wanted ashore, we have to be ready to defend force to accomplish the mission and then to sustain the force once it's ashore," said Brig. Gen. Christopher Owens, deputy commanding general of 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force.

About 3,500 Marines made landfall on the beaches near Camp Lejeune, N.C., and Virginia Beach beginning Monday, days before an aerial assault and insertion of Marines launched from sea is made on Fort Pickett in Virginia.

About 6:30 p.m. Monday, between 120 and 150 Marines traveled by landing hovercraft from the USS New York — an amphibious landing dock ship — to the cold shores of Fort Story, a military base along Virginia Beach hidden away from nearby high-rise resorts.

After unloading equipment about an hour and a half later, they made their way about 2.5 miles to raid a mock village playing host to a terrorist training camp. The Marines were receiving reconnaissance from about 10 of their brethren who had been hiding out undetected for the past few days gathering intelligence after swimming ashore.

Suddenly, among the wooden darkness, gunfire, pyrotechnics and shouting filled the bitter air as about 50 Marines entered the camp. Helicopters circled low overhead and light armored vehicles neared the village to tend to any wounded and clear the site.