Page 64 - Australian Defence Magazine October 2021
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                                     64 SPONSORED CONTENT
OCTOBER 2021 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
  THE TILTROTOR REVOLUTION AND THE MARINE CORPS IN THE PACIFIC
The United States Marine Corps (USMC) is the only combat force in the world built around a backbone of fifth generation airpower combined with the tiltrotor revolution unleashed by the Osprey. In the evolving Indo-Pacific operational theatre, the Marines can move various payloads – including Marines, supplies, weapons, C2, ISR, or autonomous systems – with range and speed to the desired operational area. In tandem, the F-35s provide cover from the ‘flying combat system’ which combines the basing flexibility, fifth generation information superiority and survivability of the F-35B – with the long-range logistic capabilities of the CMV-22B.
BY ROBBIN LAIRD
   THE FIRST time I saw the Osprey was in 2007 at New River with four Ospreys on the tarmac. From that time, the Osprey has operated in land wars in unique ways, enabling the Ma- rines to operate with a speed and range that no other force possesses. The Marines set up a special purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force (SP-MAGTF) which, together with KC-130Js could operate from Europe throughout the Middle East and Africa for rapid force insertion and rescue missions.
When the Obama Administration announced the pivot to the Pacific, the USMC leadership shaped a new laydown strategy for the region. I visited Marine Corps Forces Pa- cific (MARFORPAC) in 2014 and discussed the new lay- down strategy with the Marine Corps leadership. At that
time, I wrote that ‘The Osprey is rapidly becoming a lynch- pin for connecting forces in the Marine Corps distributed laydown. It is also an intriguing platform for some players in the region who are thinking about its acquisition, for it fits the geography and needs of the region so well.’1 And of course, since then the Japanese have now added Ospreys to their Self-Defense Force.
That distributed laydown has been joined by a broader shift to what I call the integrated distributed force, with the Navy working distributed maritime operations, and Pacific Air Force (PACAF) working agile combat employment. The Marines in the Pacific have leveraged their earlier distrib- uted laydown approach and now are focused on the ability to project forward from three areas: the first island chain in Okinawa; their new Guam base; and with the Australian Defence Force from Australia. The Osprey has become the key enabler for projecting power with speed and range from these and any other locations involving mobile or expedi- tionary bases in the Pacific.
In my visit to MARFORPAC this summer and discus- sions with both Lt. General Rudder (MARFORPAC Com- mander) and Lt. General Heckl (Commander I MEF), the Osprey was highlighted as a key enabler for the Marines in operating as a Pacific full spectrum defence force – from Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief (HADR) up to higher end operations in close cooperation with both the US Navy and the USAF. As Lt. General Heckl noted in our discussion: “The challenge seen from First Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF) is that for us to be effective we need to be credible. To be credible, we need to be for- ward. We are focused on positioning the MEF to be in a position to be an effective deterrent force.”2
  
























































































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