Experience. Common arguments
against the nomination of an aviator
have been, “No one knows the needs
of the 0311 like a Marine infantryman,” or “An aviator doesn’t have to
look his Marines in the eye and tell
him to ‘seize that objective’ or ‘take
down that machinegun nest’ against
withering enemy fire.” Neither argument holds water. From day one, each
and every individual who earns the
right to wear the eagle, globe, and anchor is taught that we are all “riflemen
first.”
Along the same line, the Marine
Corps has looked to its officers to become total MAGTF professionals; each
is required to complete the same line of
professional military education, regard-
under great pressure and at great peril.
The burden of leadership weighs
equally upon us all.
It Is Time
The recent successes of aviators in
command positions validate their leadership skills. The Marine Corps has already placed aviators in command of
the world’s premier expeditionary
fighting force—the MEF. The logical
implication is that they can perform
the duties as Commandant with the
same expectation for success. In fact,
our previous Commander-in-Chief
nominated an exemplary MAGTF officer—an aviator—to the position of
Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff;
this is the second most senior ranking
gument that the Commandant must be
an infantryman is not a compelling
one. This article is simply postulating
that it is time for the Marine Corps to
take that last and final step toward validation of the total MAGTF officer, regardless of MOS.
Notes
1. Headquarters Marine Corps, Chapter 2, Part
2: “Organization,” Marine Corps Concepts and
Programs 2008, United States Marine Corps,
Washington, DC, p. 34.
2. Ibid., p. 27.
We do not struggle with the petty nuance of job de-
scription. When asked what we do for a living, every
Marine responds, “I am a United States Marine.”
3. Then-BGen James N. Mattis, Commanding
General, 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade (1st
MEB), assumed command of Task Force 58—
a hybrid of 1st MEB, 15th MEU, 26th MEU,
and U.S. Special Operations Forces Task Force
Sword, as well as Coalition Special Operations
elements.
4. Command element, ground combat element,
aviation combat element, and combat logistics
element.
less of background, in addition to the
training required by their MOSs. We
all live to support that 0311. And while
the immediacy and gravitas that comes
with being “in the thick of it” with a
Marine Corps infantry company is a
daunting challenge that can test the
fortitude of the strongest leaders, the
Marine aviator knows what it is like to
operate in the face of tremendous risk
and does not live without consequence.
Find any combat aviator who has been
a member of a tactical air control party
(TACP) with troops in contact or in an
aircraft on a danger-close close air support mission or the pilot in command
for an immediate casevac. Ask him
about the helpless feeling he experiences when listening to Marines in extremis on TACP-LocalNet, or listen as
he tells of the twisted knot in his stomach when he informed that engaged
platoon of Marines to hold on for a little while longer because he didn’t have
enough gas to pick up the last of them.
These aviators perform their missions
and make life and death decisions
officer in the Department of Defense
(DoD). If a Marine Corps aviator is
good enough for the DoD and the
country as a whole, why is he not good
enough to lead the Marine Corps?
Nothing Personal
It would be easy to mistake this article as an attack on the capabilities of
the ground combat arms officer or on
the present leadership of the Marine
Corps. Quite the contrary, the unique-ness of our Service lies in the fact that
every Marine is a rifleman first. It is our
hallmark. We are fortunate as a Service
in that each and every Marine is exactly
that—a Marine first and foremost. We
do not struggle with the petty nuance
of job description. When asked what
we do for a living, every Marine responds, “I am a United States Marine.”
Without a doubt, our doctrine is such
that every Marine officer has the potential to lead a rifle company and, ultimately, command large, joint forces.
That being the case—especially bearing recent experience in mind—the ar-
5. McCutcheon was eventually appointed Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps in
1970 but was unable to assume the post because
of ill health. It was widely rumored that, if not
for his death, he would have been Commandant.
6. Currently 11th, 15th, and 26th MEUs.
7. MajGen Terry Robling is slated to assume
command of III MEF this summer. (See Special Notices, p. 4.)
8. Then-LtGen James Amos (II MEF, 2004–
06), LtGen Keith Stalder (II MEF, 2006–08),
LtGen Samuel Helland (I MEF, 2007 to present).
>Author’s Note: Special thanks to James
Ginther, Archives and Special Collections
Branch, Library of the Marine Corps, for his
invaluable support in the provision of the recent lineage of the three active duty MEFs.
