MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- As members of America’s primary force in readiness, Marines must continually train for battle. To help better prepare Marines to fight today’s ever-evolving enemies, Camp Pendleton has ramped up its number of training facilities.
In the past few years there has been a tremendous increase in new state-of-the-art training complexes on the base. The number of Military Operations in Urban Terrain facilities has gone from three to 14 in just a few years.
Military Operations in Urban Terrain facilities are simulated urban environments that have been utilized more and more since moving away from the jungle warfare of Vietnam to urban battles like Fallujah, Iraq.
Pendleton has also developed Improvised Explosive Devices Lanes, which are areas designed to simulate IEDs in combat.
There are convoy training routes, including one that encompasses the entire base and fires integration sites where regimental leadership can train to fight a battle as a large unit.
One of the more popular facilities is the newly revamped Infantry Immersion Trainer, which is a simulated Afghan village. The upgrade to the facility makes it approximately four times larger than before, totaling 130,000 square feet, and features 40 role players, six weapons caches, three home-made explosive labs, 20 animal pens, 25 smell generators and six sound zones to make the training as realistic as possible.
“The whole purpose behind Camp Pendleton is to train war fighters,” said Joe Vaineharrison, range control officer, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, and a retired Marine gunner. “Without these facilities this base wouldn’t be meeting its responsibility to this country.”
Like Vaineharrison, the staff members who organize and create these training facilities are mostly retired Marine staff non-commissioned officers and officers, all with combat experience.
“One thing I love about this base is that if it isn’t an active duty Marine running a range or a training facility, it’s a retired Marine with at least 20 years of experience,” said Vaineharrison, a New Mexico native. “Similar to why the Marine Corps have its own air wing – you know that when you call in for air support, there are Marines coming in to back you up.”
Another benefit to expanding the training facilities on base is that Marines can get all the training they need right here, instead of sending a unit to another Marine base or another service’s base, said Vaineharrison.
“The importance of Camp Pendleton cannot be measured quantitatively,” said Vaineharrison. “What the Corps gives this country is freedom and that's the only way you can measure the true value of this base.”