CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- Marines with Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment conducted an
amphibious landing as part of Exercise Dawn Blitz on the beaches of Marine Corps
Base Camp Pendleton, California, Sept. 5, 2015.
Dawn Blitz is a
multinational, amphibious training exercise designed to hone the amphibious
landing skills of I Marine Expeditionary Brigade, Expeditionary Strike Group
Three and allies of the United States.
“One of our biggest strengths in
the Marine Corps is that we can rapidly build combat power ashore,” said Capt.
Joe Fontanetta, Alpha Company commander, 1st Battalion, 5th
Marines.
During the exercise’s amphibious landing, Alpha Company Marines
were transported by 14 amphibious assault vehicles with 3rd Assault Amphibian
Battalion from the USS Somerset to the shore of Camp Pendleton.
“We are
able to train and learn how to deploy from a ship, come ashore, and whether it’s
a combat or a humanitarian mission, we do it efficiently,” said
Fontanetta.
After taking the beach, the Marines pushed further into Camp
Pendleton to set up a defensive position against a simulated enemy. The Marines
will be fighting this simulated enemy until the close of the exercise, Sept.
10.
“It is a coordinated effort across the battalion,” Fontanetta said.
“We take one beach with a small boat company by the cover of night from over the
horizon and then come in hard with a mechanized company with armor, speed and
firepower. Then when [the enemy is] trying to figure out what to do, we’ve got a
company flying ashore cutting off they’re lines of communications.”
This
exercise is another step toward the Marine Corps strengthening and returning to
its amphibious roots.
“Amphibious landings are what pays the bills for
the Marine Corps,” said Gunnery Sgt. Heath Fernald, a platoon sergeant with 3rd
Assault Amphibian Battalion. “We’ve shown during this exercise that we are
capable of splashing out from multiple amphibious ships effectively.”