USMC Ending The Amphibious Landing?

The problem for modern USMC planners is that a determined defender managed this with 1940s weapons.
The Corps’ new vision does not include waves of landing craft and AAVs storming ashore on a beach. That’s a brute force approach and the Marines want to play it smart from now on. They’re looking at landing in places where the enemy least expect it, like a mangrove swamp, so they can get ashore and concentrate combat power before getting into contact.

To enable these new tactics the USMC is looking at a whole range of technologies. Obviously, a lot of them focus on reconnaissance and intelligence – there’s no point in getting your troops ashore in the mangrove swamp if the terrain is so bad they’re fixed there, an easy target for the first enemy artillery that finds them. Drones will prepare 3D terrain maps to highlight terrain features, allowing commanders to choose where to go ashore. Other drones will hunt for enemy defenses and fire support so they can be destroyed by standoff weapons launched from far offshore. Autonomous vehicles will explore routes and create diversions, and there’s a huge focus on how to keep forces undetected once they’re ashore.


U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate 1st Class Terry W. Matlock (RELEASED)

The Marines are aiming to test 50 new technologies on the exercise, which runs from 24-28 April, and another 50 will be on display for participating troops to look at. The ones that show promise will be given a tougher test at s second set of exercises later this year. The USMC’s traditional mission – kicking in the doors of the enemy’s coast – is a challenging one, but they’re taking action to make sure they can still do it. Best of all, they’re moving at impressive speed.