"Tip of the Spear, US Marine Light Armor in the Gulf War", by Greg J. Michaels
Hardbound. 280 pages. 14 photographs.7 maps. Notes.
ISBN: 1-55750-599-3.
"Tip of the Spear" is Greg J. Michaels’ experience as a Marine Non Commissioned Officer` in a Light Armored Vehicle (LAV) company in the 1991 Gulf war. Not the fiction of a technology thriller, it is the first book written on present day US wheeled armored vehicles in combat, and the men who fought in them. It looks at the mission of the LAV units, the needed training that is difficult in peace and the capable leadership of Non Commissioned Officers and Officers required for a unit to be cohesive and functional.
These real experiences include the effort to operate effectively in a desert environment devoid of recognizable terrain features that are basics of map reading and land navigation. Early Global Positioning Satellite receivers (GPS) helped but there were not enough units and experienced users to make a difference.
Communications, even with the frequency hopping SINCGARS radios could and did not always work. Contact with aircraft providing ground support was only possible with the command vehicles and there were several occasions of mistaken identity by friendly aircraft that led to Marine casualties. An Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) device could have also helped in preventing these accidents.
Greg Michaels looks at his experience in Desert Storm as the manifestation of Honor, Courage and Commitment. Michaels understood that this was their purpose in Desert Storm; to free Kuwait.
The book serves as an insight into the organization of the Light Armored Infantry Battalions (LAI) s where the LAV-25 and its variants serve. The vehicle’s combat experience will influence the future utilization of the US military’s largest number of wheeled armored vehicles. The Marines have used the LAV flexibly in its role of reconnaissance, mechanized infantry, or infantry support. The new versions of the LAV are a TOW combination on a 25mm turret and the 4.2-inch breech loaded mortar turret, fire support version.
The readers can relate to Michaels’ examples of good leaders in an organization and their dedication to the men and the unit. It reminded me of the concern of a Philippine Marine officer who had the same drive for his unit. The Philippine Marine Commandant raised a toast to him as one of the "most professional" officers in the Marines and the AFP. He added his regret of losing this good officer who had requested to retire after his completing his tour as the Commanding Officer of the 6th Philippine Marine Battalion.
This book will be of interest to the Philippine Marines who use the other contender of the United States Tank-automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM)LAV trials, the V-300 manufactured by Textron (Cadillac Gage).
The V-300 was provided to the Philippines as part of the last Military Aid package for the former US bases at Clark and Subic. The APC variant has a manually traversed turret similar to that on the AAV-7. It is armed with a .50 cal M2HB machine gun and a 7.62mm machinegun (M60) in place of the 40mmAutomatic Grenade Launcher (AGL) of the AAV-7. The Philippine Marines also have the 90mm gun turret of the V-300 as a fire support vehicle.
Visit an LAV crewman's site! "1 of the Few!"
The US Naval Institute publishes books that are in the interest of the sea service and the Marines. These may not always be a commercial success, but are deemed important by the editorial board that they are put into print by the Institute to disseminate ideas that affect the Navy and the Nation.
The Institute has again accomplished this goal with the release of "Tip of the Spear,".
Copies of "Tip of the Spear" are available directly from the US Naval Institute bookstore,
Beach Hall, USNA, 291 Wood Road, Annapolis, MD, 21402, USA.
Telephone: 1-(410) 295-1081; Fax: 1-(410) 269-7940
Members of the US Naval Institute are entitled to discounts on this book and other titles in published by the Naval Institute Press.
USNI Bookstore:USMC Equipment Data Files,(Use your browsers back button to return to this page)
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Subject: Marines Praise Versatile Light Armored Vehicle
By
Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, May 10,
2001 -- The Marines want people to know
about their unusual light armored
vehicle that performed
distinguished service during the Gulf
War.
Staff Sgts. Russell A. Strack and Thomas E. Davis will
answer
questions about LAVs on display through May 13 on
the National Mall between
4th and 7th streets here as part
of Public Service Recognition Week
activities. The two are
assigned to Company B, 4th Light Armored
Reconnaissance
Battalion, Fort Detrick, Md.
The Marines use their
eight-wheeled, amphibious LAVs for
reconnaissance, artillery direction and
"hit-and-run"
missions. The vehicles replaced slower, tracked
M-113
personnel carriers in 1985, said Strack, a
Baltimore
native.
"I look at this as a chance to show people what we
do and
where their tax money is going," said Davis, who hails
from
Wadsworth, Ohio.
The LAVs on display include a "25" scout version
with a 25
mm cannon, Strack said, and a "tank-killer" variant that
uses
TOW missiles. The LAVs also come in mortar-, command-
and-control-, supply-
and towing-vehicle versions, he said.
Bristling with two machine guns and
smoke grenade launchers
in addition to the cannon, recon LAVs carry a
crew
consisting of a commander, gunner and driver, and four
infantry
scouts, Strack said.
At 14.5 tons, the Marines' rubber-tired LAV is
petite
compared to the 65-ton M-1 Abrams tank, he said.
"She's fast
and versatile, but not heavily armored. We gave
up the armor for more
mobility and lethality -- and very
dependable," Strack said. The LAV attains
speeds of 60 mph
and faster on hard surfaces. Crews don't need to
worry
about blowouts, he said, because the tires have hard inner
liners
and can run flat.
LAVs are equipped with twin aft propellers and
rudders,
Strack said, and although not designed for sea use, they
can make
6 mph in calmer water found in rivers and streams.
Like the Army's Abrams
tankers, Marine LAV crews
distinguished themselves in the Mideast during
Operations
Desert Shield and Storm, he added.
"The Saudi Arabians
liked it so much, it is one of the
chief vehicles in their army now," Strack
continued
"Because we can move so fast, it is hard to hit us when
we're
rolling."
The LAV can be shipped or airlifted to hot spots around
the
world and could be considered a predecessor to a kind of
light armored
wheeled vehicle the Army is now developing
for its future force. The Army
model would also be air-
deployable, but considerably bigger and heavier than
a LAV
at about 25-30 tons, Strack said.
The LAV isn't designed to go
toe-to-toe against a heavily
armored enemy. Its metal skin can only fend off
7.62 mm and
smaller rounds, he said. However, he added,
infrared-sight-
equipped LAVs can scout and fight at night, and the
vehicle
excels at everything it was designed to do.
Public outreach
initiatives like Public Service Recognition
Week are important to the Marine
Corps, said Staff Sgt.
Sylvester K. Blandford, noncommissioned officer in
charge
of the Marines' PSRW displays.
"People can see and touch the
equipment and ask the
Marines: "What do you do?' 'What is this gear?' 'Why do
we
use it?'" said Blandford, a Philadelphian assigned to
Headquarters
Battalion at the Marines' Henderson Hall in
Arlington,
Va.
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