LAR War Pig with the One Six

June 17, 2008, Operation Enduring Freedom. USMC photo Cpl. Randall A. Clinton

46% More WAR PIGS!

By Lance Cpl. Jenna Lassandrello Approximately one year ago, a massive realignment of organization took place in an effort to increase productivity. After evaluating the way things were working, the Maintenance Center implemented some changes to streamline production.

As a result of the changes the light armored vehicle shop, Cost Work Center 713, at MCB has reduced the LAV repair cycle time significantly since this same time last year, said Chief Warrant Officer Scott Stevens, an LAV project manager at MCB.

“All of the LAVs slated to be completed in May were already completed in April,” said Stevens.

Some of the successful business management tools that were incorporated during the realignment and are primarily responsible for the increase in the smoothness of the operations are the new Production Management Department and the implementation of “Lean Thinking” and the Theory of Constraints.

The Production Management Department at MCB is responsible for the planning phase of the process.

Production Management teams plan each individual project from start to finish, including personally monitoring the cost schedule and performance of each product, said Stevens.

They are also responsible for formally briefing the customer on the entire program status, tracking costs and configuration management, said Stevens.

Next is the implementation of “lean thinking” around MCB.

The basis of lean thinking is getting rid of what isn’t needed, making sure what is needed is in the right place, eliminating time wasting processes and making the workplace look professional by keeping it orderly, clean and safe, Stevens said.

While reevaluating the job of repairing the LAV, the procedures that were not working as well as they could were thrown out and improved processes replaced the old.

The feature of “lean thinking” is the six S’s. The S’s stand for sort, straighten, scrub, standardize, safety and self-discipline.

These letters help the employees remember the principles the organization is designed around.

The Theory of Constraints is the organization and tracking of every step in each individual project.

The TOC process involves monitoring each step in the critical chain of events necessary to produce a product.

It helps to identify where the production rate is lagging and limiting the production, explained Stevens.

“If we can improve the (production) rate … the entire chain operates at a higher ‘throughput’ rate,” said Stevens.

From start to finish, the break down, repair and rebuild of the LAV has 67 steps, said Stevens.

“With the TOC each step is identified, along with the time each step should take.

If anything goes wrong, such as not having the correct parts for repair, the project will be delayed.

As soon as these issues are identified, the supervisors of the project will know through the tracking of the TOC, and can give proper attention to the situation and get it back on track,” said Stevens.

But with all the new improvements over the last year, getting behind is no longer a concern for the LAV workers.

The 67 steps it takes to repair an LAV originally took 130 days.

Since implementing the new improvements it has been reduced to an average of 95 days, said Stevens.

The vast improvements and the new smooth-working processes at MCB are not all due to the new organization, though, said Stevens.

“All of these things are just tools, the people doing the job whole-heartedly is what really makes everything work in the depot.

“They are why we are successful,” said Stevens.

“Speeding up the process is important because the LAV is a critical item. The fleet needs them and the warfighter needs them. The faster we get them out, the more the Fleet Marine Force benefits.

“It is always good to reevaluate the things we are doing and find more effective ways of doing them,” said Stevens.

“And in this situation, we really made quite an improvement.”

September War Pig

First Day of Fall-September War Pig Photo:HQ. USMC

ISO Downed Pilot:Officer Dude! This way...

September: Two LAR War Pigs are in the Camp Lejune, NC week long drill course on tactical recovery of aircraft personnel. The line "Officer Dude! This way..." is from another hotly contested recovery of a downed US pilot caught between Saddam forces and US Army. The confused pilot, trapped in the middle, couldn't figure out who the friendlies were-both were firing and both yelling at him in English until finally he heard one side yell: "Officer Dude! This way..." USMC photo Lance Cpl. David J. Beall

War Pig Fire Power

LAR Marines and and the War Pigs of C Company, First LAR, August 2007 out for some live fire exercise as a combined arms training. This is the first week of Operation Mawtini at Combat Outpost Rawah, Iraq.Photo Cpl. Ryan Heiser

DVIDS 8/2007 story/photo Cpl. Ryan Heiser

Company C, 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, Regimental Combat Team 2, conducted combined arms training near the end of the first week of Operation Mawtini.

"The shoot was pretty awesome, and showed we could do some incredible stuff when we coordinate together," said Cpl. Kiante K. Walker, a fire direction control chief and vehicle commander with the company. "It proves we have massive fire suppression abilities, and according to what the targets looked like afterward, it also proved we have deadly accuracy even from a distance."


The combined arms training, nicknamed 'Series Thunderstruck' after the song it was choreographed to, tested the abilities of the company's newly formed mortar platoon.

"Generally when you fire (a mortar) you're just trying to get rounds on target. Yes, time is critical, but it isn't nearly as difficult as synchronizing with maneuvers. That was literally by the second," said Cpl. John P. Wallis, a mortar man and scout team leader with the company. "This forced us to expand our skill set and work as a team. My last shot proved that, it was a once-in-a-lifetime drill that came down to a fraction of a second."

The shot came after the long volley of initial rounds that marked the opening of the song's first verse. The mortar team ran into a few problems and didn't have much time to fix them.

"We had 10 seconds to get the gun up. Let me try to put that into perspective. I would say if the gun was mounted on a vehicle and had no interference or potential movement due to the ground shaking, that 30 seconds would be a great time," said Wallis, a Kailua, Hawaii, native. "On the dirt, with an unseated bi-pod and minor target adjustments to be made, it was as if God came out of the sky, reached down and said, 'Gentlemen, I would like you to fire your gun right now.' It was that incredible. Ten seconds. Ten."

Wallis and Weathers, an assistant gunner and scout with the company, quickly corrected the bipod. As Weathers grabbed the next mortar round, Wallis made the necessary sight adjustments. Right as the order for "fire" was sounded, Weathers got the round into the tube and the team safely, and successfully sent it down range.

"I don't really think about how much time we have or how hard something is. We train until our tasks become muscle-memory, so everything is just a reflex. It isn't a question of how fast you can accurately fire. It's a matter of how many lives are at stake if you don't, so you find a way," said Weathers, a Houston native.

The company fired 40 mortar rounds, 200 25 mm rounds, and 800 7.62-caliber rounds during the exercise. As the sun dropped below the horizon, the tracer rounds could be seen streaking across the sky and exploding in sparks as they hit their target.

"It was a great show of force and a great way of kicking off this operation," said Walker, a Laurel, Del., native. "The Iraqi civilians know we are still here, and we still have a massive amount of firepower if we need to use it. Most of all, we proved to them we haven't given up, and we are still going out searching for insurgents."

The Marines all agreed the training was an effective way to show an example of what the enemy was up against if they chose to attack.

"In general, just the presence of our vehicles is enough to intimidate and ward off terrorist behavior, so I imagine it would have struck fear into the hearts of anyone who was watching and was thinking of attacking us, our city (Rawah, Iraq) or its civilians," Wallis said.

"The enemy was probably ruining their underwear if they were watching us," agreed Walker. "They'd have to be insane not to be afraid of us. We completely destroyed our targets and nearly flattened the hill they were on in just a few short minutes."

War Pigs Exercise M242 25mm Bushmaster chain gun in Kuwait

DVIDS Story/Photo Cpl. Justin Martinez U.S. Marines with Light Armored


U.S. Marines with Light Armored Reconnaissance, BLT, 3/2 held M242 25mm Bushmaster chain gun live-fire training near Camp Buehring, Kuwait, this month as part of the MEU's training.

LAV tires trench fresh tracks in the road to the first range where rusty, blown-out, double-stacked cars await further destruction.

"It's a very large area that's quite open with a lot of micro-terrain that we can use, and it allows us to actually maneuver as an entire unit," said Staff Sgt. Christopher S. Hall, platoon sergeant for LAR and a native of Phoenix, Ariz. "It's perfectly suited for our mission."

Kevlar helmets poke out of eight-wheeled, armored shells as the platoon prepares to employ a weapon like no other.

"The advantage of having the M242 25mm Bushmaster chain gun is that its 25mm rounds put a lot of fire power down range at a rapid rate," said Hall. "It actually is driven by an electric motor and the bolt itself is rotated on a chain."

Marines wiped the sweat that collected in the bottom of their goggles as they collectively searched the glaring Kuwaiti sand for low mounds with makeshift men clutching wooden weapons.

"We've had time to take the junior Marines out so they can experience what it's like for a platoon to move in a width over six or seven klicks," said Sgt. Andrew C. Wedde, a vehicle commander and a native of Berrien Springs, Mich. "Covering that much area was amazing to them. You can't see the vehicle next to you."

Wedde added that the training provided a great experience for the junior Marines because the range was uniquely suited for vehicle movements that they couldn't conduct at Camp Lejeune.

For three days, the men drenched their uniforms with sweat under the baking sun, learning things that make LAR a more formidable force to reckon with.

"They did very well, I was proud of them. It's been a long time since we've done anything like this," said Capt. Christopher D. Winn, the Platoon Commander and a native of Colorado Springs, Colo. "They exceeded my expectations."

In early August, elements of the 22nd MEU arrived at Camp Buehring, a U.S. Army Central Command/Area Support Group Kuwait owned training base. The MEU is conducting sustainment training and is currently serving as the theater reserve force for U.S. Central Command.

Raw Footage LAR War Pigs in Helman Province

No sound. Maybe you can spot your Marine.