Marine unit suffers 21 KIA this week

Reuters reports,

Fourteen Marines were killed in a roadside bomb blast in western Iraq on Wednesday in one of the single deadliest attacks against US forces since the beginning of the war. The bomb exploded near a Marine amphibious assault vehicle as it was travelling south of Haditha, a town on the Euphrates river about 200km (120 miles) northwest of Baghdad. A civilian translator was also killed. One Marine was wounded.

That makes 21 Marines killed in action this week (post), and the week is only half over. All 21 KIA are from the same Ohio-based Marine Reserve unit, a terrible loss for them. The 14 who died today were all riding in an amphibious assault vehicle (AAV), which serves as an armored personnel carrier for the Marines, either on land or afloat. The AAV has a crew of three and carries up to 18 infantrymen in its compartment.

A US Marine Corps AAV. It is only lightly armored. USMC photo.

My son, Stephen, is an amphibious assault vehicle (AAV) crewman in Alpha Company, 2d AAV Battalion, part of the 2d Marine Division. A Co. is presently undergoing predeployment training at March AFB, Calif. They will go to Iraq next month.

Stephen called last night and among other things said that they are doing a lot of training in IEDs and ambush procedures. He is one of only four Marines in his platoon trained as combat lifesavers, advanced first aid training adapted from an Army program. As such, Stephen is a crewman of the section leader's track and is positioned about a third of the way from one end of their convoys. This isn't a hard and fast rule, however.

Beginning today (I think) his unit will train intensively in small-unit combat in buildings. At week's end they will fight mock close-quarters combat using paintball equipment. I told him if he got painted I'll kick his rear in (rhetorically speaking only, of course, since a 19-year-old combat-trained Marine can easily outmatch a 49 y/o retired Army slug).

I am confident that Stephen's training is the best to be found for their tasks ahead, but the grim news from Iraq this week is chilling for a dad whose son will go there soon.