Replacing the M16/M4

Yeah, as soon as we checked in they told us to forget about TOWs/Javelins. I ended up in a quasi MIT team my first deployment and then in the BN QRF my second. Because for some reason they thought we we're smarter than your average crunchy and our lack of a home, I spent the better part of my enlistment fighting to avoid the S-3. I wish I'd just gone 11 in retrospect.

 

I don't think they're trying to replace all the SAWs. I remember reading that they're keeping like 2/3s of them or something. 1 IAR per squad? I think it all goes back to Afghanistan and it's greater demands for foot operations. They loaded us up to the heavens with the MTVs and other bull(*)(*)(*)(*) for Iraq and then realized an 80+lb fighting load doesn't work in the mountains of Afghanistan. We can probably blame congress a bit for that.

 

What is MIT again? I forgot.

0311s are just the slaves of the Marine Corps. My squad basically built all of Karma's security emplacements by itself (the rest of our company was sandbagging, no pun intended). We probably filled over 5,000 sandbags, easy.

 

Oh yea. Good point. Forgot about Afghanistan. I guess the IAR would be better suited to that terrain.

 

It's actually "MTT" not 'MIT"...sorry. Its stands for Military Transition Team; A small team of Marines that live with, train, and do operations with Iraqi/Afghan forces. My platoon wasn't really an official MIT team but we were basically attached to a company of Iraqis at an outpost in the middle of nowhere. We did a lot of joint ops and every once in a while tried to teach them a thing or two. It wasn't bad, we avoided most of the bs everyone had to go through on the COP/out with their companies. Our SgtMajor dubbed us the "Lord of the Flies Platoon"....a nickname we coveted.

 

I remember filling HESCOs by hand around our UXO pit on New Years Eve. Builds character, haha.

 

hehe...you skaters.

That's cool though. My platoon was like that, too. We were embedded at the Karma IP station. We patrolled with and trained the IPs and provincial security forces. Built all of their checkpoints for them (lazy asses). We were the last fixed unit in Karma. After we left, squads just rotated in and out from the FOB.

 

Oh God, HESCOs...almost forgot about those too. Jesus...those things sucked.

 

I take it 0352 is anti-armor, and kinda the version of what use to be our 11H mos?

 

I don't know who was more lazy and chicken (*)(*)(*)(*), the IPs or the IA.
I felt a little better going out on patrol with the IA, because all those IPs were straight up snakes, and were recreational Mahdi on their free time.

 

Pretty much. The MOS codes for Army and Marines are pretty similar in structure, only differing in the codes and how they are used.

Instead of 11X for Infantry, Marine MOS codes are 03XX for Infantry.

And where the Army uses a single letter designator for specific MOS (11B for Infantry), the Marines use a 2 number specific designator (0311 for Infantry Rifleman).

This makes it even easier to show exact MOS, plus the Marines really do not do the redesignation and consolidation that the Army does. However, it does happen.

When I was in, 0351 was Light Anti-Armor, in other words SMAW. Now apparently it is for Obstacle Breaching. And 0352 was for Heavy Anti-Armor, Dragon and TOW. Now it is Tow and Javelin.

And it continues like this down the line. 0331 is Crew Served Machine Gun (M60 then, M240 now). 0332 is Heavy Machine Gun, M2 and MK19.

The Army a while back decided to eliminate a lot of the 11X specialty MOS, and rolled them all into 11B.

 

Ya, it was kinda of a cluster (*)(*)(*)(*) when the Army consolidated the 11 serious with the exception of 11C(mortar). I was a 11B, and we had NCOs who use to be 11M and 11H coming in our unit that were a little rusty when it came to maneuvering squads and fire teams.

By the way, how is Bliss treating you?

 

Well, during the week last month and this month I am out at lovely White Sands Missile Range, doing some system upgrades. And in their infinite wisdom, they billeted us all the way out at Donna Anna Range. So instead of a 20 minute drive to the site, we now have a 1 hour drive each way.

This is why I am only on during the weekends for the next month. However, I hope to have some good photos to post here in a week or so when I have a chance. I may even update my avatar picture. I had that one taken back in 2007.

 

Are you a contractor, or are you still in?

 

Nope, still in. If I was a contractor I would be making TDY money and staying in a hotel. Not living on a fake FOB which makes me feel like I should be wearing a reflective belt every time I go outside at night.

 

Lol, got it.

Are you ada?

 

And that is why I never wanted to be in a unit without tracks. We always had engineers with bulldozers and backhoes close by to do that (*)(*)(*)(*) for us.

 

Must have been nice! When you're a grunt, you are the backhoe and bulldozer.

 

I have they gotten rid of 0332? I was under the impression that 31s did ALL machine guns +Mk-19. I'd never even heard of a 32 until you posted it in a thread.

 

Yea, it has been made obsolete. Like the 0342 (81/120mm Mortarman).

Sorry, I did not realize this had happened.

0332 Gunner, Heavy Machinegun (Marine Corps - Enlisted)

The gunner, heavy machine-gun has the specific requirement of providing immediate, responsive, and accurate supporting fire for the infantry battalion. Typical duties of the gunner, heavy machine-gun are routine weapons maintenance, vehicle operations and maintenance, and engaging targets with the M2 and MK19 machineguns.

Note:This military occupation is obsolete.

 

Yes, maybe 10 years from now they'll be practical on larger artillery pieces and start becoming portable. Bullets that can change direction mid-flight would be cool too. Invisibility technology and robots would be the ultimate thing to change warfare. These would be good replacements for the m16 and m4.

 

OK guys, keep in mind that Call of Duty does not familiarize civilians with every single military acronym and slang term in existence, so please try to keep the conversation at a level that we can all understand. I'm lucky to have an Army friend who informed me that "fobbits" = soldiers who never leave the Forward Operations Base, but not everyone has a friend in the Army.

Incorrect. The M4 is indeed fully automatic, though only the M4A1 variant can fire more than 3 shots on a single trigger squeeze.

 

Maybe SF guys get to play with full auto M4s, but most line units use M4s with three round burst, since there is no real need for full auto.

 

The M4 variant that most of the military use is NOT automatic. Typically only SF carries the fully automatic version.

 

The Stoner uppers could be replaced with gas pistol uppers for much less cost than replacing the M-16/M4 series with the ACR.