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Lt. Lou Schott, 96, was part of the A Company 1st Battalion 5th Marines (A15) during WWII and fought in the Battle for Iwo Jima. The Marine Cryptologic Support Battalion (MCSB) participates in a Professional Military Education (PME) course focusing on WWII small arms used by the US Marines and Japanese with an emphasis on the Battle for Iwo Jima. The marines got to live fire historical arms from the war alongside gun and range club members at the Associated Gun Club of Baltimore in Marriottsville. - Lt. Lou Schott, 96, was part of the A Company 1st Battalion 5th Marines (A15) during WWII and fought in the Battle for Iwo Jima. The Marine Cryptologic Support Battalion (MCSB) participates in a Professional Military Education (PME) course focusing on WWII small arms used by the US Marines and Japanese with an emphasis on the Battle for Iwo Jima. The marines got to live fire historical arms from the war alongside gun and range club members at the Associated Gun Club of Baltimore in Marriottsville.

Sharing heritage and history: Marine Cryptologic Support Battalion learn about battle of Okinawa, shoot WWII firearms

Wearing a Marines cap adorned with the Purple Heart, 96-year-old Lou Schott watched as 40 members of Headquarters Company, Marine Cryptologic Support Battalion fired rifles, shotguns and pistols used in World War II.

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Cpl. Jason E. Casbeer and his military working dog, Mac, wait to train in Okinawa, Japan, Jan. 25, 2017. The dog teams run through courses to evaluate their proficiency in explosive ordnance detection, the application of controlled aggression and the execution of combat tracking. Casbeer, from Angleton, Texas, is a tracking dog handler with 3rd Law Enforcement Battalion, III Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Jessica Etheridge) - Cpl. Jason E. Casbeer and his military working dog, Mac, wait to train in Okinawa, Japan, Jan. 25, 2017. The dog teams run through courses to evaluate their proficiency in explosive ordnance detection, the application of controlled aggression and the execution of combat tracking. Casbeer, from Angleton, Texas, is a tracking dog handler with 3rd Law Enforcement Battalion, III Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Jessica Etheridge)

How man’s best friend becomes closest ally

For more than 241 years, Marines have earned fame for fighting alongside their brothers, sisters and allies, but military working dogs are often overlooked. They have also risked their lives, aiding their Marine counterparts in combat since World War II. Today, MWD handlers constantly hone their dogs’ abilities to detect explosive ordnance, perform combat tracking and exercise controlled aggression.

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Cpl. Robert Arellano became a Martial Arts Instructor, Dec. 16, 2016, after he completed a three-week long MCMAP instructor course in Okinawa, Japan. Arellano, a combat camera production specialist with Headquarters Battalion, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, is from Yuma, Arizona. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Bernadette Wildes) - Cpl. Robert Arellano became a Martial Arts Instructor, Dec. 16, 2016, after he completed a three-week long MCMAP instructor course in Okinawa, Japan. Arellano, a combat camera production specialist with Headquarters Battalion, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, is from Yuma, Arizona. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Bernadette Wildes)

Arizona combat camera Marine moonlights as martial arts instructor

Late on a Friday, most Marines were on their way out to enjoy a weekend night, but not Cpl. Robert Arellano. He was on his way home from his second Marine Corps Martial Arts Program session of the day.

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Sgt. Leonard S. Yost inspects vehicles repaired during a reservist training period, Jan. 24, 2017, at Camp Kinser, Okinawa, Japan. The training period was used to integrate reserve and active duty Marines to share knowledge and ideas to improve work productivity. Yost, a native of Hubert, North Carolina, is an intermediate automotive mechanic with Transportation Services Company, Combat Logistics Battalion 25, Combat Logistics Regiment 45, 4th Marine Logistics Group, currently working with 3rd Maintenance Battalion, Combat Logistics Regiment 35, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force. (U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Lance Cpl. Jonah Baase) - Sgt. Leonard S. Yost inspects vehicles repaired during a reservist training period, Jan. 24, 2017, at Camp Kinser, Okinawa, Japan. The training period was used to integrate reserve and active duty Marines to share knowledge and ideas to improve work productivity. Yost, a native of Hubert, North Carolina, is an intermediate automotive mechanic with Transportation Services Company, Combat Logistics Battalion 25, Combat Logistics Regiment 45, 4th Marine Logistics Group, currently working with 3rd Maintenance Battalion, Combat Logistics Regiment 35, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force. (U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Lance Cpl. Jonah Baase)

From Connecticut to Okinawa: Marine reservists train with III Marine Expeditionary Force in Japan

Reservists rarely get the chance to train overseas, but Marines from New Haven Armed Forces Reserve Center recently received that opportunity with III Marine Expeditionary Force here.

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Retired Lt. Col. Frederick Grant retired Jan. 27, 2017, after 54 years of continuous service to the Marine Corps. Grant served as the director of the Tactical Exercise Control Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force, after 38 years of service as an enlisted Marine and officer. Grant, from Emporia, Virginia, enlisted Oct. 2, 1963, and served as an infantryman in Vietnam in addition to various other enlisted and officer billets. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Bernadette Wildes/released) - Retired Lt. Col. Frederick Grant retired Jan. 27, 2017, after 54 years of continuous service to the Marine Corps. Grant served as the director of the Tactical Exercise Control Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force, after 38 years of service as an enlisted Marine and officer. Grant, from Emporia, Virginia, enlisted Oct. 2, 1963, and served as an infantryman in Vietnam in addition to various other enlisted and officer billets. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Bernadette Wildes/released)

Q&A with Virginia Marine who retires after 54 years of service

Retired Lt. Col. Frederick Grant, from Emporia, Virginia, enlisted in the Marine Corps Oct. 2, 1963. He served on active duty for 38 years, filling various enlisted and officer billets. During his Marine Corps career, he married Hiroko Grant, a Japanese citizen. They had two daughters and five grandchildren, all of whom continuously support him overseas. When he retired from active duty, he returned to Okinawa, Japan, to begin a government service career as the director of the Tactical Exercise Control Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force. Now, Grant is retiring from his 54 years of uninterrupted service with the Marine Corps.

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AH-1Z conducts precautionary landing on Ikei Island

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP BUTLER, Okinawa, Japan - An AH-1Z helicopter belonging to Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 267, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, III Marine Expeditionary Force conducted a precautionary landing on Ikei Island in Okinawa, Japan at approximately 7:30 p.m. today.

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F-35B Lightning II aircraft, belonging to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121, Marine Aircraft Group 12, arrived at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni January 12, beginning the squadron’s permanent basing at the air station. - F-35B Lightning II aircraft, belonging to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121, Marine Aircraft Group 12, arrived at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni January 18, beginning the squadron’s permanent basing at the air station.

F-35B arrives in Japan

MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan – F-35B Lightning II aircraft, belonging to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121, Marine Aircraft Group 12, arrived at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni January 18, beginning the squadron’s permanent basing at the air station.

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Four U.S. Marines and two Sailors instinctively responded alongside local residents when a vehicle with five passengers fell from the fifth story of a parking garage in Yokosuka, a city in the Greater Tokyo area, Dec. 31, 2016. Once the Marines arrived on scene, the group flipped the car in order to remove the passengers prior to Japanese Emergency Medical Services arriving. The Marines are assigned to 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment and forward-deployed to 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Okinawa, Japan. The Sailors are assigned to Commander Fleet Activities Yokosuka. Pictured left to right: Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Garrett Osborne, Marine Corps Lance Cpls. James Flores and Manaure Arellano, Marine Corps Pfc. Jacob Boerner, Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Raheem Gilliam and Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Derhon Finch. (U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Richard Gourley) - Four U.S. Marines and two Sailors instinctively responded alongside local residents when a vehicle with five passengers fell from the fifth story of a parking garage in Yokosuka, a city in the Greater Tokyo area, Dec. 31, 2016. Once the Marines arrived on scene, the group flipped the car in order to remove the passengers prior to Japanese Emergency Medical Services arriving. The Marines are assigned to 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment and forward-deployed to 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Okinawa, Japan. The Sailors are assigned to Commander Fleet Activities Yokosuka. Pictured left to right: Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Garrett Osborne, Marine Corps Lance Cpls. James Flores and Manaure Arellano, Marine Corps Pfc. Jacob Boerner, Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Raheem Gilliam and Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Derhon Finch. (U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Richard Gourley)

Marines rescue Japanese children during Tokyo tragedy

Four Marines were traveling toward a Yokosuka train station on their way to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Tokyo, when they heard a call for help. Without hesitation, they sprinted toward the scene, weaving between pedestrians on a crowded street.

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Sgt. Jonathan M. Kelly is one of the Marines in the group who developed the winning “quality of life” app category in the Commandant’s Innovation Challenge. The awards announcement was made Dec. 7, 2016. The challenge required the participants to develop an app for the following categories: war fighting, lifestyle and physical fitness. The app, called “Liberty Okinawa”, includes information about different places in Okinawa, Japan, a link to Google Maps to find their locations, the liberty rules and guidelines, an alarm when your liberty curfew is approaching and important contact numbers in case of an emergency. Kelly, a Honolulu, Hawaii, native, is a part of 1st Marine Air Wing, III Marine Expeditionary Force on Okinawa, Japan. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Amaia Unanue/ Released) - Sgt. Jonathan M. Kelly is one of the Marines in the group who developed the winning “quality of life” app category in the Commandant’s Innovation Challenge. The awards announcement was made Dec. 7, 2016. The challenge required the participants to develop an app for the following categories: war fighting, lifestyle and physical fitness. The app, called “Liberty Okinawa”, includes information about different places in Okinawa, Japan, a link to Google Maps to find their locations, the liberty rules and guidelines, an alarm when your liberty curfew is approaching and important contact numbers in case of an emergency. Kelly, a Honolulu, Hawaii, native, is a part of 1st Marine Air Wing, III Marine Expeditionary Force on Okinawa, Japan. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Amaia Unanue/ Released)

There’s an App for That | Okinawa Marines Win Corps-wide Development Competition

They weren’t forced or “voluntold.” They simply volunteered their talents and dedication, and won. Marines stationed in Okinawa, Japan swept the competition away when it came to mobile-application development, winning two of three categories during the first Commandant’s Innovation Challenge.

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MV-22B Osprey flights set to continue for III Marine Expeditionary Force on Dec. 19, 2016. - MV-22B Osprey flights set to continue for III Marine Expeditionary Force on Dec. 19, 2016.