Marines Debut New Amphibious Combat Vehicle in High-Stakes Sea Drill

During the first at-sea combat readiness test, the US Marine Corps put its brand-new amphibious combat vehicle (ACV) through its paces. The drill took place off the coast of Camp Pendleton, California, from October 20 to November 1. It was part of the Quarterly Underway Amphibious Readiness Training (QUART). Nearly 200 Marines and 400 sailors from I Marine Expeditionary Force and Expeditionary Strike Group 3 came together for the event to test what the Navy and Marine Corps could do when they work together.

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The new ACV was part of the complicated at-sea readiness practice that also tested four types of rotary and tiltrotor aircraft. Deck landings were done during the day and at night on the amphibious transport dock Somerset, which had just returned from a seven-month tour with the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

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"QUART is an important training chance for the Navy and Marine Corps to work together to improve our readiness and deterrence," said Col. Kevin Hunter, head of Marine Aircraft Group 16 and leader of QUART 25.1.

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The training exercises also helped with ongoing coastal defense drills with the Marines' partners in the Philippines. This showed how important it is for Allied troops to have amphibious capabilities.

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This drill is an important part of proving that the Navy and Marine Corps can work together on amphibious operations. This makes sure that both services are ready to deal with threats at sea. To meet the needs of modern combat, the Marine Corps keeps improving the ACV and its other expeditionary tools.

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