MEU to Debut New Artillery, Missile, and Multi-Domain Unit
The 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit will take along several innovations when it deploys this summer.
CAITLIN M. KENNEY | MAY 3, 2023
MARINE CORPS NAVY EUROPE MIDDLE EAST
ABOARD THE USS BATAAN—When the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit sets sail this summer, it will be carrying artillery and munitions new to East Coast MEUs, plus a new unit trained for multi-domain operations.
“Being able to add just yet another asset to a very already capable [Marine Air-Ground Task Force], really it just kind of—it provides a level of excitement, and just making things go boom is always fun,” Marine Capt. Chace Nelson, the commander of Sierra Battery, Battalion Landing Team 1/6, said about his unique artillery battery and the multiple weapons they employ.
Embarked aboard the ships of Amphibious Squadron Eight—Bataan, Mesa Verde, and Carter Hall—the 26th MEU will join 6th Fleet, then 5th Fleet. In European waters, the ARG/MEU will participate in unspecified “big NATO exercises” and practice operating under alliance tactical control, said Navy Capt. Martin Robertson, the commander of Amphibious Squadron Eight. Last year, Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO executed this transfer authority three times, including taking control of the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier, the USS Kearsarge ARG, and the 22nd MEU.
https://www.defenseone.com/threats/2023/05/meu-debut-new-artillery-missile-and-multi-domain-unit/385960/
