A Marine expeditionary brigade (MEB) is a formation of the
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...
, a
Marine air-ground task force
Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean.
Marine or marines may refer to:
Ocean
* Maritime (disambiguation)
* Marine art
* Marine biology
* Marine current power
* Marine debris
* Marine energy
* Marine habitats
* ...
of approximately 14,500 Marines and sailors constructed around a reinforced
infantry
Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...
regiment
A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation.
In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...
, a composite Marine aircraft group, a combat logistics regiment and a MEB command group. The MEB, commanded by a general officer (usually a brigadier general), is task-organized to meet the requirements of a specific situation. It can function as part of a joint task force, as the lead echelon of the
Marine expeditionary force
A Marine expeditionary force (MEF), formerly known as a Marine amphibious force, is the largest type of a Marine air-ground task force. A MEF is the largest building block of United States Marine Corps combat power.
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Structure
A MEF is l ...
(MEF), or alone. It varies in size and composition, and is larger than a
Regimental Landing Team (RLT) or Regimental Combat Team (RCT)
*
Infantry Regiment
Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...
(w/ 3 Infantry Battalions), Reinforced
*48 Amphibious Assault Vehicles, AAV-7A1 and variants (1 Amphibious Assault Vehicle Company (Reinforced))
*27 Light Armored Vehicles, LAV-25A1 and variants (1 Light Armored Reconnaissance Company (Reinforced))
*14 Main Battle Tank, M1A1, Abrams (1 Tank Company (Reinforced))
*2 Armored Recovery Vehicle, M88A2, Hercules (1 Tank Company (Reinforced))
*2 Assault Breacher Vehicle, M1, Shredder (Combat Engineer Company)
*24 Howitzer, 155 mm, M777A2 (1 Artillery Battalion w/4 firing batteries of 6 guns each)
*24 Mortar, 81mm, M252 (4 tubes per section, 2 sections per platoon, of the Mortar Platoon, Weapons Company, Infantry Battalion × 3)
*27 Lightweight Mortar, 60 mm, M224 LWCMS (3 tubes in the Mortar Section of the Weapons Platoon, Rifle company × 3, Infantry Battalion × 3)
*24 Anti-Tank Missile Launcher, BGM-71, TOW (8 launchers in the TOW Section of the Anti-Tank (AT) Platoon, Weapons Company, Infantry Battalion × 3)
*24 Anti-Tank Missile Launcher, FGM-148, Javelin (8 launchers in the AT Section of the Anti-Tank Platoon, Weapons Company, Infantry Battalion × 3)
*18 Automatic Grenade Launcher, 40 mm, Mk 19 (6 guns per Heavy Machine Gun Platoon, Weapons Company, Infantry Battalion × 3)
*18 Browning Machine Gun, Cal. .50, M2, HB, Flexible (6 guns per Heavy Machine Gun Platoon, Weapons Company, Infantry Battalion × 3)
*54 Machine Gun, 7.62mm, M240 (6 guns in the Machine Gun Section, Weapons Platoon, Rifle Company × 3, Infantry Battalion × 3)
*243 Light Machine Gun/Infantry Automatic Rifle, 5.56mm, M249 (9 guns per Rifle Platoon × 3, Rifle Company × 3, Infantry Battalion × 3)
F/A-18
The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an all-weather supersonic, twinjet, twin-engine, carrier-based aircraft, carrier-capable, Multirole combat aircraft, multirole combat aircraft, designed as both a Fighter aircraft, fighter and attack airc ...
(2 VMFA squadrons w/ 12 aircraft each)
*5
EA-6B
The Northrop Grumman (formerly Grumman) EA-6B Prowler is a twin-engine, four-seat, mid-wing electronic-warfare aircraft. Operated by both the United States Marine Corps and United States Navy between 1971 and 2019, it was derived from the A-6 I ...
(1 VMAQ squadron w/ 5 aircraft each)
*6
KC-130
The Lockheed Martin (previously Lockheed) KC-130 is a family of the extended-range tanker version of the C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. The KC-130J is the latest variant operated by the United States Marine Corps (USMC), with 48 delivered ...
(1 VMGR detachment)
*32 CH-53E (2 HMH squadrons w/ 16 aircraft each)
*48 CH-46E or MV-22B (4 HMM or VMM squadrons w/ 12 aircraft each)
*18 AH-1Z (1 HMLA squadron, each HMLA squadron contains both AH-1 & UH-1 aircraft)
*9 UH-1Y (1 HMLA squadron, each HMLA squadron contains both AH-1 & UH-1 aircraft)
*45
Stinger missile
The FIM-92 Stinger is an American man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) that operates as an infrared homing surface-to-air missile (SAM). It can be adapted to fire from a wide variety of ground vehicles, and from helicopters and drones as th ...
MASS
Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...
forklift
A forklift (also called industrial truck, lift truck, jitney, hi-lo, fork truck, fork hoist, and forklift truck) is a powered industrial truck used to lift and move materials over short distances. The forklift was developed in the early 20th c ...
s
*5
bulldozer
A bulldozer or dozer (also called a crawler) is a large tractor equipped with a metal #Blade, blade at the front for pushing material (soil, sand, snow, rubble, or rock) during construction work. It travels most commonly on continuous tracks, ...
2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade
The 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade is a brigade of the United States Marine Corps. It is part of II Marine Expeditionary Force (II MEF). It advertises itself as a "middleweight" crises response force of choice in the United States European Comma ...
Task Force Tarawa
Task Force Tarawa (TFT) was the name given to the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. It was a Marine Air-Ground Task Force commanded by Brigadier General Richard F. NatonskiNatonski message. that was attached t ...
for the
Iraq War
The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...
*
Task Force Leatherneck
Task Force Leatherneck or MEB-Afghanistan was a Marine Air-Ground Task Force that operated in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. The name was originally given to the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade during its 2009-10 operations for OPERATION ENDURI ...
for the
Afghanistan War
War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to:
*Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC), the conquest of Afghanistan by the Macedonian Empire
* Muslim conquests of Afghanistan, a series of campaigns in ...
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...