"Bradley and LAV's" Topic

hey all

further to my earlier question, what USMC units use bradleys and LAV's and in what capacity do they use them in?

cheers
Bryan

I dont believe any USMC units use Brads, only army. Marines use LAV's for amphib landings and as recon units on land.

Here is an idea of how they are distributed:
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Ok the Marine Corps only has the LAV-25 and they are in Light Armored Recon Battalion. Each LAV-25 has a three man crew and carries 4 Marines as scouts. I think that there is 13 or 14 LAVs in a company.

I've read that the USMC had Army Bradley's in support in several operations in Iraq. However the USMC has never adopted the M2/M3 AFV.

Army only for the Bradleys. The Bradleys in Iraq were/are Army. For example in the second battle of Falluja, 1st ID (the Big Red One) was there and had Bradleys, though often folks think of that battle as a Marine affair.

Hey CPT Jake, someone had to bail the jarheads out eh???? 8D

It's a proven fact, if you need something done right then you HAVE to bring in the BIG RED ONE!!! Hooah!!

Tgunner, before you whip it out to compare, know that the Army was a part of the operation from the organizational beginning, there was no "bailing" required.

Gotta have the doggies to draw fire, don't you know…

Marine LAVs are assigned to Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalions and are not infantry carriers. There are no USMC units with organic armored transport to my knowledge. Assault Amphibian Battalions, with the AAVP7A1 are scaled to provide such transport to Marine Regiments.

This might change if the USMC ever gets the Marine Personnel Carrier program really going, but right now the plan is for the basic setup to remain the same. The MPC would be integrated into battalions with the replacement for the AAVP7A1 (whatever this ends up being called with the cancellation of the EFV).

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"I've read that the USMC had Army Bradley's in support in several operations in Iraq. However the USMC has never adopted the M2/M3 AFV."

Yes, I read same. Was in Ramadi and Falujah I believe:
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Oh, I know. Sorry Mardaddy, being an old BRO I couldn't resist the dig.

The Corps needed more battalions to cover the fight. I seem to remember that there one battalion from the 1st ID in the fight ('new' 3d Brigade guys). It was pretty cool to see GIs from the BRO serve with the 7th RCT.

But more importantly for the division, the Fallujah campaign might see the division's first Congressional Metal of Honor since Vietnam (?). Staff Sergeant David Bellavia was recommended for both the CMH AND the DSC for his actions in the battle.

That was another fascinating chapter in the story of the 2d Infantry. These guys have been around:

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Is the M2/M3 Bradley vehicle seris running gear based on that of the LVTP-7 (AAVP-7), a Marine amphibious transport?

I believe its the other way around, that as part of the AAVP7A1 upgrades, a level of commonality between the two vehicles was achieved.

I think the chassis is different from the AAV7, but the recent "Rebuild to Standard" program changed the engine to the same one as in the Bradleys for better performance.

The Reliability, Availability, Maintainability/Rebuild to Standard (RAM/RS) upgrades also replaced suspension components on the AAV7 series with modified components from the M2/M3 Bradley series.