Elements of 3rd recon battalion were among the first us marines to land in vietnam, coming ashore at da nang. Some other notable actions were hill 488, operation washington, and operation scott. Marine reconnaissance as a whole can trace its heritage back to two separate unitsthe marine raider battalions, formed in january 1942 to fill an. The 3rd recon battalion consists of approximately 450 marines and fleet marine force sailors that falls under the command of the 3rd marine division, iii marine expeditionary force. From july 21, 1944 until the last day of organized fighting on august 10, the division fought through the jungles on the island of guam. Redesignated 16 february 1987 as the 3d battalion, 8th cavalry, assigned to the 3d armored division, and activated in germany inactivated 15 november 1991 in germany and relieved from assignment to the 3d armored division.
The 3rd reconnaissance battalion did not simply appear for the first time in vietnam. Vetter the 3rd reconnaissance battalion was stationed in vietnam from march 1965 to november 1969. The bravest of the brave, recon marines were awarded four medals of honor, navy crosses and 72 silver stars for service in vietnam. Known as americas battalion, the unit falls under the command of the 3rd marine regiment of the 3rd marine division. This website is the associations attempt to honor the marines and corpsmen of the battalion and to provide historical information on the involvement of the battalion s members during those years. The 3rd reconnaissance battalion conducts amphibious and ground reconnaissance in. It is geographically located on the okinawa prefecture in japan. Marines with 3rd reconnaissance battalion, 3rd marine division conduct parachute operations by jumping out of a kc hercules on ie shima, okinawa, japan, oct. Third battalion, third marines combat orders vietnam 1968. Are you looking for someone who is or was in 3rd recon battalion. It was already almost dark under the triple jungle canopy but still a bit light in the valley beyond.
The 3rd reconnaissance battalion 3rd recon conducts amphibious and ground. Picture of the commanding officers of the 3rd recon battalion in 1965 outside of da nang at future site of camp reasoner. Pendleton in california, 2nd recon at camp lejeune, north carolina, and 3rd on okinawa. Robert vance, and the 4th parachute battalion entered on april 2, 1943. On the night of june 1516, 1966, an 18man platoon of c company, 1st recon battalion was attacked by greatly superior vc and pavn forces on hill 488 nui vu hill about 34 km west of tam ky, during operation kansas. The battalion is based out of camp schwab, a satellite base of marine corps base camp smedley d. The 3rd battalion was formed on september 16, 1942, under the command of maj. Find third battalion, third marines combat orders vietnam 1968 by russell j jewett at blurb books. Recon battalion overview the marine recon battalions are the eyes and ears of the marine divisions. United states marine corps reconnaissance battalions. Commander for charlie co, 3rd recon bn, in vietnam and would go on to end his career as commanding general of the 3rd marine division was the guest speaker. Recent book recounts recons infancy deputy commandant.
Very good book telling the story of 3d force recon co during the period 6970. The following is the 3rd reconnaissance battalions patrol history for the year 1967. Marine corps units that served during the time of the vietnam conflict, and includes the records of those units that served in vietnam as well as domestically and throughout the world. Enlarge this series primarily consists of command chronologies of u. Frank reasoner far right, back row who would soon be killed in action and earn a medal of honor. This website is the associations attempt to honor the marines and corpsmen of the battalion and to provide historical information on the involvement of the battalions members. Was the only marine in history to acquire a near perfect score on edson range with the. This combined training included marines from 3rd transportation support battalion, 3rd marine logistics group, as well as support from marine aerial refueler. Why its so meaningful to retire a battalion flag the.
The 3rd recon association is a nonprofit veterans organization dedicated to the marines and navy corpsmen who served in the 3rd reconnaissance battalion in combat. Updated 30 aug 98 recon map library work in progress. This website is the associations attempt to honor the marines and corpsmen of the battalion and to provide historical information on the involvement of the battalions. The 3rd reconnaissance battalion 3rd recon conducts amphibious and ground reconnaissance in support of the 3rd marine division and marine forces pacific marforpac, operating in the commanders areas of influence. I served a s the medical aidman in the 3rd platoon. Most of these chronologies include four common sections of information. Johnson served in vietnam from april 1967 to may 1967 with the 3rd reconnaissance battalion, 3rd marine division. The men of the 3rd reconnaissance battalion have joined together in camaraderie and fellowship for the purpose of preserving the traditions and promoting the interests of the 3rd recon battalion and of the united states marine corps. The lineage of the battalion begins with company e scouts 3rd tank battalion, 3rd marine division, which was created in 1942. Marine third reconnaissance battalion in vietnam, 196570 and blood on the lotus. The 1st parachute battalion was attached to the 1st raider battalion, along with the 2nd battalion5th marines, which made up the marine forces landing on guadalcanal. In april 1944, it was redesignated the amphibious reconnaissance company, headquarters battalion, 3rd marine division.
Every marine who has an email address is hereby requested to forward your email address along with your name, address, telephone, to steve shircliff. Force recon was reduced to a single regular company. Links to other 3rd recon web pages updated 16 oct 99. Team room news tv podcast gear books academy crate club shop. A substantial portion of the book deals with jacques three tours in vietnam, mostly. Our 3rd recon battalion patch is a regulation, full color, embroidered military patch. Marines and sailors with 3rd reconnaissance battalion enter the water to conduct underwater maintenance on the u. Chris mallon, describes the cold weather training his platoon from 3rd reconnaissance battalion and members of 3rd marine division. Now he has written a book, fortune favors the brave. Portions of the booklet were edited and only the description of the period during the italian campaign are included on this site. For missions and training of 3rd recon battalion, see united states marine airground task force reconnaissance. Vetter served with the 3rd reconnaissance battalion in vietnam for seven months in 1966.
Company b was formed from the 5th force reconnaissance company due to the formation of the marine special operations teams msot in 2006. See more ideas about vietnam war, vietnam war photos and vietnam veterans. The following is the 3rd reconnaissance battalions patrol. Never without heroes is the first book to recount the story of a marine reconnaissance battalion in vietnam from the day of its arrival to its withdrawal. This list is for 3rd recon bn use only and will not be distributed to anyone outside of this organization. The story of first force recon, that chronicles the. Army landing craft utility ship port hudson lcu 2035, on naval base white beach, okinawa, japan, mar. The 3 rd recon association is a nonprofit veterans organization dedicated to the marines and navy corpsmen who served in the 3 rd reconnaissance battalion and their involvement in the republic of vietnam from 1961 thru 1971. History lineage insignia honors command philosophy leaders units. The current mission of the 2d reconnaissance battalion is to conduct ground and amphibious reconnaissance and surveillance along with other operations as. The reconnaissance they provided was the third and the last preliminary amphibious reconnaissance for the new britain operation.
The battalion headquarters site, shown in the background, would be named in his honor. This website is the associations attempt to honor the marines and corpsmen of the battalion and to provide historical information on the involvement of the battalion s. History of the 3rd marine division the fighting third. This booklet was published during the last months of the war for distribution to the soldiers and their families. Reconnaissance marines and sailors conducted opencircuit dive training while concurrently supporting lcu 2035s operational readiness. The battalion falls under the command of the 3rd marine regiment and the 3rd marine division. Of the some 2,800 marines who served with the battalion, 1,3 were either killed, wounded or missing in action. Battle of the bulge order of battle military wiki fandom. Deep reconnaissance platoons, or drps, are units within recon battalions that carry out the role of force reconnaissance. The history of recon marines begins in world war ii, when two units were formed. During world war ii, the unit participated in the bougainville, solomon islands, guam, and iwo jima campaigns. We had stopped and had planned to set up our night lager site here the arrow shows a running nva, taken about.
Command chronologies 3rd recon battalion, marine corps historical center, washington, d. A chronological listing of the 1968 combat orders for 3rd batt. Books and movies about 3rd recon bn look at the books by larry vetter, john rhodes, ernie spencer, ron zaczek, b. The next operation the 3d marine division took part in was the battle of guam. Poems, stories, and other writings by 3rd reconners featuring thomas shainline and others. Company c 1st recon battalion op con to 3rd recon bn and is at chu lai toar recon group alpha 1 nov 1965. He wrote never without heroes to tell the story of the 3rd reconnaissance battalion, 3rd marine division, during its time in vietnam from. Elements of companies a and c of the 1st battalion, 6th infantry, joined forces with the 72nd regional forces recon co. It provides a good overview of the history of the 3rd infantry division.