MARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif. – -- The Marine Corps’ top officer and senior enlisted leader visited the
Combat Center from Saturday to Monday, meeting with Marines and sailors, and viewing the most up-to-date training to ensure deploying units have the most recent instructions before going to Afghanistan.
The visit was to learn and observe the most current training being conducted before Marines and sailors deploy to Afghanistan.
On Sunday, Gen. James T. Conway, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, and Sgt. Maj. Carlton W. Kent, the Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, toured Combat Center Range 215 and observed Enhanced Mojave Viper training. They were able to sit down with Afghan role players, and the visit gave Marines a chance to meet them and ask questions.
“We want to get ahead and stay ahead with what is going on throughout the world,” said Conway, a Walnut Ridge, Ark., native. “We want to make sure our Marines are armed with the proper knowledge.”
After their trip to the training area, they went to the Recycling Center, and discussed energy initiatives and construction overviews with the Combat Center’s commanding general and top leaders with the Installation and Logistics command.
Monday morning, Conway spoke to the officers aboard the installation while Kent spoke to the staff noncommissioned officers regarding the future of the Marine Corps, and gave the Marines a chance to ask questions.
The commandant and sergeant major then made their way to Marine Corps Tactics and Operations Group and toured their facilities while receiving a status update regarding the most recent training MCTOG conducts.
The last stop for the leaders was Range 051, where Explosive Ordnance Disposal technicians create and use improvised explosive devices found in Iraq and Afghanistan to find the best way to properly disarm and remove the explosives before service members become casualties.
Maj. Michael D. Glass, the EOD officer in charge, explained all the different IEDs his technicians find while deployed, and how fast the turn-around is when a new IED is found.
Conway and Kent then spoke to the EOD Marines and members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, thanking them for their hard work to keep deploying Marines alive.
“Having these hard working Marines is what makes our Corps stronger every day,” said Kent, a Memphis, Tenn., native. “I am proud of these Marines.”
To view photos of their visit to the Combat Center, log on to http://www.marines.mil/units/hqmc/cmc/cmcphotogallery.
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