CAMP FUJI, Japan --
"Rack the bolt back to the rear and let it slingshot home," yelled Sgt. Jason Maulsby, an artillery technician, with more than 40 Marines from Headquarters Battery, 3rd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, who recently conducted live-fire training with crew-served weapons during the Artillery Relocation Training Program Exercise at the East Fuji range.
The Marines conduct training like this several times a year at ranges located throughout mainland Japan to increase their effectiveness with a variety of weapons, according to 1st Lt. Matthew Orr, the intelligence officer for Headquarters Battery.
"It's not (Military Occupational Specialty) specific; I know supply Marines that have been in more firefights than combat operatives," said Orr. "These are the basic skills that Marines need in combat."
Crew-served weapons fired by the Marines during this exercise were the M2 .50 caliber Browning machine gun and the M240-B machine gun.
"This kind of training is important because every Marine is a rifleman," said Sgt. Terrel Sjostrom, the intelligence chief for 3rd Bn., 12th Marines. "At any given point, any one of us may have to get behind one of these weapons systems and have to be able to fire it effectively."
Marines received classes about the concept of operating each weapon system prior to firing any rounds.
The Marines began the training in pairs of two at each .50 caliber machine gun position, with one Marine serving the role of shooter and the other that of an assistant gunner. The assistant gunner is responsible for providing ammunition, directing the shooter's fire and helping to fix any immediate problems encountered with the weapon.
Marines practiced firing the machine guns using a method referred to as ‘talking guns.'
"Talking guns is when you have a row of machine guns firing rounds on a (single) target simultaneously from several different (locations)," said Maulsby. "The reason for that is to keep the enemy down while the squad flanks them."
For some of the Marines, the experience of firing crew-served weapons is an opportunity that is not presented very often and one they won't soon forget.
"I was scared," said Lance Cpl. Ray A. Spell Jr., a food service specialist with Headquarters Battery. "It was my first time shooting a (.50 caliber machine gun) and I had never seen it before, but once I got up there it was fun and I was motivated."
Each Marine served both roles as shooter and assistant gunner on the .50 caliber machine gun with an allotted amount of ammunition, they then practiced the same drill on the M240-B machine gun.
"All together the Marines performed very well throughout the training," said Sjostrom. "They took advice very well and applied it."