Compass Points - Stone Mason
Do not grow weary doing good.
Compass Points - Stone Mason
Do not grow weary doing good.
July 23, 2024
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Growing weary?
Do not grow weary just yet. There is good news. And more good news on the way.
When Marines are on a long march and the packs grow heavy and the trail grows rough, do Marines say, "I'm tired. I quit." No. Even when Marines are tired -- especially when they are tired -- Marines keep at it. They encourage those around them. They take one step at a time. Marines keep marching forward.
The Marine Corps aviation squadron HMLA-269, after being removed from the Marine Corps on December 9, 2022, has now been officially reactivated and returned to full duty.
What does the return of HMLA-269 mean? Ask Jacob Riis.
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Look at a stone cutter hammering away at his rock, perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred-and-first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not the last blow that did it, but all that had gone before.
Jacob Riis
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Slowly, one hit at a time, some of the damage that has been inflicted on the Marine Corps is being reversed.
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Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron (HMLA) 269, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (MAW), reactivated during a ceremony aboard Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) New River, North Carolina, July 1. HMLA-269, known as “The Gunrunners,” previously deactivated on Dec. 9, 2022, in accordance with Force Design initiatives.
Throughout the course of the squadron’s brief deactivation, the Marine Corps conducted analysis on force management in order to ensure that no operational commitments were left unfulfilled. This analysis identified the need for an additional HMLA squadron on the East Coast to provide sustained operational support to II Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF). This change within 2nd MAW represents incremental change to Force Design to meet the conditions described in recent national security and defense strategies.
The reactivation ceremony featured remarks from Col. David Fitzsimmons, commanding officer, Marine Aircraft Group 29, who thanked the various advocates at 2nd MAW, II MEF, and Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps, that made HMLA-269’s reactivation possible. “It was a decidedly somber day when HMLA-269 deactivated,” said Fitzsimmons. “That was certainly reversed today.”
-- HeliHub
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Who should get the credit for the return of HMLA-269? While many people saw the folly in deactivating the crucial squadron, and many spoke out, it is active duty Marine leaders who recognized the error and reversed course. This is a great step forward. The Marine Corp has always been a self-correcting and constantly improving organization. The restoration of HMLA-269 shows that even in difficult times there are stout-hearted Marines on active duty fighting every day to restore and refocus the Marine Corps.
How could this error have been avoided in the past and how can similar errors be avoided in the future? One answer is Marine Corps leadership must restore and put to better use the Marine Corps Combat Development Command (MCCDC) and Combat Development and Integration (CD&I) at Quantico. The whole purpose of combat development and integration is to review broadly and in depth significant changes to the Marine Corps. With an in depth review by CD&I, misguided decisions like deactivating a critical squadron, HMLA-269, never happen. The whole purpose of CD&I is to "develop and evaluate innovative concepts and technologies."
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-- Develop and evaluate innovative concepts and technologies
-- Integrate processes to organize, train and equip
-- Assess strategic landscape and translate vision into capability
-- Produce solutions for capability gaps
-- Joint integrator for combat development
-- Combat Development and Integration
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CD&I would have made sure the deactivation of HMLA-269 never happened, but CD&I was not allowed to review the original decision. As HMLA-269 is brought back, right along with it, the entire review process of CD&I needs to be brought back as well. The reactivation of HMLA-269 is not the only signal that the Marine Corps is rethinking and restoring lost capabilities. There are many others. Progress is being made. “Semper Progredi” — always forward.
Somewhere in the Bible, it says, do not grow weary doing good. The preservation of the Marine Corps is not a project for a day or a week. It is a long march and a continuing journey. There are moments of great progress and there are times of setbacks and detours. The journey is not for the faint of heart. The good news is Marines are not faint of heart. Marines do not grow weary doing good. Like the stone mason, Marines continue to pound the rock, until one day it cracks.
Welcome back HMLA-269. Your return is a signal that restoration, reconstruction, and reconsideration are underway. So many people -- including those on active duty and those formerly on active duty, along with those throughout the defense community and in Congress -- are working hard to make sure the Marine Corps of tomorrow will be stronger than the Marine Corps of today.
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HeliHub - 07/10/2024
USMC reactivates HMLA-269 squadron
https://www.helihub.com/2024/07/10/usmc-reactivates-hmla-269-squadron/
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MCCDC and CD&I
Who We Are
https://www.cdi.marines.mil/
https://www.cdi.marines.mil/About/Who-we-are/
The reactivation of HMLA-269 is great news for the Corps and our country. This is one step of many that need to be reversed to make the Marine Corps stronger, faster and more lethal!
On Jan 8, 1790, in his first annual message to Congress, President George Washington, among many items covered, stated the following:
“To be prepared for War is one of the most effectual means of perserving peace.”
All of our services, but most especially our Marine Corps, must be prepared for war in order to preserve peace. Today’s Marine Corps, having divested of many of its lethal equipment and formations, in my humble opinion, is not ready for war.
The Marine Corps leadership must never again veer away from the time tested systems that MCCDC and CD&I were designed for!
I consider myself privileged and humbled when I was on active duty for having served with leaders who allowed me to voice my concerns, share my recommendations, test my theories without fear of retaliation. Today’s leadership need to do the same especially when questioning major initiatives that will have historical impact on Corps and Country!
Return of HMLA-269 -“what does it mean?” It means the Phoenix is rising from its ashes, that’s what it means. We now should push on for a complete reconstitution of the MEF level MAGTF capability … that also means we need to take a very hard look at the intellectual honesty and freshness of our PME institutions … that element must return to its Golden Era of the late 1980’s & 90’s. More to follow on that point.