3rd Battalion 12th Marines (3/12) is an

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

battalion comprising four firing batteries and a Headquarters Battery. The firing batteries are not permanently assigned to the battalion- they are all on 6 month rotations in

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

from the 10th Marine Regiment and the 11th Marine Regiment (known as the Unit Deployment Program (UDP)). The battalion is stationed at Camp Hansen,

, Japan, and its primary weapon systems are the

M777 The M777 howitzer is a British towed 155 mm artillery piece in the howitzer class. It is used by the ground forces of Australia, Canada, Colombia, India, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, and the United States. It was first used in combat during the US ...

lightweight howitzer with a maximum effective range of 30 km, along with the

M142 The M142 HIMARS (M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) is a light multiple rocket launcher developed in the late 1990s for the United States Army and mounted on a standard United States Army Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) truc ...

High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS). The battalion utilizes the

Unit Deployment Program The Unit Deployment Program (UDP) is a system for assigning deployments of the United States Marine Corps. To reduce the number of unaccompanied tours and improve unit continuity, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, (CMC) established it to provide ...

to fill its four firing batteries with detachments from artillery units across the Marine Corps.

Mission

Provide direct support of the

3rd Marine Division The 3rd Marine Division is a division of the United States Marine Corps based at Camp Courtney, Marine Corps Base Camp Smedley D. Butler in Okinawa, Japan. It is one of three active duty infantry divisions in the Marine Corps and together with th ...

in time of conflict. That support may come in the traditional fashion of artillery support to maneuver forces, or by providing batteries to serve as provisional rifle companies. They also have the secondary mission of being the primary providers of

civil-military operations Civil-military operations or CMO are activities of a military force to minimize civil interference on and maximize civil support for military operations. CMO is conducted in conjunction with combat operations during wartime and becomes a central p ...

(CMO). CMO is defined as the activities of the commander that establish, maintain, influence, or exploit relations between military organizations, Government and civilian organizations and the civilian populace.

Current units

Headquarters Battery In United States Army units, a Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC) is a company (military unit), company-sized military unit, found at the battalion level and higher. Considered one unit, a Headquarters and Headquarters Company is essent ...

* Four firing batteries rotating on unit deployment program (UDP) assignments from the 10th Marines and the

11th Marines The 11th Marine Regiment is an artillery regiment of the United States Marine Corps based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. Known as the "Cannon Cockers", the regiment falls under the command of the 1st Marine Division and the I M ...

History

World War II

3rd Battalion 12th Marines was activated on September 16, 1942, at

Camp Elliott Camp Kearny was a U.S. military base (first Army, later Navy) in San Diego County, California, on the site of the current Marine Corps Air Station Miramar. It operated from 1917 to 1946. The base was named in honor of Brigadier General Stephen ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, as part of the 3rd Marine Division. Deployed during January - February 1943 to Auckland, New Zealand Participated in the following World War II Campaigns Bougainville Northern Solomons Guam Iwo Jima Deactivated 28 December 1945

Reactivation and the Vietnam War

Reactivated 7 January 1952 at Camp Pendleton, California, as the 3rd Marine Division Redeployed during August 1953 to Camp Gifu, Japan Redeployed during February 1956 to Camp Courtney, Okinawa Redeployed during April - May 1965 to the Republic of Vietnam Participated in the war in Vietnam, April 1965 - November 1969, operating from Quang Tri Province Quang Nam Province Thua Thien Province Redeployed during November 1969 to Camp Courtney, Okinawa Elements participated in evacuation operations in Vietnam and Cambodia, March - May 1975 India Btry 3/12 deployed and placed in reserve during the Mayaguez Incident May '75

1970s - 1990s

Elements participated in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, Southwest Asia, 1990–1991 Elements participated in Operations Sea Angel, Bangladesh, May - June 1991 Elements Participated in Operation Fiery Vigil, Republic of the Philippines, June - July 1991

War on Terror

Artillery battalion returns to roots during Exercise Desert Scimitar 130503-M-PC317-099

Elements participated in Operation Enduring Freedom, Afghanistan and Philippines, 2001 into 2009 Elements participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Iraq, 2003 into 2007 Elements participated in Operation Unified Assistance, Southeast Asia, December 2004 - February 2005 Elements participated in humanitarian relief efforts, Philippines, February - March 2006 Elements participated in Operation Enduring Freedom, Afghanistan, 2010

Notes

References

: ;Web
Official Website

on GlobalSecurity.org {{3rdMarDiv Artillery battalions of the United States Marine Corps