UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS



History of Weapons Training Battalion

The rifle ranges at Quantico were completed on 9 March 1953 and given the name Calvin A. Lloyd range complex, in honor of competitive shooter Maj Calvin A. Lloyd. A range unit detachment was stood up at this time, but was not called Weapons Training Battalion until almost nine years later. Weapons Training Battalion, Quantico, Virginia can trace its roots to the Marine Corps Marksmanship Training Unit (MTU). This unit was originally based in San Diego, California, but was moved to Quantico on 1 October 1962. MTU was comprised mainly of competition shooters who took part in matches nationally and abroad. They joined the range unit detachment at the Calvin A. Lloyd range complex and became Weapons Training Battalion. The duties of Weapons Training Battalion at that time consisted of rifle and pistol requalification, marksmanship training and development, as well as fielding the Marine Corps Rifle and Pistol team. In 1966 the Rifle Team Equipment (RTE) section was moved from Albany, Georgia to Quantico, Virginia. The RTE section was responsible for producing match grade rifles and pistols for the Marine Corps shooting teams, as well as producing match weapons for base and station teams.

Weapons Training Battalion has grown substantially from the late 1960’s to the present. The extensive growth became more visible as the schools sections were developed. The first was Sniper School. This formal school was established in 1977 from lessons learned during the Vietnam War and the need to send school trained snipers to the front. During its first year of inception, Gunnery Sergeant Hathcock, the school’s first Senior Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge, along with RTE, created the M40A1 sniper rifle. For almost 30 years it has been renowned throughout the world as the premier sniper rifle. In 1984, members of the MTU assisted in the final testing and modifications of the M16A2 service rifle prior to service-wide fielding as the primary infantry weapon. In 1985, the Assault Breachers course was established. Brought about to meet the needs of deploying Marine Expeditionary Unit(Special Operations Capable) units, this course began teaching dynamic explosive entry techniques to Explosive Ordnance Disposal, Security Forces, Military Police, and Force Reconnaissance personnel. In 1987, the High Risk Personnel course was developed for Marine and Department of Defense personnel traveling abroad in high threat areas. This course teaches defensive shooting techniques with the handgun. In 1988, Weapons Training Battalion stood up the first Small Arms Weapons Instructor Course (SAWIC). This course was developed to send school-trained Marines back to the fleet with the necessary skills to prepare and run ranges for a variety of NATO and threat weapons. In October of 1993, the Marksmanship Programs Management Section (MPMS) was established. MPMS takes the lead in developing and formalizing marksmanship doctrine for the Marine Corps. In the fall of 1998, RTE changed its name to Precision Weapons Section (PWS). This came about as the section expanded its mission to include the Depot Maintenance Intra-Service Agreement Program. This includes the building/re-working of the M40A3, MEU (SOC) .45 cal, .50 cal Special Application Scope Rifle (SASR), and the Designated Marksman Rifle (DMR).

Every year our Pistol and Rifle Competition shooters participate in marksmanship matches as representatives of the Marine Corps. Our Shooting Teams offer support to the Marine Corps Recruiting Command (MCRC), participate in shooting matches across the country and throughout the world, and return qualified marksmanship instructors to our units upon completion of their competition duties.

Since 2001 the Marine Corps, and the nation as a whole, have been engaged in the War on Terror. As such, Weapons Training Battalion, as the premier marksmanship facility for the Marine Corps, has made leaps and bounds towards ensuring all Marines are better prepared to face any enemy in any situation. In the unconventional fight of today our schools have been instrumental in implementing the Combat Marksmanship Program, with its uniquely varied requirements for accurate shooting in any place at any distance, as the new standard of marksmanship for the Marine Corps. The Scout Sniper School has been tireless in continuously evaluating and adapting the employment of scout sniper teams to best engage enemy targets with long-range precision fires, while maintaining their record of producing highly qualified scout snipers to the operating forces of the Marine Corps. The High Risk Personnel program has been revitalized in the face of the continuous terrorist threat faced by military members at home and abroad, and produces Marines aware of the threat and capable of defending themselves should the need arise. The Dynamic Entry School annually produces highly trained Marines instructed in the newest methods of gaining entry, by any means, into any enemy stronghold on the current battlefield. In short, the nation is at war, and Weapons Training Battalion is hard at work in preparing Marines from across the Marine Corps to better bring the fight to the enemy in any climate or location.

FORMER COMMANDERS

Colonel Walter R. Walsh 1 Oct 1962 thru 20 Aug 1970

Major R.A. Russell 1 Sept 1970 thru 28 Dec 1970

Lieutenant Colonel W.W. McMillian 29 Dec 1970 thru 22 Feb 1973

Lieutenant Colonel J.A. Getchell 23 Feb 1973 thru 11 July 1974

Lieutenant Colonel C.A. Reynolds 12 July 1974 thru 29 Aug 1977

Lieutenant Colonel L.W. Sullivan 30 Aug 1977 thru 16 Jan 1978

Lieutenant Colonel David J. Willis 17 June 1978 thru 14 June 1991

Lieutenant Colonel Jack Cuddy 15 June 1991 thru 18 July 1994

Colonel Michael R. Mance 19 July 1994 thru 3 July 1996

Colonel John R. Rosewarne 4 July 1996 thru 8 July 1998

Colonel Kenneth D. Dunn 8 July 1998 thru 1 July 2000

Colonel Alfredo Longoria 1 July 2000 thru 1 July 2002

Colonel G.C. Bourgeois 2 July 2002 thru 30 June 2004

Colonel Mark A. Brilakis 1 July 2004 thru 6 July 2006

Colonel Michael J. Mulligan 6 July 2006 thru Present

FORMER 1ST SGT’S/SGT’S MAJ

1stSgt William L. Hicks 1 Oct 1962 thru 30 June 1966

1stSgt William L. Akers 1 July 1966 thru 30 June 1967

SgtMaj A. Estergall 1 July 1967 thru 15 July 1968

SgtMaj C.I. Arundale 16 July 1968 thru 30 Mar 1970

SgtMaj L.P. Slezak 31 Mar 1970 thru 30 June 1975

SgtMaj Melvin Bray 1 July 1975 thru 21 Aug 1980

SgtMaj William H. Crouch 29 Aug 1980 thru 1 May 1984

SgtMaj Terry L. Taylor 2 May 1984 thru 13 Mar 1985

SgtMaj Thomas J. Strzelecki 14 Mar 1985 thru 30 June 1987

SgtMaj Fredrick J. Pattee 1 July 1987 thru 10 June 1988

MGySgt Ronald H. McAbee 11 June 1988 thru 21 Nov 1988

SgtMaj Michael J. Rooney 22 Nov 1988 thru 15 June 1990

SgtMaj Michael P. Holmes 16 June 1990 thru 18 July 1994

SgtMaj Fredrick W. Fenwick 19 July 1994 thru 16 July 1999

SgtMaj James Talley 17 July 1999 thru 31 Dec 2001

SgtMaj B.B. Battaglia 1 Jan 2002 thru 22 Oct 2002

MGySgt K.M. Roxburgh Jr. 23 Oct 2002 thru 24 Nov 2002

SgtMaj T.D. Hawes 25 Nov 2002 thru 27 Mar 2003

SgtMaj R.E. Soto 28 Mar 2003 thru 3 Nov 2004

MGySgt Miguel N. Garrido 4 Nov 2004 thru 13 Jan 2005

SgtMaj Lorne C. Cunningham III 14 Jan 2005 thru 14 Sept 2007

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