The 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s (MEU) recent deployment gives new meaning to the term “rapid response.”

Marines from the 26th MEU, with Amphibious Squadron (PHIBRON) 4 Amphibious Ready Group (ARG), were the first on station with the full range of capabilities used for Operation Odyssey Dawn, and provided the most responsive and capable force for recovery of the downed Air Force F-15E pilot in Libya, said Col. Mark J. Desens, commanding officer of the 26th MEU, during the fourth Meet the Fleet event sponsored by Naval Air Systems Command.

This ability to rapidly respond comes from the forward deployment of the Navy/Marine Corps team aboard aircraft carriers, or in the MEU’s case, big deck amphibious ships such as USS Kearsarge (LHD 3), USS Carter Hall (LSD 50) and USS Ponce (LPD 15) of PHIBRON-4 ARG, Desens said.

Desens recounted the MEU’s nine-month deployment to about 300 NAVAIR employees July 26 as part of NAVAIR Commander Vice Adm. David Architzel’s initiative to strengthen the command’s connection to the warfighter.

Rear Adm. Donald Gaddis, program executive officer for Tactical Aircraft Programs, welcomed the MEU and echoed the value of expanding the fleet debriefs to the workforce. Gaddis experienced deployment debriefs when he served as the PMA-265 F/A-18 and EA 18G program manager.

“Those debriefs had a direct impact on those of us who were responsible for the care and feeding of those aircraft,” Gaddis said. “We always learned something. The fact that we’re bringing it across the organization is a fantastic idea.”

The fleet connection works both ways. Before Desens and his men left Naval Air Station Patuxent River, one of the MEU’s supply issues was resolved. Capt. Paul Overstreet, PMA-272 Advanced Tactical Aircraft Protection Systems program manager, made the necessary connections to ensure amphibious carriers have expendable flares, named MJU-55, available for deployed Harriers. The flare is used to defeat infrared missile threats.

Desens thanked NAVAIR employees for all they did, praising the CH-53 and the AV-8B aircraft, saying “the Echo [CH-53E] was awesome, and the CH-53K will be better. The aircraft performed magnificently, both Navy and Marine Corps. All of you that keep that aircraft healthy, thanks a lot. You did good,” Desens said.

Executing the maritime strategy
The MEU’s deployment covered the full spectrum of maritime strategy missions, Desens said, and they covered that range while disaggregated or disbursed.

On one end of the spectrum, the MEU conducted a humanitarian assistance and disaster response mission in Pakistan, participated in Theater Security Cooperation by training coalition partner forces in Jordan, and helped rebuild a school in Kenya. On the other end, the MEU saw combat in Afghanistan, where the Marines took a sanctuary away from the Taliban, and enabled the Afghan government to build a major roadway.

“That’s the operational flexibility you get by having Sailors and Marines on ships forward deployed,” Desens said. “You get to have that presence and that flexibility.”

That flexibility was demonstrated as the MEU reassembled or aggregated in Kuwait, with Kearsarge 100 miles off of Benghazi, Libya. Kearsarge’s location enabled the Marines to respond to the crisis in Libya, buying leadership decision time, Desens said.

“The Kearsarge was far closer to Libya than the joint air bases used by jets from other allied countries,” Desens said. “This enabled the Harriers to fly not one but two sorties per night.” The Harriers were also able to take out mobile targets because the aircraft were only