OCEANSIDE, Calif. -- Local surfers are usually the only people riding the crisp waves to shore at the Oceanside Harbor, but on the morning of Sept. 17, a lumbering Landing Craft Air Cushion — flanked by several assault amphibious vehicles — staked their own sandy claim.
Joining the amphibious assault was a convoy of land vehicles including medium tactical vehicle replacements (7-ton trucks), light armored vehicles and even a P-19 fire truck, displaying some of the finest war-fighting and lifesaving equipment Camp Pendleton has to offer for its annual Harbor Days display.
“The main idea behind us coming out here is to let the civilian populace in on our capabilities and show off what we do for a living,” said Master Gunnery Sgt. James C. King, regimental maintenance chief, 11th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division and a veteran of six Harbor Days. “We show off our latest and greatest stuff to spark an interest in the Marine Corps, but we also like to bring out some of the older stuff from the museums on base to strike nostalgia into the veterans.”
One of the most popular displays among the civilian patrons was the Explosive Ordnance Disposal display in the parking lot.
At first sight, the EOD display reflects the image of a third world black arms market with all the foreign, domestic, and improvised weapons from various time periods laid out over a table.
At second glance, the more cutting edge technology can be seen, such as the Remote Operations Neutralization System (a robot designed to disarm explosives while the crew operates it safely out of blast range.)
Although it was mostly children getting excited and crawling through the static displays of military fighting vehicles, older audiences were equally impressed with the equipment in their own way.
“I was amazed that a relatively small hovercraft like that could actually carry 60 tons of equipment,” said Bob Fluehe, an engineer from Orange County. “That’s a lot of weight skimming over the water.”
Even with all of the technology lying on the beach, the civilians were most impressed with the Marines themselves.
“We all know that most servicemembers are young from the news stories on TV, but it doesn’t really hit you until you actually meet them,” said Billie Fluehe. “The way these young men and women must become proficient in all of this advanced technology in so little time and then going off to sacrifice their lives for our freedom makes me proud to be an American.”