LANDING ARTILLERY GROUP

The Commander and all the personnel of the Landing Artillery Group (GAD in its Spanish initials) welcomes you to this website and invites you learn about this Marine Corps Unit which is part of the MC Brigade (BRIMAR).

This artillery group is a combat support unit -amphibious and expeditionary- easily adaptable to the new hybrid threats of the 21st century.

The multi-purpose group has many and different caliber artillery pieces which provide the Brigade with more versatility and flexibility.

Our Headquarters are in San Fernando, (Cádiz), sharing facilities with other Marine Corps Groups.

The current workforce of the Landing Artillery Group consists of 391 men and women divided into five different batteries. They provide Campaign support (ACA) and Anti-Air support (AAA) to the MC Brigade.

The Landing Artillery Group (GAD) is divided into the following Batteries:

• Staff and Services battery.
• Campaign artillery battery.
• Light anti-air missiles battery.
• Coordination and fire control battery.

The Staff and Services battery

Comprises all the necessary elements to set up a Command Post and provide the subordinate units with the logistic and communications support to plan and conduct the scheduled operations. To this end, there is a Services platoon and a Communications platoon.

Campaign artillery battery

This battery is the basic firing unit of the group. It has the necessary number of personnel, material and vehicles to carry out firing operations.

The 1st and 2nd batteries employ six 105 mm towed Oto Melara M-56 howitzers. The main advantage of this artillery piece is its adaptability since it can be transported by helicopter during amphibious operations.

The 3rd battery has six 155 mm self-propelled M-109A2 howitzers and six M-992 field artillery ammunition supply vehicles.

Light anti-air missiles battery.

The light AA missiles battery provides low level air defense to the Marine Corps Brigade and can be easily integrated into the established Air Defense Warfare system. In specific circumstances, and in the face of certain threats, the battery can operate as a close-in weapon system on board Spanish Navy warships.

The battery has 12 launchers of ‘Mistral’ missiles.

Coordination and fire control battery.

This battery makes up the Fire Support Coordination Center (FSCC) which helps coordinate and manage all fire support activities of the different battalions and the brigade itself. It also operates as Direct Air Support Center (DASC), which is the main element responsible for the control of the Brigade’s air operations.

The battery also integrates the target acquisition and fire control teams responsible for the control of air, land and naval elements in the theatre of operations. Such teams are normally made up by five marines including a Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC), a naval spotter and an advanced observer.

Our main mission is to support and protect the different operational organizations of the BRIMAR, whether land or amphibious. We also offer anti-air defense and provide support to the commands on issues of coordination, control and fire integration.

Our daily life tries to pursue the right balance between maintenance tasks of weapons, vehicles and material on the one hand, and the adequate training of the personnel to have the battalion always in readiness, on the other.

At individual level, our personnel carry out a complete and rigorous program of activities aimed at maintaining the qualifications that, as a ‘general combatant’, every marine must possess. Our training pillars are based on a solid moral and military education, a high capability for physical and psychological endurance, and a demanding program of firing drills with individual and collective weapons.

As regards artillery, our training is currently oriented -without abandoning our preparation for conventional combat- to the development of the tactics, techniques and procedures necessary to face the hybrid threats present in the scenarios of the 21st century with guarantee of success.

We also devote a large part of our daily activity to achieve the necessary interoperability of our Combat Teams with those Fleet units responsible for providing naval (frigates) and air (airplanes and helicopters) fire support to the whole force. The monthly collaborations with the different Squadrons of the Aircraft Flotilla are also an excellent training opportunity for the crews of the AA Battery.

The key to our success lies both, on the exercise of effective leadership at all levels of the chain of command, and on the excellent teamwork at lower levels.

We have basically the same weapons as other Marine Corps units; among them FN P9 pistols, HK G-36 rifles, AG 36 grenade launchers and FN MINIMI 5.56 and 7.62 mm machineguns.

Other weapons include: ATP M-109 A2 and Oto Melara M-56, howitzers, Browning M2-HB heavy machineguns and anti-air ‘Mistral II’ missiles.

The GAD uses the following vehicles: armored VAMTAC (High Tactical Mobility Vehicles), ‘Hummer’ vehicles, tractors and trailers, IVECO trucks for cargo and personnel transport, ammunition trucks, fuel and water tank lorries, etc.

Other materiel include: GPSs, night vision goggles and target acquisition devices; among them, laser designators (Rattle G) and thermal cameras, laser telemeters (Vector 21 Nite) and ‘Rover’ technology for image transmissions.

The GAD participates in most amphibious exercises organized by the Fleet as well as all those combat training exercises on land conducted by the Marine Corps Force.

Our units regularly train in many joint exercises (APOYO ADAPTABLE, SIRIO, HUMBLE FLARE) and combined exercises (AFRICAN LION, JOINT WARRIOR, PHIBLEX), carried out both in national territory and abroad (Scotland, Italy, Portugal and Morocco).

As regards real operations, our servicemen have been present in most international scenarios where the BRIMAR has been deployed, among them: Bosnia Herzegovina (2009), Iraq (2003), Haiti (2005-2006), Lebanon (2006) and Afghanistan (2008-2013).

The origins of the GAD go back to 1960 when the ‘Tercio de Sur’ Heavy Mortar Company was set up, then integrated into the Marine Corps Special Group.

In 1967 that MC Special Group began to operate self-propelled howitzers Model M-52 and became the ‘Heavy Weapons Landing Battalion’ made up by the following elements: a Staff and Services Company, a Howitzers Company, and two Heavy Mortars Company.

In 1969 those artillery units were integrated, along with the Amphibious Mechanized Group, into the Marine Corps Combat Support Group.

In 1974 the first six Oto Melara M-56 howitzers arrived and years later another batch of six resulted in the creation of the 2nd Battery after decommissioning the 4.2” heavy mortars.