3rd Littoral Anti-Air Battalion

3d Littoral Anti-Air Battalion
3d LAAB insignia
ActiveJuly 20 1939[1] – 15 Dec 1944[2]

11 Oct 1951 – 30 Sep 1994

11 Feb 2022 - Present
Country United States of America
Branch United States Marine Corps
TypeCommand and control
Air Defense
Part of3rd Marine Littoral Regiment
3rd Marine Division
Motto(s)Fortes Fortuna Juvat
"Fortune Favors the Bold"
EngagementsWorld War II

Cuban Missile Crisis

Gulf War
Commanders
Current
commander
LtCol James Arnold
Notable
commanders
Robert H. Pepper
Edward H. Forney

3rd Littoral Anti-Air Battalion (3d LAAB) is a United States Marine Corps aviation command and control and air defense unit that is optimized for operations in the first island chain. The battalion is based at Marine Corps Base Hawaii and falls under the command of the 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment and the 3rd Marine Division.

Originally formed prior to World War II, the battalion was known as the 3rd Defense Battalion and took part in combat operations at Pearl Harbor, Midway, Guadalcanal and Bougainville. The unit was deactivated in late 1944 but was brought back into service as the Marine Corps began to transition to surface to air missiles for their air defense needs in the early 1950s. During the mid to late 1950s, the battalion was based at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms in California and was one of two Marine Corps units that operated the land-based version of the RIM-2 Terrier Missile. In January 1963 3rd LAAM battalion was moved to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina and would eventually fall under the command of Marine Air Control Group 28 (MACG-28) and the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (2nd MAW). 3rd LAAM Battalion's final combat tour saw it providing air defense for the Marine Corps area of operations during Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm. 3rd LAAM Battalion was decommissioned on September 30, 1994 as part of the post-Cold War draw down of forces and because the Marine Corps had made the decision to divest itself of its medium-range air defense.

The battalion was again reactivated on February 11, 2022 as part of the Commandant of the Marine Corps Force Design 2030 initiative.

  1. ^ Rottman 2002, pp. 214.
  2. ^ Rottman 2002, pp. 216.