Unit Profile

3rd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment

This artillery battalion, headquartered at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, is comprised of three firing batteries and a headquarters battery. The firing batteries are all on six-month rotations on Okinawa from the 10th and 11th Marine Regiments. The battalion’s primary weapon is the M-198 Howitzer with a maximum effective range of 30 kilometers. The battalion is transitioning to the M-777 lightweight howitzer.

Marines witMarines with Battery L, 3rd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, after firing an M198 Medium Howitzer. Battery L, 3rd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, after firing an M198 Medium Howitzer.
NEAR BAGHDADDI, Iraq – Marines with Battery L, 3rd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, after firing an M198 Medium Howitzer.
Photo by Gunnery Sgt. Michael Q. Retana

3rd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment

Mission: Provide direct support for the 3rd Marine Division. That support may come in the traditional fashion of artillery support to maneuver forces or by providing batteries to serve as provisional rifle companies.

Commanding Officer: Lt. Col. C. L. Williamson III

Sergeant Major: Sgt. Maj. David Zapp

History: Activated Oct. 4, 1927, at Tientsin, China, and assigned to the 3rd Marine Brigade.

Battles Fought: Battle of Guam, Battle of Iwo Jima, Vietnam, Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom

Battery L artillerymen load a round into a Howitzer during a shoot at the combat center’s Lead Mountain range.
MARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER, Twentynine Palms, Calif. – Battery L artillerymen load a round into a Howitzer during a shoot at the combat center’s Lead Mountain range.
Photo by Photo by Cpl. Evan M. Eagan
   
An M198 Howitzer, with a maximum charge, fires a 155 mm rocket-assisted projectile round during a maintenance evaluation at the combat center’s Quackenbush training area.
MARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER, Twentynine Palms, Calif. – An M198 Howitzer, with a maximum charge, fires a 155 mm rocket-assisted projectile round during a maintenance evaluation at the combat center’s Quackenbush training area.
Photo by Cpl. Michael S. Cifuentes