The Republic of Korea and U.S. Navy and Marine Corps are conducting Exercise Ssang Yong 24 from August 26 to September 7 in the Pohang area of Gyeongsangbuk-Do, South Korea, to strengthen the ROK-U.S. Alliance’s combat readiness and improve interoperability.
Ssang Yong, held regularly since 2012, aims to enhance combined defensive posture on the Korean Peninsula. This year, the exercise includes more than 13,000 personnel from the ROK and U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, as well as the U.K. Commando Force which is participating for a second consecutive year. The exercise also involves the ROK Army Aviation Command, ROK Air Force Operations Command, and the ROK Drone Operations Command.
The primary focus of this year’s exercise is to enhance the capability to conduct a combined-joint forcible entry operation, in which coalition forces would swiftly neutralize key enemy facilities to terminate a hypothetical conflict scenario. The ROK-U.S. Navy and Marine Corps conducted joint amphibious operations, followed by land-based operations to rehearse eliminating enemy forces.
Notably, this year’s exercise includes the first deployment of a combined ROK-U.S. battle staff, which commands amphibious operations from the Dokdo-class landing transport helicopter ship ROKS Marado (LPH-6112). This combined battle staff is assessing command and control capabilities and is developing lessons learned for future operations.
The exercise features large-scale joint and combined forces, including a division-sized landing force, the ROKS Marado and Dokdo (LPH-6111), the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD-4), amphibious assault carrier USS America (LHA-6), more than 20 naval vessels, 30 aircraft such as the ROK Marine Corps’ MUH-1 “Marineon” helicopters, U.S. F-35B Lightning II fighter aircraft, and ROK Army CH-47 Chinook helicopters, as well as 40 amphibious assault vehicles, including the Korea Assault Amphibious Vehicle.
Significantly, Ssang Yong 24 is the first time the U.S. Marine Corps’ next-generation Amphibious Combat Vehicle is employed in an exercise on the Korean Peninsula, conducting joint amphibious operations with the ROK Marine Corps. Furthermore, the ROK Marine Corps’ MUH-1 helicopters have undergone deck-landing qualifications on U.S. vessels for the first time.
The exercise’s decisive-action amphibious landing event took place on September 2 along the coastal area of Songra-myeon, Pohang. This phase included simultaneous amphibious and airborne simulated assaults:
• Reconnaissance units from the ROK Drone Operations Command provided real-time intelligence, while reconnaissance forces from the ROK and U.S. Marines, and UK Royal Marines, infiltrated the objective area via sea and air to conduct surveillance and guide precision strike rehearsals.
• Close air support provided by U.S. F-35B Lightning II fighter aircraft and AH-1Z Viper helicopters launched from land and sea to neutralize enemy targets, setting conditions for the amphibious assault.
• Amphibious forces including Marines storming the beaches in ROK Assault Amphibious Vehicles and U.S. Amphibious Combat Vehicles to establish a beachhead, followed by the deployment of armored vehicles via U.S. and ROK Navy landing craft including Landing Craft, Air Cushion hovercraft and tank landing ships.
• Airborne forces completed a tactical airdrop from ROK Air Force C-130 transport aircraft, while the U.S. Marine Corps’ MV-22 Osprey, ROK Marine Corps’ MUH-1, ROK Army CH-47 Chinooks, and ROK Navy UH-60 helicopters rehearsed air assaults maneuvers.
• Following the successful amphibious assault, the ROK Marine Corps’ logistics units established a division-level Combat Service Support Area on the beach to sustain land operations.
• The landing forces then transitioned to land-based operations, including simulated CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear)-response elimination operations with combat casualty care exercises to further refine their combined training objectives.
ROK Marine Corps Lt. Col. Cho Hyun-Chul, who participated in the exercise as battalion commander of the landing forces, stated: “This exercise reaffirms the strong alliance between the ROK and U.S. Marine Corps and further strengthens our combined defense posture. Going forward, the ROK and U.S. Marine Corps will firmly retaliate against any provocation from the enemy.”
U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. Gabriel Tiggs, executive officer of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, said: “Rehearsing this kind of combined joint forcible entry training with an amphibious landing, then follow-on operations, is very important because of how complex they are. The defense of the Korean Peninsula depends on our ROK-U.S. forces to continuously work together, shoulder-to-shoulder, including this Ssang Yong and into the future.”
