Retired Marine Raiders honored guests at the International Special Operations Forces Conference

  • Published
  • By Cody Sontag
TAMPA, Fla. --  Two World War II Marine Raiders and their Marine and Navy combat veteran friends from World War II, and the Korean and Vietnam Wars convened at the Tampa Convention Center May 22 to view a live capabilities demonstration.

U.S. Special Operations Command Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. William Clark and Lt. Col. Doug Luccio, the U.S. SOCOM J8 Forces Assessment officer, welcomed the Marines. They spoke at length with each of the veterans and watched live air, water and land assault demonstrations by International Special Forces Operators.

The six-phase assault had the rapt attention of the veterans. Each spoke about how it brought them back to their combat days - one remarking that the difference was they were fast roping into the jungle in Vietnam. Another veteran talked of his concern for the troops of today - that they will need help to recover from the invisible wounds of war.

In Phase I of the rehearsal, along Bayshore Drive, a CV22 Osprey tilt-rotor helicopter, conducted a tilt-rotor hover maneuver to start the demonstration. Phase II included an eight-man team aboard a MH-47 Chinook helicopter. The team was inserted into the water with a rubber boat. After the water landing they moved to secure an enemy position.

In Phase III, a 16-man team moved via military vehicles and all-terrain vehicles to secure an enemy checkpoint and capture a combatant. Next a seven-man team aboard the MH-60 Blackhawk helicopter fast roped into an enemy barge.

In Phase V, a 24-man team infiltrated a mock enemy village via inflatable boats to capture a target and the last phase had a four-man team conduct a military free fall parachute water jump.

The Raider unit was considered the very first of what is now called the Special Operations Forces. Detailed in a book by Charles L. Updegraph, Jr., Special Marine Corps Units Of World War II, they were tasked to: "be the spearhead of amphibious landings by larger forces on beaches generally thought to be inaccessible; to conduct raiding expeditions requiring great elements of surprise and high speed; and to conduct guerilla type operations for protracted periods behind enemy lines."

The storied men of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Battalions of the Marines Raiders Regiment (Feb. 16, 1942 - Jan. 31, 1944) were warriors in the fierce battles on the islands of Midway, Tulagi, Makin, Guadalcanal, New Georgia, and Bougainville and were the first American military unit to defeat the Japanese in battle.

During the Pacific battles of World War II the Marine Raiders and Navy Corpsmen earned in total seven Medals of Honor, 136 Navy Crosses, 21 Distinguished Service Crosses, 330 Silver Stars, 18 Legions of Merit, six Navy and Marine Corps medals, three Soldier Medals, 223 Bronze Stars, and 37 Letters of Commendation.

The retired Marines and Sailors all live in the Tampa area and were invited to view The U. S. SOCOM and Partner Nation Special Operations Forces as they conducted the demonstration as part of the joint conference of the International Special Operations Force and the Special Operations Force Industry Conference.

During the course of the afternoon Clark and Luccio met with each Veteran thanking them for their service and sharing stories with them. They spent several hours carefully honoring each man and his service.

At the center of attention at the VIP tables sat retired Marine Lt. Col. Joseph P. Beno and retired Navy Corpsman James D. Gleason.

Lt. Col. Joseph Beno, USMC, Retired
The highly decorated combat pilot who served in three wars is the elder of the group and is showered with well-deserved admiration, attention and affection. In true "Gung Ho" working together fashion, they watch over "Joe" like a hawk. His friends and comrades relate to all who will listen to the tales of his flying skills and valor in World War II, Korea and Vietnam.

According to a review of Beno's service written by retired Corpsman James Gleason, ... "upon retirement from 32 years service in the Marine Corps and Navy, Beno had qualified to fly 37 different aircraft and logged 6,340 hours of flight time. At the time this was the second longest flight time in the Marine Corps history. He was twice awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and received 26 Air Medals and 17 other Navy and Marine combat ribbons. During his career he flew propeller planes, jet fighters and helicopters."

The American public might know of Beno as the man who flew the planes under the crane in the movie Tora, Tora, Tora. 20th Century Fox could not find anyone capable of flying that scene so they called upon active duty Marine pilot Beno. "Doc" Gleason writes, "one of the most exacting and exciting aerial performances to be filmed was the flight path where three torpedo planes had to fly though a large Gantry Crane at dockside in order to position themselves for a very low, close-in run to release their torpedoes..."

Corpsman James Gleason, USN, Retired
Keeping a close and loving watch over Beno was retired Navy Corpsman James Gleason. "Doc" Gleason is thought to be the youngest Navy Corpsman to have served in World War II. The Ohio native joined the Navy on his 17th birthday in 1942. Gleason completed Navy Hospital Corps School and then trained with the Marine Raiders in San Diego and Camp Pendleton. Following stateside training he shipped out with the Marines to New Caledonia and Guadalcanal prior to the assault on New Georgia, Solomon Islands. Gleason fought in three major battles before he turned 18 years old and for nine years he served aboard Minesweepers, Destroyers and in Naval Hospitals. After the war he became a successful businessman, educator, Librarian at College of William and Mary, Raider Historian and the author of several books detailing the Marine Raiders.

Today only 371 Raiders survive of the 7,900 Marine and Navy members who participated in the war in the Pacific. This year the United States Marine Raider Association will celebrate their 70th Anniversary of the Raiders at 6:45 p.m. Sept. 15 at the Hyatt Regency, Two Tampa City Center, Tampa, Fla.

For detailed information about the Marine Raiders and their 70th Anniversary visit their official, website: http://www.usmarineraiders.org/