Scout Snipers evolving into a Recon element.

Let me be careful in the way I say this.

It appears that Scout Snipers are evolving into a bit more than originally envisioned.  By that I mean that you're seeing them operate more in platoon strength, you're seeing them taking on missions that were once the sole reserve of Recon, and you see commanders embracing that more and more.

I think its nothing but a positive.  In the story below they're attached to the Assault Battalion but if a little further experimentation takes place and they're allowed to helo or motor or swim in ahead of the assault phase then you already have your replacements for Recon.

And we do sort of anyway.

We have scout swimmers with boat company.

We have UAV's that operate off amphibs.

We have scout snipers.

We have ANGLICO.

We have Radio Recon.

We have an assortment of units inside the MEU that dab at the RECON/Force RECON mission already.  Time to make the jump and let RECON/Force RECON go full time to MARSOC and focus on making the MEU as robust and Special Operations Capable as possible.

More often than not our forces will be either at the location of an incident or able to arrive before SOCOM can gather its bags.  Time to put the SOC back into the MEU.

It is that bias for action which makes Guzman and the rest of the SSP (Scout Sniper Platoon) such an invaluable resource.
“They act as our reconnaissance and surveillance asset whenever we are to assault an objective,” said 1st Lt. Scott Whipple, AAV commander with Co. B., BLT 1/4, 31st MEU. “If we’re coming onto an unknown beach area, they’re absolutely vital to our mission success, being the ones to scout out the area and relay valuable info back to us. If not for them, a big portion of an operation would be a guessing game.”