Anti-Ship Missiles Fired Out of HIMARS?

via KitUp!

“We’re looking at munitions and capabilities that can be fired out of existing things,” he told reporters during the conference. “I would love to have an anti-ship cruise missile I could shoot out of a HIMARS launcher. So if the Marines, for example, were to go to seize and secure an advance expeditionary amphibious base and the adversary had ships, rather attack them with an airplane, I’d like to be able to have some way to defend from the shore.”

And then this.

Neller said the Marine Corps and the Army were both looking at requirements to assess the feasibility of using the system to fire anti-ship ordnance as well.
“The Army’s looking at a lot of stuff and a lot of different type of capabilities that actually be fired from artillery, so I’m not going to get into that,” he said. “…We just need to make sure that we can continue to be able to invest in [research and development], and when we find something, that we can figure out a way to field it a little bit faster.”
Neller would also like to see Tomahawk missiles aboard amphibious assault ships, which carry Marines across the globe, he said at the conference.
“Imagine that the big deck amphibs have F-35Bs that can hold any target at risk,” he said, referring to the new joint strike fighter aircraft. “Imagine that the [vertical launching system] space on LPD-17 actually has Tomahawk missiles.”

Wow.  Neller is sounding more and more like a freaking Ground Officer and less like the second coming of Amos.

Notice the language there?

 "...Secure an advanced expeditionary amphibious base..." 

That's old skool Marine Corps thinking.  Not the aviation centric stuff we've been saddled with.  Even better it shows that thinking is migrating away from strike being an all air affair.

I'm being hopeful but could we finally see the beginning of a little balance coming back to the Marine Corps?  I can only hope.  One thing though.  I still say that the MEU needs to be reinforced.  If we're going to add anti-air, increased armor (still say we need more tanks, AAV/ACV, LAV, and apparently now anti-ship capability...not to mention a deep strike option of ATACMS), cyber, electronic warfare and despite what naysayers say increased infantry we're going to need to revamp our basic operational unit.  A reinforced MEU will be a more flexible and powerful instrument.  Combine two of them and you'll actually have a Marine Expeditionary Brigade worthy of the name.

Yeah.  Things MIGHT be looking up in Marine land.