6                                  U.S. MARJNES IN THE PERSIAN GULF, 1990-1991

 biological, and chemical protection; minefield and obstacle breaching operations;
 desert survival and navigation; and orientation lectures on Southwest Asia and
 Iraqi army organization and equipment. The officer course covered much of the
 same material, and included classes on fire support coordination, the issuance
 of fragmentary (frag) orders, and exercises in the integrated combined arms staff
 trainer.
    Planning for deployment included use of Maritime Prepositioned Squadron
 1 (MPS-1), which had a large portion of the equipment which the division would
 require. Shortly after the invasion of Kuwait, the division began MPS training.
 General Keys established an MPS planning cell in Headquarters Battalion.
 Major John M. Byzewski, the Headquarters and Service Company commander,
 and Captain Robert F. Brown, commanding officer of Truck Company, became
 MPS-qualified in preparation for the MPS off-load in the port of Al Jubayl,
 Saudi Arabia. The division's advance party, under the command of Colonel
 McElraft, left from MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina, on 4 December and
 the unloading of the MPS ships began immediately after their arrival at Jubayl,
 on 6 December 1990.'~
    Two of the division's staff sections also needed additional personnel to
 operate efficiently. The communications section needed 100 trained Marines in
 various communications specialties. These vacancies were filled by Reservists,
 but another problem arose as the mobilized units arrived. They frequently
 reported with only 25 percent of the communications equipment they were
 authorized. These and other shortages, such as cryptological equipment, were
 filled even  as  the  division arrived in  Saudi  Arabia.  However,  full
 communications operations did not begin until 24 December,   and a fully
 functional local area network (LAN)   did  not connect the staff sections'
 computers until four days after this.~~ The Intelligence Section was also short of
 personnel, but became fully staffed with the arrival of a detachment assigned
 from the 2d Surveillance, Reconnaissance, and Intelligence Group (SRIG).21
    Back at Camp Lejeune, preparations continued at a quick pace. However,
 there was time for a special ceremony. On 10 December, elements of the 2d
 Marine Division, 2d Marine Aircraft Wing, 2d Force Service Support Group,
 and 2d SRIG, all commanded by Lieutenant General Carl E. Mundy, Jr.,
 commanding general of II MEF, formed up on W.P.T. Hill Field. More than
 24,000 Marines and sailors, active-duty regulars and mobilized Reservists, stood
 in formation for the largest review in memory at Camp Lejeune. After an
 address and review by General Alfred M. Gray, Jr., the Commandant of the
 Marine Corps, General Mundy ordered the assembled commanders to `~deploy
 (their) Marines to Southwest Asia. "~ Many Marines in that formation marched
 off the field and onto waiting transportation which carried them to Cherry Point
 for their flight to Saudi Arabia.~ On the 12th the main body of the division
 began its movement to take its place as part of I MEF.~
    As the division began to arrive in theater, there was still much work to be
 done on its organization. One of the two Reserve infantry battalions, 1st
 Battalion, 25th Marines, which had trained with the division at Camp Lejeune,
 was assigned to the 1st Marine        Division.~ The 2d Battalion, 6th Marines, had