--- title: "Dozens of Marines complete revised training course to operate Amphibious Combat Vehicles" description: "After a series of mishaps, the Marine Corps set up new training for the Amphibious Combat Vehicles. The first group is finishing the course." date: "2023-07-30" modified: "2023-07-30" authors: - name: "Nicholas Slayton" job_title: "Contributing Editor" link: "https://taskandpurpose.com/authors/nicholas-slayton/" url: "https://taskandpurpose.com/news/marines-new-training-amphibious-combat-vehicles/" categories: - "Amphibious Operations" - "Marine Corps" - "Military Branches" - "News" - "Tactics" - "Tech & Tactics" --- # Dozens of Marines complete revised training course to operate Amphibious Combat Vehicles ![marine corps amphibious combat vehicle]() *U.S. Marines assigned to 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 1st Marine Division conduct amphibious assault exercises in Amphibious Combat Vehicles (ACVs) launched from dock landing ship USS Harpers Ferry (LSD 49) during exercise Steel Knight 23 (SK23), Nov. 30, 2022. (U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Zachariah Issa)* Several dozen Marines were cleared this week to operate the Marine Corps’ Amphibious Combat Vehicles in Camp Pendleton’s surf zone, more than half a year after a series of mishaps in shallow waters. This week 29 Marines completed a training course to be recertified in using the Amphibious Combat Vehicles (or ACVs). 30 others completed it in June. The course was first established in February, after the Marine Corps set out to improve confidence in operating the ACVs. The 1st Marine Division has been testing several ACVs at Camp Pendleton in California, which saw three different mishaps in 2022. Last October an ACV [rolled over in the surf zone](), due to what was deemed a “mechanical malfunction.” That followed an incident in July where one ACV broke down and another flipped in the water. [**Subscribe to Task & Purpose Today**]()**. Get the latest military news and culture in your inbox daily.** After the October incident, the Marine Corps halted all surf-zone training. Training was allowed to continue on land and at sea, or in a harbor. Limited ACV use was allowed in the surf to collect data for further study. The ACV Transition Training Unit was set up after the investigators recommended increased training on the newer Amphibious Combat Vehicle. The course included test runs with ACV on land and in the water, before eventually operating the vehicles in the Camp Pendleton surf zone. Approximately 300 ACV operators and maintainers still need to complete the training course, according to the Marine Corps. Marine Corps Times [reports]() that the Corps expects that to be completed by the fall 2024. The ACV is the Marine Corps’ replacement for the decades-old, Vietnam War-era Amphibious Assault Vehicle (AAV). The newer vehicle uses wheels, unlike the tracked AAV. The Marine Corps phased out the AAV after a 2020 incident where eight Marines and a sailor [died as an AAV sank](). The AAV was fully pulled from operations at the end of 2021. A month after the October order to pause surf zone testing, the Marine Corps still showed its dedication to adopting the new ACVs, [ordering 30 more]() for $153 million. The service branch plans to have more than 600 ACVs to replace the AAV fleet. However, there were some doubts even after that. The then-Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. David Berger [outlined a series of technical issues]() with the ACVs earlier this year. Marine ACV operators who have not yet completed the course can continue to test the ACVs on land and at sea. ***The latest on Task & Purpose*** - **Marines** [**fire two Parris Island leaders**]() **in charge of recruit training** - **‘They were just being good pilots’ — Inside the Osprey crash that** [**killed 5 Marines**]() - [**Court martial**]() **begins for Marine drill instructor in ‘Crucible’ death of recruit** - **Navy cargo ship** [**runs aground**]() **in Bahrain** - **U.S. Soldier ditched a flight home,** [**ran across DMZ**]() **into North Korea, is now detained** ## Author Nicholas Slayton is a contributing editor for Task & Purpose, covering conflict for over 12 years, from the Arab Spring to the war in Ukraine. His previous reporting can be found on the non-profit Aslan Media, The Atlantic, Al Jazeera, The New Republic, The American Prospect, Architectural Digest, The Daily Beast, and the Los Angeles Downtown News. You can reach him at nicholas@taskandpurpose.com or find him on Twitter @NSlayton and Bluesky at @nslayton.bsky.social. ### Author social links [Twitter]()