Corps to delete low-altitude air defense MOS - Marine Corps News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Marine Corps Times

Corps to delete low-altitude air defense MOS

After the Corps’ last stinger missile battalion closes shop at the end of this fiscal year, every Marine with a low-altitude air defense military occupational specialty must pick a new job, according to a June 22 Corps-wide message.

When 1st Stinger Battery, headquartered at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, deactivates Sept. 30, what’s left of the MOS’s structure “will be deleted” and “every effort” will be made to train its Marines in another specialty if they stay on active duty, according to MarAdmin 381/07.

First-term Marines in the MOS slated to end their active service at any point through Sept. 30, 2008, can submit for a lateral move in conjunction with re-enlistment. This could net them up to $61,000 for choosing an MOS such as intelligence, cryptology or aviation communication systems, according to MarAdmin 349/07, which announced the Corps’ newest re-enlistment bonuses June 7.

If a first-term Marine does not intend to re-enlist, he will sign a statement saying so and retain his low-altitude air defense specialty until he exits the Corps, according to MarAdmin 381/07.

Junior Marines with the nearly obsolete MOS who don’t end their first contract before fiscal 2009 “will be encouraged to submit for lat-move,” the message said.

Career Marines “are encouraged, but not required” to request a lateral move as well, the message states.

“It is crucial that [low-altitude air defense] Marines begin a dialogue with their career retention specialists to ensure the greatest opportunity for transition and retraining,” according to the message.