4th Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion
military unit
4th Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion (4th LAAD) was a reserve air defense unit of the United States Marine Corps. They were part of Marine Air Control Group 48 (MACG-48) and the 4th Marine Aircraft Wing (4th MAW) and were based out in Pasadena, California.
Mission
Provide close-in air defense protection for Marine Air Ground Task Force assets, key installations and vital area within the area of operations including protection of units operating in forward combat areas or engaged in special independent operations.
History
The 4th Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion traces its origin back to 1 October 1972, when the 4th Forward Area Air Defense (FAAD) Battery was activated as a combat support unit under the 4th Marine Aircraft Wing. From 1972 to 1988, 4th FAAD Battery consisted of (4) Firing Platoons and a Headquarters and Service platoon. FAAD teams employed the Red Eye shoulder-launched surface-to-air missile and used the M1A1 Jeep for missile transport and tactical mobility. In 1988, 4th FAAD Battery transitioned from the Red Eye and Jeep to the Stinger surface-to-air missile and the Humvee.
On 1 July 1989, 4th FAAD Battery was re-designated as the 4th Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion and was assigned to Marine Air Control Group 48, 4th Marine Aircraft Wing. The re-designation increased the size of the unit from four platoons to a Battalion headquarters, one Firing Battery and a Headquarters and Service Battery. At that time, 4th FAAD Detachment Alpha in Marietta, Georgia, was also re-designated as 4th LAAD Battalion, Detachment Alpha and increased in size from three platoons to a Firing Battery and a Headquarters and Service Detachment.
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This entry incorporates text from “4th Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.