Posted on Apr 7, 2020
SGT Suraj Dave
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My dates of service are 9/2009 to 12/2013. I was a combat medic in the 101st Airborne. I deployed twice to Afghanistan. A year long one
and a 9 month one. When I went to Penn State to begin college in 2014, I joined the school veterans organization and noticed the most
strange thing. It was filled with mostly active duty marine veterans who served the same time as me, but most never did a combat deployment
. Only two or three of them did a short single 6 month afghanistan deployment. Everyone else (and the three marine combat veterans) spent
the majority of their enlistments going around the world on the boat trips, "deploying" to safe places like Guam, embassy guard, etc.... I was shocked because
almost every Army veteran I come across from my time period has done at least a year long combat deployment, though a lot of Army veterans similair to me
have done two. By the numbers, does being a marine make you less likely to deploy to combat than a soldier? I tried researching this
information but found no data. I am asking because a young family member is interested in joining the military, and I was going to suggest
the Marines because from my observations there is a less chance to see combat, and you get to see the world (something you dont really do in the Army,
you just train and deploy to combat). Before I give him or his parents false information, I just wanted to find data on the topic.
Posted in these groups: Imgres Deployment
Edited >1 y ago
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Responses: 17
SSgt Loadmaster
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Like others have echoed, no guarantee of not seeing combat regardless of what branch we’re talking about. Being in the Air Force, I’ve spent over a year deployed now, but in 4 month increments, due to how our aircrew deployments are handled, and others do 6 month deployments, albeit not nearly as often as aircrew and their maintenance would. I’d almost hazard to say if you go per capita, the AF may give the Army a run for its money..after all, we have to be around to support operations and get them where they need to go.

Ultimately, if someone isn’t comfortable with the idea of deployments into combat zones, then the military probably isn’t the right kind of work for them.
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SFC Michael Hasbun
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Face value, look at the numbers... We have Armies (1st Army, 8th Army, 5th Army, etc...) that are larger than the entirety of the Marine Corps. The Marines couldn't deploy as often as we do, even if they wanted to. It's just not possible.
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SGT Retired
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Edited >1 y ago
There is actually plenty of data out there. You just have to find it. For example, see attached links.
They’re a few years old, but give a decent breakdown of some numbers.

https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/research_reports/RR100/RR145/RAND_RR145.pdf

https://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2018/03/20/2-77-million-service-members-have-served-on-5-4-million-deployments-since-911-infographic/#4b4a537b50db

There’s a lot more out there. You just have to dig a little.
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LTC Program Manager
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Short answer is, yes the Marines are less likely to deploy to combat in our current environment of continuous war rotations. In the event that this changed and by some accident we were at peace for a few consecutive months then it would be the other way around.
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Sgt Field Radio Operator
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Edited >1 y ago
SGT Suraj Dave Anyone wanting to join the military should do their own research and join the branch that appeals to them the most. You are mistaken if you think Marines get to see the world without seeing combat. The Marines and Army have specific missions. Go back over the years and I am sure that the percentage of Marines that see combat would at least equal the Army.
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SFC Ralph E Kelley
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Edited >1 y ago
5d06054a
And that's about the size of it...
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Cpl David Moore
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https://www.usmcu.edu/Research/Marine-Corps-History-Division/Research-Tools-Facts-and-Figures/Marine-Corps-Casualties-1775-2016/. There you go Sunny Dave. The WIA and KIA list of Marines up to 2016. I'd say in relation to it's size the U.S. M.C has done and given its share
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