When the ground campaign of Operation Iraqi Freedom began in March 2003, USS Boxer (LHD-4) was in the northern Persian Gulf with the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit embarked. The assault ship and her Marines were the seaborne fist of the coalition's amphibious threat — a force designed to make Iraqi planners worry about their coastline while the main attack came overland from the south. Boxer never made an opposed amphibious landing; the amphibious threat itself was part of the operational design, pinning Iraqi forces in place on the coast while the Army and Marine columns drove north. The ship and her Marines were essential without firing a shot from the beach.
The Ship
USS Boxer (LHD-4) is a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship, commissioned on February 11, 1995, and named for a succession of U.S. Navy ships bearing the name, the first of which fought in the War of 1812. She was homeported at San Diego, California. The Wasp class was the most capable amphibious assault ship ever built — a full-deck aviation platform capable of operating AV-8B Harriers and helicopters, with a well deck that could launch landing craft and amphibious assault vehicles. At nearly 41,000 tons full load, she was as large as some World War II-era carriers. The Marines she carried were both a landing force and an aviation strike capability, giving the ship a flexibility that earlier amphibious designs lacked.
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Boxer deployed to the Persian Gulf as part of the Amphibious Task Force supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit embarked approximately 2,200 Marines with their weapons, vehicles, and supporting aviation. The MEU was organized around a Battalion Landing Team — ground combat element, aviation combat element, and combat service support element — giving the commander a complete combined-arms force that could operate independently or integrate with larger ground forces ashore.
The amphibious force's presence in the northern Gulf was a critical element of the coalition's operational design. Iraqi planners had to allocate forces to defend the coastline against a potential amphibious assault, forces that might otherwise have reinforced the defense against the ground advance from Kuwait. The credibility of the amphibious threat — which required an actual ship full of actual Marines positioned to execute it — tied down Iraqi coastal defenses throughout the early phase of the campaign.
Aviation Operations
Boxer's embarked aviation assets flew in support of ground operations as the campaign progressed. The AV-8B Harriers and helicopters of the MEU's aviation combat element provided close air support, reconnaissance, and assault support for Marine ground forces. The Harrier's ability to operate from a ship without a catapult or arresting gear gave the amphibious force an organic fixed-wing capability that complemented the carrier-based aircraft operating from deeper in the Gulf.
Life Aboard
Operating an assault ship in combat conditions meant every space was in use. Marines occupied the berthing spaces below the flight deck while the crew ran the ship and kept the aircraft flying. The well deck was ready to launch landing craft on short notice. The flight deck cycled helicopters and Harriers on a tempo driven by the requirements of the Marines ashore. For the sailors of Boxer's crew — the ship's company that kept the platform operating — the deployment was a demonstration of what the Navy and Marine Corps team could do when they worked together at full capacity.
If you served aboard USS Boxer or want to honor someone who did, browse the full Boxer collection — cruise shirts, license plate frames, and more.
Legacy
Boxer continued to serve after Operation Iraqi Freedom, deploying multiple times and supporting humanitarian operations as well as combat missions. The Wasp class she represents has been the backbone of the Navy's amphibious assault capability since the 1990s, and Boxer's service in OIF is one of the most significant chapters in the class's history. The Marines who sailed with her in 2003 were part of the last large-scale amphibious-capable force employment in an active theater — the kind of operation the Navy and Marine Corps had been designed to execute since the Second World War.