MARINE CORPS BASE HAWAII, KANEOHE BAY, Hawaii -- Recently, Marines from the Radio Reconnaissance Platoon, 1st Radio Bn., aboard MCB Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay, launched into the Radio Reconnaissance Instructional Program (RRIP) as part of a building block process in preparation for upcoming deployments with the 11th and the 31st Marine Expeditionary Units. The two-month long course is broken down into six phases of intense training that require the Marines, who all volunteered, to participate in the course to travel to many different training locations across the island of Oahu. Each phase consists of detailed instruction in many different military occupational specialty-related tasks that require long hours in a classroom going over the fine details of radio reconnaissance, signal intelligence and medical training. After each phase, the Marines are tested by a thorough examination to determine their level of proficiency in each phase. The Marines are required to meet a standard of proficiency to be permitted to continue in the course. "The Marines that volunteered for this course are highly motivated and are giving up a lot of their free time to participate in this training," said Staff Sgt. Stephen Lawson, platoon sergeant with 1st Radio Bn. "They will be doing [physical training] twice a day and studying after hours to pass the exams that will be administered to them at the end of each phase." During the first phase of RRIP training, the Marines will learn the basic use of long-range communication radios followed by the second phase of signal intelligence training. In this phase, the Marines learn to collect intelligence and information using reconnaissance equipment. The Marines will not have the support of a hospital corpsman when they are conducting reconnaissance missions, so they must learn to collect and care for the wounded in a combat environment during the third phase of training.The fourth phase of training is known as the "patrolling phase." The Marines will spend day and night pushing themselves to their limits practicing patrolling movements and conducting physical reconnaissance of an enemy target. During these 10 days of grueling training, Marines get little sleep and must use all the skills they learned in the previous phases to successfully complete the fourth phase. The fifth phase of training is dedicated to teaching the Marines amphibious skills such as scout-swimmer techniques and performing recon on beaches in enemy territory.The final phase of training consists of planning briefs, missions and learning warning orders in urban training, along with marksmanship training with numerous firearms. "The Marines must know this material in order to survive in combat" said Lawson. "The Marines that just came back from Operation Iraqi Freedom utilized this training in a real-world environment and realized the importance of it. They will be able to attach to the MEUs and begin missions immediately without having to learn the training first."