was the battalion's commanding officer, Major Henry C. Drewes, who was posthumously awarded the Silver Star for his heroic actions under fire before being killed on the first day of the battle. Following the assault on Tarawa the battalion was sent to Hawaii where it established itself at the newly created Camp Henry C. Drewes and began receiving new equipment, men and supplies and also began training for its next combat operation. Saipan & Tinian In May 1944 the decision was made to assign the battalion to the V Amphibious Corps vice the 2nd Marine Division. This was revised in September 1944 when the battalion was again reassigned to Fleet Marine Forces, Pacific. LVT-4s from the 2nd Amphibian Tractor Battalion, again transporting Marines from the 2d Marine Division, came ashore at Saipan, south of Garapan at 0843 on June 15, 1944. On July 24, 1944 the 2nd Amphibian Tractor Battalion with 96 LVT-2s and 40 LVT-4s, brought the 24th Marine Regiment ashore during the Battle of Tinian, Post-war movement and reorganization After the surrender of Japan in August 1945, the battalion returned to the United States and was decommissioned on November 29, 1945 at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. The 2nd Amphibian Tractor Battalion was reactivated on May 1, 1946. The Battalion was stationed at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, where it participated in peace time training with the 2nd Marine Division. During this time the battalion was equipped with the LVT-3 and consisted of a Headquarters and Service company and four letter companies. Vietnam War In 1966, the battalion transferred 260 Amphibian Combat Operators to Vietnam. Throughout the war, the 2nd Amphibian Tractor Battalion supported routine deployments and provided training support to the 2nd Marine Division. 1980s and 1990s Elements of deployed in support of Multinational Force Beirut Lebanon 1983–1985 as part of the 24th Marine Amphibious Unit (MAU). Elements of the battalion participated in Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada in 1983 as part of the 22nd Marine Amphibious Unit (MAU). Deployment to the Persian Gulf as part of Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. Deployment to Somalia in support of protecting the delivery of food in Dec. 1992, and in May 1993 the UN took control of the relief efforts from the U.S. In August 1994, a platoon from Bravo Company 2nd AABN and Golf Company, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines departed for the Caribbean